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Body of Water: Reeds Lake Boat: Numenon With: A Time: 11 AM - 1:30 PM Conditions: Super pleasant. About 70 degrees and sunny, but with WNW winds to about 15 mph. Water was 74 degrees and green, with less than 3 feet of visibility. This was a bit of a different trip! I was joined by A, we hit the water at the crack of 11 AM, it was my birthday, and it was both A's retirement day, but also her last day in Michigan. I turned 56, and A was done with Michigan, almost 34 years to the day we left New England. With property, a boat and now, a wife, waiting for me back in New England, it's certain that the next phase of my life will take place back there. I am more than okay with that; I just need to figure out the logistics of making it happen! But as for the fishing: I banked on weed-edge bass still being present, and they were. Unfortunately, the four I stuck in the first hour were all on the small side, with only one measuring over 14 inches and the rest just shy of that mark. Still, I was pleased with the pace of the bites and remained hopeful that I would connect with a nicer fish in the time I had available to fish. The WNW wind was just strong enough to make boat control difficult. I'd been able to effectively trace the weed edge near shore, but when I relocated to the central lake hump, I struggled to maintain the proper contact with the appropriate depth range of 9 feet or so. I chose to move off the edge and scour the hard bottom in 15 - 20 feet with a blade-bait. This resulted in an immediate crappie and a missed fish, but I still felt more confident with, and so returned to, my DT10 crank. I did briefly connect with a heavy fish, right on a key spot on the edge. Unfortunely, this worthwhile bass came of, and I lost any mojo that I had going. After a few more struggles controlling the boat, I moved to a final offshore area and cranked with a very deep-diving crank. This produced nothing. We were out of time, and we pulled the plug on this pleasant, but unproductive, outing. What do I have to say about this? A followed me blindly to Michigan back in 1985, because she believed in me, and she believed in us. Now it is my turn, and I will return her favor. Michigan has treated us well, and I look toward to whatever fortune New England might hold for us. In the meantime, I'll do my best to introduce myself to as many fine Michigan fish as I possibly can. I think I'll return to Reeds tomorrow, under calmer conditions, and see what I can find! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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Date: August 22, 2019 Body of Water: Reeds Lake Boat: Numenon With: Alone Target: Largemouth Bass Time: 8:45 AM - 1:45 PM Conditions: 60 - 75 degrees, mostly sunny with ENE winds swinging to NW and <10 mph; water was 76 degrees F and heavily stained green, with less than 3 feet of visibility It has been a while since I have been able to utilize a "Flexible Schedule" day off work to go fishing! I took it easy and visited Reeds Lake, again. I had hopes for a continued crank-bait bite, and also hoped I'd have enough time to try to find some other productive techniques, too. I targeted the deep weedy edge of the primary offshore hump first. Once again, it took me 10 or 15 minutes to get properly oriented to the hump and its edges (especially 9-11 feet) with the unusual wind direction, but I did manage to settle in. I was about halfway down the south side of the hump when I instinctively swung on a slight interruption in the DT10's cadence. It was an 18-inch, 3.25-pounder! Just 10 minutes later, now at the eastern end of the hump, a fish smashed my crank almost below the boat. This bass was 17.5 inches and 3 pounds; I really was off to a good start! I relocated to the north side of the hump and had consecutive hits near the western end. Once again, keeping the bait in the "right" amount of contact with the irregular weed edge was key. While the first bass here was a shorty, the second was another fine, 17-inch "keeper". One hour of fishing; just over 9 pounds of bass! With a panfish boat anchored over the sweet spot of my next planned stop, I scouted out a couple of other, secondary locations. Once again, my secondary hump did not produce. I spent some time mixing in a swim jig and a Texas-rigged, 10-inch worm, but kept returning to the DT10 crank. When legal bass No. 4 was another solid fish (16.5 inches and over 2.5 pounds), I committed to finishing my limit with the DT10; these were the right fish! Returning to the west end of the north side of the hump, it didn't take long for me to connect with the archetypal bass of the day. The boat was positioned in 10 or 11 feet or water; I lined up my cast based on collecting too many weeds on the previous cast; anticipating contact with the weeds at the right moment, I slowed down my retrieve until I just touched them; I gave a pause and then a quick snap; and a bass annihilated the bait! This bass fought hard and deep, but I was able to slip the net under my biggest largemouth of the year at a pinch over 19 inches and a conservative 4.5 pounds. After finishing the northern stretch of weed line without any further contact, I switched to "search" mode. I quickly tricked a deep bass (15-20 feet) into eating a gold blade-bait, but the rest of my time was truly searching. I couldn't get anything else to go for me. What do I have to say about this? What a nice way to spend a Thursday! Pleasant conditions, no real pressure, and some quality fish! I'm definitely in danger of succumbing to the temptation of becoming a One-Trick Pony, at least seasonally. I've done virtually nothing other than cranking for Reeds Lake largemouths for the second half of the summer. It's tempting; I've been catching some nice fish, and I enjoy this technique. The Helsinki Shad DT10 still ruled the day (and produced my Top 5 bass), but I made a concerted effort to incorporate other presentations, too. I tossed a swim jig and a 10-inch Texas-rigged worm near weeds and docks, but never got touched. I did have some success with a gold blade-bait off the western edge of the main hump in water between 15 and 20 feet deep. I targeted those fish based on sonar marks; and it didn't take long to have a nice bass eat this bait. I was ripping the bait pretty aggressively off the bottom when the bass hit; and this was my first warm-water bass on this style of bait. I've had increasing levels of success with blade-baits in the last few cold-water seasons, and I am glad to add them to my summer arsenal, too. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways Date: August 11, 2019 Body of Water: Reeds Lake Boat: Numenon With: Alone Target: Largemouth Bass Time: 6:45 - 11:45 AM Conditions: 65 - 75 degrees, generally overcast and calm; water was 76 degrees F and stained green, with about 3 feet of visibility The overcast, calm and humid conditions all called for topwater action. But after a dozen or so initial casts with a Whopper Plopper, I instinctively picked up the casting outfit with the DT10 crank. (To be honest, Reeds Lake has never been a productive topwater lake for me. I can't say why; it just hasn't!). On my second cast with the crank along the familiar weedline, a feisty pike slammed the lure. A few casts later, my targeted quarry, the largemouth bass, ate the bait. At a solid 15 inches and over 2 pounds, she provided a nice start to my morning! I played musical chairs with a few other bass boats for a bit as we all searched out favored, productive spots. By 8 AM, I was on the main, sunken hump's north side. This hump is usually productive during the warmest months for me. I was relieved when consecutive casts to a known nook in the weed edge produced keeper bass to 15 inches. These fish let me know that I was onto something productive; I figured I would "limit out" on these deep weed edge bass before moving on to other techniques. I proceded to a secondary sunken hump. This spot seems to be either On! or Off! While it has produced a couple of excellent bags and a few true, giant bass, on this day (as it has been all season, for me), totally Off! I received nary a bump here, and I even convinced myself that the weeds seemed less vibrant here than other areas where I've been contacting fish. I stuck with my crank; a did catch a few shorts, excited a few pike into chasing the bait, and had at least one hesitant swing and miss. At 9:45 AM, on a favorite spot-on-spot, I scored a 14-inch squeaker. I then returned to the main hump for my limit fish, but chose to target the southern edge first. I fished almost the entire length of the hump before I had a chance to set the hook; I pulled in my best bass of the day at 16 inches and 2-6 on the scale. It was now almost 10:30 AM and the lake was getting a bit busy. I decided to try "new stuff" with the rest of my time. I slow-trolled stick baits off bottom bouncers at about 1.5 mph with the electric motor. I visited known hard-bottomed areas and weed edge areas from about 13 to 22 feet deep. In over an hour, I did not get a bite! Oh well, by 11:45 AM, the lake activity was really ramping up. I was hot and tired; I got off the water for the day. What do I have to say about this? Again, five bass for a combined weight of just about 10 pounds is nothing to crow about; but, I enjoyed my approach and caught them my way! I did throw a senko and a swim-bait occasionally to make sure I wasn't overlooking a productive opportunity; but the crank was productive enough when I was able to maintain the proper amount of contact with the weeds. I simply enjoy the craft of cranking, too, so I guess I'll continue refining my techniques whenever and wherever I have fish relating to deep weed edges. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways |
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