OH Saturday Night

[Jim]

Travis and I fished 9 to 1am Saturday night. Fishing was slow. Travis got 2 bass and lost a good one. I got skunked :(

Water was low and fish were definitely not shallow like a few nights earlier. We did not see much sign of fish, shad, etc moving around or on the side imaging, so I don't think we were ever really on the fish.

The LED lights worked well, but I am still moving them around to find the best locations.

The best news for me came the next morning as my 2 year old son picked this morning to sleep in until 9am for the first time ever! Those extra 2 1/2 hours of sleep felt great.

Great meeting you Travis! I will have to redeem myself next time ;)
Jim

[Travis C.]

Great meeting you as well Jim.

We'll get them next time. I believe the generation played a part in our lack of production. Looked back and they pulled water the whole time you were there last Thursday then last night did not between 9pm-1am. I would bet if we'd stayed longer we'd caught some in those places.

They are probably moving a lot with the shad and with no current to position them they must have been roaming. All I can figure.

I really like your lights setup. You already have me thinking about what I can possibly do to mine.

We'll make sure they are pulling water and I burn some my gas next time.

[butts0907]

I went out Saturday night as well...for my first ever night fishing experience. Put in around 9:00 and fishing until midnight. My wife went with me and although she tried her best, she ended up laying down in the boat around 10:30!! (But I give her all the credit in the world for giving it a shot!!) And the water temp never dropped below 84.3.

Anyway, based on previous posts, I was really hoping to find some fish in the shallows, but didn't have any luck from 4ft on up. However, I backed off the bank a bit and found some fish between 5-10 ft. I ended up with 4 LM and one catfish (which surprised me), but none had any size to them. They were also pretty light colored. I did, however, miss what I'm assuming had the potential to be a nice one in around 10 ft of water. Fought him for about 5 seconds and then he got off. Don't know if it was a bass or not, but it definitely had some size. So I guess your theory about them not pullng any water holds true in my case. But one question I do have...would the generation schedule have an effect on fishing in Station Camp Creek? I would understand if I was fishing close to the mouth of the creek, but I was a ways away from it.

But overall, night fishing was not that bad. I couldn't really see much though. I though the moon would provide some light, but I guess all the house lights and such prevented my eyes from really adjusting. I did buy a black light for the trip, but will be returning that thing this week!

[Travis C.]

But one question I do have...would the generation schedule have an effect on fishing in Station Camp Creek? I would understand if I was fishing close to the mouth of the creek, but I was a ways away from it.

Yes. Even when the current is not being generated there is still current in creek channels. Once they do pull water it will cause more pull out of those currents as well. You can really tell what I am talking about in the summer back at the W. Station Camp ramp in the mornings. There will be scum, trash and other stuff floating around if no generation then after they start it will all clear up. It will be increased more on the main body and if Cordell is running to I'd run to those humps, ledges, shell beds and main lake points.

[Jim]

I did buy a black light for the trip, but will be returning that thing this week!

What didn't you like about the black light? I love mine. It is really cool to be able to see your light so clearly at night. Were you using fluorescent mono? I use green fluorescent Trilene heavy cover line. It glows very well. It makes a big difference.

All that said, you caught 4 more than I did :D

Jim

[butts0907]

What didn't you like about the black light? I love mine. It is really cool to be able to see your light so clearly at night. Were you using fluorescent mono? I use green fluorescent Trilene heavy cover line. It glows very well. It makes a big difference.

All that said, you caught 4 more than I did :D

Jim


I wasn't using fluorescent line, but the light didn't seem like it would have done much even if I was...it was a cheap $30 light from BPS. If/when I change out my line(s) I may invest the additional $30 and get a decent light. Plus, I wasn't real sure if night fishing would be for me so I didn't want to invest too much time/money up front. BUT, I think I could really get into it, so I think I'll go ahead and make that investment! But regarding your line(s), do you have fluorescent mono on all your poles?

And thanks for the info Travis. West Station Camp is where I normally put in so I'll be sure to pay a bit more attention from now on. And are there shell beds in W. Station Camp? Short of renting some scuba gear, how would I go about finding them, i.e. are they at certain depths, locations, etc..?? I have a good idea of the humps and ledges and such because they're easily found on sonar and/or maps. But shell beds (I don't think) are as easy to spot.

And to take a shot in the dark here, if any of you are ever looking for a fishing partner one day/night, please let me know. I've just started fishing OHL this year and have thought about shelling out the money for a guide for a half day or so just so I could get a better feel for the lake. However, being a self-employed architect with a 2-year old, my funds don't flow as freely as I would like for them to!! And pretty much everyone on this board seems to have a good handle on the lake, so I'd thought I'd throw it out there...

Thanks guys!

[bd-]

Fish with some fluorescent line before you return the blacklight. Even a small weak light will really make the line visible, but it has to be a fluorescent line for it to work. I don't night fish enough for bass to use one, but I've gone out on other folks' boats before with blacklights and they really make a difference if you are worm fishing or jig fishing where line watching is important.

bd

[Travis C.]

And are there shell beds in W. Station Camp? Short of renting some scuba gear, how would I go about finding them, i.e. are they at certain depths, locations, etc..?? I have a good idea of the humps and ledges and such because they're easily found on sonar and/or maps. But shell beds (I don't think) are as easy to spot.

Thanks guys!

Shell beds are a great place to catch fish but really tough to find. To my knowledge there aren't any around Station Camp. They are on down river from there or way up. You have to use sonar unless you get lucky with a carolina rig or deep crank and drag a shell up. On sonar they will be slightly raised off of a hard bottom in places that get the strongest flow. Upstream ledges in the main river channel are the usual places. They are filter feeders so think in that mind set when searching.

People won't give you locations for beds unless they think they found one and can't catch fish off of it. Which won't be the case because there are fish on shell beds. KY Lake and TN river tournaments are won all summer long off of fishing shell beds. Just watch every summer Elite tourney held at KY lake.

[Jim]

But regarding your line(s), do you have fluorescent mono on all your poles?


And to take a shot in the dark here, if any of you are ever looking for a fishing partner one day/night, please let me know. I've just started fishing OHL this year and have thought about shelling out the money for a guide for a half day or so just so I could get a better feel for the lake. However, being a self-employed architect with a 2-year old, my funds don't flow as freely as I would like for them to!! And pretty much everyone on this board seems to have a good handle on the lake, so I'd thought I'd throw it out there...

Thanks guys!

I only use two poles at night and each have green fluorescent mono on them. It is that much better than regular mono, braid or anything else I know of. Hopefully one of the new superlines will work with UV lights as that would be great.

I would be glad to fish with you some night. You can try out my lights and see what you think before spending much money. I do know it is way too hot to fish in the day right now.

I know the station camp area well and upstream of Cairo. Those are my typical fishing areas.

Jim

[butts0907]

[quote=Jim;16031]
I would be glad to fish with you some night. You can try out my lights and see what you think before spending much money. I do know it is way too hot to fish in the day right now.


Jim...would love to take you up on that offer. I don't know if you're planning on heading out this weekend, but I've got a b-day on Friday so I can play that card to get out of the house!! If you're heading out and don't have someone lined up, let me know and we can get everything coordinated.

Thanks for the offer!