It Ain't Over Yet

[ozark trout fisher]

I know it's late November right now, and by now I'm usually done fishing the warm-water ponds around here, and settling for squirrel hunting or Busch Wildlife trout (as well as a trout trip down to the Meramec or Current every few weeks) as my sporting entertainment. But not this year. With this crazy warm weather, I'm still finding plenty of bluegill and bass in shallow water and am still catching them on flies-even managed to catch a couple of bluegill on a topwater bug Sunday afternoon, although most of the action has been on buggers, leaches, and other sub-surface fare. I've never done so well for warm-water lake fish so late in the year. Anyone else still getting in on this while it's good?

I will say that afternoons have been best, with the fishing noticeably slower in the mornings and evenings.

[Norm M]

I think the front that blew thru northern Illinois Monday evening put an end to any warmth in my fishing for the rest of the year.

I'm still going to wade for smallies until[hopefully it won't] the river completely freezes over.

[Kayser]

I've put about 70 8-9" bluegill in the bucket over the last three afternoons of fishing. My best fishing is usually from October through December (January, if I can ice fish) with November being the best month. Just downsize your presentation (1/80th oz red jigheads with a waxworm) and look a little deeper. Brush helps.

Rob

[Gavin]

I'm done with it till next April or May...trout from here on out, but I may catch a bass or two by accident. Cheers.

[stlfisher]

The warm weather fishing has certainly lingered this year, but I think the cold front tomorrow will put an end to that....at least on the smaller waters. Bass fishing has been great this fall with the warm weather. Blugills have been pretty good as well. Trout is more my game so this time of year is my favorite.

[ozark trout fisher]

I think as some of you mentioned, you're right that this front could, if you not end the warm-water fishing, at least slow it down a good bit. When the air temp went up a bit and the rain slowed down this afternoon, I got out in my canoe and fished for a few hours. I caught two small bass on a Woolly, but it was much, much slower than it has been. And the fly absolutely had to be twitched slowly pretty much on the bottom-the fly fishing equivalent of soft plastic fishing.

It would have been a perfect day to get out on the Current and fish the fall Olive hatch (I find drizzly, nasty days like today to be best for that particular hatch) but time did not allow anything more than a trip to a local pond.