Flo-Rida!

     

Recently returned from a great week in Florida that included a total slam with my nephew.  We were able to enjoy and see the power of the Florida flipp'n bite!  What a blast. 

All of our fish came while flipping a Big Bite Bait 4" Yo Mamma rigged with a 3/0 Offset Superline Gamakatsu worm hook.   We flipped braided line with the Yo Mamma to any sort of cover that the fish could be holding in.  Grass, hanging over trees, mats, and all other kinds of cover.  I pegged a 1 oz tungsten weight in front of the bait and let it punch through the heavy cover.  You had to let it soak for a long time to get the fish to grab it. 

We did have a few other interesting visitors. 

One thing that did happen was a massive cold front set in on Florida....like a 25-50 year record.  It was in the 20's the first few days we were there...needless to say the fish didn't bite those days.  Even had frost all the way down to the keys.  It has caused for a massive fish die off all up and down the coast and Florida has shut down much of the ocean fishing for 6 months or more to try and let it recover.  The issue with this front was how long it lasted.  Usually it gets a bit cold but warms up a day or two later this one had been sitting over Florida for a few days before we arrived and stayed until wed.  The water temps on Okeechobee were in the mid to low 40's.  That is tough on a Florida strain bass.  Heck they are hard to catch in the North states when the water gets that cold.  Water temps in the ocean around the keys even dipped into the 40's! 

I am having techincal difficulties with posting my recent videos.  I hope to have it fixed soon and be back to posting some of the recent videos we have taken. 

Magnum Spotted Bass On Spro "Little John" Crankbait

I am going to start sharing small videos....tid bits from each day on the water....the crush begins. Many more to come! The spot in this video tipped the scales over 5lbs....5.34!

The Mentor

Tony G with a couple nice pan walleyes from Lake Waconia this past week. 

Very early in life I knew I was destined to fish and pursue a career in the fishing industry.  Much of that knowledge and passion came from my good friend Tony Groskreutz.  At the ripe age of 15 Tony took me fishing and realized I was not like every other kid at 15.  I was the baby of 9 kids, I was loud mouthed-far from shy,arrogant, and I fished every day; fishing was in my DNA.  Fishing ran strong in my veins.  I was driven to fish because it was challenging and different every time out.

When Tony decided to take me fishing that very first time, he also signed up for all of the following; my best friend, take me fishing anywhere/anytime I would like, offer me lots of fishing knowledge, teach me invalulable lessons about the business, put up with my stubborn loud mouth, and help mold me as a young man into who I am today.  We fished any where we could find water.  We even fished many tournaments will some success.  I can't give enough credit for what Tony has done for me.  Without Tony I wouldn't be able to pursue the passion and crush each and every day.  So now you all have the insight of who Tony is and what he means to me.

Tony moved to Chicago 5 years ago in pursuit of other aspirations.  Each winter during the holidays he would come back to fishwithmatt for a few days and we would catch up.  For the past 3 winters all he has talked about is getting back to MN with his family.  So this early winter when he called me to tell me he had taken a position in MN with a outdoor rep group; I was not the least bit surprised.  But I was very excited for him and his family.  He is more passionate about business than I am fishing.  Well maybe not more...but darn close.  This opportunity gets him back spending time with his family, fishing, and working....all the things he enjoys most.  Tony has the passion and thinks outside the box.   

He also notified me that he would still be coming up for the holiday ice fishing gig.  That is always good news.  So this past week we hit the ice of Lake Waconia since the snow fall had made travel very difficult on our usual haunt-Lake Minnetonka.  We shared many laughs, ideas, fish stories, and even a few walleye bites.  We were able to ice a few eaters and managed to break off a very nice one in the hole.  Nice; as in 9-11 lbs!  It's always the one that got away, right?!  :)  We have always shared good success together on the water.  I don't care if it is summer or winter, we seem to be able to crush.  This trip was no exception.  

With all of that said I have to let you know that I am going to be taking my passion into uncharted waters in the near future.  I have the type of passion that keeps me up at night tossing and turning.  It must be channelled and put to use in new ways.  I am going to start sharing more of that passion with each and every one of you.  I want to shed light on what it really means to "Crush"!  Every reader will have the chance to experience the "Crush!".  Stayed tuned here for more info and updates in the coming future.  Never wake up and just settle with what you are doing, challenge yourself in new ways.  In the mean time I will continue to share stories, thoughts, and info here at fishwithmatt.com.  Needless to say in the coming days I will be working on stretching the string each and every day.  Fish On!    

Winter Wonderland

I have been spending the last few days on Lake Minnetonka ice fishing and chasing "gravel lizards" around.  Lake Minnetonka and Lake Waconia have great ice conditions, but this ample amount of snow is not going to help our cause.  The dumping of snow we have been getting has made travel on Lake Minnetonka and Lake Waconia very difficult.  I had been using my 4-wheeler to get to and from the shanty but it struggled to get the shanty off the lake yesterday so I was stuck to using my "back-up" truck.  I would not recommend driving your car or truck across lake minnetonka without knowing exactly what you are doing. 

Lake Waconia and Lake Minnetonka fish house rentals are well under way and also I am geared up and guiding many trips next week for walleyes and crappies.  Let me know if you are looking to get out or book a trip you will not soon forget!    

The nice thing about this time of year is the walleye action on both Lake Minnetonka and Lake Waconia.  The bite has been great.  The traffic levels are very low and the fish are willing to fall victim to shiner or fathead danggled in their face. 

My brother Eddie and I were able to enjoy success with jigging spoons tipped with a minnow head.  These were a few 'eater" walleyes we kept for the hot pan of grease.  They did fry up delicious for dinner!  We landed 18 walleyes the first night out and 23 walleyes the second night out.  I did not make it out last night due to heavy snow. 

Winter candy fresh out of Lake Minnetonka!