Far Beyond Driven

We ended up 4 for 11. Key at Saugy was being tight to the plume, but with the traffic we had a couple passes where we had to bail from that troll at the last second. Ended up 3/8 down there, jogged up to Holland and set up south in 30' to miss the pier head. Which we did, although we didn't account for perch boats. Stayed in the channel due to the fog and ended up 1/3 in there, loosing a fish at 12:55.

Lost a double in Saugy when we got into the fog and had to stop the boat when about 5 boats merged off the bow at once, causing both fish to run at us.

What worked:

#4 green glow J on a 2 color: lost one, broke off

Firetiger reef runner 50' out on a flat line, hit and got ran over by another boat

J-13 rapala down 8' on a rigger, 2 kings

Wonderbread J down 6 on a rigger, lost a king we could not turn at 420' on the counter

Yellow nailer plug on a one color, took one while trolling next to Dave Ash - that was fun.

Bomber long A swing and a miss.

Holland:

J-9 orange rapala set for steelies got destroyed by a king. Stupid little hooks didn't stand a chance.

And we took a nice hen on a _____ off a one color. Can't tell all my secrets.

Sucks that we had the fish to win, we saw the one on the rigger we could not stop jump and it was 20+ easy.

Ken: only fished one event this year, but thanks for taking the time to put this all together. I think the rule changes were positive - would like to see kings and coho flipped back around as coho are smaller on average and don't show up as much around here, but liked the move to Holland and the 8 rod limit.

Thanks to Mr. Ash for his mad Excel skills.

No, I started with Heddon rods (cork grips!) and Penn 209's, which I still run for browns in the spring - those rods are probably antiques. And my dad taught me to have my crap together....

Season never ends. It's just harder to troll in the ice. It was dead calm and 45 on 12-4 last year and we went 5/5, 2006 we went out on New Years and got two browns.

Great, now everyone with something that floats and two old snagging rods with the same K-mart 80# mono from 1976 will be out there.

That said, count us in. If it's that calm we'll burn up to Grand Haven or Muskegon and join the circus.

I had this - it was one diver that did it - the brass? ferrule that the line goes through at the back had a little burr on it. Once I found that and filed it (with a little tiny carving file) problem solved.

People that know how to fish, or idiots that show up three days after the fish come in?

Went 7/9 on browns this spring in 30 mph east winds hiding in the lee of the dunes and fishing the warm water trapped inside of the first sand bar, but getting the 14' back into the channel was a trip....

Forecast looks stiff NE on Saturday, better on Sunday. On a NE wind would you run it on Saturday anyway?

They just hate Dave as he's switched to the other side......

Not really. But St. Joe has more pier fisherman. I'll choke a spread up faster for them as they don't have options than I will for boats.

Boards are set about 5' out from the slide divers.

Last week when no one was in the channel, we were running 2 per side.

Got ripped going down the channel by some guy in a Rinker that told me I was an ass for running planer boards in the channel.

Later he was running in the dark without nav lights. But I'm evil as I run planer boards in the channel. I spend a LOT of time in the channel and haven't crossed lines with any one in about 10 years.

That said, 5/6 last night. And 5 of the hits, well they came on PLANER BOARDS! Including one that hit right as we passed said Rinker.

Silver J 10' down took a 21# king, and the rest were something that didn't stick long, a 12# sheepie, and kings at 16, 17 and 17#.

Fun night, lots of traffic, and more poorly set riggers (I like the ones with no tension at all standing straight up). And by the way, I'm not dragging something, they're called trolling bags, but thanks for asking.....

You know my opinion on that matter.

You're hitting fish with the balls or the wires. We've joked about welding sharpened spikes on the front of the cannonballs and seeing what we could spear.

Throw down in the channel, or head far enough out to get back on top of the warm water. Then fish the temp break or find where 55 degrees is about 40-60' down and look for immature kings.

4 year old slept in the cabin the whole time, woke up and was bouncing around like a gerbil on crack after a couple hour nap. Wish I could handle that - I go in the cabin to get a lure in 2' waves and throw up.....

Slick was cutting the waves pretty well. We were jealous as we were getting pounded.

Closest thing to a guided hunt I've ever been on - buddy had the tail end of the week off and did his homework - saved this field for us after hunting other ones on the opener and Friday.

14 for 25 out of Holland this afternoon. One jack king, 2 coho, 10 mature kings and a 10.4# walleye on a #4 J-plug off a rigger. Had 7 rods out and all got hit but wonderbread J's off the slide divers were by far the stand outs.

Cooler had 170# of fish in it and would not close, between that and the waves - some well over 6' when we quit - with all that weight on the swim platform the boat handled like a pig. Was glad to get her tucked back into the channel and grab dinner.

With the forecast we decided a goose hunt was safer - in Newaygo County of all places. People across the road watched us from their porch, that is when they could see that far. Sideways rain, lightning, at one point the rain let up and we looked up to see 15 geese on the far side of the decoys - then before we could sit up the rain started again so hard you could not see 100'. Ended up with 8 and lost one that sailed onto land we didn't have permission to go onto.

Any size to the brown?

36 hits in my last three trips, only one is on a flasher fly. I didn't even have them on the boat today. I know my program and f/f are usually part of it, but for me lately it's been mag moonshines and size 4 J's.

Just because everyone's posting or talking on the radio about something doesn't mean you need to run it.

Is the other place downtown in Saugy? If so, we were in there Sunday night, what a joke. If you want a T-shirt and to paddle a kayak around, so be it. If you want tackle, they don't have it, and if they do, it's $3 more than Lakeshore has it for....

Yes, there are no fish in Holland.

But there are, or at least were some nets between Port Sheldon and Grand Haven.

Forecast for this weekend looks stiff. Good luck.

Two laps in the Holland channel last night, ended up 7/8 with 5 kings and two largemouth bass. Stick baits and plugs were best.

I will say the pleasure boat traffic was intense, but the scenery on the piers was awesome.....

Holland and Saugy get the same plants, Saugy gets a few more steelies. Oddly though, some days the fishing is better at one than the other, but mostly Saugy does better, if you don't mind gettting shoved around by charters.

Ran 3 spinnies, 3 j-plugs, 1 spoon, and 2 stick baits last night.

Spinnies: 0

Spoons: 0/1

J's: 2/2

Sticks: 3/3

Wow, with all these glowing reports I must really suck. Went 5/5 from 7-8am in 65' south of Holland, full cores with mag glow spoons and J plugs - 4 mature kings and a nice coho. When that bite ended I went out deep, fished herring for a change and never had a hit. Should not have left fish, even in that bath water, to search for fish.

Took one king 40' down on a J on the Sub-troll with it reading 76.7 degrees. Weird.