Three T.A.R.P. Night

Not to be confused with the 70’s rock group. That being said, my Dad has been in the hospital since last Thursday, and my Mom stays with him 24/7. I called to see if she would go home and let me stay overnight, but “Mama told me not to come!” So, an evening fishing trip was in order! We launched around 6:00, the truck said 93, and there were very few rigs in the parking lot. So, it was off to try the docks, as the sun was bright, and the water temp showed 82-83 after finally calming down from being out of the water. We made our first run to our farthest dock that we were going to fish. This dock sits in up to 25’ of water, and because of cross pieces, is hard to shoot without hanging up. We fished outside it, and the posts. Nothing of interest was showing up on downscan, and I was noticing some current pulling my green/chartreuse tube jig with a red headed 1/16. I decided to drop at the up current side, and let the current take it further under the dock. T.A.R.P. Number 1!
Well, don’t mess with what worked, so I did it again. T.A.R.P. Number 2!
We played that hand until it stopped, which didn’t take long, so we took a pretty long run to spot #2, and it was a relief to get the breeze from the run. There were some pleasure boats, but not nearly as bad as expected. In fact I was able to just enjoy the lake’s beauty. A pair of Osprey watched over everything from their elevated home. The water temp is climbing, but I’m still amazed that it has remained cooler, considering the string of 90+ degree days!
Spot #2, we stuck with the drop on the up current side, and let the jig wash under the dock. T.A.R.P. #3! We did catch some normal sized crappie, as well as a decent Stripe/White/Yellow Bass....I don’t know the difference. Some small LM and a big ol stinking drum also got in the mix.
Ft. Loudoun is a lake that can reward you, but a 14”+ Crappie is the exception rather than the rule. So my rule is, when you catch one, they get a pardon. Three in one evening, well, I ain’t done it before yesterday. That mindset granted a pardon to all fish on this evening. Loaded up at 8:30, and had the boat backed in and stored before dark. It was a fun evening, and probably the last hurrah for this week.
If you can stand it, get out and fish early or late. As for me, I’m real close to the first night stalk of the season.


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