Jmax/polo-dog bassin' 7/6

[polo-dog]

Jmax had left a message when I got home to call and we went fishing from 7:15 to 9:30pm. We started out on a drop next to a flat that runs 8-12 feet deep. The fish were stacked on the drop and we caught one right after the other for about 10-12 fish. Jmax had 3 fish on the first 4 casts. I figured that there would be other fish in the creek that would be in similar spots so we left the hot bite. We fished two other similar drops and there were a few fish there but no big bunches. That was our worm fishing spot. We then decided to go for the topwater bite and went out to Harrison Bay. Fished shallow grass with buzz baits and caught a few more here and there. The wind was really whipping us down banks and I'm sure that we went past lots of good fish. It began to get dark and fished a drop with a worm and a black colorado blade spinner bait and caught a couple more. In all, 21 bass and all were very healthy. I figure that we could have caught a bunch more off the first drop but there was a lot of boat traffic and I like to try to duplicate spots to see if other areas will produce. We had a great time and three or four would have measured. The biggest fish hit a buzzer but missed the hook and wouldn't hit on repeat casts to the same spot.

 

[Jmax]

Thanks for the get togather Polo, as always we had a great time. I am sorry we only caught 21 bass in two hours, I was sure we could put 30 in the boat in two. I am going to blame it on us moving off the sweet spot after 10 and the wind on the buzz bait bite. Man, I am excited about the grass that is coming up. I sure hope they don't go and spray or something stupid like that.emoAngry I will not be a happy camper if they do. Had a great time, thanks again,emoThumbsup Jmax

 

[rsimms]

Wow! 21 bass in two hours, and you left fish! I'm impressed.

 

[fisherpal2k]

Nice job guys! Glad you two left a few! emoLaugh I was just wondering if the cold front and the cooling off would help the fishing and it sounds like it did. Jmax, I am gonna have to get lessons from you. disappointed with that many fish in two hours and leaving some to boot!emoLaugh

 

[Jmax]

Yea I love it when they start stacking up. I told Polo we would catch at least 10 or 12 there when we first pulled up and I positioned his boat. He told me,"You sure are confident." My reply was watch this, I made a long cast and hit the sweet spot, pulled up a couple times and tap, tap, set the hook and it was on. Caught three in four casts. I think Polo decided real fast I had good reason to be confident.emoThumbsup I never know what Polo will want to do. I had another spot just like that and after about 20 minutes and 10 bass he said lets move. He wanted to look for new water! We found two more points like that one and they had fish on them but only managed two more.emoScratch I think we may have missed the sweet spot on those. The ski boats were hell trying to fish in there. I told him there would be a buzz bite right at dark so he wanted to try it. The lake is up unusally high and all my grass was under water but since I knew where it was we fished it anyways. Love to see them hit the top on a buzz. We caught seven on the buzz and missed several others because of the waves and rough water. Finished off on a drop out in the main lake, he had one on a black spinner bait and me one on a black 10 inch zoom worm and we headed home right at dark. Nice evening on the water for just two hours.emoCool Jmax

I am really not disappointed in 21 bass in two hours, just like giving you all a hard time.emoPoke emoLaugh

 

[xroadsbasser]

JMAX, is the grass you are fishing millfoil, hydrilla or something else??? Maybe they won't find it and let it thrive!

 

[drc]

I don't think "they" look for it anymore. From what I have seen it's the winter drawdown that kills most of the grass on the Chick and that ain't changing anytime soon (or ever).

 

[Jmax]

xroadsbasser I am not sure what it is.emoScratch There is a mixture of it there in the area I like to fish. Polo and I got into this conversation yesterday. The stuff on top is like a tabacco weed that is leafie and lays over when it gets longer. Than under the water is a more light weight type of grass that is more massed out but not as thick. The tabacco grass seems to only grow in the shallow stuff like 0 to 4 feet deep. However the other type is as deep as 8 feet in a couple of spots I have found it in already. Last year when they drpped the water it was great for just a while when the fish were in it and it still had enough depth for them to be under it. I was catching 60 to 70 bass a day easy. CCSM went with me and saw it first hand. However once it got exposed and got cold it died. This year it looks like it is coming back much faster and should be thick fairly soon. On the CFF8 all three of my keepers that night came off the deep side of that 8 foot grassline.emoThumbsup Jmax

 

[drc]

Jmax, do you see the grass on your electronics or did you find it by casting and bringing it in on your hooks? I have a decent fishfinder but never see grass on it execpt in shallow coves where it is very thick and is visible to the eye, I never see it show up in deeper water (7-10ft). Maybe my sensitivity setting is not right or something.

 

[beetlespin]

I believe the deeper grass you are seeing is stargrass or spiny niad. It is better than nothing but not as good as milfoil. Doesnt matter to me though. I hate it all!! Only because I have forgotten how to fish it.

 

[Jmax]

Thanks beetlespin, that is the name I was looking for. I had another guy tell me it was called spiny niad. It does not seem to grow deeper than about 10 feet. I can only assume the sun light goes down that deep to cause it to grow. Any deeper and there is not enough sun. I have found the stuff both by sight, seeing it on my graph, and bringing it in on my line. I like to work the stuff with a light weight worm in a finesse pattern. A 1/16 oz weight and just shake it when it gets stuck. Most of the time it will work it's way free. A lot of times right when it does is when you get the hit.emoSmile Jmax

 

[Fishin Fool]

You hate it all!!!!! Wow I've never heard that one! I'm assuming you are just joking because I have caught some of the biggest, best quality bass I have ever caught out of grass and weeds like Jmax is talking about. Jmax you may have mentioned it but what color and how were you rigged? Also were you guys fishing really slow and letting the plastic hit bottom or just zooming it some?

beetlespin - 7/7/2006 11:56 AM

I believe the deeper grass you are seeing is stargrass or spiny niad. It is better than nothing but not as good as milfoil. Doesnt matter to me though. I hate it all!! Only because I have forgotten how to fish it.

 

[Jmax]

Fishnfool over the years I have taken up the habit of calling it catching the low hanging fruit. Turn the trolling motor up on high and haul butt down the bank. With me and polo both chunk-n and wined-n we were casting as fast as we could and catching only the aggressive bass on the buzz. The wind there was so bad that when we went with it we were haul-n without even touching the trolling motor. The big one that polo mentioned was about 3.5-4 lbs and hit my buzz by totally coming out of the water. We both saw it but the wind and waves were so bad it would not come back for the second hit and we blew on by. Now on the worm I fish it slow. Mentioned it before but 12 lb line, 1/16 oz bullet weight, T-rigged. I use a tube hook with the eye clip and fish it in the grass and shake it. CCSM is murder doing this, if you need a lesson he is the man to ask for one. I thought I was good at it until I went with him on a finesse shake pattern. I already warned him he better not show up at the G with that winnie line he uses or I may throw him out of the boat the first one that breaks off.emoLaugh I like to use two colors onthe chick this time of year. It was all I took with me to go with polo. A black 10 zoom u-tail worm at dust, dawn and night. then in the daylight the six inch pumkinseed chartruse tail zoom u-tail worm. polo was cracking jokes at mefor "All the tackle I had brought." Two packs of worms, three rods, one buzz bait and a puppy. JmaxemoBigsmile

 

[Biofisher I]

Great job guys. I must need a buzzbait lesson because I Can't seem to get them in the same quanity as you guys. It is a fun bite when it happens. Great job.

 

[polo-dog]

Jmax, the submurged weeds that we were fishing looked very much like these: http://www.agronomy.ucdavis.edu/uccerice/WEED/pondweed.htm
But I think that the water was high and so the leaves that are usually floating were under the water. Does this plant look right to you?
The other weed that was very prominent was southern or spiney Niad from what I remember. Most of the fish seemed to be in the Pond Weed or what you called Tobbacco but there was Niad everywhere.

 

[Jmax]

Yep, looks like the stuff to me. I was not sure what it was called but I think I can remember Pond Weed.emoLaugh Jmax

 

[jason]

Gee thanks, Jmax! After that performance, I don't see Polo taking me out anytime soonemoPoke! That was actually a great report and will come in handy if we hit the Chick tomorrow.

 

[Jmax]

Well, since I have been in such a sharing mood I thought I would tell what the puppy was for. Any time I use a buzz I like to have what I call a follow up bait. A sinko, a fluke or a puppy are all good choices. If you get a blow up on the buzz cast back a couple times. If you get nothing than back it up with the follow up bait. I just like a puppy and usually it works. I have had to use something that sunk at times and the other two are my choices. We could not do that yesterday becuase of the waves and wind. Jmax