We had snow on the ground here in Minnesota last week, but several days in the high 40s and low 50s made most of it disappear. And today was supposed to be the warmest of them all, close to 60, which is highly unusual this late in November. The warm temps made my buddy, Bryon, want to do some fishing. The closest trout streams that are open for fishing around here are about 2.5 hours away, so he decided to hit the mighty Mississippi, about 5 minutes from his house. When he told me he was going, I knew there was little chance of catching anything, since the water was bound to be cold, and the fish either lethargic or moved to deeper water. Yet, when he asked if I wanted to join him, I jumped at the chance! I guess we are both hopelessly optimistic!
We hit the big river at a stretch that is bounded on the west side by one major freeway, and which flows under another major freeway about a quarter mile upstream. We were probably about 2 or 3 miles above downtown Minneapolis. We had fished here before, in the hot summer months when the smallmouth bass were abundant and aggressive. Today they were neither. But, we had a fun time flailing away for a couple of hours anyway.
Some pics:
Looking upstream
I started with a Tequeely, which I have never had luck with. That streak continued.
Rod of the day: a sweet Sage 789SFL I acquired a couple of years ago. It was built by a local famous fly casting guru, who never actually fished with it. Today was the first time I have fished with it. It performed beautifully.
Shelf ice
Looking downstream towards downtown
Cool trees full of nests on an island. Not sure what kind of nests they are. Any guesses?
Switched to a white and grey Clouser Minnow. It also caught nothing...
Oh well, it was just fun to get out and do some fishing in November!