7 days with no fishing comes to an end! 6-16-2017 Round Lake

[djkimmel]

Wow! Between various reasons and the thunder storms forecast for almost every day I hadn't been fishing since last Thursday... and it was showing!! Even though they were calling for isolated or scattered thunderstorms yesterday (Friday, June 16, 2017), I just couldn't take it anymore. They were calling for winds of 'only' 10-20! So off to Round Lake I headed nice and early!!

I was ready to electric motor out to my starting spot at 6:05 am with no one else there! When I left SW Lansing it was partly cloudy with some sun. As I drove to the lake just NE of Lansing it became overcast with somewhat menacing, wet-looking clouds?!? As soon as I pushed the little 12 foot rowboat off the shore, it started to rain - wish I had a $1 for every time this has happened in my life...

But, it was a slow, light rain - big drops but not a ton of them. I quickly put on my rain suit because I had a feeling it was going to be raining harder shortly. Motored out the where I had decided to start - the big point. I stopped the trolling motor, picked up my topwater rod after getting a few cast-back rods ready... and it thundered...!?! @#$%@!

You've got to be kidding me...?? They've been wrong with the forecasts ALL week but now that I decide to go fishing they're going to be right, and the 'scattered' or 'isolated' thunderstorms have to be right where I'm at?? Of course, this is like an old friend to me anymore after all these years of similar 'coincidences.'

I hesitated. Looked back at the clouds getting darker and thicker... and turned the boat back to the launch site. I heard one more distant menacing rumble just before I got back to shore. I love fishing... the odds are probably low... but I just don't want to be the only guy on the lake who gets hit by lightning... Might be hours before anyone even notices my boat floating around looking empty... 

There's lots of trees and cover at the launch so I sat there getting a little rain on me waiting to see what happens... to see what I'm up against I tried to load some weather radar. Unfortunately, I always have a poor and intermittent cell signal at Round Lake so the first 2 weather apps and websites I tried to load wouldn't work right. My 3rd try luckily - Weather Underground - worked, though somewhat slow and intermittent at times. But at least I could get something.

There was one visible line of rain with possible storms with one of the heaviest spots coming right at me... @$#%@#$!! Figures... It appeared to be moving really sloooooowww... though the center of the band of weather that was passing across the middle of Michigan appeared thin. That was the part that looked like it would pass over me NE of Lansing.

I kept thinking about risking it... I never heard anymore thunder but I kept looking at the angry red spot heading right for me... and hesitated. I waited quite a while with nothing really happening - light rain and thick clouds. No thunder. Finally, it looked on radar like it might be breaking up in the middle and the rain stopped. I hadn't heard anymore thunder so I went for it! After not fishing for a week, I wanted to go fishing really bad!!

I had lost a whole hour of fishing while heading in, waiting, and heading back out!! Rats! But, I hadn't been zapped by any lightning, so that's just the way it goes sometimes...

Though I had almost seen the sunrise when I first arrived - quickly blotted out by the front's clouds - it was now moderately gray, overcast but that kind of quiet stillness that sometimes follows right after a storm front moves through... that part was enticing anyways...

So I started on top of the big point facing the drop off and the still surprisingly green milfoil clumps just off the break. I picked up an old topwater Sammy (I keep calling it a Gunfish by mistake - don't know why I can't keep it straight...??) that seems to be leaking now sometimes, though I've tried to seal it up recently. It doesn't seem to be working the dog-walking as right as it did so I may have to retire it. I only have 2 different Sammys of different colors that I bought years ago on sale. I like them for when I want something a little more 'finessy' than an actual Spook. I think this one is a ghost minnow color.


I was casting across the flat, and back over the break from shallow as I worked my way out the point. About half way out I saw what looked like a stealthy attack on near-surface panfish. I cast the Sammy out past the spot and walked it quietly back through the spot between the break and a thick milfoil bed when a bass came quietly across the surface from behind and grabbed the Sammy!! No splash and just a ripple... but I set the hook into this really nice 3+ small lake largemouth bass!! It jumped several times and fought hard but I got it.

Good thing I wasn't in a tournament because it was hooked under the 'chin' probably because it came from behind and the lure grabbing it by the top of the back. It happened bast but it was one of those bites that seemed like slow motion because it wasn't the crashing attack you often get from topwater action!! A very nice start though and great because I landed the quality bass and got a picture.

Though it wasn't blowing much at this time I had also dropped the anchor so I wouldn't move hardly at all from that spot. After I unhooked the bass and shared a quick post (probably, looking back I should have assumed more bass and made some casts first, but it was early in the morning and I probably wasn't yet completely awake and alert!), though I didn't see any more attacks I had a feeling this time of the morning there could be little schools probably working the panfish schools.

Not sure why I didn't cast the Sammy again - maybe because I wasn't seeing anything on top again? - but I picked up the wacky rig (6" Canadian Mist X-worm, no weight on a weedless hook through crisscrossed o-rings) and tossed it past the little drop towards the milfoil clump (guessing about where it was since I couldn't see it from where I was sitting shallow). I didn't see any obvious change but it appeared the lure picked up speed as it dropped so I set the hook! SOLID!!!

I felt a strong fish, nice head-shakes and even stripping out a little line on the run... It tried to head for the surface so I moved the rod low and to the side. Felt like I was hooked up solid and I had it on for several seconds moving it a 3rd of the way to the boat before it busted the surface with one of those beautiful head-shaking, gill-rattling jumps!!! And threw the wacky rig right back at me!?!?! ...another big lost bass?!? It was at least a 4-pounder!!?! darn... (@#$%#@! )

What is going on with me and all these lost nice bass?? I had switched to light braided line with a 15 pounds test Fluorocarbon leader recently thinking that would give me good hook sets?!? But I've lost 2 nice bass now since I did that...?? I had switched to a weedless wired 'wacky' hook that's about a 2/0 short shank with a wide round bend. I think I'm no longer liking some of these wacky hooks...??

It's a heavier wire hook with a fairly stiff double wire weedless rig. In this case I think the weed guard wire is getting in the way of the hook point...? I have to constantly rebend the wire from many different contortions ...though I don't seem to have a problem hooking and landing most of the small bass that hit it??

After this fish I immediately retied the rig going back to a smaller, lighter wire Gamakatsu wacky hook that has a plastic weed guard that doesn't do a lot of 'guarding' but also doesn't seem to get in the way of the hook much... regardless, it seems like these hooks don't hook as well when I try to do a 'Bassmaster' hookset but only when I just tighten up and keep the line tight... I may start experimenting with different hooks on the wacky rig since I'm just not liking the hooking properties of a lot of these so-called 'wacky' hooks. I forgot I have some heavier wire hooks with a brush fiber weed guard from Kustom Kicker. I'm thinking I had better hooking percentages with these but the ones I have are weighted so I need to see if they have any unweighted versions? Maybe that will solve my problem?

Again, I probably should have picked something else up right away and casted back to the hot spot but this wacky rig frustration has been getting to me...


After I retied I actually picked up the weightless Texas-rigged Kickerfish white gold Shad Stick instead and cast out over the same spot. I was working it pretty much like a slow jerkbait back when I felt a nice tick and set the hook!! Felt solid but not big. It put up a good fight and turned out to be a fat little just keeper-sized largemouth bass.

I tried a selection of lures after that on the same spot but only had a tentative bite, hooking no more. I decided to move on out the point while things were quiet and calm still since there was still some surface commotion going on in many places.

Unfortunately, for awhile I didn't catch anything other than dinks and a couple hammer handle pike (that part not bad though because it is below my average so far this year!!). I had decided before heading out that I was going to look for the bigger bass out deep past the breaks looking for some clue to where the rest of the bigger bass are. So I began slowly working my way across the deeper flats past the breaks in 10-15 feet of water. I was throwing various Texas-rigged lures (mostly a Power Worm or a Bullet Craw) and some deep crankbaits.

I was hoping to find some deeper weed clumps. There had been a few in past years. But I kept coming up clean. I did have one nice tap on the Bullet Craw out there but it apparently let go right away. I had one other cast that felt like a bite but didn't hook anything. I tried a variety of colors and presentations hoping to entice whatever was out there but couldn't get another bite.

Another thing to mention about this day is that the skies and wind were changing a lot all day long. I know that had an effect on the fish because I could often see changes in the activity levels, and the bite would slow down or pick up.

While I was working the deeper water, the skies slowly cleared and it got bright and mostly sunny. The wind picked up and then died back down a couple times. I worked my way all the way across the deeper water almost to the weeds along the edge of the sunken island (which has been pretty pitiful so far this year).

It got mostly cloudy again and the wind died down. Shortly after it did the panfish and minnows moved to the surface again in big schools! They were all around the lake side of the hump with some on top of the hump too, mostly around the thicker weeds. I started seeing some smaller bass attacking the panfish here and there. I think I was seeing some crappie going after minnows too.

Things started to happen a little faster. At first, I stayed more than a long cast outside the weed edge still looking for deeper weeds. I only found a few very small patches out deeper but I started to get a few bites on the Texas-rigged Power Worm. I was using my regular Round Lake green pumpkin as usual. I caught a few dinks. I reached just into the thicker outside weeds when I got tapped and set the hook! I thought I had a good fish but it buried me into the milfoil solid!! I kept pressure on it and prepared to go after it when it started to move. Barely... I ended up pumping and reeling in about 30 pounds of milfoil with a @#$%# hammer handle pike.

Shortly after, I got thumped hard out in the open and set the hook! Bit... off... clean... !#@$@#! This was on 30 pounds test braid... pike really like those shiny Tungsten bullet sinkers. I was using a tiny 1/4 oz but they are expensive as you know...

I retied and kept casting, feeling for any isolated cover out deeper hoping for a bigger bite. I caught another dink or two by casting at the most nervous panfish schools. I got a little better bite and landed a barely keeper, long and lean. Then another solid thump and another clean bite off!!! I just set the hook hard out of habit but that was probably what helped the darn pike bite right through my braid!! Another expensive Tungsten worm sinker gone... Aie yi yi...

That was the end of my retying with shiny Tungsten sinkers for a while. I changed to a much cheaper (but bigger) 1/4 oz red lead bullet sinker. I love the feel with and smaller size of Tungsten but it starts getting expensive in a hurry when the pike start biting you off. I have bought some thin, tie-able steel leader to try but I guess I didn't feel like digging it out just yet. I have a feeling in the darker water of Round Lake it probably won't actually effect the bite a lot. I'll have to test that out one of these days...

Meanwhile, I was getting low on green pumpkin Power Worms so I switched to electric blue. I caught a few more small bass and one more pike (I just tightened up and reeled this time to see if I could avoid the bite off, and it worked this time) by casting at the most nervous panfish some more.


But I was noticing more obvious attacks on the surface-feeding panfish and minnows so, thought it was now early afternoon, I broke the Sammy back out. I saw a bass or two attack a school out further away from the break and I cast the Sammy over the spot. I started walking the dog and the lure just dunked under with no splash or even a ripple... and the fight was on!! I landed this small, chunky just keeper bass. It was maybe the quietest topwater bite I've ever had!!

I kept moving along and had several more exciting strikes but they all appeared to be small bass and none of them hooked up. One even hit the lure twice without hooking up either time!! I even tried throwback lures but I can only assume the bass were moving fast because I didn't get bit on anything else that way.

The wind picked up again and the surface activity died down again. It had gotten cloudier again too. I decided to try the weed edge and breaks off the popular spawning flat I had been fishing the last few times out. Though there was a good ripple on the water, there was still a tiny amount of surface activity though it only appeared to be the panfish along here. I fished out from the weeds going back and forth between the Texas-rigs and the wacky rig. I tried right on the weed edge. I even went up and dunked into some big to small holes in the weeds. Nothing much was happening.

I decided to go back to the big point where I'd had my best action earlier to see if I could find some bass moving in and out maybe, or laying in the thicker weeds off the break. Even though it was Friday, the lake was starting to get busy. I've seen way more boats, boaters, skiers and jet skis on the tiny lake this year than in past years more often. I had to fish around a few people - some fishing for panfish and some fishing for bigger fish like me.

I first tried the other side of the point but got no bites this time. So I moved to the side I had the bites on this morning. I was still overcast and the wind was blowing pretty good now so I would anchor and fish slowly all around the boat before moving a little and repeating the process. I mostly stuck to the Texas-rigs for the feel and to get it down there near the bottom quicker.


I had just moved over to the 'good' side and was fishing the 'corner' closest to shore when I saw something attack some panfish outside the dropoff weed edge. I cast the 7 inch Power Worm into the middle of the surface disturbance and let it drop (I think I was using either electric blue or black/silver at the moment). The worm started dropping and then doubled or tripled in speed so I set the hook and got this decent largemouth on. It had a big open wound on its tale maybe 2 inches wide on the other side from this picture but it fought pretty hard nonetheless!!

I threw back in there a few times and might have had a bite again but I didn't hook anything. I started moving out the point anchoring near the edge and casting up and down the drop and out into or over the deeper weed beds. Every little bit I would get another bite but mostly I was catching a bunch of dinks. I did have one solid bite and set the hook to feel a strong fish!! It got me down into the milfoil head-shaking and stripping line before burying up. Seconds later I broke free but only reeled in a wad of weeds and no fish... I think it was a good bass?!? I never had a dogfish on all day that I know of  but they were rolling around all day so it could have been a dogfish, or even a pike but it didn't feel like one of those.

[djkimmel]

continued...


I was about 3/4 of the way out the point when I cast back behind me down the base of the dark drop inside the thick weeds. This worked several times  this afternoon but for dinks so far. I had hopped the worm (electric blue) and then paused it when it got thumped HARD only a dozen feet from the boat!! It felt more like a pike but I set the hook and was pleasantly surprised to land another nice largemouth bass. Not big but solid!!

That was my last keeper of the day. I fished my way out about to the tip of the point with the wind blowing stiff. Even with the hard breeze and the steady ripple on the surface some panfish were now feeding on the surface again and there was one spot out near the tip where a lot of them were feeding over a deeper milfoil bed. These panfish kept exploding like they were real nervous and maybe getting busted though I didn't see this for sure.

I didn't get any bites on the Power Worm so I picked up the wacky rig and tossed that out into the middle of them out past the weeds a little deeper. I still had no weight on so I had a big bow in the line, but I had the light braid on as the main line so I still felt thick nice tick in my line and saw the lure take off. I set the hook and got it but it was another dink. This same thing happened 3 more times as I just scatter cast out off the tip of the point around the boat. They were aggressive but all dinks.

That bite petered out and though I tried some other lures from the edge to out deeper I didn't get anymore bites so I started working my way back down the point heading towards the launch.  I had a couple more bites but they weren't good ones and I didn't hook up. It felt like a mix of small pike and bass that weren't hanging on after hitting the lures. It was time to go in as I had a jet boat and two jet skis doing circles around me - not coming super close but making my little boat rock a lot. There were more anglers out and a number of pontoons running around too.

There were also 2 speed boats (WHY on an 80 acre lake?!?) and one wouldn't start but the other one started towing kids on a tube (too fast so they never stayed on more than a few seconds each run... genius!). It kind of rocking and rolling out there sounding a little more like Lake Lansing on the weekend... so I called it a day.

I still don't know for sure where the bulk of the bigger bass are though some are around the big point but apparently mostly feeding real early in the day before holing it up somewhere... maybe in the deeper, thicker weeds? I even found a few more big bass beds in a couple spots - empty now but stored away for next year...

I guess I'll have to get back out there and just do some more prospecting. I'm still surprised how much of the milfoil is still alive and green despite the Sonar treatment?? It appears more of the pond weed is dying and that is generally more scattered and sparse. I did see a sign at the ramp that 2 days before they again treated the lake, this time with copper sulfate because, as I previously mentioned, the algae was exploding, maybe because of their previous weed treatment, maybe a coincidence?

There's still a lot of slimy green algae out there coating the weeds in some places, especially where the weeds appear to have thinned out a little but there's noticeably less algae in many spots already. I am wondering what the rest of the season's weeds will be like?? Probably nothing like previous years considering by this time other years most of the milfoil was dead and sunk, and most of the pond weed left was sickly and brown...