troywaukee

Well I'm glad I checked in! Will make sure we plan on targeting crappie. Are they hitting throughout the day as well as first thing in the morning? Frustrating to hear that about the bass. Could the lake be turning over? We went last year in October and it was rough as well...maybe we need to change it up to a spring trip!! I'll keep my fingers crossed they pick back up with warmer weather on the way next week. I had awesome luck over the 4th this year, but when we came back in early August the bass fishing was atrocious...

One week away from heading down. Stocked up on some new jigs, swimbaits and buzz baits. Any updates on how the fishing has been lately? We were thinking of mainly targeting docks based on what I've been hearing, but thought I'd check. On a side note...how has the crappie bite been lately?? We'd like to fry up a few while down there, but haven't seen any crappie reports. Thanks!!

Awesome! Thanks for the intel...will stock accordingly!

We've got our trip finalized for Oct. 19th to 22nd. Hoping for a better outcome than last year's trip. Any specific tactics or baits to recommend? Didn't know if that time of year is best for jigs around docks? Looking forward to a calm lake for once!

Yeah, we make sure to avoid the BBB. Don't need to get in line for my normal spots!

Thanks for the all the info fellas. We gave it a go last year in mid-October and didn't have much luck. Might be looking at a similar timeframe this year with schedules. If I can push it to late October, we might give that a go.

Is there a certain time in the fall that is best for bass fishing? Brother in law and I are planning on heading down at some point in October. Didn't want to get into the fall turnover.

I'm through episode 7. Like the show, but I agree, the lake it was shot at doesn't look the same at all, including shorelines and docks. (I don't think I've ever seen a dock at LOTO like the dock at the Bird's house). The show does go over the top with making the locals look like something out of Deliverance. I'm not a local, but 99% of the locals I've met are just as ordinary as me, just with a much stronger accent The Blue Cat Lodge in the show reminds me of what some places were like back in the 1980's...The Clown and Ozark BBQ come to mind. Glad it was renewed for another season.

I made it a point to check this out too when down there. Took prop off, no fishing line. Also pulled one of the long bolts out from the lower unit to inspect for signs of rust or corrosion. All looked good. The prop spins when out of water, but when I push on it to spin it, it quickly stops. I'm guessing that is due to the magnets? I was happy when I saw no signs of rust or corrosion in lower unit. The battery issue was diagnosed with your advice of checking the volts at the plug, which was reading 17 instead of 24. Thanks again for the advice!!

Positive update guys!! So we diagnosed the problem and luckily it was quite minor and now have a fully functional TM again. The boat has an onboard charger and apparently at some point last fall or early this spring the fuse popped on one line leading to the front 12 volt battery. Took the voltmeter to it Tuesday night and it was reading 5.0, while the other battery was reading 12.4. Hooked a trickle charger up to just the front battery and within 4 hours we were up to 10 and the prop was spinning like it should. By morning, both batteries were fully charged and fuse was replaced. No issues after that. However, we woke up one morning to a leak. Standing water about an inch on carpet after boat sat all night. We re-applied silicone in every location we could think of with minimal change in water intake. My father-in-law seems to think the livewell intake line may be cracked which is causing our issues, but we are still trying to figure it out. I bought a brand new plug while we were down just to make sure and that doesn't seem to be the issue either.

Just returned from our trip down there. Bass were non-existent for us, but the crappie cooperated at least under the docks. Couldn't catch anything and I threw everything in the tackle box at them...its amazing what 3.5 inches of rain will do to the lake temperature. 86/87 when we arrived on Tuesday night and 81.5 when we left yesterday morning.

Excited to head down tonight! I'm wondering with this cooler weather at night if the fish have moved back into the back of coves shallow during early morning hours? Prior to the 4th, I did really well on shallow running crankbaits deep in coves and am hoping that might be the case again. The low on Friday night is 55?!

I agree as well. My brother-in-law and I own it together, so when you can split the cost, it helps quite a bit. Any recommendations on trolling motors? Don't need a Cadillac one, but would be looking at a mid-level TM. I've always preferred Minn Kota's to Motorguide, but am all ears!

Thanks Hydro. I'll likely give it a good look next week when we are down to see if it is minor (crossing my fingers). If not, I've got a place in Iowa that does good work for the right price and will let them have a look.

Thanks for giving me a ballpark idea, appreciate it. Going to try and rule out everything mentioned prior to really getting into the lower unit. With it being older, not sure the best option would be repair vs. replace at this point if it is major. Thanks for all your input guys. I'll let you know what the final diagnosis is!