Today Joe and I decided to do some panfishing together, so we started down by the Birches in 12 feet of water and drifted toward shore with the aid of the 5-12 mph wind out of the west. We used jigs tipped with 2" Gulp lime-green grubs and caught numerous perch, crappie and rock bass. Joe even hooked a pike.
After an hour or so of catching panfish, we moved our Lund 1800 IFS to the reeds and grass in front of Norm's cabin to do some bass fishing. We switched to 4/0 offset hooks and 5" Senkos rigged weightless Texas style. We each caught a nice largemouth bass in the neighborhood of 18".
The temperature today was 72 degrees and the water temperature had dropped to 71 degrees.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Periodic Reminder
For those reading this blog, the reason you're seeing August 2008 posts in April 2009, is that last year I spent roughly 6 months at our lake house on Leech Lake and was so into living life at the lake that I spent very little time in front of the PC.
During that time I kept a day-to-day, hand-written fishing journal where I recorded the air and water temperature, wind speed, other relevant weather data, fish caught, tackle used, fishing location, and tidbits of information about what was going on in my life.
Now that I'm back in California, I decided to post my fishing journal notes on my Fishing Leech Lake blog in chronological order.
Now on to the rest of August's posts.
During that time I kept a day-to-day, hand-written fishing journal where I recorded the air and water temperature, wind speed, other relevant weather data, fish caught, tackle used, fishing location, and tidbits of information about what was going on in my life.
Now that I'm back in California, I decided to post my fishing journal notes on my Fishing Leech Lake blog in chronological order.
Now on to the rest of August's posts.
August 26, 2008
It was back to work today. A couple of days ago Joe, Kathleen and I stained the lake-side deck. Today, while Kathleen took her Mom and sister back to St. Cloud, Joe and I stained the front porch.
It was a nice day to work outside, with the temperature hitting 80 degrees as a high, winds out of the SW at 8-17 mph and clear blue skies.
It took us most of the day to get the porch stained, and I was just cleaning up when Kathleen returned from St. Cloud.
We all enjoyed a cold, malted beverage on the dock as we watched the sun sink into the western sky. Although there was no fishing today, it was still another great day at Leech Lake.
It was a nice day to work outside, with the temperature hitting 80 degrees as a high, winds out of the SW at 8-17 mph and clear blue skies.
It took us most of the day to get the porch stained, and I was just cleaning up when Kathleen returned from St. Cloud.
We all enjoyed a cold, malted beverage on the dock as we watched the sun sink into the western sky. Although there was no fishing today, it was still another great day at Leech Lake.
August 25, 2008 on Leech Lake
After four days of being stuck on shore, I was finally back on Leech Lake fishing today!
The sky was sunny, the temperature was 72 degrees, the winds were 5-12 mph out of the SSW. I hit the water at 1:30 p.m. to do some drifting for panfish -- I was curious if the great panfish bite from a week ago was still on.
I drifted from our house north to the Birches in 8-10 feet of water along the weed line. I used a 1/16 oz. firetiger colored Northland Neon-tone Gum-Ball jig tipped with Gulp 2 1/2" minnows. For a little added flash, I attached a #3 silver Colorado blade spinner to the jig.
By 4:45 p.m., I had caught numerous rock bass, bluegills, perch and crappie, but none of them the size of the fish I was catching a week ago. Nonetheless, it was a great day of fishing on Leech Lake.
The sky was sunny, the temperature was 72 degrees, the winds were 5-12 mph out of the SSW. I hit the water at 1:30 p.m. to do some drifting for panfish -- I was curious if the great panfish bite from a week ago was still on.
I drifted from our house north to the Birches in 8-10 feet of water along the weed line. I used a 1/16 oz. firetiger colored Northland Neon-tone Gum-Ball jig tipped with Gulp 2 1/2" minnows. For a little added flash, I attached a #3 silver Colorado blade spinner to the jig.
By 4:45 p.m., I had caught numerous rock bass, bluegills, perch and crappie, but none of them the size of the fish I was catching a week ago. Nonetheless, it was a great day of fishing on Leech Lake.
August 24, 2008
Although today would have been a great day to go fishing, Joe, Kathleen and I spent the entire day staining the lake-front deck on our Leech Lake house.
The temperature today was a perfect 72 degrees, the winds were light at 5-10 mph out of the south and the sky was mostly sunny.
We took only a small break from our project around 1:00 p.m. to have some lunch, and didn't wrap up until nearly 7:00 p.m. It was a long day, but if felt good to get the deck stained. It hadn't been done in two years, and it really needed it.
No fishing today.
The temperature today was a perfect 72 degrees, the winds were light at 5-10 mph out of the south and the sky was mostly sunny.
We took only a small break from our project around 1:00 p.m. to have some lunch, and didn't wrap up until nearly 7:00 p.m. It was a long day, but if felt good to get the deck stained. It hadn't been done in two years, and it really needed it.
No fishing today.
August 23, 2008
Breezy conditions today on Leech Lake
We still have more than a week to go before September, but here in the Northwoods of Minnesota, on the shores of massive Leech Lake, it feels like autumn weather has arrived.
At 9:45 a.m. the skies were partly cloudy, the winds were blowing out of the SW at a stiff 12-17 mph and the temperature was only 58 degees. It's hard to believe that just three days ago I was in the boat wearing shorts and a T-shirt under sunny skies and a temperature of 85 degrees.
As the day wore on, the winds shifted from the SW to the NW, and increased in speed to 15-17 mph and it did warm up to 68 degrees. Since the lake was still churning with white caps, Joe and I decided that we'd power wash the house in preparation of us staining the lake-side deck and the porch on the front of the house.
No fishing today.
Joe power washing the deck on the Leech Lake house (that's our dog Elsa watching through the sliding glass door)
August 22, 2008
Today's weather was as intense as I've seen in some months. The temperature in the late morning was 82 degrees under overcast skies. The winds were out of the SSW at 20-30 mph, creating huge swells and white caps on the lake. By midday it started to rain very hard, and the temperature began to drop.
No more than a half an hour after the rain started, it slowed and eventually stopped. Unfortunately we didn't get enough rain to raise the water level of the lake. I checked the temperature again and it had fallen all the way to 66 degrees -- a 16 degree drop in just a couple of hours.
The wind let up a little, but was still blowing at 15-20 mph out of the SSW. Today was another day that I didn't go fishing on Leech Lake. It was simply too rough.
For dinner, I did decide to fry up the perch and walleye that I had cleaned last night. We had a wonderful Leech Lake fish fry complete with French fries, cole slaw, roles and hearty malted beverages. We all raised our glasses to toast Kathleen's mom, because today marked what would have been her 58th wedding anniversary. God bless you John.
No more than a half an hour after the rain started, it slowed and eventually stopped. Unfortunately we didn't get enough rain to raise the water level of the lake. I checked the temperature again and it had fallen all the way to 66 degrees -- a 16 degree drop in just a couple of hours.
The wind let up a little, but was still blowing at 15-20 mph out of the SSW. Today was another day that I didn't go fishing on Leech Lake. It was simply too rough.
For dinner, I did decide to fry up the perch and walleye that I had cleaned last night. We had a wonderful Leech Lake fish fry complete with French fries, cole slaw, roles and hearty malted beverages. We all raised our glasses to toast Kathleen's mom, because today marked what would have been her 58th wedding anniversary. God bless you John.
August 21, 2008
The temperature today was again 85 degrees, but the winds had shifted and increased dramatically in speed. The wind today was out of the SW at 20-30 mph. The lake was covered in 4- to 5-foot swells and white caps.
I stayed on shore today, but later in the evening I did clean the fish for tomorrow's fish fry.
No fishing on Leech Lake today.
I stayed on shore today, but later in the evening I did clean the fish for tomorrow's fish fry.
No fishing on Leech Lake today.
August 20, 2008 on Leech Lake
With Kathleen's mother and sister visiting us (me, Kathleen and Joe), if we were going to have a fish fry I needed to catch a few more fish. So I hit the water's of Leech Lake today at 2:00 p.m. with the goal of catching several jumbo perch or a couple of eater-sized walleyes.
The weather today was almost identical to yesterday -- a temperature of 85 degrees, winds varying from calm to 8-10 mph out of the NW, mostly sunny skies and a water temperature of 77 degrees.
With the weather identical to yesterday, and since yesterday was one of the best days I've had on Leech Lake fishing for panfish, I decided to employ the same tactics in the same location. And once again it paid off.
I started fishing in 12" of water in front of Schiebe's cabin and drifted SE along the weed line toward our cabin. I used the same 1/16 oz. yellow Northland Neon-tone Gum-Ball jig tipped with a variety of 2" lime-green Gulp grubs, 2 1/2" Gulp minnows in smelt or shiner color, and 3" Gulp Alive! minnows in an emerald shiner color.
I caught dozens upon dozens of perch, including numerous jumbos, lots of pound-plus sized crappies and a few big bluegill. I kept only what I needed for a nice dinner for five -- 3 jumbo perch. Along with the two jumbos and the walleye from yesterday, I had just enough for a fish fry.
At 4:45 p.m., with my mission accomplished, I headed for shore. One small note: upon reviewing the size of the 5 perch in my basket, I decided to let one of them go. The four jumbo perch and 16 1/2" walleye would be more than enough food for the five of us. No sense wasting fish.
Here's an example of the jumbo perch I was catching.
The weather today was almost identical to yesterday -- a temperature of 85 degrees, winds varying from calm to 8-10 mph out of the NW, mostly sunny skies and a water temperature of 77 degrees.
With the weather identical to yesterday, and since yesterday was one of the best days I've had on Leech Lake fishing for panfish, I decided to employ the same tactics in the same location. And once again it paid off.
I started fishing in 12" of water in front of Schiebe's cabin and drifted SE along the weed line toward our cabin. I used the same 1/16 oz. yellow Northland Neon-tone Gum-Ball jig tipped with a variety of 2" lime-green Gulp grubs, 2 1/2" Gulp minnows in smelt or shiner color, and 3" Gulp Alive! minnows in an emerald shiner color.
I caught dozens upon dozens of perch, including numerous jumbos, lots of pound-plus sized crappies and a few big bluegill. I kept only what I needed for a nice dinner for five -- 3 jumbo perch. Along with the two jumbos and the walleye from yesterday, I had just enough for a fish fry.
At 4:45 p.m., with my mission accomplished, I headed for shore. One small note: upon reviewing the size of the 5 perch in my basket, I decided to let one of them go. The four jumbo perch and 16 1/2" walleye would be more than enough food for the five of us. No sense wasting fish.
Here's an example of the jumbo perch I was catching.
August 19, 2008 on Leech Lake
I spent nearly five hours fishing today, although I love being on Leech Lake so much, that the time went so quickly that if you had asked me, I probably would have guessed I was fishing for no more than an hour and a half.
I left the cabin at 12:30 p.m. under mostly sunny skies, variable winds from near calm to 8-10 mph out of the NW, a temperature of 85 degrees or warmer and a water temperature of 77 degrees.
I again started my fishing in 12 feet of water in front of Schiebe's cabin and drifted SE toward our cabin along the weed line, a distance of roughly 3/4 of a mile.
Like yesterday, I used the 1/16 oz. yellow Northland Gum-Ball jig, tipped with either lime-green 2" Gulp grubs, 2 1/2" Gulp minnows in smelt or shiner color, or 3" Gulp Alive! minnows in the emerald shiner color.
I caught one nice eater-sized walleye (about 16 1/2 inches), more perch than I can count, upwards of 75, including several large jumbos, lots of bluegill, and a number of pound-plus slab crappies. The panfish bite has been outstanding for the past 7-10 days, but today was by far the best action of the lot. I decided to keep the walleye and two of the jumbo perch for a later fish fry.
I finally headed home at 5:00 p.m., even though I would have sworn it couldn't have been later than 2:30 p.m. Another fantastic day of fishing on Leech Lake.
Upon my arrival at the cabin, I found that Kathleen's mother and Kathleen's sister, Margaret, had arrived. I knew they were coming for visit, but figured they wouldn't arrive until later that evening. It was nice to see both of them again, and I promised them a fish dinner with the walleye and perch I caught today. Although I thought to myself that we'll need a few more jumbo perch or a nice walleye to ensure we have enough fish for all of us (I guess I'll have to fishing again tomorrow). Everyone loves a fresh fish fry when visiting Leech Lake.
I left the cabin at 12:30 p.m. under mostly sunny skies, variable winds from near calm to 8-10 mph out of the NW, a temperature of 85 degrees or warmer and a water temperature of 77 degrees.
I again started my fishing in 12 feet of water in front of Schiebe's cabin and drifted SE toward our cabin along the weed line, a distance of roughly 3/4 of a mile.
Like yesterday, I used the 1/16 oz. yellow Northland Gum-Ball jig, tipped with either lime-green 2" Gulp grubs, 2 1/2" Gulp minnows in smelt or shiner color, or 3" Gulp Alive! minnows in the emerald shiner color.
I caught one nice eater-sized walleye (about 16 1/2 inches), more perch than I can count, upwards of 75, including several large jumbos, lots of bluegill, and a number of pound-plus slab crappies. The panfish bite has been outstanding for the past 7-10 days, but today was by far the best action of the lot. I decided to keep the walleye and two of the jumbo perch for a later fish fry.
I finally headed home at 5:00 p.m., even though I would have sworn it couldn't have been later than 2:30 p.m. Another fantastic day of fishing on Leech Lake.
Upon my arrival at the cabin, I found that Kathleen's mother and Kathleen's sister, Margaret, had arrived. I knew they were coming for visit, but figured they wouldn't arrive until later that evening. It was nice to see both of them again, and I promised them a fish dinner with the walleye and perch I caught today. Although I thought to myself that we'll need a few more jumbo perch or a nice walleye to ensure we have enough fish for all of us (I guess I'll have to fishing again tomorrow). Everyone loves a fresh fish fry when visiting Leech Lake.
August 18, 2008 on Leech Lake
Under partly cloudy skies, a temperature of 82 degrees and winds out of the NW at 8-17 mph, I again continued my week long hunt for trophy panfish on Leech Lake. I left the boat lift at 3:00 p.m. and had to battle some pretty big waves and white caps as a result of the stiff wind. The water temperature, I noted, had increased to 77 degrees due to the 80+ degree temps we've had for the past several days.
My fishing location today was in 8-11 feet of water from in front of Schiebe's cabin drifting SE toward our cabin along the weed line.
Despite the wind, I decided to try a smaller jig than I've used for the past several days. Today I tied on a 1/16 oz. yellow Northland Gum-Ball jig, and tipped it with either lime-green 2" Gulp grubs or 3" Gulp Alive! minnows in smelt color. I caught numerous perch, including some nice jumbos, a number of beautiful slab black crappie and a few nice bluegills.
Around 5:00 p.m. I headed back to shore. On my way I noticed a boat with an Illinois license and saw they had a bag full of fish off the back. Typical FIB meat hunters.
My fishing location today was in 8-11 feet of water from in front of Schiebe's cabin drifting SE toward our cabin along the weed line.
Despite the wind, I decided to try a smaller jig than I've used for the past several days. Today I tied on a 1/16 oz. yellow Northland Gum-Ball jig, and tipped it with either lime-green 2" Gulp grubs or 3" Gulp Alive! minnows in smelt color. I caught numerous perch, including some nice jumbos, a number of beautiful slab black crappie and a few nice bluegills.
Around 5:00 p.m. I headed back to shore. On my way I noticed a boat with an Illinois license and saw they had a bag full of fish off the back. Typical FIB meat hunters.
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