Ludington Fishing Report: Logan Luck Hypothesis

9/21/20253 min read

Normally Sundays are a frantic sprint: quick troll, yank lines early, haul ass back to the dock, cram gear in the truck, three hours home, and then schoolwork until midnight. But thanks to my 2023 Ram deciding it didn’t feel like starting anymore (shocker—been here before), I scored a bonus day in Ludington. No rush, no road rage on US-31, just me, the boat, and the hogs. Honestly? Truck poop-out might be the best thing that’s happened all week.

Schoolwork is basically wrapped, stress levels at zero. Soup Club still looming Tuesday, but that’s a Future Jeff problem.

Today’s Crew:

Me (autopilot button presser, donut counter, blog guy).
Jenn, the Salmon Surgeon—zero chance of a bad trip when she’s aboard.
Charlie Daniels—dock rope master, long-line setter extortioner.
Petunia Josh (PJ)—No Kate today, but brought his foam-rod-butt obsession.

And then… the real question: Logan. This trip wasn’t about catching fish. It was about figuring out once and for all—WTF is up with this dude? Is he lucky? Or just flat-out fishy?

We met at 6am (well, most of us—PJ runs on his own time). Motored north to the bank, slid into 110 FOW, and started quartering the drop. Usually I set all 7 inside rods, then farm out longlines to 2 helpers—slick, efficient, like a pit crew. But Logan doesn’t roll that way. He works port side, someone else works starboard, and the chaos… works. Doesn’t feel as clean as my usual system—but here’s the kicker: we couldn’t get rods in without bites. Damn it, Logan!

We ended the morning 10 fish on 19 bites: 5 kings, 5 coho, And 4 hogs that got away (and you know they were giants).

Hot Bites (Logan brought 2 boxes of gems)

Blue Slice meat, low diver 150 back: 3 bites
Mr. Chrome Yeah Mon mini free-slider, rigger 74 down: 3 bites
White slick paddle + Pickled Sunshine, chute 100 down: 2 bites
LOGAN: Stinger Coyote, rigger 71 down: 2 bites
Red tail meat, high diver 200 back
LOGAN: DW Little Naked Lady 4” plug, 10 color leadcore
Showtime Bikini Bottom SD + Howie Fly, low diver 111 back (won it at Stix—thanks Gabe!)
Moonshine JJ Mac standard, 200 copper
LOGAN: Yeck Blue Dolphin, rigger 74 down
LOGAN: Yeck Double Orange Crush, 7 color leadcore
LOGAN: Johnson’s Freaking Blue Veggie, free-slider rigger 84 down
Black slick SD + Pickled Sunshine, high diver 220 back
LOGAN: Logan’s goofy new spoon, 300 copper (don’t ask, just know it worked).

What I Learned

Ali intel matters—thanks for the texts, nice 8-for-14! But today, I had Logan, so… advantage me. 😊Hit me up every time you see me please!
Been a while Charlie! Nice to have you back in business – literally!
Me: “But it just got bit, leave it.” Logan: “Nope, swap it out.” And then? Boom…Damn it again, Logan!
Diver bites are life. Logan can literally call the species by the cadence of the rod pounds. Freaky.
Logan isn’t “lucky.” He’s just a fish-brained dude who builds his own luck: right lure, right depth, right time. Smart dude!
El Rancho toothpicks might actually be the real secret sauce—Logan never said it, but we all knew. Starter kit delivered.
PJ’s foam rod butt obsession continues. Practical? Maybe. Cool? Hell no. Now he’s eyeballing the “pride” xtratuff’s!
Oh, and yes—Taylor Swift has taken over XM Channel 13. Did the fish eat more with her on? Yep. Love to admit it.

Truck’s still dead, Soup Club soup still looming, homework still lurking… but none of it mattered today. We had THE Logan, we had the mojo.

Next question: am I stuck in Ludington all week? Is Soup Club getting canceled (OMG, what if they have it without me!)? Or am I gonna be the first dude to Zoom into UWGB class from a fish cleaning table?

Disclaimer: I used Logan’s name 28 times in this blog (29 now). I appreciate everyone who’s fished with me this year (well, almost everyone), so I don’t want to insult anyone reading this by sounding Logan obsessed (30). I’m of sound mind and ready to move forward in life now.