Salmon and Lake Trout 5-3-11

What a complete opposite spring this one has been in comparison to last year. Last year around this time we saw water temps approaching the low 40’s and the Lake Superior trolling bite was in full swing. This year is a bit different. Water temps are 33 to 36 degrees and fishing is TOUGH! That’s all that needs to be said, as if you are lucky enough to get a few fish it is easily perceivable that you had to work for them! Another sign of the late spring is the annual run of the smelt. The smelt run is winding down as I type, but there are still a few around. Last year, the run was hot and heavy around the 15thand done by middle-late April, as this year it was a good 10 plus days later. The smelt will run when the water temp warms up enough for them to spawn in the shallow water.

This morning I took advantage of the good forecast that was predicted and I ventured out by myself before sun rise to see what I could troll up on the big lake. This was my second trip out for the year. It seems like every day I have the opportunity to get out and fish, a big northeast wind picks up, and unless you have a 72 foot Hatteras Yacht, you aint fishin! This time of year is always exciting as the smelt, in combination with the rising water temps, bring into reach all kinds of fish such as, lake trout, coho, kings, walleye, brown trout, steelhead and a few more. All of these fish can be grouped together within 500 yards of each other, essentially making it a guessing game as to what you are going to catch. Luckily for me I’m not too picky!

Conditions were tough today, as I did not see the water temps nor water color/combination that I like. 99% of the water within 5 miles was a mud stained tea color. The other remaining water consisting of maybe 50 acres total was crystal clear, with no real fine line between the two anywhere in sight. When you are fishing over 50 to 120 feet of water, your water temp and color become your “structure”. With all the water pretty much the same temp, I was left with water color being my only help. As the morning progressed, absolutely nothing was happening anywhere in sight. I knew I had to change things up as I was marking a lot of fish, but they weren’t the active ones I was looking for. My thinking is there are always active fish feeding SOMEWHERE, you just got to find where that it. I left the battlefield of 20 or so boats that were competing over dormant fish and headed out to sea, not caring about where I was going, just to find different water.

As soon as the boards got in the water, I had one go back, and then another. One board just got SLAMMED, as I completely lost sight of it, as the board and the fish alike were headed down into the abyss! To make a 20 minute-long fight short, I had the fish at 30 feet on my line counter as I found myself scrambling to 1; get the net out 2; control the boat 3; not lose the fish! Talk about a disaster! Thankfully she got into the net without too much of a struggle. She measured right around the 36 inch range. I was hoping for a nice king, but like I said earlier I’m not picky lol! As the wind died down, and the largest lake in the world became akin to glass and the fishing slowed down to a halt. As for types of lures, anything silver or bright in color this time of year you can’t go wrong (when the fish are willing to bite). I like the 4.5 inch crank baits such as bombers, renoskys, x raps, brads and smithwicks. I like to keep my GPS speed right around 2.2 to 2.5, depending on water clarity. Hopefully warmer weather will be here one of these days, as this is turning into a long spring that is making fishing tougher than normal, but if you pay attention to water clarity and temperature, you will have a good chance at putting some fish in the box!