did the most damage making passes in line with the nuclear plant and the middle of the “gap” between S.B. and Catawba. Running 2.5 in 27 to 31 fow, running cranks mostly Bill Lewis lites 109 back with 2 oz. inline. Once we found ’em, it didn’t take long.
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Yellow Gold update August 4, 2026 G can SE (my honey hole)
Late start today , not much breeze so not much of the swing, spreaders (no Bling), shiners.
dozen yellow gold returns today, 3 sheep head, and a young walleye not much bigger than a big shiner. (returned unharmed)
did keep 10 yellow gold 8 inches.
There were boats way west of me, 6 or so, they didn’t move much so maybe they were sorting also.
This was a surprise , some of my shiners were 3/4 of the walleye’s size. Thats a #2 true turn hook.
dozen yellow gold returns today, 3 sheep head, and a young walleye not much bigger than a big shiner. (returned unharmed)
did keep 10 yellow gold 8 inches.
There were boats way west of me, 6 or so, they didn’t move much so maybe they were sorting also.
This was a surprise , some of my shiners were 3/4 of the walleye’s size. Thats a #2 true turn hook.
(my honey hole gps#’s are posted on About Water Dog)
Well, back on Wednesday, weather permitting. May try the Reefs or South of Green, just never know.
Enjoyed being back on the water, land chores are up to date for now.
Be safe and use the life jacket and engine kill switch , safety first.
~ Water Dog
Fishing with Rick Rensch…8/4/2026
2 a.m. back deck forecast for the morning was clear skies, 64 degrees, and an absent wind. iWindSurf said the wind forecast west of the islands would be 5mph out of the south….in other words, a beautiful day to go perch fishing.
Rick Rensch was driving in from Indiana this morning, and was meeting me at Catawba at 5:45, so we could be launched by 6 a.m.
I left the house at 4:45 and took the slow way through town, out to Hi-Way Bait to pick up some ice and some Emerald Shiners. Their shiners this morning were nice ones. The perfect size to cut in half. I like to use the tail on one hook and the head on another hook instead of whole minnows. I tend to think that the smell of the innards draws them in to check it out.
I got down to Catawba at 5:15 and readied the boat. Rick showed up at 5:30, but since it was still pretty dark out, we waited… and launched at 5:45.
I didn’t have any intel on where to go after this two-day blow, so I simply headed NW out of the launch and started searching. I was headed towards D-Can, but kept an eye on the Garmin for any tell-tale signs of perch down below.
Rick Rensch was driving in from Indiana this morning, and was meeting me at Catawba at 5:45, so we could be launched by 6 a.m.
I left the house at 4:45 and took the slow way through town, out to Hi-Way Bait to pick up some ice and some Emerald Shiners. Their shiners this morning were nice ones. The perfect size to cut in half. I like to use the tail on one hook and the head on another hook instead of whole minnows. I tend to think that the smell of the innards draws them in to check it out.
I got down to Catawba at 5:15 and readied the boat. Rick showed up at 5:30, but since it was still pretty dark out, we waited… and launched at 5:45.
I didn’t have any intel on where to go after this two-day blow, so I simply headed NW out of the launch and started searching. I was headed towards D-Can, but kept an eye on the Garmin for any tell-tale signs of perch down below.
We stopped once between F and E Cans and gave it 20 minutes. There were good marks when I hit the Spot-Lock on the Ulterra, but they wouldn’t bite. The bottom was a little softer than I like to sit over, too, so we continued on up towards D-Can.
The bottom wasn’t rock, but it was harder than the first spot, and there were marks, so I was going to give it more time than just 20 minutes.
There was a pack of boats starting to congregate on the west side of the cans, and only a handful of us on the east side of the Can. We fished over 26 feet of water.
The bite started slow, with some little ones, but eventually got steadier with some keepers coming in over the side. It was about a 3:1 ratio of little ones to keepers, so it took us from about 7a.m to 10:30 to get our 2-person limit of keepers.
Rick was happy with the size, and wants me to keep him informed on the bite, because he wants to come back for more…and that makes me happy! 🙂
My next trip will be Friday with Jack Scott and his two friends. We will be launching out of Huron or Vermilion and chasing walleye over in Lorain again. If the wind forecast is anything like it was last Saturday, we’ll launch out of Huron. But, if it’s stronger, we’ll launch out of Vermilion and save 10 miles on the boat ride.
Stay tuned….
Capt Juls
Yellow Gold update August 4, 2026 G can SE (my honey hole)
Late start today , not much breeze so not much of the swing, spreaders (no Bling), shiners.
dozen yellow gold returns today, 3 sheep head, and a young walleye not much bigger than a big shiner. (returned unharmed)
did keep 10 yellow gold 8 inches.
There were boats way west of me, 6 or so, they didn’t move much so maybe they were sorting also.
This was a surprise , some of my shiners were 3/4 of the walleye’s size. Thats a #2 true turn hook.
dozen yellow gold returns today, 3 sheep head, and a young walleye not much bigger than a big shiner. (returned unharmed)
did keep 10 yellow gold 8 inches.
There were boats way west of me, 6 or so, they didn’t move much so maybe they were sorting also.
This was a surprise , some of my shiners were 3/4 of the walleye’s size. Thats a #2 true turn hook.
(my honey hole gps#’s are posted on About Water Dog)
Well, back on Wednesday, weather permitting. May try the Reefs or South of Green, just never know.
Enjoyed being back on the water, land chores are up to date for now.
Be safe and use the life jacket and engine kill switch , safety first.
~ Water Dog
Fishing with Rick Rensch…8/4/2026
2 a.m. back deck forecast for the morning was clear skies, 64 degrees, and an absent wind. iWindSurf said the wind forecast west of the islands would be 5mph out of the south….in other words, a beautiful day to go perch fishing.
Rick Rensch was driving in from Indiana this morning, and was meeting me at Catawba at 5:45, so we could be launched by 6 a.m.
I left the house at 4:45 and took the slow way through town, out to Hi-Way Bait to pick up some ice and some Emerald Shiners. Their shiners this morning were nice ones. The perfect size to cut in half. I like to use the tail on one hook and the head on another hook instead of whole minnows. I tend to think that the smell of the innards draws them in to check it out.
I got down to Catawba at 5:15 and readied the boat. Rick showed up at 5:30, but since it was still pretty dark out, we waited… and launched at 5:45.
I didn’t have any intel on where to go after this two-day blow, so I simply headed NW out of the launch and started searching. I was headed towards D-Can, but kept an eye on the Garmin for any tell-tale signs of perch down below.
Rick Rensch was driving in from Indiana this morning, and was meeting me at Catawba at 5:45, so we could be launched by 6 a.m.
I left the house at 4:45 and took the slow way through town, out to Hi-Way Bait to pick up some ice and some Emerald Shiners. Their shiners this morning were nice ones. The perfect size to cut in half. I like to use the tail on one hook and the head on another hook instead of whole minnows. I tend to think that the smell of the innards draws them in to check it out.
I got down to Catawba at 5:15 and readied the boat. Rick showed up at 5:30, but since it was still pretty dark out, we waited… and launched at 5:45.
I didn’t have any intel on where to go after this two-day blow, so I simply headed NW out of the launch and started searching. I was headed towards D-Can, but kept an eye on the Garmin for any tell-tale signs of perch down below.
We stopped once between F and E Cans and gave it 20 minutes. There were good marks when I hit the Spot-Lock on the Ulterra, but they wouldn’t bite. The bottom was a little softer than I like to sit over, too, so we continued on up towards D-Can.
The bottom wasn’t rock, but it was harder than the first spot, and there were marks, so I was going to give it more time than just 20 minutes.
There was a pack of boats starting to congregate on the west side of the cans, and only a handful of us on the east side of the Can. We fished over 26 feet of water.
The bite started slow, with some little ones, but eventually got steadier with some keepers coming in over the side. It was about a 3:1 ratio of little ones to keepers, so it took us from about 7a.m to 10:30 to get our 2-person limit of keepers.
Rick was happy with the size, and wants me to keep him informed on the bite, because he wants to come back for more…and that makes me happy! 🙂
My next trip will be Friday with Jack Scott and his two friends. We will be launching out of Huron or Vermilion and chasing walleye over in Lorain again. If the wind forecast is anything like it was last Saturday, we’ll launch out of Huron. But, if it’s stronger, we’ll launch out of Vermilion and save 10 miles on the boat ride.
Stay tuned….
Capt Juls
Best Perch hair jig color this year?
Alright? have at it! What?s the best hair color jig so far this year? Tipped w a minnow or just the jig?
Best Perch hair jig color this year?
Alright? have at it! What?s the best hair color jig so far this year? Tipped w a minnow or just the jig?
Draggin the Line with John
We fished this past Friday just north of old C can in Canadian waters.Had done well there the past few weekends.Caught one right away but started noticing grass on our trolling gear.After another 30 minutes of nothing and clearing grass on all 4 lines decided we needed to move.Headed north a few miles but was too much grass also We headed east to the weather bouy and the grass was not a factor there.We got our 12/26 lbs but took us close to 4 hrs.The best setup was dipsey 3 setting at 80 and 1 setting at 60.Gold double Willow worm harness and monkey puke spoons were what caught.Had a couple spoons on TT 40 on our inline boards at 75 and 85 that also caught.I was doing something with a rod when I heard an unusual noise.I looked to the rods and one of the rods drags was screaming.I yelled to John to grab it.He was just finally able to get some line back when I noticed our inline board getting pulled in too.I grabbed that inline rod but the board dove.I gave it slack but the board didn’t surface.I thought we were going to lose it all.Then John said it’s gone.Whatever grabbed it got off luckily The board surfaced and we got the tangled mess in.Not sure what could be big enough to pull so hard and get off. Chrome or walleye or some junk on the bottom.
Draggin the Line with John
We fished this past Friday just north of old C can in Canadian waters.Had done well there the past few weekends.Caught one right away but started noticing grass on our trolling gear.After another 30 minutes of nothing and clearing grass on all 4 lines decided we needed to move.Headed north a few miles but was too much grass also We headed east to the weather bouy and the grass was not a factor there.We got our 12/26 lbs but took us close to 4 hrs.The best setup was dipsey 3 setting at 80 and 1 setting at 60.Gold double Willow worm harness and monkey puke spoons were what caught.Had a couple spoons on TT 40 on our inline boards at 75 and 85 that also caught.I was doing something with a rod when I heard an unusual noise.I looked to the rods and one of the rods drags was screaming.I yelled to John to grab it.He was just finally able to get some line back when I noticed our inline board getting pulled in too.I grabbed that inline rod but the board dove.I gave it slack but the board didn’t surface.I thought we were going to lose it all.Then John said it’s gone.Whatever grabbed it got off luckily The board surfaced and we got the tangled mess in.Not sure what could be big enough to pull so hard and get off. Chrome or walleye or some junk on the bottom.
Fishing with Bill, Brock, and Bennett…8/1/2026
If you’ve been reading my fishing reports over the past 15 years, you already know the morning routine…grab a cup of coffee, a couple of dog treats, and take the dogs out on the back deck to check the morning’s forecast.
I knew there was a chance of showers for the morning, but the thunderstorms were predicted to show up by mid to late afternoon today. RadarScope was showing some sprinkles scattered throughout NW Ohio and over to Illinois. My plan was to launch at Huron this morning, so when looking at the radar image, it looked like everything would miss that area…I was relieved.
The wind forecast was perfect. Light winds out of the SE…the lake would be 1 foot or less where I wanted to fish. The sky was cloudy, so the full(ish) moon wasn’t able to shine on the lake overnight, and maybe those night-feeding walleye would be hungrier this morning. The air temp was 74 degrees.
Bill’s wife Lana had called me and set up this trip for them. Initially, it was supposed to be herself, Bill, and their son (either Bennett or Brock, I don’t know which one), but yesterday she said that their other son would be taking her place in the boat. So, I had Bill, Brock, and Bennett this morning.
I knew there was a chance of showers for the morning, but the thunderstorms were predicted to show up by mid to late afternoon today. RadarScope was showing some sprinkles scattered throughout NW Ohio and over to Illinois. My plan was to launch at Huron this morning, so when looking at the radar image, it looked like everything would miss that area…I was relieved.
The wind forecast was perfect. Light winds out of the SE…the lake would be 1 foot or less where I wanted to fish. The sky was cloudy, so the full(ish) moon wasn’t able to shine on the lake overnight, and maybe those night-feeding walleye would be hungrier this morning. The air temp was 74 degrees.
Bill’s wife Lana had called me and set up this trip for them. Initially, it was supposed to be herself, Bill, and their son (either Bennett or Brock, I don’t know which one), but yesterday she said that their other son would be taking her place in the boat. So, I had Bill, Brock, and Bennett this morning.
I picked them up from the Whitecaps Motel at 5:00. We headed to the gas station for some ice for the coolers, then hit the highway. We were Huron bound. We arrived at the launch at 5:40, and I got the boat ready to launch. The Vexus was headed out the river at 5:50a.m. It was still pretty dark, and there was no one else there launching at the time, which surprised me since it was a Saturday, and it was going to be a nice day.
I knew the lake would be calm enough to take a comfortable ride up towards Lorain from Huron. I didn’t want to use Vermilion’s launch, because I thought it might get busy, and it’s a very tight launch site. Huron’s is so much better, so we went out of Huron. I was right; the ride was fun, and it was easy. Even though we could have gone fast, I didn’t want to because, first and foremost, the big 400 drinks more gas the faster it goes. I kept it at 30-35 mph on the way up, because if a big log shows up…I would have time to see it and react.
We went about 13 miles before stopping over some fish the Garmin was marking. “This looks like a good place to start”, I said. I deployed the Ulterra, which always gets approval from my customers who have never seen one deploy on its own before, and the Baby Merc. The Ulterra was set on a course towards the Lorain Dump. We were SSW of the bottom of it and over a good contour on the map.
Our water depth where we started was 46′. You’ll be able to see the line I was on if you enlarge the Garmin screen behind Bennett in his big fish pic. 😉
We made one long pass towards the dump, turned and headed a bit north for a bit, then turned the boat completely around to head back over the same fish we had just gone over. The bite became faster going that way than going the other direction. We had their 3-person limit in the cooler by 9:15. My 6 were in the cooler by 9:45.
None of them have ever fished with linecounter reels, dipsies, or planer boards before, but were excited to learn it. I showed them how everything works, how to set dipsies, attach the snap-weights and Off Shore boards, and explained the must-do’s for each.
Dipsies HAVE to go down with the “Clicker” (tension) ON. The reason being, if it’s free-spooled, it will dive too fast, and the leader will get wrapped around the dipsey, making it useless.
For the snap-weight, the line must be behind the pin in the center of the OR-16 (red clip), so it doesn’t come off the line until you take it off.
The Snapper release on the back of the Off Shore board must be secured with the pin pointing down in front of the release (not back and pointing up), because once the front arm is released from the main line, the board swings around and is only secured to the line by the Snapper release. If the release is attached wrong, there is a chance that the line could come out of it… and then we would have to reel everything back in and go chase a board. That’s never fun.
The guys did a great job today and had a fun time. This was their first time catching walleye. The teeth were a subject of conversation a few times this morning.
Brock was promoted to “First Mate” since he caught on quite easily, and between the two of us, we could keep enough lines in the water to keep the catching going.
Bennett had the lucky touch and caught the two biggest fish…a 25 1/2 and 27 inch walleye, so he was happy.
What worked…
Dipseis…early on, I had the port side zero setting at 28 back. The starboard side was set at 50 back. The “28 back”, on an Orange Yeck spoon, caught the 27-incher that Bennett reeled in. Eventually, the port side was set to 50, and the starboard side was set to 60 back.
The three setting on the port side ran at 70-75 back, and the starboard side ran at 80-85 back. BadMo, Yeck, and Scorpion spoons were used. I don’t think color really matters over there right now. If it wiggles and passes by them, they will eat it.
Ran the same Bill Lewis PWC Lite program I ran yesterday. 2 oz snap-weights at 50/47 (97 total line out), 50/25 on the port side. On the starboard side, they ran 50/43 and 50/30.
Speed was 2.5 mph on the FishHawk.
The bite was better today than it was up by the Weather Buoy yesterday. The fish weren’t tight to the bottom like yesterday, either, so that helped. The quality of fish was better than I expected…and that made me happy!
My perch trip for tomorrow has been rescheduled to Tuesday, due to a forecast of gusty NE winds.
The dogs will be happy…:)
Stay tuned….
Capt Juls