Hunting and Fishing 

                                                               12/29/2008

The total impact of the environmental disaster at Kingston on Watts Bar Lake may never be completely known. TVA will make restitution to the home owners who lost their homes and other possessions and will try to clean up the water shed as best they can. The question remains, how do you clean up an untold amount of a lake once it has been polluted?
The primary pollutant will be arsenic. This will continue to leech out from the sludge that drained itself into the lake. The long term effect this will have on the aquatic life in Watts Bar may take several years to know,
If you were an eye witness to the aftermath you will know that countless fish died in the mishap. Most died from suffocation when their gills became clogged with the ash. There is no way to know how many died that never floated or how much delayed mortality there may be from continued leeching of the ash,
Watts Bar has long been on the receiving end of up stream pollutants. The east fork of Popular Creek caries such advisories as” no consumption of fish avoid contact with the water”. The Emory River has advisory precautions that say “precautionary advisory for all fish”. Watts Bar proper has a consumption advisory due to PCB that includes “Catfish, striped bass, white bass, smallmouth buffalo, sauger, carp and largemouth bass”. The primary pollutants are PCB, Mercury, and now Arsenic.
The Federal Government, TVA, and the EPA can no longer ignore the problems that are created due to our outdated laws and use of outdated technologies. During he last election I heard the term “Clean Coal Technology” repeated over and over again. Exactly what does this mean? Does coal burning no longer pollute the air, cause acid rain or in this case arsenic in the water? How many Kingston/Watts bar catastrophes are acceptable before we decide to draw the line?
Development of new technology, that is safer and more efficient does have a price. It would and will cost all of us more in utility bills and taxes. Someone has to pay for the research and development. The flip side is who ultimately will pay the clean up cost of this disaster?

                                                             10/27/2008
       The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources in news release have revealed the details of how a bear was killed by two hunters near Harlan. Billy Koger and James Forrester both of Cumberland were hunting deer during the Kentucky muzzleloader season when two bear entered the area they were hunting. One of the bear a 250 pound male started to approach the ground blind that Koger was hunting from. Koger stated that once he realized that the bear was going to come straight to him he began to yell at the bear but this did not deter the animal He then shot the bear when it was about to enter his blind. Forrester shot the bear a second time when the initial shot did not kill the bear.
      The Kentucky wildlife agency has determined that the bear was killed in self defense. Blood was found 1 foot from the blind. The agency stated that bear rarely will approach a person unless they smell food. The investigation found that there was no food in the blind. The animal's remains were found 300 top 400 yards away.
       Steven Dobney of the agency said that perhaps the animal was just curious or that the animal had lost its fear of humans from frequent contact with people. There is a dumpster site with-in one mile of the location. Bear have been raiding the dumpster site all summer. Once bear start to feed where humans are dumping food they soon loose there fear of humans. Many people will feed the bears thinking it is good but this action will often mean a bad ending for the animal.
      People had been warned not to dump food at the site by the dumpster owners. It is against the law to feed bears in Kentucky. The agency stated that this is a case of where the actions of people in one area can cause a problem for the animals in another.
        In Tennessee this has been a problem in Sevier and Blount counties. Bear leave the park during times of low natural food supply and begin to raid the garbage in the restaurant areas. Once they find this abundant and easy food supply they rarely leave it unless something or someone causes there removal. In recent years bear have been found to travel as far from the park as Anderson County.


Norris                    The lake is very clear. The surface temperature is 62 at daylight reaching 66 by early afternoon. Bass fishing overall is slow. You can catch as many small bass as you want but the quality fish seem to be hard to locate Bass are hitting buzzbiats with clackers, jigs or shaky head rigged worms. Most of the fish have hit in 10 to 15 feet of water. Stripers are hitting near Cove Creek or Lost Creek. The best bite has been very early in the morning before daylight or just after. The fish have been from 30 to 50 feet deep. Live shad have been the best baits. Crappie fishing is slow. Walleye are hitting at 25 feet above the 33 bridge and at 35 feet at Loyston, Trolling has been the only method of locating the walleye.

Cherokee                     The lake has some color and is 61 at daylight. Bass fishing is fair. Bass are hitting jigs or spinnerbaits in less than 10 feet of water. The better locations have a mixture of clay and limestone. Crappie fishing is fair to good on the lower end. Crappie are hitting in wood cover along steeper banks. Live minnows have been the best bait. Stripers are hitting form Points 8 to 12. Look for the fish 25 to 30 feet deep. Live shad or bluegills have been he best bait.

Douglas                                           The lake is stained and 65 degrees, Bass fishing is air to good. Bass are starting to move into the creeks. Spinnerbaits or crankbaits are staring to produce. White bass are hitting up stream near Fanchers. Crappie fishing is fair. Trolling small crankbait has been best.

Loudon Tellico                              The water temperature is 68 and stained in most locations. The biggest story is the crappie bite. Crappie are starting to move up to more shallow locations and hitting around docks or blow downs. The best baits have been white 1 inch tubes. Bass fishing is fair. Early there has been a good topwater or buzzbait bite, later in the day bass are hitting bandits or spinnerbaits. White bass are hitting in the Concord area. Stripers are hitting below the dam at Chillhiowee or Loudon when water is discharged.


Melton Hill                                The lake is 65 degrees and clear. Bass are hitting either along points next to deep water or in surface schooling minnows. Many of the fish feeding on the surface are small. Bass are hitting jigs, rattletraps or jerk baits. Crappie fishing is starting to improve. Look for the crappie in creeks around wood cover 5 to 10 feet deep. Musky fishing is still slow.

                                                           10/23/2008

                    

              The 2008 Tennessee Deer season is now three weeks into the first segment. The numbers of deer harvested is once again down from the previous year. The numbers as of Monday were down 5% from the numbers for the same time frame in 2007. The 2007 numbers were also down from the 2006 reports.
              The first segment archery season opened September 27. The season will remain open until Oct 24. The season will close to general hunting while a special youth hunt will is conducted on October 25 and 26, then the general archery season will resume on the 27th.until the 30th. Muzzleloader season will then open along with archery on November 1.
           The reason for the decline in the harvest is yet to be determined. In 2007 the state wide heard suffered loss of numbers from EHD. This could be a real reason but not all counties suffered the same amount of loss from the disease. The numbers could also reflect increased gas prices where hunters have spent less time in the woods.
           Tennessee's deer heard is still very good. The overall health of the animals is good according to the TWRA biologist. There will be more hunters in the woods once muzzle loading season starts and then we will get a better picture of what the 2008 harvest numbers will be like,
          The unseasonable weather may also be keeping a few hunters at home. Walking distances in the woods wearing camo and equipment can be a little uncomfortable. Once the weather cools down a little we may see harvest numbers go up.

          Warm weather and the full moon may be having a big effect on fishermen as well. Reports from fishermen that  are fishing during the daylight hours have been a little bleak while reports from fishermen still fishing at night is very good.


Norris                          The lake is 74 and very clear in most locations. The bass bite during the day has been very slow. There has been some bass hitting right at daylight or just before dark on Zara Spooks or Pop R topwater baits. Those fish have been either right on the bank or around brush off shore. The night bite has been real good. Bass are hitting short armed single spin spinnerbaits or craw type plastics along the points . Most of the fish at night have been between 5 and 10 feet deep. Striper fishing is fair. Stripers are hitting 30 to 50 feet deep on the lower end of the lake. Live shad have been the best bait. Crappie fishing is slow. Walleye fishing has been slow. Walleye are hitting spinner worm rigs trolled at 30 feet deep but the numbers have been low.


Cherokee                    The lake is 75 and falling. Bass are hitting jigs or Pop R.s at daylight. The best fishing has been along points that have a mixture of red clay and rock. The best bit has been at night before midnight. Bass are hitting jigs or spinnerbaits along secondary points 2 to 10 feet deep. Stripers fishing is fair. Stripers are hitting between points 4 and 8. The fish are holding at 30 feet and hitting straight lines shad or blue gill. Crappie fishing is fair to good. Crappie are hitting live minnows fished in brush 12 to 15 feet deep.

Douglas                      The lake is falling and 72 degrees. Bass fishing is fair. Bass are hitting spinnerbaits along wind swept points. The night bite is much better. Bass are hitting jigs or spinnerbaits along secondary points. Crappie fishing is fair. Crappie are hitting small crankbaits trolled in 15 to 20 feet of water.        




Loudon Tellico                                   The lake is stable and 70 degrees in the mornings. Early in the morning there has been a lot of surface feeding action at Loudon. Bass and stripes are both surface schooling. The rattle trap has really produced numbers of schooling fish. Look for schooling bass on secondary points in creeks. Bass are also hitting top water baits around wood cover. Crappie fishing is improving. Crappie are hitting 5 to 12 feet deep around deeper docks or brush. Below the dam the stripers are hitting when water is discharged

Melton Hill                                     The lake is stable and clear in most locations. Fishing in general has picked up. Bass are hitting in schools on the surface. Jerk baits or shallow running crankbaits are catching these fish. Bass are also hitting jigs on the drops or around brush when current is present. Crappie fishing is slow. Catfish are hitting at the steam plant. Stripers are hitting in the river above Clinton.  

                                                           10/07/2008

                                                        Hunting and Fishing

 

This morning when I awoke and turned on the morning news I was greeted by a rather dismal head line. The news commentator said that scientist had announced that ½ of the worlds mammals were in jeopardy and that ¼ could become extinct in a short period of time.  Most of these animals were from far away places and animals that most of use will never see.

I gave the subject some thought and then it occurred to me that I had not heard any mention of hunting, fishing or native American animals from either of our two current presidential nominees. I decided to go to the web sites of each and here is what I found.  

McCain:               “Every year, more than 45 million Americans venture to our forests, marshes, mountains, lakes and streams to pursue the traditions of hunting and fishing. Our sportsmen are citizen stewards of these sensitive areas and play a vital role in maintaining the abundance of wildlife found on our public lands. Indeed the sportsmen community is perhaps our strongest advocate for programs that encourage habitat protection and wildlife conservation. A vibrant hunting and angler community is essential to supporting our state and federal game and fish agencies.

Additionally, we should promote collaborative public-private partnership initiatives such as the North America Waterfowl Management Plan, which build upon the common objectives of various stakeholder groups including hunters and conservation advocates. We must also reverse the declining access to quality hunting and angling opportunities vital to the sportsmen tradition. The long term success of wildlife and fisheries populations is dependant upon a knowledgeable society invested in the efforts to provide for wildlife access and habitat protection.”  

Obama:          “Barack Obama did not grow up hunting and fishing, but he recognizes the great conservation legacy of America 's hunters and anglers and has great respect for the passion that hunters and anglers have for their sport. Were it not for America 's hunters and anglers, including the great icons like Theodore Roosevelt and Aldo Leopold, our nation would not have the tradition of sound game management, a system of ethical, science-based game laws and an extensive public lands estate on which to pursue the sport. Barack Obama and Joe Biden recognize that we must forge a broad coalition if we are to address the great conservation challenges we face. America 's hunters and anglers are a key constituency that must take an active role and have a powerful voice in this coalition”  

It is evident that McCain is more in touch with the American sportsman and the importance of maintaining the valuable resource that it evolves. McCain has also worked for the Federal wetlands act and the agreements with other nations to limit and promote the protection and limits of migratory game birds.  

I do not see how a man that has never hunted or fished can understand the needs of the American sportsman or the importance of the 2^nd Amendment to hunters or fishermen.  

                                                                9/23/2008

                                                      Hunting and Fishing

 

 

 

          One exciting thing about bass fishing is that you never know when you might catch a fish of a life time. Allen Gunner experienced just that a couple of weeks ago while fishing at Tellico.

           It was late in the day and had started to rain. Allen was fishing with lure maker and tournament partner Josh Moore when the fish hit. The pair was fishing a drop in about 14 feet of water. Allen was rolling his bait about 4 inches under the surface when suddenly the big smallmouth exploded on his bait coming about 3 feet out of the water. The bait Allen was using was a Swimmo swim bait manufactured by Josh Moore’s HPP Plastics lure company. It was the 5 ½ inch model in the pearl color.

          Josh recanted the battle saying” once the fish jumped on the initial strike it went down and tried to stay there.” Allen was using 17 lb test fluorocarbon line and was trying to wear the fish down before he brought it to the net. Josh went on to say “the third time it circled the boat I was afraid it would pull off so as it came by the trolling motor I put the net down and it swam right into it”

         These two anglers catch a good number of lunker smallmouth, but when they saw this fish out of the water they knew it was a special fish. “The fish was 27 inches long and 20 ½ inches in girth” Josh said. The pair knew they needed to get the fish certified. Currently the official lake record for Tellico is 9 lbs even. There was a 9lb 6 oz smallmouth weighed in a few years ago in a tournament at the canal ramp but the fish was not certified nor weighed on official scales.

         They quickly made arrangements to fill out the paper work for an official fish. The official weight was 9 lbs 4 oz. That’s a smallmouth of a life time. Allen is awaiting the official results of the certification from the TWRA.

             The world record smallmouth was caught in 1955 at Dale Hollow. Kentucky and Tennessee both claim that fish as their state records. The International Game and Fish Association recognize that fish as the world record. That fish was certified at 11lbs 15 oz. Tennessee holds seven of the top ten largest smallmouth officially documented.

                                                                 7/15/2008                                                 

 

 

Monday evening when I got home I was met on the porch by my 18 year old son. His first words were Dad can we go out fishing for a while after dinner. I try to never turn down an invitation to fish so we hastily ate dinner and then hooked the boat up.  

We launched at our house about 8:30. I didn’t even crank the big motor but just dropped the trolling motor and started casting. I had rigged a spinning rod with a 10 inch Flip Tail grape worm rigged Texas style. On the third cast my son asks me to look at something he was doing. I allowed the lure to fall with the bail open on the spinning reel. When I turned back to the task at hand I noticed at once that the line was slowly spooling off the reel. I dropped the rod tip, engaged the reel and set the hook hard.  

The rod came alive as a powerful fish that was moving in the other direction felt the resistance caused by what it thought was an easy meal. The strike had occurred in about 15 feet of water and this big girl did not want to see the sky. I slowly guided the fish towards the boat. Finally when it was almost at the boat the bass decided to show it’s self. In just a moment I reached down and lipped a fat 20 inch largemouth. How big is it, I heard from the back of the boat? We weighed the fish on the digital hand held scales. The device showed 4 lbs 7 oz. I thought it was bigger than that was the response from my son. No respect. It’s bigger than what you have caught I said.  

What made that fish strike? Other than the fact that I knew there was fish attracting brush located in that general area, there were two very distinct factors. I had made very sure that the worm was rigged straight on the hook. When rigging a Texas rig that is a very important ingredient. The other was that the lure fell straight down to the bottom.  

Most strikes on a Texas rigged plastic worm come as the bait is falling. Bass most usually feed up. The noise created when the lure hits the water will often get the fishes attention. In order for the fish to locate the lure it is necessary for the lure to fall straight down. If you do not rig the lure straight or allow enough slack in the line the lure will fall away at an angle.    

Always make sure that your lure is rigged correctly and follow the basic rules demanded by the presentation type you are using. It will result in additional fish caught.

                                                      

 

                                                                7/01/2008

Recently I was reading an article about all the innovations that have come about in bass fishing over the last 50 years. One of the most monumental developments was what was called at the time the rubber worm. It seems that no one knows for sure who developed the original plastic worm. The credit goes to Nick Crème who started building these innovative baits in Akron Ohio around 1956.

The first rubber worm that I fished with was around 1965. The worms in those days had a harness with three hooks and a little spinner on the front .We knew very little about these fake worms so we fished them by slowly reeling them along the bottom. The three exposed hooks were magnets to snags so this was short lived.

In about 1966 I was walking the bank at Cherokee looking for arrowheads when I found a plastic worm that had been lost. Instead of the harness rig it had a jig head in it. I picked the worm up looked at it and a light bulb went off in my head. I began to look for a source to purchase worms that could be rigged this way and by the next spring my worm fishing days began.

During the same time frame fishermen in Texas discover that lots of bass could be caught from the abundant brush that was in those lakes. No one knows who first discovered a way to fish these worms in that brush but it is an accepted fact that this is where the Texas rig was first discovered. Anglers were taking the plain worms placing a lead head jig in them and then putting the hook in side the worm making it wheedless. This rig was surly very much like the way we commonly rig a shaky head today. The demand for crème worms became so great in Texas that Nick Creme moved his young company to Texas and a new manufacturing industry was created.

Today we have dozens of colors, styles and sizes of plastic baits. The early models came only in black. It didn’t matter what the water or sky or weather was the fish hit black worms. A few years later someone who was creative gave Creme the idea for a purple worm soon followed by red. Injection molding made worm colors a reality and soon colors of all types were produced.

It is really strange to have lived through so many years of bass fishing evolution. The old adage that the more things change the more they stay the same really applies in this sport. Lately I have found myself rigging a straight tail worm on a lead head jig just like I did almost 50 years ago, and it still catches bass.  

 

                                                                

                                                                  6/24/2008

The FLW Loudon Tellico tournament is now in the history books. The tournament had a surprise ending. If you watched the weigh-in you know that it was won in a come from behind fashion by David Dudley from Lynchburg VA.

Dudley went into the last day 4 ½ pounds behind leader Art Ferguson. The leading pattern for both anglers was similar. Both were fishing off shore ledges in deep water. The difference was that Dudley adjusted his presentation on the last day and Ferguson did not.  

Dudley stated that earlier in the week he had blistered the fish with a crankbait in 10 to 12 feet of water. On the last day the crankbait would not produce so Dudley switched to a football head jig and a 10 inch Berkley Power worm to clinch the lead.  

Local angler Brandon Coulter rallied with a best day 17 pound bag of bass to finish in 4^th place.  Coulter had managed only 8 lbs 9ozs on day three. Coulter said he stayed with his milk run pattern from earlier in the week to advance to 4th place.  

Local pro Craig Powers of Rockwood finished in 6^th while local area pro Andy Morgan of Dayton , TN. finished 8^th. Morgan is leading in the Angler of the Year race with 926 points.  He has a 22 point advantage over Ocala FL. Pro Glenn Browne. There is only one more event in the 6 tournament trail. That leaves Morgan in the cat bird seat to win the prestigious title.  

Barry Isbell from Trussville AL. won the co-angler title with 9 lbs 9 oz. Jim Campbell of Maryville placed 3^rd with 6lbs 15 oz and Tennessee anglers Brian gage of Gray Tennessee placed 7^th and Kyle Lane of Clarkrange was 8^th.  

                                                                   5/28/2008

           If you are out on Loudon or Tellico Lake in the next few days and see a brightly colored bass boat all wrapped up in what looks like a floating billboard it's not your eyes playing tricks on you. It is one of the contestants in the FLW pro series tournament. The tournament will be held starting June the 19 and will go on until the 22nd. The blast off each day will start from the canal ramp at Lenoir City at start at 6:30 AM. The weigh in will be at 3:00 PM.
         The first 2 days the weigh in will be at the canal. Days 3 and 4 the weigh in will be at the Knoxville Convention Center on Henley Street .in Knoxville. If you have ever been to a FLW weigh in you know that there are lots of festivities that go along with the event.
           The FLW was founded by Forrest L Wood, founder of Ranger Bass Bats and is co sponsored by Wal-Mart. This tournament will pay the winner on the pro side $125,000 and the amateur co-angler $25,000. The tournament brings lots of tourism revenue to the area and is a very good method of promoting future tourism in the greater Knoxville area. 
                   I will not make a prediction about what or who will win the tournament. The fishing conditions on Loudon leading up to the event are good. The bass are up and active early and the lake has good color with a surface temperature of 86 degrees. The weather man is calling for cooling temperature which could have some affect on the bite early in the tournament,
                    If you see one of these boats on the water yield them a wide area. These guys are fishing for a living. Please show them the same courtesy that you would want when fishing and show them how hospitable East Tennesseans can be. The FLW makes a great effort to protect the fishery and release all fish back to the lake alive.                                                                     5/18/2008

 
         The full moon in May is considered by many to be the unofficial beginning of night fishing season. This is especially true of walleye fishermen.
        The walleye which is also locally called pike, glassy eye, or shiny eye is a very nocturnal fish in its movements and often best caught during low light periods. The walleye at times are so light sensitive that fish actively feeding in the pre-dawn hours are suddenly gone as soon as it is daylight enough to see across the area that they are located in.
     One of the best places to catch walleye locally is the cold clear water of Norris. Norris has two different strains of walleye. There is the strain that spawns in the river during Feb or early March and another strain that spawns in the lake a little later.
      The Clinch and Powell Rivers had walleye when the lake was backed up. Sometime later Erie strain walleye were introduced and for many years both thrived. Many anglers pursued the walleye during the early spring spawning run and later in the year would troll for the walleye in there deeper water hangouts during the day. Common baits for trolling are the June Bug spinner or the Jet lure both tipped with night crawlers. Night fish was limited to fishing in deep water with lanterns hung over the side of the boat and jigging spoons worked at depths of 25 to 30 feet.
        The traditional time honored methods that local anglers have used still work , however somewhere along the line it was discovered that walleye will make one or two trips per day to a more shallow area  to feed . This is usually at dusk or before daylight in the morning. That is not to say that you cannot occasionally catch a walleye shallow during the day but most frequently they move shallow during the lowest light periods.
        In May and June many anglers search the shallows during the night looking for that area that the walleye are using. The common lures that they may deploy are Shad Raps, Bomber Long A's or various other jerkbaits or crankbaits. They most frequently fish areas that have a bottom consistency of clay mixed with gravel or broken rock. These areas can be very hard to locate but once and area is located it will often produce for many nights.
        The walleye became very scarce at Norris around ten years ago. The numbers of the fish dwindled at an alarming rate. The TWRA knew of this happening in other areas across the nation. The exact reason was not determined. One suspect was the alewife. It is believed that these little bait fish were eating the walleye fry before they could gain any size. The TWRA began an aggressive stocking program with Walleye from Arkansas. The end result has been favorable.
         You may be asking yourself why so many would go to so much trouble to catch this one species of fish. The walleye is considered by most to be the best table fare swimming in fresh water. Its flaky white filets are prized all across the nation and there is only one way to get then in our area.

                                                                     5/12/2008

Many of you may remember the sensational story that broke several years ago regarding a huge bass that was caught and released in California. A bass that was reported to have been a 25 pound largemouth that had been caught while bed fishing. If certified a bass of this size would shatter the existing world record caught by George Perry in Georgia.

The story claimed that three young anglers had spent years pursuing this fish each spring. They had caught the fish once but it was just under Perry's record weight hitting the scale at 21lbs 11 oz. The next time the trio caught the big fish it was reported to be 25 pounds. The young man that landed the fish stated that it was hooked outside the mouth so he photographed the fish, took measurements and released it to fight again. This was the second time the fish was caught by the group.

When the story was released along with a photograph, instantly there was a huge reaction from the fishing community. Some folks screamed fraud while others embraced the story cheering the sportsman like conduct of the young angler that had released the fish. There was such a division regarding the authenticity of the fish and its photographs that no one was sure if the big bass really existed. That' is no one but the three young men that had spent years trying to catch her.

The proof and the final chapter in this story have finally been written. The giant bass which had been affectionately named Dottie was found floating dead in Dixon Lake California by one of the Park Rangers at the lake. The huge bass was spawned out and found on the north side of the lake. She had lived a normal life and had spawned for the last time on Mother's Day.

George Perry's 1932 record from Montgomery Lake in Georgia is safe. His 22 lb 11 oz bass will remain as the official world record. The one fish that has been found that could have beat that record has died without an official entry into the record book as the largest bass ever. She is listed as the forth largest in 2003 when she was caught and officially weighted at 21lbs 11 oz.

One of the young anglers who had pursued the bass had this to say." Now I wont wake up every morning worried that someone else is going to catch her" he went on to say " I think its great that she didn't end up in an aquarium or on someone's table or as a mount" " Its good to see that she lived out her life and came to visit us one last time."

Dottie was truly a special fish of giant proportions. The death of this fish puts us back to square one. Is there a giant bass big enough to beat George Perry's world record swimming somewhere in America?

                                                                     5/05/2008

          Last week I had one of the most enjoyable days fishing I have had in some time. Lonnie Thomas and I decided to stop talking about fishing Chilhowee Lake and set a day aside to do it. I love this lake.
          Chilhowee is the next lake on the Little T above Tellico. It is easily accessed from Highway 129 just below Maryville. Built in 1957 to make power for Alcoa Aluminum it has 1727 surface acres. It is a river run mountain lake with crystal clear water surrounded by majestic mountain landscapes that can only be found in East Tennessee.
          I met Lonnie early and we arrived at the lake just as it was getting day light. The lake was beautiful. There was a slight chop on the water from an early morning breeze. The air was crisp and cool. Just looking at the lake gave both of us a feeling of anticipation like 10 year olds on Christmas Eve. Neither of use knows much about this lake. The most recent creel surveys showed it to have a good population of black basses as well as trout, walleye, crappie and sunfish.
           We launched Lonnie's Triton Bass boat and headed across the lake to a cove that is one of the few on the lake. I started by casting a 9F Rapala floating minnow. It only took a few casts for use to see that the smallmouth were up and had an anger management problem.  The lure was laying motionless on the surface when a spunky 2 pound smallie exploded on the lure. A short fight later I hauled a beautiful smallmouth over the side. For the next two hours we continued to catch smallmouth on the Rapala.
            This lake is not really deep by East Tennessee standards but most of the banks are vertical drops. The lake is very clear. In fact seeing the bottom plainly in 10 feet of water was like looking out your picture window at home. The color of the smallmouth from the clear water was gorgeous. We saw many of the fish come up to take the lure and you could plainly see the fish fighting as you brought them in.
           The wind started the lake white capping at mid morning. This seemed to neutralize our early top water pattern. We switched to a Texas Rigged Zoom Lizard and the fun continued. Lonnie quickly hooked up on yet another smallie and I shortly followed his lead. We caught and released a good number of smallmouth that day. It was a relaxing almost dream like excursion. It is little wonder that the ancient Cherokee's called this valley their home.
           That afternoon as we drove back to Knoxville I had to thank God that we live in a country where there are still a few unspoiled beauties like Chilhowee. I will return,

                                                                     4/22/2008    

 

 

        Recently, I was watching an old tape of Tony Bean catching smallmouth at Center Hill. Many of you may recognize Toney’s name from the notoriety he has gained for being a smallmouth bass guru.

         Tony was fishing off shore and catching smallmouth from deep brush on a lure he promotes called a craw tube. He was trying to explain the difference between smallmouth bass fisherman and largemouth bass fisherman. He made what would sound like a joke that was really a profound statement. Tony said to a largemouth fisherman the bank was everything but to a smallmouth fisherman it was just something to keep the water from running out of the lake.

         I believe this statement holds more wisdom for all bass fishermen than many would believe. Once the bass have spawned they will leave the creeks for the most part until the mid to late fall. The bass will relocate along main channel humps, drops or points. They will also except for very short periods of time occupy deeper water. In most cases by deeper I mean 10 to 20 feet.

         During the summer you frequently see boats going down a bank casting to visible structure. Some days these fishermen catch some good fish but more often than not they catch small aggressive juvenile bass. This is because most of the fish are either under their boat or behind it in deeper water.

          In late May or June when your shallow water bite begins to slack off try positioning your boat further off the shore. Cover more and deeper water with each cast. Pay close attention to how far off the bank the fish are when you get bit and adjust your fishing depth accordingly. Learn to use your electronics and believe what they show you. This may be hard to do at first. Old habits are hard to break, but you will be rewarded with more and bigger bass.  

 

 

                                                                     4/1/2008

                                                              Hunting and Fishing

 

 

              If you love to catch big smallmouth, the next two weeks may well be two of the best of the year. April is typically the month that smallmouths spawn in East Tennessee and I don’t believe this year will be any different.

               In the very early spring as the days get longer and the water and air temperatures get warmer smallmouth bass in our area begin a slow movement to the shallow water sandy gravelly banks where they will spawn. This may take several weeks starting as early as February and usually reaching a peak just after the full moon in April.

              The smallmouth bass is a truly amazing fish. If Webster asked me for a definition of this fish I would say it was a bass that gets up every morning in a bad mood. From the time it gets up its mood goes down hill the rest of the day. I believe that pound for pound they are the meanest fish native to our local area. They truly are a special fish.

              Many years ago I met a man from Florida that had moved to East Tennessee . He was an avid angler and talked of the big Florida strain largemouth bass that are plentiful in Florida . One day I asked him if he had every caught a smallmouth. He said he didn’t even know what one looked like. I invited him to go smallmouth fishing with me the following week end.

               The day could not have been better. It was a beautiful October day. We began by cast pig and jigs on 45 degree sloping banks at Norris. That day we caught and released about 20 smallmouth one of which was a hearty 5 pound beauty that my guest caught. Later I asked him what he thought of our smallmouth his comment was “if you tied a 5 lb smallmouth tail to tail with a 10 lb Florida largemouth the smallmouth would pull the largemouth all over the lake”.  There you have it. Enjoy the next few weeks. The smallmouth fishing will be great.

 

 

 

                                                                   3/25/2008

     For many years one of the most productive spring season artificial baits has been the jerkbait. These are the long slender hard baits that have a small diving bill that submerged when pulled or cranked. Locally certain brand names such as the Original Rapala, Smithwick Rogue or Bomber Long A have become somewhat legendary.
   The first of these baits that I personally ever witnessed was the Original Rapala floater. This lured manufactured in Finland found its way to East Tennessee in the early 1960's. It was a totally new type lure design that resembled a wounded bait fish in appearance and action better than any we had ever seen.
    My father first learned of these lures at a bait store in Knoxville called Rays Rod and Reel. Rays was located at the corner of 17th and Western and was the in place for the new and modern sport of bass fishing. Ray convinced dad that these magic lures were worth the $1.25 price tag and home he came with a couple of black and white Rapala's and directions in their use.
     During the sixties my parents had a home on Cherokee Lake near the Gilmore Boat Dock. I was in my early teens and then like now one of my biggest passions was bass fishing.
      My father presented me with one of these prize lures with instructions to work it like a top water plug. That meant cast it out near some type cover, allow it to sit motionless until all the ripples were gone and then ever so slightly give it a twitch with the tip of my 7 ½ ft fiberglass spinning rod.
      Early the next morning I was on the water rigged and ready. My first stop was at the old Point 14 which was the first rock point upstream from Gilmore's. I cast the lure very close to a big limestone rock, waited, waited and then gave the lure a twitch. Suddenly the water erupted in such an explosive strike that I was startled like a small boy being spooked from behind. Once I gained my composure I realized that my Mitchell 300 was slipping drag. A few moments later a 2 pound largemouth glided into my landing net and at that moment my whole outlook on bass fishing changed.
      Those early Original Rapala's truly were magical in East Tennessee . The fish had never seen any lures like them and they resembled a wounded bait fish so well that for many years bass had no resistance to them. Over the years thing have changed Lures are more sophisticated, rods are more sensitive and our boats are bigger and faster. No matter how fancy we get I don't think I will ever again witness such a remarkable fishing innovation as the Original Rapala minnow.   

                                                                     3/16/2008

Last week I informed you about the introduction of HB2856. That is the movement to do away with the TWRA. Since that time I have become aware of another house bill that is as controversial as the last. It is House Bill HB4185. This bill which is supported by The Tennessee Road Builders Association, some home builders and representatives of the coal mining industry would remove significant water quality protections that currently exist.

The bill known as the Limited Resource Waters bill would remove current protections for human and wildlife health and safety, remove current protections that prevent pollution from running into streams and slow down the TDEC Aquatic Resource Alteration Permit process for business across the state.

According to the Tennessee Wildlife Federation it is the single largest threat to water quality and fish that the federation has seen in the last 15 years. Studies done by the wildlife federation show that the bill will create a scenario where streams, wetland and lakes will, over time, be impacted by sediment and toxins. This will damage aquatic life including fishable waters and fish populations, in addition to placing greater pressures upon all streams, rivers, wetlands, and lakes which will adversely impact the business community as well.

If you are against the pollution of our fishable waters please contact members of the House and Senate Conservation and Environment Committee and express your opposition to HB4185/SB4119

                                                                     3/04/2008

                            Fishing on most of the areas lakes is starting to improve. Water temperatures for the most part are still in the mid to upper 40's with many creeks starting to warm into the mid 50's. Bass are not active all over the lake and when you locate active fish staying with them can make a difference in the day's results.
                            Staying put is not something most bass anglers are good at. But the evidence in many tournaments as well experience of many guides, indicates that staying on one productive piece of water is usually the best way to turn a mediocre day into a good one. Leaving fish to find fish has been a common mistake of many tournament anglers for years. Staying put is not as easy as it may seem. Often the lure of other spots is far too tempting.
                             Most of us are inclined to use the trolling motor to hold the boat steady and in the zone of a productive area. This works but eventually the fish begin to make the connection between the sound of the motor and the presence of the lure. Studies have proven that Bass will take more notice of an intermittent sound than they will a continuous sound. The best way to work a spot or group of fish may be to anchor the boat rather than spook the fish with the trolling motor. If your motor is equipped with a continuous speed selecting a slow setting may be the best choice and then leaving it on. This is particularly true when the fish are holding in a close area.
                              One other little bit of information. There is increasing evidence that the signal that your LCR puts out may spook the fish. This is particularly true with the newer more powerful units that have been out for the last few years. There seems to be two ways to counter this. One is to use the unit to locate fish or structure and then simply turn it off. The other is to turn the power way down on the unit once fish are located.**************

                                                                     2/26/2008

               The latest Bassmasters Classic is now part of history. The tournament which was fished at Lake Hartwell near Greenville S.C. was won by Texas angler Alton Jones. Jones who climbed the leader board from 10th place on day one ended with a winning weight of 49.7 lbs.
               The number 2 spot went to Cliff Pace with 44.5lbs.  Pace is from Mississippi and was fishing his 2nd career classic. Third place went to Kevin Van Dam of Michigan. Van Dam had 43.8 lbs.
               The main baits that produced were jigs, crankbaits and jerkbaits. Many of the competitors choose a shallow water crankbait pattern but ultimately the contest was won with a combination of jigs fished to deep standing submerged timber and the jigging spoon. Jones caught his fish in 25 to 35 feet of water fishing the inside edge of submerged timber. On the final day he had just 5 bites all day. He was able to catch all 5 fish for a third day total of 13.7lbs.
              One angler that grabbed a lot of attention was Charley Hartley. Hartley was able to grab the lead the first day and hold on to second place the second day. On the third day his shallow water dock pattern just could not provide enough fish. He had only 2 bass on day three and fell to fifteenth place. Hartley was flipping docks with a jig.
             The lake was down about 10 feet from normal summer pool. The water color ranged from clear in the channel to stained in the creeks. The water temperature ranged from 47 to 50 degrees. Lake Hartwell lacks the rock cover that most of our local lakes in the Knoxville area have so abundantly. The primary cover the fish were holding on was some type wood or residential boat docks. The patterns that many of the anglers were using were very similar to those often found successful at Loudon in late February.  Hartwell is about 130 mile drive from Knoxville.

 

                                                                      2/18/2008

 

                                                                        2/05/2008

        I recently received a frantic call from a person that lives in Heinz Creek area stating that they had just seen a mountain lion. The person excitedly explained that a big cat had run in front of their car on Norris Freeway in the Raccoon Valley section. They stated that the cat was very big and that it nearly caused them to wreck.
         I questioned them about the validity of the sighting. Undoubtedly they had seen a dog or perhaps a very large house cat. The most far fetched imagination could say that maybe they had seen a Bobcat.
          I dismissed this as an overactive imagination but my mind kept going back to something that I along with a friend witnessed many years ago.
          It was a very dark night on Norris Lake. The moon had set early and the partly cloudy sky had diminished the star light. We were fishing the Dollar Island area and had decided to run up to Bear Creek before the early daylight bite. Those of you that know Norris will remember that there is a narrow strand of water at Island F above Crooked Creek that is navigational most of the summer. It is a real shortcut.
           We were approaching this narrow strand so I set the boat down and reached for my spot light to mark the bank on both sides. I shined the light first to the island side and then to the main land side. Suddenly, my light lit a pair of bright blue eyes. We focused in on what was behind the eyes and realized that we were looking at a pair of big black cats. According to the way they were headed we believed they had just crossed over from the island and were headed out the lake bank towards Crooked Creek. We watched with amazement as the two animals trotted away occasionally looking back at us with a guarded concern. The two big cats stayed in our site for approximately 100 yards of shore line before disappearing into the woods never to be seen again.
           My companion and I discussed what we had seen both agreeing that it appeared to be some type big cat. We decided that perhaps it had been two big ferrell cats or could it have been bobcats that appeared dark in the night?
            Witnessing a wild cat of any kind is a very rare site. I have seen a wild bobcat three times during the day light in my entire life. Once near Melton Hill Lake and twice in Arkansas. Wild cats are very nocturnal and very hard to detect in the wild. They frequently move around over a great area leaving very little if any sign.
              Federal Wildlife Officers believe that the eastern cougar is all but extinct. While they admit that the big cats are very hard to detect they can find no proof of there existence in the Appalachian area. Recently there have been and unusual number of reports from people in Virginias Shenandoah National Park and other areas of Cougar sightings. Volunteers will be placing infrared cameras over a 600 mile area of the Appalachian Trail in an attempt to prove that these magnificent animals are not extinct. This 600 miles area is only a portion of the 2100 miles of trail that makes up the Appalachian Trail but if any real evidence is found the area will be expanded 
               Now the question remains, was the sighting of the two black cats near Island F real or the imagination of two over caffeined night fishermen? We will never know but I also know two men that believe that is exactly what they saw.

N

                                                                 1/24/2008


             This year's political arena is as confusing as it has ever been. I cannot ever remember a time when collectively both the Republican and Democratic parties have offered such a diverse group of individuals for our scrutiny.
             I don't usually write about politics. I don't really like politics or politicians. I ran across this little tidbit of information that I thought many of you may find interesting. This is not the big headline news that you will hear on network television.
           Republican Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee has been presented as a grass root type guy with a strong religious background. That is not a bad thing, especially since this country was founded on and made great through our national religious convictions. It has recently been brought out that Huckabee is also and avid lifetime sportsman.
           Ray Scott who is considered by many to be the father of modern day bass fishing recently was quoted as saying this, "I am really pumped about Huckabee's candidacy," "I've never been a one-issue voter and I won't start now, but it's sure exciting to have an authentic angler and hunter as a candidate, not to mention a bona fide conservationist. I was thrilled to find out he's been a life member of BASS since l996.
"Even more important, I believe he truly understands middle America and I'm inspired by his message of hope and prosperity and strength. Like a friend of mine said, he's the 'real deal' and I think more and more people are seeing that".
            It is one thing to be endorsed by one of the biggest names in bass fishing but the story does not end there.  Huckabee was recently listed by Outdoor Life Magazine as one of the top 25 individuals who have had the greatest positive impact on hunting and fishing.
            Most of you that know me realize that I am basically just a country boy that has loved the outdoors all my life. Basic wisdom tells me that if he has a strong Christian conviction and he is an avid friend to the outdoorsmen perhaps we should give him a serious look.

                    Today in American it is estimated that 30 million people fish. That number represents a 4 million angler decline in the last six years. This reduction may initially sound like a good thing. Less crowding on the lake and less competition for the fish may sound good, but further examination proves it is not.
                     Fishermen through their sheer number pack considerable amount of political clout.  These numbers united have stood up to forces that would pollute our waters and against those that would deny us the right to hunt and fish. Fewer numbers weaken our position not only now but in the future.
                     The reduction we have experienced is most visible in the recruitment of young people. Most of us grew up in the outdoors. It has been a time honored tradition handed down from father to son for as many years as this country is old. During the last decade we are seeing fewer young people on the water with their fathers enjoying the time honored sport that has been part of mankind since our most primitive days.
                      In part, some of this may be caused by the misconception that the quality of fishing or hunting is not what it once was. The misconception is that there has been a big reduction in the number of fish available or the amount of game in the wild. I say this is a misconception because the fishing is the best it has been in the last 50- years and the amount of game available for harvest is the greatest it has been in the last 150 years.
                      It is important that all of you that grew up hunting or fishing pass this along to your children and grandchildren. It is only with this continued recruitment that our numbers remain strong It is also through these numbers that we can continue to preserve our wet lands, keep our streams from being overrun by pollution and retain our right to use public waters.

 

                                                                   1/3/2008

 

 

                                                                    12/04/2007

 

 

 

                                                                       11/25/2007

Late fall and early winter fishing is arguably the best fishing of the year in East Tennessee. I make this statement for numerous reasons, one of which is the shear number of fish that can be caught this time of the year. Disregard the great beauty that the area holds, the abundant wildlife that is visible around the area lakes and the wonderful fact that there is almost no one on the water. The numbers of fish that are aggressively biting is tremendous,
During the Thanksgiving week-end, I had the pleasure of fishing two days with Brad Testerman A dentist from Ohio and one day with Lonnie Thomas A retired National Guardsman from Knoxville. in spite of the cold and sometimes wet weather I will have to say it was some of the most enjoyable angling I have done in several weeks. During this three day period we caught and released alive over 70 largemouth and smallmouth bass. There were several smallmouth over 18 inches long and numerous largemouth over 14 inches with one touching the board at near 20 inches, all caught on the humblest of baits. The pig and jig.
No we were not on the largemouth rich waters of Guntersville or the smallmouth haven of Dale Hollow. We were fishing the clear clean waters of Norris aka "The dead sea". Was this a fluke week-end. Not according to my fishing diary. The period between November 15 and December 15 has for years been one of the most productive fishing times of the year on virtually every lake in the Knoxville area.
During this same week-endm,while at the ramp at Loyston Point I talked to two different men that had limits of crappie and another man that had a 7 lb smallmouth.
Next week-end if that tree stand starts to get a little cramped or the rabbits are just not kicking celebrate the Tennessee victory over LSU with a little fun fishing on your favorite Knoxville area lake. It may be the best trip of the year.


Norris                     The surface temperature is 59 and the lake is clear in most locations. Bass fishing is hot over most of the lake. Bass have moved to the main channel stair step rock points and are hitting in less than 10 feet of water. The best baits have been the 1/8 oz Bitsey Bug tipped with a Zoom Teeny chunk or a 4 inch smoke grub rigged on a 1/8 or 3/16 oz ball head. Banks with wind blowing directly in on them are best. Crappie fishing is good. Crappie are hitting small minnows rigged on a green or pink Popeye jig. The crappie are hitting in open water 15 to 20 feet deep in the deeper sections of the creeks. Drifting with the wind has been a good method of locating the fish. Walleye fishing is slow. Striper fishing is fair with the best fishing on the Clinch being above Island F. The stripers have made their fall run up river. Most of the stripers caught have been in the 8 to 10 lb range.


Cherokee                     The surface temperature is 56 and the lake has a slight stain in many locations. While the bass fishing has been a little on the slow side there have been some good reports. The two baits that have been mentioned the most have been the jig and the float and fly. Both are producing some good fish. The lower end of the lake seems to be better than the upper end at this time. Some smallmouth have been caught in the breaks right before dark. Crappie fishing is good. Crappie are hitting fly tipped with minnows along the main channel bluffs. Many reports of strong limits have come in. The crappie are 5 to 15 feet deep. Stripers are hitting shiners 15 to 20 feet deep along wind swept bluffs. The best bite is in the afternoon. Walleye fishing is slow.

Douglas                The surface temp is 53 and the lake is stained to muddy. Bass fishing is fair. Bass are hitting flat side crankbaits like the old Tennessee Homemade. Jerkbaits have also accounted for several undersize smallmouth. Muddy Creek has been a hot area. Crappie fishing is good, Crappie are s6till hitting in open water on the lower end of the lake. The crappie have been 15 to 20 feet deep. Some people are catching them trolling small crankbaits others are drifting minnows to locate the schools. A few sauger have started showing up along the main channel. The normal locations for the sauger are either high and dry or not accessible. This should be a learning year for the die hard sauger fisherman at Douglas.

Loudon Tellico                  Both lakes are stained and 55 degrees. The bass fishing has been fair to good. The guys casting small crankbaits like the deep Wee R or the 300 series bandits have been doing real well. The fish are still in the creeks and pockets along with the shad. Some fish have also been caught on a Carolina Rig on secondary points. Crappie fishing is slow at Loudon but good at Tellico. Crappie have been hitting 12 to 14 feet deep in the major creeks. Hick's creek and Island creek have been hot spots. Grubs or minnows have been best. Below the dam smallmouth fishing has been hot. Smallmouith are hitting jigs or fly's tipped with pork. Brown has been the hot color. Sauger fishing is slow.

Melton Hill                      The surface temp is 58 and the lake is clear. There has not been a lot of activity on Melton Hill in the last few days. Crappie are starting to hit over much of the lake. The crappie are hitting minnows 165 to 25 feet deep in brush. Most fishermen are just dropping the minnow straight to the brush piles. Bass fishing is fair on the lower end. Smallmouth are hitting jigs fished on the main channel points. The best bite has been in less than 10 feet of water. Largemouth are hitting blue and white spinnerbaits in the backs of the creeks. A few reports of Musky have been going around but I didn't find anyone that had actually caught one this week. The water temp should get them going.

 

 

                                                                           11/13/2007

                      

      The best thing about cold weather is the great effect it has on big bass. Every year when we get our first frost soon after the bigger female bass start to show up shallow in the creeks.
        I began to realize this several years ago when I was looking back over my fishing diary. It became very clear that the first frost was followed by a day of catching big bass in shallow water. 
        This year was no exception. Early last week we had our first sub freezing temperatures at night. A couple of days later I was fishing at Norris and found myself enjoying a great buzzbait bite that was rewarding me with 3 plus pound largemouth in numbers. The fish were in less than 3 feet of water and feeding very aggressively.
       I can't really explain this with scientific proven facts but can offer an explanation in good ole boy terms. The sudden lower air temperatures coupled with shorter daylight periods and lower water temperatures signals to the fish that winter is coming. This means it is time to fatten up while the abundant forage of summer is still available. Big ole mama bass takes this signal and decides it is time to move up out of the deeper haunts of summer and consume their prey more often and in greater amounts.
      There are two really good things about this. One is that it continues until the water temperatures drop to the high forties and stay there for several days. Locally this is usually sometime in late December or early November. The other good thing is that you may catch the biggest bass of the year during this time.

Norris                        The water temps are now in the lower 60's and the lake continues to fall. The water is very clear in almost all locations. Bass fishing is good for largemouth and the smallmouth bite is improving. The best baits have been buzzbaits or spinnerbaits with double willow blades. Look for the largemouth in the creeks along banks that have big rock mixed with white gravel. The fish may be very shallow but will be within a short distance of deeper water. The smallmouth are starting to show up in shallow water along the main channel  Look for wind swept banks with rocks and stumps that are along exposed islands. Stripers are hitting above Island F on the Clinch and above Davis Creek on the Powell. Most of the fish have been less than 10 pounds but an occasional bigger fish has been caught. Crappie fishing is fair to good in both rivers. The best bite is early in the morning but can continue all day. Small grubs or tubes have been good baits. Walleye fishing is slow.  

Cherokee                   The lake is clear in most locations. Some creeks on the upper end have stained water. The surface temp is 62 degrees. Bass fishing is fair to good. Bass are hitting suspended baits like the Rogue or Excalibur suspended crankbaits off main channel points. The best depth seems to be 10 to 15 feet. Some bass have hit Zara Spooks in the creeks. Look for this bite to improve. Striper fishing is good. Stripers are hitting shad drifted in open water 10 to 30 feet deep. The best bite has been above the bridge but some fish are hitting below Wani. Crappie fishing is good. Look for the crappie in brush 10 to 15 feet deep on steeper banks.

Douglas                           The lake is holding steady and stained in almost every area. The surface temperature is ranging from 58 on the upper end to 62 at Muddy Creek. Bass fishing is good with the best bite found between Dandridge and Indian Creek. Bass are hitting Shad Raps or Rattle Traps along rocky banks on the main channel. There has been a few bass caught on topwater but the best bite has been on crankbaits or jigs. There have been a good number of big smallmouth caught either on the upper end or at the dam, Crappie fishing is good. The best areas have been Muddy Creek, Indian Creek, or the points between Point 5 and 8. The fish are hitting 10 to 15 feet deep. The best bait has been green or a pink jig tipped with minnows.Sauger fishing is fair to slow. Minnows fished on the bottom in 15 feet of water have been the best bait.

Loudon Tellico                   The lake is steady and stained at Loudon Clear at Tellico. The water temps at Loudon are 62 and it is 65 at Tellico. The bass fishing has really come on. Bass are hitting 200 series bandits cranked under the schools of bait. The size of the bass has been every thing from slicks to 5 pounders and anywhere in between. It seems that there are more numbers coming from the upper end of Loudon but bigger fish coming from the lower end of either lake. Crappie fishing is good on both lakes. The crappie are still hitting around main channel docks at Loudon. The Clear Creek area of Tellico is been a hot spot.

Melton Hill                          The Lake is clear and in the lower 60's. Bass fishing is good over most of the lake. Bass are hitting double willow spinner baits fished in the backs of the creeks or on the back side of current swept points. Silver or white with blue spinner baits have been best. There are also still lots of breaking fish early in the morning. The cool weather has really increased the size of the bass caught. Crappie fishing is fair and improving in the creeks on the upper end. Crappie are hitting plain minnows fished in brush tops 5 to 10 feet deep. Stripers are hitting on the upper end of the lake above the steam plant.

                                                                       11/07/2007

        If you are one of the growing numbers of people that think hunting rabbits requires a pack of beagles and a major land lease you may need to travel back in time. November 10 marks the day that rabbit season opens. In days gone by that date was circled on the calendar just like Thanksgiving or Halloween. It was like the beginning of the real hunting season.
       During the 50's and 60's deer hunting was almost non existent in East Tennessee and wild turkey were very rare. The main source of hunting was small game. Rabbit season opened in November as it does now .Once rabbit season came we were all tired of stalking squirrels through the woods and the dove shooting was a distant memory.
      It was a very special time to many of us. We rarely got to hunt with dogs. Finding rabbits was done with experience of where and what to look for and with the energy of youth. We would walk great distances in a days hunting in order to jump a few rabbits. The hunts success was based on ones ability to shoot more than anything else. Once a rabbit was jumped if you were the one that missed it you were sure to get ridiculed
      The first time I ever hunted with beagles I was amazed that the rabbit would run in a big circle. Once the dogs jumped a rabbit I soon learned to find an opening near by that was a likely area for the rabbit to cross on its return. More often than not this gave you a chance at a shot that was unobstructed. The question was how far ahead of the dogs was the rabbit.
       The day after a snow storm was a great time to hunt. This was especially true if the night had been clear. The rabbits would hold up in very thick underbrush and once the weather changed would begin to move around. The movement created tracks in the snow that would alert you to their location. It was hard to get them to run when the snow was several inches deep. It took a sharp eye to spot them in the heavy cover.
       We didn't have a pack of dogs and our locations were often fence rows, railroad tracks or ditch lines. More often than not our shot guns were single shot and shells were a valuable commodity. It was our big game in that day and came complete with all the excitement of an African safari. 

                                                                        10/30/2007

        From October 18th until October 20th Fort Loudon/Tellico was the host to a prestigious bass fishing tournament that came and went with very little local attention. The Wal-Mart BFL regional championship came to Lenoir City. The tournament featured the 40 top anglers from the Bama, Music City and North Carolina divisions.
        The three day contest was won by Johnny Patterson of Grant Ala. His winning total of 13 bass weighing 22 lbs 13 oz was good for a fully rigged boat and truck.
         This win will advance Patterson to the Wal-Mart BFL All American Classic to be held on the Connecticut River next May. The winner of that event will receive 140,000 in cash. The All American is one of the most prestigious tournaments in bass fishing.
        Patterson had this to say about the tournament. "It was extremely tough to catch fish," Patterson said. "There was a lot of shad on the lake, which made it difficult, and I think the time of year. I just went searching for fish, and I couldn't figure it out. I started out in sixth place, so I really didn't think I had a chance."
       Patterson won the event with a green pumpkin finesse worm

      David Walker of Sevierville was recently named Angler of the Year in the eastern Division of the Wal-Mart FLW Tournament Series. Walker edges out David Fritts of North Carolina to win the title at Pickwick Lake in middle Tennessee. Walker had this to say about fishing the Wal-Mart FLW series. "Consistency is everything out here," said Walker, who has amassed more than half a million dollars in winnings and earned a record 33 top-10 finishes in his FLW Outdoors career. "It's just great to be able to do this against the caliber of anglers that fish the FLW Series. I'm proud to be a part of Team BP, and I couldn't do this without the support of my wife and daughter. They travel with me everywhere I go. It's great to have them along."

 Bandits or spinnerbaits fished in the backs of the hollows. Indian Creek and Muddy Creek have been hot sections. Crappie fishing is good on the lower end. Crappie are hitting 15 to 20 feet deep along the main channel. Trolling small crankbaits or drifting a jig and minnow has been best. Sauger and white bass fishing is slow.
 down trees. Minnows under a float have been the best bait. Striper fishing is starting to pick up. Look for the fish with live shad. Musky fishing is slow.      
          

                                                                        10/23/2007

                     One of the most common topics of conversation lately has been the water depths at many of our lakes. This year's drought and the demand for electricity have caused quite a stir. Rumors are circulating everywhere about how low Douglas is or how low Norris is going to be. 
                      The truth is that the lake levels we are experiencing are what the norm was a decade ago. It was very common for many of the upper reservoirs to experience a drawdown during the winter of 40 or more feet.
                       I launched at Loyston Point this week end. The parking lot for the low water ramp was starting to show. I have not seen that ramp in many years but remember that it was the normal ramp to use every winter in years gone by. If you are not aware of it there is another ramp to the left of the double ramp that we use in the summer at Loyston.
                     Lower lake levels are not necessarily a bad thing. The number of fish contained in the lake remains the same. This means a more dense concentration of the fish which can make it easier to locate numbers of fish. This may sound a little strange but look at all the bare banks that surround the lake. Those areas were capable of holding fish when the lake was full.
                      This is a great opportunity to learn a great deal about the lake. You can see areas that you may have looked at on the depth finder. This will help you relate bottom contours and show you structure that you may have never found without a visual reference. You may be amazed at the location of road beds, foundations and ditch lines.
                       TVA may n