SLIP’S 2018 LOGS, STATUS AND STRATEGIES

[Slip Sinker]

As I turn the last page of the “SLIP’S 2017 LOGS, STATUS AND STRATEGIES” log book on an astounding year of angling… I think back on the initial strategies and goals for the year. I wanted to tag at least (4) Trophy Master Angler Panfish and that would include one thru the ice which would be a PB using that method. I ended up with 2 trophy P.Seeds thru the ice with a PB at 9.8" as well as(13) total Master Anglers thru the rest of the open water season!

To accomplish this feat I would greatly scale down my presentations to micro lite equipment… rods, reels, lines and baits. Careful considerations of lines were incorporated into my methods which would not exceed 2# mono diameter…and super lines that would approach 8# test or above to handle the trophy quality of fishes sought.

I would also aim to make my time on the water more productive by timing the trips with solunar periods… majors and minors on New and Full Moons. I've discovered big fish follow the moon… period! 2017 proved that especially considering the hard water Ice Period. I was on the big fish spots on the peak periods and it paid off!... BIGly!!!

I think I coined a phrase “Fishing for the Numbers by the Numbers” by incorporating all methods and strategies to gain my odds on the water for numbers as well as numbers of trophies. By the end of the day and all the numbers were tallied for 2017 I broke many records for the Master Angler Program in at least 2 counties.

I’m hoping for an even better season for 2018 and success for the fishermen following BBG!

Ken

[Slip Sinker]

20180508-~~<")))))><(---*Pre-Spawn Period*--64°

[Slip Sinker]

20180508-Anxious to get back on the water with the fly…

Looking back on my history of fishing the Master Anglers statistics I am lacking a few months without the tag Nov, Dec, and Mar also I have never tagged one on the fly… i'd like to fill those gaps.

I am hitting a spot this afternoon that would give a great chance at that opportunity… to tag that Lepomis on the fly. I have a particular unique pattern in mind hopefully I’ll have some good reports for tonight’s post.

[Slip Sinker]

20180508-today’s strategy was about tagging gills on the fly…

But it was just not in the cards… the cut that I traveled too was just not holding the fish. My usual plan of attack with the fly rod is to locate them with the jig or slip/float then pursue them with the fly… it just seems to make sense to me and more efficient for speed. If the gills aren’t there why try to pick them off with the extra effort of the fly?

I was indeed caught on a downslide of a Minor.Period unable to schedule the major periods for a trip. The small cut was empty of active fish but just a few B.Gills from 7.5” to 8.5”.

The Pink waxie seemed to coax the bite better over the nite crawler presented on the same set-up 5:1. But hey… if Earl was fishing in the boat with the crawler bit, chances are the ratio would be reversed. Lol…

The popular method of the day was slip/float/pink waxie used on nearly inactive fish… coaxed five out on a short flurry of activity before calling it quits…

BOW vitals were slightly stained calm seas, 80° air temps with water temps rising in the cut near 70°… main lake at 64°.

[Slip Sinker]

20180513-~~<")))))><(---*Pre-Spawn Period*--59°

[Slip Sinker]

20180513-Beautiful day here in mid-michigan weather-wise.

I took a walk to the bridge to check the vitals on the BOW. The temperature at the bank was a cool 59° after being subjected to 3 days and nights of cold-front… frost and freeze warnings for the nights… a drop in nearly 10 degs.

Tough day fishing tomorrow is the forecast.

[Slip Sinker]

20180514-~~<")))))><(---*Pre-Spawn Period*--60°

[Slip Sinker]

20180514-anybody else feel that pull from the New Moon?

top preds need to be on the water! 90% fish activity day!!

[Slip Sinker]

[Slip Sinker]

20180514-Fish on the Fly was the plan.

the day’s game plan was to find shallow running panfish in the canals and cuts on one of my favorite reservoirs and tag them with a fly… I also brought along several UL set-ups including a slip/float set-up.

The goal of tagging a Master Angler Panfish on the fly is weighing heavily on my fishing agenda. The plan steered me to some cuts and canals that have impressed me favorably with productivity this time of year.

The main BOW measured a non impressive 64° with a light chop. Sunny Summer skies and temps made the trip pleasant. Once in the cut water temps rose to the upper 60’s.

Visually looking for panfish in the shallow clear depths revealed nothing. Oh-oh… nothing about this season so far proved reliable on the water I would really have to blame that on the below normal temps and the severe cold fronts every three or four days we’ve been experiencing here in Michigan. Nothing puts a fish in the neutral zone than a rapid drop in water temps.

I was on one of my most productive spots  and I was getting no response on the dry fly… not even a sniff. Swapping out techniques with the slip/float setup I tagged a few smaller eater sized fish

Time to move to a new spot brought me to an inside bend along some rip rap… casting the pink waxie along a small lay down drew some interest with a few mid-sized b.gills.

With number of bites low in the area I moved on to a small cut that usually warms up quite nicely in spring. Moving along the canal working my way to the end found me tagging some nice sized gills along the way.

Slip/floating and long-casting kept me busy till the timer ran out on the trip. Deciding to make a few more casts I tried a nicely tied Allen Morgan tungsten fly tipped with a pink waxie. With my lightest long caster I was still able to manage 40’ long casts. One of these cast landed the nicest fish of the day… a nine inch class P.Seed in beautiful coloration and condition.

Vitals for the day included a 90% activity day for the month fishing the uptick of the minor.period. with temps on the rebound and stable spring like weather in the short and mid term forecasts fish were found to be a bit more active.

[Allen Morgan]

Pics or it didn't happen! :)

Glad to hear that little jig-fly catches fish.  If I remember right, you lost it to a toothy predator, right?  Let me know if you want/need more.

[Slip Sinker]

20180515-~~<")))))><(---*Pre-Spawn Period*--69°

[Slip Sinker]

20180515- New Moon at 97% Fish Activity… Trophy Day!

still reeling from the excitement of the close call certificate P.Seed from yesterday’s trip… I fit in a short trip for the afternoon hoping to break that mark with a better fish.

Today was the New Moon with a 97% fish activity rated day. These are the days trophies are made

Same tactics, same lake and similar weather I fished the same waypoints hard.

Slip/float/Waxies against the bank and long-cast/jig/waxie and Allen Morgan Tungsten Fly many fish responded as well as some Lunkers.

Found the real warm water deep in the cuts and canals and worked it thoroughly.

The fish worked with me the whole day even with another close call P.Seed on the Morgan tungsten. As I passed the peak of the Major.Period and worked the downslide I set the hook into a very solid fish casting the Lil Minnow on a .016 oz jig. 9.6” Beautiful hen P.Seed full of spawn.

I did it broke the ice for the first certificate fish of the year! It measured to 9.6” and registered as My 2^nd best PB P.Seed.

Shortly after I tagged a beautiful P.Seed on the Allen Morgan Tungsten!... by this point I was shaking and making good casts were now a little more difficult.

As I progressed down the downtick the bite faded and so did the shakes. You are never to old to get the shakes from tagging a close PB as well as trophy.

The timer alarm sounded and I headed back to the launch a satisfied fisherman

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