02-12-2009, 10:00 AM
<br />Hal took me fishing again this morning. We launched at 8:30 from Tyner Lane ramp. It was a balmy 20 degrees when we started fishing. Actually had to drop 3 of my crappie stake structures before we started fishing. There is 5 feet of water over the tops of the stakes before anyone gets worried. emoBig
<br /><br />The water temp at the ramp was 38 degrees, but there was a lot of ice on the surface of the water in the shaded parts of that cove. We ran to the river where the water temp was 41.4 degrees. Stopped at Harrison bluff and Hal snagged a 2&quot; threadfin. There were bunches of these fish flipping on the surface all down the bluff. Stressed out because of the water temp no doubt. No crappie there that we could get to bite. Went to docks and after a very slow start, someone rang the breakfast or lunch bell and the crappie went into a feeding frenzy that lasted for about 1 hour. We caught the bulk of our fish between 10:05 and 11:15. We were in 18 feet of water, but the countdown of the lure was only 4 and then a slow, but steady retrieve with very slight &quot;palsy&quot; twitches was what it took to trigger the fish into biting.<br /><br />The best lure today was a Bobby Garland shad on a 1/32 oz jighead with bleeding hooks. We did catch some on stingers too, but the bite really picked up when we switched to the BG shads. We also caught 3 spotted bass and 2 bluegills. The total crappie was 30 with 25 or 26 of them being nice keepers. The smallest that I caught today was 10.5 inches long. Most of the fish ran in the 11.5 to 13&quot; range. I only weighed one and it was 1 lb 6 oz. I caught one black nosed crappie that was right at 12&quot; long. Pretty healthy fish. The black nosed down here are pretty rare as TWRA has never stocked Chickamauga with black nosed crappie. This was an escapee from Watts Bar. We quit fishing just before 1:00 pm. We released all fish. I hope that I get my boat back this afternoon so that I can go again tomorrow. I have been offered a ride with a couple of you and I may take you up on it. Look for a pm tonight. emoBig emoGeezer
<br /><br />The water temp at the ramp was 38 degrees, but there was a lot of ice on the surface of the water in the shaded parts of that cove. We ran to the river where the water temp was 41.4 degrees. Stopped at Harrison bluff and Hal snagged a 2&quot; threadfin. There were bunches of these fish flipping on the surface all down the bluff. Stressed out because of the water temp no doubt. No crappie there that we could get to bite. Went to docks and after a very slow start, someone rang the breakfast or lunch bell and the crappie went into a feeding frenzy that lasted for about 1 hour. We caught the bulk of our fish between 10:05 and 11:15. We were in 18 feet of water, but the countdown of the lure was only 4 and then a slow, but steady retrieve with very slight &quot;palsy&quot; twitches was what it took to trigger the fish into biting.<br /><br />The best lure today was a Bobby Garland shad on a 1/32 oz jighead with bleeding hooks. We did catch some on stingers too, but the bite really picked up when we switched to the BG shads. We also caught 3 spotted bass and 2 bluegills. The total crappie was 30 with 25 or 26 of them being nice keepers. The smallest that I caught today was 10.5 inches long. Most of the fish ran in the 11.5 to 13&quot; range. I only weighed one and it was 1 lb 6 oz. I caught one black nosed crappie that was right at 12&quot; long. Pretty healthy fish. The black nosed down here are pretty rare as TWRA has never stocked Chickamauga with black nosed crappie. This was an escapee from Watts Bar. We quit fishing just before 1:00 pm. We released all fish. I hope that I get my boat back this afternoon so that I can go again tomorrow. I have been offered a ride with a couple of you and I may take you up on it. Look for a pm tonight. emoBig emoGeezer