Quillback

Launched at dawn, cloudy yet calm morning. The plan was to try for crappie. We motored back into Indian Creek, went into a cove that a buddy of mine had caught some crappie in a week ago, and we diligently fished with various crappie lures and caught zero crappie. Meanwhile top water striper activity was getting going, it was easy to ditch the crappie stuff and start chasing stripers. We started chasing down the blow ups, easing in on a low trolling motor setting once we got close to casting range. Sometimes we'd get close enough, sometimes they'd move before we got there, but the fish that wanted that top water really got after it, they'd keep hitting it until they were hooked. We were using walk the dog type baits, I had a Yellow Magic Havana and my buddy was throwing a Spook. We caught 8 stripers that ranged between 5 - 10 lbs., we released them all. Once the sun burned through the clouds, the stripers stopped. We wasted some more time in pursuit of crappie, and tiring of that, we spent the last hour fishing for smallies, we caught a half dozen of those on 3.3 Keitechs. Surface water temp was 77 when we left at noon.

Spent three mornings fishing around Indian Creek and the dam basin this week. 2 of those days I had someone with me, and one day I was solo. I have been targeting smallmouth, the fishing has been good for them, usually we're putting between 25-35 smallies in the boat every morning. Mostly 12-16 inch fish with a couple of 17 and 18 inch fish thrown in. Swimming Keitechs and dragging a Ned have been working, seems the Keitechs work better when there is some wind, Ned when it is calm. Still getting fish shallow, but some are moving out into 10-15 FOW. Not seeing much striper activity, I did get lucky and was able to get a top water on one that came up near the boat chasing shad. I'm guessing it weighed about 12 pounds. It popped that bait 4 times before finally getting it. It pays to have a top water tied on and ready to cast for when those striper opportunities appear. I was working the keitech today, got a hook up, heavy fish. I worked it towards the boat and felt it let go, saw that I had about a 5 inch spotted bass on the hook, which surprised me, no way that fish was pulling that hard, all of a sudden a big walleye appeared and grabbed that little bass, then let go of it. What I think happened is that I hooked that little bass, and right away that walleye grabbed it and held on as I got it to the boat, then it let go and came back after it. It left some gouges in that poor little bass. Water temp was 74 today, water is stained green, but clear. In some places I could see bottom in 15 FOW.