Month: May 2020

Top 5 Update

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Nearly 25 pounds of bass join the ranks after a period of decent, stable weather graced the area last week. Didn’t take long for that to disappear but fun while it lasted.

Weight: 4-12
Angler: Chris Schwarz
Date: May 3
Location: Warren County, IL private pond
Lure: Chatterbait (bluegill) with paddle tail swimbait trailer

Weight: 5-4
Angler: Chris Schwarz
Date: May 3
Location: Warren County, IL private pond
Lure: Chatterbait (bluegill) with paddle tail swimbait trailer

Weight: 5-7
Angler: Chris Schwarz
Date: May 3
Location: Warren County, IL private pond
Lure: Chatterbait (bluegill) with paddle tail swimbait trailer
Top 5 Weight: 22-5 (6-14,5-7,5-4,4-12) NOTE: that’s only four fish too, folks

Weight: 2-6 (17.5”)
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: May 4
Weather: Partly cloudy/windy
Location: Knox County private strip mine
Lure: Stanley Vibra Shaft Spinnerbait (blue glimmer) with twin tail trailer (pumpkinseed)
Structure: Trees

Weight: 2-2 (16.5”)
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: May 4
Weather: Partly cloudy/windy
Location: Knox County private strip mine
Lure: Stanley Vibra Shaft Spinnerbait (blue glimmer) with twin tail trailer (pumpkinseed)
Structure: Trees

Weight: 2-7 (17”)
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: May 4
Weather: Partly cloudy/windy
Location: Knox County private strip mine
Lure: Stanley Vibra Shaft Spinnerbait (blue glimmer) with twin tail trailer (pumpkinseed)
Structure: Trees

Weight: 2-3 (16.5”)
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: May 4
Weather: Partly cloudy/windy
Location: Knox County private strip mine
Lure: Stanley Vibra Shaft Spinnerbait (blue glimmer) with twin tail trailer (pumpkinseed)
Structure: Stumps
Angler Comments: A tough start to my day was salvaged in a hurry. I found the right lake at the right time resulting in a flurry of quality bass in my last 75 minutes on the water. The classic Blue Glimmer spinnerbait was on fire just like old times.
Top 5 Weight: 13-14 (4-12,2-7,2-6,2-3,2-2) culls 2-1,1-15,1-14,1-14

A potentially frosty start to this week but temps look to pick up as the week progresses. Here’s hoping that the bite does too. As always, send them my way when you catch some. Talk to you later. Troy

Guest Perspective

Posted on by Troy Jackson

NOTE: On this special day, I welcome a guest blogger, my wife and the mother of our brood, Julie. Enjoy.

To quote a dear friend of mine, “It’s all about perspective.” – Aaron VanMiddlesworth.

Think about it. Today your fishing report is brought to you from a new perspective. A female. A wife. A mother. But then again, is it? An angler. An outdoor person. A spouse. A parent. That’s the usual perspective of TJO, right? Let’s throw in photographer. There’s always piscatorial pics embedded throughout the traditional roving report.

Once upon a time, I took a photography class at Carl Sandburg College. I’ve always enjoyed taking pictures, but it was inspiring to have to take specific kinds of photos for different assignments for the class. Seeing things from behind a camera lens was creatively appeasing, and I think I captured some pretty interesting images. They were all black and white because I developed my own film and printed the photos myself as well. I loved going to the darkroom, as it was exciting to see what would be revealed on the film and photo paper since I used a manual camera without a digital display to see what the photos would look like before being printed. All adjustments needed to be made before the button was pressed. No delete and reshoot 13 times like with my cell phone pics today.

The point of my photography class recap is to introduce you to a picture I took during that time. You may need no introduction – you may know it very well. It’s the one that TJ Outdoors uses on his business cards and YouTube Channel. And it shows what my perspective was back when he and I used to go on outdoor adventures just the two of us. Because there were only two of us.

The picture I speak of is the silhouette of TJ walking up a path packing his tackle and poles headed to a fishing hole. I followed him that day with my camera in hand and just thought my view was a nice perspective of this fisherman. I can’t recall now if he knew he was a subject for one of my assignments at the time or if I even used it for class, but it has always been one of my favorites. And TJ must like it ok too if he prints it on his cards. I also don’t recollect if fish were fooled let alone specific species or sizes. I know someone who could find out for me though…

So recently, we took our four children on one of those outdoor adventures and I recaptured that perspective. Of course this time the picture was taken with my cell phone camera with a color digital display, and I snapped several shots as the kids followed their father – all toting tackle and poles up the path to the fishing hole.

Not only is my photography at another juncture, but so are our outdoor adventures. Now we’ve always taken our kids fishing, hiking, camping and such. But this time it was different. It had been awhile. I didn’t spend the entire morning packing. We didn’t have strollers, diaper bags, potty seats, pack and plays or any sort of pint-sized paraphernalia. The kids helped make sandwiches and pack a cooler. Each kid wore his/her own boots and walked the path (or lack thereof sometimes) in them. They even grabbed their own gear for the most part.

That’s the moment I was struck with incentive to share my perspective. Again. As I bent down to pick up just my equipment and follow the rest of the crew, I remembered taking a picture of TJ all those years earlier and how the scene from that perspective had changed a bit. I wasn’t preoccupied by babies and baggage and just consumed the contentment as I clumsily collected my camera in the form of the cell phone from my pocket to capture the moment in order to share and compare this sight with the image printed on the TJO business card.

It really is all about perspective. Amen, AVM!

Happy Mother’s Day everyone.

Family Fishing Report – May 2

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Last weekend presented another opportunity to get the whole family outside for some fresh air, some fishing and a picnic supper. Sticking with my general fishing report format, here is how it all went down.

Stats
Date: May 2, 2020
Location: Little John Conservation Club
Time: Evening
Weather: Partly cloudy/breezy, sweatshirt weather
Totals: 6 bass
Lures: Senko wacky rig, weighted and weightless (various colors)
Top Bass: 0-14 (Carly)
Totals: Girls – 6 bass, Boys – 1 bass

 

Trip Lyric
“Rock and rock and roll radio, let’s go!”
Do You Remember Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio, The Ramones (1980)
So, our daughter, Helena, is working on the driving hours required to obtain her license this summer. Well, the standing policy is pretty much that the driver runs the radio. As such, this lyric fits the bill for our round trip as the current Top 40 had no resemblance whatsoever to my old “rock ‘n’ roll radio”.

Notes and Nonsense

Lucky Shirts – During a normal May we would be taking part in the annual JDRF One Walk for type one diabetes. A classmate and friend of one of our daughters was diagnosed with Type 1 Juvenile Diabetes in 2011 at age five. Since moving to the Quad City area in 2014 we have joined Team Morgan’s Hope for the annual event aimed at raising money and awareness in a quest for a cure. Obviously, this is not a normal May thus the event has transitioned to a virtual experience. For details and donations click here.

Sporting our collection of Team Morgan’s Hope shirts from past JDRF One Walks

Girls Rule – It didn’t take long before the whole crew was tossing Senkos looking for a bass instead of wetting some waxworms in search of panfish. And it didn’t take long before the ladies did some catching. Carly posted the first bass and also claimed Top Bass among her three catches. Julie took runner-up honors with a pair of bass and Helena posted her first Senko bass. The boys, well, they were a little more distracted but did get on the board just after suppertime. Their lone bass came on the first cast by the fifty something year old boy who first set foot on those strip mine banks over thirty years ago.

Can’t go wrong with these choices from my “clients”

Additional Catches – Beyond the bass, I witnessed anglers catching a stump, a tree and a bridge. In addition, we had major loops and tangles in a couple of our ultralight spinning rigs. The above are reasons us “fishing guides” bring along plenty of spare poles and tackle. Hey, as long as we avoid catching any family members, it’s all good.

Had to respool a couple reels after this trip

Mission accomplished with some fresh air in these strange and isolated times. My favorite bunch of people to be isolated with and enjoyable when we can do it outdoors. Talk to you later. Troy

Friday Flashback – May 3, 2000

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Twenty years ago I was without a job and essentially without a care. My employer of the previous ten years, National Seal Company, had left town in January 2000 and left me with a reasonable severance package that paid me until June. A single, thirty something guy with a longtime girlfriend (now my wife) could get by for a while.

A keepsake from that old job (1990-2000) that I keep in my tacklebox 

But as the need to find a new job began to become a bit more pressing, so did the need to get on the water while I had ample free time. Today’s flashback outing was about as long distance as I get with roughly an hour drive from my hometown of Galesburg, IL to Fulton/Peoria County’s Banner Marsh. I made this trip with my then brother-in-law, Tim Townsend, and my Dad’s Bass Tracker in tow.

I’d never fished the area before and horsepower restrictions relegated us to a trolling motor only approach. I recall it being a struggle to find some bass in the pair of lakes we chose, one of which required a substantial troll (and much of our battery) to reach a wide open expanse of humps and flooded timber.

Original log entry from the May 3, 2000 outing

And it was in a spot with such a mix of cover that I boated the larger of the only two bass I fooled on the day. But hey, if you are only going to catch two bass it sure is nice when one is a four-pounder (one ounce shy is close enough, right). Kind of fun too, that I caught both of my bass on the Blue Glimmer spinnerbait. Twenty years later, almost to the day (5/4/2020), I had a banner day on an area strip mine with the very same lure (Top 5 Update and fishing report to come next week).

Another shot of my first ever Banner Marsh bass

And also twenty years later, the spot is in the midst of statewide closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic despite it being rather remote and spread out. I know one Top 5 angler who is particularly missing his stomping grounds. Hang in there, Jim, as at least we’ve got some other fishing holes for a fix.

In fact, I have several fishing reports to come from some of those waters along with a batch of Top 5 bass on Monday so stay tuned. Talk to you later. Troy

Strip Mine Report – May 1

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Among the many personal lifestyle changes resulting from the worldwide health concern was a directive to take a few days away from work. At least for this vacation hoarder, the timing was right in terms of stable weather around what would be a five day weekend with plenty of fishing in my sights. Read on for the first of several fishing reports from my mini vacation.

This one gets the nod for bravest bass of the day

Stats
Date: May 1, 2020
Location: Knox County, IL strip mines (8 lakes)
Time: 9:00am-4:00pm (5.50 hours fishing)
Weather: Sunny to partly cloudy/windy
Air Temp: 54-70F
Water Temp: not available
Totals: 38 bass
Lures: Jig & Pig (black/blue) – 11 bass, Rapala Shad Rap (blue) – 10 bass, Senko weighted wacky rig (strawberry cream) – 8 bass, Chatterbait (bluegill) with Zako trailer (smoke) – 5 bass, Strike King Red Eye Shad (sexy shad) – 4 bass
Top Bass: 1-15 (Senko)
Top 5 Weight: 6-5 (1-15,1-5,1-2,1-0,0-15)

 

Trip Lyric
“On the road again.”
On The Road Again, Willie Nelson (1980)
Fishing twice within a week’s time can be a rarity these days so this tune was playing in my head as I drove back to the strip mines. It was also exciting knowing that I’d be on the road again over the next several days as well.

Notes and Nonsense

Senko de Mayo – While the Senko wacky rig claimed my Lure Lunacy title last month, I still had yet to catch a bass with the presentation in 2020. Of course, since May and Senko go hand in hand, I didn’t waste any time once the new month arrived. In fact, the first cast with a weighted Senko wacky rig was a winner as displayed in the clip below.

 

Senko Trick #2 – The next clip is a pretty cool demonstration of the effectiveness of the Senko wacky rig on clear strip mine waters. Never have I found a presentation that will tempt a cruising or interested bass as effectively as the tantalizing drop of the wacky rig (both weighted and weightless). The 1-15 catch proved to be my Top Bass of the outing.

 

Mother’s Day Approaching – Here in West Central Illinois you can rest assured that as the calendar nears Mother’s Day you will find the local crappie shallow and in the mood to bite. Such was the case on this trip with numerous fish spotted from the bank and several winding up on a hook by “accident.” A couple green sunfish also took a liking to my bass offerings and a hooked bluegill got loose at the bank, narrowly preventing me from posting the species “Grand Slam.”

Going the extra yard for some bass (actually 8,448 yards)

Another stellar day in terms of numbers but the smaller bass continue to beat the larger specimens to my offerings. It is encouraging, however, that what I am throwing is producing. In the world of fishing, you just need to keep on casting. And that’s just what I did along with shifting gears to fishing guide for another outing. Stay tuned as those reports are headed your way soon. Talk to you later. Troy

Strip Mine Report – April 26

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Too busy fishing as of late to keep up with the fishing reports but no complaint there. Here is the first of several headed your way as I attempt to get up to speed.

Stats
Date: April 26, 2020
Location: Knox County, IL strip mines (5 lakes)
Time: 10:05am-3:50pm (4.75 hours fishing)
Weather: Sunny/windy to breezy
Air Temp: 54-66F
Water Temp: not available
Totals: 26 bass, 2 bluegill, 1 crappie
Lures: Rapala Shad Rap (blue) – 11 bass and 1 crappie, Jig & Pig (black/blue) – 10 bass, Chatterbait (bluegill) with Zako trailer (smoke) – 4 bass, Strike King Red Eye Shad (sexy shad) – 1 bass, bluegill on waxworms on jighead hung from a slip bobber
Top Bass: 4-12 (Jig & pig)
Top 5 Weight: 8-11 (4-12,1-1,1-0,0-15,0-15)

Lures that got it done

Trip Lyric
“So, I’m heading out to the highway, I got nothing to lose at all.”
Heading Out to the Highway, Judas Priest (1981)
Having a big fish in the bag and finding it tough to get many other bites, I decided to head to an area that I refer to as The Highway. While not really familiar with the water in that area, I figured it was worth a look. Read on to see if my decision panned out.

 

Notes and Nonsense

New Records – My Top Bass on this day had been a long time coming as I have struggled for big bites the last couple years. In fact, the 4-12 is my largest bass since a 5-0 landed on July 8, 2017. The 4-12 also establishes a new lake record for a body of water that I call Fencerow Lake, besting the old mark of 3-6 from April 8, 2017. In addition, it is the largest catch (and release) for which I have GoPro footage.

 

New Water – Being a creature of habit I’ve become comfortable with my standard collection of fishing holes in the area where this outing took place. And while I’ve paid my dues and covered a lot of ground, there’s still some bodies of water left to explore. After struggling to fool nine bass in the first four hours of casting and roaming, I figured that I might as well invest the time required to reach some distant waters. The decision to relocate was a winner as the new waters produced 17 more bass in just under two hours.

New (Old) Shirt (more to come later in a Lucky Shirt post)

New Catchphrase – I’ve made a point to leave the whole current state of life in a pandemic out of my blogs for a couple reasons. You can get your fill of that stuff elsewhere whether you want it (or believe it) or not and I have no qualifications to provide anything medically insightful. As an outdoorsman, however, I am puzzled by some of the state recreational areas that remain closed such as Snakeden Hollow and Banner Marsh. I understand that facilities come into play. But let’s face it, probably 50 years ago I learned that when you are out in the middle of nowhere (as Snakeden Hollow and other sites are), you don’t need a bathroom to use the bathroom.

Social distancing on this outing? Not a problem.

Okay, enough editorial. Hope everyone is well and hanging in there as we navigate these unusual times. I have several more fishing reports along with various other items coming your way so stop by here, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube for a regular escape. Talk to you later. Troy

Top 5 Update

Posted on by Troy Jackson

A solid weather weekend and an extra day off for me allowed for quite a few hours on the water. Good numbers on bass but any real big ones were elusive. Fun to get the family in on the act and managed to add a quality “accident” for our first “Other Species” entry of 2020.

Weight: 1-15 (16.5”)
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: May 1
Weather: Partly cloudy/windy, 61F
Location: Knox County, IL strip pit
Lure: Senko weighted wacky rig (strawberry cream)
Structure: Weed edge/drop
Angler Comments: This bass was interested in a crappie that I had just caught on a Shad Rap and continued to cruise a dropoff in view of my position on the bank. I tossed out a Senko several feet beyond the bass and the fish immediately turned towards the splashdown. Several seconds into the Senko sinking the bass was on the line.
Top 5 Weight: 12-8 (4-12,2-1,1-15,1-14,1-14) culls a 1-12

Weight: 0-14 (13”)
Angler: Carly Jackson
Date: May 2
Weather: Partly cloudy/breezy
Location: Knox County, IL strip pit
Lure: Senko weighted wacky rig (smoke)
Structure: Flat/dropoff
Top 5 Weight: 0-14 (0-14)

OTHER SPECIES

Weight: 1-2 (13”)
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: May 3
Weather: Partly cloudy/breezy
Location: Knox County, IL strip pit
Lure: Senko weighted wacky rig
Structure: Weed edge/dropoff
Angler Comments: After I missed strike on a Zara Spook, I tossed the Senko near the area of the boil thinking maybe the bass would still be there looking for a perceived meal. Right on cue, I got a hit on the Senko but to my surprise it wasn’t a bass at all.
Top 5 Weight: 1-2 (1-2)

The bite has picked up with some stable weather and the crappie in particular should really be hitting full stride as Mother’s Day has long been the general target date to nab a bunch of those papermouths. Got a few more days off on the horizon so hoping to add some more fish to the log and hopefully contribute to another Top 5 Update or two along the way. I also have a significant backlog of fishing reports, pics, videos and random stuff so stay tuned as I try to chip away at those posts. Talk to you later. Troy

Top 5 Stats

Posted on by Troy Jackson

On the heels of May Day it is time for the first batch of Top 5 Stats for 2020. Same as it ever was, my intent is to provide monthly updates as we make our way through the year.

2020 Totals (* = new record)
January = 1 bass
February = no submissions
March = 4 bass
April = 25 bass

Top 5 Weight by Month (* = new record)
January = 1-4 (one bass)
February = no submissions
March = 15-8 (6-14,4-1,3-4,1-5)
April = 16-11 (4-12,3-2,3-1,3-0,2-12)

Boat vs. Bank
Boat = 2 bass
Bank = 28 bass

Boat vs. Bank Weight (* = new record)
Boat = 5-6 (4-1,1-5)
Bank = 21-1 (6-14,4-12,3-4,3-2,3-1)

Public vs. Private
Public = 20 bass
Private = 10 bass

Public vs. Private Top 5 Weight
Public = 17-4 (4-12,4-1,3-4,3-2,2-1)
Private = 17-15 (6-14,3-1,3-0,2-12,2-4)

The Baits (* = new record)
Chatterbait = 9 bass (Top Bass 4-1 Jim Junk)
Plastic Worm = 8 bass (Top Bass 3-2 Brent Jackson)
Lipless Crankbait = 3 bass (Top Bass 3-4 Jim Junk)
*Spinnerbait = 3 bass (Top Bass 6-14 Chris Schwarz) – tops 5-14 Mark Balbinot
Crankbait = 2 bass (Top Bass 1-10 Brent Jackson)
Jig = 2 bass (Top Bass 4-12 Troy Jackson)
Livebait = 2 bass (Top Bass 3-1 Teagan Mills)
Grub = 1 bass (Top Bass 1-4 Jim Junk)

Monthly Top Bass (* = new record)
January
1-4 Jim Junk
February
No submissions
March
6-14 Chris Schwarz
April
4-12 Troy Jackson

Top 10 Bass (* = new Top 10 all-time)
*6-14 Chris Schwarz (3/25) – new #10 all-time
4-12 Troy Jackson (4/26)
4-1 Jim Junk (3/7)
3-4 Jim Junk (3/3)
3-2 Brent Jackson (4/26)
3-1 Teagan Mills (4/21)
3-0 Teagan Mills (4/12)
2-12 Jim Junk (4/23)
2-4 Jim Junk (4/23)
2-4 Jim Junk (4/23)

Angler Weights
Jim Junk 14-9 (4-1,3-4,2-12,2-4,2-4)
Troy Jackson 12-5 (4-12,2-1,1-14.1-14,1-12)
Chris Schwarz 6-14 (6-14)
Teagan Mills 6-1 (3-1,3-0)
Brent Jackson 4-12 (3-2,1-10)
Brady Jackson 4-8 (1-5,1-2,1-1,1-0)
Kennedy Jackson 4-1 (1-13,1-5,0-15)

Thumbs up to our anglers for a good start to what has turned into an unusual year. Here’s hoping that opportunities continue to arise for folks to get out on the water. Send them my way when you catch them at troy@troyjacksonoutdoors.com. Top 5 Update coming your way Monday and check back often as I have plenty of stuff to submit as time permits. Talk to you later. Troy