When You Fish So Much You Need a Spa Day… on a Bike… in Bib Shorts

7/14/20253 min read

If you're one of the one actual fisherman who opens these looking for hot baits, depths, GPS pins, or what color spoon I’m catching 20-pounders on—close the browser now. Seriously. Nothing to see here. The only “intel” I got today came from a dude who texted me from the point at 8:06am with three bites and a bad attitude…then followed up two hours later with a pic of a hog lake trout. No context. No coordinates.

This one’s for the other two of you who don’t mind a fishing report without actual fishing in it.

Why No Fishing today? Because two years ago I fished 11 days in a row during tournament week and came out cooked, done, needed like a week to recover (and I don’t drink – can’t imagine how some of you do it with 20 drinks/day!). So this year, I’m pacing myself. Which meant today’s schedule was less Downrigger Tangles & Dipsy Drama and more Mojo Maintenance & Self-Care.

Ludington to Muskegon…Yesterday, post-south-troll, I had an epiphany: I’ve never done any of my weird salmon mojo stuff on the south end. So naturally, I hopped in the truck and drove to Muskegon—because that’s what normal people do, right? Dinner? Salad. (Trying to detox from the Wesco donut binge.) Sunset? Top-tier. Not quite Ludington-level, but close. Only note: Muskegon lighthouse needs a little TLC. It looks like the set of Beat Street with Ramo and Spit tagging it on the regular. Sandblast, paint, repeat please.

Tour De Ludington (that means “tour of Ludington” – I had French in 9th and 10th grade! Mrs. Neubrecht – she drove “Le Car”) 7am wake-up. (Felt like sleeping in.) Protein smoothie and avocado down the hatch (Wesco donut detox continued). Hopped on the bike to the State Park, which I have a history with since the early ‘80s. Back then, we’d camp there over Labor Day weekend with my dad’s buddy Jimmy Dean (his best friend was Bob Evans - actual names, I swear).

Thinking of doing the 30-mile charity ride this Labor Day… so today was a test: Will the bike survive? Will I survive? Will my butt survive?

On the way north, 7 miles out, hugging the coast, Avg speed: 15.1 MPH (fast for me, slow for Tour de France – I think), Avg heart rate: 98 BPM (borderline naptime), Sweat level: Nonexistent!

The park was starting to wake up…Fires being rekindled, campers rolling out of their tents looking dazed and lightly hungover. I did the full loop: Hamlin Lake ➡️ The Dam ➡️ All Campgrounds ➡️ Bathhouse Inspection. I decided to give my 3 readers an extra special treat…I’ve only taken 2 selfies in my life – well today I selfied (is that right?) myself at all the cool spots – just for you!

Saw some boats working the bank—shoutout to the lone woman in full bibs holding the line down. That fish will bite at 11am. Believe me.

On the way back, I passed all the Ludington landmarks: Chuck Wagon (pizza's decent post-Rick, but not the same), Nader’s Motel (still for sale, Justin, return a call maybe?), Bike shop test rides (tempting, but my current ride still has 2 good wheels)

So back to the original questions:

Bike okay? Meh. Needs brakes, squeaks, possibly leaking tires.
Body okay? Surprisingly yes…way easier than a 5k
Butt okay? Absolutely not. At the halfway mark I hopped off to check out Hamlin Lake and realized my entire lower half felt like someone gave it novocaine. Kyle at the bike shop says “you’ll get used to it.” But do I want to get used to that tingling in areas that should never tingle? That’s a think-about-it-with-a- NA beer moment.

I now have full Lake Michigan mojo coverage from Muskegon to Big Point Sable. Tomorrow, we’re back to full throttle fishing on the water. But for today, I’m going to: Wash the condo windows, Spit-shine the Tiara, Maybe hang with Riley, Definitely NOT eat a whole Wesco donut or even a half (but better pack another plastic knife for the rest of the week) – oh wait, Glenn is fishing with us tomorrow, cherry pie Glenn!

What I Learned:

State Park roads = butter smooth and look great – best state park in Michigan!
Post-Rick Chuck Wagon pizza is still worth it, but not sacred.
20 mile bike ride = easy…5k run = hard!
My new, super expensive (remember people, I’m not buying any fishing stuff in 2025, I have lots of extra money all of a sudden) hiking boots are unbelievable – highly recommend!
Sometimes skipping a fishing day is the most fishy thing you can do.

Back on the water tomorrow with Charlie Daniels, Glenn the vet and cherry pie dude, Kaedin and maybe Riley. Oh, crap, what if Glenn brings cherry pie and Charlie Daniels brings cinnamon rolls - good or bad? Worse, what if they both read this and neither brings anything!