11/7 - Tournament Report - Artificials
Nov 10, 2015 15:40:50 GMT -5
seajay and drag4striper like this
Post by johnr on Nov 10, 2015 15:40:50 GMT -5
I've never done well in any of the various striper tournaments at the lake. Actually, I barely fish for stripers anymore except for the short time between the end of hunting season and the start of Walleye season. I hadn't live baited since I sold my skiff, and actually sold the remainder of my live bait equipment just prior to the tournament, save for a few cast nets, so live baiting was out of the equation. But for the past couple years, I have been using only bucktails with good success, though big fish have been few and far between. I thought I had a fair shot at breaking 60", which I figured would put me 10" short of a win, but maybe with some luck I'd be in it. It didn't work out that way..
The plan was to run uplake and work the backs of all the creeks with the bucktails, looking for active fish. It's a pattern that I've seen a lot of in November and December, and I knew I could capitalize on it. When I stopped at my first creek, I dropped off plane just outside the mouth and was on top of a huge school. I quickly weighed my options, and decided to change the plan and set out the leadcore spread consisting of bucktails and spoons. This was the wrong decision for a number of reasons. First being all the leaves. It was impossible to go more than a couple hundred yards without leaves fouling my lines. Next, it seemed like those fish in the channel were 'migrating' rather than eating. But I stuck with it for 11 miles up and back, mainly because of the number of fish I marked along the main channel edges. After wasting the precious morning hours on that bad idea, I had zero fish. An unsuccessful and frustrating morning of trolling is not a great primer to a rainy afternoon of bucktail casting.
I put the trolling rods away at noon and found my way to the back of a creek. As soon as I pull in, I see a few stripers busting. Cast, cast, cast, nothing. Slide out a bit, cast some more and end up losing a decent fish that hit right at the boat. All while watching a guide catch a couple fair fish in the very back where I started.
Onto the next creek. Motoring my way towards the back, I started marking fish tight to the bottom in 15'. Cast, cast, cast, fish on! Landed it, 26.25", and figured I shoulda just stuck to the game plan from the start. Next cast, a reel malfunction sends my bucktail up into the woods. Re-tie, first cast and that bucktail lands up in the woods too. Change rods, put another bucktail on and go back to those fish. First cast, fish on. A few cranks, fish off. I saw a couple swirls in the creek afterwards, but those fish moved somewhere else and after a bit I moved on too.
Checked my best main channel area, marking fish deep. Drop a jig to the bottom in 22' and hookup immediately. And then immediately unhookup. Drop down again in 30', and miss a few hits that stripped the flukes from my jigs. Check the clock, 2:30. Getting short on time. Hit one more creek, and no signs of life. Fished to the back of Campers hoping for a hail mary fish, but nothing.
Next time I develop a game plan, I will stick to it.
My new game plan is to get another bait tank.
The plan was to run uplake and work the backs of all the creeks with the bucktails, looking for active fish. It's a pattern that I've seen a lot of in November and December, and I knew I could capitalize on it. When I stopped at my first creek, I dropped off plane just outside the mouth and was on top of a huge school. I quickly weighed my options, and decided to change the plan and set out the leadcore spread consisting of bucktails and spoons. This was the wrong decision for a number of reasons. First being all the leaves. It was impossible to go more than a couple hundred yards without leaves fouling my lines. Next, it seemed like those fish in the channel were 'migrating' rather than eating. But I stuck with it for 11 miles up and back, mainly because of the number of fish I marked along the main channel edges. After wasting the precious morning hours on that bad idea, I had zero fish. An unsuccessful and frustrating morning of trolling is not a great primer to a rainy afternoon of bucktail casting.
I put the trolling rods away at noon and found my way to the back of a creek. As soon as I pull in, I see a few stripers busting. Cast, cast, cast, nothing. Slide out a bit, cast some more and end up losing a decent fish that hit right at the boat. All while watching a guide catch a couple fair fish in the very back where I started.
Onto the next creek. Motoring my way towards the back, I started marking fish tight to the bottom in 15'. Cast, cast, cast, fish on! Landed it, 26.25", and figured I shoulda just stuck to the game plan from the start. Next cast, a reel malfunction sends my bucktail up into the woods. Re-tie, first cast and that bucktail lands up in the woods too. Change rods, put another bucktail on and go back to those fish. First cast, fish on. A few cranks, fish off. I saw a couple swirls in the creek afterwards, but those fish moved somewhere else and after a bit I moved on too.
Checked my best main channel area, marking fish deep. Drop a jig to the bottom in 22' and hookup immediately. And then immediately unhookup. Drop down again in 30', and miss a few hits that stripped the flukes from my jigs. Check the clock, 2:30. Getting short on time. Hit one more creek, and no signs of life. Fished to the back of Campers hoping for a hail mary fish, but nothing.
Next time I develop a game plan, I will stick to it.
My new game plan is to get another bait tank.
