Jackson and I went to Cane Creek on Friday. The lake is beautiful with acres and acres of Lily pads,  stumps and did I say stumps.  It is a shallow lake with a deep creek going through it. The water had a tannic tint to it but was clear with  4 or 5 foot visibility.  A front had moved through the day before, the wind was in the North but, surprisingly, the fish did bite a little early.  Many of the bites were courtesy bites. They would butt the bait with their mouth shut or slap it with their tail. Sometimes they would knock the bait up in the air.   I used a Ribbit and Jackson used a Spro Bronze Eye Frog.  The fish liked Jackson’s bait best as he got about four times as many bites as I did. We ended up catching 3 with the FOD at 3 – 10. Jackson and I guessed the FOD weighed 2 3/4, but it was so fat it fooled us. It was a bad day but I’m going back soon, especially if I can get an overcast day with sprinkles of rain. A couple of photos.

Now here are some strings of fish, caught by a father and son team. As you can see by the date on the photo,  they were caught in early April.  It would be my guess they both killed a turkey in the morning and went fishing in the afternoon. What a day!

Went back to Whittington today and caught a big zero. I fished from 7 to 11:30. Went to the spots that had produced yesterday but only a small stripe would bite.  Tried some new places but nothing but gnat bites. My hat is off to the guy that caught a box full.

I went to Lake Whittington today and fished until noon. It’s beginning to fall at a pretty good clip. The lake is full of duck weed which sometimes makes it hard to fish. Where it is thin a ribbit or a worm works well. Where it’s thick nothing works well.  Here is a photo of a spot that was  thick.I caught the FOD, 4 – 0 , on the extreme left edge of this photo. It blasted a ribbit early when the duck weed was not quite so thick. Caught 5  bass in all, in 3 different spots, 2 on a ribbit, 2 on a worm and one on a DT-6. One 3 pounder looked like a smallmouth because it was so fat. The large body made its mouth look small. All the fish were in extremely good shape. For some reason the grinners were cruising too. Caught 2 of them on worms.  I heard someone caught a “box full” of bass in the last few days somewhere on Whittington.  Maybe I need to change my tactics.

The mosquitoes and the biting gnats were biting too.  There seemed to be an extreme number of gnats. I think Skin So Soft will deter them and when I go back I plan to have some.  I understand they’re bad anywhere along the river.

Mickey and I went today and caught 5. They have been hitting swimbaits but today it was worms only, even early.  Water temp started at 79 and went to 84 by 2:00 p.m.. Since it was a bluebird day with high water temps, we started trying deep for bites.  I managed one at 19 feet that I missed. A photo of the 4 1/4 FOD. Hair looks like I need a trim. The next photo is one of a bass that was willing to eat something as long as he is.

Started fishing this morning at about 9:30.  Late start was due to getting Gayden Bishop to the airport.  By noon, I had caught 3 bass with a FOD of 5 lbs 2 oz. The FOD fell for a ribbit, while the others were caught on a swimbait and a worm. It appeared they were at the end of their major period when I got there. A goo came up and attacked the swimbait right at the boat and then quickly spit it out while I watched. A lot of halfhearted bites. Lake is falling and it’s only going to get better. A rumor has it that a “box full of bass” was caught on Whittington on a topwater and a spinnerbait by an unnamed party.  Also of interest, I understand the Skinny Lawyer caught a bass on the first cast with the swimbait I gave him. The fish hit before the bait hit the bottom. He was fishing in a pond with Billy Johnson who told me the story.

The river lakes are getting ready to get good with the falling water.  I’m going to get out my DT-6s and make sure the hooks are sharp.  With all the duckweed that I see as I drive on the levee, it would probably be wise to have a Ribbit or a Scumfrog ready also.  It’s going to start soon.

In the meantime, I’ve seen quite a few alligators lurking next to the levee waiting on an easy meal. This one was an estimated 9 feet long.

Hal and I caught 10 today, all on 4 1/2 inch Bass Magic swimbaits. 6 were over 3 pounds with the FOD at 5 3/4. The fish’s head was out of proportion with the rest of its body. I guess it had spawned and needs to fatten up. The water was clear with a 5 foot visibility. The water temperature started at 70 and went up to 77. They bit best for us until about 9:30.  We caught the fish in water 6 to 10 feet deep, however we saw some men after lunch catch 2 in about 20 feet of water. Here is a photo of the FOD.

Jackson and Harley went fishing today and caught 17. Mine were equally divided between a ribbit and a swimbait. Jackson caught his on a worm a swimbait and a Spro bronze eye frog.  Included in the frog victims was the 6 lb 7 oz FOD pictured here.The fish size today was less that usual. Only 6 of the 17 were over 3. They bit the ribbit best during the middle of the day.  If we had caught all we lost we would have sunk the boat.

I had a brainstorm this morning on how to put a 3/8 oz weight on a swimbait hook.  I figured a 3/8 oz would keep the bait deeper during the retrieve. I have some 1/4 oz squeeze on weights but they’re not quite what I want.  A 3/8 oz bullet weight on the floor caught my eye and the lightbulb came on.  A hacksaw sawed a slot lengthways down to the hole the line goes through. A punch widened the hole so the hook would fit.  A pair of pliers later and here it is. The before and after in the same photo. Compare that to the one with the bought 1/4 oz squeeze on weight.Field test tomorrow.

UPDATE:  Did not work well because there was not enough distance from the bait’s belly to the hook shank. The weight might impede a good hookset.