BWCA Trip Report - Memorable Moments on the Water: 2011 Boundary Waters Trip Reports
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walleye_hunter
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12/29/2011 08:55PM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
New Trip Report posted by walleye_hunter

Trip Name: Memorable Moments on the Water: 2011.

Entry Point: Other

Click Here to View Trip Report
 
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TuscaroraBorealis
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12/30/2011 06:57AM  
Looks to me like you had a good year. Always nice to hear about someone being able to do what they love most. Thanks for taking the time to share your adventures.
12/30/2011 02:42PM  
Good job walleye_hunter...and I hope you left a few fish for my friend Izzy, as he like's to catch em also! :)
Also, enjoyed the photo's and especially that you took your MOM, that was really nice! Happy New Year, and thanks for the Psalm.
SunCatcher
12/30/2011 06:06PM  
what a great summer you had, kevin! glad you took your mom along on some of these trips, she's a real outdoors woman, esp opening weekend on a crazy windy lake.
felt like i was right with you landing those fish and watching some get away.
looking forward to hearing about winter trout fishing 2012.
01/08/2012 08:26AM  
I love reading about trips like this. You are living the dream. And I completely know the feeling of losing a big fish. That kind of thing will stick with me for awhile. But - some of those you guys landed were real beauties. How big was that one your friend got at night? That had to be 30 inches right?
bruceye
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01/10/2012 11:17PM  
Wow WH! What a great trip(s) report! You garnered my attention a couple years ago when you mentioned the importance of finding "the spot on the spot". Like yourself, I also prefer live bait, namely, leeches, over artificials with the exeption that I trend towards lead head jigs instead of slip bobbers. But after reading this and some of your other post's, I may have to give bobber fishing another go. One of my phobias with drift fishing at a set depth is, as you well know, that on the shield lakes, your bait will be suspended in that 1-2 ft off the bottom range right were you want to be, but a few seconds later, your either 30 ft off the bottom or stuck to the rocks. How do you control that when you're fishing break lines and humps? Or are you fishing suspended fish on the thermocline? Or am I putting like, way too much thought into this? :)

Hope to see you at Duluth/Cloquet wingnight!

walleye_hunter
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01/11/2012 10:36AM  
quote TomT: "You are living the dream."

I have had a lot of time to fish in recent years but that will change this summer with a baby on the way. I am excited about this next chapter in life though.
walleye_hunter
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01/11/2012 10:49AM  
Bruceye-
I probably have more stories than answers. I fish actively with my bobbers trying to find that ‘spot on a spot’. A decent sized walleye is an awesome predator that can get a meal when it pleases, and really doesn’t have a reason to swim too far from its nice shaded rock just to grab a leech or night crawler. I try to focus on fishing specific rocks, not just a reef.

If I have a lot of confidence in a particular area I will fish my bobbers at a lot of different depths. For instance; if I were anchored off the side of a rock pile where a little 18’ flat butts against a rise I will try a few depths on that little flat. The fish might be belly to the bottom or they might prefer if the bait is a few feet off the bottom. Let the fish tell you what they want. I won’t let my bobber sit and drift until it gets snagged in 10’ of water. If I want to fish the top off a rock pile for a minute I will set my bobber shallow and cast it up there.

This summer I was fishing a nice finger with a friend one evening and decided to set my bobber stop so it was a few feet off the bottom while my friend was only about 6” off the bottom. After I caught 3 quick fish I told him what I had done. Two years ago while I was fishing a 14’ rock pile I started catching fish like crazy when I cast way out to the shaded side. My bobber was set at 14’ but I was over 30-40’ of water.

A big walleye that is actively feeding on a rock pile will probably willingly take a jumbo leech whether it is presented with a bobber, jig, or rig. I like bobbers, small hooks, and light line in a lot of clear water situations during the day cause it often gives me the best chance of catching a big walleye without spooking it. I think there are better methods at night though and if I want to become the real deal when it comes to big walleyes I need to spend more nights on the water. I have heard of big walleyes exploding at spinner baits that were heaved up on rock piles by guys casting for pike which makes me wonder why I am not out casting big crank baits at night.
01/13/2012 10:12PM  
quote walleye_hunter: "
quote TomT: "You are living the dream."

I have had a lot of time to fish in recent years but that will change this summer with a baby on the way. I am excited about this next chapter in life though."


congratulations on the baby news, Kevin! very exciting, indeed!
walleye_hunter
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01/14/2012 07:55AM  
Thanks Sheryl, we're excited. The due date is the beginning of July so I probably won't be up that way much this summer.
01/14/2012 09:28AM  
Nice report WH. I liked the way you reported on the entire season. You are indeed a "walleye master." And congrats on the little hunter heading your way.
01/14/2012 10:58AM  
Very interesting! I have not been able to fish as much during the 'new year'. Our first was born on Dec 25th. One month early but this way he may be ready for opener this spring:) A guy can wish!
 
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