Windy Let It Blow

I know most of you are biting the bit for fall but don't miss out on what September is really all about. Wind and cool mornings. The west wind and now south wind that has been hammering us at Shelbyville for last couple of weeks, embrace it. I am having a ball fishing for whites and getting some walleye and large mouth and catfish and big carp and anything that roams the flats chasing shad with the whites. My depthfinder hasn't read anything deeper than 1.7 in two weeks. The huge flats have a small out crop of dead smart weeds and willows and the whites have went to them now that the lake has risen a few inches. Anywhere on the big flats as long as you see bait is fine. I am seeing busting fish all day long. Boat traffic putting huge waves on the shore is the only thing slowing me down. By that time I already have over a hundred fish anyway. Today we had a cooler full at 8:00AM

I am using a twenty pound fluted anchor and slip drifting along the flat and just hammering the fish. It is as good as it was a month ago up in the river only now you got a good shot at getting a walleye.

I did see the surface temps this morning were down to 73 so things will be looking up soon but for now white bass fishing is a ball. I would rather catch a hundred fish a day over a couple dozen small to average sized crappie. I will join the rest of you at the end of the month.

Sounds good --too much work for me --:):)

Thanks for the tease but this weekend has been all about waterfowl for me but if things go well this morning I might consider this afternoon as long as my boat can handle the wind/waves????

I am headed south in a few hours for Teal after hitting the geese up in Knox County this weekend. Who knows, maybe the Ghillie Monster might make an appearance...;)

Steve, do you ever drift with a wind sock?

I have stayed at home and did some work on my boat dock. I let the weekend warriors have the lake, I will fish when I am the only boat on the lake. LOL.The fishin' always seems better then.

The squirrel hunting has been good. During duck season, there is a duck blind about 100 yards from my house. I never bird hunt.

Dave, I have fished with a wind sock but it is still to fast. I am using a three pronged twenty pound anchor and by adjusting how much line I have out I can either stop me or slowly slip down the flat. Fished today in twenty plus wind and tore up the whites. Hard to see the busts but when they do the water comes alive.

From all the repoorts I am getting the white bass fishing is still far better than the crappie fishing. We had over a hundred again today and that is what we cleaned not what we caught. Shallow on Blue Fox Vibrax spinners and Big Dudes. Water is so churned up I think the extra flash of these two baits is doing better than the two-jig rig. No walleye in a couple of days though but I am due. Saw a big buck pop up on an island mid day and swim across the lake. Pretty Cool. Think the goose hunters have them a little spooked. Saw several meet their maker this week.

I have been a member for about 1 1/2-2years but have never posted(I guess I am a lurker by most people's definition). Don't post because I don't have much/anything to contribute. I was raised to shutup and listen/learn. Great site for newbies to learn. I enjoy reading everyone's posts and knowledge base. I am definitely a newbie to crappie fishing.

With that being said, how would you apply your technique to Carlyle Lake. I recently purchased a boat and when I get to fish(rare) it is almost exclusively at Carlyle. I have tried applying certain things that I have learned on here but seem fall short of making a good dinner for four. I was fishing with bait fish all around me on Saturday, but I did not manage to boat 1 fish. Couldn't figure it out. I didn't venture out in the main lake , for there were 4-5 foot rolling white caps. ROUGH! If fact another person drowned Sat-Sun.

I am not wanting to know spots, but merely techniques/tips on how to apply to Carlyle. I have two children that have been disappointed from their fathers lack of finding fish.

LSG, do you fish the whites on rip-rap edges or sandy flats? Carlyle is mostly flat with a few channels running thru. I have caught them before in flats but only for a short time and they seem to "turn off", and always wonder where they went. And Crappie for that matter are excellent hiders in Carlyle, as I have only pulled several from the lake.

Like I said just trying to apply any knowledge/hints to fishing the huge,wide,rough open lake or coves.

I tore up Redticks Wipers this weekend on Lake mattoon. Found a couple of good crappie on Sunday evening but they was gone on Monday evening. Them wipers like to jump out of the water a little bit and they pull hard. Caught about a 4-5 pound channel cat on a crappie jig. They took a while to pull in. That wind makes holding one position tough

I quit fishin' for wipers because they became too easy. There are a couple of spots where guys catch one 7-8 inch wiper after another. I don't see much catch and release going on either. I know how to target the bigger ones but I don't do it often because I don't want to share my technique. I know that sounds selfish but some guys would use it to exploit the resource ( the same guys that keep the small ones). Crappie fishin' can be the same way, some folks keep the 5 inch crappie. I just can't help folks like that.

I was working on my boat dock. Too many weekend warriors for me to fish. Hunting season is in and my dogs need worked.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by soill angler

I have been a member for about 1 1/2-2years but have never posted(I guess I am a lurker by most people's definition). Don't post because I don't have much/anything to contribute. I was raised to shutup and listen/learn. Great site for newbies to learn. I enjoy reading everyone's posts and knowledge base. I am definitely a newbie to crappie fishing.

With that being said, how would you apply your technique to Carlyle Lake. I recently purchased a boat and when I get to fish(rare) it is almost exclusively at Carlyle. I have tried applying certain things that I have learned on here but seem fall short of making a good dinner for four. I was fishing with bait fish all around me on Saturday, but I did not manage to boat 1 fish. Couldn't figure it out. I didn't venture out in the main lake , for there were 4-5 foot rolling white caps. ROUGH! If fact another person drowned Sat-Sun.

I am not wanting to know spots, but merely techniques/tips on how to apply to Carlyle. I have two children that have been disappointed from their fathers lack of finding fish.

LSG, do you fish the whites on rip-rap edges or sandy flats? Carlyle is mostly flat with a few channels running thru. I have caught them before in flats but only for a short time and they seem to "turn off", and always wonder where they went. And Crappie for that matter are excellent hiders in Carlyle, as I have only pulled several from the lake.

Like I said just trying to apply any knowledge/hints to fishing the huge,wide,rough open lake or coves.

---

Right now wind is the key to finding whites. They hurd bait up against a shore on a flat and rip them up. So all you need to know is where bait is and not bait setting peacefully in a wind protected bay but bait on a flat that has wind on it or had yesterday. I am using different flats on south wind than I am on a west wind so I am moving every day. As the wind builds it gets better to a degree. You can have too much wind as I am sure Carlye does. Today I took out tow Carlyle fishermen they loved Shelbyville just because you can partially get out of the wind and still catch fish. We caught about two hundred today and in a different spot than I have been fishing for last five days. I guess what i am saying is you need to get in a boat with someone who knows how. You will learn so much faster than experimenting on your own.

are the birds still following the whites?

What are the temperatures on your lake? I have seen some mid 70s on the lake I fish the most. I have noticed some shad very shallow.

I think the fish like the cooler water because it holds more oxygen.

Red the shad have been shallow on mattoon for the last two weeks. Also, in the evenings when the lake is flat there isnt a 20 yard gap on the lake that doesnt have shad schools on top....so your conclusion about people hurting the shad population there I would have to say is slightly false lol

I know this might be a dumb question, but what is a "wiper"?

A hybrid striped bass, also known as a wiper or whiterock bass, is a hybrid between the striped bass (Morone saxatilis) and the white bass (M. chrysops). ...

Birdy, I have been seeing some of this year's shad crop, no doubt about it. Still I haven't been seeing many of the bigger shad jumping or on my fish finder. I reckon the little shad will soon be big shad. I am glad to see a good shad crop!

I could point out some things but it may be best for folks to learn on their own concerning shad. I will say if you find the shad, you will find the predators.

Guy, the lake is infested with wipers. I think they may hurt the crappie population. I don't fish for them much but I know of places you can only fish 1 pole and have a 7-8 inch wiper every cast. I like the 22 inch wipers and it takes a little more skill to catch them.

I meant for the temperature message to go as a separate thread.