We are at a tipping point; summer is slowly slipping away; autumn comes closer.  Daylight is shorter now; nighttime comes earlier, lingers later into the morning.  The hour of dawning is quieter; birds no longer sing with the abandon of spring when their songs will fill the time of daybreak.  In the fields birds begin to gather in small flocks, soon to build in number.
 
The summer heat continues to hold for now; this is the warmest time in a typical year (though this year it seems as if all bets are off on normal weather).  For those who spend time outdoors and love the summer months, this is the best you’ll see.  And the clock is ticking down.
 
As we head into this week conditions are summer activities are about as good as they get.  Lake water is pleasant, days are sunny and warm, the woods are lush and green.  The mosquito plague of early summer has subsided and wood ticks have decreased.  They’ll come back in cooler weather but for now all is well.
 
The just-past July was cooler than the norm and that has kept fishermen pretty happy.  In the past week we’ve had continued reports of very good walleye and musky fishing as well as an increase in bass activity.  The heat now forecast for this week may slow things down but as it stands we’re coming off some strong fishing results and have hopes that will continue.
 
Walleyes continue to produce.  It comes as no surprise that jigs with crawlers or leeches or good artificial tails are the best lure to use.  And walleyes continue to hold where they usually do in the heat; deeper water weeds next to sand or gravel.  Find those areas and you’ll find fish.
 
Bass fishing has been slower than usual this summer but the past 2 weeks has seen in increase in success.  Bass location varies but generally smallies are in deeper water or in faster moving water in streams.  Largemouth on many lakes will look to shallower water under lily pads, especially in evening, but on some deep lakes will drop out into deeper water.
 
Musky action continues to be steady and that’s good news given that they usually slow down dramatically in August.  The usual mix of top-water lures and deeper running lures work with no one particular lure standing out above all others.

The Outdoor Report is provided by the staff of Mel’s Trading Post in downtown Rhinelander.