Opening Day Dink Report

[Scott McKee]

Carrie and I fished the River from 4:30 AM (I know, we were late) to Noon.  I caught a 30" just below Frenchman's Creek on a black Monster Tube just before 7 AM jigging.  The Mayans may be right.  Can the end be near if I catch them jigging?

We started trolling for a few hours.  The moss isn't too bad.  In some spots we could ten minutes out of a lure, in others only five or so.  We jigged the Triangle for a few drifts and then cast and jigged above the International without even a follow.

After a pit stop at the foot of Sheridan, we cast a few weed beds in UN4.  I half caught, half snagged a pike near the Launch Club wall which I thought was a nice musky until I saw the green rat coming in sideways.  A few casts later on a perch 6" Grandma I was rewarded with a super dink.  It was maybe 17-inches.

Around noon I started to feel a little weird, not in my usual fun happy weird way, just weird, so we docked and let my brother jump on for some bass fishing with my sister, Dr. Marilyn McKee.  (I just love the way that sounds!)

By the way, I submitted my two dinks using the form on the Release Submission page.  The form is very easy to use.  It took about a minute to enter both fish.  Please don't enter multiple fish on the same form.  Enter one and then hit Submit.  Click on the Release Submission tab again and enter your second fish.  Got it?

Let's see those Opening Day reports Kids!

I'm gong to take a nap and hit the River again around 7 PM.  Congratulations to everyone that hooked up today and good luck next time out if you were skunked.  Nap time go now!

[John Pensyl]

Nice, lost a good fish about 8am just before you trolled past. Brought her right to the surface without a fight because she never felt the need without hooks in her face. Mid 40s for sure, let go of the tube and swam back home. Hit a couple pike near strawberry on 7in shallow czar and had a follow down the east river early and my buddy had a mid 30s fish swipe and miss boatside near beaver island marina. Still at it now but running out of steam fast.

[Tony Scime]

Jon MacSwan and I trolled the harbor from 6 to 11:30am. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. I was surprised how little bait I was marking. Water was flat, wind calm. I was also surprised when we cam down river and hit a breeze, and heard that there was a breeze there all morning.

There were a lot of boats around and we didn't even see anyone catch a bass, or a sheepshead, or a carp.

River was the place to be, I think.

[Jay Nannen]

Fished the river with Dave and Don Martin for 6 fruitless hours.  We saw several fish landed and talked to many successful anglers, it just wasn't our day.  It was still awesome to be out there seeing old friends, making some new ones and swapping stories.  Maybe next time we'll get one in the boat.  

[Josh Ketry]

Fished the harbor.   Got a 42" fish trolling and raised a few casting.  Floating weeds everywhere made it a pain to troll and even cast in some spots. 

[Scott McKee]

After a very nice nap, Carrie and I fished the River from 9 PM to 11:30 PM.  We bombed the hell out of Motor Island shallow and deep. I like fishing near Motor for the sounds that come from the island.  You've heard them before I'm sure.  You know, those deep in the rain forest screams and cries.  Not much happening on Motor tonight though.  My aquatic apes were generally silent.  They must have been tired from heaping moss on my lures earlier today.  Damn dirty apes.  Carrie did catch a big rock bass on a Mepp's Marabou bucktail casting at shore.  Rock bass never cease to amaze; they are little psychopaths.  If muskies had their attitude they'd be extinct.

We kicked the yellow can once and then trolled in the Triangle.  There was really nice bait near the mouth of Frenchman's or maybe my graph was just reading moss which seemed much thicker than earlier today.  We were getting five minutes tops before we had to clean lures.  We tried fishing lures higher in the column off 16 oz. Jojo Balls to catch the brunt of the moss and limit the amount of line out (8-Ball Joe style), but it didn't really help.

Two dinks doesn't make for a memorable Opening Day, but the ice is broken and that's good enough for me.  Good luck to everyone tomorrow.