Fireside Lodge Fishing News/Photo Report 7/18 to 8/1 2009

Fireside Lodge Fishing News/Photo Report 7/18 to 8/1 2009

The weather finally turned around getting some sunny days with calm winds, and temperatures in the mid 70’s. We did have some rain in the form of showers by mid week but no dramatic cold front or high winds like the few past weeks.

Chuck Barreras from Douglassville, PA was returning for his fifth time with Tom Crooks from Feasterville, PA along with Chuck’s father Charles, daughter Maria (her third trip), son Steven, and Andrew Klimek, the son of Richard who is a very good friend of Chuck and Tom. First day fishing this group was on fire catching 110-120 Northern Pike and a few Smallmouth Bass. Steven at eleven years old caught his first Northern Pike and his first fish ever on a lure plus 14 more. Everyone caught a lot of fish and all had a very memorable day. Second day was a reality check as they fished for Muskie and Pike with limited success. Both Tom and Chuck each caught a Muskie and Steven had his first Muskie follow. Maria caught a nice Smallmouth and the group caught a few Northern Pike before supper. Third day was another super catching day as the group caught well over 100 Northern Pike and Maria had the biggest fish of the day up to the boat, and as Tom was unhooking it at boat side in the water the fish thrashed and was off in a flash. They did get some photos of the fish in the water and it was a monster. Andrew also did great catching his fair share of Northern Pike and his excitement in the fish photos is obvious. Four days go fast and this was their last. The plan was to fish for Smallmouth Bass and they did with Steven landing the biggest of the day and if his fishing career landing a very big 17.5-inch Smallmouth. They also had some family fun at Twin Falls enjoying the sight and sound of the rushing water, fishing, and just enjoying the great day. Many family memories were made and all left with smiles, however a little disappointed that it was the end of their trip.

Returning to Fireside Lodge for their fifth time were Father, son, grandpa combo of Bill, Kamen, and Charles Kossow from Salina, KS, Kenny Kossow from Gypsum, KS and father and son Doug and Kane Comfort also from Salina, KS. First day on the water was a great day and had Kenny and Bill Sr catching a lot of Smallmouth Bass, Bill and his son Kamen did great catching Pike with Kamen landing his largest fish ever on his fourteenth birthday measuring a heavy 33-inches. Father and Son Doug and Kane also had a special day as they both caught their first Muskie. Kane did a great job landing a 36 inch very large Muskie, and Doug’s was a beauty at near 40-inches. WOW, what a great father and son memory. Second day FABULOUS as in Bill Sr’s words “if we caught one we caught two hundred”. After some discussion it was determined that they caught well over 200 fish, most being Northern Pike. Kamen caught two over 18-inch Master Anglers Award Smallmouth Bass, Bill Sr caught 12 Smallmouth between 17 and 19-inches and a BIG GIANT 20.5-inch Smallmouth. This group had a day of fishing that most will never experience, and will remember for the rest of their lives. Their third a final day they caught 43 Smallmouth Bass, 10 Northern Pike and had a ball at Twin Falls enjoying part of the afternoon relaxing by this natural wonder. Kamen and Kane both had BIG Muskie follows and were very excited telling their fish story of the day. All were packed up and on the road by 4:30 PM for an all night drive home, which Kamen seems to enjoy. Driving out on Fireside Lodge Road they left Fireside Lodge and Little Vermilion Lake system behind, but the memories made between family and friends will stay with them forever.

For their second consecutive year Bruce and Pamela Ross from Mequon, WI were fishing at Fireside Lodge and this year good friends
Craig and Leslie Martin from St Charles, IL Joined Bruce and Pam for their first experience. First day was a cool with light rain and drizzle all day long. They had a great day catching Smallmouth Bass and Northern Pike. Smallmouth were up to 17.5-inches. Some of the northern approached the mid-30-inch range and Leslie caught her first Northern Pike ever In-Style landing a very BIG 35-inch Pike. Second day was better as they caught a lot of Smallmouth and Northern Pike. Pam had a big fish day by landing a 17.5-inch Smallmouth and a 35-inch Northern Pike. Bruce was very excited when telling his story of seeing the biggest fish he has ever seen in fresh water. The fish followed his lure and stay by the boat for 20-seconds or more so Pam and Bruce got a great look at the beast estimated at over 50-inches. Not interested it just turned and waved goodbye to Bruce and Pam with its tail. Leslie and Craig had a great day catching some nice Smallmouth and Pike and learning more of Little Vermilion Lake. Third day was terrific as hey caught a bunch of Northern Pike, Pam had the highest total catching 35 herself, and lost one monster. Fourth and final day was fabulous as they caught a lot of Northern Pike with some Smallmouth Bass, and Pam lost a lot of big fish but did land a 38-inch Northern Pike with GIANT girth. Bruce, Craig, and Leslie also did well and Leslie finished the trip like she started by catching the biggest fish a very large 38-inch Northern Pike. All had loads of fun and made lasting memories between good friends.

George Carney and Tom Miller from Madison, WI returned to Fireside Lodge for their seventh consecutive year. On their day of arrival between 1:30 and 5:00PM they did great catching about 20 Northern Pike between 26 and 33 inches. First full day in their own words “was a fabulous day” catching so many Northern Pike they had three or four doubles and caught over 100 Pike before supper. WOW, what a GREAT first day at Fireside Lodge. Second day they targeted Smallmouth Bass catching a half dozen, and about 7 Northern Pike. Third days plan was shooting for some Smallmouth Bass, which they caught some but to their surprise had a GREAT Muskie fishing day. While using a chug bug fishing for Smallmouth on the surface George hooked into three different Muskie, one biting him off, a second jumping and spitting his lure back at him, and the third, HUGE Muskie, after being half way into the net straightened the split ring holding the hook and took off with the hook in its mouth. Tom did land one 30-inch Muskie and had another hooked and lost. In addition they saw Muskie everywhere they were fishing for Smallmouth Bass. Fourth day was a discovery day as they decided to fish areas new to them. They caught some Smallmouth and Northern Pike before supper and had fun finding new structure for future fishing. After supper they tried something different, by going in the shallowest very weedy areas and fishing surface plastic frogs right in the slop. Well, they returned to the dock full of excitement as they caught a lot of small to average size Pike that were jumping through the slop to hit their lures. Fifth day was fabulous starting out with 8 Northern Pike on their first 12 casts. Well, this continued all day and they ended up catching over 100 Pike. Sixth and final day they enjoyed catching fish and soaking up the wilderness around them, reminiscing the week’s happenings, and concluding another fishing trip full of fun and memories made.

Father and sons David, Dave, and Todd Stefanini from Olmsted Twp. And Middleburg Heights, OH were fishing at Fireside Lodge for there first time. After supper these three got off to a great start catching Smallmouth Bass sand Northern Pike and Todd caught an 18.5-inch Master Anglers Award Smallmouth. First day ever fishing Little Vermilion Lake system they caught over 40 Northern pike and lost over 40 Northern Pike. They were using surface lures and the misses were as exciting as the caught fish. They had several doubles, and Dave caught all his while fly-fishing. Great day for these newcomers. Second day was focused on Muskie fishing, and they did great having some follows and catching two Muskie. A two Muskie day is a great day in any Muskie fisher’s log. Third day was off to Cedarbough Lake for Muskie fishing where the Muskie were not cooperating, having a few follows being left with the reality of Muskie fishing. Fourth day was a FANTASTIC day fishing as they caught 70 Northern Pike and two Smallmouth Bass. The action was so fast they had many doubles and one triple catch. The best catch of the day was Dave landing a GIANT 20.5-inch Smallmouth Bass on his fly rod. WOW, what a great catch fly-fishing. Fifth day they portage for Muskie and for 6 hours had no action, then in typical fashion the Muskie suddenly turned on for 1.5 hours having follows and Todd caught two at 32 and 34-inches. Dave had one open its month just about to eat his fly and it saw the boat, turned and waved goodbye with its tail. Very next cast Dave hooked and landed a nice Smallmouth. Patience paid off for these three, having another two Muskie day. Sixth and Final day was a gang busters day as they caught what seemed to be endless Northern Pike catching 75 along with 6 Smallmouth Bass, and David Sr caught a BIG heavy Master Anglers Award Smallmouth Bass measuring 18.5-inches. Great finish to a great week full of fun, with the biggest catch between these father and sons were the memories made. Thanks for making them at Fireside Lodge.

Returning for their second year in a row was David Jewell with Wendell Davis. And for his first time Bob Nutter from Pineville, Crab Orchard, and Clarksburg, WV. First day Smallmouth fishing they did well catching some Smallies. Second day they portaged and caught a boatload of Northern Pike all day long, and Wendell lost a BIG Walleye that completely destroyed his rig when it took a dive at boat side. Third day they did well catching Smallmouth Bass, using top water lures having to fish many locations and spend all day on the water, resulting in about 50 fish between them. Fourth day was so good that when talking with them at suppertime I guessed that they caught about 100 fish. At that they laughed at me saying that it was more like 200, mostly Northern Pike, plus Wendell landed a HUGE Smallmouth measuring 19.5-inches. Last day for these fellows was a very windy, which caused some problems of boat control and presentation, however they caught some fish and had a bunch of follows by toothy critters, All had a great stay and hope to return next year.

Back for his second time was Martin Duda and for his first good friend Kevin Keech both from Belleville, MI. First day they caught a mix of Northern Pike and Smallmouth Bass with Kevin landing a Master Anglers award Smallie and Martin catching a HUGE 38-inch Northern Pike. Second and third days had them catching about 20 fish each day, being a mix of Smallmouth and Northern Pike. Fourth and final day they caught 18 fish before supper mostly Northern Pike and after supper they caught about a half dozen more. They soaked up their last evening in this great wilderness setting of the great boreal forest. Both left with great memories and for Martin it was a special place to remember the past and enjoy the present. Both hope to return in the future.

Returning for his second time this year and tenth consecutive year was Phil Spahr from Fairborn, OH and with him for his second trip to Fireside Lodge was bother-in-law Jerry Westfall from Clarksburg, WV. Day of arrival these two caught almost 20 fish, mostly Northern Pike and a few Smallmouth Bass. First full day was full of excitement as they landed 43 Northern Pike, had several doubles, lost many, and each caught a BIG Smallmouth Bass. Phil’s measured in at 17.5-inches and Jerry caught a Master Anglers Award Smallmouth at 18-inches. Second day had them catching a mix of Smallmouth Bass and Northern Pike landing about 20 fish total and enjoying the nice day. Third day was off fishing for Muskie and they did have some excitement in this area. They had follows, a Muskie hooked and lost, and Phil had a big Muskie under control, led it into the cradle perfectly, when the fish went wild thrashing so fast and hard it slapped Jerry’s hand off of he cradle handle and got out. Phil still had it on for a moment only to see his Mepps pop out of the Muskie’s mouth. They also caught a few nice Smallmouth during the day. Fourth day was full of fabulous fast action and fun as they caught 54 Northern Pike by suppertime. Lat day was even better as they caught 52 Northern Pike and 8 Smallmouth Bass, all the Pike being larger than the day before with a lot between 28 to 32-inches and Jerry caught his second Master Anglers Award Smallmouth at 18.5-inches. Both made memories that can’t compare to any fish caught, and Phil will be back in 2010 with his sons to enjoy the wilderness he loves so much.

Kent Williams and Bill Black from Atlanta, GA returned to Fireside Lodge for their fifth consecutive year. First day fishing they caught a bunch of Smallmouth Bass, and said the action was very fast until 1:00PM when rain moved in a seemed to shut things down. They caught a lot up to 14.5-inches, along with some Northern Pike up to 30-inches. Second day was slower as they tried some new waters with very limited success. That is what good fishers do, constantly looking for new waters for future fishing opportunities. For the evening fish Kent decided not to fish so Bill went alone and of course the Pike were very active. Bill had lots of action, but had difficulty landing these toothy critters by himself, especially one that was in the 35 to 38-inch range. Bill tried to net the fish four times and finally the fish broke off and swam away. Third day was great as they caught a lot of Smallmouth Bass. Just goes to show the difference one day could mean as the Smallmouth were very agreeable, which was not the case the day before. Fourth and final day was very windy but as Bill says, Kent gets all wide-eyed and excited when this happens after he learned a technique that woks great in the wind. Picking the windy side of weed beds they troll right in the heaviest wind, and did they ever catch Northern Pike. The Pike were all good size, 28 up to 35-inches. They caught so many that Kent said quote “we caught so many Pike I quit because I was tired of handling them”. I told Kent I was going to use this quote in my fishing report and if anyone calls me on it he has to verify his statement, which he agreed to do. I found them on the dock on their last evening after supper enjoying the cool breeze off the water as long as they could before returning to hot steamy Atlanta. Both had a great trip and hope to return in 2010.

Mike and Zack Gerulski from Huntington Woods, MI were fishing at Fireside Lodge for there eighth consecutive year. First day they caught some Smallmouth Bass and a few Northern Pike. Second day was a slower day but for Mike and Zack Smallmouth fishing picked up considerably after supper. Third day shaped up very nice with the Smallmouth Bass action turning on and Zack himself caught 18 nice Smallmouth Bass before supper and Mike mixed it up with 8 Smallmouth and 7 Northern Pike. Fourth day was a portage for Smallmouth Bass and Muskie. It was very high winds on this day, which made boat control difficult, however they did catch some Smallmouth Bass and Zack caught a Muskie, which was his first ever. Congratulations to Zack on his first Muskie catch. They concluded their trip by fishing after supper in the still high winds with one goal and that was to catch a fish. Well, they did just that and caught a Smallmouth. After they returned to the dock they said goodbye to Kent and Bill (above) who have become Fireside friends over the last several years. Nice that people meet at Fireside Lodge from Atlanta and Michigan and form lasting relationships. That’s part of what Audrey and I call the “Magic” of Fireside Lodge. This along with the lasting memories made over the last eight years between Mike and Zack, is the biggest catch of all. We hope to see all of these fellows back at Fireside Lodge for many years to come. Thanks for choosing Fireside Lodge to make memories and friends.

Returning to Fireside Lodge for their third year in a row were Todd Meyer and sons Dan and John with John Anderson and his son Jake all from Naperville, IL. Day of arrival this group got right to it catching some Northern Pike and Smallmouth Bass. First full day of fishing was a slower day for most guests in camp however these guys were the exception. They caught a total of 37 Smallmouth Bass, 9 Northern Pike and the fathers Todd and John each landed a Muskie. John’s was 36-inches and Todd also caught a 36-incher with the girth of a 42-inch Muskie. Great first day. Just goes to show that even during a slower day fishing on the lake, there are still plenty of fish to be caught. Second day was the best fishing days of their lives as they caught over 145 Northern Pike and 12 Smallmouth Bass between both boats. John Meyer and Jake had a BIG day as John caught his first Muskie ever and Jake caught his first Master Anglers Award Smallmouth. John and Dan also caught Master Anglers Award Smallmouth Bass all being 18 to 18.5-inches. They could hardly believe the fishing day they had when talking about it at suppertime, and all decided to call it a day and rest that evening after supper. Three days go by fast and this last day they met up with very windy conditions with showers on and off all day. This made fishing more difficult, however all caught fish with Todd, Dan, and John catching 8 Northern Pike, 8 Smallmouth Bass, and Dan caught two Muskie in the 34 and 35-inch range. WOW, two Muskie in one day is a great fishing feat. John and Jake did better with numbers, with John alone catching 21 Smallmouth Bass despite the strong winds. All had loads of fun, made many father and son memories, and hope to return in the future. Thanks for choosing Fireside Lodge to spend your special father and son time together.
Make sure to go to our website listed below to see the 2009 Photos

Hot Lures of The Week: Dardevle Spoons, Blue Fox Spinner, X-Rap, Mepps Spinner, Beatle Spin, Tiny Torpedo, White Jig

Catches of the Week: Two 20.5-inch Smallmouth Bass, 40-inch Muskie, 38-inch Muskie, three 38-inch Northern Pike

Hot Flies of the Week: Flash Tail Whistler
Please note that we have a “NEW” email address below.

Well, that's it for this weeks Fireside Lodge Fishing News Report, Please stay tuned for next weeks report. Until then "Keep On Fish'n" Alan
www.firesidelodgefishing.com
www.firesidelodge.com
800-545-0815
Email: fireside@xplornet.com