HB2

Went out early with my boy and followed Coyote K to the hot spot  with the new boat . It occurred to me this morning that I have not named her yet . Very happy so far with her . 

We fished the 110 to 140 waters.   Got  this 260 on my braid dipsey and broke off another screamer on my slide diver . 

wound up going 5 for 8 or 9 

All spoon bite . 

Stopped by today . 

Nice shop with good assortment . 

Local people . 

Support them . 

I live in Holley and cottage at Sandy creek in Hamlin . 

Yes but it looks like they integrated the nut into the knob . The shaft and ,the washer ,and that red bearing look the same . 

If you need a Hail Mary , I have it . 

Is this it ? 

Is that from Mag 10 from the 80 s ? 

I'm working on the lake in Rochester and it's white caps . 1 to 3 ft 

Good sales at Bass pro and Cabalas (same thing ) but regular prices are high since the merger . 

I'll stop by soon at the new shop . 

After the microburst that came thru Thursday night and getting bumped to a different campsite because of all the monster trees that came down in the tent section ,  we had a good weekend . It's very luck that someone was not killed . If it was a day later and we were on that site , it could have been tragic . A huge tree fell right where our tents would have been set up . Thank God . 

We went out for a few hrs Fri afternoon and fished the inside outlet and did well on bass . 

Next morning it an angry lake was howling and the bay was capping so plan B was fish the creek where the diving boards were . We did well and got our shore lunch we always get  without fail , that looked like was in jeopardy . 

Small Senko style and Swimbaits did the trick . 

An old freind who knows 0 about fish caught this nice bass  on the third cast after I set him up and showed him how . I can make a fisherman out of anyone 

I figured it would blow itself out overnight but Sun morning was as bad as Sat . There was drifting sand at the swimming area parking lots . 

Great party with good friends which the older I get , is more of what it's about 

Buy the proven lures . It's the best thing you can do to improve your chances for success . 

A lot of what I see on sale on here are people's rejects . 

You need about 10 of the right spoons and a couple flasher fly rigs . 

Oak or Sandy 

Bring your bass rods in case it's a blow off . 

Oak is better for bass . 

Where can I get a canvas boat cover made . 

I live in Holley 

There are times during the day that the fish are most active . Rarely have I seen it , for any species , that the bite is strong all day . 

That time might be first light or just before dark . Or it might be , especially full moon , middle of the day.  

Mid day high sun , especially when the fish are deep , I like my dipseys way back . A mirage fly was always good for me . Also silver purple spoons . Glo frog also among others . . As of late I like a white UV pro troll I am partial to .

My advice to you would be when the bite slows , start drinking heavily . 

I have found that speed is way more important than temp 

I park my probe at 50 deg and  fish above and below that . 

Some days you will look at your probe and it will be 50 and then a few minutes later it will be 46 or 56 at same depth . 

Research thermocline 

This weekend it was 58 surface and 55 down 80 ft as thermocline has not set up yet .

I like to troll 2.1 to 2.7 . 

It was a  good investment .

Protect that probe like it was a newborn baby . Make sure your Downrigger cable and crimps are  perfect . 

IDK 

12# ? 

Got some big fillets . 

I would have thrown it back but it probably wouldn't make it 

Went out early and started at 150 and work my way out to 230 and turned back because best pic was 190 . 

Was kind of snotty out there the farther you went out.  But new boat handles it well . 4 stroke Yamaha purrs . 

Went one for 3 . All spoons Got this nice steelhead that hit at 105 down.  Came up on the strike from down there and jumped 3 ft out of the water . 

NBK mag has been best . 

Off the water by 820 

Yesterday 20 boats 

Today nobody . 

First day with the new boat 

I managed one skipper and had another knock off but that was it . Fished dawn till 8 

Both hits came 75 down . 

Nice boat with nice equipment . But I miss the hard top . 

1 hour ago, LongLine said:

Measure twice & cut once or it'll get expensive quickly.

 

Tie good knots & check you lines regularly or it'll get expensive quickly.

Oh , it's going to get expensive  no matter what . 

The center of a good woodshop is a table saw 

The center of a trolling rig , especially for rookies , are down riggers . 

They are easy to use and there is no guesswork for depth . 

There is a learning curve with divers etc. They work great . But first time , especially when the fish are deeper you will be guessing at depths . 

A set of manuals can be had pretty reasonable on here . 

3 hours ago, Oxbow Custom Rods said:

I appreciate all of the responses. I guess however what was missed (Implied but not stated was that the tackle is the same). I was wondering what biological factors have others witnessed playing a role. Do you see a seasonal change, do you notice a speed preference before or after a front passes? Do you find it to change on a rising/falling barometer etc? The lake has started to flip so is there a change in underwater currents associated with this that impact the speed etc…

That is a great question . And very important and overlooked . I fish bass / pike a lot . There are days they slam  a spinner bait or crankbaits and days they won't touch them .Slow fished plastics those days .  Also fly fishing there are days a steelhead or brown will chase a streamer or swung fly and days they won't . Egg fly or nymph better.  

You should know pretty fast if they are in what I call a chasing mood or not . 

Cold fronts , lake flips,  etc , put them down in my experience and you have to slow your presentation down . But sometimes a fast moving lure will draw a reaction strike . 

A freind of mine got a boat donated to him  That he is   fixing up . He has started a youth fishing club in his church group . Probably more bass panfish  than trolling but they might do a little trolling . 

He asked me if I had a pair of down riggers for him . I have a Riviera Short  arm and some other pieces of junk . 

Was hoping one of my LOU brothers might have a one or two riggers laying around .  Manual would be best as it's a outboard and power might be an issue  . 

I have weights and releases for him . He has some rods and I have some spoons for him . 

He lives a few houses east of the mouth of Bald Eagle . 

Thanks 

The fish have the final say on what they want and how they want it . 

Some days they hit anything that moves . Some days they want it a certain way, speed, size ,color .  . Some days they don't want anything. And all this can change in a heartbeat . 

That's what makes it fun . 

The difference between mono and braid or wire is epic . No stretch . 

I have used both wire and braid . Never had an issue with braid . It's not quite as good when the fleas get real bad but it is bearable , at least for me .And it's very forgiving .  The wire gets a little deeper but not a whole lot . And after losing 3 diver , flasher , bait rigs  and all the terminal tackle ,in one year , I trashed the wire . 

And side by side , I catch the same amount on both 

A 150 yard spool of 65# is about 20$ 

Not bad If your reels have counters and good drags . Splice it with an Albright to 20 or 30# mono.

If you feel you need the best , then by all means. .  . ..

Replace the mono with 65 or 80# braid and you should be good 

Or go buy what gambler said and pay 500 $ each .