Bumper boats yesterday below the dam @ Genoa. Tailwaters will be the only open-water access on the River for at least another week. Walleyes have been holding in 29-32 fow, saugers a little deeper BUT I refuse to fish deeper than 32 fow cuz of air bladder rupture in fish that can be quickly cranked in from deep water.

Most can be released to “swim away”. no different than a heart shot buck. But you can’t hear a sauger ‘crash’ on the bottom like you can a deer in the timber.

A big part of me says this valuable resource could be best protected by closing all fishing north of the Genoa launch until maybe March 15. But 4 out of 5 voices in my head say the last thing we need is more government infringement on our unalienable rights to access the Immortal River.

Just got back from a couple weeks fishin’ the Gulf out of Ft. Morgan, Alabama. Fishing sucked. Unlimited seafood & sugar sand beaches were nice. Where I was going with this is tennis shoes. One mange-bearded, jihadi nitwit stuffs a cherry bomb in his Nikes and everybody younger than
75 has to remove their sneakers before boarding the big bird forever after. What a huge raft of crap!

A couple of years ago the FWS held public meetings over charging hunting & fishing guides a fee for every person they take out on our resource for pay. In spite of overwhelming rejection by the public I’ve gotta pay $3 for every person I take out on the River fishin’ to educate them on good stewardship for the resource.

With tis gin-blossom camel’s nose under the tent of freedom it’s just a matter of time before access is limited to vessels powered by renewable resource propulsion.

The global warming hustle is just another way to control the people. But before i go down this rabbit hole rant, back to the brutal honesty of the River.

The new albin access is still locked up with ice. About 5″ of cloudy stuff just out from the ramp. Some small pocket of open water are beginning to appear.

NOTHING trumps SAFETY on the dangerous Mississippi!! If you launch @ the power plant you can make it up to the Genoa dam–but nothing says ice won’t block the ramp when you try to take the boat out.

Don’t go out there without a workable exit strategy downstream. Victory & Blackhawk park are a couple possible options on the East side of the River. No workable exit options on the West side for 10+ miles downstream. MAYBE highway 82…in a couple of weeks. MAYBE.

Last early spring I got jammed up by ice twice trying to get back to the new Albin ramp and had to go with the Plan B option to get home. Catching walleyes/sauger downstream from the power plant launch is not a problem. Far fewer boat to contend with.

Ice jams WILL be a problem for at least another month even if our El Nino winter continues. Plan on it! If the weather trend continues i might hang up the guide shingle prior to March 15.

Last spring I boated 300+ fish from mid- feb to mid-March, even though having a respectable gut-zipper from serious surgery on jan. 11 put a serious hitch in my git-along.

Lord willin’ this spring will be more productive. Only the Creator knows what’s in store for us. Beyond the reality of the River, any country which allows the government to take down a statue of Tommy Jefferson and sets illegal aliens free after they beat up new York coppers is setting the stage to focus on much bigger concerns than fishin’ in 2024.

There’s a bad moon on the rise