Fishing Forum

Had a crazy schedule over the weekend but I did manage to get out for a few hours Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday
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I launched @ Willard Saturday at 6:30 AM. I worked my way from the south marina to the tire island and picked up 8 wipers through-out the day. On my 3rd pass by the island I picked up a 27 inch Walleye. Made the trip excellent. Fishing wasn't fast but it was great. I was off the water by 10:30.

Sunday
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I launched at 6:00 PM and started my way back to the tire island and seconds after I cast out my first pole I caught a 12 inch walleye. I continued to hook walleye about every 200 yards or so.

Once I arrived to the island marker I turned around to see 5 boils on the way back so I worked my lure into those areas. That is when the circus started. I had 2 poles out. 1 with a side planer.

The second I reached the boils one of my poles would hook up. I would drop my trolling motor down to its lowest speed then begin reeling then my other pole would hook up. I reeled in, fought the fish and netted it, then I would reel in the other. And so on and so forth. The first double was a walleye/wiper hookup. I cought several walleye out of the boils and then the wipers turned on. They were so aggressive it was insane! I would cast my line out and start trolling then start letting out my other and smack, the other would get a fish on, then I would put the bail down on the one I was putting out and then while reeling in one I would get another fish on the one that was only out of the pontoon about 50 feet.

If you were out there you would have seen a series of circus acts of me netting fish, fish thrashing around on my apron, etc. Juggling poles, removing lures, releasing fish, letting out lines and doing it all over again. After 7PM not even 2 minutes went by without a fish on.

WHAT AN INSANE YET ENTERTAINING EVENING!

Total count for 3 hours was.

15 Wipers (Several lost at the toon), 8 walleye, and 1 channel cat.

Fished from 6-9pm. My tendonitus is aggrevated from all the fish fighting. Insane!
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Sounds like an awesome day! I'd take 15 wipers and 8 walley any day of the week!
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Craig sounds like a fantastic evening of fishing. BTW -- if you are talking about the main island out from the South Marina it is not made of tires. I also thought it was, but it is made up solely of rocks pushed up into a pile.
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Ah ok, some folks told me it was a "tire island". Good to know, now I wont feel to edgy about tossing lures over it.
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Those rocks will still snag a lure, but probably not as much as if it was made of tires. Here is a good thread on the subject:

[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?post=16197;search_string=%20tire%20;#16197"]Click here for thread on the Willard sunken island:[/url]
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A few days ago I droped the aqua-vu down and circled around and over the island a few times. The water wasn't clear enough to see more than a foot or too, but the island appeard to be nothing more than a natural little underwater hill. I didn't see any big rocks at all. I could see a lot of 2-6 inch sticks coming out of the bottom on the south side of the bouy that where probably from growth when the island was above water.

finhunter
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Craig, mind sharing what you were trolling?
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I was pulling a Renegade (Tennessee?? I think that is it.) Shad Crankbait. It is brown with red and silver and you can find these cheap-o's at walmart in a cardboard box by the tackle. They sale for $1.99 a piece but they work like a champ up there. They seem to match the size of the minnows i have pulled out of the bellys of the wipers perfectly.
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[cool]Craig, nice report, dude! Too bad you didn't get get any pics of that 27 inch 'eye. That would've been cool to see. Congrats on the nice fish! Did he fight well, or was it like a log?
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Dude my camera is MIA. I think its a goner.
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Too bad, man. Good luck on your next trip out. I'm headed to Scofield on Thursday (not because the fishing is redhot right now there-'cause it ain't) because that's where my dad in law thinks the crawdading is good right now. Seems he had some friends go to Soldier Creek this weekend and didn't do anywhere near as well as you, Cliff and me did a few weeks ago, so he's taking their word over mine I guess. Oh well, it'll be fun anyway at Scofield and good company.
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Hey I am up for another dadding trip. I may hit Soldier Creek again this weekend.
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Great report Craig and a big eye to boot, was it skinny or did it have some weight to it? You are one brave guy going all the way out to the island with a pontoon, there are a lot of people that don't see smaller craft so be very careful.
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The eye was surprisingly fat. Stomache didn't have much in it but it had some good girth and the filet's were huge.
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