I gave The Canal a break and headed down to Knox County for an afternoon/evening hike on the strip mines. Feeling spry, I elected to hit several lakes that I had not fished since 2021 which required considerable foot travel to chase those bass.

5:56pm – Top Bass Runner-Up at 1-5 (14″) on a swimbait

Stats
Date: September 7
Location: Knox County public strip pits (4 lakes)
Time: 1:30pm-7:35pm (5.00 hours fishing)
Totals: 45 bass, 1 crappie
Weather: Sunny/breezy, 64-55F
Lures: Spro Flappin Frog 65 (natural red) – 18 bass, 3.75” Strike King Rage Swimmer Swimbait (pro blue/red pearl) with a Twist Lock Flashy Swimmer jighead – 16 bass and 1 crappie, 5” Yamamoto Senko (natural shad or blue pearl/silver flake) – 8 bass, Rebel Pop-R (purple shad) – 3 bass
Top Bass: 1-6 Senko
Top 5 Weight: 6-5 (1-6,1-5,1-4,1-4,1-2)

Winning lures

Notes and Nonsense

Twin Lake – Back in April 2014, I landed a 4-6 bass from this spot but the largest catch since has been a 1-10 among 167 total bass going back to 2013. So, I have been pursuing another big bass in this lake for ten years and still can’t find one. This outing once again produced numbers with twenty-one bass but the only “keepers” came in right around a pound. Now the question is, do I continue to visit this spot or invest my time on better water?

A bonus “accident” crappie at 0-15 (12.5″) on a swimbait

Horseshoe Lake – A pair of quality catches continue to convince me to make a return to this spot. Brent posted a 3-13 and a 3-8 during 2014 to put this lake on the radar. Like Twin Lake, we have not caught anything worth a darn since. That trend continued this afternoon as I landed ten bass with all falling under twelve inches.

With my daughter in the NIU Huskie Marching Band and performing at the game, I will always remember right where I was when this went final.

Cottonwood Lake – This lake is loaded with small bass, but I still hold out hope that some of them will grow up. Over the years, I have recorded fifty bass from this lake but only nine have been “keepers” and the Top Bass weighing a mere 1-1. This outing produced five more bass between nine and ten inches. But the highlight of this stop was following the Northern Illinois-Notre Dame football matchup. My daughter, Carly, is a member of the NIU Marching Huskie Band and was onsite in South Bend, IN and got to perform on the field. She also witnessed an impressive upset that will be talked about for a long time. My cell reception was spotty, so it kept me on edge waiting to see the result of what was the game winning field goal attempt.

7:03pm – Top Bass at 1-6 (14″) on a Senko

Strip Mine Lake – My finale for the evening was a spot where I have not invested much time fishing over the years. My previous Top Bass among the seventeen bass caught in my brief stops is a 1-15 but I did observe another angler with a five-pounder earlier this year. My results on this day were nine bass (and a quality crappie) in just under two hours of fishing including seven “keepers” but a Top Bass of only 1-6. Encouraging, but tough, steep bank access makes the lake a challenge. Unlike the other three lakes on this trip, I am eager to give it another shot before the year is out.

Plenty of steps and most of them aren’t particularly easy

Wear and Tear – Each year, I intend to get in better shape so that these strip mine hikes aren’t quite so taxing. Yet again, I failed to do so just like every other year going back to 2019. I pushed my hike well off the beaten path and wound up with two sore heels, a twinge in my right knee, and a sore back. And it did not take long for an ongoing case of “caster’s elbow” to start nagging my right elbow. In the middle of the night a cramp flared up in my left calf but fortunately I was able to move around and fend off a full-blown instance.

 

In the end, a particularly good haul in terms of quantity but could not find the big bites. Was it worth the effort and the sore muscles? Well, I was back for more the following afternoon. Stay tuned and talk to you later. Troy