Kim City - Dec 5 - Damiki rig deep bite

Nice!  I have been experimenting with that rig myself, just not seeing the fish deep like you're seeing.  Every once in a while I'll see one or two, but not enough to spend much time messing with them.  

Got out at Baxter yesterday and my graph showed a similar type of picture.  Really could not clean it up and I'm usually pretty fair at that.  Started late, close to 7:30 am and should have been out by 6:30 on a clear day is not to early.

Fished 3 different creeks going up the White and fish were schooling and chasing on top in all 3.  Seemed to be pushing small groups of pretty big shad to the surface.  Schools of 25 to 50, 3" shad.  There were huge schools in all 3 creeks and the fish were cutting out small pods and pinning them to the surface.  Totally everything I saw yesterday was no deeper than 45' suspended or on the bottom.

Got some good pictures but for some reason my old computer is just not taking them from my camera.  I can text them to others but the computer refuses them.  Time for a new deal.

Had 4 fish in the Big Indian 2 on a spoon and 2 on the Ice jig.  All 4 were keepers and were suspended in about 30' over 55'.

Next creek I was stumbling around looking at the graph and kept hearing splashes and after a bit started looking and could see they were feeds.  Grabbed the swimbait and it was on.  If I could get in range of a chase it was a done deal.  I also caught them on a jerkbait when they were chasing.  Really after about a dozen I started looking for another deal and had a 3/4 oz white Dixie Jet and started throwing it.  Totally hammered it. Multiple fish would follow the one i had on trying to steal the bait from its mouth.  These fish would have  eaten up an A-Rig.  They stopped after a while and I moved to Big Creek.  They were chasing in there still a little bit and I caught 2 on the jet.  Did not try topwater but it would have worked.  Water in Big Indian, Big Creek and Pig Pen was 54 degree and perfect color.  Saw quite a few fish in Pig Pen chasing close to shore, so I believe a crank bait or a jig would catch them.

It was clear and bright yesterday and cloudy today so I bet today would have been fantastic.  It was pretty much done by 10:30.  I fished to Noon but no bites either chasing or deep after 10:30.  They were going when I got there so I'm guessing early is best.

Lots of folks fishing yesterday and quite a few pleasure boats both pontoons and ski boats.

Everybody must be up on that end of the lake, probably because of that good shad bite up there.  I saw one, and only one bass boat yesterday, and I saw only 2 on Tuesday.  No recreational boats whatsoever.  Did see the water patrol and a work boat.

Just not seeing the shad in the creeks, maybe I am missing them, but they are hard to find if they are out there.  No birds, no topwater schoolers.  There are scattered shad around.  

From the Kings River up, in all my years on the lake I just have not done very well on a deep creek bite up the White.  I can at times find a very good deep channel swing or flats bite as far as the deep ones are concerned.  I have done well on roll offs and humps, but it seems that part of the lake just fishes better shallow and I'm talking 35' and under except for the main channel.

If I want to deep fish I fish from the Kings to even up Long Creek with much better results.  Might be just me but very seldom do I see them in the deep creek channels up the White.

Kind of the same up the James,  you can find them deep but most of the time they are main lake James river and not in any of the major deep pockets or creeks.

Just what I have found but I'm sure others will tell you they have had different results and there is no doubt about it.

I fished for a short time the last two afternoons - creeks in the dam area.  Fish were at 20 - 40 fow over 60 ft.  Tried slab spoon, ice jig, crawlers, 2.8 kitech, lil george.  Swim bait and lil george worked the best.  zero on the ice jig.  never saw fish quantity on the graph like Dock-it and Bill but enough to keep it interesting - lots of bait fish - saw or heard just a few splashes.  Mostly short or barely keeper Spots but this one nice one.   For a few minutes last night the catching was fast and furious.

Bobby

Merc always reminds us about the time it takes to search for shad and that they will vanish overnight. His advice is so true. This fall season I have not been able to find bait in the same location on consecutive days. Searching for bait in the morning is a little aggravating knowing that the primary feeding time is clicking by. In the afternoon, the bite can get better with each pasting hour so the search time is happening before the primary feeding time. When your excited to start fishing, keeping the big motor running is easier said than done. 

2 hours ago, Dock-in-it said:

Merc always reminds us about the time it takes to search for shad and that they will vanish overnight. His advice is so true. This fall season I have not been able to find bait in the same location on consecutive days. Searching for bait in the morning is a little aggravating knowing that the primary feeding time is clicking by. In the afternoon, the bite can get better with each pasting hour so the search time is happening before the primary feeding time. When your excited to start fishing, keeping the big motor running is easier said than done. 

but, many things are learned while studying and not fishing.  i've caught way more fish by spending the time looking rather than just stop some place throw the troller over and start fishing.

so back in my tournament days, i never minded making a long run.  i would rather spend one good hour of catching that 8 hours of catching nothing because i did not make a run to where they can be caught.  same can be said, i would rather spend 1/2 the day or longer to find them stacked up and get to catch the snot out of them for a couple of hours, than fling around to no avail all day.

i no there are always two sides of the coin, but if one wants to consistently catch bass, or any other game fish, it is a very mental game, and the more time of the water the more you learn, and i will emphasis one has to have a will to learn or you just are not going to get there.  better just hire a guide and let them take you to some, and that is a maybe.  just ask bill how much time it has taken him to learn what he now knows.  many hours and many hours of paying attention to what is going on to learn and remember.  and even when you think you have found some, you still have to unlock the keys on how to get them to bite, and i will just throw in that i don't believe invisible line is the answer.  you have to make them bite.

bo

Can't be said much better than that, Bo. 

The deep bite was pretty good this morning. The Damaki rig and 4" grub did not work but the ice jig, swimbait, and Lil George did the trick. Hit four locations and three of them produced. The spot that did not produce had way too much bait.

Thanks to Bobby B for mentioning the lil george in his comments. That bait stays at the desired depth during the retrieve. 

1 hour ago, Dock-in-it said:

That bait stays at the desired depth during the retrieve

So you're casting and retrieving  Lil'George horizontally, not working it vertically?