Got to enjoy a Sunday morning on the water with a friend who I have known since the 80s when I used to run around a Galesburg High School basketball court with his younger brothers. Jim Junk has also been a regular contributor to the Top 5 project going back to the start in 2014. His 2018 Top 5 is off to a great start with some solid Banner Marsh bass so I was hoping some of his success would rub off as we teamed up for some Knox County, IL strip mine bass.

6:31am 1-4 Senko

Stats

Date: June 3, 2018
Location: Little John Conservation Club (2 lakes)
Time: 5:55am-12:50pm (6 hours fishing)
Weather: Sunny/windy to very windy
Air Temp: 62-81F
Water Temp: 76F
Totals: 30 bass (Jim = 15, Troy = 15)
Lure Jim
Senko wacky rig (several colors) – 15 bass
Lures Troy
Senko wacky rig (several colors) – 11 bass
Booyah Buzz Buzzbait (sexy shad) – 4 bass
Top Bass: 1-14 Troy Senko
Top 5 Weight: 7-5 (1-14,1-8,1-6,1-5,1-4)

8:09am 1-8 Senko

Notes and Nonsense

Off the Bank – As noted in the intro, Jim has been knocking the bass pretty good from the bank at Banner Marsh and has also had bank bound success on the first body of water we fished on this morning. For me, it was not only fun to have a fishing partner along but also to be able to help that partner get a look at those “over there” spots that are inaccessible to a bank angler. If you’ve spent any time on the bank, you certainly know what I mean.

8:13am 1-5 Buzzbait

Wind – The forecast called for the wind to pick up around 11:00am but it arrived about an hour ahead of schedule. We’d relocated to a second lake after working over stop number one but the layout just made it too tough with the particular wind direction. Therefore, we bailed out and headed back for round two on our original stop. A handful of bass joined the ledger on the second visit but the wind and its toll on the trolling motor battery prevented us from reaching a spot that was productive earlier in the morning. Chop on the water in the sunny conditions was welcome but when you’ve got to run full throttle on the motor just to stay in place it makes for a challenge.

8:36am 1-14 Senko

Senko Domination – Several Senko hues fished wacky style were the big winners on this trip, landing 26 of our 30 bass. The Senko success was no surprise as it is the typical winner on the water we fished and both Jim and I are big fans of the presentation. In fact, we were in definite agreement as to the fact that the Senko had revolutionized our approach over the last decade plus. I also tried to force feed a buzzbait in search of that one big bite but it never materialized with the combined weight of those four bass coming in close to what I had my sights on for a lone big bite.

12:46pm 1-6 Senko

Good numbers and certainly enough to keep us interested but just couldn’t find a lunker. Still good to get out with a fishing friend and shoot the breeze with some fish stories, Cubs observations and whatever else came to mind while chasing bass on a windy day. More than a few months of fishing left for 2018 so perhaps a Part II lies in the future. Talk to you later. Troy