Well, instead of going out, partying, hanging out with friends etc like everyone else on the 4th, I spent most of the day at home. I was recovering from getting sick on sunday night. So it gets to be around 8 pm or so and I was feeling better so I decided to go fishing at a local lake.

When I got to the park, there was a lot of people already there. Most of the shore spots were taken up by people, none of which were fishing. I was pretty much limited to one spot from the start but it was ok because it ended up being a pretty good spot.

For the first hour, fishing was really slow and I expected it to be because the rock bass don't really come shallow until night fall. Within the first 5 minutes I caught a little largemouth about 7 inches long or so. Then about 30 minutes later, I caught another little largemouth about the same size but a little fatter. At just about 9 pm when the sun started to fade just a little bit, the neighbors along the lake started shooting off fireworks. One of the houses must have spent thousands because for about 2 hours straight they were blasting off huge artilery shells that shook the ground and echoed after exploding.

So the fireworks start, the sun starts to set, and the bite is on! From about 9:30 - 11pm or so I caught over 30 rock bass and 3 more largemouth bass. The biggest largemouth only went about 10 inches or so while the biggest rock bass went about 8 inches. The average rock bass I caught was in the 5 - 6 inch range along with a few dinks that I probably could have used as bait.. If it was legal that is..

All fish were caught on a Shakespeare Durango 5' 0'' Ultra Light Rod that I bought at Walmart for 8 bucks. The reel came off of an Ugly Stick Ultra Light Combo that I bought last year but one of the eyes popped out so I sold the rod for 10 bucks. I was using 6 lb mono with my drag looser than it needed to be. This just added to the fun factor :)

So the fireworks stop at about 11 pm or so and the bite died immediately. I mean stone cold. I couldn't get a bite to save my life for the next 30 minutes. So this makes me wonder.. Do the fireworks make fish active and bite? Perhaps it's all the bright lights and flashes and vibrations. I don't know. But I do know that the best went red hot when the fireworks started and went stone cold when they stopped.

Oh yeah, I was using a drop shot most of the time. I threw a top water popper just for the hell of it when it got pretty dark. I had 3 explosions at the surface but none of them yielded a fish. The first one was most likely a rock bass judging by the size of the splash that I saw in the moonlight. The second one was definitely a 3+ lb largemouth because the surface exploded like someone just threw a basketball sized rock into the water. The third one was a pretty good explosion that probably came from a small largemouth. I have never caught a fish on a top water popper before but then again I have barely ever used one before. Definitely looking forward to trying again in the near future. The water temps are up so the fish should start getting aggresive and hit more top water. It's almost getting to that time to start throwing buzz baits, frogs, top water plugs, etc etc.

The Quadfather

7/7/2011 6:12:00 AM

I was out there in a tube at the same time, I believe you were fishing solo at the far end of the grassy area? Glad to hear you did better than I did. That was my first skunk of the year. It is a pretty decent lake. I have caught some good sized large mouth out of there this year. Helps do be on the water though. As far as the bite being effected by the fireworks... I don't think that it was keeping the fish active honestly. I find that fishing is great right b4 dark, but then at some point it always turns off just like a light switch. Yeah... that is funny about the house that was going crazy on the fireworks. I always circle the entire lake in my tube, but as I was approaching that particular house, it was just nuts on their dock. They were pointing all this stuff out into the water. Maybe 75 people in their yard. I felt like a floating target so I boogied to the other side of the lake and got out of the firezone, LOL.

afk

7/7/2011 7:24:00 AM

Two of my most favorite things, fishin' & fireworks! Best of both worlds. Thanks for the report.

pika206

7/7/2011 10:06:00 AM

@quad, dude, it's like going to the gold driving range, and you're the one in the little ball cart picker-uper. yeah. not a good thing.

@insane-if-not-fishing sounds like a good time! Yup, keep tying on those hard baits, it's just so rewarding to catch, well anything on a top water, big or small. Once, i caught this frog on a surface lure, well actually it was on dry ground. haha!

Anonymous

7/7/2011 5:08:00 PM

@ The Quadfather - yeah, I didn't think really think the fireworks would affect the fishing really. i just thought it was really odd that the bite and fireworks died at the same time. i've caught rock bass all night long on other lakes, until 3 - 4 am. so i thought it was strange that the rock bass bite just stopped like someone flipped a switch.

Anonymous

7/7/2011 5:09:00 PM

@ afk - thanks man :) i was too busy trying to catch fish to enjoy all of the fireworks but i definitely heard and felt them and saw the skies light up. the trees blocked most of my view :P

Anonymous

7/7/2011 5:10:00 PM

@ pika206 - definitely! it's always much more rewarding to catch any fish on a lure as opposed to bait. i have been dying for some actual top water hook ups!

gotsum411

7/7/2011 8:06:00 PM

Got skunked today at bitter... Threw everthing at em...

Anonymous

7/7/2011 11:32:00 PM

bitter lake is a tough lake to fish from shore during the day. sunset and nightfall is the key to catching rock bass from the shore access :P

knotabassturd

7/8/2011 7:32:00 PM

Just got done reading this report. Nice writeup! Ya I'd probably agree with Quad on the timing and bite explanation. Especially panfish. I've been at a lake throwing into 4 feet of water with nothing. Then about 1 hour before sundown things start picking up and can build quickly. Then have things shut down just as quickly. Thinking of bluegill in particular with that thought, though I'm sure several types of panfish share some similarities with that habit.
Thanx for the report!

Anonymous

7/8/2011 11:55:00 PM

@ knotabassturd - thanks! i agree as well. i just thought that it was really odd about the bite dying because i've caught rock bass all night long from 9 pm - 3 - 4 am.. but as they say, every body of water is different :)

kenimes

7/21/2011 2:00:00 AM

Went there Monday round noon with the boat. Caught a few rock bass, and the biggest a 1 1/2lb Largie. Mostly fishing Mepps and 4" Senkos. Little bit of real worms as well. Mid day seemed fine, so I can only imagine the bite @ dusk.

Have caught a couple smaller Largies on poppers at this lake earlier in the year. Dude that lives on the lake has seen us there a couple times, and each times he mentions a 5+ pounder he caught earlier this year. Can't wait to latch on to one of those.

The 1 1/2 lb I caught was on a FeatherLight Eagle Claw rod, with 8lb test and the drag set loose though. Made it fun. Darn thing almost got into the thick lily pads on me. Smart fish.

Tight lines!

Elijah.Loves.Fishin

7/28/2011 9:46:00 AM

@ kenimes - very nice :)

Leave a Comment:

Login

Flag

×

Why is this comment inappropriate?

Close Submit

Delete this comment? Provide reason.

No Yes

Edit

×

Cancel Save