WHO I FISHED WITH: This past Wednesday afternoon, 23 November, I fished with returning guests Steve Niemeier, his adult daughter, Emily Haberer, and Emily’s daughter, seven-year-old Zoey Haberer, all from right here in Central Texas.

Steve is a real plan-ahead guy who understands how the fishing ebbs and flows through the seasons.  He always books well ahead for the peak fishing from late March to late May, and again for the autumn peak, normally from late October to mid-December.

We had two trips booked for Steve for this past Monday so he could accommodate as many grandkids as possible during their Thanksgiving break, but the weather turned wet and cold, so, we wound up doing just one trip today.

Here is how the fishing went …

______________

 

PHOTO CAPTION:  From left:  Mrs. Emily Haberer and her daughter, 7-year-old Zoey Haberer, hoist Zoey’s 7.75-pound Lake Belton hybrid striped bass.  This fish was taken on a white, 5/8 oz. Bladed Hazy Eye Slab with stinger hook.  It is one of the top 10 heaviest hybrid I’ve had clients land in 17 years of guiding.

 

 

PHOTO CAPTION:  From left: Emily & Zoey Haberer and Steve “Babu” Niemeier with a few of the solid white bass we caught in our take of 102 fish this afternoon.

 

WHERE WE FISHED: Lake Belton

WHEN WE FISHED:  Wednesday, 23 November 2022 (PM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

As I mentioned in my previous report, our lengthy downward trend on water temperature continued today, making it an unheard of 13 consecutive days over which at no time did the air temperature exceed the water temperature.  This has led to one of the fastest lake cooldowns I’ve seen in my 30 years on Central Texas reservoirs.

Although the weather (big picture) is far from stable, this afternoon’s weather (small picture) was not as crazy as this morning’s was, and the fish did feed throughout the afternoon.  It was not a very aggressive feed, and we wound up moving pretty frequently as we observed that the fish would not stay “fired up” very long, but were were able to put together a solid catch.

Thanks to the quickly dropping water temperature, I’ve re-rigged my primary rod/reel combos with the Bladed Hazy Eye Slabs with stinger hooks attached.  This is a lure of my own making, incorporating the time-tested features of a slab with the fish-attracting flash of a spinning blade which has makes the Mepps MAL Lure so effective.

We used a “slow-smoking” tactic to work this bait up through the fish we saw suspended on sonar, as well as to draw fish up off the bottom.  This kind of fishing can be tedious and demanding when done correctly, so I was very impressed at how well Zoey did.  She stayed focused, adjusted her technique when need be, and was rewarded routinely for her efforts.

When all was said and done, this crew landed 102 fish including 2 legal hybrid (one @ 7.75 pounds), 8 short hybrid striped bass, 4 freshwater drum, 2 largemouth bass, and 86 white bass.

TALLY: 102 fish caught and released

Find Bladed Hazy Eye Slabs with Stinger Hook here: https://whitebasstools.com/

OBSERVATIONS: 1) 8th consecutive trip helpful bird activity.  Birds active 3:50-5:00P today. Water temperature profile was as follows:

0 feet 61.5F
5 feet 61.2F
10 feet 61.1F
15 feet 60.9F
20 feet 60.9F
25 feet 60.3F
30 feet 59.0F
35 feet 57.5F
40 feet 57.1F
45 feet 56.9F

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 1:15P

End Time: 5:15P

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 60F

Elevation: 13.43 feet low, 0.01′ fall in last 24 hours, 40 CFS flow.

Water Surface Temp: 61.5F

Wind Speed & Direction:  SE4-6

Sky Condition: Solid grey sky all afternoon.

Moon Phase: New moon at 0% illumination.

GT = 55

Wx SNAPSHOT: 

 

 

AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:

Area 1942/B0155G – slabbing for 4 fish

Area B0012C/B0119C – slabbing for 29 fish

Area vic 1141- slabbing for 26 fish

Area 1548 w/ 2 hops – slabbing for 27 fish

Area B0043G – slabbing for 16 fish

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

#WhiteBassFishing #LakeBelton #StillhouseHollow #BeltonFishingGuide #LakeBeltonFishingGuide #BeltonLakeFishingGuide #stripers #stripedbassfishing #rockfish #sandbass #freshwaterfishing #fishing #bass #bassfishing #whitebass #panfish #crappie #fishingonaboat #fishingtackle #fishinglife #fishingsport #fishingaddict #fishingpicoftheday #fishingtime #fishinggear #fishingday #Fitec #mepps