Priority1

Sometimes it's easy and sometimes ya have to work a little. It's not too bad.

Trophy Specialist Saginaw Bay Au Gres.

Don't get hung up on the word bottom. My bouncers are well off that. We were fighting floating weeds on the boards and they would also run down the line. Bottom Bouncers can be run like inline weights but inline weights do a poor job at best of bouncing the bottom.

Family fun on the Saginaw Bay. My Son Mike, Daughter-in-law Juli, and grandson Alex joined me on the Saginaw Bay for a Sat morning of fishing. We fished in 11-19 FOW pulling ten OR12 Offshore boards and two down rods. 2oz BB on the boards and 3oz BB on the down rods. Crawler harness blades that produced were Glow Chartreuse tiger, hammered copper, Antifreeze, pink, and purple in that order. The conditions were great the bay was beautiful and the bite was a little slow so we just enjoyed the morning and finished a four person limit of eater size walleye around 11 AM. Our speed was between 1.5 and 1.7 MPH. Floating and suspended weeds made us work a bit. Alex was able to reel in a quite a few fish and netted some also. It just don't get any better.

Mike, You da man. Fantastic!

I hear you Scott. But some guys don't get out as much as you and I do. When you only fish four or so times a year all you care about is a good time and numbers. Get them on the fish. They were prepared for what was to come. And what difference is it pulling boards in or casting and reeling? Keep em busy and you get less complaints. I love every minute I can spend out there. We are truly blessed being able to play this game.

I fished with Scott j, Chuck A, and Tom D, for a 4 man limit of walleye. We were done and pulling lines by 9:30 and we farmed 3 keepers at the end. Our last fish of the day was the nicest with the board being under water for three or four minutes. We fished shallow water again and fought the weeds continuously. Our best color by far was the glow chartreuse tiger pattern, followed by Antifreeze, purple, and hammered copper. One 3 oz down rod accounted for at least 5 fish. It was strange but the port side caught about 75% of the fish. Uphill was our best troll. We were on 18 when I made the turn and picked up 5 quick fish. 2oz BB off the boards. It was an easy trip with a very good crew. This is the first time I fished with Scott and he fit right in.

Yes it has been a good one and it looks like it will hold all through the Summer. Gotta Love Dat Bay.

We fished the skinny water today and fought the weeds for a 4 man limit farming 3 keepers at the end. Our first stop was too slow so we made a move about 4 miles and finished up. Most of the fish came in bunches. Antifreeze, glows, purple and pink were getting it done. Of course we were running two oz bouncers off the boards and 3 oz down rods. We did try some weight forward spinners but they were not the ticket today. 1.5 MPH. Two of the guys were on 2cd shift and we were done in plenty of time for them to clean fish and to get on the GM clock.

Sometimes perch jerking can be tough. On a recent Saginaw Bay Walleye trip we took 7 nice perch accidentally. Love it when we cam limit on eyes and get 6-12 bonus perch. Usually the perch caught trolling are in the 10"-13" range.

Gotta love the tip of the thumb's mixed bags.

Yooper land. 9 months of Winter and 3 months of tough sledding.

Yes! It looks like Priority1------- 2. Nice boat for sure.

Steve, GJ on the mixed bag out of PA. The PA Grindstone area has long been noted for the mixed bag fishery.

Tue: I had the extreme pleasure of fishing with 3 very capable fishermen, Ralph S; Bob M; and Buster P. The weather forecast called for Saginaw Bay waves 2' or less. It must have been one of the two footers that washed the top of my cooler that was on the swim platform. After a while it did lay down to the forecast of 2' or less. We trolled up hill and down hill in two different locations for a long enjoyable day on the Saginaw Bay. 8-30 FOW. 1.5 to 2 MPH pulling meat off BB. It was too slow for us and the bay gave up a little over a half a limit for or efforts. The GR area boys left with a their limit and the Gracious Ralph S just took home one for his dinner that night. My limit always fills last so I got the skunk. Wed: We set up in a nice 1-1/2' chop and it didn't take long to get the skunk out of the box. We didn't go shallow on Wed. I was joined by Bob M, Karl M, and Buster P. Another slow but enjoyable day on the Saginaw Bay. We reeled in 21 keeper walleye and 7 bonus perch. We did get a critical piece of information from Doug (Slap shot) that helped us finish up. Good colors were Chrome, Red, Hammered copper, Antifreeze and some glows. Speeds were 1.5 to 2 MPH. The bite was very light and almost unnoticeable. You had to be on your game or they would easily be missed. A lot of fish would just let go while reeling them in. We also dealt with a lot of floating weeds a result of the storms and high winds. We got to meet Doug, Billy, and Ryan at the launch. We swapped a little information and a few snacks. We also got to chat with Capt. Mike V for a short time. Now remember that I mentioned above about my limit filling last. The other rule I have is I keep the perch. I do let a few of the perch go home with other but not too many. The 7 perch yielded 1#10oz of skinned filets. The perch completely covered the bottom of the kitchen sink bowl. I didn't want to go in any perch waters Tue because I would have had to wrestle with Ralph for them. Ya just have to love what the Saginaw Bay provides. It's not only the great eats but the good times and memories that we keep forever. The fire drills, the snacks, the BS, and the jokes, all make for a great fishing trips.

That cupcake is 10 yo. I just keep it there so I can laugh when someone eats it.

Above the ball.

It's always a pleasure fishing with you and the boys. The boys are different as night and day but are both well mannered and helpful. I like to see them doing more and more on the back of the boat. It takes practice and it's our job to make sure they get that. You are a good grandfather to them. I know you were influential in what those lads have become. Keep on keeping on. Thanks for your help.

After a few fish you guys were going at it like a well oiled machine. The help with towing the boat was awesome. I'm sorry you had to be towed in with your boat. I hope the repairs are less than expected. Thanks for breakfast as we waited out the storms.

I fished Fri with Tom T, John V and John's grandsons TY and Zach. The kids were doing a good job reeling and netting fish. The bite was tough where we were at but fish were nice. The bigger fish were barely noticeable when they hit and swam with the boards. Thanks all for joining me. Sat I fished with Kevin Chuck and Nick. We slowly pulled 19 walleye from the bay. Bouncers and meat like always. We had to find and stranded boater in the dark and tow him in. By the time we were done the DNR and CG were involved. Towing a boat through a set of unlit cans and up a river partially blocked by a barge was a bit of a challenge. Every one onboard was involved and it was a joint effort for sure. Two other boats helped us out with information and helping light up some danger spots. I was glad to make it home but stuff like that takes it's toll. I couldn't sleep most of the night. Rescue efforts in the dark is about 10 times more difficult than during daylight hrs.

^5s Grizz and gj on your nice fish. It's always a pleasure to see you and your family. One of these days things will line up and maybe we can have 2 slowpokes onboard. I just love the time on the water with good people.

Friday: I fished the skinny water with Jim M, Ron, and Rod for a four man limit of eaters and some bigger fish. I was running 3 oz BB off the down rods and 2 oz BB off the boards all with short leads. I can't afford to buy lighter weights for shallow fishing so we do what we have to do. When the down rods get hit someone needs to reel the and someone better have a net in their hand. Same thing bringing in a board take the board off and reach for a net. I fished this method several times. The books say to do it differently. I guess the fish never read the books. We do a lot of unconventional stuff. I fished with Jim and Ron before in very rough water. Jim introduced me to Rod a new friend of mine. I thoroughly enjoyed my time on the water with these great guys. Hot colors were antifreeze, Hammered dirty copper, and the glow chartreuse. Thanks Jim, Ron, and Rod for joining me on the bay. Just four grumpy old guys getting along and getting it done. Thanks for the crawlers Jim. Sat: I fished with Larry M aka Rat City Hooker, Chuck, and Canyon. We returned to the scene that we fished yesterday. Same colors and presentations. Canyon was the guest of honor and being 7yo he got to reel all the fish in. I guess 20 nice walleye gave him a workout because he was nodding off on the ride back in. I brought some cupcakes out to celebrate Canyon's 7th birthday and we all sang happy birthday to him. I'll remember this trip as long as I live. I think we made some good memories for Canyon. Larry and Chuck are fantastic people and fishermen but this trip was all about the youngster. Thanks Larry, Chuck, and Canyon for making my day. Sun: I was a few miles from the Au Gres DNR Launch when I hit a deer. It was a bit foggy and I couldn't find the deer. Light damage to the grill and left front corner of my truck. I slammed on the brakes and my six pack cooler with crawlers on ice went forward and into the step down just aft of the cabin. I called 911 at the ramp to report the incident and told them I'd be on the water and would come in for a report later. A officer came to my home later to fill out a report. I had the pleasure of fishing with Chris C. and his lovely daughters Amanda, Alexa, and Alexa's BF Nate. Amanda and Alexa do not fish like little girls. Chris has taught them well. We returned to the same waters I fished the previous two days and the fish were not cooperating. After a bit off trolling and waiting for them to turn on we pulled lines with one fish in the box. We made a run to some deeper water that has proved good before and it was game on almost immediately. A couple of doubles and we were five times better than a few minutes ago. The action slowed a bit until I found some fish hiding in the shade under some chart numbers. No these were not my numbers rather numbers NOAA placed on Chart I run on my Toughbook Chart Plotter. Same colors and weights as above but of course the leads were a lot longer. We took a four person miscount of 24 walleye and if you could tune out the bugs it was a beautiful day to spend on the bay. Thanks Chris, Amanda, Alexa, and Nate for joining me on the bay. I forgot my camera on the previous two trips but I captured this pic after tying things down in the lot. Chris, Thanks also for the venison jerky, back straps, and squash.

I live between Au Gres and Tawas and haven't fished Oscoda in 5 or more years. I usually fish Au Gres for walleye. There is some walleye, steel, and Laker action there.

VN rig.