Midwest Finesse Fishing: September 2023

Sept. 5

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log about his outing with his grandson Brady Cayton of Lawrence on Sept. 5 at a 63-year-old and heavily fished northeastern Kansas’ state reservoir.

Here is an edited version of his log.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 78 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 101; the heat index reached 103 degrees at 12:52 and 1:52 p.m. The wind angled from the southeast, south, southwest, west, and northwest at 8 to 20 mph with wind gusts ranging from 18 to 33 mph. Those wind gusts subdued the intensity of the 103 heat index a touch. It rained lightly twice during the early morning hours, and at other times, the sky was fair. The barometric pressure was 29:72 at 12:52 a.m., 29.72 at 5:52 a.m., 29.76 at 11:52 a.m., and 29.74 at 2:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be about 12 inches below normal. The surface temperature was 79 degrees. The dipstick indicated that the water exhibited 2 ½ to three feet of visibility.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 3:34 a.m. to 5:34 a.m., 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., and 9:47 a.m. to 11:47 a.m.

We executed our first casts at 12:45 p.m. and the last ones when we caught largemouth bass number 30 at 2:22 p.m. We also tangled with two bluegill and seven crappie.

Two of the 30 largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man’s Canada craw TRD TicklerZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Twenty-eight of the largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

We spent the entire 97 minutes of this outing dissecting many square yards of a massive shallow-water flat in the back of a major feeder-creek arm. This flat looks to be the size of four or five football fields. Its underwater terrain is embellished with patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and manmade piles of eastern red cedar trees. A submerged creek channel meanders along the west side of this flat.

To counter the effects of the 18- to 33-mph wind gusts, we used a drift sock, which allowed us to slowly drift from the south and shallow end to the north and deep end of this massive flat. We made this drift, five times. As we drifted, we used the bow-mounted electric trolling motor to stop the drift when we caught a largemouth bass, which allowed us to methodically dissect this locale, and we often inveigled a couple more largemouth bass. These largemouth bass were caught in five to 10 feet of water around the patches of coontail or sago pondweeds or piles of eastern red cedar trees. Four were caught on the initial drop of the rigs. The others were caught on either a straight-swimming presentation or a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation as we skimmed our rigs over the tops and along the edges of the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation or edges of the piles of eastern red cedars.

We estimated that we elicited 13 strikes that we failed to hook.

In sum, we caught an average of 18 largemouth bass an hour.

Sept. 6

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log about his outing with Rick Hebenstreit on Sept. 6 at one of northeastern Kansas’ community reservoirs.

Here is an edited version of their log.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 60 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 84 degrees. The wind angled out of the northwest and west at 6 to 15 mph; at times, there were wind gusts that reached 20 to 22 mph. The sky was fair and hazy. The haze is the residue of the forest fires in Canada. The barometric pressure was 29.98 at 12:53 a.m., 30.o1 at 5:53 a.m., 30.05 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.01 at 2:53 p.m.

The water level at this 83-year-old reservoir looked to be about one foot below its normal level. The surface temperature ranged from 79 to 80 degrees. According to our nine-foot dipstick, which we call our Secchi stick, the water exhibited about five feet of visibility in the vicinity of the dam and 3 1/2 feet of visibility along the shorelines in the upper half of the reservoir. Some of this reservoir’s shallow-water flats and shorelines are adorned with patches of bushy pondweeds, coontail, and wads of filamentous algae.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 4:27 a.m. to 6:27 a.m., 4:54 p.m. to 6:54 p.m., and 10:40 a.m. to 12:40 p.m.

We made our first casts at 10:35 a.m. and the last ones at 2:35 p.m.

We caught 48 largemouth bass and accidentally caught five green sunfish and one white bass.

One of the 48 largemouth bass was caught on a slightly shortened 4 ¾-inch Z-Man’s purple-haze Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. One largemouth bass was caught on a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse TRD affixed to a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. Ten were caught on a Z-Man’s Canada craw TRD TicklerZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Fourteen largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Twenty-two largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man’s Junebug Finesse TRD affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig.

We tangled with eight largemouth bass along the dam, which is 1,550 feet long with a height of 58 feet. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are occasionally adorned with a few meager patches of coontail, bushy pondweeds, and some wads of filamentous algae. It possesses a 50- to 60-degree slope. The water’s edge is graced with a concrete water outlet tower, patches of terrestrial grasses, and a few patches of American water willows. One largemouth bass was caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse TRD. The Z-Man’s Canada craw TRD TicklerZ inveigled seven of the eight largemouth bass. Two of the largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of our rigs in about three feet of water. Six were caught as we employed a drag-and-shake presentation in five to nine feet of water.

Along the main-lake shoreline that is adjacent to the dam, we caught five largemouth bass. Its water’s edge is embellished with some patches of American water willows, several concrete retaining walls, and 12 docks The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are embellished with occasional patches of bushy pondweeds, some wads of filamentous algae, and a few bristles of coontail. It has a 25- to 35-degree slope. Two of the five largemouth bass were caught on the Canada craw TRD TicklerZ, and three were caught on the Junebug Finesse TRD. One was caught on the initial drop of the TRD TicklerZ. A swim-glide-and-shake presentation caught the other four largemouth bass. They were caught in one to six feet of water.

In the lower half of the reservoir, we caught 11 largemouth bass on a main-lake hump. The underwater terrain of this offshore hump is endowed with a series of piles of rocks and boulders. A few of these piles of rocks and boulders are coated with some meager patches of bushy pondweeds, coontail, and filamentous algae. Five of the largemouth bass were caught on the Junebug Finesse TRD rig, and six were caught on the Junebug TRD TickerZ rig. One was caught on a deadstick presentation; another one was caught on a straight-swimming presentation; nine were caught on a drag-and-shake presentation. They were caught in four to six feet of water.

Around a main-lake point in the lower half of the reservoir, we caught one largemouth bass. This point possesses a 30-degree slope, and there is a ledge that plummets into deep water. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, and portions of this underwater terrain are quilted with minor patches of bushy pondweeds. The water’s edge is endowed with a concrete retaining wall, two docks, and several minor patches of American water willows. The largemouth bass was caught on the Canada craw TRD TicklerZ rig with a drag-and-shake presentation in about seven feet of water along one of the outside corners of one of the docks.

We caught four largemouth bass along about a 125-yard stretch of a shoreline that is situated in the middle portion of the reservoir. This area possesses a 35- to 45-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are embellished with some patches of bushy pondweeds, coontail, and filamentous algae. The water’s edge is endowed with several concrete and stone retaining walls, a few overhanging trees, some patches of American water willows, and nine docks. One largemouth bass was caught on the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig. One was caught on the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig. Two were caught on the Junebug Finesse TRD rig. They were caught in four to six feet of water. One was caught on the initial drop. The other three were caught on a drag-and-shake presentation.

Along about a 300-yard stretch of a shoreline in the upper half of the reservoir, we caught 11 largemouth bass. The underwater terrains of this shoreline consist of gravel, rocks, boulders, and some silt, which are adorned with a few patches of bushy pondweeds, filamentous algae, and coontail. These areas possess a 25- to 60-degree slope. The water’s edges consist of several concrete retaining walls, nine docks, one small rock bridge, a few laydowns, several piles of brush, some patches of American water willows, and several overhanging trees. Five of the 11 largemouth bass were caught on the Junebug Finesse TRD rig, and six were caught on the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig. Along the steeper section of the shoreline, six of the largemouth bass were caught on a drag-and-shake presentation; one of those was caught adjacent to the inside corner of one of the docks; they were caught in six to nine feet of water. On the flatter sections, one was caught on the initial of the Finesse TRD rig. The others were caught on a swim-and-glide presentation; they were caught in three to five feet of water.

Across a large shallow-water flat in the back of the primary feeder-creek arm, we caught four largemouth bass. Portions of this flat’s underwater terrain are embellished with wads of filamentous algae and a few patches of bushy pondweeds. This flat looks to be about the size of six football fields, and we fished a section of it that is about the size of one football field. One of the four largemouth bass was caught on the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig with a straight-swimming presentation in about four feet of water. The other three were caught on the Junebug Finesse TRD rig; one was on the initial drop; one was caught on a drag-and-shake presentation; one was caught on a straight-swimming presentation; these three were caught in three to five feet of water. We suspect that this flat will entertain a significant number of largemouth bass later in the month and in early October.

We eked out four largemouth bass along about a 175-yard section of another shoreline in the upper half of this reservoir. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are endowed with a few manmade piles of brush, several areas of coontail, occasional patches of bushy pondweeds, and some wads of filamentous algae. It possesses a 30- to 55-degree slope. The water’s edge is lined with many concrete and rock retaining walls, scores of docks, a few patches of American water willows, one massive laydown, and several overhanging trees. The Junebug TRD TicklerZ caught one of the four largemouth bass on a drag-and-shake presentation in about seven feet of water. The Junebug Finesse TRD rig caught three largemouth bass; one was caught on the initial drop in about four feet of water; two were caught in five to seven feet of water with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation.

During the first hour and 31 minutes of this outing, we caught 24 largemouth bass. After that, it took us two hours and 29 minutes to catch the next 24 largemouth bass. Thus, we caught an average of 12 largemouth bass an hour.

Sept. 7

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Sept. 7 outing with Norman Brown of Lewisville, Texas.

Here is an edited version of his log.

Norman joined me for a four-hour jaunt at one of several U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ hill-land reservoirs situated in the Dallas/Ft.Worth metropolitan area.

This reservoir was actually our second choice. The first reservoir we went to was a disappointment. When we arrived at the boat ramp, the first thing we noticed was the significantly lower water level, which may be a byproduct of our ongoing severe drought conditions. Upon our closer inspection of the launch ramp area, we determined that the water level had dropped several feet since I last visited this reservoir on Aug. 4, and the receding water has made launching a boat at this reservoir a risky endeavor.

Therefore, we decided to err on the side of caution and drove about 20 minutes to another Corps’ reservoir. And much to our dismay, the black-bass fishing was wretched. We fished for four hours, and we had to work hard to catch 10 black bass, which consisted of six spotted bass and four largemouth bass. We also crossed paths with two white bass by accident.

Weather wise, it is still scorching hot in our neck of the woods. The sky was clear. The morning’s low temperature was 86 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature soared to 109 degrees. (It is interesting to note that a couple of area thermometers located close to this reservoir registered the afternoon temperature at 111 and 113 degrees.) The barometric pressure measured 29.88 at 7:00 a.m. and 29.90 at 11:00 a.m. The wind was calm for most of this outing, but there was a brief spell or two where a light breeze meandered out of the southeast at less than 5 mph.

The water level was four feet below normal pool, which is the lowest level we have seen this year. The water clarity ranged from 14 to 18 inches. The surface temperature was 85 degrees.

According to In-Fisherman’s solunar table, the most productive fishing would occur from 5:29 a.m. to 7:29 a.m., 11:18 a.m. to 1:18 p.m., and 5:56 p.m. to 7:56 p.m. It also indicated that fishing would be great.

We fished in the lower end of the reservoir from about 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

In our eyes, it appears that the annual fall black-bass migration from their main-lake lairs into the feeder-creek arms may be starting a little earlier than usual this year. Typically, our bread-and-butter black-bass haunts this time of the year consist of flat and rocky main-lake points and portions of their adjacent rocky shorelines; shallow clay-and-gravel flats cluttered with partially-flooded stickups, submerged laydowns, stumps, chunky rocks and boulders; steeper rock-laden shorelines. But these locales were virtually devoid of largemouth bass and spotted bass during this outing. We did manage to catch one spotted bass in four feet of water from a flat gravel-and-clay main-lake point at the mouth of a large bay where we launched our boat. One largemouth bass was extracted from seven feet of water near a steep chunk-rock-and-boulder main-like point at the mouth of another large bay. And another largemouth bass was caught near a floating tractor-tire reef that floats in 11 to 19 feet of water at the entrance to a medium-size marina.

The other five spotted bass and one largemouth bass were scattered inside three major feeder-creek arms. We caught these fish around steep and rocky secondary points, flat gravel-and-clay tertiary points, and the remnants of an old concrete road bed in three to 13 feet of water.

We employed 11 Midwest finesse rigs. We caught fish on two of them. Six of the 10 black bass were allured by a swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a 2 3/4-inch Z-Man’s The Deal TRD TubeZ rigged on a black 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. Four black bass and two white bass were beguiled by a fast-paced swimming retrieve with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s Space Guppy Slim SwimZ affixed to a pearl 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig.

Sept 12

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about one of his family outings with Brady and John Cayton of Lawrence at a 91-year-old and heavily fished state reservoir in northeastern Kansas on Sept. 12.

Here is an edited version of their log.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 50 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 81 degrees. The wind varied from being calm to angling out of the northwest, northeast, east, and north at 3 to 9 mph; a gust of wind hit 17 mph around 2:52 p.m. The sky fluctuated from being foggy, misty, fair, partly cloudy, and cluttered with a few clouds. The barometric pressure was 30.15 at 12:52 a.m., 30.15 at 5:52 a.m., 30.18 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.11 at 2:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be normal. The surface temperature ranged from 78 to 80 degrees. The water exhibited about five feet of visibility.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 9:10 a.m. to 11:10 a.m., 9:32 p.m. to 11:32 p.m., and 2:59 a.m. to 4:59 a.m.

We made our first casts at 12:49 p.m. and our last ones at 2:49 p.m.

We caught 53 largemouth bass. A slightly shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s purple-haze Finesse WormZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig caught 38 of the 53. And a 2 ½-inch Z-Man’s purple-haze ZinkerZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead caught 15 of the 53.

We spent the first 66 minutes probing a massive shallow-water flat in the back of a major feeder-creek arm. This area is about the size of seven football fields. We fished across and around an area about the size of 2 ½ football fields. This flat is endowed with a small island, which is embellished with patches of American water willows and littered with scores of concrete blocks. Much of this flat's underwater terrain is quilted with patches of coontail, patches of bushy pondweeds, and several manmade piles of eastern red cedar trees.

During the first 20 minutes, we caught 25 largemouth, and during the next 33 minutes, we caught 13 largemouth bass. Our Finesse WormZ rigs caught 23 of those 38 largemouth bass, and the ZinkerZ rig inveigled 15 of the 38. We caught them in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as nine feet. Five were caught on the initial drop of our rigs. Six were caught on a deadstick presentation. The others were caught on a slow straight-swimming presentation as we allowed our rigs to traverse across the top of the patches of coontail and bushy pondweeds.

We spent the rest of this outing probing another massive shallow-water flat in the back of another major feeder-creek arm. It is about the size of five football fields, and we fished around and across an area about the size of two football fields. The water’s edge of this flat is endowed with significant patches of American water willows and a few laydowns. A massive patch of American lotus plants enhances an area about the size of two football fields. The underwater terrain is endowed with patches of coontail and a few manmade piles of eastern red cedar trees. Around an area about the size of four tennis courts, we caught 15 largemouth bass. All of them were caught on our Finesse WormZ rigs around patches of coontail in four to nine feet of water. One was caught on the initial drop of the Finesse WormZ rig. Five were caught on a deadstick presentation. The other nine were caught on a slow swim-and-pause presentation.

We did not keep an accurate count of the strikes we elicited and did not hook, but there were a goodly number of them.

In sum, we caught an average of 26.5 largemouth an hour. Most of them were dinks but a joy to catch on this family get-together.

Sept. 14

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Sept. 14 outing with Pok Chi Lau of Lawrence at one of northeastern Kansas’ community reservoirs.

Here is an edited version of his log.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 50 degrees. The afternoon’s high temperature was 83 degrees. The wind fluctuated from being calm to angling out of the east and southeast at 3 to 10 mph with wind gusts ranging from 18 to 22 mph. The sky was fair. The barometric pressure was 30.07 at 12:53 a.m., 30.09 at 5:53 a.m., 30.12 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.07 at 2:53 p.m.

The water level looked to be about 12 inches below its normal level. The surface temperature ranged from 75 to 76 degrees. Many acres of the water were afflicted with an algal bloom. The water exhibited about 4 ½ feet of visibility along the dam and two to three feet of visibility in the upper half of the reservoir.

In-Fisherman’s solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 10:13 a.m. to 12:31 p.m., 10:51 p.m. to 12:51 a.m., and 4:21 a.m. to 6:21 a.m.

We made our first casts at 10:49 a.m. and the last ones at 1:50 p.m. And it was a tussle to catch 14 largemouth bass, eight smallmouth bass, one bluegill, and one white bass.

Two largemouth bass and two smallmouth bass were caught on a Z-Man’s coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ affixed to an unpainted 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. We caught three smallmouth bass and five largemouth bass on a Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Three smallmouth bass and seven largemouth bass were caught on a slightly shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

The bulk of these 22 black bass were caught as we employed a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around patches of Eurasian milfoil. A few were caught on the initial drop of our rigs.

Around a main-lake point in the upper half of this reservoir, we caught one largemouth bass and one smallmouth bass. This point has a 45-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are quilted with some patches of Eurasian milfoil. The water’s edge is endowed with magnificent patches of American water willows and one large laydown. The largemouth bass and smallmouth bass were caught on the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig between the outside edge of the American water willows and a small patch of Eurasian milfoil in about five feet of water.

Along about a 250-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline

in the upper half of this reservoir, we caught two largemouth bass. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders; some of the boulders are monsters. The slope of this area ranges from 25 to 60 degrees. The water’s edge is endowed with patches of American water willows, several laydowns, many overhanging trees, and one concrete dock foundation. One of the two largemouth bass was caught between a patch of Eurasian milfoil and the concrete dock foundation in about three feet of water on the coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. The other largemouth bass was caught around several patches of Eurasian milfoil in about five feet of water on the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation.

One largemouth bass was caught on a massive shallow-water flat in the upper section of the reservoir’s primary feeder-creek arm. The underwater terrain is adorned with Eurasian milfoil. We spent about 15 minutes probing the outside edges of scores of patches of milfoil. This largemouth bass was caught in about six feet of water on the Finesse WormZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation.

We caught two smallmouth bass and one largemouth bass on our Junebug TRD TicklerZ rigs along a flat shoreline and around a flat secondary point inside a small feeder creek in the upper half of the reservoir. This area possesses a 25-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, and a few stumps, which are embellished with occasional patches of bushy pondweeds and Eurasian milfoil. The water’s edge is embellished with patches of American water willows. One smallmouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig between the outside edge of a patch of American water willows and the inside edge of a patch of Eurasian milfoil in about 3 ½ feet of water. The largemouth bass and the second smallmouth bass were caught around patches of Eurasian milfoil with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in three to four feet of water.

Along about a 75-yard stretch of another main-lake shoreline in the upper half of the reservoir, we caught one largemouth bass. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. A few patches of bushy pondweeds and Eurasian milfoil grace some segments of the underwater terrain. It possesses a 35- to 50-degree slope. The water’s edge is embellished with patches of American water willows. The largemouth bass was caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation with the Finesse WormZ in about five feet of water.

We quickly fished about a 100-yard section of the dam’s shoreline, which yielded one smallmouth bass and one largemouth bass. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are highlighted with patches of Eurasian milfoil. It possesses a 50- to 55-degree slope. The water’s edge is embellished with patches of American water willows. The fish were inveigled by the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig around the patches of Eurasian milfoil. The smallmouth bass was caught on the initial drop in about three feet of water. The largemouth bass was caught while strolling with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation across a patch of Eurasian milfoil in five to six feet of water.

Along about a 50-yard section of a shoreline inside a small feeder-creek arm, we caught two smallmouth bass and three largemouth bass. This feeder-creek arm is in the reservoir’s middle section. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and a few boulders. Some of this terrain is quilted with milfoil. This area has a 25- to 35-degree slope. The water’s edge is lined with wonderful patches of American water willows. The coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ rig caught one largemouth bass and two smallmouth bass; one smallmouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the rig between the outside edge of a patch of American water willows and the inside edge of patch of Eurasian milfoil; the largemouth bass and the second smallmouth bass were caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation of the coppertreuse rig around patches of Eurasian milfoil in five to six feet of water. Two of the largemouth bass were caught on the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig around two patches of Eurasian milfoil in five to six feet of water.

Around a main-lake point and along a 60-yard stretch of its main-lake shoreline, we caught one smallmouth bass and one largemouth bass. This area is situated in the reservoir’s middle section. The underwater terrains consist of gravel, rocks, and boulders. Some of this terrain is adorned with a few meager patches of bushy pondweeds and Eurasian milfoil. This area has a 25- to 35-degree slope. The water’s edge is lined with significant patches of American water willows. The smallmouth bass and largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of our Finesse WormZ rigs in about three feet of water.

We caught one smallmouth bass and four largemouth bass inside a large feeder-creek arm, which is in the middle section of the reservoir. The smallmouth bass and three of the four largemouth bass were caught along about a 150-yard shoreline. One largemouth bass was caught on the shallow-water flat in the back of this feeder-creek arm. The underwater terrains of the flat and shoreline consist of gravel, rocks, and silt, which are occasionally embellished with patches of bushy pondweeds and Eurasian milfoil. The water’s edge is graced with many patches of American water willows, two concrete dock foundations, numerous laydowns, and scores of overhanging trees. The smallmouth bass and the four largemouth bass were caught on our Finesse WormZ rigs while we were employing a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentations around patches of Eurasian milfoil in four to six feet of water.

We failed to elicit a strike on a massive offshore hump that consists of a submerged rock-and-boulder fence. A secondary point and its adjacent shoreline were totally fruitless.

In sum, we struggled to catch an average of 7.3 black bass an hour.

Sept. 15

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Sept. 15 outing with Todd Judy of Denton.

Here is an edited version of his log.

Todd and I sojourned to a popular U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ hill-land reservoir in north-central Texas.

According to In-Fisherman's Solunar calendar, the fishing forecast was excellent. The prime fishing periods would most likely occur from 5:29 a.m. to 7:29 a.m., 11:18 a.m. to 1:18 p.m., and 5:56 p.m. to 7:56 p.m.

It appears that this summer’s exasperating triple-digit heat wave has finally come to an end, but the severe-drought conditions continue. The morning’s low temperature on Sept. 15 was 75 degrees. The afternoon’s high temperature was a delightful 80 degrees. The wind quartered out of the east-by-southeast at 5 to 10 mph. The barometric pressure measured 30.01 at 7:00 a.m. and 30.04 at 11:00 a.m. The sky conditions varied from overcast to mostly cloudy.

This reservoir’s water level appeared to be about four feet low. The water exhibited between 30 to 36 inches of clarity. We were a bit surprised to discover that the surface temperature has dropped from the mid-80s to the upper 70s; it ranged from 77 to 78 degrees during this outing.

This reservoir’s underwater terrain consists primarily of red clay, pea gravel, chunky rocks, and quite a number of large boulders. In the upper end of the reservoir, there are scores and scores of acres of thick stands of flooded timber, laydowns, stumps, brush piles, and buck brush, which is nirvana to many of our power-fishing brethren. There are some burgeoning patches of Eurasian milfoil scattered about in several of this reservoir’s feeder-creek arms.

We had this reservoir mostly to ourselves. We saw only three other bass boats during this outing. And as we relished the wonderful cooler weather, we found the black-bass fishing just as enjoyable. We fished from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., and we caught 30 black bass; 26 were largemouth bass and four were spotted bass. This is also the most fruitful outing we have had at a federal or state impoundment since July 16, when Bear Brundrett of Valley View, Texas, and I caught 30 black bass in five hours at a state impoundment in north-central Texas.

Our primary focus for this outing was to search for some black bass inside two feeder-creek arms and around several main-lake areas in the lower end of the reservoir. One creek arm is situated in the reservoir’s east tributary arm, and the second one is located in the west tributary. And on our way to those two locales, we stopped briefly and fished at three rocky main-lake points and portions of their adjoining main-lake shorelines, and around the perimeter of a large concrete water-outlet tower at the center of the dam.

We caught one spotted bass and one largemouth bass in less than five feet of water from one of the three flat and rock-laden main-lake points, and we failed to elicit any strikes from the other two flat main-lake points and from any of the main-lake shorelines.

The perimeter of the water-outlet tower, which is usually one of our most productive spots at this reservoir, yielded only one largemouth bass this time. It was suspended about three feet below the surface in 37 feet of water next to one of the tower’s concrete walls. We decided not to fish along the riprap that covers the nearby dam because we didn’t locate any schools of threadfin shad there.

The first creek arm, which is the largest of the two and situated in the lower end of the east tributary arm, yielded nine largemouth bass and three spotted bass. The second creek arm, which is located in the lower region of the west tributary arm, relinquished 15 largemouth bass. We found large aggregations of threadfin shad in both of these creek arms.

Twenty-four of these 27 black bass were scattered here and there, and all of them were caught in less than five feet of water from a series of flat and rocky secondary points that are spread out from the lower to the upper ends of both creek arms. The other three bass were relating to the sides of a couple of large and shallow patches of Eurasian milfoil.

Seventeen of these 27 bass were allured by a three-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ matched with a chartreuse 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. Eleven were tempted by a three-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ rigged on a black 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. One spotted bass was caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s space guppy Slim SwimZ affixed on a pearl 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig, and one largemouth bass engulfed a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Baby Goat fastened on a chartreuse 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. All of these combos were employed with a steady swimming retrieve.

In conclusion, it appears that the black-bass fishing in north-central Texas is beginning to pick up as fall quickly approaches. Thus, we are hopeful that our two-month streak of lousy black-bass fishing has finally come to an end.

Sept. 15

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log about his Sept. 15 outing with Pok Chi Lau of Lawrence at a community reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

Here is an edited version of his log.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 54 degrees. The afternoon’s high temperature was 84 degrees. The sky fluctuated from being fair to cluttered with a few clouds to mostly cloudy to overcast to light rain. The wind varied from being calm to angling out of the south, southeast, southwest, east, and north at 3 to 12 mph. The barometric pressure was 30.10 at 12:53 a.m., 30.10 at 5:53 a.m., 30.12 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.08 at 2:53 p.m.

The water level looked to be about 12 inches below normal. The surface temperature ranged from 76 to 78 degrees. The water was affected by a slight algal bloom. According to our nine-foot dipstick, the water exhibited from four to six feet of visibility.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 11:26 p.m. to 1:26 a.m., 4:57 a.m. to 6:57 a.m., and 5:16 p.m. to 7:16 p.m.

We made our first casts at 10:35 a.m. and our last ones at 3:05 p.m.

For the first 40 minutes, it was a trying ordeal to elicit a strike. But we eventually caught two smallmouth bass, 54 largemouth bass, four green sunfish, and one walleye.

A Z-Man’s coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ affixed to an unpainted 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig caught one largemouth bass. A Z-Man’s Canada craw TRD TicklerZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead caught one largemouth bass. A slightly shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead caught 15 largemouth bass. A slightly shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s purple-haze Finesse WormZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead caught two smallmouth bass and 37 largemouth bass.

Inside a small feeder-creek arm, we caught one largemouth bass. This feeder creek is located in the middle section of the reservoir. The shorelines inside this feeder-creek are cluttered with 14 large boat docks and two concrete boat ramps. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, and much of the flat and shallow-water areas are quilted with patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad. The largemouth bass was caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig around patches of coontail in about eight feet of water at the end of a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation.

Around a main-lake point at the mouth of this small feeder-creek point, we caught one largemouth bass. This point possesses a 35- to 45-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are partially covered with patches of coontail and sago pondweeds The water’s edge is lined with American water willows, and it is endowed with one large boat dock. The largemouth bass was caught on a deadstick presentation of the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig in about seven feet of water inside one of the dock’s boat slips, which is enhanced with a few patches of submerged vegetation.

We caught four largemouth bass around the other main-lake point at the mouth of this small feeder-creek arm. It has a 25-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, which are embellished with patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad. These largemouth bass were caught on our purple-haze Finesse WormZ rigs and a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around the patches of coontail in about six to seven feet of water.

On a shallow-water flat in the back of a large feeder-creek arm, we caught four largemouth bass. This feeder creek is situated in the middle portion of the reservoir. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, and a small portion of this terrain is endowed with patches of coontail and sago pondweeds that are growing in three to eight feet of water. One of these largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the Canada Craw TRD TicklerZ rig in the vicinity of a patch of submerged aquatic vegetation in about five to six feet of water. Another one was caught on the coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in five to six feet of water. Two of the four were caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in three to four feet of water.

Along about a 50-yard stretch of a steep shoreline adjacent to the dam, we caught one largemouth bass. This shoreline possesses a 50- to 90-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are enhanced with a few meager patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. The water’s edge is graced with several patches of American water willows, some laydowns, and many overhanging trees. The largemouth bass was caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig with a drag-pause-and-shake presentation in about eight feet of water.

We fished about 1,4oo feet of the dam, which is reported to be 1,700 feet long. It possesses a 45- to 50-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of rocks and boulders, which are endowed with occasional patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad. About 25 meager patches of American water willows grace about 100 feet of the water’s edge; most of the American water willows have perished because the dam is sprayed with a herbicide. We caught one largemouth bass while strolling and employing a drag-and-shake presentation with a green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig in six to seven feet of water. The purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig caught two largemouth bass; one was caught on the initial drop in about three to four feet of water; the other one was caught while strolling with a drag-and-shake presentation around patches of submerged vegetation in five to six feet of water.

Around a main-lake point that is adjacent to the dam, we caught one largemouth bass and one smallmouth bass. This point possesses a 45-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are quilted with a few patches of coontail and sago pondweeds. A massive concrete water tower dominates a portion of this point. The water’s edge is graced with some patches of American water willows and American pondweeds. The largemouth bass was caught on the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig with a drag-and-shake presentation in about eight feet of water in the vicinity of a patch coontail. The smallmouth bass was caught on the same rig with a drag-and-shake presentation in about four feet of water in front of a patch of American water willows.

We fished about a 200-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline adjacent to this point, and we caught seven largemouth bass. This shoreline possesses a 25- to 50-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and an array of gargantuan boulders, which are quilted with occasional patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, southern naiad, and a few manmade piles of brush. Three of the largemouth bass were caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig. Four were caught on the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig. They were caught as we worked with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in four to six feet of water.

On a shallow-water hump and flat about three-quarters of the way inside a medium-size feeder-creek arm, we caught a dozen largemouth bass. This feeder creek is situated in the lower half of the reservoir. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, which has an area about the size of two tennis courts that are adorned with a few patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad in four to seven feet of water. Two of the 12 were caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig, and 10 were caught on the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig. They were caught from around the submerged aquatic vegetation. Two were caught on the initial drop, and 10 were caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around and over the patches of submerged vegetation.

At the mouth of this feeder-creek arm, we fished around its main-lake point and along about a 125-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline. The point yielded one largemouth bass, and the shoreline yielded three largemouth bass. The point possesses a 25-degree slope that eventually plummets into deep water. The shoreline has a 35- to 45-degree slope that possesses a ledge that plunges into deep water. The waters’ edges of the point and shoreline are endowed with patches of American water willows, some overhanging trees, a few laydowns, and two patches of American pondweeds. The underwater terrains consist of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are coated with occasional patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad. These largemouth bass were caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig. One of the largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop between the outside edge of a patch of American water willows and the inside edge of the submerged aquatic vegetation in about five feet of water. The other three were caught while we worked with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in five to eight feet of water.

We thoroughly dissected a 25-yard stretch of an offshore hump that is situated in the middle portion of the reservoir. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. Some of the boulders are humongous. Segments of this terrain are endowed with patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad. One largemouth bass was caught on the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig with a straight-swimming presentation around some patches of the submerged aquatic vegetation in about six feet of water.

We caught one smallmouth bass and 10 largemouth bass across a massive main-lake and shallow-water flat in the middle section of the reservoir. This flat has a gradual slope that eventually drops into deep water. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, which are endowed with several burgeoning patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad; these patches are covered with four to seven feet of water. The black bass were caught on our purple-haze Finesse WormZ rigs around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. Three were caught on the initial drop of our rigs. Four were caught as we were strolling and employing a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Five were caught on a basic swim-glide-and-shake presentation.

During the last 27 minutes of this outing, we spent a long time searching for patches of submerged aquatic vegetation across the shallow-water flats and one shoreline inside a medium-sized feeder-creek arm in the upper half of the reservoir. This arm used to have the most magnificent patches of coontail that we have ever fished in northeastern Kansas, but they disappeared two to three years ago. To our delight on this outing, we discovered some burgeoning patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad, and as we were strolling with our purple-haze Finesse WormZ rigs with a dragging presentation, we caught four largemouth bass in four to six feet of water.

It is important to note that during the first 40 minutes, we failed to elicit a strike around a main-lake point and across a shallow-water flat and several shallow-water shorelines inside a small feeder-creek arm. Both of these locales are situated in the middle section of the reservoir.

In sum, we caught an average of 12 black bass an hour.

Sept. 18

Pat and Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about their extremely short outing on Sept. 18 at a community reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

Here is an edited version of their log.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 46 degrees, and its afternoon’s high temperature was 90 degrees. The wind was calm for six hours, and at other times, it angled out of the east, southeast, and south at 3 to 14 mph, and there were some 21 to 22 mph wind gusts. The sky was foggy and misty, fair, and fair with haze. The barometric pressure was 30.06 at 12:52 a.m., 30.05 at 5:52 a.m., 30.01 at 11:52 a.m., and 29.91 at 2:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be about one foot below normal. The surface temperature was 77 degrees. The water, which is being afflicted with an algal bloom, exhibited from two to 3 1/2 feet of clarity.

It is somewhat interesting to note that this reservoir is 84 years old, which is a year older than we are. And it has suffered many more trials and tribulations than we have. It has been overwhelmed at times by a variety of herbicides, tons of siltation, and other abuses.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 12:57 a.m. to 2:57 a.m., 1:19 p.m. to 3:15 p.m., and 7:08 a.m. to 9:08 a.m.

We made our first casts at 2:00 p.m. and our last ones at 3:03 p.m., and we spent the entire 63 minutes fishing portions of two shorelines inside a large feeder-creek arm in the lower section of this reservoir.

During these 63 minutes, we quickly dissected about 175 yards of the north shoreline and about 75 yards of the south shoreline. About three of these minutes were consumed with taking a photograph.

The underwater terrains of these shorelines consist of gravel, rocks, boulders, and silt, which are graced with a few stumps. Some of this terrain is enhanced with meager patches of Eurasian milfoil. Along about a 150-foot section of the north shoreline, there are a multitude of humongous boulders and several piles of them.

The waters’ edges are endowed with some shallow-water patches of American water willows, one dock, a concrete boat ramp, a few laydowns, several piles of brush, four tertiary points, and a few overhanging trees.

Both shorelines possess a 25- to 45-degree slope.

Along the 75-yard stretch of this feeder creek’s southern shoreline, we caught two largemouth bass. One was caught on a straight-swimming presentation with a slightly shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead; it was caught in about six feet of water and many feet from the water’s edge. The second one was caught on a slightly shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead with a deadstick presentation near the water’s edge and under some overhanging trees in about four feet of water.

Along the 175-yard stretch of this feeder creek’s northern shoreline, we caught eight largemouth bass. Three of them were caught on a Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ affixed to a chartreuse rig 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead; one was caught on a deadstick presentation in about five feet of water; the second was caught on the initial drop in three to four feet of water; the third one was caught on a drag-pause-and-shake presentation in about six feet of water. Two were caught on a deadstick presentation with the Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead in four to six feet of water. Three were caught on the Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead on a drag-pause-and-shake presentation in four to eight feet of water. Three of the eight largemouth bass were caught around the massive congregation of boulders.

During this extremely short conjugal and old-codger outing, we eked out 10 largemouth bass, six green sunfish, two channel catfish, and tangled with a hefty creature that unfettered itself after about a three-minute entanglement with the Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead.

Sept. 18

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Sept. 18 outing with Rick Allen of Dallas.

Here is an edited version of his log.

Rick Allen and I fished at the same north-central Texas’ U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ hill-land reservoir where Todd Judy of Denton and I fished on Sept. 15.

The weather conditions on Sept. 18 were in stark contrast to the weather on Sept. 15, and our results were much different, too.

During the Sept. 15 outing, the sky was overcast to mostly cloudy, and the wind quartered out of the east-by-southeast at 5 to 10 mph. Todd and I fished for four hours, and we caught 30 black bass.

In contrast, Sept. 18 was bright and sunny. The sky was mostly clear. The wind was calm. The morning’s low temperature was 61 degrees, and the afternoon’s high reached 93 degrees. The barometric pressure measured 30.03 at 7:00 a.m., and 30.04 at 11:00 a.m.

Rick and I fished from 7:30 a.m. to around 11:00 a.m., and this time, the reservoir was much more miserly with its black bass. We searched for largemouth and spotted bass inside four feeder-creek arms, around five prominent main-lake points, and inside a large bay, and we failed to locate any large aggregations of threadfin shad and black bass.

Unlike the excellent fishing forecast for Sept. 15, In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the black-bass fishing would be poor on Sept. 18. The optimal fishing periods would likely occur from 1:08 a.m. to 3:08 a.m., 7:19 a.m. to 9:19 a.m., and 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

This reservoir’s water level appears to be holding at about four feet below its normal pool. Where we fished, the water exhibited three feet of clarity. The surface temperature ranged from 77 to 79 degrees.

As I noted in my Sept. 15 log, this reservoir’s underwater terrain is composed of red clay, pea gravel, chunky rocks, and quite a number of large boulders. The upper end of the reservoir is cluttered with acres of thick stands of flooded timber, brush piles, laydowns, stumps, and buck brush, and we rarely fish in that region. There are some flourishing patches of Eurasian milfoil dispersed in several of this reservoir’s feeder-creek arms.

During this Sept. 18 foray, we stayed in the lower end of the west and east tributary arms. We caught 11 spotted bass and six largemouth bass inside two of three feeder-creek arms that we fished in the west tributary arm, and we failed to catch a fish inside one feeder-creek arm and around four major main-lake points and a large bay in the east tributary.

Inside the first feeder-creek arm, which is situated on the south side of the west tributary arm, we caught six spotted bass and five largemouth bass.

We caught two of the six spotted bass around a floating tractor-tire reef that extends out from the water’s edge about 25 yards and above water as deep as 31 feet. Both of them were caught about a foot below the surface in 17 to 23 of water. They engulfed a three-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ on a black 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead that was employed with a fast-paced swimming retrieve parallel and within a foot of the floating tires.

Along the rock-and boulder-laden east-side shoreline of this creek arm, we caught the other four spotted bass and three of the five largemouth bass in two to five feet of water. This shoreline has a gradient that varies from about 10 degrees to as steep as 35 degrees, and it is adorned with a large rocky secondary point, two shallow rock ledges, a shallow clay-and-gravel pocket about the size of a volleyball court, and the remains of a large clay-and-gravel stock-pond dam. These four spotted bass and three of the five largemouth bass were caught from the shallow clay-and-gravel pocket in less than five feet of water; four were caught on the three-inch pearl Slim SwimZ rig with a fast-paced swimming retrieve. The other two were allured by a fast-paced swimming retrieve with a three-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ affixed to a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead.

We caught the fourth largemouth bass in about three feet of water from a patch of chunky rocks on a large secondary point. The fifth largemouth bass was caught from a small patch of Eurasian milfoil in three feet of water and about halfway back in the creek arm. Both of them were tempted by the fast-paced swimming retrieve with the three-inch pearl Slim SwimZ rig.

We failed to locate any black bass around two riprap-laden shorelines, four rocky secondary points, and around an old dilapidated concrete boat ramp in the back end of this creek arm.

From this creek arm, we travelled about a mile to the west to the second feeder-creek arm, which is also located on the south side of the west tributary. We fished around one of its rocky main-lake entry points, and along about a 75-yard section of the adjoining east-side shoreline that leads back into the creek arm, and we failed to elicit any strikes.

From the second creek arm, we crossed to the north side of the west tributary arm and fished inside the third feeder-creek arm. This creek arm relinquished 15 largemouth bass on Sept. 15, but this time, we struggled to locate and catch five spotted bass and one largemouth bass. These six bass were caught in three to five feet of water from several flat and rocky secondary points on the lower end of the creek arm’s east shoreline. All of them were allured by the three-inch pearl Slim SwimZ while it was quickly and steadily retrieved just under the surface of the water. And these six fish were the last ones we would catch during this outing.

From the west tributary, we travelled to the lower end of the east tributary arm, where we investigated four major main-lake points, several rocky secondary points inside a large bay, and several rocky secondary points inside the fourth creek arm, which is the largest of the four creek arms that we fished. And we were at our wit’s end by the time we executed our final casts and retrieves by not being able to garner a strike from any of these locales in the east tributary arm.

In closing, this was what we consider to be a lackluster— but average— outing in north-central Texas. We caught a total of 17 black bass in 3 1/2 hours and a catch rate of four bass per hour.

Sept. 21

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, and Rick Hebenstreit of Shawnee, Kansas, posted a log about their outing on Sept. 21 at one of northeastern Kansas’ community reservoirs.

Here is an edited version of their log.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 62 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 85 degrees. The wind angled out of the east and south at 5 to 9 mph. The sky fluctuated from being fair to cluttered with a few clouds to mostly cloudy. The barometric pressure was 30.01 at 12:53 a.m., 30.o4 at 5:53 a.m., 30.08 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.05 at 1:53 p.m.

The water level at this 83-year-old reservoir looked to be about 15 inches below its normal level. The surface temperature ranged from 73 to 74 degrees. According to our nine-foot dipstick, which we call our Secchi stick, the water exhibited about five feet of visibility in the vicinity of the dam and 3 1/2 feet of visibility across the flats and along the shorelines in the upper half of the reservoir. Some of this reservoir’s shallow-water flats and shorelines are adorned with patches of bushy pondweeds, coontail, and wads of filamentous algae.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 10:28 a.m. to 12:28 p.m., 10:48 p.m. to 12:48 p.m., and 4:17 a.m. to 6:17 a.m.

We made our first casts at 10:00 a.m. and the last ones at 2:00 p.m.

We caught 61 largemouth bass and accidentally caught five bluegill, one green sunfish, and one painted turtle.

One of the 61 largemouth bass was caught on a Z-Man’s meat-dog TRD MinnowZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. One largemouth bass was caught on a Z-Man’s Junebug Finesse TRD affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. Two were caught on a three-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ affixed to a chartreuse 3/32-ounce mushroom-style jig. Three were caught on a 4.75-inch Z-Man’s purple-haze Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. Six were caught on a Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Fifteen were caught on a 4.75-inch Z-Man’s PB&J Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. Thirty were caught on a slightly shortened Z-Man’s Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

We spent the first three hours of this four-hour outing in the upper half of this reservoir, where we caught 50 largemouth bass. We spent this time fishing across a portion of a shallow-water flat, around five main-lake points, and along two massive shorelines.

Across a large shallow-water flat in the back of the primary feeder-creek arm, we caught 15 largemouth bass. Portions of this flat’s underwater terrain are embellished with wads of filamentous algae and a few patches of bushy pondweeds. This flat looks to be about the size of six football fields, and we fished a section of it that is about the size of one football field. We caught the largemouth bass in about three to five feet of water around wads of filamentous algae. Two were caught on the Slim SwimZ rig with a straight-swimming presentation in about four feet of water. Five were caught on the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig; one was caught on the initial drop; one was caught on a deadstick presentation; three were caught on a swim-and-pause presentation. Six were caught on the PB&J Finesse WormZ rig with a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation.

Along about a 400-yard stretch of a shoreline and around five of this shoreline’s main-lake points in the upper half of the reservoir, we caught 21 largemouth bass. The underwater terrains of this shoreline and its five points consist of gravel, rocks, boulders, and some silt. This underwater terrain is adorned with a few patches of bushy pondweeds, filamentous algae, and coontail. These areas possess a 25- to 60-degree slope. The water’s edges consist of several concrete retaining walls, 20 docks, one small rock bridge, a few laydowns, several piles of brush, some patches of American water willows, and several overhanging trees.

One largemouth bass was caught around one of the five main-lake points amongst some patches of bushy pondweeds and coontail; it was caught on the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig and a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about six feet of water. Another main-lake point yielded five largemouth bass around wads of filamentous algae in about three feet of water; they were caught on either the PB&J Finesse WormZ rig or the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig; two of the five were caught on the initial drop of these Finesse WormZ rigs; three were caught on a straight-swimming presentation; they were caught in about three feet of water.

Four of the 21 largemouth bass were caught around four of the 20 docks. One was caught on the PB&J Finesse WormZ rig with a swimming presentation in about three feet of water. The other three were caught on the Junebug Finesse WormZ rig; one was caught on a deadstick presentation in about seven feet of water; two were caught on a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation in five to six feet of water.

The other 11 were caught along portions of the shoreline that are devoid of docks. One was caught on the initial drop of the Finesse TRD rig in about four or five feet of water. The others were caught on either our PB&J Finesse WormZ rig or our Junebug Finesse WormZ rig; two were caught on the initial drop in about three feet of water around wads of filamentous algae; the other nine were caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about four to seven feet of water.

We caught 14 largemouth bass along about a 200-yard section of another shoreline in the upper half of this reservoir. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are endowed with a few manmade piles of brush, several areas of coontail, occasional patches of bushy pondweeds, and some wads of filamentous algae. It possesses a 30- to 65-degree slope. The water’s edge is lined with several concrete and rock retaining walls, 25 docks, a few patches of American water willows, one massive laydown, and several overhanging trees. The purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig caught one largemouth bass around one of the docks with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about seven feet of water. The PB&J Finesse WormZ rig caught one largemouth bass with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around a patch of bushy pondweeds in about five feet of water. The Junebug Finesse WormZ rig caught 12 largemouth bass; two were caught around docks with a deadstick presentation in seven to eight feet of water; the other 10 were caught with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about four to eight feet of water.

We spent the final hour of this outing in the lower quarter of the reservoir, where we caught 11 largemouth bass.

We caught one largemouth bass on top of an offshore hump. Its underwater terrain is endowed with piles of rocks and boulders. A few of these piles of rocks and boulders are coated with some meager patches of bushy pondweeds, coontail, and filamentous algae. This largemouth bass was caught on the TRD MinnowZ rig with a drag-and-shake presentation in about four feet of water around some of the massive boulders.

Along a short section of the shoreline that is immediately adjacent to this hump, we caught two largemouth bass. This shoreline has a 25- to 35-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are quilted with occasional patches of bushy pondweeds, coontail, and wads of filamentous algae. The water’s edge is lined with concrete retaining walls, rock retaining walls, and six docks. One largemouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig around patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in about four feet of water. The Junebug Finesse WormZ rig with a straight-swimming presentation caught a largemouth bass around patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in about five feet of water.

We tangled with five largemouth bass along the dam, which is 1,550 feet long with a height of 58 feet. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are occasionally adorned with a few meager patches of coontail, bushy pondweeds, and wads of filamentous algae. It possesses a 50- to 60-degree slope. The water’s edge is graced with a concrete water outlet tower, patches of terrestrial grasses, and a few patches of American water willows. These largemouth bass were caught on the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig. One was caught on the initial drop in about four feet of water. The others were caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in five to about eight feet of water.

We caught one largemouth bass along a short portion of one of the shorelines that is adjacent to the dam. This shoreline has about a 30- to 35-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are endowed with a few patches of bushy pondweed, coontail, and wads of filamentous algae. Two docks float about and around the submerged aquatic vegetation. This largemouth bass was caught on the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in five to seven feet of water.

We caught two largemouth bass along about a 50-yard stretch of the other shoreline that is adjacent to the dam. This shoreline has about a 30- to 35-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are adorned with patches of bushy pondweeds, coontail, and wads of filamentous algae. The water’s edge possesses one dock, a concrete boat ramp, and two tertiary points. One largemouth bass was caught by strolling purple-haze Finesse WormZ and employing a drag-and-shake presentation in the area of the boat ramp in about six feet of water. Around one of the tertiary points, the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig with a very slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation caught largemouth bass number 61.

In sum, we caught an average of 15.25 largemouth bass an hour. None of them were lunkers. The biggest ones might have weighed 2 ½ pounds. But because we are numbers hunters, we relish eliciting oodles of strikes and tangling with at least 10 largemouth bass an hour. And we are such diehard numbers hunters that we are perpetually hoping that we can tangle with 25 largemouth bass an hour, which has become a rare phenomenon nowadays.

Sept. 21

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Sept. 21 outing with Norman Brown of Lewisville, Texas.

Here is an edited version of his log.

From 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., Norman Brown and I fished at a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ hill-land reservoir in the Dallas/Ft.Worth metropolitan area. It is the same one where we both struggled to catch 10 black bass on Sept. 7.

Our original plan was to travel to Oklahoma and pursue some smallmouth bass, but the weather forecast indicated a good possibility of severe thunderstorms at the Civilian Conservation Corps’ reservoir we had planned to fish. Thus, we erred on the side of caution and stayed close to home.

The weather is beginning to cool down a tad in north-central Texas, but it is still humid. The morning’s low temperature was 77 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature climbed to 94 degrees. The barometric pressure measured 29.91 at 7:00 a.m. and 29.96 at 11:00 a.m. The wind blew out of the south-by-southeast at 10 to 15 mph.

The water’s surface temperature ranged from 77 to 79 degrees. The water level appeared to be about four feet below normal pool. The water clarity was 18 inches.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar table noted that the fishing would be poor on Sept. 21, and the most productive fishing would most likely occur from 3:47 a.m. to 5:47 a.m., 10:01 a.m. to 12:01 p.m., and 4:14 p.m. to 6:14 p.m.

We fished a smorgasbord of black-bass lairs in a large tributary arm in the lower end of the reservoir in hopes of finding a motherlode or two of largemouth bass and spotted bass. A few of the areas we targeted were main-lake haunts, but the majority of them are situated inside four feeder-creek arms.

It was still dark when we launched our boat inside the first feeder-creek arm, which is located on the south side of the tributary arm. We immediately deployed the trolling motor and began probing a clay-and gravel flat, several rocky secondary points, 12 boat houses, and the sides of a submerged roadbed that is now exposed on dry land because of the low-water conditions.

This outing started off on a good note. We caught seven spotted bass during the first hour that we were afloat. Two were caught in four to seven feet of water from a small clay-and-gravel flat next to the boat ramp where we launched the boat. They engulfed a Z-Man’s Canada-craw TRD TicklerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce finesse jig that was employed with a steady-swimming retrieve. Two more spotted bass were caught in three to five feet of water from two flat and rocky secondary points about 50 yards west from where we caught the first two spotted bass. They were enticed by a fast-swimming retrieve just below the surface of the water with a three-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ affixed on a blue 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. We then caught another two spotted bass that were abiding in less than three feet of water along a flat hard-clay-and-gravel terrain bordering a crumbling concrete roadbed that is located in the back end of this creek arm. Both of these spotted bass were caught on the three-inch pearl Slim SwimZ rig and a swimming retrieve.

At the entrance to this creek arm, we fished around its most prominent main-lake entry point, which is flat and composed of mostly silt, red clay, and small gravel. This point is also adorned with patches of shallow boulders, chunk rocks, and a dilapidated concrete roadbed. This point yielded one spotted bass that was extracted from three feet of water near a patch of small rocks on a swimming retrieve with the three-inch pearl Slim SwimZ rig.

After we finished fishing this feeder-creek arm, we felt pretty confident that we were on a good bass bite, but during the next three hours, we had a difficult time locating and catching three more spotted bass and two largemouth bass, and inadvertently caught one small white bass.

At the second feeder-creek arm, which is situated on the south side of the tributary arm, we caught one largemouth bass that was suspended about three feet below the surface in 17 feet of water and near a floating tractor-tire reef at the entrance to this creek arm. It was caught on a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a 2 3/4-inch Z-Man’s The Deal TRD TubeZ fastened on a black 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. We fished portions of another floating tractor-tire reef that is positioned about 25 yards away from the first one that we fished and a rocky shoreline that lies in close proximity to the two tire reefs, but we were unable to garner any strikes around them.

Inside this creek arm, we dissected a clay-and-gravel flat, several secondary points, a concrete boat ramp, and two steeply-sloped clay-and-gravel shorelines. These areas stretch from the lower to the upper end of this creek arm. From these areas, we garnered one strike from a spotted bass that was caught in less than three feet of water from the clay and gravel flat on the west side of the lower portion of the creek arm. It was caught on a chartreuse 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig sporting a Z-Man’s The Deal Baby Goat that was employed with a steady-swimming retrieve.

After we finished fishing the second creek arm, we travelled about a mile westward and stopped at two large riprap-covered causeways that lie at each end of two large bridges. From the end section of the first causeway, we caught one largemouth bass and one spotted bass. They were caught in three to five feet of water and within 10 feet of the water’s edge. The largemouth bass was caught on the three-inch pearl Slim SwimZ rig and a moderately-paced swimming retrieve about three feet below the surface of the water. The spotted bass was caught on a swimming retrieve with the Canada-craw TRD TicklerZ combo in less than five feet of water. We failed to elicit any strikes from the other end and sides of the second causeway.

We also probed the sides of 13 large concrete support pilings under the two bridges. These support columns are surrounded by water as shallow as 11 feet and as deep as 41 feet, but we failed to elicit any strikes around them.

Inside the third feeder-creek arm, which lies on the north side of the same tributary arm, we caught only one spotted bass in three feet of water from an offshore rock pile. This rock pile is usually covered with three to five feet of water, but the top of it is now exposed, and it is encircled by receding water that is less than five feet deep. This spotted bass was caught on the initial fall of the three-inch pearl Slim SwimZ rig.

We fished several rock-laden secondary points, two of which are endowed with concrete boat ramps, and a couple of shallow clay-and-gravel flats in the midsection and upper end of the creek arm. But we were unable to locate any more black bass in this creek arm.

We finished the outing at the fourth creek arm, which lies about two miles west of the third one. We fished from one of its rocky main-lake entry points to about halfway back in the creek arm, and we failed to garner any strikes.

In conclusion, the black-bass fishing at this Corps’ reservoir was as problematic this time around as it was on Sept. 7. Everywhere we fished, there were oodles and oodles of threadfin shad, which is typically a key element for us to locate and catch a substantial number of black bass in the Corps’ reservoirs in north-central Texas. However, we could barely muster 10 spotted bass and two largemouth bass around all of these threadfin shad, and none of them were impressive ones.

As for the motherlode of black bass that we were seeking, their whereabouts remain a mystery to us.

Sept. 25

Ned and Pat Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log about their outing on Sept. 25 at a 63-year-old and heavily fished northeastern Kansas’ state reservoir.

Here is an edited version of his log.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 53 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 87. The wind fluctuated from being calm to angling from the north and northwest at 3 to 7 mph. The sky was fair. The barometric pressure was 30.00 at 12:52 a.m., 30.05 at 5:52 a.m., 30.11 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.05 at 2:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be about 12 inches below normal. The surface temperature was 75 degrees. Our dipstick indicated that the water exhibited 2 ½ to three feet of visibility.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., 7:59 p.m. to 9:59 p.m., and 1:15 a.m. to 3:15 a.m.

We made our first casts at 12:34 p.m. and the last casts when we caught largemouth bass number 25 at 2:24 p.m. We also tangled with one bluegill and two crappie.

We spent the bulk of the 115 minutes experimenting with a shortened 6.5-inch Z-Man’s purple-rain SMH WormZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. We shortened it to 4 5/8 inches. We are hoping that it will become our replacement for the 4.5-inch Z-Man’s purple-haze Finesse WormZ, which is no longer manufactured. To our delight, this rig caught 23 of the 25 largemouth bass. One largemouth bass was caught on a slightly shortened Z-Man’s Junebug Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Another largemouth bass was caught on a Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

We spent a few minutes fishing around patches of American pondweeds, American water willows, meager assortments of submerged aquatic vegetation, a pile of brush, and the metal poles of a dilapidated dock along a short portion of a shallow-water shoreline in the back of a tiny feeder-creek arm. Our SMH WormZ rigs caught two largemouth bass. One was caught on the initial drop in about two feet of water in front of the American water willows and around a patch of submerged aquatic vegetation. The second one was caught on the initial drop adjacent to the pile of bush in about four feet of water.

We spent most of this outing dissecting many square yards of a massive shallow-water flat in the back of a large feeder-creek arm. This flat looks to be the size of four or five football fields. Its underwater terrain is embellished with patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and many manmade piles of eastern red cedar trees. A submerged creek channel meanders along the west side of this flat.

This flat yielded 16 largemouth bass. One was caught on the TRD TicklerZ rig with a swimming-and-pause presentation around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in about five to six feet of water. One was caught on the Finesse WormZ rig with a straight-swimming presentation around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in five to six feet of water. Fourteen were caught on our SMH WormZ rigs; five were caught on a short deadstick presentation in five to six feet of water; three were caught on the initial drop in five to six feet of water; the others were caught on either a straight-swimming presentation or a swim-and-pause presentation in five to seven feet of water.

Along a flat shoreline and around a patch of coontail immediately adjacent to the dam, we caught two largemouth bass on our SMH WormZ rigs. Both were caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in four to five feet of water. The underwater terrain of this flat shoreline consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders.

Along this flat shoreline, we also fished around three riprap jetties. We caught two largemouth bass around the first one. We failed to elicit a strike around the second one. Two largemouth bass were caught around the third one. Portions of the riprap are endowed with patches of bushy pondweeds and coontail. All four of the largemouth bass were caught on a short deadstick presentations in three to four feet of water.

In sum, we caught slightly more than an average of 12.5 largemouth bass an hour, or one every 4.8 minutes.

Sept. 26

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log about his Sept. 26 outing with Pok Chi Lau of Lawrence at a community reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

Here is an edited version of his log.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 58 degrees. The afternoon’s high temperature was 81 degrees. The sky fluctuated from being fair to cluttered with a few clouds to mostly cloudy. The wind varied from being calm to angling out of the east, southeast, north, northeast, and northwest at 3 to 10 mph. The barometric pressure was 30.08 at 12:53 a.m., 30.09 at 5:53 a.m., 30.09 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.02 at 3:53 p.m.

The water level looked to be about 12 inches below normal. The surface temperature ranged from 75 to 76 degrees. The water was affected by a slight algal bloom. The water exhibited from four to six feet of visibility.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 8:19 a.m. to 10:19 a.m., 8:47 p.m. to 10:47 p.m., and 2:05 a.m. to 4:05 a.m.

We made our first casts at 11:17 a.m. and our last casts at 3:17 p.m. And we struggled to catch two smallmouth bass, 40 largemouth bass, two channel catfish, one warmouth, one walleye, and a hefty freshwater drum.

A Z-Man’s coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead caught one largemouth bass. A shortened 6.5-inch Z-Man’s purple-rain SMH WormZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig caught one largemouth bass. A Texas-rigged and shortened 6.5-inch Z-Man’s purple-rain SMH WormZ affixed to a weightless size-two offset-shank worm hook with an O’Shaughnessy bend caught one largemouth bass. A slightly shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s purple-haze Finesse WormZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead caught two largemouth bass. A Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ affixed to either a chartreuse 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig or a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead caught 38 largemouth bass

Inside a small feeder-creek arm, we caught four largemouth bass. This feeder creek is located in the middle section of the reservoir. The shorelines inside this feeder-creek are cluttered with 14 large boat docks and two concrete boat ramps. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, and much of the flat and shallow-water areas are quilted with patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad. Two largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig adjacent to one of the docks that floats above patches of coontail in about seven feet of water. The Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig caught one largemouth bass with a slow swim-and-pause presentation adjacent to another dock that floats above patches of coontail in about seven to eight feet of water. The TRD TicklerZ rig caught one largemouth bass on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in about five feet of water.

We caught three largemouth bass around a main-lake point at the mouth of this small feeder-creek arm. This point has a 25-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, which are embellished with patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad. These largemouth bass were caught on our Junebug TRD TicklerZ rigs and a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around the patches of coontail in about six to seven feet of water.

On a shallow-water hump and flat about three-quarters of the way inside a medium-size feeder-creek arm, we caught three largemouth bass. This feeder creek is situated in the lower half of the reservoir. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, which has an area about the size of a tennis court that is adorned with a few patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad in four to seven feet of water. Two of the largemouth bass were caught on the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig, and one was caught on the purple-rain SMH WormZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. They were caught as we employed a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about five feet of water around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation.

On a shallow-water flat in the back of a large feeder-creek arm, we caught one largemouth bass. This feeder creek is situated in the middle portion of the reservoir. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, and a small portion of this terrain is endowed with patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad that are growing in three to eight feet of water. The largemouth bass was caught on the Texas-rigged purple-rain SMH WormZ with a slow swimming presentation on the surface around shallow-water patches of coontail.

One largemouth bass was caught around a main-lake point the mouth of this large feeder-creek arm. This point’s underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders that are embellished with several patches of coontail. The water’s edge is adorned with patches of American water willows, some American pondweeds, and several laydowns. It has a 25- to 35-degree slope. It is endowed with a significant ledge that plummets into deep water. The largemouth bass was caught on the coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ rig with a drag-and-shake presentation around a patch of coontail in about eight feet of water.

We caught 20 largemouth bass across a massive main-lake and shallow-water flat in the middle section of the reservoir. This flat has a gradual slope that eventually drops into deep water. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks, which are endowed with several burgeoning patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad; these patches are covered with four to eight feet of water. The shoreline is graced with one dock, some patches of American pondweeds, and many patches of American water willows. The 20 largemouth bass were caught on our Junebug TRD TicklerZ rigs. One was caught on the initial drop adjacent to the side of the dock in about five feet of water. Five were caught on the initial drop around the patches of submerged vegetation in four to five feet of water. Six were caught as we were strolling and employing a dragging presentation. The others were caught as we were employing a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in four to six feet of water.

We caught five largemouth bass along one shoreline inside a medium-sized feeder-creek arm in the upper half of the reservoir.

The underwater terrain of this shoreline consists of gravel, rocks, and some boulders, which are quilted with occasional patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad. It has a 20- to 40-degree slope. The water’s edge is embellished with several patches of American water willows, many overhanging trees, a variety of laydowns, and a secondary point. The five largemouth bass were caught on our Junebug TRD TicklerZ rigs as we were strolling and employing a dragging presentation around the submerged patches of aquatic vegetation in four to six feet of water.

Around a main-lake point and along about 100 yards of its main-lake shoreline, we caught two smallmouth bass and three largemouth bass. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders; some of this terrain is enhanced with a few patches of coontail, sago pondweeds, and southern naiad. It has a 25- to 50-degree slope. The water’s edge is decorated with several patches of American water willows, many overhanging trees, and several laydowns. One smallmouth bass was caught on the initial drop of the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig along the outside edge of a patch of American water willows in about three feet of water. The other smallmouth bass was caught on the Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig with a dragging presentation in about six to seven feet of water. Two of the largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of the TRD TicklerZ rig between the outside edge of patches of American water willows and inside edges of the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation in about five feet of water. One largemouth bass was caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in the vicinity of a laydown and a patch of submerged aquatic vegetation.

In sum, we caught an average of 10.5 black bass an hour. And there were many yards of main-lake shoreline and three main-lake points where we failed to elicit a strike.

Sept. 29

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his Sept. 20 outing with Todd Judy of Denton and Rocky Soucy of Moodus, Connecticut.

Here is an edited version of his log.

Sept. 29 felt more like a continuation of summer than the beginning of fall. There was bright sunshine and a few distant clouds hovering in the sky. The morning low temperature was 74 degrees, and the afternoon high climbed to a humid 100 degrees. The wind quartered out of the south-by-southwest at 10 to 15 mph. The barometric pressure measured 29.93 at 7:00 a.m. and fell to 29.90 by 1:00 p.m.

The black-bass fishing in north-central Texas has been fair to middling during the past few weeks. Therefore, Todd Judy and Rocky Soucy joined me for a 6 1/2-hour smallmouth bass outing at a scenic Civilian Conservation Corps’ hill-land reservoir in southern Oklahoma.

Rocky is an ardent river and stream trout fisherman. But he also revels in tangling with Mako sharks and yellowfin tuna across the coastal waterways of Connecticut. And on occasion, he enjoys grappling with a few largemouth bass, crappie, and sunfish in the natural lakes near his home.

This was Rocky’s first Midwest finesse outing, and our first outing at this reservoir since May. Todd and I were hoping to introduce him to a couple of Midwest finesse tactics that he could add to his bag of tricks when he is in pursuance of largemouth bass and trout.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the fishing would be great on Sept. 29. The most productive periods would occur from 4:43 a.m. to 6:43 a.m., 10:55 a.m. to 12:55 p.m., and 5:08 p.m. to 7:08 p.m.

We were afloat from 7:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

The water exhibited five feet of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 77 to 80 degrees. The water level appeared to be about four to five feet below its normal pool.

This reservoir’s submerged terrain consists primarily of pea-size gravel, chunky rocks, and boulders. There are some sections of various shorelines that are adorned with thick patches of American water willows, cattails, stumps, and a few thin stands of decayed standing timber.

During these 6 1/2 hours, we plied seven main-lake shorelines, portions of two main-lake humps, and eight main-lake points. Inside a major feeder-creek arm, we fished around three rocky secondary points and across two clay-and-gravel flats. All of these locales are situated in the middle section of the reservoir’s west tributary arm and within two miles of the boat ramp where we launched the boat.

We were a bit concerned that the hot and humid weather, warm water temperatures, and the lower-than-usual water level would adversely affect our abilities to catch a dozen or so smallmouth bass. But to our surprise, we found them fairly easy to locate and allure, and we savored catching 51 smallmouth bass, two largemouth bass, and three green sunfish.

One smallmouth bass was caught on a slightly-shortened four-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. Seven smallmouth bass were allured by a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ matched with a black 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. Eight smallmouths were tempted by a 2 3/4-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD TubeZ rigged on a black 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. And 35 smallmouth bass, two largemouth bass, and three green sunfish were enraptured by a black 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead matched with a three-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ.

Sixteen smallmouth bass were caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Thirty-three smallmouth bass and two largemouth bass were caught on a moderately-paced swimming retrieve about two to three feet below the surface of the water. Two smallmouths engulfed the green-pumpkin TRD TubeZ rig on the initial fall.

All of these bass were caught in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as 13 feet. They were relating to clusters of large rocks and boulders. Because of the low water level, most of the patches of American water willows and cattails were out of water.

The two main-lake humps yielded six smallmouth bass and one largemouth bass. These two humps are usually covered with two to four feet of water and are cluttered with numerous boulders and large rocks. Their sides quickly drop off into 12 or more feet of water. But during this foray, the tops of these two humps were exposed and about three feet above the water’s edge.

The eight main-lake points surrendered 17 smallmouth bass. These points are flat and are covered with patches of chunk rocks and large boulders.

The three secondary points and two clay-and-gravel flats inside the feeder-creek arm failed to yield a smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, or spotted bass. These points and flats are also graced with scores of chunky rocks and boulders.

Twenty-eight smallmouth bass and one largemouth bass were caught near the deep-water sides of the seven main-lake shorelines. Their shallow-water areas are bedecked with chunky rocks mixed with large boulders, some standing timber, and a few stumps.

In closing, this bountiful smallmouth bass outing was a nice distraction from the lethargic black-bass fishing that we have been enduring in north-central Texas. And perhaps Rocky will now have a new trick or two to entice the black bass in Connecticut.