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Houghton Lake "Walleye in the Weeds"

May 18-21, 2006

"The wind blows, making big waves, pounding upon the shore..." poet Albert Johnson must have been visiting Houghton Lake when he wrote these words. During the 2005 tournament season on Houghton Lake, the middle of May saw water temps in the mid to high 70 degree range and limit catches of good sized walleye were available using any presentation method you preferred.  But what a difference a year can make.  Big wind, falling water temperatures, muddy water and finicky walleye greeted the 38 anglers looking to take on walleye in the weeds on Michigan's largest inland lake.

The week prior to the anglers arrival on Thursday, May 18th had seen water temps drop from 63 degrees to the low 50's in a matter of only a few days.  What had been planned as a lesson in tackling walleye in the weeds soon become a lesson on  boat control, perseverance and patience.  The anglers braved 15-25 mph winds blowing across the whole lake and the occasional 3' wave to try and unlock the secret to catching walleye in the weeds.

Friday morning began later than most of our trips due to the wind, but around 8:00 am all the boats were out tackling the challenge Houghton Lake and mother nature had laid before us.  At the end of the day only 7 walleye had been caught, obviously an all-time low for a "Walleye 101" trip, but actually not bad under the conditions we were faced with.  In the final count, 1 fish had fallen for a slip bobber/leech combo, 4 on trolled crankbaits, and 2 more on the "weed drift rig".  At dinner that night the talk focused on location, and it was becoming obvious that the same parts of the lake that produced in last years 60 degree water, was still holding fish under these very different condition-an important lesson for lots of the anglers.

Saturday saw a little less wind in the morning, picking up as afternoon rolled on.  At the end of the day 9 walleye had been caught, with a few more coming on trolled crankbaits, and the drift rig producing again as well.  With only 16 fish caught in 2 days, the traditional fish fry was changed to a family style chicken dinner-at least we didn't have to clean the chickens!  The weather report for Sunday had most of the anglers thinking of staying on shore for the final day.

Sunday morning brought 25 mph winds, a 26 degree wind chill and even a brief period of snow mixed with rain-not what we expected on the 3rd weekend of May.  Most of the anglers headed out after breakfast and a few stayed around until late morning for some more fishing talk, but none ventured out to the lake.

Unfortunately, the conditions we were faced with made it hard to see the weeds, try some of the weed fishing techniques and kept the fish in a very negative mood.  Most of the anglers expressed to me that these conditions made them better fishermen, since concentration and patience were the keys to even catching a single fish.  Most said if they had not been on the trip they would have not even gone out on the lake, but after 2 days in bad conditions, they had a new confidence in the ability of their equipment and themselves to begin tackling rougher water and tougher conditions-a great lesson to learn.

We have already scheduled the 2007 "Walleye in the Weeds" trip for the weekend before Memorial Day and hope that better weather and fishing will come with us next season.

A special thanks to Val, Mary, Melanie and the whole staff at Quality Inn for their hospitality and effort to make it a great weekend.  Also, a big thank you to Lyman from Lyman's on the Lake for a wonderful bait shop and for coming over and spending some time with us on Friday night.

(click on a picture to enlarge)