Fishing Report Archives

Hey Folks from my living room. The deck of the Excel Bay Pro 230 is getting lonesome. I’ve spent the winter doing boat shows and helping my sponsors. I hear folks say, “Man you’re lucky to have all those great sponsors!” Yes, I’m truly blessed BUT those sponsors also expect a lot back in most cases. Much of that is in the form of tournaments, social media, personal appearances, and boat/outdoor shows.

I consider myself to be a “People Person”. I love meeting new people and getting to know them. I’ve made many dear friends guiding and consider myself a lucky man for those friends. Many of those same friends don’t understand why I have very few friends on Facebook. My social media is for my sponsors and business. Please don’t take offense if I don’t accept your friend request. It’s nothing personal.

All the reports I’ve had up until the last couple of days have been of slow fishing at best, way too much current and debris, and generally bruised egos when they got home. I have heard of some decent catches from the most recent few days from the Big Sandy area. Most of those reports have been of catches of decent crappie on spider rigged minnows and Livescope fishing with jig on a single hand-held pole. Most of the fish are coming from cover near creek and river channels.

The water temperatures are still in the very low 50s on what few sunny days we’ve seen for months. If we ever get a lower discharge flow rates at the dams, the crappie should be staging along the deeper channels in preparation for the migration toward shallower water. With warmer weather, the serious fishing should be in high gear since most of us have decided it wasn’t worth the effort for most of the winter.

My bookings have been steady, but I still have a very few dates for April and May but after May is pretty much open. My current Excel Bay Pro 230 will be replaced by a new Excel Storm Cat in a couple of months. I love the Bay Boats but my knees, back and hip are telling me I need to stop standing for countless hours per day.

The Storm Cat will be a much different set-up for trolling and such but will still allow me to offer any of the crappie techniques as well as some catfish trips in the summer. I’m really looking forward to the snap down top and windshield. Vicki says it’s going to take her some serious getting used to. She has always loved the Bay Boats.

My Bay Pro 230 will be for sale as soon as the Storm Cat is ready and rigged. It will sell thru the Excel dealer network unless I make a deal for it. I would like to keep it loaded up with rod holders, Humminbird electronics, transport racks , and Ulterra trolling motor as it has been rigged for the past year. Check with me if you might have an interest in buying it once the Storm Cat is water ready.

If you do venture out on the water, do yourself and others a favor and get all your gear ready BEFORE you get to the ramp. I hear more complaints about inconsiderate people at the boat ramp than for any other reason. Many boaters haven’t used their boats for a half of a year. Those batteries need to be serviced and well charged.

The engine needs to be hooked up to a garden hose with an engine muff and started and allowed to run for a few minutes AFTER the fuel tank is topped off. Hopefully you remembered to put gas stabilizer in the tank before you stored it.

If you want to earn the wrath of a bunch of angry, eager fishermen, show up at the ramp then do all the things you should have done at home. Every year I hear of THAT GUY. He blocks the ramp then spends his battery charge trying to start the clunker while others are waiting. Not a good thing to do.

Fishing needs to be as stress free as possible. Check your safety gear. Life jackets, fire extinguisher, throwable device, rain gear, etc. Make sure you’ve bought your new license. Boat registrations are due the end of April. Make sure you have your boat insurance up to date.

When you do finally get out there, make sure to wear your PFD. We have recently seen several deaths on our waterways. We don’t want to hear of other tragedies. The lake levels should be at or near winter pool for a while so watch out for the Gremlins. Have a good time, know the rules, and keep what you need but please don’t waste our precious resource.

Welcome to our slice of Heaven!