Fish Catching Travel

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Shoedog and Nolan on Norfork

The Shoedog has been in North Arkansas spending the week with his grandson Nolan and dropped me this report.

Lake Norfork 3/2316

I am spending this week with my grandson Nolan on Lake Norfork in Arkansas. He is 9 and  is on spring break.  We had spent the first two days fishing off the dock where we are staying and checking out a couple areas of the lake. We have caught a couple small crappies and an Ozark bass of the dock, but not mush else. 

We tried to go up to an area that usually has crappies yesterday, but no luck, just a couple small bass. We had caught about 10 small bass in the Buzzards Roost area on the first day out, so today we went back there. Also, the wind has been a factor the last 2 days And I knew we could probably fish there and have easy and safe access to  the boat ramp. 

We got out about 10:30 and I caught a small bass on a Rogue. Our pal Clyde kept recommending using small swim baits, so I tied Nolan on a 4 inch white/pearl Berkeley Havoc Grass Pig. I use them trout fishing in Texas. It was fairly easy for him to fish with a steady retrieve. He caught a small bass right off. It was pretty tough casting in the strong wind, so I had him on the front deck with me and would cast and hand him the rod and he would reel. It worked pretty well.

Click on the logo and check out the best balsa baits on the market.

He caught a couple more and one almost made the 15 inch limit. We had 6 or 7 in the next couple hours. Then he ran the trolling motor for me! I caught 3 nice ones in the next while. A 15, 16 and 17 incher. 

Nolan catches a nice one.  And he named it Dinner!

We ended up with 13 bass in 6 hours- not bad for the conditions and a grandpa and a 9 year old! 

The water was between 50-53 degrees. The fish seemed to be on a little steeper banks and points close to the main creek channel – exactly where you expect them to be pre-spawn. I did catch one of the larger fish way in the back of one cove. A good sign for the coming week of fishing with the big boys! 2 more days with Nolan and then a week of hitting it hard. 

We are having fun now!

I have been coming here for over 40 years and have never been able to slow down and spend more than a few days on the run. This week has been very enjoyable with my grandson and we have spent time on the bank looking for rocks and shells, hiked a few trails and fished. Good times. I am a lucky fellow. 

********************

Looks like the boys are having a big time.  I am at my parents in Fayetteville (Go Hogs) and will be heading over to Mtn. Home today to meet up with them and my buddy Clyde.  A fairly large cold front has moved through here and the wind howled out of the north the last couple of days, including 20 – 30 right in my face the whole drive up here.  But there is good news, a nice warming trend for the week and it should put those fish in the spawning mood.  Channel turns leading into spawning coves, and secondary points in those coves should be the ticket.  Getting excited just thinking about it.

So today I head to Springdale to Cabela’s before I leave town, there must be something I need to buy, and tomorrow it begins.  I can’t wait to put some walleyes and stripers in the boat, big change from our South Texas fishing.  I spent many years on these lakes chasing anything that swims, and I am really looking forward to puttin’ the hurt on them.  Reports will come as often as I can, hopefully every day.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines.

 Fish Catching Travel

Click on the logo above and see all the cool new stuff for 2016.

Weather

Low 46  High 78  Wind out of SE 5 – 10  Increasing mid morning to 20 – 30 mph  (It blew every bit of that.)  Partly cloudy.

Solunar Times

• Best Times:  10:34A – 12:34P
•                         10:55P – 12:55A
• Good Time:   4:23A – 6:23A

Tide

High   4:48 AM     0.4       (The tide I like – falling all morning.)
Low  12:18 PM     0.2
High   7:49 PM     0.4
Low  11:59 PM     0.3

Coleto – The Towater Bite Continues

I took yesterday off to be with the Boss after she finished an 8 day stretch of 12 hour days, and of course it was fairly calm.  Today not so much.  Knowing that the winds were forecast to hit up to 30 mph it was definitely a lake day.

On arriving at the lake it there was a little wind, and the wind did not wait that long to really start blowing.  The lake is still coming up and there is more cover with a little more color in most places.  I wanted to keep the topwater thing going, so I mainly concentrated on that.   It took a little while to find some, buy I finally did.  After I put the first one in the boat I managed to lose the next 4.  Even though I changed the 3 smaller hooks on the Rapala to 2 bigger ones, they were still tearing off.

As the day warmed so did the bite.  The second one was a good fish.

The one that hurt the most was one an easy 6, maybe 7, who hopped out of a bush and smoked it, and then pulled off.  I really do need a Bang O Lure, more on that later.  I kept hunting and pecking.  Many places had some run off so they were a little murky, so I stuck to anywhere with at least some clearer water.  Even with good polarized glasses they were awfully hard to see when they roll over on it while it is under water.

Remember folks,  I am just twitching it along with short jerks, barely pulling it under.  It is so critical that you keep visual contact with the bait, and my fit over Cocoons were mandatory today.  It seemed they were just a little tentative with this cold front.  And it really did not help that the water temp was down almost 10 degrees from what it was last week, in fact it was 65 – 67 in most places, down from 75+.

The best bite was in the middle of the day.

I stuck with coves that were as least a little out of the wind.  Besides messing up half the lake the wind makes it real tough to throw that light Rapala, another reason I want the Bang O Lure.  It is heavier and casts well, and having 3 perfectly matched hooks would have increased landed fish today for sure.

I did not completely stick with topwater, but I did not have a bite on buzzbait, Swim Jig, and only lost one on the watermelon stick worm.  But other than that it was definitely topwater.  And once I kind of figured out how they wanted it thing started looking up.  Incidentally the bite really was during a best time today.

These were caught back to back.  To bad both of the bigger fish I had on today got off.  I need my Bang O Lure.

Of the 10 or so I caught today, and I missed at least that many,  about half took it off the top.  A couple even blew up on it, and I saw every stinkin’ one of them, hooked up or not.  It really does hurt to have them pull off like that, I went to a real soft rod and looked like one of those big shot tourney guys as I played them way out before I tried to land them.

So it was definitely a win today, given the howling wind and a bait that is almost right, but not quite what I needed.  I think that little bigger bulk, and definitely the bigger hooks, on the Bang O Lure really make a difference landing fish out of bushes.  It sure would have helped the casting with all that wind.  Almost all of the fish came from cover, in maybe 3 foot, and I did see several that rolled on it who did not eat.  Coves were the ticket, and if the water was clear enough it was a guaranteed fish or two.   And when I got a bite another one soon followed.  Isolated cover off the bank was the ticket.  And do not give up on it, work it all the way out as several hit it close to the boat.  You can never tell when one will come out of the depths and eat it.  With around 20 taking at least a pass at it today it was not to bad for a 6 hour trip.

*********************

Update on the Bang O Lure Search

The Mighty Bang O Lure

I want to thanks those of you who either texted or emailed me a couple of places I might find the Bang O Lure.  One of the comments I got I wanted to share with you, and maybe share a little more information to go along with it.

Well kind sir – THANK YOU!

I read your post while shopping in Academy…… for new fishing baits….

I’m glad that Strike King sponsors you (in whatever capacity) and you share the baits that work best for you. I’m really glad you don’t stop there.
I just spent $24.40 on two Bang O Lures (with free Amazon Prime shipping, of course). Like with most lures I haven’t tried, I’m quite excited to give these a shot. But I’ll have to exercise patience. You made it very clear about the waters of NW Arkansas. What about SW Missouri? Every other year our family takes a week long vacation to Table Rock Lake for some slightly competitive fishing. I won’t go into detail about my love of Table Rock Lake – because I could….. Its just so awesome.

I did happen to pick up a couple of my favorite artificial baits – Strike King Red Eye Shad lipless crankbait. I needed another silent crank as well stocking up on a couple colors I’ve found most effective.

Its March and I cannot wait for our trip in June. Especially now that I have a bait recommended by a seasoned fishing veteran.

Thanks for sharing valuable information.

Evan

Thanks for the compliment and there are a couple of things I wanted to comment on.   As far a seasoned veteran, ripe old timer might be a better description.  Strike King has given me a small lure sponsorship but it has been a policy around here to tell you like it is as far as baits go.  I hope you know that when I talk about where, how, and with what I am fishing it is what it is, good or bad.  Of course I play favorites, as I said before, the Lunker Lure, the Redfish Magic, the Swim Jig, and the Bang O lure are favorites, no matter who made them or whether I buy them off the shelf.  I play favorites with lures that catch fish, otherwise why throw a particular bait?

When I referred to NW Arkansas it is because I had almost 30 years of fishing on the highland lakes every spring with the Bang O Lure.  But that is not the only place it works.  I went back and looked at some old Florida trips from the 90’s and I have a couple of pictures of trout, a shark, and several snook, all caught on Bang O Lure years ago.  And Snook really like the one with the spinner tail.  We would also add a suspend dot to the Bang O Lure and catch lots of speckled trout using it like a classic jerkbait.  It did not dive as deep as regular jerk bait and you could work it over the top of submerged grass and potholes.  Good clear water is the ticket, and there are few game fish that won’t eat a Bang O Lure, but the toothy critters are just a little to hard on them.

And when you are at Table Rock rest assured you are in the right place.  How effective it will be this trip will depend on how late the spawn was and what the weather is like.  Get a nice cloudy day and you will be in business.  And don’t forget they will hit that thing on Coleto for a couple of months yet.  As a side note, Table Rock is part of the White River chain of lakes.  First is Beaver, in NW Arkansas, where I practiced law and fished for 10 years, then Table Rock, in Missouri, then Taneycomo, then Bull Shoals, and finally my home lake, Norfork Lake, coming off the North Fork of the White River.   They are peas in a pod, and fish basically the same give or take a little.

Hope that added a little more to what I wrote the other day.  Good luck on your trip and we will be looking forward to hearing how it goes.  And of course thanks for keeping up with the blog.

Stop the Presses!

Welcome Aboard!  Check out their full product line.  Click on the logo of the best balsa baits on the market.

I dropped a note and link to Bagley on the post I wrote about the Bang O Lure and they have come to my aid.  A few are on the way, just in time for when I get back from Arkansas.  One thing I did after contacting them was to look over their catalog and there are some additional baits that I know will work like a charm.  One I am particularly interested in is the Minnow B.  Made of durable ABS resin it has the same Bang O Lure action, and should be tougher and great for those saltwater fish.  And I have been using the 1/32 jig head on the trout since last summer.  They also shared some information that I will pass on to you next time I blog.  There is lots more to come about the Bagley Bait Company.  A big thanks to Bagley President Don Hultstrand for his help and consideration, I really appreciate it.

*********************

When I first started the blog I watched the readership numbers all the time, now I check occasionally, it is not the priority it was.  It was kind of like watching a pot boil.  Now as long as there is one or two of you out there reading I will keep writing.  But I did check the other day and we just topped 475,000 visits since we started.  In the next couple of months we will hit 500,000 visits.  The numbers keep in the 10,000 visits a month, and I can not thank you regular readers enough.  That is crazy!  The day I top 500,00 I just might tip a cold one to all of you.  Thanks.

********************

Today is last call day.  Time to get everything I need for Arkansas out, put line on stuff, grab some spare everything, the usual.  With the possibility of catching everything from crappie, rainbow trout, bass, walleye, to stripers, there is no such thing as to much stuff.  Kind of like dressing for winter fishing, if you have it on you can take it off, but if you don’t have you don’t have it.  The fishing will start in earnest on Saturday and will go on a week or so.  It will definitely be fish on!  I have a few more things to get to in the next couple of days so keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

 Fish Catching Travel

Can’t wait to try KVD’s new Tournament Buzzbait.

It was over 35 years ago that I was watching Saturday morning fishing, what a guide does when he isn’t fishing, when the Bill Dance show came on.  Now this was the old days when Bill was not fishing in ponds that are so full of 4lb bass that a bait can’t make it to the bottom.  He was fishing Lake Seminole in the spring, and the water was super high.  He was wading in the back end of a place and catching monster bass on topwater.  That was my first introduction to the Bagley Bang O Lure.   I was hooked immediately.

They love that Bang O Lure.  (2013)

Living about 2 hours from the original Bass Pro I found some in Springfield Missouri and it became a real staple in my spring fishing and guiding.  It was so effective in the clear waters of NW Arkansas.  A balsa bait, it has a tighter, more subtle, wobble when jerked, and the foil version gives out a tremendous amount of flash.  I really believe that the foil gives off a more natural flash than other coloring.  In clear water it will draw fish from a long way, and it is one of the coolest, most visual, ways to catch bass.

Help!

The Bagley Bang O Lure.  The greatest topwater minnow ever!

Over the years they have been hard to find.  Whenever I saw them in stores I usually bought all they had.  Looking at the ones above you can see what happens when they take a beating, which they do.  To get looking like these last 2 functioning ones I had, it was simply a matter of tossing it and twitching it and watching it get eaten.  I have always considered this a finesse technique, you can fool them with this bait and it is a thing of beauty when it does.

Now this is not a criticism of other folks topwater minnows, in fact since I can not find the Bang O Lure, I am currently throwing the Rapala right now, and it just does not put them in the boat like the Bang O Lure.  And over the years I have used them all, but facts are facts, the 5″ Bang O Lure in silver foil and black back is the best topwater minnow ever made.  The two above are the last of 8 I found on a dusty shelf in an old time tackle store in Fort Worth about 6 years ago.  They were still marked $5, the steal of a lifetime.  I have treated them as good as possible, but when the bite is on they eat them up.  One thing that hastened their demise is that Coleto has about a 6 month plus topwater season and I have caught a bunch on them, including losing the biggest bass I have ever seen.

My Bill Dance Moment.  I know it is blurry, but they were sucking that Bang O Lure down that day like fish candy.  (2013)

So here is what I need from you, this is almost a fishing emergency, the topwater bite is on.  I checked on their website and they are not in stock.  If any of you see them in some store around these parts drop me a quick note.  A half dozen would be about right.  I see some on Amazon but would prefer seeing them before I buy them.  The ones I bought those years ago in Fort Worth had dried and shrunk just a little, happens when you are probably 100 years old in bait years.  You know how I can get about some baits: the Redfish Magic is the best redfish bait ever, of course the Strike King Swim Jig, and nothing beats the old Lunker Lure buzzbait, they all have earned a place.  Over the years, in spite of my fishing deficiencies, certain baits have proven themselves over and over, and the Bagley Bang O Lure is one of the best.

*********************

And it was good to get this fresh Coleto report from Jeramie.

I went yesterday in the drizzle and had 2 fish just over 5 pounds, 1 over 4 pounds, 1 just over 3 pounds , several 1& 2 pounders! I caught most of my fish in the evening with a buzz bait , I did have to add a trailer hook due to the short strikes. Caught a few of the smaller fish on crank baits. You are right the tilapia are everywhere . Thanks for all your tips they really help me the few times I make it to the lake.

I appreciate your kind comments and the report.  I know I may harp about the drizzle and spring time, but it really is the time on Coleto.  And from your report what I have seen the last week, you can catch them on other stuff, but if you want big fish toss the buzzbait.  And I would have boated a few more with a trailer hook, and with no real grass yet to speak of it is the thing to do right now.  So nice job and keep those reports coming.

********************

I was at Academy this morning, imagine that, searching for some tackle that I just could not live without.  While waiting to check out I met Travis who reads the blog.  I always appreciate folks introducing themselves, it lets me know there are real people out there.  He is going to rent a cabin on Coleto at the end of the month, and they should hit it right on the head.  He also had some friends who limited on trout with shrimp in one of the mid-bay passes on Monday.  The fishing is on and it is a good time to live in South Texas.  So thanks for introducing yourself and drop us a note when you get done with your Coleto trip.

********************

The one the other day was this ones momma!

I got this comment on yesterdays report from Rusty, the resident Fayette and Bastrop pro.

Learn something everyday!!! Cool alligator info. Been seeing them all my life and never saw that. Fish are biting at Bastrop and Fayette but spring breakers are out in force!
Rusty

Good to hear you are catching them, and just like here on Coleto the spring breakers are hard at it.  And I really was lucky to see that monster do his thing.  Left me with visions of him after me, which would be one scaring thing.  And on that same note I heard from Clyde in Arkansas.

Did you fish the bank with the gator? Well did ya “punk”?

To tell you the truth I actually gave that area a wide berth.  I know they can not reach out and pluck you out of the boat, but this guy was big enough and worked up enough there was no way I was going to give him the chance to make me his girlfriend!  See you in a week and you better have them cornered, or I will end up  having to guide you like I have for the last 40 years!

**********************

If you live in our neck of the woods you know it is blowing like a freight train out side, straight out of the north.  It may last for 3 or 4 more days, typical March weather.  Besides writing this it is time to get some stuff ready for the Arkansas trip.  Traveling like I do the packing is actually half the fun.  Spare equipment and tackle, line, reel oil, and plenty of stuff that will probably not see the light of day, are making the pile.  You can speculate all you want, get the fresh info, but nothing means a thing until you fish, and it always seems there still has to be a trip to the tackle store once you get there.  But until then I will be hitting the water, and maybe the weather Gods will give us a break with this wind.  A few trout frying in the pan is sounding better every day.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

 Fish Catching Travel

Can’t wait to try KVD’s new Tournament Buzzbait.

Weather

76/60  Wind SE 5 – 15  Cloudy with a 60% chance of rain  (They got the forecast dead right.)

Tides

Th  17      Low   8:10 AM    -0.2
High   8:22 PM     0.5

Solunar Times

• Best Times     7:00A – 9:00A
•                          7:26P – 9:26P
• Good Times   12:48A – 2:48A

Sorry you salt addicts, but with  perfect weather (drizzling rain) it was back to Coleto.  Now before we get to the fishing something happened today that I have never seen.  Whether it was walking up on 2 cheetas taking a nap under a tree on the African plain, having a whitetail fawn try to get in my boat, or the gobble fest that was happening around me as I fished, nothing made a bigger impression on me that what happened today.

I headed down the windy side of a big cove near the dam and when I got near the back end there was a big alligator laying right next to the bank on the other shore.  As I got even with him he raised up on all fours and roared.  I mean bellowed full throat twice.  His body was pumped full and he looked as big as a 50 gallon drum.  The water was foaming around him as he roared.  Wow.

That thing was fierce, primeval, and as big as any I have ever seen.  He did not seem to notice me and then his head swiveled around and he looked right at me.  Folks trust me, he was worked up.  Being around them for years they do not scare me, I just have a healthy respect, but this one had menace in his eyes and it was one impressive display of male hormones run amok.  The great outdoors is just that, great, and I got to witness something that will stick in my memory for a life time.

(I wanted to know about the water frothing on his back so I read this, very interesting.     http://www.wired.com/2011/05/alligator-mating-physics/)

******************

The Beat Goes On

As conditions stayed perfect for a bass assault I could not help myself.  When you love the visual bite as much as I do I wait all year for this, the time is now.  And as the bite has been in the middle of the day there was no hurry so it was 9:30 before I backed the boat in.  It was lightly drizzling with the wind out of the SE at about 10 mph depending on where you were.  First stop was the cove where I put the smack down on them.  Primarily it was to check and see if they were biting there earlier.  I started on the point with the Strike King Bleeding Buzzbait and had a one about 5 crash it and immediately in a pile of stuff he went.

Bigger fish?  Fish the buzzbait.

Unfortunately he pulled off before I could get to him.  That was a sign of things to come in there as I proceeded to miss 4, or they missed me, it was a group effort.  With them being somewhat tentative I threw the Swim Jig and of course caught one right off the bat.  But with my love of the visual bite I either wanted to keep force feeding them the buzzbait or give the topwater a go, and with a light wind topwater seemed logical.

Without boring you there is a big punch line here, almost the back end of anything midlake down has bass in the back end.  Twitching that balsa minnow on top produced tons of bites in those back ends.  Now most of those were small fish, but plenty were keepers.  I am noticing one thing, you have those that are just going on beds with full bellies, and those that are done and look like they have been in a knife fight at their local drive bar.

As I worked any clear water it was throw the buzzbait anywhere there was wind, especially on points.  The best place for the topwater was anywhere there was brush off the bank.  And if you could find bushes in deeper than 2 foot those fish are there.  One problem I experienced with the small Rapala balsa minnow is the hooks are so small and I had a problem with a few pulling off.  In the best cove I fished I think I went 3 for 10 or so.  And polarized glasses are mandatory.  With the heavy cloud cover the yellow Cocoons lightened it up enough to see those fish roll, without them my hook up percentage would have been in the dumpster.

Twitiching it just under and letting it pop up, and then twitching it under again, you could see them roll over on it.  So the plan is next time to take the 3 hooks off and put 2 bigger ones back on trying to keep the weight the same.  In the 7 hours I fished I had lots of bites, and while I caught fish, it is hard to estimate the number who were on for a second and then off.  Basically a simple problem easily rectified.

Fishing is consistent, almost great, right now.  There are lots of folks at the lake due to spring break but the rain kept lots of them inside.  Plus, the balsa minnow technique is a great bait to use when it is busy.  Subtle, it will pull those fish out of cover when other baits won’t.   How do I know for sure?  I fished a cove completely with the buzzbait and had one bite, so I just turned around and re-fished it with the topwater.  That was the place I then went 3 for 10.  The fish were exactly where I knew they were, isolated deeper bushes, but they were  not interested in chasing anything.  But twitch that bait next to the deep brush and out they came.  Another lesson learned.

And beds, oh the beds.  If you are a bed fisherman, not my thing, you should be in heaven on Coleto right now.  Besides the bass, the tilapia are at it full swing and I saw them in most every cove I fished today.  Guess I need to get my buddy Jeffish and do a little bow fishing for them.  They are literally everywhere.

*****************

I got this comment from my buddy Voe, who fished with me Monday before he left town.

It figures, your next time out you wack em.
They look nice.

Life is not fair, especially when it is lived with a fishing rod in your hand.  The old should have been here yesterday, last week, last month.  But as usual we had a good time anyway, so let me know when you will be back and we will give it another go.

*****************

I am starting to get excited about Arkansas.  The final plans are close to made, just a questions of when I decide to go, but it is in the next week or less.  The Shoedog is already up there with his grandson and by time I get there he should have a pretty good idea on what we need to be doing.  Normally when we go it is not a real meat hunt, but in this case some crappie, walleyes, and stripers in the freezer will be a good thing.  Before that I hope to make it to the Gulf a few days.  I have not forgot about you salt guys, but it is hard to stop chasing nice bass on the buzzbait.  What a bite.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

Fish Catching Travel

Click on the logo above and see all the cool new stuff for 2016.

Weather

75H/L65   Wind 10 – 20 SE   Cloudy  Chance Rain 20%

Tides

W   16      Low   6:48 AM    -0.2
16     High   7:39 PM     0.6

Solunar Times

• Best Times:
• Good Time:

• Best Times    6:10A – 8:10A
•                         6:37P – 8:37P
• Good Times  11:57A – 1:57P  (Very close today)

Buzzbait Time

If you read my stuff regularly you know I look forward to days like today.  This set of conditions is perfect for Coleto in the spring.  Warm all night, warm day, wind not to bad, and drizzle.  And this time of year one thing that is nice is the bite is usually sometime during the day as opposed to first light.

So I started about 9:00 and caught the one below in the first cove I fished.  He smoked that buzzbait and I was thinking here it comes.  Well a few hours later I was wondering what I was thinking.  I fished from coves near the dam all the way up lake and did not have a fish.  Of course part of that was the choice I made, to go way up and see if it was clearing.

 First bite.

I basically threw the book at them as I worked my way up with no luck.  Finally when I was way up, almost to Shrader Bridge I caught a couple of one place throwing the watermelon red senko style plastic. It seemed like the water up there  is finally clearing some, but it is way up.  After not catching anything for a while I thought it was time to pitch it into cover, and though I got these 2 it never did happen.

Before 2:00.

The water up lake is still really a funny color, and just did not feel right.  But they had to bite, it was the right day and the right time.  So with that motivating me I ran all the way back down to a cove right near the dam and grabbed the buzzbait, and the bite was on.

After 2 – The bite begins.

I started on the point and before I made it all the way around the cove I caught 7.  So I kept going, hitting coves and points.  Basically I was searching for clear water and finding it gave me confidence, and the fish sure liked it.  When one hit it they blasted it.  And wind on the bank did not hurt anything, in fact the best place had the wind blowing right in it.

They were flat out smashing that Strike King Buzzbait!

From about 1:30 until I quit at 4 they bit, and I left them biting.  It was the kind of buzzbait day I wait for all year.  They were really shallow and you had to throw it way back in the stuff and have it moving when it hit the water.  While I never hit another real jackpot like the first place, I caught fish or two everywhere I fished after that.

For 2 hours it was crazy good.

I was reeling it moderately slow keeping the rod pointed right at the bait.  When combined with the braid it really lets you get a hook in them when they blow up on it.  My personal preference is a heavy action rod, seems like if you get the hook in them they are going nowhere.  There really wasn’t a defined locational pattern to them, it was just keep it in the water.  Casting and winding, every once in a while one would commit in a big way.  It definitely was one of those days where making a perfect cast resulted in a bite.

Amazing what a difference a couple of days make.  Monday it was hot and sunny, and they were not having it.  Today they were on the move.  I have a feeling if I had stayed in the clearer water in the lower end all day I would have boated a lot more, and started catching them a lot earlier.  But no complaints.  Whether it a bass, trout, muskie, or redfish, when they are hitting topwater I am all about it.  And if you do not take the time to check stuff out, and keep trying different areas, you will end up knowing nothing.  We really can learn almost as much not catching them.  But who knows what I missed fishing up the river all morning.

Now the big question is whether I am going to do it one more day.  I often say do the thing you need to be doing when you need to do it.  I have a feeling staying with it all day should produce a big fish if a person keeps after it.  Besides, the lake came up just a tiny bit more and we have lots of cover in the lake.  As it clears it will only get better.  And I have to get to the Gulf, there should be a pretty good bite there too, depending on the wind.  I really appreciate your comments so feel free drop one anytime.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

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Weather

Mainly sunny. High 91F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph   0% Chance precip/.0 inches

Solunar Times

• Best Times    4:10A – 6:10A
•                         4:38P – 6:38P
• Good Times  10:24A – 12:24P

Tides

M   14      Low   4:12 AM
14     High   6:17 PM     0.5

Water

Up a couple of feet since last trip.  Temp 72 – 76 over most of the lake.  From real murky up both arms to fairly clear near the dam.

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There really is not much to say about fishing Coleto.  Voe was able to fish a day before he headed back to Las Vegas so we hit the lake right after day break.  It was fairly foggy and it did not clear until about 9.

We started mid lake and fished a couple of coves and points on both sides going in.  I caught a small one in the back end of the first one we fished, and then it was about an hour before Voe finally caught one on a buzzbait.  In fact, I went almost all morning without another bite, and that was his only bite on the buzzbait.

The only one worth a hoot all day.

We ended up fishing both arms, a couple of main lake coves, a creek, and a big flat cove, all with about the same success.  It did seem the farther up lake you went in either arm the slower the fishing got.  The only place we actually had more than a couple of bites was in a creek, and they were all small.  It seems the water raise and the color combined to slow them down, but it may just not be me adapting to the changes.  Only time will tell.  I do know that there is a ton more cover in the water and that can only help as  conditions stabilize.

The ones we did catch came half came on Swim Jigs, and 1 or 2 on buzzbait, blade bait, and I think one on a worm.  Just guessing we caught 9, and until we fished the last pocket right by the dam, maybe 3 of them measured.  The one above came on a KVD 4 1/2″ pearl swim bait.  It came out of a shallow bush and ate it, the only one we actually saw eat it, unlike the last couple of trips.  We fished hard and just never did have a run, just a bite here and a bite there.  We needed the rain but a big raise during the spawn is usually not a good thing.

One thing going on, the tilapia are starting to be everywhere.  As the water clears they will be easy to find in the back of flat coves, their spawning beds look like a small tire in the water.  And trust me, if you find a bunch of beds they are in the hole, no matter what your eyes tell you.  So if you ever wanted so shoot one with a bow and arrow, now is the time.  And they are a lot better to eat out of the lake than the ones you buy in the store.

*******************

Johnny sent a report on Coleto and a comment on the Fiskars scissors.

The Fiskar Scissors cut the braided line like a hot knife through butter!

Caught most of the fish today on soft plastics in 4′-5′ of water. There were a few in the coves but most were on points. Hope the good luck hangs around next weekend for the tournament.

Thanks for tip about the trailer on the spinnerbait.

Caught most of the fish today on soft plastics in 4′-5′ of water. There were a few in the coves but most were on points. Hope the good luck hangs around next weekend for the tournament.

Thanks for tip about the trailer on the spinnerbait.

Thanks for the report and the tip on the scissors.  Looks like the fish may have backed off just a little with the rain.  So good luck in the tourney, let us know how you do, win, lose, or draw.

*******************

And I got this from Chuck who fished in the kayak tournament on Coleto last weekend.

KATS Tournament 03/12 with 107 Kayak entered. Water wasn’t too bad. Tough day of fishing for most. The rise pushed the shallow fish up further and the big ones were tough to get to for most folks. Two lucky anglers found a small cove that had 20″ fish in (kayak tournaments use length instead of weight. We CPR Catch, Photo and Release the fish) Plenty of zeros got posted by some darn fine anglers. I caught 3 fish off one stump but could never find another stump the fish were holding on. I’m going to keep my lucky bait under my hat for now, but the most successful plastics were all dark as in black/blue. Seems like smaller fish liked the pink and chartreuse. A few guys caught em on swimbaits and spinner baits. Winning length total for 5 fish was 96″.

Wow!  I know kayak fishing is gaining popularity, but I had no idea that many folks would be fishing.  Of course whether fishing a kayak tourney or a boat tourney, it seems conditions always conspire to turn things on their ear.   Not a bad string for the winner, I would be happy with 5 that measure 20″ most any day and most anywhere.

*******************

Mark sent along this comment on the needle fish I caught on Coleto.

The photo of the weird fish caught on your March 8 trip to Coleto Creek is an Atlantic Needlefish. Scientific name “Strongylura marina”.
They are quite common in the bays in the spring and summer. Apparently this fish migrated up the Guadalupe River and was pumped into the reservoir by GBRA pumps.

Thanks.  I thought they looked like what we catch at the gulf occasionally, just surprised they can live in fresh water.  And I wondered how they might have gotten into Coleto.  So great comment, thanks for reading.

********************

That about catches us up for the day.  I am just waiting to hear from Shoedog on tomorrows plan, but it will be on the water.  So next it is outside to work on trailer lights.  Funny how both trailers were fine, now both are acting up.  Love those trailer lights.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

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I might not have fished last week, but a few folks got out the last couple of days and managed to catch a few.  Looking at the week to come it has winds up to 20mph every day.  That is the thing about March, you get some and you lose some.  Water is warming and most of the gamefish we chase are stirring around and thinking about making some babies.  Unfortunately along with that is the winds which either roar out of the north or the southeast, then all day from both directions, and then it will really blow.  But the end is near as we approach the middle of the month and our best fishing of the year both fresh and salt is coming.

*******************

Got a great report from my buddy Jeffish who is on Lake Dunlap with family and the future Bass Master Champion of 2030, Korbin, but bass were not on the agenda this weekend.

That thing is as big as you are Korbin!  Jeffish said he about wet his pants on this one.  Just kidding Korbin.

Korbin and I set some limb lines out on Lake Dunlap and caught 2 channels and a yellow on small perch. Then Korbin caught another yellow on road and reel. Good fight on light pole. 16 lbs or so total. Frying em up for a Sunday feast.

Jeffish and Korbin with a heavy string.

Nice job boys.  Looks like a pretty productive weekend.  Korbin keeps putting them in the boat no matter where he fishes.  So have a good fish fry, makes my mouth water to think about it.

*********************

I waited Friday until it looked like the rain had mostly cleared and headed out to Fayette Co. Lake.  Got there about 12:30 and fishing by 12:45.  Guy at the ramp said he was disappointed with his day and asked if I had been there much lately.  Told him not since the first of the year.  I put in at Oak Thicket Park and went out and started on the same long bank we always do on the left going down lake. The weather was changing hourly- Sun, drizzle, partly cloudy, calm, windy- whatever.

*********************

Johnny sent along this tip and a note on Coleto’s current water condition.

Hi Douglas. My wife found these snips at Walmart in the Fabric Department for my tackle box.  They are sharp and easy to use. Don’t have to fight the little holes in small scissors with my big fingers. Thought you might want to try them out.

I was at Coleto today and the water from the housing addition to the plant is real dirty. The main lake up to the first bridge is still clear up to a foot deep. Caught a few on white spinnerbait and the old style white swim jig.

Have a safe trip home.

Thanks for the tip on the scissors, will be interested in how they work on braid.  Fiskars make good products so for all you guys with the big hands here is a good alternative.  And I wondered how the lake was, sounds like it got a lot of off color water after all that rain.  Since I plan on fishing there in the morning I will be able to update conditions.  And if any of you have had chance to fish it the last couple of days drop us a line, love to get a new report.

*******************

Speaking of getting home safely it was an interesting trip.  Las Vegas changes each and every time we go, and it has been almost 30 years since we first went.  Probably the most memorable moments of the trip were at Bush International before we even took off.

First, you know how TSA is always running that thing over the speakers about unattended bags?  Well there was a ratty back pack left leaning against the  counter as we waited for the plane.  After a while I finally said something.  10 minutes later a woman with a plastic vest strolls over, and then leaves.  Then about 10 more minutes later here comes the cops.  So that thing sat there for well over a half hour at least and nobody really cared.  Your tax dollars at work.

Second. the plane was 3 hours late, and on boarding there were 6 or so dudes acting a fool.  Apparently on the way to this guys bachelor party, his brother decided that he could be a real idiot.  So he disregards the flight attendant’s orders twice, and was disrespectful.  She did not get in to it with him, and then here comes security, and there goes the fool off the plane.  His brother is going but I already paid for the trip, to bad.  Could not have happened to a better guy.  Other than that the trip was uneventful and we missed the rain.

*******************

It does feel weird when I haven’t fished all week, but from what I hear the weather and rain this week was plenty tough and I did not miss anything.  But all this writing about fishing and looking at pictures has me cranked up to go.  First will be Coleto, and from there who knows.  The first day this week the wind is not expected to top 20 I will be on my way to the Gulf.  So pray for calm, the topwater bite has to be on so maybe it will just boil down to which direction the wind is blowing where I can get to the trout.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

This is quick post, no fancy stuff. Can anyone help a few brothers out?  I am in Las Vegas, we decided to hit the road for a couple of days to miss the rain so I do not have a clue what is going on at the lake.  A buddy told me got around 5 – 6 inches.  I have got several comments concerning water levels, color, at lake.  So if any buddy can help us out with a water report send a comment as quick as you can and I will post them.  It sure could help several folks thinking of coming to Coleto, nothing worse than getting there and it is to ugly to fish.  Hope you all made it ok, looked rough on the news.  Thanks in advance, back in the game tomorrow.

Fish Catching Travel

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Weather

Overcast  72.9 °F   Feels Like 74 °F 

Tide   M    7th      Low  10:39 AM    -0.2  (No high for the day, and low is getting later, the good tide is right around the corner, and next week will be the Gulf.)

• Best Times: 8:47A – 10:47A     9:14P – 11:14P

• Good Times:  2:33A – 4:33A

Wind

As soon as I got up this morning I hitched up the boat and headed to Coleto.  It was already blowing pretty good, and was looking to pick up as the day went along.  That sure turned out to be right on.  Funny how the weather man can miss the wind forecast fairly regularly, but there is one thing to know for sure, he is never wrong when the forecast is for big wind.  So knowing it is forecast to blow hard for 3 days with a significant chance of rain or storms, it was fish this morning or it might be a while.

The lake is still falling slowly, and there is grass and other stuff growing on some of the flat wetter banks.  Before I forget, what makes that significant is that if we get some rain and a raise this week those fish will charge that stuff in a heartbeat.  The last few trips they have been on grass and cover.  The ones I am catching are shallow, and like last trip I got to see several fish eat it today.

The white Strike King Tour Grade Swimming Jig is still the ticket.

There is not a lot of grass and what you do find in some of these coves is really shallow, but there are still some fish up there foraging around.  So have that jig moving when it hits the water and do at least a couple of erratic speed cranks/stop in the first 10 feet or so, and if you feel anything, set the hook.  They are not slamming it, but they are eating it.  Kind of a trade off, if you recognize a bite quick enough they are coming in the boat, but hesitate and they are gone.

Some of them are pretty beat up right now with the spawn in full swing.

I probably caught maybe 6 or so on the Swim Jig so I decided to fish a bait I told you I was going to fish next time out.  Now that is not such a big deal, if the wind is not blowing 25 – 30mph.  To explain that statement it is important to know how I fish it.

In the early spring through out the spawn they will eat a bubble gum trick worm.  It is a ton of fun to fish, and it you like visual strikes it is the bomb.

More fun than a barrel of monkeys!

I throw this on at least 15lb test, 20 if I have some fluorocarbon.  A weedless hook, generally a 2/0 or 3/0 in red if you can find them, and no weight. (And that is why it was so tough to fish in high winds.)  Tossing it to the bank I give it a tug and it does the collapse and open thing, and I just twitch it along.  The best depth seems to be where you can just see it.  About half of them you will see them roll on it, others the worm just disappears or you see your line move.  You need to get any slack out and bust em’.

They thought they were going to chew some bubblegum.

The bubble gum trick worm is particularly effective in the back ends of pockets and coves.  It is a soft presentation and a fairly finesse presentation.  It can be worked slowly over trash and cover, just twitching it along.  Fishing it is really a believe your own eyes thing, yes, one really does have it.  Fishing the last 2 coves with it before I quit I boated 4 or 5, had one break my line, and missed a couple.  And it is real important to wear good optics, today since it was cloudy it was Cocoons in the yellow lens, which made that worm super visible, a real plus.

By 1:00 it was almost blowing me off the front deck, it was just to much of a hassle and getting worse, and it sprinkled some but never did rain.  Considering the conditions I was happy with the results.  If it had not been blowing the trick worm would have really smoked them.  Those fish are in the back ends and looking to eat, making it the perfect time for the trick worm.  It is something they do not see that often and is worth giving it a try.  When I came back to the ramp it was white capping to beat the band and it was definitely time to call it a day.

His eyes were sure bigger than his stomach.  What a weird fish in freshwater.

*********************

Got this great question from Chuck that I was actually thinking about today as I tried to keep from blowing off the bow of the boat.

I’m enjoying reading your blog. I have a kayak fishing tournament coming up on Coleto March 12th and wonder what may happen to the fishing if it rains a whole bunch like the weather guessers are saying it will ?

Lets look at a couple of scenarios.  The lake is going down and there is actually new growth coming up where it is freshly exposed.  The water has come down enough that much of the shoreline cover is a little to shallow.  So if we get a gully washer, but no mud, the lake will come up and flood lots of new growth and cover at what I think is the perfect time.  Now if it really muddies up it will affect them, but mainly the back ends of  coves and creeks until they start to clear, and then it will be on big time.

There is one scenario that is really tough, and that is if we get a monster raise.  I have seen that happen over the last 40 years several times where the fish did not come with it.  When that happens the fish still bite but it is basically at the place they were when it came up.  And as we are in the spawn right now we do not want it to rain a ton right before this moon.

But the real point is how cool is the rain runoff?  Looking at this week’s forecast it is going to stay warm until it cools off a little at night at the end of the week.  Until then the rain temp should not have any great affect.  But if it rains hard and cold one night look out, everything will change in the big coves and the lake itself, none of it for the good.

One thing about the kayak, as you paddle out of the ramp cove you will get an immediate take on the water color.  It may be clear like it is now, or off color, or dirty.  So as you paddle out to the main lake you will get an instant read on the color, and what effect it might have had, especially in the coves, depending on the amount of rain we get.  Maybe this does not make a lot of sense, kind of hard to condense all the possibilities.  But one thing is for sure, if it just rains some and blows the next couple of days it will have no real affect, the bite is on.  But if it is clear that it has muddied up as you paddle out, stay on the main lake and look for tips of grass sticking out, that is the first place I would look. So thanks for the question, and sorry for the rambling answer.  And let us know how the tournament goes.

                                                                 ******************

Had a great time eating oysters at Fulton the other day, followed by more seafood for supper in Corpus.  Growing up in Iowa, where seafood is those $1 packages of pop corn shrimp or fish sticks, you really do not have a clue about seafood.  Fresh huge shrimp, oysters on the half shell, oyster shooters, po’ boys, grouper sandwiches, and octopus, whether beside the Aegean Sea or in some dive in Louisiana, it is all good and makes my mouth water thinking about it.

The forecast this week is something.  If it rains even half of the time they are forecasting we could really get wet.  And combining it with 20 – 30mph winds just makes it perfect.  So who has a clue what is next?  It is up in the air.  Who knows, I just might disappear a couple of days.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

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I try to keep the ads/plugs to a minimum but the other day on Coleto I really got a lesson in what it means to have the right optics from Cocoons. There was something about the combination of water color, lure color, and sunlight that seemed to actually make the Swim Jig glow.  No matter how many times I see a fish eat it still excites me, and they were smoking that thing.  So the next plan is to take the different lens with me and actually change glasses as I fish and try to really determine the proper lens for the conditions.  I know we all can’t have every pair we need, but there is a difference and for those of us that wear glasses Cocoons fit overs are affordable.  More on that as spring progresses.

********************

How about a few more Arkansas pictures?  These are my buddy Clyde from a week or so ago when the Shoedog was up there fishing with him.  The year I moved to Mtn. Home, 1974, and bought a small gas station/tackle store Clyde came down to work with  me.  We basically ran the store or fished our butts off for several years.  He still keeps after them 40 years later.

A couple of nice stripers.

A hybrid and a smallmouth.  You can catch the works on Norfork.

Now that is a nice Kentucky.

We are still trying to finalize plans, but it looks like it will be a full week of fishing on Norfork and Bull Shoals the last week of March.  They are a little ahead this year so our timing should be great.  One thing to be said for their fishing is the number of species that can be caught.  The baits of choice in the spring are a jerkbait, a grub, and the Alabama Rig.  I have never used the Alabama rig, not a great choice for Coleto or Falcon, but will throw it quite a bit this trip if these pictures are any indication.  And as you can see it catches most everything that swims.  It is time to get excited, the fishing should be on.  So see you guys in a couple of weeks.

********************

The Good Old Days

I have been reading the white bass reports online keeping up with the run this spring.  Funny how 12″ and up is often mentioned, and 10″ is legal.  So I thought I would share a picture with you from Arkansas sometime in the 70’s .  Look at the size of the whites on the left, that is not uncommon in those lakes., with 3lbs being fairly common.  Also note the 10 fish bass limit in place at the time.  There was way over 150lbs on this stringer, and though legal it was a different time and a different ethic.

Maxwell, me, Danny, Terry, and Clyde

That was one of those perfect storm days where the fish bit all day everywhere we went.  Most were caught on spinnerbait and jigs, many with really light line.  We really did whack them, and it was one of my most memorable days.

******************

I got this comment from Gary which really sums up the turn the fishing has taken on Coleto:

Awesome report, it’s good to see Coleto getting back to it’s old self, beautiful pictures as well. Hopefully it will hold for the spring season, should be a good buzz bait bite soon! Keep up the good work!

You are so right about the buzzbait bite.  And speaking of the buzzbait bite, a bait I want to throw in that vein is the Whopper Plopper by River to Sea.  While $17 baits are not usual in my tackle box I plan to make an exception for this one.   Also I did see some beds yesterday, and we should have a full on spawn this next moon.  So if you haven’t fished Coleto lately now is the time.  Thanks for the comment.

*********************

And this comment on my less than stellar day on POC this week:

You might not agree, but to me, this was one of your better reports. Why?, because you explained in such detail why the fish did’nt bite. Also the weather, tide, solunar info adds a lot of value to your reports. I’m sure you will get ’em next time.

Thanks Rick, I hope to get them next time.  Now when that will be I am not sure as we are going to have a stretch of weather this week, so we will just have to wait and see.  And as far as putting the conditions for each trip, it is the kind of thing that a real fishing log contains.  Not only does it give us a place to start next year by reading old reports and comparing conditions, but it gives us additional information to talk about on the blog.  And there is one thing to add to the conditions the other day:  The wind initially was out of the north/east and it was actually a cold front.  It sure seems that speckled trout take a slight drop in water and air temp much harder than other fish.  So a small front can have a major affect on the fishing, a much bigger affect than the same front would have on freshwater.  So keep your comment coming.

**********************

And for a little different take on my day at POC:

I wanted you to know that I had a good giggle at your expense reading the first part of your report as I have been in your shoes. Get to the ramp with horrible conditions and still convince yourself to go KNOWING it’s going to be bad then later saying to yourself, “well that sucked and should have known better”. LOL!!

Anyways, I really like how you are giving the “technical” information regarding tides, weather, etc before your reports.

Keep up the good work.

Jim

Thanks, I think.  Tough conditions come in many forms, but that day at POC the only other option was not going fishing.  But we make choices everyday out on the water, it is just some days we might make a few better ones.  There is a bright side though, for all those day we make the wrong choices there are those days when we get it all right.  Thanks for the comment.

********************

That catches us up for today.  Looks like the weather will be pretty sketchy this week with high winds and rain, we will have to see how that plays out.  And as usual I appreciate all of you who send me comments and reports, they are appreciated.  I know some of you are fishing so let us know how you are doing.  I am about to hit send then it will be off to Rockort/Fulton for the Oyster Fest.  I am not sure how many raw oysters I can eat, but it could get ugly.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines