Fishing Resolutions For 2010

I’m not big on New Year resolutions, but after every fishing season I like to think about things I did differently or new things that I tried in the past fishing season that I want to expand on in the next fishing season. Following are some of those things.

I had some friends tell me they had been using ice-fishing lures in open water. This fall, when the fish were deep and schooled pretty tightly, I tried this tactic. I attached a Puppet Minnow to a snap-swivel and vertically jigged it. Using a fairly gentle lift-drop action, I caught good numbers of walleyes and perch. I intend to try ice-fishing baits in open water more in 2010 when the fish are in deep water.

I plan on becoming more familiar with my electronics and learn more about all the things they’ll do. The Humminbird 798c SI Combo that I used this past year drew an outstanding picture of the bottom. In the side-imaging mode it showed what was out to the side of the boat, and in the GPS mode it showed where we were on the lake and how to get back to the boat dock.

But by choosing a couple of options on the menu, this sonar did an even better job. I’m going to learn how to use my sonar to its maximum performance level for an even better understanding of what’s going on in the water below and around the boat.

I’m going to use soft bait more next year. I found soft bait producing extremely well in situations that were often thought of as live-bait conditions. We caught walleyes really good on Gulp! Alive in water temps of 39 degrees last fall. Gulp! Alive has become a big part of my walleye fishing: Next year I’m going to try to find more ways to employ soft bait.

I’m going to be sure to go to bodies of water I haven’t been to before. This past year I fished on Lewis and Clark Lake near Yankton South Dakota. Unique scenery and very good walleye and white bass fishing were discovered. I know there are other outstanding fisheries here in the Midwest that I haven’t tried: I am going to look for them in 2010.
I am going to make sure than when I get a free afternoon or morning, I’ll get on one of the lakes or rivers close to home. Those three and four hour trips can be fun and productive.

I’m going to try to continue to introduce new anglers to fishing. It’s important that we show people of any age just how much fun fishing can be, and also how productive fishing can be here in the Midwest.

I’m going to continue to take my time on the water seriously, but not too seriously. Fishing is supposed to be fun, and for me, it’s fun to watch wildlife and take time out for a snack while on the water.

Those are some of the things I’m going to do while fishing in 2010. Now is a good time for you to start thinking about what you’ll be doing differently or more of this next fishing season.

For more fishing information visit fishingthemidwest.com and watch all the 2009 episodes of Fishing the Midwest television on www.WalleyeCentral.com in the video section and on www.MyOutdoorTv.com.