MEMORIES OF 2005
End-Of-Year-Report
I would have to say that overall the 2005 fishing season was a good one. It was far from normal, but productive none the less. The fishing action was all over the board, just seemed to be the luck of the draw as to whether you hit one of the good days or one of the dogs. Strange weather was AGAIN the theme of this year, as it has been for a few years now. Many of these extreme deviations from normal weather patterns have become so common the last few years that I think I’m actually getting a handle on staying on active fish despite them. Time will tell. At least a few things started to make sense this year and we will see next year as to whether they hold up over the long haul.
We came out of winter looking like we would have a late ice-out. But, as has been the norm the last few years, the weather took an abrupt turn. In late March the temps shot into the upper 70’s for a few days. Those temperatures, combined with some rain, took out our ice before the seasonal normal dates. Immediately following the warm-up, it swun
g back to below average temps and stayed there till well into May. That contributed to a slower than average spring bite for me. Cool spring weather is never conducive to a consistent bite for any species, and this year was no exception. I did manage a few days of some decent crappie action and a few slabs were boated. The action was inconsistent, but good on the days when it was going. The sun played a key roll, if it was out we didn’t get fish, if it was covered, the fish got into the shallows.
About the 20th of May the weather finally started to warm and the fishing picked up with the warmer water. We did manage some decent bass fishing in late May and through much of June. The large mouth action was particularly good as we got into mid and late June, but unfortunately, I did not get to do a lot of it because of the start of a very good walleye bite that keep us busy most of the summer. No big bass hit the boat, but many in the 2-3 pound range were caught.
As May left us, so did any hint of cooler weather. When the heat finally broke out, it was relentl
ess. Water temps shot up 20 degrees on many lakes in just three
weeks. By the third week of June many lakes had made up for the cool spring and in the days and weeks to come, they would see a very hot summer period for Northern Wisconsin. If the past has taught me anything, it is to think walleyes during these hot summers and this year was no exception. Well actually it was an exception, exceptionally good! This was easily the best year I have ever had for “numbers” of walleye in the boat. The hot weather always puts some big girls on the bite, but this year the numbers were way up as well. Space does not allow me to put up all the pictures, but here are few. Many of these warm water, summer walleye are caught after dark and usually the biggest ones are night feeders as well. This summer we ended many a days fishing by staying out a couple of extra hours (some nights just a few extra minutes) and ta
king home a nice stringer of fish. On several occasions we were limited out after less than 45 minutes! I can’t explain the sheer number of 18” to 23” fish that we caught (hopefully it’s a sign of population nu
mbers), but it was consistent in several lakes. And while the number of bigger females was down a bit, we still got several over 5#s. Only one fish over 23”s was kept this year; the rest of the big females were released to spread their gene pool, and to hopefully keep this kind of fishing coming for many years. I have seen this summer bite many times in the past and usually it is a short and sweet bite each night. The action usually starts at sunset or just after and lasts usually no longer than 
an hour and a half. This year, however, there were many nights when we would limit out quickly and stay out catching and releasing fish well into the night. Several times we left the lake and the fish were still going! That I had never seen before. The biggest eye of the year was 8.5#s and the best day for numbers of fish was a 19 fish night in July. The action got going about the 18th of June and stayed consistent till the 19th of August, which was our first cool down heading out of summer. Still managed a few fish after that, but the days of numbers of fish were over and I started to concentrate more on muskies. I was thankful that many of the folks who fished this summer wanted to walleye fish. I’m sure it hurt my musky numbers for the year, but with a bite like we had going it would have been a shame to pass it up.
In late July I fished a walleye tournament with a good friend of mine, Chuck Valentine. Whi
le we did not do that good in the tournament, the prefishing netted us a prized picture. This Drum was caught trolling a crankbait on a planner board. It is by far the biggest sheephead that I have ever seen, much less had in the boat. The whole time we taught we had a big walleye!
We boated several that week, but this tub-of-a-fish was far and away the biggest. We estimated it at being over 20#s, but the actual weight is unknown.
While we boated several muskies during the spring and summer periods, all the bigger fish that we came in contact with were lost. There were four encounters with big fish from June through August. All were hooked and all got off. Two of these fish were seen, two were not. One of the observed fish was a REAL hog! That fish alone would have made the season well worth fishing. The other sight fish was a 30# class fish that got off at boat side. Of the two unseen fish, one is worth special mention. I’ve been doing this musky thing for over 25 years now and had yet to have a fish act as this one did. We had it hooked on a crackbait while trolling. The thing that makes me wonder about this fish is that I have never had a fish consistently take line while hooked. Even the biggest fish that I’ve boated only take line in short runs and usually just once or twice. This fish, however, never let us pick up any line on her. On three occasions she took line to the point that I’m checking the client’s drag to be sure that it did not loosen. The fish could not be moved and eventually just came unhooked. A huge fish? No way to know for sure. I’ve foul hooked a few fish that had I lost them, I would have swore that they were bigger then they were. The difference here is that this fish continually took line. Foul hooked fish are heavy and hard to move, but they don’t pull away in the opposite direction. Ultimately it doesn’t matter, we didn’t get her, but those are the fish that make you wonder.
The heat of the summer did eventually slow what had been an inconsistent musky bite to that point in the season. The best summer bite was had by Allen Krieger, a 
wheat farmer from Fort Collins, Co. He had 
never musky fished before and wanted to give it a try while in the Hayward area. We set out to a lake that had been going pretty good for a couple of weeks. After a quick casting lesson, Allen was tossing baits like a pro. First spot, one fish seen, low 30” class. Next spot, another fish seen, upper 30” class. Next spot, BANG, 43” fish at boat side, quick photo and release. Two spots later, BANG, 43 ½” fish, same bait, another photo and release. Break for lunch. One other low 40” fish seen in the afternoon. Last spot, just enough light to see, BANG, 30# class fish at boat side, comes cartwheeling out of the water, lost. Day over. All in all a pretty good day of musky fishing: two boated, three seen, one big one lost.
As summer slowly turned into fall, and this year it was a very slow turn, the fishing picked up slightly. But again, the fish remained on the conservative side, with lower 40” class fish leading the w
ay. The early fall period was warm and I was afraid of having another disappointing finish because of it. The sucker bite started out slow and it was hard to keep bait alive much of the time. Turnover was going to be late and by mid October it was obvious that the cisco spawn was not only going to be late, but there was a chance the season would close before it happened! I did manage to boat a nice 25# class fish just before turnover. Actually, the lake I was on was hanging on the edge of turnover (just needed some wind) and did start to turn the next day. I had the month of November pretty much to myself, so I picked m
y spots and fished hard.
The musky action was inconsistent day to day. But the one bright spot was a pike bite that was superb. In fact, I have only had one other fall that 
showed me pike 
numbers like this , but this year, the fish were bigger. For a stretch of about two weeks I was boating 2 to 6 pike a day that averaged in the 36” – 38” range. The bigger ones were running in the low 40” class. In hindsight, I think a guy could have fished to specifically target these big pike and caught 10 or 12 a day. I was catching them indiscriminately on my musky gear. With downsized tackle I think the numbers would have gone up considerably.
On the 4th of November I lost yet another big fish! This was turning into “the season of lost opportunities”! Had any of those fish gone differently, I could have looked back at a successful musky season. This fish hit a Bull Dawg casting some deep weeds, right at dusk. I fought her to the surface and about 2/3 of the way to the boat…………..she is mine, I thought! A little bit of wallowing on the surface, just to be sure I got a real good look, and she was off and gone. Swam right under the boat, directly under my feet. Again, I think just to be sure that I knew what I had lost. Low 30# class, a nice fish to end the year with. Five big fish this season, every one hooked, every one gone. I was sure I was out of chances. Four days later, while working some schools of ciscos that were bunching up for the fall spawn, a sixth chance! A deep diving crankbait being pulled on a planner board, 30’ down over 50’ of water, just stops in its tracks. A hard fight, the fish stays deep the whole time. Lots of weight. The fish gets just below the surface about 30’ out from the boat. It’s a dandy and not hooked very good. Time to play her super light………………..been here before. Just hooked in the corner of the mouth on one hook of the rear treble. The nets close and ready. She hasn’t fussed yet after seeing the boat, not a good sign. Should expect one last attempt at freedom. Get the fish started to the boat, lower the net into the water, she swims right in without so much as a tail kick. GOT HER! Sixth time is a charm.
That fish was one of the cleanest releases I have ever had on a big fish. She never put up a whimper from the time she came to the surface till I let her swim out of my hands. The whole release - weight, measure, photo - did not take four minutes, tops. She was 49 ½”, weight of 34#s, and besides a split dorsal fin, did not have a mark on her, a beautiful and perfect fish to end the year with. I did fish a handful of days past November 8th, but the fish were few and far between and small. We got a cold snap just before Thanksgiving and the water temps dropped into the upper 30’s quickly. That ended my season. Just as well. It gave me time to put some venison in the freezer for the winter.
I want to thank all the folks that shared the boat with me this season. It was lots of fun and I’m looking forward to doing it all over again next year. Here are the numbers for 2005……………be they good, be they bad, they are what they are. See you on the water next year.
2005 SEASON
38 muskies boated
11 over 20#s
2 over 25#s
1 over 30#s
12 walleye over 5#s
9 pike over 38”s
4 over 40”s
