APRIL 2010

Written by George 4/12/09

I picked up Gary at Capt. Hirams Inn for day two of his three day venture here in the sunny south. Gary has been coming for years so the option for location was a open subject. Yesterday we hit Ansin/Garcia and as is usual for that lake the fish caught were on the smaller size. Today we decided to head to Lake X, (not its real name).

The decision proved to be a very good one in spite of the 20-25 winds that blew all day. Working with 5 in Senkos lightly weighted proved to be the correct choice of bait as the fish caught exceeded 50 for the day. Size was there as well as numbers as 3-5 pounders were the norm with the two biggest weighing in at a hefty 6 pounds and 8 pounds.

We haven't decided where we will be off to for day three but more than likely it will be a foray back on Lake X.

Written by Bucky 4/3/10

Relivin' it will be painful but the story needs to be told lest anyone else fall prey to the same abuse that me and my buddy, Don "The World's Worst Fisherman" Willis, were subjected to this past Wednesday.

Some background is warranted:  Don and I are friends with a local guide, George Welcome, who has made his living on the Stick Marsh/Farm 13 for 15 years or more. George maintains a website (imaginationbassin.com) on which he chronicles his fishin' knowledge about the Marsh.  That website has been a major source of fishin' smarts for me for a number years. George has no qualms about identifying what baits are working and how to work them.  He is kind of like having an ongoing Bassmaster Magazine about your home lake.     

As I began to fish the Marsh years ago I would faithfully read his every report and often see him on the water with various clients and marvel at the numbers of Bass he located for his customers.  I learned a lot about my favorite body of water and what would put Bass in the boat.  I used to think it would be great to fish with George and learn more of what he knows.
 
Did you catch that last sentence?  The active words are "used to".  You see, George invited Don and me to fish with him a couple days ago.  I eagerly said "Oh yeah!!"  Little did I know just what kind of day it would be?

George likes to get started early.  Real early!  When we idled away from the dock last Wednesday the only thing up was the full moon and my "pucker factor".  Have I ever mentioned that the Stick Marsh is known as the "Stick Marsh" for a reason?  The common quote about that lake is:  "Where you see wood - there is wood.  Where you don't see wood - there is wood."  There was NO sunlight.  George stuck it on plane and charged off across the water using nothing but the moon streak for navigation!  And drove straight to the spillway!!!  Like he had an auto-pilot!!  I guess 15 years of experience does have it's advantages but it still did nothing for my nerves. The spillway gate was wide open.  The water level upstream was 2 feet higher than our level and it was flat boilin', chargin' thru that open gate.  Lots of current.   George tied us off at his favorite spot and announced, "Throw
Carolina rigs".  At that point, we couldn't even see where we were throwin'

Just throw it and thumb the spool.  Then nothing happened.  The sun came up.  But no fish came up.  45 minutes later we decided - well, George did, that we needed to move out into the lake.  That led to three plus hours of dragging bait.  George caught one, I caught one and Don hooked into a good one.  He got it halfway to the boat and it went airborne, threw his hook and increased his vocabulary for the next hour.  He swears, literally, it was 10+ pounds, a real "picture fish".   (Note: We all practice Catch and Release and it is mandatory on the Marsh) NOT a good day.  But the sun had warmed the water and sometimes the bite changes when that happens. 

George yanked up the trolling motor and hauled us back to the spillway.  The flow was the same and George thought we should look elsewhere.  Don suggested we should try it since we were there anyway. I agreed.  George deferred to us, tied off to his favorite spot again and proceeded to give us a lesson in why he makes his living bass fishing.  Two casts into it he announced, "Had a bite, missed him."  Two more casts and he landed a 2 pounder.  Don and I continued to drag our bait.  George caught another one.  George caught another one.  George caught another one.  Don and I drug our baits.  George caught another one.  George caught another one Don and I drug our baits.  Do you get the drift of what is happening here. Don and I were using the same rig and type of bait as George was throwin' I watched what part of the current George threw to and did the same.  I
watched how he worked his bait and did the same.  I mirrored the length of leader he was using.  Thinking I was missing bites, I even swallowed my pride and asked him what the bite felt like.  He even gave me one of his baits.  I began to think, "Boy, ya don't know whatcher doin'." 

Eventually I hooked up.  George caught another one.  And Don started catching a few. George caught another one.  At one point George sat down to rest - Don and I continued to drag our bait and couldn't catch a fish.  One of us commented that there wouldn't be another fish come into the boat until George started fishin' again.  So George got up, made one cast AND CAUGHT ANOTHER ONE!!! At this point Don and I were wondering how long George would float if we threw his fish catchin' self overboard.= This turned into the most complete butt whippin' that two humbled fishermen could ever dream of taking.  When we finally had enough, the count for the boat was 39 Bass.  I had landed 4.  Don had 10.  Do the math.  George caught 25 Bass.  Right in front of us!  Didn't even look like he was tryin'!!

This wasn't a fishing trip, it was a "Massacree on the Marsh"!  Don and I got a real life lesson on "How it's done.".  We had received the same courtesy as Sitting Bull gave Custer, that Santa Anna gave Davy Crockett, that the White Whale gave Cap'n Ahab, that Ali gave Liston - I could go on and on but you get the general idea.

All kidding aside, it was a good trip.  Anytime you get to watch a master at his trade you just throw your ego out the window, etch the memory into your mental camera and marvel. I enjoyed the company, the tall stories, the tales of outstanding trips of the past and the plans for more trips in the future.  The sun was warm, the air was fresh, the Ospreys were diving, the gators were swimming lazily and we were enjoying life.  What more could an old man ask than a few hours with
a couple good friends sharing a passion that not everyone understands.  I hope each of you has a passion that keeps you entertained as much as this does me.  And that you have friends who share it. 

To Quote Sir Isaac Walton:  "The time a man spends fishing, should not be deducted from his total time on this earth." I intend to live a long time.
 

Written by George 4/7/10

Made the trip to Lake X with Don today to explore and check the action. Results were okay but no big fish for the day. The one real event was Don pulling six bass from one spot next to some pads.

The road was pretty poor with heavy bumps and washboard all the way.

The bass were located mostly around off shore hydrilla and most were caught with Senkos.

Written by George 4/8/10

Met Lenny and we headed for the ramp at daybreak. The wind was already blowing out of the SE which did not bode well for a super day of fishing. We did however manage to put 14 fish in the boat by utilizing a drift sock to control the speed.

Bait of choice was Senkos and big fish for the day was only a 4-pound gal.

Areas fished included Pin Ball Alley and areas west. The catch for the day totaled 14 in the boat and about 6 misses. I bet each one of the missed fish were 10-pounds and up. (Surrrrre)