Have you ever had a hook stuck in your hand while fishing? If you have fished for as many years as I have, you will probably be able to answer yes to that question. This is just one of the hazards of being an avid fisherman. Over the years I have had a few instances where I have hooked my shirt, carpet in the boat and my hand.
One year I was doing some early-morning fishing on Spider Lake and I latched onto a big northern. I fought the fish for a couple of minutes before I finally coaxed it close to the boat. As I was reaching for it with the net, it broke water, shook its head and spit out the lure. The lure exited its mouth like it was shot out of a slingshot, and before I could react, I had a Rapala dangling from my hand. Now I had a treble hook stuck in the webbing between my thumb and forefinger. I am not a doctor, but after assessing the situation, I realized that removing this hook was not going to be a painless procedure. The hook had gone all the way through and there was no way to get a good grip on it with a needle nose pliers, so that I could smoothly extract it. After trying different things, including clipping the barb off, I came to the conclusion that, if I could get a firm grip on the hook, I was going to have to rip it out. With clenched teeth, I got a firm grip on the hook and pulled it out. Not a painless procedure, but I got the job done. Lesson learned, or at least, until the next time.
I am looking forward to fishing in the fall and with that brings the opportunity to catch a personal best fish, whether it be a muskie, northern, bass or walleye. I am going to fish Spider Lake at least one more time before the “hard water” season comes along. Fall is my favorite time to fish; the temperatures are cooler and, once the lakes turn over, the fish can be found at almost any depth.
Northern and muskie will be shallower or on the edge of a weed bed and, although not easy, they can be enticed to bite. Fish tend to follow the baitfish, especially in the fall when the baitfish are schooled and easier to find. One little tip that someone gave me years ago is always to look for smaller fish or minnows that are breaking the surface. This is usually a sign that there are bigger fish pursuing them.
When it comes to dealing with nature, there are no guarantees, so I always go with what has worked in the past and go from there. Bass will still be in the lily pads and on the weed edges and northern can be shallow or deep, depending on the baitfish.
I had an old fishing buddy named Charlie Thompson, whose son was an avid bass fisherman. His favorite lake to fish in the fall was Lake Francis near the town of Elysian. He would catch frogs and use them for bait. His trick was to cast a frog to the top of a lily pad and then twitch his line just enough to jump the frog off of the pad and into the open water. The bass couldn’t pass up this easy meal, and the next thing you knew he’d hook one. He caught a lot of bass like that over the years and his largest, to my knowledge, was a 5 1/2-lb. hog.
My friend Charley passed some years ago and I actually don’t know what ever happened to his son. Those days of fishing with Charlie were good times and I have always said that, no matter what I know about fishing, I will never be too old to learn a new trick or two.
Whenever I would attend the Governor’s Fishing Opener, I always enjoyed fishing with a fishing host from the area that we were fishing. Almost every time that I have attended an opener I would pick up a tip or two. Some of those times we fished in some pretty crummy weather conditions, but still managed a fish or two. I don’t always judge the success of an opener by what was in the live well at the end of the day, and some years were definitely better than others. I have fished with guys who are actual guides and others who were just folks who loved fishing and knew their area very well. It’s all good, and I can’t remember a time when I didn’t take away some fishing tip or technique that I have used somewhere down the road.
Until next time: it’s time to take advantage of some late summer-early fall fishing. Who knows? That lunker that you’ve been seeking could be lurking just around the next point, waiting to attack your lure.
Please take a few moments also to honor those who have sacrificed so much for the freedoms that we enjoy today. Also take a little extra time to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice, those who have served and those troops who are serving today