St Croix was Hot!

I know I said in a New Year's resolution that I wasn't just going to just post fish pictures and instead get better action shots - this is going to be an exception.

Blake got his biggest SMB career to date - a 17 inch beut.  SMBs were almost all on topwater - finally.

And while he and Scott were casting topwater I followed up with a wounded minnow pattern and this fella came out of nowhere - my biggest pike ever.

A nice part about fishing in rural NW Wisconsin is that on your drive back you can fire off a few rounds.  Blake and I are working on Yeti promotion shots - and this was the first firing of my new AR-15.  Only $1.10 a round!

We head to Door County for a week vacation.  It's mainly going to be gear fishing but we have a musky day Tuesday and I'm bringing the fishing boat for SMB and walleye action.  No flats carp plans.

First Musky on the Fly for the Season

We have been hitting the St Croix a bunch lately.  Even though water is a little high the clarity has been good and it's warmer than the Namekagon.  Brian and I hit it Memorial Day weekend and even though the day finished pretty slow, it started great.  A 30 inch musky started the day off on a chartreuse sculpin I tied for such an occasion.

Minutes later and slow moving 19 inch smallie hit the same fly.

 

Not pictured is the pike (Brian likey big pikey) caught on the same fly.  I'm sending it to one of the main fly companies for it to go into full production.  Brian got the St Croix Grand Slam on the same fly - I don't know how we didn't touch a walleye dredging the thing.  That would have been amazing - maybe next year.

 

Last weekend we hit the section up by T and caught some big girl SMBs. 



As you can see from the photo - the boys were with me.  I don't know why I think every year it works to take 4 people, 2 of which are little boys, out in the boat.  At least they weren't bugging mom.

 

Fish are starting to move a little more - nothing on topwater yet but I assume that will be changing pretty quickly.