multiple trips, variable conitions up north

[Norm M]

After the water started receding from the last high water episode the fish started pulling away from shore as they usually do. the levels got down to about 8,000 cfs and the visibility never improved. Despite trying a multitude of lures a rattlebait out on the seam was the only success I had. Numbers were not all that impressive, 11 fish was the best day, the rest none to single digits.

The rains returned in a big way, over the entire drainage area of the river. It currently is at 20,000 cfs and still rising. The water was past the top of one boat ramp I fished around. the visibility was nil. Ma was rearranging the furniture again, all sorts of stuff huge and little flowing along.

Rattlebaits over the tops of waterwillows got some fish, but they were better on a seam when I could find one that wasn't inches off the flooded shorelines. The rattlebaits did get a couple fish off the flooded boat ramp. Today the chatterbait was ignored, I had to go in and dig the fish out of the waterwillows for the most part. To do this I used a Berkley Heavyweight worm t-rigged . The way this thing sinks makes a senko look likes it floating .I get the worm hit the tops of the willows and moved it slowly with the rod tip, just like worming largemouth in a lake . For the most part the hits were not heavy, just a change in the feel of the rig.

At a creekmouth I fished there was no mudline. The creek was muddy and way out of it's banks. Twixt the junction of the creek flow, the river flow and the shore a nice sized slack area had set up. The most productive spot was a band of slick topped flow between the two converging flows . It really got going whenever the wind put a chop on the surface. I had to use a squarebill crank designed to work 8-10 ft to get bit. The 5 biggest bass of the day came from this area.

Just shy of 30 smallmouth, no other species cooperating with the program