This time of the year when fishing the creeks I'm pretty specific about what I'm fishing for that being crappie first and bass second.

I have found that when fishing for crappie we will catch just about everything that swims but not so much the other way when targeting just the bass (whites or blacks).

I sum this up to "no hungry fish passes up an easy meal" and those fish that stay tight to cover and don't spook easily will eventually fall for a jig placed right in front of them. The difference I see most often is how quietly you can get to and stay on the fish. Crappie for whatever reason don't seem to spook easily when they are grouped up tight on structure. Same goes for black bass in thick cover, they will hold tight but not bite until things settle back down. Whitebass are very spooky when fresh in the creek from the lake and can be very hard to find holding in one place for very long. I suspect whitebass move up and down the creek more than any other fish and that is why we seldom catch them in the exact same place week to week and season to season. Whitebass also relate better to moving water, which is the difference between the Yegua and all other creeks that feed Lake Somerville.

Last Thursday and again on Saturday the crappie bite was unreal and so was the bass bite but to a lessor extent mostly because we were targeting crappie. From Thursday to Saturday the water went clearer in the upper part of the creek and so the best bite went downstream in the less clear water. Monday blows in wet and wild which muddied up the whole creek by mid-morning and put a damper on the bite overall.

This current cold spell is certainly a game changer but the fish will adjust and so will we. If it rains enough to raise the creeks and lake then the next discussion will be about whitebass..

Thinking back over the times on the creek where we found and caught a bunch of whitebass it was almost always done very quietly with little competition from other fishermen. The best whitebass trips for me personally have been solo and way up a creek as far as I could go. If you notice from my videos I'm seldom on the Yegua much after the start of the whitebass run in late January. I will avoid the whole creek especially on weekends unless I'm leading a group of kayakers for the state park. My time on the Yegua is before the masses arrive to partake in the annual harvest.

nice

I am a true follower of this fishing philosophy. Take the kayak and go where few others will go. Fishing + Solitude + Wildlife = Good Day. Sometimes two out a three ain't bad either.

I've been watching a LOT of your Nails and Yegua creek videos as of late Mr. T.

I just bought my first kayak, and am super excited to get out on the water.

I am probably in the minority, but I fish purely for the fun of it. CPR only.

Thanks for your videos!

Now that deer season is over I'll concentrate on fishing.. maybe Saturday up the Yegua just for the fun of it.. It would be a no-brainer if Newman's was open but crossing over open water with a stiff north wind ain't good for the complexion!

Once I build a roof rack for my Jeep, I will be frequenting Somerville. Perhaps we will cross paths and I can thank you in person!

I can handle the low temps but not the wind and low temps in the kayak crossing open water to get into the creek. I guess the Michigan Yankee part of my upbringing has finally played out..

Looks like a redirect is in order.. long hike up the river to parts unknown.. look out piggies here we come.. the fish will have to wait..

Looking forward to the video!

Yes, what sets many of Ben's videos apart from so many others is they often have that touch of transcendentalism.

Some very good fishing videos are all about technical issues, gear reviews . . . and they are great, too. But a few have this broader perspective like FishTales and TrailTales.

I fully endorse them for: daydreaming about nature, lowering blood pressure, wishing I were there!

More, Ben!

Brad

J-Moe and I made it back to Nails Creek Sunday afternoon.. The water is certainly colder but I think the creek crappie like it that way.. High barometric pressure, 3/4 moon, southern wind returning and plenty of sunshine did more than raise this old fisherman's spirits

With the annual whitebass & crappie spawning run underway up the creeks and rivers there are many opportunities to plan and go fishing. Kayaking is by far the best method to access the creeks for crappie and whitebass when they move into tight quarters waiting for warmer & longer days to spawn.

Crappie are the easiest to find in big numbers as they will stack up at certain points along the creeks several weeks before spawning begins. When you find where they are holding it can be ridiculously good fishing both in numbers and size. I�m always surprised when sitting in my kayak right on top of a big school of crappie how tolerant they will be as one by one they are pulled out of the creek. Crappie do not move from good structure and will often be found in the same areas year after year.

Whitebass are a very different matter as they move constantly and tend to be spooky when in the shallows. The creeks that feed Lake Somerville vary in size and more importantly flow and current. Whitebass seek moving water to spawn and the only reliable flowing source of water to Lake Somerville is Yegua creek. The smaller creeks (Nails, Birch, Cedar, Big creek and Jerdelle) depend entirely on floodwater to draw any whitebass into them. So far this winter we have not had the rain in the amount necessary to flood these smaller creeks and bring up the whitebass. All it takes is one good wet week to bring a rise of these smaller creeks and the lake to get the party started.

All that being said, "fishing is still fishing" and we do have many "off" days when the fish simply do not bite! Overall, the last two summers Lake Somerville flooded to record levels and stayed way above normal pool level until the fall. This set up a boom in fish populations and we are seeing the benefit of all that water now when fishing the creeks.

Largemouth bass fishing has been nothing short of phenomenal both in numbers and size. The last 4 miles of the Yegua just above the lake is loaded with chunky largemouth bass like never before.

This kind of fishing does make for some great memories but it is not without effort and sometimes we will put in the extreme effort and have no fish to show for it. But the odds are really stacked in our favor like never before especially for the kayak fishermen willing to venture off the beaten path. This is cold weather outdoor adventure so prepare yourself properly and be safe!

A few of us Brazos Valley Fly Fishers are planning to explore the Fort Parker paddle trail up near Groesbeck / Mexia on the Navasota river Saturday January 14th. Should be a good easy paddle for most anyone with a kayak. Join us if you can! http://tpwd.texas.gov/fishboat/boat/paddlingtrails/inland/limestone_bluffs/index.phtml

Looks like it may be pretty quiet on the creeks this weekend. I'll post a report if go!

I'd bet no matter where you go on the Yegua this weekend you will not be alone