FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

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Weather 

86/73.  Thunderstorms with locally heavy downpours.  Chance rain  80%.   Winds E 5 – 10.

Lake Level

Today  95.61 msl.    2 days ago  95.55 msl.

Solunar Times

No relevant period when I was out.

The One That Got Away

The weather forecast was pretty sketchy for today so I got up about 5:30, looked outside, and while it had rained last night, it was partly cloudy and calm.  So it looked like I could get in some fishing on the lake before it got here, and my timing turned out to be just right.  I fished from 7:15 until 1:00 when I heard thunder off in the distance.  So I  loaded up and headed home.  5 minutes after I got home it started coming down in buckets, so I got lucky.

I never, ever, get tired of this.  The morning ride across dead calm water with not a soul in sight makes me glad to be alive.

So being unsure how long I would be able to fish I headed right to the good stuff.  It was dead calm and the sun was coming out.  The bite was slow the first hour, I had 5 or 6 bites and only boated 1.  They were definitely pecking it and not eating.  But then it was like they threw a eat it switch and the bite was on.  From about 8:00 until 10:00 I boated 15 and missed half that many.  Today I decided to keep an accurate count to be sure that when I had been telling you it was 15 or 20 a morning it was not bullshit.

The bit the whole morning.

The wind was still under 10mph so it was time to head down lake and try some of those deeper banks that have had the wind blowing on them.  First it was a deep point, and I caught 1 and missed a couple that I should have caught.  Next was a channel turn and it was a couple more.  Then a long deep bank and 3 more made it over the side of the boat.  This is a place I have wanted to fish with plastics but the wind has been to hard on it for a couple of weeks.  Today it was possible to let the stick worm just fall down the face of the drop, and they were just swimming off with it.

20lb mono, a 4/0 Gamakatsu worm hook, 3/16th oz. tungsten slip sinker, 5″ Big Bite watermelon red stick worm.

At this point it was about noon so it was time for one more deep tree and then a deep bank  by the dam.  The tree produced 2, and it should have been 4.  Now I have caught another 7 since coming down lake, for a total of 22 for the day.  So I decided to hit one more deep bank by the dam, and disaster struck.  From starting off having them hit short, to catching them right along, this fish decided to hit it as I reeled up in about 10 foot of water and literally swam right at the boat.  I set the hook, up comes a huge mouth, and off goes a huge mouth.  All I have to say about that is dang it!

Nothing big but they sure were willing.

Today they were all about the same size with a couple of real small ones thrown in, other than the big one.  Cover is still the ticket, but on the channel banks they are on drops.  Both on the deeper point I fished and the long channel bank they were in about 10′.  As the lake drops the upper end will get tougher but the fish on the lower end should start bunching up and once you find some they should hang out in the general area for a while.

I still love the hand to hand combat of pulling them out of cover but a couple of “funny” things happened today.  2 were able to get tangled in line inside the bush and pull off.  It is so important that we make every effort to pick up our line as best we can.  It is hard to complain about the fishing with these kinds of numbers, and most days a shot at a good one like today, it is simply a matter of getting it in the boat.  It just did not happen today, but I had my chance.

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I got this comment from Chad the Mad Trout Fisherman, who we had not heard from in a while.

Hey doug its been awhile since i dropped a line, i saw you at speedy stop in poc the other morning and said Gm captain but u said hello and jumped in the 4 runner.

A nice 28″ CPR’d.

Fishing in poc has been tough on the big moon for me and the sharks have been tough in the greens area, my son taylor did manage a 30” trout the other day only to have a 5 ft shark take more than 1/2 of it. What a bummer!!!

We took a pic with the leftovers beside a 17” trout. Croaker has been the ticket for us . I hope to get in the surf on friday. Thanks chad

It may be tough but like usual you sure have been laying the smack down on them.

Now I am embarrassed. Sorry if I was half asleep and it did not register who you were so please accept my apology. Heck, I would have pumped you for info, or a ride! Not saying I am glad you had a tough time on the moon, but it just makes me feel better to know I was not alone in my struggles. And if you struggled a little bit with the croakers it says a lot. (See his article on croaker fishing in the technique page of the blog.) Tell Taylor sorry about that but I am sure there are more 30″ coming in his lifetime. I could see him being a top guide in the future. (Don’t tell him that, try college first.) It is good to hear from you and next time just slap me a good one.

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Get inhaled!  

Michael tells me that the Controlled Descent line is about to expand.  Not sure exactly what is coming but he says it is something brand new.  Innovation in fishing lures comes on step at a time and I am excited to see what is coming!  Stay tuned.

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And Topwater Billy had another comment.

SA Joe’s comment made me chuckle as well. As you said, cool that someone checked the link. Sorry that I disappointed him.

As to our statement, “And I guess we can fish again. Maybe!”…….gee, what a glowing endorsement for future fishing opportunities.

Whispering very softly, “topwaters all day, topwaters all day”…….lol.

Boy you do have a topwater problem.  I wonder if there are touchy feely groups where you could work out your feelings with other deeply sensitive fishermen.  You know, a group setting where you all pour out your deepest feelings and insecurities.  On the other hand, nah.

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Those of you who read this stuff know I look at boats for sale all over the state almost every day.  It is fun, informative, and often crazy what folks expect.  Lately there has been lots of really high dollar used boats for sale.  Some of them are easily in the $50k plus price range, even being a couple of years old.  Seems to be a lot of cases of someone’s eyes being bigger than their wallet.  And why in the world if you can justify spending that kind of $$$ would you buy a used boat?  And one other question – If it has been maintained like they say it has why not a compression check and the maintenance records available for inspection?  Would sure help sell the boat.  Just wondered.

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That will do it for today.  Saturday it will be joining the grandkids and family for a play in Dallas.  Not sure what the Lion King is all about, but everyone is pretty excited about going and it will be good to see the kids.  Next week is going to be some saltwater fishing.  The moon is on the wane and things should improve somewhat.  And anytime any of you feel the need to comment drop me a line, we all love hearing from you.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines