Today’s report covers a pair of short trips with each consisting of an hour and a half of hiking and casting. My aim was to visit some areas that I had not fished this year to scout out water levels, water clarity, and amount of vegetation. While hiking in the summer heat was a hot prospect, the bite made it worth the sweat.
Stats
Date: July 13 & 15
Location: Hennepin Canal (4 pools)
Time: July 13 (1.50 hours), July 15 (1,50 hours)
Totals: 15 bass (July 13 – 6 bass, July 15 – 9 bass)
Weather: Sunny/calm both days
Water temperature: Not available
Lures: 5” Yamamoto Senko wacky rig (various colors) – 11 bass, Spro Flappin Frog 65 (nasty shad) – 4 bass
Top Bass: 2-3 Frog (July 13)
Two “Keepers”: 2-3 (July 15), 1-5 (July 13)
Winning lures
Notes and Nonsense
July 13 at 1:26pm – Top Bass weighing 1-5 (12.5″) on a Senko wacky rig
July 13 – While I did throw a frog around for a bit, all that I needed on this day was a Senko wacky rig. This was a midday trip with my first cast at 11:45am and my last at 2:10pm with some driving in between as I hit three different pools. The first two pools only produced one short bass at each spot while my final stop of the day gave up four including the day’s Top Bass at 1-5. As I expected, I had The Canal to myself in the afternoon heat. However, I did end the day having a welcome visit with a fellow Canal angler, Eddie Block. We chatted across a lock catching up on our latest Canal exploits and each caught a couple bass.
July 15 at 7:14pm – Top Bass weighing 2-3 (16.5″) on a Senko wacky rig
July 15 – I got home from work and after eating my supper figured that I had enough time to make a few casts. Being the MLB the All-Star break, there was no baseball to follow so why not invest an hour and a half exploring another passion. Barely a minute into casting, I was rewarded for my decision with a solid bass on a Senko weighing in at 2-3. As it turned out, that fish set the bar high for Top Bass and even though I landed eight more fish, none were “keepers.” However, nine bass in an hour and a half was certainly a winner.
July 15 at 8:48pm – An overachiever 6.5″ bass on a 5″ Senko
Many times, I let myself get mentally hung up on a time crunch when pondering fishing trips such as these two outings. Had I stayed home, there would be fifteen less bass in the log. While only one was much to brag about, in the end it doesn’t really matter. Get out, get some fresh air, take along a fishing pole or two (or three, or four), and let the bass do the rest. Talk to you later. Troy