5bites

Here are a couple I'm wanting to try. The Gamakatsu head looks funny but that keeper is exactly what I'm after. http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Gamakatsu_Stand_Up_Alien_Heads_4pk/descpage-SUA.html http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Keitech_Shakey_Football_Tungsten_Jig_Heads_3pk/descpage-KSFTJHD.html

I love the predator blanks

Are you experimenting with head design or worm keeper?

109 boats isn't to bad this time of year.

We didn't start either morning as early as I'd like but when you're at the lake with your wife and kids it kinda goes that way sometimes. So both days it was around 7:30 before we left the ramp. Right off Saturday morning we landed on some schooling fish that kept coming up in the mouth of the creek until about 8:30 then it was more or less over. They were all little guys 13" and under but it was entertaining and as easy as it gets. Perfect for kids in the boat. After they quit we went further in to the second channel swing of the creek. I was throwing a wart ko and my oldest son was throwing an h20 square bill (the bigger one) and burning it. It wasn't until we got to where the swing moves away and the bank starts to flatten out some that we started getting bites. Some little ones and he caught a healthy 16" black burning that square bill past a bush. I picked up a swim jig and started skipping it around the bushes. I picked up some shorts and lost a keeper. On this stretch. Again it was kind of a tweener bank that you run into after a channel bank. I fished from here onto the flat and completely to the back just to see. Usually it's not possible to go this far especially this time of year so it was more for fun. I had one short in the back that ate the trailer of the swim jig but not the hook. I lost him near the boat and put the jig back in and he ate it again. I lifted him out of the water setting the hook and he came off. I put it back in and he hit it again! Once more I lifted him out but he came of and apparently had enough. I hit the last channel swing in the back with a wart and caught a few fat 13" fish that had craw antennas in their gullet but that was all on that stretch. I caught a keeper in the last dock out of an empty stall on a 10" worm. He was around 12-15' deep. I pitched the worm to a few random trees but no love. Off to another creek and my favorite bank in the Eagle Rock area. It's a channel bank near the back. We immediately started catching them, my son still burning the square bill and I with a wiggle wart mostly. Id occasionally pick up a square bill but this bank is a little steeper than the ones we fished before. Same thing (having fun catching but no keepers) until we neared the end of this stretch and I hooked up with what I was sure was a REAL fish. As it got closer I could see I actually had two fish on the same wart and one was 3-4lbs. I didn't have my net out and in the panick the bigger fish came off near the boat as I was trying to grab her. The other was about 14" lol. Pretty much along for the ride. We fished the flat side that has laydowns scattered all over the flat. When they're there it can be fun. There were a few but they just bit funny. I was throwing the worm and they'd bite it half heartedly or just not eat it real well. I set the hook on several but they'd always come unbuttoned. I should have changed up I know. Day 2 my wife came along which is always better but adds fear to one more person flinging hooks and one more person that can get hooked lol. So far no ER trips have happened but with four in a boat and two of those being 9 and 12 years old you've got to wonder if it's only a matter of time. I normally have a no treble hook rule when we have a full boat but with topwater and cranking obviously we were big risk takers on day 2 Anyway the schooling fish were back again. They moved more though and did stay up as long each time. We caught them though and had a blast. The panick of chasing them around is half the fun. A walking bait was beyond the shadow of a doubt much preferred over anything else. We made the same run as the day before after they went down at 8:30 like clockwork. The fish in the creek no doubt changed. Fewer fish on the tweener bank and more on the last channel bank. I didn't fish the whole stretch because I wanted to get to the other creek sooner. Again same deal but today I was throwing a rock crawler rather than a wart. They weren't right at the beginning of the channel swing like the day before but we started getting bites halfway back and caught several fish down that stretch. If I remember right we got one keeper here too. I tried the flat and laydowns again just to see. Carter caught one off the first tree which was encouraging. It stopped there... I didn't hit all the trees and spent time fishing parts of the creek I'd never fished. Once again on a tweener type bank Carter caught a nice keeper fish winding that square bill like he was trying to keep it away from the fish. I caught another keeper on int inside of the mouth of a cut. Still back in the creek a ways. The remainder of the day we fished the swings themselves and transition areas catching fish steadily but some places where deader than other. Not every spot that fit the "pattern" had a concentration of fish but several did. I apologize for for how long winded this was. To summarize if you just want to get bit pick up a crankbait that dives at least 5' deep and fish transition and channel banks that aren't staight drops. The wart and crawler obviously go deeper than that but I bet 90% of our fish came in less than 5' and only one past 10'. The better fish were not on the channel bank itself. Most were on those banks that aren't flats but aren't steep by Table Rock standards either. Just sorta flat rocky (not gravel) transition areas. I'll also say if a guy started at it first thing he could have a solid limit or a good start to one fishing the bushes themselves on these transition banks. Just don't sit still. One guy make long pitches and the other throw a shad colored square bill. I've got a few neat looking screen shots from the graph that I need to load. I'll add them later.

Here's the arkie jig head I mentioned. Obviously the hook is all wrong for a shaky head but the keeper is great. It seems to hold well and goes on better than the screw keeper. If you use robo worms it's hard to keep the screw keeper centered and not coming out the side due to the worms small diameter. I'm obviously outnumbered on this preference though. Travis those do look like great heads. For the big worm and swim bait like you mentioned I could see them being killer.

The screw lock thing doesn't bother me as much on the big heads and worms. The little worms I'm not a fan. Arkie has the setup I like best so far. I'll see if I can dig up a pic.

what do you consider to be THE shaky head jig head? The best one out there in your opinion. Bonus points if they don't come with the screw on bait keeper. What weight/weights do you commonly use?

All this brown fish talk is tempting me into launching down lake at least once this weekend darn it. I'd like my boys to catch a few smallies.

Sweet goodness! We are inching my direction. Hopefully I'll have some input tomorrow this time.

They used to make glass bass boats about 15 years ago.

Good report! I like that 15' or less part. What breed where these critters?

lol!

I have a non small head and really like my Costa Corbinas with 580p lenses. I have two pairs I like them so much.

Thanks Bill. I look forward to getting down there. It's been since July! Grand has consumed my time since then.

How'd you do Richy?

Will be down this weekend staying at our friends cabin by Eagle Rock for my sons birthday. That's one way you know you're raising them right. I wonder how that wart bite will translate on the upper end? I'm gonna find out...

Np. Good luck this weekend and be safe.

Wolf Creek area has some stain but not bad. I assume Honey creek is clear for Grand. It usually is clearer than the wolf creek area.

Personally I think the idea is dumb. I like the idea of splitting lakes but I'd rather them do it for just the final day or even the final two days. The back and forth thing seems silly. Nevertheless I'm glad they are fishing a lake that gets little exposure.

And this post prompted a small order. Just a few things for my sons birthday. Thank you sir.

Heck yes I have trouble with zebra muscles. I hate those things. Two weeks ago in the Anglers for Christ tournament I broke two fish and my son broke one. One of those was a genuine big fish. I believe (just from feel so bear with me) that fish was the difference between just not getting a check and second place. Last check was 9.74 and we had 9.08. Second was 10 something I believe. Weights were stacked due to the 3 fish limit. Anyway I use good flourocarbon. Sunline structure, shooter, and yesterday started playing with assassin on my deep cranking rod. I check my line and retie. The zebras are just brutal in places. On the first fish I broke in the tournament my line was shredded a few feet up. The fish had me wrapped in a tree and it was obviously covered. Earlier this summer I found a shallow rock pile and was throwing a square bill on it. Nearly every cast either had a zebra attached to my hook or impaled. Almost always there will be zebras attached to zebras. Like 8+ in a wad sometimes. It's crazy. yesterday rock from June. Bit a 6xd. Made a hard run at the boat but I turned 'eem around proving he was no match for my custom cranking rod.

I thought I'd post a few screens from yesterday. My graph isn't set for pretty internet pictures.^^^Can you see the fish in this one?^^^

Saturday hours! Now I can finally check this place out.

Just to add I'd try shallow wood again tomorrow too. You just never know. I wouldn't push it as much but I'd try it. So take this crummy report for what it's worth. It worked this way for me today but I wouldn't count on it sticking.