Happy Birthday to ME!

Another year GONE! But, at least I spent half the day on the water, perching with Nick and Cfish. It's that time of year. The yellow perch are coming in to get the Fall feedbag on. Right off Cleveland, there are tons of fish.

We headed out early, as the weather man said building waves and rain coming in the afternoon. I think he should check his watch! After stopping at Shine's Bait and Tackle on E.55th for bait, ice, and a good report, we headed down to Gordon Park to launch. Lake was beautiful, a nice light chop, partly cloudy sunrise. Great morning. A small pack of boats was out in 41 foot, just North of the breakwall, so we went and set up. Within a few minutes, the perch were coming in the boat. Anglers in other boats all around us were hauling them in too. After an hour or so, the fish slowed down. There were quite a few dinks we had to weed through, but we put 25 or so in the box. The pack seemed to grow a little North, and the waves were building, so we moved deeper.

The radio chatter was about the up and down action all along the Lakewood/Edgewater/E. 72nd/Bratenahl/Euclid area, with the fish coming in from 38 to 45 feet of water. Like I said, there were a lot of fish out there. Heck, "The Holiday", the "Linda Mae", and "The Express" all were reporting hot action, a couple of boats even reporting marks on the depth finder 20 feet thick in perch! Now is the time! we ended up in 45 feet of water and hammered the bigger fish. It was a ball.

And it's only going to get better. The perch are feeding voraciously and limits are fast in coming. We ended up with 77 fish between the three of us, but the waves chased us off before we could limit. The rains also came, and there we were, no rain gear.

No matter. With perch being so tasty, it just takes your mind off the misery as you're yanking them in. Going try something a little different with the fillets this time... Nick has the right idea at the end of the video!

It was a great way to spend a birthday, that's for sure. At least it was until I watched the Browns... Oh well. There are always more fish to catch and who knows, maybe they'll improve. Long season. Fishing season too!

Any questions, comments, whatever.... Send me an email at cbachtel@wkyc.com and I'll get back with you.

I'm Carl "Big Daddy" Bachtel and I'll see you on the water.

The Volunteer Spirit

When it comes to fishing, I consider myself a very lucky person, having the opportunities I do. But, and I know this may be hard to believe, I haven't always been the fishing legend(HA!) I am now. It all had to start somewhere. When I was a kid, it was fishing with my Dad and older brothers. In this day and age, with life keeping folks so busy, there may not be opportunity to get out and fish, or even, heaven forbid, a lack of interest. That's why passing the knowledge and passion of the fishing experience is so important.

For the past couple of years, I've volunteered in the Natural Resources Area at the Great Geauga County Fair. What an experience. They have a youth fishing area where the Ohio Division of Wildlife introduces kids to the joys of fishing. They stock the area with a variety of fish and provide cane poles, tackle and bait. Us volunteers, we help the kids and their parents, if needed, providing worms, helping get snags free, and taking fish off the hook. It's pretty much organized chaos and after working all day in the hot sun, it does tire you out, but when a kid catches his first fish, and you see the excitement, it makes it all worth it.

There were two kids that stood out this year. One young girl who caught a little sunfish. When she brought it in, I could tell she was excited about the fish. She was saying "I don't want to touch it, keep it away!" But I saw she was curious. I took the fish off the hook and held it for her to look at. I showed her all the different colors of the fish, the different fins and how it swims. She even touched the fish, then held it and threw it back in, all by herself. Later, I saw her do the same thing with another she had caught.

The second was a young man, about 3 or 4 years old. He was fishing with his Mom and Dad, and Dad was helping him out. His bobber slammed under and he pulled up a tiny, baby largemouth bass about 3 inches long. By the kid's reaction, you would have thought he caught a whale! He was laughing and doing a fishing dance on the shore. He just couldn't control his excitement. He was high-fiving everyone in sight and gave BIG hugs to his Mom and Dad. All coming from dropping a worm hooked on a cane pole into the water. It's that joy, that excitement, that feeling you get. It's what I feel when hook into a fish to this day.

I hope you like the videos. Look for more "On the Water" segments next week. Any questions or comments, send me an email at cbachtel@wkyc.com and I'll get back with you.

I'm Carl "Big Daddy" Bachtel and I'll see you out there.

Perch are biting!

August is almost over, and that signals a great time for us fishermen. The big perch will be moving in to strap on the Fall feedbag. I got out this past Sunday with my son Nick and buddy Walt. No walleye this day. It was a perch fest from the start!

We watched the wind and wave forecast again and the morning brought a Southerly breeze and nice chop on Lake Erie. After getting some minnows at Shine's Bait and Tackle, it was off to Wildwood State Park to launch. I had heard reports of perch hitting off Cleveland, all the way East to Conneaut. The magic depth was 52 feet of water, so out we went.

After a nice ride, I slowed to check the sonar. It read 43 Feet and man, were there marks! Great ones. We decided to toss the anchor and give it a shot. No need to go deeeper if the fish are in close. First couple fish were dinks. I mean small, probably last year's babies. After about 5 or 6 of them, and just as I said "maybe we should move", WHAM! A keeper! Then a couple more! Then a double! It was ON! Some big fish had moved in and the action was up and down. At one point we managed FIVE doubles in a row! It was awesome!

The whole time, we were all laughing, digging on each other, telling bad jokes, and most of all having a great time catching fish. It didn't matter they were small. We weeded our way through them and put together a nice 3 man limit of fish. Took about 3 hours and 7 dozen minnows, a lot of which were cut in half. The fish didn't care. They were HUNGRY.

It was a great trip. One of those we'll all remember for a long, long time. That's one of the reasons I love to fish. Sharing fun like that. With all the stresses of daily life beating you up all week, it's good to get out and have some fun.

With the Fall bite just getting started, there will be a lot of opportunity for more fun trips! I can't wait.

I'm Carl "Big Daddy" Bachtel and thanks for stopping by.

If you have any questions, shoot me an email at cbachtel@wkyc.com and I'll get back with you.

Catch a bunch!

Wave Forecasts???

I have to tell you... I really look forward to fishing Lake Erie. What a phenomenal fishery. I've been going with friends and have been taught the ropes by some of the best, but I've really been trying to get my own boat out on the lake and do it myself. I watch the ever changing wave forecasts on the NOAA site, both open lake and near shore. If I had a dollar for each time they were wrong, I could retire!

Today was no different. Forecast was 1 to 3's with winds SSW 5-10. So, Nick, Walt and I packed up and headed North. We got to the ramp at 6AM just as the sun came up. There was another boat heading towards the sandbar just East of Lorain, and as soon as he cleared the breakwall, there they were. 2 to 4 foot rollers. Definitely not what I wanted to see. Safety is always first, and taking my 18 ft Crestliner Canadian into building seas makes me a little nervous. Winds were out of the NW, but were supposed to change up, so we decided to give it a shot.

We headed NW, but the waves pushed us back. Much easier running, trolling with the waves. After a while, we got set up in 38 ft of water and started trolling NE. we had two crawler harnesses out, mixed veggies and Mi Hi, and two spoons, monkeypuke and double orange crush. Orange has been the HOT color this year for sure.

We trolled out to 50 ft of water, crossing several areas of good marks on the Garmin. We pulled 3 sheephead, a white and yellow perch, and the winds were changing. More West, but they were'n't slowing at all. We decided to turn for the ramp and troll in. After about 15 minutes, the monkeypuke spoon got hit. I handed the rod to Nick, who was trying to balance himself in the back of the boat. The rod was set 80' back, dipsey on #1 setting, and the fish slammed it in 48 ft of water. I thought it was another sheephead, but I was wrong. He got it to the side and I saw the white spot on the tail. It was about a 4 pound walleye, and there I was, without the net! I grabbed the leader and when the wave rolled, I lifted the fish in the boat on the momentum. SWEET! The hook then fell out of the fish's mouth, but he was in the boat. We got a walleye.

Wasn't where I wanted to fish, but we took what we were given and worked with it. That's what fishing is really all about. Without the help from lots and lots of others I've fished with in the past, I'd have never even tried. Now, we have a couple real nice fillets to fry, bake, or grill. That's going to be a tough decision too!

Any comments or questions? Email me at cbachtel@wkyc.com and I'll get back with you.

I'm Carl "Big Daddy" Bachtel and I'll see you on the water.

Portage Lakes 8/9/08

Hit the water with Nick and Cfish... Lake Erie wave forecasts weren't compatible with my 18 ft semi-V boat, so we went bass fishing. Portage Lakes is a great resource for several types of fish. Bass, bluegills, crappies, catfish. There are even a few straggler walleye and saugeye from stockings years back.

Winds were howling pretty good out of the West, but we hung in there. Tried crankbaits, stick baits, soft plastics. Fished shallow, fished deep, but it was extremely slow. As you can see in the video, Nick pulled the first fish. The thing had a big head and very little body. The fish, not Nick... HA!

Portage Lakes is usually a lot better. It's been a tough year there, at least for bass fishing. The weed killer plus the huge amount of fishing/boating pressue may be taking a toll. I'm looking forward to cooler nights, the shad schooling up, and lots of Fall topwater action.

Any questions about fishing or the outdoors? Shoot me an email at cbachtel@wkyc.com and I'll get back to you.

I'm Carl "Big Daddy" Bachtel and I'll see you on the water.

Vermilion Walleye 8/02/08

Got the call from Chris McKimm, captain of the "Inside the Great Outdoors" fishing team, to join him and a few friends on Lake Erie. There have been great fishing reports from our friends at Ohio Game Fishing, so we headed out. One of our crew, Paul, had never been fishing before, so we had to get him on some fish.

After a bumpy ride out to the sandbar, we were greated by a pack of 60 or so boats. There were drifters and trollers, and every once in awhile, you'd see a net go in the water. The fish were there, but action was spotty. After the lines were set, it wasn't long. First fish was a scrappy little sheephead, but Paul didn't really care. It was his first fish.

Shortly after resetting the dipsey again, a rod on the other side went off. The time had come for his first walleye. Paul did great, keeping pressure on without horsing it in, and brought it right up to the net. SCORE! First fish in the box and Paul's first walleye. Check out the video above and you'll see it all.

A nice eater, that's for sure. We ended up with 8 nice eyes for the day. Not a lot of fish, but as is always the case, it was a lot of fun. Lots of laughs hauling in walleye between sheephead and white bass. Chris's buddy Glen hauled in a GIANT sheephead, almost took the rod out of his hands when he saw the boat! Fish was around 8 pounds or so, a real slob.

The trip made some great memories for us all, and we got in some more trolling practice. There's a lot to learn about boat speed and direction, lure depth, lure type and color, and putting it all together in a pattern that catches fish.

Thanks Chris for a great day of fishing. We'll get 'em again soon.

Any questions about anything? Shoot me an email at cbachtel@wkyc.com.

I'm Carl "Big Daddy" Bachtel and I'll see you on the water.

Great day for a hike!

Instead of using the gas to haul the boat today, I decided to head down to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park to do a little exploring with my two sons, Nick and Sam. It's always fun to get outside, and walking the beautiful Furnace Run was a blast.

We were looking through all the gravel deposits, gazing at fossils, watching for different kinds of rocks (sedimentary or igneous), looking for animal sign, watching for minnows and whatever else we could stumble on. It was a ton of fun and very educational.

We found a TON of fossils from corals to shells. The kids really thought they were neat. Every once in a while, we'd see a pair of goldfinches fly by in all their yellow splendor. A Great Blue Heron almost dragged its legs on Nick's head as we disturbed it from its roost. We saw deer tracks, raccoon tracks, and even beaver tracks, along with the trail between the prints made by its big, wide tail. Like I said, a lot to see if you look close enough.

We saw a few butterflies, including a big tiger swallowtail, and the pesky black flies dined well on me, I can tell you. I don't think the boys noticed them too much. They were too excited about the discoveries around every turn and under every rock.

The CVNP is a great place to get out and see a lot of diverse wildlife and habitats. I know my kids really enjoyed themselves today. Any time kids can get their feet wet chasing minnows and toads, or running down flying grasshoppers is a great time. I know I really enjoyed it and can't wait to get back out. The boys will tell you their favorite things of the hike in the video, but for me it was seeing their eyes light up when they saw new things, the questions they asked about the area, and the pleas to return to the creek as soon as we could for another day of exploring.

Great day for sure.

Talk to you later.

Carl "Big Daddy" Bachtel

Wildwood Woes 7/19/08

Headed out bright and early this morning for some more trolling practice. The weather has been hot lately, but stable and allowed me to take my own 18 foot Crestliner Canadian out on Lake Erie. Gotta love the 2 foot or less wave forecasts.

Anyway, I've trolled Erie quite a bit on my fishing buddies boats, but have little experience on my own. I've managed to build up a small collection of trolling gear and when the weather cooperates, I head out. It's mostly in preparation for the Fall night walleye bite, that if you experience it, you'll be spoiled on Lake Erie walleye, guaranteed.

My buddy Walt and I hit the ramp around 6 or so. The lake was looking good. We headed North for a few miles, looking for the plentiful marks we found last week. I stopped in 50 foot of water and there they were. The marks were showing up between 15 and 40 feet down, just like last week. We trolled 61-68 feet last week, but decided to stay close today. We got caught in a storm last week and it took 4 days for the color to come back to my knuckles. No fun in an 18 footer, that's for sure.

Anyway, we got our spread set up and started. Dipseys on the 3 1/2 setting, 100 back on one side, 85 on the other with crawler harnesses. On the inside, they dipseys were set to #1 and we trolled spoons. Small double orange crush and Listerine were it. I had a BIG hit on the orange crush, but it pulled off. Sharp hooks will do that, but it felt like a sheephead anyway. After a time, we switched to all orange. It worked last week, but this week, all we could manage were a couple farm animals. No walleye.

Not sure, but I think the full moon last night may have shut them down. Usually, the fish will come up and keep feeding all night and the next day, have lockjaw. It was tough.

I couldn't help wondering if we had been in deeper water, we may have found active fish. Who knows? Maybe next time. The waves and wind were building, so we headed in.

Something different with the blog now is the addition of video. I'll take the Flip camera along and shoot some highlights of my outdoor experiences. I hope the fish aren't camera shy!

Anyway, with some experimentation, I'll get it down and make it interesting. I'll see you on the water.

Carl "Big Daddy" Bachtel