Category: Fishing

Bass Fishing tournament on Kinkaid Lake July 11, 2020

This is the follow-up post to the preparation post for the MO’ Bass Club fishing tournament held on Kinkaid Lake in southern Illinois on July 11, 2020. Welcome back if you are following along. To get up to speed with this post, check out the previous post about how I prepared for this tournament. The weather was definitely hot and the fishing wasn’t bad. The anxiety of trying to catch a keeper fish (minimum 16 inches) on Kinkaid Lake was definitely prevalent as only 3 out of the 5 boats attending had a keeper. Everyone caught fish, but keepers were hard to come by. Remember, due to high temperatures, the tournament time was shortened, and we were only keeping 1 fish and the biggest one wins.

We arrived to the lake with the sun already up and warming up quickly. Unfortunately, Jaime wasn’t able to join me this time due to COVID19 restrictions. Our group of boats blasted off from the marina. I made a short run to a place where I thought my game plan would work best. With the short run, I was able to begin fishing quicker.

I started on a main-lake point that led to some coves on either side of it. The water clarity was good, but not super clear. The weeds that grow in Kinkaid Lake are growing well, but were not as matted up as I had expected. Looks like some other fisherman had the same ideas as there were a few other boats already fishing in the area.

I made a few casts with some top water baits around the point, but could not find any fish interested in my offerings. I noticed some shad swimming in the the first cove that I entered. I tried the top water baits around them, but again no takers. With the shad swimming around in schools, my thinking was there would surely be a bass that would mistake my bait for the real thing.

After putting down the rods rigged with top water baits, I picked up a rod with a deep diving crankbait tied on and began throwing it to deeper water. My thinking was if they didn’t want to come up above the schools of shad then maybe they were under them. A few casts later I hooked up with a bass that was under the minimum size and released him. However, he was the only one that was interested in my deep diving crankbait!

Trying a new bait for the day, I began pitching a jig and craw to the edges of the weeds. A few pitches later, SPLISH SPLASH I WAS CATCHING MY SECOND BASS! Although under the size limit, two fish catches in the first hour of the tournament wasn’t bad. But I needed to push on to find one big enough to keep.

The sun was getting higher and the heat of the day was starting to set in quickly. I continued fishing back out of the cove and around the point to another cove. My past experiences in the cove told me to pick up the rod with the Texas rigged creature bait tied on. Sure enough, I convinced a bass that measured almost 15 inches to eat the creature bait. I released him and continued fishing on.

The pressure was setting in and it was time to make a change again after trying the edges of the weeds and some deeper main-lake banks with a couple of the presentations I had prepared for the day. Three fish so far and no keepers. It was definitely hot already.

It was time to make a move before time slipped away from me. I made a run down to the dam and spillway area of the lake. There is some deeper water near the dam that I felt was worth trying now that the sun was up and the air temperature was getting very hot. With the boat sitting in about 35 feet of water, I started casting the jig and craw toward a rocky point and waited for it to hit the bottom before hopping it along. I hopped the jig another time and felt the tap-tap of a fish eating it for sure. I set the hook and landed a chunky 14 inch bass. As the bank got shallower, I started throwing the Texas rigged creature bait to the weed line. A few casts later, I got a bite from and landed a 15 inch bass…getting closer to a keeper, but still not there.

I moved across the lake to fish a couple of points that were covered in weeds. I continued casting the Texas rig to the weeds to no avail. I could hear Jaime in head my asking the same question she always does, “I don’t understand why you are not trying to catch them on a crankbait. You know they always eat a crankbait.” So I said okay, I will try the shallow running crankbait. But I couldn’t find a fish that was interested in eating it today.

The lake was getting busy with pleasure boaters and time was running out. That deep feeling of disappointment of not bringing a keeper fish to the weigh-in to at least give myself a chance to win was setting in. I figured I would fish around a point a that was littered with weeds and a little bit of old trees. I flipped the Texas rigged creature bait to the edge of the weeds and felt a fish pick it up. I set the hook and felt what seemed like a hefty fish pull back. I kept tension on it as it started to come out of the weeds while hoping it was going to be a very large fish -and it was my largest of the day! A keeper that measured 16 inches. And just in time as I had just a few minutes to head back to the ramp.

I met up with my MO’ Bass competitors who also struggled to get a keeper. I was the last boat to have my fish weighed and was told that I had to beat a 2 pound and 9 ounce bass. Moment of truth!! We put my fish on the scale and it weighed 2 pounds and 8 ounces and good enough for a second place finish.

While I did not win, I still enjoyed the day being outside in nature and the challenge of trying to catch those elusive fish. I look forward to the next challenge and the chance to enjoy nature at its finest. All fish that were kept for the weigh-in were quickly released back into the lake and unharmed.

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Bass fishing tournament on Kinkaid Lake July 11, 2020 (preparation)

The second Saturday of the month means another MO’ Bass Fishing Club Tournament. Follow along as we prepare things for this tournament. We will then have a follow up post to tell you how things went. This tournament is being done as a 1 keeper fish limit due to the heat that is expected.

The MO’ Bass Fishing Club chose to go to Kinkaid Lake in southern Illinois for the July 2020 tournament. The original time was scheduled to be 6:30 to 2:30, but with the temperature expected to be in the 90s and a heat index of 103, a decision was made to end 2 hours early for angler safety and fish health. Everyone is going to have to find a keeper fish during the morning. If you read the previous post about Kinkaid Lake, you will remember that the minimum size limit is 16 inches. If you haven’t read it, check it out and you will find information about the lake and area.

The St. Louis region has not had much rain recently with some minor exceptions, and it has been sweltering hot. With the lake being off limits to MO’ Bass anglers since Monday, it is hard to say what the actual conditions will be. We are expecting the water to be clear and the weeds to be thickly matted. In past visits to Kinkaid Lake during this time of year, we have found some smaller fish in the thick grass mats, but not too many keepers. Finding one keeper that is the big fish of the day is definitely going to be a challenge and may need to be found out deeper in cooler water around structure instead of in the grass.

Wade has studied a lake map and, with his recent success, has put a game plan together. The plan is to start out with some topwater lures. You can’t rule out an early morning top water bite even in the grass. So, a frog is tied on one rod and a walking the dog action type bait is ready. After the sun gets up, it will be time to move to the edges of the grass and find some deeper water.

For the rest of the day, deeper water structures (rocks, standing timber) will be targeted. Several rods are rigged up and ready to go. The deep water presentations will include a jig and craw, a Texas rigged soft plastic worm or creature bait, and medium depth and deep diving crank baits. Wade is not the type of fisherman who likes to stop fishing to re-rig a rod, and he will definitely have a lot of rods out to rotate through during the shortened tournament.

Stay tuned for an update about which baits were successful, which were not, and what changes were made. We will also give details about the specific baits used. While there is no money on the line for MO’ Bass Club tournaments, they are still exciting and filled with a lot of anticipation for the competition and fellowship that is enjoyed at each tournament.

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Looking back at a day of fishing on the lake on May 30, 2020

Beautiful sunny morning on Kinkaid Lake

Late on a Friday, we were wondering what to do over the weekend.  We were looking for an outdoor adventure where dogs can have as much fun as we can.  After bouncing a few ideas off of each other and checking the weather, we exclaimed – Kinkaid Lake! It was going to be a cooler than normal day, so we could bring the dogs along too and enjoy some fishing time.

For those not familiar with this fun spot in southwestern Illinois, Kinkaid Lake is 2,750 acres of fishing, boating, and camping fun.  Getting to the lake is pretty easy as it is only 100 miles south east of St. Louis and you might get to pass through Chester, IL, home to Popeye -but that is another story!  The Lake was constructed in 1968 and is owned by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Whether you want to cast a line, have a picnic, or play in the great outdoors, Kinkaid is a must day trip or weekend getaway.

The lake is home to several species of fish including bass (largemouth and smallmouth), sunfish, crappie, catfish, walleye, and muskie. As you know, Wade is an avid fisherman.  There are several habitats for these fish including submergent grass, standing timber, and submerged manmade structures.   The banks of the lake include bluff walls, grassy points, and riprap rock.  Whether you throw a crankbait, jig, or frog, you are bound to catch fish.

The weather was cool in the morning and slowly warmed up.  We were on the lake bright and early – about 6:00am.  It was definitely a bit chilly for the last weekend in May! Wade was eager to do battle with his underwater competitors – large and smallmouth bass!  Remember, Kinkaid does have a fairly large minimum size limit.  While we always practice catch and release, only fish above 16″ can be kept.

We launched the boat, and, with our lifejackets on, we idled out of the no wake area of the marina. Wade pushed down on the T-H Marine Hot Foot accelerator pedal and the boat came up on plane quickly. We ran a short distance to a cove and the boat came down off of plane. The manmade structure in this part of the lake that Wade was planning to fish around was a little more submerged than usual. The submergent grass beds were not matted up due to the water being higher than what is normal for the lake. Wade began wondering how the fishing was going to turn out with the abnormality and how he would adapt to the changes.

Wade started off the day casting and retrieving a weedless frog over the weedy area.  With no interest from the fish, he moved on to make precision casts towards the manmade structure with a Tokyo Rig technique using a soft plastic creature bait. He was beginning to feel stumped after not having any signs of the fish wanting to eat his offerings and decided to head over to a main-lake point that was covered in weeds and seemed to have some fish activity. With a feeling of optimism, Wade turned back to casting the frog over the weeds…NO takers. Wade needed to rethink his strategy if he wanted to catch a fish!

Tokyo Rig

After the slow start, Wade decided to make a slight adjustment using his Tokyo Rig – making casts to the edges of the weeds and not in or over the weeds. A few casts later, this adjustment paid off with a catch! While it was not a “keeper” fish, it was a good sign that he made the right adjustment.

Main lake point with weeds leading to coves and deep water main lake bank

Wade idled over to another main lake point that had weeds growing on it, but also led to a couple of coves that looked good to try to find some more hungry fish. Wade fished the edge of the grass and noticed a breeze had started blowing on the main lake edge of the point that led to another cove. With the slight change in the weather, he started throwing a spinnerbait to the edge of the weeds and along the deep slope of the point. And then – BOOM!!…he boats another solid bass. It is slightly short of the minimum length limit, and he releases the fish.  Wanting to try another technique, Wade puts the spinnerbait rod down and picks up another rod rigged with a jig. The deeper bank lacks the weeds but has a few logs near the bank that he makes precision casts to with the jig. Within minutes, Wade sets the hook on a 12’’ and then a short time later a 16’’ bass and brings them into the boat. The 16’’ bass would be a keeper if he was in a tournament, but the bass was released today as Wade was just fishing for fun.   Wade rarely fishes the jig on Kinkaid, but his recent success has given him confidence in this technique!  He will surely use it again in his MO’ Bass Club Tournament in July!

Wade picks up another rod with a Texas Rig with a crawfish imitator and pitches it to the edge of some more weeds. After a few casts, a little bass eats it, and he lands it in the boat. He quickly unhooks it and releases it into the water. After a few more casts and no bites on the crawfish. He puts it down.

Spinnerbait used in this outing

The next rod he picks up has the spinnerbait again, and he casts it to the edge of the weeds. We get to the back of the cove where there is some standing timber. He makes a cast with the spinnerbait next to a rotting tree and sees a large shadow follow the bait. Then he sees a big mouth full of teeth open up to try to taste his spinnerbait! He excitedly pulls the spinnerbait away and watches a very large muskie swim away. He starts to fish his way out of the cove while allowing his heart rate to recover.

We take a break to eat lunch. Even when taking a break, Wade is like a focused hunter looking for prey and is still looking around at the water and contemplating what to use next to get a bass to bite.

Crankbait used during this outing

He pulls another rod out of the rod locker that has a crankbait tied on. He begins casting it near the weeds but tries desperately not to get it hung in the grass. Suddenly a big bass grabs the lure after it ticked a grass stalk. The fight is on as the big bass struggles to get loose from a mouth full of treble hooks. The bass tries to jump out of the water and then the line goes limp. Wade is disappointed that the fish did not stayed hooked. The fish was definitely over the 16’’ minimum and may have been 3-4lbs., but we will never know for sure. Feeling deflated, Wade continues on trying to get another bite.

As we make our way to other areas of the lake, Wade is still casting, winding, flipping, and pitching numerous baits hoping to finally feel the pull back of a fish. We see a splash in a nearby weed mat. Wade spots sunfish swimming around a possible spawning bed and assumes the bass was trying to feed on them. He puts a creature bait on a Texas Rig and flips it into where the splash occurred a few moments ago. The bait falls through the matted vegetation as Wade, full of anticipation, yoyos it up and down. All of a sudden, he sets the hook good into a strong, fighting fish. After the battle between fish and fisherman, Wade swings in a hefty and healthy bass. We hear another splash in another weed bed a little further into the cove. Wade said “there is another one up there that is hungry too”. Wade pitches the bait in the weeds, and he feels a tap on his line and sets the hook hard. He fights the fish out of the grass and swings in another hefty and healthy bass.  Wade fishes around the cove a little more but does not get anymore bites.

After five hours of playing cat and mouse with the fish, we feel like we had enough of enjoying the nature and the beautiful day.  The sun is high and warm even though the high temperature for the day is only in the mid 70s which is cool for late May.  We head back to the boat ramp and put the boat back on the trailer and secure everything. As we start to head home, we are both thinking that we sure could use a nap, but that would have to wait until our 1.5 hour ride home was over. During the ride home, Wade is recollecting on the day and the where, how, and when he caught his fish and is already looking forward to the next visit to Kinkaid Lake. We are both thankful for the wonderful day that nature provided for us to enjoy. We were able to see and hear multiple beautiful birds in the trees and flying over while enjoying nature at its finest on this beautiful day.

All fish were immediately released to grow and be caught again another day.

Most successful baits used on this trip
A few lures used during this outing.