Wisconsin Driftless 2020

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Long Way Home

The wife and I had to get out of the house last night. We picked up food curbside at the Rooted Spoon in Viroqua and ate it "Greek" in the wayside near Readstown.

It was too early to go home so we visited my mom at the cemetery and her mom in Gays Mills. After those stops she was not ready to go home so we wandered.

I took her to my stream I had caught my last big one on. She wanted to see the stream because I had described it to her. I wanted to see if it was clear enough to fish.


Barb was astounded I walked so far just for fishing when I would not take a walk with her in town.


Barb snapped a photo of the stream at the beginning bridge. She could tell I was excited because the stream was clear and I wanted to hit it at first light in the morning. I talked about it all the way home.


I set the alarm clock for 4am and went to bed. The sun woke me up at 7am. I thought I had slept through my alarm and was mad at myself. Barb woke up shortly thereafter.


I asked her if she heard the alarm at 4am. She admitted to turning off the alarm when she came to bed. This is what she said: "It is supposed to get up to 87 degrees today." "I have gotten kinda use to you through the decades." "You should pick another day when it is 20 degrees cooler."

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Nearly skunked this morning...Landed 6.

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The wife has a week off so I took all my fishing equipment out of the SUV and went "Waterfall Hunting"

Is truly a on odd feeling being so close to water and not having a rod in my hand.

Hamilton Falls and Big Falls in Eau Claire County.

[Steve Molcsan]

Looks like a great day , lovely photo of the wife,,


Be well..

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The Surface Action Was Amazing

I drove an hour to a promising stretch of water. The last time I was there I rolled a really big trout. I was unaware there was a prior engagement at the pool.

[lee s]

We get a lot of that pond fishing around here. 'course most of the ponds we target have to do with the dairies we service hauling hay.
....lee s.

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Trip Report "Unusual" and "Wow"

The overcast skies and cool temperatures drew me to the stream. I targeted a trout I had chase my lure and slightly kiss it and off it went in early spring.

69 degrees outside and water temp 62 at noon when I began.

First cast on stream was hammered and the fish came screaming downstream at me. I had to reel really quickly to keep up with it. As it swam past me I saw about a 20 inch hammer handle pike..... landed it and released it. Next cast was a 10 inch brookie. 10 minutes later I was up to a dozen trout and then I landed a small mouth bass.

I got up to where the springs feed into the stream and scored my first photo worthy brown.

I scored a few more and one more photo worthy.

My thirtieth trout was a wow trout. It ran down stream like its tail was on fire. I turned it after I tightened my drag.

I always look for a landing zone prior to making a cast and this time was the same. I worked to the edge and went in the water for this one. I was not wearing waders. This one was worth getting wet for. My cellphone is always in a zip lock bag so I waded right in. My wallet is drying as I type.

It alligator rolled as I netted it and broke the line. This stretch has regulations of 2 under 12 inches only to encourage large trout longevity. I snapped a couple photos and sent him on his way.

Longest trout of the year with an enormous kype. I could not get all of the trout in the photo with an out stretched arm...that means big in my book. I did not measure it.

I was only half way done with the stretch but decided I was done. I walked back to the vehicle.

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Trip Report "Big Male Brookie"

Was on the water at 5:42am this morning. Went to the stretch with the bathing cows the last time. No cows in the stream. I walked all the way to the Kickapoo River and fished back to the vehicle.

Two hours later and quite disappointed 2 small browns to hand.

The stream Gary Peters caught his tiger on was close so off I went.

This stream was my best brook trout stream back in the day. It was nothing to score 100 brookies in an outing here 15 years ago. Gill lice and competition with browns had really put a damper on my best brookie stream. The last 5 times there I did not even catch a brookie.

It seemed like ground hogs days and all I was catching was little browns.

I tallied 45 browns today. All on the small side. Near the end of the outing I landed a small brookie and was happy as a clam when I examined it and there were no gill lice.

I fired right back in there and wham!

My net opening is 15.5 inches and he went about an inch past it.

No gill lice also. My biggest male brookie was 15.5 inches and this broke that. My biggest brookie ever was 17 3/4 inch female.

I am very happy no gill lice here!!!

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Dog Days

I typically fish all of my stretches one time during the calendar year. It is a visit the landowner trip. I reaffirm permission and drop off a trout or two if a landowner requests them.

Today I visited a landowner after I was done fishing that I have fished on his land for 25 years. I remember this land owner especially because he has a very friendly black lab that I have been visiting through the years since it was a puppy.

Today when I knocked on the door and gave the landowner a couple trout I asked him where his dog Snickers was. The landowner look down with a sad face and told me that Snickers had passed away this spring. This is the second dog that I was introduced to on this land that has passed away. I was sad for the owner but I bet his pain really ran deep ......14 years having a dog with you non-stop as a farmer has to be heart-wrenching when it passes ... Snickers was a very good dog that loved petting and that loved it's master.

Snickers was buried near the barn where the rest of the pets through the decades have been lovingly laid to rest.

I caught 18 trout today between 6 a.m. at 9 a.m. .

I hope when I visit the same landowner next year he has a new pet to introduce to me.

Losing a dog is like losing a family member.

Snickers, Rusty, Crispy, and Ginger are where all good dogs go.

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Fished in the morning with Chris Young. Watched mostly. Decided I needed an easy spot to scratch my trout itch. Was on the water about 12:30pm. It was the stream I considered mine when I was younger.

I picked an easy stretch of pasture not too long because I was a little worn out from fishing all morning.

The clouds thickened up and it started to sprinkle ever so slightly. I love fishing in the rain. It typically turns the trout on.

The rain did not disappoint me.

Left water at 2pm. 28 to hand. 26 browns and 2 brookies. Lost big fish of the day just before I exited the water. Was a big SOB.

Stopped by at the cemetery and said hello to Ma, Kate and Dad.