jdh

Well, we're "allowed" back on the water now! I'll be out Monday unless I get more work for next week.

I just wish the order would have shut down the major DNR launches until May 1st. That would have prevented many of the large congregation of people at the launches, and would still allow me to use my boats other places. Or legally use our 14-ft row boat with an electric trolling motor. In other news - at least the time off has allowed me to actually get the boat ready properly instead of piling boxes and boxes of crap in the front of the boat because I don't know where anything is! My question now is, are we going to see a massive "launch your boat" civil disobedience protest if the boating prohibition is extended?

Going to have to run slow this year. Getting the boat geared up for coho fishing. Should be out there soon!

Welcome. We'll see how soon we'll be able to start fishing this spring. Not as much activity on this site since Facebook groups have become much more popular. Contributions are appreciated! -JD

Well, start out simple. This time of year can be quite unpredictable for fish. Pick a pier known to fish well, and get out there at first light and see how many people are out there and what they're using and if they're catching anything. Be friendly and maybe someone will share some tips and their setup with you.

Was worried about the big storm forming off of Holland, but it stayed south. Fished 6:30 until 10:30. Went 4-4. 3 kings, 1 steelhead. Nothing huge but good sized fish. Kings were immatures and biggest ran just under 15 lbs. 2.0-2.5 mph. 120-150 fow. 200 copper & Lyman plug. 400 copper & Moonshine Double Trouble Rigger 67 - Silver streak mag blue dolphin Mag Diver on 3 back 145 - Kevorvian Spin Doctor and Mirage Fly with green beads.

I run a low diver on a 7 ft Talora and a High on a 9 ft Talora. Seems to work for me. I've been on other boats where running 9 and 10 ft rods worked too. Just need a little practice to avoid tangles when setting/resetting.

Fished from 5 until dark. Worked 50 out to 135, but stuck in 125 -135 most of the night. (lots of big marks in that water). Went 1-1 with a 23-ish lb king. Didn't weigh it, but its the biggest fish I've got this year. Hit a lyman lures plug on a 200 copper.

Fished from 70 fow to 215 fow and back. 3-3. Two kings about 8 and 18 lbs. Both immature fish. No milt or eggs. Third fish was a shaker. White paddle down 93 feet and 400 copper with blue flounder.

Yup. There aren't a ton of fish, but the ones there weren't on a good bit today from what I can tell. They might be feeding overnight near surface and not as much in the morning.

We have a steelhead and a lake trout in the cooler. Lost our 1 king bite on a meatrig off a 300 copper. Fished 100-180 fow. Pulling lines in 20 minutes.

The snap on the back is to hook the fly leader to (you tie a loop in the fly leader). See if you can't browse through the gallery on this site. There are some good pictures of how flashers are set up.

I've done both. I prefer to use a small spro barrel swivel between the mono and braid and then use a uni-to-uni knot to connect the leadcore and mono. A lot of people use the Willis knot for the leadcore but I'm not a fan.

Braid is abrasive and tends to eat up the releases. Also, the releases will fray the braid over time. I like 30 lb to 40 lb mono to clip the board too because its "sticky" and stretches. Kind of like a shock absorber in the system.

5 & 7 colors will work. I use the same clips that come with the board. I also tie in a 10 ft section of mono behind the leadcore to clip the board to. Then I use 300 yds of braid behind that. Longer sections of leadcore work better with bigger boards. I find the Church TX44 boards a little overkill, but I haven't tried any other options.