Fishing Report - 5/14/05

[Hairstacker]

Was able to break away for a few hours, so hit the Delta today in the inflatable kayak. Nice, sunny, and warm with a little breeze. Water temperature was just shy of 70 degrees, although the water was high and murky. Fishing was slow. Talked to a couple guys in a big bass boat, and they thought it was very slow as well. In fact, they said they were debating the very topic when I paddled up to them. Anyway, fished here. . .



and there. . . .



And caught this one that tape-measured 17" on a #2 chartreuse and white Clouser:



Here's another picture of him, although he looks all pink from reflections off the kayak, which is red. Trust me, he was actually a clean, normal bass color :



Fun bass, put up a great fight! Caught one other smaller one as well, also on the Clouser. Didn't notice ANY surface activity, and my trademark red/white Tap's Bug was ignored completely. Really looking forward to the water levels and clarity to return to normal. With water conditions as they are, weedbeds are pretty much submerged. Thus, not as many parking spots for the kayak. Still GREAT to get out, though.

[David Lee]

NICE !!!!!

A pink Bass ??? Mucho-kinky , if ya ask me . That's a good fish , though .

David

[Darian]

In the first picture, there's a dead tree with empty branches in the background. A sure sign that very few fish are present... .

If there were fish there an iggle, herren or igrit woulda been sittin' in the top listenin' for fish or worms (....or sumthin ).

Great lookin' place to fish tho .

[Hairstacker]

Yeah, it is a great looking place to fish, isn't it? But I prefer it to look like this, 'cause it's easier to figure out where the topwater bass are when the weed beds are visible. All I have to do is focus on that edge (left side of picture) next to the deep water:

[Adam Grace]

Mike nice bass. The first picture made that fish seem much smaller than the second picture.

Have fun out there with those big delta bass.

[Hairstacker]

Adam, I hear you about the picture thing -- that was the reason I included the second photo even though it didn't come out. Thought everone would think I was exagerating the length if I only included the first photo. Photos are a funny thing, especially when you take them yourself while holding the fish -- since your hand is in the foreground and magnified, the fish generally look smaller than they really are.

On another note, this bass was kind of skinny for its length. Although he had good weight to him, I could imagine him feeling much heavier if he was fattened up a bit. Not complaining, mind you, I'll take 'em as they come.

[Darian]

Ya know any bass wearing pink is something like the boy named Sue in the Johnny Cash song; not stylish Probably has to be physically fit, long and wiry, too :P :P :P :P

[SullyTM]

Hairstacker...Seeing those photos makes me want to get an inflatable. :P The last photo...did you catch anything over that weed/tullie[sic] bed? What flies do you use when you're parked on the vegetation? Do you tie in a weed guard? Thanks.

[Hairstacker]

Thom,

I don't remember if I caught anything from that weed bed on that particular day (probably did), but I have fished that specific stretch of weedbed many times and have caught many bass from it.

When I'm parked on the vegetation like that, I fish almost exclusively with a #2 red/white spun deerhair Tap's Bug. Here is a picture of one:



The beauty of this fly is that it doesn't have any feathers or other wind-resistant features on it, so it's easy to cast with my 6 wt. rod. It also floats like a cork, has a natural feel to it, and can be worked to produce quite a variety of actions.

If I'm not parked but, instead, am drifting parallel to the weedbed line bordering deeper water, sometimes I like to cast a #2 chartreuse/white Clouser to the edge of the weedbed, let it drop several feet, then begin retrieving it back in jerks, like an injured minnow. A lot of times, the bass will hit it on the drop. You can also fish a #6 crystal olive woolly bugger this way, as well.

Also, if you tie your Clousers with small eyes, you can fish them just below the surface where you'll still often see the hit. By tying them with small eyes set between 1/3 to 2/5 of the way back from the eye, you can also fish the Clouser over the weedbeds (even that thick stuff you see in the picture) where, again, you'll often see the hit. With the hook riding up, it tends to fish fairly weedless. By the way, I don't attach weedguards to any of my flies, even when I'm fishing the stuff you see in that last picture. Quite frankly, I haven't had much of a problem and just haven't missed not having one. I guess I get kind of paranoid that a weedguard might act like a fishguard.

Having said all that, my first choice is a topwater bug -- it's hard to beat that topwater explosion to get the blood circulating. I only go subsurface when I can't get them on top for whatever reason. Oh and by the way, I also switch to Clousers completely in late fall once I know stripers are in the system. Never know when one of those might grab your bass fly.

[Tony Buzolich]

Hi Mike,

Not that you seem to need it but have you ever tried an Eagle Claw EC413 hook? I use them almost exclusively down in the tract and hardly ever hang up. The hook rides point up and can be dragged through or over all kinds of stuff that a normal hook would grab. Also, just about every fish is hooked in the roof of the mouth.

Just a thought,
TONY