May - The Yahara Fishing Club

May
2010
Editor: Tom Raschke (traschke@globaldialog.com) or 608-233-6765
Rods to the Ready - Opening Day
A homegrown panel of experts, Phil Emmling,
Eric Olson, and Duffy Kopf, presented tips and
tactics for catching panfish, bass, and muskies
on the local lakes for opening day and beyond.
Phil gave the panfish presentation and, since
there isn’t an opening day for pansh, he covered
the complete open water season. Opening day is
any day. Phil started the season with early spring,
April 1 to April 30. Bluegills will be in shallow water,
usually one-to-three feet
in dark bottom channels and bays. Fish in
the afternoon and early
evening when the water
is the warmest. Cold
spells can shut the bite
down. At times the
fish are unaggressive;
this may be due to low
oxygen, high carbon
dioxide, and lowered pH
from decomposition of
bottom debris. Perch
spawn at about 42 o
using wood or old vegetation. Large females
look good but make
poor fillets because of the space required for
egg development-best to use catch and release.
The best baits are spikes, maggots, red worms,
and ies such as small hares-ear nymph, yellow wooly
worms, and thin white legged-black nymphs. Light
spinning gear with small stick or rocket bobbers work
well along with a y rod for y presentations. Places
to look for sh this time of year include Willow (Biotron)
Creek (on campus, parking is free in Lot 62 after 4:30
p.m. and on weekends), Spring Harbor, Marshall Park,
Pheasant Branch, County Park mooring channels,
Yahara River at Highway 113, and Cherokee Marsh
on Lake Mendota; Winnequah Lagoon (rocket bobber
Club Web site: http://www.yaharashingclub.org
Notes by Stan Nichols
helps, flies work well), Schluter Beach channel,
Starkweather Creek, and MGE Power Plant discharge
on Lake Monona, Upper Mud Lake, Hwy N
channels by Stoughton, and the City Channels
and Beyers Cove Channels on Green Lake.
Phil considers the prespawn from May 1 to May
21. Bluegills move to weedline breaks in about 8 to
10 feet of water. There can be a clear water phase
before higher temperatures promote oating algae
Duffy, Eric, Phil and Tom
growth. Crappies spawn a little earlier than bluegills
and may be found spawning in 6 to 10 feet of water.
On clear sunny days and during active spawning they
can be hard to catch. Perch seem to cruise in shallow
water in low numbers. Set your bobber at six feet
and use redworms or spikes for bluegills, for crappies
try white, clear, chartreuse, black with chartreuse,
purple and red plastic or minnows. Light line with
fluorocarbon leader may help. Early and late in
the day can be better than sunny, at-water days.
Often you can tell which sh is biting. Bluegills bite
Continued next page
Yahara Fishing Club
hard, a slow, steady sinking of the oat indicates
a crappie, and perch are an aggravating nibble.
A place to look for crappies this time of year is
under the Hoofer’s piers on the U.W. Campus.
May 22 to June 21 is the spawning period
for bluegills and white bass. By this time the
pike, muskiest, perch, walleyes and crappies have
spawned. The traditional places to look for white
bass are the Maple Bluff and Warner Bay areas of
Lake Mendota. The bluegills are found in many
places. Some general areas are inside weedlines and
around piers. Phil shes a lot of spawning bluegills
in waders or a oat tube. Lately Lake Waubesa has
the best numbers of 8.5-9 inch sh. Generally the
size of bluegills in the Madison Lakes goes from Lake
Mendota with the largest to Kegonsa, Waubesa, and
Monona. Phil only has limited experience shing
Lakes Mendota and Kegonsa this time of year. For
Lake Waubesa he recommends the areas north of
the Lake Farm boat launch, the shores north and
south of Babcock boat launch, and the area out
from the Green Lantern Restaurant. What Lake
Monona bluegills lack in average size they make
up in numbers year after year. Schluter Beach, the
east shoreline around into Squaw Bay, Frost Woods
Beach, the south shoreline of Squaw Bay around the
point to Ester Beach, Olin Bay, Olin Beach and west
to John Nolan drive and the shoreline from the Yahara
River north to Starkweather Creek are recommended
areas. In other words they are just about everywhere.
Summer panshing extends from about June
16 to August 15. Bluegills and crappies are at the
weedlines early and late in the day, during mid-day
try drifting in deeper water. The best bite is in the
upper 15 feet of water and the wind help the drift.
On calm days use your trolling motor to drift. Use
no weight and two different spit shot to determine
which setup works best. Occasionally lift and drop
the bait. The deep sh on the sh nder usually do
not bite. The sh may be over 20 feet on some days
and over 45 to 60 feet on other days. The inside of
the weedlines have smaller pansh and bass at this
time. Some larger bluegills will hit poppers in the
evening over the weeds. Perch may be schooled
in 18 to 36 feet of water in Mendota and Monona.
Use three rods over the side of the boat with
a piece of “hellgrammite” (dragonfly nymph), a
piece of nightcrawler, or a red Willy Worm with
a spike. Keep your hand on the nymph and
use the crawler and Willy Worm when the fish
are around the boat. When the action slows, put
the nymph back in the water. The nymph seems
to attract the sh to the boat so the other baits work.
Early fall fishing starts about mid-August and
continues to mid-October. Fishing the weedlines
with bobbers set as low as possible or slip bobbers
works well. Live bait or red and purple Willy Worms
work with a jiggle. For the jiggle, rst jiggle, stop,
reel in three feet and repeat if the water is calm. On
windy days the wind provides enough jiggle action.
Late fall is from mid-October (after turnover)
until the lake freezes. At this time of year there is
a good University Bay bite in 7 to 10 feet of water.
Check the shoreline from the Lot 60 boat launch to
the rowing team boathouse. Lately the best bite
seems to be from Willow Creek to the boathouse.
Some equipment tips from Phil include using a
six foot graphite rod with four pound Trilene XL or
uorocarbon line; rocket, stick, or weighted bobbers;
small pansh plastics including mini-jigs, twister tails, or
Willy Worms (in purple, red, white, chartreuse or clear
colors), and live bait includes garden worms, crawlers,
Continued next page
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608-255-5955
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This shop offers a 20%
discount to members of
the Yahara Fishing Club.
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Editor
Yahara Fishing Club
spikes, mousies, waxworms, and “hellgrammites”
Now you are geared up for pansh, next is to
catch some bass. Eric Olson concentrated more on
early season bass shing. An important aspect that
Eric mentioned is pre-season scouting. Go out before
the season opens, when the water is clear and look
for spots like rock piles, wood, and underwater point
that you can’t see later in the season. These could be
bass hotspots all year long. Early in the season, Eric
recommends shing right in the weeds. He likes the
new soft plastic swimbaits and swimming jigs. There
is not much brainpower needed to use them. You just
cast them out and reel them in, preferably over the
tops of newly emerging weeds. One problem with soft
plastics is that northern pike also like them so they
can tear up your supply quite quickly. Monona and
Waubesa are good largemouth bass lakes and he has
been recently shing Mendota more. Mendota has
good largemouth and smallmouth bass and it doesn’t
get the tournament shing pressure that the other lakes
have. For Monona he recommends Squaw, Turville,
and Monona Bays, and the bridges along John Nolen
drive. Upper Mud Lake can also be a good early season
location and he recommends using Rattletraps there.
He hasn’t “gured out” Lake Kegonsa yet so he has no
recommendations there. For line he likes 50 pound-test
P-Line. You don’t need that heavy line to land a bass
but it helps getting lures and sh through the weeds.
Duffy gave some general locations to look for
springtime muskies in any lake: look for them in shallow
south or east facing bays and on the north end of lakes.
These areas warm faster. They are usually found in
5 to 7 feet of water. Cast the shorelines, preferably
irregular shorelines and over newly emerging plant
growth. Also look for open sandy areas, and sand,
or rocks near weeds. Shoals and incoming creek
mouths can also be good. Muskies are sometimes
found suspended just off the rst breakline adjacent
to good shallow areas. Where muskies are found is
directly related to water temperature, structure, and
baitsh. Because muskies are in shallow water this
time of year they are easily spooked so make long
casts. Duffy also recommends preseason scouting
when the water is clear. On warm, sunny days the
sh may be in the upper part of the water column.
Once the water really warms up, look for a night
bite. If you are trolling, strain the water. With two
people you can run two baits between two and
ve feet deep and two baits between eight and ten
feet deep. In the Madison area fish the shallow
lakes first- Wingra and Waubesa before heading
to Lake Monona. The shallow lakes warm first.
Duffy gave a whole list of baits that I won’t
duplicate here. Some he has used and some were
recommendations from other musky anglers. There
are a few generalities. Use smaller lures in the spring
- baits like a six-inch Ernie or Grandma bait or a
number 5 Mepps spinner, instead of the monster baits.
In the spring slow down your retrieve. For floating or
suspending baits leave them sit still for a while. In the
Madison lakes perch and firetiger patterns work well.
All three panelists are YFC members and are usually at the meetings so if you have further questions
give them a call or “corner” them at the next meeting.
Thanks to Stan Nichols for
these extensive notes. Editor.
D&S Bait Seminars 2010
These seminars are on Thursday evenings at
7pm at our store (D&S Bait, Tackle & Archery,
LLC 1411 Northport Dr., Madison, WI 53704
(608)241-4225), and are free to the public!
So, here it is:
MAY
06 Charlie Grimm
13 Gene Dellinger
20 Wally Ban
Techniques
Bass From Shore
Post Spawn Bluegills
Modern Muskie
If you have any questions, give Gene a call at
the store at 241-4225.
2010 Fishing Seasons
General Inland Trout May 1 (5 a.m.) to Sept. 30
Large and Smallmouth Bass Northern Zone Catch and
Releas eMay 1 to June 18
Large and Smallmouth Bass Northern Zone Harvest
June 19 to March 6, 2011
Large and Smallmouth Bass Southern Zone May 1 to
March 6, 2011
Musky - Northern Zone May 29 to Nov. 30
Musky - Southern Zone May 1 to Dec. 31
Northern Pike May 1 to March 6, 2011
Walleye May 1 to March 6, 2011
Lake Sturgeon Sept. 4 to Sept. 30 (hook-and-line)
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Yahara Fishing Club
April Monthly Club Meeting
A presentation from LakeTides and the Warden
Lake Tides - The newsletter for people interested in Wisconsin Lakes
http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/uwexlakes/
Erin McFarlane
Aquatic Invasive Species Volunteer Coordinator
Erin coordinates the Clean Boats, Clean Waters watercraft
inspection program that assists Wisconsin residents in
stopping the spread of aquatic invasive species.
Madison Warden Mack Hannon.
Mack will discuss aquative evasive species and law
enforcement of the rules pertaining to them.
New Dam at Lake Wingra
This dam separates Wingra Creek,
and therefore Lake Monona, from
Lake Wingra. This is where the
Muskies jumpe each year to spawn
in Lake Wingra. Note that under the
concrete pier there is an opening into
gates that can be opened manually to
allow upstream migration.
Editor
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Erin McFarlane
Brittingham Bay Fish Kill
Yahara Fishing Club
In 2009 and again in 2010 we had a sh kill from street run-off and businesses discharges into
Brittingham Bay. The health department and the DNR were notied both years of the kills
and have been working on the problem. I hope to hear soon from the City health department
and the DNR for an explanation.
As the weather warms and the snow melts, street debris is washed into the lakes. This
includes plastic bags, bottles, Styrofoam, etc. This problem is so bad that City Engineering
cleared three truckloads of debris from the outlet twice in two weeks using their big green
street vacuum sewer cleaning truck. Thanks must go to the City Engineering for doing their
part, but something must be done to better lter the run-off. Thanks to Dave Hovotony for
reporting this to me and for the pictures.
Jack Hurst
Dead sh oating
among ice chunks.
Debris washing into the bay.
We have planned a fun seminar day at the
newest boat dealer in Madison - Madison Truck
Equipment is now carrying G3 boats. Come and
spend part of your day with us. Saturday, May
15th. 2410 S. Stoughton Road, Madison, WI
Duffy
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Yahara Fishing Club
Notes from the Prez
Mission accomplished! That’s exactly
what I told my friend Steve on Lake Tenkiller in
Oklahoma a few weeks ago. After shing with
him for an evening and the following morning,
and watching him closely fish a Lucky Craft
Pointer jerk bait, I was suddenly catching more
bass on this bait than ever before. Still not as
many or as big as Steve’s sh but, certainly
moving forward, getting better! Along with my
watching him very closely, he was sharing some
of the finer points of this red-hot technique.
Having the exact rod/reel/line set up was the
rst step. Anytime I have the opportunity to
sh with someone who is very good at a certain
type of shing, I try to take advantage of it. And
go into this humble and relaxed. I don’t try to
outsh them or compete against them. I sh
against the sh, not against my shing buddies!
After almost 20 years in a very talented and
competitive bass club, I learned a lot because
I admitted I had a lot to learn! Sometimes I
think of all the possibilities like this within our
own club. We have a great bunch of shing
experts right here in the YFC. So let’s get out
there and learn from each other. Pay attention,
ask lots of questions. I’ve been known to dig
through someone’s tackle box to get the answers
I need! And keep your hooks sticky sharp.
Here comes summer. And in a big hurry
too. We all know how fast Memorial Day turns
into the Fourth of July and so on. And since
we have our meetings on the water during the
summer, the May meeting is a very important one.
Please try to attend as we have to nalize plans
for several key club events. And after that watch
your newsletter and keep the director’s phone
numbers handy to get additional info on outings
and activities. The summer meetings are lots of
fun and can be super productive and informative
if you’re in that learning mode, as I always am!
We will also be reviewing the new member
surveys at the May meeting. Some interesting
stuff…..to say the least. Every members ideas,
whether old members or new members, are welcomed and valued by all club directors and ofcers. We can all work towards a goal to make
the club more effective, thrifty, responsible, and
fun! Anyone can attend the board meetings or
call me with an idea or item to add to this month’s
meeting agenda. I will try to adjust our schedule
to discuss anything. How about free beer??
So as summer slides toward us, I realize
how much I have to do. With 3 grandkids, a June
trip to Lac Seul, my rst summer of retirement on
the Madison Chain, a cabin in the U.P. to maintain
(actually called putzing!), and lots of YFC Club
activities, I should be one busy boy! But I’m not
complaining. Life is good. Every day is a gift. We had
a good week of turkey hunting last week. My friend
George shot 26 1⁄2# gobbler on Wednesday, my son
Terry shot his rst ever on Thursday ( a nice jake),
and I shot my personal best 25# on Friday. Tagged
out! And last year we all zeroed! Miller Time!!
See you at the meeting! Mission accomplished!!
Charlie
Fishing Has No Boundaries
Fishing Has No Boundaries needs
volunteers to help with the annual event
held at Governor Nelson State Park on
Lake Mendota. This year it will be held
July 9 th and 10 th. To pitch in call Marv
Cutrell at 608-244-5410 or Marv Kontney
at 608-221-1751 for more information.
6
Yahara Fishing Club
Club decals
YFC Survey Results
This is just a sample of the information that was gathered.
Species by preference:
Bass
15
Bluegill
15
Bullheads
1
Carp
2
Catsh
4
Crappies
13
Large mouth
2
Muskie
7
Northern Pike
6
Perch
7
Salmon
4
Sauger
1
Small mouth
8
Trout(inland)
7
Walleye
18
White Bass
2
any kind
1
Pansh
7
Do You?
Fly Fish 13
Spin cast 32
Bait cast 24
Bow sh 2
Do you sh in:
Wisconsin River
26
Mississippi River
12
Great Lakes (Salmon)12
Inland Trout streams 8
Mendota
19
Monona
25
Waubesa
21
Kegonsa
11
Species by preference:
Yahara Fishing Club
Membership Application
A class for adults who are new
to the sport of Muskie Fishing.
Young people 14 years old and up
are also invited.
When: May. 8, 2010 -- 11:00am
- 12:30pm
Where: Madison Gander Mountain’s Gander Lodge Meeting
Space
Who: Duffy Kopf - Pure Fishing
Ambassador
Family..............................$35
Youth Member..................Free
(with paid membership)
Except for special Summer “On the
water” dates, meetings are held at 7:00
p.m. on the second Tuesday of each
month at the Lakeside VFW Hall, John
Nolan Dr, & Lakeside St. in Madison.
Street
Email
Muskie Fishing Basics
Individual.........................$25
Name
State
Thanks, Tom Wilke
Annual Dues:
P.O. Box 3271
Madison, WI 53704
City
I will have them at the meeting
(last meeting indoors for
awhile). They are $3 each, a
great way to promote our club.
Zip
@
An Organization to Educate, Protect and Propagate the Interests of All Fishermen in the Yahara Basin Area
Including all of Madison’s Lakes
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The next meeting is on Tuesday, May 11th, at the Lakeside VFW Hall (John Nolen Rr. & Lakeside St.)
The Board Of Directors meet at 5:45 pm, The General Membership meeting starts at 7:00 pm.
Speaker: Erin McFarlane from Laketides
May Events
Calendar of Upcoming Events
May 11th - YFC Club meeting at the VFW hall. Erin McFarlane
from Laketides will speak. See page 4.
June Events
June 5th - Kids Fishing Day
June 8th - On The Water YFC Meeting
June 11-13th Winneconne Trip - See Duffy Kopf
July Events
July 9-10th - Fishing Has no boundaries
The Yahara Fishing Club’s doors are open to EVERYONE, so invite a friend to the meeting!
Director - Roger Swenson 752-6825
Director - Jim Kloth .........635-0116
Director - Karlette Schoen 242-8803
Yahara Fishing Club
P.O. Box 3271
Madison, WI 53704
Director - Tom Wilke ........834-9554
Director - Jeff Wydeven ...848-4542
Director - Jim Pankratz .....288-9789
Director - Tom Klein ........255-4968
Check out our web page at:
www.yaharafishingclub.org
President - Charlie Grimm .....249-9694
Vice Pres. - Paul Murunich ....219-4449
Secretary - Paul Nichols 309-335-6815
Treasurer - Brad Czebotar ....838-9458