April 17, 2016
Fishing Time: 3:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Rating: 5
Weather Conditions: Sunny with heavy winds
Bait: Drop Shot with Poor Boy’s Baits Green Pumpkin Drop Shot Darter and Quick Drop 1/4 ounce weight; Livinston Beauty Shad Howeller Dream Master Classic
Rod: Megabass Orochi XX Drop Shot Rod; Abu Garcia Veritas Rod
Reel: Shimano Sustain; Quantum Smoke
Line: 7-pound Sunline Super Sniper FC; 10-pound Yo-Zuri Hybrid
Total Bass Caught: 2
Final Weigh in Weight: 2.99 pounds
We’ve been having some great weather lately, so I decided to make the most of it and get back out onto the water. I got out a little later than I had hoped, so I decided to just start fishing the docks right of the boat launch. On my very first cast, I felt a bass pick up my worm. Unfortunately, I missed the hookset and it got away. After that, the wind really started to pick up and it made fishing my drop shot almost impossible, so I decided to switch over to a crankbait. I worked my crankbait along the sides of the docks, but didn’t have any success, so I decided to motor over to the second point on the right and give those docks a try. When I got over to the second point, I noticed that the wind had gotten even worse. I tried my crankbait for a while, but still didn’t have any luck, so I motored over to the rock dock because the wind was a little more calm over there. I worked my crankbait and my drop shot around the rock dock, but didn’t have any success, so I decided to fish the rocky drop off to the left of the dock. On my third cast, I was able to get a decent bass to follow my lure back to the boat, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to get it to bite. I was a little disappointed, but I continued to work my crankbait off of the steep drop off and on my tenth cast, I felt a bass hammer my lure. I set the hook and was able to land a 0.5 pound smallmouth bass. I worked the drop off for a few more minutes, but wasn’t able to get anything else to bite. Since none of my spots were really producing, I decided to go and try some new ones. I motored around for a while until I finally came to a cove that was completely sheltered from the harsh winds. Since there was no wind, I picked up my trusty drop shot and cast over to one of the floating docks. As soon as my weight hit the bottom, I felt something pick my worm up. I set the hook, but unfortunately missed the bass. I cast back to the same spot and fortunately, the bass came back and hammered my worm. I set the hook and this time it was bass on. I felt the weight of the fish and immediately knew that it was a big one. I set my drag and fought with it for quite a while before finally bringing it into the boat. I put the bass on the scale and it came out to be a solid 2.49 pound smallmouth. Unfortunately, the wind picked up even more after this and I was forced to head in and call it quits.
Observations: The water temperature ranged from 55-56 degrees, which is a lot warmer than the last time that I fished Lake Sammamish. The wind made fishing extremely difficult today, but fortunately I was able to find a cove that was somewhat protected from the wind. The bass seem to have moved back to the shallows and seem to be back at the docks. I caught my two bass in 10 to 20 feet of water. My last few outings have yielded some pretty sizable bass and it is good to see the population of quality smallmouth in Lake Sammamish growing.