Opener at GOMH (All Nighter)

 

15.5" Jerk Shad (Crackle)

12:00AM-8:30AM GOMH SW
Conditions:  36-42℉, Clear to Cloudy, Light N wind to calm
Water level to normal high

11" Shiner Minnow

I was hyped up to cash in some gold on the shiner minnows I caught last week. It didn't work out that way. Eddy's Jetty was iced in, so the GOMH it was. I got my first bite around 12:30 am, but it was silver. Some guys on the other side got some gold right away. Lantern Man's son got one, and Lantern Man got one. Shorty after LM got his golden, he told me to throw into the current, which I did, and got a jumper.

14" Shiner Minnow

It then got real slow, and everybody left by 2:30 am. I went fishing on the NE side and got a 15" jumper on the Grass Pig. Peter W. showed up at about 3 am. He got a bullhead right away. I tried the NE side briefly again before someone else showed up to check what was up. At 4 am, the Wheel House Guy showed up and started fishing right next to me. Pretty soon, his brother and other relatives/friends showed up and took up the SE side. WHG got one golden on the NE side. It was dead until about 5:40 am, when I quickly got three nice jumpers on the Poison (2x18", 17.75").

18" Poison/Razor Shad

17.75"/4.12lbs Poison/Razor Shad

It then got slow again for about an hour. I got into a good run of 16" jumpers on a brown/grn pumpkin crawtube, dropping the two big ones. I missed a bunch of bites as well.

18.25'"/3.81lbs Crawtube

I got one good 17" on the Grass Pig and that last pig on the crawtube. I also got one toothy on the craw tube. WHG gave me a banana and some banana bread to eat before leaving. His brother, who fished next to me the whole morning, got a few jumpers and silvers. The people across the way got more of the same. For the most part, fishing was more difficult than expected. I should have fished on the NE side in the wind rather than camping on the SW side like I did. Still, 19 jumpers for the trip isn't exactly terrible. I was disappointed to not get at least one golden, though. My feet were fried from standing in my Bugaboots all night.

For the morning trip
19 Jumpers (18.25,18,18,17.75,17,16) for my 6 best (Stupidly, I only weighed two fish)
1 Toothy
1 Silver
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dad got me up just before 5 pm to go and put the dock in at the lake place, which we did.

8:45–11:00 pm GOMH NE
Conditions: 62-50℉, partly cloudy, calm

9.5" X-Rap Shallow Shad

Nobody was on the NE side when I got there, so I quickly got my stuff and headed down. Lantern Man arrived as I was getting my stuff laid out. I got a jumper on the first cast and thought it might be on. LM's son came and down on the NW side. He had been fishing the Southside, getting silvers and jumpers. After he left the GOMH last night, his bridge hopping was a resounding failure. His first cast under the bridge resulted in some gold. His friend Kyle came and netted it, and Kyle got a golden on his first cast as well. They got another one, and I got the one I did casting out on the crackle Jerk Shad. I also got a 24.5" toothy casting out on the jerk shad. Two bow fishing boats came through.   LM son and Kyle left. I got the Rock bullhead. Other than that, it was pretty dead. Sneaky C showed up. He was a pretty good day on the gravel lizards wherever he was fishing. I left shortly after Sneaky arrived. I was still worn out from last night and didn't feel like flogging the water anymore.

So that is my 2018 Opener Day 1

Tribute Lilah Loo

I don't remember my reaction when Mom called to tell me that she would be bringing my brother Steve's recently adopted dog back home with them from Florida.  We still lived at the lake place in 2005, and she bolted several times over the first few years both at the lake place and here where we live now.  She and Patti Lou made fast friends.  She was often my bed buddy sleeping up by my head or under the covers.  She got along OK with the cat.  She and Kaylee do not so much, mainly because Kaylee doesn't play nice with other animals much of the time.  The little yipper won me over with her personality, and I'm sure going to miss her. 

Docks In Area Lakes, I Got Skunked Both Morning and Evening

 

It was about 37℉ when I left for the GOMH at 5:10AM.  It was calm, and the world was awake with birds and frogs singing away.  I thought for sure I would get at least something, but the bullheads were just not around.  I went NE side, SW Side, and back to the NE side after sunrise.  I had a toothy on briefly on a white craw tube on one of my last casts.  I then checked the Platte Public Access where the dock was in the water.  Then I went to Bulldog, nothing there.  Then I went to Rock.  The Rock Dock was in, and a boat was out fishing.  Didn't get anything there.  Stopped at Bear Trax, and they just gave me what was left of their crappie minnows as it was mostly sticklebacks and one bullhead/catfish.

 I got the Trophy vacuumed out today, the first run anyway.  I didn't get out until after 7PM.  I was surprised no one was at Bulldog.  No fish, that's why. I tried both spots.  I quickly eliminated Rock, then went to the GOMH.  Nobody there either.  I had one toothy follow the Panfish Chatterbait in on the NE side. Probably the same fish from this morning.  That was it for action.  I stayed un 9:30 or so.  I'm a little concerned that I couldn't get a few fish after a warm sunny day.  Maybe the shallows are warming up to fast? 

2018 Ice Out Platte Lake

I was unable to get out to verify it for myself, but Bear Trax Facebook Page reported it.  I will hopefully have the Trophy in the water on Sunday or Monday.  Thanks to Dads help I was able to get my way too complicated trolling motor situation mostly figured out today or so I hope.  We will see how it works once I'm out on the water.

1st Open Water Fish of 2018(Bulldog)

5" T.H.E. Jig /maggot Bulldog Lake

It can only get better from here.  The only bite I got tonight. I fished at Rock, Bulldog, and the GOMH.  Ice is out on Bulldog and Rock.  Platte is about 60% out.  I think I'll probably be able to call Platte tomorrow.

Rock Lake

0 for April

I gave it good shot fishing from 7:30-10:30PM, but I didn't catch a thing tonight or this month.  I might have missed one bite tonight, but I'm not 100% sure it was one.  I fished at Bulldog for about half an hour then the rest of the night at the GOMH. I was the only person there.  I really thought the warm temps today would be enough to bring some bullheads in, but that obviously wasn't the case.  It was a beautiful calm night with 70℉ temps when I finally left.  I did have a beaver give me a tail slap on the Se side.  Also had an otter come through before it got too dark.  The cloud cover was to thick for the moon to make an appearance.

Bulldog 20% Open

Rock Lake 50%  or more

I think Rock goes out on May 1st

Channel Inn Bay past SISP

Dropped A Bullhead Tonight

Right after taking this picture I briefly had a bullhead on. Pretty sure it was a toothy. It turned out to be a really nice night and loons were calling back and forth.

Sullivan Platte River Outlet Mostly Ice Free

I'm thinking Channel In Bay to the Small Island  will be Open by Tuesday

Rock Lake open by Friday???

Bulldog Lake

Will I Catch A Fish By May 1st?

That was the question I asked here at the blog in 2013 on this date. I put my chances in that blog post at 10%. I then lost a jumpin' bullhead and snagged a carp, and did not catch a fish in April. I put the odds at 50/50 for this year. What I've got going in my favor are the sun and warm temps which may bring some bullheads into the GOMH. What I've got going against me are the sun and warm temps which may bring other fisherpersons to the GOMH. With the way the forecast looks, I am highly confident ice comes off the area lakes, minus Mille Lacs, sometime this upcoming week. And if I don't get a fish by Monday, I'm pretty sure I'll be catch one by Friday.

My Tackle Warehouse Opener & GOMH Open

Today was the Offical Tackle Warehouse Opener, even though I did go in there briefly yesterday morning.  Both GOMH Bays are now open.  Loons were calling, swans were trumpeting, frogs were making a racket, saw a great blue heron and a white heron.  A bald eagle was at the dead deer and a deer ran in front of me on 8 on my way to the GOMH.  Didn't get a bite again tonight and I'm now down to two of Pete's minnows left.

Area Lakes, Loons, Swans, and Lost Scissors at the GOMH

I checked out Bulldog, Rock, and the GOMH tonight.  Loons and Swans were at the GOMH tonight for Steve, Kim, and Devin to see.  I found my scissors which I apparently dropped last Fall.  It was a little on the cool side when I first arrived at the GOMH do to a light wind.  There was a guy fishing the NW side with his little daughter.  He said he didn't see any suckers in any of the rivers he checked.  I didn't catch anything.  Once the wind died it was actually pretty pleasant.

Bulldog

Rock Public Access

Pulling away from shore at Rock

GOMH not as open as I thought it would be tonight

Loons and Swans

The scissors I didn't know I had dropped

April 23, 2013 vs. Tonight at the GOMH

2013

Tonight

2013

Tonight

Closer to even then I thought it would be. A difference is that runoff has been pumping into the lakes non-stop for 4 days now.  Most of the snow is gone now, while that wasn't the case in  2013.  It took until the 26th for a significant warm up to happen in 2013.