Let's Go Fishing

[vernon]

54 minutes ago, Quillback said:

Mangy?  Here's a pic of myself I took this morning, as you can see, I take great care of my hair.

 

Nice!

Salon Select I assume?

And your "blouse" did NOT come from Target my friend. 

Well played old sport!

[m&m]

1 hour ago, Quillback said:

Mangy?  Here's a pic of myself I took this morning, as you can see, I take great care of my hair.

 

Quill, now I know what happened to Jerry Seinfeld's puffy shirt. It is in BV, AK

Mike

[vernon]

BTW, we got in about 90 minutes of fishing yesterday late afternoon. Since we'd just gotten here we spent more time getting organized and unloaded than anything else.

I was absolutely shocked at how much the lake had changed since we left last Saturday!  Doesn't even look like the same place.

Sure made me wish I had been a bit more diligent about inputting waypoints that's for sure.

Nonetheless, we couldn't resist the obvious temptation of flinging at some of the flooded trees and submerged brush with spinnerbaits and a Plopper for about thirty minutes.  Had only a couple of small followers on the SB and nothing on the WP.

Once the effects of the adrenaline eased a bit we went back to what was so effective last week which was good ol' Ned off of the points.  While the appearance of the neighborhood had changed dramatically, the smallies were still home.  

While it wasn't exactly a slayfest we did catch about a dozen with one or two "maybe" keepers before heading in to get settled for the week. 

Although the high water is obviously gonna require some significant adjustments, I don't see any reason why we shouldn't be able to catch a few. Mostly a matter of figuring out what types of areas to eliminate so as to not waste a bunch of time fishing fishless water but that's certainly nothing new. 

There just happens to be a WHOLE BUNCH more water to eliminate!

Regardless, looking forward to it and will let everyone know how it goes!

[m&m]

Vernon, second thing I noticed was the water temp cooled a few degrees. Put that into the mix. But with the temps in the 80s the next few days, those fish just might move into the flooded shallows. Keep your eyes open for shad activity. 

Mike

[vernon]

1 hour ago, m&m said:

Vernon, second thing I noticed was the water temp cooled a few degrees. Put that into the mix. But with the temps in the 80s the next few days, those fish just might move into the flooded shallows. Keep your eyes open for shad activity. 

Mike

Yep, we noticed that as well. Almost six to eight degrees cooler in some places than eight or nine days ago. 

I wonder if it will warm up as quickly as it normally would with all of the cold water coming in from Beaver?

I sure hope so!

We will definitely keep an eye out for the shad and any other surface activity though. 

Thanks. 

[vernon]

Pretty dang good day again today. Got on the water about 100 and fished until 700. For the life of me I don't know why I don't put all my baitcasters on eBay. Ned rules as always. Messed around a little with spinnerbait and swimbait but, again, no soap. 

Ned, however, was money. Caught at least thirty and probably closer to forty with around eight for sure keepers and a few more tweeners. Brother had a 19" smallmouth that was just beautiful. Somewhere around three pounds or a little more for sure. Some really pretty fish throughout the day. 

Fifteen feet was still the best depth but did catch some as deep as twenty feet and a few as shallow as four but fifteen was dominant. 

Bottom line, we ain't that good and don't really work that hard at it anymore - if we catch fish great but if not we still have a great time. Nonetheless, the week before last and now this week have been about as easy "catching" as I can remember on this lake. I'm sure we wouldn't win any money with our stuff but we're having a blast and what else matters?

I'd also add that other than the fifteen foot depth deal nothing else really mattered for us. Points, cuts, or nothing banks it just didn't much seem to make much difference. 

Have been trying to load a few pics but, as usual, can't make it work. Even the tech savvy brother can't figure it out. I can do it easy from the computer at home but the iPhone is a consistent no go. 

What a stupid I am. 

[m&m]

Vernon, a good day for sure. I agree it is hard to put down the Ned when you consistently catch fish on it. Did the water temp rise any?

Mike

[vernon]

Yes but it was really squirrelly. It varied anywhere from three to five degrees depending on the area. A couple of times I thought thought the temperature gauge was acting up but the readings were consistent between both units. 

We'd be moving from one point to another using the trolling motor and the temp gauge would be blinking up and down all over the place.  I guess with all the new water, rising and falling levels and steady current it just can't stabilize throughout the water column.

The absence of wind probably made a difference too since the surface layers weren't mixing at all.  For the day it was about as slick as I've ever seen it.

Found a couple of spots that reached 71 but most were around 67 - 69. 

[m&m]

Maybe these warm days will stabilize the water, moving the fish into the new shallows and the TW bite turns on.  That would be one of the few times to put down the Ned. 

Mike

[rps]

8 hours ago, m&m said:

Maybe these warm days will stabilize the water, moving the fish into the new shallows and the TW bite turns on.  That would be one of the few times to put down the Ned. 

Mike

Gentlemen, the shad spawn will start soon at these temps. All bets are off at that point. One year during the spawn I had a 63 fish top water day with about 25% keepers. (Overcast, muggy day during the height of the spawn) Not too long after that we will get the bluegill spawn. The salad days of the fish cycle. It will be fun provided I figure a way to get Kolin out of bed and down to the dock.