Turtle Flambeau Flowage, Mercer, Wisconsin, Fishing Guide Reports & Conditions

FISHING REPORTS:

Wow, I haven't said this for a long time... We are in a cool rainy cycle. I know it's not what the visitor to the northwoods wants to hear but we need it BAD. Myself and a few other guides were sitting around Great Outdoors Sports Shop a few days ago and we were commenting on the growing number of lakes there were that were among our favorites and that we can't fish them because of the low water levels. So please don't hate us when we cheer the rain.

Other than the rain the fishing has still been pretty good -- but only if you go deeper and slower. One thing rain does is kick most of the fish out of the shallows into the deeper and warmer water nearby. A friend of mine was on a lake we love to fish with a client the other day and HAMMERED the fish by going out to 7-10ft instead of the normal 3-4ft and kept his bait on the bottom slowly jigging.

The weather looks like it going to be this way for a few more days so if your hitting the water leave the crawlers, fast cranks and impatience at home cuz none of them are likely to do you any good.
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Jeff Bolander, also known as 'How' of Dewey, Catchem and How at www.deweycatchemandhow.com
Check out my Real Estate website at www.jeffbolander.com
and my Up North fishing and resort web sites at www.upnorth.info.
jeff bolander <jeff@deweycatchemandhow.com>
- Tuesday, June 08, 2010 at 08:54:25 (PDT)

Fishing started out good in the last week with walleyes up in the new weeds. Beetle spins and minnows were producing some bigger fish in 3 to 5 feet of water. Fish were also in shallow wood hitting on crawlers a on a weedless jig. Walleyes, perch, lots of rock bass, and an occasional crappie. Smallmouth were everywhere with fish hitting what ever we were using, with a leech on a slip bobber working very well. Musky have been decent, with a 45 incher hitting a topwater, and we got a 46 on a sucker in the last couple of days. The last few days have been very difficult on the Flowage with a huge mayfly hatch coming out. There were bays that had thousands of mayflys floating on the water with a constant stream of them flying up off the water. Combine that with the huge schools of perch minnows everywhere and it makes for a difficult day. The few walleyes we caught yesterday were, one from wood, one from weeds, and one from a rock shoreline. I'm heading out this afternoon, if it doesn't rain, so we will see if things are better.
Jerkbait Guide Service <info@flambeauflowagesports.com>
- Tuesday, June 08, 2010 at 07:49:38 (PDT)

Well the walleyes have finally moved up a little shallower and have been hitting a little more aggressively. Shallow wood anywhere from 4 to 9 ft has been holding fish. Jigs and minnows has been working the best, but beetle spins and crank baits have been producing fish when the are in an aggressive mood. There has also been a good bight after the sun goes down. Smallmouth are still along the shorelines, but are changing daily with the water temps. A few days ago we fished mostly bass and landed 19 on a slow day. Tube jigs are working well, but the fish are hitting anything from surface baits to spinnerbaits. Crappie have been up spawning in the shallows, but the low water levels have made the difficult to find and catch. I got chased off the water today by lightning after a short day so we will see what tomorrow brings.
Jerkbait Guide Service <info@flambeauflowagesports.com>
- Tuesday, May 25, 2010 at 14:17:56 (PDT)

I am still amazed at how many people still don't get it. FISH THE WIND BLOWN SHORES! "Dewey" took me fishing for my birthday last night and we saw the same thing over and over. Boats parked on shorelines out of the winds. And it wasn't even that windy. The one thing we didn't see was them pulling in a pile of fish. Yeah, there was one here and one there but no big runs. One the other hand when we headed to a wind blown rocky point with some nice green weeds on it, we caught fish. Bunch of crappie, small mouth bass and a couple of northern. We also hit another spot with lots of woods on the bottom and picked off a couple of real nice smallies. The walleyes hid well for us this night.

The bite was on minnows and leaches and cranks, nothing on crawlers. Today we finally have some clouds and a little more wind. This should help a lot because most species are found right now in very shallow water. Smallies, Largemouth, bluegills and crappies are all in some stage of the bedding thing. This means that those toothie critters are feasting on the ones that aren't weary enough.

It should be a great weekend of fishing, maybe the best of the year... If you stay on the wind blown shorelines. One note of caution though. The water levels are VERY low. Flowages are very dangerous and a lot of lakes are not launchable. I had a fella tell me yesterday that Wild Rice was launchable but you couldn't get out of the power wash hole. Not good.

Go get 'em guys and gals. Take lots of different bait with you and have FUN! And don't forget the kids!
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Jeff Bolander, also known as 'How' of Dewey, Catchem and How at www.deweycatchemandhow.com
Check out my Real Estate website at www.jeffbolander.com
and my Up North fishing and resort web sites at www.upnorth.info.
jeff bolander <jeff@deweycatchemandhow.com>
- Friday, May 21, 2010 at 10:15:14 (PDT)

With the water temps going up fast there is lots going on in the area lakes. I have been out on the Flowage guiding the last 3 days and this afternoon the surface temp was 64 degrees. That's with dead calm conditions or a light east wind. Crappies were up shallow, but the spots that they usually spawn in are so shallow that they are only 1 1/2 feet deep. We did see some crappies, but the boat was beaching before we could get near the fish. Some overcast skies with a little wind would make the fish a little more accesable. The smallmouth are making beds along the shorelines, with mostly smaller males cruising around the beds. We caught a few fish yesterday very shallow, but today the few bigger fish that I saw would not even look at a tube jig or a xrap. I'm sure things will change quickly. Walleyes are still in 12 to 16 ft of water in the wood. We have been picking up a few fish in spots, but it has not been a good bite. I am sure things will change quickly with the walleyes coming up shallow and getting more aggressive. I will let you know how things go in the next few days.
Jerkbait Guide Service <info@flambeauflowagesports.com>
- Tuesday, May 18, 2010 at 13:48:51 (PDT)

After the Blackhawks took care of business in San Jose yesterday afternoon I decided to take a couple of hours and see if I could boat a Northern or two on a spinner bait. Well I did see tons of fish...because it was so calm I could see the bottom in five feet. Saw plenty of nice northern and bass cruising the bluegill and crappie beds looking for easy targets I guess. I did throw a 2" Gulp grub for some crappies and was mildly effective at that. It was so calm I had to throw the bait out as far as I could to get a bite. And even then they were very light hits, mostly stealing the tail off the grub. And if the tail wasn't on the grub, well, no interest.

The next few days should be great, highs in the 70s and light breezes. I'll be out there and I'll let you know what's popping. Oh, btw, that lake was at 52-54 degrees two days ago. Now it's at 62-64.

Hey, don't forget to take a kid fishing and HAVE FUN!
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Jeff Bolander, also known as 'How' of Dewey, Catchem and How at www.deweycatchemandhow.com
Check out my Real Estate website at www.jeffbolander.com
and my Up North fishing and resort web sites at www.upnorth.info.
jeff bolander <jeff@deweycatchemandhow.com>
- Monday, May 17, 2010 at 11:29:09 (PDT)

I just couldn't take sitting around and working on web sites anymore so when Dennis called and said "let's go hit 'em with cranks for an hour or so", I responded "I'm IN!" Cold, windy and rain spitting on my glasses was only a deterrent until the first fish was caught, which wasn't long. Dennis has his firetiger stick bait on and I tied on a chartreuse glow jig and tipped it with a bright yellow gulp grub tail. I saw Dennis's face when I did this and I knew he thought I was nuts. Well, 13 Walleye (13-16"), 4 Rock Bass and one 30" Musky later and the fish catching score was even. All of this in an hour and it would have been more but the Musky took about 15 minutes off our fishing time getting it in the boat and then released from the light tackle. Lot's of fun. This is the short period of time during the year when you can get the 'eyes up shallow on this lake, in good numbers. Dennis claims he got 25 of them two nights before.

I'm sure we won't get out today as it is going to rain all day and not make it out of the 40's. But this weekend looks fantastic. I can't wait. I'll keep you informed as we plan to get a bunch of pics and videos put up on the site.

Hey, don't forget to take a kid fishing and HAVE FUN!
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Jeff Bolander, also known as 'How' of Dewey, Catchem and How at www.deweycatchemandhow.com
Check out my Real Estate website at www.jeffbolander.com
and my Up North fishing and resort web sites at www.upnorth.info.
jeff bolander <jeff@upnorth.info>
- Thursday, May 13, 2010 at 09:26:07 (PDT)

Wind, Rain and Cold. No, that's not a rock and roll group from the 60's and 70's!

I wish I had a great "You gotta be here" report to put up but I think we are paying for all our beautiful weather in April. Highs in the 40's, north winds and rain have been the norm. All this can make for an fishing trip deemed uncomfortable at best. But I bring you good tidings. The weatherman says warmer weather is on the way this weekend and thru next week. So dust off the poles, buy some minnows and get ready to put that "Gone Fishing" sign back on the front door.

I'll post another report later this week to tell you where they are.

Don't forget when you go to take a kid fishing with you and make sure you have FUN!
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Jeff Bolander, also known as 'How' of Dewey, Catchem and How at www.deweycatchemandhow.com
Check out my Real Estate website at www.jeffbolander.com
and my Up North fishing and resort web sites at www.upnorth.info.
jeff bolander <jeff@upnorth.info>
- Tuesday, May 11, 2010 at 08:51:53 (PDT)

Walleye fishing have been decent the last couple of days depending on the weather fluctuations. Most of the fish we have been getting have been in 10 to 12 feet of water and tight to wood. Weedless jigs and minnows are still working the best, but I did get some fish on Gulp minnows yesterday. Slip bobbers have also picked up some walleyes and nice perch. Shallow stump fields have held some walleye and smallmouth, but the bite is very erratic. It's raining out right now which is great for the water levels but there is a winter storm watch for tonight, which sucks. It's supposed to be in the high 50's by Sunday so at least it will warm up fast.
Jerkbait Guide Service <info@flambeauflowagesports.com>
- Friday, May 07, 2010 at 09:24:27 (PDT)

Overall fishing over the opener was slow and very difficult. 30 mph wind gusts on both Saturday and Sunday made it almost impossible to fish most of the spots that were holding fish. Any calm spot that was out of the wind was full of boats. Water temps in the mid to high 50's made it more like June than early May. The walleye's that were found did not seem to have much of a pattern as they were in anywhere from 15 to 5 feet. Jigs and minnow were the best choice with very few fish reported on crankbaits. Water levels on the Flowage are 3 feet down so caution is advised on travel. If you just take it easy and go slow there is not a problem. Once the wind dies down I will have more info on the patterns.
Jerkbait Guide Service <info@flambeauflowagesports.com>
- Monday, May 03, 2010 at 14:43:54 (PDT)

05-01-10 THE ANGLERS CHOICE GUIDE SERVICE.COM The opener for game fish in northern Vilas County Wisconsin has been very good. The high winds we have been seeing have brought some difficult, or some very, very good fishing to all that have come up from southern areas. This morning at 5:00 AM, as I picked up my clients, from the west shore boat landing on Presque isle Lake, we had the entire lake to our selves. We never saw another boat until we were leaving at (with our 6 Walleye limit) 9:00AM. As my 3 clients and I left. We then proceeded elsewhere, to fish, and fill the rest of our daily bag limit. On Presque isle Lake we fished the north end, where the shallow water revels the cabbage weeds, already growing, green, healthy and strong, from 2 to 13 ft. This location in conjunction with the strong south wind of the last several days is concentrating the fish. As these photos show, we only caught small males, in 50 degree water, but lots of them. This year, you will here and learn more of Presque isle Lake, including all of its, Giant Smallmouth Bass, Jumbo Perch, large concentrations of Blue Gill, Walleye and Musky secrets, (including ice fishing) that I have learned, on this chain of lakes, in the past 36 years. God Bless. John Andrew. Expert Guide. TO VERIFY: JAKE AND JIM RIEDEL 1-414-702-7663
johnandrew <johnandrew@centurytel.net>
- Saturday, May 01, 2010 at 16:42:50 (PDT)

one of my readers e-mailed me to let me know i forgot to mention them thar basses. they are in the green weeds chasing the rest of the fish in there. but one of my favorite presentations, for smallies or largies, is a crooked purple worm retrieved very slowly over the weeds and rocks. if you need depth, put a small sinker a foot or so in front of the worm. yes you can use spinner baits, twister tails and others, but i love the purple worm (chuck's). and dont for get to let them basses go!

take a kid and have some FUN!
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Jeff Bolander, also known as 'How' of Dewey, Catchem and How at www.deweycatchemandhow.com
Check out my Real Estate website at www.jeffbolander.com
and my Up North fishing and resort web sites at www.upnorth.info.
jeff bolander <jeff@upnorth.info>
- Friday, April 30, 2010 at 17:00:39 (PDT)

Conditions: Cloudy Air Temp: 61° - 65° F Water Temp: 51° - 55° F 04-30-10 The Anglers Choice Guide Service.Com At 4:00 PM we are receiving the largest and most violent lightning and thunder storm of the last year, the rain is roaring across the lakes in sheets and the thunder is booming thru our homes. We truly need this rain, but after several days of south wind, is this Nor Wester going to affect our Walleye opener? H"MMM, good question, with a local Walleye tournament starting tomorrow morning, we will see, Good fishing and God Bless. God Bless, John Andrew Expert Guide
johnandrew <johnandrew@centurytel.net>
- Friday, April 30, 2010 at 14:33:01 (PDT)

The big day is almost here and the anticipation is higher than in years past. For the first time in a long time we are ahead of schedule as far as temps and conditions on the area links. And that’s a good thing.

The Walleye are down spawning and are in post spawn. That means they are starting to feed heavily after ‘fooling around’ with each other for the past few weeks. Look for rock shorelines going into sand or mud bottoms or for GREEN weed edges in and around 10 feet of water. As always, low light periods are the best.

Crappie are on the bite right now. With most lake temps in the upper 50’s right now, the crappie are close to hitting the beds which they normally do at around 62 degrees water temp. Look for them in 5-10 feet of water, in green weeds and the warmest water you can find. 1 degree can make a difference. Plastics are doing much better than minnows right now at 1-2 feet under the surface.

Perch are with the Walleye. Look for them in the weeds looking to feed on minnows or those little plastics in your box.

Northern Pike are in all the same places. You can fish for Crappie, Perch and Bluegill and I’ll guarantee you latch on to a few pike and Musky. If you want to target pike, nothing works better right now than a flashy spinner bait worked slow and fast over the top of those green weeds right now.

The weather for this weekend doesn’t look to good right now. The temps are ok as they should be in the 60’s but the winds are predicted to be 24-45mph. That will make it tough. Most boats will be looking for a place on the lake to get out of the wind but the boats that fish those wind-blown shorelines will be the ones bring home the catch. The wind not only blows the food around but also the warm water which is on the top also.

Hey, take a kid fishing with you and make sure you have FUN!
-----------------------------
Jeff Bolander, also known as 'How' of Dewey, Catchem and How at www.deweycatchemandhow.com
Check out my Real Estate website at www.jeffbolander.com
and my Up North fishing and resort web sites at www.upnorth.info.
jeff bolander <jeff@upnorth.info>
- Wednesday, April 28, 2010 at 12:30:59 (PDT)

04-23-10 THE ANGLERS CHOICE GUIDE SERVICE .COM As we continue to fish Lake Superior, we are catching Coho Salmon, as some of the other Trout specie are moving out to deeper water, ahead of a normal schedule, due to the water temp. warming rapidly. Our technique is working with thin spoons, lazy ikes, and even trolling 1/4 oz. jigs with 4 inch twister tails. We are working hard to provide knowledgeable and (new) productive, current information. As these photos show, my clients are happy and repeating customers. We will be continuing to work hard for positive results, I hope you will gain some understanding from this information. Our depth is around 30 ft. during the day time. We are using small planner boards, although, others are using a tower, about 6 to 10 ft. tall, mounted in the bow of the boat, with a large planner board, off both sides with several line releases connected. This info is old, but note worthy. Working with such positive people is indeed a pleasure, people willing to be part of the (path finder) approach is industry building. Come on along and we will discuss the best dinning locations, great resorts and why so many people come to northern Wisconsin. TO VERIFY. Mike Lucas 1-332-5637 God Bless, John Andrew Expert Guide
johnandrew <johnandrew@centurytel.net>
- Thursday, April 22, 2010 at 21:12:14 (PDT)

We're close... The water temps on a 1,000 acre lake was 54 yesterday and a smaller, shallower 300 acre lake was 57. Another couple of degrees and the crappie should really start to bite. We caught a few but very sparatic and only small males. Gonna try and get out today. We also put some new videos on deweycatchemandhow.com that should be viewable later today.

__________________
Jeff Bolander, also known as 'How' of Dewey, Catchem and How at www.deweycatchemandhow.com
Check out my Real Estate website at www.jeffbolander.com
and my Up North fishing and resort web sites at www.upnorth.info.
jeff bolander <jeff@upnorth.info>
- Tuesday, April 20, 2010 at 11:10:17 (PDT)

04-10-10 THE ANGLERS CHOICE GUIDE SERVICE.COM As the warm spring weather continues across the north, many people are catching Perch and some early Walleye. This spring has brought some early changes to our area as most of our fish are spawning ahead of schedule. We are continuing to do very well on Lake Superior as these photos show. Today we caught Coho Salmon. We had beautiful weather and caught all our fish trolling. We are using several baits, such as stick baits, crank baits and some very light spoons. A variety of colors are used each day we go out, one particular color usually works better than the rest, but that color changes from day to day. Also we work 2 lines deep behind the motor and 4 to 6 lines off the sides of the boat, running shallow. Now, the depth we are in, in conjunction with the water temperature, water clarity, location, (rocks, creek chancel, or flat) and what color our lure is, is the critical concept to our daily success. We are fishing just over an hour from Minocqua. The time is know for these cold water tasty fish. These fish are great on the grill, deep fryer, broiler and very good in the smoke house. There flesh is very reddish orange and world class for table fare. Working with people who are so polite and positive in there family and communities brings great joy to me. Hope this info helps you on your next outing, come on along and we will share favorite locations for dinning out, lodging, and the reasons why so many people come to the north woods of vilas county. TO VERIFY WAYNE NASI: 1-906-364-1162
johnandrew <johnandrew@centurytel.net>
- Saturday, April 10, 2010 at 19:06:05 (PDT)

04-02-10 THE ANGLERS CHOICE GUIDE SERVICE.COM Great weather, great positive clients and great fishing. As these photos show. On 04-01-10 we were fishing on Lake Superior for Trout. Several specie of trout bite through out the course of the day. Trolling is the method we use, with planer boards, some flat lines, long leads behind the planer boards, crank baits, and various colors. We caught Rainbow trout, Lake trout, Coho Salmon and Brown trout with very good size, as you can see. The trolling technique is slightly more complex than just throwing out a line and trolling along. Although this does work, some times. A variety of baits will work during the course of the day, from crank baits, spoons, stick baits, lazy ikes, jigs, (Swedish pimples, casted and retrieved), even night crawlers on a hook with a bobber casted from shore right in side the harbors. Duluth is reporting such success right now. Our fishing location is much closer to Iron County. One thing to note, when we are on Lake Superior my guests cell phones get very bad reception and most of the time no reception, even my own personal cell phone only records pieces of voice mails and will not ring on my end at all. So, to all callers on my cell phone the past 3 days including this morning, as I just got back for this posting to be sent out, sorry for not responding and please call back. My guests have registered several voice mails while fishing but could not understand what any of there voice mails said and could not call out. The trout are in and we are producing some nice fish. With this warm weather, they wont be around to long, before heading out to deep water, so now is the time. If you enjoy smoking fish, these are prime candidates. Hope this information helps on your next outing. TO VERIFY: JEFF GOGLAND 1-715-892-0821 God Bless, John Andrew Expert Guide 1-715-892-3020 (Immediate attention) Stay positive, think clearly, do not listen to negative talk and do not listen to negative people. www.theanglerschoiceguideservice.com johnandrew@centurytel.net
johnandrew <johnandrew@centurytel.net>
- Friday, April 02, 2010 at 12:37:23 (PDT)

03-24-10 THE ANGLERS CHOICE GUIDE SERVICE .COM We continue to fish small lakes back in the woods with great success day after day. As the wood ice houses are put away for another year, our portable Frabills are working just fine and most of the time we are not using them either. The fishing is fantastic and we have complete and very easy access to these hidden jewels. Most of these small lakes have very dark water and have fantastic day time fishing, no need to wait until the evening or night bite. Also, no need to get out at 7:30 or 8:30 in the AM. The middle of the day is best. Not having people drilling holes next to you is also nice. Our techniques are mostly the same as other lakes, but the quality of fishing is much greater and we only take what we need for an ice fishing shore lunch as these photos show. My guests are always happy and very gratefull for the learning they are receiving. There positive attitude and smiles always keeps myself moving forward. Sharing this is a continuing force for the future. A special thank you to all those who continue sending me such wonderful, positive e-mails and continuing support for my work and postings. As this ice season draws down to a close, I take the daily opportunity to look up and give thanks.
johnandrew <johnandrew@centurytel.net>
- Wednesday, March 24, 2010 at 06:19:11 (PDT)

03-19-10 THE ANGLERS CHOICE GUIDE SERVICE.COM As the warm spell gives way,to cooler weather and all the snow now gone and the lakes 1/2 melted, some fishing is still being done, with caution. We are using plywood to access across some open water to the ice. Some, of the small lakes or ponds, hidden back in the woods, are slightly, more protected from the melt, due to the high tree line surrounding them, and some are not. We enjoyed catching Perch, with out any ice house shelter, (as all of mine, on several different lakes, including my home lakes have been stored away for the year) then enjoying a fantastic ice shore lunch of fresh Perch, potatoes, baked beans, corn and fried onions. As these photos above show. This is a great way to share the day together with great people and positive life long memories. Our fish were hitting wax worms in about 5 ft, shallow, as most of these back ponds are very dark water. We must take care of these hidden lakes as they are very fragile. Having some of them close by is also great since I don't have to go far. Next report will be on yet another ice lunch, if the cool nights holds on for a few more days, then its back in the boat for some big perch fishing, more on that to follow. TO VERIFY: BILL FRANKLIN 1-815-621-3000
jophnandrew <joh nandrew@centurytel.net>
- Friday, March 19, 2010 at 06:41:12 (PDT)

03-15-10 THE ANGLERS CHOICE GUIDE SERVICE.COM Some lakes have open water the first 3 feet off there north or north west shore line, already, due to the extremely warm weather. As the very warm weather continues, temps. in the 50's, our ice conditions are now deteriorating very, very quickly. If this continues, as it is forecasted to stay warm thru this Friday, we might see ice out much, much earlier than last year. Nearly 70 % of all our snow has melted and will all be gone by this Friday. While you can still get out there, Our panfish are bitting well, with several techniques working, several lakes active with bitting fish. On the deeper lakes, fishing the deep brush piles are still leading the way for the multiple specie catch. Some shoreline brush piles are very good in around 18 to 30 ft. be careful of not hooking the logs or a web cam, as they are becoming ever more popular. Also trees that extend off the shore line into deeper water are very good. The deepest weeds you can find, coontail being our choice. Now, the north end of these deep lakes, if weeds are present, can be productive on the drop off connected to the weed line. The shallow weedy lakes are all bitting well, from 3 to 15 ft. deep in the weeds, take your pick on which lake, there working. Although some lakes are bitting well in 20-28- ft. for Crappie and Perch. Nothing special is needed, no special tricks, wax worms and strike indicator will do it. Several specie of panfish are going to be caught, as my clients photos above this posting show. Working with such great guests and sharing there excitement continues the good experience of why we are creating such positive relationships. Today, from 1 till dark we will be fishing 2 ponds back in the woods, off a snowmobile trail, these little hidden JEWELS are loaded with fish and require special care, not to harm there populations. We are going to have a ice shore lunch, but take nothing home. We had a great shore lunch with clients yesterday, which I will share later. Do you know of little ponds like this? I'll bet you do if you think about it.
johnandrew <johnandrew@centurytel.net>
- Monday, March 15, 2010 at 08:19:23 (PDT)