You never know when or where you’ll connect with the fish of a lifetime
PARK FALLS, Wis. (October 9, 2024) – Sometimes referred to as “a foot deep and a mile wide,” the sprawling Susquehanna River rises in Central New York’s Otsego Lake and drains over 27,000 square miles in three states before dumping into the Upper Chesapeake Bay. Bisecting the entire state of Pennsylvania and containing a rich forage base, the Susky is full of spunky smallmouth bass… for anglers who can get to them.
Shallow and rocky, the Susquehanna is the domain of the jetboat; ideal craft for skimming over and around treacherous rocks and ledges that would destroy an ordinary bass boat. Susquehanna fishing guide, Joe Raymond, bought his first in his twenties and now runs a 300-HP Rock Proof River Rocket. He’s been guiding anglers on the Susquehanna for over 15 years. In that time, he watched his clients catch a lot of big bass. A couple of weeks ago, Raymond caught one of his own.
“For George and me, we looked at this picture and were absolutely shellshocked,” Mike told viewers in his intro. That speaks volumes, given the Acord brothers’ some-50 years of experience fishing on the Susquehanna River, not to mention the hundreds of big smallmouth photos they see from their customers each and every year.
Raymond described the series of events leading up to the historic catch.
“Tom (Mills) and I had talked about fishing a Williamsport Bassmasters Charity Tournament for Toys for Tots,” Raymond said. “We’d only fished up there a couple times and it had been a few years. We remembered both times being a dinkfest, but we decided to do it and have some fun while supporting a worthy cause. There was a big thunderstorm the night before. My roof was leaking and I didn’t sleep at all. We didn’t have much of a gameplan and just headed upriver in the dark to a spot we’d had some success at before. There was already a boat there so we just kept going.”
Raymond says they finally pulled into a spot and started fishing. “The plan was for me to fish for a limit and Tom to target a lunker,” he recalls. “I was throwing a 3” Z-Man MinnowZ swimbait on a weedless jighead and I kept losing fish. Nothing big, but it was aggravating,” he says. When Raymond opted to switch to an open jig, a new sort of misery crept in. “I started to catch a few small ones, but I was getting snagged on almost every cast. I told Tom I was done and we had to move.”
The pair bounced around to a few spots in the largely unfamiliar water without a lot of success. “There was an area up there in one of those pools we had passed… it looked so good,” Raymond says. “We agreed it had to have fish, but we’d never caught anything there during our two prior trips to this part of the river. We decided to try it anyway.”
The pair arrived at the back end of the pool and Raymond started fishing his 3” MinnowZ on a 7’ medium-power St. Croix Legend X spinning rod paired to a 3000 Vanford reel with10-lb. smackdown braid and a 10-lb. Tatsu fluoro leader. The curse continued. “I broke off again… like right away… and had to tie on a whole new leader,” Raymond says. “Tom was throwing a Ned rig in a current seam and he had broken off too.”
Raymond was sick of snagging up, so he tied a fresh EZ Money-colored Z-Man paddletail with a weedless jighead onto the fresh leader.
“There was a log on the bottom in the back of this pool in about four feet of water. I made a cast to it and flipped the bail closed after giving the bait a couple seconds to get down,” Raymond says. “I reeled tight and felt weight and immediately thought I was snagged again… then I felt movement. I hit this thing and it came screaming up and did a backflip in front of the boat. The fish looked huge, but I was still trying to process what had happened and how big the bass actually was. It only took a couple more seconds before I realized what I was fighting.”
“When a guy like Joe Raymond tells you to get the net because he just hooked the biggest smallmouth of his life, you move quickly,” Mills says. “The fish was just digging behind the boat puking up crayfish like crazy. The water was so clear it was like watching the scene in an aquarium.”
“The fish fought so hard,” Raymond says. “I was thinking, is this real life?” Then the St. Croix took a deeper bend and the fish took off downstream.
Raymond snapped out of his daydream and took the MinnKota off of Spotlock to follow the big brown bass that was now peeling line and headed for some rapids. “We caught up and netted it,” Raymond says. “Both of us were staring into the net and going crazy like a couple little kids.”
Raymond weighed and measured the fish quickly before snapping a couple of photos. She stretched the tape to 24 inches and bottomed out at 7.19 pounds. Later, the fish would weigh 7.08 at the tournament weigh in.
“I just kinda lost it,” Raymond says. “Like any guide – or any serious fisherman – I obsess over big fish. I’ve celebrated with so many of my clients after helping them catch personal-best bass over the years. This fish is the first over six pounds I’ve ever caught on the Susquehanna, and only the second over seven anyone I know has ever heard of from the river. It wasn’t a super-fat fish, just thick all the way through and super healthy. I actually know the guy who caught the other documented 7-1 back in 1981. His name is Russell Fuller. I heard the story over and over when I was young and was always suspect until I got the chance to meet him and speak with him later in life. He brought the mount into the restaurant a few years ago and I was blown away when I saw it. He caught his in the spring, basically right behind the house where I now live in Duncannon. It was a 23” pre-spawn fish, so it was quite a bit fatter. Mine wasn’t as deep but was an inch longer.”
Raymond has a few key tips for all smallmouth anglers.
“You never know when or where you’ll connect with the fish of a lifetime,” he says. I certainly never expected to run into this fish in the spot we were fishing. I was lucky that I had just re-tied my leader. We’ve all gotten lazy about knots and leaders and it always bites you. I learned this early as a guide. If you cinch down a knot and it doesn’t feel right, or your leader knot gets hung up in your guides, or you feel some nicks in your leader, take the time to re-tie and avoid disappointment.”
Raymond is also a firm believer in using the best gear you can afford. “I’m not rod heavy; I’m rod particular,” he says. “Unlike a lot of bass fishermen who have a dedicated rod for every specific presentation they make, I’m the guy who has a handful of different rods that I like and trust with a few powers and actions that suit the lines and lures I most often fish. There are a ton of great rods on the market today. For me, it’s hard to beat the quality and performance of St. Croix and specifically their Legend X series. These rods are made in the USA, light, load up great, and are extremely sensitive. It’s the same with the lures I most often use. Z-Man ElaZtec plastics mimic everything in this river a smallmouth eats and the material is incredibly soft with unmatched durability. For me, that means my clients can catch a bunch of fish on a single bait before I have to replace it. The Z-Man MinnowZ swimbait is the best bait ever for guiding. They can be rigged in a bunch of different ways to match the conditions and have a shimmy almost like a spybait on a slow steady retrieve. You will catch fish hopping them on the bottom and burning them through the water, too.”
Finally, Raymond encourages anglers to handle all fish with care and to release the ones with the genetics that make better fishing possible for everyone. “I think most bass anglers are in the same camp about caring for big bass and releasing them healthy, but we still have some archaic regulations and procedures in some states, especially when it comes to recognizing record fish,” he says. “In a lot of states, you just can’t get a record fish certified without killing it. No record or recognition is worth killing a huge, old fish. The very same day I caught my fish here in Pennsylvania, a guy fishing a tournament in New York caught a nine-pounder, which would have smashed the state record. He called the DEC and was told to put the fish on ice until someone could come out and certify the fish the next day. He would have had to kill it to get it certified. That’s a huge problem. To his credit, the angler – Dante Piraino – knew better and had no part of that plan. After it was weighed and revived, he adamantly directed tournament officials to put that fish right back into the St. Lawrence River with all the rest of them. States need more protocols and procedures that make it easy for people to certify fish like this without killing the fish. These are genetic freaks and all of us need to let them continue to do their thing.”
For up-to-date information on fishing in the Susquehanna River, or for tackle recommendations, contact Susquehanna Fishing Tackle at 800-814-7433 or via their website, sfttackle.com.
GOOD. Water clear; 77 degrees; 0.23 feet above pool. Crappie are good over trees in 15-25 feet on jigs and minnows. Report by The Bait Shop, Post, Texas.
FAIR. Water normal stain; 86 degrees; 65.60 feet below pool. Black bass are fair in 20-35 feet on Carolina rigged and Texas rigged creature baits, fished deep in Wat Red, Kudzu, pumpkinseed, gourd green, and bloodline colors are having the best results. Main lake points and ledges are holding the most fish. Topwater baits in bone and shad colors are also catching a few fish. White bass and Stripers are good in 30-50 feet up the Rio Grande around buoys 20-23 feet. Follow the shad bait balls and the fish are right under them. Alabama rigs, underspins, spoons, deep diving jerkbaits and swim baits are doing great. Happy Fishing. Report by Captain Raul Cordero, Far West Guide Service.
GOOD. Water stained; 85 degrees; 5.41 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are holding steady. Bass are biting shallow on crankbaits and creature baits. The offshore bite is good as well once the sun rises on brush piles and 10-15 feet of water.
GOOD. Water lightly stained; 79 degrees; 6.01 feet below pool. Fishing pattern is holding as the water slowly cools off. Catfish pattern is holding steady drifting with fresh cut shad. Report by Brandon Brown, Brown’s Guide Service.
SLOW. Water slightly stained; 81 degrees; 0.54 feet below pool. Bass are slow, but can be caught on the outside of grass lines with Texas rig worms and weightless flukes. Crappie are slow on small jigs over deep brush 25 feet. Report by Reagan Nelson, Lake Athens Bass Guide.
SLOW. Water stained; 85 degrees; 0.70 feet below pool. Bass are feeding more heavily at night than during the day. There is an abundance of bait in deep water. Small minnow presentations work best. Report by Carson Conklin, ATX Fishing Guide Service.
FAIR. Water stain; 85 degrees; 0.26 feet below pool. Mayflies are hatching, so expect some topwater bass action. Bass are fair on soft plastics in the cuts, or with frogs over grass. Crappie are fair with jigs in flooded timber. Catfish are fair on juglines.
GOOD. Water stained; 90 degrees. Lake Bastrop is fishing decent for bass. The discharge is always good early in the morning, throwing small swimbaits and shaky heads. Further out in the discharge, you can work around the rock piles throwing a shaky head, jig or crankbait. Report by Bryan Cotter, Texas Hawgs.
EXCELLENT. Water stained; 83 degrees; 1.24 feet below pool. Great fishing has improved even more this week. After the first significant cold front moved through the first week of September the north winds increased, the air temperature and lake surface temperature dropped, and the humidity levels increased. Fishing for white bass improved drastically with fish now inhabiting portions of the bottom they have not used since May down to as deep as 47 feet. A go to tactic has been to drop a MAL Original with chartreuse tail to the bottom and crank it fast enough to get and keep the spinner going, up to about six cranks off bottom, then repeating. The early morning shallow bite has all but died and there is a productive deep water bite now starting around 8 a.m. and ending around 10:45 a.m. There are small fish to contend with, but quality fish are present. To catch quality fish leave the small fish behind after the initial burst of interest at a given area. Report by Bob Maindelle, Holding the Line Guide Service. Catfish have been great. Large numbers of blue catfish under 10 pounds can be found in the mouths of creeks and along old river channels in 10-30 feet of water. Drifting with fresh cut shad has worked best. Channel catfish have been excellent using punch bait around gravel beds and timber. Flatheads have been slow but can be found around large rock piles using live bait. Report by Brian Worley, B&S Catfishing.
GOOD. Water stained; 80 degrees; 2.57 feet below pool. Catfish are good in shallow water. Perch are good in shallow water. Crappie continue to be good in 20 feet of water using live minnows. Largemouth bass and smallmouth bass are shallow around structure using chatterbaits and Texas rigged worms. Few reports on catfish and sand bass.
GOOD. Water slightly stained; 85 degrees; 0.59 feet below pool. Channel catfish are fair in 25 feet of water on baited holes with stink bait. Crappie limits are possible in 25 feet of water on standing timber with black and green jigs. Channel catfish are fair in 25 feet of water on baited holes with stink bait. White bass are fair at night in the lights with a white spinnerbaits. Report by Joey Crews, Lake Bob Sandlin Chubby Chaser Guide Service. Black bass are chasing shad and bream. Windy retaining walls will produce marauding bass. Try topwater baits in a fish pattern and streamers in a Bream pattern. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service. Bass are excellent, especially late afternoon. Water clarity is good with 3 feet of visibility. Schools are suspending in 10 feet or less on main lake points on the north side of the lake, and points east of the railroad bridge. Use an Alabama rig, walking top water. Shaded walls next to points with bladed jigs or small swimbaits have produced bigger fish. Report by Blake Doughtie, Lake Country Lunkers.
stained; 85 degrees; 2.30 feet below pool. Bass are hit-or-miss with longer activity on cloudy mornings. Frogs and choppos are good in pond weed. Then work wacky ring dingers to chatterbaits and rage swimmers. Offshore bite has slowed down, but brush piles in 14-19 feet are best with Carolina rigs, Texas rigs, and big shaky heads. Use 8-10 inch worms, but if the bite slows switch to smaller baits. Report by Marc Mitchell, Lake Fork Guide Service. Crappie fishing is hot with fish on timber, brush or any structure you can find in 8-25 feet of water. Focus on the outside edges of timber lines and open water main lake timber under the surface. These fish have not been pressured, so any bait you want to present to them will work. Tons of fish around 12 inches can be put in the boat and quickly. This is definitely a lake to hit up if you are looking for a mess of crappie. Report by Jacky Wiggins, Jacky Wiggins Guide Service.
SLOW. Water stained; 85 degrees; 12.30 feet below pool. Black bass are slow with a few being caught late afternoon before dark around deeper rocky shorelines using senkos and slow rolling spinnerbaits. Catfish are slow with a few caught late afternoon into the night on cut bait. Crappie and white bass are slow.
GOOD. Water stained, 90 degrees. Bank anglers are catching redfish at Dead Tree Point on live bait. Trolling near the dam area has been slow with live bait. Channel catfish are good along the rock lines on cheese bait and cut bait. Bass are slow. Report by Harry Lamb, Alamo Texas Fishing.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 83 degrees; 11.60 feet below pool. Largemouth bass are good on topwaters early, switch to shad pattern crankbaits as the day warms up. The bite should only get better as things cool off and the fish start following migrating shad. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs at the usual places. Docks, brush piles and the 380 bridge have been productive. Minnows have been good, look for the jig bite to really get going as the water cools down further. Hybrids and sand bass have been good on live bait and slabs. Look for increased schooling activity during cool mornings, especially when there is cloud cover. The main lake continues to be the best area to find them. Keep a propeller bait handy for topwater action, a chartreuse slab for when they go deeper. Blue and channel catfish have been good on cut bait. Check the same areas that you find the sand bass in as the catfish will be nearby looking for an easy meal. Report by Keith Bunch, Lake Bridgeport Guide Service.
GOOD. Water stained; 80 degrees; 1.75 feet above pool. Black bass up to 5.67 pounds are fair on Hags’s baits with soft plastics and frogs casting into the newly submerged grass and weeds. Some catches with crankbaits in 2-8 feet of water around the rock cuts. Crappie are slow with catches up to 10 inches around docks with brush in 9-15 feet of water with minnows. White bass are excellent with catches up to 1.50 pounds on crankbaits around the lighted docks. Catfish are fair with catches up to 3 pounds on cut bait and on artificial lures.
GOOD. Water stained; 87 degrees. Bass are excellent and can be caught with your favorite approach. Fish are schooled up on points before dark, and in brush piles in around 12 feet of water. Shallow bite has been good, and should progressively improve as the cool fall weather comes in. Report by the Aggie Anglers.
FAIR. Water slight stain; 83 degrees; 13.40 feet below pool. Topwater striper schools are sporadic lake wide. White bass are surfacing in large schools mid lake hitting slab spoons and topwaters. Trolling in 6-21 feet of water with white and chartreuse half ounce jigs and trailers has still been the most consistent pattern producing some keeper fish with numerous throwbacks. Vertically jigging, slabbing, with �½-1 ounce spoons has been working when you can find a school that will stay under the boat. Report by Travis Holland, TH Fishing. Cold front should increase the topwater action and possibly turn on the live bait bite. The topwater bite is improving for white bass and scattered stripers at the mouths of creeks working towards the back. Striped bass continue to be good trolling bucktail jigs on downriggers in 16-30 feet of water. Fish are feeding on shallow sandbars in the morning and afternoons. Catfish are slow in 15 feet of water on live shad, but are still on deep rock piles and ledges in 15-20 feet of water biting punch bait or shad. White bass bite is good on jigging spoons in 20-30 feet of water. Report by Captain Aaron Dick, One Up Fishing Guide Service. Crappie are good on brush piles and standing timber in 20-25 feet of water with jigs and minnows. Blue catfish are good in 20-25 feet of water with cut shad or punch bait. Report by Jess Rotherham, Texas Crappie Fishing Service. Bass are good throwing shaky heads and Texas-rigged 4-5 inch worms around rock piles to catch some good ones. Flipping trees in 5-15 feet with jigs, flukes and craw worms will get some too. A medium or deep crankbait will catch some of those bigger bass. Report by Bryan Cotter, Texas Hawgs.
GOOD. Water stained; 80 degrees; 0.04 feet below pool. Bass are still in transition from the summer to fall pattern with fish schooling all over the lake. Topwater patterns like pop r, frog, spook, fluke or buzz baits should all work at daylight on the main lake around pads and grass matts. Go to a light Texas rig worm when sun rises. Target river cuts and turns with a dropshot, shaky head or shad color crank bait and you should get bit. This is a beautiful time of the year to come visit this majestic lake that God spoke into existence. Report provided by Vince Richards, Caddo Lake Fishing & Fellowship.
GOOD. Water slightly stained, 92 degrees. Bank fishing has been good from Spider Island to Jet Ski Cove on live bait and shrimp. Redfish can be caught trolling around the dam area 10-15 feet on gold spoons. Blue catfish are fair on rock piles on shrimp and cut bait. Channel catfish are good on weed lines on cheese bait. No reports on bass. Report by Harry Lamb, Alamo Texas Fishing.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 84 degrees; 24.80 feet below pool. With the cooler nights the bass are starting to get way more active. Topwaters early In the morning around grass have been producing fish. Then as the day progresses a Chatterbait around grass has been catching fish. Report by Evan Coleman, Big Bassin Fishing.
GOOD. normal stain; 79 degrees; 2.15 feet below pool. Smaller sized baits are the key to success! Hybrids and white bass are good early in the morning at daylight on midlake points and drop offs along sandy flats throughout the dam area, Crappie Island, Key Ranch and the spillway humps in 11-17 feet. Cast spinners and slabs and look for schooling fish on these flats as well as deeper seawalls and shorelines. Then fish any hump in 14-22 feet throughout the lake to find fish stacked up in schools as the day warms up. Look for schooling fish on cloudier days. Use spinnerbaits or drop a slab down to the bottom and work it fast up and down and the fish will hit it immediately. Also throwing out a slab and reeling it back with a slow retrieve is also working well. Cast rattle traps, Spoons,Umbrella Rigs, slabs or sassy shads to get the hybrids to bite. The crappie bite has been getting better. Target crappie with small jigs and minnows in 5-12 feet under bridge pylons, hidden brush piles throughout the lake or under docks. Limits are being reported, although guides have been reporting conditions are improving with bigger sized fish being caught. Report by Brent Herbeck, Herbeck’s Lonestar Fishing Guide Service. Catfish are biting on humps and points in 18-24 feet of water anchoring or drifting with cut shad. Report by Jason Barber, Kings Creek Adventures.
FAIR. Water stained; 86 degrees; 31.26 feet below pool. Few anglers on the water due to low water levels. Call to check ramp status. Bass are fair early in the morning or late in the afternoon on main lake long extended points with shad colored crankbaits and flukes. If you come across some hydrilla there are usually a few in the cover. Catfish are in 15-30 feet of water. Crappie are biting on deep docks in 25 feet of water with live minnows or grubs. White bass are schooling early in the morning on long points near the dam. Report by Scott Springer, Fish Choke Canyon Lake.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 73 degrees; 13.44 feet below pool. Crappie have really been doing good on minnows. Also a few anglers are having luck on channel and blue catfish on perch, worms and cutbait. Report by Lake Cisco Rentals.
SLOW. Water stained; 85 degrees; 0.53 feet below pool. Largemouth bass are slow on topwaters early in the morning, or flipping a senko into cattails. Crappie are fair with jigs and minnows.
GOOD. Water stained; 84 degrees; 0.66 feet below pool. Catfish are good all over with improved catches of keepers after the water cooled. Target catfish in 10-30 feet of water on catfish bubblegum, liver, worms, and punch bait. Bass are good early and late in shallow water and offshore midday on structure and ledges. Crappie are still poor but some can be caught on structure 12-25 feet. Hair jigs have been out producing plastics. Report by Brad Doyle with Bradley’s Guide Service. Hybrids have been scattered in 13-24 feet with some whites mixed in, some are trolling with a deep diver and a pet spoon trailer, others are using slabs from Bradley Outdoors to jig for them. Always wear your life jacket and stay hydrated in this heat. Report by Mike Cason, Fishical Therapy.
GOOD. Water stained; 83 degrees: 2.00 feet below pool. Hybrids are great off main lake humps and points with live shad, you can catch them vertically jigging spoons. Crappie are slow but can be caught in 3-10 feet of water on the bottom of timber with a crawdad jig. Catfish are good on the edges of the river channel in 15-20 feet of water. Report by River Bottom Boys Guide Service.
GOOD: Water stained; 78 degrees; 0.65 feet below pool. Channel catfish are good in 12 feet of water with stink bait. Crappie are good in 15 feet of water on minnows. Report by Joey Crews, Lake Bob Sandlin Chubby Chaser Guide Service. Patterns and conditions have not changed since last week, but fish are grouping up more. Finesse baits like small swimbaits and drop shots will help locate groups. Water clarity is 2-3 feet. Bass are good, with fish grouping up near isolated pieces of hard cover. Texas rigged, small profile creature baits in green pumpkin. Report by Blake Doughtie, Lake Country Lunkers.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 79 degrees; 4.96 feet below pool. White bass are fair to slow on main lake structures. White bass continue to be scattered due to ongoing water releases. Crappie are fair to good on brush piles and main lake structure on jigs with white color combinations. Blue catfish and channel catfish are good on punch bait and cut bait. Report provided by Chad Ferguson of North Texas Catfish Guide Service.
GOOD. Water stained; 90 degrees; 45.26 feet below pool. River is flowing so the north end of the lake is fishing well. Catfish are good with catches up 25-30 pounds being caught in Veleño Creek. Gar are good up the river as well. Gar are good on the north and south end with cut carp or tilapia and big shad. Bow fishing is excellent on the south end. Crappie are slow for numbers and the few being caught are undersized. Bass are good in brush piles in 10-20 feet of water with a crankbait or soft plastic. Report by Ram Reyes, Ram Outdoors.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 92 degrees. Bass should become more active after the cold front enticing a fall feeding frenzy on points. Bass continue to be good on points hitting squarebill crankbaits early then moving out to 14 feet of water throwing shaky heads and deep diving crankbaits. Perch are fair to good on shallow flats in 5-8 feet of water and starting to push deeper. Report by Mark Fransen, Fransen’s Guide Service.
GOOD. Water Stained; 81 degrees; 1.62 feet below pool. Shallow bass bite is good early to mid morning around grass and smaller points in 2-4 feet with topwaters, flukes, or shaky heads and minus 1 type crankbaits. Carolina and Texas rigs are good on points and humps in 10-14 feet near drop-offs. Smaller baits catch numbers, but big worms will catch bigger bass. Crank baits such as DD 22,XD 5,XD 6 still fair, but have slowed down during the full moon. Best places are long points and over or around road beds in 15-20 feet. Report by Marc Mitchell, Lake Fork Guide Service. Bass are aggressive on top water and shallow. Windy banks can provide schooling action so be ready with a small top water or streamer. Catfish are shallow around boat houses. Bream are excellent in the shallows, wooly buggers and small poppers should bring a strike. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service. The Lake Fork crappie fishing continues to be excellent as we head into fall. You can find fish in a very large range of depths from 12-40 feet. Timber still has some great white crappie if you cover water and pick off those fish. Brush piles are holding decent numbers with a combination of white and black crappie. You can find black crappie on underwater road beds and bridges. We should see more and more black crappie on the tops of timber in deeper water over the next month. Minnows are a great bait but we did catch fish on small hand tied jigs this week. Soft plastics will work and that bite will get better as water cools off. The catfish bite is on fire in 18-28 feet around timber along creek channels. These fish are following bait migrations and will load up under your boat as you begin to fish. They will even elevate off the bottom as they load up so you can fish up and down the water column to find the larger fish. Use any prepared bait of choice to catch this fish. Using some cattle cubes or sour grain will attract and hold even more fish. Report by Jacky Wiggins, Jacky Wiggins Guide Service.
SLOW. Water stained; 85 degrees; 7.65 feet below pool. Hybrid stripers are fair to good. White bass can be caught trolling with crankbaits or live shad. Largemouth bass are good on topwaters along the rocks.
SLOW. Water stained: 85 degrees; 9.12 feet below pool. Expect the bite to improve as the water temperature cools. Sand bass are hit-or-miss in the evenings. Bass are slow in the evenings with catches up to 2 pounds. Carp and gar can be caught up stream. Black drum can be caught in the stilling basin.
SLOW. Water stained; 85 degrees; 4.28 feet below pool. Fishing is improving with the cooler water temperature. Bass are biting in shallow water on shad. Sandbass and hybrids are schooling all over the lake. Crappie are good in the brush on jigs and minnows.
GOOD. Water stained; 80 degrees; 0.35 feet below pool. Temperatures have been see-sawing with the weather with the water fluctuating from the upper 70s to the low 80s. Sand bass are good to excellent on slabs and spinnerbaits in many areas of the lake. There are lots of small sand bass, but some bigger ones mixed in. Look for schooling action in town around the Shores to Striper Alley. Striped bass are slow to fair with catches up to 10 pounds fishing with live bait on the lower ends from Decordova to the Dam in 15-20 feet of water. Look for those striped bass near schooling sand bass. Largemouth bass continue to be good on crankbaits and soft plastics fished near humps and ridges near creek entrances. There is a good largemouth bass topwater bite in the back of sloughs where baitfish are holding. Crappie catches are fair to good on small jigs and minnows fished on submerged structures in 10-20 feet of water. Best reports on crappie have been from near Water’s Edge to Bent Water. Catfish action is good on cut shad and prepared baits on many areas of the lake. Look for catfish on shallow humps in 10-15 feet of water. Report by Michael Acosta, Unfair Advantage Charters.
GOOD. Water lightly stained; 85 degrees; 0.07 feet above pool. Black bass are good to 7 pounds on worms and crankbaits. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows fished over cover in 4-12 feet of water. White bass are fair with mostly small undersized fish being caught over ridges, humps, and roadbeds. Blue catfish are good on shad. Yellow catfish are good to 25 pounds on live bait. Report by Tommy Tidwell, Tommy Tidwell’s Granger Lake Guide Service.
FAIR. Water normal stain; 82 degrees; 0.83 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are consistent with the average size of fish caught larger than what we have seen. White bass are moving fast but if you find the right school and structure the fish will leave and come back. White bass are good in 22 feet of water with white jigging spoons. Fish are feeding well. Catfish can be caught mixed in with the sand bass. All boat ramps are operational andt the lake is in good shape. Report by Omar Cotter, Luck O’the Irish Fishing Guide Service.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 80 degrees; 49.57 feet below pool. Crappie are in standing timber. Sand bass are good. Catfish are good on minnows and worms. Largemouth bass are good.
GOOD. Water slightly stained. 80 degrees. Bass are chasing bait fish around the edges of grass. Bead heads will tempt bream and bass, dropping the flies at the front of the grass line. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service.
SLOW. Water stained; 85 degrees; 0.05 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are consistent, but this should change as the weather begins to cool. Sunfish are good. Crappie are slow on minnows and jigs. Bass are slow midday, with the best bite in the morning.
SLOW. Water Stained; 85 degrees; 14.16 feet below pool. Bass are slow with the best bite around the north end of the dam on rocks of the overflow, and in Game Warden Cove in 4-11 feet of water on trees near the rocky shoreline. Smaller fish are biting topwaters, and bigger fish were caught on square bill crankbaits for jerkbaits for schooling bass. Blue catfish can be caught on juglines with live bait or cut carp. White bass are schooling throughout the day.
SLOW. Water normal stain; 85 degrees; 0.11 feet below pool. Bass fishing is tough with fish scattered. Spotted bass can be caught with crankbaits on brush piles in 10-16 feet of water. There is a fair topwater bite in the morning and at dusk. Some schooling action on topwater and swimbaits.
SLOW. Water normal stain; 80 degrees; 0.04 below pool. Activity is picking up daily with shad and small bass in the creeks. Expect bigger to move in soon. Squarebill crankbaits, swimbaits, and topwater will catch fish. There has been a lot of sporadic schooling for white bass and largemouth bass. Crappie can be caught on minnows under the bridges. No report on catfish. Report by Gilbert Miller, GTB Outdoors.
GOOD. Water stained; 90 degrees; 0.25 feet below pool. Water is stained and visibility is around 1 ft north of 155 bridge. Bass are good in the grass near the islands or off the points with a creek channel running on the end of the point. Bluegill colored flukes, creature baits will produce bites. Big fish can be caught with a black hollow body frog on top of matted grass, or a buzz toad along the edges of matted grass. Report by Blake Doughtie, Lake Country Lunkers.
EXCELLENT. Water lightly stained; 80 degrees; 2.71 feet below pool. Catfish are excellent on baited holes. Dragging shad on Santee Rigs are producing some 10-15 pound fish with an occasional 20-30 pound fish. Crappie are excellent on 1/32-1/8 ounce jigs or minnows. Finding Fish on laydowns in 5 feet of water and any kind of hard structure as deep as 18 feet, or brush piles in 15 feet of water. Black Bass are in 3-20 feet. Cast white and chartreuse spinnerbaits early in the morning 1-5 feet. About an hour or two after sunlight no bite, switch to a 3-6 foot diver, then gradually go to a 12-15 foot diver as the sun rises around 10 o’clock. Obviously, there will be days when fish will not react to a reaction bait, such as a crankbait, so you might have to slow down and Carolina rig or Texas rig to entice a bite. There is still some submerged brush on main points and secondary points that are holding fish early morning till the drop back out 10-20 feet. Rocks along banks, boat ramps, floating and submerged tire reefs, and rock piles. Do not be scared to try one to 5 feet of water all day long because there are some shallow ones right now. White bass are excellent, but everyday is different. One day they are over here, the next day they are on the other side of the lake. Try to hit the main lake points and ledges in 15-20 feet with 1 ounce white slabs for when fish are on the bottom, and topwater plugs, or swimbaits for surfacing fish. Glass House Point, Island Point, and little ridge have been hot. Bluegills are still super good on structure, such as brush piles in 15-20 feet. Earthworms, wax worms, mealworms, working great on light line 2-4 pound. Crickets are catching bigger fish. Do not be surprised if you catch crappies while you’re trying to catch the gills. Report by Carey Thorn, White Bass Fishing Texas.
FAIR. Water stained; 83 degrees; 0.17 feet below pool. Crappie are good in 20-25 feet of water over brush piles with jigs or minnows. Channel and blue catfish are good on punch bait in 25 feet of water over brush piles. Report by Jess Rotherham, Texas Crappie Fishing Service.
FAIR. Water stained; 82 degrees; 1.34 feet below pool. White bass are fair to good on humps and points in 15-30 feet of water. There has been some sporadic bird activity on mid lake flats and humps. Slabs, jigs, and live bait are working. Keeper sized hybrid stripers are fair. They will be in similar depths as the white bass. If you are keeping fish, please be aware that there are a lot of undersized hybrid stripers in the lake that look very similar to a white bass. Blue catfish are fair on cut shad. Drifting mainlake humps, points, and flats near the river channel have produced in 12-32 feet of water. With the recent rain, there will be catfish where the river and creeks flow into the lake as well. Channel catfish are good on baited holes on punch bait in 8-25 feet of water on humps and points. Crappie are fair in 6-26 feet of water. Check brush piles and submerged cover close to a drop off ledge. Cover close to drop off ledges has been best. Minnows and jigs are catching those fish. Report by Wes Campbell, BendARod Fishing. Bass are more active at night. Largemouth bass are slow on jigs and finesse worms. A lot of fish are cruising around chasing bait fish. Crappie are heavily stacking up in main lake brush piles in 12-15 feet of water. Sand bass are all over biting live bait or spoons. Lake levels are dropping rapidly, so navigate with caution.
GOOD. Water slightly stained; 84 degrees; 1.81 feet below pool. Water temperatures are fluctuating from the upper 70s to the upper 80s. Thermocline is strong at 15 feet. White bass have been schooling in the back of the creeks. Seeing numbers of shad schools moving into the back of the creeks this week. Largemouth bass are scattered with some fish suspended on deep brush and some under docks. Crappie action continues to be best on offshore fresh willow tree piles, with some on power line pylons and standing timber. The lake is dropping, so navigate with caution. Report by Colan Gonzales, CG’s Just Fishing Guide Service.
GOOD. slightly stained; 89 degrees; 0.65 feet below pool. White bass are great on roadbeds in 6-16 feet of water hitting Duck Tracker slabs. Report by Michael Richardson, Lake Livingston Adventures.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 90 degrees; 1.33 feet below pool. Bass are good with red bug worms working the edge of the hydrilla. There are schooling bass along the county line road with best bait the 1/4 ounce chrome rattletrap. 6-8 XD crankbaits on deep brush. Crappie remain excellent in standing timber and brush piles in 25-30 feet of water. Minnows are the go to bait. Catfish are still being caught on jug lines with live bait in water above the thermocline. Fishing water depth that no thermocline is present. Reports given by Hambone guide service.
FAIR. Water stained; 74 degrees; 48.22 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are holding steady as the water starts to cool off. White bass bite continues to be excellent on just about anything. Bass are good on minnows and artificials. Catfish are fair to good with nightcrawlers, minnows, chicken liver and frozen shad. Crappie are fair with artificial baits and minnows. Trout are slow. Walleye are good on minnows, grubs, and other artificial baits. Hit the secondary points of a morning, slabbing in about 40 feet of water. Best of luck to you out there. Please be safe out there, watch weather reports. Life vests save lives. Report by Kenneth Wysong, SharKens Honey Hole.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 82 degrees; 1.26 feet below pool. The clarity has improved to 4 feet of visibility. Largemouth bass are excellent with 3-5 pound fish being caught on small swimbaits and topwaters. There is a lots of schooling action. Crappie are excellent on 1/16 ounce white crappie jigs. Catfish are fair on live minnows and cut bait. Report by Cal Cameron, Cal’s ETX Guide Service.
FAIR. Water slightly stained; 82 degrees; 0.00 feet full pool. Much warmer temperatures have increased the surface temperature so this destabilizes the fish. They cannot decide if they need to stay or go from their typical summer haunts. Expect the next two cold fronts to drop the temperature down to the mid 70s before heading further down to set off the fall turnover. Keep an eye on the thermocline. This tells you the exact depth to present your offering. Even over deep water, do not go below this line. The square-bill crank 5 feet depth got the most bites over the weekend. If you find them hugging the bottom in 8-10 feet, dragging a Texas rig Mag-worm can be effective. Crappie population is good. Catfish are slow. Report by Eric Wolfe, NacoTack Fishing Services. Largemouth bass are good on topwaters and swimbaits. Crappie are excellent on brush and standing timber in 10-15 feet of water on 1/16 ounce white crappie jigs. Catfish are fair on cut bait in the fishing pier area. Report by Cal Cameron, Cal’s ETX Guide Service.
FAIR. Water slightly stained; 92 degrees. 0.43 feet below pool. Bass are good on white chatterbait and spinnerbaits early morning and evening. Flipping soft plastics around reed bases in 1-3 feet of water midday is the ticket to catch shaded up largemouth bass. Crappie were good around boat docks on chartreuse jigs and catfish were fair on cut bait and stink bait around river channel bends. Report provided by the Angelo State Fishing Team.
SLOW. Water slightly stained; 88 degrees; 0.34 feet below pool. White bass are good on chartreuse slabs. White Bass can be found in the main lake on underwater humps or schooling on the surface in the morning and afternoons. Catfish are good on punch bait and shad in the flooded timber on the west end of the lake. Crappie are good on minnows around brush piles in 15-20 feet of water. Largemouth bass are fair on crawfish jigs near the dam. Report by Clay Major, Major Guide Service.
GOOD. Water slightly stained; 79 degrees; 25.89 feet below pool. Flooded green vegetation is starting to decay and sour moving fish out further into the brush and suspending in open water. Black bass are slow, with one 12 pounder and a 9 pounder reported. Main lake water is clear with schooling activity in open water. Bass are moving around being caught on topwaters, rattle traps and small minnow shad imitating baits. Upper end stained and tough fishing but a few bass being caught on worms. Still some debris moving around with the wind so be careful on the upper end of the lake. Crappie are good with fish suspended in trees in deeper water hitting minnows and small jigs. White bass are still being caught at night mainly under lights. Catfish fair on cut bait and shrimp in a variety of places shallow and deep. Report by Wendell Ramsey, Ramsey Fishing.
SLOW. Water lightly stained; 80 degrees; 17.22 feet below pool. Anglers are reporting success using several methods to catch quality bass up to 7 pounds. Bass are being caught on large plastic worms with large shaky heads, and swimbaits. Crappie reports are good with anglers catching limits on live bait and Bone Head jigs. The fish are schooled up on brush piles and trees. Anglers utilizing forward facing sonar are reporting success. Report by Bronte Guns and Tackle Pro Staff.
SLOW. Water slightly stained; 90 degrees; 0.83 feet below pool. The cooling trend that began about two weeks ago has not continued. There are reports and observations of lake turnovers and the thermocline sinking, but large-scale cooling is just not taking place yet. This is simply because the overall weather pattern has not really changed much. We just passed the Fall Equinox, so the nights will be getting longer and contributing more to diurnal cooling of the water and the shorter days will heat the water less on the average. On the average though, looking at the history of the lake, we have less rain and a lowering lake to look forward to until November. Bass have been fair predominantly from fishing boathouse patterns with spinners, jerks, and finesse type lures. The various striped bass have also been only fair, the longer bite periods just did not develop because of increased temperatures. Crappie have been good, but primarily for white crappie down at 16-24 feet on brush and timber, black crappie have been slow. All catfish remain good at night, but only fair during the day. Report by Jim Beggerly, Jim’s Fishing Lake Palestine.
GOOD. Water slight stain; 88 degrees; 0.98 feet below pool. Blue catfish are biting great up in the flats at Lake Palo Pinto and in Lake Palo Pinto Creek on cut bait. Crappie are slow. Hybrids and sand bass are biting in deep water on roadrunners and rattle traps. Black bass are slow. Report by David Holt, Lake Palo Pinto RV Park and Resort.
FAIR. normal stain; 82 degrees. Water clarity is clear. Largemouth bass are good on large or small swimbaits, and dropshots in 10-18 feet of water. Crappie are excellent on 1/16 ounce white crappie jig. Catfish are slow on live minnows or cut bait. Report by Cal Cameron, Cal’s ETX Guide Service.
GOOD. Water stained; 82 degrees; 1.57 feet below pool. Striper are starting to pick up but still not consistent. Live bait is putting fish in the boat if it can be caught. Downriggers are still slow at the moment and not catching any fish. Any kind of artificial bait is fishing slow at the moment. Look for them in 20-40 feet of water. They are moving fast and not staying in one spot long. Sand bass are still slow. Look for them in 20-30 feet of water. Use live shad or small slabs and jigs or rattle traps. White and silver are good colors. Catfish are fair to good. Cut shad or your favorite brand of stink bait, also known as punch bait, is producing good numbers of fish in 15-30 feet of water fished on or near the bottom. This rain we just got has cooled the lake of 2-3 degrees but I expect it to rise again this week. Water clarity is steady at 6-12 feet of visibility. Report by TJ Ranft, Ranft Guide Service. Bass are scattered on ledges, points, and deep timber hitting crankbaits, Carolina rigs, dropshots. Report by JK Outdoors Bass Fishing Guide.
SLOW. Water stained; 85 degrees; 0.70 feet above pool. The lake is over full pool and with water being released at 100 cfs, this is the highest rate of release for the last 9 years. One fishing dock is open in South Creek Park. Early morning fishing on jugs has been productive for catfish. Recent sightings of alligator gar behind the dam.
FAIR. Water light stain; 85 degrees. Crappie are fair on minnows and artificial grubs. Bass are fair on soft plastic artificials. Catfish are fair on worms fished off the bottom. Bluegill are excellent at the boathouse dock on crappie bites and worms.
GOOD. Water slightly stained; 83 degrees; 2.00 feet below pool. White bass are fair on shallow flats early morning and late evening. Fish are also in shallow humps 13-16 feet but they are moving fast. Fish and a horizontal presentation throwing Bo-Blade slabs and slow rolling. Trolling is also producing white bass 13-16 feet of water. Crappie are fair and relating to brush 15-22 feet deep moving on and off structure, and suspended on the bridge pylons biting minnows. Catfish are fair around the north end of the lake near timber with cut shad in 12-17 feet of water. Report by John Varner, John Varner’s Guide Service.
GOOD. Water slightly stained; 83 degrees; 0.54 feet below pool. White bass are schooling up on top early mornings, but the late afternoons activity is not consistent. Smaller fish when you do find them. Crappie are good in 5-20 foot brush piles and small patches of structure, minnows and small jigs. Channel catfish bite is still going good on punch bait 15-20 feet of water. Few bigger blues drifting cut bait on flats 15-25 feet. Report by Justin Wilson, Wilson Outdoor Connection.
FAIR. Water normal stain; 84 degrees; 1.02 feet below pool. Very little change to the pattern this week water temperature up to 84 degrees. White Bass fishing remains slow with just a few reports of catches being made on slabs when schools are located off main lake points. Historically, October cool fronts have turned the white bass on. Keep an eye on the 309 Flats and look for Gulls as they should arrive shortly. Hybrid stripers are also slow with a few fish being caught on live bait. Blue and channel catfish are good on punch bait in 15-20 feet of water on the Richland Creek Arm of the Lake. Chum with range cubes and, or fermented grain. Report by Royce Simmons, Gone Fishin’ Guide Service.
FAIR. Water slightly stained; 85 degrees; 0.61 feet below pool. Bass are schooling on points biting Carolina rigs. There is topwater action in the grass in the morning. Crappie are fair on 27 feet on brush piles with minnows over jigs. Blue and channel catfish are fair in 24-27 feet of water on cut bait and minnows. Report by Captain Lynn Atkinson, Reel Um N Guide Service. Lake level is holding steady, but expect the lake to drop to 5-7 feet low to continue to work on the dam in the future. Fish are in all stages of the transition. Target bass with jig head minnows and forward facing sonar. Bass are suspended at the mouth of creeks and on offshores flats chasing bait. When bass are schooling on the bottom cast a Carolina rig, dropshot, and shaky head. There is an abundance of shallow fish and this pattern should continue through the fall. Target the hay grass and flooded bushes early in the morning to catch bass chasing bait using a chatterbait, swimbait or frog. Report by Hank Harrison, Double H Precision Guide Service.
FAIR. Water normal stain; 88 degrees; 0.52 feet below pool. At Somerville marina the crappie bite is slow, bluegill and catfish are fair. Crappie are slow over brush in8-16 feet of water with jigs and minnows. Catfish are fair in 3-10 feet using cut shad or punch bait. White bass are fair trolling with various spoons or anchored with shad and ghost minnows. Hybrids are slow in deeper water, when you locate them, using cut bait. Below the dam fishing is fair, while water is being released at 277 cfs. Report by Weldon Kirk, Fish Tales Guide Service.
SLOW. Water stained; 85 degrees. 45.90 feet below pool. Bass are slow but anglers have reported some success on stick type baits. The catfish bite has been fair to good. Bank angler are reporting blue catfish and yellow catfish biting cut carp and shad. Yellow catfish are being caught on live bait as well. White bass bite is active on topwater baits, and spoons, such as the K.T. Slabs and Bomber Slab spoons. Report by Bronte Guns and Tackle Pro Staff.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 85 degrees; 0.81 feet below pool. Bass are good on soft plastics. When you find one fish, stay in the area because you will probably find another. Crappie are fair to good on concrete. Catfish are good in baited areas.
SLOW. Water stained; 83 degrees; 0.59 feet above pool. White bass fishing remains very tough. Suspended fish are responding to a splasher, but unwilling to stick around very long. What fish I have caught while scouting all came on vertically “smoked” MAL Mini lures. Consistent local bass tournament anglers report groups of bass on isolated cover. There is short window of success during low light conditions right before sunrise and right after sunset. Cedar Gap Park remains closed and the Rivers Bend courtesy dock is not usable. Union Grove, Dana Peak, and Stillhouse Park’s ramps and docks are all in good shape. Report by Bob Maindelle, Holding the Line Guide Service.
GOOD. Water lightly stained; 86 degrees; 1.38 feet below pool. Despite peak heat conditions Lake Tawakoni continues to fish fair the first week of September. The hybrid striper white bass bite is fair. Early mornings and late evening evenings have been best as we have been seeing random schools of Fish feeding on the surface. Slab spoons are working best. The eating size catfish bite is by far the best choice right now on the lake. This bite is wide open. Prepared such as punch bait and dip bait are working best in 10-20 feet. Crappie and largemouth bass are both slow right now. Report by Captain Michael Littlejohn, Lake Tawakoni Guide Service.
GOOD. Water stained; 75 degrees; 1.37 feet below pool. Striped bass fishing is improving with each cooler day. Look for fish to be schooled up, moving along ledges and in ditches between 25-40 feet of water. Bigger fish can be found on shallow flats and at the backs of creeks, feeding on gizzard shad. Live bait and topwaters will be producing fish. Crappie fishing is also picking up with the cooler temperatures. Target brush and structure near points and drop-offs in 15-20 feet of water. Both jigs and minnows are effective but a faster presentation moving a jig through the brush will trigger reaction bites. Catfishing remains great, though many smaller blues are moving in schools on ledges, flats, ditches, humps, and just about anywhere else on the main lake. Live and cut shad are effective baits, or you can target channel catfish in shallower humps in 15-25 feet of water using prepared baits. Bass fishing is still challenging, but as the water continues to cool, expect fish to move up into the backs of coves and creeks chasing gizzard shad. Smallmouth bass fishing along the bluffs has been productive with live shad, particularly near rocky points in 8-12 feet of water. Report by Jacob Orr, Lake Guaranteed Guide Service. Stripers can be caught early morning with topwaters along the banks especially under birds. Switch to slabs after the sun rises in 25 feet or less, but they can be deeper. The weather has cooled off and the lake is turning over creating tough fishing conditions. This will trigger fish to start feeding up for the winter. Seagulls should migrate through during the next couple of weeks, and some days terns are working. Report by John Blasingame, Adventure Texoma Outdoors. Numbers of crappie can be caught but very few keepers.
FAIR. Water normal stain; 82 degrees; 4.08 feet below pool. Bass fishing has improved, but forecast is showing lots cooler temperatures so this may slow the bite. Shallow fish coming on topwaters and chatterbaits, most of these fish coming on main lake points and in back of creeks. Mid range fish are coming on Texas rig and mid running crankbaits in 8-12 feet of water. There are a good number of fish schooling on some main lake ridges and half way back in creeks, as the water cools back off this week, these fish will really get going better. Good numbers of deep fish, action is good just not that many good ones, most are small to 14 inches. These fish are coming on Carolina rigs, big crankbaits and dropshots. Report by Stephen Johnston, Johnston Fishing.
FAIR. Water slightly stained; 89 degrees; 39.05 feet below pool. Lake Travis has been good in the morning as you can catch bass feeding shallow in the flooded brush. Throw flukes, swimbaits, 4 inch worms and creature baits with chartreuse dyed tails. When the sun gets up high, work deeper water along ledges and cliffs in 20-25 feet of water throwing jigs, shaky heads and Texas-rigged creature baits to get those better bites. A deep crankbait will get some bites as well. Report by Bryan Cotter, Texas Hawgs.
FAIR. Water stained. 82 degrees; 37.85 feet below pool. The bite will be slower until the lake settles after the influx of freshwater. Channel catfish are fair on cheese bait. Catfish have moved to 6-8 feet of water with the rising water biting. Crappie are on the move towards the deeper water but still holding in the brush with jigs and live minnows. Report by Captain Michael Peterson, 4 Reel Fun Guide Service.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 84 degrees; 0.73 feet below pool. Crappie are good with minnows on brush in 16-20 feet of water, and off the barge. Catfish are fair to good in 10-16 feet of water liver and nightcrawlers. Bream are good on red worms off the barge and throughout the lake. Bass are fair on topwater baits, crankbaits and spinner baits in 4-12 feet of water. Report by The Boulders at Lake Tyler.
SLOW. Water stained; 80 degrees; 0.83 feet below pool. Summer fishing patterns are steady. Crappie are good in 10-20 feet of open water on brush piles with live minnows or jigs. Largemouth bass are slow and scattered. The best bite is early or late in the day with soft plastics. Sand bass are excellent on small slabs, small crankbaits, small swimbaits and small spoons in 15-35 feet on open water humps, points, ridges, roadbeds, and on the Old Dam. Blue catfish and channel catfish are good with cut bait or live shad on juglines or rod-and-reel in 10-30 feet of water. Hybrids up to 7 pounds are being caught with 5 inch swimbaits or spoons at the Old Dam. Best colors are white and chartreuse or chrome.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 84 degrees. Water levels are low but it is still possible to launch. Numbers of bass have slowed, but fish can be caught with worms, frogs, flukes, and reaction baits. Expect the bite to improve as the cold fronts begin to roll through. Report by David Townsend, Austin Fishing Guide. The ramp is still open, but water levels are getting very low. Bass are great right now with frogs around most of the lake. Working weightless flukes and Texas rigged worms in the hydrilla off the bank has been producing. Lots of bait offshore right now with fish around them and a decent amount of schooling activity on the surface. The lake is in great shape. Report by Carson Conklin, ATX Fishing Guide Service. Lake Decker is fishing great if you can get on it. They are not keeping it full very well. Bass are schooling after shad early in the pockets, so a swimbait, shad colored fluke, shallow crank or vibrating jig/spinnerbait works good for those. Later, work off the bank around grass with 4-5 inch worms in watermelon or green pumpkin colors. You can catch some up tight to the reeds flipping a craw or creature bait. Report by Bryan Cotter, Texas Hawgs.
FAIR. Water heavily stained; 80 degrees; 3.52 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are consistent, but expect the bite to slow until water stabilizes after the cold front. Crappie are good on deep brush piles with minnows and jigs. Catfish are fair along the rocks with cut bait and shad. Bass are slow on deeper water ledges with crankbaits and soft plastics. The lake continues to be heavily stained with about 6-8 inches of visibility compared to the normal 12 inches.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 85 degrees; 22.82 feet below pool. Catfish are good. Crappie are good on minnows. Largemouth bass are biting in deeper water ledges with soft plastics.
FAIR. Water slightly stained; 82 degrees; 0.21 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are consistent for the last weekend of September. Catfish are fair using cut shad in 12-25 feet of water. Striped bass bite is slow on live bait or drifting in 25 feet of water. Very few being caught on artificial baits while trolling umbrella rigs and Alabama rigs. Crappie are fair on small jigs and minnows in timber in 15-20 feet on the north end of the lake. White bass fishing is slow. Largemouth bass fishing is slow. Report by Captain Cory Vinson, Guaranteed Guide Service.
FAIR. Water normal stain; 79 degrees; 2.57 feet below pool. White bass are good on main lake structures on slabs with teaser flies. Crappie are fair to good on brush piles and main lake structure on jigs with white color combinations. Blue catfish and channel catfish are good on cut bait punch bait. Report provided by Chad Ferguson of North Texas Catfish Guide Service.
GOOD. Water normal stain; 88 degrees; 0.07 feet above pool. Largemouth bass are really hitting ⅛ ounce grubs rigged weedless in the shallows in the morning. Focus on cypress stumps then move to heavy structure when the water heats up. Crappie are fantastic in 8-14 feet of water using hand tied jigs and minnows mainly in large stumps. White bass are heavy in the west fork being caught on crankbaits. Gar are plentiful in the creeks on red rattle traps. Report by Captain Zackary Scott, Zack Attack Fishing.
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Saltwater Weekly Fishing Report Week of September 25, 2024
Redfish Bay
FAIR. 85 degrees. Morning has been good for redfish with a productive bite on live mullet and chunks of crab in the morning. Target windblown shorelines to find redfish. Very few catches of drums. Captain Aerich Oliver, Rockport Paradise Outfitters.
San Antonio Bay
GOOD. 86 degrees. Fishing action has been good with lots of mullet in the bay and tidal movement. Redfish are good in the back lakes on topwater. Trout are good over shell and in the guts with soft bottom mud and grass during outgoing tides with live shrimp or croaker, and soft plastics. Report Captain Lynn Smith, Back Bay Guide Service.
Sabine Lake
GOOD. 85 degrees. With another hurricane in the forecast, focus fishing efforts inland on shell pads and oyster midlake, around Pleasure Island Point and ICW. Flounder should start moving out of the marshes staging on points during in or outgoing tides. Sabine Lake is good for redfish along points and drops keying on mullet with live shrimp under a popping cork, or �¼ ounce jig head watermelon red and chartreuse 3.5 inch tails. Trout can be caught drifting midlake over shell reefs when the sun rises. North Levy producing good catches of trout in the morning. Report by Captain Randy Foreman, Captain Randy’s Guide Service Sabine Lake.
Bolivar
EXCELLENT. 83 degrees. It should be another week with excellent fishing! Water temperature is cooling a bit. The jetty has been producing limits of trout and big bull redfish. Small flounder are still visible on the low tides and bigger females are starting to move in for the fall. Tide changes and incoming tide fishing will be some of the best. The surf is producing limits of speckled trout, bull reds and black drum. The big stingrays and bigger sharks are still running along the whole peninsula. Anglers are using all kinds of different bait with awesome results. Report by Captain Shane Rilat, North Jetty Bait Camp.
Trinity Bay
SLOW. 86 degrees. Sylvan Beach area producing a few solid catches of speckled trout along shell and old pier pilings. Upper ship channel and spoil islands holding redfish, black drum, and a few trout, best on live shrimp. Gas wells in the middle of Trinity produce scattered catches of keeper trout, but there are many undersized fish in and around the well pads and under working birds. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing. Water clarity is decent. Trout are on some wells being caught in live shrimp and paddle tails using �¼ ounce jig heads or weedless. Redfish were feeding heavily before and after the harvest moon but starting to pick back up in the shallows being caught on live shrimp under a popping cork and WAC Attack’s WACky Shad xl in the root beer color with a chartreuse tail. Any scent in any artificial bait helps. Drum and sheepshead are around the redfish mainly on rock shorelines with current being caught in live shrimp under a popping cork. Wear your kill switch and be prepared. Report by Captain Zackary Scott, Zack Attack Fishing.
East Galveston Bay
GOOD. 86 degrees. Scattered flocks of birds working over smaller speckled trout, ladyfish and gafftop. Flounder catches are improving at the mouths of drains and bayous. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing. Rising waters from the tides and out of the winds produced plenty of speckled trout, redfish, and black drum using live shrimp or finger mullet. Pockets of gafftop and hardheads in areas. Report by Captain Shane Rilat, North Jetty Bait Camp. Surface water temperature 85 degrees. Water clarity is about average for East Galveston Bay. We have spent some of our fishing time on shorelines in the intracoastal finding trout, redfish, black drum and flounder, around structure and close to drains and points with good tide movement. We have also found good numbers of trout, but weeding through quite a few small ones again this week to find the better size fish, on reefs, as well as over shoreline shell and structure close to deeper drops. If you like fishing under birds, that has begun to pick up substantially over the past couple weeks. Redfish and flounder are still being caught up around shorelines where we have good current pushing bait, especially when we have good tide movement and bait in the area. We are still finding excellent success with Imitation shrimp lures under popping corks, with a 1-2-foot leader, as well as 1/8 ounce jig heads with tails by WacAttack and Deadly Dudley, with lighter colors working better for us again this week. The topwater bite was good when the conditions were right on a few of our early am trips this past week, with chrome/black or bone performing equally well. The crowds are much thinner now that hunting season has ventured upon us, so fishing should continue to be strong with less fishing pressure and a cool front on the way this week, so grab your friends and family and get out on the water and make some memories together. Report by Captain Jeff Brandon, Get the Net Guide Service, LLC.
Galveston Bay
SLOW. 87 degrees. Speckled trout are still good over deep shell, but at times lots of undersized trout are being caught, on live shrimp and soft plastics. Redfish bite is fair on shallow structure, along with black drum, sheepshead, and the occasional keeper trout. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing.
West Galveston Bay
GOOD. 87 degrees. Waders doing well on speckled trout and redfish throwing live natural baits. Flounder fishing at night improving with some big fish being taken by gigging. Those fishing from a boat near and around the structure with live shrimp catching black drum, sheepshead, speckled trout and redfish. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing.
Texas City
GOOD. 86 degrees. Bull reds fair along the Galveston jetties and a few are being taken off the beachfront piers. Offshore catches of amberjack remain consistent, along with some good catches of state water snapper and a few ling. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing. Great fishing conditions before the storms arrive mid-week and should be even better when it clears up. Anglers are catching plenty of speckled trout, redfish, and a few nice flounder every day with some occasional black drum, sheepshead, sand trout, and gafftop. Live shrimp and finger mullet have been the best baits. Report by Captain Shane Rilat, North Jetty Bait Camp.
Freeport
GOOD. 88 degrees. Christmas Bay, Chocolate Bay, Bastrop Bay, and the upper West Galveston Bay have been good drifting shrimp under a popping cork for trout, redfish and drum. San Luis Pass and The Brazos River are good early in the morning for trout and redfish throwing topwaters, plastics, or free lining mullet or live shrimp. The Freeport Harbor is good for catches of redfish, sheephead mangrove snapper and some trout using live shrimp or mullet free lining along the rocks. Report by Captain Jake Brown, Flattie Daddy Fishing Adventures
East Matagorda Bay
GOOD. 90 degrees. Very little fishing pressure on the bay. Wade anglers are catching of trout on the east side, and those drifting on the west end are landing catches of trout. Very few reports of redfish, with most catching coming from West Matagorda Bay. Report by Captain Charlie Paradoski, Captain Charlie Paradoski’s Guide Service.
West Matagorda Bay
GOOD. 90 degrees. Very little fishing pressure on the bay. Redfish are good in the back lakes and on mid bay reefs with cut mullet and shrimp. Redfish and drum can be targeted on shell reefs with artificials, live shrimp or croaker. Report by Captain Charlie Paradoski, Captain Charlie Paradoski’s Guide Service.
Port O’Connor
GOOD. 85 degrees. Slot and oversized redfish end of the north jetty on blue crab and Spanish sardines. Black drums are good 100 feet inside the north jetty. Few catches of trout in the washouts on croaker. Sharks from the back of the jetties to Bird Island on skipjack. Report by Captain Marty Medford, Captain Marty’s Fish of a Lifetime Guide Service.
Rockport
GOOD. 84 degrees. Trout are fair on croaker along grass and shell in 3-4 feet of water, or drifting with a popping cork and shrimp on the flats. Redfish are great on shrimp, piggy perch and cut skipjack or mullet on the flats and sand pockets and along the islands. Black drum are fair on live or dead shrimp and fish bites in drains, sand pockets and along oyster beds. Report by Captain Kenny Kramer, Kramer Fishing Charters.
Port Aransas
GOOD. 84 degrees. Redfish are great on shrimp and cut mullet or ladyfish. Trout are good with croaker or shrimp free lined along rocks. Silver spoons have also been producing good redfish at both the north and south jetties. Report by Captain Kenny Kramer, Kramer Fishing Charters.
Corpus Christi
FAIR. 85 degrees. Morning has been good for redfish with a productive bite on live mullet and chunks of crab in the morning. Target windblown shorelines to find redfish. Very few catches of drums. Report by Captain Aerich Oliver, Rockport Paradise Outfitters.
Baffin Bay
GOOD. 86 degrees. Water is still pretty high in Baffin Bay from the past hurricane in the Gulf. Contrary to what you would think, it seems that the trout are still hanging out where they were before the extra water arrived. Without a snorkel, a short person like me has to work pretty hard to get the lure to the big fish. Bigger lures are working best, like Mirrolure Lil’ John XL’s, 6” Coastal Brew Darts and 5” Salt Water Assassin Sea Shad paddle tails, all in natural colors. Another lure working great is the Texas Custom Corky SoftDine. All lures have been most effective working near the bottom. Report by Captain Sally Black.
Port Mansfield
GOOD. 90 degrees. Fishing is still fair to good early for redfish and trout. Water levels fell out some and the bigger trout faded off to deeper water. Water temperatures remain in the upper 80s to low 90s which means the early morning hours have produced the best bite. Topwaters and soft plastics are working well. We are targeting areas that have good bait activity and scattered grass beds. Drifters are doing well on slot trout in 3-4 feet of water. Report by Captain Wayne Davis, Hook Down Charters. The bite in Port Mansfield has been great bringing some exciting opportunities. Our tides are still extremely high and low pressure lingering in our area has brought some rainfall which has lead to more fresh water entering into our estuaries. In the morning, water temperatures are in the mid to low 80s and lines of baitfish are moving around, these lines of bait are where you can have the most luck targeting redfish trout and flounder. Pelicans and seagulls will hover over these lines of baitfish and will help you identify them from a distance. Once the bait line is identified, wade along with it and focus on the outside edges of the bait line. Water clarity as well as floating grass has an influence on what lure and color we decide to throw. MirrOLure Little John’s XLs, Texas Custom Lure Double D’s and Custom Corky Softdines have been lures of choice in mainly dark colors with the stained/chalky water we’ve been fishing. Once you figure out the pattern, stay consistent on it, fish it thoroughly and make each cast count. Stay safe and courteous of others on the water, and as always tight lines! Report by Captain Reanna DeLaCruz, Captain Reanna’s Baffin Bay Adventures.
South Padre
FAIR. 84 degrees. Light southeast breeze with 84 degree water at the jetties. Trout are plentiful in deeper water, on the Gas Well Flats when the wind is strong. Redfish are good on the east side of the bay. Mangrove Snapper are excellent in Brownsville Channel. Stay safe out there. Report by Captain Lou Austin, Austin Fishing South Padre.
Port Isabel
FAIR. 84 degrees. Light southeast breeze with 84 degree water at the jetties. Trout are plentiful in deeper water, on the Gas Well Flats when the wind is strong. Redfish are good on the east side of the bay. Mangrove Snapper are excellent in Brownsville Channel. Stay safe out there. Report by Captain Lou Austin, Austin Fishing South Padre.
Zebra Mussel AlertTo prevent the spread of zebra mussels, the law requires draining of water from boats and onboard receptacles when leaving or approaching public fresh waters. Get details.
WINTER SPECIAL: November, December, January $50 off 4 hr. fishing trip, $100 off 6 hr.Fishing trip, $150 off 8 hr. Fishing trip. This applies to all fishing bass or crappie; call today toset up your winter days on Guntersville. 256 759 2270.
With the wild weather this past week we managed several days on the water with really good results; there is no doubt that the bite saw some change as the second spawn appears to be over and the bass are on the move. There was some searching as the change in weather and bass movement forced you to look for the change in pattern, when we found them, it was great, and we had fun!
Baits we definitely had to keep presenting different baits at times in order to find there preference, Missile Bait D-Bombs lead the way, Duckett small profile spinner baits were excellent, Tight- Line swim jigs produced well as well as SPRO Pop-r’s.
Come fish with me October is always the best month of the fall I expect this year to be much of the same; I have days available call today 256 759 2270. We fish with great sponsor products, Mercury Motors, Ranger Boats, Vicious Fishing, Lew’s Fishing, Dawson Boat Center, Boat Logix Mounts, Costa, Toyota Trucks, Lowrance Electronics, Power Pole and more.
Take Advantage of my Winter Special
Every year as we approach the November thru January time frame, we have some of the best fishing on Guntersville and most fishermen are caught up in family holiday gatherings; lots of things going on, family, company, friends all gather and wonder what they can do to have some fun together. Fishing for bass or crappie on Guntersville can be your answer as I am overing up to $150 off my regular prices for November, December, and January.
That will put up to two people in a boat, we supply rods reels and tackle just bring your best fishing skills along with a few eats and drinks and we will do the rest! Nothing is more fun than having family catching fish on Guntersville, bass or crappie we do it all. If you want to keep and eat some fish, crappie fishing is always great in the winter months, you can keep up to 30 crappie per person of 9 inches or more and have a big cook out with your friends after fishing. The crappie are gathering up on the structure and putting a big mess of crappie in the boat is lots of fun and relatively easy for most fishermen.
Bass fishing in the winter can be some of the best time of year for big fish on Guntersville; if you want your chance at a monster Guntersville bass the winter can make your dreams, come true. The bass are feeding up in the early part of the winter as they prepare for the prespawn. Then the bass become fat and move into the pre-spawn in the late part of the winter and putting a trophy in the boat is not out of the question. Yes, November, December, January I will offer $50 off a 4-hr. fishing trip, $100 off a 6-hr. fishing trip, and $150 off an 8-hr. fishing trip for bass or crappie. Take advantage now call today. We will be very accommodating for you and will adjust for winter weather days that might bother you! Call 256 759 2270!
Come fish with me I am booking for the fall and would love to take you fishing call today 256 759 2270. We fish with great sponsor products Mercury Motors, Ranger Boats, Boat Logix Mounts, Toyota Trucks, Cornfield Fishing Gear, Costa, Duckett Fishing, Dawson Boat Center, Vicious Fishing, Power Pole, and more
Get Your Hands On The Best New Rod & Reel Systems For Bass
By The Fishing Wire
Voted Best Rod & Reel Combo at ICAST 2024 just two weeks ago, all-new St. Croix GXR Bass Systems are available to elevate bass-fishing experiences starting August 1. St Croix rods are my favorite rods.
Park Falls, WI – St. Croix Rod exists to give every angler the upper hand on the water with over 800 fishing rod models, engineered and handcrafted to deliver excellence in any fishing technique or presentation.
One year ago, the 76-year-old privately-owned American company introduced SEVIIN Reels, a new brand established with the goal of creating the most dependable reels available, so anglers can enjoy fishing more and worry less.
Today, St. Croix Rod and SEVIIN Reels announce the availability of St. Croix GXR Bass Systems – a carefully curated collection of eight high-performance technique-focused St. Croix rods, precision-matched and balanced with smooth and dependable complimentary SEVIIN GXR casting and spinning reels. Voted best new rod and reel combo by fishing tackle retailers and media members at ICAST 2024, GXR is the first and only off-the-rack precision-matched rod and reel system to combine St. Croix performance and SEVIIN reliability. Four casting models and four spinning models are available at an angler-friendly retail price of $200 to $225. Two-piece GXR models are also available.
GXR begins with a proven St. Croix performance platform – crisp, strong, and responsive SCII carbon-fiber blanks mated to lightweight and durable hybrid stainless-steel guide trains that promote exceptional balance and reliable performance with all line types. Handles are an angler-preferred traditional split-grip design with premium cork grips, blank-through nylon reel seats, and black stainless-steel and nylon hoods. “GXR casting and spinning rod share DNA with several of our most popular bass series, including Bass X and our retired (previous generation) Mojo Bass rods,” says St. Croix Brand Manager, Ryan Teach. “These are proven, technique-optimized rod platforms that fish light with surprising power and exceptional balance.”
A 7’1” medium-heavy power, fast action ALL AROUND model is available in both GXR casting (GXRC71MHF) and spinning (GXRS71MHF). It’s a rod that can do about anything well, from skipping docks to swimbaits to jigs, flukes, topwaters, and more.
Get Your Hands On The Best New Rod & Reel Systems For Bass 1
On the casting side, a 7’2” heavy power, moderate action REACTION BAIT model (GXRC72HM) provides a parabolic design optimized for crankbaits, chatterbaits, and other swimming lures, while a 7’4” heavy power, fast action FROG & FLIP (GXRC74HF) is the GXR model anglers will want to have in their hands when pitching, flipping, frogging, or fishing other lures in and around heavy cover.
Two additional spinning models round out GXR’s technique-optimized lineup. A 6’10” medium-light power, extra-fast action FINESSE (GXRS610MLXF) is optimized for light-line applications such as drop-shotting, as well as presenting Ned rigs, downsized creature baits, and smaller hair jigs. An additional 7’1” medium power, fast action STICK BAIT spinning model (GXRS71MF) excels in presenting wacky rigs, light Texas rigs, shaking minnows, heavier Ned rigs, and more.
Finally, Teach says GXR’s appeal is further widened by the availability of a pair of two-piece models. “Because not every bass rod lives on the deck of a bass boat full time, two-piece bass rods are trending,” Teach says. “GXR gives bass anglers two-piece convenience for travel and storage and one-piece performance in the unique GXRC71MHF2-C (ALL AROUND) and GXRS71MF2-C (STICK BAIT) models.”
SEVIIN designed complimentary GXR casting and GXR spinning reels from a blank canvas to balance and enhance the performance of these technique-optimized GXR rods. “The goal was to create a new series of bass-fishing systems for anglers of all levels that are ready to fish with heightened St. Croix performance and SEVIIN castability and reliability,” says SEVIIN Reels Product Manager, Robert Woods. The SEVIIN and St. Croix Product Teams worked together to create a series of hard-core bass rod-and-reel combinations with wide appeal and performance that exceeds their retail price, fully backed by St. Croix and SEVIIN warranties and customer service.”
SEVIIN GXR casting reels are crafted on a compact, 100-size lightweight graphite frame. Castability and operation are enhanced by anodized aluminum spools with Japanese stainless-steel spool bearings, magnetic cast control, and 6+1 stainless-steel bearings that support key moving parts. Strong and exceptionally smooth drag comes from a carbon fiber and stainless-steel drag stack, while a versatile 7.3:1 retrieve ratio provides optimal performance in a wide variety of bass presentations.
Lightweight and strong SEVIIN GXR spinning reels feature 3000-size carbon fiber bodies and rotors with anodized and ported aluminum spools. 8+1 stainless steel bearings yield silky-smooth operation, while a carbon fiber and stainless-steel drag stack ensures slick, consistent, and reliable drag performance in all conditions at all settings.
St. Croix GXR Bass Systems Features
• Precision-matched high-performance rod and reel systems (4 casting and 4 spinning), optimized for popular, technique-specific bass presentations • Premium SCII carbon fiber blanks with FRS (Fortified Resin System) for increased flexural strength with reduced weight • Lightweight, black stainless-steel guides with aluminum-oxide rings for reliable performance with all line types • Traditional split-grip premium-grade cork handles with premium EVA accents • Nylon reel seat with black stainless-steel hood and nylon and stainless-steel locking nut • 5-year rod warranty backed by St. Croix Superstar Service • 100-size SEVIIN GXR casting reels feature 6+1 bearings, durable and lightweight graphite frames, aluminum spools and accents, high-performance carbon fiber + stainless-steel drag stacks, soft-touch rubber paddles, and versatile 7.3:1 gearing. • 3000-size SEVIIN GXR spinning reels feature 8+1 bearings, lightweight and rigid carbon fiber bodies and rotors, ported aluminum spools, high-performance carbon fiber + stainless-steel drag stacks, premium EVA paddle, and versatile 5.1:1 gearing. • 1-year reel warranty backed by SEVIIN • Designed in Park Falls, Wisconsin, U.S.A. • Retail price $200 to $220
St. Croix GXR Bass Systems Models
• GXRC71MHF-C / ALL AROUND – 7’1”, medium-heavy power, fast action, casting / Retail $210 • GXRC71MHF2-C / ALL AROUND 2 – 7’1”, medium-heavy power, fast action, 2-piece casting / Retail $225 • GXRC72HM-C / REACTION BAIT – 7’2”, heavy power, moderate action, casting / Retail $210 • GXRC74HF-C / FROG & FLIP – 7’4”, heavy power, fast action, casting / Retail $210 • GXRS610MLXF-C / FINESSE – 6’10”, medium-light power, extra-fast action, spinning / Retail $200 • GXRS71MF-C / STICK BAIT – 7’1”, medium power, fast action, spinning / Retail $200 • GXRS71MF2-C / STICK BAIT 2 – 7’1”, medium power, fast action, 2-piece spinning / Retail $220 • GXRS71MHF-C / ALL AROUND – 7’1”, medium-heavy power, fast action, spinning / Retail $200
Get Your Hands On The Best New Rod & Reel Systems For Bass 2
Put simply, GXR Bass Systems are the right tools for the job – a collection of premium, technique-optimized rod-and-reel combinations designed and crafted to give bass anglers of all levels a series of synergized tools that move them forward towards new wins on the water, including more and bigger bass, and more exceptional fishing moments and memories. Embodying trusted St. Croix performance and SEVIIN reliability… right off the rack… all-new GXR Bass Systems are available at St. Croix dealers and online at stcroixrods.com starting today, August 1, 2024.
Headquartered in Park Falls, Wisconsin, St. Croix has been proudly crafting the “Best Rods on Earth” for over 75 years. Combining state-of-the-art manufacturing processes with skilled craftsmanship, St. Croix is the only major producer to still build rods entirely from design through manufacturing. The company remains family-owned and operates duplicate manufacturing facilities in Park Falls and Fresnillo, Mexico. With popular trademarked series such as Legend®, Legend Xtreme®, Avid®, Premier®, Imperial®, Triumph® and Mojo, St. Croix is revered by all types of anglers from around the world.
Any shooting like the one in Uvalde, Texas where innocent children are killed is horrible, but do not blame me and other law-abiding gun owners. Blame the low-life evildoer that did it.
Unlike the gun ban vultures that started circling and crying the “do something” mantra before the first body was recovered from the school in Texas, I tried to listen to all the conflicting reports and wait for valid information.
The “something” gun banners always demand is “common sense” gun bans. There is nothing “common” about their demands and if they made “sense” they would not have to exaggerate and tell half-truths to outright lies.
I have been disappointed and amazed, but not surprised, by the bald face lies and stupid comments to uninformed babbling from everyone from personal friends to the president.
Biden’s comments have been weird. First, he said something about the 2nd Amendment not really meaning “shall not be infringed” because citizens could not own cannons when it was passed. When he was told by constitutional scholars like John Turley that he was wrong, in fact you can still own a cannon today, he continued to tell that lie.
He then began babbling about how a .22 caliber bullet would lodge in the lungs, but a 9 mm “big caliber” bullet would blow the lungs out. That is an inane comment by anyone familiar with guns and bullets.
But somehow it relates to banning “assault” weapons, meaning the AR-15. AR stands for the company that developed the gun, Armalite, is in no way an “assault” weapon, no military in the world uses it. And the most common caliber for it is .223, apparently less dangerous to Biden than the dreaded 9 mm.
One TV commentator said it was ridiculous an 18-year-old could go buy an automatic rifle and more than 300 round of ammo without a background check. Fortunately, a guest on the show pointed out the rifle was not automatic, he went through a background check and it is not uncommon, especially in that area to buy large amounts of ammo.
Personally, I have purchased more than 1000 rounds of 7.62×39 ammo at one time for target practice to save money. Shooting more than 100 rounds in one target shooting session is not uncommon. And common .22 long rifle bullets I shoot in my semiautomatic squirrel gun I have owned since I was eight years old come in boxes of 525 rounds.
Calls for extended background checks are another “common sense” waste. The background check in place for years did not work this time so let’s make you get one on your child before giving them a gun for Christmas with an “extended” background?
All guns bought from licensed gun dealers must go through the current background check. The proposed “extended” check would have made no difference since the shooter in Texas bought his gun from a licensed dealer, already covered in the current law.
The sale of over 100 brands of rifles defined as “assault” guns were banned for ten years, from 1994 through 2004. One liberal commentator told this lie: “Mass shootings dropped by 40 percent during the ‘assault weapons’ ban.”
Here is what Factcheck.org says: “A RAND review of gun studies, updated in 2020, concluded there is “inconclusive evidence for the effect of assault weapon bans on mass shootings.” Seems a 40 percent drop would be pretty “conclusive” evidence, if it was true.
It didn’t work the first time, lets lie about it and do it again.
I keep hearing “Nobody needs an assault weapon.” Yet they can’t define what they consider an “assault weapon,” it is a constitutional right and there are many reasons to own one. That is why there are somewhere between 10 and 20 million correctly called “modern sporting rifles” in the US.
One senseless murder is too many, but if these guns were the problem such shootings would be much more common.
Confiscation of all guns is the ultimate goal of some. But if you confiscate all rifles, from my old .22 through all deer rifles to modern sporting rifles, you might somehow eliminate guns that are used in 2.9 percent of all homicides in the US.
The most recent data I can find from the FBI shows homicides by all rifles in 2019 was 364, compared to 1476 by knives, 1591 by blunt objects and 600 by fists and feet.
If you want to have a rational discussion on gun control, don’t exaggerated, tell lies and make up numbers to try to push your agenda. I will rely on facts, not emotions.
If you just have got to do “something,” go spit on the insane murderer’s grave. It may make you feel better and it will be just as effective as all the proposed gun control laws put together.
Poles Down For More Fish, you can catch more fish by using yourshallow water anchors correctly
By The Fishing Wire
By Mike Frisch
Various innovations designed for helping anglers control their boats while trying to effectively present baits has been a part, or maybe better put, a challenge, of anglers for decades. Recently, shallow water anchors, which deploy from a boat’s transom and spike into the lake bottom, have been gaining popularity. These anchors, often working in pairs with one on each side of the transom, do a great job of locking a boat in place, allowing anglers to fish and not worry about boat control. I have been using a pair of Power-Pole anchors this summer and have been very, very pleased with how they help my fishing. Here are some examples.
Bluegills on beds
This past June, our Fishing the Midwest TV crew headed to Big Stone Lake on the Minnesota/South Dakota border to fish bluegills and crappies. We fished with guide Tanner Arndt. Tanner used the side scanning technology on my boat’s sonar to “look” to the boat’s sides to see spawning beds the bluegills were using. When a good number of beds were found, we would “pole down” a casting length or so from the beds and start fishing. We caught a bunch of bluegills and the poles contributed to our successes. Using side scan, we could stay away from the beds to avoid spooking the fish as we located them. Then, with the poles down, we could cast to the beds and concentrate 100% on the fishing and not worry about the boat drifting over the beds.
Walleyes on the rocks
Earlier in the fishing season, I fished some lakes that have off-colored water and shallow walleyes. These fish often relate to rocky shorelines or rock piles along shallow to mid-depth flats. In either case, holding the boat out from the rocks to be fished and casting to them is usually a good technique for targeting these fish. With the poles down off the boat’s transom, a partner and I would share the front casting deck on my boat and make casts to the rocks and hopefully the fish. Once again, we could concentrate fully on fishing and not worry about boat control. This came in handy for presenting jig and minnow combinations or slip bobber rigs, particularly on windy days when this bite often peaks. The poles were especially advantageous when a fish was hooked because the angler with the hooked fish only worried about fighting the fish and leading it to the net, while the other angler could concentrate fully on netting the walleye.
Bass on the docks
Dock fishing for largemouth bass is often a move down the shoreline while skipping, pitching, and flipping baits under and alongside docks coming out from shore. When targeting docks as a right-handed caster, I like to keep the docks to the boat’s left side and present my bait to the dock while slowly moving along. When a bit past the dock, I angle the bow of the boat to the shoreline and use roll casts where I skip the bait along the lake’s surface and under the dock. From this angle I can target the face of the dock and the entire length of the dock as well. Plus, an angler fishing off the back casting deck has good access to the dock too. If a fish is caught, or I know a dock is a “good dock” from previous fishing trips, I will often deploy the Power-Poles and hold in place while making multiple casts the entire length of the dock.
The above are just three of many examples of how I use my shallow water anchors to help me better present my baits. After all, better presented baits, often lead to more fish in the boat. And more fish in the boat usually makes for happy anglers!
As always, enjoy your time on the water and remember to include a youngster in your next outdoors adventure!
Mike Frisch hosts the popular Fishing the Midwest TV series available on the Sportsman Channel, World Fishing Network, and more. Visit www.fishingthemidwest to learn more.
I try to listen to both sides, I really do. But on some issues, like guns, it is almost impossible to hear both sides.
When trying to read Jesse Jackson’s Griffin Daily News July 14 Editorial “Assault weapons are weapons of war” I had to stop in the second paragraph. When he wrote “They are useless for hunting” I knew I was wasting my time.
That proved to me he was clueless about his topic and was just pushing an agenda. Nothing that came after such an inaccurate statement could be relevant. When I read something patently untrue, I cannot keep reading.
First, the 2nd Amendment has nothing to do with hunting.
Second, “Assault weapons” are a fake term given to what sportsman call “Modern Sporting Rifles.” One of the most common designs is the ArmaLite Rifle Model 15, usually shortened to AR 15. It is a type gun that comes chambered in more than 60 different calibers. The vary from rimfire calibers like the .22 long rifle, bullets usually used for squirrel hunting, to .30 Remington, specifically designed for deer hunting to even larger calibers.
The .223 caliber is one of the most common in the AR platform and it has been legal for deer hunting in Georgia for years. That cartridge is a relatively small caliber and does not have a lot of powder, so it has much less kick than rifles like by old Marlin 30-30, but it is legal and efficient for killing a deer.
It is a good choice for young hunters and those that don’t want a gun that kicks hard. I am using mine for deer hunting rather than my 7 mm Mag since I have a port in my right shoulder and am afraid to expose it to too much recoil.
It scares me that, in a recent PEW poll of “journalists,” 55 percent say every side of an issue DOES NOT deserve equal treatment. The same poll found that 76 percent of all Americans say both sides SHOULD get equal coverage.
Maybe that is why a recent Gallup poll shows only 11 percent of Americans trust television news and only 16 percent trust newspapers.
Almost as bad is a PEW poll showing 64 percent of US adults approve the recent gun control laws passed by congress, but 78 percent say the law will do little or nothing to affect crime. But 63 percent say they want more useless laws like the one passed that they know will do little to no good.
Maybe the reason they support useless laws is they hear only one side. Most mall shootings are hyped 24/7 for days, but the recent shooting in Indiana got little coverage. Was it because a good guy with a legal gun killed the shooter before he could kill many people?
As long as only one side is pushed by the media, I will adamantly oppose any gun control legislation, not matter how often those pushing the agenda call it “sensible” or “reasonable.”
Their call for compromise always means “do it my way” even if you know it is useless.
A current political ad says the recent “Constitutional Carry” law in Georgia makes it easier for criminals to carry loaded guns in Georgia. I question any law enforcement officer that claims criminals would not carry guns if it was just against the law.
A good example of the mindset of the gun banners is New York Governor Hochul. When the Supreme Court overturned a state law that made it almost impossible to get gun or carry it in her state, she got laws passed to make it a felony to carry guns in almost every building in the state.
Her reason? In response to a reporter’s question if she had any data to prove her claim that citizens carrying guns would endanger millions of New York residents, she said “I don’t need to have numbers. I don’t need to have a data point to say this.”
I will fight “feelings” from gun banners like her with facts and truth, if I can be heard.
Easy-swimming Z-Man® Guppy GrubZ™ sports serious longevity in its genes.
Ladson, SC – It’s the question all anglers eventually answer: If you woke up on a deserted island and had to pick just one bait to catch fish for the foreseeable future, what would you choose to cast?
Hypotheticals and shipwrecks aside, you’d likely want something versatile, proven and universally appetizing to a wide range of fish. (All the better if said fish tickled your own tastebuds, in turn.) Like many anglers, you might opt to tie on a good old curly tail grub and cast away. But which grub would grab your attention?
On make-believe islands, casting a bait that holds up to dozens of fish is a matter of survival. In the real world, softbait durability means more fish in your livewell, less time rigging and fewer baits in the trash can—all of which highlights the new ElaZtech®-enabled Guppy GrubZ™, the newest softbait to join Z-Man’s trending Micro Finesse system.
The new 2″ Guppy GrubZ offers exceptional swim action and durability for days.
While traditional curly tails made from PVC plastics catch fish aplenty, the baits’ unfortunate fragile nature means they’re equally likely to sacrifice their tails after a mere strike or two. It’s why cutting-edge crappie and panfish anglers continue converting to Z-Man’s Micro Finesse baits and a radical, made-in-the-USA superplastic known as ElaZtech.
“The new Guppy GrubZ is anything but just another curly tail bait,” notes Z-Man brand manager and multispecies angler Ryan Harder. “Not only does this bait swim and tail-spiral at the widest range of speeds, but it’s also designed to withstand numerous bites from toothy critters and those little machine-gun tail bites from smaller panfish.”
For its 10X Tough ElaZtech durability alone, the 2” Micro Finesse Guppy GrubZ might be the most valuable crappie-sized curly tail bait ever made. (Picture limits of crappie, perch and sunfish, all on a single, game-used Guppy GrubZ . . .)
Next-level details begin with the bait’s purpose-driven, paper-thin curly tail. “The Guppy GrubZ’ softness and expanded tail surface area empower it to activate and corkscrew at even the slowest retrieve speeds,” notes Harder.
“Foremost in designing the bait, however, we first addressed several common curly tail issues. To bolster its soft, razor-thin tail, we implemented a slightly thicker, semi-rigid ‘spine’—essentially a thicker slice of ElaZtech, which extends into the initial (dorsal) section of the curly tail.
“You might not even notice it’s there, but this seemingly minor enhancement serves two functions,” Harder explains. “One, the little spine helps prevent the tail from fouling during faster retrieves, which is often an issue among traditional curly tails. And two, to reinforce and strengthen the tail section, the specialized spine prevents it from being prematurely cut or sliced, allowing you to deploy a single bait for hours of fish-catching action. That’s a huge bonus when you’re catching and sorting through dozens of fish in short order.
“Just caught over a hundred white perch on a single Guppy GrubZ this morning. That’s pretty incredible for a curly tail grub—or any softbait.”
Further empowering the bait’s allure and water-thumping action, the Guppy GrubZ’ natural minnow torso and head boost the bait’s physical presence among crappies, perch, trout and all panfish. “We built the bait with a flattened face, which matches right up with either a Micro Finesse ShroomZ™ or Micro Shad HeadZ™ jighead,” adds Harder. “The result is a clean, seamless profile that presents fish with a totally natural target. Alternatively, try rigging it on a ChatterBait® Flashback® Mini for incredible underwater action.”
Creating extra fish-attracting visuals, the Guppy GrubZ is imbued with bulging eyeballs and accentuated ribbing all along its torso. “The rib cages produce subtle vibration, but also generate micro bubble trails that predatory fish easily detect and track back to the source,” Harder explains. He also suggests adding dabs of scent, such as ProCure Crappie & Panfish Super Gel, which adhere especially well to the bait’s 3D ribs.
If you happen to awaken on a random island, pray your pockets include a pack of Guppy GrubZ. Or, slightly more likely, for impromptu outings to your local panfish pond, this is one grub you can’t live without.
Landing at fishing tackle retailers in November, the new Z-Man Guppy GrubZ delivers freewheeling action, lifelike buoyancy and the toughness to survive countless panfish attacks. Crafted with care at Z-Man’s South Carolina based bait labs, the 2” Guppy GrubZ features ten alluring crappie/panfish colors, including glow and high-vis hues as well as earth tones for tricky bites. MSRP $4.99 per 8-pack. For more updates and intel, check Z-Man’s website or social media.
About Z-Man Fishing Products
A dynamic Charleston, South Carolina based company, Z-Man Fishing Products has melded leading edge fishing tackle with technology for nearly three decades. Z-Man has long been among the industry’s largest suppliers of silicone skirt material used in jigs, spinnerbaits and other lures. Creator of the Original ChatterBait®, Z-Man is also the renowned innovators of 10X Tough ElaZtech softbaits, fast becoming the most coveted baits in fresh- and saltwater. Z-Man is one of the fastest-growing lure brands worldwide.
“I’d rather be lucky that good.” Kenneth Hattaway, one of my mentors in the bass clubs back in the 1970s and 80s, used to say that a lot. He was one of the best club fishermen in the area back then and did well in bigger tournaments, too. In many ways he was both good and lucky.
Over the years I have come to believe what he meant was you can be good consistently, but when you are lucky you do even better. Anyone can win a tournament with the right luck, but it won’ be consistent over time.
All the pro fishermen on the Bassmaster Elite Series are good. I have fished with more than a dozen of them and they have all the details and mechanics of fishing down pat. They can skip a jig under a dock into places most of us never reach. They can read electronics like a printed report. And they keep all their equipment in top condition.
But to win an Elite tournament when competing against 87 other fishermen just as good as you are takes some added luck.
Boyd Duckett sitting on the porch of his cabin after the first day of a tournament, seeing fish schooling and going there the next day and winning is mostly luck.
Leaving your bait in the water while eating a sandwich for lunch, and your boat drifting over an unknown rockpile and getting a bite, then winning the tournament on those rocks is a lot of luck. My partner in a BASS Regional in Kentucky did that.
When I do well it is a lot of luck. To do well one day of a two-day tournament is luck, to do well each day takes some skill. There have been multiple times I have done well one of two of the days in our state top six, but I have done well both days only five times, making the state team each time.
Sunday I got lucky enough to stop first thing on a bank with a little current moving, and caught six bass in the first two hours. The next six hours produced only two more fish. Stopping on that particular bank was as more luck than skill, and the current died before 8:00 AM.
In the Flint River Bass Club tournament Sunday at Sinclair, eight of us fished from 6:00 AM to 2:00 PM to land 18 12-inch keeper bass weighing about 28 pounds. There were two five-bass limits and three people did not have a bass.
My five weighing 10.42 pounds was first. Niles Murray had three at 6.45 pounds for second and his 3.34 pound largemouth was big fish. Doug Acree had five weighing 6.22 pounds for third and Lee Hancock came in fourth with three at 2.83 pounds.
My first stop was on a deep bank with docks and grassbeds and I started casting a buzzbait. When I came to a shallow seawall a cast with a weightless Trick worm produced my first keeper, one that was very skinny and barely 12 inches long.
A few minutes later I skipped a wacky rigged Senko under a dock and landed my biggest bass, a 2.94 pounder. Then another good keeper hit my buzzbait between docks. Another dock produced my fourth keeper on the Senko at 7:00. I was pleased with the fast start.
A few docks later I caught another good keeper, filling my limit, then, right at 8:00 caught my sixth keeper, culling the small bass. I was happy with my catch and started trying to find something else that would work.
At noon I had not had another bite, then I caught my seventh keeper on the Senko on a dock and my eighth, my second biggest of the day, on the Senko on a shady seawall.
Other than hooking a 20-pound blue cat on a shaky head near a dock at 1:00 PM, I did not get another bite until weigh-in.
