Fish Catching Travel
Monday morning was definitely a “put on your big boy pants” kind of morning. With the temp projected to be 42 at daylight, it was, dropping to 40 by 9 am, it did, it looked like it might be a little cool. When you added a 25 mph north wind to the equation, it was definitely going to be ugly. But since I had been a week without a boat, I was going to fish no matter what. And with the winds projected to be blowing that hard, he lake was the rational choice over the bay.
The first thing I noticed was the lake had come up, almost a foot it looked like. And the water temp was reading 73 degrees at the dam. And just for your info, it dropped 8 degrees above the bridge. The water up lake was not murky, just cooler, and the fishing bore that out. I started with a jerk bait, and it was just one here and one there. But at least there was usually one where ever I fished. The one thing that I really liked, while I was freezing my butt off, is that there are fish in the mouths of some of the bigger coves, especially if there is a small secondary point near the mouth of the cove.
Though the fish cooperated fine on the jerk bait, I could just not seem to get a better bite. I did throw a spinnerbait some, and had one nice boil which did not hook up. A little later I caught this one.
Not that big, but what makes this fish important is where she came from. She was halfway back in a cove on a small secondary point.
I was actually buzzing this spinnerbait right on top like I love to do. It seems counter intuitive to run a spinnerbait fast during a week long cold front with cold rain, but folks, the bass in Coleto are about to really get after it. And the better fish came from down lake. A little while later I followed up with this one.
Again not the biggest bass in the world, but considering the conditions, she will do.
So all in all a good morning. I put 17 or 18 in the boat, a few like the ones above. Most were caught on a 4″, 2 hook suspending Rogue in silver and black. The rest came on a 3/8 ounce white spinnerbait. One thing that is real apparent right now is that the best bite is in the middle of the day. You can catch them early, but the last couple of trips the good run was mid-day. And they have been shallow. And here is the real tip of the day. When that wind is blowing, be looking at the point where the wind is blowing right on it, then pay special attention to the calm side of the point, I am just saying. The urge to spawn is starting to take hold. So get ready, one big warm front will have these fish really biting. It looks like the bite will be a little later than last year, but no matter what, it is right around the corner.
Random Notes
I did want to thank Bob and the crew at Victoria Marine. They got my service done quickly, and my prop for the other boat is back, so I am back in action. While there I met Capt. Randy Brown. He was a real gentleman, and hopefully we will share a boat together some time. He and I agreed on one thing for sure, Monday’s are the day to fish. So some time in the future I hope to get with him and catch a few fish on Monday.
I was in Houston today, and stopped at Bass Pro in Katy. When I first moved to Arkansas in the early 70’s, I was about 2 hours from the first Bass Pro, it even had the old Brown Derby Liquor store attached. It was the place to be in those days. You could not find a better tackle store anywhere. To bad it is not that way now. Poor selection, high prices compared to almost anywhere, she just ain’t what she used to be. There are many other stores, large and small, that do a better job of catering to the fisherman.
I can not wait to get back to the Gulf. This front is supposed to be out of here tomorrow, and I look forward to that calm warm day that will happen in the next few. It will be a great time to do some serious wading for that big trout. The trout are just like those bass, it is going to be lights out soon.
With that thought in mind I picked up 5 bags of plastics at Fishing Tackle Unlimited. (I love that store.) And of course 3 of them are in the electric chicken. That color has been my go to bait all fall. And I really have grown to like the Gambler Flappin Shad. I have only used the 6″, so I picked up some in the 4″ and can not wait to give them a try.
So tomorrow it is off to Coleto. It is nice not having to hit the water first thing, and with it expected to be close to freezing, I won’t hit the road until a little later. So stop on by, I plan on hitting it pretty hard the next week, and really am going to spend a little time trying to catch that big trout. The time is now.
So thanks for reading my stuff. We are off to a big start this year. My new logo should be done this week, and then I need to do some revamp on the web site. The only problem is that dang fishing gets in the way. Oh well, we all have our crosses to bear.
Good Luck and Tight Lines.
