"Well I was out on a drive,
on a bit of a trip
lookin' for thrills, to get me some kicks
now i warn you folks, We cast from the hip
Fish are born with a stiff, stiff upper lip…"
Yes, we couldn’t have put it any smoother than that. Seriously, where would we be without ACDC? No TNT to Shake us all night long. No Big Guns to make us feel Safe in New York City. No Holding me Back on the Highway to Hell. Ok, that’s enough. We just Can’t Stand Still. Sorry, couldn’t help it.
Yes ladies, gentlemen, and all you readers out there in
between. We are in a rockin mood, riding the high left over from spending this
past weekend in Northern Wisconsin fishing the ************ River (sorry, would
have to kill ya). Not a cloud in the sky, okay maybe one or two, and 70 degree
weather through and through. With the sun guiding and our rods leading the way,
we left Saturday morning, early of course, on a 4 ½ hour drive to our most
prized and privy of destinations.
Toyota Camry Rental- Brand Spank'n New
After filling up for Gas and stopping for omelets and coffee
to go at a local Green Bay Perkins, we hustled in anticipation to our fate of
the weekend in hopes of small mouth bass and the occasional trout. Cruising to
our Early Morning Tunes we discussed which lures we would use and the impact of
the rain water in the river.
Due to the most recent Spring rains and Spring Creek Distributions
and Run-offs, the river was at a level of 8.20. However, it wasn’t holding, so
we knew we would see significant drop of the water line while we were there.
When the rain water comes in, the river is warmer, which of course brings the
smallies out to feed. However, once the rain water runs out, the river cools
down again. And since it is still early in the season, smallies are still on
their beds, nesting and recuperating from the excruciating pain of birth and
nagging of their husbands to go worm hunting while the female, feeling bloated
and ugly stays home to watch the babies and wallow in despair and angst at how
her scales will never be the same and…. Whew, I digress.
So after much discussion and deliberation, we arrived in the
river just in time after the sun had been up long enough to warm the water. As
we waded in, a wave of ease and attainment rushed over us as we lifted our
faces to catch the sun and grazed our hands over the water. We’re back. It was
like we were thinking the exact thing. We didn’t need to speak or look at each other. It was a mutual RiverBum thing, that can only be experienced in this
particular river. Surrounded by nothing but a national forest, rolling
boulders, rushing clear water, and rods in hands. Utter Perfection.
So, what could have made the day better? What minute,
teensy, weensy detail would have sent us over the top? Oh ya, Reeling in the
Bass…
AC Caught this Smallie on Her First Cast...
Like Mike Bass
Who needs a Cameraman?
A Bridge too Far Bass
hiding under a boulder
A Fish Out of Water
First Top Water Bass
of the year! (Chugger/orange bottom)
Smallie hiding
in a pool outside the weeds of an island.
Pregnant Bass= Hungry
+ Fiesty
Bass hiding off the
eddy of a rapid and big Boulder
AC about to go
swimming…
Nothing But Net Baby
Showing Off
Caught in the Rapids
Biggest Bass of the
weekend!
A Dark Side Bass
hiding in a pool surrounded by boulders and silty bottom
Display in Style
If you haven’t guessed
already, we had a somewhat productive time casting. Yes, you can admit it; you
wish you had been there.
Hours in the river: 8
Miles waded: 2
Fish Caught: 30
Clear Skies, Clear Water, Clear Mind: Priceless
There are some things money CAN buy and this ain’t one
of them.
So we trudged out of the river around 7:00 pm, sore,
burnt, and perfectly happy. After de-wading and packing out, AC and Dad
rock/paper/scissored to see whether they would be staying in a hotel or a tent.
AC had tent, Dad had hotel. Dad won, as usual. So, camping was put on the back
burner due to Dad’s real Back burner (old age- and yes Dad, that was a diss.)
On that note, we headed over to the Holiday Inn, picked up wraps and a pack of pilsners
on the way and were out as quickly as the last beer was guzzled down.
Sunday morning we woke to the sounds of birds humming
and…ok, so we didn’t wake to birds humming, more like the sounds of our alarm
clocks pushing us to get dressed for church. Mass started at 7:30, so we were
up by 6, dressed by 6:30 (AC took a long shower) and down for coffee and fake eggs
by 7:00. It took us a while to find the church which is scary because there
were only maybe 30 inhabitants in town and the downtown consisted of a DQ and a
lantern antiques shop. After mass, we B-lined it to the river. We had a 30
minute drive to this one spot we were looking forward too.
Along the way, we discussed our plan of attack. We had
been watching the water level on the DNR USG site through AC’s handy dandy
Iphone and noticed the level was decreasing. The rain water was emptying which
meant the water was getting colder. Good for trout, bad for smallies. So, we
knew we would have to work extra hard today. Casting closer to the boulders,
slowing down on our retrievals, and setting the hook harder. This would also
mean that we would put the top water lures away (because they are best for hot
days and feistier fish) and focus on crawdad patterns, bottom feeders. That way
we could slowly drop them up and down off the bottom, enticing the fish low on
their beds.
This also meant we could try our crawdad patterns which look like this...
Crawdad Pattern Lure
As we started fishing, we noticed the smallies were sticking closer to the boulders and not biting as well as Saturday. The water was much cooler and so we knew we would have to stay in spots longer, cast more, and slow down the lures so that the smallies would bite...
Bum's Eye View
This was right after AC lost a rainbow trout. She had caught him in the rapids, which goes to show that because trout are more accustomed to cold temperatures, they can stand the fast rapid water better than the smallies.
Reeling in a Bass on the Flats
AC had run into a hunting decoy goose while bush-whacking it on a small island. The details that follow are a bit hazy, but they look a little like this...
Crouching Bum Hidden Goose
Send us your best
caption for this picture and the winner we choose will get a FREE Riverbums
Bumper Sticker and their caption displayed in our blog.
He Walks on Water Too...
A New Friend
Caught along a fallen tree...Wood down!
Dad Casting the Shore
Smallie caught under the boulder
Excellent Coloring
Red-Eye Sally
Where AC wants to get married - No booking fee necessary
Close up!
Saying Goodbye to the River
So after 5 hours in the river, we caught only 10 bass and lost one trout. But, the weekend was immaculate, the river perfect, and the casting was Pro. Yellow twisty tails with yellow jigs did the trick for the smallies on Saturday where as the bottom feeders (crawdads, green tubers) were the likely choice of bait on sunday.
Well, it looks as if this upcoming weekend is going to be sans-fishing. But, don't worry, we are planning a big Memorial Fishmorgasbord. So Until next time, we'll see ya on the other side of the river...
Cast Away,
AC & Dad
