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Joe Joslin has been fishing Toledo Bend and Sam Rayburn for 25+ years and has been a full time pro guide on Toledo Bend/Sam Rayburn since 1998.Joe Joslin Outdoors Fishing Guide Service Wholesome atmosphere * Safety minded * Latest equipment. Visit Joe's website at Joe Joslin Outdoors E-Mail Joe at joejoslinoutdoors@yahoo.com
Toledo Bend Reservoir Fishing Report
for
July 29, 2010
Hello, Anglers. Are you in need of a top quality fishing rod that will not sink your budget? The rods I have been using for the past 20 years have been Fenwick and for several reasons. Fenwick was the first to make a fiberglass rod(remember the Lunker Stick?) and they also were the first to make a graphite rod which made it possible to have a strong, very sensitive rod that weighed only a fraction of what glass rods did. Both of these rods changed the fishing rod industry. I continue to use these excellent, top of the line rods with the only downside being their cost which can run as high as $300 per unit. However, I acquired some rods recently made by Abu Garcia that are very impressive and are very affordable. The rod series I am talking about is Abu Garcia's Vendetta Series which are priced just under $80. I have been using four of them, 2 medium action for baitcast reels (model VTC70-5/7' 0"med-cast) and 2 medium-heavy baitcast (model CTC70-6/7' 0" med heavy). These rods are factory tuned with contemporary styling, very sensitive, lightweight, excellent hardware(reel seat/guides/handle) and look and fish like a rod 2-3 times the cost. One tournament angler told me recently "These are the best $80 rods he has ever had" and informed me that he had just ordered 4 more. Another thing about these rods is that they are available in multiple local outlets as well as online from top tackle suppliers. The series comes in various lengths including both casting and spinning plus a two year factory warranty and offer a lot of bang for the buck. LAKE CONDITIONS: The lake is at 168' with both generators shut down currently until further notice. Water conditions are excellent but the lake is 4 feet below full pool which boaters should keep in mind especially on the north half of the lake as well as when running boat lanes which come off main lake and entering main feeder creeks. Water temperatures are similar to last week running about 85 in the morning to 88 to 90 in the afternoons. North Toledo is slightly stained, mid-lake is clear and south Toledo is very clear. FISHING REPORTS/BASS: We are in the prime of night fishing season and with the moon on the increase this week there have been a lot of anglers catching bass at night. Up and Coming Outdoors held its third tournament of the Toledo Summer Series last Saturday at Pirates Cove Marina. 86 anglers competed for $4,500.00 in cash and prizes. The weather was hot and the moon was full with some cloud cover and wind and after the final 3:00 AM weigh-in there were seven teams with 5-bass stringers over 20 pounds including 15 fish over 6 pounds. Over-all winners were Shannon Thibodeaux and Rodney Owens of Lake Charles with 29.56 and a check for $1,865. Runner's up were Tommy Rascoe and Alton Powell of Marthaville with 29.15 pounds and winnings of $805. In third were Tim Merriman and Travis Hillman of Leesville with 24.65 and $550. Big Bass went to Thibodeaux/ Owens with a heavy 8.40 pounder. Todd Fontenot and Pat McConnaughy of Lake Charles had second big bass at 7.20. Up and Coming has 2 remaining events in the Toledo Summer Series set for August 21 and 28. Daytime patterns improved slightly, especially the afternoon patterns from 5 p.m. until sunset. Deep diving crankbaits have been a decent choice with main lake points and ridges suggest areas to target. If you catch a good fish don't be in too big a hurry to leave the area and you might first want to change colors of crankbaits and go back through the area and then work it with TX rigs or Carolina rigs. I always keep a schooling bait on the deck of my boat this time of year and it may be a jigging spoon (that I can throw 60 +yards) or a topwater plug. I have learned a lot from schooling bass over the years. One of those things is that schooling bass which continue to surface in the same area may be holding on some type of cover or structure with a significant change of depth. Several of my favorite main lake honey holes were located by chasing schooling bass and watching my electronics as to where they were located. So remember, there may be more to schooling bass than what you see on the surface. While we are catching some bass early and with cloudy conditions in less than 15 feet, most of our time currently has been working DD22s, Texas Rigs, Carolina Rigs and drop shot in 15 to 30 feet depths with much of it in 18 to 24 feet. Our top soft plastic colors include watermelon candy, pumpkin magic, watermelon seed, redbug and plum and plum-apple. We are using 15 and 17 lb test Berkley 100% Fluorocarbon on our TX and Carolina rigs and 8 lb Berkley XL on our drop shot. CRAPPIE/YELLOWBASS: Patterns have changed very little this week on crappie with brush piles in 20 to 30 feet and live shiners the most consistent approach and 20 to 30 crappie considered a good trip. Yellow bass are still hitting on jigging spoons and tailspinners in the back portions of major creeks. The yellows do move around and follow the baitfish(shad) so you may need to do the same. I have more confidence in an area where I see surface/schooling activity. AUTHOR INFO: Joe Joslin is a syndicated outdoor columnist, tournament angler and pro guide on Toledo and Sam Rayburn. Contact him at 337-463-3848 or joejoslinoutdoors@yahoo.com. and WEBSITE www.joejoslinoutdoors.com.
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