Indian Summer

Did quite a bit of fishing this last week before the cold arrived... 10/23

Was out for just over an hour before work. Water temp at noon was 64/65! Thats way up from last weeks 57/58 at the same spot. Fish were aggresive and nailing a topwater plug. Made me want to call in sick today. No big fish today but 7 nice 10 to 14 inch fish on pop-r and a minnow plug fished as a topwater. Highlight was cutting back thru the riverbottom to the truck and jumping a big ten point buck that was bedded in a patch of weeds and brush. He was going to let me walk right by and then jumped up when I was like ten yards away. Gave me a heart attack!

10/24

My God the river was beautiful today. Some days this time of year I spend half my time just standing around soaking in the beauty. But then I spend the other half heartbroken that soon it will all be over. The gorgeous colors all gone to brown, the fall asters dead, the smallies lethargic and sulking in some deep hole. But not today, the weather perfect, the river low and clear and 65 degrees, may glorious fall never end. I started fishing right where I'd left off the day before. I'd caught smallies pretty good off this riffle and I had high hopes. I first threw an inline spinner and caught a white bass on the second cast. Then nothing. Nothing for a long time. Where are my smallies? I tried a grub, a pop-r, a rebel minnow all with the same result. 0+0+0=0. I put on a grey marabou jig and caught two small bass. Oh well at least I wasn't getting skunked. I moved slightly downstream where the water pouring into the hole from the riffle above really slowed down. Then a shad began skipping, frenzied as if it was running for its life. It was also bigger than the things I was throwing. In my box I had a couple of Bass Pro's awesome XPS Floating Minnows and I tied one on.

While only a bit longer than the rebel minnow the xps was broader and deeper and "fished" much bigger. It reminds me of nothing more than a miniature smallmouth buffalo and comes in a beautiful foil finish reminiscent of those japanese plugs that cost so much. I threw it out and let it sit a couple seconds then twitched it and began fishing it as a topwater, pulling it under then letting it float back up, reeling a foot then stopping, twitching it on top. About every five minutes a nice smallie would slash at the plug. From where I was standing the light was just right and I could see about half the fish come and bash the minnow plug. Usually when this happens I'll miss the fish, striking too soon and it will take a fish or two to settle down. But today was perfect, my timing good, i think I landed every one. For one golden hour life was perfect today.

10/25

With a mild case of insomnia and it being 65+ at midnight I decided to do a bit of night fishing. In three hours I caught about 8 or ten sauger/saugeyes and one small smallmouth. All on a crankbait. I hadn't caught any decent saugs at all while smallmouth fishing lately just small ones. But night seems to be the trick for the better ones, five or six were better than any I've managed to hook during the day. And then this guy hit, I actually thought I had hooked a four or five pound shovelhead till I landed it. A few more like that and I may have to quit badmouthing the way they fight...