Boys of Summer

I grew up fishing the cranberry marshes of rural Tomah and Warrens. I recall as a boy riding our bikes to the marsh of choice and fishing all day long; catching  bass and panfish on worms and beetle spins.  As I grew older, I got away from fishing the marshes as much, forgetting the value of this unique fishery.
As an adult, I’ve returned to the the marshes, guiding the old stomping grounds and sharing the passion I have for my boyhood fishing. Each time, my clients leave spell bound at the vast quanity of bass, pike and panfish they catch.
This weekend, I was left with some spare time so I decided to make the 45 minute hike to one of the marshes I grew up fishing. I got there around 8 am and got the NuCanoes in the water. It is always nice to fish this pond, because it almost always produces nice bass, even mid summer.  Averaging a depth of about 5 feet; this marsh, like many others of its kind, has a sandy bottom coupled with weed beds and lily pads. A benefit to fishing these marshes is there are no gas motors allowed, making this a haven for canoe/kayak anglers.
Once we got going, I directed my guest to the far end of the pond.  Most anglers start at the front of the pond and work their way back. I like to start from the back and work towards the front.  The water is shallower at the end and there is more weed cover.
Temperatures this week have been in the hundreds, so I knew with the cold front that moved through was going to be a starting point for the fish to start hitting shallow water; and with the could cover overhead, I knew the big bass were going to be in the weeds.
Once we got to the location, roughly a 5 minute paddle, we got set up with Bombshell Turtles and frogs. Upon review of the bay I liked, I could see the bass were actively feeding and knew it was going to be a gamble that will pay out.
Our first few casts produced bass right from the start. They were slamming our bombshell turtles as we skimmed them across the surface. Once the cloud cover went away, the fish became timid so we threw on frogs, something that was weedless and could be worked slow.
One of the things I enjoy most about the NuCanoe and the Frontier, is how easy it is to stand while fishing. I could see from above the waterline where the bass were feeding and could see the fish’s reaction to my lure. It takes little water it takes to run the Frontier, we could silently skim the outside of these pockets and avoid detection from the tenacious bass and get to within casting distance of feeding fish without spooking them.
After being on a school of bass, I instructed my companion to not limit out, to keep four bass until the end of the trip, otherwise we would have to quit fishing early. We caught a few more bass, then at 1130, we each took our last fish.
One thing I like about the cranberry marshes is the quality of the fish, not in size but in flavor. The meat of the fish tastes clean and the water quality is phenomenal.

  Written by
 Anthony Larson of Coulee Region Adventures has been a guide for the last 5 years, but a life long resident of the coulee region. Anthony shares the many adventures one can have in the Coulee Region of LaCrosse, WI.

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