FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

“SAVE OUR WATERS”

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt

Brought to you by

The Best Wading System on the  Planet.

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It is 44 degrees this morning and raining off and on.  On the radar is huge bands of rain with much of it skirting the Victoria area,  The wind is 10 mph out of the NNE and it could not be called pleasant.  So though it is less than optimal as soon as I get off my ass I will be heading to the lake.  The little front will be passing today and into tomorrow, then a couple of cool days before the warmer weather returns.  Be that as it may I intend to drop it in the water by 9:00.  Just have to see how it goes.

Weather

44/61.   Clouds with a 70% chance of rain.  Wind NW 10 – 25 mph.

Lake Level

Monday  94.34 msl,  Today 94.36 msl.  (Hanging in there.)

Bite Times

Major  3:57 pm to 5:57 pm.  Minor  9:42 am to 10:42 am.

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Michael reports that the mold in on the way and they will be available soon.  The Knockin’ Tail catches fish.  

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The water temp was 60 – 61 (Coolest in the plant arm.) more or less all over the lake.  The wind was out of the north and you could see your breath when I dropped it in at 9:30.  Real pleasant.  First up was the long channel bank in the plant arm.  The color was marginal, and it varied right around 60 degrees.  I fished a long stretch and other than a couple bites on the swim jig not much was happening.  When I got to the end where the big point sits right on the channel turns the first bite, but it just pulled a claw off the jig.  Like it was Monday, early the  bite was slow with lots of nibbling.  Bumping, ticking, pulling, none of it with gusto.

I sat way off the point and started catching them.  In fact, 6 or 7 which is a good thing, for 5 years from now.  They were really small.  A couple came on the stick worm, and then what has become a daily thing, a crappie.  And while we are at it lets just get the wacky stuff out of the way and add the catfish caught later on a jerk bait.

Just wanted to show you that the other fish are biting when you catch them on bass stuff.  Crazy!

If you want crappie now is the time.  They are shallow around brush, and if they are eating the 5″ stick worm they are up.  Not sure if they have spawned, are spawning, or just about to, but now is the time.  I have caught them in 4 different places right now, a good indication the spawn is on.

I am trying to fish at least a couple of new places everyday, which works some days, and like today, not so much.  But before giving it up in the plant arm a good 10 jumped on, but they were crazy small.  So time to head up to the area where I have been catching them.  On the way I decided to stop by the discharge to take a temp as the last time I went by that cove there was no change in the temp on the main lake.  There was basically no water coming through the discharge and the water temp was only 60.  Not sure why that is as I assume the plant is running with the  cold temps.  I made a few casts, caught a couple of small ones and headed on up.

The first good bite of the day off a big stump.

With the water temp now down from a high of 70 in the better coves down to 60 they were a little further out in the coves and actually more bunched up.  The first bite was off a big hardwood tree, right where a good one would make a nest.  Who knows, I am still not seeing any beds but that does not mean much.  Areas with no wind and cover was the place to be mid day.  The swim jig kept catching them, there sure is lots of boys waiting on the big girls right now.

There is plenty of this size around.

Like it has been, alternating between the swim jig and the stick worm was the way to go.  The jerk bait produced a catfish and no other bites though I gave it a go.  Around 4:00 the wind died and it looked like clearing was on the way.  There was the occasional shad flip so time to concentrate on what I learned earlier.  Which was they were not on the reel brushy stuff.  A good hardwood with little stuff on it seemed to be better.

That will work!

Switching to the Pit Boss I started pitching to the big wood and lost a good one.  The next piece the one above thumped it and immediately went around the stump.  But I managed to wait her out and get the boat around it and in she came.  Definitely the best one I have caught in a while.  There just happened to be a couple of similar hardwoods close so I hit 4  or 5.

On one of them I thought I was hung.  In fact I just kept reeling figuring it was a piece of cover, but unfortunately it was a fish.  A really big fish.  She did not fight, swim, twitch, nothing, just let me reel her right to the boat.   Of course no real hook set, I mean, it was wood.  She took one look at the boat, I was frozen like a rookie when I saw her, and she pulled off.  That was right after the one above.  The day finished  with a couple more of the usual size off the big wood and I called it a day.

It was an interesting day. Everything is up and eating, easy to see that with the random number of crappie and catfish adding to each day.  The deer and the hogs were moving around, but the cool weather had the gators buried up.  It was not pleasant by any means and never got comfortable with the drizzle and north wind.  But the numbers are still there, lots and lots of smaller bass, a good thing for times to come.  And if you can just put it in the right place a real bite is possible.

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I forgot to tell you something about Monday .  I boat flipped a white bass and when he hit the deck the Rapala popped out and like a rocket buried in my finger.  “Thunk.”  At least when it did it was so fast it ripped a little bit and made it easy to just back it out.  No harm no foul as I had an antibiotic wipe and bandaid.  My only comment, that is the 3rd time in a couple of years, after never really being stuck for decades.  It is hell getting old.

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It is a small world!

It is amazing what you find on Facebook.  While going through messages I guess I missed there was one from Wendell sent in June of last year.  (Shows how on the ball with this internet thing I am.)   Wendell was asking if I remembered him?  So time for a story.

In January of ???? this young guy  (My age probably.)  comes in my tackle store (Or met him at the dock, it was a long time ago.) and tells me this fantastic story about the giant walleyes he is catching on a river outside Pocahontas Arkansas.  Sure…..  Now this is a whopper!  His last trip I believe he said his best 6 went 72 pounds!  So of course  I am just a little bit skeptical, I mean come on.  So I ask him to take me.

My biggest to that point – It went 7 1/2.  (Nice aviators dude.)

We met in Pocahontas and headed to some little ass ramp in the middle of a corn field and put in on the river, wish I could remember which one.  It was small with lots of timber in the water.  Until that point I did not know that there was a native strain of walleye in those rivers and they get big, real big.

Basically using a 3/4 ounce hair jig with a fine wire hook, we drifted down river.  Being full of snags the fine wire allowed you to straighten the hook out or you would have needed dozens of jigs.  Before we quit we boated 5 with mine being the biggest.  At that time it was my biggest ever.  While it may not have been a real giant, it was clear he knew exactly what he was talking about.  If I remember right I promised to not tell anyone about where, and I never did, but I sure shared that story without the particulars.  Now I am to dam old to remember where!  It was really something different and a great trip that I have never forgotten to this day.  I knew exactly who it was when I read the message.

It was good to hear from him and of all things he is living in Midway Arkansas, right near Bull Shoals.  He is having a health problem but I will be sure to stop in and see him, and maybe we can get on the water for a few hours, or at least visit.  So thanks for the memory Wendell, I did not forget and will see you soon.

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It has really become weather watching time.  The dude at Falcon Lake Tackle has a blog, which is rather entertaining at times, on which he posts pictures.  Well the big fish are showing up now, I mean the 10’s, and the ones in the pictures have not spawned. According to him none have really gotten after the spawn yet this year so it might be about to get Falcon good.  Really hope I can make it, but lots of crap on the schedule right now.  But man those were some big fish.  I went the week after the Houston Fishing Show last year and did ok, but I will be in Arkansas then.  So much water, so little time.

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Even with the weather it is hard not to go to the lake right now.  Tough conditions but sticking with it gets you bit at some point.  A guy I met at the ramp, one of 3 of out today caught a 7 3/4 his last trip.  So the bite is on and I can not wait to get back out there.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines