Lake Bixhoma, 10/18/2013

[Allen Morgan]

Arrived about 0700.  It was NIPPY!!!  Glad I dressed for it.  Water temp is pretty cool, as is the air temp, so I was wearing my waders, insulated pants under those, polyprop fishing shirt with a fleece pullover.

 

I launched my kayak, loaded down with my typical Bass Search setup.  I was trolling a Rapala Clankin Minnow in silver/black, and had a black Jitterbug rigged on my other pole.  While trolling, I took a few readings.  Water temp was 63.8°F, and it was mostly cloudy, wind out of the northeast about 5 mph.  My sonar was showing no signs of a thermocline.  Then the sonar died.  Dang cheap batteries…….

 

Anyway, I had this gut feeling the fish were probably way back where the creek dumps into the lake.  As I entered the south half of the lake, I got a little tap on my trolling rod.  That’s unusual.  Normally, when a LMB hits that, it’s an instant hookup.  I don’t normally get a “tap” and no hookup.  I paddled on, directly into the sun.  

 

A few minutes later, ba-BANG!  Hookup on the trolling rod!  I picked the rod, and started reeling.  Whatever “it” was, had some size to it, but for some odd reason, didn’t really want to fight.  I got it about 20’ from the yak when the head of the fish broke surface and I got an ID on it.  A Black Crappie!  Big one, too!  It measured out at 13”.

 

Once I got that fish unhooked and released, I dropped the lure back into the water and continued to the head of the lake.  Suddenly, I started seeing splashed in the distance.  YES!  Schooling fish slashing into bait!  I picked up the pace.  I reeled in my trolling rod, as I knew it was going to start getting shallow, and I didn’t want to snag onto anything.  Plus, I wanted to make as quiet of an entry into that little cove as I could, and didn’t want any extra thumping from the trolling rod spooking fish.

 

I got within a couple hundred yards, and saw a few more splashes.  Then, I saw a few ducks against the sky, close to where the second set of splashes had come from.  Joy.  Birds, not fish.

 

I went ahead and made a stealthy approach anyway.  I’ve never fished that cove, and wanted to give it a go.  As I glided into the cove, I started seeing a few signs of fish chasing minnows near the weeds.  OK, not all is lost.  I picked up the rod with the Jitterbug and started throwing it here and there, near the weeds, over the grassy bottom, trying to scratch a fish.  Nothing.

 

I get almost all the way back, when I hear a whole lot of splashin’ going on BEHIND me.  I turn around, and wouldn’t you know it, a school of fish are slashing into bait in an area I had just coasted through.  I quietly turn my yak around and let the wind push me towards the target area.  I made a few casts, and nothing.  I actually had fish crashing into bait all over, some of the fish were as close as 15’ from my yak!  But nothing wanted that Jitterbug.  Ok, pull out my crankbait box, cut off the Jitterbug, and look through the box for “something” that should match the bait.  I settled on a Shad Rap “ScatterRap” in a size 5.  I had drifted past the “feeding” area, but made a few casts around anyway.  I got a nice little LMB that was hanging around a clump of weeds on the surface.  I got another, smaller, LMB in a pocket of water willow.

That was the extent of my catching.  I did a lot more fishing, but nothing to show for it.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Great report, Allen. I always enjoy your thoughts as you work out the fishing day.