Going fishing Tuesday! Advice?

[jwp]

It looks like my day off and the weather are going to cooperate tomorrow!

My son and I are heading either to Beaver Lake or Guist Creek Lake in the morning to see if we can trick some bass. We have fished both lakes, with much better results at Beaver. However, it's a 10 HP limit lake, I don't have a kicker on the boat and it's going to be pretty windy. So I'm thinking the trolling motor battery is going to get a big workout if we get very far from the ramp.

Considering all the rain we have had, what sort of techniques/lures/colors/depths would YOU try tomorrow? The weather forecast is overcast with a high maybe in the mid-sixties.

Don't hold back... I enjoy learning from others almost as much as catching fish.

Thanks in advance.

JWP

[thebassman30]

finesse jig or something small on light line....6lb flouro. I've wacked them at Guist this time of year on finesse jigs on rocky points off the main channel.

[fisheater]

I would burn a rattletrap on a shallow flat near deep water.It seems on lakes this time of year either rain will shut them down or have them on fire but you dont know till you get there.

[BanditMan]

Guist Creek and throw jigs, and cranks around wood. Should be fun if you can get in some dirty water. Good Luck.

[jwp]

Great responses so far. Please add more opinions to this mix.

Finesse Jigs like a Strike King "Bitsy Bug"? Is the idea using a small light weight jig to get a slow fall? For small trailers I have some NetBait Paca chunks and some curly tailed grubs. Would these work? Colors?

Jigs and cranks around wood in colored water... suggested jig/trailer combo? crank type/color?

Thanks again...

JWP

[DJD]

Guist Creek and throw jigs, and cranks around wood. Should be fun if you can get in some dirty water. Good Luck.

Marvin,
Don't think I'll ever forget the cranks around wood! Especially on Guist!

[DaveR]

smaller baits sometimes work better as the water gets colder, bass's metabolism doesn't require a big meal. Paca chunks work well.

I'd personally stay away from real muddy water this time of year,

Shad Raps are good in cold water, and maybe bandit or bomber crankbaits for a crawfish imitator.

Don't forget a 3-3 1/2" tube or a 4 inch finese worm on 1/8-3/16 oz jig head.

Best bet is in wood cover, stumps/brush primary, stickups secondary.

[birdstrike]

So were did you go and how did you do? Inquiring minds want to now

[jwp]

Well, we went to Guist. We were on the water in the late morning. The guy at the marina said the lake had risen 1.5 feet (I guess in the last day) and the temp was 47 degrees. The water was plenty muddy at the marina, but we went up the creek past the "no wake" buoys. There was quite a bit of water up into the brush, bushes and trees.

We just drifted awhile as we tied on various rigs. My son, Eli tied on a chartreuse and orange shad rap and caught a 18" striper on the first cast! He said he cranked about 4 times and the fish nailed it.

Unfortunately the "never catch a fish on the first cast" jinx went immediately into effect and we never got another bite. We fished crankbaits, shadraps, jigs, chatterbaits, and spinnerbaits until about 3 p.m. I even jigged a spoon on some electronic fish in about 30' of water. We went down to the dam and found much better looking water but just couldn't figure out how to find and catch 'em. Plus some of the gusts were pretty intense which made finese presentations pretty hard. We spoke to others on two different boats and both were skunked. One said he broke one off on the hookset while fishing a jig on the riprap near the dam.

It was a good day off from work, a balmy day for december, and the boat ran fine. The fish didn't cooperate, but I guess they need a holiday sometimes too.

We took pics of the striper (Eli's personal best) and let him go.

Thanks for the advice. One of the days we'll catch em at Guist. This was out third trip and it has to get better.

JWP

[RoadToad]

Thanks for the report. Today WAS a beautiful day to be out. At least it wasn't a total shutout. And just FYI, that would be a hybrid he caught. There are hybrids and yellows in Guist, but no stripers.