POC – NOPE! 11/17/16.

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

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As  I write this today (Wednesday) before I hit POC tomorrow it almost scares me off.  It is always about being at the right place, at the right time, and the prognostications for tomorrow on the bay can be summed up in one word, it sucks.  A possible 20mph wind right down the pike, combined with a low Solunar activity leading to a “no fish” day does not exactly fill me with hope and anticipation.  So what does all the mean, I can’t wait.  So lets see tomorrow how it all comes out.

Weather

81/71   Sun and clouds mixed.  Wind South 10 -20  10% chance of rain.

Tides

High 1.3 at 1:02 am   Low  -0.2 1:20 pm  Tidal Velocity  is 88 and is considered high.  But as far as the 17th it is a “no fish day” on the 3 fish scale.   Solunar periods during the day – Low 9:56 to 10:56 pm   Average activity  3:28 to 5:28 pm.

No POC For Me

So after I wrote the stuff above the Boss and I went out for a little socialization and of course the first thing I did when I got home last evening was check the weather.  The wind forecast was already bumped to possible 25 mph and then the weather Dude at 10:00 said it might blow, especially in the afternoon.  So when I got up I looked at 3 or 4 weather sites, listened to the local morning guy, and watched the constant weather channel.  It just looked like it might blow so I made an executive decision and changed course.  Out went the wading stuff and in the skiff and off to the Lavaca I went.  Good call, first of several today.

When I got to the river it was way up and about the normal color.  There was almost a bare breath of wind so I headed way down river to the Swan Lake area.  The minute I got there the wind started out of the south.  It blew harder and harder, not gusts really, straight line at 25 mph right up the river, and stayed there.  It blew.

So here is where it gets sticky.  The tide is trying to fall but the wind is blowing water right back in the river.  And the current wants to flow down river and the wind says you are going back up river.   The minute I would cast there was an immediate big bow in the line.  Talk about hard to feel, river flowing one way, boat and line headed the other.  But the fish did me a favor and I figured out the rest.  And the wind did one other thing, lots of folks called it a day.

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A nice flounder headed to the grease.   Lots of rats scattered around.    

When I say this, the trout were right on the bank, most in the first hop or two, it is not because I am sure that is where they all are.  It may have been the result of the wind and lack of feel once the bait got deeper.  It was hard to work the plastic properly throwing across a 25 mph blow so I did 3 things and caught fish basically until I quit.  The first, changed to a 1/4 ounce jig head which not only helped it sink, it straightened out the bow some.  I was throwing a regular paddle tail but the tail working against the current and wind reduced the feel so second I went to the Down South.  The paddle is considerably smaller which reduced drag and increased feel.  Third I got way closer to the bank than I normally would, allowing shorter casts that helped keep the line straight so I could feel the bites.

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         The Boss ordered supper – 18″ and a 17″ headed to the grease.

Don’t get me wrong, it was really tough fishing, but it sure was better than being on the bay at POC and the snot knocked out of me coming back in.  So I just kept letting the wind blow me up river making short casts and missing way more than I caught.  A big red broke me off,  and of course I boated several rats.  The Boss ordered supper so I needed 2 trout and the couple above were in the cooler pretty quickly.   For the rest of the morning it was 12″ – 15″ trout, I didn’t measure any more but could have probably squeezed out a limit.  And that was the first flounder in the box in a while and will be pretty tasty later.

Before I quit, just because I was tired of fighting the wind, I went above the bridge into the creek to check out my secret really cold and windy day hole.  I decided to troll up to it just to see if one would bite.  I met a couple of guys who had trolled way up and back and did not have a bite.  I didn’t either until I stopped on my spot and tossed plastic.  A couple of small ones cooperated, but it is still just a hair to warm for that far up creek.  That will really change if we get what is coming this weekend.  The man was talking some folks hitting a low in the 30’s.  Bring it on!

There are days when I fish like crap and make poor decisions, and I tell you.  Today I fished like a pro.  Conditions were flat tough and I made it work.  I caught an easy 20 in 4 hours, and missed or lost that many more.  By changing the plan from bay to river, and then adjusting the presentation to fit with what I had, I caught fish.  Nice work if I do say so myself.  Not to often that I can say that about an adverse condition day.  The real thing to take away is the river and creek pattern is about to get after it.  Not sure how long it will last but the crazy fishing is right around the corner.

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It was good to get this great report from Jim on Fayette County.

Glad to see you had a good day on the lake. I fished a club tournament on Fayette Saturday. There were two other clubs fishing and a whole bunch of kayakers. Even with all the traffic there the bass fishing seemed to still be hot. I caught 25 fish. The first 5 were on a swim jig before 6:30 then it was CR’ing points. My partner and I caught 20 fish off one point on the north end in 14-16ft of water. Everyone in the club caught fish so I assume everyone else on the lake did as well. Out clubs 1st place was 22#, 2nd place was 21# and 3rd was 17# which was me. Conditions were great. Light breeze out of the north-northeast. Water temp was 75. Clarity was probably at least 2ft. Hope you get up there soon!!

Those are nice weights, and really good for a weekend on Fayette.  Plus who can complain about the numbers, that is the thing that makes Fayette a great fishing hole.  And congrats on the 3rd, when I fished tourneys it was always nice to be at least close.  Heck of a lot better than an embarrassing weigh in.  And I will be making the trek soon, probably right after Thanksgiving and before another round on the bay with the Austin Boys.  Thanksgiving I will be watching the Cowboys at the Jerry’s World as they beat the Redskins and hopefully clinch a playoff spot.  So thanks for the report, comment anytime.

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I can only imagine how good it would have been if it had not been so windy.  But putting 20 plus over the side is never a bad thing.  What is next is really up in the air/forecast.  It seems like when a big front is one the way from the north we get these high SW winds that seem to blow against it until it lays, and then the big north wind howls in.  That is what is supposed to happen early afternoon tomorrow and we may see a daytime temp Saturday that is around 25 degrees cooler than this afternoon.  That will surely get them going.  And thanks to all of you who keep reading this drivel, sure makes it easier to write.  Your comments and reports are an important part of this, so thanks all and keep them coming.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

About Redfishlaw

I am a retired attorney who just loves to fish. I was a freshwater guide for about 20 years and now have moved to the salt. I am not the greatest fisherman, but I am committed. So if you love fishing, and want to learn what little I have to offer, stop by anytime.
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