Matt Fly

Bassindude, sounds like Biosonix to me. Can you tell me where to find the info on Rick Clunn?

Track Those Shad There are, however, ways to actually follow schools of migrating shad and catch bass steadily until the baitfish finally disperse; or to predict where and when these migrating schools will show up and be there waiting for them. As long ago as 1970, no less a fishing authority than Bill Dance experienced just such a migration pattern on Sam Rayburn. Dance followed the school for several hours each day for 10 consecutive days; and guides on Toledo Bend as well as Greers Ferry and Table Rock Lakes in Arkansas and Missouri have experienced the same thing as they tracked the shad in their daily migrations. It is now well-established that massive concentrations of threadfin shad seek shoreline cover each night. This cover can take the form of grass and moss beds, logjams, or even standing timber and brushpiles if that's all that's available. This cover provides them with some semblance of protection from predators like largemouth bass. Early in the morning, generally shortly after dawn, the threadfin leave this shallow water cover for deeper haunts where they may disperse slightly for the balance of the midday period and early afternoon hours. The threadfin then re-group and return to the shallow water cover late in the afternoon, frequently by reversing the same exit route they used that morning. Why is bass fishing good in shallow water early and late each day? The answer is because the shad have already moved in for the night, or have not left for the day. Why does the morning action frequently end just after the sun peeks over the trees? Because the shad have left and the bass are following, but not necessarily feeding on them. Dance Keeps Track Consider Dance's experience on Rayburn: "In September, 1970, I was competing in the Texas National B.A.S.S. tournament on Sam Rayburn," recalls Dance, "practicing in a small creek that contained open water near its mouth and heavy standing timber in the back. About 7 a.m. I heard a lot of feeding activity in the timber, and when I eased my boat into position, I was able to catch several bass before they disappeared. "As I was sitting there, the feeding started again about a hundred yards away. The school of bass was heading out of the creek toward the main lake, and before they went back down, I caught three or four more." "That morning I followed those bass for an hour and a half as they traveled from the creek all the way out into the main lake and into the timber of the Black Forest where they finally disappeared. I followed those bass every morning like that for 10 straight days. The shad were migrating from the Black Forest to that creek at night, then moving to the main lake again early each morning, and the bass were following them." Professional fishing guides who have been able to follow shad migrations like Dance describes, believe bass are more likely to attack the baitfish when the shad school becomes more compressed, packed tightly together. Or, when the school is forced closer to the surface, such as when the shad move over an obstacle like a hump, roadbed, or submerged fenceline. That way, escape options are more limited for the shad and the bass certainly do not have to chase them as far. Ambush Techniques Even more exciting, perhaps, is the knowledge or fact that if these "ambush points" can be identified, there's a good chance bass will attack them there again that evening when the threadfin migrate back through on their way back to the shallows. What do you look for in a shad migration route? It's difficult to pinpoint anything precisely because much depends on the characteristics of the lake. Perhaps the best thing to do is immediately check any areas where you see and experience surface activity between bass and shad with a depthfinder to determine what's on the bottom. The shad may be following a ditch, small creek channel, or some other specific terrain feature you may then be able to backtrack to their nightly hideout. When do shad migrations take place? Again, the answer depends on the lake as well as on their temperature driven spawning cycle. Threadfin shad spawn in shallow water coves from late April into July, depending on the surface water temperature. The optimum spawning water temperature is 68 degrees. Threadfin shad grow rapidly - life expectancy is two to three years - and the migrations from shallow cover to open water tend to occur from late spring throughout the summer and well into autumn. Again, much depends on the lake; the amount and location of phytoplankton and zooplankton, and water temperature. Threadfin shad cannot tolerate cold temperatures and actually begin dying (winter kill) when the water reaches approximately 45 degrees. Find the Current Threadfin shad have another habit that may help observant fishermen catch bass. They appear to be attracted to slight current during times of high water. A recent national B.A.S.S. tournament was won on Table Rock Lake in Arkansas by an angler (a guide on Lake Ouachita in Arkansas) who found huge schools of shad in the back of a small cove fed by two little creeks. The angler had never fished Table Rock prior to the tournament but saw water and shad conditions similar to those he frequently fished on Ouachita. That small cove produced five limits of bass in two days and at least one more limit (the winner's) the final day. This on a lake in which more than 90 contestants blanked the first day! Obviously, there is much more to be learned scientifically about threadfin shad and their direct relationship to bass. And just as obviously, every bass fisherman owes it to himself to increase his own knowledge of this tiny fish. The popular adage, "Find the bait and you'll find the bass," is certainly true in the case of the threadfin shad.

I am a firm believer, to step up to another level in bass fishing, is being able to find forage consistently. This applies to any lake with shad as the primary forage. This article comes from the insider on Gary Y's web. It's ironic that the one species of fish that all largemouth bass anglers should worship is the one most know almost nothing about, the threadfin shad. Of all the elements that factor into the equations of bass location and behavior, the presence of this small baitfish nearly always plays a leading role. The threadfin shad (Dorosoma petenense) has been described as the "perfect" forage fish, and indeed, it comes close. It's only real limitation is it's intolerance to cold water, but even so, many state game and fish departments deem the threadfin so important to a lake's ecosystem they often stock them in spite of winter die-off problems. Other characteristics more than make up for the threadfin's otherwise limited range. It likes calm, shallow water. It's prolific but it does not outgrow its place in the food chain, as it rarely exceeds three inches in length. Equally important, threadfin shad do not seriously compete for space with other species. Gizzard or Threadfin? Not only do a lot of anglers misjudge the threadfin's importance, many cannot positively identify a threadfin shad on sight. That's understandable, since it has a lookalike cousin, the gizzard shad (Dorosoma cepedianum), that for a short time looks similar and has many of the same characteristics. Gizzard shad also occupy an important niche on the food chain, but they have one characteristic that forever sets them apart from threadfins: they grow much larger, up to 16 or 18 inches, and thus may outgrow the bass that feed on them. In fact, one reason striped bass were originally stocked in some reservoirs was to control these larger gizzard shad. Basically, both threadfin and gizzard shad are silvery-white in color and have distinctly forked tails. The threadfin's tail, however, has just a shade of yellow, while the gizzard shad's tail does not. Closer examination will also show that the lower jaw of the threadfin shad projects beyond the tip of the snout, but a gizzard shad has a more blunt nose and the jaw does not protrude beyond the nose. Both species often have a distinct black dot on the shoulder, behind the gills. Migrating for Micro-Meals Threadfin shad live primarily on microscopic plant and animal life, phytoplankton and zooplankton, which is why they are often found around rock riprap, bridge and dock pilings, and areas with gentle current where algae grows or is washed into the system. They are more surface-oriented than gizzard shad, and frequently move in huge schools just under the surface, sometimes migrating for miles each day. These movements, when located or tracked by anglers, can open the door to some truly spectacular fishing action, because the schools of shad are nearly always followed by schools of bass. Many bass fishermen have experienced schooling action in which bass trap the schools of shad against the surface and suddenly begin tearing into them like sharks. Typically, such action lasts only long enough for an angler to make one or two casts before the school submerges and disappears.

Thought I'd let some of our new members know there are great threads to be read posted months ago. Raul and others alike have created a library of bass fishing wealth that applies to all parts.

May i ask, what it is? I have not heard of it before.

I have been reading on BSX, it has an Auto Mode, turn it on and go, or you can make some fine tuning adjustments on it. Was reading another thread on another forum where guy realized theres more to it than just turning it on. What adjustments? good question, I'll try to find more on this. From reading other forums, they have different modes, like finese shad clicking, shad feeding frenzy for power fishing. I read it depending on the food source as to what tuning is to be done. crawfish, shad

#2 was caught this weekend on Lake Conroe Tx on Sunday 12/11/05. She weighed in at 14.22, 25 inches long and 23 inches in the girth. Caught on a minnow while crappie fishing in 25 ft of water. This is the same lake about 15 years ago, maybe longer, the vegitation got out of hand, so someone got the hair brained idea to plant Coy, a japanese, sterile, grass carp, supposed to be sterile. 2 yrs later, the lake was void of vegitation and the lake quit producing double digit bass untill anglers started to plant native Tx vegitation and brush piles. About 6 years ago, she started coming back with the larger bass being reported. Now, vegitation has come back strong and lake owners want something done again. There was a thread from the Houston area a month or so back explaining the situation again on Lake Conroe.

Why only three, thats tough. #1Rick Clunn, #2Hite, Nixon, Brauer, Guido Hibdon #3Fritts, Davis, KVD, M. Mendez, Yelas And the rest of the TEXAS bunch, Jordan, Tak, Wharton.

Thats not so tough for someone who grew up around Texas. I have all the duck and deer hunting close enough. North East Texas has the bass fishing and tournaments. Fork would be the ideal head quarters to call home. It is all ready my second home.

The statement concerning if this works it goes against the ethics, was the directors reasoning. I feel that I could spend 700.00 in other areas that would aid me in catching a few more fish. Lets say that half of the winners this year on pro or your local trails are in the money that have the BSX onboard, I will consider it then if its allowed. But as long as we are fishing by the same rules, I have the same chance. The arguement of some not being able to afford this is no different than the guy who runs a 21 ft boat with 250 horse against the smaller bass boats. It is not the boat who puts fish in it, it may help you run faster and farther, but don't put fish in the boat for you. That being said, I'll game plan as per to what equipment is availale to fish with, like only going 40 mph and 12 gals, my patterns will be tailered to my limitations.

In theroy, it sounds good. The most important aspect I look at when gizmo fishing, as I call it, is how many ties, or joints, or in this case, a cap that un-screws can causes a loss of fish. The more ties or anything that could aid in the loss of a fish is not good. For that reason, like the old Carolina method of using a swivel requires three knots, one on the hook and two ends of the swivel, thus making the odds go up on a knot failure. I use the suspending type crank baits, drive them down to your desired depth and let set. If you notice a little bouyancy, you can add the suspending dots that stick on to your bait like tape that adds weight to the bait. With the technology in baits now days, rarely do I have to counter weight anything like the days in the 80's. Excalibur suspending cranks are my money cranks.

If you are experiencing what I call "short strikes", a fish just barely lipping it, I do a couple of things. I will trim my skirt, booyah spinner baits have long skirts, so I'll trim some off to shorten the skirt, smaller profile, I always have replacement skirts. If a trailer or shorter skirt isn't putting them in the boat, the fish are telling you to make another adjustment. Blu-bird sky, clear to slightly stained, do you have two silver blades on? not one of each. Maybe your spinner bait is too big, or too small, is it threadfin, gizzard shad, brim, shinners? What is the baitfish they are persueing? What size? After a couple of short strikes, you should be making changes, do not wait, start up sizing for a bigger profile, or down size. Make the slight color adjustments also. I use Terminator skirts, easy to change in less than minute, no excuses for not adjusting. Try smaller blades, larger blades, if you make 10 changes and finally get a few in the boat, you are adapting to what the fish are telling you. I also use the different color garlic markers, this will add color when the right skirt isn't in your tackle box. I keep extra skirts in a plastic bag in a side pouch, only seconds to make changes. Just remember, the fish is seeing something that doesn't look right, a change is needed. retrieval speeds, colors, bait profile size, blade styles, colors, and sizes.

If Rattlinrogue is coaching, yes he needs his vest, we had a coach at Canton H.S get shot numerous times by a players father last year during school. The coach was back on the side lines this year and the team played the state champion in the playoffs. What an offensive game, last one to score wins. 61-58 canton upset the defending 3A state champs and still going I think. The so-so team from a year ago rallied around their coach this year. Great storyline.

As for now, Media bass in Texas has deemed them to be un-sportsmanlike under their rule #8. This may change in 2006, this came up late in the year and that was the ruling. If this product works, electronically attracting fish goes against the ethics of "being able to locate fish on your on" without an electronic signal.

The only Ice fishing I do, is fishing for Ice cubes for my tea!

Asctech, I'm having enough problems with spanish, don't throw another language out like that man!!!LOL

Now that this one is back, one, I will surf one other that is the Texas Fishing Forum, Don't claim to be a member of that one. This forum is quite mild compared to the bashings that can take place on their forum.

Not to bust on your thread, but after reading it and noticing you were on the US ski team, challenging Charlie Moore to a slalom race might have been advantagous. Charlie, you win, no challenge, I win, you gotta give me a shot. A simple challange to challenge.

Lots of good thoughts on this one. We all say, a good Tournament fishermen makes adjustments to the current pattern as he or (I can't forget Chevy) she fishes. One more mistake I think I make, is I put time, alot of spare time in on Fork, which I like deep water for the opportunity of a hog. I do fish it shallow, but not as much as I go deeper than 10 ft. That success has lead me to go deep on other lakes alot. Face it, some lakes are better fishing shallower year around. For some reason, there are lakes that don't have a good deep dependable bite or vice a versa. So success on one lake doesn't translate to success on similar lakes, and I have tried to carry that same thinking with me to another lake. You guys are gonna get the rust off of me, and look out!!!! I have fished all year, just didn't tournament fish after April, until getting pumped off this site. Now my mind is mental, no jokes please, and I have re-focused and want to fish the BFL as it would be the most feasible for me next year, maybe the Skeeter Team Trail also. Thanks. My high is a legal one by the way. Pure 100% bass adrenaline!!!

If you want to graph creek channels, run slowly across them watching the graph, not parallel to the channel, across. Use fishing bouys as you slowly run across the channel and notice the drop, mark it, Mark it on the other side where it starts to rise with another bouy. Move up from your other two bouys, 10 yds or more, repeat this process a few times, A map , Gps coordinate something has shown you there is a gut, ditch, creek channel, down there, After you have laid a pattern of bouys, you will see in relation to how that part of the chanel is running. When locating bends, i will lays as many as ten bouys out to study the bends in the creek. If this is a Lake it should recieve an influx of water once in a while. Study the creek channel coming in from dry land surrounding the area of the lake you are graphing, Does it recieve lots of run off from rains, some creek channel will silt in over the years, but the creek will still show up because the lake bottom is also silting in. There are days, my fishing is strictly with electronics, truly understanding what is down there and how it relates to humps, roadbeds, stumps, old bridges and other contour and structure is keys in unlocking where fish move to on days when they where stacked in the bend of the creek, knowing what is around that area is as important, like the fish suspending in the bend for two weeks straight due to cold fronts continually passing. Then after 3 or 4 days of warm weather, the fish are gone, knowing that 200 yds up the creek channel, the water comes up on the norhtside of the lake into a 100 flat is 2-4 deep and the fish are moving up shallow and sunning from about 10:30-2:00 and a rattle trap is prime for the taking. These are the same migration routes that will be used in spring when they start to move shallow to spawn. Knowing the north side will hold more fish in the winter than south banks is important, North banks offer protection from blistering cold winds and offer warner water in the winter. Knowing where the warmest water is located in the winter is key to finding active fish.

Back then, I had the green guest card, military I.D. Miramar Naval Air Station.

If the lake is a Core engineering project, they will have maps. Also there have been some other threads posted on here where to get good maps.

Theres the public hole that every one knows can and has produced a good sack from, you got the lucky draw and your out on the glassy water first, first to the hole, you fish it for an hour and nothing. In the back of your mind, you don't won't to leave because some one else is gonna show up and sackem. You know that deep watered boat docks are few on this lake, most are shallow, the dock holds tons of Holiday brush under neath and on the sides and out front. It always produces big bass that are eating crappie for a steady diet. Nothing for an hour. When do you give up and leave?

Since my last post on 26 Oct, I have added two more checks, not big, got my entries back, plus expenses, I am 4 out of 7, with two more tourneys the next 2 weekends to go.