something to get excited about!

[jbird]

....For me :-)

I Have found very little information on stillwater trout in wisconsin. The vast majority of stillwater is dominated by warmwater species (which is okay, kinda looking forward to that) but I dug up this book...just ordered it....this looks very interesting and these possibilities could probably keep me occupied for a lifetime! Looks like perfect float tube waters!

Take a minute to browse thru the the pages they have visible of the book.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0965430308/qid=1124229139/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2?v=glance&s=books#reader_0965430308

[Bob Laskodi]

DUUUUUUUDE, you're going to the land of pike & muskies and you're thinking about trout!!!????
Boy, I sure wouldn't!!!! ;>}

[David Lee]

I recall reading something about a bunch of Limestone Streams w/ lots of Brownies in them ?

The Smallmouth fishing there is supposed to be pretty good - I'd run myself into the ground over those puppies !

Good luck , whatever you choose to chase .

D.~

[jbird]

DUUUUUUUDE, you're going to the land of pike & muskies and you're thinking about trout!!!????
Boy, I sure wouldn't!!!! ;>}

Theres no doubt I'll get frenzied about these beasties! I am not a "species" guy. Ill fish for anything. I believe there are some unreal carp waters too. I just dont want stillwater trout fishing to be a lost art for me. ;-)


I recall reading something about a bunch of Limestone Streams w/ lots of Brownies in them ?

The Smallmouth fishing there is supposed to be pretty good - I'd run myself into the ground over those puppies !

Good luck , whatever you choose to chase .

D.~

David, The entire southwest region is known for some of the greatest spring creek trout fishing in the country. They call it the Driftless region. Apparently the great glaciers of the past did not "drift" thru that region and flatten it like the rest of the state.

I am beside myself excited about catching bulldog smallmouth. Hopefully all my coming reports will drag you up to visit me and test some tackle!

[David Lee]

I am beside myself excited about catching bulldog smallmouth. Hopefully all my coming reports will drag you up to visit me and test some tackle!

Shoot me an email after the Smallies start/before the bitin' bugs start !!

You'll be just a hop and skip away from Boundary Waters SMB/Pike/Walleye Canoe fishing - scout it and I bet I can get a small group of the right dudes to come up for a trip .

D.~

[TaylerW]

jbird have you looked into the driftless region?

tons of trout water.

check out the fly shop "the driftless angler"

[jbird]

I hope to invest some time and money into hiring guides for the first few adventures. Then Ill go it alone.

[Hairstacker]

Man, Wisconsin has great smallie waters all over the state -- literally. If I was moving there, I'd probably spend almost all my time doing this: :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JriS4JJJgzU

[Hairstacker]

Well Jay, I went through those pages you linked and I can see why you're excited -- that is quite a list of ponds! I'd be pretty excited too. Looks like all brookies, which makes sense, and a smattering of browns, and mostly public. Sure wish there was a list of ponds like that for our State -- very cool. In any event, it looks like a float tuber's paradise. :cool:

[jbird]

I bought a book that details central and northeast wisconsin. It covers litteraly every body of water. There are 5 other books that cover each other region of the state. There is an entry detailing lake size, depth, species, location, stocking history and a topo map of the bottom contour. Many of the entries start with the sentence, "Very little is known about this lake,". but they will detail the species "known" to reside there. Its like the big delorme topo maps we have but its for fishermen. Its amazing how important the sport of fishing is in wisconsin. There seems to be so much more money put into supporting their fisheries than the states out west.

[Hairstacker]

I've been checking out a bunch of Youtube videos as well, and it looks like there is a ton of beautiful waters there as well. It looks like an outdoorsman's paradise. Place looks like it gets damned cold, though, in the winter time. Kind of reminds me of the year and a half I spent in North Dakota. Brrrr. Do you expect to spend the rest of your days there?

[jbird]

I just got back to Oregon after spending Christmas in Wisconsin with my wife. (she has been living there since september) The highest temperature I saw was 26* and they said it was a "warm front"! There was 18" of snow on the ground. Tho the spring thaw happens early and fast there from what Ive heard.

Heres a picture of the area we'll be living in.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v283/jbird35/DSC_0284.jpg

[David Lee]

Looks pretty .

Looks pretty cold , as well . Pheasants and hun paar'trige ?? Big fat Whitetails , Smallies , Pike , Walleyes....

Probably lots of nice people there , too . And pretty Mid-Western Girls who make gravy from scratch w/ no lumps in it (yes , I used to know one .....) . And really great Cheese .

Do us all a favor - start as blog as soon as you relocate .

D.~

[Hairstacker]

26 degrees? Not bad at all. That was t-shirt weather in North Dakota.

A blog is a great idea! :)

[pvsprme]

I hope to invest some time and money into hiring guides for the first few adventures. Then Ill go it alone.

Check out Brad Bohen. He spends some time out here (Sac) in the winter and has some posts on this board re: striper fishing and fly tying. I spent a couple days with him on the Sac and Trinity last year and you'll not find a nicer guy or better angler. Although he guides Muskie and Smallies, I'm sure he can tell you a lot about trout in the Wisconsin area. If you see a guy at the fly show rep'ng Clear Goo who looks like a displaced Hippie; overalls and flip-flops, that be him.
http://muskycountryoutfitters.com/

[jbird]

Yep. Ive been in contact with brad and definitly plan on spending some time with him. Theres a couple other guides Ive contacted as well.

Take a minute and let a few of these photos cycle across your screen!

http://www.wibigfish.com/index.php

[Phil Synhorst]

Take a minute and let a few of these photos cycle across your screen!

http://www.wibigfish.com/index.php

Holy Bleep, Jay!!!!! You start hooking into some of those beasts, and you'll never come back west. All of the species looked great, but what really caught my eye was the size of the "Smallies" and Brookies.....mmmm, giant Brook Trout.=P~

I missed the announcement. When did you guys decide to head to the heartland, and when do you leave? More importantly, best wishes for the move and settling in back there.

[jbird]

Holy Bleep, Jay!!!!! You start hooking into some of those beasts, and you'll never come back west. All of the species looked great, but what really caught my eye was the size of the "Smallies" and Brookies.....mmmm, giant Brook Trout.=P~

I missed the announcement. When did you guys decide to head to the heartland, and when do you leave? More importantly, best wishes for the move and settling in back there.


Thanks Phil. My wife made the move do to the loss of her job here in Oregon. She found a great job there. She moved to Wisconsin in September to start the job. I stayed behind to see my son thru his senior year of HS. Ill be moving out there this summer and my son will be off to college.

I am a contractor that scrapes out a buck or two wherever I can. My wife is an executive and where she goes I follow.