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Hairstacker
10-10-2006, 04:50 AM
Had another opportunity to fish the Delta evening bite today out of the inflatable kayak. Once again, my spidey sense told me I just HAD to get out there. :nod: As it was, I fished from about about 6:15 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

This time, I could see fish busting the surface up and down the slough as soon as I got out of the car. As a result, I think I set a new world land speed record for getting my kayak fully inflated and on the water. :lol: Here's a picture of the place when I got there. Hard to tell in this photo but a fish had just broken the surface before I took the picture:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/10-10Delta1.jpg

I started out with a size 2 Blackbird Diver but gave it up after about 10 minutes and no hits. In turn, I did the same with a size 1/0 chartreuse/white Flashtail Woolly Bugger. Then I switched to a size 2 red/white Tap's Bug (topwater deer hair bass bug), which happened to coincide with when the activity level really took off, and I started catching 'em. Here's one of 'em I taped at 18":

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/10-10Delta3.jpg

This was a fun fish and put a real nice bend on my 7 wt. rod. By this time, the fish were really aggressively busting up schools of baitfish on the surface up and down the slough, so I employed a fast retrieve to imitate an escaping fish. It was just the ticket. 8)

At one point, I got into a real nice fish and fought him all the way back to the kayak. Felt like I had hooked him solid but when I went to lift him out of the water, all I could find at the end of the line was a huge bunch of weeds. :?

Ah well, get some and lose some, it's the nature of the game. All in all, though, it was a blast and I was very glad I had made it out there. When your gut tells you to go, you really should go.

By the way, a couple of items I recently acquired really enhanced this trip:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/Headlight.jpg

This is a Streamlight that straps to the top of your head for hands-free illumination. It has 3 lighting modes (green, white, and beam) and allows you to adjust the elevation of the light cast with positive stops. Having this enabled me to keep paddling even after it got dark without fear of finding my way back to the car and up the levee. Provides GREAT lighting and I very highly recommend this model. The green light setting in particular lights up the area immediately in front of you without making you feel like you might be spooking fish. 8)

This was also a GREAT purchase:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/LifePreserver.jpg

This is a Stearns manually-inflatable life vest that you wear as a belt around your waste. It's so unobstrusive that you'll forget you're even wearing it. A very nice change from the full-on, bulky life vest I had been using. I especially like the fact there's no back to it, just a strap, so I can very comfortably recline now against the air cushion seat-back of my kayak.

With the new toys and willing fish, it was a great time! Gotta love that Delta!

David Lee
10-10-2006, 09:31 AM
Nice fish Mike !

Get any Diaper-Stripers ??

David :D

mikenewman
10-10-2006, 11:17 AM
Nice one Mike!
Glad to see you've got the party lights sorted - Hairstacker the Nightstalker :D
For those of you who have never seen it, here's a photo of Mike's famous watercraft

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a317/Mikenewman_/hairstacker.jpg

Katz
10-10-2006, 12:56 PM
The drink holder is NICE! :lol:

Did that cost extra?

Kraig

Bill Kiene semi-retired
10-10-2006, 01:48 PM
Thanks HS,

I think that the top water LMB fishing will continue through October, especially if the weather stays warm.

In November when/if the weather gets cooler it should go more to a sub-surface game.

Looking back on everything I believe that the premium timings for top water LMB are 'around' May (mid-April to mid-June) and 'around' October (mid-Sept to mid-Nov).

I think mid-July to mid-Sept can be so hot that it is not a lot of hours in the day. Mainly AM and PM.

I would go right now. Still, early and late should be best.

JerryInLodi
10-10-2006, 07:15 PM
Bill, although I haven't targeted LMB the last two outings I caught four if I remember right while fishing for stripers. Two of those were busting bait right in the middle of striper schools and the other two subsurface with the big chartreuse WB.

The water is actually warming a little with the temperatures moderating in the morning and warmer evening temps.

It may be topwater till November!

Hairstacker, that is some pretty thick liquid in back of that good looking fish. It looks more like stew than water. Really excited about the 15th! What's a good starting time for you?

Hairstacker
10-10-2006, 09:16 PM
David -- nope, didn't get any stripers at all, although I would not be surprised if they were busting baitfish right alongside the LMBs. You should have seen the size of some of the swirls I witnessed. :shock: I was hoping but it just didn't happen this time.

Mike & Katz -- actually, that is the deluxe model, as mine didn't come with cupholders: :lol:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/kayakondelta.jpg

It's actually much sturdier than it looks. I know, in this photo it looks kind of like a balloon. :? :lol:

Bill -- yep, I think you're right on about best months, and the topwater action should be excellent through this month as long as water temps hold up. Now is definitely the time to go!

Although any time of day can be good, it seems like evenings are best. Only problem is that it is such a short bite window -- about 1 hour until it gets dark. But what an hour! I most definitely wouldn't hesitate to go mid-day, though, as I've had some GREAT fishing in the middle of the day during this time of the year. This is THE perfect time of year for anyone to get into their first topwater fly-caught largemouth, as the weather's fantastic, the fish are hungry, and they're aggressively chasing baitfish on top.

Jerry -- yeah, the fish were pretty well concentrated in that "stew," which actually covers a very large, shallow flat. That particular fish was actually caught well inside the flat, at least 40 feet away from clear, open water. I don't normally fish that far from the edge on a shallow flat but that's where some really good fish were busting surface, so. . . .

I'm REALLY looking forward to the 15th too! As you suggested, 8:00 a.m. sound okay? In anticipation, I went out and tossed a type IV sink-tip with a 6' leader and an uber bugger on the end for about an hour on Sunday morning, just to make sure it paired up well with my rod. Seemed like a perfect match, although I was reminded how much I hate any type of fast sinking line while paddling the kayak -- kept getting hung up on the bottom each time I had to make a course correction. Anyway, I'm not sure what we should chase but I'll be game and ready for either or both!

JerryInLodi
10-10-2006, 09:24 PM
Eight it is, bring your striper gear and LMB as well. As far as what we're going to target, we'll just, "Hang loose brudda," and be happy with what comes along!

I'll fire off an e-mail on Thursday since I'll do some scouting tomorrow night. From the looks of that soup I think I'm probably going less than a quarter mile from where you were at!

jbird
10-10-2006, 11:09 PM
I pitty any slough dwelling species that should encounter the two of you in the same boat :evil: in the same zip code for that matter :D . You guys are gonna put a serious hurt on those rascals! :D I would love to be there!

let us know how it goes.

Jay

PS Great report and nice pictures Mike. I could feel your anxiety pumping up the yack while fish are bustin all around.

Adam Grace
10-10-2006, 11:31 PM
Great report. I think that I should get that deluxe model. I've always wanted my very floating lazy boy! :lol:

SullyTM
10-11-2006, 09:31 AM
Good report Mike! Where did you purchase the inflatable life vest? Was it a piggy bank breaker?

Adios...

Hairstacker
10-11-2006, 01:22 PM
Hey Thom! I got the inflatable vest online at Bass Pro Shops for $59.99 plus shipping. My wife had got me gift cards there for my birthday, so I used 'em to pick up the vest, the Streamlight, some possum dubbing, and a pack of saltwater popper hooks. :D

Come to think of it, the inflatable vest was the same price as my kayak. :lol:

Adam Grace
10-11-2006, 08:55 PM
Thom, can you put a price on your safety?.....or on your life?

That's they way I rationalized it when I spent more than that on mine.

I also own the belt type like Mike, it is unobtrusive like Mike said. I appreciate the extra security that it gives me.