tltorrice

Get well soon Erik.

I don't change them but I do sharpen them every time they go in the water. That has make a world of difference. You would be surprised how dull hooks are coming out of the package. Stingers are the worst. So just to be sure each one is tested and sharpened before use.

Get well.... What will you do tomorrow?

Jason, I have a Starcraft Fishmaster that I bought new in 2006. It is 19'9" long, and trailers good. What I really like is the back end is open giving you plenty of room for working the down-riggers and fighting fish. It takes the waves well. You should give it a look.

Good job Ken.

I get moss and mold on my pontoon boat too. I use a mixture of bleach and water and hit it with a power washer. It cleans it up nice.

Great job Ed. When I read your story it is like I am there. Except I don't get cold or wet!

Good job. Thanks for the report. I was hoping to get down there this weekend if it ever stops raining, oh wait now it is snowing!!

I carry two wire line dipsy @ 1000 feet each. No copper.

Congratulations Nick! Enjoy.

Name: Tom Torrice

Age: 55

Residence Location: Chelsea, MI

Area(s) Most Often Fished: Detroit River, Lake Erie, Lake Michigan-St Joe, Muskegon, Manistee, Lake Ontario Oak Orchard Creek.

Years of Experience: since I was 5 so 50 years

Boat Size and Info: 19.5' Starcraft Fishmaster, 150OB 15 kicker

Boat Name: Tangle Factor

I have been fishing for as long as I can remember. I started on the great lakes around 1995 fishing for walleye on Erie. My first boat was a 16' Lowe Lunker with a 50hp OB. I caught a lot of fish in that boat. I fish as much as I can now. For the last 3 years I have spent a week on Lake Ontario fishing for the "Big Kings". I also have a small business tying flies for fly fishing for some of the local fly shops, and enjoy casting a fly rod on a quiet river.

I have the same set up as Dogfish. My main engine is a 2 stroke 150 outboard with oil injection. My kicker is a 15 hp four stroke. The only difference is I have a switch to direct the fuel from one engine or the other. It works great and I only have one main tank.

I have Great Lakes Planers trees 3 rod holders. They work great and i use the top for holding nets. Mine are in Berts Tracks. Let them know when you order them if you have berts tracks.

I am going up north this weekend to sit in my boat and have a cup of coffee.

Jeff, I use my planer mast when fishing for walleye. I use my inlines for salmon. I can tell if I have a fish on with the mast but I cannot with the inlines. I don't have the flags for them.

Great idea Aaron, I like that!!

I need to change all of the backing on all of my lead cores. I am going to install 40# Power Pro. Last year I had lost a full core, a glow ghost J-Plug, a big king and the board because my backing broke. I was trying to pull all of the other lines to turn back to get the board, but we got 3 more fish on. By the time I got back I could not find the board. Expensive way to find out I need to change the backing. It will be a pain but it must be done.

I run meat rigs regularly, usually one off of the starboard down rigger and another off the port dipsy. I always use cut bait. If I cant get cut bait I make my own from whole herring green label.. Meat rigs don't always produce but I believe they bring fish into your spread. I always do better when running meat then when not. It adds to the group dynamic. I use spin doctors or fish catchers in front of the meat rigs. Green seems to work the best. All of my rigs are 3 fly teasers although I am think of going with 2 fly for my DD. Tom

Way to go Jason. Good to see you are still getting out.

Jim I have a15hp 4 stroke on my boat too. You will like this. Keep the hours off of your main motor. Also nice to have a back up motor.

After having my Big Jon Captain Packs for several years now the only thing I would do differently is look for a down rigger that can handle more than a 12lb cannon ball. In the hot summer when the cold water is down very deep it would be better if I had more weight. Don't get me wrong I love my Big Jons.

I am planning on being in Manistee this weekend. Looks like I will bring the fly rod and play with some salmon in the rivers. Hope to get out on Sunday and Monday. I too hope to get some pictures.

We decided to hit the early morning bite since we had been sleeping in all week. We were on the water and setting lines by 5:30. We fished south of the pier where we were the previous night. We didn’t mark very many fish. The cold water had moved closer to shore, so we did too. It was very slow, the only hit we had was around 8:00am on the Glow Ghost J-Plug. Pat landed a very nice 18.8# King Salmon.

That got us excited but that was all we could coax into our spread. We decided to only fish until 10:30 so we could get out for the evening bite.

We went back out around 6:00pm 2-3 foot waves and building. We went to a spot we like a little north of the pier and over very deep water. We managed 3 fish the largest was 15#. We took one hit on the wire meat rig, one on the down rigger glow spoon, and the other Glow Ghost J-Plug on the ten color. It is nice to catch fish on this plug and not lose it!! We pulled lines a little before dark because it was getting rough and it was time to head in.

Wednesday Aug 25. No fishing due to the bumps. We should be able to hit it again on Thursday morning.

Ed, good to see you got out. Thanks for the report and nice job on the monster king Olivia!!

We fished the evening bite and went 5 for 9. Tough day… We started north of the pier, first fish on the rigger, I grabbed the rod and it came unbuttoned. Next fish on the wire I grabbed, it came unbuttoned. I am beginning to think I am jinxed. Next fish on the rigger meat rig I did manage a small king. Good, Skunk is out. We hit a long slow spell as we worked our way south. Pat had one on the full core on a glow ghost J-plug. It came unbuttoned. We lost another Glow Ghost J-Plug, a full core and a walleye board. We quickly marked a waypoint to go back for the board. As we were pulling lines we took a hit on the downrigger. As that was coming in the wire went! Nice double. Two nice fish. Once all of the lines were in we looked for the board, however due to the winds it was nowhere to be found, or someone already picked it up. I do have my name and phone number on the board. We stayed in that area and picked up our fifth fish after dark. We had a fun day. As we were motoring back in a tip broke off of one of the full core rods. Here is our catch for this day.