Slight delay on the latest Top 5 report but better late than never on a solid batch of bass. Interestingly, this week’s update consists of five bass caught last week. The catches come courtesy of our Top 5 leader, Jim Junk, and the report comes via a slideshow below rather than my standard format.

 

Weights: 3-14,3-12,3-11,3-1,3-1
Angler: Jim Junk
Date: July 13 & 14
Location: Banner Marsh
Lure: Fluke
Top 5 Weight: 24-3 (5-15,4-14,4-12,4-6,4-4)

Way to go, Jim, who added on July 11 that he was interested to see if the new presentation “becomes a real confidence lure or if it was just a ‘fluke.’” After a follow-up outing on July 14 he noted, “Maybe not a fluke.” Here’s hoping that the success continues. Talk to you later. Troy

Quite a collection of fish this week with an unexpected catch joining our list of “bonus” species. (Note: I also forgot several of my brother’s bass last month so playing catch up on those)

Weight: 2-3
Angler: Brent Jackson
Date: June 14
Location: Snakeden Hollow
Lure: Buzzbait

Weight: 2-13
Angler: Brent Jackson
Date: June 14
Location: Snakeden Hollow
Lure: Senko

Weight: 1-14
Angler: Brent Jackson
Date: June 14
Location: Snakeden Hollow
Lure: Senko
Top 5 Weight: 13-3 (3-2,2-13,2-12,2-5,2-3) culls 1-14 and 1-10

Weight: 1-13
Angler: John Kirkemo
Date: June 29
Weather: Partly cloudy skies
Water Temp: 81-82F
Location: Lake Storey
Lure: Wacky Worm

Weight: 1-2
Angler: John Kirkemo
Date: June 30
Weather: Light rain with gentle breeze from east
Water Temp: 82-83F
Location: Lake Storey
Lure: Wacky Worm

Weight: 1-2
Angler: John Kirkemo
Date: June 30
Weather: Light rain with gentle breeze from east
Water Temp: 82-83F
Location: Lake Storey
Lure: Wacky Worm
Top 5 Weight: 7-10 (1-15,1-13,1-6,1-6,1-2) culls 1-0

Weight: 4-0
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: July 1
Weather: Partly cloudy/breezy
Location: Snakeden Hollow
Lure: Buzzbait
Structure: Flat/weed edge
Angler Comments: Pretty cool start to the morning when you’ve got three bass in the first twelve minutes topped by this one which is my personal best on this particular interior lake.

Weight: 3-11
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: July 1
Weather: Partly cloudy/windy
Location: Snakeden Hollow
Lure: Senko wacky rig
Structure: Sticks
Angler Comments: Actually saw this bass swimming near some stickups, plunked a Senko within range and got it to commit. On the upside, it was larger than I’d visually estimated. On the downside, it was rather gaunt and would have been my second four-pounder of the morning if in normal shape. No complaint, though.
Top 5 Weight: 17-6 (4-12,4-0,3-11,2-8,2-7) culls 2-6 and 2-4

Weight: 4-12
Angler: Jim Junk
Date: July 5
Location: Banner Marsh
Lure: Senko wacky rig
Top 5 Weight: 24-3 (5-15,4-14,4-12,4-6,4-4) culls 4-1

Other Species – Common Carp

Weight: 10-5
Angler: Jim Junk
Date: July 2
Location: Banner Marsh
Lure: Texas rigged Senko
Angler Comments: He hit close to the bank and started stripping line. Really thought I had a monster bass. Took quite a while to get close enough to see the yellow belly.
Top 5 Weight: 10-5

Well done by our crew. Looks like the dog days have arrived which can be a challenge. Early or late in the day can often tilt the odds a bit more in your favor but those fish don’t go anywhere, typically just a bit harder to find and fool. Talk to you later. Troy

A trio of bass join the ranks as we transition from spring to summer. Yep, time sure flies when you’re fishing, a perfect getaway during our unusual times.

Weight: 1-0 (12”)
Angler: John Kirkemo
Date: June 18
Weather: Bright blue skies
Water Temp: 78F
Location: Lake Storey
Lure: Senko wacky style
Top 5 Weight: 4-5 (1-15,1-6,1-0)

Weight: 4-4
Angler: Jim Junk
Date: June 19
Location: Banner Marsh
Lure: Texas rigged Senko

Weight: 3-9
Angler: Jim Junk
Date: June 20
Location: Banner Marsh
Lure: Texas rigged Senko
Top 5 Weight: 19-7 (4-4,4-1,4-1,3-9,3-8) culls 3-7 and 3-4

Thanks for your submissions fellas and keep them coming as the summer rolls on. Talk to you later. Troy

A new month means a new stat update. So, here we go.

2020 Totals
January = 1 bass
February = no submissions
March = 4 bass
April = 25 bass
May = 18 bass

Top 5 Weight by Month
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)
May 22-6 (5-7,5-4,4-12,3-8,3-7)

Boat vs. Bank
Boat = 10 bass
Bank = 38 bass

Boat vs. Bank Weight
Boat = 13-10 (4-1,2-8,2-7,2-6,2-4)
Bank = 27-1 (6-14,5-7,5-4,4-12,4-12)

Public vs. Private
Public = 28 bass
Private = 20 bass

Public vs. Private Top 5 Weight
Public = 19-0 (4-12,4-1,3-8,3-7,3-4)
Private = 25-6 (6-14,5-7,5-4,4-12,3-1)

The Baits (* = new record)
Plastic Worm = 15 bass (Top Bass 3-7 Jim Junk)
*Chatterbait = 12 bass (Top Bass 5-7 Chris Schwarz) – tops 4-10 Mark Balbinot
*Spinnerbait = 7 bass (Top Bass 6-14 Chris Schwarz) – tops 5-14 Mark Balbinot
Lipless Crankbait = 5 bass (Top Bass 3-4 Jim Junk)
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)
Buzzbait = 1 bass (Top Bass 2-5 Brent Jackson)
Creature = 1 bass (Top Bass 3-8 Jim Junk)
Grub = 1 bass (Top Bass 1-4 Jim Junk)

Monthly Top Bass
January
1-4 Jim Junk
February
No submissions
March
6-14 Chris Schwarz
April
4-12 Troy Jackson
May
5-7 Chris Schwarz

Top 10 Bass (* = new Top 10 all-time)
*6-14 Chris Schwarz (3/25) – new #10 all-time
5-7 Chris Schwarz (5/3)
5-4 Chris Schwarz (5/3)
4-12 Troy Jackson (4/26)
4-12 Chris Schwarz (5/3)
4-1 Jim Junk (3/7)
3-8 Jim Junk (5/16)
3-7 Jim Junk (5/29)
3-4 Jim Junk (3/3)
3-2 Brent Jackson (4/26)

Angler Weights
Chris Schwarz 22-5 (6-14,5-7,5-4,4-12)
Jim Junk 17-0 (4-1,3-8,3-7,3-4,2-12)
Troy Jackson 14-5 (4-12,2-8,2-7,2-6,2-4)
Brent Jackson 9-13 (3-2,2-12,2-5,1-10)
Teagan Mills 6-1 (3-1,3-0)
Kennedy Jackson 5-12 (1-13,1-11,1-5,0-15)
Brady Jackson 4-8 (1-5,1-2,1-1,1-0)
John Kirkemo 3-5 (1-15,1-6)
Carly Jackson 0-14 (0-14)

Other Species
Crappie 1-2 Troy Jackson

A strange year and it keeps getting stranger. All the more reason to grab a rod and reel, get some fresh air and tune out for a bit. Here’s hoping you get a chance to get away. Talk to you later. Troy

Five years ago this week I spent a full day roaming and rowing some of my strip mine stomping grounds. The combination of many public and private fishing holes produced a sizeable quantity of bass including several in the two pound range. Below are the stats and a couple notes from the original three-part fishing report posted May 27-29, 2015.

Top Bass of the day at 2-13 on a Senko wacky rig

Stats
Date: May 23, 2015
Location: Knox County strip pits (2 sites – 9 lakes)
Time: 6:55am-8:00pm (8.75 hours fishing, the rest walking/relocating)
Weather: Sunny/windy
Air Temp: 55-75F
Water Temp: 70F
Totals: 58 bass
Lures: Senko weighted wacky rig (various colors) – 35 bass, Strike King Red Eye (sexy shad) – 9 bass, Booyah Buzz Buzzbait (salt & pepper) – 8 bass, K9 Walker (Madd Shadd) – 4 bass, Mann’s Baby 1- crankbait (copper shad) – 1 bass, Rebel Zell Rowland Pop’R – 1 bass
Top Bass: 2-13 (Senko)
Top 5 Weight: 10-0 (2-13,2-1,1-15,1-11,1-8)

An old Zell Rowland signature Rebel Pop’R, probably older than some folks reading this post

Notes & Nonsense

Topwater Tactics – With the weed choked waters I did a fair amount of topwater casting by throwing a buzzbait, stickbait and popper as far as I could into open water. I’d then work it back to the edge and give a big yank to send it flying back in my direction and then reel it up out of the grass on the bank nearby. It was cool to nab a few on a K9 Walker stickbait made by HO.com reader, Frank Harvey. In addition, I caught one on a Zell Rowland Pop’R autograph model that is probably over 20 years old and likely hadn’t caught a bass for nearly as long. Gotta do what you gotta do when dealt some tough conditions.

K9 Walker, a homemade topwater bait received from a blog reader many years ago

Unlucky Bass – The 2-1 pictured below had a bad day upon making a decision to try a Senko for brunch. For starters, my equipment is a bit less than new and would not be mistaken for top dollar as my money goes elsewhere. So anyway, the bail on my spinning reel flipped open on the hookset leading me to originally think I’d busted the line. I quickly realized that wasn’t the case, found that the tough luck fish was still attached and finished battling the nice bass to the boat. Then I discovered that the fish was hooked deep and debated just clipping my jighead but was able to extract it without any noticeable damage. Upon release I placed the bass in tail first and let go only to watch the fish make a tail walking jump right into the Red Eye Shad I had hanging over the side of the boat (yes, I should know better). Well, if bass have a chin that’s where it wound up double hooked the second time. So, I snatched my rod before it went overboard, unhooked my bass again with no visible damage and re-released it (only recorded it in the log once though as that would be greedy and unethical to count it twice). I did apologize to the fish as it was the right thing to do and it swam away in a hurry, minus the leap. For its sake I actually hope it does not find my bait in the future no matter how big it grows as I feel kind of bad for its ordeal.

My apologies to this unfortunate “sorta twice caught” bass

The Shirt – This marked the final day for one of my favorite fishing shirts.  For me, fishing is rife with favorites whether it be a hat, a lure or a productive spot on the water.  Well, me and this shirt go back a ways but it now must join the collection of other “good luck” shirts that have worn thin over the years.  Perhaps someday I will pursue writing more on the specific shirt and the general topic but for now just want to say “Thanks” to the holey tatter that Julie said that she wouldn’t wash again should it show up in the laundry.  

Rain or shine the old “lucky shirt” was a winner

Five years later, I’m getting around to the “Lucky Shirt” thing with a yearlong project. It’s also time for topwater baits and a Senko wacky rig presentation as the weeds take over some waters. Hard to believe May is about to come to a close. Stay tuned for June as we’ve got a couple fish already in for next week’s Top 5 Update and I hope to include a fishing report or two in the near future. Talk to you later. Troy