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By Louie Stout
The Waldron Chain of Lakes in Indiana’s Noble County – also known as Duke’s Bridge - has become a hot spot for bass anglers.
Tournament results in recent years show the lake has some quality bass and it’s become a popular early season/late season tourney site.
Anglers must launch in a channel along the north branch of the Elkhart River. With fish being released there after a tournament, many anglers have asked, “are those fish making it back to the lakes and to where they were caught?”
The Indiana DNR plans to find out. Beginning in late April or May, fish managers will begin collecting bass from the lakes, inserting tiny transmitters into their bellies, and releasing them. In addition, receivers will be submerged at strategic locations in the various lakes.
“We’re excited about this project and hope to learn a lot,” said DNR District Biologist Tyler DeLauder. “When a fish carrying a transmitter swims by a receiver, it will record it. We will go out periodically and pull the receivers, download the information, and put the receivers back in the water. This should begin to tell the story on what those fish are doing after being released at the ramp.”
DeLauder said he only has 10 transmitters, as they are very costly.
“We’re using the less expensive ones and they still cost $375 each,” he noted. “There are better ones that provide water depth in which the fish are swimming and water temperature, but they cost $1,000 each.”
Anglers will know if fish they catch are carrying a transmitter because a small, orange-colored tag will be protruding from the belly. DeLauder encourages anglers to not remove the tag unless they plan to keep the fish. If so, he’d like to get the transmitter returned so biologists can use it again. It’s the size of an AA battery and lasts for up to 600 days.
“I realize this (10 tagged fish) is a small sample size but we think it will give us answers to our questions about fish movement on that lake,” DeLauder said. “Years ago, we did a similar project on Wawasee, but today’s technology is better. Ultimately, we’d like to do a smaller lake and get tags for bluegill and other fish to track their seasonal movements.”
The biologist said that he would be interested in talking to an angler or group representative who would like to buy additional tags for the project.
You can contact him at the North East Regional Office, (260) 244-7049.
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Sportsman Spotlight
Hometown: Sturgis, Mich.
Occupation: TV show personality
Favorite fish species and biggest: smallmouth, 7-15
Favorite Michiana Lake: Gull Lake
Favorite rod and reel: 7-2 Lew’s Zona Tube Crackin’ or 7-4 Lew’s Hackney Frog rod. The reason I like both is even though labeled cracking or frog, I’m able to use them for multiple techniques and both actions cater to the way I fish around my house.
Hobbies when not fishing: Deer hunting, watching Chicago Bears, and pontooning.
If you only had one lure and why: ½-ounce Strike King Structure Jig.
Best tip to give a new Michiana angler: Learn…I was fortunate to hang around some of the best anglers in the Midwest - Greg Mangus, Neil Vander Biezen, Mark Snyder, Chip Harrison Larry Barnett, and of course, KVD. I wanted to know what their fastball was – their specialty – and learn from that. I would modify it to fit my style. They were all open with information that made them successful and now I do the same.
By Louie Stout
Mark Zona needs no introduction. His big on-camera personality has made him one of the most popular names in bass fishing and his TV Show, “Zona’s Awesome TV Show” is the highest rated fishing show on TV.
But what you may not know is Zona is deeply rooted in Michiana, having moved from Chicago to his parents’ summer home on Klinger Lake as a teenager and built his angling career on Michiana waters.
He fished a lot of local tournaments and was a big stick in regional events. He held several different jobs in his younger years and became a top-notch boat seller at dealerships before he was recruited to work in TV.
He still lives on Klinger and has no intention of leaving the area.
“Ever since I began working for Bassmaster and in television, people ask me why I don’t move south where bass fishing is huge,” he insists. “I love fishing up here and I would never be able to thank the numerous friends I’ve been in the boat with and what I’ve learned from them. But I’m not gonna lie, I don’t like the winters.”
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Sportsman Spotlight
Hometown: Union, Mich.
Occupation: Jayco construction
Favorite fish species and biggest: Largemouth bass, 7.2 pounds
Favorite Michiana lake: Long Lake, Union, Mich.
Favorite rod and reel: 8-0 Leviathon Rod and Shimano Antares DC
Hobbies when not fishing: Painting lures and being with family
If you only have one lure and why: Bury Basswood Glide bait, you can fish it most of year and I really enjoy doing it.
Best tip to give a new Michiana angler: If you want to gain confidence in a glide bait, work them like you do Chatterbaits. Reel it and put action in rod tip. Fish it like would a conventional lure and you will gain confidence once you start catching fish.
By Louie Stout
I have said for a long time that Michiana is blessed with a lot of talented anglers.
Floyd Wolkins belongs in that group – not just based on his skills with big baits – but his lure painting talents as well. He does custom painting for glide and wake bait companies who send him expensive baits to paint for their customers.
He’ll do 200 a month for Clutch and Willie Pete Glide baits on top of working a full-time job at Jayco. And that’s not all – anglers from throughout the U.S. send him baits to repaint or paint.
When he’s not painting, he’s fishing big baits on Michiana lakes. Last year, he caught three largemouth bass over 5 pounds and a 6-2. He’s landed two bass over 7 with big glide baits.
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Sportsman Spotlight
Hometown: Angola, Ind.
Occupation: DH Mechanical and Facility Consulting (he owns it)
Favorite fish species and biggest: Smallmouth 6-15
Favorite Michiana lake: Clear Lake, Stueben County.
Favorite rod and reel: Shimano Vanford spinning reel and Dobyns Champion Extreme 742 rod.
Hobbies when not fishing: Spending time with wife
If you only had one lure and why: Mango Jig - I can swim it, hop it on the bottom and they bite it in cold water.
Best tip to give a new Michiana angler: I’m big on paying attention to the details. It’s always about the details. Pay attention to the little things around you, not what other anglers are doing.
By Louie Stout
Heath Wagner knows how to catch ‘em around the Great Lakes area.
The Angola, Ind. angler has won six Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournaments and won more than $77,000 over the course of 38 tournaments. But over the years, he’s been a serious threat during inland lake and river tournaments.
Due to business obligations, he sat out most of last year and primarily fished weeknighters, but his name still resonates with anglers throughout eastern Michiana.
He’s a frequent seminar speaker, recently became a licensed fishing guide and will dabble with that this season for both bass and walleye.