Week of May 20, 2013

Rhandy finally got his greenhouses cleared out of spring plants and invited me out for a couple of days of "fun fishing".  I brought the BBQ and beer and helped out with the gas and Rhandy let me crash at his Siesta Ranch and we went crappie fishing every day.  A pretty good trade-out if you ask me, and even if you don't ask me!

We spent Tuesday morning on lake Bob Sandlin and came home with 22 keeper crappie which Rhandy cleaned up and bagged for me to take home later.  We came in early due to some big thunderstorms building to the west and made it back in just in time to dodge the rain and hail.  I managed to snooze my siesta right through the thunderstorm and didn't hear a thing!  Hey, it is called Siesta Ranch!  After some fabulous BBQ and much beer we called it an early evening and crashed to prepare for Wednesday's festivities. 

 

Wednesday's weather was much calmer so we headed out to Lake Cypress Springs to check out the crappie there.  As we put out from the dock at the ramp Rhandy commented it needed some repair.  We spent about 4 hours catching one here and one there under the bridge and ended up with 29 keepers, including one giant 2.2 pound crappie that was 16 inches long.  Anywhere else they would have mounted that fish.  Rhandy couldn't stand it any longer so despite a fridge full of righteous Q, we dined on fresh fried crappie that evening and, man, were they excellent!  We mounted the 16 incher on a fork and ate it!

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday we spent the morning back at Lake Cypress Springs.  When we went to load in the parks people were there fixing the dock.  Rhandy got his wish.  We caught another 10 crappie including another 2 pounder.  Rhandy kept those and sent me home with 80 crappie filets for my freezer.  I have a very happy freezer.

 

week of April 28, 2013

Another fun couple of days out with Dale and Rhandy on Lake Fork.  The weather was amazing except for Wednesday when the wind slicked off and it got pretty warm.

Rhandy and I started Sunday out at Lake Cypress Springs for some crappie fishing.  We didn't kill them but I came home with enough filets for a few dinners. We caught a few giants, too!

Monday I went out with Dale while my buddy Trey and his son in law went out with Rhandy.  We caught a few but Rhandy put Trey on a 6 and 7 pounder and Rhandy caught one over 8.  We had a decent mexican dinner in Quitman before they had to head back to town.

Tuesday David came out and joined Dale and I and things started out pretty good on a main lake point.  David hooked a good one but it spit the hook.  Later Dale caught one at 9 pounds and 12 ounces.  It was a fat monster.  I was sure it was over 10.  When David netted the fish the hook fell out of its mouth.  We spent the rest of the day catching one here and one there on a variety of techniques.

David had to head back but I went back out with Rhandy around 2:30 pm.  Rhandy caught one that went about 6 pounds and I hooked a big fish that straightened out the hook on my rattle trap.  I never saw the fish but it felt like a good one.

Wednesday Dale and I started before 6 am to get out to his favorite deep water hole before it was camped by other fishermen.  I jumped off about an 8 pounder who spit a crankbait at my head.  I got to see that fish and it was a big heavy fish laying right where Dale said it would be.  Drat.  We did catch a few decent fish before they shut off around 8 am.  We hunted the rest of the day with little success as the wind dropped to zero and temperatures climbed.  It felt more like summer than spring for awhile there.

In our travels we saw a nice immature bald eagle and I snapped a couple of photos.  His white head had not quite developed yet but it was a huge bird.

I ended the day with Dale by hanging a carolina rig in the top of a tree as a christmas ornament. I hate doing that!  The fish are certainly deeper than 30 feet in the air.  We went in to meet up with Rhandy about 2 pm.

Rhandy and I headed straight to his honey hole and things started slow.  After about 40 minutes of no bites, Rhandy finally hooked a 7 pound 2 ounce bass and got it to the boat.  We stayed around his "go to" hump but never got the action we had seen the previous day.  We did get a couple of DD-22 fish pitching around stumps.  Off we went to try several other good spots without success.

 

 Around 6 pm the wind turned around to the northeast and started blowing 15-20 mph.  We went back to the main lake point where I had my hook straightened the day before and at first had no better luck.  Then we saw a single bass, about 3 pounds, chasing a single shad all over the top of the water around the boat.  At that point we had been sitting shallow and throwing out deep as that is where we got the best bite on Tuesday.  That showed us they were up shallow and I started pitching a rattle trap along the shore.  I told Rhandy if the bite didn't pick up by 6:30 we'd just go in and drink beer.  Shortly after that I caught a 3 pounder.  Then, right at 6:30 I hooked an 8 pound 4 ounce "good un'".  It made for deep water but I got it out from under the boat and into the net.  That was a strong fish!  We fished about another 30 minutes and I caught one more bass before we went in to drink much beer.  Photo of that fish is at the top.

I had planned to fish Thursday morning a half day with Dale, but yet another strong cold front made us think better.  I appreciate Dale's flexibility a lot as I don't think either of us would have enjoyed the 30 mph winds and plunging temperatures that were expected.

I'll be back for more soon!

Week of April 21, 2013

More fun in the sun with Rhandy and Dale this week.  No big fish this week.  The biggest we caught was a 6 pound 7 ounce fish Dale hooked.  We had some fun and I caught several around 4 pounds. I also caught one long skinny fish, probably a very old male.  If it had packed the weight on like all the other fish it probably would have gone 7 pounds.  However in its emaciated condition it only went about 3.  Record low temps and a cold rain Tuesday night killed our fun, but I shall be back again soon!

Special mention to Rhandy for the outstanding Armadillo eggs.  Huge jalapenos stuffed with cheese, wrapped in bacon, and coated in BBQ sauce.  More please!

week of April 14, 2013

Another fun few days with Dale and Rhandy on beautiful Lake Fork. I fished Sunday afternoon with Rhandy, then mornings with Dale and evenings with Rhandy the next 3 days.  Plans for another half day with Dale on Thursday were derailed by a howling cold front that dropped temperatures 30 degrees and 3 hours of heavy rain and high winds.  We made a good decision canceling Thursday morning.  Temperatures were mid to upper 80's during most of the days and mid 60's to lower 70's in the evenings. Nice fishin' weather except for a stiff south south wind that got ridiculous on Wednesday.

Sunday evening was tough with just a few fish caught and no size.  We hit some good spots with just a few dinks to show for it.  We figured the fish still were not back from the last cold front and planned to hit the same spots again later in the week.  Monday was no easier as we tried to find spots out of the wind to tie up and fish shakey heads.  Later in the day we got back in a good pocket and caught a few on Texas rigs.  Dale and I had 11 but I think I only caught 2.  After switching to Rhandy's boat we headed back to some of the same spots we hit Sunday, fished the same techniques, but this time it paid off.  We had 12 fish and I had one that went 4 and another around 6 pounds.

Tuesday my buddy David came out and joined us once again.  This time we did a bit better.  In the morning we fished a high spot near deep water and caught a few small bass and a couple of sandbass.  I decided to pitch out in deep water and hooked a 7 pound 5 inch fish that put up a good fight.  I think he was eating some sandbass out there.  She liked my excaliber crankbait.  The fish's stomach was huge and there was a big tail sticking out of her gullet.

After we wore out our welcome at that spot we moved back in the pocket where we had success the day before.  This time the wind was down enough we could fish wacky worms and they worked well. We got a lot of bites but only hooked a few of the fish.  I had one lane I went down 8 or 9 times and got bit every single time, but only boated 2 small bass and hung up 2 hooks.  David got the nicest one at about 5 pounds.

We started out the only boat in that pocket but before long it got crowded with other boats so we went elsewhere.  I think we ended up with 11 fish total.  David had to head back but I headed out again with Rhandy about 3 pm.  We went back to our successful spots from the day before but the fish were gone once again.  After moving around a bit I finally got two bites, then hooked up with a nice 7 pound 6 ounce fish.  How Rhandy managed to beat Dale's fish I'll never know, but he is sneaky like that!  Even missing part of its tail.  Hooked her with a Carolina rig with a fluke.

Rhandy caught a couple of more decent fish but I never had another bite.  We bagged it early around 7 pm and went in to drink much beer.  Two 7 pounders in one day is not too shabby.

Wednesday was tough and was mainly spent battling the wind.  I caught some big ol' sandbass early and couple of small bass late but mostly we were just trying to feel our bait as the wind picked up and got stupid.  The ride back was a bone pounder as the wind seemed to be blowing a steady 20-30 mph.  Rhandy tried to get us out on the main lake after Dale dropped me off but it was just unfishable.  We spent several hours up in Leafy Branch without much success and even had to chase down Rhandy's hat while we were back in there.  It was just too windy.  Back for more soon!

week of March 17, 2013

Well I finally got my first bass trip in for 2013.  We had a lot of fun and had some decent fishing but no monsters were captured.  I fished a half day Sunday with Rhandy, then a full day with Dale and a half day with Rhandy on Monday through Wednesday, then another half day with Dale on Thursday.  Most days we were fishing sun up to sun down or "can to kaint" and we were often the first boat off the ramp and the last back to the ramp.  You can't say I don't like to fish!

Sunday evening was a nice laid back affair and I think we caught 6 or 8 fish.  The biggest was about a 6 pounder that Rhandy caught.  We pretty much stuck to Carolina rigs and the fish seemed to like that.

Monday morning we left out at 7:30 and hit some spots back in Little Caney and Northwest Bay.  Dale had the best fish at almost 8 pounds but I was too slow with the camera.  We fished a lot of shakey heads and a few jigs and ended up with 8 fish for the day.  After a short stop I switched over to Rhandy's boat and we hung around secondary points on the main lake around the hog pens down to alligator.  We found 7 fish and my biggest was half-a-lunker. Exactly 6 pounds 8 ounces.

 

Tuesday my buddy David came out and joined Dale and I. It was cold and cloudy most of the morning and the fish were NOT happy.  Dale said he'd push me in the lake if I blogged about it so I'll just say everyone caught fish and had fun.  Dale did his job, the fish were just ornery.  David had to leave when I switched over to Rhandy's boat but we headed over to try some spots in Little Caney with no luck.  We went back to the main lake and hit a few pockets and came away with 6 fish.  Nothing big but still fun.

Wednesday we hit the water before dawn and headed back over to Little Caney.  We pulled half way back in a pocket and almost immediately started catching fish.  We stayed in that same pocket until 1:30 pm and probably had 10 fish by the time we left.  Shakey heads were the bait of choice.  We moseyed down the bank a ways and found another 6 before heading in to meet Rhandy. 

 

Rhandy decided to try up north by the crossroads so we put in at the 515 public ramp.  Our first stop was a sandy bay and if they were there, they were not interested.  We moved back across the lake and I hooked up with 5 fish including a 5.5 and a 6 pounder.  In the evening Carolina rigs seemed to be the ticket.

 Thursday dawned another grey day with gusty winds and it was COLD (for me).  Probably mid 40's.  We had some rain and that didn't help a bit.  It just made it colder.  The fish didn't seem to mind because we boated 11 in just 3 hours. Dale had a good one on but it wrapped him up and got off.  I caught a for sure future Share Lunker.  Way way in the future. 

I have already booked two more trips.  I can't wait!

week of December 3, 2012

Oh  my.  Bass fishing in December.  Yes the weather was supposed to be very nice for 3 days but it was really only for one day, Tuesday.  Temperatures in the mid 70's, light winds, plenty of sunshine, and hungry  fish made for a great last trip of the year.  A cold front came through about 10:30 am but the winds didn't get too nasty til around 2 pm.  I fished with Dale until 3 pm and we boated 30 bass up to 5 and a half pounds.  My biggest was about 4 pounds. It seemed like almost every place we hit had a few fish and that made for a fun day on the lake.  Every fish I caught came on a Carolina rig with a fluke. I even caught a clam shell.  Hah!  Unfortunately it was a slot clam so I had to throw it back.

After a short stop I went out again with Rhandy and we stayed until dark about 6 pm.  We boated another 5 fish before the wind and the dropping temperatures sent us in for beer.

After dinner I found an unwanted shower guest and flushed him out to sea to feed the fishes.  That's the first bug I have ever seen at Hook Line and Sinker, but I will sure be keeping my shoes on a chair from now on!

The sign at the Minnow Bucket said 51 degrees when we headed out at 7 am the next morning.  That plus a stiff breeze around 10-20 made it downright nippy.  The weather forecast had called for 5 mph winds and a high of 67 but I don't think it cracked 60 til well after noon.  I do NOT like cold weather but it did not seem to bother the fish too bad.  Dale had to hunt a little harder but we found another 17 fish and most were bigger than what we saw Tuesday.  They seemed to be hugging the bottom and would hit at the fluke but wouldn't bite it until you reeled up fast.  So I did!  My biggest was around 5 pounds off a road bed around 20 feet.  Fun catching, even if it was cold.

Once again I headed out with Rhandy about 3 pm and we tried chasing some schooling fish.  We caught a couple of dinks on rat L Traps but they never stayed up for long.  After that we headed over to SRA where we saw several nice bald eagles.  I saw a lot of them this trip both flying around and sitting in trees.  We caught a couple more nice fish, including one drive by bass that flipped near us and bit my Carolina Rig as I reeled through.  Fun stuff.  Also a gorgeous sunset that was worth more than a few pictures.

 

 

Plans to fish Thursday were derailed by Dale's cows and the cold weather so that will have to conclude my bass fishing for 2012.  Of course Dale was nice enough to call me later and tell me someone caught a 11.86 pound bass on Thursday near where we were fishing.  To get even I will eat pork for awhile and no beef!

Spring will be here soon and I'll be staying in my nice warm house til then.  In the meantime, grow you fishes, grow!

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!