12-30-23. Cape Fair

[Dutch]

I don’t usually fish on Saturday but the weather has been nasty.  I met Jeff at Cape this morning.  It was cold with freezing fog when we arrived.  It soon lifted and the sun came out bright and shiny.  We fished where they were located last trip…zip.  We fished where they were trip before last…zip.  So it became search and seizure.  We found fish in places where they haven’t been in months.  We also found fish in places that seldom give up anything.  Jeff started out with Ned.  I tried some jigs and Shaky worms but no bites.

 I was behind before I smartened up and started throwing the little guy.  All of the fish came on it.  We wound up with 16 bass and 1 goggle eye.  4 of the bass were keepers as was the goggle eye.  We fished from 9-2.  I saw water temps from 47° to 51°.  The air was 31° at launch and 55° at load.

[Bill Babler]

Nice report. Thanks.  My neighbor has thrown a big glide bait the last several days for quite a few hours.  He has had a few follows but no takers. He is persistent so I think it will eventually pay off with a big one. 

[Quillback]

The most important thing about this trip was I caught my first Table Rock goggle eye!  I have heard so many stories about the great (supposedly) google fishing in TR, but I never have caught one of those elusive suckers until today.  10" long and thick, if I had a half dozen more I would have had some fried fish!

Caught a couple of ridiculously fat spots today too, barely keeper length, but they were piggies.

Thanks for the trip Dayne!

[aarchdale@coresleep.com]

44 minutes ago, Quillback said:

The most important thing about this trip was I caught my first Table Rock goggle eye!  I have heard so many stories about the great (supposedly) google fishing in TR, but I never have caught one of those elusive suckers until today.  10" long and thick, if I had a half dozen more I would have had some fried fish!

Caught a couple of ridiculously fat spots today too, barely keeper length, but they were piggies.

Thanks for the trip Dayne!

Im surprised as much as you fish you hadnt caught one by now.  We caught a couple this year on 5" flutter spoons.  All the ones i have ever caught have been up around Kimberling though. 

[Dutch]

This was a Piney goggle eye.  We catch them around Martin Hollow in the James.  We used to catch several in Schooner at night on bass jigs.

[Quillback]

10 hours ago, aarchdale@coresleep.com said:

Im surprised as much as you fish you hadnt caught one by now.  We caught a couple this year on 5" flutter spoons.  All the ones i have ever caught have been up around Kimberling though. 

Yeah I know, I guess there just aren't that many where I usually fish.  When I first saw it in the water when I was bringing it in I was thinking that was a funny looking bass.  

[Bill Babler]

For some reason if you get much above the SK  bridge they are really hard to come by. Really Campbell Point is the starting spot for them. 

KC to Long Creek gives you the best shot. 

There is a bit of a concern however as their numbers seem to be dropping in the last 5 plus years. 

In speaking with the biologist several years ago he said they were extremely hard to monitor or know a lot about. 


 

[Bill Babler]

Just a little follow up on the Goggs before Church. 
The guides have really used them as crappie to keep their clients from wanting to butcher bass. Hearts were in the right place. 

Trouble is there is a lot of pressure on the little guys right during their spawn. Really cause for most of us that’s the only time we could find the elusive little dudes. 

Frankly I don’t know if the fishing pressure has caught up with them or what the reason for the decline is. 

They are yummy. They have a bit of fish flavor somewhat like perch and walleye. 

Crappie have always been to me, they taste like what you cook them in.  Extremely  mild, unless you spice them up.   I know most disagree,  that’s fine. 

In recent years due to the decline I’ve started treating the Goggs like bass.  I give them a smooch and send them on their merry little way. 




 

[Dutch]

I don’t know anything about the situation on them but somehow they have shown up in the James above Pt 15.  I’ve been fishing it for a very long time and never saw one there until a couple of years ago.  20+ years ago we caught them in Schooner but no where else.

[pstone]

My Dad and I caught a bunch of goggle eyes in Wolfpen one Spring, about 9 years ago.      He loved to eat those little dudes and we kept enough for him to have a mess.    The biggest one I ever caught was in the little pocket near point 5 about 4 years ago.   It came off right at the boat, but it had to be 14 inches.    

Happy New Year everyone!   Thankful I made it through another year and looking forward to a new year and some good fishing in our beautiful Ozarks!    Good luck this year to everyone.