Published: July 20, 2008 08:04 pm            

Bass fishing tough during hot weather

We’re in the dog days of summer now.

Bass fishing really gets tough and unpredictable at this time of year.

The surface temperature on our area lakes is around 88 degrees. This can be very stressful on the bass, especially if you try to keep bass alive in your live well.

Night tournaments are really taking a toll on the bass population because not many fishermen have live wells that are equipped with good aerators and pumps that re-circulate the water.

Fish need oxygen to live, and hot water doesn’t hold much oxygen. This leads to a high mortality rate.

I’m seeing big bass floating around Lake Jacksonville. I believe many are victims of the Thursday and Friday night tournaments. It’s very hard to keep big bass alive under these conditions.

Frank Lusk and I fished Lake Nacogdoches this week. Bass fishing was tough. We managed to catch a few bass on Nichols’ black rattling spinners, Yellow Magics, Spook, Jr. and worms.

Lusk had two big bass blow up on his Yellow Magic but they quickly came unhooked.

Hydrilla is growing out 10 to 12 feet in some areas. Lily pads are everywhere. Lusk threw a frog bait a lot but only got a few blow ups. We covered a lot of water and saw fish feeding in the edge of heavy lily pads, but they were hard to catch.

This is typical summer fishing. One day you may do good, and the next day will be tough.

I believe a lot of the larger bass are feeding at night. During the full moon this week, night fishing should be good.



Tyler night tournament

The Jacksonville Bass Club fished a night tournament on Lake Tyler last weekend. Eighteen fishermen caught 26 bass up to five pounds. Bites were few and far in between.

Tony and Thomas Goodman took first place honors with four bass totaling 13.5 pounds. Tony’s 5.11 pound bass was the largest of the tournament. The duo targeted brush in 10 to 12 feet. All their bass were caught on trick worms.

Jerry Beasley and Mike Jones came in second with three bass totaling 8.38 pounds. Beasley said, “We caught all of our bass on a black and blue jig in 15 feet of water in front of deep piers.”

The club’s next tournament is on Lake Jacksonville, Aug. 8-9, launching at the concession ramp.

This is a team tournament. Only five bass can be weighed in. Hours are from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m.

Starting in August, the club’s membership will be reduced to $15 for the remainder of the year.

This would be a good time to join.



Jerry Miller can be contacted at: gonefishing@suddenlink.net

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.