Dock-in-it

I fished this morning and the swimbait bite was good when I found fish grouped up on shad. My first stop had plenty of shad and feeding fish, but 30 minutes later the sun popped over the hill and everything disappeared. I was able to get a nice limit while it lasted. Then I checked 6 locations with zero shad/fish. I checked one more spot about 9:30 and it held the right shad/feeding fish scenario. So I was able to catch another limit in about 30 minutes. These fish are staged in some nice areas due to the presents of shad. They could swim 5 seconds and be ready for the spring time ritual. But these fish will "unstage" as soon as the shad move. Then magically reappear to spawn in the same area when the water temp suits them. Kept the boat in 20 to 30 FOW. WT 51.5

The 3.5 Fugitive produced a good TR limit this morning....all three species. The shad were thick and that tail thump got their attention.

Regarding FFS ramifications, no one has mentioned the elephant in the room..... which is scopers thumb, it is a condition that needs to be taken seriously. I may need to purchase a scopers glove....just for my left hand.

I fished this morning and got to experience a very good swimbait bite. The scenario included lots of trees with big schools of surface shad. The bass kept the shad herded up on the surface between 0-10ft. There were several groups of shad and each group had a small school of bass that would constantly feed and keep them on the surface. Normally the number of feeding bass ranged from 3 to 10 and they were hanging out in 8 to 15ft regardless of depth. Once I caught a few bass from a group they would start ignoring my swimbait and I would then select another group to bug. I moved the boat approx 100ft all morning. I caught fish on every swimbait I tried but the shad were in the 2" range and therefore the Keitech 2.8 was the most effective. I had approx 20 to 25 keepers and very few shorts. All the keepers were in the 2# range and I was surprised I did not connect with a big fish. My first 6 keepers were LM then for some reason the K's started to dominate. I used FFS this morning to help maximize my catch rate but I could have caught plenty with no electronics. FFS is educational, efficient, and sometimes effective. I was grateful it was effective this morning. WT 52-54

With FFS we have learned that fish inhabit any portion of the lake that suits them. On any given day, approx 99.9999% of the lakes surface and/or natural cover is not fished by anyone. On any given day, approx 95% of the lakes man made cover is not fished by anyone. When we have a major tournament, FFS will allow both good and average anglers to put more fish in their live well and a certain percentage of those fish will die due to lack of proper fish care. The number of expired fish per each tournament will not have a measurable impact on your next fishing trip. Fish do group up on certain locations at different times of the year and some non-commercial anglers will find, catch, and release these fish. There is a percentage of guides that cater to the catch and keep clients and some believe this impacts the fish population especially in the dam area where you have more tourists and guides. This perceived impact was happening way before FFS. Some meat hunter guides use night crawlers and put their FFS in DOWM move, so their FFS is a high priced 2D sonar.

Hey Mitch, the 3.5 swimbait worked good on TR this morning. Probably had 7 keepers with it and I am getting more confident in its ability to trigger bites. 6 were LM and 1 SM. I caught several on the 2.8 Keitech, but once the Fugitive started working I stuck with because it is effective and durable.

I fished this morning and the swimbait bite was very steady. With the calm wind I stayed with a 2.8 Keitech and they did not want a more aggressive bait like an underspin or larger swimbait. Some of the fish were near the trees in open water and others were holding fairly tight to a tree. I kept the boat in 30-50 FOW and was always around plenty of cover. I seen plenty of fish under the boat below 30ft but I stayed committed to the swimbait. The bass have made a major move from the main lake. I used FFS today and I would rank myself a 2 with FFS in the winter and a 3 in the warmer months. I fish sitting down in the winter for safety reasons and fish standing up the other 9 months. I am fortunate to find myself around lots of fish on some trips and with FFS I have to laugh at myself for my poor execution with FFS. I have a 9" screen and my casting accuracy is Ok straight ahead but it is very comical to the left or right. I have a difficult time trying to track my bait with boat movement,,, etc. I am always glad that Cody Huff is not around because he could out catch me 10 to 1. If you think using FFS is like spotlighting deer or shooting fish in a barrel......then your ranking with FFS is a solid 10 (Congrats). WT 48.5

Greg, in my area the bait and fish have really moved a lot. I have pretty much committed to the swimbait bite and I ignore fish below 30ft even when they are under the boat. The scenario I have found lately is small balls of surface shad where you have 1 to 5 fish postured underneath, so the fish are 5 to 15ft below the surface regardless of water depth. This scenario is tailor made for FFS and has worked on both sunny and cloudy days. I have found both K's and LM working these shad. I will target swimbait fish down to 30ft. If you are fishing for deep fish (below 30ft) then you might find the K's and LM in their separate camps.

Lvn2fish, these guys were in a newer boat with power poles and everything like a real pro. Prior to these guys I had another boat get real close but they did not cross the etiquette line. The guys that got educated idled straight to me and passed by me at 50ft and shut down about 75 yds away. Then with the trolling motor (using FFS) they headed my direction and stopped 50ft from my boat using FFS to look for fish that I could easily cast to. I stop fishing when boats got too close. I put my boat on spot lock and just drop my swimbait straight down about 5ft and just wait them out.

Mitch, I was around a lot of fish and they were eating the Keitech. So I tied on the Tackle Max SB and caught a keeper on the first cast. I locate another small group of fish and make a cast and they ignored it (like they routinely do with a Keitech). I make a 3rd cast and catch another keeper. So now I realize my goal is to catch a limit on your SB and that happened without a problem. I was around fish postured above 15ft and below 15ft. The SB worked much better on fish postured below 15ft. The 2.8 Keitech worked good on fish above 15ft. I think a 2.8 inch version of your SB would be interesting. The thing I like about the SB is how well it holds up due to the sturdy top section where you have the jig head and then the lower tail section has lots of action/flexibility. After catching a limit the bait showed no wear and tear.

I did a table rock post for Feb 15......the 3.5 swimbait worked good.

Tackle Max pics

I fished this morning and the swimbait bite was awesome. The BFL tournament this weekend should be pretty good for a lot of the guys. I normally try to experiment with new baits when the bite is strong and I am around a bunch of fish. So today I decided to try the 3.5" Tackle Max Fugitive SB and it did not disappoint. I caught a nice limit on it which included all 3 species. BFL-FFS comments. FFS is educational, efficient, and effective (I like it). But some tournament guys can not use it and also practice proper etiquette. They get so close and totally ignore your presents. I normally let it go because 99% of my trips are hassle free. But the morning it was so flagrant that I decided to educate a few guys. Plenty of tournament guys misjudge a book (me and you) by its cover and that is a character flaw they need to work on. Tournaments bring out the worst in many guys, but these same guys know proper etiquette when fun fishing. Had 20+ keepers and kept my boat in 40-50 FOW......on the main lake. WT 46.5 to 47.5 The Tackle Max pics are on the carpet...too many eyeballs in the area.

Regarding FFS smack down/education, Patrick Walters (Elite pro) showed its capabilities in Nov 2020 on Lake Fork. His approach with FFS caught everyone off guard. MLF pro Drew Gill (age 21) is a product of college fishing and he just finished 3rd on the MLF-BPT on Toledo Bend and won the MLF invitational last week on Sam Rayburn. If you want to see the impact of college fishing and the future of high level pro fishing I would recommend you watch his interview from earlier this week on Bass Talk Live (BTL) on YouTube. This young man is ready for prime time.

I fished this morning for a few hours and things are changing (like shad locations and the deep bite techniques). Shad can be found on gravel runouts, in the creeks, and on the main lake. Finding fish associated with the shad is a challenge. The deep vertical bite can still be found but the fish are very picky and not grouped up like they were. I have found the swimbait bite to be more reliable because the fish are using the entire water column and they seem more willing to bite a horizontal presentation. I have not spent any time looking for gravel fish, I normally try areas with plenty of trees. The two pictured fish were caught using a swimbait retrieve. One on the main lake and the other in a creek. Had 7 keepers this morning. the boat in 30-50 FOW. WT 46.5 to 48.5

I scouted/fished this morning for a few hrs and there is a big disconnect between the bait and the fish. In the river channel around channel swings you set your graph at a depth of 100ft and see an unlimited amount of shad starting at 90 FOW (stacked from 70ft to the bottom). Some large schools of shad can also be seen in 60 FOW several hundred yds from the channel. I was not able to find any fish associated with these massive bait schools. I was able to find some active fish on the main lake around trees and just a small amount of scattered shad. The fish were feeding in small groups and several individual fish just raised up off the bottom to follow my Damiki rig. I would normally drop the Damiki to the bottom and slowly crank it straight up. The graph picture represents the bait/fish scenario that I was seeing in the area. Kept boat in 40 to 55 FOW. WT 45

I fished this morning from 9-12 and the bite was really steady the first hour then got progressively tough. There were more boats than I have ever seen for a weekday in January. I fished an area with lots of trees and scattered shad. Kept the boat in 30-55 FOW. The fish were eating 3 to 4.5" shad. The bite was aggressive but I did lose about 10. The fish used the entire water column and plenty broke the surface and that allowed me to catch several on a swimbait. I used ice jig, Damiki, 4" grub, 3.3" SB, and modified Tackle Max Shark tail worm on a Damiki head. WT 45 to 45.6

I fished this morning for a few hours but did not find very many. I had about 8 fish and they were all shy of keeper size. I tried the ice jig and Damiki and the ice jig worked but the Damiki did not. They wanted the ice jig reeled up real slow. So I decided to try a modified version of Tackle Max Shark tail worm on a 3/8 oz VMC Damiki head. I took the 5.25 inch worm and cut it to 3 5/8 inch which is just above the solid mid section. I caught two fish in 4 minutes then I could not find more fish to experiment with. These fish were about a foot off the bottom in 43ft and they wanted the Shark tail dropped down to them and then reeled straight up very slowly. They would rise up and follow the bait then finally commit. I went to my dock yesterday and worked the modified bait just below the surface to comprehend the action based on moving the rod left/right, twitching, dropping,,,etc. The bait has very fluid movements were as a regular Damiki brand bait is rigid. I look forward to trying this bait again when I find a good group of fish.

Mitch, I mostly use a 3/8 VMC moon eye jig with a 3" Damiki brand armor shad. Regarding the shark tail worm, I would recommend cutting the 5.25" version down to 4" and put that on a 5/8 oz jig head. Then use it vertical for the deep fish and fish for the guys closest to the bottom and work the bait aggressively by jigging it up several feet. These winter fish love a fast rate of fall. Then try the same setup as a swimbait. Regarding hover strolling, I have not tried it in the winter because of the slow rate of fall to reach the fish and the fish high in the water column are very tough to catch vs the bottom guys. I would love to hear feedback that it works. I think the best scenario to try hover strolling is in the first 30 minutes of daylight (with no wind) and you know your around plenty of fish. A low pressure mild wind day before a cold front is the best time to find winter fish feeding high in the water column.

Regarding how to determine which creeks are good for winter time. Every creek is unique and will hold winter time fish at different intervals throughout the winter. Since I fish deep 95% of the time I know which creeks are good for grouping up pre-spawn and/or post-spawn fish (at certain offshore locations). A creeks 'spawn phase grouping ability' seems to correlate to having winter time grouping of fish at certain locations. These groups of fish come and go multiple times during the spawn phases and during the winter months. So you can not write off a good looking creek/location after one visit. Prior to FFS, deep winter time fishing was more suited for guys on the water multiple days per week. Since FFS, several weekend fishermen have cut their learning curve time frame by a few decades.

I fished this morning for a few hours and the deep bite was very steady on the Damiki rig. Both the horizontal and vertical presentations were effective. Swimming the Damiki produced the best quality and was just as effective as the vertical bite. Tried the ice jig and they did not like it very much. I did not try a Keitech because the Damiki is so effective as a swimbait. As normal for resident fish, the good bite lasted from 7:15 to 8:45, then the wolfpacks fizzled and the small groups were much tougher to catch, then at 9:30 it was done. Stayed in 37-45 FOW. WT 50-51.5

Fished this morning for a few hours and found some resident fish grouped up and willing to bite. Both horizontal and vertical presentations worked good. Scattered deep thredfin and plenty of gizzard shad breaking the surface. Caught them mainly on Damiki straight under the boat and as a swimbait. Kept the boat in 55 to 60ft. Also I never ignore a fish that breaks the surface because they are active and ready for a swimbait. WT 54ish

Regarding winter time resident fish (history proven locations). Resident fish will vacate an area throughout the winter and reappear days later. So they will roam off the reservation. I just fish mornings so I do not have any first hand knowledge of how resident fish operate in the afternoon. I have fished in the winter for many years and my trips are based on wind speed and direction ( I avoid the wind ). These fish get educated so I recommend not fishing for them on consecutive days. Resident locations are normally a few acres in size and some locations require more shad to keep them hanging around. A lot of these locations have trees and are on the edge of a comfort zone (like deep/shallow or trees/then no trees). Winter time resident fish will be very active from daylight until 8AM, then between 8 to 9 you can see the activity start to slow down. After 9 or 9:30 it is like a ghost town on your graph. I would not scout for these fish after 8:30. You may not see any grouped up shad but there are scattered shad in the area. If I was going to fish for 8 hours I would start on resident fish at daylight then go looking for abundant shad after 9AM. These locations have an overall depth range of 30 to 65ft and that allows you to catch them suspended or on the bottom. Different resident locations will turn on at different times throughout the winter. Some are good in December and others might get going in January. You need an inventory that you can check in a few mile range because running the boat in cold Temps works on your enthusiasm.

The deep bite has been good the past few days. Mainly using Damiki, ice jig, and slab spoon. I caught a few yesterday on topwater (in 40ft) but they were shorts so I put it down after 5 casts. The bass pictures are from this morning in 60-65ft. The graph pictures are from today (60-65ft) and yesterday (40ft). These are resident fish vs shad roamers. These resident fish will come and go from the area but it does not take much bait to hold them. These resident fish are grouped up unti 8 or 9am, then they disperse into singles and are tough to catch. This morning I noticed a few gizzard shad break the surface where I could see there body. That is a good indication that nice fish maybe in the area. WT 54-55

Thanks for the report. I went out this morning for a few hours in the Kimberling area and found some deep fish. I could have caught a few on topwater but threw a fluke style swimbait at the ones that broke the surface. The 1/2 oz spoon works good on picky fish.