Big walleyes gobbling bait
When you hear a fisherman complaining because all he’s catching is five pound walleyes and he couldn’t catch any “eaters,” you know something is going on.But when you hear several people tell you the same story, fishing on different lakes on different days, you wonder if you can cut out of work early, just to see for yourself. We had 10 walleyes registered this week that went over six pounds, definitely beyond the eater size. Nice fish. Top walleye of the week was caught by Dave Rajamaki of Park City, UT with a 10 lb. 10 oz., 30.5-inch fish caught in Burntside Lake on a leech. Rajamaki was guided by Mike Pelto and weighed his walleye in at The Great Outdoors. Bob Hahn of Bolivar, MD fished Basswood Lake and using a pink jig nailed a 9 lb. 15 oz. walleye that he registered at Timber Wolf Lodge. A 9 lb. 10 oz. Burntside walleye went 30 inches on the ruler for Paul Domich of Sacramento, CA who checked the fish in at The Great Outdoors. Lots of walleyes were registered this past week as the hot fishing trend continued in the Ely area.Catch and Release entries were filled with walleyes as well.Jack Schramm of Arlington Heights, IL used a jig and a leech to catch a 29.5-inch walleye on Basswood. He entered the release at Packsack Canoe Trips and Log Cabins. A green Lindy Rig with a crawler was the ticket for Steve Wiskerchen of Elgin, IL on Basswood Lake to catch a 28.5-inch walleye which he released and noted at Packsack Canoe Trips. Jackfish Bay was the spot for Trevor Barth of McHenry, IL to release a 28-inch walleye, also entered at Packsack Canoe Trips.The biggest smallmouth bass of the week was caught by Shane Toms of Roselle, IL. The 4 lb. 4 oz., 20.5-incher was taken out of Basswood Lake and registered at Skube’s Bait and Tackle. David White of Irving, TX went over to Grassy Lake and caught a 3 lb. smallie on a Daredevle. He entered the contest at Skube’s Bait and Tackle. The lake trout have gone to deeper waters with the high temperatures we have been having, but Lyman Childers of Ely pulled a 2 lb. 6 oz. rainbow trout out of Miners Lake in Ely. He stopped by Skube’s Bait and Tackle on the way home. Russell Smith of Fort Worth, TX used a Daredevle in Grassy Lake to catch a 37-inch northern pike that tipped the scales at 11 lb. 11 oz. He brought the fish to Skube’s Bait and Tackle for the entry. Nick Domich of Sacremento was fishing with leeches when he hooked a 9 lb. 8 oz. northern in Burntside Lake. The Great Outdoors took down the entry info. The hot weather has probably slowed the fishermen more than the fish. If you’re heading out on the water in a day when the mercury is already climbing, be sure to throw a cooler and some beverages in the boat. Water and something like Gatorade will keep you from dehydrating as the sun bakes you on the water. Oh, and don’t forget the sunscreen!
