Fishing Report Sept / Oct 2010

October 22-23, 2010

Pheasant hunting in S.D was very good, but we had to fight extremely high water conditions.  Lots of ducks out there, too.  Meanwhile, fishing in Woman Lake couldn't get much better.  I went out alone on my birthday and caught nine nice walleyes in 2 hours.  The walleyes are still shallow and scattered, but they were very aggressive.  Water temperature was still 52 degrees.  I was fishing redtail chubs while I drifted the wind across a mid-lake shallow flat, long lining the rig about 75 feet behind the boat.  I did not hook any big ones, but the ones I caught were all 14-19 inches, fat, and healthy looking.  I kept my six, ate a couple, and froze a few for the winter.  This will probably be my last open water fishing for the season, as I need to get the docks taken out and my deer stand set up in the woods.  My next fishing report will probably be something about the early ice in December.  See you then.

October 9-10, 2010

Fall fishing up here is traditionally very good and that has been true this year, as well.  It can get pretty cold some years, but October has been warm and sunny, so far, making up for our cooler September.  The walleyes have moved shallower as I have found most fish in the 13-15 foot depths as the water temperatures hover in the mid 50 degree range.  Scout your typical fishing spots, but check up on top of mid-lake structure and closer to shore on major points.  One nice thing about this time of year is that you have the lake to yourself.  The adult loons all left weeks ago, but there must have been a good loon hatch because the lake is still full of yearling loons.  I have not been duck hunting yet, but there appear to be plenty of ducks around.  I am off to Woonsocket, SD next week for pheasant hunting with my two brittany spaniels, but I plan to be back in time to fish on my birthday.

September 24-25, 2010

The weather has been cold, wet, and windy for much of the month.  The fall colors came early this year, but they were truly brilliant around the Longville / Hackensack geography.  Fishing was pretty good for the walleyes, too.  As is typical for Woman Lake, we were able to find nice walleyes in a variety of sizes from 16 - 22 inches.  My wife was having a "girls weekend" at the cabin, so everyone enjoyed a great walleye dinner.  Linda made her famous almond and blue cheese walleye, which a few people have said is even better than my own special batter fry recipe.