WHO I FISHED WITH: This morning, Feb. 24th, 2020, I fished with Shawn, Micah, and Kameron Chapman of Chapman Woodworking, based in Salado, TX. Back in June of 2019, Shawn’s wife, Amy, got him a fishing gift certificate for Fathers’ Day and today was the day Shawn decided to redeem it.
The three men, along with about 20 other employees of the company, design, build, and install everything from cabinetry to kitchens, baths, bars, bookshelves, mudrooms, and more.
PHOTO CAPTION: From left: Shawn, Micah, and Kameron Chapman with a portion of our catch of healthy, plump, one, two, and three year-old white bass which fell for slabs worked slowly near bottom as a mild, dry cold front pushed in through the morning hours.
WHEN WE FISHED: Monday, 24 February 2020, AM
HOW WE FISHED: We began the day chasing scattered fish under birds on mid-depth flats in three distinct locations, making two short hops at each before moving to the next. Fish would patrol through in small packs and were a bit difficult to convince this morning. We’d only picked up 14 fish and missed another half-dozen by 8:30. When I felt enough light was present to illuminate some of the deeper channel segments, we switched over to fishing the channel and our results improved from that time on. Especially productive was the time from 8:45 to 9:30 when the wind shifted from WSW through W to WNW and increased. After the wind reached WNW, the bite toughened up again.
The go-to tactic all morning was easing with my small, 3/8 oz. Hazy Eye Slabs with stinger hooks attached. Used in conjunction with long rods and Garmin LiveScope, we were able to present baits very efficiently as both bottom-dwelling fish and suspended, cruising fish showed on the sonar screen.
The bite ground to a halt by 11:45. By that time we’d landed exactly 92 fish, including about 5 or 6 drum and the balance being white bass.
TALLY: 92 fish caught and released
OBSERVATIONS: The best concentrations of fish we found were immediately adjacent to the river channel once again today. Most bird (gull) action was focused on shallower, scattered fish feeding on mid-depth flats, wounding just enough sunfish to keep the birds’ attention.
TODAY’S CONDITIONS/NOTES:
Start Time: 7:00A
End Time: 11:45A
Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 62F
Elevation: 3.26 low, +0.04′ 24-hour change, 1 CFS flow
Water Surface Temp: 53.5F
Wind Speed & Direction: WSW at trip’s start, shifting slowly through the west, then to the WNW, and peaking around 9:30 at 13mph, then backing off to 10-11 mph thereafter.
Sky Conditions: 100% grey cover all morning
GT = 55
#WhiteBassFishing #LakeBelton #StillhouseHollow
Wx SNAPSHOT:
AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:
**Area 1980 – scattered fish under birds
**Area SH0010G – scattered fish under birds
**Area 786/SH0002G – scattered fish under birds
**Area vic SH0001C – channel breakline for plentiful whites
**Area vic 1196 – scattered fish under birds
**Area 1502 – channel breakline for plentiful whites
**Area SH0012 – channel breakline for plentiful whites
Post-trip scouting: SH0011G – scattered fish under birds
Bob Maindelle
Full-time, Professional Fishing Guide and Owner of Holding the Line Guide Service
Belton Lake Fishing Guide, Stillhouse Hollow Fishing Guide
254.368.7411 (call or text)
Website: www.HoldingTheLineGuideService.com
E-mail: Bob@HoldingTheLineGuideService.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/bobmaindelle
Twitter: www/twitter.com/bobmaindelle