Walcrabass

CJfisherman74, When I get the boat on the trailer on dry land and with the tail end sloping downhill I let the motor all the way down to the ground and give it a 30 seconds for all the water to run out of the prop area. Then after raising the motor back up and arriving at home I repeat the process. I leave the motor down at home so water will not collect in it. Just don't forget to raise it before taking off again !!! Skeeter, For me I have not found a great deal of difference in any of the better name brand Jerk Baits. After all, look how many Bass have fallen to the common Rogues. There is no way possible I could even guess at the number of Bass I have caught on Clown colored Rogues.I have had to mess with all of them to get them to act like I want. My buddies who have purchased the $30 ones have done the same on some of them. I have read where people actually put an extra coat of ..... whatever it is they coat them with.... to get them to suspend correctly. I use extra split rings, bigger split rings, different hooks, lead wire, or whatever it takes. Kind of funny when you look in my Jerk Bait boxes at how many of them have been messed with... they all catch fish. I personally feel that when the water is extremely cold it is better for the Jerk Bait to sink ever so slowly. Sometimes Fluorocarbon line is enough to do the trick. I know... some people say it coils bad when in cold water. Gotta buy the right kind and use it light enough. ( Not a paid advertisement but Seguar ain't bad) As far as the Jerk sequence I think 15 to 30 seconds at 50 degrees, 30 seconds to a minute at 40 degrees. Remember complete slack in the line after the jerk for the bait do dart correctly. When the water is 50+ I actually use a 2 or 3 foot pull and pause instead of a Jerk a lot of times. I have literally seen the time when certain fish could not move as the water was too cold. I still caught fish on Jigs that day. They will catch Bass when NOTHING ELSE will work. The Old Timer, Walcrabass

Justfishn, Mr. Bass Chomper is correct. I would like to add something from an old man that has done it for years. When the "Winter" truly settles in the Bass will find a place where they can slide up and down the water column and still relate to the bottom. I personally feel that when the water gets below 50 that this is when it takes affect. Not to say that a Jerk Bait won't catch one because it will. But it will be a LONG time between Jerks. For me these places are usually long sloping points, maybe even devoid of standing timber ( not devoid of brush piles or logs though) as they don't need much shade that time of year. This is when things that are crawled or scooted on the bottom will still catch fish. This includes..... Chatterbaits, Jigs, Swim Baits, Spoons, Spinnerbaits, A-Rigs, etc. For the Spinnerbaits I just pull them off the bottom to make them flutter and then let them back down. Same for the Chatterbaits and Spoons. For the A-Rigs just try to reel slowly and keep in contact with the bottom occasionally. For the Jigs ( My favorite) use Finesse with short trailers like Craws, Chunks, etc. Make your retrieve erratic but slow. Watch for "Dead Weight" on the line. If you feel it click on something it is probably a fish picking it up. Use colors that are drab like mottled browns, dull green pumpkins, etc. as this time of year most things swimming in the water are not very colorful. You may also need to use lighter weight Jigs to give a "softer" look to the motion of the Jig. There is nothing wrong with 1/4 or 3/8 oz. if the wind will allow. Can't have a bow in your line and feel a fish that barely is "feelable". This doesn't hurt as far as the fish picking it up either. If the water gets too cold you might need to fish with no skirt at all..... just the trailer. Finally...... keep you boat back..... the water gets clear and you can boat spook them. Give it a try.... fish through the winter......keep your life jacket on as the cold water takes it's toll quickly. Make sure you drain all the water out of the boat AND MOTOR PROP TAIL END. Don't want to freeze up your tail end on the motor while it is in storage. Still got a few "Winter Fishing Years" left in me, Walcrabass

jpb2187, My son, you done hit the nail on the head. Thank you. Walllyboy

OK, Now that you guys have brought up all this info I have to say............ Genetics, Genetics, Genetics. That is what I have been talking about with the Spots that exist in Table Rock and Stockton. They just don't have it...... that is why they are small. Please look up on the internet something like Kentucky/Largemouth or Kentucky/Smallmouth hybrids. Very interesting reading. Very informational. Very scary. Definitely not the same fish as the one caught in California. Walcrabass

Ham, You are exactly correct and have made a good point. A hog is not a hog is not a hog even though they may be the same breed such as Hampshire etc. It is also their lineage that makes them what they are. Glad to know others understand this genetics stuff. There are other states in the South that regularly catch 5 pound Kentuckies from what I have seen on TV. Also not the same Kentucky we have here. Walcrabass

Lvn2Fish, You are exactly correct. They have done a study on Stockton. They are basically never reaching the harvestable length of 15". Therefore they have their entire life cycle to spawn and make more that will never reach the 15" limit either. It is very easy to see that with this management approach they will be ever increasing in population. Stockton is a GREAT LAKE for Bass fishing. I do not want to see it get ruined. Hammertime, You are exactly correct too. The percentage of Kentuckies in Stockton is small. But the fact is that until recent years it was almost non -existent. Now that there is a decent amount of them in the lake, and now that so many are prime breeding size which for them is about 11 + inches they will literally sky rocket in percent of Bass in the lake unless something is done immediately. As far as letting Mother Nature take it's course......... Kentuckies are a creek fish...... that is why they are built to spawn at a smaller size as creeks do not generally offer the food that a large body of water offers. As I have said before they have special length limits for them ( in some places no length limit ) on some of the creeks in our nation as they have literally taken them over due to incorrect length/species differentiation regulations. They have poisoned the Smallmouth gene pool due to crossbreeding in some places that it is getting more and more difficult to find a pure Smallmouth. We can discuss this eminent problem for days but the fact is that the studies have been done and action needs to be taken. Stockton is on the verge of a population explosion of these small Bass that will completely ruin Bass fishing as it is now known on the lake. I want everybody to understand that I do not hate these fish. I fish for them a lot on the creeks and rivers. That is where they belong. I have been studying these fish for about 40 years and it is my opinion and the opinion of others that in certain environments ( like lakes ) that they need special regulations. Respectfully, Walcrabass

Hammertime, I certainly respect your posts on this forum but I have to say that "protecting" certain species will allow them to flourish. I consider the 15" length on Spots to be a form of protection as they rarely reach this length on certain waters. Stockton is one of those places. In this instance you and I are in disagreement. You are correct about the Spots being "few and far between" in Stockton. From my own observations and keeping mental notes they are certainly on the increase. I catch far more of them today than 10 years ago. The most disturbing part is that in one day of fishing two years ago I caught three of the Kentucky hybrids in the same day..... on three different parts of the lake. They have to be kept in check with different regulations than the other Bass or the awesome Bass fishing we are enjoying of Stockton will go South. I believe we all need to ask for regulation changes that will allow this species of Bass to be dealt with in a manner that will assure they do not have the opportunity to increase in numbers. Walcrabass

Lowe, I think the best way is to go to the internet and type in something like " How to identify a Kentucky or Spotted Bass"? Thanks for the help. I wish all anglers would understand the importance of this effort. Walcrabass

Lowe, Thank you very much for releasing the Largemouth but please do me a favor. Keep ALL the legal Kentuckies. Myself and others do not want Stockton turning into " Table Rock Part 2". Walcrabass

Sixstring and others, That is a NICE BASS !!! I have caught many like that on Stockton. Just think what the fishing would be on a lake like Stockton with plenty of food that had a slot length ( which I have been told on good authority won't happen). Stockton would literally on a regular basis produce 8 to 10 pound Bass. Like Table Rock used to do before the Kentuckies took over. Sure hope Stockton gets that 12" Length limit on the Kentuckies they are talking about. The fishermen deserve that consideration I think. Walcrabass

White Bass Catchin' People, Ok it's time for a fish story. A true one. Tried to post the other night but did not succeed. About ten years ago I was bass fishing with a friend in Birch Branch cove. We were catching a few but nothing extravagant. It was summertime and late in the evening. Thunderstorms were predicted. The wind started to change so we decided to get to the ramp. As we came out of Birch Branch the wind was picking up. When we rounded the bend that headed us towards Ruark I looked up ahead and saw White caps everywhere. I told my buddy to hit the bank as we were going to get pounded. Then as I looked I saw that it was fish blowing up the surface. It was about a ten acre area. I told him to keep going up to them. It was in the area of the low water buoy. As we got there it was so frenzied that the fish were running into the side of the boat. The White bass were pushing Shad to the surface and chasing them to the North Bank. They literally ran them out onto dry land and then beached themselves going after them. We tried some of our Bass Crankbaits but evidently they were too big so we switched to Spinnerbaits to get some flash. We DID NOT catch our limit but what we caught were dandies. It lasted about 30 minutes and then all was calm again. We went to the ramp with one of the most unbelievable fish stories ever. So there definitely is a God and he definitely had the fish put on quite a show that day. If you spend enough time on the water and keep your eyes open maybe you will see a display like this one too. I have had more than one experience while hunting or fishing that would probably get me called a liar by more than a few people. It is your choice to believe or not. Let me just say that personal opinion has never changed one single fact. I know...... another story by Old Man Walcrabass.......Wow !!!!!! Wallyboy

Cat Thief and others, A few years ago as we were pulling out at Ruark Bluff we saw a guy coming in to the ramp with what was obviously a hard rifle case in his boat. Being inquisitive as I am I ask what he was hunting for?? He replied that he was hired by the USDA to kill some hogs. He too was hunting up Son's Creek. He told us he was hunting over bait but was not doing very well. When I ask why the USDA was interested in killing the hogs he replied " Diseases"........ like Cholera..... I guess he was never successful as they are still on the loose in this area. I hope they get them killed..... they are awfully hard on the farmers. Walcrabass

Quillback, Good idea on the Tuesday night thing. Not that I have anything worth contributing but maybe I can gain some knowledge. It would be great to hear from Bill Babler on structure fishing.I'll try to remember.

Don't understand the " four five inch white bass". However if your personal length limit is longer than required then that is awesome. Wally

Hook Dupp, Does this mean the Whites have a length limit other than the ones over 18" ?? I don't hardly ever fish for them so I am kind of uneducated on this one. Walcrabass

Hammertime, Sounds like you have figured out what a friend of mine has figured out too. He tells me about the same stories. Loves to Bird hunt and is an older guy. Public land can be a place to find some. I believe some of the Public areas stop hunting for them around 1:00 P.m. Good idea in my opinion. Walcrabass

1Xshot and others, I am not advocating the "unused land thing" myself...... just throwing things out there as I always do. Just wanting people understand that there are always alternate ideas that COULD have worked. Just like shutting the season down to 1/3 of the hunting when the decline was evident so early on. Or maybe even cancelling it for a year to get a handle on things. As far as the fallow fields go ..... well.... you need brood stock to populate them. I am the kind of guy that wants to begin repair on the toilet when it first starts acting up.... not when it is overflowing all the way down the hall. It's just better to fix things before they get to the point of ruination. Please don't anyone say that I blame the Conservation Department for the Quail decline. That just isn't so. As I have stated I believe it is directly related the decline of habitat and increase of predators. I will say again that a lot of it goes back to the Chickens. I honestly believe if everyone still had chickens and depended on them for meat and eggs that we would have an entirely different outlook on the "Predator situation". Walcrabass

1Xshot and others, OK this one is way out there but it could have been done if implemented early enough. I hope I don't make a lot of farmers mad but here goes. In California and maybe other places they have land development laws. Just because you own 40 acres does not mean you can develop all of it. There are laws that cause you to leave a portion of that land undeveloped. The same thing could have been done with farming. A certain portion of the land you owned would not be able to be dozed or cultivated in a manner to destroy the natural plants, brush, etc. If all farmers and land owners in the U. S .A. would have had to do this then they would have all been pretty much on an even plane as far as production and crops were concerned. Just another one of my outside the box thoughts. I know I will hear about this one. Walcrabass

Waterpossum, Funny how us old guys see things huh? We have a very studied look at things from the years we have been around. Where your land in Texas is concerned........ even though you may have habitat still on your land maybe the land around you has changed?? Also remember the predators. There is billions and billions of nest raiding and Quail killing machines out there now that did not exist in years past. For example on the coyotes. I have read where they did not even exist in Barton County , Mo. in the early sixties. I know from having relatives in that area that this is an accurate account. This predator thing is much bigger than most people take into account. When we were little everyone still had chickens. Most people let them run in the yard in the daytime and put them up at night. Because of this ANYTHING that could harm a chicken, the chicks, or get the eggs was severely eradicated. I have went with family members to put gunny sacks soaked with Diesel in holes in the ground. We lit them to kill whatever was in them. And Hawks? Really never saw one.... very rare. Then remember all those boys growing up in the country that set traps to earn some spending money. Thing of the past. One other thing is that as the population dwindled people who had traditionally hunted Quail continued to hunt. When a species is declining and the hunting pressure stays the same as when it was thriving things are bound to suffer. I remember very well some people I know killing out the remaining Quail in a certain spot in Missouri. I tried to shame them but it did no good. From all of these things we are talking about I think it is probably very evident why I write the things I write. It is why I am so adamant about taking the Kentuckies out of the picture in our lakes. They have and will continue to take over. It is just a bad management practice for the larger species of Bass. Other states have already proved it. I feel the same about the four point rule for our Deer. I was pushing for this thirty something years ago and had written letters asking for it in Missouri. I was told it would not work. Other states had already proved it. We finally woke up to it. I personally feel that Quail season should have been cut by 2/3 when the decline started. That did not happen. I believe we could have gotten on top of the problem better if the population was not racing to the bottom of the pit so fast. I am not saying that I am a genius on these matters and those that are educated are dummies. I am however saying that common sense, experience, looking in the past, and a good old Farmer type thinking process goes a long ways where formulas and studies cannot give us the answers. SO this is what it boils down to...... imagine that tomorrow morning you wake up and all the predators in Missouri have died in their sleep. Can you see the Quail population going up after that? Even with the existing habitat? Of course you can !!!! And what if Every Kentucky Bass died in the same night??? Do you think the overall size of the Bass in the lakes would go up?? Absolutely !!!! And what if we had the four point rule for our Deer starting back in the sixties. Do you think our average Buck that is killed would be bigger?? Of Course !! The same is true for the Crappie. If we have good numbers in a lake and the lake has enough food. Then RAISE THE LENGTH LIMIT !!! And what if we had stocked Elk way back when we first started talking about it. Do you think maybe we would be rivaling states like Arkansas in population ??? Absolutely!!!! Don't procrastinate guys. When you see something that is wrong write your Conservation people, Congressmen, etc. Our Missouri Conservation department has done many, many great things for our Wildlife. I simply believe that we have put things off that should have been taken care of sooner. On a happier note..... we had our Quail dinners at Thanksgiving. I remember well helping to make the butter from the cow we had milked the same morning. I don't believe I have ever had better Thanksgiving meals !!! Walcrabass

Waterpossum, !. The Hawks?? You are right ...... way too many of them. Why they are protected eludes me. Some Federal law I think. Quail wouldn't stand a chance crossing the road. Same for a Rabbit even though they might be a little faster. Hawks eat a ton of mice and rats. These critters are a menace to grain crops. Back to the money thing. 2. Trapping?? Went out the window with the Fur Embargo put on by Europe. Kind of ironic as the Europeans were the ones that came to America for it's fur trade. Used to go with people that trapped on the rivers. It is almost a lost art. Also the reason we have 8 billion skunks, 10 billion Possums, 20 billion Armidillos, 40 billion Musk Rats, tons of Beaver/Mink, 800 Ka-Trillion KaBillion Coyotes, and oh yeah now the River Otters. If you have ever know anyone that has one of these critters in their pond then you know they can kiss their fish good-bye. 3. Bulldozing?? Our conservation lands are regularly leased to farmers. No Farmer wants 500 Deer and 500 turkeys eating their wheat, soybeans, etc. Bulldozing stops a lot of that problem. Doesn't do a lot of good for Quail. If you are familiar with Bushwhacker think back to how many fence rows have been dozed on that site. 4. Consider the amount of money brought in by Deer and Turkey tags. I am guessing that the money from regular hunting licenses that would permit you to take Quail never even approached this figure. 5. I guess I am just getting too old. I see things in a different light than the college educated biologists. They are way smarter than me. 6. So while I am looking at the side of things that may not strike most people. Have you ever considered the difference between commercial fishing licenses and personal fishing licenses? When an individual catches fish he can take them home and eat them. Done deal. The fish do not generate any money. On the other hand if a commercial fisherman sells a catch it generates income tax on his part. Then maybe they are processed and sold at a store. This creates jobs for grocers and thus wages and thus more income taxes. Then they are sold at the stores. This creates sales tax. More revenue. It is not hard for me to understand why the daily limits in our ocean waters are being reduced. The fish will bring in far more money if they are caught by the business people. 7. Before a lot of the readers of this I have written fly off the handle and think I am just a crazy old man....... let this soak in for a few days..... I believe that some of it will make a little sense. Don't take it like I am ranting and raving. I am simply pointing out some things that have occurred to me over the years. 8. Lowe's, join them both. They are great about planting habitat and improving things for the Quail. Wally

Lowe, You are exactly right about shooting late in the afternoon, especially when it is cold. There are some states that do not allow game bird ( I am thinking Pheasants etc.) hunting after 1:00 P.M. in the afternoon. When I was young I hunted with a very wise older Quail Hunter. We never hunted late in the afternoon. You hear all this stuff about Dogs are not supposed to eat chocolate? He gave his a Snickers candy bar every time we went. The dog lived to be way up in his teens. Chocolate must have finally got him huh? Wally

Hammer and Lowe, Glad to see such interest in these little guys. I know a little bit more about them than I am letting on. Quail can be released into the wild successfully. It is very tricky and all things have to be right. Releasing them as adult birds is pretty much a disaster. The best age is between 7 and 9 weeks when the grasses are tall, insects are plentiful, and the weather is hot and dry. They must be released close to water and the predators must be eradicated beforehand. If there are any wild birds around they will find them. Pecking order problems can be the end of them if they take up with another flock. Like I said everything has to be right. The problem with all this is that it is strictly illegal in Missouri and probably other states. I am not sure about that as other states have game bird release programs for Pheasants and I believe Chukar. The main thing with Quail is simply this..... something to hide them.... something to hide under from the rain...... and a good food supply. They will eat just about anything including grasses and seeds from the grasses and WEEDS. Walcrabass

Quail People, I agree that it is sad about the Quail population. I have studied these birds in great detail and would like to shed a little bit of light on their decline. When you say that habitat is a key reason you are exactly right. Weeds in particular played a big role in their survival from chicks to adults. Unlike other game birds like Pheasants the Quail cannot get wet and cold. It will kill them in a heartbeat. With the loss of fields that used to not be mowed and BROADLEAF WEEDS that sheltered them like an umbrella they are pretty much doomed. Along with that spraying fields has taken away a lot of the small insects that the chicks depend on. I remember very well an old farmer we used to hunt on telling me that the first year he sprayed his Wheat he "knocked the Quail in half". Our farming world today is perfect for animals like Deer, Coyotes, etc. That is why they are doing so well. Walcrabass

The Creeks will flush again from this rain. There is a good possibility that the fish will run from the incoming water that surges through the old channels. Might be able to actually catch some decent fish in front of the bushes etc in 10 to 15 feet of water. Use a slow bait since they will be adjusting again a little. Beaver, Jig, Brush Hog, Plastic worm, Crank Bait deep enough to dig the bottom. They should be pushed onto the bottom with the "Move" to different water. Maybe even a slow reeled Spinner Bait in a Darker pattern like a Bluegill or Sunfish. I won't be able to get to Stockton this weekend so good luck to all.

As far as the Bass go........ I am guessing with the big swings in water temp in the shallow water right now the bigger fish aren't willing to put up with the amount of time it takes for their bodies to adjust...... because just as they do it changes again. My buddies are telling me they are seeing 6+ degrees changes regularly from pre daylight to mid morning. I would say look in the 20 to 40 foot range with your graph. And then be ready to fish with something straight down, like a flutter spoon, wacky worm, drop shot, etc. Some of my buddies are catching a few this way.