Water Temp 69 – 72
Visibility 2 - 4 ft
Wind 5 – 15 mph
Launched at around 6:30 this morning. Abundant sunshine, with short periods of clouds. A steady western breeze blew. Conditions were perfect for reaction baits.
With the tide coming in, we started on a shallow flat. Initially, I started with my chatterbait, but after missing two fish right off the back, I switched to a buzzbait. This yielded me a couple of small fish, but my father stuck to the chatterbait and was rewarded with a couple of healthy bass.
As some clouds moved in, the reaction bite got even better. I went to work with the chatterbait, while my father threw a crankbait. It was a good combination, since we could cover water quickly, but also give two different presentations. We land a number of decent fish ranging from a pound to just over three pounds.
With the clouds now gone and the chatterbait bite slowing, we moved to a rock wall. I switched to my custom craw crank, and my father threw a lipless craw crank. We proceeded down the bank and got bit on almost every cast for about a 100-yard stretch. It was crazy to see how stacked these fish were (largemouth and stripers). Granted, it was a battle of the dinks, but still a fun experience.
After going to town on the dinks, we were in the search for some bigger fish.
Stopping on another promising looking flat, I worked my crankbait. Sure enough, I hooked into something strong, but as I fought it for a couple of seconds, I knew it wasn’t a bass. Then is saw an orange flash. I know it’s a carp, and by the looks of it, a good one.
After fighting the brute for about ten minutes, my father managed to get our tiny net over the carp’s head. This was not what I meant by “searching for bigger fish”, but I guess something is better than nothing. Definitely the largest carp I have caught.
By late afternoon, the wind picked up, and the fishing got even tougher. We managed a few more fish, but called it a day.
Notes
The early reaction bite was key to getting the better fish. Once the sun came up, the fishing got tough.
A fun craw crank bite has begun. For those who are new to bass fishing, and want to just get bit, find yourself a rock wall with a weedline. Cast to the trough and hold on. The fish will be small, but still fun.
Carp the new Bass??
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