Guido how did you do yesterday? You were not in Dry Rock by the time I got there. We did not catch a striper yesterday due to windy conditions. I wish my trip was today instead of Yesterday.
Fall Fishing Discussion.
- Thread starter Dungee
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Guido how did you do yesterday? You were not in Dry Rock by the time I got there. We did not catch a striper yesterday due to windy conditions. I wish my trip was today instead of Yesterday.
Guido
Active Member
We did see you go past us while we were shore fishing. We then tried to find you but failed, sorry.
We did catch enough smallies for dinner in dry rock (we found them stacked up big time in 14 feet of water) after failing to locate any stripers.
So I decided to stop in warm creek on the way back and found a willing school in 50 feet of water and spooned up 3-4 nice ones so we had the stripers instead, and saved the smallies for my mother in law.
Took wednesday off and played golf, needed a break from the pounding we got monday and tuesday.
Went out yesterday and spooned and trolled warm creek for a couple of hours and got 1 on a blue and chrome rat l trap.
Did go to the back of navaho and trolled up 5 really nice ones over a spot where they always seem to hang out, on left there is a bunch of humps, so I trolled a firetiger deep thunderstick for those guys.
Boy this weather is more springlike than fall....
We did catch enough smallies for dinner in dry rock (we found them stacked up big time in 14 feet of water) after failing to locate any stripers.
So I decided to stop in warm creek on the way back and found a willing school in 50 feet of water and spooned up 3-4 nice ones so we had the stripers instead, and saved the smallies for my mother in law.
Took wednesday off and played golf, needed a break from the pounding we got monday and tuesday.
Went out yesterday and spooned and trolled warm creek for a couple of hours and got 1 on a blue and chrome rat l trap.
Did go to the back of navaho and trolled up 5 really nice ones over a spot where they always seem to hang out, on left there is a bunch of humps, so I trolled a firetiger deep thunderstick for those guys.
Boy this weather is more springlike than fall....
birdsnest
Keeper of San Juan Secrets
How lucky/blessed we are to be able to hit Powell at this most beautiful time of year. Me and a buddy are going to the San Juan for a three day two night tent trip on Tuesday. Can't wait, this is such a great time of year. When the world appears to self-destruct around us we get to go to Powell. I feel horrible for those hurt by the LV shootings but am looking forward to the gorgeous lake I love so much. I will still watch out for the red sand giraffe and all the other dangerous entities that inhabit that part of the lake. All others stay away.... I am authorized to enter that very dangerous area. Oh, I promise to not harm any spiders either.......unless I see one.
Edward Gerdemann
Well-Known Member
I am a confirmed Lake Powell fall fisherman. I've had more good days in the fall than in the spring. The one thing you need to know about fall fishing is that you need to be flexible because the patterns can change daily.
Generally speaking in the fall shad migrate to the backs of the canyons and coves and the gamefish, stripers, smallmouths and even walleyes, follow them. So in most years fishing in the backs of canyons and coves is generally more productive than fishing main lake structure. However, that is not always the case. I usually start out by following this traditional pattern, but if I'm not catching fish I change. Most of the time I'm able to figure out where the fish are and what they're doing. Since I'm a smallmouth fisherman, that's the species I normally target, however if I can't find a consistent smallmouth pattern I may look to stripers, especially if I'm seeing big schools on my graph. Having a rod rigged with a jigging spoon up on my deck has saved a number of fishing days for me. If there has been extended cold weather and I'm convinced the smallmouth bite will not be there, I often go looking for stripers from the get go. I know that in the late fall I can usually go into the back end of Gunsight near the forks or the back end of Padre Canyon and find two or three schools. This is my ace in the hole if smallmouth fishing is slow.
As to what to fish with, you need to let the fish tell you that. If you see shad schools on the surface (they look like riffles) or physically see game fish busting the top then using surface lures and even lipless crankbaits are a good idea. If I don't see any surface shad or gamefish activity, most notably when smallmouth fishing, I stick to the tried and true drop shot technique with soft plastic baits. You need to learn to recognize what the fish are doing and taylor your presentations to match that. It's not something I can describe here. It just takes practice.
For fall smallmouth most folks would believe shad imitators are generally the best lures, however I've seen years when shad were in abundance but smallmouth stomachs were crammed full of crayfish. I have years when I knew bass were feeding primarily on crayfish but preferred a shad imitating lure over a crayfish pattern. Go figure. As Wayne says, fish don't read textbooks, and that's particularly true in the fall.
As for depth, I've caught smallmouth all over the place in the fall both shallow, deep and in between - and all in the same day. Last week my friend John Conrad and I caught a tremendous number of smallmouths, most of them at 10 to 15 feet. However we caught fish, and some very good ones, as shallow as five or six feet and all the way down to over 30 feet. That's why I like to fish the drop shot so much. It enables me to fish a big swath of the water column with the same rod. That is particularly true in the fall.
My general rule of thumb for fall is start in the backs of the coves and canyons as that is where the most catchable fish are likely to be. If that is not successful be prepared to head out to main lake structure. If an area isn't producing, move. Have rods rigged with drop shot setups, jigs, surface lures, crankbaits and spoons ready to go, and let the fish tell you where and how to fish. Hope this helps.
Ed Gerdemann
Generally speaking in the fall shad migrate to the backs of the canyons and coves and the gamefish, stripers, smallmouths and even walleyes, follow them. So in most years fishing in the backs of canyons and coves is generally more productive than fishing main lake structure. However, that is not always the case. I usually start out by following this traditional pattern, but if I'm not catching fish I change. Most of the time I'm able to figure out where the fish are and what they're doing. Since I'm a smallmouth fisherman, that's the species I normally target, however if I can't find a consistent smallmouth pattern I may look to stripers, especially if I'm seeing big schools on my graph. Having a rod rigged with a jigging spoon up on my deck has saved a number of fishing days for me. If there has been extended cold weather and I'm convinced the smallmouth bite will not be there, I often go looking for stripers from the get go. I know that in the late fall I can usually go into the back end of Gunsight near the forks or the back end of Padre Canyon and find two or three schools. This is my ace in the hole if smallmouth fishing is slow.
As to what to fish with, you need to let the fish tell you that. If you see shad schools on the surface (they look like riffles) or physically see game fish busting the top then using surface lures and even lipless crankbaits are a good idea. If I don't see any surface shad or gamefish activity, most notably when smallmouth fishing, I stick to the tried and true drop shot technique with soft plastic baits. You need to learn to recognize what the fish are doing and taylor your presentations to match that. It's not something I can describe here. It just takes practice.
For fall smallmouth most folks would believe shad imitators are generally the best lures, however I've seen years when shad were in abundance but smallmouth stomachs were crammed full of crayfish. I have years when I knew bass were feeding primarily on crayfish but preferred a shad imitating lure over a crayfish pattern. Go figure. As Wayne says, fish don't read textbooks, and that's particularly true in the fall.
As for depth, I've caught smallmouth all over the place in the fall both shallow, deep and in between - and all in the same day. Last week my friend John Conrad and I caught a tremendous number of smallmouths, most of them at 10 to 15 feet. However we caught fish, and some very good ones, as shallow as five or six feet and all the way down to over 30 feet. That's why I like to fish the drop shot so much. It enables me to fish a big swath of the water column with the same rod. That is particularly true in the fall.
My general rule of thumb for fall is start in the backs of the coves and canyons as that is where the most catchable fish are likely to be. If that is not successful be prepared to head out to main lake structure. If an area isn't producing, move. Have rods rigged with drop shot setups, jigs, surface lures, crankbaits and spoons ready to go, and let the fish tell you where and how to fish. Hope this helps.
Ed Gerdemann
Outside
Well-Known Member
Any recent reports? We're heading towards Rincon and Escalante from Halls wed am. Staying on the hb at halls slip tues evening, any suggestions for stripers there at night?
We'll be chasing almost everything that swims in Powell, with the highlight hopefully being lots of stripers on fly rod! Last years trip kids caught catfish nonstop from camp on dough balls from bread. It was fun watching the catfish reaction in clear water to everything we could think of to use as bait, the bread was automatic......... Love this pre-trip anticipation!!
We'll be chasing almost everything that swims in Powell, with the highlight hopefully being lots of stripers on fly rod! Last years trip kids caught catfish nonstop from camp on dough balls from bread. It was fun watching the catfish reaction in clear water to everything we could think of to use as bait, the bread was automatic......... Love this pre-trip anticipation!!
birdsnest
Keeper of San Juan Secrets
Funny you should mention fly fishing. Going to lower San Juan tomorrow for three days and am going to try a water bubble with a fly on a 3 foot leader. This is the first time for me doing this and was wondering if there is any certain flies to use. I am taking of bunch of flies that my grandpa gave me. Any advice? I've been fishing Powell for 20 years and usually target small and large mouth with the striper night fishing. I'm good with that but flies are a different matter.Not taking a fly pole, too much work.
Outside
Well-Known Member
If you're talking San Juan river below Navajo the fly shops will let you know what they're eating, probably leeches, sj worms, egg pattern under a bubble, need split shot to get it down to right depth and light tippet. For powell stripers any bugger, streamer, deceiver, clouser that looks and acts like a shad.
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