What am I missing?

[Bill Babler]

I have never heard as much crying from the guides fishing the dam.  Yes we cry most of the time but I believe this year is the worst.  Most guys are saying 6 to 8 fish in a morning is what to expect with a whopper of a day catching maybe 12 to 15.

There are some fish at every depth between right on the bank and 65 ft.  Some on the bottom and lots suspend in open water and some in trees, they are just scattered horrible.  Almost seems like September and I"m also thinking the moving water.

Up the White can also be tricky with lots of suspended fish, mostly in the trees and off the bluffends.

James River has a fantastic jig bite right now, putting the boat in about 30 on the flat gravel and making a long cast to just in front of the bushes.  I believe the fish are still on the old bank line.  There are some up in the bushes but the majority out.  Gizzard and threadfin shad are in the James by the millions and are everywhere you stop.  Fish we caught today however were just filled to over flowing with crayfish.

On another note, yesterday on the White was slow and every fish we caught had a hook hole.  Today we had a really great day on the James and at least 3/4 of those fish had been caught and released.  We probably had at least a dozen keepers with a LM at 4 pounds and lots of 18 in K's

Good Luck

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Bill Babler said:

I have never heard as much crying from the guides fishing the dam.  Yes we cry most of the time but I believe this year is the worst.  Most guys are saying 6 to 8 fish in a morning is what to expect with a whopper of a day catching maybe 12 to 15.

There are some fish at every depth between right on the bank and 65 ft.  Some on the bottom and lots suspend in open water and some in trees, they are just scattered horrible.  Almost seems like September and I"m also thinking the moving water.

Up the White can also be tricky with lots of suspended fish, mostly in the trees and off the bluffends.

James River has a fantastic jig bite right now, putting the boat in about 30 on the flat gravel and making a long cast to just in front of the bushes.  I believe the fish are still on the old bank line.  There are some up in the bushes but the majority out.  Gizzard and threadfin shad are in the James by the millions and are everywhere you stop.  Fish we caught today however were just filled to over flowing with crayfish.

On another note, yesterday on the White was slow and every fish we caught had a hook hole.  Today we had a really great day on the James and at least 3/4 of those fish had been caught and released.  We probably had at least a dozen keepers with a LM at 4 pounds and lots of 18 in K's

Good Luck

bill, i have been fishing the lower end because of all the floating stuff on the upper end.  we have still been catching them pretty good, but never in the same place twice.  it seems right now that steeper stuff is more consistent, and that just makes common sense because of all the water being ran through the lake.  just that fact alone draws the shad out.  then given the lake levels will begin to fall, bass suspend quite a bit.  just natural instinct for them to keep water above them and below them so they will not get trapped someplace.  if they are ever on anything flatter, they will always be on the last bush out that is at the depth they want to be at.  but, guess what?  there are very few tree that match up with the high water level because those trees that are left are fairly deep and it takes a lower water level to put them into play.  yes, most of the feeding is out in the lake, but i am never looking for feeding fish, but bass that have laid down to rest in an area.  i then try to figure out how to force them to bite, not beg them to bite.

bo

[Ranger185dvd]

Bill,

How is fishing this time of year up long and cricket creek? Looking for whites and crappie also. Staying at Big Cedar would like to get the family a rug  on the linr. Thanks in advance.

[BassPastor]

It’s only fair to provide an update for all the tips. Finally brought a few up from the deep this morning. Found shad at 40’ on main lake and caught a few on the dropshot. My buddy caught a nice 19” smallie on a jig last night. We tried a tactic that I recently read from Bill Babler to back the boat off and cast to where you would normally keep the boat. 

Thanks for all the help. Even when fishing is tough, this lake is hard to beat. 

Here’s one that I caught this morning. 

[dan hufferd]

Any one ever try those dissolved oxygen meter/gauge thingys ? I have always wondered about that when they have to pull so much water.  

[Bill Babler]

That is one beautiful Jaw BP, thanks for sharing her with us.

[Bassmeister]

On 7/1/2019 at 8:34 AM, MoCarp said:

With all the high water TR has not been as bad as Grand, Truman and Stockton...so where do they go?

TR fish eaters gotta eat...

That picture makes me sick. 

[MoCarp]

37 minutes ago, Bassmeister said:

That picture makes me sick. 

Same

[Bill Babler]

Have no idea where that was taken or if it was photo shopped but that is NOT the ROCK.  Looks like Mex-he-co

[MoCarp]

44 minutes ago, Bill Babler said:

Have no idea where that was taken or if it was photo shopped but that is NOT the ROCK.  Looks like Mex-he-co

That’s from Nebraska, but they can bf bass, ( any stabbing method), apparently it’s pretty easy to shoot them off the beds...I’m not a big fan of stab fishing....