Reel Addiction Charters

The 2010 Baileys Harbor Brown Trout Tournament is in the books.  It was a year of bad weather and mixed results for most fishermen.  On Friday and Saturday, the strong cold front that moved through the state created unfishable conditions.  Winds exceeded 30mph and waves built to 5 feet around most of northern Door County.  The southern half of the county faired better and the leader board showed it.  Thirteen of the top twenty fish, including the winner at just over 20lbs came out of Sturgeon Bay.  Egg Harbor had many top fish also.  We landed a couple fish, including this one, but nothing that stayed on the leader board in the end. 
Overall it was a fun weekend seeing the friends and family that joined us fishing.  In just a few weeks, as the water continues to warm we will turn our attention to salmon.  There is nothing like a 20lb king screaming line off your reel...I can't wait!

     After a long winter nap, the Reel Addiction is out of storage!  Kathy and I worked long and hard on the boat over the last few days.  We gave it a complete scrubbing, installed 2 new riggers, a new GPS/sonar unit and a new planner mast for brown trout fishing.  We finally put it in and gave its first open water run of the season on Saturday morning.  The 25 mph winds and 3 foot waves in Rowleys Bay forced us back to port after an hour.  I am happy to report that all updates are working and the boat is officially ready for the 2010 Baileys Harbor Brown Trout Tournament in just 2 weeks.  Salmon season will soon follow.
      With all of this warm weather so far this spring June could be a hot month for Kings.  Our July bookings are really filling up but if you are going to be in Door County during the middle or end of June there are still openings.  Check your calendars and book a trip soon!  Hope to see you on the water this summer.

Although a bit early this year, it looks like spring may be here to stay in Wisconsin.  In the last few days almost all of our snow has melted, the snowmobile trails have closed and the stream in our front yard is open and now home to a few playful otters!  
In just three weeks Kathy and I will be getting the Reel Addiction out of winter storage and making a few updates for the upcoming season.  If all goes well we hope to have it in the water and be trying for spring  browns over our Easter break weekend. 
I hope everyone had an enjoyable winter.  Looking forward to seeing you on the big water soon! 

A friend and I made it up to Door County this past weekend for some winter brown trout fishing.  It just so happened that some of the coldest winter weather of the season followed us.  Despite the 5 degree morning temps, we landed a few nice fish including this one that was pushing 12lbs.   On the photos page I also posted a picture of the ice covered rocks that line the shores during the winter.  Absolutely beautiful when the sun shines on them.   
I hope everyone is staying warm and enjoying winter.  Ice fishing is great but I am counting down the days until I can get the boat back in the water.  Hang in there, spring is on the way! 

My wife and I would like to take a minute to wish everyone out there a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.  May you enjoy a relaxing holiday season with family and friends.  For those of you that need to get someone something yet, a Door County salmon charter makes a great last minute gift!  Just click on the charter availability link on the left of this page, click the 2010 fishing season at the top, pick a date and fill in your information!  Who wouldn't love battling a king salmon next summer!  Hope to see you on the water next summer.

What a great fall season it has been!  Although I have not been fishing Lake Michigan, I have been targeting muskie on the waters of Northern Wisconsin and deer in the woods. 
My wife and I boated several muskie during the Greater Wisconsin Muskie Tournament this year but nothing big enough to register.  My brother and his fishing buddy ended up winning with a 48 inch fish.
Deer hunting went well for me this year despite the low deer numbers around the state.  I saw a lot of activity while bow hunting and harvested a large doe in October to fill the freezer.  During the 1st and 2nd weekends in November I had 11 different bucks in my area that I saw while hunting or had on my camera.  Passed up many shots, looking for a big boy to hang on the wall...no such luck this year.  Gun hunting went the same way.  Saw deer but wanted a big one!  All those little bucks will grow up for next year!  Overall it was a satisfying season for me.
We are finally getting some ice forming on area lakes and I am hoping to get out fishing walleye this weekend or next.   I will keep you posted!
Hope everyone out there had as enjoyable a fall as I have.   

We ran our last trip of the year on Saturday morning with a group from Camping World RV Sales out of Illinois.  The lake was very calm, we had a beautiful sunrise, and managed to catch 8 kings and a crazy mutant steelhead seen below.  All fish came on deep riggers down 120 ft+ in 200 FOW.  Water temp off of Rowleys Bay is still 65 degrees at 95 feet.  Its like a giant bathtub out there! 
After the trip we pulled the Reel Addiction, cleaned, winterize, and hauled it to winter storage.  I will be compiling a list of totals for the season in my fall newsletter so stay tuned for all the details.
Thank you everyone for such a great first year.  I hope to see many of you back next year to battle more big salmon!

Due to a surprise party for a family member I was unable to be in Door County over the Labor Day Weekend.  I closed, to the disappointment of many, but had 1 trip scheduled with a group from Lodi, WI this morning.  Capt. Denny agreed to take them out and they landed 5 salmon on a 3 hour trip.  Capt. Denny told me that this is the calmest stretch of weather he has seen on Michigan in many years.  The water was like glass all weekend.
I did manage to make it out musky fishing with my brother after the surprise party.  We saw 3 fish and my brother boated one nice 39 incher.  As the salmon season comes to an end I target musky in northern Wisconsin.  The cool nights are beginning to turn on the fish around the area.  Although I love chasing musky, it is sure hard to beat a 20lb king screaming line off a reel! 

After my Saturday morning clients cancelled on Friday night, a couple of friends and I went on a personal trip to put a few salmon in the freezer for the winter.  The winds from the NW were at about 15kts and there was a light rain but we fished from 5:30-8:30am and landed 6 fish.  All fish came on flasher flies on deep riggers in 130+ FOW.  The water is still 60 degrees at 100 feet and no thermocline to speak of until you get out to 150+FOW.  If you are going to fish, go deep right away.
School started for me on Friday so it is back to teaching for another year.  I will be up for 1 more run on the 12th of September and then we will put the boat away for the winter.  Capt. Denny will be taking a few clients out over the next 2 weeks.  I will be sure to keep in touch with him and give everyone an update.

The termocline continues to get deeper with few pockets of cooler water to be found off of Rowley's Bay.  The Hagen family from Rhinelander, WI fished one of those cool pockets yesterday evening and did fairly well landing 7 for 10 fish, including a nice 15lb. king.  Fishing was a little slow but the weather and seas were nice and we enjoyed a beautiful sunset.  I am going to miss those Door County sunrises and sunsets as I head back to teaching in northern Wisconsin next week.  I will be out again this Saturday and then on the 12th of September for the last run of the year.