While working today my cell phone notified me I had a text message from a buddy of mine from SW Ontario. Steve Schmelzle was out on Lake Ontario in search of a fish that had been eluding him for years. The text message relayed his success and the search was over.
Steve is no newbie to the Lake Ontario trolling game. He’s been at it for years and continues to push the limits and is always trying new things to put fish aboard his Lund. He can be seen regularly trolling shorelines in January and February while others are out ice fishing. He’s always thinking “outside the box”, something I really think we could all do a little more on the water.
Today, while out trolling with his buddy Andre a permagrin on Steve has been installed. He set up his fairly standard trolling spread. Two riggers and two planers boards. One board fell back hard and was just dead weight, Steve immediately thought Laker. When the second board fired and screamed line off he knew it was a Chinook so he urged Andre to grab it. Andre passed off the rod and grabbed the screaming reel setup.
Both fish arrived at the back of the boat near the same time. They both pulled a fast one on them by making their way in between the downrigger rod line and the downrigger cable. Quick thinking on Steve’s part by cutting the lines on those rods enabled boith fish to be landed. The King went into the net first, just as Steve’s fish surfaced to popping eyeballs on Steve.
With the Chinook in the net he slid it under his prize.
24.5 pounds of beautiful Lake Ontario Brown Trout. Wow.
Measurements came in at 36″ x 30″. Just an incredible fish.
Steve was running a Shimano Clarus rod teamed with a Shimano Tekota reel filled with 30 pound test braid to a 20 pound test Fluro leader. He was running a Yozuri Crystal minnow 55′ back off his inline board.
Congrats Steve! Just awesome and well deserved.
