Thread: It's been awhile

Really missed you guys this summer. Believe it or not, I have been able to squeeze a few fishing trips in. They had more to do with keeping my sanity (no comments from the peanut gallery!) then anything, but The Jigger got wet regardless.

Lake Redman has actually gotten too easy. Being small, and this being the third year of almost exclusive fishing it, I decided to move on.
I did not manage to hookup the one crappie I've been after those three years, and this was the first year we didn't see each other boatside. I can only presume she was taken by another angler, or died.
Going back over my journals was an interesting few hours of reading/putting things together. For anyone who doesn't do it - keeping a journal of your fishing trips is an easy way to learn. You end up teaching yourself and don't even know it.

Just a few weeks ago I opened up a closed series of journals on a lake I spent time on many, many years ago. Spending time on Lake Marburg (Project 70) recently, it was decided that this waterway would be "worked on" for 2006.
While fishing deep water bluegills there recently, I watched a gentleman in another boat pull crappie in as fast as I was boating bullgills. H ecaught no 'gills (that I saw), and I caught no crappie, yet we were fishing the same combined school of fish. His bait if choice was minnows, I was using Berkley honeyworms on 1/64oz. jigheads. Not being able to accept the fact crappie were around, and I wasn't boating any, I picked up a 1" tube jig and promptly boated two black crappie. Point proven, I went back to filling a livewell with hefty 'gills.

But it was last weekend that poisoned myself. Fishing in the downpours we had here Saturday morning, I was setup over a school of mixed panfish in 42foot of water.
Bilge pump pumping, rain dumping, I was having the time of my life working two rods: one out one side of the boat for 'gills, the other out the opposite side for crappie....................big crappie.
Here's a copy of the recap from the day of:

Sung to an old Beatles tune:


"Bluegills to the left of me.......
Crappies to the right.......
Here I am, fishin' at Marburg again"


That pretty much says it all about this morning.
Nothing about this trip was the same as "The Turnaround Trip".
Wanted to be on the water at 5:30am - was motoring at 5:42am.
Kicker motor fired up on the first pull - no surprises.
Ambient: 70º, raining
Water temp: 70º
Wind from the complete opposite direction this week.

Took a look at the location I was on last week - no fish.
Found a group of panfish suspended 18ft. above a 42foot bottom - setup shop.
Did I mention it was raining.............

Started the morning with a multiple honeyworm rig. A white 1/64oz jighead w/a red honeyworm (hw) 18" above a yellow 1/64oz jighead w/a yellow hw.
I fished this until 7:00am without a hit.

The second rig out was a large fathead (approx. 2½-3") under a slip bobber set to 20 feet. As soon as the bobber stop hit the bobber, it went under - first fish of the morning, a 10" black crappie.

At 8:42am I laid the live minnow rig down with 5/12" crappie in the livewell. I really did not want to keep any crappie, but these were bleeding and hooked deep - didn't want to leave any "floaters".
Minus the waterfowlers that are getting some shooting, I haven't seen another boat yet.

Not wanting to give up on a presentation that has worked in the past, I pick up the honeyworms again. Another 15 minutes w/o so much as a hit.
This is when it got interesting. I changed the slip bobber rig out for a free lined minnow, and set the rod in a rod holder.
I figured while Mr. Fathead was scouting things out for me, I'd see just how color sensitive these bluegills are.
The white jighead was replaced with an orange head. The yellow jighead was replaced with a chartreuse green.
What happened next was best described by the lyrics at the beginning of the post.
Not figuring Mr. Fathead would do much (it's not like he was on a high pay scale), I missed the original hit, but noticed my 7' St. Croix was three guides deep into Marburg. One 13¾" white crappie boated and released. New fathead, cast out, set rod in rod holder.
Pickup 4' micro rod, cast out new color jigs w/honeyworms, look over at rod in rod holder, feel hard hit on rod in hand, set hook.
Look at rod in rodholder just after hookset, find second rod three guides deep into Marburg again.
Reach down with right hand (while keeping tight line on rod in left hand obviously attached to a feisty 'gill), set hook into something substantial.

In the matter of 2 seconds I made the decision to concentrate on -now drag pulling- rod #2, and put rod #1 under my foot. All I did was get a look at it, and based off the crappie I just released, all I could do was watch this (possible) 16" crappie head back into the depths with a deep set hook. Guess crappie teeth can wear through 2lb. line if given enough time to work on it. Clean line break just above the hook (using the small split shot still attached as reference).
Land bullgill (9"), put in livewell, cast back out, set micro rod in rod holder, begin re-rigging rod #2.
Just as I clipped the tag end off the hook on rod #2, rod #1 starts bouncing.
Land 'gill, keep gill (9"), re-cast rod #1, hook fathead on rod#2, cast rod #2, set hook on rod #1......................now I'm in a quandry. I've got a freshly cast live bait rod in one hand, a hooked-up rod in the other hand, and.................I just saw the line twitch with the fathead on............set hook on rod #2, no wait rod #1, no, no that was rod #2 - well, I've got two rods hooked up again with :


"Bluegills to the left of me.........
Crappies to the right.......
Here I am, faced with a decision again"


I wasn't going to loose another huge crappie, and the rod in my right hand is slowly stripping line again..............

Total tally for the morning: 23 crappie - a nice mix of both black and white. Sizes went from 7½" to a citation fish topping the 15" mark. (just a tick under 15¼" to be exact)
Don't worry C-man - she was released with explicit instructions to introduce herself to you this fall. I'm exempt from the challenge, so the position is still open.
Wish I had a camera along, but with the rain I didn't.
The crappie I lost at boatside was larger. She was thicker. Maybe I'll stick to that 16" guess.
18 bluegill - from 7" to 9¼"
Fished from 6:05am to 10:44am.

Lessons learned:
1) when fishing for crappie at the Project, stick with 4lb. test line.
2) when crappie are biting at the Project, stick with one rod.
3) when parked over 'gills at the Project, and not getting bit, change colors - it could make a world of difference.
4) when fishing in the rain, make certain your rain pants stay pulled up; you rip the crotch out if they fall down a little and you try to bend your knees - RRRIIIIPPPP!
5) carry a camera at all times, even when the weather is ugly, cause you never know when you will need that proof.


Did I mention it was raining?
I'm soaked.

nice report zig, I have never had much luck on the project. Mind sharing general area?

Good hearing from you again Zig, thought you might have fallen off the earth from all the paint fumes you been smellin. Nice post.
I am going to try my luck monday morning, last time out I was skunked, I need to get that off my back and you are right about keeping a journal I need to do that.

Did you guys see the date on that post?

Did now , lol