boat fishing and man over board

Hi Folks, Been out and about on my boat the last few days guiding and fishing.  Mixed up the still water fishing and chased lake trout and smallmouth bass.  Water temperatures have in the mid to high seventies on the surface.  Been fairly calm in the morning with a west wind increasing as the day progressed.  Whether fishing for smallmouth or lakers we have been setting up on structure.  Fishing submerged humps and islands that come out of deep water.  Incredible how fish relate to a lonesome piece of rock or debris on the bottom of a lake.  If that is the only piece of cover on the bottom and the surrounding area is featureless, then the bait fish and the predators will be holding there.  We have been jig fishing with swim baits that imitate emerald shiners for the lakers and 3.5" craw fish looking tube jigs for the smallmouth.  Heavier jig heads in deeper water and lighter jig heads in shallow water.  Good steady action, but nor real large fish until this morning.  Mostly lakers and smallmouth in the 1lb to 2lb class.  However, this morning my client did hook a monstrous smallmouth  on a popper and the fish immediately jumped out of the water and then wrapped itself all through some submerged wood.  We could see the big bass in the wood wrapped up and my client promptly jumped over board to attempt to free the fish from the wood.  Unfortunately the fish got free.  That was the first time in 17 years of guiding that I have ever seen someone jump out of the boat to go after a fish.  Pretty funny.  Well, morning is still the most pleasant time to be on the water.  Trout fishing in the small brooks is still steady and the big rivers are still too warm.  I will be guiding a small brook on the fly this afternoon.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy