I headed back to the Knox County strip mines for a second straight day on the heels of my birthday trip. These trips can be a workout but I still had plenty in the tank and I was eager to get off the grid, get away from the grind, and create some more fish stories.

6:43am – Top Bass at 3-5 (19″) on a frog

Stats

Date: July 24
Location: Knox County public strip pits (two lakes)
Time: 5:50am-8:35am,9:30am-11:30am
Totals: 19 bass
Weather: Partly cloudy to sunny/windy, 75-89F
Lures: Spro Flappin Frog 65 (nasty shad) – 13 bass, 3.8″ Bass Pro Shops Speed Shad (K’s Magic) with 3/16 oz Owner Flashy Swimmer jighead – 5 bass, 7″ Berkley Power Worm (tequila sunrise) on an Owner 3/16 oz. Shaky Head – 1 bass
Top Bass: 3-5 Frog
Top 5 Weight: 11-5 (3-5,2-13,1-12,1-12,1-11)

Starting lineup

Tune of the Trip
Changes – David Bowie (1972)
“So the days float through my eyes but still the days seem the same.”
I heard this one driving down to and around the Victoria, IL strip mines. I couldn’t help but do some reminiscing as I have been prowling around the area for close to forty years. So much has changed on so many levels, but it’s still fishing and a chance to recharge the batteries.

7:54am – Top Bass Runner-up at 2-13 on a swimbait

Notes and Nonsense

Lake One History – My first stop was a lake that hasn’t gotten a whole lot of my attention over the years with only four visits since 2011. However, this trip marked my second shot this year. Oddly, one of my most memorable fish stories on this lake was a day when I did not catch a single fish. Quite a few years ago, when my oldest daughter, Helena, was in grade school I hit the lake for an outing after getting her to school. I drove a half an hour to the lake, dragged my boat to the water, and was ready to start casting when my phone rang. Helena was sick and needed picked up. So, I rowed back to my launching point, loaded up, and headed home. Been a while as she is now married and a long way from “home” in California.

Lake One Results – Early morning, overcast skies, and a bit of chop on the water set up well for topwater frog fishing and the bass were onboard with the lure selection. Ten bass were landed on the frog including my all-time Top Bass for the lake at 3-5. In addition, a swimbait produced a solid 2-13 on a deep weedline. All told, this trip featured five of the top eleven bass I have ever landed from this lake making for a daily Top 5 weight of 11-5.

Lake One Top 5 Update – My all-time Top 5 for this lake sat at 9-15, meaning that I needed a one-ounce boost to reach double digits. That one ounce would require landing a 1-14 to knock out a 1-13 as the lightest bass in my creel. My 3-5 (frog) and 2-13 (swimbait) provided quite a boost and the current Top 5 stands at 12-6.

11:09am – Top Bass #5 (tie) at 1-11 on a frog

Lake Two History – Thirty-five years ago, when I first fished this lake, it was part of one long, winding narrow strip pit. Over the years, a walking bridge was built over a constricted part of the lake allowing easier walk-in access to a batch of interior lakes. Eventually, a land bridge was constructed, and the one lake is now divided into two separate bodies of water connected only by a shallow culvert.

Winning lures

Lake Two Results – The frog bite was not as impressive as I moved to the second lake at mid-morning. Really no surprise there, as the clouds dissipating and relatively clear water did not present ideal conditions. In addition, the lily pad growth had exploded to cover the entire shoreline up to nearly thirty feet from the bank. The key was to find pockets or channels for the frog or to work a worm or swimbait around the deep weed edges. I caught enough to keep me interested but nothing to boost my Top 5 weight for the day.

Lake Two Top 5 Update – A 1-11 (frog) and a 1-4 (frog) boosted the lake Top 5 from 5-10 to 6-9 by culling a pair of one-pound fish. Always a success when getting a boost but still plenty of work to do to hit double digits.

 

A second consecutive successful morning on the water with back-to-back days breaking the daily ten-pound Top 5 mark. Not bad for the dog days of summer and what would be the end of my July fishing. Time will tell when I get to hit the water in August but stay tuned in the meantime for a Trip Tunes post. Talk to you later. Troy

I took a vacation day on my birthday to fish in the morning and then have family time later in the day. On such summer days, I get up around 3:30am to finish a few pieces of preparation with the aim of reaching the water right around sunrise. I get a solid morning of fishing and return home by about 1:00pm to take a nap and enjoy family time in the evening.

Stats
Date: July 23
Location: Knox County public strip pits (two lakes)
Time: 5:40am-11:45am
Totals: 15 bass
Weather: Partly cloudy to sunny/windy, 74-89F
Lures: 7″ Berkley Power Worm (tequila sunrise) on an Owner 3/16 oz. Shaky Head – 10 bass, Spro Flappin Frog 65 (nasty shad) – 5 bass
Top Bass: 3-6 Frog
Top 5 Weight: 10-6 (3-6,2-4,2-3,1-5,1-4)

Starting Lineup

Tune of the Trip
Iron Man – Black Sabbath (1971)
“Has he lost his mind?
Can he see or is he blind?
Can he walk at all
Or if he moves will he fall?”
As expected, there was a spate of songs on the radio in tribute to Ozzy Osbourne considering his passing the previous day. The first line above applied to being out in the heat and nearly undertaking a lengthy portage before coming to my senses. The last two lines hit home at the end of the trip after dragging the boat back to the truck. A nap was in order once I returned home.

6:05am – First bass at 2-4 (16.5″) on a Spro frog

Notes and Nonsense

Ten-Pound Top 5 – My top goal when I hit the water is to post a double-digit Top 5 (five heaviest bass weighing ten pounds or better). I had hit the mark on an April 19 trip (10-4) but otherwise it had been close but no cigar on May 16 (9-15) and July 12 (9-11). For this trip I was able to reach the mark again with a birthday creel weighing 10-6. Which just so happens to be the heaviest bag landed on July 23.

8:21am – Top Bass at 3-6 (20″) on a Spro frog and the all-time birthday bass runner-up

Top Birthday Bass – These days, I like to get on the water for a while on my birthday to just kind of get away from it all. And, because I just like to fish, I guess my birthday is a day like any other day in that regard. Several years, Dad and I would hit the creek chasing catfish, carp, or whatever else would bite a dew worm. In more recent years, the birthday trip has been strictly bass fishing. Anyway, I have birthday fishing data dating back to a July 23, 1985 bass landed at Lake Bracken. Among those birthday bass, the 3-6 fish landed this year represents the Top Birthday Bass runner-up to a 3-8 caught at Little John’s Moose/Elk Lake on July 23, 2017.

Winning lures

Top 5 Update
The 3-6 culls a 3-4 from what I call Discovery Lake bumping the all-time Top 5 on the water to an impressive 19-8.

Shaking Things Up – I tried a new presentation called a “Shaky Head” worm and it was my top producer of the day. Now, I am a creature of habit so time will tell if this approach gets further use on the strip pits, but it seemed like a good fit on paper and did not disappoint when put into practice.

Birthday bass thumb means it was a successful morning on the water

More to come with another strip mine report from the following day but I will conclude with a thought that was running through my head at one point on this outing. I had visions of significant portage to reach a remote lake, and I scouted it out at one hundred and thirty-six steps through tall grass, uneven terrain, and a stand of shoreline reeds. Throw in full sun and temperatures pushing ninety degrees and I wavered a bit. After roughly thirty steps of dragging the boat and gear, I wised up and turned back around. As I eased the boat back into the main lake, I heard Nemo’s dad, Marlin, chiding me, “You think you can do these things, but you just can’t, Nemo.” Granted, it was a little hard to take but solid advice on a hot, July day. Perhaps another time, perhaps not.

Here’s to another trip around the sun. Talk to you later, Troy

On the heels of a successful July 12 outing, I hit the same Knox County public strip mine area again the following Saturday. My ambitious aim was to fish three lakes, but Mother Nature did not follow the initial forecast. A brewing storm ran me off the water much earlier than planned leading to a bit of exploration during the rest of my day.

Starting lineup and winning lures

Stats
Date: July 19
Location: Knox County public strip pits (two lakes), Hennepin Canal (one pool)
Time: 5:40am-7:50am, 1:20pm-1:35pm
Totals: 10 bass
Weather: Overcast to partly cloudy/breezy
Lures: Spro Flappin Frog 65 (nasty shad) – 6 bass, Booyah Buzz Buzzbait (snow white shad) – 2 bass, 5” Yamasenko wacky rig (blue pearl/black hologram flake) – 2 bass
Top Bass: 3-1 Frog
Top 5 Weight: 9-11 (3-1,2-2,1-11-1-10,1-3)

Tune of the Trip
Riding the Storm Out – REO Speedwagon (1977)
“The wind outside is frightening, but it’s kinder than the lightning life in the city.”
Such was the theme of substantial part of my day as I left the water before the storm, rode out the rain in my truck, and did some exploring. And I actually heard this song twice on the radio. Maybe it was a DJ being amusing, or maybe just an interesting coincidence.

5:44am – First bass at 1-3 (13″) on a buzzbait

Notes and Nonsense

Main Lake – The bass were quite cooperative as I rowed my way around a portion of this lake on my way to my preferred destination. Four bass in thirty minutes, all on topwater was tough to leave behind but the larger bass potential of my target lake convinced me to make a portage. I suspect that there are some quality fish in the Main Lake but have a hard time committing when solid fish are a short drag away.

6:26am – Top Bass at 3-1 (18″) on a Spro frog

Discovery Lake – Moving to this lake paid dividends right away as I had two “keepers” in the logbook after six minutes of casting including a 3-1 that would be Top Bass of the morning. Conditions remained conducive for a lasting topwater bite with overcast skies and a bit of chop on the water, but it wasn’t long before the thunder began rumbling. On these remote lakes, it takes a while to get back to the truck and I’ve gotten wiser over the years when it comes to calling it quits. Don’t get me wrong, I am still reluctant to leave the water but about 8:00am I was sure glad that I did. The skies got uglier, unleased several downpours, and put on an impressive display of thunder and lightning all while I was safely sheltered in my truck.

1:26pm – Hennepin Canal bass at 1-3 (13″) on a Senko wacky rig

Bonus Bass – I took advantage of the rainy day to do some exploring to the northeast. I peeked at Mautino State Fish & Wildlife Area and found that the interior roads had been repaired (they were so bad that much of the site closed several years ago). A couple lakes also had new rock launches in place that would be just right for my little boat. Next stop was a new spot on the Hennepin Canal near Mineral that I had hiked last winter. During that hike, I observed a beaver lodge, one of my favorite pieces of cover, a short distance from a parking lot. I took a walk and sure enough a bass called it home and took a liking to my Senko wacky rig. The stretch is on my list for a future launch to add four more “keepers” and establish an initial Top 5.

Top 5 Update
Main Lake – Boost from 6-4 to 7-4 as a 1-3 knocks a 1-2 out of the creel
Discovery Lake – No boost as it takes a 3-4 or better to bump my weight
Hennepin Canal – A bass at 1-3 was my first ever catch on this pool

I opted to take my birthday and the following day off work to get away from the hustle and bustle. Stay tuned for those reports as I hit the strip mines again on both days. Talk to you later. Troy