Three Generations Aboard — 50 Fish, Belton, 10 Oct.

This past Columbus Day Monday I was joined by Mr. John Matthews, his adult son Derek Matthews (of Belton, Texas), Derek’s daughter, Isabel, and John’s granddaughter from Buda, Texas, Bella Jaimes. We set out on Belton Lake on a multi-species trip, primarily focused on white bass and sunfish.  These fish provide lots of action and keep younger kids engaged.

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From left:  Back row: Derek and John Matthews; foreground: Isabel Matthews and Bella Jaimes.

The girls were alert and energetic as they boarded the boat. I went over a quick safety briefing and introduction to both spinning and casting gear, and then we were off.  Within a few minutes of launching, we had identified heavy schools of white bass blanketing the bottom in 22 to 25 feet of water under still dim conditions.  As the skies brightened, the fish grew more active, and stayed active for about 50 minutes, and then began to move offshore and grow less enthusiastic as the skies brightened.

Over this time, the girls routinely landed singles and doubles of white bass on downrigger rods rigged with Pet Spoons fished just above the level we saw fish appearing at on sonar.

When things got slow, we relocated to deeper structure and continued downrigging.  Occasionally, we’d find a tightly grouped bunch of white bass holding tight to the bottom and would work slabs through them for a few quick fish, but, these fish didn’t stay put very long, and we then kept right on downrigging.  We fished this way right up until 10 AM. By this time, we had landed 38 white bass.

The remainder of our trip we invested in catching a variety of sunfish species up in shallow, cover-laden water. The girls took turns on one long bream rod using worm as bait, and wound up with exactly 50 fish boated for their efforts. Dad and grandpa didn’t fish, but rather came along as moral support, to spend some time with the girls, and to help me help the girls be successful, which was much appreciated.

TALLY = 50 fish, all caught and released

 

TODAY’S CONDITIONS/NOTES:

Start Time: 7:15a

End Time:  11:45a

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 52F

Water Surface Temp:  78.6F

Wind Speed & Direction:  SW5 until sunrise, then calming to light and variable.

Sky Conditions:  Bright, calm, clear post-frontal conditions

Water Level: ~0.16 feet high following a bit of inflow from the area-wide 1″ rain the previous Sunday/Monday, 26/27 Sept.

GT = 50

 

AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:

**Area encompassed by Areas 1804-1655-1803-1790 – downrigging for white bass

**Area 1814 & 1815 – smoking for white bass

**Area 376-1678 – downrigging for white bass

**Area  502 – sunfish

 

Bob Maindelle

Owner, Holding the Line Guide Service

254.368.7411 (call or text)

Website:www.HoldingTheLineGuideService.com

E-mail:Bob@HoldingTheLineGuideService.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/bobmaindelle

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