For my return to The Canal, I chose a stretch that is popular with other anglers. My hope was that a sunrise start on a Sunday morning would beat the crowd and that indeed proved to be the case. The primary aim of this trip was to get a boost of two ounces to my Top 5 to reach double digits for the pool. Read on for the results from my first visit to The Canal in nearly a month.
Welcome to The Canal where you get a side of “summer salad” with your bass
Stats
Date: August 4
Location: Hennepin Canal
Time: 5:50am-8:50am
Totals: 8 bass
Weather: Partly cloudy to sunny/breezy, 66-77F
Lures: Booyah Buzzbait (snow white shad) – 5 bass, Whopper Plopper (bone) – 3 bass
Top 5 Weight: 6-13 (2-5,1-4,1-3,1-1,1-0)
7:36am – Top Bass Runner Up at 1-4 (13.5″) on a Whopper Plopper
Notes and Nonsense
Top 5 Quest – In my ongoing quest to post a ten-pound Top 5 from every pool on The Canal from Colona to the Feeder Basin, I selected a spot where my Top 5 sat at 9-14 (2-8,2-3,1-15,1-11,1-9). As such, I needed a 1-11 catch to knock out the lowest member of the Top 5 and gain the two ounces I was lacking. Reports from fellow anglers have shown that there are plenty of quality bass in the pool, but my previous efforts have found me coming up short. Just have to keep on casting.
Winning Lures
Topwater Commitment – The depth and cover on this area set up well for a topwater bite like most stretches of The Canal. However, a lack of clouds and the angle of the sunrise had the stretch in full sun shortly after my arrival. Even so, I went nearly all in on topwater with only limited casts of a swimbait, spinnerbait, and Senko wacky rig. Part one of my thought process was to stick with topwater as close to the weed cover as possible where I expected the bass to be hiding from the sun. Part two of the topwater approach was a willingness to sacrifice quantity in exchange for a quality bite. The first two hours were tough with only four bites (three on a Whopper Popper) including two “keepers” and a Top Bass of 1-4. For the final hour, I switched to a buzzbait and had better “luck.”
8:50am – Top Bass at 2-5 (17″) on a buzzbait with the last cast of the morning
Last Cast – Pushing three hours into the morning, I was still lacking the bite needed for my Top 5 boost. Adding to the disappointment was the fact that I had recently had a solid blowup on the buzzbait by a bass that lacked good aim. It’s a guessing game on how big such a bite could be but in my mind the strike was the fish that I was seeking. Luckily, at 8:50am I got a second chance when a bass nailed a buzzbait as it neared the boat on the end of a retrieve. As I battled the fish, I knew that it would make the mark. I did have trouble getting a grip on its lip but got it in the boat where it tipped the scales at 2-5. Mission accomplished in pushing my Top 5 weight for the pool to 10-10. With that bass in the bag, I elected to call it a day with the successful final cast. After a picture, I thanked the fish, released it, and rowed back to the truck.
Mark another spot off the list with a double-digit Top 5. Still more work to do and I was back at it the following morning on a stretch with a Top 5 mark of 8-2 that was established in my lone visit back in June of 2023. Stay tuned for that report and talk to you later. Troy