A couple of my kids had this one on their wish list this year and I let them down. Gonna look to correct that in 2018.

Carly and Jayce both stated that they want to catch a catfish to add to their species list which already includes bluegill, crappie, largemouth bass, green sunfish and redear. Our other two kids, Helena and Zac, didn’t necessarily specify such a wish but this thing is going to be a family affair.

7/26/2011 Pat’s Creek Henderson County. IL

7/9/2005 Pat’s Creek Henderson County, IL

Julie and I both have landed our share of catfish over the years but it’s been quite some time. In fact, I believe the last time we combined for some catfish would have been in 1997 on the Mississippi River out of Quincy, Illinois. That trip was hosted by Julie’s dad, Junior Breuer, back when his daughter was just my girlfriend. Sadly, Junior passed away in the summer of 2006, a few years after his girl became my wife and we had a couple girls of our own. I’m sure he’d get a kick out of our fishing brood which has since doubled with the addition of a pair of boys.

My late father-in-law, Junior Breuer, with a mess of Mississippi River catfish

My Dad also knows a thing or two about catching those whiskered fish with one of his favorite pursuits being creek wading and looking for whatever had interest in a dew worm. Float trips were also among his adventures and my brother, Brent, and I have enjoyed both with him over the years.

Dad in his element, what we called Pat’s Creek in Henderson County, IL

And back in the day, before I got all tore up with this bass fishing thing, me, Brent and a handful of buddies used to spend a considerable amount of our fishing time chasing catfish.

4/14/85 accidental catch from Lake Bracken while panfishing with Dad and Brent, fun story for another day

7/2/1985 from Sperry’s Pay Ponds north of Galesburg, just saw that Mr. Sperry passed away, good memories from his fishing holes

So, this one’s on the Wish List for 2018 and the significance of 6 catfish pertains to each member of my family reeling one in. Yep, we already know all about some basic lures and waxworms so now it is high time to explore the exciting world of catfish bait. Oh yeah, a messier, smellier batch of goodies that is sure to entertain. Bring on some chicken liver, dew worms, cut bait and stink bait.

Gotta do what you gotta do to grant those outdoor wishes for your kids. I’m already grinning as I think about some of the memories to be made. I dig that they want to catch something new and I also look forward to a few of those “careful what you wish for” moments as catfishing can be a whole different ballgame. Talk to you later. Troy

For my money, an 8-pound bass represents the bass of a lifetime, and I’m still looking. Thus today’s item on the Outdoor Wish List. All in all, a pretty tall order and quite likely a longshot in the waters I fish. And I’ve actually got some solid fishing holes. That’s just how rare one this size is in my neck of the woods.

The closest I have been was an impressive Emiquon Preserve beast that still left me 13 ounces shy of this coveted mark. And in the realm of trophy bass, those 13 ounces can be real tough to come by. Regardless of falling short of an 8-pounder, I’m quite proud of that catch, particularly the fact that it came from a public fishery. Of course, that public water is unlike any other fishing hole I’ve ever seen but still not overflowing with seven or eight pounders. If that’s as good as it’s going to get for me, I’m okay with that. A cool catch at a cool location while fishing with Dad makes for a great fish story.

I have seen an eight-pounder up close in the form of a mount of a bass caught by my former brother-in-law, Tim Townsend, back on April 4, 2000. Just a flat out awesome looking fish and inspiration to keep on casting for one like it. Although I guess I really don’t need a whole lot of motivation as this hobby is truly enjoyable no matter what I catch.

Anyway, Tim’s lunker still holds the top spot in the family and friend bass fishing record book. At least for now. Come on spring, more wishful thinking I suppose. Talk to you later. Troy

On May 22, 2005 I caught my first bass on a wacky rigged 5” Yamasenko at Lake Bracken. Twelve and a half years and close to 800 bass later, this crazy setup definitely gets the vote for MVP (Most Valuable Presentation). Many colors have contributed to that collection of catches but if I had to pick a favorite, it would be the natural shad pattern. This particular hue got hard to find for several years but a recent look around some online retailers turned up my go to color.

I can’t resist a few examples of the effectiveness of this bait which produces both quantity and quality catches.

2005 Lake Bracken

2008 Dad Lake Bracken

2012 Lake McMaster – Snakeden Hollow

2012 Prairie Lake – Jim Edgar Panther Creek

2014 Dad Little John Conservation Club

2017 Little John Conservation Club

2017 Dad Little John Conservation Club

All I’m asking Santa for is one pack (qty. 10) of natural shad but I also figure that I’ve put together a year worthy of the “Nice” list, so who knows. But we have a saying at our house, “You get what you get and you don’t throw a fit.” Talk to you later. Troy

Back in May, I ran down a list of “Outdoor Resolutions” targeted for completion in 2017. I have knocked a few out since then and last Saturday’s fishing trip with Dad provided an opportunity to take care of another one.

This Resolution was referred to as “Retro Fishing Report” and the May 31 posting described my stab at fishing reports aimed at mirroring a monthly Bassmaster magazine feature entitled “Day on the Lake.” That monthly article places a pro on an unfamiliar lake and documents the high and lows in chronological fashion as they spend seven hours on the water trying to figure things out.

From 2002 thorough 2009 I posted seven such reports featuring either Dad or my brother, Brent, as my fishing partner. Our version of these reports differ from the pros as we have fished known locations (with one exception in 2007) and I also photograph and document the details of every bass we land for usage in the final product. While I sure dig the Bassmaster version, I much prefer our reports. Not only because it’s firsthand experience but also because it’s the real deal with a couple guys in 30 or 40 year old boats using whatever fishing gear they’ve amassed since the 80’s and showing you every fish, not just the big ones thrust out at arm’s length as close to the photographer as possible (yes, I have been guilty in the past but these days I make sure to bend them elbows).  I’d like to think these are things to which more than a few fellow bass anglers can relate.

(Note: in the interest of further promoting “regular guy” fishing we do probably need to pull this stunt on public water more often although the bass just don’t jump in the boat at any of our stomping grounds, still takes some work.)

Below is a brief rundown of some of the numbers from each of our previous stabs at this project.

July 9, 2002 with Brent at Lake Bracken (private)
7.50 hours and 37 bass (Troy = 20 Brent = 17)
Top Bass: 1-9 Troy Spinnerbait
Top 5 Weight: 5-12 (1-9,1-3,1-1,1-0,0-15)

June 13, 2003 with Dad at Lake Bracken (private)
5.25 hours and 35 bass (Troy = 19 Dad = 16)
Top Bass: 3-3 Dad Spinnerbait
Top 5 Weight: 8-0 (3-3,2-2,1-1,0-14,0-12)

July 23, 2004 with Dad at Lake Bracken (private)
7.00 hours and 25 bass (Dad = 14 Troy = 11)
Top Bass: 1-14 Troy Buzzbait
Top 4 Weight (only 4 at 12” or better): 5-5 (1-14,1-8,1-0,0-15)

July 13, 2005 with Dad at Lake Bracken (private)
7.50 hours with 20 bass (Dad = 11 Troy = 9)
Top Bass: 2-7 Troy Senko wacky rig
Top 5 Weight: 6-8 (2-7,1-5,1-1,0-14,0-13)

May 9, 2007 with Dad Snakeden Hollow strip pit (public)
2.0 hours with 21 bass
Top Bass: 1-11 Dad Spinnerbait
Top 5 Weight: 7-1 (1-11,1-10,1-8,1-3,1-1)

June 16, 2008 with Dad at Lake Bracken (private)
6.50 hours with 38 bass (Dad = 26 Troy = 12)
Top Bass: 3-7 Dad Spinnerbait
Top 5 Weight: 14-2 (3-7,3-5,2-13,2-9,2-0)

September 21, 2009 with Dad at Lake Storey (public)
7.00 hours with 15 bass (Dad = 8 bass Troy = 7 bass)
Top Bass: 2-10 Troy Creature Bait
Top 5 Weight: 8-11 (2-10,1-10,1-10,1-9,1-4)

Totals
7 outings
42.75 hours
191 bass
Top Bass: 3-7 Dad 6/16/08 Spinnerbait
Daily Top 5 Weight Record: 14-2 Lake Bracken 6/16/08
All-Time Top 5 Weight: 17-6 (3-7,3-5,3-3,2-13,2-10)

So there you have the basis, background and up to date recap regarding the resumption of the annual retro fishing report, deemed “Lake Lowdown” from this point forward. Tune in tomorrow for the 2017 version and talk to you later. Troy

Now, I like my standard format for my fishing report postings as I feel that they tell the tale just fine with an intro, a batch of stats, a handful of notes on the highlights, lowlights, observances, random happenstance and, of course, pics.  But several times in the pre-blog days I wandered off that path in borrowing a page from Bassmaster magazine’s “Day on the Lake” feature.

For those not familiar with the magazine’s monthly series, the concept is to put an angler on an unfamiliar body of water and then provide a chronological account of the decisions, results and conversation during a seven hour day.  The articles finish with the angler’s assessment of the day, what approach they would take were they to return “tomorrow” and yep, a Top 5 weight.  It has been my favorite feature in the magazine since its inception many years ago and is always my first read when the latest issue arrives.

2002 Day – Brent,action shot                                                                                               2003 Day – Dad, Top Bass

My kickoff date for my new website venture to start this month marked fifteen years of writing which all began with occasional fishing, trapping and general outdoor reports to family and friends prior to becoming a blogger back in April 2010.  Among those pre-blog postings were seven of the “Day on the Lake” type postings of my design, borrowing some of the concepts from Bassmaster along with inventing some of my own, including taking a photo of every fish we caught no matter the size.

2004 & 2005 Day – they all count and have a moment of fame for this project

My archives indicate that I kicked off this idea in 2002, posted a pair of these reports in 2003 and then made it an annual project with one a year through 2009 (skipped 2006 for some reason, probably had another kid or something).  Each of the outings were trips with a partner, either Dad or my brother, Brent, but unlike the Bassmaster version all but one were trips to familiar waters.

I just finished re-reading each of the old reports and while some are a bit lengthy, I still found them quite entertaining.  Of course, I had a front row seat and certainly possess a bit of bias as the author.  Still, it is fun to look back and reminisce over days spent on the water with your best fishing partners.  Some “Days on the Lake” were more successful than others in terms of fish but as I continue to put a few more years and fishing trips behind me I’ve come to realize that fishing is about a whole lot more than catching.

Yet again, a ringing endorsement for keeping a log/journal or in some way recording your day on the water.  For within those postings and log entries there are countless details that still bring a smile or a shake of the head, details that would have long been forgotten had they not been documented.

Good stuff then, good stuff now and good stuff for the future.

2007, 2008 & 2009 Days

So, this resolution is to take another swing at this approach at least once this year after being put on the shelf since 2009.  More details to come and perhaps a revisit of the past postings prior to kicking off the 2017 version.  After all, who doesn’t like a fishing report, even if it’s nearly 10 years old?

Hey, guess what?  My initial resolution of a blog a day for May is now officially completed.  And I’m having so much fun that I’m going to keep the string alive into June.  Talk to you tomorrow.  Troy