Hey, Gang.
I thought we were all going to dodge that "tough bite" bullet this season on the Bay. With everything else that usually spelled a tough bite having little if any effect on the catch rate this year, I just assumed the bite would remain great until it simply stopped dead after our first frost in mid-September. But all bets are off, and the new learning curve we must all get a handle on because of our new naturally spawned fishery is still being laid out. The walleyes for the most part, still seem to be in the same places they were prior to this change that started 2 weeks ago with that first hard N NE blow. In fact, that blow seems to have triggered the perch into action, as many more people are finding bigger and more perch these last 2 weeks. All this may be linked as too why one specie goes on the feed and the other goes off. Or it might be the times that they feed, how much they feed or what they're feeding on has changed. Don't get me wrong, it hasn't gone completely dead. I'm still catching 10 to 12 walleyes and keeping 5 or 6 legal fish per trip. But a far cry from what was going on all summer.
Most of the fish I am catching are right tight to the bottom, and this is one facet of the game that seems to have remained the same this year as in years past. As dredging the bottom has always paid off and been the norm during the late August/early September timeframe. I'm still running Cranks 90 to 130 back with a piece of crawler on the belly hook for extra incentive. And my running speeds are still above 2.3 MPH. I'm thinking that I'll be pulling my big boat about mid-September this year and gearing up for the fall/early winter river fishery in my Jet Boat, so this may be my last Bay report. All in all its been a terrific year for walleyes. Our walleye fishery has changed these last 3 years and all of the anxiety, worry and questioning we have had about our DNR's decision not to plant walleyes in the Bay this year may have just been that, worry. I hope we're on the right track, and what started this year sustains itself in future seasons to come.
We who live on and fish on the Saginaw Bay and its tributaries are truly blessed with its beauty and bounty. It hasn't always been that way as people over 40 years old well know. As a whole, we need to keep an eye on her and keep her steward's and users informed about her welfare. One of the pet pieves I have, is the trash I see and pick up during the winter (ice fishing) months. If its not to much trouble to carry out full, it can't be that much more trouble to carry back empty. I'll end this report like so many others with a couple of my recent charter pictures and the wish that you stay safe, fish smart and have tight lines. Capt. Dan.
