Hi Folks,
Fall is a great time for fishing if it just weren’t for those pesky leaves.
As I have gotten older I am not as fired up about being in a boat in cold, windy weather as I once was. It wasn’t always that way. There was a time when I felt like Mr. Invincible and the colder, the rainier, the windier, the better. Waves blowing cold water in my face as we aimed the boat toward a spot, bouncing along on tight fall waves, feeling the rush of cold wind on my rain-suit. Great stuff! Fishing in challenging conditions made me feel like a real man. A hero among simple mortals who hugged their blankets and wouldn’t even consider braving nature’s worst elements in pursuit of the almighty fish. Then I got older. And smarter.
This year I didn’t get to fish as much as I would have liked. Yea, I’ve got a million excuses. Family, bad knee, new business venture, you name it and it probably factored into what put the kabosh on fishing. There were no real emergencies. No family crisis. No catastrophes. Just a bunch of pretty lame excuses. Not one should have prevented me from getting on the water more. But they did. And what a year for fishing it was.
This was the hottest summer in the Midwest that anyone could remember. Lots and lots of record highs. Think 107 to 108 degrees with no rain. For months. The combination of heat and negligible precipitation caused many local lake’s water levels to slip to all time lows. There was structure seen that no one had ever seen before. Boats ran aground all over the place, from small DNR lakes to well known bodies of water like Kentucky Lake, Barkley Lake, Lake Cumberland, lots more. Given my limited experience (and wisdom) this was a formula for terrible fishing. But quite the contrary happened.
Not too far into this heat wave and drought our customers started reporting catching more big fish, and I really mean B-I-G fish, than anyone here at American Legacy Fishing has ever seen during summer. In the middle of the hottest days there were Largemouth bass in the 8 – 9 lb range when we usually only hear about one or two this size. Smallies going 4, 5 lbs plus were everywhere. Sauger over 2 lbs and stripers at least 5 lbs bigger than what we usually see. Add some humongous musky and walleye as well. That was the norm this summer, not the exception.
Now I’m not a marine biologist so this was unexplainable given my past experience. But we had never had such a summer. But the real point here is I missed all this. To catch big fish there is one undeniable rule: you’ve got to get on the water. I didn’t do that this summer. Rationalizing as best I could as this phenomenon developed I figured that we just had a bunch of lucky customers. Then I concluded that our customer’s fishing skills had improved exponentially due to their buying better gear (from ALFC, of course). But the big fish stories just kept coming. Could it be a conspiracy to inflate the truth? Nope, the fish (and sizes) were real. And I missed it.
Me being me I have developed some theories about all of this. Perhaps all that heat made bait fish scarce and these bigger fish were biting at anything that looked like dinner. Maybe the heat made them mad and having “an attitude” they just went around chomping at anything that moved. Perhaps they were moving more trying to find cooler water and were inhabiting structure that would typically not hold these monsters. Theories yes, conclusive evidence no.
By late August our heat wave had waned as had the size of the fish being landed. There definitely is a correlation between extreme heat, no rain, and the size of fish being caught. That was clear. Why? That was elusive. I just knew I needed to get on the water and get some of the big guys in the boat. And I sincerely intended to do just that.
August passed and September came as did much cooler weather. The fishing was still good and I knew the day after Labor Day it was my time. I checked out my gear, added a few new rods and some of the new reels that were absolutely fabulous compared to my usual selection. I checked Dixie’s schedule (she’s been my fishing buddy for over 46 years) and we set a date for a full day of fishing. We were ready to get on the water while the weather was still good – and warm. Then came jury duty!
Now I consider myself a patriotic American, but this totally obliterated our plans. There was no way we were going to try and get out of this duty. So, the trip was once again put off. But we still had our plans as well as our commitment. As soon as jury duty ends.
Well, long story short, we have still not got on the water as we intended. And here it is the first part of November! It’s cold. And windy. And has been raining. But I (or should I say ‘we’) are still committed. We will get out on the water!
Many of the leaves are off the trees here in Southern Indiana now. Yep, they’re floating on the water, meandering from one end of the lake to the other and then, with a changing wind’s help, making a round-trip. Leaves are pesky little critters. They mess up lures and catch on hooks as the lure hits the water. They make top water lures impossible and camouflage stumps, stick ups, and weeds just barely under the water. Worst of all they portend cold hands, frozen feet, sock hats, and wind burned noses. But we’re still going out. Really we are. Just as soon as I get the garage cleaned out!
This issue of our Newsletter we have some great news on the brand new, just released Lew’s casting reels. They’re something special and given the price point something you will definitely want in your tackle box. Lots of information below. We also have some information on the new G. Loomis hooded sweatshirts, the new Shimano hoodies, and the ever elusive G. Loomis beanies which we now have a wonderful supply of just in time for fall fishing. Again, details are below along with some more great products that were sure you will want to know about.
As always, we thank all of you for your friendship and confidence you have shown us over the years. You are the reason we are here and we truly appreciate you and your friendship. It makes our days bright and so very meaningful. Thank you.
Tight Lines,
Tom Ashby
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