Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Week of November 18, 2012

A spate of beautiful fall weather and the arrival of my wife's relatives for Thanksgiving spurred me to Lake Fork once more for 2 and a half days with Dale and Rhandy.  I fished 2 full days and a morning with Dale and 2 half evenings with Rhandy.  The weather was a bit cool for me in the mornings, lows around 50, but things warmed quickly in the afternoon and I was back in short sleeves with a need for sunscreen.  Winds were very light and that helped a lot.  I think Tuesday topped out at about 75 degrees, which was just perfect. 

The biggest fish we saw this trip was around 4 pounds so no big fish stories.  We saw a few schooling fish, but never really got them to bite.  They never stayed up very long either.  I did hook one good fish with Rhandy but it got off, somehow, after I swung hard and thought I had him jammed.  It left one big scale on the hook and that was that.  Things were mostly average to slow with almost every fish under 2 pounds.  They were still fun to catch.  I even foul hooked a catfish in the tail with an excaliber.  That was interesting!  I think our totals for Monday were 12, 18 on Tuesday, and 8 Wednesday morning. 

We used just about every technique except buzz baits and spinner baits.   As usual, carolina rigs with flukes were the best producer.  We caught a few on crankbaits and rat-L-traps.  Spoons weren't happening, though we gave them a go several times. We even messed with shakey heads, wacky worms, and jigs, with nothing to show.

My favorite part of this trip was the beautiful weather, catching a fish every now and then, and enjoying the fall scenery at Lake Fork.  The trees are starting to turn and we saw a bobcat chasing ducks.  We also saw several bald eagles.  Plus the usual amazing sunrises and sunsets. I shall return, as soon as I can!

 
 
 
 
 
 Oh, and the Minnow Bucket is still closed, but the sign tells the tale!