4 hours ago, T-Billy said:

I get up at 02:00 for work. Usually do the same on off days. Sometimes earlier if there's a good night bite happening.

My mom retired 20 years ago and a still gets ups at 0400. What a long day! 

2:00 is an awfully early morning… I guess the body can get used to anything

My body is used to sleeping all night 

17 minutes ago, LrgmouthShad said:

2:00 is an awfully early morning… I guess the body can get used to anything

I started work at 02:00 for a year. Got up at 00:30. Never did get used to it. I was OK getting up at that hour, but from sunrise until 09:00 or so I struggled to stay awake. Not good for a haz-mat tanker driver. I was a happy camper when that year was over. I do fine with my current schedule though. I enjoy the quiet of early morning.

The clean up and repair of the wide spread destruction of our property

at the hands of the early April Ice storm, has moved to the front of our priority line,

placing any fishing days somewhere else down the list. 

Only been out on the water a few times  and that less fishing trend,

is bound to continue for some time.

Might be able to do a few shorter local trips but long distance hikes are not in the cards right now.

Realistically, August might be the next time I get a shot at any more trophy Brown Bass. 

Still hoping to float around and get my line pulled a few times between now & then,

but when I look at what we had here before the storm,

compared to what we've got going on now, it's depressing.

We've been hacking away at it daily, but some days it seems like a drop in the bucket.

Going to be some time before I can come to grips with just what a jacked up scene

this whole deal has turned out to be.

Still waiting for my insurance company to give us back some of that $$$

we've been faithfully throwing their way for the past 25 years.  

More to follow

🙁

A-Jay

 

 

 

 

Heading a little further up into the mountains with a buddy to do our annual float down a small river. It’s loaded with smallmouth, wild trout, and panfish so the action is usually non stop. Torrential rain the last few days should have the river lookin swole. Hopefully not flooded. Tiny poppers, inline spinners, ned rigs, and dry flies are rigged. 
 

A-Jay, hopefully you get some more lake time soon. 

2 hours ago, Jar11591 said:

Heading a little further up into the mountains with a buddy to do our annual float down a small river. It’s loaded with smallmouth, wild trout, and panfish so the action is usually non stop. Torrential rain the last few days should have the river lookin swole. Hopefully not flooded. Tiny poppers, inline spinners, ned rigs, and dry flies are rigged. 
 

A-Jay, hopefully you get some more lake time soon. 

Good Luck & Thanks ~

We'll be needing to keeping a nose to the grind stone here for a while.

https://www.facebook.com/ThePAWZ/posts/pfbid03yto3vsuewgQ7SwBFgpeWEt8M9Zw5QCYjCZ6PqaENYx1GUgKPFaQx9RFe2AAAvQJl

A-Jay

You gotta know ~

I'm Always Wish'in

I could be Fish'in ~

A-Jay

Took a big ol goose egg. For only the second time since 2016, I blanked on bass. And not just bass. I didn’t have a single hit. River was way way up, and moving very swiftly. Little murkier than usual too. If there were fish in that river, then they fooled me. 

I feel your pain. We had straight days of rain here. The Susquehanna is about 2 feet above flood stage, flowing like crazy, and super muddy. I can't even get near any of my usual fishing spots, and the areas I can get near are so full of debris that they are unfishable. It is going to be a while before the river in this area is fishable, and that is assuming we don't get more rain in the near future. Even the local ponds I have access to are unfishable right now. 

Plan on being at my favorite spot on Lake Menderchuck at first light tomorrow morning.

It's been a while, but I think I remember how to cast.

Guess we'll find out.

And yes, I do have a mouse in my pocket.

A-Jay

Atta boy!

Here We GO !

A-Jay

Ummmm, you forgot me!

 

And this is how it went.

It was a gorgeous warm flat calm morning - and I mean Zero Wind and BUGS !

Lots of Bugs.

Started out throwing a 3/8 oz wiggle wagon.

I caught a pike.

Then I caught another pike.

Then another one. 

And another one 

And another one

 And another one 

And another one 

And another one,

Well,  I think you got the idea.

Went through 4 ft of AFW wire,  4 baits (skirts chewed off) and 1/2 dozen Zako trailer on top of that.

Did I mention it was a pike day ? 

Good times.

A-Jay

 

 

31 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Lots of Bugs

Black flies? The black fly season started here about a week ago. Gonna be brutal for the next 2 weeks whenever there’s no breeze. They love nostrils, eyeballs, and ear holes. 

1 hour ago, Jar11591 said:

Black flies? The black fly season started here about a week ago. Gonna be brutal for the next 2 weeks whenever there’s no breeze. They love nostrils, eyeballs, and ear holes. 

Mayflies are the worse! Probably a bit early for mayflies in Northern Michigan though.

@12poundbass what I was referring to are also called Buffalo Gnats. I think the term “black fly” may be a northeastern colloquialism but these are different than mayflies. These are tiny black gnats that swarm and bite. You typically don’t feel them biting, but later that evening you’ll be covered in big, sore, welts. They come around in mid May and thankfully only stick around for a couple weeks. 

@Jar11591 I knew what you meant. Black flies and knats are terrible too. If I had to pick one though at least from a fishing standpoint in northern Michigan, mayflies take the cake!

@12poundbass ah gotcha. Luckily in my area the Mayflies don’t get too bad. Or at least I’ve been able to avoid the worst of them. 

Mosquitos  biting flies and no see'um gnats. I love when they go in my eye !

🧐

A-Jay

Cold Snap: A landscape pushed to the brink

Highlighting the impact, response, and recovery from the March 2025 ice storm

in northern Michigan

Michigan DNR

May 18, 2025

https://arcg.is/1maHyL1

 

A-Jay

That’s quite the mess you all will continue to deal with for years to come. 

15 minutes ago, 12poundbass said:

That’s quite the mess you all will continue to deal with for years to come. 

You know what the 'roads' are like up here.

Tree lined FOR MILES.

Now it's just an endless view of ugliness.

Super sad.

It really is.

A-Jay

In the words of the late Capt Kenny , “mother nature will steal your lunch and %#+* in the sack”