I finally get to fish
between the heavy rains, we have been experiencing here in Alabama. What a great day to start my bluegill quest for this
season. The temps were in the seventies with the water temp reading 65 which is
on the verge of the spawn. Some of the big gills were on the move and staking
out areas close to cover in water four to five feet deep just off the shaded
banks.
My first nice bull of the morning was taken
hugging
the shaded bank in the brush pile. The Black Gant got its attention. I’m glad I was using my 9 ft. 4 wt. otherwise I would’ve
had trouble landing it.
I felt like the top image could grace the wall of any den, with its lush green canopy of trees lining the
banks of this nook. RFD's FlyBox Foam Butt Caddis would get a savage hit on the other side
of the sunken tree; again shade and cover was the ally for this nice gill. I
thought I had found the honey hole, but again the fish were not bunched to spawn;
one fish and keep casting.
I would end the day
landing numerous small bluegills and this fighter on my 3 weight. I feel good
about actually accomplishing this year’s quest because I’m back on my home
waters; 23 away from the finish.
Believe me when I tell you
guys that today’s visit to the Sipsey was special not only for the trout caught,
but to meet these two young fly fishermen. They were headed down the tailrace
to fish the really deep sections. I hope they had success, it pleases me to see
the youngsters with a fly rod in hand.
My first cast and my first trout that was to be one of many that I would touch on a cloudy overcast day. The two-hour trip consisted of casting nymphs early and closing out the trip with the Gnat. Sorry guys for the bad image; I'm a work in progress when it comes to camera work.
One of the things I love about this place besides landing the trout is all the handy rock stools. They are positioned up and down the gouge for; let’s say the “seasoned fly fisherman.”
Overcast skies, a slight
breeze out of the west and a huge rain front in the forecast for Thursday morning
told me to wet a fly on the Sipsey today.
The blooming of the
Dogwood Trees are always the sign that the crappie has begun to spawn here in
the Deep South. I’ve been noticing the Dogwood buds but no bloom
yet. That didn’t keep me from joining one of my fishing buddies the other day
to test the waters for some slab crappie.
My 7 ½ ft. microlight
spinning rod paired with the Pflueger President XT spinning reel is perfect to
handle big crappie. I’m using 4 lb. test vanish line with a small curly tail shad
jig to duplicate small minnows. The balance of this rod makes it effortless to
cast for distance and accuracy. Using the micro light combo parallels the light
7 ½ to 8 ft. fly rods.
The dark male crappie is
one beautiful fish in the early spring.All the crappie today was landed using the micro. I had the 4 wt. fly
rod with me but the wind was too strong to get a dissent case in place; in
other words, my patience has worn thin dealing with the gust coming from all
directions.
The in results, using my
new fish cleaning table from Bass Pro Shops; these ten beauties yielded 40
mouth-watering fillets.
My second trip fishing
with my 2 weight medium action fly rod today was awesome! I believe all the
fish I landed today enjoyed its action as well. The 6X leader combined with the
2 weight fly line enabled the flies to touch the water as if they had dropped
from a tree limb near the bank. How many times have you guys experienced that
situation? Be ready because the fish will usually explore on your offering. I
experienced that a number of times today absence the tree limb. The Redington medium
action fly rod paired with the Redington Drift reel yields one fantastic day on
the water.
Even bluegills and bass this size
can make one think they’re fighting a super bull gill or quality size bass. The 2 weight gives
the fish a fighting chance and at the same time test the landing skills
of the angler.
Ralph’s Foam Butt Caddis was the
winner of the flies tossed today, so realistic on the surface film. I’m still
in search of the quality bluegill to begin my quest; another enjoyable practice
day in the books!
As most of you know WalkerCountyLake is one of my
favorite fishing destinations. I’ve landed huge bluegills here from its waters
that equal those I’ve caught on my beloved SmithLake. To say I was
excited to fish its waters again after a two-year absence was an understatement.
Cathey and I are still trying to adjust to the move out of
state and back to Alabama; in fact, it will take us the rest of this
year to complete the cycle of the move. Our lot we are planning to build on is
saturated with rain almost daily.It
will take weeks before any construction can start sometime in March. The
building process will last at least 6 months if the weather cooperates. In the
meantime, we will stay dry in our rental home, which houses my Pelican boat in
the carport. No way was I going to store my Pelican and miss spring fishing on
some of the smaller lakes I fish here. Sorry to veer off subject, back to Walker outing: This is the earliest I’ve fished this lake, but the forecast
pulled me like a magnet to its waters today. A high of 80 degrees is somewhat
unusual even for the northern part of Alabama this time of the year.
The water was somewhat stained because of all the rain making me
think I was going to fish dark small to medium poppers. So I had a game plan and I
hoped it would work. The water temp was 58 which is a long way from the
spawning season for the big bull bluegills.
My first bull bluegill in one of the small
nooks near the levee; this fish nailed a Betts popper sitting still. It was a hoot to land so many
bluegills this afternoon after being absent from this lake for a while.
The warm temps have started to produce
buds on some of the trees along the lake's bank. I have a feeling we are in for
an early spring here in Alabama.
The blue Booglebug popper attracted a lot of bass today. It’s not your average popper; it becomes submerged when worked
along the surface film. All the bass I landed today nailed it submerged. There would be no Redeye bass landed today.
Today’s trip was not about
landing trout on the Sipsey but a time for me to reflect back on the many
storied trips I’ve had on this beautiful tailrace. Sure a colorful rainbow
would be nice to bend my 3 weight, but the excitement of just watching my fly
gently light on the Sip’s surface took precedence over the catch. This was my first fishing
trip since August 29th, 2017 when I hurt my back and had to have two Epidurals to
get back on my feet. Close to five months is a long time to go without wetting
a fly for me; so to say I was pumped about getting to fish was an
understatement. I was anxious to try my new
Orvis Battenkill II reel my son gave me for Christmas. I paired it up with my Hardy
Streamflex 3 weight. What impressed me about this reel was the narrow spool to
reduce line stacking and of course the lightness.
l put the combo to work
within five minutes of wading into position in one of my favorite holes on the
tailrace. This beautiful rainbow nailed the Copper John as it was drifting down one
of the many runs located on the lower end of the tailrace; a lot of fun on the
3 weight.
The tailrace was higher
then I like to fish it, but I didn’t care; I was back on my home waters and
that was all that matter to me.
My wading staff was my
best friend today as I maneuvered through all the rocks on the floor of the gorge.
I saw one guy take a spill on the slippery rocks; luckily he didn’t damage his
wrist and knee.
Faster water was the turn
on for all the trout I landed during the four-hour trip. This bow was taken as
my nymph floated over a few submerged logs. I lost a couple other trout in the
run due to breaking off in the logs. I questioned myself for using the 3 weight
after losing two quality trout in this run, but again being here today
was more important than the loss of a few trout. I know I’ll have many more
trips to redeem myself.