December 12 bass report

[Skeeter ZX190]

This was my first time on Stockton since last July.  I had a couple of things going against me.  First was a new hat.  Wasn't broke in yet.  New hats aren't lucky.  Second was that the bass were probably mad at me for not fishing Stockton in about 6 months!  😀  Put in at 10:30 am at Orleans Trail and fished till sundown.  Water temps hovered around 46 to 47 degrees. I fished between Orleans Trail and State Park Marina.   Ended up with 15 bass with 4 keepers.  I caught the trifecta.  The largest bass was 18 inches.  Also had a 17 incher.  The other 2 keepers were just over 15 inches.  Caught 1 bass on a jerk bait, 4 on the A-rig and everything else on the Ned.  Secondary points with a fast drop seemed to be best.  I had no idea where I would find them and I spent too much time looking too far back in the bigger creek arms.  I found my fish from the main lake to about halfway back.  Plus with the lake this low, the fish just aren't where I would normally find them at normal pool. It was a simply gorgeous day on Stockton. 

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[Steve McBasser]

Good job.....I can't wait to go again. Been WAY to long....

[Dutch]

Good going.  That beat the heck out of me.  I put in at Hartley and fished the mid lake area.  I threw the Arig for 3 hours with only one bite.  I fished swim baits and the Ned.  Not one bite on either.  I decided to run from the stink and try to get something.  I ran about 2 miles up river and fished for walleye.  I had 2 keeper walleye (one was a 6# which is in the fridg.) and 2 short crappie.

[Walcrabass]

Skeeter,

  Nice job on the fishing................ I assume the trifecta means Largemouth, Smallmouth, and Kentucky ??

Funny how just a few years ago on this forum people were saying that there were no Kentuckies in Stockton. Now I see reports of them ( assuming yours had some Kentuckies in it ) more and more often. It will be very interesting to see how many are being caught in 5 years. Even more interesting will be how many are 15" or longer.

Walcrabass

[fshndoug]

I caught loads of spotted bass in Stockton 30 years ago,just on the small side

 

[Flysmallie]

44 minutes ago, Walcrabass said:

Funny how just a few years ago on this forum people were saying that there were no Kentuckies in Stockton.

They have been in there since at least 1987. 

[Walcrabass]

Fishndoug and Flysmallie,

  Now that it has been confirmed that they have been there a good while..........................  what percentage of the Kentuckies that you catch in Stockton are over 15"?

Wally

[Flysmallie]

Mine would be somewhere around zero lately. But I'm only fishing the rivers these days and usually only in the spring. Been many years since I spent a lot of time on the lake. But when I did I don't think I considered it rare. I I fished a lot of main lake secondary point stuff up around the dam always chasing a smallmouth but was never surprised to catch nice spots. 

 

[Dutch]

4 hours ago, Walcrabass said:

Fishndoug and Flysmallie,

  Now that it has been confirmed that they have been there a good while..........................  what percentage of the Kentuckies that you catch in Stockton are over 15"?

Wally

I specifically target them a few time each year.  I'd say maybe 1 or 2 out of 100 would go over 15".  Probably has a lot to do with groceries.

[Skeeter ZX190]

Walcrabass:

Yes the trifecta means largemouth, smallmouth and kentuckies.  Catching kentuckies isn't that rare for me.  One's over 15 inches are.  What I find interesting is that more and more, I'm pretty sure I'm catching meanmouth on a pretty consistent basis.