Finally Found Some Big Fish at John’s Lake

I finally found some fish on John’s Lake. I checked this spot out where the water goes from about 10 ft to 4 ft in the horseshoe cut and they are stacked up in there. It’s almost a vertical ledge. The good thing is that there’s some big ones mixed in. I caught a bass or two every pass I made on this spot and one about 6 pounds last night. All the fish I’ve been finding have been bunched up lately, so I know there’s more big ones there. Heck, I even threw one out into open water and still caught one.

I can’t figure out if they’re liking the depth change or the cover or combination. It could just be all the bait here. The shad were jumping all around me and I have no idea why they’re in this spot other than the fact that they’re supposed to make their way back into creeks and coves in the fall. I’ll have to check out some coves with deeper water and fish where the depth changes from deep to shallow.

All the fish came on a junebug color YUM Big Show Paddleworm with a 3/16 sinker. Why fix something that ain’t broke. I will have to try to graph some weeds along this structure and carolina rig this spot in open water. Heck, I should also possibly deep crank it, jig a spinnerbait, or swim bait it with a Wild Eye Swim Shad along the bottom.

In any case, I’ve got to start finding fish on Toho and Harris Chain. I checked out Lake Eustis and some of the creeks one morning and got skunked. I’m gonna have to check out Harris and Griffin next time. I’m thinkin you gotta flip and spinnerbait here, but I don’t have the answers yet. I hear the canals are good but there’s so much boat traffic. I’m gonna have to figure something out.

Bass Moving Into Coves

I went out for a couple of hours on John’s Lake at sunset and found a bunch of fish in the horseshoe cut. Most of the fish were about half way into the cove and I’ve got to check out some other coves later on. It looks like they’re moving back into these coves. Most of the fish were caught on a YUM Big Show Paddleworm in junebug and one on a gold Arukushad.

Perhaps There’s a Fall Pattern Developing on John’s Lake and Butler Chain

This week I fished the Butler Chain and John’s Lake. The wind was howling at 20 knots, but at least I wasn’t cookin in the heat. The day on Butler was pretty good with about 10 fish and a 4-5 pounder. I spent most of the day fishing wind blown points leading into a cove on Tibet Butler and snagged a bunch of fish, but nothing big. After a while the wind was too much to deal with and went into Lake Pocket. There, I caught 5 fish all within a 20 yard stretch where the lily pads were mixing with the grass. The biggest fish was caught in Fish Lake out of a cut in the pads on a watermelon red senko from Bitter’s. All these areas were fairly shallow and my deeper spots did not graph any bait so I didn’t bother. It looks like the fish are going real shallow probably because of a combination of all the rain we’ve had and the fall shad run. I have no idea which it is but I’m catching fish shallow and not deep.

Fall weather has not hit us yet, but I think the fish know it’s comin. A friend of mine used to have a 50 gallon fish tank with bass and bluegill. He created ledges on both sides of the tank and on most days, the bass would sit on one ledge and the bluegill on the other. They made sure to stay away from each other except on days a front was comin. When the bass and bluegill mixed together, you knew some crazy weather was comin. The crazy part is that the tank was inside his house. All I can say is that these fish were better at predicting the weather than the weatherman on the news who says there’s a 50% chance of rain every day. It’s pretty nuts.

Fishing has been pretty slow on John’s Lake with biggest fish being about 3 pounds. They’re shallow here as well. As always, the junebug and watermelon red senko seems to be bait that gets’em. Sprinkle in a few with a Rat L Trap and maybe a Trick Worm and you’ve got all the tackle you really need for John’s Lake. I checked a lot of places here and the only places holding decent fish is a cove on the east side of the main lake with Kissimmee grass, lilly pads, and eel grass and just outside the entrance of the horseshoe cut. There’s been a bunch of fish less than 12″, but at least in these 2 spots there’s some bigger ones mixed in. It’s only taking about 6 pounds to win the Wednesday night tournaments so the big fish are definitely hard to locate these days.

Interactive Fishing Report Map of Central Florida Lakes

The ledger.com out of Lakeland, FL has a neat interactive Google Map wish fishing reports around Central Florida. I think it’s a pretty neat resource to figure out where the fish are. You may have to zoom in once to see which lake you’re looking at or just click view larger map on the bottom left. In any case there’s lots of fishing reports on the map.

You can also check the “Around Polk County” article for a compilation of written fishing reports around town.

View Larger Map

A Flop at the FLW BFL Event in Palatka

My tournament in Palatka as a co-angler was awful. It was blowing 20 miles an hour and it started raining by about 10 o’clock. My boater and I fished Rodman Reservoir and I’m glad I didn’t have my boat out there. I’ve never seen so much standing timber and so many crab traps in my life. Needless to say we ran over a few.

It would have been all worth it if we found some fish but we didn’t. My partner and I both caught 3 fish but they were all around 12 inches and that ain’t gonna win nothin. Only the top 20 fished on Sunday and we didn’t make the top 20 for some reason. The funny thing is that I got paired with a guy who was fishing the event with his son. They practiced out there together and had 2 spots. We fished one of the spots in the morning and then we swapped places later in the afternoon.

His son pulled in 15 pounds from the same spots with the same Watermelon Old Monster worm. He just happened to hit them at different times. I was thinkin that we suck or timing plays a big factor with bass. Needless to say, the son hit both spots on the next day and weighed in only a pound. Maybe he got the timing wrong on Sunday.

I was really hoping that he caught fish on Sunday so I could go to those spots next year on the same dates at the Bassmaster Weekend Series event. I guess I’ll have to check out Salt Springs, Lake George, Seven Sisters Island, and Turkey Island later this year as well as crank and carolina rig some parts of the river at the right tide.

I’d like to say I learned something from this event, but I didn’t. The highlight was running into Terry “Big Show” Scroggins at the weigh in.

I was planning on fishing Sunday anyway, so I went out to the Kissimmee Chain to check out the Bassmaster Weekend Series event there to see where everyone was fishing. I ran Cypress, Hatchineha, and Lake Kissimmee and burned up a lot of gas. Of course, the winner fished open water hydrilla on Toho so I didn’t see where he fished. I’m thinkin fishing open water with a Rat L Trap is the way to go on Toho. I know of 3 tournaments that’s been won that way recently. I’ll have to find some good patches out there. The only problem is that hydrilla is everywhere and the bass seem to be in places where it’s a little less dense.

Preparing for BFL Tournament in Palatka

I’m getting geared up for my FLW BFL tournament in Palatka this weekend. I’m fishing as a co-angler so I hope I get paired up with someone who’s found some fish. The recent rains probably aren’t gonna help things out there. If anything, it probably stirred up a lot of water and I’m not sure how much salt water will be mixed in out there. All I can say is carolina rig all day long.

Bill Dance Brings Back Childhood Memories

I remember being kid watching episodes of Bill Dance and riding my Huffy down to the dock with delusions of catching monster farm pond bass like Bill catches on the show. He was one of my inspirations growing up and I looked forward to his shows as much getting the new Bass Pro Shops catalog in the mail.

Needless to say, I rarely caught bass the size Bill catches on his show and never ordered anything from the Bass Pro Shops catalog, but I sure did love to go fishing and loved looking at all the new stuff in the catalog. I was lucky if I could talk the folks into buying me a new Rapala or a bag of Culprits at the corner drug store.

In those days, I’d probably throw at the same row of reeds for hours on end and eventually I’d catch a fish. I still can’t figure out if the fish moved in there or just got annoyed.

At one point at about age 10, I remember taking an inflatable boat floating around in the pool that was really more of a raft and a Fischer Price like oar to fish on that lake. My mother spotted me on that thing in the middle of the lake freaking out and called for me to come in. I did catch one fish before she caught me and I distinctly remember the small inflatable boat spinning around in circles as I reeled it in.

Watching this video reminded me of those days and thought I’d share. Bill Dance is a goofball.

Bassmaster Weekend Series Announces Schedule for Central Florida in 2009

Here’s the schedule for Central Florida:

Florida – Division 6
01/17/2009 Harris Chain of Lakes Venetian Gardens
02/28/2009 Kissimmee Chain Camp Mack’s
04/04/2009 St. John’s River Ed Stone Park
05/09/2009 Harris Chain of Lakes Venetian Gardens
09/19-20/2009 St. Johns River Palatka City Docks

Here’s the complete schedule for the rest of the country from American Bass Anglers:

REGION 1: SOUTHERN
Alabama North – Division 1
02/28/2009 Guntersville Lake Guntersville State Park
03/28/2009 Weiss Lake Weiss Mart Marina
05/09/2009 Wheeler Lake Ingalls Harbor
06/27/2009 Neely Henry Lake Gadsden Boat Dock
09/19-20/2009 Guntersville Lake Guntersville State Park

Alabama South – Division 2
01/24/2009 Lake Martin Wind Creek State Park
02/21/2009 Lake Eufaula Lakepoint State Park
05/02/2009 Lay Lake Beeswax Landing
05/30/2009 Alabama River Cooters Pond
08/22-23/2009 Logan Martin Lake Lakeside Landing

Tennessee Central – Division 3
03/21/2009 Percy Priest Lake Fate Sanders Marina
04/25/2009 Center Hill Lake Ragland Bottoms
06/20/2009 Old Hickory Lake Bulls Creek Access
07/18/2009 Kentucky Lake Paris Landing State Park
09/12-13/2009 Percy Priest Lake Fate Sanders Marina

Tennessee East – Division 4
02/14/2009 Guntersville Lake Goose Pond
04/04/2009 Chickamauga Lake Chester Frost Park
05/02/2009 Ft. Loudoun-Tellico Lakes Tellico Recreational Ramp
06/13/2009 Chickamauga Lake Dayton Boat Dock
08/29-30/2009 Watts Bar Lake Tom Fuller Park

REGION 2: SOUTHEAST
North Carolina – Division 5
02/14/2009 Lake Wylie Ebenezer Park
03/21/2009 Lake Norman Pinnacle Point
05/16/2009 High Rock Lake Southmont Abbotts Creek
06/20/2009 Lake Wylie Ebenezer park
08/29-30/2009 High Rock Lake Southmont Abbotts Creek

South Carolina – Division 7
02/07/2009 Lake Murray Dreher Island State Park
03/07/2009 Clarks Hill Reservoir Dorn Sport Fishing Facility
03/28/2009 Santee Cooper John C. Land III
04/25/2009 Lake Hartwell Portman Marina
09/12-13/2009 Lake Hartwell Portman Marina

Georgia – Division 9
01/31/2009 Lake Eufaula Lake Point Resort State Park
03/14/2009 Lake Oconee Sugar Creek Marina
04/18/2009 Lake Sinclair Little River Park
06/06/2009 West Point Lake Highland Marina Resort
09/26-27/2009 West Point Lake Highland Marina Resort

REGION 3: SOUTH CENTRAL
Southeast Texas – Division 10
02/07/2009 Sam Rayburn Umphrey Family Pavilion
02/28/2009 Toledo Bend Cypress Bend
03/14/2009 Sam Rayburn Umphrey Family Pavilion
05/30/2009 Toledo Bend Cypress Bend
09/12-13/2009 Sam Rayburn Umphrey Family Pavilion

East Texas – Division 11
01/24/2009 Lake Palestine Villages Marina
02/14/2009 Lake Tyler Lake Tyler Marina
03/21/2009 Richland Chambers Oak Cove Marina
04/18/2009 Cedar Creek Log Cabin
09/19-20/2009 Lake O’ The Pines Johnson Creek Park

Arkansas – Division 12
01/31/2009 Ouachita Mountain Harbor
03/07/2009 Lake Dardanelle Dardanelle State Park
06/20/2009 Greer’s Ferry Lake Devil’s Fork Marina
07/11/2009 Lake Millwood Yarborough
09/26-27/2009 Arkansas River Alltel Ramp (Little Rock)

Louisiana – Division 13
01/17/2009 Pearl River Ed Scroggins
03/28/2009 Atchafalaya Basin Doiron’s Landing
04/25/2009 Lake D’Arbonne Lake D’Arbonne Marina
06/06/2009 Toledo Bend Cypress Bend
08/29-30/2009 Red River (Natchitoches) Grand Ecore Landing

REGION 4: MIDWEST
Oklahoma – Division 14
04/04/2009 Grand Lake Martin’s Landing
05/02/2009 Tenkiller Chicken Creek
06/13/2009 Ft. Gibson Taylor’s Ferry Marina
07/18/2009 Arkansas River Port of Muskogee
09/05-06/2009 Eufaula Eufaula Cove

Kentucky – Division 15
03/07/2009 Kentucky Lake Kentucky Dam Marina
04/18/2009 Kentucky Lake Kenlake State Park
06/06/2009 Lake Barkley Lake Barkley Marina
07/25/2009 Kentucky Lake Paris Landing State Park
08/22-23/2009 Lake Barkley Lake Barkley Marina

Missouri – Division 16
03/14/2009 Lake of the Ozarks State Park, Public Beach #2
04/11/2009 Table Rock Lake Port of Kimberling
05/16/2009 Truman Lake Long Shoal Marina
07/11/2009 Stockton Lake Orleans Trail Marina
09/26-27/2009 Table Rock Lake Port of Kimberling

Wisconsin/Minnesota – Division 18
05/30/2009 MS River – La Crosse Copeland West-Clinton St.
06/27/2009 MS River – Wabasha City Ramp at Ike’s Park
07/25/2009 MS River – Prairie Du Chien Washington Street Park
08/15/2009 MS River – La Crosse Copeland West – Clinton St.
09/19-20/2009 MS River – Wabasha City Ramp at Ike’s Park
(***This division is pending permits and schedule could change***)

REGION 5: NORTHEAST
Virginia – Division 19
03/07/2009 Lake Gaston Americamps
03/28/2009 Kerr Lake North Bend
06/06/2009 Lake Gaston Holly Grove Marina
06/27/2009 Kerr Lake North Bend
07/18-19/2009 Kerr Lake North Bend

Ohio – Division 20
04/18/2009 Indian Lake Moundwood
05/16/2009 Alum Creek New Galena
05/30/2009 Rocky Fork East Shore Marina
06/13/2009 Mosquito Lake Mosquito Lake State Park
08/22-23/2009 Erie Sandusky, Shelby Street

Maryland – Division 21
03/21/2009 Lake Anna Sturgeon Creek
04/25/2009 Potomac River Smallwood State Park
05/09/2009 Upper Chesapeake Bay Anchor Boats Marina
05/23/2009 Potomac River Smallwood State Park
07/25-26/2009 Potomac River Smallwood State Park

New York West – Division 22
06/20/2009 Chautauqua Long Point
08/08/2009 Seneca Lake Seneca Lake State Park
08/29/2009 Chautauqua Long Point State Park
09/12/2009 Canandaigua Town Ramp
09/26-27/2009 Oneida Lake Oneida Shores State Park

New York East – Division 23
07/11/2009 Lake George Ticonderoga Mossey Point
08/01/2009 Lake Champlain, Whitehall, NY South Bay
08/15/2009 Lake Champlain Plattsburgh
09/05/2009 Sacandaga Lake Northville
09/19-20/2009 1000 Islands French Creek Marina

Testing Out My Theories on Fishing Current

my buddy Ralph’s biggest bass ever

Well, my theory about fishing in current was sort of right. I fished some current coming into John’s Lake and caught about 10 fish between 2 and 3 pounds. I got one on a black buzzbait and none on my 1/4 ounce spinnerbait. I tried the senko and trick worm and they wouldn’t bite for some reason. There was way too much timber for me to try the carolina rig, but I’m sure it would’ve worked. All the rest came on a watermelon red fluke made by Gitem Baits. I ran out of that color but it didn’t matter. They were biting the chartreuse and white ones as well.

Even my buddy caught a few and he can barely cast a spinning rod. I mean there was a few instances where I saw some flukes fly eerily close to my face, but heck it’s about having good company out there. He was really out there to suck down some Bud Light on the lake, but he was pretty excited about the biggest bass of his life so far. I told him I’ll get him on some bigger ones sometime soon.

All I know is everyone’s gonna know about this spot soon because some of kids that hang out at the boat ramp were asking everyone pulling their boat out of the water whether or not they’d found the spot with the gate, aka the place with the current. I told them that’s where I just came from. I normally wouldn’t care, but it’s a tough spot to find. I guess the current’s gonna stop soon and it won’t matter anyway.

A note to self. Don’t tell the kids at the ramp where the fish are.

Fishing for Bass in Current

I’ve doing a lot of fishing in current the past couple of weeks on John’s Lake and the Kissimmee Chain and the best baits have been a watermelon red & silver flake fluke, a drop shot rig with a junebug finesse worm, a chartreuse spinnerbait, and a red eye shad rattle trap in the chrome sexy shad color. They’ve been stacked up in the eddys and I was too busy catching them to try somethin else.

Now that I think about, I should have also fished a carolina rig, a Sworming Hornet Fish Head Spinner, a buzzbait, and probably a 1/4 ounce spinnerbait. My guess is that the bass are sitting in the current breaks waiting for shad to swim by and whackin’em. I thinkin this because the fluke has been the best bait.

I hope we get a lot more rain sometime soon so I can test out my theory.