Help Me Fellas

[jovush]

I've taken the wife out a couple times now and haven't been able to get her into a bunch of fish. This is making me look real bad and jeopardizing my fishing future if i don't show her some good fishing. We plan on going out Friday afternoon till dark and would appreciate any pointers. Plan on putting in at either CC or Ruark area. Would love some crappie but anything on the line will make things much better. My question...where would you go and what would you fish with? Thanks in advance guys.

[Skeeter ZX190]

I'm no fishing guru, but if it was me I would go bass fishing back into one of the larger coves like Googer Creek and wacky rig a green pumpkin senko. Pitch it up towards and around the flooded bushes and twitch it back. I would concentrate on the secondary points. Sounds like Friday might be cloudy which would really help that type of fishing. That wacky rigged senko is pretty simple and if you keep it fairly colse to the surface then you will see the bass strike it which is always a rush for me.

[MstStudent10]

Don't know a ton about crappie fishing right now, but if she starts getting too bored, put her on a finesse worm on a spinning rod and let her catch some bass. A 3/16 to 1/4 oz shaky head with a green pumpkin or watermelon candy Zoom finesse worm, you can also simply Texas rig it with a lighter bullet sinker and worm hook.. Whether or not the bass have spawned or not, there's still a TON of buck bass swarming around in the shallows. Go into one of the creeks (Maze, Turkey, Sons, Price) and fish secondary points. Key in on gravel, like gravel points, or where chunk rock changes to gravel. Have her toss that finesse worm out and SLOWLY DRAG it back. The gravel makes it easy to drag. When I take my gf out and am only concerned with numbers, I'll do this and it's not uncommon to catch 30+ bass in a day, Especially in May. Use Good SHARP shaky head hooks as this style of bass fishing doesn't require her to set the hook. U just reel down and load up on the bass and the sharp thin hook sets itself with the weight of the fish. This is a good thing, at least for my girlfriend, because when she gets a bite the last thing on her mind as she frantically starts reeling in is "setting the hook". Good luck either way with whatever u decide to do.

[MstStudent10]

Also, don't get stuck on just keying on the secondary points. Go in a creek arm, and then find a cove or "smaller creek arm" that is inside that "big creek arm" and start fishing the back of that cove and work your way back out until u reach that secondary point. And the shallower sloping banks will prolly be more productive. Hope that made sense.

[jovush]

Thanks guys for a very detailed approach!! Gonna load up on a variety of worms and head out to try these techniques, will report back. Thanks again.

Joe

[straw hat]

They may be right Jovush. A lot of the crappie lately that I have been catching have been off of windy rock riprap points although any steep point will do. They will probably be off the feed with the drop in temps and a north wind. The soft baits for bass probably sounds like a good idea. If you decide to try for crappie though I would suggest steep south facing banks with some cover in the CC area. I would start out fishing around 12 to 20 feet. You shouldn't need minnows this time of year but they can be fished a little slower which may help in this cooler weather. Good luck to both you and your wife.

[dennis boatman]

Pink 6" worm on an unweighted hook always works. Let it sink till it goes out of sight, twitch it up to the surface, let it sink back down and repeat....lots of fun too...

[jovush]

Report- Well we got rained out for Friday but did get to sneak out for a few hours Saturday. Huck mentioned the Son creek and since I've never been there I thought we'd give it a try. Launched my dinghy on the flooded ramp off 39 and explored the area. Took your advice and tried the Shaky Head method and it paid off. We hooked into a few and had a great time. Thanks a bunch guys....will have the chance to take her back!!!

On a safety note!!!!! With the flooded condition be extra careful of submerged obstructions. Like I said, I had never been in this area before and while idling under the bridge I chose to go between two of the columns to check with the graph....how was I to know they are connected by a now submerged support? Lucky I was only idling and had my motor unlocked. Nothing damaged but only my ego. Safety tip = always suspect what you can't see underwater and DON'T DRIVE BETWEEN COLUMNS UNDER 39 BRIDGE!! I'm sure I would have seen this if water wasn't up six feet.

[Huckfinn]

I have never been to Son creek in my life??? I cant take credit when it is not dew... I think you got the wrong man. Huck

[jovush]

You're correct, sorry I meant MstStudent10, it musta been that picture of your monster Walleye..........it was foremost on my mind. Since you've never been to Son's Creek, if you go there remember not to boat between the coloumns of the bridge!! Ü