Alligator Alley MM 39

Sunday 5/22/22

6:30 AM to 11:30 AM

Temp 92*

Cloud cover

Wind 15 to 25

Water Still Low

Went out yesterday with a good friend.  We noticed immediately there was little signs of life.  No gators swimming, and little surface movement.  For months there was lots of activity, with 20 gators in sight, and surface bites early, and late in the day.  We started throwing a zara spook, and a HB Frog.  My partner threw the frog deep in the junk and there was an explosion of water and the frog was gone for good.  Apparently a big gator took his bait hidden in a big  pad field.  My spook had a big boil and a miss, but for 20 minutes no other action. 

I switched to a fluke and got a willing player almost immediately.   The fluke got a few more small ones but all were deep in 28 feet of water.  I switched to a wacky rigged trick worm on a jig head, and that had good results.  This is a deep canal and almost all bass were caught deep over 20 feet.  I had to let it settle, and slow pull with just the boat moving.  They didn't want anything fast, we tried Spinnerbaits, hair jigs, and square bills, and not a sniff. 

The wind picked up to stupid levels so we called it quits before noon.  We finished with 28 bass caught, no Kodak moments with the biggest in the two pound range.  No peacocks, no Oscars, and no exotics.  That is a sudden change from just weeks ago.  A hundred Oscars were a real possibility just recently.  The question is where did they go?  

Overall a fun day, good conversation, and not too hot with cloud cover and the wind.  Things are changing out there, but someone always manages to figure it out.