I Got to Remember I’m Not Thirty Five Anymore

I had planned on making a trip to the tailrace Friday and fish for some of the nice stocker trout shipped from Missouri on Thursday. The Missouri trout are larger than the ones the tailrace gets from Dale Hollow out of Tennessee; but my plans got sidetracked by a pulled tendon in the calf of my right leg, which occurred at the gym three weeks ago. My doctor informed me that I had to stay off the leg as much as possible and no more uphill treadmill walking for at least 3 weeks. I’m taking medication and using ice packs for the swelling, which comes and goes, depending on the amount of standing or walking I am doing. He told me that I got to remember I’m not thirty-five anymore. So wading and standing for 3 or 4 hours on the tailrace is out for a while. At least I can look forward to some great tailrace fall fishing soon.

                                                                       

Not to be outdone by this setback I decided I would do some sitting and fishing, which means casting from my boat on Smith Lake for some more bluegill to add to my quest. Fishing during late July, August and September can be tough because of the drawdown that occurs during this time of year on the lake. The fish go deep and one has to have a lot of patience to land quality fish during this time.

This is one of my favorite spots to land bluegill early in the morning using the popper. As stated it is slow fishing this time of the year because one has to let the popper sit there for some time to entice a hit, but looking at this beautiful area often outweighs the hit. I love the huge rock formations on this lake.

Patience paid off with this bluegill that showed the rigors of the spawn, with a slim body and light color. The spawn takes a toll on the big bulls, during the spawn; they seldom eat anything, because they are too busy guarding the bed. The ferrous fight the fish puts up in the spring on the fly rod is not present now because of weight and strength loss during the spawn.

If one fishes cover during the drawdown, it is usually good for a bluegill or two. This old submerged tree didn’t disappoint.

The end results of a short morning trip and a good meal for later on in the week. I never stay on the lake after 9 AM during this time of year because of the heat and horrible humidity. It gets worse as the day progresses causing one to have trouble breathing at times. Funny, during those three hours the tendon pull never enter my mine.--------Almost forgot I counted two in the cooler for the quest, I am now a long shot 27 away.