Percy Priest 10-14-2011

On the river at Jefferson Springs ramp at 6:15 am. River is very foggy and still but the winds are expected to be 15-25. I can confirm they were closer to 25-30 than 10-15. I started at my old faithful, the pumping station just downriver from the ramp. Threw a buzz bait, crank bait, fluke and Red Eye Shad but no cigar. No shad flipping. So I head upriver on a tip from a friend. He said I should be there before the sun came up but with fog and part of the river unknown to me I waited. Went about 5 miles above the 840 bridge but I could not score. Very few shad showing and the leaves were extremely thick on the water. Makes it hard to fish a bait properly. Finally headed back to the junction of the East Fork and West Fork. Set up in 18 feet casting to the bank in 3-5 feet and immediately hooked up a nice bass but naturally he pitched it back to me. I was throwing the DT6 in shad color that Jack gave me a lesson on the week before. First fish landed was at 9 am. I then hooked and caught 6 more bass and early released 4 more. On my third fish I had a break off of my DT6. The fish refused to give it back. I then tried a Bandit in Root beer and it produced. Fisherman are never satisfied so I had to try my Little John in Cell Mate color. Caught 1 and then my line broke on the cast and the Little John was donated to the West Fork. These fish were concentrated on a shelf feeding on shad as they entered the East Fork. A local had clued me into this pattern a few weeks ago. The fish finally quit feeding and I couldn't locate them again. Headed back downriver. Stopped at the pumping station again and found a little action, very little. Moved across the cove to the flat just before a stone bluff and picked up a nice little smallmouth on a SK square bill. Went downriver to a large flat off a swing in the river. Caught 2-3 here on Red Eye Shad.

Decided to head up Spring Creek and stopped on a sharp point. Caught another on the Shad. Stopped at the pumping station one more time and picked another 1-2. I think altogether I landed 13 and lost 9 (that were actually hooked). Most of the fish were 12-13 inches with only 2 around 14-14.5. The wind was really whistling by now so I headed for the ramp around 2 pm. It was somewhat slow but if I had landed all I hooked and hooked the number of hard strikes I had it would have been a pretty good day. It was still fun to be on the lake.

I can't wait for the next time on the lake.