Happy Halloween!!!

Ashley Rae of SheLovesToFish.com blog in a sweet and spooky Halloween Photo.

Trophy Is Out

Pulled the Trophy out of the water yesterday. The water on Platte is super high and so we were able to pull the boat out at our friend Jenny's access. That is the same spot that I fish from shore occasionally.

I still plan to do a little bit of fishing before ice up, if we can get some nice weather. I very well might hit up Rock Lake, Erskine Lake, or Peavy Lake instead of Platte/Sullivan.

Going Ike in a Coleman Crawdad

Here is my Crawdad:

(Click to enlarge)

Coleman Crawdad's are great little boats for small lakes and bad accesses. I can't believe Ike put a casting deck on one. They are pretty stable, but I would think making it top heavy like that would make it much less so. Maybe Ike's is bigger than a 10fter.

Ebayt Monkey Crawtube Shootdown

This week on Ebay 3 lots (6packs, 6packs, 8packs) of Lake Fork Craw Tube's came up for auction. When I became aware of the auction 1 lot had a bid on it and the other two did not. I decided to bid on the two that didn't have any bids and then I was going to wait and see what happened with the other auction and probably bid on that. When I bid on one of the lots with 6 packs I made the mistake of including the shipping charge in my max bid, so I bid $6 more than I wanted too. I kind of figured I was a shoe in to win that one as you can get LFCT's on sale
for about the price I bid in that auction.

Today the auction came do and I slept through being able to bid for that 3rd auction. When I went to check and find out what happened I didn't win anything.

The 6 pack I bid on went for $15.68 + $6.00 shipping
The 8 pack I bid on went for $16.78 + $6.00 shipping to a different bidder
The 6 pack that I failed to bid on went for $7.00 + $6.00 shipping to a different bidder than the 1st two.

Seriously, is that how it goes down?

I guess I can't get to bent out of shape as I didn't end up paying significantly more for a lot than I wanted too. I believe I can buy quality knock offs for quite a bit less than the 2 lots I bid on's final price. The person who got 6 packs for $13 made out like a bandit.

Do you "Like" Tami Curtis?

Bass Fishing Blogger Tami Curtis now has a Facebook Fan Page. We are racing to 100 fans and she is way behind because she just opened her page this week and mine has been up for months.

So if you are into Facebook click on the link and go "like" Tami.

If you don't know who Tami is, go visit her blog.

All you have to do to help me win is be logged onto Facebook, click on the badge on the upper right corner of my sidebar. I only need one more Fan thanks to Tami being #99.

Update: I win unless somebody drops me!

Minnesnowcold!

Things could have been a lot worse.

Update: 6:30PM it got into the 40's today, so most of the snow has melted. Earlier this morning the end of our driveway turned into a small creek bed. Should have taken a picture of that.

Shimano Woman Dumps Daiwa Man For Co-Angler

Weather Report

Minnesota in a cyclone, will not be fishing for a few days.

Thank goodness it doesn't look like it will be cold enough to make this an epic blizzard.

Refs Got It Wrong!

No FRICKEN Duh!

Today the NFL apologized to the Vikings for taking away the touchdown catch yesterday by Visanthe Shiancoe.
This is what I wrote about that call yesterday:

2. Visanthe Shiancoe catches what to my judgement was a clear touchdown. By the time he landed his hands were under the ball. It was clear from the replay that the ball didn't move when he hit the ground, yet despite this visual evidence that it was a touchdown the ref reverses the call on the field, Vikes kick fieldgoal, thus 4 Vikings points were taken off the board.

The Vikes lost by 4 points and were well within field goal range with their last possession of the game. If the Green Bay touchdown that wasn't and the Vikings touchdown that was were handled correctly it's a Vikes victory even without a field goal at the end of the game.

Once again the Vikings Fan is screwed by the league.

IKE is coming to Minnesocold

BassFan reports that Ike is going to shoot an epi of City Limits in MN. Apparently he is going to ice fish. I wonder if he is going to try for bass? Panfish would be the obvious choice because they are the easiest kind of fish to ice. My guess is he'll do a multi-species thing on Minnetonka.

Vikes Loss at Lambert- My Thoughts

Vikings Lose 28-24 at Lambert. It's pretty clear the Brett Favre Magic is gone. Still the Vikes barely lost this one and there are a number of could have been's.

Could Have Been's in Chronological Order:
1. Packers receiver clearly bobbles football while going out of bounds in the end zone. Chilly doesn't challenge, giving Green Bay 4 Free Points.

2. Visanthe Shiancoe catches what to my judgement was a clear touchdown. By the time he landed his hands were under the ball. It was clear from the replay that the ball didn't move when he hit the ground, yet despite this visual evidence that it was a touchdown the ref reverses the call on the field, Vikes kick fieldgoal, thus 4 Vikings points were taken off the board.

3. Vikings driving at the end of the game, something like 1st and 15 from the 20 yardline. Phil Loadholt called for hands to the face putting Vikes in 1st and 30. I think the replay showed the hands to the face happened but was brief. Loadholt mostly had the shoulder. Tick Tack call especially with some of the holding's that were not called on both teams.

4. Favre makes long throw to the endzone to Percy Harvin who was clearly interfered with while the ball was in the air. The intereference caused Harvin to not get a second foot in bounds when he caught the ball for what would have been a go ahead touchdown. Vikes should have had the ball 1st and goal at the 1.

5. On third down replay clearly shows Clay Mathews try to draw a penalty by flipping his helmet off his head. This should have been an unsportsmanlike conduct 15 yard penalty giving the Vikes a much needed first down. Seriously how do you miss Clay Mathews with no helmet? Instead the Vikings can't convert on 4th and long and the Packers win the game.

My thinking was the Vikes needed to win either this week or next week and they would still be in OK shape. Now the Vikes must win next week in New England and they pretty much have to sweep the Bears, sweep the Lions, and beat Green Bay in the dome.

On the encouraging side. The offence showed some life and pass blocking was the best it has been all season.

1 Little Pike Platte Lake Dock

It was raining today and so I had to go an put the cover on the boat. Naturally when I was done with that I threw a few casts from the dock. I used a white Monsoor Swim Jig with a Pearl Essence 5" Action Plastics Super Mag Grub. I had a follow from a small pike and then a couple of casts later I caught a small pike and that was it for action.

DNF

Was on the cool side today, but fishable. I hibernated for most of the day.

If I didn't have to go into the Cities tomorrow, I would have been out for sure. Temps are suppose to be in the upper 60's.

Big Indiana Bass Has a New Look

In my opinion Big Indiana Bass is one of the best bass blogs out there. However, I don't visit it as much as I should. Anyway, it's sporting a new look more in line with the blogs scientific side. To be honest I liked the old look a little better.

DNF

Did not fish, should have. Tomorrow is suppose to be very windy, so I doubt I will try to deal with that. Thurs is suppose to be kind of cool, but Friday is looking nice. We'll see.

My Thoughts on Hooks for Buzz Toads/Frogs

I love to fish Zoom Horny Toads and other plastic buzz toads or buzz frogs. Finding the best hook has been an evolution for me. The first hooks I tried were offset wide gaps. They seemed to rip the nose of the bait up immediately upon getting a fish and the hook up ration didn't seem to be the best. I was not satisfied.

The next hook I tried was a Mustad Power Lock Plus EWG Hook

I really liked this hook as it was awesome for hookups and kept the bait usable for multiple fish provided you used super glue with the plastic keeper. The problem is that super gluing is a pain. The Hooks are also expensive at a buck a hook, never the less I bought a bunch of them.

Next hook I tried was the Greg Hackney Hook from Tru-Tungsten
For me, these things were so messed up they never even saw the water. I couldn't rig them on the hook well and they ripped the plastic badly.

The next hook I tried was a Zoom Horny Toad Hook:
These seemed to work pretty good, but I had a problem with the springs stretching out or falling off.

One day I saw some Owner Beast Hooks and bought them.

I thought the Beast was a great hook, but they are more expensive than the Mustad Power Lock.

I also gave the Owner TwistLock Open Gap Centering Pin Hook a try.

These are a little less expensive than The Beast, but still more expensive than the Mustad Power Lock. Using this hook has really sold me on the superiority of the Owner Twistlock Centering Pin Spring...
...over and above the Power Lock plastic keeper on the Mustad Hook. The Twistlock is just the best thing for durability because you can twist it in to the plastic in multiple places and you don't have to mess with super glue. Thankfully you can buy Owner Twistlock Centering Pin Springs and put them on yourself. I plan to cut off all my Mustad Power Lock plastic keepers and replace them with the Owner Twistlock Centering Pin Springs.

Bass Fishing Blogger Tyler Brinks is high on the Stanley Ribbit Double-Take Hook

These look to be something similar to the Gambler Double Trouble Toad Hook.

I don't think I will be trying these because the Stanley Hook is more than $1.50per hook and the Gambler is almost $2.50 a hook and up here in the north country you lose many toad hooks to pike.

I think the Twistock Pin with the Mustad hook will make for the ideal combo.

DNF

Just wasn't motivated to get on the water today. Will probably get back in the swing of things tomorrow as winter will soon be knocking on the door and if I want to fish open water it's crunch time.

For Bass & Fish & Outdoor Bloggers

Today is the official launch of The Outdoor Blogger Network

The Outdoor Blogger Network is a blog directory and resource for outdoor activity themed blogs. Click on the Logo to visit their site.

I wish The Outdooress and Wolfy of Flowing Waters blog the best in their new endeavor.

DNF- Vikes Win!!!

Watched football, so I didn't go fishing. Even though it was cool, it would have been a good night to get out because there wasn't much wind.

The Vikes managed to pull out the must win game, by the skin of there teeth. Gone are the Vikings that destroyed the Cowboys in the playoffs last year. It seems that neither our defence or offence is as good as last year. This season it seems that the offense is improving a little from game to game, while the Defence is maybe going the other way, but that is hard to say. Having Cornerback Griffen out for the season looks like it is an unfortunate key injury. Hopefully our rookie Cook will be ready to go soon.

This is Packer week and we get them in Lambert on Sunday Night Football. The Packers apparently have a number of key injuries. Hopefully this will be the game we can recapture a little bit of last years magic. The Pack will be in serious trouble if they lose to us. It's an important game for the Vikes who are on the road for the next two weeks. The Vikes need at least a split in those two contests.

Change Is Coming????

(No this isn't about politics)

Now that I think I have figured a couple of things out, I am seriously considering upgrading this blog to the newer Blogger Layout format instead of keeping it in the old Template format that it is now. It would be nice if there was a way I could change it "in draft" and then make a decision when I see what I end up with. Come to think of it, I think there is a way I can do just that, sort of.

I think I will dabble.

Update: I have now fiddled and it looks like if I decide to make the change I am in for a lot of work on the sidebar. How much work isn't clear because I just don't know how much stuff will transfer if I make the change. I definitely will not be doing anything until the snow flies and the lakes freeze.

This is what I came up with in my dabbling... What do you think?

Another Update: I've looked into some things that I thought would be short cuts for if and when I do change, but unfortunately things don't work like I think they should in terms of presentation and spacing. Frustrating because it means changing will be a lot more work.

Platte Lake Oct 16th: Something Anyway

Conditions: Today there was sun and the high temp was 61. It was breezy with a 15 to 20mph wind out of the NW. It settled down to a 7mph wind around 6PM. I was out from about 5PM to 7:10PM

The Report:I headed straight back to the spot that was so good to me yesterday and there was nothing there. I fished the area and eventually started working my way down "The Trench" breakline and I got the 15.25" bass in the pic. It hit on a white with white single Colorado blade spinnerbait with bubblegum Zoom Super Fluke trailer. I did throw a marker and worked the area hard with the spinnerbait. I caught a little pike and that was it. If I had it to do over I would have thrown a lipless crank and the crawtube as well. I worked my way around "The Trench" catching 2 more pike. I gave the point off the South tip of the small island a try but didn't get anything.

Around 6PM I made a move to hit up by the maidencaine across from the public access in the Big West Bay. Unfortunately the wind was a little more out of the West than North and I didn't have mostly calm water until I got right up by shore. That was unproductive and a little before 7PM I made a move to hit the rice patch in the middle of the bay where I got into some fish about a week ago. There was still a ripple on the water but the wind had calmed down to under 5MPH, so I tried throwing the Repo Man. It was getting a little dark and with the ripple on the water I kept getting hung up in weeds. Finally I was going to make one last cast with the Repo Man. Sure enough a fish swirled on it a couple of times before hooking up. It felt like a good fish but it got down in the weeds and got off. A couple casts later a little pike came shooting out of the water at the Repo Man, but missed. That was the extent of the nights actions.

Platte Lake Oct. 15th: Hmmmm...Yeah!

Conditions: A very nice day but a bit cooler than it's been. Sun with temps in the high 50's. Wind was out of the SE at about 4-7 turning calm around 6:40PM. I fished from about 4:30PM to 7:10PM

The Report:I started by hitting the first dock to the West of the lake place. Nothing. I then continued in that direction and had a hit, missed it. In fact as I kept going that direction I missed the first 5 hits I got. Visions of another skunk were running in my head until I got this dude on a spinnerbait.

Yeah, no skunk!

I fished the last 3 docks on the South Shore of the Big Middle Bay. That wasn't happening and it was coming up on 6PM and I needed to make a move. I decided to go to the South shore of Platte just to the SE of the small island. I don't think I've fished in this area for at least 3 years. I started out on the weed flat fishing in extremely sparse reeds. I managed to catch one small pike out there on a white Monsoor Swim Jig with pearl essence 5" Action Plastic Super Mag Grub. I worked my way West and towards shore eventually getting to a thicker reed bed. I was working my way around those thicker reeds throwing the swim jig when I got on the lake side where the reeds thinned out considerably. I made a cast by a couple of isolated reeds and I got hit, then hit again, then on the third hit the fish hooked up. I fully expected it to be a pike, but it was this 14.25" bass.

The end of the tail got bit off the grub, but I cast it right out over the same spot and had another bass on that was the same size jump off right at the boat. I cast back to the spot again and got a 13.50" largie. I decided to give the Repo Man a try and it took a couple of casts, but I got 13.50" on that. Then nothing, so I tried the swim jig and nothing. I cast a junebug crawtube to the spot and got bit, but I missed on the hookset. Same thing on the next cast. On the third try I got a 14.75" and that was it. I tried throwing a few more things and it seemed the bite ended. I put a new Super Mag Grub on the swim jig. I cast over the hot spot from a different angle and had a hit that didn't hook up. Cast back a couple of times more and nothing. I then cast back with the crawtube and got a 13.75" and 14.25" on consecutive casts and that seemed to be it for the spot.

It was now about 6:50PM and getting dark quick, and I made the decision to fish the point that comes off the South tip of the small Island. It was a good call. I smacked this 17.5", obviously on the Repo Man.

A couple of casts later a 17.25" largie just lit up the Repo Man right after it landed. I had one more blow up on the Repo Man but it didn't hook up and it didn't come back for seconds. As it was getting dark I moved the boat off the end of the point and was casting over the tip before the drop off with a white single white Colorado blade spinnerbait when I got the last bass of the night, which was 14".

It looks like the secret to catching bass on Platte right now is to find a pod of fish. Easier said than done as the previous two days of no bass proves. I'm not sure what was so special about that one little area to give up so many fish. I plan to go back there tomorrow and try it again and GPS it.

Bass Fishing Blogger Donna Rutledge Has Passed Away

I am not sure if she died Tuesday Night or Wednesday morning. She was 50 and apparently died unexpectedly in her sleep.

Donna had fished on the WBT Tour and most recently the Bass Weekend Series District 17, which is MN/WI. I believe she was a Co-angler on both Tours. Her blog is Donna Rutledge....Bass Fishing Yankee

Godspeed Donna

Platte Lake Oct 14th: Skunked, Yes Skunked

Conditions: Wasn't much different than yesterday with temps in the mid 60's, but today the winds were blowing much harder 20mph+ out of the NW. Just as I was heading out I heard on the radio that a front had come through today. Water temps seemed to be 55-57. I got out for a couple of hours until dark.

The Report: I ran across the big middle bay to protected water where a couple of docks that are still in the water are located on the end of North Platte Lake Road peninsula point. Nothing on the docks. I out to try the edges of the reed bed and had a good hit with a baby bass Zoom Super Fluke. Unfortunately I didn't hook up. I tried topwaters and spinnerbaits, but nothing happened so I headed across the weed flat heading NE.

The spinnerbait I was getting the pike on yesterday wasn't doing anything, so I tied on a white spinnerbait with white single Colorado blade. I got a couple of hits that I didn't bring in near of in the the reed bed in the middle North of the bay. Topwater wasn't happening at all.

As it was getting dark I made a quick move to fish the outside edge of the big Eastern reed bed. Didn't get any hits there.

Unfortunately I think the topwater bite might be done for the year. To be honest I am not really sure where to go to find bass in Platte now.

GRRRRRRR

I don't know if it is messed up for everyone else, but for me the blogroll is visually screwed up intermittenly starting with Rattletrap Ramblings. I don't know what the deal is, as this has just developed in the last few days. I looked at it with Mozilla and it looks fine with that browser. Nothing has changed in my template for things not to be uniform. Hopefully whatever and wherever this problem is coming from gets fixed.

Found: Bass Fishing Blog

One Cast At A Time is a BFB out of California. It looks like it is just a blog from a guy that loves bass fishing and premium bass fishing gear.

Platte Lake Oct 13th: Bassless

Conditions: Today was sunny with temps in the mid 60's with about a 12MPH WNW wind switching to the SW around 6:30PM. I fished from about 4:30PM to 7:15PM

The Report:
My first stop was the reed bed off of the end of the Platte Public Access Peninsula Point. It was nice because it was semi-protected from the wind. I started with topwater but quickly switched from that to a 1oz brown, green pumpkin, and orange spinnerbait with large tandem copper Indiana blades. On the first cast I smacked a small pike. A couple minutes later I got another small pike, and after that I got a 25" pike.

Something got lit up in shallower water and I went in to investigate, but I couldn't make anything happen. I went back to where I was getting the pike, but now the area was dead, so I headed out onto the weed flat. After catching a couple more small pike. I switched to a 1oz brown, green pumpkin, and orange spinnerbait with large tandem copper Willowleaf blades. I ended up catching 5 more small pike with that.

I worked my way across the weedflat to the Southern shoreline of Channel Inn Bay were there is the remains of the summer rice beds. It looked good but it was dead. It was around 6:30PM and sunlight was diminishing quickly, so I was making my way out of the rice when I had a hit on a white Horny Toad. I wasn't paying attention and didn't really get a hookset and the fish came off.

When I got out of the rice I headed to the Big Middle Bay to the reeds where I got into the bass last night. One big problem, the wind had shifted out of the SW and it was blowing on the area pretty good. I gave up on topwater pretty quick and went to the spinnerbait. I got a couple of hits but didn't hook up. Eventually I went in closer to shore where it was calm. I had a hit on the Repo Man but didn't hook up and that was it for action.

I caught 10 pike total.

Platte Lake Oct 12th: Topwater Flurry Late Saves Trip

Conditions: Today was cooler than it has been with temps in the mid 60's and sun. It was windy out of the W NW which I didn't like, but it seemed around 6:30 the wind lowered a bit and shifted more out of the North thus giving me almost calm conditions. Water temps had dropped into the high 50's from the low 60's yesterday. I fished from a little after 5PM to about 7:15PM

The Report:
I was hoping the North shoreline would be protected so I headed across the bay to the North Shore just a bit to the West of where I started yesterday. The shore was sort of protected but only very close in as the wind was more out of the West than North. Basically I fished the same water I started on yesterday. There was nothing on the docks. I had a hit on a spinnerbait that didn't hook up and I got a small pike somewhat close to shore on the Repo Man.

Around 6:30PM I made a move to hit the weed flat on the North End of the Big Middle Bay. Due to the wind I went much farther to the West than where I fished yesterday. I stopped in the middle of an area that had space reeds that had stalks that were cut off. The wind pushed me to the SE. I just kept working the back side of the reed bed and eventually I happened into a school of bass with the Repo Man. I got a 14.25" and a 14.75" then I missed 3 consecutive bites including what looked to be a 16" largie that got off right at the boat. I then got a 14.5", 15", missed a strike, 14.25", small pike, and a 14.75" all on the Repo Man.
The way things started out I worried that I might get a skunk, because I was going to try and make topwater work no matter what, but it turned out to be a fun and productive night.

Karen Savik Gets A Raw Deal!!!

Karen Savik is a former FLW Tour Pro from Minnesota and she is also a host of North American Fishermen TV. She won the Bassmaster Weekend Series (BWS) Division 17 Tournament, held Sept. 18-19 on the Mississippi River out of Winona, Minn. Not so fast.

In the aftermath of the victory she was interviewed by somebody from the BWS for a story about the tournament. The story quoted her talking about how many fish she culled in the tournament. The problem here is that it is against the law to cull on the river where the tournament was held. Open and shut case for a DQ right, well not so fast. Apparently Karen contacted the MN DNR to find out if culling fish was allowed when fishing out of Winona MN. Whoever she spoke to told her it was OK. In addition to that little fact, the Tournament Director for the BWS told the anglers they could cull in this tournament. However, her remarks caused a controversy which made the DNR step in and give Karen a ticket, presumably because she was honest and told a DNR Conservation Officer directly that she culled on the river. I am not a lawyer, but I don't think they could have given her a ticket based on the BWS article.

Unbelievable to me is that the people of the American Bass Anglers Bass Weekend Series retroactively revoked the permission they gave to cull and DQ'ed Karen for something presumably all the top finishing anglers in this tournament also did but dishonestly (some would say smartly) wouldn't admit too.

This is a clear case where no good deed went unpunished and the good gal finished last. To me it's total Bullshit!!!

Glenn Walker on Fishing Milfoil

He's using the Bass Snatchers secret weapon plastic. I don't think our guys are using Trokar's though.

Platte Lake Oct. 11th: A Little Better Night

Conditions: Today was in the high 70's with hazy sun. When I went out around 4PM there was about a 8MPH wind but I fished in protected water and it was calm by 6PM. Water temps were in the low 60's. I stopped fishing at about 7:05PM when it was quite dark.

The Report:
I started out by going to the other side of our bay (North) to fish docks. On the first dock I got a bite on a bubblegum Zoom Super Fluke and missed it. I switched to a baby bass Fluke and got hit again and missed again. Finally after casting back in a bunch of times I pulled out a 13.25" largie on the Fluke. I then got a 11.75" largie up shallow on a Paycheck Baits Repo Man. I fished a dock to the West missing a bite (I think it was small) and then I went back to the 1st dock and caught a 14.25" bass. Next I caught a 9.5" bass and 7" bass on the Repo Man. Here is the eager 7 incher:

I got a 13.5" largie between docks on a bluegill Deps Buzzjet Jr. Then I missed yet another dock fish with the Fluke. I pulled off the shoreline onto the flat where there had been surface activity and got a 15.25" largie on the Buzzjet Jr.

It was about 5:30PM and I wasn't getting anymore bites out on the flat so I headed out of our bay and into the Big Middle Bay and I stopped at the first dock as there were 3 in a row still in the water. I missed about 4 bites on the baby bass Fluke before finally catching a 15" largie. I think there might have been more fish under the dock but I hung the fluke and didn't get a bite with the crawtube.

I cast out towards the reeds and got a 12.75" largie on the Repo Man. On the next dock I got a small pike on a bubblegum Zoom Super Fluke and I pulled a 14.25" bass out from the end of a small tree laydown.

Next I headed out onto the flat where I found the schooling bass last week. My first fish out there was a little pike on the Repo Man. After covering lots of water with the Repo Man I finally had a bass fooling with the Repo Man and after hitting it about 5 times it finally hooked up and was my biggest of the night at 16.25". I didn't take the time to get a pic of the fish, just in case I was on the school. There wasn't a school there. I covered a bunch more water on the flat as it was getting dark. And in about a 10 minute period got a 14, and 2x 14.5"'s on the Repo Man also had a couple of pike attacks. Two of those bass took multiple strikes to hook up. Finally it was pretty dark and I had to leave to catch the Vikings game kickoff.

Frenzy Popper News

Blue Shiner is my favorite Berkley Frenzy Popper color (personally I think it is more of a purpleish color). After Berkley dropped the Blue Shiner color I was able to buy a couple dozen through Ebay for $4 per lure or under. Yesterday a Blue Shiner Frenzy Popper went on Ebay for $18.52 plus $3.65 for shipping.

I had a pike steal one of mine last week. That particular one had a decent sized chip out of the top of it's popping cup, but it seemed to work just fine. That pike sure liked it. Since I couldn't find it and the water was flat calm my guess is that the pike got hooked and has it in it's mouth. I wonder if someone will one day find it?

Platte Lake Oct 10th: Attack of the 14 Inch Bass

Condititions: Today was in the high 70's with sun for most of the day, but it got kind of hazy for about the last hour of fishing. There was wind today, but I didn't notice it where I was fishing and it was calm by 6PM. I fished from about 4:30PM to 7:20PM

As I was was pulling out from the dock there was a boat I thought I recognized heading my way. Sure enough it was one of my blog readers Mike B. and his wife. They were out enjoying the nice afternoon. He had gotten a couple of small bass and pike on a little topwater lure he made; It is a jig with a blade and plastic trailer that kind of has an action on top of the water similar to a Jitterbug. We talked for a little while then I was off the hit some docks on the South shore of the big middle bay of Platte Lake .

On the first dock I pulled a 14" and 10" bass on a bubblegum Zoom Super Fluke. Didn't get anything on the 2nd dock. On the 3rd dock I lost what looked to be about a 17" bass right next to the boat. I cast the Fluke back under the dock and got a 14" bass. Unfortunately that was it for the docks for about 150 yards because the docks that are usually there have been pulled out. There were 4 docks toward the end of the peninsula point and I missed a pike off the last one.

Next I headed to Loon Sex Point and that was a bust. I fished away's into the slop in Loon Sex Bay because I saw some activity, but nothing would hit my Horny Toad.

Next I headed off to fish in the area that has been productive near the maidencaine across from the Platte Lake Public Access. There was a duck and goose hunter sitting in the maidencaine which would prevent me from fishing some of the water I wanted too. I hit the far outside of the rice and had a fish wake on the Horny Toad. I cast back and it waked again, I let the Toad sit and the fish hit it, but I messed up the hookset by not letting the fish take it a little longer. I worked down the rice a little ways to where I saw some activity but nothing was going. I decided to head out to where there was still some standing rice farther out in the bay. I wasn't going to fish the area much longer when I got a 14" largie on a "Drag Stripper" color Paycheck Baits Repo Man. A couple of minutes later I got a 13.5" that just lit up the Repo Man. Then I had a couple of bass come all the way out of the water hitting the Repo Man but neither hooked up despite striking multiple times. Both of these fish were 14 inch class. Before it got to dark to fish I got a 14.25", and two more 14" bass, plus missing one more bass and a pike.

Sure the fish were not huge, but I had fun.

Bass Snatcher Win!!! The 2010 Challenge Cup@ Sylvan Lake

The Challenge Cup is an annual bass tournament that pits 6 guys (3 boater, 3 non-boaters) from my bass club the Baxter Bass Snatchers vs. 6 guys the Range Bassmasters. I think the Brainerd Lakes Bassmasters have also fished in it in years past. Last year was the first time I got to fish it. This year it was held on Sylvan Lake which is just South of Gull Lake West of Brainerd, MN. This year I fished with Emmet Smith who was also my boater last year. Before blast off he was talking up what a great lake Sylvan is, but it really didn't show it on this day.

Conditions were phenomenal for October with air temps in the high 70's and a fairly light wind out of the East. Water temps were in the low to mid 60's.

Here's the run down:
Bass Snatchers 52lbs 3ozs
Range Bassmasters 47lbs 14oz

Tounament Winners
1st In-Fisherman's Steve Quinn with 10lbs ??? Range Bassmasters
2nd Place and 4lb 10oz Big Bass Dennis Lothspeich Bass Snatchers
3rd Chuck Steinbauer Bass Snatchers

Everyone caught a 5 fish limit.

My weight was 6lbs 12ozs and Emmet weighed 7lbs 6ozs, so we were pretty close. Last year he destroyed me. I was actually 11th out of the 12 anglers, but I beat 1 Range guy, so I pulled my weight sort of. I caught at least 9 keepers, culling 4 times and my big fish was a 14.5". It was my last fish of the day and it was caught on a blue shiner Berkley Frenzy Popper. I did catch several small bass at or below 12 inches that I didn't bother to measure.

I caught keepers on:
white single white Colorado blade spinnerbait
Bubblegum Zoom Super Fluke
blue/black jigNpig
blue shiner Berkley Frenzy Popper

We caught fish all day long and almost everywhere we went, Emmet and I just couldn't buy a quality bite, even our pike were small. We fished inside and outside weedlines, flats, and docks. Slop was totally unproductive.

After the tournament I went to Gander Mountain in search of the magic spinnerbait that Chuck and Dennis were using. I didn't find them, but bought something awefully close. The spinnerbait is kind of ugly but it suppose to be a killer color in the Fall.

2010 Challenge Cup Sylvan Lake Preview

Tomorrow I will fish in my second Challenge Cup which pits my bass club The Baxter Bass Snatchers vs. The Range Bassmasters. Last year the tournament was on Mission Lake and I didn't fair so hot. This year the tournament is on Lake Sylvan which is just South of Gull Lake. Once again my boater will be Emmet Smith of the Range squad. I have never fished Sylvan and I think the RB's fished it last year. I remember Emmet said they fished Sylvan and I had no clue about where it was located. The lake is only 803 acres and is made up of two basins connected by a fairly wide channel. Apparently one of the lakes is very clear and the other one is stained, not sure about the channel. We have been having warm stable weather this week and that will hold for tomorrow, so the bite should be good. Naturally I will be trying to make topwater happen, but having never seen the lake I don't know what we will be doing. I paired down to 7 rods because if Emmet has the same boat as last year, it really has limited room for a non-boaters rods.

Here's how my rods are rigged.
Zoom Horny Toad
Herb's Dilly Buzzbait
White Spinnerbait
Texas Rigged Crawtube (I only have one crawtube, so if it is demolished I will fish a Yum Wooly Bug next)
Texas Rigged Tube
Dock Rod: Zoom Super Fluke spinning gear
Misc topwater or crank rod (Norman speed clip)

I hope the bite is good and I finish above all of the Range non-boaters.

The Derby is Updated

It's actually turned into a race. If Rich can just get one more "Doozer", he could pass Holmer. Now have pics of 3 fish over 6lbs this year.

See Derby Blog for what's been up.

I Should Be Fishing Right Now

It's coming up on 6PM and conditions are stellar, yet I'm not fishing tonight even though I certainly could be. Anyone want to guess why?

Platte Lake Oct 7th: Prime Time

I wish I would have gotten out sooner on this lovely day. Today had a light SW wind with sun and temps in the 70's. As it was I didn't start fishing until about 5:40PM. I started on a weed flat in the Big West Bay (Public Access Bay). First I went with the Repo Man, but that didn't get looked at. I switched to a white spinnerbait and caught a small pike on that. Eventually I switched up to a purple (blue shiner) Berkley Frenzy Popper. I got a 13" bass on that, then had a pike steal the lure, glad I've still got tons of them. I tied on another purple BFP and threw that some more along with a Herb's Dilly Buzzbait. Eventually I worked myself in shallower where there was sort of a dense patch of brown rice; Here I was throwing a white Sizmic Toad and on one of my casts through the rice it looked like a little pike was waking the thing. I cast back and it happened again. I cast back one more time and when the fish showed behind it, I killed it in place. After a second there was a big swirl. I made sure the fish had it and set the hook. It wasn't a little pike, but a 19.75" bass that was close to 5lbs(pic).

I worked my way over to some thicker slop (rice, reeds, and pads). I had a hit on the end of a long cast that didn't get the Toad. I worked the area hard with a number of lures but couldn't get another strike. With the sun setting I made the call to head across the bay by the maidencaine where I got fish a few nights ago. There was a little breeze and ripple on the water. I went with the Herb's Dilly but that hauled water. The farther I got into the weeds the calmer it got and I started fishing the Sizmic Toad quickly hoping a fish would show itself. I got something to wake a few times but it wouldn't hit. I kept moving in towards shore and had a hit on the Toad on the end of a long cast in the pads that didn't hook up. I got a second chance at this fish on the Toad and missed it again. I pitched a junebug crawtube into the pads and sure enough it got picked up. It was a 13.5" bass. I was now close enough to cast to the last patch of bullrushes. Something waked on the Toad. On a subsequent cast a fish lit it up but I missed it on the hookset. That was my last bite of the night.

Another Minnesocold Bass Fishing Blog

Bass Bloggin: Bass Fishing in Minnesota is a blog by Minnesocold tournament angler John Pozarski. The blog has been around for a couple of years, but I didn't find it until today. I found the blog because he caught a 6.94lb largemouth bass at the Viking Bassmasters Invitational held last week on Lake Minnetonka and somebody linked to it at Futurebass.com forums. It looks like John fishes lots of tournaments, then blogs about them. Cool!!!

A Good Read:
DNA Maximus Theory by Coloradocastersblog

He's Back!!!

Randy Moss is once again in Purple.

I have always been a Randy fan. I thought he was done for after his stint in Oakland, but he came back with a vengeance in New England. Hopefully he still has something left in the tank. Hopefully he is motivated to give his best and he and Favre can build a quick connection. Wouldn't that be great if Randy could finally win that ring with us?

Now lets relive one of Moss's many great moments vs. the cheese

Platte Lake Oct 6th: A Good Night That Could Have Been Great.

Unfortunately I forgot the camera.

Conditions: Today was sunny and in the high 60's with a 10MPH wind out of the NW that turned calm a little after sunset. I fished from 4PM to 7:10PM.

Naturally I tried to catch that fish off Sherman's dock that I missed yesterday, but it was a no show. I worked a bit on the other side of Sherman's dock, long enough to know that the area to Jenny's probably wasn't going to give me much. I decided to hit wind protected docks on the North End of the big central bay.

On the very first dock I had a good pick up on a bubblegum Zoom Super Fluke but when I set the hook the line broke. Not sure if it was a pike or maybe part of the dock cut my line. The tag end was frayed up pretty good. I decided to head West 1 dock and give the fish a chance to recover. I think I ended up going two docks with nothing. I got back to the original dock and had a pick up that I whiffed on. I threw the white/chart tail Fluke back to the area and as I was bringing it back I spotted a 12" class bass following. It picked up the Fluke by the tail, and so I couldn't set the hook. After a couple of seconds the fish spit the Fluke instead of sucking it in.

On the other side of the dock is a shallow reed/slop patch that was holding baitfish and there were lots of leaves in the water. I couldn't get anything. About half way across the shallow reed patch I decided to chuck a white single spin white Colorado blade spinnerbait out to the edge of a reed bed that is in a little deeper water. Sure enough I hooked up on a very hard fighting fish that turned out to be a 18" largie. I made several more casts out with nothing and then fished the rest of the shallow reeds. I was casting well beyond the end of the shallow reeds when a 11.5" bass hit the spinnerbait. Next I worked myself out to the deeper reeds but nothing was happening and after about 20 minutes I headed back to the shore. Next fish was a 14" on the Fluke that I think was on the inside weedline in-between docks. The next fish was a 14.75" bass on the Fluke on the inside weedline; I missed this fish about 4 times before I finally caught it. I pulled a 9.5" bass off a boatlift. Next I caught a little pike and the Fluke was done for, so I switched up to an electric Chicken Fluke (bubblegum top, Chart belly, red tail). I got a 13" largie again on the inside weedline.

I skipped the Fluke under a dock to a boat lift and had a fish pick it up. I pulled instead of set and the fish got hung up and got off and the hook hung on the dock. As I was going in to get the hook un-hung I pitched a crawtube over the dock and under the boat and I ended up pulling out a 11.25" largie. I got the crawtube rigged up and pitched it back to the same spot and had another fish pick it up, but I missed it on the hookset. I pitched in several more times. Finally one of the times when I was working the bait up and down it got picked up and I ended up catching a 15" largie. I couldn't get any more bites so I got the hook un-hung and moved on. I got a 13" off another dock and missed a couple of bites. As I was approaching the last dock I was going to hit, I tossed out a bluegill Deps Buzzjet Jr. and it got hit by a 13.25" bass.

The excitement:
It was now after 6:30PM and I headed out onto the weed flat trying to pull a fish on topwater. I had seen some good swirls on the flat while working the shoreline. I was throwing the Buzzjet Jr. and Paycheck Baits Repo Man and nothing was happening so I was about to make a move to the Big West Bay. I decided on one last cast with the Repo Man and sure enough it got hit by a 15" bass. On my next cast I brought in a 12.25" largie. On the next cast I connected with a 18.75". On the next cast I had another blow up, but it didn't hook up. On the next cast same thing. And then I missed another fish on the next cast. Obviously I had found an active school. On the next cast I had a huge bass come all the way out of the water but it didn't hook up. I paused the Repo Man and started working it slow and the fish blew up on it hard again. It was hooked for a second then got off. I think I had one more cast missing a fish and then it settled down. After about 5 minutes of nothing I had a fish that I think was probably a small pike repeatedly strike at the Repo Man. About 5 minutes later I missed another blow up and that was it.

It was cool to get into a school like that, but my execution was pretty pathetic.

I recorded 13 bass caught and 1 Pike. I think I might have forgotten to write down one small bass.

Platte Lake Oct 5th: Avoided the Skunk

Tonight I got out fishing for about the last hour before dark. Today was warm (70+) and sunny with a pretty good SE wind.

I didn't stop at Jenny's, but did fish from the dock. I cast next to Sherman's dock and a fish boiled on the Ish's Phat Frog, but didn't get it. I cast back and this time the fish really swirled on it, but somehow I didn't hook up. Several more casts produced nothing, so I threw a Zoom Horny Toad and let it sink and sit. On about the 3rd cast of doing that, it got picked up, but I missed the fish.

Finally I got the boat untied and headed towards Sherman's/Jenny's (East). I worked the area with the missed fish hard but didn't get a thing. On the other side of Sherman's dock I made a cast up by shore and had what was sure to be a small pike swipe at and finally get the Horny Toad. When I set the hook the line got cut. I kept working my way East and when nothing happened I decided to move.

I headed to the North side of the bay where I caught fish last week on Monday. I think I got a couple of bites on docks with a crawtube, but I didn't hook anything. The sun set and I decided to head back to the South side of the bay and fish the water that would be calm near Jenny's. I got the skunk out of the boat with a small pike on a white Sizmic Toad. I figured that was going to be my only fish as it was getting dark quickly. I was making my way out of the weeds when I got another hit. I was pleased to get the 15" bass in the pic on the Sizmic. I fished for maybe 5 more minutes and then headed in.

Bass Snatcher Serpent Lake Tournament Oct. 2nd

Serpent was the 6th and final tournament of the 2010 Baxter Bass Snatcher Bass Club schedule.

Conditions: It was in the mid 30's at blast off, but I think it got into the high 50's by tournament end. It was mostly sunny with a few clouds. Water temps seemed to be in the high 50's.

My Day:
A little before blast off I asked my boater Tony where we were headed and he basically told me we were going to the same bay that I had fished so successfully with boater Mark Munson two years ago. Just after Tony told me, Mark pulls up next to us and says mostly in jest "you better stay off my spots." I informed Mark that I hadn't told Tony anything, which was the truth, and that we were going where Tony wanted and I had nothing to do with it. It turned out we stopped more to the West and they started more to the East and then we fished towards one another.

First thing in the morning I was casting with a white/silver Herb's Dilly Buzzbait and actually had a fish show behind it but not take it. Eventually I switched to a black/red spinnerbait with a large single Colorado blade. I put the first fish in the boat with it, and it was a pike. This is almost the exact same way the tournament on Serpent started two years ago. Mark and his boater 2010 Minnesota Federation Nation Tournament of Champions Champion Nate Steinbauer were approaching us when I got the fish. They were covering water quite a bit quicker than us and said they had one small bass and had caught a couple of pike as well. After they were well past us I was the first one to put a keeper bass in the boat with 13.5" fish. We were working our way East first on the deep weedline without success then we went to the inside weedline and Tony connected with a couple of keeper bass on a white spinnerbait. I switched to a white with white single Colorado blade spinnerbait and got a 14.5" largie and then a 13.25" largie on it. Just after my third bass of the day, Tony brought in a 14"+ smallmouth, which had to go back because they are now in a immediate catch and release season. Tony caught a nice bass off a dock. We worked our way back over the productive water but only caught pike and I missed a couple of bites. We worked our way back West to some docks and I dropped a small bass in front of one of them. Nothing happened after that so we moved to a weedline and some docks on the South East shore. The docks gave up nothing and we kept working down the weedline. I was casting out towards deeper water and bringing it shallow when I connected with a 16" bass on the white spinnerbait.

For a long time we fished a weed flat and picked up several pike, but the bass just were not on the flat. Eventually we went West to a point on the North shore. As we approached the point I flipped a junebug crawtube into some weeds on the break and I had a very bassy pick up. I set the hook and was disappointed that it was another pike. We started fishing the inside weedlines and docks going east. Tony picked up a dink (non-keeper) on a dock and I stuck keeper #5, which was a 13.5" largie on a bubblegum Zoom Super Fluke in front of a dock. Tony stuck a couple of more non-keepers. Eventually we ran out of docks and made the decision to run to where we got most of our fish, which was a good call. It wasn't long and Tony filled his limit. Soon after that I stuck a 14.5" largie on the white spinnerbait and had my tournament limit. Tony stuck a good 17"+ bass, but it turned out to be a smallmouth.

With my limit, I became totally fixated on topwater and got a 12" keeper that didn't help on a Paycheck Baits Repo Man. Not long after that the day ended with 7 keeper bass and 11 pike.

The Results:
Weigh in proved that the fishing was kind of tough and quite a bit of drama as well. My weight came to 9lbs 4ozs which put me right in the middle of the pack in 8th. I edged Peter Johnson by 1oz despite the fact that he had the days "Lunker" (4lbs 4ozs). Beating Peter was significant because it put me 2 points over Peter in the end of the year standings and helped me capture 6th Place in AOY. 6th Place in Angler of the Year is significant because it gets a plaque and traditionally is the last slot for the Club State Tournament Team. I am not a MN State Federation Nation member, so I am not eligible to go to State but still being in that position is an honor.

My boater Tony had 10/1 which put him in a tie for 4th Place with Chuck Steinbauer. Tony won the tie breaker with Chuck by 1oz on big fish and that 1oz cost Chuck the club Angler of the Year title (Mr. Bass). 5th Place put Chuck in a tie in end of the year points with Guy Henkensiefken for Mr. Bass, but Guy owned that tie breaker. Chuck was totally out of luck.

Analysis: Man was that a squeaker. I probably spent way to much time trying to make a topwater bite happen, but as it was I got lucky and it didn't cost me. The day was a bit of a thriller not getting my limit until the last hour. I think switching to that white spinnerbait was probably a key move. I could cast it farther than the black spinnerbait and a couple of my keepers came right at the start of the retrieve.

Note: Mark Munson who was my partner at Serpent in 2008 and came in 2nd at that tournament got his revenge and captured 1st Place with 11lbs 13ozs.

Next Tournament: Bass Snatchers vs. Range Bassmasters Challenge Cup at Sylvan Lake in Southern Cass County.

Most Tournament Guys Just Can't Do This

"I was losing eight to 10 baits a day, getting them snagged in the brush or hitting docks and other stuff and messing them up. I ordered a bunch after Tawakoni, but I almost ran out."
Takahiro Omori talking about Lucky Craft RC 2.5 crankbaits. That crank sells retail for $16 a lure.

DNF

Have elected not to fish today. The weather is a little cool, but pretty nice today. However after a full tournament day I could use the break. The weather looks to be awesome this week, so I should be getting out a lot.

Yesterday I got my 21 (modern) Herb's Dilly Buzzbaits in the mail. With shipping I paid $1.44 per lure. I have seen (modern) Herb's Dilly's with competitive Ebay auctions sell for over $10 per lure. The seller really screwed up by selling all of them in 2 big lots and then I got lucky that the auctions flew under the radar. By far my best deal on Ebay ever. Now it's no big deal that I have lost 2 Dilly's in the past two years.

Serpent Tournament Quick Report

Not gonna say much until official results are in. The bass were not really snapping and weights were low. The pike were snapping; I caught 11 pike and missed several more. Lots of guys said they had great pre-fish success. It was much warmer than forecast, and winds were fairly light, so it was a pleasant day to fish.

At the end of the day fished by a boat lift with a boat that had a 200HP Mercury Verado tiller on it. That is CRAZY!

Bass Snatcher Serpent Lake Tournament Preview

Tomorrow morning I return to the scene of my best Baxter Bass Snatcher Club tournament finish (3rd), Serpent Lake out of Crosby, MN. That tournament was on Sept. 20 1998, so we are pretty darn close in terms of time of year. The weather has been pretty nice this week, but tonight it is forecast to get below freezing and temps are not suppose to get out of the low 50's tomorrow. Fortunately winds are suppose to be fairly light but it suppose to be sunny, which means cold front conditions.

The tournament two years had a morning topwater bite follwed by picking off fish here and there throughout the day on spinnerbaits and a jigNpig, with a 4+lb kicker caught from a dock with a Zoom Super Fluke. I will try and get away with a topwater bite tomorrow. The lakes maximum depth is 65 feet and it has a lot of water 15 feet or deeper, so one cold night probably won't effect the lake temps that much. If we are lucky the little extra bit of cold will turn the fish on. Besides topwater I have rods rigged for spinnerbaits, jigs, texas rigged crawtubes or beavers, and Flukes and am packing jerkbaits, rattlebaits, senko's and a few crankbaits.

My boater Tony is currently 12th in the standings, but hasn't had a particularly good year. His best finish this year was a 9th at the last tournament, Washburn Lake. I do not believe he got out pre-fishing and I'm not sure how much experience he has on the lake. He did fish the tournament 2 years ago and got 5 fish for just over 8lbs which put him in 14th out of 24. We only have 16 guys fishing, which translates into pretty good points no matter where I finish provided I catch a keeper, you get 0 points for a skunk. I will need a very strong finish to make my way into the coveted Top 6 for the year. There are 4 of us closely in contention for that 6th spot.