Bass Snatcher Mississippi River Tournament Recap

Conditions: 70-90℉, Partly Cloudy, 2-5mph

The Day:

We went straight to Little Rabbit Lake and started in the same section as Arnie and Theo. We were working the slop, and they were working deeper. After 15 minutes of nothing, I started casting out over the calm water with the Walkine Boss. I had a pike miss the Boss. Theo got a couple of pike. I think I had a small keeper take a shot at the Walking Boss, but it didn't hook up. Arnie and Theo, I believe, both got on the board and caught a pike as well. 

We entered the third bay, and I got the skunk from the boat with a 2-lber on a frog off some wood. Darren missed a bite and got hung up. We went a little further into the bay, then Daren got the skunk out of the boat with a small bass off the same piece of wood where we had caught those two bites as we were on our way back out of the bay. We fished almost to the mouth of the Bay we started in with Darren getting a couple of boils, but no hook-ups. We fished in the first basin for quite a while, along with a number of other Snatcher boats. Darren and I both pulled a non-keeper out of a slop area that had some life. 

We then returned to the bay from which we had started. Darren got three small keepers on a Chatterbait, and I got what would be my final keeper of the day on a Chatterbait. I think we could have gotten our limits, but a guy was trolling in the area where Arnie and Theo got their fish. We decided to bail for the entrance to Little Rabbit. The life that was in the area in the morning had mostly left. 

We then went to the backwater where I had success with Ruff. It was lifeless there, other than one attempt by a pike to get my frog. We went to an area where Darren got a 4-lber pre-fishing. We started downriver from the juice, and he got a bonus smallmouth right next to the bank on a piece of wood. The area where Darren got the 4-lber had a lot of life in it. The first time I had seen really abundant signs of life all day. We fished this area too quickly, in my estimation. I don't remember if Darren caught a fish or not. He definitely had a couple of blow-ups. I had a good bass eat my frog, and I got a very good hookset, yet it jumped and got off. Tough luck, I was sure that bass was going to come in the boat. 

We ran a good bit of the river, hoping to duplicate the smallie bite, but it never happened. We then arrived at another area where Darren caught a couple of pigs in pre-fish. He had a blow-up that missed his frog just before we crossed paths with Tyler and Dave, who were both struggling. Darren ate his lunch, and I piloted the boat.  Darren resumed fishing with me on the troller and immediately had a blow-up that missed. A little while later, I had a great opportunity to put a good bass in the boat on a Livetarget Frog. I knew the bass was there because it missed the frog the first time, and I let her have it on the hookset. But it buried me and got off.  I was pretty pissed off, and that propelled me for the final hour and a half. Unfortunately, I only had one more blow-up, and I'm pretty sure it was a pike. Darren got two small keepers with the final one coming in the last five minutes. It just wasn't my day yet again. Frustrating!

Results: Third from last, I'm moving up baby. DJ.Kicker got 1st, 2nd Place  went to Dennis and 3rd Place and Lunker (4/10) went to Nate.

My Thoughts: Lost fish cost me yet again. The bite was much tougher than expected. I thought I would average at least two bites an hour. I had maybe 6 bites from keeper bass for the day. The hot weather didn't bother me, and I fished hard all day. Having an infection in my left eye did affect my vision and casting accuracy. Once again, I could not get my limit on a river. Hopefully, we will schedule the Gull River for next year. With two bombs now on the record, I am in a hole for the year.

Tournament Grade: C

Lost fish suck, but when you get good hooksets on a frog, and that is how things go. Fortune was just not with me again.  

Snatchers Tourny At Pelican Lake

 

Smitty's Bigs

Smitty's Fin

DJ's Bigs

DJ, Arnie, Smitty

2/9

Conditions: 62-82℉, Mostly Sunny, 0-2mph Wind

The Day:

We headed NW to a bay up there with a bunch of slop. Smitty had a bass in the boat in about 5 casts out of the pads. I had something follow my frog but not hit it. Smitty got another bass. I think I had something hit my jig back where the fish followed my frog too. We then came across some docks and Smitty would get a bite or two of off each one it would seem like. His 3rd or 4th fish in the boat was a 4lber. I got the skunk out of the boat with my biggest bass of the day (2.53) on a Livetartget Frog next to some cattails. We fished more slop and docks, with Smitty getting fish off of both. We ended up returning to where we started and I missed a bit in the pads and think Smitty culled with a 2lber. He had 3 quality fish off of the docks I think. Next. we headed NE to another slop bay where there was a lot of activity. I got a 24-inch dogfish on a Mag Fluke. Smitty had a big bass miss his frog. I think He caught one as well. I'm not sure if he culled. I got my second bass on Bobby's Perfect Frog. We fished farther East into another slop bay then fished our way back to the area where there was activity. I got my smallest keeper (1.36) that I was never able to cull on the LiveTarget frog. Smitty got a big dogfish. Next, we fished Smitty's favorite docks and they were productive for him. Smitty had mercy on me and offered me the craw tube he was getting them. I think he added two culls while I was getting my rod rigged with the proper weight while I was getting heckled by a guy on shore for not having my act together while my partner caught fish left and right.. Unfortunately, the best dock was occupied. I got a 1.82lb bass on the craw tube out of some reeds. Smitty got a few that didn't help. We ran South to one of Smitty's favorite holes, but there were not really fish around except on the last dock, where Smitty bird dogged me one (1.69) that I got on the craw tube. We then went North again to more reeds and Smitty pulled a 5lber out of the Cane. I missed a bite in the Cane because I set the hook too quick. Smitty wasn't going to fish until I got my limit. I got a short out of some reeds/pads. Finally, I got a keeper in the boat off of a dock (2.11). We went back to the dogfish bay. I had three bites on my frog, but didn't land any of them; Two never got the frog and I rolled the one that did get it on the pads on the hookset.  I ran out of energy shortly after my last bite on the frog. As we headed out Smitty had motor issues, so we went to the bay where we had the weigh-in and fished the final hour there, not getting any bites.

Results: 

My results, meh! But at least I got a limit. Congrats to Smitty for putting himself in the Snatcher record books with that outstanding bag of fish. Also congrats to Arnie and DJ. Dj was top Co-Angler. 

My Thoughts:  With that 2.50lber in the boat on a frog about 20 minutes in I thought it might be my day. But then Smitty put on a clinic above average size fish in the boat with a craw tube on docks. I tried switching to a popper after some activity in open water. Then we got to more docks and Smitty got more above average size fish and my jig wasn't getting bit. We got to an area with pads and I couldn't get bit on a frog or Jig, but Smitty continued to catch fish. It just seemed like all my choices were wrong in the first spot. I got two keepers in the boat at the second spot, but I don't think it held the numbers and size of bass to produce a great frog bite. When we got back to docks. It became clear the crawtube was the deal. So when Smitty offered what he was using I rigged up my dock fishing rod with a light Texas Rig. I was way too anxious fishing that crawtube. I needed to let it sit and give the fish a chance to eat it instead of immediately pulling the trigger. It was unfortunate our run South wasn't really holding a good school of fish or had already been hit by somebody else. Not getting any of those final frog fish in the boat sucked, but that is frog fishing. Catching one of them would have probably moved me up at least a couple of places.

Watching Smitty wreck 'em is the highlight of my year so far.

Grade: C+