1. Big-time ‘lectronics tip from KVD.
> The first thing I do when I get to a lake being drawn down is to adjust my
Humminbird LakeMaster digital mapping with a setting called “Water Level Offset.” This might be one of the most overlooked tools in digital mapping.
> …allows me to calibrate the contours to the current water levels. If the lake is down 3′, with one adjustment I can essentially pull all the contours down to reflect that 3′ drop so I am now looking at a true representation of the new water level.
> If a lake is falling hard, I’ll check the lake level each day and adjust day-to-day if I need to. I follow that by adjusting my “Shallow Water Highlight” to 5′ so that anything that is 5′ or less is in red.
> These 2 steps now give me an accurate look at the “new” lake after it has been pulled down. This is not only a tremendous advantage in finding fish during drawdown, it’s also a huge safety measure in navigating an unfamiliar, dewatered lake.
Great post, worth a full read.
2. Matt Herren’s fave squarebill options right now.
3. Mark Davis doing better after Rocky Mntn Spotted Fever.
Not sure why he didn’t get Ouachita Mntn Spotted Fever? Kidding, glad he’s doing better….
His sons and their buds just got a $1K state grant for their HS feeshn team after doing a habitat project on Ouachita this summer. Assumin’ the waypoints won’t be shared widely…lol, congrats to ’em.
4. Matty Lee says versatility is overrated.
Points he makes are 100% on the $$$. BUT let’s see if he only has a couple rods on deck next year….
5. MO: Dion Hibdon will be at bass/golf deal at Ozarks.
Also MLFers James “spoon jackin'” Watson and Mike “rock crawlin'” McClelland, along with other hammers. So sharpen your sticks if you’re gonna fish it….
6. Jarrett Edwards likes his Ghost troller.
> “681 hours on my prototype Lowrance Ghost trolling motor since March. No issues and super quiet!”
7. Few nuggets from the MLF on the FLW Tour.
> The FLW Pro Circuit will retain the former FLW Tour’s traditional four-day, five-fish-limit format for the 2020 season, but will feature a Major League Fishing-style championship [not called the Cup]….
> …”if MLF had not purchased FLW, the FLW Tour would likely not have survived.”
> Polaris…formerly held an ownership stake in FLW….
Also new/expanded FLW Series deets just came out.
8. KY/TN: Kentucky Lake choked again.
First, congrats to IOWA’s Mark Myers for winnin’ the 3-day BFL Regional. Believe there’s more corn in IA than bass but somehow he can fish? Hahaha IA peeps! Anyhow, bad news was:
1st: Mark Myers, 12 bass, 31-00
2nd: Sam Caron, 8 bass, 28-00
3rd: Kerry Frey, 9 bass, 27-10
4th: Mark Flick, 10 bass, 27-02
5th: Troy Stokes, 9 bass, 24-04
No one had a limit every day. At KENTUCKY LAKE! We should all be concerned, no matter where you live. What if your lake was that way? Clear Lake? Okeechobee? Erie?? That’s how bad the Asian carp plague is man. SUPER bad.
9. FL: Seminole BLF Regional almost won on shoal bass.
Crazy ain’t it. Deal was won by NC’s Bryan New, but 2nd-place dude Randall Allen weighed 12 shoal bass from way upriver somewhere (Flint River?):
^ For a sec I thought he was wearin’ waders….
10. Blue Mountain College anglers on new Rapala college podcast.
Rudy Worley and John David Nowlin.
11. AL HSers have won 3 tourneys in a row.
Hudson Choquette and Aaron Cherry of the Headland Bass Team:
> Cherry has already received multiple college scholarship offers for his fishing expertise. Choquette, a sophomore, is starting to draw some interest from colleges as well.
Very cool! But…they’re doing so well Trip Weldon is starting to investigate…lol.
12. WY DNR hoping Renner will be a good bass lake.
Sounds like a 3-yr lake renovation there is done.
13. MN: 2020 MN Fishing Hall of Fame class named.
Couple names to call out are Steve Pennaz, who’s done too much to list in fishin’, and occasional bassin’ scribbler Tim Lesmeister. Also would be remiss if I didn’t mention one of the most recognizable names in outdoor media: Babe Winkelman, who I believe was named after a mythical lumberjack.
14. How to fish the Jewel PeeWee Football Jig right now.
From the man hisself, Gayle Julian:
> On the
PeeWee we use the
Jewel Finesse Craw, some of the new
Ned TRD Bugz and small twin-tail grubs mostly. We typically just want everything really compact so we shorten the trailers way up.
> As always, the action is more important than the color. Post-front conditions call for little to no action so the Jewel Craw works great. Bulkier twin-tails when you want to move more water and have tail action for conditions like stained water, wind, cloud cover and darker days.
> Favorite colors for clear water are rootbeer, watermelon and green pumpkin. Stained is usually smoke blue flake and black/blue.
15. How to preserve your swimbaits.
From SIMMS’s Patterson Leeth who loves him some swimbaitin’, talkin’ the SIMMS Dry Creek Gear Pouch (not yet out yet, coming soon):
> This is the perfect tackle storage solution for expensive baits that need to hold shape and form before fishing. Nothing more frustrating than baits deteriorating before they hit the water. [The Gear Pouch has] multiple colorways for color coding in boat storage.
> Great solution for the CA swimbait shore fisherman to the kayak angler that wants to keep tackle, personal items, etc dry and accessible for easy access. I’ve been keeping my everyday carry gear in it: Backup battery charger, chords, phone, headlamp, wallet…all the stuff I need for a day on the water but generally forget.
Looks like the pouch floats as well:
16. KastKing launching new reel with Indiegogo.
The Speed Demon — 10.5:1!! Anyhow, the innerestin’ part is how they’re doing it: pre-orders, referrals, a chance to fish with Brent Chapman. Indiegogo is a crowd-funding platform.
17. New Garmin Ultra lake maps.
Or “cartography products” as Garmin calls ’em:
18. FL: CDC wants help from Okeechobee fishermen.
To see if there’s any health effects from bad algae. If you look at bad algae under a microscope you see this:
Seriously. Maybe.
19. FL: Toho being dropped for habitat work.
> …will be dropping at a rate of approximately 1′ per month until the target low-water level elevation of 53′ is reached in mid-Feb. East Lake Tohopekaliga will be maintained at this stage while habitat enhancement activities are conducted including the scraping of dense plant and organic material, herbicide treatments, controlled burns, and planting of native vegetation.
20. UT: Milfoil found in Bear Lake.
Seems like the lake’s got trout so I guess the only thing left to do is stock bass?
21. SD: Zebras found in Francis Case.
22. MI: US EPA announced $10 mil in grants for Great Lakes.
For stuff includin’ keeping Asian carp out.
23. KY/TN: New Asian Carp Aid website.
No idea if legit, sounds like Farm Aid — they should have an anti-carp music festival. Serve all the partiers carp!
24. The Great Lakes are big water.
Duh, but check this shot MLive.com posted: [big eyes emoji]
Couple fixes:
1. Yammy contingecy program is called PowerPAY, not PowerPLAY.
2. Brandon Palaniuk DID show the Rapala DT-6s he uses — here’s the shot we shoulda run:
