Report #12 Diamond Lake and a Rough Lake Michigan

May 12th and 13th, 2012

Synopsis for Diamond Lake: Weather was mostly cloudy with winds from the N to NW and a few showers. Air temps maxed out at about 55 degrees. Water temperature was 63-65° F. We threw , crankbaits, and with crankbaits doing best. We caught LM and SM bass, which were released and kept three rock bass, a bluegill, a redear sunfish, and a 24 inch (just legal) .

I fished with my brother Gil from his boat. The object was to secure some fish for a fish fry he would later enjoy with his kids. We tried several favorite spots and Gil did best with crankbaits:

A smallie and a largemouth. We also got some panfish like this redear sunfish:

I got a LM bass on a and Gil got a 24 inch pike which provided the bulk of the fixings for the fish fry.

Synopsis for Lake Michigan: Wind was from the N at 15-20 mph. Waves were 3-4 feet. Water temp was 55° F. We initially tried for and but were hampered by conditions that rendered the crew seasick. We then re-tooled and came back out for smallmouth bass. Only one small male cooperated.

Conditions to fish the big lake were marginal at best. I will normally not take guests out if waves are forecast to be in excess of 3 feet. However, I had a veteran crew consisting of my friends Don and Scott and my brother Gil. I wanted to do a shake-down cruise to check out my salmon in preparation for the prime summer season. One thing I had to find out was if my Big Jon Captain’s Pak would handle my new 14 lb weights (they did).

We launched from Pastick Marina and headed 6 miles north into the waves toward ‘The Gong.’ Once we got there, I deployed the kicker and attached the connecting rod from the main outboard to the kicker to allow steering from the helm. This was necessary because the waves were too large to use the Minnkota Terrova electric motor as an auto pilot. We trolled south with the wind to facilitate setting rods. I set out two planer board rods two dipsey diver rods and two downrigger rods. We trolled south for a while and then turned east toward Gary Light. Gil began to feel queasy and hung in as long as he could but he was fast approaching his limit so I decided to pull lines and take him in. He retreated to the relative comfort of my tow vehicle while Don and Scott helped me jettison the salmon gear allowing us to head back out for smallies. Unfortunately, we had used up most of the morning and we had little time left.

We went the short distance to the outer harbor and began pitching jigs and cranks. Almost immediately, I got this small male to eat a goby imitation:

We continued to fish around the inside of the outer harbor but had no further action before we ran out of time. My next adventure will be to the St. Croix Flowage near Gordon, WI to take part in my friend Bob’s annual family fishing trip.

Stay fishy my friends!

Captain Guy Lopez

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