An Outdoorsman’s Journal

Mark Walters sponsored by

Hello friends, This past week I headed to Green Bay with my 18.6 War Eagle and both of my golden retrievers, Ruby and her 5-month-old pup Red, for two days on the water and a night of camping. My plan was to troll for walleyes and see what I could catch.

Monday, Aug. 22 High 82, Low 57

The old Chevy would turn 350,000 miles this week and it still has its original motor, tranny and exhaust. To be honest I was very satisfied to see it do an excellent job pulling the War Eagle to Little Suamico, where I would launch at Geano Beach.

Anytime that you put a boat in the water with a plan of camping and fishing it’s kind of a big deal to have all of the right gear. I had the gear and secured some solid advice at the landing and that was to head out to 27 feet of water and troll with night crawler harnesses.

The last time that I launched at Geano Beach was with a canoe and I limited out on walleyes and caught a 47-inch muskie on a crawler harness. I had no idea the muskie was a muskie and it pulled me around for a half an hour before I saw it.

The time before that I was three miles from shore fishing in the War Eagle and I got a call from Jeff Moll that a bad storm was going to hit. I got whacked hard on the ride back to the launch and it was one of the top 10, “I should have died” experiences of my life.

Today would be different. Almost no wind, sunny skies and it seemed like there was at least 100 boats on the water. I would be pulling two crawler harnesses or a crankbait that I would switch about every two hours as I experimented.

I had been trolling for four hours and had not had a hit when one of my rods with a crawler harness started bending and it was fish on. The fight was great and soon I netted a 27-inch walleye. As far as I was concerned my trip was success.

It seemed that my action was slow but steady. Three hours later I had my next strike and this time I caught a 24-inch walleye and I was a very happy camper. It seemed 27 feet of water with my harness back, 100 feet behind my planer board was the right number. My third and last hit of the day came just before dark and it was another 24-inch walleye.

I pulled lines, headed to some private land which was remote and beautiful, built camp and slept on the sand with my two pups.

Tuesday, Aug. 23 High 84, Low 53

I had camp broke and was on the water before sunrise with high hopes. I joined the growing pack of fishermen in deep water and, let me tell you, it is quite a world out there. Trolling with planer boards is a game of skill and common sense, especially when you are alone. You have to be wise or you are going to have an almost constant issue with other trollers and when you get a fish on, especially a good one, getting it in the net and not messing up your other lines is a very cool challenge.

I did not get a hit until I had been fishing for three hours. My first whack would be an 18-inch walleye and that made me feel like I was doing something right. In some ways I am extremely patient. When it comes to trolling and tip-up fishing I am very patient. You have to be checking your lines at least every 15 minutes or you will be weeded up which means that you are wasting your time.

It would be another three hours before I had another chance and this fish would be another 24-incher which made me very happy.

The pups were awesome in the boat. To keep them cool I just put wet towels over their bodies and they were fine. Red and Ruby always wrestle and Red is probably the sweetest golden retriever that I have ever had.

I needed a trip like this and was thankful that it worked out with relative ease.

Live large! Sunset