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Posts: 2691
Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin | I was out last night doing some preseason homework on my local lake and this morning I was wondering why more people don't do it. I have never seen anyone else use this as a tool. Every year the last two weekends before the season opens I get on the lake armed with only a spotlight and check out the weeds situation and spawning. I have watched hundreds of walleyes swim around my boat with occational muskie swimming with them. Last night we saw 5 muskies(one pushing 50), over 50 walleyes, a few northerns, and over 100 carp swimming around the shallows. How can any fish spawn sucsessfully without a group af carp eating the eggs on this lake.
I have learned so much about this lake after dark just by working down the shorelines and checking out the bottom content:rocks, gravel, sand, weeds, muck. I have never in all my year doing this ever seen a boat other than a friend or two doing this. Why don't more people try this? I am not talking about disturbing the fish while spawning but just slipping through areas to check on the conditions of weeds and numbers of fish holding in that area. I have hot spot on a weedline that just held fish, it looked the same as the rest of the weedline, after spring time homework I noticed that timbers were piled up from a old pier in the weeds, this is why it was a hot spot, the weeds cover up the timbers shortly after the opener so I never noticed them. Thing like this can be checked out all over the lake, rocks also can be seen before the weeds grow up, lots of very good bottom content is found preseason scouting. Seeing the fish is a bonus while scouting and things that you find can make your fishing better each year. Just wondering if anyone else checks out there local lakes. We do this with a empty boat, no rods or tackle, just a spotlight. You will be surprised at what you can learn from one night of homework in the spring. Its like scouting your deer hunting land in the spring, all the underbrush is gone, everything is open and in plain view.
I know that some people will not like this but I see no harm in doing this type of scouting. Just wondering if anyone else does this or has a problem with people doing it. |
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Posts: 2378
| That sounds like a good plan to me. I may have to give that a try this season. I have over a month left before the season starts here in MN so plenty of time for scouting.
As long as you are not disturbing the fish what is the harm?
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Posts: 5874
| Oh, sure, and you don't call me! Hope your chin is feeling better. |
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Posts: 2691
Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin | Shep, one of my friends asked me if I wanted to go, we used his boat. Its early, the walleyes are just finishing up. Water clairity was bad and algea or some green stuff still hanging around from last year. Looks like we will have a bad case of that stuff again this year. |
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Posts: 617
Location: Clintonville, WI | I'm with you, Mike. I've been into that type of "scouting" for a few years kind of by accident. Because of where I used to live, my weekend trips did start until Thursday or Friday nights becasue I'd have to leave after work and drive 5-7 hours. We'd be so jacked up to get on the water, we'd launch the boat LATE p.m., get out the spotlight and the maps and go for a ride. This works all year, especially if it is a new lake to us and if it is clear. All the lake elements become very apparent by doing this.
Many trips have been more productive because we know where the exact weedlines are, or where the rock hump contours are, etc. before we start fishing. |
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| Watched Al Lindner's new Angler's Edge show this year and a segment dealt with fishing for carp with Berkley's new carp bait.
If memory servies me, Al made comments to the effect that it was an old wives tale that carp eat fish eggs and in actuality, they don't.
Any truth to this? I always thought carp hurt other fish species reproductions and Lindner left me with the impression that they really don't.
Edited by ddfenner 4/14/2003 11:21 AM
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Posts: 2691
Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin | I have lived on Pewaukee Lake all my life and every year when the bluegills are in the carp are in also. I see a wolf pack of carp all in one spot with heads down and tails up working a small area, after looking at this area I noticed that it was a bed or bunch of beds. I see this for weeks then as soon as the gills and bass are done the carp leave. I know these garbage cans with fins are sucking up the taisty eggs, no other explaination as to why they are doing that. You can bet they will be in those same places at the same time this year, I will be there also with the bow and arrow like last year. I will be fishing for them with my kids off the pier soon, great fighting fish for kids. The only problem is what to do with them after catching them. I don't let them go. |
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Posts: 2378
| Carp are a tasty fish when smoked properly. Better than wasting them by throwing them in a ditch somewhere. |
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Posts: 32955
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | Hey man! Save me a couple, just gut and freeze and I will pick them up for smoking when I am there next. as to the question: I have three weeks up here in the 'North' to explore the waters I fish for Muskies before season opens, during the walleye/pike early season. I spend a ton of time looking over the conditions in my favorite 'ski spots before season opens, looking for just what you have described. |
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Posts: 129
| You guys are going to make me sick!! Who eats carp?? thats like eating a seagull or crow. Hey maybe it does taste good when done properly but would you eat something that thinks dump is a delicious meal??? Of course this is just me (I may be missing something here but ewwwwww!)
Musk. |
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