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Written For Outdoor Gazette
October 8, 2007

Birdies In The Morning, Walleye In The Evening
By Joel “Doc” Kunz

Well it looks like the HOT spell might have finally moved on. WOW, what a stretch of nice weather as back yard pools, slip and slides and other means of liquid fun were everywhere in my neighborhood this last weekend. It seemed like summer as the kids down the block enjoyed a giant, blow up slide and pool set. Usually this time of year is announced by the first need of the furnace being run and the smell of the wood burning stoves in the neighborhood. This year, record temperatures have extended the air conditioning season and grilling out is still better then heating up the kitchen, but that is soon to change.

I for one am glad to see the cool temperatures return. To me, there is nothing like the crisp air and sounds of a high school football game in the distance. The fishing should be very good too as crappie, white bass, northern pike, cat fish and small mouth bass have all been biting. That is until the water temperature rose 9 degrees and changed the pattern. Look for a few cooler days and nights to put the fish back on the feed bag though. As water temperatures drop below 60 degrees, instinct takes over and the fish feed hard up until the ultra cold water period. With a lot of food in the water and some continued periods of rain to draw the fish, I am in hopes of one of the best fall seasons in recent memory. This excitement is also due to the numerous year classes of fish around in all of the sought after species. I’ve seen some big white bass mixed in with the smaller ones that are just reaching filet-able size. There have been plenty of little ones around too, which is always good news for the future. Same with the walleye. Anglers this fall should see plenty of keeper size fish with some “picture fish” and some small ones mixed in too. Although resident fish and those most prone to hit the river in the fall will provide action, we need a good flow of water to draw the bulk of the fish from the lower lakes. Same with the rest of the white bass, rumored to be schooling in the lower lakes and in the Fox near Winnebago. If we get a rise in the river level to go along with the cooling temeratures, Wolf River Country will draw more fish.

Another bonus to this years record warm fall is the condition of the local golf courses. My personal favorite 9 hole hide away is Cedar Springs Golf Course near Manawa. It’s a nice track and the owners, Tim and Greg Schuelke are among the nicest people I have ever met as are most of the people I have enjoyed playing with there. They have great food too, especially their well known fish fry and my favorite rib eye steak in the entire area. The course has a fair amount of challenge, but not so much I can’t enjoy playing there with my wife who is just learning the game. Another area golf course that looks to be in fantastic condition is Eagle Creeks, just north of Greenville. It’s a GREAT golf course, one that provides challenge, beauty and the feel of true championship golf. With 5 sets of tee boxes, golfers can also choose the length and slope rating to fit their game. I love this golf course, it’s a great place to play if you are on your game. Another nice area golf course is Shamrock Heights, (formerly New London Golf Club), now in it’s second full year as an 18 hole track. Last year I thought the conditions were not up to par, but this year is a different story. The warm fall and extended growing season has made this course grow up in a hurry. Each nine has a mix of old and new holes and the small greens make for a need to be accurate with your lofted clubs. This is another very pretty golf course in the fall as it has plenty of tree lined fairways and protected greens. There’s good food here too!

So, say thanks to old Mother Nature for the bonus warm weather and hope we don’t go the other way as far as temperatures too soon. A nice gradual promenade to winter would be just fine with me as I like fishing Wisconsin’s river systems right until freeze up, sometimes breaking a little ice to get to the bite. But that’s a story for a different issue. For more information on the local fishing visit my web site www.wolfrivercountry.com, there’s a new fishing blog coming on line and lots of new features, video and more thanks to the addition of a new partner, so keep in touch.

Joel “Doc” Kunz
For Outdoor Gazette

 
         


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