The annual Maple Vallley / Lake Wilderness Derby was as usual a crowd gathering event. No problem there in that the lake produces fish and there was plenty of room on the lake. Worked the area between the boat ramp and big private dock on the opposite shore, north to south between the ladder log and the cove north of the large private doc. 15 minutes into the day, meaning around 5:45 AM, I hooked a nice little trout; 16 inch, 30.5 oz (by the weigh masters scale). Caught and released another 4 -5 planters that ran 10 - 12 inches. Very fiesty and a lot of fun. Dragging a hunk of worm on a wedding ring behind my pontoon float boat. Fished ar a depth of 3 -5 ft for most of the morning. Dropped a little deeper after 9:30 AM. Fishing slowed considerable after about 9:00 AM, but was still interesting enought to keep me going until just before 12:00. The bigger fieh entered in the derby have to be holdovers from last year. No trips planted according to WSFG...

---