Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
I'm Brian Bashore, Professional walleye angler and owner of The Walleye Guys Guide service. I am here to reel you in with captivating stories, expert tips, and interviews with some of the biggest names in the fishing community. So, sit back, relax, and let the drag scream!
Brian Bashore (00:00.918)
Hey folks, thanks for tuning in to another episode of Real Talk Fishing with No Limits. Today we're gonna talk going to Nebraska, Western Nebraska, talk a little bit about Lake McConaughey. no other but Lake Mac spoiled guide service with Brad Hahn joining us today. Brad, how's it going over there on the big sand pit of Lake McConaughey?
Brad (00:23.484)
Pretty warm right now.
Brian Bashore (00:25.69)
We we kinda the heat's not a bad thing this time here. It gets them fish going though.
Brad (00:30.448)
Yeah, yeah.
Brian Bashore (00:32.514)
Hm, what's so let's go back a little bit here. You've been you're guiding on Lake McConaughey. Just talked about a little bit. You're coming up to South Dakota here later in the summer now, or now you transition into the into the salmon fishing, coming up South Dakota Lake Wahe. Let's go back a little bit to your guide service on on on McConaughey, how long you've been doing it, what got you into it, and that kind of stuff.
Brad (00:55.355)
So I started about twelve years ago. I did it part time on the weekends, for one season and then ended up going full time. It's just my eleventh year full time. tournaments really were the what started me in guiding. I did decent tournaments and sort of used that momentum to build a reputation on Lake McConaughey and you know, it's been pretty dang good to me. So
Brian Bashore (01:22.158)
That that's kind of the story most of us have. We start out on the weekends, which is how I encourage everybody to do this if you are looking to venture, instead of just kind of jumping all in unless you have endless supply of money to where you can do that to build up a clientele, to figure it out, see if it's kind of for you. and kind of a secondary, you know, tournament type income type deal. help you build that reputation up little bit. It's kind of the the story for most guides, kind of the path that most take and
Brad (01:50.714)
Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (01:51.982)
Certainly the one I would I would definitely recommend until you kinda get going and before you make that leap. I know Takasaki Ted when he traveled with me a lot always said don't go full time fishing until you're making enough fishing part time to replace that full time time full time income, which is, you know, pretty hard to do obviously. But yeah, I don't think a lot of people realize that. You ain't getting rich doing it, but you're doing what you love. So there's there's always that, but you gotta
Brad (02:16.825)
Exactly.
Brian Bashore (02:19.285)
Gotta be frugal and you gotta find your find your way around things.
Brad (02:23.056)
I worked in the oil field before this, so I sort of enjoy fishing guiding fishing a little better. So
Brian Bashore (02:29.707)
Yeah, that's some tough work, but obviously the money isn't quite the same as oil fields to fishing by all means. But it's you know, guy can save up for some years doing that kind of work, get your get your boat, get your equipment, get your you know, you kinda get you get you grounded basically before you before you take a leap. So and you got you got some competition out there. I mean it's not I mean it's an open market obviously, but McConaughey's got, you know, I don't what, four or five guides at least probably working out there. I know James is artisty is out there guide now and
Brad (02:46.594)
Exactly.
Brian Bashore (03:00.823)
Some have gone. I think Steinke doesn't guide no more right. Jerry's kinda retired.
Brad (03:03.925)
Nope, no thank me. Robbie and Justin, probably the two most reputable. Yep. You know, com yeah. Yep.
Brian Bashore (03:09.581)
yeah, I've been rolling. Yep. Yep. Yep. Good handful of them. But for people that don't know McConaughey, tell us a little bit about that.
Brad (03:19.372)
You know, you know, when I first started guiding, we had trees and that's sort of how I built my name and everything. We we lost a lot of crankbaits, a lot of baits, spinner baits and everything and we slabbed in trees. I we lived in trees, you know, and this year's definitely brought a big challenge to us 'cause for the first year ever in July we didn't have any trees to troll or anything like that. So,
this year's been like learning a whole completely new lake because we're sitting at about twenty seven percent currently right now. So yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah, we're there's a ramp they had to go find that they used back last time in the drought days. But hopefully we get some snow in Wyoming and we hit some inflows next year. So
Brian Bashore (03:50.573)
Yeah, you got some super low water going on there.
Brian Bashore (04:06.795)
Yeah, you're I remember a few years back it was super I mean this is basically the largest reservoir in Nebraska. It's a little bigger loose Clark Lake, but nobody either state seems to want to clear, you know, declare that fishery as their own. but it's same kind of layout, it's long. It runs, you know, east to west. You got a few bays, Martin Bay and you know and what have you, but deep water structures always been the trees. That's kind of the whole Dan Ferguson came up with the whole spinnerbait, you know, pulling those spinners on lead.
Brad (04:23.926)
Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (04:36.001)
You know, through the trees is where that kind of Elwood Reservoir where it got started. Makatahay is where it's kind of been living for for years and and effective. And it is a place with some monster wall eyes. It doesn't get the recognition it probably deserves 'cause it doesn't have a lot of big national tournaments there for whatever reason. I mean, obviously the low water issues. It's a reservoir though, so it's made for irrigation and you got the Platte River that runs into it.
Brad (04:37.663)
Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (05:01.889)
And if anybody's ever seen a Platte River, Nebraska, it it's not it's pretty wide and it's pretty flat and it doesn't have a lot of water. So you're very dependent. Yeah. You're very dependent on that snow melt coming out of those mountains. And then plus you have Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas has a a tri-state water agreement type thing, and it all starts basically coming out of of Big Mac there. but trophy walleye, I mean the walleye's I mean low water ought to make it easier in a sense if you can get your boat out on there, right? Because they're all you don't right, once you find them, you're on them.
Brad (05:08.102)
Not right now, surely.
Brad (05:29.247)
Yeah. Yeah. I think we're gonna have a terrific I think we'll have a terrific fall. Yeah.
Brian Bashore (05:32.354)
Yeah.
you just need some water in that place. So I remember Yeah, I've been there years ago, you know, slabbing in the fall. last time I was there was a tournament. We pulled some slow death through the trees. the L wives is what that, you know is still the main forge base there, I assume.
Brad (05:37.181)
Yeah.
Brad (05:53.001)
definitely. Yep.
Brian Bashore (05:54.722)
Which I wish we had everywhere 'cause they're a very fatty bait fish. I think it's better than the smelt and that's why you got such trophy frickin' walleye there.
Brad (06:05.778)
Yeah, yeah, those owl wife are catch twenty two a little bit, and the state sort of identified that. they make it tougher to get the the small walleye to get to, you know, eating on you know, bait fish and stuff. But once they can get up to that about eight to ten inch range, they're they're in good shape. So but that zooplankton the owl wife deplete the zooplankton in the lake and that's that's a big deal they're trying to definitely work on out here, so
Brian Bashore (06:32.907)
A stocking shad or smelt or anything in there? I mean smelt probably isn't gonna make it.
Brad (06:36.07)
they don't have to stock any bait and it's like it's the Allife for just so hardy and so abundant that they would there's no they just need to stock walleye. Just keep stocking walleye, so
Brian Bashore (06:40.269)
It's they're thick.
Brian Bashore (06:46.283)
This more wall lights, and obviously you got wipers, which I absolutely love. And since I moved to South Dakota, I haven't caught a single one. but a wiper's a folks, listen, and then a wiper's a cross between a striper and a white bass, and they get not as big as a striper, but a hell of a lot bigger than white bass, and they're an absolute blast to cast if you ask I mean I love them. 1410 is my biggest out of Harlan. topwater, you're catching them trolling. I mean, they're there, and they're probably continuing to put those in there because I'm I imagine they're eating up those L wipes good.
Brad (07:13.757)
Well, you know, that's actually one thing I wish Game of Parks needs to they they sort of decided that walleye fishermen don't like in Nebraska and they haven't stocked wipers in McConaughey for about six or seven years. So I'm I'm hoping they start start stocking a little bit more because those are a good secondary fish and McConaughey needs a good secondary fish, so those wipers are really fun.
Brian Bashore (07:25.111)
Merlin.
Brian Bashore (07:33.4)
Yeah, I know I yeah, I mean, I used to I mean, sure they get annoying if you're in a tournament and you're cracking on wipers and it's not like you just hook in one and you can just rip it in quick and toss it off. It's you're it's gonna take you a couple minutes to get this fish in. I've seen rods break, I've seen people fall out of their boat catching I mean, these things are but it's awesome topwater fish too when that bite's going. I know you're you know, guys are trolling the dam and and and getting them up there. But I heard last year, two years ago, the guys at Harlan were kind of complaining that there was so many wipers.
that they couldn't even get to the walleye, you know. And, you know, everybody there loves cat, you know, doing the night fishing and just the trolling for the white bass. In South Dakota, they call silver bass. People aren't aren't the biggest fan of the white bass. But I know Nebraskans, when I guide they come up and we've got some, you know, schooling white bass finally going now. I'm like, hey, they're they're blowing up. Let's go get 'cause that's just that's fun. I don't care who you are, that's fun. That's right, that's action. And as a guide, you're like, we'll we'll take this all day, especially if the walleye bites, you know, slow. But
Brad (08:23.588)
Let's catch it.
Brad (08:32.484)
Absolutely.
Brian Bashore (08:32.533)
It may not last that long, so jump on it while while it's happening and catch those. And these are like, you know, two plus pound white bass. But your wipers are like five plus pounds, ten pounds.
Brad (08:39.547)
Mm-hmm.
Brad (08:43.676)
Yeah, yeah. Most of the wipers in McConaughey right now are about nine, nine pounds 'cause they just haven't stocked them in a while. So nine to them, the state record got caught out of here. Mm probably five years ago was twenty three around twenty three pounds. So
Brian Bashore (08:57.153)
I remember I lived I think it was Red Willow had it for a long time at twenty or something. And you know Yeah, that's a huge wiper. That's that's big. And any stripers showing up anymore? I know f I mean that used to be stripers there years ago, and then randomly there would be one caught here or there, but I haven't heard of any for quite a few years.
Brad (09:00.113)
Yeah, feeble item, yeah. Yeah.
Brad (09:07.866)
No, no, they're gone with the dinosaurs. Yeah.
Brad (09:15.94)
Early two thousand's the last I heard. they didn't reproduce successfully in Maconages, so didn't have the inflows for the eggs to roll down river is what I was told. So never did reproduce ever in McConaughey. So whatever they stocked is what was in that lake and but
Brian Bashore (09:31.625)
Yep, and that's kinda how the wipers are, folks. They don't reproduce either. It's a hybrid. You know, it's a genetically basically graded fish that's Nebraska's got a lot of Kansas has a lot of I'm not really sure if they really put anywhere else, but they're a great fish to put in when they want to control like a white perch or some kind of invasive spate bait fish, 'cause the suckers devour a lot of stuff.
Brad (09:53.881)
Yeah, swimming stomachs.
Brian Bashore (09:55.628)
Yeah. Yep. Yep. They're awesome. What you've been guiding out there? You guys been kinda you've been whacking pretty good. What's the go to? Is we live scoping we still pullin' cranks and spinners or spinners not such a deal without the trees or
Brad (10:06.649)
We know actually this week was sort of something different. we were we are in a pretty good white bass bite. had a lot of family groups a lot of times this time of year. We get one last two raw, you know, the all the families. They got school coming up the next week or two and you really see an influx and family trips and had a lot of kids in the boat this week and you know, what better way to get the rods to bend and we we started putting spinnerbaits out, bast aisle spinnerbaits, like big eye spinnerbaits and
Brian Bashore (10:30.167)
Yeah.
Brad (10:35.854)
We know we c were catching really big white bass. We caught some a big walleye on them. We had a nine and a half pounder last week, walleye. we had a triple on wipers and then went back through and had an eleven pounder. The wipers ended up knocking out two reels. They just absolutely stripped the reel and but boy, they were fine. Yeah, yeah.
Brian Bashore (10:52.363)
They do damage, yeah. Yeah. Yeah, you get on you got kids in a boat. I mean white bass, you're just like, Come on, baby, where's that white bass at? Let's go. You know. Yeah, we're we've moved on to the catfish this last week 'cause of walleye aren't biting very well, so
Brad (10:59.754)
Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. They just want that pull to be.
Brad (11:08.585)
we got a lot of catfish this week too and you know, you just you just reel in, clean and just that's yeah, it's that time of year.
Brian Bashore (11:16.299)
Yep. Yep. Most people as a guide you know they don't I mean they're they're a lot of them are coming out the you know, Big Mac to catch that trophy. just 'cause you're a fishery that has that potential. But like you said, it's family times, you get these last minute trips before the kids go back to school. Most people just want to catch fish.
Brad (11:24.45)
Mm-hmm.
Brad (11:34.115)
Yeah, my first two years of guiding I really thought I was just a walleye guide and then I probably my third year I decided you know, I'm not a walleye guide, I'm a fishing guide. And you know, I when you just go fishing and most people have a good time just going fishing. So I get that that rod to bend.
Brian Bashore (11:37.869)
Yeah.
Brian Bashore (11:47.906)
Yep. Yeah, I actually had a evening trip yesterday. I was like, What do you guys want to catch? Does it matter? And they were like, They don't care. Boom. Right to a tree, drop jig and crawler down. Ten catfish in that three to eight, nine pound range. And they were like, Woo, your four hour trip turned in about two hours 'cause they were like, I'm good. I'm kind of worn out. And I was like, Well, we'll go over here and try to catch some walleye's and got a couple keeper walleyes pitching some jigs to and a lot of little ones were biting was about it, but there was a ton of them there.
Brad (12:09.407)
Exactly. Yep.
Brian Bashore (12:18.039)
But that was a little bit more work than just dropping over. They kind of just wanted to hang out. It's evening. You can drink in the boat in South Dakota since I'm driving it, having a beer, dropping it over. When you get five pound channel cag, you how those suckers fight. So and when you especially got to get it up out of the trees quick. So yeah, they just you're a fishing guide first and foremost, right on. And you guys, I mean Western Nebraska, Ogallala, so even way, way out there, for people that don't know where it is, look it up. Lake McConaughey.
Brad (12:30.88)
yeah. Yeah, yeah.
Brad (12:37.32)
Exactly.
Brian Bashore (12:46.999)
Denver is probably your closest big city and I imagine that's where a lot of your clients coming from.
Brad (12:51.678)
Yeah, yeah. Three three hours away from here. And I get a lot of Omaha Lincoln though, you know. I think that's sort of why I decided to do the South Dakota deal because you know, Omaha Lincoln, they either go north to Owahi or they go to west to McConaughey to go fishing, so definitely a lot from Omaha and Lincoln.
Brian Bashore (13:11.595)
What you say you're at twenty you're at twenty seven percent below pool or you're only at twenty percent pool right now. I was at McConaughey full, so that's pretty bad. That's that's real bad. I think it was Jesus. Yeah, it's irrigation time. It was it's probably been ten years now. I remember you were thirty foot low one year. I mean typically McConaughey's a pretty deep deep lake when it's when it's full. and had a good snow melt. Yeah. How what are your deep spots right now?
Brad (13:15.093)
Mm-hmm. Twenty seven percent full right now.
Brad (13:22.921)
Losing two for the week.
Brad (13:35.37)
Still a hundred foot.
Brad (13:40.072)
Well, I mean, right by the dam, there's probably a football field stretch of a hundred foot still. I'd say the average area of the lake right now is probably about
Brian Bashore (13:42.08)
Right. Well.
Brad (13:51.667)
Sixty percent of the reservoir's probably still fifty foot deep. So, I mean it's still there's still a lot of water out there. People on the east side of the state, they think it's just a big old puddle, but it's still even at twenty seven percent, it's still the biggest lake in Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas and Wyoming.
Brian Bashore (13:55.01)
okay. Yeah. Yep.
Brian Bashore (14:06.433)
Yep, yeah, that's still that's still deep, it's still a lot of water. like I said, it was about ten years ago, had good snow melt, water was coming, good spring rains are like, hey, it's filling up. I think you're thirty feet low going into it that spring. And the brass game fish was like, Yeah, it's about you know, in a few years we'll be a full pool. Three months. It took three months. It was full. Yeah, it kept raining and you the snow kept coming and it took three months, and he went, Okay, we're there. Baby was full.
Brad (14:26.398)
It it can happen in a hurry.
Brad (14:34.152)
Yeah. There's so much negativity around the lake right now. It's just you know, people think it's the end of the world and it's done this three times. I mean, in the late fifties, early sixties it was this low. in the early two thousands it was this low. And, you know, it just it's a reservoir like you said earlier and it fluctuates. I mean, we're not gonna be in a drought forever and we're not gonna be in a flood stage forever. It just it's gonna cycle.
Brian Bashore (14:58.997)
Yep, yep, it does. And and we hope we hope it continues to cycle and cycles upward. Water is a commodity that is definitely taken for granted in this country. People need to be a little more mindful of it. But I mean, you're obviously over the largest aquifer in the world, pretty much, but that's not what fills up the lake. So you you know, we need the snow and Colorado got next to none that last year. I know my son went out there to go snowboarding and I think it was early January and he sent him pictures of Colorado. He's like, It's brown. There's no snow. I mean so
Brad (15:14.685)
No.
Brian Bashore (15:27.745)
Believe it or not, folks, they still make snow in Colorado on the ski lifts just for those purposes. And it's pretty high up, but it does happen. And yeah, we'll see what this winter brings. It could like I said, it happens fast and that place could fill up next spring real quick. Twenty seven percent. That's it's it's got a long ways to go. It may take a while, but Yeah, it won't it won't go over. Yep. you just mentioned South Dakota, so you're wrapping up your season down there.
Brad (15:45.018)
Won't go over the dam, I promise you that. But yeah, we we'll take every drop we can.
Brian Bashore (15:55.554)
Been good, I take it. Obviously water's low, but fishing looks like according to your Facebook, you guys are catching but fishing's been pretty good. Moving on up, gonna spend the rest of what do you spend a couple all August, September, October, or just a couple months up here chasing the salmon? August, September.
Brad (15:59.494)
Yeah. Yeah.
Brad (16:08.528)
Just August and September. Yeah. I'll be we'll do be taking trips on Lake Sharp, you know, below a Wahi and we'll go for you know, those those good eaters and then, you know, if a group wants to go for walleye and then take up a lar large chunk of our groups like to go salmon fishing on a Wahee. It just the when I ask a group leading up to the trip, do you wanna go walleye fishing or salmon fishing? A lot of them say, We got walleyes back home, let's go salmon fishing. So, you know, that's
Brian Bashore (16:18.765)
Yep, sharp's full of them.
Brian Bashore (16:38.091)
Yeah, I've never done it. It's not I mean, kinda well not really well known, or there's not a lot of guides really doing it up here as much. But Lake Hawaii's got some salmon. I they got a hatchery. They're stocking it. They're putting the salmon in there. A lot of October gets a that must be when they're spawning or whatever. 'cause the guys are up there on the shore catching them. I don't even know what our state record is here, but it's yeah, it's pretty it's pretty good. but Lake Hawaii is pretty pretty damn good salmon fishing, if you know what you're doing.
Brad (16:58.606)
Yeah, probably we'll offline.
Brian Bashore (17:07.125)
I don't know what I'm doing, so I don't go salmon fishing. So what's the what's the tricks to that?
Brad (17:07.194)
Yeah, we sort of with that. just troll, troll, troll. But you know, I I think you were talking about not many guides do it up in South Dakota. And I think I think you know, our client base here at Lake McConaughey, you know, you we talked about McConaughey being at trophy walleye fishery and a lot of our clients have the patience to grind on, you know. It a lot of our groups aren't always
We gotta get our limit. We gotta get our limit. We're they're they're chasing you know, if they catch two to five walleye a day and they're big, they love it, you know. And then I think that's that's the difference with South Dakota guides is their groups all want their limits and I guess we've instilled a little bit more patience with our client base, so just 'cause they they sort of just go trophy fishing and that salmon fishing sort of like that trophy, you know, you're you're looking for you're not gonna like they ask me what their limit is on salmon and I said don't don't worry about it 'cause it's probably
Brian Bashore (18:02.773)
Don't worry about it. We're gonna catch a salmon today. We're going for a big one, you know.
Brad (18:05.529)
Yeah, we're gonna go for some salmon, you know, and it's crazy the amount of meat to get on those salmon. So you know, the boy we w we had groups last year. Had one group go home with about a hundred pounds of salmon fillets. They had like a three day trip and a hundred pounds of salmon fillets. It's just that's crazy how much meat come off of them, but
Brian Bashore (18:24.767)
Yeah, that's a lot. That'll last you a while. I don't we're spoiled up here in South Kotas why everybody wants their limits and that's just what they think. They see you catching, you know, hundreds of fish a day and they're on that and and there's no size limit on some of those lakes up here in the upper river parts through July and August. So keep you know, some some of the photos you're seeing they might look better, but they're not. They're thirteen, fourteen inches. where I'm at w that's we don't have that option. It's fifteen inches and I probably wouldn't keep any smaller than that anyway.
Brad (18:32.131)
Mm-hmm. Exactly.
Brian Bashore (18:53.655)
We need those suckers to grow up and get bigger Lake of Walleye obviously a trophy walleye fishery. I was just there for the walleye throw down and it was a lot of big walleye caught and it was pretty damn fun. I'll definitely be back for that. but the salmon, yeah, they just don't get targeted. But like you said, when people come up South Dakota, they're just thinking limits of walleye. But when they come, you know, if they're always fishing in Nebraska, who isn't necessarily known for its great fisheries, which I mean, I grew up there fishing Harlan County and McConaughey and Calamus, Sherman.
You don't come by limits a a whole hell of a lot necessarily. there's obviously times of years and days that are good and I've had great days at Harlan and great days in McConaughey. And McConaughey being the best, I think, you know, hands down fishery in the state. You know, limits a little more privable up there, but in South Dakota it's just that's expected.
Brad (19:43.141)
Exactly. Yep. Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Brian Bashore (19:45.173)
You know, so always good to qualify the client. What do you want to catch? You know.
Brad (19:50.407)
No, very much so. Nothing worse than having a group, get in your boat and they're like, Well what time do you think we'll catch our limit? And you're like
Brian Bashore (19:58.754)
Yeah, I'm like, it's gonna take all day. We'll get those we do half day trips and it's like, Well, do I need to go a full day? I'm like, yeah, you yeah, you need a full day. And then maybe you're done in hour, you know, I don't know. Maybe you fish the whole full day and you're still not limited out. It's it's fishing. It could be awesome one day and horrible the next. So we're we're we're going through some of that up up and downs right now with them these funky cold fronts and an absolute it's August. There's
Brad (20:16.468)
Exactly.
Brian Bashore (20:24.915)
absolute ton of bait in the system, which you're gonna see when you get up here to Lake Hawaii as well and go, Wow, there's a lot of bait in that system. Sometimes these fish aren't really willing to eat anymore, but you know, they're gonna sometime throughout the day.
Brad (20:29.479)
yeah. Yeah, we deal with that daily at McConaughey with the LY F.
Brian Bashore (20:43.383)
Well how you targeting the salmon, what's kinda what's the go to? What do people expect?
Brad (20:48.131)
flashes and flies. Yeah, flashes and flies trolling. So and anyway.
Brian Bashore (20:52.567)
Flies, so that's like big streamer type flies down there basically. And then that flashers, whatever it is, those are like what, four to six inches or something like that.
Brad (20:56.01)
Yep. Yep. Yep.
Brad (21:03.381)
Yeah, twenty dollar piece of plastic.
Brian Bashore (21:05.451)
Yeah, that this is what a few feet up on a leader that that's gets their attention, I assume, is what the flashers are all about.
Brad (21:08.69)
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, we're supposed to imitate a feeding salmon.
Brian Bashore (21:14.357)
Right. Okay. So it brings him in and then they obviously see the the fly, which is intimidating to bait fish roaming back there and then wham. But that's a hard fighting fish.
Brad (21:24.28)
man, yeah, they they're they're really equivalent to a wiper. They fight really, really good. Yeah. I I'd bet I don't it'd be a quite the competition who fights harder, a salmon or a wiper. So
Brian Bashore (21:35.66)
Down riggers.
Brad (21:37.288)
Downriggers, dipsy divers, copper line. We can run eight rods, you know, if we got enough people.
Brian Bashore (21:44.694)
And what, a hundred foot, eighty hundred feet, or I guess depending on kind of where the herring's hanging out or
Brad (21:48.648)
We're catching a lot of them. It's sixty to eighty foot you know, in a hundred and fifty foot of water. So just troll right. Yeah, mostly the lower end. Yeah, twenty the the the south twenty miles of the reservoir. Yeah. And we come out of Cow Creek, but we stay at the outpost lodge.
Brian Bashore (21:53.528)
They're on the lower end. Yep. Are you going out of Spring Creek? You go out of Spring Creek then or
Brian Bashore (22:05.441)
Calcreek. Outpost lodge. Okay. Yep. Yep. Yep. So yeah, most people are and and there's clearly trophy walleye's down there as well. I mean the governor cup fishes out of the the lower part. we just fished in the I guess a casca mow bridge. Two twelve bridge, I guess they call that the upper part. It's not fully the up upper part. I'd say Mobridge and above is probably the upper. That's kind of the mid. but man, a lot of big walleye. Lots.
Brad (22:14.883)
yeah.
Brad (22:33.533)
Yeah. We
Brian Bashore (22:33.559)
There was a few salmon cot up there during this last tournament.
Brad (22:37.959)
Yeah, we don't do a lot of the walleye on a Wahee just 'cause I think we we get there and I mean they're walleye definitely getting caught when we get there, but you know, it's sort of the slow time up on a Wahee when we're there, so a lot of our clients they they get that tropey walleye out of their system at McConaughey, you know, so we're not really really bringing there to O Wahee for those trophy walleye.
Brian Bashore (23:01.057)
Yeah, August can get and September can get tough. That a lot of come back late fall, try to get those when they're really feeding like crazy. And last fall didn't go very good on Oahu. It didn't go very good anywhere up here 'cause it didn't it didn't get cold. So I mean it you're in November and the water temp was still like fifty to some degrees, so you're waiting for it to drop to really trigger that and kill some of that bait. And it just when it got cold, it got cold, like ten degrees outside, but the water temp was still forties. Like you're not taking a boat out and this crap.
Brad (23:12.421)
I heard.
Yeah, I didn't get cold either.
Brian Bashore (23:31.329)
So I guess you know, you kinda needed to go move a little ice in December when there was a skim on it and that then they were finally biting good. But yeah, that's Mother Nature's kinda putting us on a little roller coaster lately. But I imagine Big Mac's the same way, right? That fall bite. I mean, is it still a slabbin type thing?
Brad (23:49.401)
Yeah, yeah. definitely. Yeah. October, November. And you know, I had trips all the way up until February is the only month that didn't guide a McConaughey. we we had ice finally come on for three weeks on McConaughey. But we don't ice fish it 'cause it's too much sand, too much it's just not that's not safe. But yeah, we had a actually our winter bite was probably better than our fall bite, but I guess we really didn't have a fall.
We didn't much have a winner either.
Brian Bashore (24:18.519)
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, that you you were just south enough to where the fall bite turned into a a winter bite for you, 'cause that's when it got cold enough. We started freezing up when it was good. So basically it'd been an early ice bite, but I'm on the river and I ain't getting on that crap just like you said down there. Not until we got really, really good ice, and that came in like early January. But I think I was back on Chamberlain by Valentine's Day, mid February, I think, where the river was open and flowing. So
Which is the advantage we get up here with rivers, so
Brad (24:51.493)
Yeah, October I think October will be a really good year th this year at McConaughey, as long as we can get cold for once. And I mean they're not gonna have a lot of places to hide this year, so they're gonna be sort of a fish, you know, in a barrel. But 'cause I'd guess we're gonna get around the lowest the lake's ever gotten by September when they finally shut the irrigation off. So
Brian Bashore (25:13.729)
Yeah, so we'll s we'll see what it brings. I mean, f we've had some falls where we've got a lot of lot of rain and and what have you. And I mean I think the farmers are kinda doing all right. You're irrigating down there, but up here we've we could we could use a little rain. We had over the fourth July week pretty good run of rain and then pretty pretty hot and pretty dry since then. So it just kinda is what it is. That stuff's out of the out of our control in the elements and obviously as a fishing guide, you're really dependent upon the weather so so I mean more than most people understand.
Brad (25:40.567)
yeah.
Brian Bashore (25:43.508)
Your livelihood kind of di there's it blows, right? It's too windy, it's not safe, you can't go out, or in your situation, or even on you know on the river sometimes is there's no water. I do have no job. There's no lake, right? Or you're you're now you're moving to South Dakota to get on on the reservoir because Bacon A. Yeah, it's it's pretty tough. It's you know, and then you obviously have, you know, GFP's management or DNR people call it. I'm South Dakota, Nebraska, we have game fish in parks where there isn't any fish.
Brad (25:54.698)
Exactly.
Brad (25:59.247)
Yeah, it's up to be a fishing guy without water.
Brian Bashore (26:13.901)
Because the systems weren't managed or were or a kill off or whatever like that, you know, happens. I think they do a pretty decent job out there. We do a pretty good job up here in South Dakota. I th for the most part, I think all these fisheries I think are fishing good. we just seen monster weights come out of Green Bay for the NWT tournament. I d I don't you your life's coping a bunch down there, I imagine, as well. And people complain and we're destroying these fisheries with all these tournaments, but I don't know what your take is on it. how is Nebraska fisheries fishing, but
I think we're overall fisheries are pretty healthy and I think numbers look pretty good.
Brad (26:49.819)
I think McConaughey always fishes tough 'cause there's a lot of bait in it and I I don't think that's a bad thing. I I'd rather have sort of a finicky fishery and know the fish are there than just have a you know like a three month stretch where everyone catches fish and pontoons are catching limits and you can just see the the fish aren't doing well. But I mean McConaughey's in good shape. The walleye are in very good shape. you know the live scoping deal, it's tough to implement with clients sometimes. That's one thing we I I I'm not quite
Fig you know, perfectly perfected that. we do a lot of trolling just 'cause McConaughey's got a lot of open water and that's we do a lot of trolling with clients. But
Brian Bashore (27:25.015)
Yeah, the scoping with clients is if you got one or two guys that want to learn it or show it or, you know, play with it, that that's about it. Or you use it to kind of maybe find some fish and then tell where to throw or something like that. But you have suspended fish out there, and in that case, blind casting isn't gonna really do you so well. You need to be it's it's a whole video game. Watch that. Lucy Clark, I have that issue 'cause we our fish are gonna be they're not suspended. So I did catch spending one there today scoping, but
Brad (27:36.63)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Brian Bashore (27:52.136)
Very few. And like when you get to Lake Oahu here on Francis Case, where yeah, you know, what you would typically use to troll and get some. Now you can obviously get a lot quicker, but it's it's a one or two man show again. And it's it's casting, you know, crawlers or Yeah, no. Get the rods out, bouncers out, cranks, yep, and just go to town. yeah, but I mean the fisheries good and those fish are so fat down there. I've been trying to get there the last couple of years. I wanted to film. It doesn't sound like this is the year to go 'cause there's
Brad (28:04.642)
Mm-hmm. Kids in the boat and you know, I just I don't I don't like being like the
Brian Bashore (28:21.325)
There's no boat ramp hardly to use anymore. So is it Martin Bay or what are you what are you launching out of?
Brad (28:26.285)
Spillway low water ramp just came out. so they're they're able to they found it and they didn't know if they were gonna find it, but they did and I credit Game of Parks for looking for that and finding it. but it was ac it's in good shape. It's actually a pretty good ramp. they built it back in like two thousand four to two thousand six. It just kept adding on as they kept dropping. And yeah, they had to dig sand out and yeah, they they didn't even know quite exactly where it was, but they found it.
Brian Bashore (28:47.031)
Was it buried in sand? Was that the how they had to find?
Brian Bashore (28:54.102)
shit.
Brad (28:55.11)
It's actually got a great drop and it's a good ramp. But Martin Bay probably Martin Bay gonna get tricky.
Brian Bashore (28:59.157)
Nice, nice. I know otherwise Martin Bay. Is it are they still putting in is are they still are they still putting in with the tractors? Or is that an even not?
Brad (29:08.4)
yeah, we we take them out we come out of vans most of the time. So that just that that's really nice with clients and I'm sure you know with your clients you don't know if they can back a trailer or they're gonna lose your boat on the dock or you know, it's but vans you hire twenty bucks in and out and it's great.
Brian Bashore (29:11.756)
Banks.
Brian Bashore (29:22.817)
Yep. Yep. Yep. That sounds like the way to go. I don't know. Maybe I'll still get it there if August tapers down. August is usually a slow month for us up here, but right now it's it's booked. Today is the only day off for at least the next ten. So it worked out good to get you on here quick, talk about McConaughey. What are you fishing any other Nebraska Lakes or you're probably just too busy? You don't get a get away. Any tournaments coming up out there?
Brad (29:44.393)
Well we We take some groups out to Sutherland in the early spring and they catch their limits and we did a little bit of enders but that was a little tougher this year. it was good last year. But we primarily, you know, take groups out on McConaughey. That's sort of the the draw out here.
Brian Bashore (30:02.293)
What it's what county is that? Kingsley or what are they what do they call it?
Brad (30:08.563)
Keith County? Or Yep, yep.
Brian Bashore (30:09.591)
Keith County. Yeah. Yep. Yep. Keith County. I they're I used to do some stuff with the tourism gal there. But they're doing a lot. I know GFP, you guys had a big project on McConaughey redoing I don't know if it was Admiral's Cove or Martin, the big marina, right? Redoing the whole thing. Did that ever happen or did it get kind of started and put on hold? Is that what happened? Do you have any insight on that?
Brad (30:24.841)
Yeah, Martin Bay, yeah.
Brad (30:30.938)
Martin Bay, they got it done. It was three three million dollars to do the boat ramp. And yeah, I've used it about twelve times. I've gotten it done. They got it done about five years ago. They got a nice fish cleaning station there, but yeah, the low water sort of made it to where we didn't get to use that ramp a lot. But big thing in McConaughey is the dam right now. That's they had a shelf collapse on the dam and they don't really know what they're gonna do quite yet on that dam. they're talking about
Brian Bashore (30:42.595)
yeah.
Brad (31:00.079)
Either putting a bunch of rock on the dam in twenty twenty nine or concreting the whole thing. So that'll be that'll be interesting how that plays out.
Brian Bashore (31:09.537)
Yeah, I mean that damn's been there in fifty something.
Brad (31:12.411)
Eighty five years. Yep, eighty five years.
Brian Bashore (31:15.947)
Yeah, I know they've done some at Lewis and Clark on Gavins. They put some pressure relief. They're like giant holes back, you know, behind the dam on the flats near the campground. It looks like looks like they put a bunch of septic tanks and you just see big round lids on the surface. but they were pressure relief. So I don't sure people understand how much water in your case, not a whole lot, 'cause I mean the lake's low, but you're still talking a hundred feet deep with water covered at it. That's a hell I mean the Missouri River's it's moving, so we got a lot of water pressure.
You know, versus the your inflow is pretty minimal up there, especially right now. It's next to nothing. Yeah, ours are minimum, you know, just the power plants are nineteen, twenty thousand cubic feet. That's like that's just a power plant, you know, running generation. but that's a lot of pressure. It's a lot of dirt, but that's a lot, a lot of water pressure moving on into those things. So
Brad (31:48.033)
Two runner, two hundred season exceeded second. Yeah.
Brad (31:55.334)
Mm-hmm.
Brad (32:06.671)
So the the dam's not actually leaking. That's what a lot of people are you know, the rumor out there is the dam's leaking. The dam's not leaking. just the the rock on the dam, that protects it's a dirt dam and the the rock on the dam that protects the the integrity of the dam is hit fell down on that that like level and they just don't want water hitting that 'cause then it could start washing up the dirt. the Yeah, C N P P I D they described it as
Brian Bashore (32:28.597)
Yeah. Yeah, so it slipped.
Brad (32:35.629)
It's like painting your house. you know, it's not urgent, it's not immediate, but if you you know, let it go. Yeah. Exactly. The dam's not gonna fail. It's it's just they gotta figure something out.
Brian Bashore (32:42.189)
Put it off, it's gonna do damage. Right. Yeah. Yep. But if it's like that for ten years it it will or it's gonna start to erode and trench through and so basically you had a it slipped is what it did 'cause of I imagine it's hitting it and it's yeah, and it's burrowing underneath it. Yeah.
Brad (32:57.099)
Mm-hmm. There it's stared. Yeah. We had a we had a four day wind of like seventy mile an hour wind and it it just had one of those shelves collapse and yeah, it you know it the elevation where that problem is is thirty two twenty and we're currently sitting at thirty two seven feet above elevate you know, sea level. So it's high and dry the problem area. So it's not even and they they would actually raise the lake above that level.
if we got the water. It's they just bury the problem and they they the court that's what they said. Yes. As long as waves don't hit it. As long as waves don't hit it and erode the dirt that's there, they're they're fine with it. So
Brian Bashore (33:32.311)
Well, they would never know it, right. Of course now's a good time to fix it while you can see it. Right. I mean
Brian Bashore (33:42.446)
Well, it's your give a little sense of urgency to only advantage of when the water's low. I know we're looking at some of this up Lakes Kakwe as well as now's when you go fix a lot of these things, go fix these boat ramps, go fix these the dams, go do do all this, take advantage of the opportunities while this water's low that you know, that you can't obviously fix and and see or adjust any of this stuff when the water level's where you want it to be. So hopefully they hopefully get on that and your governor there stops.
Brad (34:05.912)
Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (34:10.165)
Hijacking the GFP funds and lets them get some work done on some of these places. So I know that
Brad (34:15.03)
That That got that was a hot topic out here, that's no doubt.
Brian Bashore (34:18.517)
Yeah, it we're they're trying to do some work at the Wigal Marina, Lewis and Clark and same type of deal. They started it in the fall, it's been closed all this year, but the project has gone from a massive scope to this big and they basically have dredged it out, adding a few boat slips, but not near what it was expected because he took a lot of their funding.
Brad (34:37.13)
Yeah, I did that out here too. We had a Star Wars fund that was gonna go towards a big marina here at McConaughey. And I think that that Star Wars fund had done sixty four million dollars in grants and we all of a sudden found out we weren't gonna get any of it and our county commissioner went down there and said, no, we want some of it and they're gonna repave, they're gonna pave the Burma Road, that goes into Divers Bay and with the I think we got twelve million dollars in that sixty four million, but
They're gonna repay Burma Road and they're also going to pay a redo Vans Road. And then it also goes into Eagle Canyon. And then if there's enough funding left, they're gonna do another boat ramp on the north side is what they and they might be able to find additional funding to do another boat ramp on the south side, but we'll have to see.
Brian Bashore (35:23.723)
Is there there isn't hardly any boat ramps on the south side, is there?
Brad (35:27.188)
Mm. Nope. Nope. It's a lot of private ground, but a lot of private ground. Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (35:28.599)
Why is that? No access. It's not just it's private and there's just really isn't much access over there, is there? I mean, I've gone and stayed at vans. So if people are coming to them conhe, what what are their options? Where can they where can they go? Where can they stay?
Brad (35:34.752)
Mm-hmm. Exactly. Yep.
Brad (35:44.115)
You Kingsley Lodge, if you want to be on the lake's probably the best place to stay. Yep. Yep, it's you know, the other other places are unfortunately quite a ways away from the nearest boat ramp, with our water levels. But yeah, there's only two launches on McConaughey currently, Martin Bay and then this low water spillway. we're probably gonna lose Martin Bay at some point this year. So it'll be one boat ramp on Lake McConaughey by September.
Brian Bashore (35:48.001)
That's on the dam, isn't it, in the corner? Okay, I've stayed there.
Brian Bashore (36:10.509)
Right. See, I've used I stayed at Kingsley, which is like the motel there on the dam, and then Vans Resort. I that that's about all there really is, isn't there? Otherwise I've stayed at friends' houses out there.
Brad (36:21.701)
Bogle's Bogle's is a nice area at Lemoyne. Yep, yeah. Yep, yep.
Brian Bashore (36:24.489)
Vogels, not Vans. Vogels is where I stayed, yeah, excuse me. Vogels. Yep. He's got a little bait shop and stuff. He's got the stripers up on the wall from the seventies or eighties when Yep, Vans Cameron. And then you have Admiral's Cove, I think, right? Which is probably Yep, which I think has a restaurant and little motel or something there. Which isn't on the water anymore, though.
Brad (36:30.696)
Mm-hmm. Yep. Yeah, it's vans is a campground. Yeah.
Brad (36:38.142)
Yeah, yeah, that's another one. Yep.
Mm-hmm. Yeah. it it sorta is and but by it probably won't be later this summer, but it's still
Brian Bashore (36:51.361)
That's just far enough west, right? That's about the end of it. They're like on the tail end of it.
Brad (36:57.631)
There's still about a mile of water. It probably goes up to Spring Park, which is about two miles from Lemoyne, but it that's gonna dry up quick 'cause there's only a couple of feet of water in that area and, you know, losing two feet a week, it's gonna it's gonna start drying up really quick.
Brian Bashore (37:14.835)
And seasonal, what's the what's the best time to head there? I mean any time you can go fishing is the best time to go. When's McConaughey kinda get going? When's its peak? most places, May, June
Brad (37:25.99)
If you it depends on what you're after. If you're after big walleye, I recommend most of my groups come in late April to early May for our post spawn bite, that's really good. If a guy's really good, you know, a sort of a hardcore walleye fisherman who likes to cast jigs. you know, I love the pre-spawn, which is late March to mid April. And but, you know, throwing a jig's not for everyone. I I really have to, you know, sort of vet my clients if you know, if a guy just wants to go pull
you know, baits or something that time of year, it's gonna be a miserable time 'cause we exclusively throw jigs. but you know, if you're after big ones and you're really hardcore walleye fisherman late March, early May or late March, early April. if you're sort of a casual fisherman, want a big walleye late April to early May for a postpon bite. And if you're after, you know, more quantity, I'd recommend the month of June into early July. you know, we we actually had a game park started stocking
twenty to twenty five million walleye a year out here. And it it we've really the last four or five years we've really seen influx of eater walleye and a lot of people complained that they weren't catching eater walleye about, you know, two, three years ago. But this year was you know, we had a lot of good fifteen to twenty inch walleye in our summer season.
Brian Bashore (38:39.617)
That's that's exactly what you want to see.
Brad (38:43.288)
yeah, yeah. You they don't all just, you know, start at twenty five inches out here McConaughey.
Brian Bashore (38:47.181)
Right. I mean it makes that trophy a bonus and and you can stumble into them more when they're mixed in with some of those. But with those L wise, those things are gonna grow so fast. I mean they're I mean, yeah, that that's a that's a big number for stocking, twenty twenty five million where most places are lucky to hit one one point five or something like that. And I love the Missouri River isn't even stocked, it's all natural.
Brad (38:51.484)
Mm-hmm.
Brad (38:56.187)
Exam.
Brian Bashore (39:09.27)
but yeah, you gotta stock that place. That's I mean they spend a lot of stocking in South Dakota on the g on the glacial lakes. They are stocking some in Oahe and stuff like this in certain areas, hoping those fish kinda stay in those areas just 'cause you know, the numbers get low or whatever, but fishing's
Brad (39:12.24)
Lot of them are
Brad (39:23.524)
lot of them are fries, so the success on those is probably astron astronomically low. But they they stock about one to one point five million fingerling and they have a lot better success rate but still, you know, you know how the stocking goes. It's it's not it's not great, but
Brian Bashore (39:40.354)
Yeah. And it also the it's like the spawning, okay, you got a million of them put in there, but it's like one, three percent or something survival. I mean it I mean it's still hundreds of thousands of fish, but that that's why they stu the not stocking numbers are so big. I think I don't even know what it is. Three percent of spawns, I think. Cause like you said the fryer, I mean, they turned into bait, you know, and and then we had the problem with the Modelus Clark when they tried to stock this this isn't working because there's too much current, they're just going getting sucked right through. And then they had to
Brad (40:07.777)
So the owlwife or what really, you know, is the biggest what they've said is the owl wife are the toughest obstacle in stalking and natural recruitment in the lake, 'cause the owl wife or but the biologist Daryl Eichner told me, that the owl wife are like the best zooplankton predator the way their gills and their mouth are set up and they just really deplete zooplankton in a a reservoir and
So like I said earlier, it's that's their biggest obstacle is trying to get those fish past that that point where the zooplankton is their, you know, diet.
Brian Bashore (40:42.283)
Right, yeah, that's so zooplankton is particles or the microbio organisms that are in the water that paddlefish eat and bait fish eat. That's what they're they're eating. Obviously a minnow can't chew, you know, eat another minnow, so it's eating plankton and L wives are basically bait that are eating a plankton, which makes it hard for young of the year fish to have anything to eat 'cause you lack plankton. Same kind of deal. Asian carp do. That's why they get into fisheries and ruin it because they deplete it of all the plankton and then you don't have any bait. You don't have bait, you don't have
Brad (41:03.808)
Exactly.
Brian Bashore (41:12.085)
you know, the game fish there. So it's one of those never ending type of of deals that just sucks, right? It just kinda goes. Yep. But you got good f you still got the trout fishing below the dam there on the backside and all that jazz.
Brad (41:19.802)
Circle live, yep, yep.
Brad (41:26.092)
Yeah, but Yeah, I've heard that's pretty good. you know, I I think Local Lake Ogallala's a little slower, tougher, but you know, the Keystone Canal and the North Platte River below Lake Ogallala's you know, man, I saw some people cleaning some trout and they were three to three to five, six pounders. So definitely the best trout yeah, the best trout fishery in the state hands down.
Brian Bashore (41:43.381)
Big drought.
Brian Bashore (41:46.992)
yeah, yeah, hands down. And 'cause the water's coming out of the you know, obviously the bottom end of that dam, so it's cold and however I haven't I've never I've been back there. It's been a long time and I but I haven't fished it and you know, so I know we'll we might drive by again as we go to the Broncos game here in late October and if we take that route we'll have to take a take a peek. 'Cause my wife's never seen it, but I I gotta and she hasn't been to Oli's yet neither. So when I used to always go that route when I lived to Lake and I'd come out and that that's
Brad (42:11.837)
Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (42:15.861)
I you always gotta stop at Oli's, so so if you don't know what Oli's is, people look it up. Oli's big game bar and grill, right? Is that what it's still called, I believe. So Yep. You wanna talk about a butt I don't know if it's a hole in the wall, but it's I don't know what else is in town there besides the co op. So but it's good place to grab a yeah, good place to grab an elk burger or whatever and see all the all the tax dermin to mounts on the wall and good people, good food, good good time, good place out there. I got some
Brad (42:18.204)
Absolutely. Yeah. All those big game modes.
Brad (42:24.565)
Yep, yep.
Brad (42:33.161)
Yeah, tax in Nebraska.
Brian Bashore (42:45.185)
Some friends that are still out that way and they fish out there and yeah, I gotta get out there. It's just a cool place. So it's just a big Nebraska it's kinda known. Waters are a little dirtier, a little muddier till you get to McConaughey. It's sand. It is a sand freaking lake. Waters I what's your water clarity out there now? It's it's gotta be really good.
Brad (42:57.567)
Exactly, but
Brad (43:02.248)
It's good. you know, times divers will have ten foot when they're spearfishing the visibility. you know, like we were talking you were talking about catfish. you know, I I tell you what, it's tough to a cat a Lake McConaughey catfish is probably one of the better catfishes to eat in, you know, definitely in the state of Nebraska. I mean I you clean those things and it's it's nice white meat, you know. You got a maybe a tick of yellow at the top, but you you catch catfish in other areas and you can tell the difference.
Brian Bashore (43:17.538)
Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (43:30.475)
Yep. Yep. For sure. I kind of see that with the river cats. I'm like, these are a little better than some of the lake ones where that water's Lewis Clark's hot. I our water temps are in the eighties, but same deal, they're not as yellow. You know, some have a little bit more tint to it. But I'm like, you want you don't want these muddy water, hot water cats in the summer are gonna taste good. If you got a river where it's cruising, that's better. But also you a crystal clear lake or something like McConhey, then then hell yeah, that's what you that's what you want. Especially and they're eating those.
That fatty bait. The old rumors in the days from the divers, so you guys got you got a lot of divers that spear fish out there. Well, they'd always say there's McConaughey's got catfish the size of Volkswagens down there. I swear I've seen You know, they'll they'll eat humans. Yeah. I I don't I don't think that was a I'm not sure.
Brad (44:03.125)
Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah, I'm not sure about that one. We've seen some blackheads. Forty-six pound flathead was the biggest bladhead we've ever gotten out of the lake. But yeah, you know, actually the but this the channel cats sort of stun out here. you know, go to Calamus Reservoir in Nebraska and they get twenty pound, you know, channel cats, but it yes
I mean there's been some nice channels but most of them are the biggest one usually is fifteen pounds, but
Brian Bashore (44:38.797)
Yeah, we had a 15-pounder, a little kid caught the other day. And I'm like, that that's you don't want to eat that one, but I'm like, he he wasn't very old. And I thought he was gonna break the rod that his dad was a big man and he helped him. Well, I we both helped him. It took a little while, but he was probably like six, seven years old. I was like, just keep just real. Just just just keep reeling. You know, that drags loose stuff. I'm like, it it took him five or ten minutes. I'm like, it went it was probably a 13-pounder it, but it was we just caught a like an eight and a nine, and I'm like, this one's
Brad (44:43.935)
Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (45:07.873)
This one's little bit bigger and it was twenty feet, twenty nine feet deep. So it wasn't, you know, feet it wasn't too hard. It didn't take forever to get up, but it but it did. But that little kid was a it was good to go after that. I think you needed a nap and about two o'clock we took him in and mom picked him up. He was done. I'm like, Yeah, he he caught a few big cats and was like, Ooh boy. Then his brother got to catch a few after that. But it I'm like, he did catch the biggest one of the day. He gets that that gold. I think I actually might have hooked it and like, come here, buddy, come over here and
Brad (45:23.677)
Yeah, yeah, that's what it's all about.
Brian Bashore (45:37.28)
Add him the rod and I'm like, Dad, you're gonna have to help and hang on to this rod too. But I'm like, don't hold it up here because it's gonna bend all the way back to the handle. This that Saint Corey was definitely being tested. I I should probably throw a couple catfish rods in a boat. Good time good times for an ugly stick. So for sure. Hey, all right, for those folks that are listening, they wanna find you, they want to go check out and chase some of these trophies or just have a good time at a on Big Mac there, or they wanna go get some salmon.
Brad (45:50.227)
absolutely.
Brian Bashore (46:05.385)
At Lake Wahi, where can they find ya? How they gonna get a hold of ya?
Brad (46:09.361)
You know, you can call me nine seven zero five eight zero nine two two nine or get on my website like digmaxpoil dot com or you know, Facebook. I'm on Facebook too, so you can see how we're doing on Facebook and you know, see see the fishing report out here at McConaughey, you know, the next six weeks up at Wahae.
Brian Bashore (46:28.365)
I may have to give you a shout and jump in for a day on a wally and try to maybe go do some video and chase somebody's salmon for once. So you guys gotta go catch one. So may I live here? I should probably go. I had a buddy that does a little bit of it and I haven't talked to him for a while and he hasn't been doing it. I was like, all I'll come out in the summer, we'll go. Cause he he's got it, he lived in pier and he's kind of got it dialed in where he can go out and catch, you know, a couple salmon. but yeah, I'm kind of like I said, I don't I'm not
Brad (46:35.603)
Yeah, that sounds awesome. Exactly.
Brian Bashore (46:55.425)
I don't like to fish super, super deep. I don't hate trolling by all means. I don't I don't mind trolling. But that's the name of the game. That's how you're gonna get them. So it
Brad (47:02.699)
Mm-hmm. The salmon they they don't get the bends like the walleye do. So if you if you didn't want to keep them all you know, like they actually do well and you can let go. But
Brian Bashore (47:10.715)
I'm catching salmon. I'm eating that some gun. I'm I love me some salmon. So but if it's a I mean what how big are we talking over here on size wise on these
Brad (47:12.945)
Yeah, exactly. They're good to eat. Yeah. Absolutely.
Brad (47:21.098)
Biggest one we've caught's twenty pounds. I'd say the average probably gonna be, you know, ten to fifteen though. so
Brian Bashore (47:23.127)
Twenty.
Brian Bashore (47:27.329)
That's good sized salmon. I can't is our state record here? I want to say forty, but I could be wrong.
Brad (47:35.065)
With that, I didn't get that.
Brian Bashore (47:35.309)
I can't remember the state record in South Dakota salmon. Forty, I want to say it's forty pounds or something, but that sounds that sounds more like it. I'm thinking forty sounds a little excessive. I know the Nebraska record came out of Lewis and Clark and it's like four pounds. Cause there's no salmon in Lewis Clark.
Brad (47:40.977)
I think it's thirty thirty one or thirty three. Yeah.
Brad (47:49.889)
you know you know the the co ho salmon records out of McConaughey, nineteen seventy one, five pounds, but they probably have kings, they had kings at Lewis and Clark, is that what or they probably came all the way down from Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (47:57.579)
Okay.
Brian Bashore (48:03.051)
Yeah, well it it got washed down through the floods. So I mean I caught a couple of rainbow trout this year and they're not they don't survive in there neither, but they got they dump in at Fort Randall in like March or April, kids fishing day. Hey, everybody come out, catch the crap out of these trout, you know, 'cause they're gonna die in a little while. Well, some of are are surviving. They stay up in the fast water at the dam where it stays cool and they get deep, and then a few of have made it thirty miles down river where we caught I'm like, Well, just keep it 'cause it's it's not gonna survive. It's
Brad (48:13.634)
Mm-hmm.
Brad (48:21.056)
that's
Brad (48:32.738)
Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (48:33.281)
This lake isn't very deep and this water's eighty four degrees right now. So yeah, that rainbow trap, they're not they're not digging it. They're not liking it. So anyway. All right. Awesome, Brad. Good to know you got me all a little little excited. I might be reaching out to go chase some salmon for a day. you guys pretty booked up, or are you kind of just getting a few days here or there? You get a little time off.
Brad (48:39.778)
Mm-hmm.
Brad (48:54.017)
No, no, I'm booked. I hit the ground running August thirteenth, and I don't have another opening till September nineteenth and twentieth. I got two more days left at the very end. We we had did so good booking up there that we decided to extend another five days and almost got that all booked up. I got two other guides going up with me, Shane and Bert, and Shane's
About full in that whole time frame. He's got some late September. Bert's got some late September. But yeah, we'll have three three guides running every single day for six weeks up there so
Brian Bashore (49:25.397)
Awesome, awesome. Well, shit, I better get on get on your website and get my day booked in there. So we'll see what see what holds. I've kind of bouncing around a little bit more, trying to film stuff and just go do some things like that. Cause you're not that far a four or five hour drive for me. So worth every penny. McConnell's five or six and two, two things I need to get done. Maybe it we will get them done here in late August. We'll see. Or September. September can get September's just kind of some weird fishing. And yeah, when the walleye bite sucks. It but must be that's kind of a pre sponsor. I imagine that's
Brad (49:30.638)
Okay.
Brad (49:39.008)
No, not at all.
Brian Bashore (49:54.517)
Salmon's kind of a really good time to go salmon fishing.
Brad (49:56.321)
Yeah, you know, that water column is where those salmon like to be sorta gets smashed down in the heat of the summer like August and September and that's why sorta I think that's why it's sort of a good time to get away from McConaughey and then have a you know, a break from tough fishing and but that salmon's been a a heck of a cure for it.
Brian Bashore (50:15.125)
Yeah, yeah, hell yeah. Come up here to beautiful South Dakota and and chase down some salmon and good eats, man. Boy, if there's something that I don't know if I'd say better than a walleye or not, but pretty damn close it's gotta be salmon. So gotta be.
Brad (50:27.976)
Absolutely like sharp, those walleye they're just they're just fun to catch. Catch a lot of good.
Brian Bashore (50:30.997)
Yeah, Lake Sharps Yeah, yeah, definitely. People want to go catch a salmon one day, book a multi-day trip. You want to go catch walley one day, go to Sharpen. Plenty of eater eater wallies in there. Plenty, plenty of them. More than enough. Yep. It and it just keeps I you just don't see the big ones there. They're obviously there because that place is reproducing so well. And most of that's majority of that's natural. But man, is there a lot of eaters? And eaters this year have been on the higher end. I mean, there's a nice
Brad (50:42.508)
Yeah, it's an incredible fishery. Yeah. Yeah, that's that's fun.
Brad (50:56.539)
it's
Brian Bashore (50:59.573)
eighteen, nineteen in inch year class in there. So you're gonna probably do real well on your days. You gotta go mix it up and that's nice too to kinda switch up, except for the fact that you gotta swap gear all over. But
Brad (51:11.916)
No, luckily I you you just really need bottom bouncers on that. So I keep up in the front of the boat and all the salmon gear and the big compartments and my twenty two hundred skeeter. So pretty lucky I don't have to swap that stuff out too too bad. But
Brian Bashore (51:24.715)
Yeah, yeah, that's that's good. Well, that's a guide life for you, right? So it it's it all comes with some work. So that's how it works. No. Yep. I had did a radio show the other day and it's like, what is a normal day? When does it start and when does it end? I'm like, Well, you can add at least four hours to your eight hour guide trip. Yeah, it's like a time you f your morning, ice, bait, travel, fuel, prep, cleanup, fish cleaning.
Brad (51:28.545)
yeah. Yeah. No, it it's not just going fishing, that's no doubt.
Brad (51:42.778)
definitely.
Brian Bashore (51:50.145)
You know, then you get in if you're like me living in a camper, you got your emails, your phone call, all that can you know, do it during the day when you're on the water with clients, so you're you know, you're answering all those calls and stuff that evening. It's just we're probably a little crazy. Do it 'cause we love it.
Brad (52:05.317)
Exactly. Yeah. Sometimes it'd be nice to have a secretary, but you're the your own secretary, so
Brian Bashore (52:09.953)
Yep. Secretary that's what they said. I said, nope. Website, everything. It's a Yep, it's it's an all all one man type show here and the other guys obviously are working it and doing that stuff, but the business side of it is usually best done with a a one thing and you know, maybe someday all of us will have ten guides and a receptionist of, you know, or whatever the case is, or I'll
Brad (52:19.453)
Yep, Jack of all traits, master none.
Brad (52:35.763)
Mm-hmm.
Brian Bashore (52:38.091)
gladly be that person and sit in the office and do all that and everybody else go fishing all day and then you know I'll go just fun fish when I can. So anywho. All right, Dredd, thanks a ton for joining us today, folks. Check them out over there on Big Mac spoil eye guide service. Catch some salmon at Lake Wai. Go to Lake McConaughey and chase down some trophy walleyes. I know I want to, but it's been quite probably 10 years. Last time I was there is for a tournament. but man I'm just
Just a cool place, great fishery. I don't think I barely ever had any bad days of fishing, but I've had been been blessed with some of that awesome Lake McConaughey storms that roll through that area. So that gets it gets wicked, but it's kind of what same stuff that happens up here on the Missouri River. So you don't see it coming, and when it's coming, yeah, yep, yep, it gets wild. So all right, thanks, man, and thank all you for tuning in and listening to this episode of Real Talk Fishing. Tight line, stay safe. We'll see you on the water.