June 25, 2011 -- On Leech Lake

This morning the temperature was 60 degrees at 9:15 a.m., the wind was variable from 8-17 mph out of the SSW and the sky was mostly sunny.

By 11:00 a.m. my parents had loaded up their car and were heading down West Shores Road on their way back to Illinios. We had a very nice visit with them.

Kathleen and I enjoyed our coffee on the back porch, ate some breakfast and then temporarily went our separate ways. Kathleen went running, while I went fishing.

Since it was Saturday, there were about 10 boats motoring around from Second Duck Point to our house. After getting my boat out onto the 68 degree water, I joined them in the general area.

The sun was shining, the temperature was 72 degrees, and the wind was still fairly strong at 12-15 mph out of the SSE when I dropped my jig tipped with a leech into 10-12 feet of water. With the stiff wind blowing I opted to use a slightly heavier jig and tied on a 1/4 ounce parrot colored Gumball jig instead of my usual 1/8 ounce jig.

Even with the drift sock in the water the wind was pushing the boat along at 1/2 to 3/4 mph. I made several drifts between Second Duck Point and our cabin, but could catch no walleye. I repositioned the boat near the Malays and drifted past Norm's, but again, could catch no walleye.

I eventually switched to a Mimic Minnow Spin while drifting from the Birches past Schiebe's cabin, but could only manage to catch a few perch. I gave up and came ashore about 2:30 p.m.

Kathleen was just getting back from her run, so we decided to go for a bike ride. The temperature was now around 75 degrees, and the wind felt great during our ride. We rode down to the boardwalk on Duck Point and back; about a 8 mile ride.

When we got home we cleaned up, listened to a Prairie Home Companion, ate dinner, and then sat out on the dock to watch the sunset. We moved our party to the back porch just after the sun dipped below the horizon and just enjoyed being together.

Just after midnight I could hear the rain falling. I guess the 50% chance of showers was actually greater than that. I was a wonderful day on the shores of Leech Lake.