Hayward, Wisconsin Fishing Report 10-9-14

Walleyes, smallmouth, muskies, crappies and wind…  It’s been one heck of a week for sure with some well earned fish.  Joe Lynch from Palm Springs, CA and his son Tom from Cathedral City, CA joined me on Tuesday for a morning walleye trip in the Hayward area.  The nasty weather system that hit us last weekend just wouldn’t leave as cold temperatures and big winds have pounded us throughout the week.  Tom and his mother Val fished with me last year, and Joe deciced to make it out this time.  Even though we had tough conditions to deal with, we caught a few and missed a few including walleyes up to 17″ and a nice 18″ smallie landed by Tom.  It was definitely a tough bite, and once the winds picked up we were limited in where we could fish.  The Lynch men did a great job however on a day when every fish caught was deserved.  We caught our walleyes in 40′ – 45′ of water on jigs and minnows, and the smallie came in 17′.  Water temperatures ranged from 54 – 55 degrees.  Even though they live in sunny Califiornia, the Lynch’s are big time UW Badger fans and are welcome in my boat any time.  It’s good to be among friends!!!  Go Bucky!

Melissa Williams from Shell Lake, WI bought a fishing trip with us through our Relay For Life donation as a Father’s Day gift for her husband Shane and father in law Dennis.  Dennis is a former high school football coach (like my father) so we had a lot in common and hit it off right from the start.  As you can imagine, there was a little bit of football talk in our boat…  Shane and Dennis were all in on a musky, and we put in one heck of a hard day Wednesday while battling more high winds and cold temperatures.  This was a tough bunch though, and I had a feeling they wouldn’t be denied.  After a slow morning, we had a near miss on a fish in deep water right before lunch.  With conditions the way they were, you had to wonder if that was our opportunity.  We continued to work a variety of weed and rock structures in the afternoon without moving a fish and decided to pay our friend from the morning another visit.  This time it was a different story…  Our fortunes changed quickly has Shane landed a beautiful 40″ musky in 20′ of water that grabbed a sucker we were dragging.  It had to be the same fish we had dealt with in the morning, and revenge was sweet!  Shane and Dennis were a pleasure to fish with, and I’m glad their hard work was rewarded with a musky in the net.  Water temperatures ranged from 48 – 51 degrees.  Turnover can’t be far away with temperatures dropping like a rock and the cold nights were having.  Thanks to the Williams family for their donation to a great cause, and congratulations on great fish!

Tim and Marnie Jones from Crawfordsville, IN fished with me last July and brought their boys, Landon (8) and Dawson (5), to Wisconsin for their fall break from school.  After a long ATV adventure with my father Jim earlier in the week, they spent Thursday on the water with me chasing crappies.  Let me tell you, these kids can fish!  Dawson “The Crappie Killer”, and Landon “The Crappie King” put on one heck of a performance all day long as mom and dad did their best to keep up.  We had a steady bite throughout the day with fish up to 13″, and I was truly impressed at how great these two brothers learned how to jig for slabs in deep water.  It was another cool and cloudy day, and the winds finally seem to be dying down a little.  I think… Or maybe that’s wishful thinking???  Landon set the tone at the beginning of the day by letting everyone know that he was catching the most fish, and the rest of the Jones bunch did their best to keep it a close race.  When it was all said and done Landon claimed to be victorious, but big fish of the day is still up in the air…  I guess the guide will have to make an official ruling at a later date!  All of our fish were caught on plastics in 20′ – 25′ of water and water temperatures ranged from 48 – 51 degrees.  Thanks to Tim, Marnie, Landon, and Dawson for a great day that I won’t soon forget, and I hope you enjoyed that fish fry!!!  Have a great weekend everyone!