Bye Bye Bunny Gulch 9-27-10

[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]I figured I had already made my last trip to Starvation until hard deck time. Figured wrong. The recent warm weather got me itchin' to hit it one more time and TubeBabe volunteered to help. What a girl.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Beautiful sunrise, calm water and 52 degree air temps at 7:30. Looking good. Water has really been dropping in level but the temps were still at 60 degrees at launch...warming to 64 by early afternoon.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The stable water temps have got the perch and smallies still frolicing in shallow water. Got lots of both in water from 12 to 15 feet. But, no walleyes at any depth today. First trip I can remember this year that I didn't at least catch a few "see-gars".[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Perch were showing the same silly behavior they did last fall...suspending up off the bottom (see pic of sonar screen). We found quite a few suspended schools and there would be fish of all sizes in those schools. Hard to get through the dinks to get to keeper size perch but we did score a few footlongs. Also got grundles of 8 and 9 inchers. Those would be welcome from most waters but are merely a nuisance at Starvation when you are hoping for a 13 or 14 incher.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]As usual, the "Starvation steelhead" came out to play too (rainbow trout). After catching one on a bottom bounced jig...and losing a BIG one on a dropshot when it hooked itself, raced to the surface, leaped skyward and spit the hook...I decided to focus on them for the last hour or so before we quit fishing. Good move.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Threw several different lures at them and got hits on almost anything I got within range. Best results were on a couple of my homemade spinners. One was silver with hot red spots on the blade. The other was white glitter with hot pink spots on the blade...and followed by 12 inches of mono and one of my "Pink Lady" flies. (see pics). Tried bubble and fly but they liked the flash and vibration of the spinners better. Got about a dozen and kept 4 in the 17 to 18" range for our oven broiled Starvation steelhead recipe. Yum.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]TubeBabe finished up on one of her favorite big perch spots and added several toads to her take. That girl is almost as good on finessin' big perch as she is with rasslin' kitties.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Word of warning. The Starvation main ramp at the state park is closed. Don't try to launch at Bunny Gulch. The old road is a decent ramp during higher water but the level is so low right now that you will get into trouble (deep mud) if you try it. One guy today found out the hard way. Almost lost his truck.[/#0000ff]
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[perchinski]

Nice to get a report on Starv. Seems like it's been weeks. Still some nice perch to be yanked. If nuthin' else, would be a good time to take some pics for high-water reference. Looks like I'll be planning one last trip of my own. Thanx for the info.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Hope the launching at Indian Bay is better than at Rabbit Gulch. Did see a couple of good sized boats on the water yesterday...but it was a Monday so not a good guage of boatability.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]You are right about taking advantage of low water to mark potential structure for high water times. I have learned a couple of my best high water producing spots by noting them when the water level was super low. It is still not as low as it was 3 years ago but lower than it has been the last two years at this time.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]PM me if you would like some "Xs" on a map for the better spots right now.[/#0000ff]
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[FishKillr]

Good Looking Fish Pat,

Shawn M
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[CoyoteSpinner]

Another nice one. Is it Bye Bye cuz you're done with it, or cuz it's too low to launch? Thanks for the warning!

Those are some fat trout, and fat perch. We have mercury in some of our puddles, what do they pour growth hormone into that lake? Maybe a little radioactive waste making SuperFish!

Ran a round of Bows through the smoker last night. Mmmmmm - smokey! Do you have that Trout recipe available to the public?

Wonder if the full-moon moved your eyes from their usual haunts?

Good point on the low-point ID. I've been realizing the same thing at a couple lakes. Newton and Hyrum in particular - Some downed trees - now on shore, but come spring - probably some good bass holding grounds! Had thought maybe I'd check my GPS position, and mark an "X" on the map. Hadn't thought of taking a picture. Good idea - pair the both.

I'd be afraid to see your map of Starvation marking where you'd caught fish. I don't think we'd be able to see the lake through all the X's!!! []

Tried my first go with a fly and bobber, and didn't even get to switching around flies - they kept us busy enough! Planer boards and an orange buoyant spoon - they LOVED it. Kept other offering on the other side, but nothing was hitting like the orange spots. They do like spots don't they.

Again - thanks for the post, and congrats to the Mrs!

[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Not "done" with Starvy...just setting it aside while I harken to the call of other waters for a while. So many puddles...so little time. Hard to decide which direction to point my float tube.[/#0000ff]

[#0000ff]Here is a link to a past post on [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?post=235668;#235668"]TROUT FILLETING[/url][/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The last two pics show trout fillets in a foil lined pan with seasoning and butter. Now we use a nice glass baking dish just the right size for the two of us. The recipe is to sprinkle the skinless -boneless fillets with garlic salt, seasoned pepper, lemon juice or dry lemon zest and sesame seeds. Dill is a nice touch too. Dot generously with butter and bake for about 15 - 20 minutes at 350. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Walleyes? They are always "interesting". First you gotta find them...and that changes a lot as the seasons change. They seem to respond more to the shortening daylight hours than to any real changes in water temp. And while some walleye chasers swear by moon phases I have had both good and bad trips on any given moon phase. But, finding them is no guarantee of catching them. Some of the marks on my sonar just HAD to be walleyes...but they all had their middle fins upraised. Tough fish.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Orange is a great color this time of year. I have quite a few fly patterns I use that have orange in them. Spinners too. See pics. I guess fish celebrate Halloween too. Orange actually works all year but is better in the cooling waters of fall.[/#0000ff]
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[4poundonly]

Great report and pics[cool] just curious about how u rig a fly behind a spinner without messin with the spin? never tried that technique before but think it will work well on some dif waters thanks[cool]
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]No problem. Anything you rig BEHIND the spinner blade has no affect on the free rotation of the spinner blade. I have been rigging spinner-fly combinations for years...using all kinds of blades and all kinds of flies. Really a killer combo on many waters for many species. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The rig I was using for the rainbows was a bit different. It was a standard spinner, but with the rear hook removed. Instead, I tied on about a foot of leader and then the fly. The spinner works fine and the fly is trailing behind. It is kinda like mini "pop gear"...with only one spinner blade. Or another comparison might be the flasher/dodger rigs used by a lot of trollers for trout and salmon. I actually use a small spoon instead of the spinner sometimes and that works great too. You can cast it a mile and just vary the speed of the retrieve until you find what the fish want. Better than a bubble and fly for getting down faster and deeper and for making faster retrieves.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Some guys add beads ahead of their spinner blade, for extra visible appeal. But, any extra weight pushing down on the clevice and blade will add friction and slow down the blade...or stop it.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]One word of advice...be sure to rig a swivel either on the top of the spinner or a foot or more above it. Rigging that way can put some serious twists in your line if the balance is off even a little bit.[/#0000ff]
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[Ahi1953]

Thank you TD.
some nice perch in them baskets
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[Marathonman]

Great post! I was going to try to hit Powell in a couple of weeks but maybe I'll settle for Starvation. I haven't been there for at least 4 years. I'll have to bring my pontoon boat but I have trouble trying to maintain a steady position especially if I try to drop shot which I aim to try for the 1st time. Bassrods pretty successful at it.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Two weeks is a long time at this time of year. A couple of cooling storms could push the fish out into the deeper channels and it could be grim. I have had week-apart trips that were totally different.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Just watch the weather and see if there are any current reports on Starvation close to the time you want to go. If it is questionable then Powell should get the nod. Always something to target down there and this time of year can be gangbusters on the right day.[/#0000ff]
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[high_n_dry]

Pat,

What do you use to wrap the loops on your custom spinners? I'd like to try my hands at a few of them this winter. I've been tying my own flies for years, but haven't tackled (pun intended) any lures as of yet. Doesn't look to difficult to do.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]I use a simple and inexpensive pair of round nose pliers...see picture. You don't need to buy a fancy schmancy (expensive) wire forming jig. You just need to know a couple of little tricks to turn out perfectly round loops every time.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I would be happy to have you over for a "Working With Wire" tutorial. I don't do big classes anymore but always glad to do personal show and tell for serious tackle crafters.[/#0000ff]
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