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I had one just like that, pic on "in the wind" I always heard there were no brown mean mouths but it just didn't look right for a smallie. In most tournaments they would be weighed as small mouth but I say they are crossed with a spot. Nice looking fish.

I hope there are no big tournaments out of PC this Saturday morning if so let me know so I can launch out of Rocky Branch. High Saturday looks to be in low 60s with 7am around 45 degrees.. A couple of cold nights and seasonable temps during the day and that fall bite should be triggered. I will be looking for those early morning top water stipers but I am betting the bass respond well to the cooler temps this weekend and dropping water. If there is a tournament should be some really good weights. Just as soon as I make plans, work will probably call and send me to west Texas or New Mexico.....but if I am here I will be on the lake early Saturday morning, with a heavy jacket and top water ready.

My personal belief in this matter is that Walleye are bottom feeders they stay around rocks in deeper water and don't suspend. The bass and whites will school and run the shad to the top then devastate the school. Walleye work alone, don't move into the brush or feed on top, in a high water year that gives the shad plenty of room to stay away from them. I think the walleye then are left with small bluegill and crawfish darting in and out of the rocks. After the water gets cold and the shad slow down the walleye won't and they fatten for the spawn in cold water, then you will see fat walleye in January and February. JMO I have seen schools of little walleye feeding on top and had little 4in walleye hit a top water but I have never seen a school of big walleye working together.

No just a little worm on a drop shot and a senco also on drop shot.

Got out in the wind and fished the windy side down around Blackburn. I went out between 1-3 pm water was white capping and very few clouds. The fish were still biting and shallow on the points. Managed 10 spots one legal LM and this guy in the picture that was heavy for 18in, not sure but I think it was a mean mouth, could have been a smallmouth. This guy hit a little worm on a drop shot in about 10 feet of water.

We sort of got off subject, anyone know who won and how?

I hope it wasn't Vanish, that stuff always snaps on me. I have had brand new lines throw a top water clean across the lake before I had a chance to even think about getting a crimp. That is what made me go almost entirely to braid, last years no worries, no replacing, just don't back lash. But to each his own everyone has their favorites and nothing wrong with that. Better luck next time.

Sounds like a great morning, betting out this afternoon hope they are still around.

You really don't need to go light for bites on drop shots, I use 20lb braid and tie on a 12lb fluorocarbon leader and I can straighten out a hook on a snag with that combo and doesn't bother the fish one bit.

I noticed on the Table Rock forum that a lot of Bassmaster pros were chasing those spots in the trees on table rock with a drop shot. Diffidently an easy pattern to catch fish fast right now, but not the way to find big fish. Did anyone find a pattern for bigger fish? Those 5lb LM are so scarce on Beaver I don't know if you can get a BIG FISH pattern, since it takes 3 to make a pattern.

I went out of PC for a couple hours toady with the wind I thought the points would be loaded. I started throwing cranks and got nothing, even tried a jerk bait. Then went to some deep trees in 40 feet of water and started catching BIG SPOTS of the top of the trees. Best spot went 17in and had 10 over 14 inches and heavy. Could not find a largemouth, tried shallow and only found small spots. I pulled back into PC just in time to see 20 or so boats heading out for a night tournament. Saw a young man at the dock who said he had some good action on top water just before sunset. The spots are really heating up but guess I will have to run up the river to find LM.

Spinnerbaits?

Weekend traffic will drive them back deeeep, so I will have to hit the lake before the traffic. Thanks for the report, I would just be happy to get into some whites and hybrids right now.

300 bass boats + 50 kayaks + fog = ? With everyone having dollars signs in their eyes ? If I was in a kayak that morning I would be fishing behind a tree. If I was launching out of PC that morning with my 17ft glass boat I would spend the first hour behind PC. Not passing judgement just making an observation, I have noticed the mornings are getting foggy water temps have been higher than air temps.

I think they are just full, not looking for a meal but unable to pass up an easy snack. Like leaving steak on a plate but taking that after dinner mint.

That sounds more like a saltwater rig than a finesse rig, then again when I used to cast from the beach in Rhode Island my weights were always 1oz and larger but the hook was tied the same way as a drop shot. Right now with all the shad I think the slow fall of a small worm looks like a dying shad and that is why the hitting the small worm. But if that was true they would hit a spoon and I cannot get a bite on a spoon.

You would not believe how SMALL most are, guess I have a talent I did not know about. lol Might be the affect of using braid connected to flouro. When I get bored I start downsizing to just make something happen and seems the blue gills suffer the most from my efforts. Around point 8 there are some mussel shell beds that seem to hold some nice size gils and sometimes small mouth. This past week end all the fish were small I caught around there.

I also catch a lot of sunfish on the drop shot, but those small 1/2 oz jigging spoons are sunfish magnets. Some of the sunfish I caught were not much bigger than the spoon. They hit like a 3lb white then all the way up feel like you have wrapped your spoon around the line.lol I can usually find whites and walleye under those big shad balls with a spoon but this weekend was all bass and sunfish. I was really surprised those sunnies looked so bright when I was catching them in 35 to 45 feet of water right on bottom. They were thick enough to show on the fish finder....

Looks to be a fun time, I just don't have the patience to get caught up in the crowds anymore. I do like the big bass per hour but looks like free for all allowing launching all over the lake. Very hard to verify a start time ect... Looking at the rules you could drag with the wind or even troll with multiple rods.... I know most BASS fisherman will say that is common sense you can't do that but it is not listed. I wonder if that was on purpose? Good fishing to all those that go and hope the water temp drops in time to provide that great fall bite.

I was referring to a drop shot worm in general, but I was using a watermelon/purple 4in Cabala's worm. I usually get Largemouth on the purple and the spots shy away but seemed just what the spots wanted yesterday. I can't find the Zoom "old purple" anymore but it was a go to color for me for years. Tore up half a bag yesterday but left zero in the lake or in fish so I felt good about that!!! Spots had so many undigested shad in their gulit I don't think they could have forced down one more bite.

I tried to exchange a broke Shimano rod at Cabela's in Rogers toady and was told they did not honor any manufactures warranty. Then I went on the Shimano web site and found their lifetime warranty has been reduced to a one year warranty. The rods bought before 1 August 2014 are still covered but all rods after that regardless of price only have a one year warranty. I had no idea this had taken place. has anyone had trouble with rod replacement? I have a broken tip on a spinning rod and have always got those replaced but seems after reading their warranty information a lot has changed. For details CLICK HERE

Somewhat, still hard to idle right after starting, but once it warms up it is doing fine.

Feels good to be home and be able to give a report. Got on the lake about 4pm out of PC and fished till dark. Went straight to point 8 and found fish under shad at 25-30 feet so I tried to spoon them only small sunfish. So I picked up the drop shot and dragged it from 15 feet out to 30 feet and started catching small spots and small mouth. Then headed back to PC and saw shad on top right across from point 10 so I tried a top water no takers, tried a spoon since there were shad and fish all over the screen no takers. So I started throwing the little worm and lost count after 10 big fat spots. Those spots are looking like Table Rock Spots, fat as footballs and coughing up shad. Great afternoon, very little traffic and the fish were biting. Big full moon tonight they will probably be full by morning but hard to bet sun up on the lake. Finding those ambush spots when the shad start moving shallow is key to an hour of a fish a cast action right now IMO.

Big prizes, another morning to mark on my calendar NOT to be on the lake. Thanks for the heads up.

Does anyone know the survival rate?