Well, I’ve been writing a great deal about Snakeden Hollow in celebration of 30 years of public access. So, how about a look back ten years ago at some results from three trips within a week to Snakeden’s Lake McMaster. Welcome to another Friday Flashback courtesy of some notes, numbers and pics from September 2010.
Slideshow below of some highlights along with plenty more from late September back in 2010, as I remember, what a week.
Originally posted 9-23-10
Having a full day to fish, Dad and I decided on an early start and chose Snakeden Hollow’s Lake McMaster for our destination. We’d fished it back on May 20 with fair results and figured we’d give it another try before the area shuts down to anglers on October 1. We had to work for our fish but had a successful day once we pinned down some cooperative bass.
Original log entry from September 22, 2010
Date: September 22, 2010
Time: 7:20am-2:20pm
Results: 19 bass, 1 green sunfish (Dad – 10 bass, Troy – 9 bass, 1 green sunfish)
Lures: 5” Yamasenko wacky rig (natural shad) – 13 bass & 1 green sunfish, Zara Spook (black shore minnow) – 3 bass, Lizard – 2 bass, Zoom Baby Brush Hog – 1 bass
Top Bass: 3-6 (Troy – Senko)
Top Five Weight: 11-4 (3-6,2-1,2-0,2-0,1-13)
September 22, 2010 – First bass at 7:31am on a lizard, weight 2-1
Notes – September 22
Toothy Encounters – We each had an opportunity to add another more impressive species than my lone green sunfish. About thirty minutes into our trip I had a muskie (upper 30 inch range) blow up on my Zara Spook. I’d seen the fish in pursuit and committed the cardinal sin of Spook fishing as the water exploded. I set the hook before I felt the fish and came up empty. I know better but if you’ve been in my shoes I hope you can relate. Dad also had a similar size fish follow a hooked bass to the boat but it wouldn’t commit to the easy meal.
Beaver Lodges – If I had to pick my favorite piece of structure it would likely be a beaver lodge and we picked three bass off of the two spots we fished today. Our first fish of the day was Dad’s 2-1 on a lizard and I quickly followed his fish with a 0-15 on a Baby Brush Hog. Fifteen minutes in we had three pounds on the board and high hopes.
Top Bass – My 3-6 came from a series of laydowns crossing a small, fairly deep shoreline pocket. It hit shortly after my Senko landed near one of the laydowns and the bass dove between a pair of the tress scraping my eight pound test along the wood. I could see it was a decent fish but had little choice other than horsing it to the surface in hopes it would clear the trees into some open water. In the end, I got lucky and have a new personal best for 2010 (for the time being).
Originally posted 9-24-10
Wednesday’s success on Lake McMaster brought us back for Round 2 on Thursday. Once again, we had to work for our fish but presentation was more of a chore than location as the weather forecast was right on with high winds.
Original log entry from September 23, 2010
Date: September 23, 2010
Time: 8:40am-1:25pm
Results: 17 bass, 1 bluegill (Troy – 13 bass, 1 bluegill, Dad – 4 bass)
Lures: 5” Yamasenko wacky rig (natural shad) – 16 bass & 1 bluegill, Zoom Baby Brush Hog (watermelon seed) – 1 bass
Top Bass: 1-9 (Troy – Senko)
Top Five Weight: 4-9 (1-9,1-1,1-0,0-15)
September 23, 2010 – Top Bass 1-9 at 10:47am on a Senko
Notes – September 23
Some Words on the Wind – The reports indicated gusts of up to 33 miles per hour but I think there was a fair amount that exceeded even those predictions. A couple nearly knocked me off balance and more than once I found myself having to lean into the wind as I fished. On the upside, the wind helped to position a few bass but it never fails that the wind is working against us when trolling back to the ramp.
Back of the Boat Blues – Such was Dad’s assessment as he joked about having a tough day on the water. Typically I’m up front on the trolling motor while Dad is in the back sometimes getting “used” water despite my best efforts. But all he had to do was ask and on this rare occasion I would likely have traded places and let him fight the wind.
Solitude – As I wrote about last week, fall is a good time to have the lake to yourself. Today was a prime example as we showed up to an empty lot, never saw another angler the whole day and returned to find the lot just as we’d left it. It could be argued that the absent anglers simply had enough sense to stay out of the wind. But, you know, we got seventeen more bass than we would have hooked in the living room and it sure beats mowing the yard or doing the dishes.
Originally posted 9-29-10
Our pursuit of a strong fall finish continued Tuesday after a weekend at work and a Monday of grown up responsibilities. Dad and I selected Snakeden’s Lake McMaster once again in light of our recent success while hoping that the days off had given the bass in our hotspot time to recharge. We weren’t disappointed.
Original log entry from September 28, 2010
Date: September 28, 2010
Time: 9:10am-2:10pm
Results: 16 bass, 2 green sunfish (Dad – 9 bass, 2 green sunfish, Troy – 7 bass)
Lures: 5” Yamasenko wacky rig (natural shad) – 13 bass, Zara Spook (black shore minnow) – 2 bass, Mann’s Baby 1- 1 bass, 2 green sunfish
Top Bass: 3-9 (Troy – Senko)
Top Five Weight: 12-10 (3-9,2-13,2-11,1-14,1-11)
September 28, 2010 – Top Bass 3-9 at 11:01am on a Senko
Notes and Nonsense
81% – Of our 16 bass, 13 came from one general area in the span of just over an hour and a half. All but one came on a Senko with the lone exception hitting the Zara Spook. This was quite similar to our trip on 9/22 where the spot produced 13 of 19 with 10 on the Senko and 3 on the Spook. We had the area to ourselves despite half a dozen other boats on our latest outing so apparently nobody has caught us catching bass.
Misses – While we weighed a decent stringer (all released of course), there were a couple others that got away. Dad lost a two plus pounder when it dove into some heavy weeds and I had a big blowup on the Spook that unfortunately had bad aim. Near the end of our day I also had a small muskie nose my Senko part way back to the boat before slowly turning away.
Top Bass – At 9:53am I landed a 2-11 on my Spook to set the bar for the day’s big fish. It stood until Dad reeled in a 2-13 at 10:20am on his Senko. As soon as I set the hook on my bass at 11:01am I told Dad that I was going to need a net man. Upon seeing the fish in the clear water I further told Dad, “I think I’ve got you if I get this one in.” My eyes did not deceive as the 3-9 on my Senko would not only claim the title but eclipse our lake record of 3-6 from 9/22.
Final Stats
16.75 hours produced 52 bass (Troy – 29 bass, Dad – 23 bass)
3.1 bass/hour average (solid anywhere but very good for Lake McMaster)
Lures: Senko – 42 bass, Zara Spook – 5 bass, Lizard – 2 bass, Zoom Baby Brush Hog – 1 bass, Mann’s Baby 1- crankbait – 1 bass
Top Bass: 3-9
Top 5 Weight: 14-8
September 28, 2010 – Dad Top Bass at 10:20am on a Senko, weight 2-13
All in all, a darn good “week” on the water and fun to take a walk down Memory Lane. Hope someone else got some insight along the way as well. Got at least a couple more Snakeden pieces to post before I wrap up the 30 year Snakeden celebration. Stay tuned and talk to you later. Troy