littleboat

Fished from 6:30-12pm, 80-206fow, 3 for 4, Two small kings and one small coho. 1-coho, 4.23#, bloody nose std, on 7C, W trl, 2.8sog, 119fow(9:20am). 2-king, 3.22#, fireball dingle spn, 7C, W trl, 3.1sog,152fow(9:38). 3-king, 2#, bloody nose std, 9C, E trl, 3.0 sog, 186fow(10:53). No big ones yet. The last one I almost fillet with my pocket knife. I would have thrown him but he wouldn't have made it. Still got some nice carefully cut fillets. Water temp 52.6, 1/2 ft waves 55air temp. No hits on rigger, big marks on bottom. I had my rigger down a 150, but no takers. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

That's what shakedown is all about. Hope you can make your fixes. You didn't miss much on the fishing. It's been tough. Big ones must be further north. I put 27.2 miles on my boat and depths to 205fow yesterday, went 1/3 with a small 14" dink at 5am, in 55fow south of the harbor, which I threw back to growup off a std dancing anchovy. I had two flybys that didn't manage to stay on. I washed alot of lures of different sizes an colors. I went out of Port Sheldon even getting up at 4am. I made stops about every 30feet depth change pulling my lines so I could cover more areas, in depth along the path to see if better marks would lead to a change and produce different results but it didn't. I had boards, riggers, WS, cu and leadcore at various lengths and depths no better results. I ran from south of Port Sheldon to highway 45 and back to port. It was very challenging to say the least. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Thanks for the report. Fog is the worst. Well it sounded like you lost the flys. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

GOOD TIMING! Nice catch. Congratulations. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

This is the first time, I felt like I caught a small king at a SIX FLAGS amusement park off Holland. I think I did it as my boat entered the Bounce House. I went 1 for 3. Caught him (king 4.65#), in 75fow, with mixed veggie std, on rigger 40ft dwn, going NE trl, sog2.4, btmp 49 (10:51am). I had waves coming at me from two different directions. I hadn't had that happen to me before. What an experience. Interesting morning. Fished 8-1pm, 50-115 fow. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

That tarpon would have been hard to leave for the flies. Great catch except for the flies. You must have a Master Fly Angler Patch somewhere?

Good looking batch of eaters!

Good play at the piers! Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Great looking dinner. Nice king. Did the fog get thicker farther out? Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Nice looking kings, good dinner! Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

2.6 trl spd Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Fished mid morning shakedown cruise, 9-11:30am. Went 1 for 2. Both were steelhead, but I lost the second one in a bumbled net job being solo. Fished 40-80fow, 1/2ft waves, wind 5mph. Surface temp 47.5°. 1- steelhead, 7.69#, 27-1/2", bloody nose mag, DR dwn 26', back 50, 2.6sog, W dir. Ball tmp 47.6, 51fow (9:45am) 2- lost 2nd steelhead (9:53am) on 3C, caught on thinfin, approx 6-7#, lost in net strikeout. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Fished 7:30 to 10:30am, 15-21fow. Got another half dozen for my limit. 4 out of 6 on Rapalas, blue minnow, purple minnow, Bandit traffic light and Sprinkles got the other 2, all were dhjs or deep diving cranks. Lines were 44-67 behind cranks, 1.4-1.7 trolling speed was best. Walleye were 19-20-20-21-21-23". Water was as yesterday chalky with areas of stain. Little waves covered the lake. Water temp 54.1 at ball 8ft down. BIG bottom half of TREE (12ft long , 12" dia with short thick branches sticking out) went under my boat ( 2-3ft below) while trolling. It was easy to see it even in the chalky stained water. It glanced off part of my cable on my Fishawk probe. I thought it was going to take it off and mess with my lines on the boards. I was just glad I didn't hit something like that while on my way out. Later I lost a board but made a recovery. Heading home to holland now, remember to head out east then go north. Now its back to salmon fishing. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Nice size king early in the season. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

1st trip on Lake Erie ever. Late start. Went 6 for 6 on. Rapala DHJ12 Blue Glass minnow and Sunfire DHJ12. Bandits Deep walleye Sprinkles. Walleye nation Reaper disco. Fished 12-20 fow. lines ran from 44 to 60ft back. Trolling speed 1.4-1.7 was best, fish were 19, 20,18.5, 22, 21, 23". Ran east and north, water was chalky to semi-stained. Ran one small spoon picked up large white bass. Water temp was 51.3 at ball in 12ft down Sunny day, very little waves. Enjoyed the day. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

One ramp is in at both Holland and Port Sheldon. They are pushed far in to accommodate for the low water access. Watch your props when you leave the docks. Port Sheldon is really showing alot more shoreline protruding. Check the pictures. 6 trailers were in the lot at Holland. None at PS. Though it did look like one boat broke the skim ice there much earlier. Anyone going out there, let us know how the channel is? Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

I didn't launch today but checked out the ramp situation. Holland has one ramp out, leaving two in. Port Sheldon has two ramps of the three out. One ramp will stay in at each place until ice out (Yeah!). The footing on the ramps is silently slippery becareful. Lake water level is very low. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Those freezing temperatures did not give me any incentive to go out this weekend, so I stopped and talked with several of the brave souls that did go. The results showed lots of shad and other bait fish on their displays with occasional dink caught similar to my pictures above. Some had gone out to 160fow, noting that the shad had disappeared once they left the shallower area 50-80 fow. The gates are closed across the street at the state park as well as the cleaning station, and parking was full in the lot next to the ramps. Port Sheldon was open to park in. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Some of my previous catches at night on Muskegon Lake. I'm looking forward to this year. That's a 41"-17# pike I'm holding with a 25" walleye. A whitefish in another picture

Got out today in 45-60 fow. Lake had lots of chop but not too bad if you didn't go out farther. Went 1/1 after a heavy battle, emptying a reel of 2C with a 40 jet diver on a board. After wiping the sweat off my brow, I calmly reeled in my aquarium candidate and released him instead. Since you can't keep them. There are lots of shad and small fish in the fishfinder pictures. The kings should get big with this swimming buffet around by spring. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

What is the length of those spoons? Maker? Tadpole size? Nice catch in the spring anyway. Sent from my SM-A156U1 using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app