B.B.S. Birch Lake

I drove up to Snatcher Darren's Place and rode up with him.  When we arrived at Leech it was blowing to beat the band out of the NNE when we arrived at 6:30AM.  Not a good thing when we were launching out of Horseshoe Bay.  The wind didn't die down and the tournament director switched us to the alternate lake at about ten to 8:00AM.  So off we went to Birch Lake.  My boater Alan had only fished the lake twice when the club fished here for the first tournament of the year in 2016.  I fished the lake twice in 2016 and twice in 2011 when we fished there on Oct 1st.

The Day:
I think we blasted off by 8:40AM.  Alan and I were boat number 1.  Alan made the decision that we would run to the farthest west bay in the lake; It's a pad lined slop bay.  Al got two quick small bass in the boat; One kept, one short.  I missed a bite in the pads and had a pike hook up on the frog over open water where I saw a fish bust.  We got into the open area in the bay.  I hooked up with a bass near a pad patch that was out in the open on a black/red Terminator Frog.  Immediately after I set the hook so did Al so we got a double.  My bass was my biggest of the day (2/10) and Al's was just a keeper.  I think Al got 2 more keepers in there.  We then went across to an adjacent point and didn't get anything.  So we headed a little farther East and tried some docks and wood on the north shoreline.  I got a pike on a dock.  We worked our way out on a point and I got a 2lber there on a green pumpkin Jackhammer.  Other than a couple pike that was all we got.  Next, we headed to the south end of the western basin and started working the weed flat.  I put on a junebug Jackhammer and was quickly rewarded with a small keeper.  We went up and worked the pads for a little bit and tried some reeds to the west not getting anything but a few pike.  I then suggested we try the channel between the lake.  I got a very small keeper out of the reeds on the southeast shoreline.  We didn't get anything in the channel.

Next, we headed to where the river goes to Ten Mile Lake.  I had a fish hit, hook up, hang me in some cabbage and get off.  As I was reeling in I saw a 2lber following my Jackhammer so I killed it and the fish smashed it.  I didn't get another bite until we were across the other side of the bay when a 14-incher hit my bone Sprinker Frog in some reeds.  That was my last landed bass of the day.  We went back to the bay we started in and Al got his biggest bass off the day in the pads.  We worked around the southside pads of the little island. I had a couple of fish hit my Terminator Frog, but I didn't hook up.  Probably just small bass like Al was catching.   Then we tried the south side of the big island and all I could get was pike.  And just like that, the day was over.

Results:   
My fish weighed 10lbs 1oz which put me in 14th Place out of 18 anglers.  Al had 2 more ounces than me and finished 13th.  Keith Tuma won it 19/3 and had a 4/04 for the tournament "Lunker".  Dwight Hammermeister, who was in Tuma's boat, came in 2nd and won the Co-Angler Challenge.

This finish makes me finishing in the club Super 6 highly unlikely, but I'm pretty much guaranteed I will reach my goal of finishing in the Top 10

My Thoughts:
My mental state wasn't optimal.  I hadn't fished since Monday and I was 100% sure we were going to be fishing Leech Lake and had prepared myself for a tough bite there.  My head just wasn't in the game like it needed to be.  It didn't help that the fish never really clued us in.  It didn't help that I didn't have rods and tackle along that would have diversified my fishing options.  I think we probably should have tried a few more docks and definitely fished the eastern basin.

     

B.B.S. Pelican Lake

The sun rises over a surprisingly fogless Pelican Lake 

Conditions: 60-73℉, Cloudy for most of the day, Light Wind WSW
Water Temp: 76℉ maybe

1st Fish of the Day Caught on a Jackhammer

The Day:  The first spot we stopped at was at a hump offshore somewhere where Dwight caught a good one while pre-fishing.  We both started out throwing topwaters, but with there being a bit of a breeze I quickly put the popper I was throwing down in favor of a junebug color Evergreen Jackhammer.  On about my 5th cast, it was fish on.  I could tell it was a good fish, but it wasn't exactly fighting like a bass.  Turns out it was a nice walleye, maybe 23-inches long.  About 5 minutes later I got a pike.  That was it for the starting spot.  We tried briefly aways off of a point, not getting anything.  Then we tried close to some reeds.  No bites there.  Then we headed out to where I had the big bass miss my topwater in pre-fish. 

On my very first cast with the same smoke colored tube I used to catch some fish on my first ever tournament on Pelican Lake in 2009 I got the skunk out of the boat for myself with a 1.75lb bass.  That was the only bite we got out there.  Next, we went to the reeds on the South side of the island.  Dwight had we thought was a 2lb smallmouth hit at his lure, but not get it.  We then briefly fished off a point and on the north side of the island not getting anything.  Next, we headed to the reeds on the south side of the entrance to Breezy Point Bay.  I had a good fish take my Hack Attack Jig, but it came off as I tried to bring him through the reeds.  Pretty quickly after that Dwight got the skunk out of the boat with a nice one.  Dwight then added a small keeper after missing a couple of bites.  I had a fish hit the Jig, but I swung and missed.  I pitched right back to the spot and got a small keeper.

Next, we were gonna fish some other reeds, but another tournament boat was fishing out in front of them, so we fished a sunken island instead.  Pretty sure this was the spot Dennis started us on back in 2009.  It was calm, so I got out the good old bullfrog color Frenzy Popper I used to catch some fish on back in 2009.  Sure enough, I had a fish hit it, but not hook up.  I threw back to spot missing it by several yards.  A bass that was just over a pound and a half was on it.  Not sure if it was the same fish or not, but that was the only bite I got on the popper for the day.  We next went and tried the reeds, but Dwight didn't like them and we quickly left for a cabbage area somewhere on the eastern side of the lake.  There was a bit of a chop and I elected to throw a swimbait and was quickly rewarded with a small keeper.  Next, we went back to the area where I got my first keeper and I got a 2lber there on the swimbait.  We tried running South, then back to the starting spot.  With about an hour left we went back to the reeds where we caught fish.   They now had the wind blowing on them and we didn't get any bites.  With about a half hour left we ran some docks.  Dwight got a small keeper and a short.  He also had a what was probably a small keeper come off.  With 10 minutes left, we were getting over towards a large swimming area when we came to a dock that was right on the break.  Dwight got a good keeper.  I then briefly had a fish on.  A few casts later I got a 2lber on a green pumpkin Jackhammer.  I was pretty pumped.  My last bite of the day was a nice pike that hit the junebug Jackhammer.  And then time was up.     

Results: My limit weighed 10lbs 4ozs and put me in 10th Place out of 21 anglers fishing. 
Dennis Lothspeich won with 19/2.  Chuck Steinbauer had "Lunker" with a 4/12 largemouth.  Beau Bacon was the Co-Angler Challenge Winner with a 18/6 bag, which was 2nd Place for the tournament.

My thoughts:  There were only 8 limits caught of which mine was the smallest.  I am pretty darn proud that I managed to catch a limit.  With two tournaments remaining I still have a shot at finishing in the Club Super 6, but it's an outside shot with 4 guys ahead of me right now for the 6th Spot.  One more finish in the Top 8 should pretty much guarantee I reach my goal of finishing in the Top 10 for the year.

Full Results:

B.B.S. Lake Minnewawa

1st Place my boater Keith Tuma 19lbs 11ozs

The Plan:  Hope that the rice fish were going and that we wouldn't have too much company.

The Day: We blasted off right around 7:30AM and Keith beelined for the SW rice bay.  He was shocked that we were the only boat to come into the bay.  Several boats stopped in the cane and rice outside of the bay.  Keith wondered if we had missed something.  Seeing how nobody else came into the bay, we didn't head right to Breanne's Secret Spot.  We started on a point with arrowhead pads just inside the bay.  Keith had a good bass in the boat in less than 5 minutes of fishing out of the arrowheads.  I had a fish strike at my new just out of the package Bluegrass Mad Maxx and not get it.  Keith put the Power Poles down.  The fish struck at me again but didn't get it.  Several more casts with nothing and the Power Poles came up.  I made a couple casts back and finally the fish committed and it was a solid 2lber (2.62lbs).  We then didn't get a hit for about 20 minutes.  We went in by a dock and Keith got a couple of dinks.  I had a fish hit me in the rice, but not get it.  On about the fourth try the fish nailed Maxx and stole it. Damn pike.

Ooops!

I don't think we got another bite for about half an hour.  As we were in that lull I went to make a cast, but my line got caught in the hook keeper and I slammed Maxx straight down resulting in a catastrophic overrun.  I decided to just switch Maxx onto my X-Heavy Frog Rod, not switch rods and reels.   We came into an area that really held some big fish on Keith's first-day pre-fishing.  The wind made presenting frogs difficult, but Keith got himself a good one.  After he brought that fish in he decided to switch out reel handles on the Revo Rocket.  We then got to an area where we had access to the bank.  Keith got a couple of small bass and I had a couple of fish hit, but not get the frog.  We then got into an area with a little more rice.  I got a couple of dinks on a Yum Dinger, before getting a 1.47lber on Maxx.  I also missed some hits on the Dinger.  We came up to another big bank of rice and Keith got himself another quality fish.  Unfortunately, that was the only one we could raise.  I tried pitching a craw tube and got a couple of pike.

Right around noon, we got to Breanne's Spot.  It wasn't but one or two casts and Keith is bringing in a good one.  It jumped and I'm thinking 5lber.  I got it in the net and we high fived.  A couple minutes later and Keith make a good cull.  I missed a couple of hits from fish that didn't get the frog.  Keith got a couple that didn't help.  I ended up getting a line burner, a few shorts, dropping a decent one that got me in the arrowheads and missing another one in the arrowheads in Breanne's Spot.  I should of had my limit when we left.  We headed back to the first big fish area.  Keith got a couple that didn't help and I got a pike or two.  We were working our way out of the bay when I got another line burner out of the rice on the Frog.  With about 2 Hours left, we left the Rice Bay for some slop on the eastern side of the lake.  Keith got a couple of dinks on docks.

For the last 45 minutes or so we worked docks in the public access bay.  I got lucky and got my big fish (3/11) on a bubblegum Zoom Super Fluke off of a dock.  I got a couple pike as well.  And then time ran out.

Results: My 5 bass weighed 10lbs and put me in 6th Place.  Keith blew everyone away with 19lb 11oz, putting him 5/11 over Nate Steinbauer in 2nd Place.  Keith's big bass went 4/14.  The club really struggled in this one and only 4 limits were brought in.  I'm pretty sure

My Thoughts:  I kind of blew it.  I had the ideal partner for getting a top 3 finish and was on water that held big fish and I just couldn't make it happen.  I didn't even get a limit for goodness sakes.  If only it was a little warmer and the wind was half of what it was I'm pretty sure I would have had a pretty good sack.  The tournament was a day late for that to happen as the weather was ideal on Saturday.  Me deciding not to switch a working reel onto my favorite frog rod was a mistake.

Well, on to the Lake Edward.

     

B.B.S. Bay Lake

Photo credit: SarahJean Fishing Bay Lake 6/2/18

Conditions: 47-64℉, Cloudy with fog for several hours, light and heavy rain after the first couple of hours, Windy ESE.

The Day:
The guys weren't in a big rush to launch the boats on this blustery foggy morning.  I think we blasted off a minute or two after 7AM.  Chuck took me to his starting spot where a couple of loons were milling around.  Chuck got a couple of small keepers in the boat and a pike or two and a rock bass. I think I got a pike and missed a couple of bites.  After fishing the area for around half an hour or so we moved on.  Chuck got a little turned around in the fog for a second, but quickly got back on track.

We next went to a large weed flat where Tuma and Sarah were fishing.  Chuck said they were on the juice.  I got a couple of pike to start things off on the Pure Poison and Chuck landed a couple of small keepers and a pike or two.  It was pretty clear to me at this point that the bass were not in a chasing mood, so I went to the craw tube.  It wasn't that long and I had my first keeper in the boat, a solid 2.18lb fish.  I quickly followed that up with a 1.71lb bass.  Then it was a pike fest for a while and Chuck filled out his limit with little keepers.  Tuma left.  I noticed a fish swirl on the surface.  I picked up a white Pure Poison/RaZor Shad and got a 1.14lb keeper on it.  We got a few more pike and it started to rain.

We headed South to try some docks.  Chuck got a rock bass.  We headed back North.  I got pike on three consecutive casts on the Pure Poison/Craw Fatty.  I also got 1.21lb and .88lb squeaker along with a few more pike.  We fished along Malkerson Island and got some more pike and a rock bass or two.  We went back to the large weed flat where Bailey/Herman were now fishing. I think Chuck got a couple of bass that didn't help and I got a few pike and missed some bites.  I also had a pike bite off my Texas Rig, so I downsized to 3/16oz sinker from 3/8th.

It started to rain harder just as we headed South and West.  We were fishing an offshore point.  Chuck and I both quickly got a small keeper.  Chuck invited me up to the front deck to fish next to him.  I had a fish pick up my Texas rig, but when I set the hook the fish had dropped it and the rig flew out of the water with the sinker nailing Chuck right in the eye.  I saw the whole thing as it happened, quite scary.  Chuck was in quite a bit of pain for a couple of minutes, but then he recovered fairly quickly after that.  I was a gun shy for a little while after that and missed some bites due to a poor hook-set because of it.

We moved back into the central part of the lake and I got some pike on a Whopper Plopper and Chuck got a small bass off of a dock.  We then went back up to the Northern part of the lake to try the starting spot getting nothing,  Chuck asked me if I had any ideas and I did, which paid off in me getting 2.50lber, my biggest of the day during the heaviest downpour.

We went back to work the large weed flat again.  I missed several fish as they bit on the upswing of my jigging motion.  Also caught a few more pike.

We tried a spot over by Chuck's starting spot and I got a very minor cull along with a rock bass and a pike or two.  We tried his starting spot one last time and then the day was done.  It quit raining during the last hour or so.

The Results:
My Fish weighted 10lbs 1ozs, which put me in 14th Place out of 28 anglers.  I jumped 2 places due to some anglers getting to the weigh-in a bit late.  Chuck had 9/14 and finished right behind me in 15th. Jim Smith won with 13/10 and Dave Branum caught a 5/01 hawg for "Lunker".

Thoughts: Both Chuck and I just didn't put enough two-pound fish in the boat.  One more 2lber would have jumped me into the top 10 and another one probably Top 6.

Final Results: