A recent email from a fishing partner, Mark Case, read like this, “Bringing my baby home! 17 feet, 90 horses! Haven’t picked out a name yet!” That one got a chuckle out of me. I hoped he wasn’t expecting some sort of baby shower for that new Lund boat of his. I gave him an almost-new fishing cap and key-chain, which would have to do.
Mark invited me to accompany him on the boat’s maiden voyage, which took place last Saturday on Birch Lake near Babbitt. It was my honor to do so. Well, actually, I had to. It was my duty.
I figured Birch Lake would be a good choice for breaking in the new motor. The lake is fairly long and can require a lot of motoring from one fishing spot to another. He assured me that his LakeMaster chip worked in his new rig. With a new rig and that powerful little chip, I knew we wouldn’t have any problem finding the spots. The rest was up to our angling skills and the fish.
It was turning out to be a tough day on the water. We were breaking in the motor real good but not catching much of anything. I finally heeded the words of Babbitt baitshop owner Theresa Miller who told me earlier it the day, “Crappie are the best, walleye are slow, and northerns are starting somewhat.” She also told me that the slab crappies were down 14 to 16 feet.
Theresa’s advice along with the aid of Mark’s new graph and his LakeMaster lake-map chip helped us find a small area on the map that was just what I was looking for. The little hole that I found was covered with fish, scattered tight across the lake’s bottom. Normally, when I see this type of situation, it’s a bit of a tough bite but fish can be caught.
The Minnesota LakeMaster map chip has a total of 770 lakes with depth contours down to one-foot increments on many lakes. With today’s high-powered electronics, it’s very easy to find the ideal locations then use the map to know where you are related to the rest of the structure. Boat control and fishing technique are beyond the power of the chip, but LakeMaster gives you the confidence of location.
If you’ve never used one before, you owe it to yourself to try it out. I’ve been using LakeMaster chips ever since they came out and it has really helped in finding those little hotspots. I also use it during the winter months, while driving my snowmobile or pickup truck across the ice. They’re pretty much “right on” and it saves a lot of unnecessary hole-drilling. It’s like having a summertime graph during wintertime lake travel.
As we tested out his motor, we started by pulling spinners and it wasn’t long before I had a big crappie on the end of my line. Just to razz Mark, I swung the big fish in his direction, trying to get the fish to slap him in the face. You know, give him a congratulatory “nice boat” smack, but it didn’t happen.
He didn’t care. It was the first crappie to come over the gunnel of his new rig and we were having fun. Later on, when I caught small northern pike, I had to chuckle because he was very careful to keep the smelly critter from all the “newness.”
All-in-all, it was another great day on the water. Fishing was slow but we did manage a few nice crappies, walleyes, perch, and one slimy, stinking northern pike. The boat was successfully broke in and the LakeMaster chip kept us on the hotspots. Next time, I’ll make sure to drop that stinky pike on the floor.