Shell Knob this Weekend

[abkeenan]

13 hours ago, KCFinesse said:

Saturday:

Found fish both deep and related to chunk rock banks. I spent most of the day rotating between the chunk rock transition areas between docks and the cove guts where fish were suspended deep around baits in front of docks. I also found a few on runout points. In the evening, I fished a wind blown steep-bank cove spur pretty close to the main lake and found fish stacked in/adjacent to cedars in about 15-20fow. Hot baits for the day: a little bit of everything, a couple rk crawler fish, a couple mcstick fish, some spoon fish and a pretty good amount of ned and shakeyhead fish. In total around 25 with four being in the 15-16" range. I did get my first TR grand slam courtesy of a 10" meanmouth. 

Sunday:

It was a pleasure meeting 96 Champ Sunday morning. It sure seemed like it was going to be a good morning on the water. 

I picked up in the same area I found fish Saturday evening, but without the wind the fish had scattered. I marked a few fish suspended in the 12fow range and swapped out the RC STX I was throwing for a deep diving KVD jerkbait and picked up a couple fish between cedars that were 16-17". I spent too much time doing this for how spread out these fish were and late morning switched back to the transition rock bite, consistently finding groups of 2-4 fish. By early afternoon I had stopped at a few bluff points between searching for transition areas and found a pretty good ned ledge bite that I ran until calling it a day a little before 4. The Sunday total was closer to 30 fish with 6 being over 15" hot baits were neds/shakeyheads with a few jerkbait fish and one healthy smallmouth on a rk crawler. 
The main things I noticed:

• I couldn't get a consistent crawler/wart bite going- I ran 10lb fluorocarbon and mono and was suspend dotting but only caught a handful. I fished a lot of phantom green but switched to mudbug after a spot spit up something close to that boatside. I did catch a lot of fish dragging bottom in the 15-20fow range. Maybe these were wart fish a bit deeper...
• I was very surprised at how close some of the deeper suspended fish were to the bottom oriented "wart" fish. I found a lot of transition bank directly adjacent to channel swings and fish were on both... Perhaps these fish think a lot like I do, and are looking forward to dinner prior to eating lunch...
• I wasted waaay too much time on dead water. Fish were concentrated in target areas and spread out over a lot of other good looking water.I think if someone were strictly fishing transitions and points without running up every adjacent chunk rock bank this weekend they could've made hay. 
• It's hard to put down a ned when it catches so many fish; it's hard to put down a jerkbait when its catching better fish....

I didn't get my 17" spot... My biggest of the trip was maybe an 1/8th inch short, and I guess I'll just have to keep trying.  Table Rock was great to me this weekend and its pretty cool to see such diversity in effective patterns.

-Jared 

Top notch report there. Glad you got on some fish. 

I think I am most stubborn with the jerkbait over any other bait. I will throw that thing all day when I should have put it down after 45 minutes.

[Champ188]

3 hours ago, abkeenan said:

I think I am most stubborn with the jerkbait over any other bait. I will throw that thing all day when I should have put it down after 45 minutes.

Exactly what has happened to me the last two trips.

[abkeenan]

1 hour ago, Champ188 said:

Exactly what has happened to me the last two trips.

It's weird because I am not really like that with any other bait. I can get over not catching them on a crank, topwater or pretty much any other bait and switch gears. But with the jerkbait I just can't seem to let it go. Call me Elsa.

[Champ188]

1 hour ago, abkeenan said:

It's weird because I am not really like that with any other bait. I can get over not catching them on a crank, topwater or pretty much any other bait and switch gears. But with the jerkbait I just can't seem to let it go. Call me Elsa.

Pretty much the same with me. I can get pretty knot-headed when I have a blade in my hand, but I know I can cover a lot of water with it and put it back into any kind of cover I want. The jerk bait is opposite ... you don't cover much water and the turd will hang in anything it gets within 3 feet of, except a fish, of course, which can knock slack in your line and never get stuck. And that's after you've put Daichi Death Trap hooks on it that will reach out and grab human flesh from any distance.

[96 CHAMP]

1 hour ago, Champ188 said:

Pretty much the same with me. I can get pretty knot-headed when I have a blade in my hand, but I know I can cover a lot of water with it and put it back into any kind of cover I want. The jerk bait is opposite ... you don't cover much water and the turd will hang in anything it gets within 3 feet of, except a fish, of course, which can knock slack in your line and never get stuck. And that's after you've put Daichi Death Trap hooks on it that will reach out and grab human flesh from any distance.

It is very difficult no doubt to put that jerk bait down,  we can't or will not put it down or constantly keep picking that darn thing up. Seems every time I cast it I can't wait to feel that tap on the end of the line, I think the anticipation makes us work the bait to fast then, if I never got a bite on it I would probably present the bait better. It's like a bad habit fishing that thing. Sure is a lot of fun though. I had a few swipe at it the last couple days and how they didn't get hooked I have no idea. Anything else it touches its hung, crazy. 

[96 CHAMP]

2 hours ago, abkeenan said:

It's weird because I am not really like that with any other bait. I can get over not catching them on a crank, topwater or pretty much any other bait and switch gears. But with the jerkbait I just can't seem to let it go. Call me Elsa.

It's like a bad drug!

[KCFinesse]

My problem is that suspending stick seems like such a good option if the water's clear and under 60F... And if I'm not getting hits my reaction is always that I'm clearly not fishing it slow enough.... (queue infinite loop...)

[Champ188]

It doesn't help when a 16-inch spot smacks the Smuckers out of it on your third cast.

[abkeenan]

7 hours ago, Champ188 said:

It doesn't help when a 16-inch spot smacks the Smuckers out of it on your third cast.

They always say that it's the kiss of death catching a fish on your first cast (or thereabouts). There is a little truth to it as, like you allude to, it will make you stick with a bait longer since you had success on the first crack.

[Champ188]

I have but one practice in this world that even borders on superstition and it is to NEVER catch a fish on your first cast.