August-08 — John Gillespie's Waters & Woods

August 2008

Episode 31
Family Vacation
Show Date: August 2nd & 3rd, 2008
Location: Vilas County, WI
Guide: John Gillespie

When it comes to a north woods vacation, there is no way that you can’t spend at least a few days on the water. Even though John does it for a living, he still fishes while on vacation. This annual family north woods vacation is becoming a tradition in the Gillespie household. The focus of this show is to demonstrate that you don’t always need a pro guide to enjoy this sport. Targeting whatever will bite is usually the objective to the casually vacationer, and on this trip the bass are what is biting. Using a simple gold hook with a crawler or leech with a split-shot and dragging over different kinds of structure light the bass up, big bass. Keeping it simple and having fun is the name of the game on a trip like this.

Episode 32
Lake Saint Clair Muskies
Show Date: August 9th & 10th, 2008
Location: Lake Saint Clair – Near Detroit, MI
Guide: Pete Maina [PeteMaina.com | TheNextBite.com]

It has been a long time since John has traveled to Lake Saint Clair to fish. In fact the last time he was here he was with Pete Maina. Pete once again guides us on this huge 300,000 acre lake. We are joined by our friend and rocker, Brian Schram, of the Brian Schram Band. Brian is from the area so he gets us started on some spots that could produce fish. We are fishing structure that mainly consists of weed flats. Casting a multitude of baits in many areas spanning this massive lake, catches us a multitude of different species including bass, northern, and whitefish. Don’t worry we land some nice muskies too.

Episode 33
On the River After the Flood
Show Date: August 16th & 17th, 2008
Location: Wisconsin River, Wisconsin Dells
Guide: Pro Guide Big Dave Ehardt [414-803-7160]

After the devastating floods that ravaged the Midwest, the people affected are slowly rebuilding. This week we join Dave Ehardt on the Wisconsin River for the first time since the flooding emptied Lake Delton. We are going for a multi-species show, and Dave doesn’t disappoint.

We head down river to get away from the crowds, and enjoy a relaxing day on the river. We catch a multitude of species while canvassing the shorelines below the rapids. We are catching everything from crappies to bass to northern pike.

Episode 34
Wisconsin Fall Muskies
Show Date: August 23rd & 24th, 2008
Location: Vilas County, WI
Guide: Pro Guide Rob Manthei [715-477-2042 | robmanthei.com]

Muskie fishing has been a long time favorite of ours, so we take to the north to see if Mr. Muskie will make our day. Guided by Rob Manthei, we start late to end late, hoping to land some giants after the sun goes down. We work weeds and weed lines casting all sorts of baits. From top-water to deep divers we span the gamut – and into the pitch-black hours of the evening. This two-day trip is both rewarding and informative.

Episode 35
Long Legged Lake
Show Date: August 30th & 31st, 2008
Location: Long Legged Lake, Ontario, Canada (longleggedlakeresorts.com)
Guide: Pete Maina [PeteMaina.com | TheNextBite.com]

This week we head up to northern Ontario in Canada to join Pete Maina and his Dad on their annual Canadian vacation. We stay at a remote lodge that is located far off the beaten path, and by far I mean once we exit the paved roads we travel 54 miles on a pot-hole ridden gravel logging trail and 7 miles by boat. We are fishing Long Legged Lake in North –Western Ontario. Long Legged is known for its walleye, muskie, and lake trout. On the two days we are there we target walleye and lake trout.

For the walleyes we are drifting and pulling bottom bouncers with a crawler harness using a gulp worms and minnows. For the lake trout we vertical jig in 60-70 feet of water, also using gulp minnows.