Tis’ the season..
Water temps are close to 60 degrees in some areas, The water is still moderately high with a respectable flow, the bullheads are getting active, and the larger channel cats have pulled out of the spring bite and the little kitties are relentless… and most importantly… the FULL MOON CYCLE is long gone!
We are much warmer on the water temps this year than we were last year at the end of the 1st week in May.. That happens to be exactly when the flatheads started a good bite for the season.
Even though we have had so much warm weather, outings have been unsuccessful so far this year. The water has been plenty warm, but the fish never turned on the feedbag which suggest that there are more deciding factors on the bite/migration than just the water temperature.
With all that said.. I am looking at other factors besides water temperature. Ignoring the date, and the temperatures.. I am mentally following a sequence that happens every year in my area. The bite 1st starts with the early spring channel cat run.. That bite eventually dies down and the undesireable species(bass, walleyes, northerns, panfish, sheephead, scaled fish), along with channel cats start to get very active and provide the river panfisherman with some decent multi-specie angling in the shallows when our cats rods just sit there and only pick up a straggler fish here and there. This action with the game fish does not usually provide consistant action in the area they are being caught until May… or the exact same time the flatheads start to really turn on the feedbag. The larger fish tend to get active 1st, and the smaller fish will start to mix into the bag a couple weeks down the road.
Well.. that mixed bag fishing started a few days ago and is consistent. Crappies and white bass are still tearing up the minnows in the shallows in most areas.. sheephead are showing no mercy to anyone throwing a nightcrawler in the river, and the carp are hitting moving baits.
I’m willing to bet a half dozen 7″ bullheads the 1st flathead hits the shore this week. I would also lay odds we will see a 40# fish(or very close) by this coming sunday.
I’m off to finish my work for the day, then I’m wetting a line for a few hours. I dont have time to go get bullheads.. so I’ll have to rely on one of those legendary urban sylvania suckers!
The race is on!
and one finally attempt which caused our small walleye net to break at the handle, the hook came out and the pig swam away.
when they are really turned on. They were looking to steal whatever the big guy had or get at least catch a scrap or two.
