NumenOn the Water
My various records indicate just about 50 days on the water for 2017. About 3/4 of this effort was aboard Numenon, the other quarter was spent on the dock in Maine pursuing stripers. And, while a day a week (on average for the year) isn't a ton of fishing time (in my personal estimation), I can vouch that 2017 had many full days of fishing effort. There wasn't a whole lot of casual effort in 2017; when I was fishing, I was generally fishing hard!
Starting at "Noon" on the price-chart below, one can see my 2017 fishing season progress. I started with a concentrated effort for largemouth bass on Reeds Lake. I stuck with it, because the bite was so good! In May, I transitioned North and East for smallmouth bass. My good luck continued, and I can easily say that these portions of my season represented my best, sustained bass fishing ever; without a doubt!
Interestingly enough, I say that, while recognizing that the fishing was never "easy." I usually had to work and adjust to get bit or to keep a bite going. With that work comes the true satisfaction of having earned these experiences, as well as the benefit of growing as an angler.
June was a transition month in many ways, and panfishing and enjoying some Lake St. Clair white bass filled my post-spawn slump. This was short-lived, though, because it was time to go to Maine! Two separate trips to Maine dominated my fishing effort in July and August. The bite was strong during both visits, but the numbers do reflect a bit of a slow-down in August. That is not unexpected.
It looks like I was sampling the same population of fish during the two trips. The relative frequency of stripers equal to or greater than 23 inches in length was about the same; perhaps a few of the bigger fish had sought cooler waters. It's at about this length (23 inches; probably about 5 pounds) that the stripers become (for me, in my Maine setting) game fish as opposed to simply fun fish. At this size, they will now test your tackle and knots; they will selectively hit heads as opposed to just any old chunk; they will slurp down a worm with confidence; and they'll chase down a live mackerel on the surface. But they can't all be above average, so I guess I'll continue to enjoy the little guys, too.
I was fortunate to get in a few more days of quality smallmouthing in September (discovering and uncracking Bellaire Lake was a highlight of my Michigan travels for the year) before dedicating the remainder of the season to chasing pike and muskies. I wasn't super successful with those efforts (if based simply on catching), but I did encounter some very nice pike, I saw a lot of Lake St. Clair, and I think I learned some useful information about her moods and behavior. With luck, I'll put those experiences to good use in the future.
My various records indicate just about 50 days on the water for 2017. About 3/4 of this effort was aboard Numenon, the other quarter was spent on the dock in Maine pursuing stripers. And, while a day a week (on average for the year) isn't a ton of fishing time (in my personal estimation), I can vouch that 2017 had many full days of fishing effort. There wasn't a whole lot of casual effort in 2017; when I was fishing, I was generally fishing hard!
Starting at "Noon" on the price-chart below, one can see my 2017 fishing season progress. I started with a concentrated effort for largemouth bass on Reeds Lake. I stuck with it, because the bite was so good! In May, I transitioned North and East for smallmouth bass. My good luck continued, and I can easily say that these portions of my season represented my best, sustained bass fishing ever; without a doubt!
Interestingly enough, I say that, while recognizing that the fishing was never "easy." I usually had to work and adjust to get bit or to keep a bite going. With that work comes the true satisfaction of having earned these experiences, as well as the benefit of growing as an angler.
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| 50 Days of Fishing |
June was a transition month in many ways, and panfishing and enjoying some Lake St. Clair white bass filled my post-spawn slump. This was short-lived, though, because it was time to go to Maine! Two separate trips to Maine dominated my fishing effort in July and August. The bite was strong during both visits, but the numbers do reflect a bit of a slow-down in August. That is not unexpected.
It looks like I was sampling the same population of fish during the two trips. The relative frequency of stripers equal to or greater than 23 inches in length was about the same; perhaps a few of the bigger fish had sought cooler waters. It's at about this length (23 inches; probably about 5 pounds) that the stripers become (for me, in my Maine setting) game fish as opposed to simply fun fish. At this size, they will now test your tackle and knots; they will selectively hit heads as opposed to just any old chunk; they will slurp down a worm with confidence; and they'll chase down a live mackerel on the surface. But they can't all be above average, so I guess I'll continue to enjoy the little guys, too.
 |
| Sampling the available Striper Population on two separate trips |
I was fortunate to get in a few more days of quality smallmouthing in September (discovering and uncracking Bellaire Lake was a highlight of my Michigan travels for the year) before dedicating the remainder of the season to chasing pike and muskies. I wasn't super successful with those efforts (if based simply on catching), but I did encounter some very nice pike, I saw a lot of Lake St. Clair, and I think I learned some useful information about her moods and behavior. With luck, I'll put those experiences to good use in the future.
My last really good fish of the season was, appropriately, a nice largemouth bass from Reeds Lake. She provided a nice bookend to her near twin, the early March fattie that surprised me by eating my spy bait. Either might have been my Bass of the Year in other years; in 2017, they were just part of the blurred parade of quality fish to find the bottom of my net.
What do I have to say about this?
Thank you, 2017! I really love fishing; and I love it even more when good things happen. When those good things happen within beautiful settings, can one ask for anything else? I was fortunate, indeed, to partake in so many such transactions this year. But amazingly enough, I have reason to believe that 2018 could offer even more. We'll see!
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