lake zumbro?

[sparks]

i was out on lake zumbro a few weeks ago, never fished the lake before, lots of traffic wondering if anyone knows when a good time to go is and some good spots to start with are?

[Tyler Holm]

Early mornings are best, with weekend afternoons being the worst.

I'm going to hit it tonight with the primary focus on the high banks area. I'll have a report tomorrow.

[Dan Thiem]

Sparks. Lake Zumbro does get some recreational users as well as fishermen. But if you go early it's really not that bad. Even on the weekends. But from 10:00 in the morning on thru the rest of the day it gets pretty busy.

Try the area known as the highbanks. Maybe this picture can help. The highbanks are located straight across from Postier's Point. You see on the map the point? Directly across is a really sharp drop off. It goes from 1 foot to 27 feet deep just 10 yards away from shore. Good luck and welcome to the Roch forum!

[Dan Thiem]

Pre-fishing the RAF Tyler? You sneaky dog!

[Tyler Holm]

BINGO!

[sparks]

thanks for the info, i'm going to try sometime this week, hope you do well tonight

[Tyler Holm]

Sparks and all,

Just a reminder that a bunch of us are hitting Lake Zumbro on Thursday at 5:00. We are meeting at the Ponderosa boat launch. It's just a fun gathering of a few local fisherman. Boatless fisherman are welcome as well.

Shoot Dan Thiem (or myself) an email with questions.

[sparks]

i normally golf on thurs. nights do you ever meet on other nights?

[ikeslayer]

Golf!!! Many of us traded those graphite shafts in for different kinds years ago. To each his own. Good luck in all that you do. ike

[Tyler Holm]

The recreation traffic was very minimal last night. I saw 1 jet ski all night, and 1 skier. There was 1 pesky speed boat that cruised close to us a time or to, but that was it for recreation.

The Bassin boats were every present, but they were very respectful.

[jeweaver]

Is the launch at Fisherman's Inn public or private and how's the grade? I checked out the one at the power dam and it looks pretty steep, especially if you're trying to load a ProV onto a roller trailer by yourself for the first time. I tried to check out the one at fisherman's last night but the waterski crowd was too big.....

[Dan Thiem]

I know that there is a pay box there. I just aint sure how much. I think it's four bucks but I don't remember.

The Ponderosa ramp isn't too bad. Even for a first timer. Just remember not to back the trailer the trailer in too deep when you're ready to load the boat back up. That's a common mistake for new boat owners. Backing the trailer in too far when loading. The boat will foat around and wont square up even on the trailer.

If you go tonight a bunch of us are going to be out there and I am sure we can help you out in any way you need. I'll be in the little 14 foot Northwood. Green Chevy p.u.

[Tyler Holm]

Fisherman's Inn is a private ramp, but open to the public for the cost of $4 weekdays & $5 weekends. They get a huge crowd on Wednesday's for the waterski show. They skiers practice often during the week as well, so it makes that ramp tough during evenings.

Sandy Point has a ramp too, and its not at all steep. The only trouble is, its almost too shallow. I've seen many 16' boats launched there, but a Pro V would be a close call.

Ponderosa would be your best bet because I really don't think its much steeper than Fishermans at all. Plus its free!

[Dan Thiem]

And the Ponderosa is a two lane ramp. Which is nice to have when it's busy.

[jeweaver]

Thanks guys! This is my fourth boat, but the first one of this size and the first one with a roller trailer. A friend(?) of mine put a scare into me about the ramp, saying that he couldn't keep the boat from rolling back off the trailer while he was trying to load it. In any case, launching was a no brainer, but when it came time to load, I wasn't sure how far to put the trailer into the water. Luckily there were others around that gave assistance as to the right depth. And, like my friend, the boat started rolling back off the trailer when I let off the gas. But, another fellow quickly hooked the strap to the boat and all was well. I probably could have just left the motor engaged if I was by myself until I got it hooked. Anyways, good to have the firstime jitters behind me. And I managed to catch a bunch of white bass at the mouth of Ryan's bay. They were small but extremely aggressive. Some days any fish is a good fish.

[Tyler Holm]

That was my buddy Dave that gave you a hand. That setup you had did look tricky, but OH MY GOD that's a nice boat. Sweet!. Those roller trailers are good and bad, but once you get confortable with it, you'll find more good than bad.

[jeweaver]

Thanks and say thanks to Dave. Luckily I have a girlfriend who loves to fish and is better at saving money than I am. She owns about a 1/3 of it. My previous boat was only a 14 1/2 footer, and there just wasn't enough room in there for her to escape when things start getting crazy. I'd be running here and there and she'd be cowering in a corner. Now she's got a little more breathing room.