Tag: Twin Fishing

REVIEW OF 2021 FISHING SEASON

Kyle with a couple good smallmouth from the Kansas TBF Youth Championship on Melvern.

          This year things got back to normal; a little special in fishing. Fishing was a lot tougher due to all of the tournaments. There seems to be a tournament every week on all the Kansas lakes.  Good or bad? You had to be flexible when you fished and try different things all while also having to force the issue.

Twins Day 1 fish weigh-in at TBF Championship on Mississippi River.

          I would say our tournament season was probably one of our best this year. We were very consistent with several Top Ten finishes.

  • KANSAS BASS NATION HIGH SCHOOL QUALIFIER #3 TABLE ROCK – 10TH
  • KANSAS BASS NATION HIGH SCHOOL QUALIFIER #4 WILSON – 11TH
  • TBF KANSAS YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP MELVERN – 1ST
  • KANSAS MR. BASS GLEN ELDER – 6TH
  • KANSAS 4MAN/TEAM SERIES PERRY – 1ST OVERALL TEAM, DAY 1 – 4TH & DAY 2 – 3RD
  • KANSAS BASS NATION HIGH SCHOOL CHAMPIONSHIP MILFORD – 7TH
  • TBF YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP MISSISSIPPI RIVER – 8TH
  • KANSAS 4MAN/TEAM SERIES WILSON – DAY 1 – 4TH & DAY 2 – 6TH
  • KANSAS BASS NATION HIGH SCHOOL QUALIFIER #1 MELVERN – 9TH
  • KANSAS BASS NATION HIGH SCHOOL QUALIFIER #2 PERRY – 2ND

We caught a lot of fish this year, just not many big fish. We were not able to fish as much as we would like with the boys going to High School and doing a lot of High School activities. I will tell you that the boys tried a lot of different techniques this year. Fishing is supposed to be fun, so this last year, I really focused on fishing stuff I enjoy to fish. We are looking forward to next year.

KANSAS BASS NATION HIGH SCHOOL Qualifier #2 Perry weigh-in.

MISSISSIPPI RIVER PRACTICES DAY 1

We had first practice day on the Mighty Mississippi River. Nick and Kyle were able to catch 9 keepers, best five around 12 pounds. Were able to catch the fish on square bill with rattles.

Sam Rayburn Trip Day 1 & 2


I decided to surprise the Twins with a Trip to Sam Rayburn for Spring Break. There was a group of guys from the Flint Hills Bass Club that have gone to Sam Rayburn the last couple of years. So, we decided to join them. The boys were excited hearing we were going. Sunday morning around 1:30 am, we left for Sam Rayburn. It was an 11 hour trip. When we finally got there, the boys and I decided to put on the lake. We were able to get in two hours of fishing; catching 8 but lost 5.

Next Day, when we got on the water, we fished the south side because the wind was supposed to blow. We ended up catching a lot of spotted bass. Catching most of the fish on Senko and Hard Jerkbaits. I did lose one big fish on a Football Jig in some brush that we never saw. At the end of the day, we were only able to catch 14 bass and losing 8 fish. The fish were biting very weird with the rain and full moon. Hoping the next couple of days would be better.

Youth Tournament on Hillsdale Lake

On September 7th the twins had their first qualifier tournament of Kansas Youth Team Series. Six teams showed up to fish a tough Hillsdale lake. The day before 35 High School teams fished, and it took 4 fish to win. So, I told the boys it will take about 3 fish to win. We decided to start in a marina pocket with all the standing trees. I figured the twins could pick off a couple of keepers. They only had one bite before the 10 a.m. break. About a hour in, I was thinking this area was probably fished hard by the high school team. We probably should have started somewhere else.

After the break, we moved to a different area of the lake. Twins were throwing square bills and flipping creature baits. Finally while fishing some riprap, the twins saw a good bass flapping shallow.  It was not doing very good. I had heard the week before that Hillsdale had a Largemouth Bass Virus. This bass was probably in the 3 to 4 pound range. The twins were trying to catch the fish. Nick threw his creature bait up next to the laydown that the bass was next to dieing. Nick thought he was snagged, just then his line took off. After landing the keeper, the twins were pumped. They fished hard for the next two hours only catching two nonkeepers. The one keeper was able to take third place with 2.29 lb. First place was around 5.98 lbs and second place was 5.32 lbs. I heard that the first place team caught their fish early. I was very proud of the twins; it was a tough day. There were not very many fish caught by the six teams. Congrats to the winners and to all the kids that fished.  Great job. It would have been a tough day for adults.

Coffey County Bass Fishing

Here a story that happened last year on a beautiful November day.  We decided to get the boat out, and go down to Coffey County Lake to fish for some smallmouth with my dad. 1478394451993I was worried about the fishing with the power plant not running. But, when we showed up at the ramp, we saw all the boats. I knew we were going to catch them. It started out slow, but like always, it took a little time to figure them out. It had been a month since we were there. We started fishing riprap in the hot water area with finesse baits. We were able to catch 5 fish. On one of the fish, Nick broke a rod swinging the fish into the boat. The twins wanted to move to an area with grass mats on the surface that held fish the last time we were there. I pulled up to the spot.  The grass was gone, and the boys were upset. I told them the bass are still in the area  and had just moved to the rocks. Nick’s very
1478370859935first cast with a weightless stickbait, and he hooked up with a really nice fish.  The fish started to make a run to deep water, then the hook popped out. So, we went back to fishing the riprap. This time it was Kyle’s turn to hook up with a good smallmouth, which we lost at the boat. I noticed there was some tall grass on the graph which was holding the fish. Next time through, my dad hooks up with a smallmouth, and we were able to get it landed. Throughout the day, we revisited the spot catching good smallmouth and largemouth. On one trip, Kyle caught three bass on three straight casts. We were able to fish a couple of other spots catching fish but the better size came off the tall grass along the riprap. We ended up catching 30 fish. It was a great day with the twins and my dad.

While I was loading the boat, the twins wanted to fish the bank. I told them it was okay, but to make sure to stay out of the way of the people that were already there fishing. It was not very long, and I heard Nick yelling “Dad I caught one.” Then a couple more minutes, Kyle caught one. While I was cleaning the boat, I heard someone say something.  So, I said “What? You have another?” Then I heard someone from the bank say ” Yeah, they have another.” Nick then caught one more bass. We finished with 34 fish, and most were 16 inches. Making memories with the boys and Dad is priceless.