The crabby factor has been increasing and I do have other things to look forward to. But suffice to say, I'm due for at least a brief a break from the routine.
This will be my third time heading up to Lake Erie for walleye fishing. It is fun, but exactly how much fun is dependent on lots of factors, most notably the people. I suspect that even if it was terrible weather with lousy fishing, the right people would make it enjoyable. The inverse is probably also true.
The recent heat wave broke through the day on Friday with the brutally oppressive humidity going with it into Saturday. Saturday seemed to be one of those days it was impossible to be in a bad mood. Perfect weather, nice breeze; a lot got done. The past couple weeks were ugly, I'll take the weather respite even if it is forecast to be brief. It is July after all...
Sunday came with more cool weather and the mandatory early morning dog walk. I thought about trying to ride the bike as well, but that could have turned the morning into a scramble. So time was spent finishing getting ready. I was at Dave's house at the requested time and we transferred my stuff to his car, leaving shortly after.
We stopped by to pick up John - Dave's almost, sort-of relative who it also turns out works in the same building as I do (although I've never met or recall seeing him). Then it was on to Nick's where we got there very early. Todd was already there so we sat around and lollygagged a bit before Tony showed up.
Once the whole group was ready, we caravanned up in Dave and Tony's vehicles.
The drive seemed to take much longer than I recalled, but we actually made good time. The condos where exactly as I remembered them - clean, everything in its place and nothing seemed to be too broken.
It was already getting later in the day so we started dinner by cutting up a diabetes-inducing heap of potatoes and combining them with peppers and onions. Once cooking in foil in the oven some of the guys wanted to go find the marina and boat, but leaving the potatoes cooking in the oven and potentially erupting over seemed like a bit of a risk - besides, I was already getting a little over-peopled. I stayed and fished off the condo deck. Initially I caught some bait-sized bluegill before switching over to going after bass. People came and went, but the condos didn't seem nearly as busy as the previous year.
I ended up catching three small bass while some of the others brought in some impressive ones through the evening. Overall the amount of bass brought in was pretty impressive and much better than I recall from the previous year; the pond is 100% catch and release so there are lots of chances for them to grow big.
Dinner was phenomenal with huge ribeye steaks and salad in addition to the potatoes. Since I'm still working on bringing down the wild game mean level at home, it was the first time I'd had beef in quite some time.
The evening ended with more fishing and my apple pie which turned out quite well. Todd ended up saving his pie for breakfast which was not a bad idea. Once darkness came, I went to bed. I have no idea how long anyone else stayed up, but was very thankful to be able to get to sleep.
I was up at my usual time which gave me a chance to get a shower. However, I didn't want to disturb anyone else so there wasn't much I could do after that. The others started moving soon enough and we packed everything up to head out to the boat.
Captain Steve was getting ready when we got there - there wasn't near as much lollygagging as the previous year. Out we headed towards Kelly's Island.
As we motored out I could see Cedar Point in the distance. I don't have much use for amusement parks anymore, but jeepers that was the "it" place when I was a kid. Had I known about the fishing so close to the park way back then, I might have been torn on which was better, but I think I still would have chosen amusement parks. Amusement parks are expensive enough that they were a financial rarity. Guided fishing was out of the question.
We started drift/cast fishing using Erie Dearies and worm harnesses and it was ... slow. Not slow enough to give up, as just enough fish were caught to have us keep at it. That was pretty much how the fishing went all day. We'd drift over an area and catch a few, repeat and take in a few less, then it seemed to dry up. It was some kind of fish titration, where a few more brought in the boat would give a reason to keep at it.
Of course we also brought in a fair number of sheep heads and catfish. If there was any surprise, it was that most of the walleye actually caught met the minimum of 15 inches; very few needed to be thrown back. Some of the sheep heads and catfish were quite impressive.
My fishing was painfully lethargic as it was a few hours until I caught my first fish. Things picked up after that for me, while it waned for some of the other guys in the boat. On one cast I had a walleye going after my Erie Dearie, but not committing. Captain Steve said to open the bail as that would make the fish think the bait was wounded and go after it. The anthropomorphic level of intelligence given to fish (or deer, or ducks, or any game animal) always amuses me. Or maybe it frustrates me. Regardless, I did end up catching the fish and the "wounded" bait remained a running joke on the boat. Captain Steve was quite proud of his tip. "I'll never fish with a closed bail again," was my response.
There were lots of other shenanigans and BSing on the boat - suffice to say that potentially one guy revealed he peed in an inappropriate spot in the morning which became the source for much of it. Some things that happen on the boat should generally stay there.
Weather during the day was great. It started cool and got warmer, but not hot until the very end. Wind seemed to die down through the day as well with a tolerable level of humidity. For July, it was about as good as it gets.
We spent some time fishing in over 40' of water. This was painful as it takes forever for even heavy baits to get near the few fish at the bottom. If fishing would have been more productive it would have been better, but I can't say I really liked fishing the deeper water.
We ended the day in a small bay (Watkins? Race Track?) which seemed to be one of the better spots. There didn't seem to be very many other charters out so either they had given up early or maybe the other captains knew something Stevo and his few contacts new.
As time to head back approached, I brought in my one and only sheep head of the trip. I would have liked the final fish to be a walleye, but I decided to end it with a caught fish. I was hot, tired and a bit sore for the ride back.
Total walleye for the boat was 23 keepers - about half limit which wasn't too bad given the conditions. I contributed 3, with one throw back as well as a white bass. I guess I'll see if keeping that was a mistake.
We cleaned up a bit at the marina before heading to McDonalds to eat. I don't remember the last time I ate fast food - maybe while hog hunting in January? Actually I think it is before that? I guess it might be Tim Hortons in the Calgary, Alberta airport depending on what one calls "fast food." The McDonalds crispy chicken sandwich was only tolerable and even the fries weren't as good as I remember them. So it goes.
We picked up our cleaned fish at the cut house - I really value the fish-cleaning service but I have to wonder if anyone gets used to that smell?
We split up the fish between the group and headed back toward home.
The drive back went well enough and with time spent in air conditioning I felt pretty good. After dropping John off, and after getting to Dave's we split up our stuff before I headed home, arriving just after dusk. With work coming quickly in the morning, I took care of only some of my stuff before calling it a night.
As I started to fall asleep, I could still feel the remnants of the rocking boat and the subtle tug of a fish on the line.
