01-27-2010, 10:00 AM
Sunday - January 24, 2010 - Day 23 - one day missed<br /><br />January 24, 2010 - Spalding County Sportsman Club tournament<br />Jackson Lake, water extremely muddy to heavy stain, 45 to 48 degrees<br />First tournament of the year, fished 7:30 AM to 3:30 PM<br />Rainy, cool, windy weather<br /><br />At blast off I went to my usual rocky point on the main lake to start. Water was very muddy and 48 degrees - kinda deflated my hopes which were low to start with. Fished the area with two different crankbaits and a jig and pig - nothing.<br /><br />For the other boards that pull these reports, please visit my site at http://fishing.about.com That is in my signature line here but it isn&#39;t picked up. Hate to spam this board but I hate auto pulls of my posts even more.<br /><br />Ran to Tussahaw Creek at 8:30 - water was a little better but a little cooler. Fished a rocky point and bank, then bridge riprap and pilings. Not a hit.<br /><br />At 9:30 it started raining a little harder and I decided to fish up the bank rather than crank up and ride to a dock with brush I wanted to fish. Between me and it was a big rocky point with huge rocks - I have never fished it, it just looks too good and too obvious so I figure it gets beat to death. As I rounded it at 9:45 I cast a black and blue jig and pig to the shallow water and started working it slowly done the slope. Felt mushy when it hit about 12 feet deep and I set the hook - on a heavy fish. Got it to the surface with little fight and landed what I figured was a 3.5 to 4 pound largemouth - was thrilled to get a keeper, much less one that size.<br /><br />Worked that point for a long time, then fished the brush and dock, and the next rocky point. Nothing. Back to where I got the fish. Nothing. Ran across to a shallow point with brush that merged into a deep rocky bank and fished it all. Not a bite.<br /><br />At 11:30 I ran way up the creek. The water got clearer - and colder - the further I went. Stopped on a rocky island and worked the area hard - I won here last year in January with 13 pounds. On one rocky bank I felt a hard thump but missed - it was real windy. I looked and there was a big stick floating along in the wind right where I thought I got a hit - might have been the stick bumping my line. Many more casts produced nothing.<br /><br />At 2:15 went back to where I had caught the fish and worked all that area for 45 minutes. Cast up to a boat ramp and thought I felt a tick, but nothing was there when I set the hook. <br /><br />At 3 ran down to a rocky point nearer weigh-in and worked it - nothing.<br /><br />At weigh-in winner had four pretty fish weighing just under 10 pounds, including a 3 pound spot - all on crankbaits. My 4.08 pound largemouth was second and big fish. Third was two bass at 2.5 pounds and fourth was 1 spot weighing .95 pounds.<br /><br />That was it. We had only 9 fishermen - several let the weather guessers bad predictions make them stay home. Five zeros. Weather was not really that bad. Bad thunderstorms were predicted but it never thundered. I had my hood down most of the day, little rain, and had to unzip my Cabellas Guide Wear jacket and bibs it got so warm in them. I never stay home because of what the weather guessers say.<br />