Friday, April 19, 2024
LAKE WHITNEY CATCH: From left are Sam, Steven, Dale, David and John Bigge. Dale lives in DeCordova Bend, and the others are family members who came in from Midland for a Father’s Day weekend visit.
FATHER’S DAY WEEKEND: From left, Melody, Jake, Megan and Gavin Couch caught some big striped bass up to 8.6 pounds on Lake Granbury.
I have written several articles on how noise can help or hinder you on the water. These articles allude to how you can “call in” fish by making certain kinds of noise. There are other noises that do keep fish from biting and I will try to cover some of these as well.
No one can really know how the fish will react on any given day, but if you get enough data, you can make some educated choices. The reason I bring up this subject is to reflect some on my recent summer fishing trips on area lakes.
Typically on most days, the noise from a large boat can shut down surface feeding fish if you drive through them. I have seen the bite stop as a large boat comes too close to where I am fishing. Many times, you can wait several minutes and they may start feeding again. This won’t happen all the time, but it may be worth the wait if you were on good fish.
If the striped bass and sand bass are deeper, the surface noise has less impact. However, even fish deep in the water column can be impacted by large boats running on top of them. This of course depends on the day and how active the predators are.
It is a good idea for pleasure boaters to avoid anglers if possible. On Lake Granbury, you are supposed to stay 100 feet away from other boaters per the Brazos River Authority. The TPWD rule is 50 feet on most reservoirs.
We all know that some days when the fish are really active, there is not much that will bother them when they are feeding. We also know that fish in shallow, clear, calm water can be spooked much more easily, and that is why it is good to make long casts to make sure you don’t spook the fish.
Most folks who haven’t fished for striped bass are surprised when I start thrashing the water to “call in” fish. This mimics surface feeding fish and those curious predators looking for an easy meal will come in to investigate.
Sound as we know is transmitted easily and further in water than air. On a calm day, the surface “thrashing” will attract predators.
My best advice is to gain experience on the water and gain confidence in using noise to your advantage. If the noise is not working, stop for a while and see if makes a difference. Conversely, if nothing is biting, try calling them in. You may be surprised.
FISHING REPORT
Water temperatures continue to be in the middle to upper 80s on the main lake. Some 90-plus degree water will exist in the backs of sloughs on those real hot afternoons. Striped bass fishing has improved with numerous catches reported trolling crankbaits or using live bait from the lower ends near DeCordova to the dam. Crappies have been good to excellent on jigs and small minnows fished near deeper structure on many areas of the lake. Largemouth bass numbers are good with an occasional bigger fish to 7 pounds near creek entrances and near deeper docks using soft plastics and crankbaits. Channel catfish are good on cut shad in the backs of creeks. Sand bass are good near Indian Harbor and DeCordova in 12 to 20 feet of water near channel ledges.
Lake Whitney striped bass limits are common on most days near Cedron to the Island. Possum Kingdom Lake striped bass to 15 pounds are possible from Hogs Bend to the Dam. Down rigged jigs and/or live shad has been producing.
