A couple vacation days found me back on the strip mines for a second day battling the ridiculously strong winds. The morning was manageable in the little johnboat but in the afternoon I resorted to hiking. Read on for the results and my mindset in finding some bites under the crazy conditions as gusts were hitting forty miles an hour.
Starting lineup
Stats
Date: May 16
Location: Knox County public strip pits (2 lakes)
Time: 8:05am-10:20am, 2:25pm-4:25pm
Totals: 17 bass
Weather: Sunny/very windy, 69-83F
Lures Whopper Plopper 110 (bone) – 9 bass, Spro Flappin Frog 65 (redear) – 3 bass, 5” Yamasenko wacky rig (blue pearl/black hologram) – 3 bass, Strike King Red Eye Shad (sexy shad) – 1 bass, 7” Berkley Power Worm (blue fleck firetail) – 1 bass
Top Bass: 3-13 (Whopper Plopper)
Top 5 Weight: 9-15 (3-13,1-14,1-12,1-5,1-3)
Only one tick on this trip
Tune of the Trip
Another One Bites the Dust – Queen (1980)
Selected because the 3-13 on this outing knocked out a 3-10 to boost the all-time Top 5 for one of the lakes to an impressive weight of 22-9.
Notes and Nonsense
8:06am – Top Bass #3 at 1-12 (15.5″) on a Spro Flappin Frog (redear)
Presentation 1 – Spro Flappin Frog (redear)
The previous day, on similar water with similar conditions, the topwater frog was a winner. Sure enough, my third cast of the morning to a weedy point got me on the board. Unfortunately, the rest of the bite was not fast and furious with only two more frog bass in the next two hours.
10:06am – Top Bass #2 at 1-14 (18″) on a Texas rigged Berkley Power Worm (blue fleck firetail)
Presentation 2 – Texas rigged 7” Berkley Power Worm (blue fleck firetail)
As I was winding up at my first stop, I elected to slow down my presentation around a beaver lodge and other scattered wood adjacent to a deep weed edge. I wound up with two bites. The first one stole the back end of my worm and missed getting hooked. The aim of the second bite was true and wound up being my Top Bass of the morning at 1-14.
Crazy wind
Midday Break – Tiring of fighting the wind in the boat, I packed up and took a drive around Little John Conservation Club making a few casts in one lake without success. From there I decided to switch approaches and hike into a productive public strip pit. But first I ate a sandwich and took about a forty-minute nap in my truck. I was hoping no one would drive by and wonder if I was deceased but all was okay I guess, as no one bothered.
2:36pm – Top Bass at 3-13 (20″) on a Whopper Plopper (bone)
Presentation 3 – Whopper Plopper 110 (bone)
Refreshed on the heels of the nap, I made the five-minute walk to my next fishing hole. The crazy wind was just pounding a point with a near direct hit which can bode well for a bass in the area. Such wind can stack up the food chain as well as create a mudline in the water that serves as an ambush point. These factors prompted me to try a Whopper Plopper as it creates a noticeable commotion even in very choppy water. The ideal set up worked out just like the magazines said it should to the tune of a nearly four-pound bass.
4:20pm – Top Bass #5 at 1-3 (14″) on a weighted Senko wacky rig (blue pearl/black hologram)
Presentation 4 – 5” Yamasenko weighted wacky rig (blue pearl/black hologram)
I finished off my day near the same point where I had landed the 3-13 earlier. When I could not repeat the big bite with the Whopper Plopper, I opted for something different and deeper to finish the day. The wind factor dictated a change to my Senko wacky worm presentation. With the normal octopus hook, the worm barely sinks as the wind catches the line and basically pushes the worm along at or just below the surface. With the jighead, the worm sinks and goes down to the fish as opposed to the earlier topwater presentation attempting to bring the fish up to the surface. The change-up fooled three bass in five minutes including a 1-3 before it was time to hit the road.
Winning lures
Two days of rowing and walking had me wore out, so I elected to sleep in on Saturday. But on Sunday I was back on the water with Brent to do some exploring. Stay tuned and talk to you later. Troy