Lake Guntersville Report 5-18-09

Well we knew the good times had to end sometime. This weekend was great with trips having good solid numbers and the size was not bad at all. Today was nothing like the last two weeks have been . Rain has not hurt the fishing much just made it not very comfortable. The winds today, on the other hand, killed my bite. We started the morning halfday trip on the ledge where he and his wife boated several solid keepers. Then the winds just got to be too much and drove us to protected coves. We fished the lower end of the lake at thier request and as many anglers that fish the lower end know there are not alot of places to hide where the bite is strong this time of year. We did end up catching several more fish before the trip was over but not was I was hoping for. They were pleased and learned alot on making adjustments during the day. We started out with both War Eagle and Rattle Head spinnerbaits then I wanted to teach them both the swimbait so they switched to the Jackall Swimming Ninja and Sride. Those baits boated the bigger fish of the day on creek channels. After moving to coves they had several fish on the Lake Fork Live Magic Shad fishing it in "skinny" water but the size was not really there. All in all a good trip with some great people.

I will be back at it again in the morning for 2 halfday trips so it should be a fun day on the lake again with great sunny weather and the winds moving out. On a side note, Wilson Frazier has worked out a date for another GREAT Sonar/GPS class. The date is June 11th and will be held at one of the best places to eat in Guntersville, Wintzell's located on Highway 431. Class will begin at 7pm and go until around 9pm. Cost for it will be $50.00 per person. If anyone is interested please contact me at 205-706-2425 or e-mail at finsngrinsfishing@hotmail.com This will be a limited class so be sure to get on the list to attend early. Also it does not matter what unit gps/sonar you run you will learn how to use it and what you are looking at when it is on the screen. Looking forward to seeing everyone there. See you on the water.

God Bless
Phil.4:13

Guntersville 5-15-09

Well today I had 2 halfday trips. This morning I met with Dr. Kane Fulton and his buddy Mark. Kane's wife had got him a certificate for a halfday trip for a gift. Mark had never caught a fish before(any kind) and Kane is just starting to learn Bass fishing. Well today was nothing short of GREAT. We pulled up to a spot I found some fish in after a trip on Thursday and well in the first 30 mins. had put 10 in the boat. Kane had 3 in a row before Mark got his first bite. Mark held his own and soon began to turn up the heat boating several fish. I had them using Rattle Head Spinnerbaits because the bite is kinda hard to feel and get a good hook set on the swimbait for someone just starting. We sat in one spot and flat "smoked em'" on the blade until the bite slowed down. Kane was thinking about a move when "smack" his rod bowed up and he pulled. The rod then pulled back.LOL He boated his largest fish to date at just over 6lbs.. After that the bite did slow down with only boating a few more fish in one other spot. Best baits for them was the Spinnerbait in white. I had one on a swimbait but only made about 10 cast the whole trip. It was great to be a part of thier day and see both of them catch fish. I forsure enjoyed being the person to help Mark catch his first fish ever. I think his best fish was between 3.5 and 4 lbs. Not a bad start but now they are both stoked about the next trip.

After dropping them off I changed ramps at the clients request fishing the lower end of the lake. Well they are eating there as well. We fished open water humps and at his request I fished as well. We threw nothing but Jackall Muscle 10+ crankbaits, Jackall Swimming Ninja Swimbaits, Giron, and Lake Fork Live Magic Shads. We did fish a little deeper humps and some creek drops. Once we found them they were stacked up. My client had his best 5 fish limit of 27 lbs and also his biggest fish ever at 8.10lbs. He is know a believer in the swimbait.LOL In total we had 38 fish in the boat all keepers with most of them being right at or just under 4lbs.

Alll in all a great day on the lake with some great clients. It is days like this make me glad I guide here.LOL Hope everyone has a great weekend and good tournaments. I will be at Goose Pond later working for Frazier Marine Group at the Big Bass Splash sign in and then tonight at the Sonar/GPS class at the Hampton Inn in Guntersville. Be sure to drop by and say hello. Thanks for all the support and well wishes.

God Bless
Phil.4:13

Lake Guntersville 5-14-09

Water Temperature: 74Water Clarity: 2-3 feet
Well it is nothing short of a "slug fest" on Guntersville right now. I think this is the best I have seen this lake in years as far as size and numbers go. Most of the time when you can catch alot of numbers they are shorts or just barely keepers. Now everything is a keeper or better and the numbers are awesome. Had another 40+ day today with only 3 short fish. Most of the fish are iin the same areas just grouped up and eating. One thing we noticed is they are not grouped in size yet. One cast you bust two or three keeper fish then catch a 5 or 6 lb fish on the next cast. Best baits have been Jackall Muscle 10 and 7 in shad colors and Lake Fork Swimbaits in both the 4.5 and 5.5 sizes. The morning bite is getting stronger on topwater with the 0 footer cherry doing the most damage and the Rattle Head spinnerbait pulling a close 2nd. Once you find them they are stacked up so the guys fishing the McDonalds event this weekend should flat smack them.
Also Wilson Frazier is doing a Sonar/GPS class at the Hampton Inn in Guntersville this weekend on both Friday and Sat night from 7-9. The cost is $50.00 per class if anyone is interested. If you have never attended one of his classes your missing out. He will cut the learning curve in half and get you in tune with your sonar and gps as well as someways to "tweak" your units to get the most out of them. E-mail me for details. This event is being put on by the guys at Guntersville Boat Mart off hwy 69.
I still have some open dates in May and June so be sure to give us a call for a trip. Hope everyone has a great weekend and thank you for all the support.
God Bless
Phil.4:13
FINS -N- GRINS FRESHWATER ADVENTURES

Guntersville Events and Fishing

Lake Guntersville is "off the hook" right now with fish being caught from one end of the lake to the other. In the last week of trips we have "smoked em'" with clients catching huge numbers and some great weights. The fewest number of bass being boated is 40 this week on fullday trips. As of now the shad spawn is getting good and spinnerbaits are the way to go in the moning. As the day progresses We are throwiing Jackall Swimming Ninja and Lake Fork Swimbaits on the pockets and ledges. Jackall Muscle 10+ cranks are doing well in the grass. Best thing to target is shell beds off the main river and look for the tallest/greenest grass you can find.

The McDonalds "Big Bass Splash" will be coming into town this week and the lake is going to be packed with anglers from all over the Southeast. This event is like no other tournament on the lake. Anglers will be able to weigh in one fish every hour for two days. During this weekend on Friday and Sat night there is also a special treat. Wilson Frazier AKA: "The Professor" will be in town doing classes at the Hampton Inn in Guntersville. This event is presented by Guntersville Boat Mart located on Highway 69. If you have never attended one of Wilson's classes it is worth every penny. He will be covering everything from how to set up your sonar/gps to how to know exactly what your looking at in the water and adjust your fishing. His GPS class is also one that is hard to beat. While on the water with him he taught me how mark a waypoint then return to that exact point from the same angle. He placed a ballon in 35 feet of water raised only 6 feet off the bottom and had me mark the ballon while looking at it on the front sonar. We then drove around and fished for a couple of hours and he had me drive back to the ballon. When I used his tactics I pulled up to the "area" and when I placed the trolling motor in the water and the transducer "kicked in" I saw the ballon. Anyone can find a rock pile or larger structure on the bottom but to be able to locate a 6 inch ballon without having to drive around the area and look for it was amazing. This is a must have for anyone that fishes tournaments.

His classes will be held at the Hampton Inn on the 15th and 16th of this month from 7-9. There is limited seating and cost is only $50.00. Feel free to contact me at finsngrinsfishing@hotmail.com for further information or for seating.

Be sure to check out the blog in the up coming days for more fishing reports and some new articles on fishing swimbaits. Also on the lower right section of the WAAYTOBETERFISHING site be sure to follow me on twitter for up to date reports while on the water. I do these more than anything else while on trips and tournaments. If you have not heard about the WAAY 31 TV site just go to http://www.waaytobetterfishing.com/ This site is great and getting better every week. It has up to the minute weather reports for lakes all over the State of Alabama, fishing reports, articles on new products and tactics, as well as the blog. Also please be sure to add any comments on anything on the site. If there is something you would like to see there let us know or if you would like a bait tested or have any qustions about a certian tactic

Lake Guntersville 5-7-09

Well hit the water the last few days and the bite is getting better and better each day. With a day today of lots of sun and no high winds and rain we flat "smoked em'"! I had my client throwing big Lake Fork worms in several colors and we were catching some ok numbers and size. We then made a move to a place I catch them alot this time of year and started using Lake Fork Live Magic Shad swimbaits and Spinnerbaits. That was the baits to have tied on for sure. We both had several limits and size was solid with only a few fish just under 15 inches. The shad spawn is getting hotter and hotter and only going to pick up in the next few days.
The BASS Elite Series is also on Guntersville this week and today was the first day of the tournament. Well they did as well as we did with the leader Todd Faircloth busting a 31.00 lb back of LAke Guntersville bass. All the guys did well and everyone in the field can catch that one or two fish that can totally change the totals. I think it took 20+ pounds just to be near the top 50 anglers. Friday should be a true "slug fest" on Guntersville. I will be able to attend the weigh in Friday so be sure to check back on the WAAY 31 site for Twitter updates. I am also working on a blog for tactics on the shad spawn. Be sure to check it out as well.

Lake Guntersville 5-4/5-5-09

The last two days on Guntersville have been great. The cooler temps and winds getting lighter during the day have made the mid-day bite better and today with the sun coming out, and staying out, the bite was awesome. I have fished mainly open water humps in the 4-6 foot range with the better fish coming off the top of the humps. The shad spawn is getting cranked up but I have still not found it in full swing. I took out after the morning bite was over this morning and moved down river. I fished the lower end of the lake having alot better luck on size. The biggest key is green grass being on the humps. I fished several baits today with the better fish coming off the Jackall 6.8 Flick Shake rigged on the Wacky Jig head. I also had numbers on the Lake Fork Lizard. Both baits in Green Punpkin. It was good to be back on Guntersville and I can't wait for the Shad spawn to start.
I will be working on an article for fishing the shad spawn later in the week so be sure to follow and keep up to date on the site. Thanks to everyone for thier continued support and We are gearing up for a great summer in North Alabama.

God Bless
Phil.4:13

BASS Southern Open-Lake Wheeler

Well the BASS rolled into the City of Decatur this past week to bring the Southern Open to Lake Wheeler. What an awesome city and lake. We started official practice on Monday April, 27th. The water was a little stained but not too bad from the weather we had been getting but the bite was great. I did like I do in most tournaments and broke the lake down into 3 sections. I fished the mid lake area the first day. This body of water runs east to west so with the winds being forcasted to come from the South-Southwest throughout the tournament I started on the North banks working protected pockets. I found a number of fish in the backs of pockets and saw even more moving in and out all day while working my way down to the mouths of both the Elk River and Spring Creek. Once I made it to the Elk River I moved across the channel to Spring and started working the same pattern back East on the South bank. By the end of the day I was on a for sure pattern that I felt would produce a solid 12-15 lbs a day.
On day two of practice I drove down to the lower end of the lake and put in at First Creek. Well I found where most of the field was. I fished several pockets in the area and and it was apparent that area would be a total battle for a place to fish and sharing water with numbers of boats. I moved out to the main river area to some submerged structure I had done well on in the past and had 2 fish over 3 lbs in a matter of 5 cast, I left it fast and was still very confident. I made the decision to pull out and move to the Elk River area before I made an appearance for Jackall at one of the best tackle stores in North Alabama, West End Outdoors. Well plans were changed as I was idling back to the ramp in a no wake zone. I ended up with the motor stopping and would not run in gear. I trimmed the motor up to find someone had left some trot lines unmarked and found my prop. I then jumped on the trolling motor and started the LONG troll back to the ramp. I was un-sure if it had damaged the seals in the prop shaft so to play it safe I trolled back to the ramp instead of just cutting the line and running back. When I was almost back to the ramp a person finally noticed I had problems and pulled me the rest of the way. I never got his name but a huge THANK YOU goes out to him. Once on the ramp I removed the lines from the prop shaft and got on the phone. It was getting close to time for dealerships to close but I got lucky and got an answer at D&D Marine. They were walking out the door but once I explained my situation they agreed to hold the doors and help me out. I can't thank those guys enough for getting me in and working on my motor.
The next day and last practice day before the tournament I went to the Spring Creek area to stay until I had to leave for the meeting. I made several passes working the same patterns and boating several fish as well as "shaking off" several more. My partner for the day, Dennis Hollis, from Memphis, Tenn. also had a good time boating several fish. We let the area with a good back up plan and I felt I was ready for the tournament to start. Once at the pre-tournament meeting I was boat number 49 with a great partner that had never fished an Open before. We got our plan together and he was as "stoked" as I was to get started.
First day of competition the winds were blowing from the north east and not seeming to want to laydown. We hit my first pocket boating a couple of fish. Not wanting to burn the area so I could come back to it on day two we moved. I hit several pockets boating a limit but noticed every place I had caught fish or had bites in practice that were over 2-3 lbs were now producing 1-1 1/2 lb fish. I made the decision to move to my back up plan but it was too little too late. We ended running out of time and the winds made it impossible to work several areas the way I needed to to better my catch. I ended the day with almost a 7 lb total but by weight only about 3lbs out of the top 30 cut. I was down over the fish moving but still felt I was in the game if I could work the areas out and find the fish that had moved out. I went back to the hotel and hit the maps to find the areas fish would move to after they came of the beds. Once making a plan I was feeling better about day two.
On day two I drew a super guy from Fla. that started fishing the Opens this year but had a bad tournament on the Harris Chain. He was in the hunt so it was not only important for me to catch fish but I also wanted him to make the cut as well. I had told him my bite was strong but the bigger fish had moved so a limit would not be a problem. We started on the ledge before the winds came in to work on the bigger bite. Well within the first few cast we both had a solid fish in the boat and I found my hunch was right, the fish had moved in the last 48 hours. We then left that area after catching a couple of other fish and started hitting the secondary points. I boated a couple of other fish getting my limit. With my co-angler not having but two fish I made the move to get him a limit to insure he made the top 30 cut. He boated one more fish and missed a couple of others. We then made the choice to go back to the ledge and hunt for the bigger bite. It was the right choice. I upgraded little by little and he ended up with a 6+ pound toad in the livewell to put him in the toward the top of the top 30.
Once at the weigh in and at the scales I found out I need the fish he caught to make the cut but I was proud he had it and made his first cut. I ended with just over 16 lbs total for the event and out of the top 30 by around 5 lbs. Although the weights were not great I was only one solid bite a day from a great tournament. That is just part of the game but the way I look at it both my co-anglers made a check and I had a limit each day so it was not a bad event on my part. I just made the decision to move a little too late. I only had two fish lost the entire tournament so that might have made a difference but like I told reporters, if it is meant to be it will and if not there is nothing you can do to change that.
I want to make sure to say congratulations to the winners on both sides with great catches. Chris Payne flat "smoked em'" wire to wire with a total of 45+ lbs for the event to take the win. He is a great angler and hats off to him for a great job. Also congrats to some of our local angler's on both sides for a great tournament as well.
The baits that seemed to work well for me this tournament we the Jackall Flick Shake worm in Green Pumpkin rigged on the Wacky Jighead. I fished this bait in areas near spawning flats and pockets in around 2-6 feet of water. It was rigged on a Daiwa Steez spinning rod with a Steez reel and Lake Fork FH 7lb test line. I also fished a Lake Fork Lizard and Craw Tube near Buck Brush in both Green pumpkin and Killer Craw colors. I had this bait on a Daiwa Steez 7-6 flipping stick with a 7.1 Steez reel and 65 lb braid. On day two I fished the mentioned baits but also added the Jackall Muscle 7 and 10+ in shad colors for my better bites. In all over 20 limits were boated during the week on these baits.
I really need to take a minute to thank all of my supporters and sponsors. Jackall Lures, Lake Fork Trophy Lures, WAAY 31 TV, Gator Grip, Daiwa, Red Bull, The Boat House, West End Outdoors and Triton. Most of all I have to thank God for the chance to follow my dreams, my family for always being there and keeping my head up even when things are not going as planned and one huge special thank you goes out to the Peet Family, Don, Mandi, Will, and Eric. They are the reason I was even able to fish this event. They are GREAT friends and Beth and I are truly blessed to have them in our lives. Thanks again for all the support and lets get this next week started.
Be sure to check out the site and blog everyday for up to date information on tactics and tackle. As well as some new video we are working on this week. The WAAY 31 site(www.waaytobetterfishing.com) is up and running and will improve everyday. Be sure to click follow on the lower right hand section to keep up with whats going on during events. I post to my tweeter account about 20 times a day. Have a great week and lets go fishing.