Hit a couple spots on the lower J this afternoon with fair success.
WEATHER: Mostly sunny, breezy, upper 60s - very nice.
WATER: A bit on the low side, 4.8' at Newport, clear, 59 degrees F confirmed by thermometer.
HATCHES/FORAGE: No bugs; lots of minnows in skinny water and a fair number of crayfish molts indicating that the larger, early emerging crays are out and about.
At the first spot I fished I could see, from an overlooking perch, large numbers of big bass in a trench just off the current and waded out with a high level of optimism. Did stick several fish here, all in the mid-teens. There were bigger fish, including one I though might be 20" class, as they followed my hooked, smaller, mid-teen fish in to hand. Fish wanted a dark Clouser fished low and slow. I like white streamers on bright days for visibility reasons but the white fly only stuck one fish and crayfish flies were ignored. Strikes were very subtle. At the other spots I fished, there were no bass visible and no fish hooked, even though I know from past experience that they're good pre-spawn pools. Active fish were mostly on the current break and fewer were in slack water. This is what I'd expect for April and following a warming trend. Overall, it was a fair day and it felt great to lean on some SMBs as my springtime bass trips this year have, until now, been a bust. Nevertheless, things haven't broken out for me and the fish in the lower J are proving elusive and hard to pattern, at least for me.
WEATHER: Mostly sunny, breezy, upper 60s - very nice.
WATER: A bit on the low side, 4.8' at Newport, clear, 59 degrees F confirmed by thermometer.
HATCHES/FORAGE: No bugs; lots of minnows in skinny water and a fair number of crayfish molts indicating that the larger, early emerging crays are out and about.
At the first spot I fished I could see, from an overlooking perch, large numbers of big bass in a trench just off the current and waded out with a high level of optimism. Did stick several fish here, all in the mid-teens. There were bigger fish, including one I though might be 20" class, as they followed my hooked, smaller, mid-teen fish in to hand. Fish wanted a dark Clouser fished low and slow. I like white streamers on bright days for visibility reasons but the white fly only stuck one fish and crayfish flies were ignored. Strikes were very subtle. At the other spots I fished, there were no bass visible and no fish hooked, even though I know from past experience that they're good pre-spawn pools. Active fish were mostly on the current break and fewer were in slack water. This is what I'd expect for April and following a warming trend. Overall, it was a fair day and it felt great to lean on some SMBs as my springtime bass trips this year have, until now, been a bust. Nevertheless, things haven't broken out for me and the fish in the lower J are proving elusive and hard to pattern, at least for me.
