What are YOU looking forward to this Fall?

[WeeKilt]

I've noticed there hasn't been much action lately on this part of the forum (including myself ) and I'm just wondering what you're looking forward to as Fall rolls around? For me in western NC, it brings the fish bite back!

Lake Greenwood hasn't given up much this summer. If one wanted to pluck up dead stripers due to hot weather and lack of oxygen, there were plenty near Buzzards Roost Dam, but the big ones mostly dove deep for the most part and other than the occasional shellcracker, Ethan and I have struck mostly zeroes lately on fishing expeditions. Even the little white perch have been hiding. This time of the year, catfish is about as good as it gets, and unless it's a good flathead, we throw them back. Makes for long days with little bite, but a chance to try new tackle and play with old reels.

Fall brings cooler weather and a fish bite we've missed. It also brought Irma which made an absolute mess of my lakehouse yard, deck and docks. We spent the better part of last weekend as a family picking up sticks and branch bunches, much to my oldest son's consternation. It was so much to clean up that I never put a rod in the water last weekend, which stunk! (He actually accused me of inviting him for that purpose, but I truthfully wasn't aware we had sustained that much wind damage there as our neighbors there are like us, non-daily residents and mostly FSSers - Friday, Saturday and Sunday! He was ok since at least he had his iPhone to listen to music. Kids these days... ) Nonetheless, the pile of brush made an awesome firepit on Saturday night with the neighbor next door, and THAT is what I love about Fall at the lake - a firepit burning, poles in the water, a good cold one of choice (I live in Beer City Asheville so there are SO many great choices), and great friends and neighbors. Luckily Irma left us no permanent damage unlike a few years ago, and my heart goes out to those dealing with hurricane damage this year. I survived Hugo on a 40ft Chris Craft years ago when I was a younger and MUCH dumber Marine (something I will NEVER do again) and well understand the devastation hurricanes provide.

I look forward to a quiet lake in the Fall with few pleasure boaters and lots of open water to fish in! Colder waters bring the bite back and the bass will soon start getting near the dock as the lake level drops. I'll tell you another secret - I turn 50 October 7th and decided it was time to invest in another "project" - a 1961 Starcraft aluminum runabout languishing down the road from our lakehouse in a boathouse. I finally tracked down the owner and have made a deal. Was it good? Hell no! No boat is a good deal - hole in the water you pour your money into, but I love these classic boats and I can pull it behind my Pathfinder easily, unlike the 24ft pontoon at the dock. This makes a great winter project with my youngest son and I love reconditioning stuff like this that I can actually use. My wife didn't quite comprehend why I put the couch in the garage "Man Cave" on Craigslist's curb alert last week (gone in 2 hours! ) but Ethan let the cat out of the bag and she seems to be ok with it. Hmmmm... we'll see. LOL

What are YOU looking forward to this Fall?

Tight lines!
Keith in Arden, NC

[Harry Verdurchi]

In one word


CRAPPIE

[Midway Tommy D]

2 weeks in N Central MN! 'Nough said!

[Paul M]

I just joined a local group that has a Steelhead fishing trip planned for early November, 2017. The Bighead river in Meaford, ON is the destination. I haven't fished there for decades but it is a good spot and I am looking forward to using my large calibre fly rods and reels to swing big flies. In the meantime, that same group is teaching their members how to build split cane fly rods, so that is a new project I intent to tackle starting next week. ORCA member Roger Cannon told me about the group when we met a few months ago and I decided to try them out. Maybe we will find a few new candidates for membership in ORCA. I have already been approached to do some vintage reel repairs.

[Bill Sonnett]

Cooler weather! We are in a severe drought. Lake is way down--weeds are way up. Worst summer of fishing here in a long time. We have set high temperature records here (Jacksn Michigan) at least three out of the last five days. 90 degrees + the entire week---doesn't feel like September in Michigan!

[bettybarr]

Fishing the Elkhorn Creek for smallmouth after we get back from our road trip to Vermont to bike during the Fall colors. It is gorgeous here in Frankfort!

[Ron Mc]

staging for a coast kayak trip in 3 weeks.
I'm the guide - the others are big-time tailgaters. We're taking a 45' land yacht to the RV park at Estes (just down the coast from Rockport) - and 4 boats. This area was hit by the west wall of Harvey and this view no longer exists,

but the RV park said they could accommodate us. The Rockport Chamber of Commerce has a website with the status of the active businesses.

It's just a long weekend, but should get a couple of trips on Estes Flat paddling across the Intercoastal from our pad, and another day at Brown & Root flat, trailering the boats 5 mi to launch.
It will likely be more serious tailgating than serious fishing, but we'll all have a great time.


Also ramping up Trout in the Classroom for this year, and have 17 schools this year.

[colby sorrells]

No words needed!!

Keepin' It Fun!

Colby

[Midway Tommy D]

2 weeks in N Central MN! 'Nough said!

Well thanks to the barrage of hurricanes and their blocking of normal frontal movement our 2 week MN trip was shortened to 10 days. A rainy/stormy frontal line sat up in the direct line of highway travel and Irma kept it from moving east for 5 days so we got a late start. All-in-all, though, we had very nice weather once we got there and had a great trip. Here's a few photos:

My wife, Bonnie, who loves to fish, with a few of the walleyes we caught.
A couple of pics are in the fish cleaning house. She helps clean the fish, too!




Bonnie with her personal best (at the time) 4# small mouth (released).


Bonnie with her personal best 10# northern pike (released).


Bonnie with her now personal best (caught on an ultra-lite) 5# small mouth (released).


A panoramic of me fishing, running the boat and keeping an eye on the depth finder.


Me with a 4 1/2# small mouth (released) I caught on an 8' - 2 piece telescopic UL Pan Fish Rod I built. What a tussle that was!


A couple of cool sunrises.



A neat sunset/moon rise.


A visiting local.


And a couple of cool last day fog pictures taken from our cabin deck.



A lot of other fish were caught and released, too, without photos. A great trip we'll always remember and I got to take it with my best friend, my wife!

[Paul M]

Great pics and story. Thanks Tom!

[john elder]

Okay, Tommy...I guess I have to forgive you for missing the ORCA Nationals! We had fun but you clearly beat us, rain or no! Beautiful trip, beautiful wife, and beautiful fish...what a troika!

[oc1]

Great adventure and great write-up Tommy. You guys did well.... but you look nothing like your avatar
-steve

[Midway Tommy D]

Great adventure and great write-up Tommy. You guys did well.... but you look nothing like your avatar
-steve

Steve, same 2 people, same place, same cap, ........ but many moons and a few pounds added in between!

[Ron Mc]

We may yet do a trip to Arroyo Colorado in a few weeks, but renting a cabin down the Arroyo rather than driving the RV (about the same cost). Everything is happening there, herding reds, schooling specs, flounder, black drum, sheepshead on the flats - and especially, lone sow specs staking their winter breeding turf.
Lower Laguna Madre is hypersaline with no freshwater inlets, so the tides will move. Also, highs will be in the mid-upper-70s.
Did this a bit in the 90s, running a power boat the 17 mi from S. Padre. Had a November week with a spec over 25" every day.
The spec of my life, 27", came from the flounder hole between the Arroyo and Green Island


this just in: Arroyo trip confirmed, Nov 6-9
The Arroyo was the mouth of the Rio Grande thousands of years ago before the channel moved south, and now it's a tide slough that goes inland to Mission City - they keep it dredged to run boats from Harlingen.

Also don't need a guide, I have the fishing pegged - there's a NOAA station 5 miles away with wind and tides, which I link on my phone.
Here is a great tool - zoom in and check the overlays for seagrass, fishing spots, depth contours.
http://www.texmaps.com/go/texas-fishing.html (check way down the coast to Arroyo City)