We are getting closer to full time winter guide mode! My stuff really fires up for me December 9th. After that there is no turning back! With this recent little spurt of warm weather it really slowed me down wanting to venture out on ice. In fact, it got me to...
People are venturing out on the small ponds and a few areas up here on Devils Lake already. Ice isn't great, but we are seeing 3 to 6 inches of ice. The further north the more ice we are seeing. One of the problems we are seeing and are going to see early on...
I don't want to put the cart out in front of the horse, but ice fishing has started. I should be talking about the fishing on the river and if weather permits catching some really nice fish on Sakakawea or the Tailrace. Instead we will talk a little about ice...
I really don't want to be talking about ice fishing yet, but Mother Nature definitely had other plans for us up here in North Dakota. Hard for me to believe we were open water fishing a week ago in 70 degree weather and now we have 2 feet of snow on the ground. Of...
Hard to believe, but I'm pretty sure our open water days for the 2022 season are pretty much over with, especially if this snow hits us like they are saying. Unless you go to the Tailrace or Nelson Lake, it's safe to say you can start getting the ice fishing equipment...
So much has happened since my mid week fishing report. We had a close call on a new state record walleye. Some good numbers of fish have started to show themselves in the river, and yes it's deer hunting season. It's been a common theme since I was in grade school...
I can't believe the open water guide season may be coming to a close. The long range forecast isn't looking good. I'm holding out hope to possibly get some nice days toward the end of of November yet. I was fortunate enough to fish Sakakawea the last few days and also...
This weeks Mid Week Fishing Report is somewhat depressing, somewhat not. Depends on how we look at it I guess. Sakakawea remains the place to be this fall. Fish are showing up again in decent numbers but even better quality. Jig raps remain the key presentation, the...
The first half of this week we couldn't have asked for better fall fishing weather. For me, the week was spent both on the Missouri River and Devils Lake. Unfortunately, I was going to fish Lake Sakakawea later in the week, but Mother Nature said otherwise. I'll start...
A little change of pace for me being back up on Devils Lake. I'm not sure why I'm e em going to say this, but the wind has corporates the last 3 days up here and so have the fish! One of the cool parts of fishing this time of year anywhere for that matter is the lack...
Things are slowly getting better. These winds we had last week forced me to reschedule my guide trips at Devils Lake to this coming week, but I did however fish a couple days on the river near Bismarck. The water is low. Before you decide to follow and old trail make...
I was all ready to spend the week up at Devils Lake for 3 guide trips. After watching the news and seeing winds for the next 5 days anywhere from 25 to 45 mph I decided it wasn't worth it. As I've gotten older I have come to realize I don't hate walleyes that bad. The...
It finally happened! We have had a few super cold nights here in North Dakota. I've said it before but I feel as though the fall walleye on most bodies of water will start firing when water temps dip south of 55 degrees. I spent the whole week scouting the Missouri...
Lots and lots to talk about in this weeks mid week fishing report. It amazes me how things change, especially this time of year on the Missouri River near Bismarck. I've written in a few reports here as of late about the lack of forage the smaller fish may have in...
This week on the river near Bismarck is kinda the same story as before. A few small fish around in that 12 to 13 inch size. I'm hoping we will see some more fish show up here in the next couple of weeks. Sakakawea continues to be good! I just cannot believe how that...
I get asked all the time what it is like to be a guide. Some of the questions I get on a daily basis are, how do you do it day in and day out? The other question is how can you fish every day and not get sick of it? Another one is you must eat a lot of fish. I’ve...
It's no secret Devils Lake and Lake Sakakawea have been absolutely on fire all season long! Sakakawea in my 40 years of fishing it was without question the best I've ever seen it! So kudos to the ND Game and Fish for how those fisheries are today. Just an fyi for some...
If you follow me on my Snapchat you know there are two things I absolutely hate. One is the beet juice they use on our streets in Bismarck in the winter, the other is wind. As you can guess by the time of year, I haven't been complaining about the beet juice yet. The...