I had the honor of being invited by the Berwyn Bear, Ron Fiala, this past week to fish with “Team Smallmouth”. Team Smallmouth is a group of awesome individuals from the Chicago and Milwaukee area that fish northern Wisconsin once a year for smallmouth bass. Many of them have fished all over the world for trout, bonefish, permit, etc. but this trip was for big Menomonee river smallmouth bass. A big thank you to Ben, Jim, Jimmy, Skip, Ron, Nate, Mack, “Skeeter’ Jane and of course Ron for inviting me to join their elite group. It was a pleasure getting to know all of you and the Tightline Fly Fishing guides from Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Now for the report: I drove up to Chicago on June 26th to stay with the Berwyn bear and of course the night was filled with food and bourbon. The next morning, we packed the car and took the 5-hour drive north to Pembine, Wisconsin. If you would have looked down for a second you would have passed it. We checked into our motel and headed over to a meet and greet hosted by Skip, who had recently purchased a beautiful cabin on the river. Here we met Team Smallmouth and the guides, received our “assignments” and locations to fish during the three-day trip. Of course, we had a few beers and brats while we talked of past fly-fishing adventures.
On the first day Ron and I met our guide Drew (“Durbs”) and fished the Quiver Falls area of the Menomonee river. Beautiful location and didn’t see a soul the entire float. Catching was slow as Ron and I boated around 8 -10 smallmouth and lost about the same. We fished all top water with boogle bugs and large foam bugs. You had to concentrate the entire time as the bass would come up and just “suck” in your fly, set the hook and the fight was on – spectacle jumps. We floated through the Quiver Falls white water area which was a wild ride.
On Day two we fished the upper Menomonee near the “Dam” with guide Todd. Again, we concentrated on top water fishing. On this day the sun was out most of the time and we thought the top water bite would improve but again, we boated about 8 – 10 smallies and lost about as many. This section of river was a little more “used” as we saw a scout troop set up for a canoeing trip. What a beautiful place to teach young men scouting.
On day three we fished the lower section of the Menomonee river called McAllister with our guide Charlie. This section had homes along the shoreline and was much wider than the areas we fished the first two days. But this section was noted for bigger smallmouth and it was true as we caught several pushing 18 – 19 inches. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the elusive 20 incher but several on the “Team” pulled in a couple smallmouth over twenty. Again, top water was the fly of choice although I caught a very nice smallie on a streamer pattern.
Well, that’s the fishing, each day about the same amount of fish – 8 -10. Even though the catching was fair it was a fabulous trip. The beauty of the Northwoods and the fresh air couldn’t be beat. But even more important than that was having the opportunity to meet some awesome people. Team Smallmouth – you rock! Each night the conversations and stories at dinner were entertaining and just plain fun. I hope I get invited back again – I wouldn’t miss it.
