Silver Water Wheel Lodge
Lac Seul, Ontario
July 1, 2011
It is officially the beginning of summer on Lac Seul. The cabbage weeds are almost to the top on the main lake. The Bass bite is starting to wind down. And the walleyes are just starting to show up on main lake summer structure. Overall numbers were not quite as strong as the previous 2 weeks, but both of those were off the charts. There were a couple of mediocre fishing days with overcast skies and no wind, but there were also a couple of really bang up days with really hot bites.
Walleye fishing was good this week for both volume and size. The walleyes smacked plastics and Gulp alive some days and other days they didn’t. The guides used the response to plastics as a baseline for how active the fish were on any given day and adjusted their speeds and presentations accordingly. For the week, we had 28 walleyes over 27 in., including 5 – 28s. Volume was very good with guide sheets averaging more than 40 walleyes over 18 in. per boat per day. The weed bite has been good. Transition spots have also been on and surprisingly there have also been good walleyes caught out on main lake deep water sand structure. A couple of the guides caught good fish on bottom bouncers with spinners and Power crawlers, but most production was split between jigs and minnows and Gulp alive minnows or jerk shads.
We didn’t have as many groups chasing bass this week and there are spots that are holding far fewer fish, but the bass bite was still very good. We had 204 bass caught over 17 in., including 66 – 18s, 16 – 19s, and 2 – 20s. There were a couple of flat calm days when topwaters were effective, but most fish were caught on tubes or crayfish style plastics.
Big pike were hot and cold. We had 8 over 37 in,. including 2 – 38s, 1 – 39, 1 – 40 and 2 – 41s. It was a surprise to see some big fish caught in slightly deeper water in what would be considered spring time spots and to see some big fish on main lake structure. Spoons and In-line spinners were top producers.
Take away: It is officially walleye season. We will chase big pike off and on and will finish off the bass season, but It is now summer and every guide knows that to “win” he has to find the big walleye bite.
June 24, 2011
The story for the week begins with sustained East winds and stable weather. Thursday was the 9th day in a row with some version of East wind. The bass fishing really wasn’t affected by the wind direction, but the walleyes stacked up in areas where the wind blew into for an extended period of time. The surprise for the week was that we caught big walleyes from all of our good East wind spots. There were hundreds of walleyes caught in shallow water spring bays, lots of walleyes caught from 10 – 15 on transition spots, and even some very good catches on traditional summer spots in 20 -30 ft. of water. The bottom line is that the prolonged East wind was so significant that all of our East winds spots turned good fish despite what the calendar says should be working.
The Kendal Hartley / Mark Bailey group missed the smallmouth bass season in 2010, but they made up for it with a vengeance in 2011. If last week was “silly”, then this week was ridiculous. Bass fishing was awesome. For the week we had 430 bass over 17 in., including 174 over 18, 45 at 19 or over, and 3 over 20 in. I knew I was going to be out of Master Angler pins and I made a deal with this group to send them out later in order to save a few for the next week. Tubes were by far the most productive presentation. A trick I learned a few years ago from this group is that you can get away with heavier pound test line than you can with fussy walleyes. With 14 – 20 lb. test mono, you can pop a snagged tube out of the rocks without having to drive the boat into shallow water and disrupt a spot. It is a simple change, but it is one that can improve your big bass catch rate by two fold or more.
Many guides spent most of their time chasing smallmouth this past week. Despite a significant change in the amount of time spent fishing for big walleyes, it was still an excellent week. We caught and released 38 walleyes over 27 in., including 9 – 28s. We did not catch any super giants, but production all the way up to 28 in. was consistently strong. Walleye volume was also very good with an average of 40 over 18 in. per boat per day. The guides used very diverse strategies to take advantage of the prolonged East winds. Some worked the shallow side of main lake summer spots, others were way back in 4 – 8 ft. of water in typical spring spots, and many were fishing traditional East wind transition locations. There were actually just as many walleyes caught on big jigs and Gulp Alive plastics as there were caught on 1/8 oz. jigs tipped with minnows. Consistent production required versatility.
We did have a few groups hunt big pike hard this past week and the production was not very consistent. Especially early in the week, it felt like many of the bigger pike were deep and out of range of conventional casting gear. The bite did pick up with increased sunshine and improved towards the end. For the week we had 12 over 37 in. , including 3- 39s, 1 – 40, 1 – 41, 1 – 42, and 1 – 43. The weed beds in the warmer bays are up and the weeds on the main lake are getting close.
The Kicker:
Guest: “You know what they say… Wind from the East, the fish bite the least.”
Mike: “Except on my favorite East wind spots…. And I have a ton of them.”
June 17, 2011
Last week was tough, but the weather turned and this week was great all around, but was absolutely ridiculous for big bass. The trigger is several days of super-hot sunshine and we never know when it is going to happen, but when it does, the entire system changes in an instant. I wasn’t surprised that summer hit this week, but I was surprised by how many big bass were caught all at once.
The walleye bite also improved dramatically with the weather. Despite the focus on bass fishing, we had a very good week for walleyes. Daily walleye volume shot up to an average 35 walleyes over 18 in. per guide boat. The highest daily total was 64. Big walleyes were also back on the bite with 27 over 27 in., including 5 – 28s, and 1 – 30. Most of the production came from either late spring spots or early transition locations. The bright sunshine put a ton of fish into very shallow water and there were reports of many nice walleyes caught on spoons and plugs while pike fishing. For the most part, the biggest walleyes were pulled from 6 – 12 ft. dragging jigs and minnows. We did finish the week with a very fast morning bite rip jigging Gulp Alive and plastics on transition sand locations. If you weren’t moving baits fast and off the bottom, you weren’t catching. The fish caught were almost all over slot with multiple 23 – 26 inch fish per boat.
There was some effort made to chase big pike this week, but there were more quiet reports than quality. For the week we had 7 over 37 in., including 1 – 40, and 1 – 41. With good walleye results and awesome bass fishing, it was difficult to justify spending much time chasing big transition pike.
Smallmouth bass fishing production was absolutely silly. In 2010, we caught and released 40 bass over 19 in. for the entire year with none over 20. For this past week, we had 37 over 19 in. including 7 bass over 20 in. Tubes were the hottest bait, but there were some nice fish caught on jig and twister combos and small crankbaits.
The Kicker:
Missy: “You have to stop giving away multiple pins for guests catching more than one 19 in. per day.”
MW: “What are you talking about?”
Missy: “We are out. You gave away more pins in one week than we did all last year for bass and the new order will not be in until July 4. You have no pins………”
June 10, 2011
This past week was a challenge and a humbler for the guide crew. We were hit with 2 major cold fronts early in the week followed by post cold 
front bright sunshine and nearly flat calm winds. This combination of weather events is the curse of a good spring bite. The wind driven cold fronts wiped out the isolated warm water pockets and mixed the main lake so that there is no advantage for a fish to be in 5, 15, or 25 ft. of water. The bluebird skies and flat calm conditions that followed put most of the fishery in a “let’s wait for better times mood.” Across the board, we saw a drop in production, size, and volume for all species.
As a guide, the key to a successful day is usually to get a base line for the bite and then plan a strategy to duplicate a pattern that worked earlier in the day. Are they shallow and aggressive or deep and lethargic? Are they biting in spring time locations or do we need to fish slow and light on transition spots? The key is to find a pattern and identify other locations and patterns that are similar. This week it was hard to find a pattern and nearly impossible to duplicate it. At our nightly round table meetings, I listened to guides finding a few nice walleyes way back in the channels of the north shore spring time spots, some guides finding a few nice fish on typical transition spots, and some guides so frustrated that they found fish deep on typical main lake summer structure. Lac Seul went into a weather blender and mother nature pushed the puree button. We did our best to adjust, but in the end, there is only so much to work with.
For the week, we had 23 walleyes over 27 in., including 6 – 28s. Walleye volume was down to an average of 20 walleyes over 18 in. per day for each guide boat. There were a few nice fish caught shallow in spring spots, but there were also many rogues caught out on the main lake. This week there were just as many big walleyes caught on big pike cranks fishing shallow water as there were fishing 1/8 oz. jig and minnow combos on main lake transition spots. As a guide manager, I preach “change of pace” from May to Sept., but this week, it didn’t seem to matter.
The big pike fishing suffered as well. We had 5 over 40, with 1 – 41, and 1 – 42. If the weather warms this week, I will expect to see big pike move back into some of the shallow water spring spots, but we will also begin to work on the main lake transition spots as well.
Smallmouth bass are just starting to come up onto the shallow water feeding flats before they gear into breeding season. We had 62 bass over 17 in. this past week, with 23 – 18s, and 2 – 19s. Slow, compared to last year’s early spring bite, but still not bad considering the weather conditions.
The Kicker:
Senior guide during round table meeting: “I had a good south west wind blowing up on the north shore and my bite was slow, so I packed up my guys and we headed for the south shore to hit spots that are usually good for southwest. I got half way across the lake and the wind went flat and by the time I got all the way to the south shore I had light north east…. I will not chase light lake winds anymore.”
June 3, 2011
It wasn’t a disaster weather week, but spring was definitely put on hold. It was a mixed bag of cold rain, thunder storms, cold mornings, flat calm overcast and inconsistent winds. We had everything except for sustained sunshine. Water temps remained mostly steady with the main lake in the high 40s and the protected bays in the mid to upper 50s. The super shallow water did cool off significantly driving both walleyes and pike out of what would be considered some of our most consistent early spring spots. They didn’t go far. Key spots were the first transition to deeper water in the area and that adjustment was easy for the guys chasing walleyes. It was a different story for big pike hunters with their minds set on casting big plugs and spoons. We still caught big pike casting at the mouth of rivers and creeks with sucker runs, but many of the big pike caught this week were on jigs while walleye fishing.
The most consistent walleye bite was found in 8 – 12 ft. of water this week. There was the occasional fish caught in super shallow water, but there were also walleyes found down in 16 – 18. Walleye volume fell off a bit this week with guide reports averaging 25 fish over 18 inches per day. Despite the drop in numbers we still had a great week for big walleyes with 35 over 27 in., including 7 – 28s, 1 – 29, and 1 – 30.
Walleye fishing was primarily a jig and minnow bite with time split 50/50 between ¼ oz. and 1/8 oz. jigs. Presentation speed was a little slower this week with many fish in a neutral feeding mood.
We spent a great deal of time casting for pike in shallow bays with modest results. It was still a good week for big pike numbers. We had 23 over 37 in., including 3 – 40s, 3 – 41s, 1 – 42, 1 – 44, and 1 – 46. The three biggest were all caught on jigs and minnows while walleye fishing.
A few groups targeted bass this week. Considering the cool surface temps, the results were good as the smallmouth are just becoming active in the shallows. Jigs tipped with twister tails and small cranks were the most productive presentations. For the week we had 43 over 17 in., including 9 over 19 in.
The Kicker:
After a full afternoon of casting for pike, a senior guide met up with other crew members around the photo printer checking out picture of a giant 46 in. pike that had been caught that day while walleye fishing.
Senior Guide – “Well there you go… Guess I’ll just head out to the middle of Lac Seul and empty my pike tackle boxes into the lake to make room for more 1/8 oz. jigs…..”
May 27, 2011
After a very snowy winter and a cool start to spring, the ice finally went off the main lake of Lac Seul on May 13. We were fortunate to have 5 – 6 days of brilliant warm sunshine to jump start water temps before our first guests arrived on May 20. Even though we were hit with a major cold front early in the week, the season opener was excellent for both size and volume of walleyes and pike.
The cold front brought lake surface temps back down to more seasonal levels by midweek. The main lake is in the mid to upper 40s and most of the productive fishing areas are ranging from the low 50s to 60. Without the minor heat wave after ice out, it would likely have been a very tough week.
Lake levels are about average for this time of year and are increasing at a steady pace. We are able to travel through the Sticks at speed.
It was a terrific week for big walleyes, with 43 over 27 in., including 13 – 28s, 4 – 29s, and 1 – 30. Volume was also very good with boats averaging 30 walleyes per day over 18 in. The highest daily total was 65.
Very few walleyes were caught from skinny water because of the falling surface temps. Most were caught on 1/8 to ¼ oz. jigs with minnows in 6 – 12 ft. in areas we would consider normal walleye spring time locations.
The big pike bite was also excellent with 50 over 37, including 11 – 40s, 2 – 41s, 3 – 42s, and 2 – 43s. Most of these fish were found in “typical” shallow warm water bays in 1 – 5 ft. The most productive presentations were medium sized spoons, 6 in. Jakes, and Husky Jerks in size 14.
The bass bite was random and most of the production was incidental catch from pike and walleye fishing. For the week, we had 31 over 17 in., including 12 – 18s, and 5 – 19s. The bass are holding in 5 – 12 ft. and are likely to wait for surface temps to reach into the upper 50s to low 60s before they move shallow in numbers.
Over all it was an excellent first week of season and it is hard to believe that the ice went off the lake just 2 weeks ago.
The Kicker:
Guest at Checkout: “This is the first time in 10 years that all 6 of our guys had their photos on the trophy board …. And 2 of them have more than one photo up.”
Mike: “It has been a phenomenal week for big fish. The rule for the guides is that we don’t take down a photo while a guest is still in camp. This week, we had to pin photos to the frame and on to the wall.”
August 20, 2010
We began the week (Sat., Sun., & Mon.) with a massive storm front, lots of rain, and big winds. Fishing during the storm was challenging and afterward was tough for a day or so. We rebounded nicely for the last half of the week, but the big change is that the walleyes have moved deep. Most of our fish this week were caught between 25 – 35 ft.
We found the bite to be “pulsey” this week. A spot would be quiet early in the day, would have action for little ones later, and then have a 1 – 2 hour period when the big ones would bite. We made a habit of spot checking known big fish areas several times a day to capitalize on the daily changes in activity.
Overall production for big fish remained consistent throughout the year. Despite having a cancellation and a photo crew in camp this week we still had good numbers for big fish with 24 walleyes over 27 in., including 2 – 28s. Guide sheets averaged 30 walleyes over 18 in. per boat. The highest daily total was 54.
Jigs and minnows were top producers, but I saw more 3/8 oz. jigs this week along with 1/4s for the deeper water.
We continued to have a few guides mix up the day by hunting for big pike. The biggest surprise for me this year is how consistently successful we have been catching really big pike. This week was no exception, we had 1 – 40, 2 – 41s, and 1 – 43.
The Kicker:
I can’t believe that my fishing season is over. I begin packing today and head back to Iowa to get ready for another whitetail deer guiding season.
It was a great season in terms of both weather and fishing. We will have a new brochure and new website coming out this Fall.
Demand for spots is on the rise. We will be staying open for an extra week in Sept. for 2011 and the waiting list for cancellations has about a half dozen names already. If you are thinking about fishing with us in the future, plan to contact us this Fall, as I expect the book to be full by mid Jan. for 2011.
August 13. 2010
There were no major changes in patterns from last week. In fact, almost all the locations and figures remained the same. There were some really good days and there were some slower days and daily weather trends were always the driving force.
For the week, we had 21 walleyes over 27 in., including 2 – 28s, and 1 – 29. Overall volume remained good with an average of more than 30 walleyes over 18 in. per guide sheet per day. The highest daily total was 62.
Deep water rock was more productive than deep sand this past week and most of the big ones were found deeper than 25 ft. There were some pulses of walleyes shallow, but nothing strong enough or sustained to bring the bigger fish up. Jigs in 1/8 to ¼ tipped with minnows were the go to bait.
A few guide boats spent some time casting for bass and for pike this week with mixed results for pike and with modest returns for bass. For the week we had 1 – 37, 1 – 38, and 2 – 40s on spoons, spinnerbaits, and Husky jerks. Bass were caught off wind blown main lake rock shorelines with X-raps and husky Jerks. For the week we had 5 – 17s, 5 – 18s, and 1 – 19.
The Kicker:
Missy, Brooke, and Blake are packing today and leave tomorrow to head back to Iowa. Brooke is 5 and is starting Kindergarden next week. “Time Flies.”
August 6, 2010
It is always the weather. Especially the early part of the week, the walleye bite was hit hard by unsettled weather. We had 4 nights with moderate to strong thunderstorms that resulted in extremely tough morning bites the following day. Catch rates were lower early in the week, but picked up for both size and volume towards the end.
There was a definite shift in walleye location with the passing of consecutive storm fronts. The shallow bite has shut down and deep water rock and deep water sand main lake structure are now key locations. We did notice a trend for bigger fish from main lake rock although the big fish weren’t as deep as they can be at this time of year. Most were caught between 20 and 30 ft. with only the occasional fish deeper. The main lake deep sand was good, but it took a great deal of sorting through little ones to find the mediums.
For the week we had 21 walleyes over 27 in., including 2 – 28s, and 1 – 29. Volume was good with an average of 30 walleyes over 18 in. per guide sheet per day. The highest daily total was 62.
Jigs and minnows were top producers, but leeches also worked well.
One guide boat spent time chasing big pike this week and they managed to put a 41 and a 43.5 in. fish in the boat. Both fish came out of the edge of the cabbage near deep water.
July 30, 2010
The last week of July was an excellent week for big walleyes with 5 over 29 in. The weather was relatively stable and nice, though we did have several days with almost no wind. Walleye volume increased dramatically from last week with the onset of more stable conditions. Surprisingly, we are still catching both numbers and big fish from relatively shallow and deep water. Guides are successfully dead sticking 1/8 oz jigs in 30 ft. at one spot and rip jigging plastics in 10 ft. of water on another at the exact same time. The bite is far from consistent and flexibility continues to be the key.
For the week we had 25 walleyes over 27 in. including 2 – 28s, and 5 – 29s. Walleye volume was very good with guide sheets averaging 35 walleyes over 18 in. per day. The highest daily total was 50.
Many of the 27 inch walleyes were caught in 10 – 14 ft., but only one of the 29s was caught from shallow water. Most of the really big fish were deeper than 25 ft. this week. Deep water sand, deep water rock, shallow water weeds, and shallow water sand all produced well this week at different times. Once again, the key was to consistently check the spots on spots of each different key area and depth and try to duplicate a hot bite with the same conditions in a different area.
It is a schizophrenic summer walleye bite, but it is a good one. I don’t know whether we are trending deeper or shallower, but until we establish a pattern, we will continue to bounce back and forth between both.
There was some effort put into chasing big pike this week, but aside from a pair of 38’s, it was pretty quiet.
The Kicker:
Guest: “Mike, how often do you change your jig color?”
MW – “Never! If I cut off a jig and retie, it is to change jig size, which is far more important than color on Lac Seul.”
Guest: “OK… So do you have any 1/8 oz. jigs in ‘raging red’?”
