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Summertime in the BelgradesContentsfor Printing Article Summaries |
What a Year It's Been!
by Mike Guarino Isn't it amazing how quickly the summer flew by this year? It seems like only yesterday we were standing in the pouring rain every day through the month of June, and now it's late August and the last article of the season is being completed. When I think back through the summer fishing season so many fun and lasting memories shoot into my mind, however the hot topic of the year was certainly the weather. As far as I know, this June was one of the rainiest months in history. This is fine if you are a slug or a duck, but it got to the point where I'd forgotten what the sun actually looked like. During one three-week period, we fished for eighteen straight days in the rain. Fortunately for our overall morale, the fishing was phenomenal which helped make up for the miserable conditions. As much as the rain made for soggy clothes and muddy camp roads, it kept the water temperature cool and oxygen levels high, especially where streams and creeks flowed into the lakes. The hot bait was definitely the watermelon senko fished both wacky and Texas style which consistently put fish in the boat all day long. Dick Dempster provided some awesome memories with a wacky rigged senko. I loved watching him catch fish on that bait; he was like a kid in a candy store with a whole pocket full of quarters! When it finally would decide to stop raining, we'd fish topwater lures like crazy and the smallmouth bass crashed them like they were bluefish! As the summer progressed and waters started to warm we switched baits and worked diving crankbaits with some success. Then the drop shot rigs came out and at times bass were just leaping in the boat. It's a tremendous technique and when that bite is on, nothing compares the action. I'm not sure if the weather changed the northern pike bite this year or not, but the early season pike fishing was not its usual chaotic experience. There really wasn't much consistency in the fishing, but the season saw some huge fish come to the net and good numbers of them too. They were just difficult to figure out, because each day they would be on totally different structure and preferred totally different lures. I guess each season is, in a way, is its own animal and this year compared to last was the difference between a tiger and a kitten — at least in the beginning of the year. Oddly enough, the pike fishing got better as July approached and peaked for us around July 4. That's when some of the biggest, meanest, and hungriest fish started showing up. One of the highlights of the year was watching John and Tyler Bartlett catch their first northern pike. John caught a great big 44-incher that had a seriously bad attitude! That fish jumped, sounded, tried t wrap up on the trolling motor, you name it, but John showed her who was boss. One of the best baits this year was the Mann's hardnosed swim bait. The pike just loved them, but they also loved to bite them off too, which can make for an expensive day, if you lose too many. The big northern pike should start moving back into shallow water in another month, and September and October is without a doubt the best time of year to chase Mr. Toothy around. I wish I'd had the chance to do more trout trolling this year, especially in May and June, but the smallmouth fishing was SO GOOD that I couldn't convince myself to change up. When we did troll we caught some wonderful brown trout and my friend and local Guide Bill Laflamme had some magnificent days playing with brook trout on local ponds and lakes. He's an expert troller and caught some big ones throughout the season. All the local guides on our team helped make the season so much fun. Bill Laflamme, Bill Swan, Dale Freise, Dick Bradbury, and Bob Howe are just a few of the professional fishermen who helped make 2009 a very successful year. Thanks to everyone who read the articles and wrote in with photos and comments this year. We made so many new friends this season that I'm already looking forward to next spring and summer to reunite again! In the meantime, some of the best fishing of the season is quickly approaching. See you on the water! Mike Guarino can be reached at | ||
