Indian Point to Baxter 6-15 6-16

[Bill Babler]

What a difference a day makes. Have really not had time to post much as this is the busy season. Been going from one to two trips per day weather permitting.

Most days up until the middle of last week, had been really successful with between 20 and 30 fish to the boat on a 4 hr. trip with some really nice quality LM.

For a lot of us, fishing the Indian Pt. Dam area, last week stuff really changed. Top water just about vanished and the fish moved off the bottom and suspended. We do have a thermocline at 26ft. but the fish are deeper, running about 35' and not relating to the bank or the drops, but over the deep trees.

That makes it extremely hard, as some days they will scream out of the tree tops as soon as the dropshot is in the water and other days you can see them sitting over the tops and they will dive into the middle of the tree as the DS approaches.

Surface temps the last couple of days have been the same from the Dam to Point 19 on the White River. 81 degree.

Yesterday I had Matt and Ross a couple of really nice guys from the North. We just flat struggled, no matter how much ground I covered I just could not get them going. We only had 10 fish to the boat. 4 on the Dixie Jet and 6 on a dropshot. Had a couple more that came off, but just not enough bites. It just kills me when I cannot get folks bit, and yesterday was a work day.

Today, I started at Kimberling and fished up the White River. Same exact conditions, overcast with a nice breeze. They bit like they were starved. Over 30 fish to the boat with a 5 a 4 and two solid 3's. Best 5 was probably 17.5 lbs. and all were on the Dixie Jet.

Jerry and Warren got to be the "Wish you were here yesterday guys as they pounded them taking turns."

Not on purpose to see who could out do who. One would catch 2 or 3 then the other would run off 4, it was just as good this morning as it was hard yesterday. Wish I knew the answer.

Fish are much shallower from Point 9 up the White than they are back the other way. Fish up the White are still on gravel runnouts, out close to the breaks. Lots of scattered and suspended fish in both locations, but I really believe it is just as much about pressure on the fish. There are boats sitting on everything from Kimberling to the dam, and up the White we fished without seeing anyone.

A week ago both Beck and I were fishing the Kimberling to Cow Creek area one day. He had fished a big runnout and had not gotten a bite. I pulled in 5 minutes later and we caught 17 off of it. He looked back and saw me over there and called to let me know he had just gotten off of it, so I would not spend a lot of time there. On my guys first throw with the 1/2oz Jet, all three were hooked up. I told him we were hammering them. Just simply a timing deal.

When the fish suspend this time of the year, a flutter spoon is the perfect bait to not only find but search for scattered suspended fish. It is also a great bait to fish for chasing fish with. Perhaps not as dramatic as the topwater bite, but fish sure more profitable as they seem to like it sub-surface better.

There are some tricks to fishing a flutter spoon as it is not a jigging spoon, it is meant to be casted and retrieved.

Good Luck

[mjk86]

Do you fish a jigging spoon ever? In place of a drop shot?

[dtrs5kprs]

Great report Bill. Those short thick spoons go all kinds of crazy when you chuck them at chasers. Pretty versatile little baits.

[mjk86]

I love the nungesser spoon for that casting to chasing fish. I like that they only have 1 hook as opposed to a treble, but doesnt have a weed guard, so you spend more time fishing and less time taking fish off the hook. Just fling the fish towards you, grab the spoon and shake. Fish falls back in the water and ur fishin again.

[Bill Babler]

Do you fish a jigging spoon ever? In place of a drop shot?

No. The jigging spoon has fantastic applications, and will catch anything that swims in the Rock, but it is not a drop shot.

[mjk86]

No. The jigging spoon has fantastic applications, and will catch anything that swims in the Rock, but it is not a drop shot.

Can you explain when you would use a jigging spoon vs a drop shot? Also about 30 years ago my grampa learned from a guide on TR to use a split shot rig and a crawler around the deep docks and main lake points in the kimberling area 20-30ft down in 80-200fow. Been doing that ever since with great results. Question....in that vertical scenario where the bottom is not in play, what if any advantage is a drop shot over a split shot? Thanks.

[Laney]

Bill, would you explain the "Dixie Jet" , checked Bass Pro, and they don't have anything with that name listed, what is it? I am spending a week at Indian Point campround, starting Sunday, and would like to catch a few. Thanks for the info.

[abkeenan]

Bill, would you explain the "Dixie Jet" , checked Bass Pro, and they don't have anything with that name listed, what is it? I am spending a week at Indian Point campround, starting Sunday, and would like to catch a few. Thanks for the info.

http://dixiejetspoons.com/

http://www.basswishes.com/Store/tabid/269/List/1/ProductID/122/Default.aspx

[abkeenan]

Here is a nice video of spooning on TR.

[Bill Babler]

From now thru Fall, Tom Murphy's Dixie Jet 1/2 flutter spoon is tied on everytime I get into the boat. Tom is just fishing it around boat docks and piling, and for the most part I fish neither. Especially in the Summer. Just to much controversy getting around these houseboat docks. No need to sit there and argue with people, when there are lots and lots of places to flutter the spoon.

This spoon is fantastic in open water as well as fishing it over the trees.

I am not a fan of the Mustaid Triple grip on this bait. I replace them for these reasons. 1st. it is a fish killer. I'm out to catch them not kill them. Quite often especially with clients they will let the spoon get way to deep in the fishes mouth. With the triple grip with its circle style hook, it is just almost impossible to remove from a gut, gill or a back throat catch. It is extremely soft. A White bass will destroy it the first time he smacks it.

You really cannot put a plier on it or it will totally bend out and when you try to put it back straight it will snap. They also have a very week weld at the junction of the 3 hooks and come apart very easily.

3rd reason is it is just a Bear to get a hook in a fish with one for clients. They want to jerk. Tom sets the hook on these baits most of us do not. We simply let the rod load and pull back. If you jerk a Mustaid circle hook you will miss lots of fish as it hits their mouth on the bend of the hook. It you let them take it to long they swallow it. I don't like them.

The spoon however is the most balanced flutter casting spoon I have ever seen and is truly one of the best fish catchers I have ever used on Table Rock Lake. It takes 15 seconds to replace the hook with one of your choosing.

Good Luck