The good old days

[John Bales]

All of my conversations with Terry are about the good old days. Its been a long time since he has been on the water anywhere but longer since he has fished any of the lakes here in the Midwest. I try and tell him that things have changed. He never saw the effects the zebra muscles had in clearing a lot of our waters, changing them from fishing water to drinking water. Watching weedlines go from 7 feet down to 18 or deeper. Going from a yellow green to clear. Most of the lakes around here are now hooked up to a sewer system and we no longer depend on our own septic systems which many were so old, they put a lot of the waste right into the lake. I just imagine that the sewers made our lakes more fertile and helped give them the dark yellow green color and fast growing adult fish. Of all the lakes near me, we have three that still have some color, shallower weedlines and pretty good color and most important, have the best bass in the area. All of them are a chain and river fed and have less money than many of the speed boat lakes. Less weed spraying because there are normal people that live there. Anyways, I wonder with less poop running into the lakes, do the fish take longer to get to adult size? Less fertility????? I do know one thing. Mr. Perry would never take the boat off the trailer around here. John

[kschlosser]

Are you referring to the pigeon river?

[John Bales]

Nope. Piegon has never had a yellow green color but it is one of the most fun places to fish right at ice out and then again in the late fall. Right now it is plum full of small to med size smallmouth. Will be there in the next few days as soon as the wind gets going . My lake is about 30% open. The river fed lakes are the Golden chain, Waldren, I guess there is only two. Shipshawana has the best color but not sure of the population but will find out soon also. John

[kschlosser]

I was curious. we've had the zebra mussels on Golden for the last 4-5 years or so, but they haven't been able to clear it up too much, at least compared to what I hear about what they can do. I think there may be just too much runoff going through it, or the predominantly muck bottom hinders them. not sure, but not complaining either!

[John Bales]

Your lake is a great spoonplugging lake. I like Hogback better than Golden and Little Bower can be hot also but too small unless your casting all day. There is some tournament pressure now but fish are still there. John

[Steve Craig]

It's a good bet that the bass do grow slower in clear water. Out here if it wasn't for the Florida strain, it would take forever to get a 10 pound bass..