Maries River

[creek wader]

Got in a good afternoon of fishing on the Maries today, 9-13. I wade fished, carrying two poles. One with a "walk the dog lure", the other with soft plastics. I did pretty well. The stream was even lower than last trip. It was very clear and the weather couldn't of been any nicer. I caught at about 10 bass on the "wtd". Which was my highest total yet. I started throwing the "wtd", last month. The soft plastics did well, also. My first fish on the "wtd", was a nice 13" smallie. The largest fish of the day. Also, caught a 12" smallie and several smaller ones, along with a 12" largemouth and several smaller largemouth on the "wtd", as well. The leaves are starting to cover some of the pools, which is hindering some casts, so I used soft plastics where I couldn't work the top water very well. All in all, it was a good day with over 20 bass, and several goggle-eye and sunfish, as well. Glad you guys turned me on to the "walk the dog". .. Thanks ... wader

[405z06]

I always like reports with PICS!

[creek wader]

I always like reports with PICS!

Yea, I agree. I usually read the posts with the pics, first. Others on this site call it "fish porn". lol ...

I take pics of most the fish I catch and of any interesting scenery. Their digital, so it doesn't cost me anything. I can always delete them.

It would be nicer, if the pics were of bigger fish, but, hey I'm catching smallies on "walk the dog" lures. A method that I was a little skeptical about, when I first tried it a month ago. ...wader

[smallmouthjoe]

Nice report, thanks. I started using the slim dog this summer on the rock instead of the spook and I like it better. Walks much easier and is a little different than what everyone else is throwing. I need to try it on some streams, I thought it was too big and ugly for stream smallies but I guess that's not the case. Thanks again.

[creek wader]

Nice report, thanks. I started using the slim dog this summer on the rock instead of the spook and I like it better. Walks much easier and is a little different than what everyone else is throwing. I need to try it on some streams, I thought it was too big and ugly for stream smallies but I guess that's not the case. Thanks again.

"too big and ugly for stream smallies" , that's exactly what I thought. But, you can tell by the pics, that even the smaller ones are slamming it. I will be the first to admit. That I thought it would of been a waste of time. I always thought you had to finesse the smallies in clear water, like trout. I was wrong. ... I'll listen to someone's advice, and then try it for myself. I've also done well on spinnerbaits for smallies. I always thought they were to big for a stream bass but, I'm catching them on it also. I still carry the soft plastics for certain situations, though. Good luck ....wader

Here's a few stream fish on spinnerbaits in the last couple of trips out:

[Guest]

deleted

[creek wader]

You have been tearing them up! Glad to see that you are able to make it out pretty often.

Leaves on the water suck for fishing WTD lures, you might want to try out a fluke style soft plastic jerkbait ~4.5-5.5 inches, fish it the same way you would the slim dog and you won't catch as many leaves, plus you can let it free fall, and swing it through riffles. Good luck.

Andy

Thanks Andy. The weather has been great. I've been sacrificing sleep to fish. I remember last winter regretting all the nice days last summer and fall that I spent sleeping. So, I'm trying to get in as much fishing as possible. Sleep is overrated. ...lol

Yea, if you look at one of the last pics on the original post. I caught a largemouth on a baby fluke. I need to get some super flukes, yet. ...wader

[smallmouthjoe]

Hey Wader, how are you working the wtds? I've been using a zara puppy all summer and have had mixed results. I've heard Al say that you have to work it fast, but I think my fast is his slow. Are you having better luck working it really fast as well?

[eric1978]

Hey Wader, how are you working the wtds? I've been using a zara puppy all summer and have had mixed results. I've heard Al say that you have to work it fast, but I think my fast is his slow. Are you having better luck working it really fast as well?

The speed of retrieve will vary somewhat depending on the size of the lure. In my experience, you'll work little dogs a little faster, and giant dogs a little slower. A common speed for average sized dogs, such as the Sammy you were using in your pictures, is about 1 twitch per second. That seems about right to produce the best action. You never want the dog to stop, but if you twitch too quickly, the action won't have that nice wide zig-zag. That doesn't mean that sometimes a faster or slower retrieve won't be better. Experiment with the lure and you'll find your own rhythm. Keep your rod tip pointing down toward the water. Don't set the hook until you feel the fish or see he has it. They'll very often come back a second time if they miss.

In my opinion, the faster the better as long as you are producing the correct action. A dog is a reaction bait, so there's really no reason to fish it slowly. Because of the nature of its back and forth action, it stays in the strike zone longer than certain other topwaters. There is something about that erratic action that looks like a fleeing or injured baitfish that a bass simply cannot resist. It's been my absolute favorite topwater in the last few years, especially in slower current and less wind. In faster current or windy conditions, I'll usually switch to a buzzbait. I hardly ever throw poppers anymore, I think the fish have too much time to get a look at them. However, they can still catch lots of fish used in the right situation.

My favorite WTD lure is the Sammy, with the Megabass Dog-X a close second, but they are quite expensive. I find some decent deals on eBay sometimes. Spooks are fine, too, but their hot dog shape produces a little less action. Don't really care for the baby or giant sizes. Anything around four inches does the trick.

[eric1978]

Thanks Andy. The weather has been great. I've been sacrificing sleep to fish. I remember last winter regretting all the nice days last summer and fall that I spent sleeping. So, I'm trying to get in as much fishing as possible. Sleep is overrated. ...lol

Yea, if you look at one of the last pics on the original post. I caught a largemouth on a baby fluke. I need to get some super flukes, yet. ...wader

CW,

If you're looking for some good flukes, try going to catchemlures.com

They're the only flukes I use. (They call them shinny shads). They come in 4" and 5", have great action, and they sell them in 50 packs for only $12.99. They also make them in some GREAT colors for our Ozark streams.

By the way, I don't have any affiliation with Catchem Lures or anything, I just think they make good flukes. So this isn't like an ad, just an endorsement.