Hayward, Wisconsin Fishing Report 10-1-13

I can’t believe it’s October.  I have a love/hate relationship with this month.  I love to see it come and hate to see it leave!!!

Good friend and long time customer Mike Bassett from Big Tine  and his wife Kathy joined me on Sunday for a pleasant afternoon on the Chippewa Flowage chasing crappies.  We had light south winds and air temps in the mid 70’s with hardly a cloud in the sky.  Fall colors made for a great scene as we caught crappies throughout the afternoon.  Size was small however, averaging around 9″ with fish up to 11″.  It was a super light bite as well, and you really had to be on top of your game.  All fish were caught on plastics below slip bobbers in 14′ to 18′, and 63 degree water continued to be the theme.  Great weather and lots of catching made for a very enjoyable afternoon.

Hurricane Bassett arrived on Monday along with Joe LaMantia from Mid-States Inc.  Joe joined Mike and I on a day that included 20 – 30 mph south winds that made things difficult in many respects, but we were still able to put some quality fish in the boat.  Walleyes up to 17.5″ and smallies up to 19″ as well as a few largemouth and pike were caught on jigs and minnows along weed lines in 15′ of water.  Water temps actually dropped a notch as we read 62 degrees at the end of the day.  This time of year always brings an interesting mixed bag.  Every bite is an adventure!

We were promised lighter winds on Tuesday.  Guess what???  They were worse!  Should  have been a weather man…  Although we were severely limited as to where we were able to fish, it ended up being an incredible day.  We found an awesome mixed bag of fish along a 10′ weed line that kept us busy all day long.  Our catch included smallies up to 21″, walleyes up to 18″, and a gorgeous 38″ tiger musky landed by Mike.  It was his first musky landed after countless trips to Hayward over the years.  Usually when Mike comes it’s a walleye quest, but I think he’s now a fan of everything else we have to offer!  All fish were caught on jigs and minnows, and water temps ranged from 61 to 62 degrees on another warm fall day.  Thanks to Mike, Kathy, and Joe for three great days.  I’ll see you all in a month with my bow and tree stand in hand!