DADAKOTA

Another topic where each person argues for their own interests. One reason I like living on the west side is the accessibility to many, many quality lakes. However, growing up in The Lou I floated and fished rivers and creeks. Not so much of that over here, but there is some in swmo. For a person that loves the lake scene the eastside is not the place to be. I remember the wars over the Meramec dam. I think I need a float.

You must really like walleye then Wrench.. Whether I'm fishing for bass or crappie or whatever I like to put my lure in spots that other fisherman haven't or can't put a bait. Making a proper presentation in these difficult areas results in more fish.

Any of you veterans care to shed some light on the fall bite?

Nicely done lmt out!

Build in the flood plain you will get wet. Build on the top of the hill you stay dry. Seems simple to me.

I never tire of reading your adventures Al.

Amazing set of quality smallies you have taken this year.

I'm still a newbie to the Stockton walleye fishing. I have no idea where to look for walleye in the fall. I'd assume they would follow the shad and get off the main lake and into the creeks, but I could be wrong. Maybe some of the experienced walleye hunters can shed some light on the fall bite.

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A buddy and I got on the lake Thursday evening and bounced numerous walleye w/2 keepers, some large gills, and a couple keeper crappie as well as assorted bass, drum, cats, etc. Friday morning we bounced several more walleye with only one keeper. Decided to pull some cranks and added 2 more keeper walleye including one a shade over 20 inches. Caught some more crappie as well. Saturday we headed to Mutton Creek to see new water. Mainly pulled cranks and only found 1 short walleye a few keeper crappie and many white bass. Some large whites at that. Whites were from the channel point of Googer back in to where the creek goes left. 18 - 22 ft. about 2 mph. Also jigged up several off a pile on that same run. Several whisker fish on that run as well. Back to the confluence area on Sunday morning. Could not bounce a single walleye but we cranked up another 1/2 dozen nice crappie. All total we ended up with 20 or so crappie and 5 keeper walleye that will make a nice fish fry. Never caught a fish on a flick-r shad of any species. Best color bandit was mad cow. Probably accounted for 90% of our bites. Had a great time. Would have liked a few more keeper walleye and crappie bites, but that is fishing. Did not have my Tonneau broken into like on my last trip to State Park so that was a plus. Got surveyed by an MDC employee while in Googer. Wanted to know where we were from, how long we had been fishing, and how we did on various species. He said the guys doing the best on crappie were fishing brush in 20-25 feet of water with minnows. Nice fellow. Can't believe the size of some of the boats on that lake now. Felt like the Ozarks at times.

With the advances in depth finders, GPS, side imaging, down imaging, hydro wave, fish balls, let alone rods/reels/line/lures, etc. the sport of fishing is becoming more like a video game. To me part of fishing is the unknown that becomes known with time on the water. Found many a brushpile with a Carolina rig. Had to learn how to triangulate in order to find the pile again. Now you just download the piles onto the lake mapping system on your graph. At times I think the sport is evolving into catching and not fishing. Sure is fun to take a techno trained "fisherman" out on a river with no electronics other than the synapses in your brain. They often struggle as compared to someone who has an awareness of the activity level occurring in their surroundings, who can read the water, knows the fish they are after, understand the food source, the impacts of weather, structure, and cover. Many times when deer, birds, raccoon, insect, etc. are active the fish are feeding as well. Some never notice what is going on around them. A lot of folks can't find fish without all their gadgets.

Nice fish. Were you by chance using mono when you impaled yourself? The stretch in mono is like pulling back a slingshot. Lots of energy upon release from wherever your bait was snagged. Always turn your head when trying to pull one free. The son of my Dad's friend was live bait fishing on a creek and became snagged. The line broke a the hook and the split shot ended up hitting him directly in the eye. He lost his eye by not turning his head. Fluoro does not recoil as badly when it breaks as mono does and braid is far less.

Come up and look at the zebra mussels in Lake Lotawana. I've seen pontoons come out of there where you could not put another mussel anywhere below waterline. They also add extra weight to docks, lifts, etc. and have caused issues that way as well. I have heard they do not like environments where the water gets real warm.

Nice video. Really enjoyed it. Bringing a buddy down to try and catch some toothy critters this weekend. Painted up some spoons so might give that a try.

Dang. Maybe I should sell my box of warts.

Love seeing those brookies. Reminds me of trips to the UP when I was younger. From about 5th grade into my college years my Dad, brother, and I would go up every summer to catch brookies and sometimes a few walleyes from the creeks and rivers around Republic and Rapid River. Brook trout are fun to catch and make superb table fare. Smoked brook trout may be the finest smoked fish on the planet. Truly gourmet fare. My biggest was right at 26 inches long.

What did they do with them once they caught them?

How aboput the multi hook ones with a spinner and beads on them?

Couple of nice trips. Hope I can find them the 19th - 21st.

Just regular gorilla glue? Or do they make a carpet adhesive?

Decoys are great for jug lining.

Used to troll 1/4 ounce rooster tails at Stockton and catch crappie and whites. Used a Signa Keel from the Marlynn Lure Company ahead of our rooster tails on spinning tackle. Seemed to eliminate the line twist. Don't know why it wouldn't work on a baitcaster. The instructions that came with the keels says, "Signa Keel - A permanent attachment for underwater spinning lures. Attach split ring on keel to front of lure. Snap line into front hole in keel. No swivel necessary."

Love trips like that. My wife and I call it wandering. No itinerary to keep just mosey along and stop and see whatever you want. We get off the interstate and meander along the state and county highways and roads. About the only rule we have is no eating at any chain restaurant. Find some really neat places. From wineries to museums to craft breweries to you name it. A few years back we wandered from the Lienenkugel brewery in West Central Wisconsin all the way to the tip of Door County.

Dandy fish.

I took a piece of plexiglass and made an insert for my livewell with a much smaller opening than the livewell itself. Definitely helps keep them from jumping out. Watched a fish escape a competitors livewell at a local championship tourney. The drop in places cost those boys over $500.