Matt wanted to fish today, so we headed to a flow with a little bit more water in it, hoping Mr.Smallie would be in more predictable places. Got to the river about 10:30. Visibility looked like 18" and green. Water pumping.
I went with a RCLC 1.5 in Chartreuse. Got a 13" and a 17" in a slower, swirling eddie. Picked up a couple more on a tube- been going with 3/8th oz and I like it in faster water. Then a couple of dinks on the cranks and Bengs had to head out. He was nice enough to drop me off.
I was aiming for some back channels as they stay slower when the water is high.
Got a couple 14-15" in an eddy where another channel pours in gently.
Really shocked when a back channel that is dry in summer produced these two fish back to back:
Here' an alternative cut that didn't quite work out, was going for the ole' "show the fish, hide the face from the paparazzi shot"
Key was a slow, wobbly retrieve that ticked bottom or bounced off stuff. Strikes were solid. The darnedest thing, I would catch exactly two fish in each spot for the first 8 spots I caught fish. Was getting erie indeed. With one exception this continued all day.Don't know what that was about. Strangest thing. Water wasn't clear enough to be spooking all the buddy fish... :
I had just landed a thick chub on the RC, when my next retrieve seemed to brush over an unseen laydown and into another+ smallie:
I went with the "War Face" on this one:
No run and gun , deliberate dissection of the different holes, sometimes the angle was the draw or the deflection in the right way.
It rained and I knew that would have them feeding so I moved quick between holes. When the pattern became slower water, I headed to all the slower water areas I have memorized on this 3 mile wade. The water was too fast in between.
Towards the end of the day, this beast inhaled the 1.5:
Finished with 25 bass in 8 hours (18.5", 3-17"-17.5", 16", 3-15")(one was a LMB) 3 Googs, and a chub.
I went with a RCLC 1.5 in Chartreuse. Got a 13" and a 17" in a slower, swirling eddie. Picked up a couple more on a tube- been going with 3/8th oz and I like it in faster water. Then a couple of dinks on the cranks and Bengs had to head out. He was nice enough to drop me off.
I was aiming for some back channels as they stay slower when the water is high.
Got a couple 14-15" in an eddy where another channel pours in gently.
Really shocked when a back channel that is dry in summer produced these two fish back to back:
Here' an alternative cut that didn't quite work out, was going for the ole' "show the fish, hide the face from the paparazzi shot"
Key was a slow, wobbly retrieve that ticked bottom or bounced off stuff. Strikes were solid. The darnedest thing, I would catch exactly two fish in each spot for the first 8 spots I caught fish. Was getting erie indeed. With one exception this continued all day.Don't know what that was about. Strangest thing. Water wasn't clear enough to be spooking all the buddy fish... :
I had just landed a thick chub on the RC, when my next retrieve seemed to brush over an unseen laydown and into another+ smallie:
I went with the "War Face" on this one:
It rained and I knew that would have them feeding so I moved quick between holes. When the pattern became slower water, I headed to all the slower water areas I have memorized on this 3 mile wade. The water was too fast in between.
Towards the end of the day, this beast inhaled the 1.5:
Finished with 25 bass in 8 hours (18.5", 3-17"-17.5", 16", 3-15")(one was a LMB) 3 Googs, and a chub.
Nice number and sizes! Love a good crankbait bite.
ReplyDeleteSure was a nice reprieve.
ReplyDelete