05-23-2004, 10:13 PM
[cool][blue][size 1]Hey Leaky, it sounds like you had a good time, but it could have been better. Good idea trading off on the dog-sitting. By this time next year, Sparky should be better able to be left by himself and you can get out farther, for longer.[/size][/blue]
[#0000ff][size 1]If I had all the answers, I would be able to retire rich in short order. I do have some thoughts. Most of my experience on Pelican was from late May through hot summer. In fact, two years in a row, I timed my first trip to Pelican to miss the opening day of trout season, back when they still had trout season. I think that was on June 1. [/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]At that time the bluegills were bedding and you could see the little white spots all over the bottom in six or eight feet of water. There were also lots of them around the inshore reeds and flies fished on a floating line got plenty of action.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Before the weather stabilized and the water warmed past 60 to 65, the bluegills seemed to stay deeper and hit slower. I did my best work with 1 1/2" plastics...twisters or tubes...on 1/32 oz heads. Purples or blacks were usually best. [/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I also did well on my blackish "silver hilton" flies, and on gold or silver bodied "fry flies". There are also times that a big dark green damsel nymph works well. Anytime I was not fishing shallow, I put on a sink tip line and slow dredged deeper pockets. I did not have sonar or temp guages then either, and had to guess what was below me. If I caught fish in an area, I worked it longer.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I am suspecting that the string of weather fronts moving through just has not allowed the fish to stabilize and get into their "normal" activity patterns. Fishing for most species is best after several days of nice weather and warming temps.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]As far as which side of the lake to fish, I think I would have stayed away from the launch area when there was a lot of boat traffic. Probably chased away some of the fish. I used to prefer launching either from the east side, off the road, or on the north side. It stays shallow for a ways, but there are lots of good holding areas and they are the farthest away from the boating traffic.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I just happened to think of another trick I used to use for prospecting for the deep holes...dropshotting flies on spinning gear. Put a split shot on the bottom and the first fly about a foot up. Make another six inch dropper about another foot to 18" up from the bottom one. You can either drag that around behind your tube, or cast and jig it back along the bottom.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]With the "high low" rig you can get through the fishless water without wasting a lot of time. When you get into a concentration of bluegills you will sometimes get a double. That is exciting. And, if you make one of the flies a larger pattern, you can get some nice little bass on them too.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]It is too early to start blaming yourself. You know enough about fishing, and about Pelican, to be able to get fish if they are there and biting anything at all. You only need to start worrying if everybody else is loading up and you can't get bit. And, in the unlikely event that happened, I know you would be watching and asking to find out what you needed to do differently. Sometimes us fishermen got no pride at all. I don't.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]The truth is that it is still called fishing and not harvesting. If you were able to catch a lot of fish on every trip, the challenge would not be as great, and you would not appreciate the good trips when they happen.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Can't even guess what's up with the skeeters. Like a lot of critters, they go in cycles, and you might have got there after the bring spring surge. Of course, the local farmers might have been doing some spraying too.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I could never do well after the water got too warm in the summer. Once you could see blobs of dark green algae floating on the water, the fishing dropped off. I have learned since that it is probably due to a water quality problem. When the algae starts to die off, it takes oxygen out of the water as it decays. The fish I caught in late summer hit lightly and hardly fought at all compared to those taken earlier in the summer.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]The oxygen levels in Pelican are a big factor in winter fishing too. Ice fishing there is usually best just after ice up, and drops off to almost nothing after a long cover of ice. In years like the last few, where the water level drops so much, that creates even more of a stress on the fish and it is probably a miracle there was as much winter survival as there was last year.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Hope Pelican can stay healthy and that the fish get a good spawn this year. Hard to find a lake with bigger bluegills and bass more willing to pop a lure. Keep hitting it and be patient.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Hope that helps. Maybe I have to send you some of my silver hiltons. See the attached Pic. They are the best fly I have ever used on Pelican, and on some of the other waters up there for trout too.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1][/size][/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff][size 1]If I had all the answers, I would be able to retire rich in short order. I do have some thoughts. Most of my experience on Pelican was from late May through hot summer. In fact, two years in a row, I timed my first trip to Pelican to miss the opening day of trout season, back when they still had trout season. I think that was on June 1. [/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]At that time the bluegills were bedding and you could see the little white spots all over the bottom in six or eight feet of water. There were also lots of them around the inshore reeds and flies fished on a floating line got plenty of action.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Before the weather stabilized and the water warmed past 60 to 65, the bluegills seemed to stay deeper and hit slower. I did my best work with 1 1/2" plastics...twisters or tubes...on 1/32 oz heads. Purples or blacks were usually best. [/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I also did well on my blackish "silver hilton" flies, and on gold or silver bodied "fry flies". There are also times that a big dark green damsel nymph works well. Anytime I was not fishing shallow, I put on a sink tip line and slow dredged deeper pockets. I did not have sonar or temp guages then either, and had to guess what was below me. If I caught fish in an area, I worked it longer.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I am suspecting that the string of weather fronts moving through just has not allowed the fish to stabilize and get into their "normal" activity patterns. Fishing for most species is best after several days of nice weather and warming temps.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]As far as which side of the lake to fish, I think I would have stayed away from the launch area when there was a lot of boat traffic. Probably chased away some of the fish. I used to prefer launching either from the east side, off the road, or on the north side. It stays shallow for a ways, but there are lots of good holding areas and they are the farthest away from the boating traffic.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I just happened to think of another trick I used to use for prospecting for the deep holes...dropshotting flies on spinning gear. Put a split shot on the bottom and the first fly about a foot up. Make another six inch dropper about another foot to 18" up from the bottom one. You can either drag that around behind your tube, or cast and jig it back along the bottom.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]With the "high low" rig you can get through the fishless water without wasting a lot of time. When you get into a concentration of bluegills you will sometimes get a double. That is exciting. And, if you make one of the flies a larger pattern, you can get some nice little bass on them too.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]It is too early to start blaming yourself. You know enough about fishing, and about Pelican, to be able to get fish if they are there and biting anything at all. You only need to start worrying if everybody else is loading up and you can't get bit. And, in the unlikely event that happened, I know you would be watching and asking to find out what you needed to do differently. Sometimes us fishermen got no pride at all. I don't.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]The truth is that it is still called fishing and not harvesting. If you were able to catch a lot of fish on every trip, the challenge would not be as great, and you would not appreciate the good trips when they happen.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Can't even guess what's up with the skeeters. Like a lot of critters, they go in cycles, and you might have got there after the bring spring surge. Of course, the local farmers might have been doing some spraying too.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I could never do well after the water got too warm in the summer. Once you could see blobs of dark green algae floating on the water, the fishing dropped off. I have learned since that it is probably due to a water quality problem. When the algae starts to die off, it takes oxygen out of the water as it decays. The fish I caught in late summer hit lightly and hardly fought at all compared to those taken earlier in the summer.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]The oxygen levels in Pelican are a big factor in winter fishing too. Ice fishing there is usually best just after ice up, and drops off to almost nothing after a long cover of ice. In years like the last few, where the water level drops so much, that creates even more of a stress on the fish and it is probably a miracle there was as much winter survival as there was last year.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Hope Pelican can stay healthy and that the fish get a good spawn this year. Hard to find a lake with bigger bluegills and bass more willing to pop a lure. Keep hitting it and be patient.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Hope that helps. Maybe I have to send you some of my silver hiltons. See the attached Pic. They are the best fly I have ever used on Pelican, and on some of the other waters up there for trout too.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1][/size][/#0000ff]
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