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Hot, Humid and Hazy conditions of summer return to area
Posted: Friday, August 7, 2009 3:01 pm
By: By Brent Callicott
Well, I guess old man summer has come back in full force. The three H’s (Hot, Humid and Hazy) conditions have settled back into our area for sure. I know Tuesday morning when I got up to head out the door fishing, the temperature was 76 degrees and I knew then that we were going to have a very hot day. Ended up, the high was 95 degrees.
As for the fishing, things has gotten a little slow depending on where you may fish. When the late summer season rolls around, water on Reelfoot usually gets stagnant but with an unusually cool and wet July, the lake is in much better shape this year than the last two years at this time.
As for loading and unloading your boats, this is really not that much of a problem. There again, the lake is higher than the last two years at this time so you should be OK there.
Water temps on Reelfoot lake are in the 83-85 degree range but with the recent warm spell, this will change. I would say by the time this weekend comes around, the water temps will be in the upper 80s.
As for the water levels on Reelfoot Lake, the lake is about normal pool level or maybe just an inch or so below. Everyone is so thankful for the recent rains and how much this will help Reelfoot Lake overall going into the fall.
Water conditions are decent. The water is stained with a high percentage of algae. This, along with periods of hot and sunny weather, creates a green seed moss around the lake. I have reports from a few folks that some areas have lots of the seed moss. This is good is some ways and provides needed shade and cooler waters for fish to take cover.
As for the bite. Catfish and some crappie bites are being reported. A few folks are also testing their bass skills as well.
Most of the catfishing is either by yo-yo’s, trotlines or jug fishing. Some rod-and-reel action is good depending on the current in ditches from winds. Now for best results, cut shad has been good. The lake in the past several years has been blessed with lots and lots of shad. This year, the numbers seems to be a little down and maybe because of the cooler air/water temps along with rains.
Crappie are fair. Most all of the fishing right now is being on the lower end. This is the deepest water Reelfoot Lake has to offer. Also, where there is tons and tons of deep water cover along with baitfish, you have large schools of crappie. This is a hit or miss thing— like any trip — but I would use jigs, and jigs tipped with Berkley Crappie Nibbles.
As for the bass, this time of year a few diehards are testing their luck. This is not all bad because the bass have not gone anywhere and, with the less pressure, it means the fish might be a little more aggressive on the bite. Fish seed moss and trees. The seed moss needs to be fished with either a frog type bait. This works well and Strike King Rage Tail has just the frog, the Rage Toad. Use a EWG (Extra Wide Gap) hook in either 4/0 or 5/0 weighted or none weighted depending on the thickness. These also work well around pads. JIgs, spinnerbaits and soft plastics around trees. Test your colors. I would try something that shows up well due to the visibility being lower than in the spring or late fall. Stephen Turner and Billy Davis took a notion to venture down to Reelfoot Lake late Tuesday afternoon. They did manage to boat one decent bass with a couple other bites. Needless to say, they had the lake to themselves. It never hurts to try because you sure can’t catch them at the house (unless you have a pond).
I mentioned in last weeks report about the Reelfoot Lake Junior Bass Club of Union City, participating in the 2009 Tennessee State Federation Nation Junior Championship on July 25th. This was held on Kentucky Lake and out of the Birdsong Marina. Another member of the Reelfoot Junior Club ended up fairing very well in this event. Jo Hamilton ended up with the overall Big Bass of the State Tournament winning him a gift card for $50 from Bass Pro Shops. His big bass tipped the scales at over 3 1/2 pounds. Not only did he have the largest bass of the tournament to his credit, he also helped the Reelfoot Junior Club claim the traveling trophy that is passed around the Western Tennessee Junior State Clubs. Great going there Jo. Keep up the good work.
Once we get past the month of August and the first 2 to 3 weeks in September, all fishing should pick up once the weather cools down. Now, if we end up having a month in August like we did in July, this might change but long-range weather forecast calls for some upper 90s to around 100 later this month.
Folks, if you have anything to pass along to us, please send them our way. We would love to share your stories and photos to our readers. I promise we will make room.
My goal is to not only bring you a fishing report from Reelfoot Lake but to share information that might help you on your next trip. I also want to share good news and tell people about people.
As always, thank you very much for taking the time to read my report and information as well as passing your thoughts to me about the articles.
Catch ya on the water
Brent
Brent may be contacted by e-mail at calli1@charter.net.
Published in The Messenger 8.7.09
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Brent Callicott
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