I'm off the water this weekend for family stuff, but this past week was another good one. July so far has basically been a 50+ every other outing, with some smaller** fish mixed in. Big blades (Spanky Baits 11" Fireball) and big plastics (Big Joe, Mo Joe, Mag Dawg, Pounder)are leading the charge, with an occasional topwater thrown in to make things intersting. Fishing last night with a couple great guys, the remarkable fish was a stout 52 1/2" beauty, caught on a Fireball, whose girth was just a hair shy of 25". That's pretty heavy for a July fish. It was a fun night out with big fish, can't beat that.

Last night the fish bit right before sunset, but night fishing is still the most productive.

The water temps are mostly 69 degrees everywhere. The water is surprisingly murky all over. Visibility is relatively low all over the lake. A few days ago it was surprisingly dirty at the northeast, Sunset Bay, pretty much everywhere. The west side isn't any better. The stained water isn't slowing down the fishing at all, it just makes it harder to see follows.

**On Mille Lacs "smaller" means up to, and including, 49 7/8". Note that "smaller" on Mille Lacs means "bigger" almost anywhere else.