Stillhouse Hollow Fishing Report by Stillhouse Hollow Fishing Guide Bob Maindelle

Conditions:

Start Time: 7:00a

End Time: 7:25p

Air Temp: 66F at trip’s start, and 78 for the day’s high

Water Temp: 77.9 to 79.3F

Wind: A light breeze from the NE at 8 at (obscured) sunrise, followed by a NW breeze as the rain cleared out, then light and variable winds from 9 to Noon, then SE breeze the remainder of the day.

Skies: Heavy layer of low murky grey clouds dropped light rain from 6:45a to 8:15a and then slowly cleared, first to a layer of high, thin clouds enough to obscure the sun and make the day bright, but grey, and then to fully clear skies by around 3p.

Fished a full day trip today.

Just after (obscured) sunrise, I headed to Area 64 and found no action during the time the rain fell. At 8:15, immediately after the rain quit and the skies began to brighten a bit, a short topwater bite began. I found fish over 30-33 feet of water feeding on top on small shad. The fish I caught were a mix of largemouth (14-15 inches) and 10-11 inch white bass. I caught 15 fish on the cork rig, and then intentionally left while the bite was still on to see if topwater was also occurring elsewhere. I headed to the basin area and found little happening and little in the way of bait.

I returned to Area 64 and vertical jigged for 21 additional fish, again a mix of blacks and whites with a ¼ oz. slab in silver.

At around 10a, I headed to Area 65 and saw schools of largemouth feeding on topwater here. The action was sporadic, but went non-stop for nearly 3 ½ hours. Long, quick, accurate casts were the key here, and the Cork Rig did the trick for an additional 32 fish over this time span, including 4 white bass, and 28 black, of which 7 went over 16 inches. By 1:45p this action was over. I took a lunch break and returned at 5p.

At 5p, I spotted widely scattered schools of white bass feeding over 45-48′ in open water to the ESE of Area 175. The Cork Rig accounted for 8 white bass and 2 largemouth before the wind picked up to ~11 mph and turned slightly more easterly and put the fish down.

I then went hunting fish with sonar. I found a mixed bag of fish at Area 202 on the slope from 25 to 31 feet. I picked up 1 crappie, 3 small blacks, and 1 drum here with no evidence of white bass seen on sonar.

I fished up the trip at Area 34, arriving just 20 minutes prior to sunset. These fish were stacked up on the 22 foot rise here and were very aggressive. These white bass repeatedly raised up off bottom to meet the spoon as it fell, and then chased the spoon hard while I used a smoking retrieve. I tallied 13 fish here, including 11 whites between 11-13 inches, and 2 largemouth, both dinks.

TALLY = 96 FISH, all caught and released

Bob Maindelle, Owner Holding The Line Guide Service and Kids Fish, Too! Stillhouse Hollow Fishing Guide, Belton Lake Fishing Guide, Lake Georgetown Fishing Guide, Walter E. Long (Decker) Lake Fishing Guide. Offering Salado Fishing, Killeen Fishing and Ft. Hood Fishing