05/12/2012 & 05/13/2012 - Bass Fishing with Mike's Guide Service

05/12/2012 & 05/13/2012 - Bass Fishing with Mike's Guide Service

Back in November, I asked young Chris (an absolute bass maniac) for a recommendation on a good place to take my Dad for a weekend of bass fishing on his birthday in May...and without hesitation, Chris suggested I check out Mike's Guide Service (http://susquehannariverguide.com/) up in Wyalusing, PA!  Chris has a bunch of friends that have fished with Mike over the years and came back with nothing but overwhelmingly positive reports...so it sounded like a perfect destination for Dad and I to check out!

Mike, a local to the Wyalusing area since childhood and seasoned bass tournament fisherman, specializes in guiding the Susquehanna River for smallies.  He also has his own lake adjacent to his guest cabin that is absolutely loaded with largemouths, crappie, perch, and catfish!  The beauty of this setup is that his lake offers a prime backup plan in case the river conditions aren't ideal for targeting smallies...although regardless of the river conditions I'd HIGHLY recommend you make the time to fish his lake for a few hours!  Did I mention his lake has some MONSTER largemouths in it?!?! :)

The conditions weren't ideal in the river due to recent rains decreasing the water clarity, so we opted to fish Mike's lake on Saturday and save Sunday to fish the river.  Mike certainly lived up to his reputation, worked hard, and fished hard over some long days to make sure he put us on some fish!  Mike's lake didn't disappoint in the least, as we had a great time largemouth fishing landing some real nice ones throughout the day!  And as expected, conditions in the river weren't the best, but we stuck with it through a tougher than normal bite and were rewarded with some nice fish...including a nice walleye that went right from the river to the dinner plate!

Alright, let's get to some pictures and walk through these awesome set of days!  Get ready, there's a bunch!


Saturday - 05/12/2012 (Happy Birthday Dad!)


Dad and I, on our way to Mike's place...opt to stop for a little breakfast!



Good ol' Marsha's Sugarhollow Diner...Home of the "REALLY BIG BURGER"
We never did get to try that burger...maybe another reason to go back up that way again!



Workman's Omelet...WOW!  For only $12.95, you can basically eat a family meal!
I should have read the double asterisk...maybe something along the lines of "Defibrillator Not Included"?!?! haha
BTW...neither of us tackled that beast of a meal



The birthday boy!  39 forever and ready to do some fishing!  Happy Birthday Dad!



Alright back on the road...you know you're in the middle of nowhere when you run into a dirt road called "Cow Path Rd"!



Well, we arrived and met up with Mike at the guest house to unload our stuff.  As I said earlier, we had planned on fishing his lake for largemouths on the first day, so Mike headed over to slip his main boat in while I took the opportunity to take a few pics!

A couple shots of the lake as we waited...





Mike's property has a lot of great history to it...so I had to snap a few pics of the area!
Just after first light...a shed on the property, if you look closely you can get a glimpse of the moon in the distance!



A well nearby...



Nice angle to the fence and another house...



Dad bearing through my pictures! haha



Some more angles and textures...





The stages of the dandelion...





Some more texture fun...



Lush green farmlands...



Dad enjoying the morning...



A final shot of the same area before we head out fishing...



Mike arrives, ready to roll!



Dad's settled in and ready for some largemouths!



Mike, cruising us to the first area he wants to target...



Mike, rigging Dad up...



Dad's wetting a line...



Workin it...look at the concentration!



Fish on!!!



That's how it's done!



We fish around for a bit, land a few more small ones...then someone makes a horrible cast and lands right in a prime snag!
This happens a number of times throughout the day, but I'm not saying who was responsible for these horrible casts...it couldn't be me, no way...deny, deny, deny! haha



Meanwhile...Dad's hooks into another one!





And Mike joins in on the fun too! The fish are so scared of Mike's fishing talent that they...dot dot dot hahaha



Silent assassin up front...suddenly has a bass in his hands!



And a short while later I land a nice one!



And another one...of which Mike labels them the "clones"



And another...see why? :)



Dad's back on another!



And Mike jiggin away!



Dad with another nice one!





I decide to switch things up and try a jerk bait...which this perch inhaled!



Multi-species trip!  Black crappie!



Super dark!



And a white crappie!



Dad with another nice bass!



And another!



Nice!



Mike, showin us how it's done!



Then I land this nice one, which has a serious problem going on!



Ouch!!!  Yeah that's what's left of a jighead coming out...rough dinner!



Post surgery, she was thankful!



Dad's sitting down, relaxing as he fishes...and hooks up with something "different" that makes him stand up!



Apparently even catfish love the Wacky Worm!



I break out the other camera for a few shots before the sun goes down...
Mike casting...



Mike workin it...



The retrieve...



Dad, sitting down and relaxing as the sun sets...



And of course wingin his Wacky Worm around!



As the sun sets...





Dad's into another one...but lost it right at the boat!





No problem, few minutes later...he's onto another!



Nice one!  Birthday bass!



Well that didn't take long, another hooked up!



And a final shot at the end of the day with Dad and I, perfect way to spend his birthday!



Dad and I head into town to grab some dinner, then head back to the guest house and crash!
Long day but an awesome one!
Can't wait to fish the river tomorrow for the first time!



Sunday - 05/13/2012


Mike swings by to pick us up bright and early...and preps the boat before we depart...



Dad, all smiles and ready for another day on the water!



Mike, not only an accomplished fisherman...but he can also drive with his eyes closed (see rear view mirror)...he knows the spots THAT well!!! haha



First stop...breakfast at Bob's!



Short while and a few miles later Mike slips the boat in at the ramp...



I snap a quick pic by the ramp while Mike heads up to drop the trailer off...



Mike returns with rain gear in hand...ready for a day on the river!



We get rigged up and Mike sets us up with his jig combo!



Two shots from the point and shoot before I get my DSLR...





Let's make the colors pop with some awesome scenery!  Just after we leave the ramp...



Cruising along to the first spot...



Mike leading the way...



Gotta love spring!



Creeping closer...



Closer yet...



The shoreline...



Mike has a much nicer office than I do! haha



As we pass by, Mike points out the aftermath of the floods last year...ripped entire trees out!



Mike's breaking down strategy...while Dad listens closely!



My first Susquehanna smallie!  And my Dad in the background will make me laugh every time I see this picture! haha



The first spot was a little slow, so we head to the next area.  I take this opportunity to take in some more scenery!



Beautiful!  I can't even imagine this area in October!



Cool perspective...



Some more shots...





Through the narrow and shallow...



Opening up...



More and more scenery...









And finally settling in on the fishing spot...



Where we're fishing with...



And the smallies like em!



This is a great sequence where Dad has one on!



And then it's off!  See the worm flying out of the water?



Dad, astonished...trying to figure out where it all went wrong?!?! haha
Also titled..."Where's my rag?" when he couldn't figure out where he put it!



Little while later, he showed us how it's done...again!



Mike joined in on the fun too!



We caught a few more small ones and moved off to try another spot.
Along the way Mike stopped at a bald eagle nest he knew about!
Pretty far shot, I just didn't have enough lens to cover it even with a 200mm and 2X teleconverter...needed an 800mm!
I managed a couple shots that cropped OK...including this one of the two eagles and their nest



And this one...



We checked the eagles out for a bit and then moved on upriver to another side creek...





And another fallen/broken off tree...



Dad found the fish in short order!  He kept fishing his favorite go-to rig, the very simple yet very effective Wacky Worm rig!
He fished it pretty much all day and was beating on the smallies with it!



Landing this one...



And this one too...



Get em Wacky!





What is that, 6 in a row?  Did I mention I don't think I had one at this spot yet?  So easy he can do it with his eyes closed!  Now he's just messin with me! haha



There we go, landed a nice one!



Mike was crankin away too!



I stopped to grab a quick pic of some geese with the DSLR!



Then back to the fishing, landing another nice smallie!



Maybe my favorite pic in the set of Dad and I, awesome!



Mike's havin some fun too!



Dad's enjoying himself and a day on the water!



We hit up another spot at the end of the day and I hook into a nice walleye!
My second one ever caught and the first one I've ever kept to eat...I'll be keeping more in the future! Delicious!



Dad with a nice smallie toward the end of the day!



And Mike finishing off with a beauty in a stretch of fast water as we made our way back!



And finally...we cruise back to the ramp as the clouds roll in...







Well that's all boys and girls!!!  I don't think we could ask for anything more on the trip!
I know both my Dad and I had a great time and Mike busted his butt to get us on the fish!
Mike's a great guy, super easy going and just all around fun to fish with!
If you're looking for a bass fishing destination...I'd highly recommend you look him up!
I know I'll be fishing with him again!  Hell I wish I was going again this weekend!

Mike's Guide Service
1271 Hemlock Road
Wyalusing, PA 18853
(570) 721-1202
http://susquehannariverguide.com/


Until next time...