Showing posts with label bass fishing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bass fishing. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Open Mic Night

I am back from my trip, alive and well, refreshed and rejuvenated.  Although, I wish I could have stayed out in the wilderness a few more days, week, month, forever...ha

It was a total last minute decision to take off Thursday night for the Northwoods of Wisconsin.  With the arrival of Fall, I just knew it was time for me to get away.  The lure of the Fall colors, and it being "Musky Season" just forced me to take off and get lost.

I'm still sorting through pictures and thoughts...there's a lot of them, so, this story is going to come out in pieces.  I know what you're thinking, "F you CARF!"  Don't you worry, though.  I'm not going to allow myself to fall back into my slacker ways.  I have a need to keep the story telling alive!

Before I embarked on my 4 day solo adventure, a local bar my buddy bar tends at (Bigby's Pour House) was having an open mic, so, I decided to bring the guitar out and play some tunes in public.  It's been quite some time since I had done anything like this.  I had such a great time playing and listening to some of the local talent, and man, there are some talented individuals out there!  All in all, I think I did a good job.  I felt like an acoustic rock star.  Ha!  Looking forward to playing some more open mics, and possibly opening up for some friends bands.

Photo Cred goes to my friend JoAnna.
As soon as I left the open mic night at Bigby's, I jumped on the expressway and started my trek North around 11:30 PM.  2 short parking lot naps, and 6 hours later, I reached my destination.  There were a bunch of deer on the gravel road, and all but 1 scattered off.  This one was confused at the departure of it's other deer friends, and didn't even notice I was there.  3 minutes later the young deer bolted off.  Hopefully, it doesn't sit around that long for hunters and poachers.

Uhm...Where did everyone go?!?!?!
After another short nap in the middle of the forest, I was on the water.  It was beautiful out, and all of the small smallmouth bass were out to play, but no sign of Momma or Poppa.


That is all the time I have at the moment.  Still sorting through pictures.


Thursday, September 22, 2016

FALL IS HERE

With today being the official first day of Fall, that means a few things to me.

  • The days are shorter.
  • The temperatures will start dropping. Get your hoodies out!
  • Leaves will begin to turn, and blanket the ground. Making it hard to sneak around outside without making that leafy crunch sound.
  • Real football weather. Go Bears (Say what you want - I stand by my team.)

and last but not least.....IT'S MUSKY SEASON!!!!

I will have you all know, that I am leaving tonight (9/22) for a much needed adventure in the Northwoods of Wisconsin.  I'll be exploring, hiking, kayaking, fishing, car camping, jamming out on my guitar, drinking beer, all while sitting by a small campfire and hopefully not eating cold hot dogs.  

Basically being a complete fish/outdoor bum for the next 4 days...rediscovering my old self and decompressing with some good old fashion outdoor therapy.


  It's going to be awesome, and I am stoked!



I hope everyone has a great rest of the week and weekend!!

Thursday, September 8, 2016

Juice. We Can Still Go Fishing.

It's Monday, and I had planned to take my cousins Sam and Dom fishing after work.  It was storming most of the afternoon and in my head, the chances of us fishing were out the window.  I text my Aunt informing her that I don't think I'll be coming by to take the boys fishing.

When I finally got off of work there was light rain, but the skies to the west were all gray.  Once I arrived at home, I received a text message from my cousin Sam that read "We can still go fishing..."...and after a quick glance outside at the dark skies in the West, I said to hell with it, and told him that I was going to pick him and his brother up shortly.


When we arrived to the lake, there was a steady drizzle of rain, but no thunder or lightening, so, we were all good to fish.  The boys didn't mind the rain.  They were just so excited to get out and fish.  Awesome!

We all hooked up with fish.  My cousin Sam (Grey shirt) was the first to hook up, and he ended up with 2 on the day.  Dom (Orange shirt) caught 3, and ended up with 2 sunnies and 1 small bass.


It was really awesome to see how excited they were to get out and fish with me.  I'm hoping to take them out more and more before the cold weather arrives.


I ended up hooking up with a decent sized bass on a top water lure.  I was doing a lot more coaching than fishing, but that was A-okay with me.  I really wanted them to hook up with some bigger fish.  I know they will eventually.  They were super excited to see the big bass I caught.


...but they were also quick to remind me that they were up on me in the fish count numbers.
  • Dom - 3
  • Sam - 2
  • Juice (My family nickname) - 1


When the mosquitoes were too much to handle, we packed it up, and I treated my cousins to some cheese curds and ice cream from Culvers....a dinner of champions.  Ha


Always a good time when it's family time!

Tuesday, August 16, 2016

It Has To Be The Shirt

My first time out on the Des Plains River this year.  Crazy, right?  Usually, I'd be in the double digits in visits, but that's just not the case this summer.  I'm going to make the most of what time is left, that's for damn sure.  Got out to my favorite, most frequented stretch of water on the DPR in Lake County.  The weather could not have been better.


Kept it simple and light this trip.  1 fly rod and just a few flies.  I was just looking to enjoy the day and not over complicate things.  We had some storms roll through the past few days, but the water levels were surprising low.  


What I was extremely surprised about the day was the amount of fish I seen swimming around.  I have never seen so much activity in the water before.  There were schools of bass, bluegill, and rock bass all over the place.  It was really awesome to see that the fishery is flourishing.

Floating along, enjoying the scenery, and casting near downed trees and debris, I was seeing a lot of action.  The Northern Pike were hungry, but man, do they have the worst accuracy.  Once I finally got a hook up, it turned out to be a fish I had never caught on the river.  A largemouth bass!  It must have been my Troutrageous! shirt that enticed the chunky little bass.


On my paddle back up river, I anchored down, so, I can take a break and listen to a live band that someone had playing in their backyard.  They were jamming all kinds of new and old music, and were pretty damn awesome.  I couldn't see them, because, of all of the forest but I could hear them loud and clear.


Here's the spot I was anchored down at...beautiful.  Crazy to think that this is the Des Plains River.  I may or may not have fallen asleep while laying back on my kayak.

Life is good when I'm in my kayak on the river...napping.
40 minutes later...I continued my paddle back to the launch were I parked.  Made a few more casts and hooked up with this feisty snot rocket.  I think I went 1 for 20 on Northern Pike.


Surprisingly, this was the only litter that I found in the stretch I paddled.  Free double buzz bait in Chartreuse...I'll take it!

-Here's a tip for all of you fishermen-
If your lure is snagged, don't cut the line at the reel.  Aim your rod straight at the lure and pull straight, putting zero bend in your rod.  It'll break off closest to the lure (In theory), and you won't litter or lose a lot of line.  Win for you, and win for any animals that might get tangled up in your mess.  Let's be smarter people!

Thursday, August 11, 2016

Learning To Fly

Back in May, my buddy DanK and I went out fishing.  The bass were on their beds and didn't want to partake in any of our shenanigans.  I downsized the fly I was tossing to something the big bluegill in this lake would be willing to take, and they did not disappoint.

I even got DanK to try his hand at fly fishing.  His casting definitely needs work, but it was getting the job done this day.  The huge bluey's were giving my 5 wt one heck of a work out.


DanK with the cliche fly fishing grip n grin.
I don't think he's going to be converting, but I think he'll definitely give it another go.  I'll make him if he doesn't. ha

Oh, and please forgive all of the curse words.  I hadn't realized I swore so much until I was editing this video.  I have since curbed the bad habit a little bit.....I think.  Probably not.


Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Midwest "Golden Bones" Fly Tournament


The first annual M.G.B. tournament will be held on September 9th and 10th. The event will be based out of Rivers Edge Bar and Grill in Batavia, IL. Entrance fee is $70.00 per angler. Every angler will receive an event shirt, poster, SWAG bag, drinks, and food. Great prizes will be handed out to tournament winners. Live music both nights. Raffle prizes will also be handed out. Entrance fee can be mailed to Kurt Nelson, along with your shirt size, and email address for confirmation of entry. 

Registration is now open. There will be a limit of 35 slots available for the tournament. 

BASIC RULES ARE AS FOLLOWS:

Fishing Area: DuPage, Des Plaines, and Fox River Systems (with Bonus water being added the morning off).

Wading, kayaks, and boats are all welcome to fish. This will be an individual angler scoring system. No combined points between anglers in a boat.

All carp must be taken on fly, photographed/measured, and released. Pictures must be taken of the angler holding the fish and of the fish with the tournament supplied measuring stick/bumpboard. Pics must be texted to tournament staff by 6:00 PM Saturday.

Phone numbers to text pictures to will be provided on angler rules sheet given out at the meet and greet Friday night at Rivers Edge Bar and Grill and at check in at Dupage Fly Co. Saturday morning.
Tournament staff will provide anglers with individual measuring tapes the morning of tournament.
Anglers must be back at Rivers Edge Bar and Grille in Batavia, IL by 6:30 PM Saturday for awards.

SCORING SYSTEM:

The point totals will be based on total length from the day, with additional prizes for biggest and smallest carp. There will also be 1/2 points given to smallmouth bass that measure over 12"s.

Example Scoring:
30" Carp = 30 points
18" Carp = 18 points
12" Smallmouth Bass = 6 points
18" Smallmouth Bass = 9 ponts
Total Points = 63 points

Payment Options:

1.Send check payable to:
Kurt Nelson
email me at midwestwatersflyfishing@gmail.com
call at 6304290419 or message me on Facebook for address to send checks to.

2. You can pay cash in person at DuPage Fly Fishing Co. as well.

3. Also accepting entry fees through paypal. Send entry fee payment to Knkirby1@gmail.com
Contact Kurt Nelson for details or email Midwestwatersflyfishing@gmail.com for questions.

www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/send-money-online

*A confirmation email will be sent to you upon receiving your entrance fee. It will include details about the event, when and where to be, and other event giveaways.

We look forward to seeing everyone out at the inaugural event! If you have any questions or concerns please message us and we will get back to you ASAP.

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

Lazy Days

I'd just like to share some recent flies with you all, and my secret ingredient to all of my flies.

Pictured below is articulated bass fly.  Also in the picture, you will find the secret ingredient to all of my flies.  Yes, it's true.  Fish love hot sauce!  I use Tabasco for my flies and I favor Cholula on my food when giardinara is not available.

No Name Fly Ingrediants
  1. Partridge of Redditch Predator X 4/0 Hook
  2. Black Magnum Zonker Strips
  3. Bronze Polar Chenille
  4. Black Polar Chenille
  5. Flymen Articulated Shank (Medium Sized One)
  6. Misfit Holo Head
  7. Tabasco Sauce - Spice it up!


THAT FLY IS HOT!!!!


If you're a follower of The Fiberglass Manifesto, then you should be aware of a recent post of his that was a - Step by Step - pictorial of a Panther Branch Bugs fly named the "Mini Mouse."  It's a great looking pattern, and simple to tie.

Inspired, I was.  I got to tying my own, and played around with some different variations.  I'm happy with all 3.  Now I just need the fish in my area to start hitting top water already.


...And here we have my dogs, Daisy and Bo, doing a great impersonation of me the past 2 weeks.

Bumming around.

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Setting Up The Camper

It's that time of year, again.  I usually head up to my grandparent's camper with my Uncle and Cousin Donny, but this year was different.  My Grandmother and Father were already up at the camper, and my Father called and asked if I could come up and help out.  Of course my answer was, yes.


I didn't have to clear the screened patio of any leaves this year.  What a relief!  That made things go much quicker.  We were able to get the canopy over the patio, no problem.


Zip tie the canopy to the supports, because, you can't fully trust the velcro to hold when there is a storm with strong winds rolling through.


That be my father.


No Carpet....

My Grandmother and Father
With carpet.


Once we were done with all of the heavy stuff, we decided to eat lunch, and then my father and I headed down to the lake to see if anything was biting.  My father has never used plastic artificial worms, so, I rigged him up with my spinning rod and a wacky rigged senko.  I told him to cast it out, let it drop, pick it up, reel in the slack, let it sink, and repeat.

What do ya know...he hooked up with a feisty male on his 2nd cast!  Pretty cool, and kind of funny how the tables have turned.  He taught me how to fish when I was a little kid (1st grade) using live bait and watching a red/white bobber, and now here we are, roughly 27 years from those days, and I'm teaching him how to fish using artificial lures.


He ended up hooking up with 3 more after that first one, while I was tossing a fly and receiving no attention from anything.


CATCH AND RELEASE


My father got hung up and lost the worm he had on, and called it a day.  I on the other hand, put away the fly rod, and took the spinning rod and rigged it up with another wacky worm, and there you have it.  I beat the skunk.  My father bragged about how he had me beat 4 - 1 when we got back to the camper.

Friday, April 29, 2016

Daisy Meets Larry Largemouth Bass

My first decent sized bass of the year out of the backyard lake.  My dog Daisy was there, too, and it was her first time seeing a fish.  It freaked her out at first, and then I got her to come on over and say hi.

I present you, the many faces of a confused happy dog.







Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Pike On The Mind

My buddy DanK found this picture, and shared it with me not long ago.  I posted it on my Instagram, so, you might have seen it.  I really wish I knew the orgin of it, because, I LOVE IT!  I've tried a few Google searches but came up empty.  It gets me excited for the upcoming season.  I cannot wait to get into some predator fish with teeth!


I've been slowly building a stockpile of flies.  Some for myself, but most of them are for others.  The one below is an articulated double, and it'll find it's way into my personal box, and hopefully, it's next stop is the jaws of a musky or pike.


Thursday, April 21, 2016

Ice Jigs for FSA Custom Rods

My homie +Ed Schmitt of FSA Custom Rods reached out to me, and asked if I would be interested in decorating some ice jigs he plans on pairing up with some custom ice rods he's building for some Veterans.  Without hesitation, I agreed to the job.

About 2 weeks later, my GF was going through our mail, and asked what I ordered from the "Used Anal Bead Emporium.  Wait...what did you say?!?!  I got something from the WHAT? HAHA!!!!  Luckily the contents of the envelope contained zero anal beads - used or new, and only some tungsten ice fishing jigs, stickers, and a note from my buddy Ed.  Oh, what a funny guy you are!  Haha  I got a really good laugh out of that.


Now what the heck to do with these jigs.  Very different than what I'm used to, but a hook is a hook, and after much thought, I had an idea.


I painted them all orange.  In retrospect, I should have only done half in orange, and the other half in another color or left them the original color, but oh well.  I'll just blame it on the beer that I'm pretty sure I was drinking that night.


A little flash, Senyo Fusion dub, and viola, ice jigs completed.  Hopefully, these will go great with the ice rods that Ed is building, but more importantly I hope they catch some fish for those Veterans that need some fish action through some hard water.


Ed is a Veteran of the Marine Corps, a very talented rod builder, and obviously a funny guy who is a fan of used anal beads.  He's built rods for quite a few of us here in the Chicagoland area.  He can do any type of rod; casting, spinning, fly, or ice.  Some others that can attest to the quality of his work are Brookfield Angler, and The Impractical Fisherman.  

So, if you're in the market for a new rod, shoot Ed an email at - ed@fourseasonsangler.com and be sure to like his Facebook page FSA Custom Rods.

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

2016 Great Lakes Kayak Fishing Series



With a new year comes a whole new Great Lakes Kayak Fishing Series aka GLKFS is a lot of fun and organized by some knowledgeable kayak anglers such as +Colin Belle and Brookfield Angler.  I have participated in a few of the events the past 2 years, and have always had a great time.  Unfortunately, I do not think any of the dates will work out for me this year, but I highly recommend you give 1 or all the stops a shot!


2016 SCHEDULE

May 14th - Fox Chain O'Lakes
Target Species - Walleye, Catfish, and Panfish

June 11th - Madison Chain of Lakes
Target Species - Smallmouth & Largemouth Bass

July 24th - Mazonia/Braidwood
Target Species - Smallmouth & Largemouth Bass

September 10th - Manitowoc/Lake Michigan
Target Species - All Trout/Salmon

Tournament entry fee is $45 per event, but if you pay up front for all 4, it's $160, and that nets you a total of $20 in savings.  There are cash and gear prizes for placing in each event, but there are also a ton of door prizes to be raffled away to everyone at the event after the winners are announced.  Like I said, I had a great time at past events, and while I never placed, I walked away with some pretty sweet gear won in the raffle/door prizes.

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Trouterspace & The Remedy Fishing Channel

The dudes at Trouterspace and The Remedy Fishing Channel have uploaded a new video, and it's a fantastic.  Short, sweet, and get's me jazzed to get on my kayak to do some fly fishing for smallies and pike.

If you don't already, I suggest you follow them, because, they're always putting out quality stuff.  They also have one of the cooler blog names out there.  I'd name a few others, but I'll save that for a future post.

Click here for their website.

Monday, April 11, 2016

Zombie's Need More Cowbell

The weather has been super fantastic here in the Chicagoland area.  (That's sarcasm.)

Rain - Rain - Sunny - Rain - Snow - Sunny - 30 degree's - 50 degree's - Snow - Sun - and more rain.

With that said, it gave me some much needed time to get some cleaning done around the house, and more importantly get my fly tying desk in order, so, I can once again sit at the vise and fill some spaces in my personal fly boxes, and to fill some orders.

With the end of my favorite show The Walking Dead last week, and the start of their other show Fear The Walking Dead, I was in the zombie mood, and the flies I whipped up yesterday displayed just that.

Zombie inspired Minimum Cowbell's

Zombie's need more cowbell, right?


Tuesday, April 5, 2016

CARF's Renegade

I've been working on a new fly pattern, and trying to come up with a name for it.  I have finally decided.  

I present to you, CARF's Renegade.  An articulated streamer that will surly get the attention of both large and smallmouth bass, meat eating trout, and bluegill with big cahones.


Saturday, April 2, 2016

2016 Illinois Fishing License

Just a reminder to all from Illinois.  Our Illinois fishing licenses have expired, and it's time to get to your local tackle & Bait, or big box store to get your 2016 Fishing License.


To purchase your Illinois fishing license online click the link below.


...and remember.