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Needed this thread right now. If it ever stops raining the tinny is getting some add ons. Good info.

Very cool.

The May full moon is still about 10 days off, too.

I never look for them. Not much good at that anyway. I base it on how they look, where they're set up, and to some extent what they are doing, although that can fool you. Our brown fish generally look like they were dragged behind a truck when they get good and done. Just didn't see it. Started catching some that had a stripped look the day of the Water Patrol derby, but still not roughed up. And was still catching fish that pretty clearly hadn't been near the beds, on the same places. Some of the last fish to see the inside of the barge, on Monday...kind of that mix. And none looked rough.

Looked like the fish that had come in were all broken up to me. A piecemeal spawn. And I'm with you Bo, it just never seemed like big numbers were up yet. Guess it's possible they won't come in, and they'll dump or reabsorb the eggs.

He's getting a one man band together.

I think you'd love Lewis and Clark Lake in South Dakota. Lots of smallmouth. We'll chip in.

Saw the detour signs last night going up for pizza, and a story on the news. That's a genuine pickle.

Someday you'll stay home to fish 😉.

Yessir. It is well worth keeping in the boat. Could bail you out if you get one attached to yourself, too.

More like he spilled a Coke on the weather machine. You have to assume if he had actual control, he wouldn't screw up his own trips.

Wait, what?

Appreciate it. Been down since the 25th, but fished past 6pm a lot of days. That, and the wind, has me worn a little smooth. Hope you and yours are well, and the groundhogs are not.

Also...for any deep hooked fish, the little end nippers Jann's sells are literal life savers. Reach in, clip the hook (just like a doc would in the ER 😬), out it comes. Believe they're about $15, and will cut everything from the 2x hooks in our jigs to the nasty stainless factory hooks on spooks. Used them to clip a bunch of those off for storage. They're narrower than any I've been able to find at a hardware store. Haven't checked KC Tool yet.

So... this is something Ned has written about, regarding fish getting off the regular cut stick for a week or two. Timing varies, but it usually happens around the spawn (actual rubbing and rolling) and just after. Happens up home, too. We've even run into it here on our June trips. Same presentation, with a different weight or bait can be the key. We used to run the tiny brush hog (not the baby), or about half of a 4" zoom lizard. Now there are some better options. They just seem to want something "buggier" for a bit. Haven't really caught them on the regular Ned since Tuesday morning. When that weather came in Tuesday, it seemed to flip a switch. Still fishing finesse, same places, same 6# FC, just a little different bait. And I've caught a few on an 1/8 ounce black hair jig with a cut down Zman eel tail, just because I wanted to.

I've got $5 for that.

I have eclectic tastes. Didn't expect it to work. Figured in that particular situation it would be a blade and a bug. I enjoy some big line, just not into forcing it on them.

It's the one in the pic. Horrible red goop.

Garlic and craw, I think.

Lol. Last fish is the same one, I think. Didn't notice it.

Elaztech makes scent tricky. I like Liquid Mayhem quite a bit. Sticks on, doesn't seem to damage the Elaztech baits at all. Have another one I haven't tapped into yet, from a company that actually specialized in hunting scents. Pretty thick stuff too.

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So, pretty much everyone knows what I like to do, and more or less where I prefer to do it. Not much change in any of that. I walk a different path, for sure. But it's working. And it's an alternative to some other options. Now, by working...I don't think most people will have the patience (tolerance, confidence, total lack of sense) to do it. Numbers are down for me this trip, but quality is up. Translation: multiple limits most days, but not a lot of shorts. Bunch of 15-25 fish days, with 10-20 legals. Some of that is probably on me for specifically fishing bigger fish places. Bunch of 14# ish "limits". Other than a couple of freaky days due to the tornado and subsequent rise, it's been all itty bitty baits, six pound line, and water less than 10' deep. Mostly less than 8'. Caught one fish yesterday in 22' for absolutely no apparent reason. We had a crazy Chatterbait afternoon the day after the tornado, couldn't replicate it. Did catch some on similar stuff on a square bill, but it ended quickly. To pin that down more, think about the "color change", where the bright rocks get dark. That varies by area, color. Might be 3' on one spot, 8' on another. Yes it's finesse, but it's not different than where you'd fish a wart, or a wacky worm. Learned that years ago from one of the Leavenworth club guys. A really good stick. To me, it seems like the fish are a little mixed up in terms of the usual waves. Have caught fish in all stages now, although the post spawn fish just started. Anyhoo... it's a reliable bite, if you can put your head down and just grind at them. 90 degree casts, and a lot of dragging, especially if the wind is up. Dead sticking on slack line if not. Trying very specifically to not cover water. Scent absolutely helps. Don't think it attracts them, but it seems to cut down on light bites. Forecast is a bit rugged. My hunch is more fish will be coming in shortly. Have to resize some pics, will add those in a bit. Water around 13 is getting a nice clear green color. Still a lot of bits and pieces floating around. Temps mostly low 60s. Overnight cool down is murder. Of some interest: decided to weigh a bunch of fish, MLF scales. 16" to 18" brownies are consistently outweighing blacks. At 18"-19" blacks start to get that largemouth belly and it shifts a bit. I've had that feeling for a couple of years.

I don't need it at home, either. We need to chip in for a membership to a nice golf course for him. Maybe in New Mexico, or South Carolina.