Stillhouse Fishing Report by Stillhouse Fishing Guide Bob Maindelle

Fished a half day morning trip today with father Dave B. Sr. of Missouri and son Dave B. Jr. of Waco.

Conditions:

Start Time: 7:00am

End Time: 1:15pm

Air Temp: 65F at trip’s start, warming to 76F by mid afternoon

Water Temp: 74-75F

Wind: A promising SW breeze blew pre-dawn at about 8, but then, by sunrise slacked off to near calm. From then on, the breeze only puffed lightly from the SSW and never got up and sustained.

Skies: Skies were bright all day. The sun was brilliant in the morning, then toned down a bit in the afternoon due to fair skies caused by increasing humidity.

This was a tough trip today. Dave Jr. and Dave Sr. desired to fly fish. I suspected our best, and perhaps only, shot at fish on the fly was going to be around sunrise for whites, and, possibly, for schooling largemouth thereafter. So, we posted ourselves between Areas 206 and 232 and kept a sharp lookout for fish and birds. Some very light activity occurred with just 2-3 fish wolfpacks popping shad on top, and a single large school of whites showing just briefly. Within 20 minutes after sunset even this ended, and things went downhill. For the next 40 minutes nothing happened on top at all.

Fearing that the period of the morning feed was going to slip away on us as we sat and wait for diminishing chances at fish on the fly, we changed over to conventional tackle, an, over the course of the next hour managed to put a mixed bag of 8 largemouth and white bass in the boat by downrigging in 37-42 feet. Over this time, we saw occasional wolfpacks of largemouth feeding sporadically over open water, but nothing solid or sustained enough to attempt even with conventional gear.

With mid-day approaching and the wind still very light from the SW, we checked multiple other areas, but never found active fish.

We ended the trip around 1:15p and had to settle with just that handful of fish caught mid-morning on the downrigging gear. We enjoyed one another’s company at lunch at the Stillhouse Marina where we shared some fly tying techniques and where Dave Jr. showed me his first handmade bamboo fly rod. Great company and an enjoyable pair to be with, but the fish just didn’t cooperate today.

TALLY = 8 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