Anglers try to Duplicate Large Tourney Catches
Monday, June 29, 2009
Written By: Jerry
Maupin, Kentucky Lake Professional Fishing Guide
http://www.jerrymaupin.com
Wow, just one day after the FLW Tour came
through this section of Kentucky Lake, the area was again covered with anglers
trying to duplicate the large bass catches.
I had the pleasure of fishing with Mike Bowman as his Father's Day gift from his
wife. Cindy wanted to get him out on the lake and let him catch some largemouth
bass. Cindy, I want you to know that was the best gift Mike could have received.
He is such a pleasant guy to fish with. There was constant chatter back and
forth as he really did catch a lot of bass. I think he said that was the most
good bass he has caught in a long time.
I think we caught a total of 62 bass this day and several were over three
pounds. None were kept which was fine by us. Just think, as the summer
progresses all species will be feeding on the large shad population which is in
full blown hatches over the entire lake.
We are hopeful that the mayflies will be a boost to the food for most species of
our fishes. Some have hatched during last week and we could see a positive
response from the bluegill, catfish, redear sunfish, white and yellow stripers
and even the yellow perch.
The lake has been a continuous attraction for anglers throughout mid-America and
with good reason. We have the pleasure of so many different species which are
not only a real challenge to catch but are delicious eating table fare.
We are hopeful that the mayflies will come along soon and provide all species of
our fishes with that mouth watering fly pie they are waiting for. It truly is
the best attractor we have in both Kentucky and Barkley Lakes and I am hopeful
that they hatch for at least three months over the entire lakes. I know that
they can be a problem around the marinas but the attraction of so many anglers
should overcome that small problem.
I also had the pleasure of fishing again with Donald Craig and his son Josh. We
covered a lot of Kentucky Lake and found bass just about everywhere. The main
reason the bass were not actively seeking fresh food (our lures) was the lack of
any current. Not sure for the reason for the stoppage but TVA is in full control
of the situation and we can only look on. It seemed to me that the water
elevation was a little short of normal for this time of the year especially when
the shad are hatching. Mr. Don Craig and Josh are avid anglers and truly love to
chase the bass in this part of the state.
We had intended to ambush the bass as they used the currents to seek out and
catch those young shad baitfish. However, when the current is almost
nonexistent, the bass seem to lose interest and just find a good shade tree to
wait the problem out.
We found a small school of white stripers which were taking advantage of the
young shad. It was so much fun to watch Donald and Josh make super long casts to
attract the hungry stripers.
We could see a tremendous move of the shad as they swam for their lives
literally. The pocket was so shallow it was difficult for the shad to escape the
stripers. We just watched for the shad to boil up to the surface in an attempt
to escape the stripers and then we would cast into the melee. You need to be
quick on the retrieve if you are to catch the stripers. As I said earlier,
Donald and Josh are very good anglers and really knew how to get the stripers.
The feeding spree just didn't last long enough and we had to come in. Next time
men.
Happy Fishing!
Jerry Maupin
http://www.jerrymaupin.com
