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how long is too long? #10939645 06/25/15 04:38 PM
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Bois d'arc Offline OP
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Looking for insight on fishing an area not just one spot in an area. When fishing a familiar area, that has produced in the past, but may have a point, cove, creek channel, etc. within 50-75 yards proximity, how long do you fish it before moving to a completely different area?

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Re: how long is too long? [Re: Bois d'arc] #10939697 06/25/15 05:03 PM
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Outdoordude Offline
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If I pull up and there are no baitfish moving, nothing on the sonar, no waterbirds, no breeze, or stagnant looking water, as little as 5 to 10 minutes. My time in an area increases as those variables go the other way. On the other hand, if everything looks good and there is plenty cover and forage around, I may dump an hour in an area trying to figure out why I'm not getting bit before giving up on it.


Scott Jones
Re: how long is too long? [Re: Bois d'arc] #10940311 06/25/15 09:57 PM
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Donald Harper Offline
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15 Mins. on my best spot in the chosen area. Then I move to the other side of the cove and do the same on the best spot there. Usually this is for the first hour each morning and throwing my spook. These are always my best two top water spots on that lake.

I then move to the second drop on the last brush in my best area and work it for 15 mins. slow rolling a spinner bait. If I get bit I switch over to plastics and spend about 1 hour on that drop. Sometime this is what I call a no nothing bank, not a point and a spot that everyone passes up.

At noon I move to deep water and follow the contour out and around the best point looking for a big fish in 20 to 30 ft.. I make one pass on that contour dragging a C-Rig and if no bites it is time to move to the next best point or hump in deep water.


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Re: how long is too long? [Re: Bois d'arc] #10940316 06/25/15 10:05 PM
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Nutman Offline
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Donald;
Sounds like you and Finchy have been fishing together a lot.
OR,,,,,,
it is a very good plan followed by many a good fishermen.

Re: how long is too long? [Re: Bois d'arc] #10940438 06/25/15 11:35 PM
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timwins31 Offline
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15 mins is my clock too. If I know an area produces, I'll throw a few different lures before I leave, usually takes about 15-20 mins. Maybe longer if I'm getting desperate.

Re: how long is too long? [Re: Nutman] #10940481 06/26/15 12:05 AM
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Donald Harper Offline
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Originally Posted By: Nutman
Donald;
Sounds like you and Finchy have been fishing together a lot.
OR,,,,,,
it is a very good plan followed by many a good fishermen.


You have to learn each lake with those spots in mind, (shallow, first drop and deep) if you are going to be successful. Sometimes I never have to move from the shallow bit. If I do hopefully I will find them on one of the other two areas and stay on them. I try to have 3 spots for each of them and move quickly.


Each person you work with holds some promise to your future success.
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Re: how long is too long? [Re: Nutman] #10940561 06/26/15 01:07 AM
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Alex Finch Offline
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Originally Posted By: Nutman
Donald;
Sounds like you and Finchy have been fishing together a lot.
OR,,,,,,
it is a very good plan followed by many a good fishermen.


I'll take that as a compliment, Bruce. Lol. It's in my DNA to move around. If you see me sitting on a spot for more than 15 minutes, there is normally a reason. Boat's broke down, I'm sick or injured, someone else is calling the shots in the boat that day, or I'm catching. Normally, it's one of the earlier reasons lol. I will hit a spot for more than 15 minutes in a day, but usually not in one sitting.

With that being said, most of the better anglers that I know personally or from observation move around more than the average.


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Re: how long is too long? [Re: Donald Harper] #10941192 06/26/15 12:34 PM
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Bois d'arc Offline OP
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Originally Posted By: Donald Harper
15 Mins. on my best spot in the chosen area. Then I move to the other side of the cove and do the same on the best spot there. Usually this is for the first hour each morning and throwing my spook. These are always my best two top water spots on that lake.

I then move to the second drop on the last brush in my best area and work it for 15 mins. slow rolling a spinner bait. If I get bit I switch over to plastics and spend about 1 hour on that drop. Sometime this is what I call a no nothing bank, not a point and a spot that everyone passes up.

At noon I move to deep water and follow the contour out and around the best point looking for a big fish in 20 to 30 ft.. I make one pass on that contour dragging a C-Rig and if no bites it is time to move to the next best point or hump in deep water.


This is a great response....thanks Donald thumb Wondering if you come back to a spot a few times during the day or is it "just one and done"?

Re: how long is too long? [Re: Outdoordude] #10941219 06/26/15 12:53 PM
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Bois d'arc Offline OP
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Originally Posted By: Outdoordude
If I pull up and there are no baitfish moving, nothing on the sonar, no waterbirds, no breeze, or stagnant looking water, as little as 5 to 10 minutes. My time in an area increases as those variables go the other way. On the other hand, if everything looks good and there is plenty cover and forage around, I may dump an hour in an area trying to figure out why I'm not getting bit before giving up on it.


Lets assume that scouting has been done and the location is holding baitfish and conditions seem favorable for success in the area. While we're at it lets say it's a shallow point about 50 yards long that quickly drops off to about 5-8 foot of water then tapers off quickly to about 12 foot. There's standing timber, laydowns, and stumps over the entire point from shore out to the end of the point. On either side of the point there's a creek channel...one leads back into a small cove with timber along the length of the creek. It runs along the point going from 4-8 foot deep along its length. The other is shallower, about 2-5 foot deep surrounded by stumps and fallen timber. It leads back into a shallow bay. The lakes main creek is running about 75 yards out from the end of the point and at its deepest, in the area, is 18-20 foot. Almost forgot...there's waterweed growing around the perimeter of the point, out to about 2-3 foot. How would you attack this location and feel that you fished it efficiently before giving it up for another location?

Re: how long is too long? [Re: Bois d'arc] #10941418 06/26/15 02:23 PM
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Originally Posted By: boisarc
Originally Posted By: Outdoordude
If I pull up and there are no baitfish moving, nothing on the sonar, no waterbirds, no breeze, or stagnant looking water, as little as 5 to 10 minutes. My time in an area increases as those variables go the other way. On the other hand, if everything looks good and there is plenty cover and forage around, I may dump an hour in an area trying to figure out why I'm not getting bit before giving up on it.


Lets assume that scouting has been done and the location is holding baitfish and conditions seem favorable for success in the area. While we're at it lets say it's a shallow point about 50 yards long that quickly drops off to about 5-8 foot of water then tapers off quickly to about 12 foot. There's standing timber, laydowns, and stumps over the entire point from shore out to the end of the point. On either side of the point there's a creek channel...one leads back into a small cove with timber along the length of the creek. It runs along the point going from 4-8 foot deep along its length. The other is shallower, about 2-5 foot deep surrounded by stumps and fallen timber. It leads back into a shallow bay. The lakes main creek is running about 75 yards out from the end of the point and at its deepest, in the area, is 18-20 foot. Almost forgot...there's waterweed growing around the perimeter of the point, out to about 2-3 foot. How would you attack this location and feel that you fished it efficiently before giving it up for another location?


Assuming we're talking about fishing this time of year, and if it was first thing in the morning, I would start on the creek side of the point working towards the end of the point (unless the wind is blowing the same direction, in that case I would start fishing whichever side would allow me to cast into the wind and still progress towards the end of the point) fishing the vegetation with a frog over the top of the vegetation, walking plug on the edge and chatterbait or squarebill ripped through any stray clumps away from the main vegetation line. If you fish with a partner, I'd have the partner follow up with a jig pitched into any pockets in the vegetation or you could hit any that look particularly promising yourself as you come across them. I would also keep an eye on the shallow flat side of the point for any baitfish activity at the surface just in case any fish begin busting them.

If it was not first thing in the morning, and you had scouted enough to find what depth the fish were congregating at on the sonar in other parts of the lake (especially if there is an established thermocline), I would stop the boat in deep water in front of the point and cast a jig or carolina-rigged fluke straight at the point and cover it from the deep creek side to the shallow flat side, working the lure out beyond where you think the thermocline depth is at the end of the point. After a few casts of that, I'd re-position the boat so that I could cast an appropriate-depth crankbait into the wind and drag it across the point, hitting as much cover as possible. I like my chances of getting through timber with a jig without getting snagged better than my chances of doing the same with a crankbait, so I start with the jig to reduce the risk of messing a spot up retrieving my hung lure before I can fish it a bit. If none of that works, and the water visibility is less than 2 or 3 feet, I'll then move up and pitch a plastic or jig in and around the vegetation and woody cover. If it is windy, I'll use a squarebill more and bang it off of as much wood as I can, always trying to cast into the wind.

If none of that works, I might try two or three more points that look like that one before giving up on that type point completely (for example, mainlake point, secondary point midway into cove, secondary point way back within cove). But, that's just me. Many ways to go about it, that's one of the things that makes fishing fun. Truth is, not all good looking spots hold fish. If it was a point in-between or near a productive spawning flat and a winter holding area, I'd put more effort into it. If that's the only good looking thing for miles, maybe there's just nothing there.

Weather patterns, conditions that day, recent water fluctuation and clarity, type of lake (highland and clear, lowland and muddy) all contribute to how you'd go about picking a place apart. Makes it really difficult to give a solid "this is what I'd do" for a given situation. Fun to talk about tho!


Scott Jones
Re: how long is too long? [Re: Bois d'arc] #10941521 06/26/15 03:03 PM
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Donald Harper Offline
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Originally Posted By: boisarc
Originally Posted By: Donald Harper
15 Mins. on my best spot in the chosen area. Then I move to the other side of the cove and do the same on the best spot there. Usually this is for the first hour each morning and throwing my spook. These are always my best two top water spots on that lake.

I then move to the second drop on the last brush in my best area and work it for 15 mins. slow rolling a spinner bait. If I get bit I switch over to plastics and spend about 1 hour on that drop. Sometime this is what I call a no nothing bank, not a point and a spot that everyone passes up.

At noon I move to deep water and follow the contour out and around the best point looking for a big fish in 20 to 30 ft.. I make one pass on that contour dragging a C-Rig and if no bites it is time to move to the next best point or hump in deep water.


This is a great response....thanks Donald thumb Wondering if you come back to a spot a few times during the day or is it "just one and done"?


I never look back, if no fish was caught there. I have 9 spots to get to during the day. One of those is going to pay off.

That point you described for Outdoordude is one that I will go to in case of bad weather and throw the Halloween Spinner bait. Big Bass will group up there during inclement weather conditions. I also want 3 of these in different parts of the lake close to these other spots so the run is short to get to a narrow safe cove or ditch out of the wind that usually comes with a storm.


Each person you work with holds some promise to your future success.
Websiite Sponsors:
www.eletewater.com - Staying Hydrated
www.lakeoviachic.com - Booking Mexico Trips
20 Hot Spot Mapping - GPS Contour Chips - Custom Spinner Baits - Jigs -Spooks
Pure Extracts - Minnow-Night Crawler-Crayfish-Craylic


Re: how long is too long? [Re: Bois d'arc] #10942656 06/27/15 12:41 AM
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Bois d'arc Offline OP
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Outstanding comments.... The location described is real. I've landed many good fish around this point and usually just before a change in weather. Outdoordude nailed it with his ideas on wind direction, boat location and casting into the wind. Its pretty critical on this spot. Topwater baits like the 1/4 ounce Heddon Torpedo cast near the vegetation along the shallow sides of the point are deadly early. Jigs and T-rig plastic around wood and vegetation has produced very well. Hard plastic lures banged into the standing timber off the deep end of the point has worked well also. I haven't used a C-rig on this spot much but probably will in the future. Don is dead on...my biggest bass on this point was around 8 lbs. and bit a brown/orange, 1/2 ounce spinner with double colorado blades....just before a thunderstorm moved into the area thumb TFF folks know their stuff.

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