A Cold Water Transition- October 29th, 2016

    
Greg and I fished from the dam to the first takeout between 7:00 and 11:30am. The air was a damp cold with a touch of wind to give it bite. The fishing was starting to slow down compared to 6 weeks ago. I am a big believer that not all fish do the same thing at the same time in regards to transitions be it spawn, summer, or winter.  But as for the new river it is clear that the majority of fish are beginning to transition into winter pattern. This time of year can be a boom or bust kinda deal, however today was an in between sorta day. Neither a diamond nor a rock. I landed 13 and Greg 9. My biggest fish was a shade under 15 inches.
Miles floated = 3.5
Total Fish Caught = 22
Fish per Minute = 21.8
My biggest three fish limit = 36.5 inches

My New Ride - October 18th, 2017

 
After test driving a friends I decided it was time to add a Coosa HD to my arsenal. Hard to beat these boats for the stability, versatility and storage options they offer. The HD performance offers unparalleled performance on rivers.

"Anything But a Farmpond" SCKBA Open- October 15th, 2016

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We had 14 anglers compete in our last SCKBA county wide open event on this day. Greg Nahodil overcame a tough bite to win with 39.5 inch three fish limit. I finished fourth 35.25inches. This marks the first time all year no angler has broken the 40 inch mark. The bite was tough and the fish were scattered with falling water levels. Brian Aliff wrapped up the 2016 Angler of the Year title with a 53.5 inch three fish year limit. It was a fun day despite the challenge. We had four quality anglers fail to catch a limit on their home waters. The fish I managed came from a variety of techniques and places with no defined repeatable pattern.
Miles Floated = 4.5
Total fish caught = 40 (between Greg and I)
Minutes per fish = 15.0
My best three fish limit in inches =35.25.

October Morning on the Greenbrier- October 14th, 2016

     
Jared and I floated from Barger Springs to Willowwood on a cool foggy October Friday morning. The fishing started off slow but picked up some as the day warmed up. The fish surprisingly were on a topwater shallow water bite despite it being deep into October. The water flow was up some for the Greenbrier for this time of year.
Miles Floated = 6.5
Total Fish Caught = 29
Minutes per Fish = 20.6
My Best 3 fish= 39.75

After Work Yak Trip- October 5th, 2016

   
I went out solo on a last minute "it's too nice outside to stay off the water" kinda trip. I only fished 2 hours or so and paddled around in one hole and took out at the same place on the New. It really was a perfect evening. Not too hot, not yet cold, yet one where you can feel fall and a little of summer in the air in the same instant. I started off slow but the topwater bite is still there and took off. I ended up with 9 fish all on topwater. I threw a jig some but no takers on it. I had 3 fish over 15 inches. It was a quick evening float but a productive time to be on the water.
Miles floated = 0
Total fish caught = 9
Biggest 3 fish in inches = 47
Scoring Average from last 18 fishing trips (June 11th) = 40.9 inch three fish limit average. (52.5"high and 32" low).

Largemouth Revival - October 2nd, 2016

    
Nahodil and I decided to try to round up some green fish since the river was some messed up and muddy. We headed over to Moncove lake, which as to be one the prettiest little lakes in our state. We so zero other anglers the entire day and the place was pristine. We got to the lake at around 8am. We scored our fish in bunches mostly on green pumpkin shakey head worms. Greg landed 14 and I had 13, but we had no fish bigger than 15 inches. I missed several more.  I did catch three on topwater on pad edges early before the sun got high. It was a nice day to be on the water in the fall and not at work.
Total fish caught = 27
Minutes per fish =  17.7
My biggest three fish in inches = 39.25

Rain Run Off - October 1st, 2016

 
On a beautiful fall morning Greg Davis, Greg Nahodil, Brad and myself floated from Sandstone to Meador creek at daybreak. The water was up some and as we soon found out quickly rising. Despite the fact that we had gotten very little rain both NC and Pocahontas county had gotten over 5 inches in the last 24 hours. The rapidly rising and cloudy water had the fish in a funk. I managed to catch only 5, Nahodil 6, Brad 5 and Greg 1. It was a quick day with higher water that had us at the takeout by 10am. At the take out we ran into some guys who had driven all the way to Shanklin's Ferry only to turn around and drive to Sandstone due to high/muddy water.
Miles Floated = 3.0
Total Fish Caught = 17
Minutes per Fish = 35.17
My biggest 3 fish limit in inches = 32