Source: https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/midwest-finesse-fishing-october-2017/154727
Timestamp: 2019-04-25 02:47:32+00:00

Document:
Our October guide to Midwest finesse fishing contains 26 logs and 24,046 words that describe how, when, and where Midwest finesse anglers fished. It features the endeavors of Rick Allen of Dallas; Norman Brown of Lewisville, Texas; Roger Farish of Highland Village, Texas; Merit Goodman of Eudora, Kansas; Vincent Graceffa of Overland Park, Kansas; Bob Gum of Kansas City, Kansas, David Harrison of Lawrence, Kansas; Isaac Hebenstreit of Colorado Springs, Colorado; Kathy and Rick Hebenstreit of Shawnee, Kansas; John Kehde of Sedalia, Missouri; Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas; John Thomas of Denton, Texas; Mike Trometer of Plano, Texas; Andrew and Landry Ward of Peculiar, Missouri; and my northeastern Kansas' logs.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 62 degrees at 2:52 a.m. and 86 degrees at 3:52 p.m. The average low temperature for Oct. 2 in Lawrence, Kansas, is 48 degrees, and the average high temperature is 74 degrees. The wind angled out of the east, east by southeast, southeast, south by southeast, and south at 8 to 31 mph. The sky fluctuated from being clear to being partly cloudy to being scattered with clouds. The barometric pressure was 29.87 at 12:52 a.m., 29.86 at 5:52 a.m., 29.93 at 11:52 a.m., and 29.87 at 3:52 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 8:16 a.m. to 10:16 a.m., 8:41 p.m. to 10:41 p.m., and 2:04 a.m. to 4:04 a.m. I fished from 1:30 p.m. to 3:28 p.m. at one of northeastern Kansas' community reservoirs.
The surface temperature was 72 degrees. The water level was normal. The water clarity was adversely affected by a planktonic algae bloom, and the visibility was about two feet.
I could fish for no more than two hours. During these two hours, I was hoping to possess the wherewithal to catch 25 largemouth bass, and I barely achieved that goal by catching largemouth bass No. 25 with two minutes remaining on my time clock.
I spent those 118 minutes hiding from the wind and white caps by plying portions of two shorelines inside a major feeder-creek arm and portions of two shorelines inside a minor feeder-creek arm.
Along portions of one shoreline inside the major feeder-creek arm, I caught seven largemouth bass. The portions of the shoreline that I fished possess a 25- to 40-degree slope. The water's edge is embellished with patches of American water willows, some minor laydowns, and a few overhanging trees. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and some silt. One largemouth bass was caught on a 3.5-inch Z-Man Fishing Products' twilight Trick ShotZ affixed to a customized blue 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a swimming presentation around a minor laydown in about five feet of water. Two largemouth bass were caught on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher Tackle's Mushroom Head jig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about four feet of water around patches of American water willows that are intertwined with some minor laydowns. Four largemouth bass were caught on a shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve around the outside edges of patches of American water willows in three to four feet of water.
Along portions of the other shoreline inside the major feeder-creek arm, I caught nine largemouth bass. The portions of the shoreline that I fished possess a 25- to 45-degree slope. The water's edge is embellished with patches of American water willows, a few cattails, some minor laydowns, and several stumps. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, silt, and some humongous boulders. The largemouth bass were caught on the Hula StickZ rig. One was caught by employing a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around a stump in four feet of water. Two were caught by employing a drag-and-shake presentation in five to seven feet of water. One was caught by employing a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around a pile of humongous boulders in about four feet of water. Five were caught around the outside edges of patches of American water willows with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve in three to five feet of water.
Along portions of one shoreline inside the minor feeder-creek arm, I caught four largemouth bass on the Hula StickZ rig. The portions of the shoreline that I fished possess a 35- to 40-degree slope. The water's edge is embellished with patches of American water willows and a few cattails. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. These largemouth bass were caught along the outside edges of the American water willow patches on a slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation in three to five feet of water.
Along portions of the other shoreline inside the minor feeder-creek arm, I caught five largemouth bass on the Hula StickZ rig. The portions of the shoreline that I fished possess a 35- to 40-degree slope. The water's edge is embellished with patches of American water willows, a few minor laydowns, pieces of overhanging terrestrial vegetation, and several overhanging trees. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. One largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop under an overhanging tree in three to four feet of water. Four of the largemouth bass were caught around the outside edges of the patches of American water willows with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation in four to six feet of water.
In sum, the wind howled while I was afloat, peaking at 31 mph, and it made the largemouth bass fishing a task for me. Nevertheless, I caught an average of 12.5 largemouth bass an hour, which is a somewhat respectable catch rate. But this catch would not have won a tournament; nor would it impress a director of a TV fishing show.
October is traditionally a windy time in northeastern Kansas, and Mother Nature allowed it to blow rather relentlessly and briskly on Oct. 3.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 69 degrees at 4:52 a.m. and 84 degrees at 3:52 p.m. The wind angled out of the southeast and south at 8 to 24 mph, and occasionally some gusts reached 35 mph. The sky was clear from 12:52 a.m. to 5:52 a.m., and after that clear spell, it fluctuated from being mostly cloudy to overcast. The barometric pressure was 29.93 at 12:52 a.m., 30.00 at 5:52 a.m., 30.13 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.12 at 2:52 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., 9:24 p.m. to 11:24 p.m., and 2:48 a.m. to 4:48 a.m. I was afloat at a northeastern Kansas' community reservoir from 10:45 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.
I hoped of finding some refuge from the wind by making a 53- mile drive from our home to the boat ramp at this reservoir. Nowadays, my 77-year-old body, mind, and soul are reluctant to spend more than 45 minutes traveling from our home to a boat ramp, but I failed to conjure up another alternative on Oct. 3.
At this community reservoir, I found some spots that were sheltered from the wind. But more than half of the time, I had to employ a drift sock to try to tame the wind, and to my chagrin, the wind, at times, was too much for the drift sock.
The surface temperature ranged from 71 to 72 degrees. A minor planktonic algae bloom affected the clarity, and it exhibited about two feet of visibility at most locales. The water level looked to be about a foot below normal. Nearly 75 percent of this reservoir's shorelines and points are embellished with patches of American water willows, and because the water level was a foot below normal, portions of all of the patches were on dry land. Other than the American water willows, this reservoir is devoid of other kinds of aquatic vegetation.
I fished the dam, portions of four shorelines, and 12 points.
I garnered a lot of strikes, but the majority of those strikes were engendered by green sunfish, and I caught 61 of them. Some of them were quite hefty.
What's more, I inadvertently caught three channel catfish and one crappie. One of the channel catfish was a brute, and it created a heck of a donnybrook.
The largemouth bass fishing, however, was problematic, and I struggled to catch 25 of them.
One of the largemouth bass was caught on a shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. Two largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's pearl Rain MinnowZ affixed to a customized-blue 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. Seven largemouth bass were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's Junebug ZinkerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. Fifteen largemouth bass were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's sprayed grass ZinkerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig.
Nine of the 12 points that I fished failed to yield a largemouth bass.
Around one point, the pearl Rain MinnowZ rig caught two largemouth bass in three feet of water on the initial drop around the outside edge of a patch of American water willows. This point possesses a 35-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. These largemouth bass were caught on back-to-back casts to the same spot.
At another point, the sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig caught two largemouth bass in three to five feet of water with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Both of these largemouth bass were abiding around a patch of American water willows. This point possesses a 40-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. These largemouth bass were caught on back-to-back cast.
Along another point, the Junebug ZinkerZ rig caught three largemouth bass on the initial drop in about four feet of water adjacent to the outside edge of a patch of American water willows. These three largemouth bass were caught on back-to-back casts to the same spot.
I caught three largemouth bass along the dam on the sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig. The underwater terrain consists of riprap. Two-thirds of it is lined with patches of American water willows, and it is embellished with one massive laydown. It possesses a 40- to 50-degree slope. Two of the largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of the rig in about three feet of water along the outside edges of the patches of American water willows. One largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the rig in about four feet of water and five feet from the water's edge.
Many yards along the other three shorelines that I fished were fruitless.
Along a steep shoreline that possesses a 50- to 85-degree slope, I caught three largemouth bass. The underwater terrain consists of rock-and-boulder ledges. There are a few patches of American water willows gracing the water's edge, and there are some laydowns and overhanging trees. I caught the three largemouth bass on the sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig by casting it parallel to the shoreline and employing a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in five to eight feet of water.
I caught two largemouth bass around patches of American water willows that graced a section of another shoreline. This shoreline possesses a 45- to 55-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, and there are several ledges. Both of the largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of the sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig in about five feet of water adjacent to the American water willows. Along another section of this shoreline, I caught one largemouth bass around a willow tree laydown on the sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig with a swimming retrieve in about three feet of water.
In sum, it was not worth driving 106 miles to catch an average of 6.25 largemouth bass an hour.
It has been 27 days since I fished this problematic U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' reservoir in north-central Texas. It has been extremely stingy with its largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, and spotted bass since mid-November of 2016, and we have been unable to decipher the whereabouts and dispositions of its largemouth bass, spotted bass, and smallmouth bass.
For example, during my Sept. 8 excursion at this reservoir, the weather was delightful. It was sunny and the powder-blue sky was cloudless. The morning low temperature was 62 degrees and the afternoon high reached 88 degrees. The wind angled out of the southeast at 6 to 12 mph. The water was stained with 1 1/4 feet of visibility and the water temperature was 80 degrees. But to my chagrin, this excursion resembled a day of casting practice more than a day of bass fishing, and I labored to catch five largemouth bass around a couple of floating tractor-tire reefs in the southeast end of the impoundment. And as I was driving home after that wretched outing, I swore to myself that I would not return to this reservoir until October. Now that October has arrived, I apprehensively decided to check the status of the black bass fishing at this reservoir again.
According to In-Fisherman's solunar calendar, the best fishing on Oct. 4 would take place between 3:39 a.m. to 5:39 a.m., 9:52 a.m. to 11:52 a.m., and 10:16 p.m. to 12:16 a.m. I fished from 10:10 a.m. to 2:10 p.m.
It lightly rained and drizzled in Denton during the late-evening hours of Oct. 3 and into the mid-morning hours of Oct. 4. The rain and drizzle ended at about 9:30 a.m. and the sky conditions varied from overcast to mostly cloudy for the remainder of the day. The afternoon high temperature was 88 degrees. The morning low temperature was 70 degrees. The barometric pressure dropped from 30.24 at 10:00 a.m. to 30.15 at 2:00 p.m. The wind blew steadily out of the southeast, south, and southwest at 10 to 12 mph.
The water exhibited about 14 inches of visibility. The surface temperature was 79 degrees. The water level was about half of a foot high on Sept. 8 and it was 0.31 of a foot below normal on Oct. 4. This calculates to a drop of only 0.81 of a foot since Sept. 8.
I employed the following Midwest finesse offerings during my Oct. 4 outing: Z-Man's 3 1/2-inch blue-glimmer-sparkle GrubZ on a black 1/10-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig; Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig; Z-Man's white lightning Finesse T.R.D. on a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig; Z-Man's green-pumpkin-orange Finesse T.R.D. on a green-pumpkin 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig; a 3.5-inch Z-Man's coppertreuse Trick ShotZ on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, and a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's Space Guppy Slim SwimZ on a black 1/10-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig.
I spent the first two hours fishing on the north side of the reservoir, and I fished seven main-lake points, three main-lake shorelines, and the interior of a major feeder-creek arm.
The seven main-lake points yielded one largemouth bass. It was caught on the Z-Man's 3 1/2-inch blue-glimmer-sparkle GrubZ on a black 1/10-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig in four feet of water next to a small patch of rocks a few feet from the water's edge. This largemouth bass engulfed the GrubZ rig as it began to settle towards the bottom on the initial drop. I was unable to locate any other black bass at the other six main-lake points.
The three main-lake shorelines that I fished were flat and rocky. None of them surrendered a largemouth bass, spotted bass, smallmouth bass, or a strike.
Inside the major feeder-creek arm, I fished the shorelines of an island, two bluff shorelines, four secondary points, a submerged hump, and a multi-lane concrete boat ramp.
The island and both of the bluffs lie at the mouth of the feeder-creek arm. One of the bluffs yielded two spotted bass and one largemouth bass. They were abiding in five to eight feet of water and near the face of the bluff.
One spotted bass and one largemouth bass were caught in three to five feet of water next to several submerged boulders at the second bluff. They were caught as I was slowly swimming the 2 1/2-inch Space Guppy Slim SwimZ rig parallel to the face of the bluffs and through the openings between the submerged boulders.
I was unable to generate any strikes from around the island's shoreline or its various submerged boulders.
The four secondary points, submerged hump, and concrete boat ramp are situated in the middle and upper end of this feeder creek, but I was unable to locate any black bass or threadfin shad inhabiting these two sections of the creek arm.
I spent the last two hours of this outing in the south end of the reservoir. I dissected three floating tractor-tire reefs that form the entrances to two large marinas at the mouth of two feeder-creek arms and the riprap that covers the dam.
At the first tractor-tire reef, I could see small pods of threadfin shad hovering near the surface around the edges of the tires. This tire reef floats in 24 to 32 feet of water, and it surrendered four largemouth bass. They were abiding just underneath the outside edges of the tires, and they were caught on the Z-Man's bluegill-hue Scented LeechZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig as I employed a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation within a foot of the tires' edges. I lost one largemouth bass that was able to jettison the Scented LeechZ from its jaw as it cartwheeled a couple of times across the surface of the water.
The other floating tire reefs had a couple of small pods of threadfin shad cruising along the north side of the reef, and I caught one largemouth bass from this reef on the bluegill Scented LeechZ with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve.
The third tire reef was devoid of any visible signs of threadfin shad, and I failed to elicit any strikes from this reef.
I finished the outing plying the riprap along the dam. This locale has not been very fruitful for many months, and it was not very fruitful during this outing. I wielded a variety of Z-Man's Midwest finesse baits that were rigged on an array of weights and colors of Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jigs. I caught two smallmouth bass that were abiding in less than six feet of water and within five feet of the water's edge. One was caught on the bluegill Scented LeechZ rig, and the other one was caught on the 3.5-inch coppertreuse Trick ShotZ and chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig combo. I retrieved these rigs with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation.
Overall, the black bass fishing at this reservoir is still in a sorry state, but it has improved a smidgeon since Sept. 8. Across the span of four hours, I caught eight largemouth bass, three spotted bass, and two smallmouth bass.
Six largemouth bass and one smallmouth bass were caught on the bluegill-hue Scented LeechZ rig. Two largemouth bass and two spotted bass were caught on the 2 1/2-inch Space Guppy Slim SwimZ rig. The 3.5-inch coppertreuse Trick ShotZ rig caught one smallmouth bass, and the 3 1/2-inch blue-glimmer-sparkle GrubZ rig caught one largemouth bass. The 13 black bass were caught on either a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve or a slow steady-swimming retrieve.
Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Oct. 5 outing.
Rick Allen of Dallas, Texas, and I drove 73 miles and spent six hours pursuing smallmouth bass at a Civilian Conservation Corps' hill-land reservoir in south-central Oklahoma.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 4:27 a.m. to 6:27 a.m., 10:39 a.m. to 12:39 p.m., and 4:52 p.m. to 6:52 p.m. Rick and I fished from 9:45 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
It was a picture-perfect fall day. There was an abundance of bright sunshine everywhere, and a thin white cloud or two occasionally drifted across the azure-blue sky. The afternoon high temperature was 89 degrees and the morning low temperature was 65 degrees. The barometric pressure measured 30.14 at 9:00 a.m. and 30.01 at 4:00 p.m. The wind quartered out of the southeast at 3 to 10 mph.
The water level appeared to be a couple of feet below normal. The water exhibited 5 1/2 feet of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 75 to 78 degrees.
We launched the boat at a ramp in the middle of the west tributary arm, and we fished no further than two miles from this ramp. We focused our attentions on two submerged main-lake humps, three main-lake points and their adjacent shorelines, and a submerged roadbed inside a minor feeder-creek arm.
We spent the first two hours at one of the main-lake humps that lies in the mid-section of the reservoir's west tributary arm. Its underwater terrain is comprised of gravel, sand, rocks, boulders, and a few submerged stumps. The top of the hump is usually covered with about a foot of water, but it was exposed on this day. It is surrounded by water as shallow as three feet and as deep as 21 feet.
This hump was our most fruitful locale, and we observed a few smallmouth bass foraging on many small schools of 1/2-inch threadfin shad that were swimming near the surface of the water along the south side of the hump. We spent two hours dissecting the four sides of this hump, and it relinquished 24 smallmouth bass and 10 largemouth bass. They were caught in three to 12 feet of water along the south side of the hump, and they were in close proximity to the schools of threadfin shad. We failed to elicit any strikes from the west, north, and east sides of the hump where we did not find any significant numbers of shad.
The other main-lake hump is smaller than the first one that we fished. It surrendered four smallmouth bass and one spotted bass. Two of the smallmouth bass were caught along a submerged rock ledge on the east side of the hump. One smallmouth bass and a spotted bass were caught along another submerged rock ledge on the west side. One smallmouth bass was caught from the end of a shallow and flat rocky point at the north end of the hump. We were unable to generate any strikes from the hump's rock-laden south shoreline. These five black bass were abiding in three to 12 feet of water.
We caught 17 smallmouth bass, three green sunfish, a hefty channel catfish, and one freshwater drum from the three main-lake points and small portions of their adjacent main-lake shorelines. The underwater terrains of these points and shorelines are comprised of mostly sand, gravel, baseball-size rocks, and some large boulders. Most of these bass were caught next to the submerged boulders in three to eight feet of water, but a couple of smallmouth bass were caught suspended about 10 feet below the surface in 24 feet of water and about 20 yards away from the water's edge.
Inside one minor feeder-creek arm, we probed the sides and top of a submerged roadbed that is situated in the midsection of this feeder-creek arm. The three sections of the roadbed that we fished are covered with four to 12 feet of water. The edges of the roadbed are lined with large submerged boulders and rocks. These edges also form ledges that quickly plummet into 20 to 34 feet of water. This roadbed yielded 11 smallmouth bass that were relating to the submerged boulders along the edges of the roadbed.
Rick Allen with one of the smallmouth bass that they caught.
All totaled, we caught 56 smallmouth bass, 10 largemouth bass, and one spotted bass in six hours, which sets a new Midwest finesse record for us at this reservoir. Our previous record at this reservoir was set on November 2, 2016, when Rick and I fished for six hours and 45 minutes and caught 61 smallmouth bass, three largemouth bass, and two spotted bass.
Steve Reideler with a spotted bass.
Besides the 67 black bass that we caught during this October 5 outing, we also caught three green sunfish, a channel catfish, and a freshwater drum.
The preponderance of these black bass were caught on either a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's coppertreuse ZinkerZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, a coppertreuse Finesse T.R.D. rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, or a bubble gum Finesse T.R.D. attached to a red 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig.
We caught the others on a 3.5-inch Z-Man's coppertreuse Trick ShotZ dressed on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, a bluegill Scented LeechZ on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, a 2 1/2-inch pumpkin-chartreuse ZinkerZ on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, a white lightning Finesse T.R.D. on a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, a three-inch bad shad Slim SwimZ on a green-pumpkin 1/10-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, and a 2.5-inch pearl Slim SwimZ on a chartreuse 1/10-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig.
The most effective presentation was a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve, but we also allured a few bass with a steady swimming retrieve and a slow hop-and-bounce retrieve across the bottom.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 68 degrees at 5:52 a.m. and 75 degrees at 12:52 p.m. The wind angled out of the south, east by southeast, southeast, and south by southeast at 3 to 27 mph. It rained periodically throughout the morning, and when it was not raining, the sky was either overcast or mostly cloudy. The barometric pressure was 29.99 at 12:52 a.m., 29.93 at 5:52 a.m., and 29.84 at 11:52 a.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the best fishing occurred from 11:23 p.m. to 1:23 a.m., 5:10 a.m. to 7:10 a.m., and 5:36 p.m. to 7:36 p.m. Rick Hebenstreit of Shawnee, Kansas, Isaac Hebenstreit of Colorado Springs, Colorado, and I fished at one of northeastern Kansas' state reservoirs from 8:00 a.m. to 12:08 p.m.
Isaac is Rick's 13-year-old grandson. At this reservoir on Oct. 9, 2015, Isaac's grandfather and I caught 121 largemouth bass in four hours, and Isaac was hoping that we could replicate that feat again.
The water level looked to be more than six inches above normal. The water exhibited five to seven feet of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 69 to 71 degrees. The patches of American water willows that embellish most of the shorelines and points are exhibiting their early fall motifs, turning from an olive-green hue to an amber one. This reservoir's massive patch of water lilies is exhibiting signs of its dying days, too. But the submerged aquatic vegetation is robust, and it consists of bushy pondweed, chara, and coontail, which adorn the shallow-water flats in the backs of this reservoir's feeder-creek arms and along some of its flat shorelines.
We fished two secondary points, vast portions of four shallow-water flats in the back of four feeder-creek arms, portions of two main-lake shorelines, and portions of five main-lake points.
We failed to replicate our feat of Oct. 9, 2015. Instead, we caught 87 largemouth bass.
We caught one largemouth bass on a shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. We caught three largemouth bass on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's sprayed grass ZinkerZ on a customized-red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. We caught three largemouth bass on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/32-ounce Gopher jig. We caught 80 largemouth bass on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ, and we attached the Junebug Finesse WormZ to a red 1/32-ounce Gopher jig, a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig, a blue 1/16-ounce Gopher jig, and a customized-blue 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig.
It is a rare feat to catch the bulk of the largemouth bass on a Junebug Finesse WormZ at this reservoir. Traditionally, a green-pumpkin colored soft-plastic finesse bait is the most effective hue, and when Rick and I caught the 121 largemouth bass on Oct. 9, 2015, we caught them on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to either a red 1/32-ounce or a red 1/16-ounce Gopher jig.
Across a massive shallow-water flat in the back of one of the feeder-creek arms, we caught 45 largemouth bass. Forty of them were caught on our Junebug WormZ rigs in four to seven feet of water around patches of bushy pondweed, coontail, and chara. A few were caught on the initial drop of our rigs, but most of them were caught while we employed a swim-glide-and-minor-shake presentation that allowed our rigs to swim slightly above the submerged vegetation. Three largemouth bass were caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig. One largemouth bass was caught on the Junebug Hula StickZ rig. The sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig caught one largemouth bass.
Isaac Hebenstreit with his first largemouth bass of the outing.
Around a shallow-water flat inside a small feeder-creek arm, we caught nine largemouth bass in five to seven feet of water around patches of coontail on our Junebug Finesse WormZ rigs. Three were caught on the initial drop of our rigs. Five were caught while we were executing a slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation. One was caught while we were strolling and employing a drag-and-no-shake presentation.
Across another massive shallow-water flat in the back of another feeder-creek arm, we caught 23 largemouth bass on our Junebug Finesse WormZ rigs in three to eight feet of water around patches of bushy pondweed and coontail. Some were caught on the initial drop of our rigs. A few were caught as we were strolling and using a swimming presentation. The rest were caught when we were using a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation.
On a shallow-water flat inside another small feeder-creek arm, we caught four largemouth bass in three to seven feet of water around patches of bushy pondweed and coontail. Two of them were caught on our Junebug Finesse WormZ rigs with a swim-glide-and-no-shake presentation. Two were caught on the sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig with a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation.
Along a portion of a main-lake shoreline, we caught three largemouth bass in three to four feet of water around one laydown and patches of American water willows that are interlaced with bushy pondweed and coontail. They were caught on our Junebug Finesse WormZ rigs with a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation.
Rick Hebenstreit with one of the 87 largemouth bass that we caught.
We caught three largemouth bass along a short segment of a main-lake shoreline on our Junebug Finesse WormZ rigs in three to four feet of water. One was caught next to a laydown and two were caught along the outside edges of patches of American water willows. Two of them were caught on the initial drop of our rigs, and one was caught on a swim-glide-and-no-shake retrieve.
We failed to catch a largemouth bass along the two secondary points and five main-lake points.
In sum, we caught an average of 21 largemouth bass an hour.
Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Oct. 7 outing.
A minor cold front passed through north-central Texas during the morning hours of Oct. 7, and it helped to alleviate the uncomfortable mid-90-degree heat and annoying humidity to more comfortable levels. Therefore, I could not resist the temptation to spend a few hours pursuing some largemouth bass and spotted bass at a nearby north-central Texas' U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' hill-land reservoir.
According to In-Fisherman's solunar calendar, the best fishing would occur from 6:12 a.m. to 8:12 a.m., 11:59 a.m. to 1:59 p.m., and 12:26 p.m. to 2:26 p.m. I fished from about 12:00 noon to 4:00 p.m.
While I was afloat, an irksome wind blew incessantly out of the north by northwest at 12 to 15 mph. The sky was partly cloudy and sunny. The barometric pressure measured 29.81 at noon and 29.76 at 4:00 p.m.
During the past few weeks, we have found significant aggregations of largemouth bass, spotted bass, and threadfin shad inhabiting several floating tractor-tire reefs and many of the concrete support pillars underneath two large bridges in this reservoir's southwest tributary arm. But we have been befuddled as to why so many of the usual main-lake lairs -- such as rocky points, large clay and gravel flats, the riprap on the dam, and several boulder-strewn shorelines -- have been mostly devoid of black bass this year.
During this outing, I fished several floating-tire reefs, 32 of the 88 concrete support pillars underneath two bridges, a main-lake shoreline, a main-lake cove, and portions of a minor feeder-creek arm.
The water exhibited 14 inches of clarity. The surface temperature was 79 degrees. The water level was 0.67 of a foot below normal.
I began fishing at a set of three floating tractor-tire reefs in the mouth of the feeder-creek arm. I could see small schools of 1/2-inch threadfin shad inhabiting two of the three reefs. These tire reefs float in 21 to 37 feet of water. The wind confounded my efforts to execute accurate casts and retrieves, but I somehow managed to catch seven largemouth bass and one spotted bass along the edges of the tires. They were suspended about five to seven feet below the surface. The seven largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig as I retrieved it with a slow swim-glide-and-shake action. A Z-Man's white lightning Finesse T.R.D. affixed on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig and swim-glide-and-shake retrieve beguiled the spotted bass.
Inside the feeder-creek arm, I caught one largemouth bass from three feet of water at a concrete boat ramp on the west side of the creek arm. Another largemouth bass was caught from a clay and gravel secondary point in five feet of water near the back end of the creek arm. Two largemouth bass and one spotted bass were caught in three to five feet of water from a patch of submerged rocks and boulders on the tip of a secondary point on the east side of the feeder creek. These five black bass were caught on the bluegill Scented LeechZ rig that was employed with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. I failed to provoke any strikes with a Z-Man's smelt-colored Finesse ShadZ rigged on a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, the white lightning Finesse T.R.D. combo, or a shortened Z-Man's mud minnow Hula StickZ attached to a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig.
I also dissected another concrete boat ramp, three secondary points, a steep clay and gravel shoreline, a mud flat, and two rock ledges inside this feeder-creek arm without garnering a strike.
From this feeder-creek arm, I moved eastward about a quarter of a mile to a nearby wind-blown rock- and boulder-strewn shoreline on the south side of the tributary arm. The wind and waves made boat control difficult and also relegated me to using a three-inch Z-Man's pearl Slim SwimZ attached to a black 1/10-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig. I swam this combo between the openings and along the sides of the submerged boulders, around several small patches of rocks in three to six feet of water, and a couple of laydowns that litter the shoreline, but I failed to generate any strikes from this shoreline.
Next, I travelled about 1 1/2 miles westward to two large bridges, where I plied 32 concrete support pillars underneath the two bridges. I caught 14 largemouth bass, one spotted bass, and one crappie that were abiding about five to eight below the surface. The depth of the water around these pillars ranged from 34 to 43 feet.
Along these pillars, eleven largemouth bass, one spotted bass, and one crappie were caught on the bluegill Scented LeechZ rig and a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. Three largemouth bass were caught on the white lightning Finesse T.R.D. and swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. I failed to elicit any strikes with a shortened Z-Man's mud minnow Hula StickZ on a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig or a Z-Man's smelt Finesse ShadZ on a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig.
In closing, I caught 25 largemouth bass, three spotted bass, and one white crappie in four hours. The Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ rig and swim-glide-and-shake presentation allured 24 black bass and one crappie. The Z-Man's white lightning Finesse T.R.D. combo caught four. I was unable to provoke any strikes with the shortened Z-Man's mud minnow Hula StickZ, Z-Man's smelt Finesse ShadZ, and three-inch Z-Man's pearl Slim SwimZ combos.
It appears that this reservoir's two most lucrative location patterns that revolve around the tire reefs and bridge support columns are beginning to fade. But we are hopeful that we can cross paths with more concentrations of largemouth bass and spotted bass inside the feeder-creek arms during the next few weeks.
Bill Ward of Warsaw, Missouri, posted a photograph and short note on the Finesse News Network that features Landry Ward, who his six-year-old great-grandson.
Landry of Peculiar, Missouri, won second-place honors in the Kids Division at the Big Bass Bash at the Lake of the Ozarks Oct. 8 by using a Z-Man's Finesse T.R.D. to catch the second biggest crappie of the event.
Landry Ward with the crappie that garnered him second-place honors.
The photograph features one of the largemouth bass that Landry caught, and he caught it on a Z-Man's FattyZ affixed to one of his great-grandfather Bill's home-made 1/16-ounce jigs. During this event, Landry was fishing with this father, Andrew Ward of Peculiar, Missouri. Andrew is Bill's grandson.
Landry Ward with a Lake of the Ozarks' largemouth bass.
According to Bill Ward, Landry often fishes with his father, and with some astonishing regularity, he catches more bass by using Midwest finesse rigs than his father catches with his power tactics.
In an email on Oct. 19, Landry's father said that he and Landry fish at the Lake of the Ozarks a lot during the summer, and they have found that a Z-Man's "Ned's Rig is the absolute hands down the best lure to put on for a young kid. It doesn't matter how they fish it whether he just reels it in or drags it across the bottom it flat catches fish."
Landry might be on the same piscatorial road as his great-great-grandfather, great-grandfather, and great-uncle Gregory.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 52 degrees at 4:52 a.m. and 73 degrees at 3:53 p.m. The sky fluctuated from being clear to partly cloudy to overcast to mostly cloudy to raining. The wind was calm for about three of the early morning hours, and then it angled out of the southeast, east, north, and north by northeast at 3 to 25 mph. The barometric pressure was 29.72 at 12:53 a.m., 29.79 at 5:53 a.m., 29.89 at 11:53 a.m., and 29.76 at 4:53 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar indicated that the best fishing would occur from 1:52 a.m. to 3:52 a.m., 2:21 p.m. to 4:21 p.m., and 8:06 a.m. to 10:06 a.m. I fished at a northeastern Kansas' state reservoir from 11:00 a.m. until the wind sent me to a community reservoir at 1:00 p.m. I fished the community reservoir from 2:17 p.m. to 4:17 p.m.
The water level at the state reservoir looked to be normal. The water exhibited 12 to 18 inches of visibility. A planktonic algal bloom was thick enough that it deposited a greenish-brown ring around the hull of the boat. The surface temperature was 70 degrees. The patches of American water willows that embellish many of this reservoir's shorelines and points are becoming leaf-less, and their stems are exhibiting a yellowish- and tan-hue.
The water level at the community reservoir is about normal. The water exhibited 18 to 24 inches of visibility, and it is affected by a planktonic algal bloom, which is not as intense as the one at the state reservoir. The surface temperature ranged from 72 to 73 degrees. This reservoir's American water willows are still exhibiting somewhat of a greenish hue, but they do not possess their summertime robustness.
During the two hours that I battled a north-by-northeast wind at the state reservoir, I caught 25 largemouth bass.
Two of the largemouth bass were caught along the dam. Its underwater terrain consists of riprap. It possesses a 30- to 40-degree slope. Some of its water's edge is adorned with patches of American water willows. The two largemouth bass were caught in about four feet of water along the outside edges of the American water willows. They were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's Junebug ZinkerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. One was caught on the initial drop of the rig, and the other one was caught while I was strolling and employing a drag-and-subtle-shake presentation.
Twenty largemouth bass were caught along about a 600-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline that is stippled with eight riprap jetties. It possesses a 20- to 40-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. Most of the water's edge is embellished with patches of American water willows, as well as some laydowns, several manmade brush piles, and a few overhanging trees.
Along this 600-yard stretch of shoreline, four of the largemouth bass were caught on a 3.5-inch Z-Man's coppertreuse Trick ShotZ affixed to a custom-painted-red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. Sixteen of the largemouth bass were caught on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a blue 1/16-ounce Gopher jig.
Four of the eight jetties yielded a largemouth bass. They were caught in three to five feet of water. One was caught on the initial drop of the Trick ShotZ rig, and three were caught on the Finesse WormZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve.
One largemouth bass was caught under an overhanging tree in about three feet of water on the initial drop of the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig.
Fifteen of the largemouth bass were caught along the outside edges of the patches of American water willows in three to about five feet of water on the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig. Nine of them were caught on the initial drop, and six were caught on a slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake retrieve.
One largemouth bass was caught along a shoreline immediately adjacent to a main-lake point. This shoreline possesses a 30-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. The water's edge is lined with some scrawny patches of American water willows and a few minor laydowns. This largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig in three feet of water along the outside edge of a patch of American water willows. By the way, this was the only wind-sheltered spot that I fished.
I failed to elicit a strike at the main-lake point.
The main-lake point's other shoreline yielded two largemouth bass. Both shorelines possess the same contours and terrains. The patches of American water willows along this shoreline, however, are not as scrawny as the ones along the other shoreline. One largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig in three feet of water along the outside edge of the American water willows. The second was caught while I was dragging and shaking the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig in 3 1/2 feet of water next to a patch of American water willows.
At the community reservoir, I caught 20 largemouth bass in two hours.
I fished portions of two shorelines inside a large feeder-creek arm, portions of two shorelines inside a small feeder-creek arm, one main-lake point, a 50-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline, and an offshore hump inside the large feeder-creek arm. All of these locales were relatively sheltered from the wind.
The main-lake point has a 50-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. It was unfruitful.
The main-lake shoreline possesses a 40- to 55-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. Its water's edge is lined with patches of American water willows and one laydown. It was unfruitful.
I caught two largemouth bass along a portion of one of the shorelines inside the small feeder-creek arm. This shoreline possesses a 35- to 40-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and a few boulders. The water's edge is lined with patches of American water willows, one dock, a few cattail patches, a boat house, and some minor laydowns. Both of the largemouth bass were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's sprayed grass ZinkerZ affixed to a custom-painted red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. They were caught on the initial drop of the rig in about three feet of water along the outside edges of the American water willow patches.
Four largemouth bass were caught along a portion of the other shoreline inside the small feeder-creek arm. This shoreline possesses a 35- to 45-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. The water's edge is lined with patches of American water willows, several laydowns, some stumps, and some overhanging trees. These largemouth bass were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's Junebug ZinkerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig in three to five feet of water adjacent to patches of American water willows. One largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the rig. Three were caught on a slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation.
Along portions of one of the shorelines inside the large feeder-creek arm, I caught five largemouth bass. This shoreline possesses a 25- to 40-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, sand, rocks, and a few boulders. The water's edge is lined with patches of American water willows, several laydowns, some overhanging trees, and several tertiary points. One largemouth bass was caught on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a custom-painted blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man's TT Lures NedlockZ HD Jighead in four feet of water while I was strolling and employing a drag-and-shake presentation between a laydown and the outside edge of a patch of American water willows. Another largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the Junebug ZinkerZ rig in three feet of water under an overhanging tree. Three largemouth bass were caught on the Junebug ZinkerZ rig in two to 3 1/2 feet of water along the outside edges of patches of American water willows on a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation.
I caught six largemouth bass along portions of the other shoreline inside the large feeder-creek arm. This shoreline possesses a 30- to 45-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and some humongous boulders. The water's edge is lined with patches of American water willows, stumps, a few minor laydowns, and some tertiary points. One largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the Junebug ZinkerZ rig in 3 1/2 feet of water along the outside edge of a patch of American water willows. One largemouth bass was caught next to a stump on the sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig with a swim-glide-shake presentation in five feet of water. Four largemouth bass were caught on the sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve in three to six feet of water in the vicinity of American water willow patches, and one of those largemouth bass was caught 10 feet from the outside edge of the American water willows, and the other ones were caught from a few inches to two feet from the outside edge of a patch of American water willows.
I caught three largemouth bass on the sprayed grass ZinkerZ in four to six feet of water on top of the offshore hump. This hump consists of piles of rocks and humongous boulders. It is also embellished with four stumps, and two of the stumps are gigantic. One of the largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the rig, and two of them were caught on a swim-glide-shake presentation.
In sum, the shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a blue 1/16-ounce Gopher jig caught 16 of the 25 largemouth bass at the state reservoir, and the shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a custom-painted blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man's TT Lures NedlockZ HD Jighead caught one of the 20 largemouth bass at the community reservoir. The sprayed grass ZinkerZ rig caught 10 largemouth bass at the community reservoir, and it failed to elicit a strike at the state reservoir. The Junebug ZinkerZ rig caught two largemouth bass at the state reservoir and nine largemouth bass at the community reservoir. I caught a total of 45 largemouth bass in four hours, which is an average of 11.25 an hour.
The first significant cold front of fall rolled across north-central Texas on Oct. 9, which dropped the daytime air temperatures from the low 90s into the upper 60s. A north wind also accompanied this front, and it howled at 15 to 30 mph on Oct. 10.
On Oct. 11, the cold front began to wane. The sun was intensely bright in a powder-blue and cloudless sky. Local meteorologists reported the morning low temperature at 46 degrees and the afternoon high temperature struggled to reach 73 degrees. The wind quartered out of the northeast at 10 to 12 mph. The barometric pressure measured 30.24 at 11:00 a.m. and 30.14 at 4:00 p.m.
I fished at a north-central Texas' U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' reservoir from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the most promising fishing periods would occur from 4:06 a.m. to 6:06 a.m., 10:21 a.m. to 12:21 p.m., and 4:36 p.m. to 6:36 p.m.
The water level was less than a foot below normal. The surface temperature was 75 degrees. The water clarity varied from four feet in one feeder-creek arm to 2 1/2 feet in another feeder-creek arm.
I fished inside a major feeder-creek arm in the southeast end of the reservoir. In the east tributary arm, I fished around the dam, a water outlet tower, two main-lake points, a rock ledge, and another feeder-creek arm.
In the first feeder-creek arm on the southeast end of the reservoir, I fished portions of three large coves, five secondary points, a 50-yard segment of a rock-laden shoreline, and the perimeter of an island.
The underwater geology of this creek arm is comprised of red clay, gravel, basketball-size rocks, and a few submerged boulders. It is also graced with several laydowns and the remainders of many large patches of flooded terrestrial vegetation that stretch along hundreds of yards of shoreline. The terrestrial vegetation is leaf-less and the bare stems are brown.
I located a few small schools of threadfin shad that had begun their fall-migration routines in the lower-third section of this creek arm, and I caught four largemouth bass near these schools of shad. Two largemouth bass were caught in five feet of water along the outside edges of two large patches of terrestrial vegetation inside the mouth of one of the three coves. But the other two coves that are situated in the middle and upper ends of this creek arm were fruitless. Another largemouth bass was caught in three feet of water from a flat and rocky shoreline on the north side of this creek arm. And the fourth largemouth bass was caught in six feet of water from the outside edge of a large clump of terrestrial vegetation stems on the south side of the island, but the west, north, and east sides of the island failed to yield a black bass. I failed to entice any strikes from any of the laydowns or from several of the rocky secondary points in the upper reaches of this creek arm.
In the southern portion of this reservoir, I fished a 75-yard stretch of riprap that covers the dam, the walls of a large water-outlet tower, a prominent main-lake point, and a 30-yard section of a submerged rock ledge adjacent to the main-lake point.
The 75-yard section of riprap along the dam failed to yield any black bass.
The large concrete water-outlet tower near the center of the dam surrendered four largemouth bass. They were caught within three feet of one of the walls and were suspended about eight feet below the surface in water that was 57 feet deep. The other three walls of the tower failed to yield any black bass.
I failed to garner a strike along a flat main-lake point that lies about a mile north of the dam.
I dissected a submerged rock ledge that lies just west of the main-lake point that I just fished. The top portion of this ledge is covered with six feet of water and the bottom of the ledge lies in 24 feet of water. A few scattered pods of 1/2-inch threadfin shad were dawdling here and there just underneath the surface of the water near the top portion of the ledge. A 20-yard section of this ledge relinquished six largemouth bass and two spotted bass that were extracted from water as shallow as eight feet and as deep as 11 feet from the deep-water side of the ledge.
In the east tributary arm, I caught one largemouth bass and one spotted bass from a main-lake point on the west side of the tributary arm. This point is comprised of red clay, gravel, baseball-size rocks, and adorned with many shallow patches of partially-flooded terrestrial vegetation. The largemouth bass and spotted bass were abiding next to one of the large patches of partially-flooded terrestrial vegetation in three feet of water and were caught on consecutive casts.
The major feeder-creek arm just north of the main-lake point where I caught the largemouth bass and spotted bass relinquished five largemouth bass, two spotted bass, and one hefty freshwater drum. Two largemouth bass and the freshwater drum were caught from a long submerged rock ledge along the south shoreline near the mouth of the creek arm. The top of this ledge is covered with two feet of water and the bottom of the ledge lies in 20 feet of water. These two largemouth bass were caught in about eight feet of water and five feet away from the top of the ledge.
Three largemouth bass and two spotted bass were caught around a rock-laden secondary point about 100 yards inside the creek arm. They were caught in four to seven feet of water and about 10 to 15 feet from the water's edge.
I did not find any threadfin shad or black bass inhabiting the middle section or back end of this feeder-creek arm.
All totaled, I caught a mixture of 25 largemouth bass and spotted bass in four hours. I also enjoyed tangling with a five-pound freshwater drum.
Seventeen black bass and the freshwater drum were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's white lightning ZinkerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. Four bass were caught on a three-inch Z-Man's pearl Slim SwimZ affixed on a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Gopher jig. A shortened Z-Man's mud minnow Hula StickZ affixed on a black 1/16-ounce Gopher jig allured two largemouth bass. A Z-Man's smelt-hue Finesse ShadZ attached to a black 1/16-ounce Gopher jig bewitched one largemouth bass. A Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig beguiled one largemouth bass.
A slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake retrieve was the most effective presentation with the 2 1/2-inch white lightning ZinkerZ, smelt Finesse ShadZ, mud minnow Hula StickZ, and bluegill Scented LeechZ rigs. The three-inch Slim SwimZ combo was employed with a steady swim retrieve.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 46 degrees at 5:53 a.m. and 70 degrees 4:53 p.m. The sky was clear from midnight to 2:41 a.m., and then it fluctuated from being scattered with clouds to mostly cloudy to overcast to becoming clear again at 1:53 p.m.; it was also foggy and misty at times. The wind angled out of the southeast, south by southeast, and south at 3 to 12 mph. The barometric pressure was 30.14 at 12:53 a.m., 30.14 at 5:53 a.m., 30.11 at 11: 53 a.m., and 29.99 at 3:53 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar indicated that the best fishing would take place from 4:57 a.m. to 6:57 a.m., 5:27 p.m. to 7:27 p.m., and 11:12 p.m. to 1:12 a.m. I fished at one of northeastern Kansas' community reservoirs from noon to 2:30 p.m.
The water level looked to be about two inches above normal. The surface temperature ranged from 64 degrees when the sky was overcast, and it climbed to 67 degrees when it was sunny. At some locals, the water exhibited a tea-like hue with about 18 inches of visibility, and at other locales, there was a planktonic algal bloom with about 12 inches of visibility. There is also a bothersome amount of filamentous algae clinging to the stems of the American water willows and coontail.
In short, it was a struggle to catch 17 largemouth bass or 6.8 largemouth bass an hour. Some anglers might speculate that the post-cold-front conditions were the cause of this sorry outing. Others might blame the cloudy weather and the planktonic algal bloom, which combined to adversely affect the water's oxygen level and made the largemouth bass lethargic. I, however, have no idea what was going on. In fact, I have never been able to determine the cause and effect of why the largemouth bass can be or cannot be caught. Thus, I merely record when, how, and where I caught them or failed to catch them.
Eleven were caught along the dam and the spillway. Three of those eleven were caught in back-to-back-casts and retrieves along the dam. And two of the eleven were caught on back-to-back casts and retrieves along the spillway. Three largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's green-pumpkin Finesse ShadZ affixed to a customized red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about four feet of water. Eight were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's sprayed grass ZinkerZ affixed to a custom-painted red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig in three to six feet of water with a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve.
The dam possesses a 30- to a 50-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of riprap and gravel. Its water's edge is graced by many patches of American water willows, which are bordered by and interlaced with patches of coontail. The spillway possesses a 25-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rock, and concrete. There are eight scrawny patches of American water willows that stipple portions of the spillway.
I failed to elicit a strike when I dissected two main-lake points, a 20-yard segment of a main-lake shoreline, and a 75-yard segment of another main-lake shoreline.
Around a series of patches of coontail on a shallow-water flat in the upper reaches of this reservoir, I caught one largemouth bass in about five feet of water on the initial drop of a three-inch section of the tail of a Z-Man's Junebug FattyZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig.
Along a main-lake shoreline, I caught five largemouth bass. This shoreline possesses a 35- to 50-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. The water's edge is lined with some patches of American water willows, several minor patches of coontail, a few overhanging trees, and a few minor laydowns. I caught three largemouth bass on a 3.5-inch Z-Man's Coppertreuse Trick ShotZ affixed to a custom-painted red 1/15-ounce Z-Man's TT Lures NedlockZ HD Jighead with a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve in three to four feet of water around a patch of American water willows. One largemouth bass was caught in about six feet of water on a Z-Man's pearl Rain MinnowZ afiixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig with a drag-and-deadstick presentation. One largemouth bass was caught on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a custom-painted blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man's TT Lures NedlockZ HD Jighead with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around a laydown in four to five feet of water.
There is nothing more to say about this outing.
Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finnesse News Network about his Oct. 12 outing.
From 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., I fished at a different north-central Texas' U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' hill-land reservoir than the one I fished on Oct. 11.
The best fishing, according to In-Fisherman's solunar calendar, would occur from 5:06 a.m. to 7:06 a.m., 5:35 p.m. to 7:35 p.m., and 11:21 p.m. to 1:21 a.m.
The day was sunny, and as the afternoon unfolded, a few wispy clouds slowly drifted in from the north. The wind angled out of the east, southeast, and northeast at 5 to 10 mph. The afternoon high temperature was 86 degrees. The morning low temperature was 68 degrees. The barometric pressure measured 30.08 at 12:00 noon and 29.97 at 4:00 a.m.
This was basically a scouting trip. I wanted to check two major feeder-creek arms in the reservoir's southwest tributary arm in hopes of finding aggregations of threadfin shad and black bass. And I failed to locate any shad or black bass inside either of these two feeder-creek arms.
After that failure, I fished four prominent main-lake points and a 50-yard section of a main-lake shoreline that lies between two of the four points along the main-body of the reservoir's southwest tributary arm.
The surface temperature was 77 degrees. The water exhibited about 1 1/2 feet of visibility. The water level was 0.83 of a foot below normal.
The four main-lake points were the most lucrative areas. Three of them are located on the south side of the tributary arm, and one is situated on the north shoreline.
The first two main-lake points that I fished are flat. Their underwater terrains consist of clay and gravel. The remnants of several large patches of flooded terrestrial vegetation extend from the water's edge out to about four feet of water. The 50-yard stretch of shoreline lies between these two points, and its underwater terrain is the same as the two points. I could also see several schools of one-inch threadfin shad abiding along the outside edges of the patches of flooded vegetation.
I caught 11 largemouth bass, one spotted bass, and one white bass from these two points and along the 50-yard stretch of shoreline.
Ten of these 11 black bass and the one white bass were caught in two to four feet of water near the outside edges of the patches of flooded vegetation. One largemouth was caught in five feet of water along the main-lake shoreline.
Nine black bass and one white bass were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's pearl Slim SwimZ attached to a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Gopher jig that was presented with a steady swimming retrieve. One largemouth was caught on a three-inch Z-Man's pearl Slim SwimZ affixed on a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Gopher jig and steady swimming retrieve. The other largemouth bass was caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's white lightning ZinkerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation.
The third main-lake point is located about a quarter of a mile west of the first two points. It possesses a steep slope. Its underwater terrain consists of clay, gravel, and large rocks. It is devoid of any type of flooded vegetation. There were few threadfin shad relating to this point.
This point relinquished two largemouth bass. They were caught on the 2 1/2-inch white lightning ZinkerZ rig with a slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation. Both of them were relating to the submerged rocks in less than five feet of water.
The fourth main-lake point is similar to the third one. It has a steep slope and is adorned with an abundance of submerged rocks and boulders. It also lacks any patches of flooded terrestrial vegetation. At the end of this point, I observed large swarms of threadfin shad cruising just underneath the surface of the water between 10 and 20 feet from the water's edge.
This large point yielded 17 largemouth bass, three spotted bass, and two white crappie. All of these fish were abiding in five to eight feet of water and were in close proximity to the large pods of shad.
The 2 1/2-inch white lightning ZinkerZ combo inveigled 14 largemouth bass, three spotted bass, and the two white crappie. Two largemouth bass were caught on a 3 1/2-inch Z-Man's bad shad Trick ShotZ rigged on a Z-Man's black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig. One largemouth was caught on a Z-Man's bluegill-hue Scented LeechZ on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig.
All told, it was a splendid outing. I caught 29 largemouth bass, four spotted bass, two white crappie, and one white bass in three hours. All but one of them was caught around four main-lake points that were entertaining various numbers of threadfin shad. One largemouth was caught from a main-lake shoreline.
During the past couple of weeks, the Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ attached to either a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig or chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig has become a potent rig at this reservoir. But during this outing, a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's white lightning ZinkerZ rigged on a Z-Man's chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig caught 19 of the 33 black bass. A 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's pearl Slim SwimZ on a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Gopher jig caught 10 black bass. The 3 1/2-inch Z-Man's bad shad Trick ShotZ on a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig enticed two. The three-inch Z-Man's pearl Slim SwimZ on a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Gopher jig caught one, and the Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig caught one largemouth.
A swim-glide-and-subtle-shake retrieve was the most effective presentation with the 2 1/2-inch white lightning ZinkerZ, 3 1/2-inch bad shad Trick ShotZ, and bluegill Scented LeechZ rigs. The 2 1/2- and three-inch pearl Slim SwimZ combos were presented with a steady swimming retrieve.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 36 degrees at 7:52 a.m. and 70 degrees at 3:52 p.m. The wind fluctuated from being calm to variable to angling out of the north by northwest, west by northwest, south, and south by southeast at 3 to 17 mph. The sky was clear, and the sun burned brightly in a China-blue sky. The barometric pressure was 30.39 at 12:52 a.m., 30.40 at 5:52 a.m., 30.40 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.29 at 2:52 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar indicated that the best fishing would occur from 8:20 a.m. to 10.20 a.m., 8:45 p.m. to 10:45 p.m., and 2:08 a.m. to 4:08 a.m. I was afloat at one of northeastern Kansas' state reservoirs from 12:15 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. We have a lot of family affairs to enjoy this week; thus, my hours afloat will be either nil or limited, and they were limited during this outing.
The water level looked to be about six inches above normal. The surface temperature was 66 degrees. The water clarity ranged from two to five feet of visibility. The patches of American water willows that adorn the shorelines and points are losing their dark greenish summertime hue; some of them are exhibiting a light-greenish hue and others are unveiling a totally yellowish appearance. The submerged patches of chara, bushy pondweed, and coontail are bountiful.
I was hoping to catch at least 25 largemouth bass, but those hopes failed to materialize. Instead, I caught 22 largemouth bass and one black crappie, and I tangled with three fish that quickly unfettered themselves. For some unknown reason or for a variety of unknown reasons, the black bass fishing at all of the flatland reservoirs that stipple the exurban and suburban countryside of northeastern Kansas is trying, and it has been that way for quite a spell.
I spent the entire two hours trying to quickly dissect a multitude of patches of submerged vegetation that enhance the shallow-water flats in the backs of two feeder-creek arms.
These patches lie in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as eight feet.
In my eyes, each flat is about the size of five football fields. Therefore, it was impossible for me to thoroughly probe this vast underwater terrain in two hours.
Across several portions of one of the flats, I caught 15 largemouth bass in an hour and 10 minutes. One of the 15 was caught on a three-inch Z-Man's green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a straight swimming retrieve in about four feet of water. Two largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's green-pumpkin Finesse ShadZ affixed to a custom-painted red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation in about five feet of water. A dozen of the largemouth bass were caught on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a custom-painted red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation in about four to seven feet of water. At one locale, I caught three largemouth bass on back-to-back casts with the Finesse WormZ rig, and, of course, I made scores and scores of casts without eliciting a strike.
At the second flat, I caught seven largemouth bass in 45 minutes. Two of them were caught on the shortened four-inch Z-Man's green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a custom-painted red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation in about 3 1/2 feet of water. Five largemouth bass were caught on the three-inch Z-Man's green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a straight swimming retrieve in about 2 1/2 to four feet of water. I caught two of the seven largemouth bass on back-to-back casts.
Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Oct. 16 outing.
Norman Brown of Lewisville, Texas, and I returned to a Civilian Conservation Corps' hill-land reservoir in south-central Oklahoma, where Rick Allen of Dallas and I caught 56 smallmouth bass, 10 largemouth bass, and one spotted bass on Oct. 5.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar indicated that the best fishing periods would occur from 2:15 a.m. to 4:15 a.m., 8:27 a.m. to 10:27 a.m., and 8:52 p.m. to 10:52 p.m. We fished from about 10:00 a.m. to 3:10 p.m.
The morning was cool and crisp. It was the aftermath of a major cold-front that walloped south-central Oklahoma on Oct. 14. It was what many anglers would call a bluebird day, with an intensely bright sun shining in a cloudless cobalt-blue sky. The morning low was a chilly 44 degrees, and we donned hooded sweatshirts and light jackets for the first time this fall. The afternoon temperature warmed to 71 degrees. The barometric pressure measured 30.44 at 10:00 a.m. and 30.33 at 3:00 p.m. The wind quartered out of the northeast, east, and southeast at 8 to 12 mph.
The water exhibited five feet of visibility. The surface temperature was 72 degrees. The water level appeared to be about three feet below normal.
We started this outing at a wind-blown main-lake hump that lies in the mid-section of the reservoir's west tributary arm. Its underwater terrain is comprised of gravel, sand, rocks, boulders, and a few submerged stumps. The top of the hump is usually covered with about a foot of water, but the lower water level has left the top portion of this hump dry and in plain view. It is encircled by seven to 21 feet of water. We caught five smallmouth bass and two largemouth bass in three to eight feet of water. One smallmouth bass was caught from the south side of the hump, four smallmouth bass were caught along the east side of the hump, and one largemouth was caught from the north side.
Three of the smallmouth bass were caught with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's pumpkin-chartreuse ZinkerZ rigged on an unpainted generic 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. Two others were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's coppertreuse ZinkerZ attached to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. One largemouth bass was caught on a Rapala No. 8 silver-hue X-Rap suspending jerkbait. The other largemouth was caught on a three-inch Z-Man's The Deal MinnowZ rigged on a 3/16-ounce Gopher mushroom head jig.
The 2 1/2-inch ZinkerZ rigs were employed with a slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake retrieve. The three-inch MinnowZ was retrieved with a steady swimming retrieve. The Rapala X-Rap suspending jerkbait was employed with erratic jerks and intermittent pauses.
Our second spot was a main-lake point and a 50-yard stretch of main-lake shoreline adjacent to the point. The underwater terrain of this main-lake point and its adjacent main-lake shoreline are comprised of clay, gravel, and many submerged rocks and large boulders.
The main-lake point was fruitless.
The 50-yard section of main-lake shoreline next to the point yielded one smallmouth bass. It was caught in six feet of water on the three-inch The Deal MinnowZ and steady swim retrieve.
After we finished fishing the main-lake point and shoreline, we moved to the east tributary arm and fished a small main-lake mud flat, two main-lake points, and a short clay and gravel main-lake shoreline.
We failed to generate any strikes along the two main-lake points.
The small mud flat, which is adorned with a few submerged stumps and thin patches of partially-flooded terrestrial vegetation, relinquished one smallmouth bass. This smallmouth was caught next to a submerged stump in three feet of water on the 2 1/2-inch coppertreuse ZinkerZ combo as it was retrieved with a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve.
We caught one smallmouth bass in four feet of water along the clay and gravel shoreline. It engulfed the 2 1/2-inch coppertreuse ZinkerZ that was retrieved with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation.
Inside the minor feeder-creek arm, we fished a short segment of a steep and rocky shoreline and a submerged roadbed that crosses the middle section of the creek arm. And we failed to elicit a single strike from either of these two areas.
We then ventured to another submerged hump that lies at the mouth of a main-lake cove. The top of this hump is covered with five feet of water and the sides quickly plunge into 17 to 24 feet of water. We caught three smallmouth bass in five feet of water that were abiding along the top portion of this hump. Two of the smallmouth bass were enticed by the 2 1/2-inch coppertreuse ZinkerZ rig as we were retrieving it with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. One smallmouth engulfed the 2 1/2-inch coppertreuse ZinkerZ as it was resting on the top of the hump while we were untangling a wind knot out of the braided line.
In the reservoir's southern region, we fished one main-lake point and two bluffs inside a major feeder-creek arm. One bluff is about 100-yards long and is located on the north side of the creek arm. The other bluff is about a mile long, and it forms the south shoreline of the creek arm.
We failed to garner any strikes from the main-lake point.
The north bluff was our most fruitful spot and yielded 13 smallmouth bass. Twelve of them were caught on the 2 1/2-inch coppertreuse ZinkerZ. One was caught on the three-inch The Deal MinnowZ. The MinnowZ was presented with a steady swimming retrieve. We employed the 2 1/2-inch ZinkerZ rig with a slow swim-glide-and-shake action. These smallmouth bass were extracted from the sides of some submerged boulders that adorn the bluff and lie in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as eight feet.
Steve Reideler with one of the 30 smallmouth bass that they caught.
We then moved to the south side of the creek arm, where we fished about 100-yards of the southern bluff. This bluff relinquished six smallmouth bass. These smallmouth bass were relating to some submerged boulders along the face of the bluff in three to 10 feet of water.
In sum, we caught 30 smallmouth bass and two largemouth bass. In my eyes, it appeared that the dispositions of the smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, and spotted bass that inhabit this reservoir were much more subdued than they were on Oct. 5. We also discovered that many of the areas where Rick Allen and I had caught numerous smallmouth bass on Oct. 5 were devoid of smallmouth bass during this outing.
The most effective rig was the 2 1/2-inch coppertreuse ZinkerZ rigged on either a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig or an unpainted generic 1/16-ounce mushroom head jig. The swim-glide-and shake presentation was the most effective retrieve. Most of the strikes were tentative ones.
For a change of pace, we also wielded a Rapala X-Rap suspending jerkbait that we worked with erratic jerks and pauses at the wind-blown points, main-lake shorelines, and humps, and we were surprised that it yielded only one largemouth bass.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 43 degrees at 7:52 a.m. and 73 degrees at 3:52 p.m. The sun burned brightly in a powder-blue sky. There was not a cloud in sight. The wind angled out of the east, southeast, east by southeast, and south at 4 to 25 mph. The barometric pressure was 30.22 at 12:52 a.m., 30.20 at 5:52 a.m., 30.18 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.08 at 3:52 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 9:03 a.m. to 11:03 a.m., 9:26 p.m. to 11:26 p.m., and 2:51 a.m. to 4:51 a.m. I fished from 11:28 a.m. to 2:28 p.m. at one of northeastern Kansas' community reservoirs.
The surface temperature was 66 degrees. There was an algal bloom, which limited the visibility to 12 to 15 inches. The water level was normal. This reservoir's submerged vegetation has been eradicated with herbicides, but some of its shorelines are still graced with patches of American water willows, which are beginning to exhibit their autumnal hues and stature.
I spent the three hours that I was afloat hiding from the wind inside three feeder-creek arms. Inside those feeder-creek arms, I fished one offshore rock- and boulder-laden hump and portions of five shorelines. Along those shorelines, I probed the outside edges of scores and scores of American water willow patches, as well as some laydowns and stumps.
Inside one of the feeder creek-arms, I caught four largemouth bass on the offshore rock- and boulder-laden hump. A few of the boulders on this hump are half of the size of a Volkswagen Beetle. This hump is also embellished with several massive stumps, which are about a quarter of the size of a Volkswagen Beetle. The hump is about 60 feet long and 15 feet wide. It is covered with five to 12 feet of water. The four largemouth bass were caught on a customized Z-Man's Junebug Mag FattyZ tail affixed to a Z-Man's custom-painted blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man's TT Lures NedlockZ HD Jighead, which was retrieved with a swim-glide-and-no-shake presentation in five to seven feet of water.
Along one of the shorelines in this feeder creek, I caught seven largemouth bass. This shoreline is lined with patches of American water willows, several stumps, a few laydowns, and some minor brush piles. It possesses a 25- to 40-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders.
One of the seven largemouth bass was caught on the Mag FattyZ rig and a drag-and-shake presentation in six feet of water adjacent to a stump. Another largemouth bass was caught in six feet of water on the Mag FattyZ rig with a drag-and-shake retrieve around a pile of rocks that surrounds that stump. Five of the largemouth bass were caught along the outside edges of the patches of American water willows in three to four feet of water on the initial drop of the Mag FattyZ rig. Once I was halfway inside this feeder-creek arm, I failed to garner a strike along this shoreline.
I failed to elicit a strike along the portions of the other shoreline that I fished inside this feeder-creek arm.
I caught seven largemouth bass along portions of one of the shorelines inside the second feeder-creek arm. The water's edge of this shoreline is graced with many patches of American water willows, several overhanging trees, and some laydowns. It possesses a 35- to 40-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. The seven largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's Junebug Rain MinnowZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig, and they were associated with the outside edges of the patches of American water willows in three to five feet of water. Three were caught on the initial drop of the Rain MinnowZ rig, and four were caught on a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation. Once I was slightly more than halfway inside this feeder-creek, I failed to elicit a strike along this shoreline.
Four largemouth bass were caught along portions of the other shoreline inside the second feeder-creek arm. Its water's edge is lined with American water willows and one dock. It possesses a 30- to 40-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. There were two schools of small gizzard shad dimpling the surface along this shoreline. The four largemouth bass were caught in three to four feet of water on the Rain MinnowZ rig along the outside edges on the American water willows. One was caught of the initial drop, and three were caught on a swim-glide-and-no-shake presentation. One of the four largemouth bass was caught more than halfway inside this feeder creek.
I caught 12 largemouth bass along portions of a shoreline inside the third feeder-creek arm. This shoreline possesses a 25- to 50-degree slope. The water's edge is lined with patches of American water willows, four docks, several overhanging trees, many laydowns, a concrete retaining wall, and a rock retaining wall. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and a few boulders. One of the twelve largemouth bass was caught under an overhanging tree in about three feet of water. Four of the twelve were caught around laydowns in about four feet of water. Seven of the largemouth bass were caught along the outside edges of the patches of American water willows in three to five feet of water. Five of the 12 largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of the Rain MinnowZ rig. Seven of them were caught on a swim-glide-and-no-shake retrieve. All of these largemouth bass were caught no farther than a third of the way inside this feeder creek.
In sum, I caught 34 largemouth bass in three hours. Twenty-three were caught on a Z-Man's Junebug Rain MinnowZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. (The Rain MinnowZ is a vintage Midwest finesse soft-plastic stick bait that is no longer made; it is salt-free and three inches long.) Eleven largemouth bass were caught on a customized Z-Man's Junebug Mag FattyZ tail affixed to a Z-Man's custom-painted blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man's TT Lures NedlockZ HD Jighead. I failed to catch a largemouth bass on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a Z-Man's custom-painted blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man's TT Lures NedlockZ HD Jighead.
I have been in a piscatorial slump for quite a spell, and it has been a struggle for me to catch 12 largemouth bass an hour. Likewise, some Finesse News Network members who have been fishing at the Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri, Truman Lake, Missouri, Table Rock Lake, Missouri, and Grand Lake, Oklahoma, report that it has been a struggle for them to consistently locate and catch black bass around those waterways.
October can be a trying time for black bass anglers in the heartland, which is why we used to spend a lot of time chasing white bass around the flatland reservoirs in northeastern Kansas. But we have also enjoyed some bountiful black bass outings in Octobers of the past. Here is hoping the next 14 days will be more fruitful ones for the black bass anglers hereabouts. For the next couple of days, however, I am going to enjoy several family doings.
Rick Hebenstreit of Shawnee, Kansas, filed a note on the Finesse News Network about his outing with John Kehde of Sedalia, Missouri, at the Lake of the Ozarks on Oct. 17.
Johnny and I struggled to catch 28 largemouth and spotted bass. We fished for about seven hours. All of them were caught around docks on either a Z-Man's green-pumpkin Finesse T.R.D. affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig or a Z-Man's California craw Hula StickZ affixed to a black 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. They were caught on either the initial drop or on a slow swimming presentation that was two or three feet under the surface around the outside edges and corners of the floating docks. Docks that were floating in deeper water were more fruitful than the shallow-water ones.
John Kehde with one of the spotted bass that they caught.
On Oct. 16, my wife, Kathy, and I caught 16 largemouth bass and spotted bass in two hours around deep-water docks. Kathy, by the way, caught 10 crappie in 45 minutes around our boat dock on Oct. 17 while Johnny and I were struggling to catch black bass.
Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Oct. 17 outing.
It was a delightful fall day. The sunlit sky exhibited a gorgeous indigo-blue hue, and there was not a cloud to be seen for miles around. The morning low temperature was a nippy 41 degrees. The afternoon temperature was 76 degrees. The barometric pressure measured 30.30 at 11:00 a.m. and 30.16 at 4:00 p.m. The wind angled out of the southeast at 10 to 12 mph.
John Thomas of Denton, Texas, joined me for an afternoon excursion at one of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' hill-land reservoirs in the Dallas-Ft. Worth metropolitan area.
The water exhibited 14 inches of visibility. The water level was about a foot below normal. The water temperature was 74 degrees.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar indicated that the best fishing would occur from 2:58 a.m. to 4:58 a.m., 9:10 a.m. to 11:10 a.m., and 9:34 p.m. to 11:34 p.m. John and I were afloat from about 11:20 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., but we fished for only four hours.
We spent those four hours in the south end of the reservoir. To our dismay, the fishing was more perplexing and difficult than what we had expected, and it was a chore for us to catch 16 largemouth bass and six spotted bass. We also inadvertently caught one freshwater drum and a small white crappie.
In the main-lake area, we fished two main-lake points, a short main-lake shoreline that is about 35 yards long, a 100-yard section of the riprap shoreline along the dam, and 33 concrete support pillars underneath a large train-trestle bridge and an adjacent roadway bridge.
Inside a feeder-creek arm, we dissected several secondary points and their adjacent shorelines, a mud flat, and two concrete boat ramps.
The two main-lake points and the main-lake shoreline are flat and consist of clay, gravel, and several patches of flooded terrestrial vegetation stems that are now bare. One of the two points yielded one largemouth bass. It was caught on a Rapala No. 8 Helinski shad Husky Jerk suspending jerkbait that was twitched erratically along the outside edge of a patch of terrestrial vegetation stems in three feet of water. This would be the only black bass that we would catch with a suspending jerkbait during this outing.
We failed to garner any strikes from the other main-lake point and shoreline.
We failed to elicit any strikes from a 150-yard segment of the riprap shoreline on the east end of the dam.
We caught 10 largemouth bass and one white crappie from the sides of the 33 concrete support pillars underneath the two bridges. We were unable to provoke any strikes from the majority of these pillars, and the ones where we were able to entice a strike relinquished only one or two bass. These largemouth bass were relating to the sides of the concrete pillars and were suspended about five to eight feet beneath the surface in water that was 27 to 40 feet deep. Seven largemouth bass were caught on a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a Z-Man's white lightning Finesse T.R.D. affixed on a chartreuse Z-Man's 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig. Three largemouth bass were attracted to a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's white lightning ZinkerZ attached to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig and swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. A Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig that was presented with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve enticed one white crappie.
Inside the feeder-creek arm, we caught five largemouth bass, six spotted bass, and one freshwater drum.
One spotted bass was caught in three feet of water from a rocky secondary point at the mouth of the feeder-creek arm.
Five largemouth bass and five spotted bass were caught in the upper reaches of the creek arm. They were abiding along three steeply sloped and shaded shorelines in one to five feet of water. The underwater terrain of these three shorelines are identical and are comprised of mostly gravel, clay, fist-size rocks, and boulders.
The five largemouth bass and five spotted bass were caught on the Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ rig. One spotted bass preferred the 2 1/2-inch white lightning ZinkerZ combo. Seven of the 11 largemouth and spotted bass were beguiled by a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. Four were caught in close proximity to the water's edge on the initial drop of the Scented LeechZ rig.
We did not garner any strikes along the two boat ramps, the mud flat, or from the other sun-drenched shorelines and secondary points.
For the past couple of weeks, we have been searching the upper reaches of the feeder-creek arms at several U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' reservoirs for fall-migrating threadfin shad and black bass but to no avail. This outing has provided us with the first signs that the fall migration may have finally begun.
Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Oct. 19 outing.
Roger Farish of Highland Village, Texas, and I travelled to one of our most scenic U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' reservoirs in north-central Texas.
During the month of October, the black bass fishing in north-central Texas can be a feast-or-famine affair. But lately, we have experienced more famine-type outings than bountiful ones. This outing would fall under the famine category. It took us 4 1/2 hours to scrounge up 12 largemouth bass and two spotted bass. The two largest were largemouth bass, which looked like twins, and weighed 2 1/2-pounds each. We unintentionally caught two freshwater drum, as well.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur between the hours of 4:25 a.m. and 6:25 a.m., 10:37 a.m. and 12:37 p.m., and 10:59 p.m. to 12:59 a.m. Roger and I fished from about 10:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Oct. 19 was mostly cloudy. The morning low temperature was 55 degrees and the afternoon high temperature climbed to 82 degrees. The wind blew continuously out of the east and southeast at 15 to 17 mph. The barometric pressure was 30.16 at 10:00 a.m. and dropped slightly to 30.08 by 3:00 p.m.
We opted to seek shelter from the pesky wind and fished inside a feeder-creek arm that is situated on the south end of the west tributary arm.
The most prominent features in this feeder-creek arm are two large coves, three smaller coves, and a marina. Its underwater terrain is comprised of clay, gravel, rocks, and boulders.
The north end of the creek arm encompasses a large cove. Its shoreline is graced with large submerged boulders, several laydowns, a mud and clay levee, and a few patches of flooded terrestrial vegetation.
The north end of the feeder creek's eastern shoreline is steep and rocky. This shoreline is also graced with two shallow mud flats, several submerged rock ledges, a couple of flat and shallow secondary points, and several smaller tertiary points. Many yards of this shoreline are embellished with partially-flooded patches of terrestrial vegetation.
The south shoreline of this creek arm is adorned with three small shallow coves and a flooded stock-pond dam that is situated inside one of the small coves.
A portion of the west shoreline is occupied by a marina. Two concrete boat ramps, two concrete piers, and a concrete culvert are situated along the north shoreline of a large cove that lies in the southwest end of the feeder creek.
Roger Farish with one of the 12 largemouth bass that they caught.
We caught six largemouth bass from the northern shoreline in the north cove. They were caught in three to five feet of water and were relating to the sides of several large submerged boulders.
Three largemouth bass and two spotted bass were caught along two mud flats along the eastern shoreline. They were extracted from three to five feet of water. The two spotted bass were associated with several submerged boulders. The two largemouth bass were extracted from the outside edges of two patches of flooded vegetation.
In the south end of the feeder-creek arm, we fished the remnants of a stock-pond dam inside one of the smaller coves. We were unable to generate any strikes along the dam or from any other portion of this cove.
We probed two concrete boat ramps, two concrete piers, a concrete culvert, a floating tire reef, and many yards of the north shoreline inside the cove that lies in the southwest region of the feeder creek. We caught three largemouth bass that were scattered along a steep clay and gravel shoreline in less than five feet of water and less than 10 feet from the water's edge. We failed to engender any strikes from the two concrete piers, the two boat ramps, or the floating tire reef.
We caught 10 largemouth bass on a Z-Man's white lightning Finesse T.R.D. affixed on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. Two spotted bass and one largemouth bass were caught on a shortened Z-Man's mud minnow Hula StickZ rigged on a black 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. One largemouth was caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's pearl Slim SwimZ attached to a chartreuse 1/32-ounce Gopher jig.
Eleven largemouth bass were allured by a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Both of the spotted bass were beguiled by a drag-and-deadstick retrieve. One largemouth was caught with a steady swimming retrieve.
As it often does during October in northeastern Kansas, the wind howled on Oct. 20. The Weather Underground reported that the wind angled out of the south and southwest as fast as 27 mph while I was afloat, and the AccuWeather predicts that it will howl as fast as 37 mph and be associated with severe thunderstorms on Oct. 21. It was 53 degrees at 7:53 a.m. on Oct. 20, and 72 degrees at 2:53 p.m. It was sunny. The barometric pressure was 30.08 at 12:53 a.m., 30.08 at 5:53 a.m., 30.04 at 11:53 a.m., and 29.91 at 2:53 a.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar indicated that the best fishing would occur from 10:47 a.m. to 12:47 p.m., 11:13 p.m. to 1:13 p.m., and 5:02 a.m. to 7:02 a.m. This week has been and remains filled with many delightful family doings, but there was enough time for me to squeeze in three hours of fishing on this windy day, and I fished from 11:34 a.m. to 2:34 p.m. at one of northeastern Kansas' suburban community reservoirs.
The surface temperature was 65 degrees. The water level looked to be normal. The water exhibited about two feet of visibility. There was enough of an algal bloom to deposit a green ring around the hull of the boat. There are oodles of annoying patches of filamentous algae, and much of it has a black hue. It coats the stems of the American water willows, which adorn some of this reservoir's shorelines and points. It clings to the patches of coontail that is intertwined with some of the American water willow patches, and it laces most of the patches of coontail that embellish some of the shallow-water flats and some of the shorelines. At some locales, the filamentous algae was so bothersome that I had to employ a Midwest finesse rig that was affixed to a 1/32-ounce Gopher jig in order not to get the rig covered with the black strands of filamentous algae. Many yards of this reservoir's shorelines are lined with either concrete or rock retaining walls, and they are also littered with docks.
At times, the wind seemed to be blowing from a variety of directions, and there were not many areas to hide from it. As I battled with the wind, I fished the dam, the spillway, three main-lake points, and portions of four main-lake shorelines.
Along the dam, I caught four largemouth bass. The water's edge is graced with patches of American water willows, which are occasionally interlaced with coontail. The coontail is rank with filamentous algae. Its underwater terrain consists of riprap. It possesses a 25- to 45-degree slope. Two of the largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's Junebug Rain MinnowZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in three to five feet of water around the patches of American water willows. One largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's sprayed grass ZinkerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig in about four feet of water near a patch of American water willows. The fourth largemouth bass was caught on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a blue 1/16-ounce Gopher jig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in five feet of water along the outside edge of a patch of American water willows.
At the spillway, I failed to engender a strike. I also failed to elicit a strike at the three main-lake points, which I dissected very haphazardly because of the wind.
In the middle section of this reservoir, I caught six largemouth bass along about a 375-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline, which is lined with retaining walls, scores of docks, a few patches of American water willows, some minor patches of coontail, and several paltry laydowns. This shoreline possesses a 30- to 50-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and some boulders. Two of the largemouth bass were caught adjacent to a dock in about five feet of water on the Rain MinnowZ rig with a drag-and-shake presentation. Three largemouth bass were caught on a 3 1/2-inch section of the tail of a Z-Man's Junebug Mag FattyZ affixed to a Z-Man's custom-painted red 1/15-ounce Z-Man's TT Lures NedlockZ HD Jighead in four to seven feet of water with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve adjacent to the retaining walls. One largemouth bass was caught along the outside edge of a patch of American water willows in about three feet of water on the initial drop of the Finesse WormZ rig.
I caught five largemouth bass along a short shoreline in the middle section of the reservoir. The shoreline is edged with patches of American water willows, some patches of coontail, a small concrete retaining wall, four docks, and one overhanging tree. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. It possesses a 30- to 35-degree slope. The five largemouth bass were caught on a shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/32-ounce Gopher jig with a slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation in five to seven feet of water. Three of the largemouth bass were caught in the same vicinity, which was near a dock, a concrete retaining wall, and around patches of American water willows and coontail. The other two were caught near another dock and around patches of American water willows and coontail. There are wads of filamentous algae galore along this shoreline.
Ten largemouth bass were caught along a 300-yard section of a main-lake shoreline in the upper section of the reservoir. This shoreline possesses a 25- to 45-degree slope. It is embellished with patches of American water willows, occasional patches of coontail, a bridge, two concrete retaining walls, two docks, several overhanging trees, and some laydowns. These largemouth bass were caught on either a shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/32-ounce Gopher jig or a shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig in three to seven feet of water. Three of the largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of the Hula StickZ rig. One was caught with a deadstick presentation. Two were caught on a drag-and-subtle-shake presentation while I was strolling. Four were caught on a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation.
Along a 60-yard section of a main-lake shoreline in the upper reaches of the reservoir, I caught six largemouth bass on the shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig in 2 1/2 to five feet of water. This locale was somewhat sheltered from the wind. The water's edge of this shoreline is lined with a concrete retaining wall, a few patches of American water willows, a significant number of coontail patches, five docks, and a brush pile. It possesses a 25-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. One of the largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop at the outside edge of a patch of American water willows. Two were caught while I employed a swim-glide-and-no-shake presentation adjacent to the concrete retaining wall. Three were caught on a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation around patches of coontail.
At most locales, the wind incessantly created a bow in my line, which enhanced the no-feel aspect of my presentations, and in my eyes, that is an attribute. But the wind confounded many of my casts and my ability to control the boat. Because there was a bow in my line, it seemed as if many of the largemouth bass caught me rather than having me catching them, or in other words, I did not set the hook with my rod or reel; they hooked themselves, which is one of the virtues of using small No. 4 and No. 6 hooks. Small hooks also are an asset when an angler has to fish around the quagmires of filamentous algae.
In total, I caught 31 largemouth bass in three hours, which is a far cry from being a Midwest finesse bonanza.
Rick Hebenstreit of Shawnee, Kansas, and his wife, Kathy, are spending a week at the Lake of the Ozarks, where the black bass fishing has been difficult for many weeks.
He sent the Finesse News Network two photographs and a brief that described their endeavors on Oct. 20.
Rick Hebenstreit with one of the largemouth bass that they caught around floating docks.
He said that they fished six hours and caught a combination of 26 largemouth bass and spotted bass. Twenty-five of them were caught around floating docks, and docks that floated over deep water were the most fruitful ones. Five of the 25 black bass were caught on a shortened Z-Man's California craw Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig, and 20 of them were caught on the tail section of a Z-Man's green-pumpkin FattyZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. Kathy caught one largemouth bass on a crappie jig around a bridge pillar. At the beginning of this day,they caught one crappie, one walleye, and seven white bass around one main-lake point.
Kathy Hebenstreit with the largemouth bass that she caught on a crappie jig around a bridge pillar.
Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Oct. 23 outing.
Mike Trometer of Plano, Texas, and I traveled 81 miles to fish for smallmouth bass at a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' reservoir. As we made this journey, we expressed our aspirations of locating and catching a significant number of smallmouth bass.
The sunlit sky was partly cloudy. The morning low temperature was 46 degrees and the afternoon high temperature was 82 degrees. The barometric pressure fell slightly from 30.18 at 10:00 a.m. to 30.12 at 2:00 p.m. The wind angled out of the west and southwest at 12 to 15 mph, and we utilized a drift sock about 40 percent of the time that we were afloat.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 1:27 a.m. to 3:27 a.m., 7:38 a.m. to 9:38 a.m., and 1:50 p.m. to 3:50 p.m. Mike and I fished from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Typically, the water clarity at this reservoir exhibits five to seven feet of visibility. But when we arrived at the boat ramp, we noticed that the water exhibited 14 to 18 inches of visibility. The water level was 1.66 feet above normal. The surface temperature was 72 degrees.
We fished in the southeast region of this impoundment and dissected a submerged rock ledge inside one main-lake cove, a short portion of a rocky shoreline inside another main-lake cove, five main-lake points, the shorelines inside two feeder-creek arms, and a main-lake bluff.
This outing started off on a promising note as we plied a rock ledge inside the first main-lake cove. The top of the ledge is covered with five feet of water, and it quickly plummets into 42 feet of water. This ledge yielded four smallmouth bass and one spotted bass that were scattered along the top of the ledge in three to five feet of water.
After that and to our chagrin, the smallmouth bass, spotted bass, and largemouth bass fishing became a struggle, and we failed to generate any strikes along five rocky main-lake points. By the outing's end, we struggled to catch 11 smallmouth bass, four spotted bass, and three largemouth bass. We also inadvertently caught two freshwater drum.
We fished about 30 yards of a boulder-strewn shoreline inside the second main-lake cove. This locale looked promising. But it yielded only two largemouth bass and one smallmouth bass that were caught in less than five feet of water and next to a couple of large submerged boulders.
We then ventured inside the first feeder-creek arm, which is located about 1 1/2 miles west of the main-lake points and coves that we just fished. We slowly dissected the west shoreline, which is endowed with several rocky and steep-sloping secondary points, two small secondary coves, several boat houses, a few laydowns, and a large bluff. The underwater terrain is comprised of sand, gravel, rocks, and boulders. The rocks and boulders ranged in size from being as small as a baseball to as large as a small pick-up truck. We caught three spotted bass, two largemouth bass, and two smallmouth bass in three to six feet of water from two of the secondary points and several of the submerged boulders near the east end of the bluff. We were unable to garner any strikes from around the boat houses, laydowns, or inside the two smaller coves. As we were fishing along the west shoreline, we crossed paths with another boat angler. We stopped for a couple of minutes and spoke with this angler. He told us that he was having a tough day, too, and had caught one black bass all day.
We then fished about 80 percent of the shorelines inside the second feeder-creek arm. We did not garner any strikes from the submerged boulders along the west and east shorelines. But we caught one largemouth bass and one spotted bass from a couple of submerged boulders in three to six feet of water in the back end of this creek arm.
The main-lake bluff was the last spot that we fished. It is about 200 yards long. We probed about 75 yards of it, which is also graced with many large boulders. We caught one spotted bass from this section of the bluff. It was abiding next to a large boulder in five feet of water.
In sum, we wielded a variety of crankbaits, in-line spinnerbaits, and Z-Man's Midwest finesse baits throughout this four-hour endeavor. Sixteen black bass were beguiled by a shortened Z-Man's mud minnow Hula StickZ rigged on a black 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. Two were bewitched by a Z-Man's white lightning Finesse T.R.D. affixed on a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig. We failed to provoke any strikes with the crankbaits or in-line spinnerbaits.
We experimented with all six of the standard Midwest finesse retrieves, and a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve was the only effective presentation.
This was a sorry smallmouth bass outing. But on Sept. 19, John Thomas of Denton and I caught 31 smallmouth bass, four largemouth bass, and two spotted bass at this same reservoir. During that six-hour outing, the water was clear and displayed five feet of visibility. The water level was 0.21 feet above its normal level, and the surface temperature ranged from 79 degrees to 81 degrees. We caught the bulk of those 37 black bass from three of the rocky main-lake points that were bereft of bass during this Oct. 23 outing.
It has been our experience that murky- and stained-water conditions have a negative effect on our ability to locate and catch the smallmouth bass that abide in this reservoir. Therefore, we quickly came to the conclusion that we will have to wait at least a couple of weeks and let this reservoir's water clarity improve before we return again.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 35 degrees at 6:53 a.m. and 72 degrees at 3:53 p.m. It was sunny. The wind angled out of the west, west by southwest and west by northwest at 3 to 12 mph. The barometric pressure was 30.13 at 12:53 a.m., 30.04 at 5:53 a.m., 29.91 at 11:53 a.m., and 29.87 at 1:53 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar indicated that the best fishing would take place from 3:07 a.m. to 5:07 a.m., 3:31 p.m. to 5:31 p.m., and 9:19 a.m. to 11:19 a.m. David Harrison of Lawrence, Kansas, and I fished at one of northeastern Kansas' community reservoirs from 10:18 a.m. to 1:18 p.m.
The water level looked to be an inch or two below normal. The surface temperature ranged from 60 to 61 degrees. The water exhibited 18 to 30 inches of visibility. The visibility was hampered by a planktonic algae bloom. This reservoir used to have the finest patches of American water willows in northeastern Kansas, but they are in a state of significant decline. It is also devoid of any submerged aquatic vegetation, which used to be bountiful. During the past year, this reservoir's managers unwisely elected to remove the submerged vegetation with an aquatic herbicide, and it looks as if that herbicide denuded the shorelines, which used to be embellished with thick and luscious patches of American water willows.
The black bass fishing at this reservoir has been wretched since the last days of spring and the first days of summer, and it remained that way throughout this outing.
During the first hour, we caught 10 largemouth bass. During the last two hours, we caught two smallmouth bass and three largemouth bass.
Three were caught along a main-lake point in the upper portions of the reservoir. Two of them were caught in about two feet of water along the outside edge of some scrawny patches of American water willows on the initial drop of a shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. The third one was caught on a 2 1/2-inch Junebug Berkley PowerBait MaxScent The General Worm affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig with a dragging presentation in about four feet of water.
Along the two shorelines adjacent to this main-lake point, we caught three largemouth bass. One was caught on a Z-Man's Junebug Rain MinnowZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/32-ounce Gopher jig in about five feet of water with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Two largemouth bass were caught on the Hula StickZ rig in three to four feet of water with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation.
The point and two shorelines possess a 35- to 45-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and some significant boulders. Its water's edge is graced with some laydowns, overhanging trees, and shallow-water patches of scrawny American water willows.
We caught four largemouth bass along another main-lake shoreline in the upper portions of the reservoir. Two of the largemouth bass were caught on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's black neon Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. One of the two was caught on the initial drop of the rig adjacent to a patch of American water willows, and the other one was caught while strolling the rig and employing a dragging presentation in about six feet of water. The other two largemouth bass were caught on a shortened four-inch Z-Man's Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/32-ounce Gopher jig. One of the two was caught on a swimming retrieve in about seven feet of water, and the second one was caught around a laydown in about five feet of water with a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation.
This shoreline possesses a 20- to 50-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. There are a couple of underwater stumps. The shoreline is adorned with some laydowns, some overhanging trees, a variety of overhanging terrestrial vegetation, and measly patches of American water willows.
Inside a minor feeder-creek arm, we caught two largemouth bass. One was caught on a secondary point in about three feet of water on the Hula StickZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. The second largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the black neon Finesse WormZ rig along another secondary point in about three feet of water.
One of the secondary points is graced with a patch of American water willows, and its underwater terrain consists of rocks and minor boulders. The other secondary point is adorned with a few small laydowns, and its underwater terrain consists of gravel and small rocks.
We caught one largemouth bass inside a big feeder-creek arm. It was caught on the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig that was strolled and presented with a swim-glide-shake presentation in about four feet of water in the vicinity of a beaver' hut.
This shoreline possesses a 25-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. Its water's edge is laced with some laydowns, a few overhanging trees, a beaver hut, and patches of American water willows.
We caught two smallmouth bass along a main-lake shoreline in the lower section of the reservoir. One was caught on the black neon Finesse WormZ with a deadstick presentation in about six feet of water. The second one was caught on the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig with a drag-and-deadstick presentation in five to six feet of water. These smallmouth bass were caught at the same locale.
This shoreline possesses a 45- to 60-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders.
We failed to elicit a strike along seven main-lake points, portions of the dam, one offshore rock hump, portions of two main-lake shorelines, and portions of three shorelines and two secondary points inside two small feeder-creek arms.
In short, this reservoir has become an ugly, frustrating, and virtually fruitless one. And if one happens to be a power angler, we suspect that it must be an extremely ugly nightmare to fish.
Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Oct. 25 outing.
After Mike Trometer of Plano, Texas, and I drove 162 miles and endured a horrid smallmouth bass outing at a popular north-central Texas' U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' reservoir on Oct. 23, Rick Allen of Dallas and I elected to fish for largemouth bass and spotted bass at a nearby Corps' hill-land reservoir on Oct. 25.
According to In-Fisherman's solunar calendar, the best fishing would take place from 3:17 a.m. to 5:17 a.m., 9:25 a.m. to 11:25 a.m., and 3:37 p.m. to 5:37 p.m. Rick and I fished from noon to 4:00 p.m.
A local television meteorologist reported that it was 43 degrees at 8:00 a.m. and 78 degrees at 4:00 p.m. It was sunny. An irksome wind blew incessantly out of the west at 12 to 15 mph. The barometric pressure measured 30.21 at 11:00 a.m. and 30.02 at 4:00 p.m.
The water level was down 1.10 feet. An algal bloom had stained the water more than usual, and it exhibited 14 inches of visibility. The water temperature ranged from 70 to 72 degrees.
During this four-hour undertaking, we fished three main-lake points, a main-lake shoreline, portions of several rocky shorelines inside two feeder-creek arms, and 11 concrete support columns underneath two bridges.
We caught two spotted bass, one largemouth bass, and one white bass inside the first feeder-creek arm. This creek arm encompasses three small coves, a submerged roadbed, several boathouses, several rocky secondary points, and a clay and gravel flat. Its underwater terrain is composed of red clay, gravel, small rocks, and a few scattered boulders. There are a few submerged stumps.
In the upper reaches of this feeder-creek arm, we fished inside two of the three small coves. Inside one cove, we caught two spotted bass and one largemouth bass. They were caught in three to five feet of water from the side of a submerged roadbed that is lined with a few thin patches of flooded terrestrial vegetation. The white bass was caught in four feet of water along another patch of flooded terrestrial vegetation inside the other cove.
We failed to entice any strikes from a rocky secondary point situated in the midsection of the creek arm.
We also failed to generate any strikes from two main-lake points and a 50-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline that separate the two points.
We then ventured to another feeder-creek arm that is located about 1 1/2 miles west of the first one.
The lower two-thirds of this second feeder-creek arm is comprised of several rock-laden secondary points, three small coves, three concrete boat ramps, and two steep rocky shorelines. The underwater terrain is comprised of gravel and clay. The upper third of the creek arm contains a large mud flat that is divided into two coves.
We caught four largemouth bass in the lower two-thirds of the creek arm. One largemouth bass was caught along one of the two rocky main-lake points that form the mouth of this feeder-creek arm. Two largemouth bass were caught from one of the flat and gravel-laden secondary points. Another largemouth bass was caught from a large patch of flooded terrestrial vegetation near the back of one of the small coves. They were all abiding in less than five feet of water.
The large mud flat in the upper end of the creek arm yielded seven largemouth bass that were caught in three to five feet of water. These bass were relating to the outside edges of several large and thick patches of flooded terrestrial vegetation, which adorn this flat.
We were unable to provoke any strikes from two steep and rocky segments of shoreline along the east and west sides of the creek arm.
Our last stop was underneath two large bridges in the reservoir's southwest tributary arm. The pesky 15 mph wind and white-capping waves made boat control a challenge, but we were able to keep the boat in position long enough to dissect the sides of several concrete bridge support columns. These columns surrendered two largemouth bass, and a third one was able to liberate itself before we could hoist it into the boat. These largemouth bass were suspended about five feet below the surface and next to the support columns in water that was 35 to 41 feet deep.
Overall, this outing was as trying as my Oct. 23 one, and it became a laborious task to catch 14 largemouth bass, two spotted bass, and one white bass. We lost two other largemouth bass that were able to pull free before we could land them.
We caught six of the 16 black bass on a 3 1/2-inch Z-Man's blue-glimmer-sparkle GrubZ attached to a black 1/10-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. Another five were caught on a Z-Man's bluegill-hue Scented LeechZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig. A 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's coppertreuse ZinkerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig caught two. A 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's white lightning ZinkerZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig caught two. One spotted bass was caught on a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig dressed with a white lightning Finesse T.R.D.
The bluegill Scented LeechZ, 2 1/2-inch coppertreuse and white lightning ZinkerZs, and white lightning Finesse T.R.D. rigs were employed with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation. The 3 1/2-inch blue-glimmer-sparkle GrubZ combo was presented with a slow and steady swimming retrieve.
We are now finding significant numbers of threadfin shad and a few black bass beginning to migrate from their main-lake haunts into the upper reaches of the feeder-creek arms and the backs of coves. What's more, our most lucrative main-lake locales, such as rocky points, bridge support columns, and floating tire-reefs have become mostly fruitless. Therefore, we'll be spending more of our time searching for largemouth bass, spotted bass, and smallmouth bass inside the feeder-creek arms and coves and less time probing main-lake areas as this fall continues to unfold.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 37 degrees at 8:52 a.m. and 45 degrees at 2:52 p.m. It is the coldest weather of the fall, and by 4:52 a.m. on Oct. 28, area thermometers hovered around 25 degrees. The sky fluctuated from being partly cloudy to overcast to mostly cloudy to scattered with clouds. The wind angled out of the northwest and west by northwest at 16 to 32 mph. The barometric pressure was 30.05 at 12:53 a.m., 30.11 at 5:52 a.m., 30.13 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.09 at 2:52 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar indicated that the best fishing would take place from 4:47 a.m. to 6:47 a.m., 5:10 p.m. to 7:10 p.m., and 10:58 a.m. to 12:58 p.m. David Harrison of Lawrence, Kansas, and I fished at one of northeastern Kansas' many community reservoirs from 10:20 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.
The surface temperature ranged from 57 to 58 degrees. There was 15 to 18 inches of visibility. The water level was normal.
We spent a lot of this outing either battling or talking badly about the wind and the wind chill. During our many battles with and kvetches about the wind, we fished portions of two shorelines inside one feeder-creek arm, portions of two shorelines inside another feeder-creek arm, portions of one shoreline in a third feeder-creek arm, a short portion of a shoreline in a fourth feeder-creek arm, and a 40-yard segment of the dam. We also haphazardly and quickly fished a flat main-lake point.
We caught 41 largemouth bass in three hours and 55 minutes. And we failed to establish a location and presentation pattern. In other words, we caught them every-which way. At times, it seemed as if they caught us. What's more, we caught them on a multitude of Midwest finesse rigs. There were spells, however, when we caught two or three from the same locale, but similar locales were fruitless, and that is to say that there was no telling where we might catch them. Some anglers might call this junk fishing. Others might call it helter-skelter fishing.
One largemouth bass was caught on a 2 1/2-inch Berkley PowerBait MaxScent green-pumpkin-party The General Worm affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. Two largemouth bass were caught on a 2 1/2-inch black The General Worm affixed to a red 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. Two largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's pearl Rain MinnowZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Jade's Jig. Two largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's Junebug Rain MinnowZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. Three largemouth bass were caught on a 2 1/2-inch watermelon-copper-orange-red The General Worm affixed to a red 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. Eight largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's pearl Finesse ShadZ affixed to a red 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. Eleven largemouth bass were caught on a blue-pearl-black-hologram The General Worm affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. Twelve largemouth bass were caught on a shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Jade's jig. We also employed four Midwest finesse rigs and a Niko rig that were not productive.
Along the dam, we caught one largemouth bass along the outside edge of a patch of American water willows on the initial drop of the green-pumpkin-party The General Worm rig in about three feet of water. This shoreline possesses a 45-degree slope. Its underwater terrain is rock.
We caught 11 largemouth bass along a 300-yard stretch of a shoreline inside the second feeder-creek arm. They were caught on either the Junebug Hula StickZ or blue-pearl-black Hologram The General Worm rig. Three of the 11 largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of those rigs along the outside edges of patches of American water willows in three to four feet of water. Four largemouth bass were caught around a rock pile and two stumps in four to five feet of water on either a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve or a drag-and-deadstick presentation. Two were caught with a stroll and drag-and-slight-deadstick presentation many yards from the water's edge. Two were caught on a steady swimming presentation many yards from the shoreline.
This shoreline possesses a 25- to 40-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rock, boulders, and some of the boulders are humongous . The water's edge is lined with patches of American water willows, and there are several submerged stumps.
Along a 150-yard stretch of the other shoreline inside the second feeder-creek arm, we caught six largemouth bass. Three of them were caught on the blue-pearl-black Hologram The General Worm rig, and the other three were caught on the Junebug Hula StickZ rig. One was caught on the initial drop in about three feet of water along the outside edge of a patch of American water willows. One was caught many yards from the water's edge on a strolling and a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. One was caught around a laydown in about four feet of water with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. Three were caught on a drag-and-slight-deadstick presentation.
This shoreline possesses a 35- to 45-degree slope. Its water's edge is lined with some patches of American water willows, several minor laydowns, and some overhanging trees. Its underwater terrain consists of sand, gravel, rocks, concrete blocks, and boulders.
We caught 15 largemouth bass along a 350-yard stretch of a shoreline inside the second feeder-creek arm. They were caught in three to six feet of water. One was caught on the Junebug Hula StickZ rig. One was caught on the 2 1/2-inch black The General Worm rig. One was caught on the 2 1/2-inch watermelon-copper-orange-red The General Worm rig. Two were caught on the Junebug Rain MinnowZ rig. Two were caught on the pearl Rain MinnowZ rig. Three were caught on the 2 1/2-inch blue-pearl-black Hologram The General Worm rig. Six largemouth bass were caught on the pearl Finesse ShadZ rig.
This shoreline possesses a 25- to 60-degree slope. It is cluttered with seven docks, a sunken boat, overhanging trees, three concrete and rock retaining walls, several overhanging trees, many laydowns, a few submerged stumps, and patches of American pondweed. Its underwater terrain consists of clay, gravel, rocks, and a few boulders.
Five of the 15 largemouth bass were caught around the laydowns on either the initial drop or a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. One was caught on the initial drop along the clay portion of this shoreline. Three were caught with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation from three to five yards from the water's edge. Six of the 15 largemouth bass were caught around the outside edges of the patches of American water willows on either the initial drop of our rigs or a swim-glide-and-shake presentation.
Along a 300-yard section of another shoreline inside the second feeder-creek arm, we caught six largemouth bass. One was caught on the 2 1/2-inch blue-pearl-black Hologram The General Worm rig. One was caught on the 2 1/2-inch black The General Worm rig. Two were caught on the Junebug Hula StickZ rig. Two were caught on the pearl Finesse ShadZ rig.
This part of the shoreline possesses a 20- to 35-degree slope. It is littered with a dozen docks. Its water's edge is lined with some concrete and rock retaining walls, patches of American water willows, a few submerged stumps, some minor laydowns, and several overhanging trees. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders.
One of the six was caught adjacent to a dock in six feet of water on a deadstick presentation. One was caught near a concrete retaining wall with a straight swimming retrieve. One was caught on a drag-and-slight-deadstick presentation in about five feet of water on a pile of rocks and boulders. Three were caught near the outside edges of patches of American water willows on either the initial drop or a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in three to five feet of water.
We caught two largemouth bass along a 150-yard section of a shoreline inside the third feeder-creek arm. They were caught on the initial drop of the 2 1/2-inch watermelon-copper-orange-red The General Worm rig in three to four feet of water. Both of them were caught along the outside edges of patches of American water willows.
This shoreline possesses a 25- to 35-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. Some of the boulders are massive. The water's edge is lined with a patch of cattails, patches of American water willows, some laydowns, and several overhanging trees.
We failed to elicit a strike around the main-lake point and along a 50-yard stretch of a shoreline inside the fourth feeder-creek arm.
In short, it was such a hodgepodge outing that it is difficult to describe how and where we caught 41 largemouth bass. And we do not have the slightest idea why we caught them. We made hundreds of casts and a variety of retrieves, and every once in a while we inveigled a largemouth bass, but the bulk of our casts and retrieves were fruitless and rendered catawampus by the wind.
Bob Gum of Kansas City, Kansas, filed a brief on the Finesse News Network about his outing with Merit Goodman of Eudora, Kansas, and Vincent Graceffa of Overland Park, Kansas, to a northeastern Kansas power-plant reservoir.
The Weather Underground reported that the low temperature was 27 degrees and the high temperature was 62 degrees. It was sunny, and it became partly cloudy for a spell around noon. The wind angled out of the south at 5 to 12 mph. The barometric pressure was 29.99 at 12:53 a.m., 29.91 at 5:53 a.m., 29.86 at 11:53 a.m., and 29.74 at 3:53 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 6:16 a.m. to 8:16 a.m. and 6:40 p.m. to 8:40 p.m. They fished from 8:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.
The water level was a few inches below the top of the spillway. There was one to two feet of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 56 to 58 degrees.
During the first hour, they probed a riprap shoreline and a massive offshore hump and roadbed that is graced with submerged stumps, rocks, gravel, boulders, and precipitous drop off. And they failed to elicit a strike.
They spent the remainder of their outing methodically dissecting the riprap shorelines along the dam and a roadway.
They caught 29 largemouth bass, two bluegill, one channel catfish, one white bass, and Merit tangled with a humongous buffalo for five minutes, which finally broke her line on one of its many and vigorous runs.
Merit Goodman with one of the 29 largemouth bass that they caught.
All of their fish were caught on either a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's green-pumpkin ZinkerZ affixed to a red 1/16-ounce Gopher jig or a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's Junebug ZinkerZ on a red 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. They were caught in six to 10 feet of water on a slow swim-and-glide presentation that occasionally made contact with the bottom.
Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Oct. 30 outing.
During the early morning hours of Oct. 26, the first major cold front of the fall walloped north-central Texas. Daytime air temperatures plummeted into the upper 30s and lower 40s on Oct. 27 and 28. Robust northwesterly winds accompanied the cold front and howled at 20 to 40 mph.
The winds diminished on Oct. 30, which allowed John Thomas of Denton, Texas, and me to fish at a nearby U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' hill-land reservoir from 11:50 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Rick Allen of Dallas and I fished this same reservoir on Oct. 25. During that outing, it was sunny and the afternoon high reached 78 degrees. An algae bloom had stained the water, and it exhibited about 1 1/4 feet of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 70 to 72 degrees. We thought that the black bass fishing would be significantly better if we fished a few hours before the cold-front arrived, but to our dismay, it was a chore for us to catch a mix of 16 largemouth bass and spotted bass in four hours.
On Oct. 30, John and I relished fishing underneath a beautiful powder-blue sky. The radiant sun was shining everywhere. We were also delighted to see the foliage on the trees and bushes along the reservoir's shorelines transitioning from their lush summer-green hues into colorful gold, yellow, red, and orange tints. The wind blew steadily out of the northeast, north, and northwest at 10 to 15 mph. The barometric pressure measured 29.93 at noon and fell slightly to 29.92 by 4:00 p.m.
In-Fisherman's solunar calendar noted that the most productive fishing periods would occur from 12:59 a.m. to 2:59 a.m., 7:11 a.m. to 9:11 a.m., and 7:35 p.m. to 9:35 p.m.
The water level was 1.67 feet below normal. The water exhibited 14 to 18 inches of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 63 to 67 degrees.
We spent four hours and ten minutes searching for largemouth bass and spotted bass inside two feeder-creek arms, next to 15 concrete support pillars underneath two bridges, at one main-lake point, and inside a large main-lake cove. All of these locales are located in the reservoir's southwest tributary arm.
The underwater terrains at these locales are composed of mostly red clay, rocks, gravel, and boulders. Many of the shorelines are steep and endowed with several secondary points and tertiary points, a couple of shallow mud flats, two concrete boat ramps, and a partially-submerged roadbed. The remnants of thick patches of flooded terrestrial vegetation embellish many yards of the reservoir's shorelines, points, and mud flats that we fished.
The fishing was painfully slow and frustrating. It was a grind to eke out seven spotted bass and four largemouth bass. We unintentionally caught one white crappie, and the highlight of the outing was tangling with a feisty three-pound, six-ounce wiper.
The large main-lake cove relinquished two spotted bass and one largemouth bass. The largemouth bass was caught in 13 to 15 feet of water off the end of a rock-laden secondary point that lies on the east shoreline in the middle of the cove. This largemouth engulfed a shortened Z-Man's mud minnow Hula StickZ affixed to a black 1/15-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig that was slowly dragged down the slope of the point. Both of the spotted bass were caught in three feet of water along the east side of a partially-submerged roadbed in the west end of the cove. They were caught on a Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig. This combo was presented with a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve next to the outside edge of a large patch of flooded terrestrial vegetation that adorns the side of the roadbed.
One largemouth bass was caught next to one of the 15 concrete support pillars underneath one of the two bridges. This largemouth was suspended about eight feet below the surface in water that was 37 feet deep. This largemouth bass were caught on the Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ rig and swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. The other 14 bridge pillars were fruitless.
The first feeder-creek arm that we fished yielded one white crappie that was caught from a large mud flat that lies in the upper end of the creek arm. It was relating to the side of a small submerged bush in five feet of water. It was caught on a 3 1/2-inch Z-Man's blue-glimmer-sparkle GrubZ attached to a black 1/10-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig that was presented with a slow swimming retrieve. We failed to elicit any other strikes from the secondary points, tertiary points, rocky shorelines, and one of the main-lake points at the mouth of this feeder-creek arm.
The second feeder-creek arm was more fruitful than the first one. It yielded two largemouth bass, five spotted bass, and a wiper. Two spotted bass and two largemouth bass were caught in three to six feet of water from a small rocky secondary point in the back end of the creek arm. A wiper and another spotted bass were caught in five to seven feet of water around a concrete boat ramp that is situated next to the rocky secondary point that yielded the four largemouth bass and spotted bass. Four of these five black bass were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's white lightning ZinkerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig. One spotted bass was caught on the bluegill Scented LeechZ. Both of these rigs were employed with a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve.
Two spotted bass were caught in three to five feet of water from a patch of submerged riprap that borders one of the sides of another concrete boat ramp. This ramp is situated on the west side of the creek arm. Both of these spotted bass were caught on the shortened Z-Man's mud minnow Hula StickZ rig and a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation.
We failed to garner any strikes from three rock-laden and steeply-sloped shorelines, five secondary points, and a mud flat.
In sum, this was a sorry ending for October. It was what many anglers would refer to as junk-fishing.
There was no dominant location pattern. We caught a couple of bass from the side of a roadbed, one bass from a concrete bridge support pillar, five bass from two rocky secondary points, and three from two concrete boat ramps. We failed to locate any black bass from many of the other secondary points, tertiary points, rocky shorelines, and two mud flats that we meticulously dissected inside the two feeder-creek arms and main-lake cove.
There was no dominant lure. We caught four bass on the Z-Man's bluegill Scented LeechZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig. A 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's white lightning ZinkerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig allured four bass. A shortened Z-Man's mud minnow Hula StickZ on a black 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig enticed three. We failed to engender any strikes with a four-inch Z-Man's green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce ShroomZ jig, a Z-Man's pearl Finesse ShadZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig, or a shortened Z-Man's pearl Hula StickZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig.
As for retrieves, 10 of the 11 black bass were caught with a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. One bass was caught on a slow drag-and-no-shake presentation. We failed to generate any strikes with a slow hop-and-bounce retrieve or a drag-and-deadstick retrieve. One crappie was caught with a slow swimming retrieve with the 3 1/2-inch blue-glimmer-sparkle GrubZ rig.
Local meteorologists have forecasted that another cold front will arrive on Oct. 31. It will be accompanied by rain and blustery winds. And it may make the black bass fishing in the Corps' reservoirs of north-central Texas even more trying in November.
The Weather Underground reported that it was 27 degrees at 7:53 a.m. and 35 degrees at 2:53 p.m. The wind fluctuated from being calm to angling out of the west by northwest, northwest, north by northwest, north, east by northeast, south by southeast, south by southwest, and south at 3 to 5 mph. The sky was clear from 12:53 a.m. to 9:53 a.m., and then it fluctuated from being partly cloudy to overcast. A few flakes of snow fell from the overcast sky in some locales in northeastern Kansas. The barometric pressure was 30.25 at 12:53 a.m., 30.27 at 5:53 a.m., 30.30 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.19 at 2:53 p.m.
In-Fisherman magazine's solunar calendar indicated that the best fishing would occur from 7:43 a.m. to 9:43 a.m. and 8:07 p.m. to 10:07 p.m. I was afloat from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at one of northeastern Kansas' community reservoirs.
The surface temperature ranged from 51 to 54 degrees. (Ten days ago, the surface temperature at this reservoir was 65 degrees.) The water level was normal. The water exhibited three to five feet of visibility. There was no visible sign of an algae bloom cluttering the water, but by the end of this outing, a ring of algae-like stain encircled the entire hull of the boat. When it is cloudy and the water is cold, this reservoir's patches of coontail tend to lie virtually flat along the bottom, which was the case during the four hours that I was afloat, and consequently, none of my Midwest finesse rigs became entangled with coontail. But those rigs occasionally became entwined with small strands of black filamentous algae, which cling to the patches of coontail.
I spent the entire outing in the upper third section of this reservoir, and I methodically fished portions of three shorelines with six Midwest finesse rigs.
I caught 61 largemouth bass. Five were caught on a Z-Man's California craw TRD HogZ affixed to a hand-painted red 1/20-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. Seven of them were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man's white lightning ZinkerZ affixed to a blue 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. Eight were caught on a Z-Man's green-pumpkin Finesse ShadZ affixed to a red 1/16-ounce Gopher jig. Another eight were caught on a Z-Man's Junebug Rain MinnowZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Jade's Jig. Eleven largemouth bass were caught on a shortened Z-Man's Junebug Hula StickZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Jade's Jig. Twenty-two largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man's black-blue TRD HogZ affixed to a blue 1/16-ounce Gopher jig.
I fished about 400-yards of one of the shorelines. It possesses a 25- to 45-degree slope. About 90 percent of the water's edge is lined with either concrete- or rock-retaining walls. It is littered with about three dozen docks. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, a few boulders, and some silt. There are several patches of American water willows and a few patches of water primrose. I suspect there are scores of patches of coontail, which I failed to notice. There are several overhanging trees, some laydowns, and several manmade brush piles.
I caught 31 largemouth bass along this shoreline. Three of them were caught adjacent to docks in about five feet of water with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. Four were caught adjacent to or near laydowns in three to five feet water on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Six were caught in four to eight feet of water with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve, and they were caught many feet away from a dock, a retaining wall, a patch of American water willows, a laydown, or a brush pile. Seventeen of them were caught adjacent to the retaining walls in about three feet of water on either the initial drop or a swim-glide-and-shake presentation.
I fished a 475-yard stretch of another shoreline. It possesses a 20- to 60-degree slope. About 40 percent of its water's edge is lined with concrete retaining walls. It is littered with eight docks and a small bridge. Along this shoreline, there are a few patches of water primrose and many patches of American water willows, as well as some laydowns, brush piles, and several overhanging trees. Normally, oodles of coontail patches stipple portions of this shoreline, but I did not see or touch any of the patches with the six Midwest finesse rigs that I used.
I caught 27 largemouth bass along this shoreline. One of them was caught adjacent to a dock in about four feet of water with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Four of the 27 were caught next to or near concrete retaining walls in three to five feet of water with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Five of the 27 were caught in about six feet of water, and they were about 25 feet from the water's edge around an area that is graced with some submerged brush, a laydown, and patches of coontail, and one of the five was caught on the initial drop, and four were caught on an extremely slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Six were caught in four to six feet of water around laydowns on either the initial drop or a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. Eleven were caught in 2 1/2 to five feet of water along the outside edges of patches of American water willows on either the initial drop or a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve.
The third shoreline is about 60-yards long, and I fished most of it. It possesses a 35-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. Its water's edge is adorned with two overhanging trees, patches of American water willows, some minor laydowns, and four docks. There are several patches of coontail in three to six feet of water, which I failed to see and touch.
I caught three largemouth bass along this shoreline with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve in four to seven feet of water, and I suspect that these largemouth bass were associated with the patches of submerged coontail.
In sum, it was not a piscatorial utopia. But it was delightful not to have to do battle with October's ornery winds. And tangling with an average of 15.25 largemouth bass an hour is a respectable outing. It also looks as if a significant number of this reservoir's largemouth bass are beginning to abide around and near the locales that they will inhabit for the next four to 4 1/2 months. Traditionally, the cold-water locales of some of this reservoir's largemouth bass are shallow-water flats that are embellished with submerged patches of coontail.

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