03-08-2023, 08:27 PM
Might be my last Rockport trip/report, as slush layer will get nasty during and after this weekend's warm weather..Yesterday-Tues.- I headed out A.M. again, as I hadn't done so well later afternoon the last couple times..the other reason for earlier arrival was that I'd hoped the slush layer would be frozen from cold nites, and it was...to my great relief...My 'older' body is having a harder time when busting thru slush almost each step for 300 or more yards - one way....so this day was amazing...No one else on the entire res. when I got out to a deeper spot than the 20FOW I was at the last 3 or 4 times..Last Thurs. afternoon, with MWScott, we were in about 20 FOW, not doing too good, and we agreed maybe we should have been deeper...This day I was deeper, and it paid off, one of my best perch days of the season..a good 2 dozen dinks released, including several 8"ers...4 kept at 8.5 to 9", 7 at 9.5 to 10", and 4 at 10.5 to 11"...and 1 rainbow off the bottom on an eyeball...Good quality fish...Here's the lesson I learned....for several seasons now I've been using Tube Dudes 1.5" glo flashers about 3 or 4" above my hook/lure/bait...this day I decided to try one of his larger trout lures up higher, about 17'... glo white, about 1", 'wonderbread pattern', with #6 hook?..and powerbait...could be a nice 'bow would hit it...NOPE...twice one of those jumbo perch raced up off the bottom and just slammed it...I was amazed...I'll for sure try something like that again next time, but maybe not 'til next year...Guluk...