Mille Lacs Bust, Opener Saved By Bullheads

Conditions: Clear and cold, but no wind so I was never chilled.

I didn't have my tackle organized enough to be at Mille Lacs at midnight because I overslept a couple of hours yesterday but I arrived at Eddy's at around 12:20 AM.  As I was driving I thought about my plan to stay until sun up and fish for smallies and decided with it getting so cold tonight that wasn't a good idea.  At Eddy's they put up a construction fence up around the whole place including the Marina but the Jetty wasn't blocked off in any way.  The lights were off and there was a lot of piled ice where I fish.    I could have fished off the center dock, but elected to put on my waders and head to Option #2 where I fished last year.  There  were a couple of cars there that I parked across the street from.   A couple of guys were going to their car while I was getting my stuff ready.  I said loudly enough for them to hear.  Did you get your limit already.  They didn't acknowledge me at all and got in their car and left.

It was right around 12:45 when I got down to the water.  I took my jerkbait rod and two rods with swimbaits, one of them being the Abu Garcia Rocket/St. Croix LTB with the Powerbait  4.5" Rib Shad.  I put my stuff down where I crossed the road.  I could see and hear the two guys were fishing closer to the inlet.  I picked up the jerkbait rod and waded pretty much straight out.  I tried 3 different jerkbaits to no avail.  I didn't see a single walleye which was a bad sign because I saw them last year.  At some point the two guys left, but I didn't see or hear them when they did. I got over closer to inlet and actually saw a walleye.  I then noticed a guy walking toward the area where my stuff was laying so I quickly walked back.  Turns out it was a creel survey guy.  He told me he hadn't talked to anyone who got a fish and said the eye's just got done spawning and he thought the eye's were going to be in a post spawn funk.  He took the water temp at shore and it was 42 degrees.  He wished me good luck and took off.

I picked up the Rocket and on my very first cast I put in the rocks.  Luckily I got it unstuck, but the hook was bent.  I thought no problem, I'll still be able to hook fish.  Wrong!  I had several hits but I couldn't get a hook into anything.  I suppose it could have been bumping suckers as well.  Eventually I went and got the other swimbait rod.  I had a few fish just grab the back of the swimbait.  Eventually my feet got to cold and I decided to head to the GOMH.  I took off my waders, tied a new hook on the Rocket rod and left right at 3AM.

I arrived at the GOMH at about 3:15 and there were two cars who's people were all fishing on the  SW side.  I went to ask if they caught anything;  They said they weren't getting much and didn't have any golden bullheads.  Liars, they did get one, which I found out later when more of their friends arrived.

I decided to go to the NE side and started throwing the Rib Shad, that didn't get anything so I switched to swamp gas Havoc Grass Pig and I got this golden bullhead on the first cast.

18.5"

It was beautiful clear night which I noticed after a brilliant shooting star went across the sky.  There were loon calls and an owl hooting in the distance.  Eventually I decided to go to the SE side before somebody else showed up.  I wasn't there long when a couple of the other guys left as another group was showing up.  It stated getting light out and not much was happening.  A guy on the other side landed a good sized golden bullhead.  Another couple of people arrived and one came over to fish by me.  He told me that golden was 4 to 5lbs.  It got light out and I landed a 20" toothy bullhead that hit the Grass Pig.  About 20 minutes later I missed a couple of hits then had a good toothy bullhead hit right by me and rocket 3 feet in the air.  I landed it.

27" or so

Good thing that other guy was there to take the picture, because a selfie of a fish that long doesn't look good in my opinion.  I also got this one on the grass pig.  I tried several different jerkbait only getting one bump that didn't hook up. I also missed several hits on the Grass Pig.  I noticed the Rib Shad didn't seem to be swimming very well and I didn't have any hits on it.  C.O. Kuske showed up but didn't come to check me.  The guy who fished next to Mike and I yesterday who I'm going to call Local Walleye Guy showed up in his boat and picked up 3 people from shore.  He went over and parked by the point on the SW side of the GOMH, they were throwing suckers or shiners and getting golden and jumpin bullheads occasionally.  Us shore fishers were not getting much.  I did get one small jumper on the Grass Pig.  I tried the NE side one more time but my upper  back was really barking at me and I had enough of that.  I left around 6:45.  Got home and called the Chiropractor.  Fortunately Dr. Grunst was willing to take me in early because he was all booked up.