Caught yesterday on the Bink's spoon.
The lake level is 551.62 and has dropped one inch in the last 24-hours with more generation in the afternoons. The surface temperature is 80 in the main lake and a little lower in the creeks in the mornings and is stable. It is not dropping with the summer-like conditions. The thermocline has dropped to about 40-feet and that is rare as it usually does not go past 35-feet. The extended summer conditions have caused this with highs in the high 80's and lows near 70. Normal high is 76. A lot of fish are in 40-ft. or less and some are on shad and some on brush with other bait fish. There is very little dissolved oxygen in water deeper than 40-feet. About the only physical change is many fish have moved from the very deep water and have schooled on shad. The shad are following the plankton and they are blowing with any prevailing wind that has been around for a while. Small bluegill and bass baitfish are on brush in 25-30 feet and holding some good bass, crappie and catfish. Smallmouth are now showing up with them. I am mostly using spoons and minnows on slip floats on brush. If the wind is light you can go against it with your trolling motor and keep your minnow in the brush. I am setting it at 20-feet and the fish are still coming up for it. I am clipping one or two hooks off the treble hook on my spoon and fishing directly in the brush. If you fish off the side are are very few fish. They are right in it. White bass are just outside the brush. I am also using the grub and minnow and letting it sink over the brush and catching some nice bass. Walleye are eluding me now and the ones I am catching are small. They have not moved to the flats yet. Some are still on main lake points but not many. Cooler fall weather will bring the red meat fish to the bank at dark feeding on shad and can be caught on a stick bait. Not yet though. We are not in any fall pattern but a few things are changing. It will come. Too soon for me. My next change will be trolling ths flats for walleye with a crawler harness. I tried it and just caught one. Bass and crappie fishing for me until then. I like it all except trolling around with a half a dozen rods out for open water fish. I will leave that for others. I can barely handle one right. The lake is inexcellent condition for boating and swimming. Come on down. We will not charge you too much. If you are staying at a place where you are nearly the only customer, you are paying too much. Not much is happening with the fall foliage yet with the warm weather. Walnut leaves are falling and the nuts are very big. I will keep you posted. Peak usually happens the very last of October.
