OH Ivie trip

[Smithvillesteve]

Just got back from OH Ivie. That lake has been unbelievable this calendar year with 9-10 Legacy Class LM bass caught. Over 13 lbs. This was my second trip down there. My step daughters boyfriend lives in Dallas so i drive down there and he takes it from there. I caught a 5 lber and he caught a 6 lber. That was our best fish. Fishing was tough. A major front came through right when we got there. The next three days were bluebird days. Bright sun and very little wind. I think the majority of these ShareLunker bass caught there are in deep trees and caught with FFS and A rigs. Not my cup of tea. I'm 71 yrs old with a bad shoulder so winging that A rig around is tough on me. The banks are flooded with buck brush so its a spinnerbait and flipping paradise. I think the weather drove them out of there. Water temps were 58-60. Its out in no mans land. Nothing around there. It wasnt real crowded thurs and friday. Got pretty crowded on the weekend. Catching a 10 lb bass is on my bucket list so i put myself in a great position to get that done. But didnt happen again. 

[curtisce]

Any place to stay by the lake?

[Smithvillesteve]

Yes but you need to reserve a place about a year in advance. And most of the places are not too nice. We stayed in a little house with one room. Two beds in the room and one guy brought his air mattress. A tiny little kitchen. Last year we stayed in a place that was like a 5 mile drive down gravel road to get too. Dust everywhere. No restaurants. One bar b que place open on thurs, fri and sat only. Gotta bring your own food. Its in the boonies Curtisce!!

[curtisce]

gravel roads  and boat trailers don't mix to well. That should keep the crowds down though.

[DavidB]

You could come to Toledo Bend instead.  Over 30 fish over 10 lbs. weighed at certified scales since January 1st, including one over 15 lbs. and another over 14 lbs.  We're in the middle of the spawning cycle.  Grass has returned to large parts of the lake, and the fishing is the best in several years.

[Ham]

On 3/9/2023 at 8:23 PM, DavidB said:

You could come to Toledo Bend instead.  Over 30 fish over 10 lbs. weighed at certified scales since January 1st, including one over 15 lbs. and another over 14 lbs.  We're in the middle of the spawning cycle.  Grass has returned to large parts of the lake, and the fishing is the best in several years.

Yep

[Champ188]

On 3/9/2023 at 8:23 PM, DavidB said:

You could come to Toledo Bend instead.  Over 30 fish over 10 lbs. weighed at certified scales since January 1st, including one over 15 lbs. and another over 14 lbs.  We're in the middle of the spawning cycle.  Grass has returned to large parts of the lake, and the fishing is the best in several years.

And a whole heckuva lot more elbow room on the water.

[Bill Babler]

Had a friend down there last week also. He said he will never go back, with his boat  

No accommodations,  pee pour road system, no decent restaurants, and he scratched his new Kitty Kat to pieces. 

They did however catch a few fish. Biggest was a 7 pounder and second was a 6 pounder.   They fished 5 days and caught 20 fish. 

I would not have lasted the 5 days. 


 

[Smithvillesteve]

The good news is I guess that keeps your recreation people away. Its all serious bass fisherman. I've only been there in early March but I've never seen a pleasure boat yet. A few pontoons but they were fishing out of them. Its not a family vacation destination for sure. 

[Quillback]

Based on what I'm hearing, I'd got to Toledo Bend or Rayburn before Ivie.  Only way I'd fish Ivie would be with a guide if one was reasonable.  I hear that guy that is catching those bigguns with Livescope charges something like $2K per day.