Author: Bob Maindelle

WEATHER JUST RIGHT FOR FISHING — 64 FISH @ STILLHOUSE

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH:   This morning, Thursday, March 7, I fished with long-time clients and friends Tommy and Sylvia Maedgen of Troy, TX.

Aside from our shared interest in fishing, we also enjoy following Christ, doing right by our spouses, raising dogs and plants, and eating good food.  These things we have in common led us to grab a meal together once a month — something we’ve been doing for quite a while now.

Here is how the fishing went…

Next available dates are 28 March, 2, 4 April. (AMs)

PHOTO CAPTION: Sylvia Maedgen with a 4.75 pound Stillhouse Hollow largemouth bass which stopped her MAL Lure dead in its tracks as she was casting up shallow targeting white bass.

 

PHOTO CAPTION:  Not to be outdone, Tommy Maedgen took this 4.75 pound largemouth as we sat in 11′ of water, casting downslope toward the river channel, again, as we were targeting white bass.  This fish also fell for an MAL Lure (Original) with chartreuse tail worked with a sawtooth method.

 

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir

WHEN WE FISHED: Thursday, 07 March. 2024 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

If I could custom-order fishing weather in the spring, this is the kind of weather I would order.  We had completely greyed over skies, but with clouds thin enough to let enough sun through that you still had to squint without sunglasses on.  The air temperature did not change much overnight due to cloud cover, and the starting temperature at sunrise was 64F.  We had a light southeast breeze all morning, and the air was just a bit humid, so, wearing a long-sleeved shirt felt just right.

We started our morning up shallow and rode the shallow water bite as long as it lasted, then moved out to deeper water in the last 75 minutes of the trip.

 

We searched for topographic anomalies adjacent to the river channel in water under 22 feet in hopes of finding white bass staging for their spawning run (weather or not one actually happens this year).

 

I started both Sylvia and Tommy off using cut down 3 inch, white, curl tail grubs on 3/8 ounce jig heads. I noted their strike to land ratio was not what I wanted it to be on these lures, so, I experimented with an Mal original with chartreuse tail, got bit immediately, and switch them over to the same. Because this lure throws farther and sticks closer to bottom, it was ideal as long as we did not run into hydrilla.

 

We landed 6 fish at the first shallow water area we finished in this matter, 31 fish at the 2nd shallow water spot, and another six fish at the last shallow water stop.

 

After the shallow water bite tapered to nothing, I went and begin searching in over 25 feet of water looking for schooled fish on the bottom, or a collection of suspended fish.

 

We found a bottom oriented school of fish in right at 31 feet of water and begin using white, 5 eighth ounce bladed hazy eye slabs to catch these fish with a slow smoking tactic.  The action here was slower than I felt the weather conditions would allow for, so, we left this slower than expected bite to search for more aggressive fish, and, finding none in several key areas, we returned to this area and continued to catch fish slowly until they quit right around noon.

When all was said and done, Tommy and Sylvia brought 64 fish over the gunwales.

TALLY: 64 fish caught and released

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

 

OBSERVATIONS:  Here was the water temperature measured in 5′ increments from the surface to the bottom in 50′ on the morning of 05 March…

0 feet, 64.4F
5 feet, 64.3F
10 feet, 63.5F
15 feet, 62.3F
20 feet, 61.2F
25 feet, 59.0F
30 feet, 57.2F
35 feet, 55.2F
40 feet, 53.9F
45 feet, 53.1F
50 feet, 52.8F

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:15A

End Time: 12:00P

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 63F

Elevation: 16.92 feet low, 1 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 63.1F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: SSE 4-5 at trip’s start, increasing to SSE 13 by trip’s end.

Sky Condition: Light grey cloud cover all morning.

Moon Phase: Waning gibbous moon at 12% illumination.

GT = 45

 

Wx SNAPSHOT:   

 

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 #austinsubaru

ALL IN THE FAMILY – 54 FISH @ LAKE BELTON

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH: This morning, Wednesday, March 6, I fished with a returning crew of three, including brothers Stiles and Miles Parker, and their mother, Trish Littlejohn.

Stiles has come out with me multiple times and is a real student of fishing.  Now equipped with his own center console with useful accessories for the pursuit of white bass and hybrid, he does well in his own right.

But, no matter how experienced you are, there is always at least a little something you can pick up by fishing with other experienced anglers.  This morning, that nugget was seeing how to approach suspended fish in deep water not relating to the bottom.

Here is how the fishing went this morning…
Next available dates are 28 March, 2, 4 April. (AMs)

 

 

PHOTO CAPTION:  Trish took this hybrid from a horizontal band of fish holding in 35 to 40 feet of water over a 70′ bottom.  We used the white, 5/8 oz. Bladed Hazy Eye Slab to imitate a slowly moving threadfin shad to fool these hybrid with the help of LiveScope.

PHOTO CAPTION: Miles took this hybrid from a horizontal band of fish holding in 35 to 40 feet of water over a 70′ bottom.  We used the white, 5/8 oz. Bladed Hazy Eye Slab to imitate a slowly moving threadfin shad to fool these hybrid with the help of LiveScope.

 

 

PHOTO CAPTION: Stiles took this hybrid from a horizontal band of fish holding in 35 to 40 feet of water over a 70′ bottom.  We used the white, 5/8 oz. Bladed Hazy Eye Slab to imitate a slowly moving threadfin shad to fool these hybrid with the help of LiveScope.

 

PHOTO CAPTION: From left: Stiles Parker, his mom, Trish Littlejohn, and Stiles’ brother, Miles Parker, with a few of the white bass they caught, primarily by slow-smoking a slab past suspended fish.

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Lake Belton

WHEN WE FISHED: Wednesday, 06 March. 2024 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

I’ve found fishing over at Stillhouse over the course of this past week had been getting progressively more difficult thanks to a very rapid warm-up bringing late March conditions to us by late February and early March this year.

 

I found that the fish I had been routinely and consistently catching on Stillhouse were rapidly vacating deep water, were more prone to suspend, and were breaking into smaller schools and dispersing versus homesteading in large congregations as they’d been doing all winter.

 

As I conducted a check of the water temperature profile on Belton, I found it was much the same as the water temperature profile on Stillhouse, with a nearly 10° difference between the surface temperature and the temperature on bottom at 50 feet deep.

 

A dry, mild cold front blew in yesterday, leaving a light northerly wind, and slowly increasing levels of cloud cover in its wake this morning.

 

We found our fish this morning in five distinct locations. The first location and the last location featured fish on bottom which chased my crew’s baits up off the bottom and overtook them.

 

At the middle three spots, we encountered suspended fish and had to rely on Garmin LiveScope to retrieve our baits directly in front of the fishes’ direction of travel in order to get the fish to pursue the lures upwards, overtake them, and then bite.

 

We relied on only one lure this morning – the white, 5/8 ounce Bladed Hazy Eye Slab.

 

In addition to finding suspended fish at these three locations, our attention was drawn to these areas by the presence of, and behavior of birds, including both terns and gulls. I have yet to see any Laughing Gulls thus far this season.

 

When all was said and done, my three-angler crew landed a total of 54 fish , including short and legal white bass, short and legal hybrid striped bass, and short and legal largemouth bass.

TALLY: 54 fish caught and released

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

 

OBSERVATIONS:  Here was the water temperature measured in 5′ increments from the surface to the bottom in 50′ on Lake Belton on the morning of 06 March…

0 feet, 62.2F
5 feet, 62.3F
10 feet, 62.3F
15 feet, 62.3F
20 feet, 61.5F
25 feet, 58.9F
30 feet, 57.6F
35 feet, 57.1F
40 feet, 56.5F
45 feet, 54.7F
50 feet, 53.2F

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:15A

End Time: 12:30P

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 64F

Elevation: 12.24 feet low, 33 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 62.2F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: W6 for the first 90 minutes, then shifting ENE 6 for another 90 minutes, then going calm for the remainder of the trip.

Sky Condition: Partial sun shining through ~40% cloud cover at trip’s start, increasing to a thin, grey layer of clouds at 100% coverage by trip’s end

Moon Phase: Waning gibbous moon at 30% illumination.

GT = 95

 

Wx SNAPSHOT:   

 

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 #austinsubaru

I FISHED WITH THE STONES!! (THE NON-ROLLING KIND) – 54 FISH

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH:   On Tuesday morning, March 5th, I fished with long-time client Mr. Dwight Stone of Georgetown.  Accompanying Dwight was his brother, Duane, and Duane’s adult son, Josh.

Dwight is a retired restaurateur, Duane is an retired Alaska State Trooper, and Josh works in maintenance at a large gold mining operation in Alaska.

Here is how the fishing went…

Next available dates are 28 March, 2, 4 April. (AMs)

PHOTO CAPTION: From left: Dwight, Duane, and Josh Stone with a nice collection of mature Stillhouse Hollow white bass plump and ready to spawn.

 

PHOTO CAPTION: Just throwing this in for fun!!  No extra charge.

 

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir

WHEN WE FISHED: Tuesday, 05 March. 2024 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

The unseasonably warm stretch of weather in late Feb. which now continues into early Mar. has created a scenario with a full 12 degrees difference in water temperature from the surface (64.4F) to the bottom in 50′ (52.8F), and this has definitely impacted the fish and the fishing.

I’ve noted that the fish have vacated deep water (over 40′), they are now much more likely to be found suspended, and the large schools of fish we’ve had all winter are now splintering into much smaller schools.

This morning, I searched for shallow fish in under 20′ early while the light level was still low, and we found a nice school of fish tightly grouped in about 11′.  We cast white, curl-tail grubs on 1/2 oz. jigheads to them and picked up 9 whites and 1 largemouth before these fish either moved on or lost interest.

Shallow fishing is very much hindered by the presence of hydrilla, so, we really had to pick and choose where we tried this.

As this shallow bite faded, the wind began to push WSW around 6 mph, so, we moved to deeper, clearer water and spent the remainder of the trip working white, 5/8 oz. Bladed Hazy Eye Slabs vertically for fish which were either suspended or bottom-oriented (we did not find an area where the fish were both suspended and bottom-oriented).

The majority of the fish we took in this deeper, clearer water came as my crew of three smoothly reeled their slabs right off the tips of the noses of suspended fish just before the fish passed by as seen on Garmin LiveScope.

TALLY: 54 fish caught and released

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

 

OBSERVATIONS:  Here was the water temperature measured in 5′ increments from the surface to the bottom in 50′ on the morning of 05 March…

0 feet, 64.4F
5 feet, 64.3F
10 feet, 63.5F
15 feet, 62.3F
20 feet, 61.2F
25 feet, 59.0F
30 feet, 57.2F
35 feet, 55.2F
40 feet, 53.9F
45 feet, 53.1F
50 feet, 52.8F

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:15A

End Time: 12:15P

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 64F

Elevation: 16.84 feet low, 1 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 64.4F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: WSW6-8 for the entire trip.

Sky Condition: Partial sun shining through ~40% cloud cover.

Moon Phase: Waning gibbous moon at 30% illumination.

GT = 30

 

Wx SNAPSHOT:   

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 #austinsubaru

TEAMING UP WITH TPWD — 52 FISH

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH:  This past Monday morning, March 4th, I fished a special trip with my wife, Rebecca, my friend, Ronnie Trower, and two fine fellows from the TPWD’s Dundee Hatchery in Electra, TX, Cody Talley and Wesley Ide.

Our goal today was to capture large, egg-laden white bass, retain them during the trip, transfer them into a hatchery truck, and send them to the Dundee facility where they are to be used to spawn with male stripers to produce hybrid striped bass.

Here is how the fishing went…

Next available dates are 27-29 Feb. (AMs)

PHOTO CAPTION: From left: Wes Ide, Cody Talley, and Ronnie Trower place Stillhouse Hollow female white bass into a specialized trailer for transportation back to the Dundee Hatchery near Wichita Falls to be used to produce Sunshine-strain hybrid striped bass.

 

PHOTO CAPTION: Despite clear instructions to catch only mature, female white bass, Ronnie Trower, a dyed-in-the-wool bass fisherman, just couldn’t resist putting a few green fish in the boat!!

 

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir

WHEN WE FISHED: Monday, 04 March. 2024 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

After a 145 fish trip on Saturday, I texted Cody over the weekend letting him know that Monday was still not going to be a ‘cake walk’.  Every year about Spring Break time, the strong winter pattern which normally develops by mid-December begins to rapidly break down.  I saw evidence of this on Saturday, and the high temperatures we saw over the weekend just ushered this shift in even more quickly.

In summary, the five of us worked white, 5/8 oz. Bladed Hazy Eye Slabs intensely using a slow-smoking tactic in conjunction with Garmin LiveScope for a full five hours.  As the bite wound down during the noon hour, we had amassed a catch of 52 fish.  This included 13 of the target fish we’d hoped for, as well as numerous quality largemouth bass, freshwater drum, small whites of both genders, and quality male white bass.

The change in behavior I see this time of year involves fish vacating deep water, suspending more and using the bottom less, and seeing the large winter season schools break up into very small groups of 4-12 fish instead of 25 to 60 fish as is the case over the winter.

Cody and Wes truly take pride in what they do, are willing to go the extra mile to do it, and the fishing public directly benefits from their year-round efforts dealing with both the routine, and the many curveballs nature throws their way (like drought, sudden temperature drops, golden algae blooms, and more).

TALLY: 52 fish caught, 39 fish released, and 13 fish sent to the Dundee Hatchery.

Here is a tutorial on the snap-jigging method … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGtrnAQ_T94&t=55s

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

 

 

OBSERVATIONS:  Here was the water temperature measured in 5′ increments from the surface to the bottom in 50′ on the morning of 02 March…

0 feet, 58.3F
5 feet, 58.9F
10 feet, 58.9F
15 feet, 58.7F
20 feet, 58.4F
25 feet, 58.3F
30 feet, 57.1F
35 feet, 55.6F
40 feet, 54.3F
45 feet, 53.6F
50 feet, 52.9F

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:15A

End Time: 1:00P

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 64F

Elevation: 16.84 feet low, 1 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 58.4F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: Calm for the first hour, with winds going S9 thereafter

Sky Condition: Partial sun shining through 60-85% cloud cover.

Moon Phase: Waning gibbous moon at 41% illumination.

GT = 20

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 #austinsubaru

BACHELOR PARTY!! — 145 FISH ON BLADED HAZY EYE SLABS

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH:  This morning, Saturday, March 2, I fished with a crew of five on a bachelor party outing in advance of Jeff Rose’s wedding to be held in mid-March.

The five fellows joining me either are now, or have been in the past, affiliated with the Temple Independent School District where they help maintain the district’s bus fleet.

Although all had fished before, none had fished the way we approached the white bass fishing this morning.

Here is how the fishing went…

Next available dates are 27-29 Feb. (AMs)

PHOTO CAPTION: From left: John Cooper, Lindsey Davis, George Bell, James Horton, and Jeff Rose with a few of the 145 fish they caught and released this morning, March 2nd.

 

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir

WHEN WE FISHED: Saturday, 02 March. 2024 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

After record high temps around 90F on Monday and Tuesday, we dropped back down with highs at only 54F on Wednesday and Thursday. Friday warmed up, but the lack of cloud cover put us back at 46F on the boat ramp before sunrise this morning.

We had some light fog and (worst of all) calm winds with clear, bright skies until around 9:30.  Our results up until 9:30 reflected the tough conditions with only 6 fish landed in two hours of effort.  At exactly 9:34, the lightest ripple of wind approached from the SW with no calm patches remaining upwind.  The fishing turned around “big time” once this wind began.  From 9:30 until 12:20, my five man crew (now VERY well practiced at the tactics they needed to employ) took full advantage of the improving bite.

The fish went strong for a full hour, then slacked off as the wind slacked off for about 20 minutes  — from about 10:40 to 11:00.  The wind picked back up and then blew even stronger than it did earlier from 11AM until we wrapped up at 12:20.

During the entire morning we used only one tactic and only one bait.  Everyone had the white, 5/8 oz. Bladed Hazy Eye Slab tied on and used it with a slow-smoking tactic.  The fish were very choosy as to retrieve speed.  I helped everyone zero in on the correct retrieve speed by using my thumper as a metronome beating faster when the wind blew and the fish swam and chased aggressively, and beating more slowly when the wind was light and the fish were more lethargic.

We closed out the trip with a grand total of 145 fish landed, including 1 largemouth bass, 2 freshwater drum, and 142 white bass.

Here is a tutorial on the snap-jigging method … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGtrnAQ_T94&t=55s

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

TALLY: 145 fish caught and released 

 

OBSERVATIONS:  Here was the water temperature measured in 5′ increments from the surface to the bottom in 50′ this morning, 02 March…

0 feet, 58.3F
5 feet, 58.9F
10 feet, 58.9F
15 feet, 58.7F
20 feet, 58.4F
25 feet, 58.3F
30 feet, 57.1F
35 feet, 55.6F
40 feet, 54.3F
45 feet, 53.6F
50 feet, 52.9F

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:20A

End Time: 12:20A

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 649F

Elevation: 16.84 feet low, 1 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 57.8F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: Calm for 2 hours, then going SW 4-11 for the rest of the morning

Sky Condition: Pale blue skies w/ no cloud cover after a light lake fog cleared by 8:10A

Moon Phase: Waning gibbous moon at 61% illumination.

GT = 0

 

Wx SNAPSHOT:    

 

AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:  

Vic 350, SH0044C, 2022, SH0260G, SH0268G, SH0269G (3 hops), SH0283G (2 hops), vic 980

 

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 #austinsubaru

Chaplain Melin’s Boys Were A Blessing to Have Aboard — 75 Fish

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH:  This morning, Monday, February 26, I conducted the 10th SKIFF program trip of the 2024 season. Joining me this morning were Jonah (14), Huck (12), Eli (12), and Benaiah (11) Melin, the sons of the U.S. Army Captain Danny Melin, an active duty chaplain.  What great kids!  It’s refreshing to see young men who are both  polite and articulate these days.

 

Chaplain Melin’s most recent deployment was with Special Forces out of Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He is currently going through an intensive, 18-month Family Life Program offered only to chaplains to help the equip them for the unique mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of our modern fighting force. Upon completion of this training in December, Chaplin Melin will return to a regular unit to serve as a Family Life Chaplin.

 

Mrs. Carly Melin homeschools their children, hence scheduling this trip on a weekday was a win-win for my schedule and theirs, now that weekends are in much higher demand as spring approaches.

 

ABOUT SKIFF:  SKIFF trips have been provided to military families at no charge since May of 2009.  SKIFF is funded by donations from Austin Fly Fishers, The McBride Foundation, & Austin Subaru.  S.K.I.F.F. provides children of military personnel separated from their families by duty commitments with the opportunity to fish.  SKIFF trips are also provided to Gold Star families who have lost their service member.  In mid-2019, SKIFF began providing trips to kids of bona fide disabled veterans.  I conduct these 3.5 hour adventures on Belton Lake and Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir year ’round.  Call or text 254.368.7411.

Here is how the fishing went…

Next available dates are 27-29 Feb. (AMs)

PHOTO CAPTION: From left: Benaiah, Huck, Jonah, and Eli Melin with a sampling of the white bass they took on white, 5/8 oz. Bladed Hazy Eye Slabs fished vertically using a slow-smoking tactic at varying speeds in conjunction with Garmin LiveScope.

 

 

PHOTO CAPTION:  This largemouth came out of 42 feet of water as Jonah worked his slab upwards, away from the bottom.

 

 

PHOTO CAPTION:  This largemouth came out of 36 feet of water at mid-morning and his Huck’s slab as he worked it toward the surface.

PHOTO CAPTION:  Benaiah was our first to land a largemouth this morning.  It was the second fish we boated.  It came out of 25 feet of water and was our heaviest largemouth at 6.75 pounds on a certified scale.

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir

WHEN WE FISHED: Monday, 26 Feb. 2024 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

The forecast was for an unseasonably warm run of days from Sunday through Wednesday this week, and the meteorologists hit it right on the head.

 

For the first time in a long time, I started the day with only two layers on my upper body, and shed one of those by mid-morning.

That same weather kept the winds light and kept some cloud cover in place, and this morning’s bite reflected those so-so conditions. The fishing started off cold, warmed to a simmer, but never truly boiled over.

 

Fortunately, all of the boys came aboard with prior fishing experience, and were already capable with spinning gear. I demonstrated the slow-smoking tactic for them, using a white, 5/8-ounce Bladed Hazy Eye Slab worked in conjunction with the Garmin LiveScope from a hovering position maintained by the Minn Kota trolling motor.

 

The first hour was our slowest under calm, cloudy conditions. The middle two hours saw average fishing, and our final hour – the only time we had steady winds over six mph – produced nearly half of our catch.

As has become nearly standard for winter fishing on Stillhouse, in addition to plenty of quality white bass, we also caught multiple largemouth bass between 4 and 7 lbs, as well as beefy freshwater drum.

We closed out the trip with a grand total of 75 fish landed, including 6 largemouth bass, two freshwater drum, and 67 white bass.

Here is a tutorial on the snap-jigging method … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGtrnAQ_T94&t=55s

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

TALLY: 75 fish caught and released 

 

OBSERVATIONS:  A record high temperature of 90F is forecast for today’s date, the 26th of February. Birds are still present in good numbers and still helpful in solving the location puzzle.

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:20A

End Time: 11:40A

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 63F

Elevation: 16.81 feet low, 1 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 57.8F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: SSW 0-6 all morning

Sky Condition: Pale blue skies w/ up to 40% white-grey cloud cover

Moon Phase: Waning gibbous moon at 97% illumination.

GT = N/A

 

Wx SNAPSHOT:    

 

AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:  

Vic SH0235G (13 fish), vic SH0240G (8 fish), vic SH0241G (6 fish), vic SH0268G (6 fish), vic SH0280G (27 fish), vic 970 (15 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 #austinsubaru

FISHING WITH U.S. ARMY SSG NARIMANOV’S KIDS — 74 FISH

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH:  This morning, Saturday, February 24th, I conducted the 9th SKIFF trip of the 2024 season.

I welcomed aboard 13 year old Milan Narimanov and his sister, 9 year old Roxana Narimanov. The children’s mom, Tetyana Zeyda coordinated the trip for them, but declined to join them over her concern about motion sickness.

 

The children’s father, US Army Staff Sergeant Ramai Narimanov, has served for 12 years as a Russian language interpreter. He is currently in the midst of a months-long deployment to Southwest Asia.

ABOUT SKIFF:  SKIFF trips have been provided to military families at no charge since May of 2009.  SKIFF is funded by donations from Austin Fly Fishers, The McBride Foundation, & Austin Subaru.  S.K.I.F.F. provides children of military personnel separated from their families by duty commitments with the opportunity to fish.  SKIFF trips are also provided to Gold Star families who have lost their service member.  In mid-2019, SKIFF began providing trips to kids of bona fide disabled veterans.  I conduct these 3.5 hour adventures on Belton Lake and Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir year ’round.  Call or text 254.368.7411.
Next available dates are 27-29 Feb. (AMs)
Here is how the fishing went…

 

 

 

PHOTO CAPTION: From left: Milan and Roxana Narimanov proudly display a portion of their 74-fish late-February catch taken on white, 5/8-oz. Bladed Hazy Eye Slabs.

 

 

 

PHOTO CAPTION:  This nice freshwater drum struck Milan Narimanov’s slab right on bottom in around 42 feet of water.

 

 

 

PHOTO CAPTION:  With fingerless gloves and rosy cheeks Miss Roxana Narimanov battled this largemouth bass into the boat early on in the trip  with an air temp. around 43F.

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir

WHEN WE FISHED: Saturday, 24 Feb. 2024 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

Although both kids had been on a boat previously, neither had ever gone fishing before. Sometimes, that is not a bad thing, as instead of having to undo bad habits, i can jump right into teaching good ones.

 

I explained the importance of a smooth, steady retrieve, and demonstrated how to grip the spinning reels handle lightly so the kids kept their rod tip nearly motionless as they retrieved their baits.

 

We would fish five areas this morning with the fishing getting increasingly better add each one as the skies grew brighter and the wind, although light, became steady and continuously rippled the surface.

We relied on one lure and one tactic this morning. The white, 5 eighth ounce bladed hazy eye slab worked with a slow smoking tactic drew strikes all morning from fish which were both bottom oriented, especially in the 1st 70 minutes, and from fish which were suspended, including fish from as much as 35 to 42 feet deep over a deeper bottom.

 

As has been the case all week, fish eating birds, namely ring build goals, were helpful in getting to the general locations fish were using in the first 90 minutes or so. Well tuned side imaging then helped find the spot on the spot. After the birds dissipated, fish had to be found solely with sonar.

 

In 3.5 hours’ time, my young rookies landed exactly 74 fish, including 71 white bass, two large mouth bass, and one freshwater drum.

Here is a tutorial on the snap-jigging method … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGtrnAQ_T94&t=55s

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

TALLY: 74 fish caught and released 

 

OBSERVATIONS: Although the cold front which came in on Thursday afternoon was mild, it did cause bright, cold, low wind conditions, and definitely hindered the bite in the first hour or so of this morning’s trip.

 

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:20A

End Time: 11:00A

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 43F

Elevation: 16.81 feet low, 1 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 54.1F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: SSW 3-7 all morning

Sky Condition: Cloudless, pale blue skies

Moon Phase: Full moon at 100% illumination.

GT = N/A

 

Wx SNAPSHOT:    

 

AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:  

Vic 100 (4 fish), vic 338 (13 fish), vic 1536 (20 fish), vic 074 (13 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 #austinsubaru

THIRD TIME’S A CHARM!! — 57 FISH WITH THE GARZAS

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH:  This morning, Thursday, February 22, I fished with father and son Jason and Kash Garza (age 8). We were originally scheduled for Saturday, February 10th, in the morning, got rained out, then rescheduled for that afternoon, only to have thunderstorms develop to our west as I was literally in the act of launching my boat.

 

The third time was a charm however, as this morning’s wind and weather, and the warming trend we have enjoyed since late January, all worked together to really get the white bass fishing more reliable and productive.

 

A friendly wager was made right at the onset of the trip, with $1.00 riding on the largest fish, and another dollar riding on the most fish. Kash declined the option for $1.00 for the smallest fish.

Here is how the fishing went…

Here’s an up-to-date calendar so you can check availability: https://holdingthelineguideservice.com/available-dates.php

Next available dates are Feb. 26-29 (AMs)

PHOTO CAPTION: From left: Jason and Kash Garza with a few of the tanker-sized whites they landed.  The one in Kash’s right hand (photo left) measured 14 7/8 inches and was ripe with eggs.

PHOTO CAPTION: Certified scale read 5.00 pounds!!  From just over 40 feet of water — it came off the bottom whereas the white bass were suspended up higher.

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir

WHEN WE FISHED: Thursday, 15 Feb. 2023 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

We had a change of weather forecast today with west-southwesterly winds at 9 to 12 this morning in advance of a very mild, dry cold front due in at early afternoon.

 

This fairly thick gray cloud cover kept the early morning bite a bit subdued and the fish really tight to bottom, but, as the clouds thinned and we saw the first broken rays of direct sun come through at mid morning, the fishing picked up as the fish began to patrol more quickly and to lift up off the bottom for the first time all day.

 

For both simplicity sake, and because it is simply very effective right now, I had both clients use spinning tackle to present white, 5/8-ounce Bladed Hazy Eye Slabs vertically in conjunction with both Garmin LiveScope and my thumping device which serves a second purpose as a metronome helping clients keep their retrieve speed satisfactory.

 

The fishing was very straightforward. When small schools of white bass passed from left to right or right to left on the screen, I had Kash and Jason essentially intercept them with their rising lures to draw strikes.

 

When all was said and done, father and son had landed a total of 57 fish including 7 largemouth bass, 1 freshwater drum, and 49 white bass. This all took place in under 3 hours’ time, as Jason planned to get Kash back to Central Texas Christian School to finish out the day.

 

Birds remain helpful in finding fish during the first two hours following sunrise, afterwhich fish must be found with sonar exclusively.

Here is a tutorial on the snap-jigging method we used … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGtrnAQ_T94&t=55s

 

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

TALLY: 57 fish caught and released.

 

OBSERVATIONS:  Here was the water temperature profile taken on 22 Feb.:

0 feet, 57.2F
5 feet, 56.0F
10 feet, 55.2F
15 feet, 54.5F
20 feet, 54.2F
25 feet, 54.0F
30 feet, 53.9F
35 feet, 53.5F
40 feet, 52.9F
45 feet, 52.5F
50 feet, 52.2F

 

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:30A

End Time: 10:15A

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 63F

Elevation: 16.76 feet low, 1 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 57.2F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: WSW winds 9-12

Sky Condition: Grey cloud cover at near 100% for two hours, then slowly thinning

Moon Phase: Waxing crescent moon at 96% illumination.

GT = 5

Wx SNAPSHOT:    

 

 

AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:  

Area vic SH0080C (3 fish), Area 265 (9 fish), Area SH0240G (39 fish), Area 1692 (6 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 #SubaruAustin

PRESIDENTS’ DAY AFTERNOON – 59 FISH WITH CHIEF WARRANT OFFICER QUINTANA’S SON

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH: This Presidents’ Day Monday I set aside both my morning and evening trips to take soldiers’ kids out on the water fishing through the SKIFF program.

This afternoon I welcomed aboard Sebastian Quintana (age 17). Sebastian is a junior at one of Killeen’s high school and has plans to pursue veterinary science in college following graduation.  He is the currently the proud owner of two turtles, a dog, and a bird.
Sebastian’s father, U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer 2 William Quintana, has served for 18 years.  He is currently deployed within the Americas in the aviation maintenance field on a year-long mission.  Sebastian’s younger brother, Mateo, was slated to join us, but wasn’t feeling well.  Mrs. Farah Quintana, Sebastian’s mom, and a native of the Dominican Republic, joined us.
ABOUT SKIFF:  SKIFF trips have been provided to military families at no charge since May of 2009.  SKIFF is funded by donations from Austin Fly Fishers, The McBride Foundation, & Austin Subaru.  S.K.I.F.F. provides children of military personnel separated from their families by duty commitments with the opportunity to fish.  SKIFF trips are also provided to Gold Star families who have lost their service member.  In mid-2019, SKIFF began providing trips to kids of bona fide disabled veterans.  I conduct these 3.5 hour adventures on Belton Lake and Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir year ’round.  Call or text 254.368.7411.
Next available dates are 26-29 Feb. (AMs)
Here is how the fishing went…

PHOTO CAPTION: The white bass were pretty “perky” this afternoon and readily chased Sebastian’s well-presented slab.

 

PHOTO CAPTION: From October through early March, largemouth bass and freshwater drum are a consistent bycatch as we target white bass.  Today proved no different.

 

PHOTO CAPTION:  Oddly, despite pursuing white bass, our first three fish landed this afternoon were all drum (and the only drum we would land).

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir

WHEN WE FISHED: Monday, 19 Feb. 2024 (PM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

I opted to take Sebastian to Lake Belton this afternoon because Stillhouse typically does not fish well in the afternoon, and that is especially true if it has produced well in the morning, which it did today.

 

I arrived well in advance of our start time to give myself some time to do a little scouting to see if I could find fish and/or bait. I was able to locate two small groups of fish in about 27 feet of water. The fact that they were both in the same depth of water was, in itself, helpful as it gave me a starting point for my search for fish for the remainder of the trip.

 

As we got underway, I returned to these two areas, finding nothing still present at the 1st and catching 3 drum at the 2nd, while also seeing a few small, suspended schools of white bass zip by.

 

We would go on to fish 4 additional areas, each progressively further up one of Lake Belton’s tributaries

 

At each of the four locations I found tightly grouped white bass on a “shoulder” area and found these fish were already up off the bottom and in a feeding posture when we found them. Such an appearance on sonar typically means very easy fishing. Indeed, Sebastian simply dropped a white, 5/8-ounce Bladed Hazy Eye Slab to the bottom and began cranking it upwards keeping beat with the rhythm created by the thumper. The fish just drilled his bait repeatedly.

 

By the time the fish played out at the final area we would fish, it was 4:45 PM. Although the air temperature was in the high 60s, the water temperature was in the low 50s, thus it was chilly on the surface, and both Farah and Sebastian had dressed a bit lightly. They had both had enough of the outdoors by this time, and we rode back in well before the sun began to set, which would only serve to make it even cooler.

 

For his efforts, we boated 59 fish including three freshwater drum, one short hybrid, one largemouth bass and 54 white bass. Although most of these white bass were legal, many were barely so.

A note: we witnessed no helpful bird activity, despite literally hundreds of ring-billed gulls rafted and resting on the surface between Frank’s Marina and Westcliff Park.

Here is a tutorial on the snap-jigging method … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGtrnAQ_T94&t=55s

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

TALLY: 59 fish caught and released 

 

OBSERVATIONS: I spotted the first mosquito hawk of the spring this morning, and the first red-winged blackbird just showed up at our bird feeder.

 

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 2:15P

End Time: 4:45P

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 66F

Elevation: 12.48 feet low, 1 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 52.1 F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: SSW 11 all afternoon

Sky Condition: Cloudless, pale blue skies

Moon Phase: Waning gibbous moon at 78% illumination.

GT = N/A

 

Wx SNAPSHOT:    

 

AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:  

Area 472/B0042C (3 drum), Area 714 (3 fish), Area B0120C/B0169G (24 fish), Area B0118C (17 fish), Area vic B0186C (12 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 #austinsubaru

PRESIDENTS’ DAY MORNING — 50 FISH WITH THE AUSMAN BOYS

by Bob Maindelle

WHO I FISHED WITH: This Presidents’ Day Monday I set aside both my morning and evening trips to take soldiers’ kids out on the water fishing through the SKIFF program.

This morning I welcomed aboard the Ausman brothers, Jameson (age 11) , William (age 9), and Samson (age 7).
The boys’ father, U.S. Army Colonel Charles Ausman, is a logistician currently deployed to southwest Asia where he is winding down a 9-month-long separation from his kids and wife, Jessi.
ABOUT SKIFF:  SKIFF trips have been provided to military families at no charge since May of 2009.  SKIFF is funded by donations from Austin Fly Fishers, The McBride Foundation, & Austin Subaru.  S.K.I.F.F. provides children of military personnel separated from their families by duty commitments with the opportunity to fish.  SKIFF trips are also provided to Gold Star families who have lost their service member.  In mid-2019, SKIFF began providing trips to kids of bona fide disabled veterans.  I conduct these 3.5 hour adventures on Belton Lake and Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir year ’round.  Call or text 254.368.7411.
Next available dates are 26-29 Feb. (AMs)
Here is how the fishing went…

PHOTO CAPTION: From left: Jameson, William, and Samson Ausman with a portion of their 50-fish Presidents’ Day 2024 catch from out of Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir.

 

PHOTO CAPTION: Jameson and Samson double-teamed this large drum.  It was our final fish of the trip, so, I assigned Jameson as the net man as Samson worked the rod and reel, and by hook or by crook, the fish wound up in the boat!

 

PHOTO CAPTION: William brought this channel catfish (an unusual catch on slabs) to net, and Jameson closed the deal with an accurate, well-timed scoop.

Find the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab here: https://whitebasstools.com/

WHERE WE FISHED: Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir

WHEN WE FISHED: Monday, 19 Feb. 2024 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED: 

We got going right at 7:20 this morning and fished until right at 11 AM. Although the two-day cold snap, which began late Friday with an incoming cold front and ended today as southerly winds returned, didn’t help things any, it also didn’t set things back noticeably, either.

 

The fish remained in just about the same locations doing the same things at the same times as they were last week, prior to the cold front. I did note that there seemed to be more actual migratory movement  by fish moving undaunted & straight parallel to the river channel. When I say undaunted, I mean no matter what they might be presented with, their minds were made up that they were just going to keep right on swimming.

 

Only infrequently would one of these fish be duped. Noting this early on, I tried to put the boys on bottom-oriented fish instead, so they did not have to deal with adjusting bait height to suspended fish, nor with detecting a light bite and then setting the hook, given their limited experience.

 

When all was said and done, the boys caught every last one of their fish by doing a slow-smoking, retrieve up off the bottom with most of the fish landed being fish which originated on the bottom and chased the boys’ baits upwards. Birds were helpful for about half of this 3.5-hour adventure. After that, we had to rely solely on sonar. The only bait we employed this morning was the white, 5/8 ounce Bladed Hazy Eye Slab.

 

If I’d had more experienced anglers aboard, I’d likely have given dead-sticking for those migratory fish, a try, but I just didn’t see the wisdom in that this morning.

 

The boys caught exactly 50 fish, including three largemouth bass, two freshwater drum, one channel catfish, and 44 white bass, every last one of which was legal.

Here is a tutorial on the snap-jigging method … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGtrnAQ_T94&t=55s

Here is a tutorial on the slow-smoking tactic we used… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIPopSLUYoQ

TALLY: 50 fish caught and released 

 

OBSERVATIONS: I spotted the first mosquito hawk of the spring this morning, and the first red-winged blackbird just showed up at our bird feeder.

 

WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:20A

End Time: 11:00A

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 35F

Elevation: 16.87 feet low, 1 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 52.1F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: SSW 5-10 all morning

Sky Condition: Cloudless, pale blue skies

Moon Phase: Waning gibbous moon at 78% illumination.

GT = N/A

 

Wx SNAPSHOT:    

 

AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:  

Vic 100 (4 fish), vic 338 (13 fish), vic 1536 (20 fish), vic 074 (13 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 #austinsubaru