Really Bad Angler needs advice

[Fat Rabbit]

Welcome to the Dead Sea. I live across the street from it in the upper end near Rock Creek and will drive to Guntersville 90% of the time before fishing Tims.

 

[jimwarden]

Normandy is really close and crappie and bass are much easier to catch there. I don't like Tims Ford. Beautiful lake but very difficult fishing.

 

[iluvbassfishing]

Sounds like my last 2 trips to Parksville LoL ! DonBerry , you sound a little like me . I came home after 3 hours today and had no less than 8 or 9 lures of all shapes and sizes laying everywhere ! I even gave up the bass hunt and tried about 2 hours of crappie fishing WITH live minnows and NEVER got a SINGLE bite !! I can't stand to go to parksville LoL BUT BUT BUT its only 10 mintues from the house vs 45 + to HBSP .

I like being on the water , don't get to go much at all anymore working 7 days a week , so even if I'm not catching anything I still enjoy being out there . I seem to do " ok " during the spring / summer , but the colder weather fishing has me wanting to stay home in my warm man cave holding the PS3 controller hehehehe .

I guess its time to try some plastics friday . I have a buddy that used to fish up here a lot and swears all you need is some Fat Albert grubies , but I've yet to have that work for me either . I keep trying , fishing is about all my old butt can do anymore .

Here's a stupid question .............. is it better to fish as a front comes in or after ? I'm thinking before because of the barometric pressure ??

Also taking any hints or advice for Parksville lake ! ! !

Good luck !

 

[Basshopper]

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For night fishing, fish plastics slow, grubs, worms-shaky heads, go with light tackle much as possible 1/4 oz jig&pigs. The Key is fish slow. Good luck, I know what you are going through as I have trouble on the upper chic but can have good days on other lakes.
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[T Roy]

All I can say is keep fishing an never give up

 

[WOBBLE HEAD]

That's why it's called fishing and not catching.

 

[Tangled]

try a ribbit high floater,pearl belly green body,throw it out and just let it sit untill the riplles vanish then just make a few twitchs every few seconds,slow real slow,ran into a situation here on the chick they would not hit anything moving,found out by accident that letting it sit 30 seconds or longer then twitching it would trigger a strike, had a backlash and was untangling it when it all started,had been fishing for over an hour knowing they were fish there without a bite

 

[TightlineT]

Pointer 78 - 11/22/2011 5:41 PM

Consider hiring a guide. They're kinda expensive, but the experience can give you information and ideas you can use to be more successful for years. Find a buddy to go with you and split the cost.

I think this is great advice. Some of the best money I have spent on fishing. With the right guide, they will not only help you fish for that time of year, but give you tips for other times of the year. Me and a buddy split one and it was great.

 

[donberry]

yes, I am saving for a guide. I think one triip with a guide would be worth it's weight in gold to me. I would like to think I just need some fine tuning.....

 

[MadBomber]

When it gets cool, I think it's best to go in the daytime. Get on some of those bluffs and fish grubs, pig & jig and deep diving crank baits parallel to the bluff. On the jigs and grubs, use 1/16oz heads so they sink slowly. Stay as close to the bluff as possible. Watch for pockets in the rocks. Spend a little extra time fishing those. Downsize your lures to increase your chances.</p>

Remember, a bluff is nothing more than rip rap turned up on it's edge!! emoLaugh </p>

 

[donberry]

well, I always start out in the day but get stubborn and end up staying out at night. I went fishing yesterday. Air temp was around 60, water temp was 58. I did buy crappie minnows. I stuck to only 3 lures during the day - a Rapala DT, a Lucky Craft Flash Minnow, and a salt and pepper color grub that was maybe a total of 3" long on a 1/16th oz jig head , unpainted with a red hook but obviously most of the hook was covered by the grub.
Where I normally launch my boat was actually closed due to low water but I did launch there anyway, as did about 6 other people. Last time I can launch there as the water depth was only 2.6 feet.
I stayed in the one main creek channel working pretty much the entire shoreline - secondary points, bluffs etc. Wind was blowing so I cast into the wind so the lure would be going with the current. I started with the Rapala DT and fished each one for about an hour and just kept rotating thru them. Nothing.
Whenever I came across downed timber I did stop and tried for some crappie - only thing I caught was 4 bluegills.
I was on the water around 11:00 am, back to the dock around 9:30 pm.
When it got dark, I did put a spinnerbait into the rotation and also tried a buzzbait.
Nothing.
I don't know - I did see quite a few other people out. Didn't seem like they were having very much luck either, but didn't ever get close enough to ask - just watched a few moving from point to point.
I have no doubt tho that someone was catching fish. Great water temp, no reason I shouldn't be.
Not much left for me to do but get a guide and see where I am going wrong.

 

[Tangled]

buy ya some dynomite

 

[Hank's Dad]

Tims Ford is da debil Bobby Boucher! Or she's the ex-wife that wants more alimony and child support and puts out all kinds of info that keeps you from getting any anywhere else. It's like a concentration camp and you're the prisoner. It's like hemmorid surgery...TWICE!

The only way I could find fish there consistantly is for someone to drain it and walk me to them.

Failing on Tims Ford doesn't make you a bad angler. It makes you normal. The only people who are successful there are the ones who fish it REGULARLY!!! And I mean at least twice a week.

 

[donberry]

LowriePix.com - 11/26/2011 10:49 AM

Failing on Tims Ford doesn't make you a bad angler. It makes you normal. The only people who are successful there are the ones who fish it REGULARLY!!! And I mean at least twice a week.

Well, unfortunately for me I have been going out a minimum of twice a week since around July - but I was catching a few fish every time out, just nothing very big. Although in September I happened to be sitting right where they went into a feeding frenzy and was catching one every cast. They would come on the flat for about 3-4 minutes , go back to the incline for about 5 minutes and then start all over - lasted for like 1 1/2 hours if I remember correctly. 1st time I cauight a few, mainly 13" smallmouth but the 2nd time I discovered they just LOVED the small original rapala or a shadilicious. Moment they came in they would take either of those within seconds and I would get it in as fast as I could so I could get the fish off and back in. Again mainly 13" smallmouth but I also caught a couple of 24" largemouth.
I made the mistake though of thinking I had the lake figured out when it was obvious I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Since then I was catching maybe one small one a trip and that was because I normally reverted to hunting for largemouth. Have not caught another smallmouth since.

I have not done it in a while, but in the summer I could go out and load the boat with white bass, but I wanted to learn smallmouth and striper.
Can not remember last time i caught anything but a bream since November.

So, I appreciate everyone's comments, they really have been useful. I have decided my course of action is going to be 1. hit the lake a few times when the water is at it's lowest so I can "map" everything. Basically mark it on my gps, take a bunch of pictures of the area and jot down notes about any pertinent info - i.e. small pebble bottom, incline etc. Then in the spring when the water starts coming back up, I should hopefully have a better understanding of the lake - at least where I map.
2. Hire a guide. I am not looking for his honey holes. I would hope that with a lake like this there are more than a few without having to steal a guide's - I obviously need to learn the small details. I may wait until spring or summer before I do this, will have to see if I catch fish. Will definitely get one for the fall.
3. quit being so stubborn and staying out so long it is no longer enjoyable but fishing only because I am so frustrated. I need to just relax and enjoy being out there in the first place. I doubt it, but maybe I am not catching anything because I am putting so much pressure on myself. Understand I am not my brother and just take what I can get and maybe over the long haul I will learn to fish it better.
I will never give up on Tims. 1st, it is too close. I am maybe 8 minutes from the dock (until they draw down for the winter). 2nd thing I figure if I can learn how to catch fish out of Tims, it should be pretty valuable for most other lakes. Maybe, maybe not.
Again, sorry so long. Medicine kicked in a bit ago and I do get verbose.
Thanks for all the info. I have saved all of the replies and will continue to read thru all of the info.

 

[Hank's Dad]

Talk with Jake Davis- Mid South Bass Guide. He's a regular and a sponsor on here. Jake lives and guides on Tims....BUT spends most of this time on Guntersville and second most on Nickajack. So you can see what he thinks of it. But he can help you out as well. If you're going to get a guide for Tims that's the only way to go. Jake knows it as well as anyone. He knows where and when to go and also when to fish another lake. And to me that is also a key. There's times you're better off just going somewhere else.

 

[Hair Jig]

Don, you picked a tough lake. Tims has always been finicky. We've gone on a Friday night and slayed the fish, only to return the following night under the same conditions and have a struggle to find them. However, I can fish that lake and carry every bait I'll need in my shirt pocket. I've fished there off and on for 15 years, and if I were to offer advice it would be this:</p>

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Find yourself a regular fishing partner who is experienced and is willing to teach you "the ropes" of bass fishing. </p>

As for Tims Ford:</p>

1) Fish only in the daylight hours from Nov 1st until April 1st. </p>

2) When fishing at night, leave everything alone except for hair jigs, arky-style jigs, 4" grubs, and LARGE worms.</p>

3) Crankbaits are not a good bait on Tims at anytime.</p>

4) If the water levels are dropping ..... go home!</p>

5) If the lake is "slick" ..... go home!</p>

6) Fish points and shallow stump fields. </p>

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[heydaddy]

Relax and enjoy fishing. Fish with the baits you have confidence in and go from there. Pressure to catch em like KVD will make you take up golf. Enjoy and fish what you know