FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

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The Knockin Tail catches trout, end of story!

I have very strong political opinions, this blog is not the place for that and I have tried my best to keep it out.  It has zip to do whether they are on swim jig or buzzbait, or if croaker are in season.  But this election will be defining for this country no matter who wins.  So I hope you voted,  gives you the right to express our opinion.  But I am so tired of this election.  It looks like very few people are needing to be swayed one way or the other this time.  And if I see another ad telling me how wonderful any of them are, or what they are going to do for me, I think I might throw up.  Hope it is over Tuesday.  Now on to important stuff.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading need s.

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Random fish picture.  A big Lake of the Woods Northern Pike.

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Nice to get a few comments, I like to get them even if they are from sketchy people like my buddy Clyde.

Real glad your back Porkrind!!!!!!

You know what, me too!  That thing lasted a month but has given me a new appreciation for being alive with a fishing rod in my hand.   For those of you who do not get the joke probably never fished a number 11 Uncle Josh’s pork frog on the back of a jig.  Then had to cut the dang thing off the next day after leaving it on your rod all night.  And good luck in the deer woods, I am sure you are itching to get out there.

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And this from Kirby.

Doug- Enjoyed talking w you across the water today while I was fishing w Rusty (and also an Aggie). You have been a great resource for all of us, have gotten the blog from Rusty. Glad to finally meet you! Retiring at the end of the year and MORE fishing and waterfowl hunting will be at the top of the list. Need the blog myself. —Kirby

Was happy to see you guys and glad you were catching fish.  Over the years I have done this it is always nice to see and hear from folks who are getting something out of this drivel.  Trust me, the retirement thing is a breeze as long as you hunt or fish, it has been the time of my life.  And doing all that during the week is so much better, so see you out there with the rest of us old guys.  Though you are an Aggie I appreciate your reading the blog, just get ready for a good game tonight at your house.  (Go Hogs.  There is always hope!) 

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Random fish picture.  Australia Queen fish, man that thing could jump.

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This from Billie on Texana.

As to Texana, the places to catch bass are The Jungle, and up the Navidad or Sandies.
From 59 the last two look like chocolate milk, but can clear up real quick going up either of them.
The Jungle is ridiculously clear, but you’ve got to know how to get in there. You can wreck a lower unit real easy if you don’t.

Thanks for the info, I have been looking at the map and trying to figure it out.  Definitely a lake for the skiff.  Thanks for commenting.

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Random fish picture.  Coleto in the “good old days.”  This really was a giant!

After John’s post on the ongoing issues at Fayette Rusty filled me in on another story.  Someone he knows was coming in after dark the other night and ran right up on a jon boat with people in it, probably netters – and they had no running lights.  Wonder how long TPWD will let this kind of stuff go on there?  When something turns from a hassle into life threatening you would think that would be a priority with them.

And there was a facebook post yesterday when a guy went to take his boat out of Bastrop it would not go in gear even though he just got it serviced.  He had seen a guy with a bucket near the boat slip when he got back from getting the truck to load and did not think much about it.  He then had to hand crank load to get it on the trailer.  Turned out the guy threw his cast net and it ended up getting all tangled in his prop.  Like I said before, it just might be time to establish some rules before there is a major confrontation, or someone dies.

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And speaking of John got this comment on his trip to the Lavaca Friday.

Lavaca report for Friday. Wind from north did let up a lot unfortunately. Water was very low with very little rise during day. Most trout were undersize with only one group found under birds. Finally found one group that had some 15-16 inch and I could make my wife’s trout almandine hope happy. Would find the trout with poppin cork and white chartreuse tail Knockin Tail, but you had to go slow after the jerk the cork as the fish where rising from bottom. They would hit even better if used the same tail on 1/8 jig head and bump slowly along bottom on the channel edge. Could not find a red or flounder after using gulp shrimp and spinner baits on flats. Lots of fun. Thanks for our help. John

At least you caught some fish and finally figured out a few better ones.  And glad you caught some on white Knockin Tail as I have just not got them going on anything resembling white.  But who knows, I might have been using the popping cork to fast.  But with the weather finally breaking, and the nights cooling off, it will only get better on the river/creeks.  And enjoy your supper, sounds great.  Thanks for the report.

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Watching the MFL this weekend was interesting as usual, and  I can really tell I am getting old and set in my ways.  As one of the guys reeled in a bass he commented that he saw it eat it on Livescope.  For some reason that did not hit me just right.  I know the tournament guys need the latest and greatest, but that somehow did not seem like “fishing”.  Guess it is because I do not want to know, the blind anticipation is what the bite is all about.  But to each his own.  Plus they cost more than my first bass boat.

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And speaking of the skiff here is one of the strangest boating questions I ever got.  Picking up the skiff 20 years ago in Florida the first thing it did was quit running 100 yards from the house.  Even though brand new with a full tank, not a drop coming out of the line.  Luckily a boat came by and towed me in.  When I called the mechanic he asked the following:  “Did you run it after it ran out of gas?”  How do you answer that one.  Turned out they rigged the gas line with the bulb on backwards.

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All I have to say about this weekends college football is Texas pulled our victory from the jaws of defeat.  And the Razorbacks struggled as the Aggies are starting to show that they just might be a real contender.  Nice to see the middle of the pack making improvement.  It has been a long time coming for the Hogs but they just might finally be on track.

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I am really looking forward to this week’s fishing.  Tomorrow of course will be Coleto Monday as the weather looks better than my last trip.  Time to get that figured out.  So with 3 days of salt coming this week it might be a couple of days of bass fishing.  Before this week is done it will have been 13 days of fishing in the last 3 weeks, with many more to come.

Initially it looked like it would be a ride for me when the Austin boys come, but unfortunately John had a mishap with his boat the other night, a new lower unit is on the menu.  Hate that kind of stuff when it happens.  At least the LTS knows the way to POC.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Proudly Representing

The Knockin Tail, if it has fins it eats them!

They have been eating the Mansfield Magic on 4 straight trips!

The weather was looking great so it was back to Garcitas.  I slept in and did not leave the house until 9:00 which was nice and the weather was wonderful compared to yesterday.  There was already 7 trucks at the ramp, and the tide was out.  No surprise, the water temp was in the low 60’s, down 10 degrees from Monday, and fairly clear.  First stop had a mix of smalls with a few keepers thrown in, and it went from there until I quit at 3:00.

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Weather

44/78.  Sunny and pleasant with a 2% chance of rain.  Wind  E 5 – 10 mph.

Tides

Low  9:35 am  0.24    High   7:58 pm  0.98.

Solunar Times

Major  12:34 pm  to  14:34 pm.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

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For the first few hours it was just hopping the Mansfield Magic on a 1/8th jig head from the bank to the boat and sooner or later you would get bit.  It was never fast, but usually if you got a bite you would get a couple more in the same area.  I covered lots of water and tried several different techniques but it always came back to the Knockin Tail.  Today several of them jumped it totally slack, one great bite!  Others the line twitched, some were just there.

This is a good representation of what is in the river right now.  Some measure some don’t.

While I was fishing I noticed another LTS and it turned out to be my buddy Rusty and his friend.  When I stopped to talk to them they were catching them cast after cast, on the Mansfield Magic of course.  I tossed the Mansfield Magic that I had been using 3 days in there and one broke me off.  I was just thinking about taking a picture of it, that will teach me to retie after catching a bunch.  They were on the water early and found tailing reds to boot.  I noticed they had the Four Horsemen Tackle popping corks, they caught the reds on them with a new penny fake shrimp.  As Rusty had a medical issue in Colorado the same time I was sick there and it was good to see him back on the water.

Best I could manage today.

Topwater did not produce a bite, though if I had not quit early it was starting to get that feel to it.  The tide had been going out a little when I got there, and it was still slightly heading down river when I quit.  One thing I wanted to try was trolling the plastics.  One thing that is really interesting to me is they just do not want a white anything.  That is so different from the past.  Rusty noticed the same thing today.  So to test I rigged a Pearl on one rod and a White Lightning on the other and slow trolled them and the results, 2 on the White Lightning and zip on the Pearl.  Not sure what that is all about, but it is all about listening to the fish.

I hit one area in front of a pond and it was loaded with trout.  The wind was lightly blowing out and there was bait everywhere.  It is on a channel turn and the trout were up in about 1 – 2 foot of water close to an 8 foot drop.  A couple of passes produce the biggest and smallest trout of the day, along with a bunch of others.  I tried a pink twitch bait and caught 2 smalls and missed one.  If I did not have to go that place deserved a going over as there were also reds busting on the bank.  But I needed to be in town by 4:00 so time to hit the road.  The funny part of that, I was going to the Doc’s office to pick up a page of my medical record and when I got there at 4:00 they are closed on Friday.  Poor planning makes for a poor performance.  I was definitely not done fishing.

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I give the day an A for the weather and a B for the fishing.  For me a day on the creek or river is one of my favorite places to fish.  As I have said before it is so like grub fishing for  bass in Arkansas.  Love the bite and it is a nice easy way to fish.  We are about to enter my favorite fishing period since moving to Texas.  As long was we do not have some great weather incident the next couple of months the fishing will be good both fresh and salt.

Next up, the Austin Boys late next week.  So that means one thing, get out the winter stuff because the big front is on the way.  At least it has played out that way the last few years but somehow we always manage to have a good time.  We generally fish out of Todd’s boat but John is also bringing his boat so he can get some tracks before Todd sells his so I will not have to bring mine.  So let the eating and drinking begin.  And before they get here I will be fishing right along.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Proudly Representing

The Knockin Tail, if it has fins it eats them!

The plan was to fish Wednesday and when I got up it was 43 degrees and raining.  It continued to rain until noon and finally cleared up and began to warm.  I went ahead and took the time to start on the garage cleaning and organization.  So good to get a lot done today, amazing how much stuff you can throw out, the rest will be for the garage sale.  Tomorrow it will be up in the morning and gone for the day.  Very interested to see how the fishing will be the second day after a cold front with a 20 – 25 mph wind out of the north.

Weather

46/69.   Nice with plenty of sun and 2% chance of rain.  Wind 12 – 18 mph.

Lake Level

9 days ago.   93.15 msl.    Today  93.08 msl.  (Can’t wait to see the ramp.)

Solunar Time

Major  11:54 am to 1:54 pm. 

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

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

Making chicken salad out of chicken poop.

When you see this white bass fishing you are in business.

I did  not even hit the road until 9:00, it was 42 degrees and blowing a good 20 out of the north.  And not a preconceived notion except for one thing – it was going to suck, and as far as bass fishing, it did.  The real difference, it was 73 at the ramp, 74 in mid lake by the discharge cove, and as low as 62 way up the lake.  It had been in the mid 80’s over most of the lake before this cold front.  (It may have hurt the fishing today, but it will get us into real fall/winter fishing.)  And the water is nice a clear over most of the lake.

To make a long bass story short, 5 places, one small on a rattle bait.  There were just not biting.  And those were places that always have fish.  But with that kind of temp drop, bluebird sky, and a brisk north wind, was not expecting anything different, and they did not disappoint.  The real question was what was the water temp up lake?

It just seems to early for them to be there.

When I got to the area where I had been catching them it was 63 degrees with the wind pounding down the lake.  Tossed out a rattle bait and hooked up right away.  It really did surprise me as the water temp there had DROPPED 18 degrees!  But the shad were still there and the whites were even a hair bigger than they had been.  Of course when you are used to catching them 3lbs and up these are midgets, but they are Coleto’s midgets.  Never have figured out whey they do not get big, there is plenty to eat.  And speaking of eating this size is by far the best.

Whether shad colored or fire tiger, the rattle bait was the ticket.

I messed around with them for a couple of hours, they were right in the channel around shad schools.  One of those deals where once I go over a big wad it is just a matter of time before one hits.  One difference is while catching over a dozen whites, only 2 small bass jumped on, a pretty good indicator of how they were feeling.

After trolling a while I let the wind blow me down the bank, it was howling, throwing the rattle bait, and caught one small.  As it got later in the afternoon it warmed considerably so headed down lake hunting up a couple of banks with sun and as little wind as possible.  That went over like a lead balloon.  Jerk bait, swim jig, rattle bait, did not matter, they were not having it.  Never did fish plastics because of the wind.

So at 4:00 I called it a day.  The wind was still blowing like crazy, but the water temp was definitely rising everywhere I fished.   But boy were the deer active, I saw an easy 25 today.  If you really want to see a really big gator, days like today are perfect.  Saw a real monster sunning on a calm bank, actually probably the same one I have seen there for years, and where I  saw one smoke a duck.  And last there was big flock of teal, something you don’t see on the lake all that often though there has been more ducks the last few years, especially with the loss of grass and with it the coots.  Gone are the days when the bass would be on a bank with grass and the coots would just keep in front of you tearing it up making it hard to fish.  It used to piss me off, now sure miss them.

Spoke with the gentleman at the ramp who comes every evening to watch the sunset and chat with fishermen.  He was around for several folks driving their trailer off the end of the ramp.  Folks do not get to close to the edge, one of the trailers over the edge ended up with a bent axle when they jerked it out.  He said most that had trouble were bigger ski style boats.   So just be aware.

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I  got this comment on from Matt.

With Coleto so low, have you ever considered fishing Texana? It is full. The areas north of Highway 59 can be good for bass, crappie and white bass.

Yes I have considered it, and have actually fished it twice but was clueless.  I would love to give it a go.  You have an email coming as I am not sure exactly where you are talking about.  Appreciate any help you can give me.  Will let the rest of you know how it comes out.  Thanks for the comment.

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And it was good to hear from John.

Glad you are feeling better Doug and can enjoy the creek. Stayed a few days at Fayette area. Bream harder to find as they go deeper now. Did get into some nice bass hitting cranks at the intake a few times. They have made some nice repairs to the facilities at Fayette but the cast netters where the worse I’ve ever seen. They come right up to where you are trying to fish.
Still looking forward to a time we could go to POC together sometime. John

There are more and more  complaints from Fayette concerning the netters.   And there have been other problems, including the drownings last year.  Hopefully TPWD are hitting the lake more often, at least keep some of it to a dull roar.  If it is as bad as I am hearing , and you are not the only one, might be time to set a time when netting is allowed, at least everyone would know.  And congrats on the bass, they are always good ones there.  Hopefully we can figure something out on the bay in the future.  Thanks for commenting.

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Looking forward to fishing with the Austin Boys next weekend.  Whether fish are caught or not it is always a good time.  Tomorrow it will be back to the creek.  Looking forward to seeing if the cold front has changed things.  No matter what I think I know, it could be completely different. But the falling water temps should help at least in the short term.  As I have said before the river/creek bite can be fleeting so time to take advantage while it is good.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Proudly Representing

The Knockin Tail puts trout in the boat!

This is my favorite time to fish all year.  The salt bite is good and the fresh is definitely better than it has been in the summer, and both can be great.  But the thing about the river and the creek is it is a fleeting bite.  When it is good it is very, very, good. but if we get a flood it can be over in a minute.  And no matter what it slows considerably after December. So with that in mind it would be back to the creek on Monday.   The philosophy?  Get it while the getting is good.  (The real reason – the Boss ordered up a few trout for super.)

What a way to start the day.

Weather

72/88.  Cloudy skies becoming partly cloudy later in the day. Winds SSE 15 to 25 mph.

Tides

High   5:55 AM  +1.3   Low   8:49 PM   -0.8.

Solunar Time

Major 8:12 am to 10:12 am..   Minor  3:40 pm to 4:40 pm.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

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The tide was super high again, and the water color had not changed.  What had was the water temp which was 74 at daylight, down 3 or 4 degrees.  And with this little cold front coming tonight the drop will continue and it looks like temps will moderate and the nights will finally cool off.

The Mansfield Magic catches trout.

It was definitely slower than last trip, for some reason they just were not biting all that good.  I did have a first, a sand trout on a topwater.  One more jumped on a plastic on the same point so I moved.  I hit my favorite  bank going and coming without a bite.  The water was coming in and was up in the marsh and grass, which had something to do with it I am sure.  So headed down river.

I intentionally did not start where the small trout were the other day.  I just let the wind blow me down the banks tossing the Mansfield Magic Knockin Tail on the 1/8th jig head slow rolling it.  It was one here and one there, most small.  I did catch one on the Knockin Tail White Lightning which I threw for a little in an area with flounder.  And not a redfish of any size, which was kind of surprising, but I did not fish the spinnerbait.  As a side note the spinnerbait is best on a falling tide when the water is just leaving the grass, something I have not seen these last 2 weeks.

I will give them credit what would hit a topwater smoked it!

It was raining off and on, with the occasionally sunny periods.  Funny how it has rained down there the last 4 trips, and not a drop at the house.  Since I was needing a little bigger trout for the fish fry I spent a little time this morning throwing top water.  Around 10:00 there was a little flurry in an area that I usually fish.  I boated 5 or 6 only missing 1, not how it usually goes when trout are biting topwater.  When they were coming for it they were just blasting it like they do occasionally.  I re-fished it with plastics and could not get a bite, which surprised me as they were definitely there.

Around 1:00 I called it a day to head home, clean the boat, and fry some fish for the Boss.  3 is plenty for us and as most of the fish I catch, the rest were CPR’d.  It was a dozen or so this morning and it seemed once the wind came up, and it did, they quit, or I lost them.  Whatever I called it a day.  Great way to spend the morning.

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When the box your baits come in says it is not for human consumption because it has caused cancer in California I assume it is safe to eat in other states.

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I fished Monday thru Thursday before I had to get gas Friday morning.  Both the truck and the boat were full when I started, and when I filled up, $48 total for 4 days of fishing.  I can live with that all day long!

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Our winter ospreys are here in force on lake and river, cool bird.

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Will take tomorrow off and let the front blow through, and then it will be a lake day on Wednesday.  From there who knows, but it will be fishing until I drop.  And it is just over a week out until the Austin Boys come, which means a couple of things.  We will catch fish, and if there is even the slightest chance the weather will suck, it will.   It is always an adventure.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Proudly Representing

Put your favorite Knockin Tail under a Four Horsemen popping cork and hold on!  A deadly combination.

I looked at everything and decided to hit the creek again.  It may not be the 5th different place but I so enjoy fishing there.  And there are several places there I did not get to fish that are calling me.  This was a vote for the experience, the fish are a bonus.  So time will tell but it will be a great ending to a good week.  Nothing like fishing 5 straight days!

Let the games begin!

Weather

70/86.   Sunshine and clouds mixed. 20% chance of a stray shower or thunderstorm. High around 90F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.

Tides

High 5:11 AM +1.6.    Low 6:09 PM 0.6.  (Another day of high water.)

Solunar Time

Major 1:01 pm to 3:01 pm.   Minor  7:25 am to 8:25 am.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

All your wading needs.

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It is not a Mansfield Magic Knockin Tail, it is now the Mansfield Mauler!

Running down the creek at daylight I made a conscious choice to just have a good time and don’t worry about the blog.  And by having that mind set it was a fish catching good time because I stayed with the small ones early, and I still managed a few good ones before the day was over.  The tide was super high again and the color the nice tannic looking stuff.  And the wind was perfect, with occasional clouds and really freakin’ hot by noon.

Here are a few of the tons I caught the second hour.  All small but all fun.

Starting on my favorite long bank close to the bay it was a no go for over an hour, it looked so good.  Not plastic, not topwater, not popping cork.  It was like the fish were gone.  As I got closer to the bay I could see birds working here and there on a couple of small flat points, so I idled over.  The ones above are examples of what was there.  You could see bait moving and the water also started moving just a little.  I stuck with them for over an hour fishing everything in the box.  They kept biting and I wanted to see just what they would hit.

It is a thing of beauty when one this size smokes a Skitter Walk.

One thing that is still puzzling me is why they just are not interested in any white/pearl color on the jig head or popping cork.  As most of the activity is on mullet and other finned bait and not shrimp, that may have something to do with it.  They bit long enough that I went through the box and one thing has become clear on both the creek and the river – the Mansfield Magic Knockin Tail.  I finally settled on 1/8 jig head and just a slow roll.  Last year on the creek and river I caught some nice trout slow rolling the prototype Knockin Tail, and it looks like it is the ticket.  It seems like the nicer trout want it swimming along at a moderate pace with the tail rattling, and when they bite, the smack it.

They were thumping it.

Points, no matter how small, had a trout on it.  I worked my way back up river stopping here and there, and some of my old places are starting to come on.  Not sure how many fish today, but it was steady for most of the morning.  And once I got the speed down slow rolling the Mansfield Mauler it was fun.

The best trout of the day.

One point had bait going by and the occasional trout busting them.  A couple came on the Knocking Tail and one on a topwater.  As I rounded the point the red above just smashed the Skitter Walk.  Since I did not do any intentional red fishing today she was a bonus.

I finished on my other favorite bank that I did not fish the other day and it had keepers on it.  And the fish were really active and close to the bank.  And at 1:00 I called it a very successful and fun day.  It was just getting to the prime period and you could tell as they got better as the morning wore on.  But it was time to head to the house.  There just might be a thing or two that need to get done before the Boss flies in tonight.  Typical batching it, why do anything at home when you can do it all before she catches you!

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Got this comment from Ross, who I believe is a first time commenter.

Glad to hear you are feeling better and fishing consecutive days now! Thanks for the reports on the creeks as well! I don’t fish those, but it does coincide with an area I fish a little further down the coast and I am heading down for 4 days starting Nov 1. Should be good timing with the better front coming through next week. Hoping it will flush some water out of the bay and get the winter fishing set off!

Enjoy your reading your Saltwater posts while I am stuck up here in DFW area!

You took the words right out of my mouth.  Hoping the weather is at least as “bad” as they are forecasting, and maybe a little worse.  We need a couple of fronts to cool the bay off, and with it some really low tides.  They are so high right now, which is not my forte by a long shot.  But give me that clear super low and I can make do!  As a side note pick up a bag of Knockin Tail and give them a go, right along side with your favorite plastic, you might be surprised.  And let us know how you do, we always love folks reports.  Thanks for reading.

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One word on the ramp on Garcitas, you will get wet if you are by yourself.  It is rarely that good a place to launch normally, shallow when the creek is up.  And the ramp on the Lavaca is still the same though the wooden walkway around it is trashed.

With this little front coming, looks like it will not be as bad as they initially thought, there should be more fish hitting the rivers.  And it was interesting how the big school of small trout I beat on were at the mouth of the river.  So here they come.

I am tired and sore.  And kind of sick of cleaning the boat, especially as just getting it in the water and rolling involved mud most places.  But by the same token I am getting my mojo back.  By that I mean the physical act catching fish, including the “feel”.  One of the better bass fisherman I was friends with, John Story, owner of Champion Boats along with several others, always said:  “Fishing comes down to feel.”  Along with that the old saying, the more I go the luckier I get is so true. Nothing beats time on the water and I intend to keep it up.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Proudly Representing

Put your favorite Knockin Tail under a Four Horsemen popping cork and hold on!  A deadly combination.

Weather

74/86.  Partly sunny and warm with a 50% chance of rain.  Wind  E 10 – 15 mph.

Tides

High  4:18 am  1.6.   Low  5:00 pm  0.5.

Solunar Time

Major 12:21 pm to 14:21 pm.   Minor  6:33 am to 7:33 am.

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

The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

All your wading needs.

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

Day 4 – 4th Different Place.

After yesterday at the creek I decided to go ahead and see how it was in the Lavaca, and it is basically the same.  Color not to bad, water temp 78, and the tide super high when I dropped in.  And of course pulling away from the ramp it started raining, but that is why I carry the works in the truck so the rain suit was already on so I eased down river.  It was a little foggy, but not locked in.  First up was my favorite bank, and there were a few there.

It was early and wet, but the Knockin Tail Mansfield Magic put them in the boat.

What was interesting this morning is that most of the bites came in the first hop.  In fact until I stopped at one spot late just to see if they were there, none came more than 2 hops off the bank.  And those that did were all small.

I hung up the Mansfield Magic so retied with a 1/8 screw lock and the Knockin Tail Chicken on a Chain.  Like yesterday it was the preferred bait.  Thinking about it now I might have caught 3 on the KTL Bone Ice, and one of those was after I dipped the tail in chartreuse color.  And I did catch one small on the Heavy Metal.  It looks like the tail color being different than the body just might be  the ticket.

One on the Mansfield Magic and the only one worth a hoot on the Bone Ice.  It would rain and then stop, then rain again.

Again like yesterday they just would not hit a popping cork.  What is up with that?  Popping cork on the Lavaca is like a go to bait.  In fact, I caught a nice snook last year on it, but if I was guessing, and I am, we need some cold weather.  A few fish will go in the river at the “usual” time cool or not.  But we need that super cold weather to cool the bay off for real and send them in.  The water up in the bushes might have put a damper on the popping cork, they were tight.  But at least I was catching a few.

Most were like this, and on the last place they were really small.

I spent most of the morning on one long stretch.  The flounder came right off the bat.  The trout were really slow and around 9:00 they started biting a little better.  There was bait moving around right on the bank and it got cloudy and started raining again.  So thought I would give topwater a go just for the heck of it.

This one absolutely smoked the Skitter Walk.

First the nice red above jumped it, the only red this morning, and then 5 or 6 took a run at it with one trout getting on.  It turned out to be the nicest trout of the morning on, but trying to grab it for the picture it hit the deck and back in she went.  Around 11:00 it was time to check 2 more places back up river, one had no fish, the other I put 6 – 8 small trout in the boat.  It was pretty apparent the further up you went the slower it got, and the smaller they got.

Today was nice and quiet on the river, nice not to have high power boats running everywhere.  Folks who fish the creek and river are a little different than the POC crowd.  Sometimes it is nice to really enjoy the outdoors without 50 of your closest friends running you over.

I give the day a B+.  The last couple of days is my kind of fishing.  It is so like winter fishing with grubs for bass.  Light line, drops and flats, and watching your line jump.  It is a subtle way to fish, and like all fishing, once you get the retrieve and color down you are in business.  It is time to really watch the tides, looking for those really low winter tides.  When it pulls the water out of the marsh and bushes on the bank the fishing gets better.  And once you find them it can get stupid easy.  Trout fishing is so like crappie fishing, of course I am not talking big trout, find them and you will catch them.  It is far from rocket science, that coming from me, who just might be the worst trout fisherman in the world.

As soon as I post this it will be looking at the weather and tides.  Then I will make a decision on where next.  I am starting to feel it a little physically and tomorrow will be Day 5, and I can’t wait.  Nice to finally getting over the Covid!  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Proudly Representing

Put your favorite Knockin Tail under a Four Horsemen popping cork and hold on!  A deadly combination.

Weather

74/86.  Sun and some clouds with a 25% chance of rain.  Wind  E 10 – 15 mph.

Tides

High  12:47 am.   Low  12:58 pm.

Solunar Time

Major 5:33 am to 7:33 am.   Minor  12:47 pm to 1:47 pm.  (Never have figured out how it works on the river or creek, think I will pay more attention and document what it was compared to what it says.)

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

All your wading needs.

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Day 3

It was cracking daylight when I dropped the boat in Garcitas.  The water  temp was 80 degrees and the color was that tannic looking stuff.  The tide was really high and the wind was light.  With the water temp that high I decided to head all the way down almost to the bay and fish back.  While it was slow at least there were a few fish there.

This is what all the trout looked like.

It was interesting today as both the trout and reds wanted the darker Knockin Tails and other than one trout on a white, 3 light col0rs did not temp them.  Once I figured that out the numbers came up.  By noon the water temp was 82 degrees, definitely not to their liking.  As long as the bay stays that warm there is no big reason for them to move into the creeks and rivers.  But as a side note we have a real cold front on the way and it should gets things rolling.

The spinnerbait got it done.

There was a little period, which I guess was almost low, though you could not tell be looking at it, except the boat quit floating downstream on the current.  The low was maybe 1 or 2 inches,  They wanted it on a heavy 1/8th jig head to get them to bite, and it had to be hopped slowly and then let fall.  I think I caught maybe 6 trout and 10 reds at the lower end.  Interesting to note the only other boats went past me into the bay, if that gives you a clue.

The rats were running wild!  Love it when their tales are all lit up.

After a little run of rats I decided to throw my homemade spinner bait with the Knockin Tail trailer, and it accounted for the best reds of the day.  One of those things if I had just done that it would have been a good catch.  So after the wind came up I headed back up and stopped at 2 places where I normally catch them. and caught 2 on one place and 1 trout on another.  So there are a few scattered in the creek, and it will only get batter after this norther blows through.

Love it when they hit a spinnerbait.  Today the bites reminded me of the swim jig, basically they were slack lining it.

While I did catch a couple of small trout on the White Ice, the Mansfield Magic was better, but when I got on the Chicken on a Chain it was by far the bait of choice.  So I used it on the spinnerbait and they liked that.   I did through a topwater and a popping cork but they are definitely not having any of that.  As I said before as soon as we get the cold front it will improve leaps and bounds.  All we will need is a little real fall and some rain for the lake and it will all be good.

So today was an improvement and I am looking forward to fishing on Day 4.  Who knows, I might even go for Day 5, nice to actually starting to feel more normal.  And I fished 7 hours today and just quit so I could track down a power cord for the laptop.  It will be up early and on the water somewhere by daylight.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines.

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Proudly Representing

Put your favorite Knockin Tail under a Four Horsemen popping cork and hold on!  A deadly combination.

After looking at the weather the next few days I decided to fish the lake on Tuesday, then either the Lavaca or Garcitas on Wednesday.  It is calling for some morning rain on Wednesday but it really does not matter on either how early you go.  So if it does rain in the morning no big deal.  If they are there they will bite most of the day.  So tomorrow the lake, it will be interesting to see how that goes.

Weather

71/88.  Sun and some clouds with a 15% chance of rain.  Wind  SE 9 – 14 mph.

Lake Level

Today  93.15 msl.    Friday  93.24 msl.  (The ramp getting sketchy, be careful.)

Solunar Time

Minor  11:43 am to 12:43 pm.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

All your wading needs.

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

Day 2

It was dead calm when I dropped it in the lake.  The water temp remains in the low 80’s and the wind was light all day.  The water has cleared a little, even up lake.  First up was my favorite point and 2 smalls (When I use that term it could be 2″ or 13″.)  jumped on the buzzbait.  So next was the bank where several good fish ate the swim jig last trip, and not a bite. I turned around and re-fished it and caught 2 smalls on the buzzbait.  From there I ran all the way up lake, the plan was to throw the swim jig

So why am I showing you this?

I went all the way up the river until it was 5 foot of water and proceeded to fish down with the swim jig, and surprise of surprises, I could not get even 1 bite.  Staying with it for a couple of hours just knowing it was going to happen, and it didn’t.  Shallow banks, deep banks, brush, they just did not want it.  Crazy after the other day.  Shows you how important weather is.

There was one bank, where it is only 4 feet deep, that had multiple birds on it and I could see the occasional shad jump.  So why not the buzzbait.  A few casts later several fish chased it and when I stopped it a white bass jumped on.  That is way earlier than normal, to be there now makes little to no sense.  But last week there was some schooling action which I ass-u- me were small bass.  So why not a pearl Knockin Tail slow rolled?

That produced 2 small bass and I missed what was probably a white bass.  It made sense if they were that shallow to troll a couple of baits that ran less than 5 feet and see if they are up there, very similar to what normally happens in January.  Well it worked, about a dozen whites like the one above, 2 catfish, and several small bass.  Most of the whites were small but there was a keeper or two.  A Rapala Rattle Rap in shad was the best.  After trolling and finding several bunches it dawned on me, cast the rattle bait.  On one pass on a long bank 5 bass, 2 whites, and another catfish jumped on.  It was 2:00 and my last bank when I stopped fishing,  As I was putting the trolling motor up a school of whites came up right around the boat and I caught 2 more smalls.  Just nuts.

But I learned, every thing was on the shad and they were liking the rattle bait.  As I was quitting I did not throw it anywhere else, but it will get a good work out next trip.  I was just using it at a moderate pace and they were jumping it.  It is a little puzzling why they are that far up but it is probably all about the bait, and trolling around there was plenty of bait.  But I did not look a gift horse in the mouth and took what the lake had to offer.  So I showed you those 2 because it was a progression today, and I can not wait to get back out and do it again.  Maybe I learned something.

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And SA Joe sent along this comment on the 20 year old boat with a burnt cylinder.

Glad to see you back up and at it !!!!

You mentioned ” It has a dead cylinder on a 200hp Merc. And they want $11,000! ” Mine is 2001 Basscat with 200 Merc EFI, the ECM went out throwing weird symptoms. Along with my mechanic we figured it out,, Ignition packs, stator, etc…..but it still ran and went thru oil.

There is no new replacements for them and have to be rebuilt by CDI for $1300. So if you can part out an old motor for some spare change. Parts are the way to go..

There are fish still in medina, got me a nice one bass today at 6.81

The joys of boat ownership.  But the cost is worth it, keeps some of sane.  And I am slowly getting back to normal.  Still tired at times and the occasional brain fog is a hassle.  When you add not being able to hear out of one ear, taking care of that next week, it has been a crazy 6 months.  But it will all be resolved when I start actually catching them again.  And nice to put a good one in the boat.  Good to hear from you.

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Though it has been a dink fest this week I am looking for things to improve.  It really shows how fishing regularly is important and I am just getting back in the game.  It looks like this is turning into one of those see how many different places you can fish in 1 week.  Next up for day 3 is Garcitas or the Lavaca.  That decision will be made in the morning.  But it is time, and after that happening today anything is possible,  I am looking forward to some serious 4Horseman popping cork and Knockin Tail fishing.    So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Proudly Representing

Put your favorite Knockin Tail under a Four Horsemen popping cork and hold on!  A deadly combination.

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After a long absence from the salt it will be back to POC Monday.  The weather looks good and I will be on the water at daylight.  Since it has been a while I have no preconceived notions as to what is happening, and that is the way I like it.  Topwater at daylight and Knockin Tail the rest of the day, so we shall see how it goes.

Weather

75/84.  Partly sunny and humid with a 50% chance of rain in spots.  Wind SE 6 – 11mph.

Tides

High  2:57 am  +1.25  Low  11:21 am  -0.35.

Solunar Times

Minor  10:36 am to 11:36 am.   Major  4:02 pm to 6:02 pm.

The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

All your wading needs.

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

I had a plan, and like all plans it is all good until you get punched in the mouth, an apt description of my morning.  It was daylight when I dropped in at Froggies and headed down to a couple of drains near South Pass.  The wind was light and the tide was definitely up.

When I went to jump in I could not find the camera, oops, in the truck.  Oh well, before the morning was over not much to see unless you wanted to see 7 trout averaging 13″, and no redfish.  1 came on topwater, of course on my third cast after jumping in, the rest on the Knockin Tail in Heavy Metal color.  So over the next 3 hours it was 3 drains, and other than losing a good one right at the Bogo, it was slow.  And the the tide was flat all morning which sure did not help much.  So time to make the big move and catch some fish.  I saved the best spot for around 11:00 hoping the water would be running by then and the bite would be on.

Pulling up to the drain there was a big thunderhead coming in off the Gulf.  I idled in way farther than normal, just to get to the sweet spot before it started to rain.  I shut off the boat, tossed the anchor over and dropped the power pole.  It seemed like the anchor did not catch.  Well it did, it actually broke the anchor chain at a spot the was rusted.  So now the anchor is gone which changes everything.  I do not wade just using the Power Pole. After several drownings on the coast the last few years when folks were chasing their boat not interested in losing the boat, especially fishing by myself..

So I just let it drift and a midget jumped on, and one took a pass at a topwater.  The storm was getting closer, and of course it was the old one more cast thing.  My next plan was to run back near the ramp to be close and hit Big Bayou and boat fish, but that did not happen,  It started looking real scary.  I took off and then it started to rain and blow.  On went the raincoat and it was a bumpy ride to the ramp raining the whole way.  When I got there a guy grabbed the rope so I could tie up.  I asked if he saw the radar and he said it was big, red, and moving real slow.  No thanks.  In fact, it ended up raining most of the way home, at least did not have to rinse off the boat and trailer.

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Ole Miss v. Arkansas  –  Arkansas is finally starting to “relearn” how to win. It has been a while.  They got flat screwed last week, this week they basically dominated the Rebels in the first half then held on to win in the second.  A pick 6 sealed it for the Hogs.  What a defensive effort.  2 wins in the SEC!

A&M v. Miss State  –  Miss State has basically forgotten how to score since they beat LSU in the season opener.  In fact 9 quarters without a offensive score, their last one against us in the 3rd quarter.  While I only caught snippets A&M did exactly what they needed to and are now 3 – 1.  But with tough games to come we shall see.

Georgia v. Alabama  –  Saban tested positive for the virus mid week, then 3 consecutive negatives so he was good to go.  Of course he was.  They are one of the 2 best teams in the country.  Can’t wait for them to play Clemson, it will be a real game.

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The MLF Bass Pro tour was at Shearon Harris Lake in Raleigh NC and if it were close I would have already loaded up and left.  The average was awesome and one over 8 hit the scales.  Now it was the spawn, but put me on a body of water with that average size bass and I just might catch one.

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Not particularly happy with how the day worked out.  I got to fish about 3 1/2 hours and never did find anything worth catching.  And then getting rained out before I had a chance to do anything else sucked.  Losing the anchor would have changed the days plan if the rain had not reared its ugly head.  Irritating when it is the first time in months I have felt like hitting it hard.  But there is always tomorrow, and while where remains to be seen I will be on the water at daylight.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Go0d Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Proudly Representing

Put your favorite Knockin Tail under a Four Horsemen popping cork and hold on!  A deadly combination.

I am preparing tonight so I will be ready to hit the road first thing in the morning.  As long as it is not lightning or raining cats and dogs it will be fishing a soon as it is feasible in the morning, hopefully at daylight.  The forecast is one of those that may help the fishing, or it could suck.   It is my favorite forecast for Coleto in the fall and winter.  Clouds, drizzle, wind.  But that is what makes fishing what it is, you never know.  I am happy, at least we get a taste of fall.

Weather

60/70.  Shower in the morning then clouds breaking to sun with a 58% chance of rain.  Wind NE 12 – 17mph.

Lake Level

Today   93.24.    Wednesday  93.26 msl.  (I sure hope we get the rain tonight as the lake continues to drop.  And with GBRA not giving a crap about the annual pass holders when we can not put in it will be screw job #2 this year.)

Solunar Times

Minor 7:08 am to 8:08 am.   Major  1:13 pm to 3:13 am.

Conditions

Blowing out of the north with white caps.  Water temps down to around 80 degrees and there was some color based on the wind.  It was blowing right in the ramp cove and it was not easy loading.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

All your wading needs.

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

Today was a real put on your big boy pants day, it was rough.  With the direction it was blowing at daylight I decided to fish some in the plant arm of the lake.  It was cloudy and the air temp was 64 when I started.  First up an all white spinnerbait buzzed right on the top.  4 smalls jumped on and a couple just missed it on the first main lake point.  I tried the buzzbait on one more place in a deeper  cover next to the channel where another small jumped on then my brain finally started working.  If there is shallow smalls time for a bait change.

That will work.

I changed to a bluegill colored swim jig with a Pumpkinseed Knockin Tail trailer.   It is a great bait on Coleto from late fall through late spring.  The first bank produced 3, and from then on it was one here and one there.  A couple just knocked slack in it, one of my favorite bites, they have eaten it.  A couple felt like it was ticking bottom, and a couple surprised me when I set the hook and they were there.  The rest just softly stopped it, none of the bites were hard, but they were biting.  And I did not break my line setting the hook, which happens at times with the swim jig.

It was a good day.

They were shallow, and of the dozen or so that ate the swim jig none of them were more than 5 foot off the bank, and of course a little wood nearby did not hurt anything.  The speed was moderate and since it was a quarter ounce it never got below 5 feet deep on the retrieve.  And the Knockin Tail rattling right along is the perfect addition to the swim jig.

Definitely a size improvement across the board this morning.

As far as color on the swim jig it was a bright bluegill 1/4 ounce, which is what I generally fish.  I have no real preference as to manufacturer, if it looks good I fish it.  With the water color like it is fishing it on 12lb seems to be the best combination.  And while I already had the Pumpkinseed Knockin Tail trailer rigged, there are enough Knocking Tail colors to match any jig.  You can swim it steady, or hop, or drop it, but they did not want any of that today, just a nice steady retrieve.

Today was the day that they almost had to bite.  Fall is late and dropping water level and increasing water temp was just not to their liking.  Today should help move it along.  The water temp dropped a couple of degrees while I was fishing.  I thought the front was already here when I put in but around 1:00 it really started drizzling hard and you could feel it cooling off.  So I called it a day.  When I backed the truck in to load the boat it was 57 degrees, 6 down from when I started.  I would have fished a little while longer but wanted to get home and see the Boss off as she headed to the airport.  I have been waiting for a month for a day like today, and with a little cooler temps, clouds, and maybe a little rain, it can only get better.

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Another reason to not fish partner tournaments.

I have repeatedly said partner tournaments are just not safe, cheats are everywhere.  This case is a perfect example.  2 anglers (using the term loosely) were originally charged with felonies after being found to have cheated in a fishing tournament in Utah by catching a big bass in another lake.  They were sentenced to 2 years probation, no hunting for 24 months, and basically $3000 in fines and restitution.  They were the first people convicted of cheating in a Utah fishing tournament.

First.  They should not have reduced the charges.  These guys are slime at best.  They were stealing from everyone else in the tournament, and why it is not viewed that way I do not know.  They were trying to steal $2500, a felony most everywhere.  Lots of folks have gone to jail for less.  This plea was a big break.  (Understand one thing, the ultimate disposition of any case via a plea bargain can only come from an offer by the prosecutor.  Why defense attorneys are criticized for any plea is a mystery.)

Second.  I have reported on cheating quite a bit, and it almost always happens in partner tournaments.  If they kept to the original felony charges these guys would have lost their gun rights, as well they should.  And why their fishing rights were not reduced/taken away makes no sense.  Maybe it will not deter others but it will keep them from the rest of us in the outdoors.   A felon is a felon, no matter the underlying reason, or who they are.

So does my opinion seems pretty rough on these guys?  What am I, some kind of meanie?  Well how about this.  In 2018 these same slime balls finished 1st, 2cnd, or 3rd at 8 other bass tournaments in the same year!  KVD or Roland would have loved those results.  All that needs to be said about that.

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In my daily perusal of boats for sale I came across one that is just amazing.  It was for a 1999 Triton bass boat, in other words 21 years old.  It has a dead cylinder on a 200hp Merc.  And they want $11,000!   So the engine is worth zip and you want that much for an old hull?  Dream on.  And if you are looking at a deal like this good luck.  If the boat was worth it he would have had it fixed.  Do not buy someone else’s problems, boat ownership is tough enough as it is.

And it is amazing what has happened to new boat prices.  Lots of folks whose eyes were bigger than their stomach bought big, then they end up for sale in a year or so.  See them all the time.  Often buying used like that can be a good deal.  If you ever think about doing that the first question is:  How many hours and can I speak to your mechanic.  If they can not document that and have a problem if you speak with their mechanic run away.  And as I have learned from my mechanic working on my 2 boats, the hour meters on most consoles are not absolute, to be accurate it has to be taken off the computer during maintenance.  Plus, if it is one of those $50k and up boats request a copy of the rpm history, that will tell you a lot.  (Think about it:  If you were going to buy a used car, say a fast one, and the guy you meet with is wearing a street racer shirt and tells you it will run like a scalded cat would you buy it?  Same with a boat engine, you need to know if it has been run wide open most of the time.)  It is your money.

And on a side note when you get your engine serviced make sure you find out the hours and the rpm history, you just might find it informative.  The majority of  my rpm’s on the 90hp is either less than 1,500, trolling or idling, or 4,000 to 5,000, cruising speed.  My guy always says, easy on the way out, “git it” on the way back in.  Has worked for me for over 900 hours and still going strong.

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Really happy with this mornings fishing.  And fortunately I am finally not feeling sick.  So the next couple of days will be weather watching before a week of fishing.  The lake looks good a day or two, POC a day or two, and I definitely want to take a run to the river/creek and see if that is starting to go, it is about time.  This weekend will be a real boat cleaning, some football, and then off we go.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines