Members Chevy66driver Posted May 21, 2020 Members Posted May 21, 2020 How has the fishing been on the big river on the irondale to desloge area? I went down there a few weeks ago and didn't catch a thing! Maybe it was the weather or temperature? It was a bit chilly, but I didn't think weather had much effect on the rivers. Last time I went there maybe 10 years ago, it was the best river fishing I'd ever had. Lots of goggle eye, a few largemouth, and a smallie. That was the summertime, however. I read that spots may be taking over in the river and ruining the population of other species... Is this stretch of river productive lately? Maybe it was just an off day. Threw everything in the book at the water. Spinners, cranks, worms, tubes. And my friend was flyfishing. He only caught one pumpkineed. Also, when is the spawning time in rivers? How much does that affect the fishing?
Al Agnew Posted May 22, 2020 Posted May 22, 2020 It has not been all that good for me. I've floated every section now from above Irondale to Blackwell this spring, and haven't caught any big fish yet. Had one good day for numbers, with 105 bass caught. I floated it today, a long float (15 miles), so I made a lot of casts. Caught 60 bass, almost evenly divided between largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted. Not a single one of them was over 14 inches. Daryk Campbell Sr 1
Mitch f Posted May 22, 2020 Posted May 22, 2020 10 hours ago, Al Agnew said: It has not been all that good for me. I've floated every section now from above Irondale to Blackwell this spring, and haven't caught any big fish yet. Had one good day for numbers, with 105 bass caught. I floated it today, a long float (15 miles), so I made a lot of casts. Caught 60 bass, almost evenly divided between largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted. Not a single one of them was over 14 inches. What was the water temp and clarity? "Honor is a man's gift to himself" Rob Roy McGregor
Al Agnew Posted May 23, 2020 Posted May 23, 2020 12 hours ago, Mitch f said: What was the water temp and clarity? Clarity should have been perfect, about 3 feet visibility. Didn't take the temperature but on the Bonne Terre USGS gauge (the only Big River gauge showing temperature) it was 62-64. A little higher than normal but not much. Conditions should have been right. Daryk Campbell Sr 1
Members Chevy66driver Posted May 23, 2020 Author Members Posted May 23, 2020 Are the very deep slower moving pools the best place to catch fish? I still am developing my eye for frogwater unfortunately. I have a feeling I've been fishing a lot of it Maybe throwing a tube or soft craw will work better this time
Al Agnew Posted May 24, 2020 Posted May 24, 2020 7 hours ago, Chevy66driver said: Are the very deep slower moving pools the best place to catch fish? I still am developing my eye for frogwater unfortunately. I have a feeling I've been fishing a lot of it Maybe throwing a tube or soft craw will work better this time No, not in the late spring and summer. Fish, especially bass, go to where the food is. There isn't much food for them in the middle of slow, deep pools. They sometimes use the deep water as sanctuary, but if they are there they probably aren't active. They feed in shallower, moving water because there is a lot more food there. They utilize cover, especially overhead cover like big logs or rocks, as ambush points and a bit of safety at the same time, but they aren't always next to such cover. Basically, if the water is deep enough that you can't see the bottom, it's PLENTY deep enough for the fish, and if there is cover to hide in and under, they can be in much shallower water yet.
Members Chevy66driver Posted May 24, 2020 Author Members Posted May 24, 2020 Ok. I'll keep that in mind! Hopefully the rain holds off for tomorrow and I'll give it another shot.
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