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Wacky Worm Rig

With an invitation to spend the weekend on Lake Ida with my good friend Lory Brasel at his cabin, it would give us a chance to fish his lake for bass using wacky worm rigs, just like a month ago when I spent some time with my friend Charlie on Lake Miltona, Lake Carlos, and Lake Darling.  Lake Ida is basically in the same area as these other lakes as well is very similar in structure, and having threaten Lory a lesson in late summer bass fishing along the reeds, it was a pretty easy decision.  Wacky worming is a pretty simple technique for catching largemouth bass.  As stated in a previous post, it all began in Texas a few years ago.  In Texas bass is king however we do have a fantastic bass fishery here in Minnesota, both largemouth and smallmouth bass and what works in Texas works here as well.  This rig has evolved in many forms however my personal choice is the simple method of inserting a small O ring onto the middle of what is referred to a stick type plastic worm that is 4 - 6 inches, then using a wacky worm style wide gap hook (the picture shows a weedless style), hook the O ring and you are set.  These worms are usually impregnated with salt and scent and will sink on there own at a rate of 8 - 12 inches per second.  As stated earlier, there are many forms of this rig, some add weight to get down deeper into the weeds, we simply were casting the reed edges that were in the 4 - 6 feet depth so our strategy was to go with the simple presentation.  Lake Ida in Alexandria is the second largest lake in the area, it runs north to south with a couple of nice bays,  the water is extremely clear and on

Lory's First Wacky Worm Bass on His First Cast!

Saturday it was quite windy.  Wacky Worming is the most fun when you can actually watch your line as the worm sinks as often the bass will grab it and run, with the only indication is that your line is moving.  The wind plays havoc on the sight aspect of this yet one can still feel the hit as well as changes in the bow in your line.  As stated the worms are usually salt/scent impregnated and the bass will hang on to the worm for quite along time as it tastes good!  A quick set of the hook and the battle is on!  It is a very fun way to fish bass however this time of year the larger bass tend to be deeper so one usually catches bass in that 12 - 16 inch range.  One can target the deeper weed edges using the same Wacky Worm style using a drop shot presentation, something I haven't tried but is definitely on the list.  Our strategy was to find a reed/wild rice structure on a less windy part of the lake.  This was Lory's first attempt to use the Wacky Worm technique on his lake, and of course I tend to oversell things as well.  Giving him the basic instructions, cast right to the reed edges, points are good as well as pockets within the weed growth.  Let the worm settle to the bottom, give it a few lifts to impart some action and wait a few seconds.  If there is a bass, it will hit it within the first couple of seconds from the time the worm hit the water, and will actually pick it up from the bottom if in the vicinity of your worm.  With the clear water a bass can actually come a long ways to hit the bait as they are generally sight feeders.  Lory's first cast was on a reed point and although not exactly focused on the right methodology all of a sudden.....I got one!  We landed a nice 15 inch bass, actually the largest of the day, on his first cast.  I caught the next 3 - 4 bass while explaining the specific technique, after looking back at his first cast and understanding what went right with that situation, Lory began to catch more bass.  For the day we ended up with about 15 bass as conditions were difficult with the 15 mph south wind, it made boat control a challenge for sure. We fished for about 6 hours as it was fun to teach someone a new presentation that actually seemed to work.  I also tried a new type of rig called a Tokyo Rig, it looks deadly and should really work on the river for smallies, something that has eluded me this year.  Definitely plan on dealing with that in the next couple of weeks!

I did get some fish last weekend!

The saga of the Lac Seul May lower unit strike on the Ranger 620 continues.  After the trip fishing with my friend Charlie, I brought the boat back to Frankie's to fix the steering and a few stress cracks.  A more detailed inspection showed a number of stress cracks related to hitting the rock and after notifying the insurance company, $7200 arrived to cover the damage.  Giving an OK to start the work, they pulled off my motor and under the top cover of the transom found more damage that was not visible earlier.  Again another trip back to the insurance company however this time I expressed my frustration with them not getting this done all at once and 3 months later I am still dealing with damage.  Explaining that this was the final time to take care of everything and am expecting that this is the last of something that should have been dealt with in June.  the additional damage was $650 so I authorized them to get it finished, as the boat has been in the shop 8 weeks this summer.  As well I told them for now a $8,000 in repairs they can touch up a few spots of dock rash and a scratch where we hit the side with a metal shield while welding a gusset on the frame for a step.  That has been confirmed, so the Ranger should be just like new, just in time to take it back to Lac Seul in September.  Hopefully my luck has changed by then!  This week is Mississippi River week and the plan is to hit the smallies and try for some larger catfish in the hole behind the island.

Fishing With Charlie

$59.95, 16 ounce musky bait

This thing called retirement, one truly has to wonder where you found the time to do everything while still working!  On the other hand there is no more excuses why you can't do anything.  On Sunday, July 21st we where invited to a memorial service for our good friend Chuck Teasley's wife Karla who passed away a few weeks ago from cancer.  Charlie has been a long time friend and met him in the early 80's while we lived in Osseo, MN.  He was a banker for Northwestern National Bank, which became Norwest, and is now Wells Fargo.  We had a lot of the same interests including fishing.  Eventually he moved out of the apartment building but we stayed in touch.  Deciding to move back to Duluth he sold his 1984 Lund Pro Angler to me and bought a 1986 Lund Nisswa Guide, a fiberglass tiller.  Chuck got married to Karla, who did work for Minnesota Power, a utility company in Duluth, MN.  Eventually she got transferred to on of their companies in Orlando, so Charlie decided that the Nisswa Guide boat was not going to work in Florida so I ended up buying that.  We kept in touch the entire time as Charlie and his now family would spend a week every July at Mount Carmel Ministries in Alexandria, MN and we usually found time to spend a nice day of fishing on Mille Lacs.  The memorial service was at Mount Carmel and after a day of remembrance, it was decided that I'd bring my boat back up on Monday and stay with Charlie the night and fish Muskies on Tuesday.  Charlie lives in Glen Carbon, Illinois just east of St. Louis, Missouri where Karla was last relocated.  There all his good stuff including an impressive collection of Musky fishing equipment was stolen.  On his way to Alexandria he called and asked where the best place to buy musky equipment in the cities, as he had an insurance check.  Thorne Brothers of course!  Meeting him on Saturday he had his daughter Morgan with him and I am sure he made the store's day with walking out with about $2000 worth of new baits, rod/reel, tackle box, you name it.  Arriving on Monday we decided to fish Lake Miltona, a known musky lake 5 miles from us.  All these lakes in the Alexandria area have zebra mussels and are incredibly clear.  Arriving at the landing which wasn't very good, we finally got out and surveyed the area.  A sunken island topping out at around 8 - 10 feet surrounded by deeper water looked to be a great place to start and with the wind blowing gently across it, a perfect place to start

Not huge but the action was great

casting.  These new musky baits are quite interesting and some can be very heavy, which is why I don't fish them much, getting too old and it's hard on one's self.  Never the less we drifted across the area, me throwing a large Mepp's and Charlie throwing literally the kitchen sink.  He had a nice follow but failed to get a hook up.  On one cast he lifted his line up only to see his $60 Beaver tail bait slide to the bottom, the clasp had either come unhooked or something.  It kind of takes the wind out of your sails, oh well with the wind it was lost forever!  To be honest it wasn't the perfect day for muskies anyway, a bright sky, cold front had just passed through, crystal clear water, we decided to head to the calmer side of the lake and fish for bass along the reeds.  Admittedly since my time in Texas with my friends Matt and Joe, wacky worming for bass has found a place in my strategies.  The reed beds were well developed on the west end of the lake and the wind was perfect for following the edges.  We'd land our plastic worms right at the edge and if there was a bass it would slam the lure and take off with it.  Within 5 casts we had our first bass.  Not big but a lot better then watching our big baits come back to the boat empty!  Wacky worming is a lot of fun.  The worm is hooked in the middle and with no weight it slowly falls in the weeds.  Even with slack in the line you can still feel the hit, often you see the line heading off across the water.  Ending the day with over 15 bass it turned out to be an interesting day on the water.  Deciding that I didn't like the landing, Charlie drove my truck to the east side landing which was much deeper and easier to load onto the trailer.  A quick bite to eat at a bar in Miltona then on to Carlos Creek Winery and see if it is possible to pick up a wine club order, no it's too early however we did end up getting some wine anyway.  Back to camp, it was decided that because we have a lot of lost time to make up for, I would stay the night and fish a half a day on Wednesday.  Mount Carmel is on Lake Carlos so we stayed there as there are 4 lakes accessible from Lake Carlos.  In the morning we attended another service at the chapel before heading out.  These lakes are crazy, full of structure and clear.  Even in 5 feet of water it seemed as though one would hit bottom.  Crossing into Lake Darling it was interesting to see how much current was flowing between the lakes.  The Long Prairie Rive runs through this chain and with all the rain, it was really moving.  Again our strategy was the same, hit the edge of the reeds and fish for bass.   Admittedly the action was great and in 5 hours we had at least 15 fish.  It was time to leave so I left Charlie with a bunch of baits, said our goodbyes and will look for the next opportunity to fish with one of my dearest friends!

New cracks in the splashwell area.

This year has not been very good to my Ranger boat.  Hitting the rock while heading into camp on Lac Seul put a huge crimp in pretty much everything.  While getting the boat ready to take to Alexandria, I noticed a bunch of cracks in the back by the splash well. Thinking it be damage from the hit on Lac Seul in May, on Thursday it went back up to Frankie's.  As well a couple of weeks ago when we were on a maiden run after the lower unit was repaired, an attempt to open the motor up with the trim full up met with an unsettling result, the engine lost all steering feel almost losing control.  The same scenario was attempted last week with the same results.  Anything over 4800 RPM's and 50% till caused the handling of the boat to be very scary.  Dropping it off last Thursday and discussing the issues, Joe grabbed the motor and twisted it, seems there is air in the steering lines.  The fiberglass cranks would need to be looked at by their guy. Asking that they water test the boat to be sure, my next big trip is back to Lac Seul and there is no desire to have any issues.  A call this morning confirmed a couple of things. First the steering issue was air, they bled out the system then tried it with success.  Also the cracks did not look like they were related to the hit, so they called Ranger who offered to fix them however the boat had to be sent back to Arkansas, otherwise I could use Frankie's and they would pick up half of the cost.  This seemed reasonable so another 2 weeks in the shop!  Oh well, it will give me plenty of time to hit the river as this is the prime time to be fishing smallies and catfish.  Not that I need an excuse but it certainly  better than waiting!  In the meantime the garden is exploding with cucumbers, zucchini, potatoes, beans, you name it.  The onions and peppers look great as we have been making about 2 gallons of "Bernie Konter's Fall Feast Pickles" every other day, and they are delicious.  Plan on getting out on the river in the next day or so...too much to write, so little time!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow...

Snow plowing in Minnesota

Oh, the weather outside is frightful
But the fire is so delightful
And since we've no place to go
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

Boy this could not be more true than is has been this week! On Tuesday we had about 4 inches then after an evening of reprieve another 4 to 6 inches is expected today.  The cold air will rush in for the weekend before more snow is forecasted for next week.  All this has put a damper on the original plans to head up to Mille Lacs for an evening of fishing as it will take them at least a few days to deal with the snow in getting the roads back open and ready for the wheel houses.  Besides the snow we will be just on the edge of a blizzard warning  so there is no reason to push things.  Besides watching a rather boring Superbowl at our neighbors house, we did head to Eau Claire to have lunch with my niece's daughter who is going to school in Eau Claire.  Although I did not get a chance to stop at Scheels, it was fun to see her as we ended up at the Olive Garden.  This is the week that I usually am in Anaheim, California however this year did not work out very well.  Talking to a friend he said it was cold, in the low 60's there........heck, based on last weeks temperatures, 60 degrees would be 90 degrees warmer than last Wednesday morning's temperature of -30, personally it could not have been that bad!  This last weekend it warmed up and gave a chance to deal with some maintenance issues like changing the oil on the Honda generator.  I am pretty sure that the manual suggests changing oil every 100 hours yet because it runs on ECO mode most of the time, with little load attached, as well the oil used is a Mobil 1, 5W-30, fully synthetic, extended range oil so realistically there is close to 300 hours on the oil before it's changed.  Actually the oil isn't too dirty and it uses only 13.5 ounces of oil per change so it isn't too hard to do.  The other issue that been keeping me busy is cleaning and restocking the Salem as we get ready for the Perch Extravaganza at the end of the month. Things like getting the propane tanks filled, the inside dried out, the cupboards restocked, and the stuffed reorganized and put away.  One thing was to get a propane torch for the tool box.  It was -22 below when we packed the Salem up at Red a couple of weeks ago and when we tried to raise the house up to pin the axles, the cold weather had stiffened the grease in the axles enough to prevent them from moving, which they usually do by their shear weight.  Marked asked me for a propane torch to heat the grease however a simple pulling on the spring allowed it to get back in place.  Nevertheless I figured it would be good to have a torch in the house so we are ready for most any emergency.

It has been really cold!!!

After this weekend the phase of cold weather should be behind us.  Besides snow removal, I'd like to get up to my friend Bill Lundeen's, he has a guide trip next week and I always let him use some of my equipment.  There is a Sports Show in St. Cloud this weekend, I always enjoy going to them.  One interesting thing that happened while blowing snow with my John Deere lawn tractor is that something punctured the plastic window in the door of the cab.  Deciding to try this clear Flex Tape to repair it I brought it to work and went to the local Walmart and found a roll for about $13.00.  Admittedly that stuff is crazy.  The goofy guy on Television cuts a small boat in half then uses it to hold it together then takes it out on the water.  Well, I believe it now as the warning inside the roll says: Test in an inconspicuous place before using.  Tape is not intended to remove cleanly.  May damage surface during attempt to remove.  Well, they are not kidding!  It is truly amazing how strong that stuff is and my first attempt didn't sit right and I was able to get it off but just barely!  The window is good for the rest of the winter but just in case I called my John Deere dealer on getting a replacement door.  After a day he calls back, says that I might as well call their supplier direct and deal with them.  He gave me the part number, the 1-800 number, and the price, $30.00 for a replacement panel.  Heck that is a pretty reasonable price so I called an ordered one figuring the repaired one will be okay till the end of the season and it can be dealt with when it's warmer out!!!.  The other thing I am working on is my trip to Dallas on March 8th.  Locating all of my bass tackle isn't easy in the cold and I have my boat stored up north so that's out of the question.  I have found most of the stuff and

Wacky Worm Setup

only need to get a new O ring tool which isn't much.  When fishing Joe's tanks are bait of choice is the sinking plastic worm, rigged Wacky style.  Basically an O ring put in the middle of the worm then a hook goes under the O ring.  It is quite deadly and luckily on February 15th Cabela's/Bass Pro has their O ring tool on sale for $5.00, cheap enough!  I have enough time to secure everything I need as our friend Matt has already sent pictures of a recent bass outing that was met with some success.  In another month it will be even warmer and the bass should be biting better.  It was a fabulous time last spring when we fished Joe's Tank's and it will be nice to see those guys again and fish bass, Texas Style!  As mentioned before, our plans are to still stop at the Bass Pro Shop headquarters in Springfield, Missouri and see the Wildlife Museum, apparently the largest in the world.  The only problem Bruce is worried about is if his plane can safely fly back with all of the new stuff we buy!  I don't think that will be a problem but one never knows!