rps

That's a good day for a post front clear skies day.

Too easy? I was out 6 hours and caught two keepers. (I don't count bass keepers when I am fishing walleye, just as I don't count keeper walleye when I am fishing bass.) I burned close to four boxes of night crawlers. Do you have any idea how many wake boats went by and I had to rock there and pretend it did not matter? Or the PWC that thought it was fun to go round and round me? Too easy? At least if you are in the trees, the insert descriptive word of your choice here do not come right around you. To be clear: I had a great day on the lake and I bet the other folks wish they had as much fun as I did.

Green clear with some debris still washing down. Depending on location 4 to 8 feet.

I figured as much. Why else would he tout a location chock full of spots?

I really did stay on the upper end today. I put some ribs on the smoker this morning and went out to fish around 9:00. First I followed Bill Babler's recommendation and fished the flat at Roaring River from 12 feet out to 30 feet - 7 or 8 passes. I used up two boxes of night crawlers on spotted bass but finally connected with a keeper walleye I saw suspended at 28 feet over a 30 foot bottom. I don't actually see a single fish and then catch it very often. I bought more worms and fished the flat in front of Eagle Rock. More spotted bass and I lost what looked like a keeper walleye at the boat. I motored back to the Holiday Island area and repeated the pattern at a flat roll off into the channel. One short and another keeper walleye. It was time to take the ribs off so I came in.

Outstanding! BTW another spice I sometimes use is Cavenders Greek seasoning.

Served with a baked veggie dish:

Works equally well with white bass, crappie, or filleted catfish. One great alternative is to mix 1/2 trout with 1/2 white fish.

Serve it with a peach salsa.

I have fished two of the three locations Bill mentioned, one very frequently. The other is where I had an incredible 4th of July in the rain one year where I caught three walleye and a spot trolling a crank and all four fish were in the 4 pound range. Biggest spot I have ever caught on TR. Thing is, so far this year, I haven't gotten one bite on smooth gravel. The only things I have caught have been on changes and junk.

Dice the walleye. Add panko, chives, leeks, Old Bay, salt, and pepper. Add one beaten egg and mix. Form into patties/cakes. Pan fry as if chicken in neutral oil with just a touch of butter.

No one misses the top water bite more than I.

Oh. I forgot about you.

This morning I left the marina very early and motored down lake nearly to Big M. There I ran into a long time acquaintance I had not seen for a while. He has a place on Owl Creek and likes to fish walleyes. He used to fish often with Martin, an OA member who passed last year. We began to fish the same structure. I was deep because last time I was out the fish I found were deep. He fished 15 feet of water. He lost two, caught a short and then picked up three keeper walleye. He kindly invited me up into the shallow water he was fishing and that was the kiss of death. I managed one short and he stopped getting bites. He headed back to his place and I began looking for something new and different. Bill Babler does not like me to go down lake of Big M. He's afraid I might play with his pet fish. I went anyway since I was only walleye fishing. All bass I caught were immediately released unharmed. I wound up catching four walleye with two keepers. Now I will break the rule. Where I caught them is so far from me I won't be back for probably another year. How I caught them is so challenging I doubt many will even attempt it. So I will share explicit details. Find point 23. Stay on the same side and go back uplake to the first cove. Both points at the entrance to the cove are timbered, rocky, 45 to 60 degree banks. I fished both points with a 1.5 ounce bottom bouncer on 50 feet of line at 1.2 mph using one of the worm harnesses I make in firetiger. That put the bait 25 to 28 feet down. I was in 30 to 40 feet of water fishing the rig through brush and tree tops. Why would I break the rule? Can you imagine how much joy it will bring me to think of some desperate soul trying to execute that pattern and stay sane? (Insert maniacal laugh.)

Oh. My. I just gave away way too much information. (Alec Guiness voice in Star Wars - You heard nothing.)

I fished between the stickups just upriver of Holiday Island and Fletcher's old place.

If I have a walleye in the box already, I keep large bluegills. They are a PIA to fillet, but they taste so good.

Gentlemen, (insert Groucho Marx voice) and I use the term loosely, some really fine fishermen fish from very unpretentious vessels. Some really fine fishermen fish from rigs I would love to own (want to give me yours Quillback?) It's not about the ride. It's about the attitude. Ray Scott had it wrong. Fishing is not competitive. Neither are the vessels we use.

I think if you actually make the sauce I listed above, you will discover it's a reddish coffee in color and spicy sweet with a twang. My goal was to keep the mustard sauce twang but soften and sweeten it like our more traditional sauces.

Wayne! You have stumbled on the essence of barbecue! Take the tough, hard to eat, cheap leftovers after the rich folks take their choice. Then you figure out a way to cook it so well that the rich folks pay you to buy it. Pulled pork Collards Ribs Chittlin's Pork rinds Souse

Most people release the bass, but everyone keeps and eats my walleye. Bass reproduce naturally. Walleye are put and take on Table Rock. Does something seem odd here? Actually, I don't find this odd at all. Walleye are in the top five of tasty fresh water fish (I would also name bluegill, yellow perch, cold water crappie, and clear lake catfish in the listing).

Wouldn't be complete without the horseradish cole slaw to go on the sandwich, would it? I used farmers market cabbage, red carrots, and green onions with store bought Granny Smiths and a Food Network sauce I have modified a bit.

I happened to be using a chartreuse beads with fire tiger blade, but I don't know if that is a real preference.

I aim at 200 to 225, but brief periods of up to 250 are fine. I use a Weber bullet and rely on this site: www.virtualweberbullet.com ​By the time I pulled the pig out this morning, the temp was down to 185 on the first load of charcoal.

I took an internet recipe for Carolina style mustard sauce and changed it to make it more "friendly" without changing the sweet and tart that I liked. Ingredients: 1.5 cups yellow mustard 1.5 cups tomato sauce 1 cup (packed) brown sugar 1 cup apple cider vinegar 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar 1.5 cups beer 1 Tbs. Chili powder 1 Tbs. black pepper 1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce 1 Tbs. Liquid Smoke 4 Tbs. butter 1 Tbs. Franks Red Hot sauce 2 tsp. smoky paprika 1 tsp. Chinese five spice 1/2 tsp. onion powder 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder Method: Combine all ingredients in a non-reactive sauce pan and simmer over low heat without boiling for 30 minutes. The sauce will need to rest for a few hours in the refrigerator so the vinegar softens and melds.