Richland Center Fishing & Outdoor Report 11-1-12
By Wayne Morgenthaler
The outdoor activity increases during those cold fall days
A good hard frost starts things in motion during the fall. The vegetation that has grown up over the summer starts to decay and opens up a new world of fishing and hunting. You can take your choice of the two sports as they both are equally as good. My preference at this time is fishing, and I will catch up to the hunting in mid-November.
My adventures took me to Hayward with my two sons to visit my mother. Of course, we had to get in some fishing with an occasional game of cribbage. I do have to say the food is of plenty and you never leave the table starved. My mother likes to make enough for eight people but gets the three of us to clear the table with kind words of encouragement. Those words are typically wouldn’t you like a third scoop of mashed potatoes with lots of gravy. By the time we are done eating, and then there is that next quote “I hope you have room for dessert”. We usually roll out the back door and head to the truck for our fishing trip.
Our favorite spot is below the Nelson Lake Dam where the water narrows down into a two mile twisted river. On the bends are the deeper holes. If we have had enough cold weather, the lily pads are dying and the weeds are all near the bottom. This makes it much easier to fish for northern pike and largemouth bass. The northerns like to school up and chase pan fish. By keeping an eye out for any splashes, you can usually locate them. We prefer to use an orange number 3 Mepps spinner without the bucktail. The bait when retrieved only goes down about a foot below the water surface. For some reason this color and the spinner sends the fish into a crazy frenzy of smashing the bait. We hit one of those days where the fish were biting most all day long. Neil is pictured with a nice 32 inch northern that he released after a good fight on 8 pound monofilament line. It helps to have a day with some clouds and a light wind so that the fish are not alarmed when approaching them in the boat.
When we are after largemouth bass, we switch to any bait that is green and yellow in color. Our bait of choice was the Lethal Weapon and a spinner bait. Bass are a little tricky to find at this time of year, and you need to change up your techniques. On the shady side of the lake the bass are usually along the weed line. Kevin caught this nice 6.4 pound largemouth on spinner bait being retrieved very slowly. On the sunny side of the lake where the water is a little warmer, you will find the big bass near the shoreline hiding by some brush.
I would have to say the fishing was fantastic and the fish keep getting bigger every year. One of these days we will get that 8 pound bass, the 45 inch northern, and the 52 inch musky. We did have a big musky hit twice but could not get a good hook set.
The deer have been on the move and there has been some success by local hunters. Justin Born downed this beautiful buck with his bow last week. If you look closely, you can see another set of antlers. He said he had never seen this buck on his outdoor cameras before. What a nice surprise when this bruiser came along.
More To Do Than Fish In Richland County
The cooler weather and shorter daylight hours have us thinking about the upcoming winter season. We are also looking forward to the upcoming holidays. Therefore, Richland Center is pleased to announce the 1st Annual Rotary Lights in the Park” which will begin Wednesday, November 21 and run for six weeks through Wednesday, January 2. Please check www.richlandchamber.com Events tab for more details.
We are also anxiously awaiting to see what the weather will bring for snowmobilers this upcoming season. Please email us if you would like up-to-date trail information at chamber@richlandalliance.com.
I hope this winter will be as nice as last years and don’t forget to take a friend outdoors for some good fresh air.
For information on lodging, dining, entertainment and more outdoors, call the Richland Chamber of Commerce at 608-647-6205 or email chamber@richlandalliance.com