The day was overcast and cool but it wasn't raining so I decided to hit the lake at about noon. I trolled around for a bit but wasn't having any luck (though I did see some other guys having luck trolling). I was using a Luhr Jensen School 'O Minnows with a size 2 silver Blue Fox and Mepps Aglia spinners. I decided to park it 150 yards or so from the public boat launch. I went with spinners first due to the fact that I was watching these trout eat all around the boat. No luck. I then decided to see who was hanging around the bottom so I rigged two egg sinkers and about two and a half feet of leader with a small Gamakatsu egg hook and some green/yellow PowerBait. It was like taking candy from a baby.

I think the best part of the day was when one of the local Bald Eagles came literally within arms reach of my small boat (and therefore my HEAD!) and grabbed a trout that was swimming near the surface. I only heard the WHOOSH of his wings as he came in to grab the fish, and as I turned around to see him snatch it up, I could have reached out and touched his feathers. If he would have been aiming those talons at my McTasty North Mason educated brain, I would have been bird food at the top of one of those big Cedars.

Anyhow, I was doing so well with PowerBait that I tried trolling again, but had no luck. I kept thinking of the old saying, "Don't leave fish to find fish." So I went back to the same spot and parked it again. I thought I'd switch it up so I grabbed my old jar of pink 'mallows (the stinky shrimp flavored ones) and put one of them on my hook shank and tipped it with a piece of yellow Berkely corn that I usually use for Kokanee. I tossed out the concoction and had one on before the sinkers even touched down.

I made my way back to the boat launch at 4 p.m. with a couple of really nice 18" + triploids. I think I'll be going back tomorrow!
--Mitch Hailey

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