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Well folks, we're back from Banks lake and although the fishing wasn't red hot, it was very good.
First Banks:
The beginning of the week started off with a great morning/evening topwater bite. Quite a few bass in the 2-3 pound range were caught, with a few over 4 (thanks to the Smallmouth Master, Larry Gonczy). Personally, I had several smallies in the 1.5-2.5 range slam my spinnerbaits.
As the week wore on, however, the night temps dropped, which killed the topwater bite. The little smallies came out and hammered any plastic you put in front of them. Crankbaits seemed to be the key for larger bass, with the exception of a few 3+ pounders falling victim to Mike Singson's dropshot rig. I was lucky to be at the right place at the right time to find a school of 1.5-2.5 pound smallies on a feeding frenzy. The result? 8 nice bass in less than 45 mins - all on a crankbait. Several were spitting out baitfish as I hauled them into the boat.
Towards the end of the week, the morning/evening bite gave way to a decent late afternoon bite. However, afternoon winds made fishing a little difficult (read that "dust storm" on Thursday). Still, I managed to hook a 3.5 pounder on a wind blown bank with a crankbait. Others, including Hal Schlagel, caught keeper sized bass, with a few bigger ones mixed in.
Roosevelt:
Although I personally didn't fish the lake, Larry Gonczy, Dennis Larson, Les & Wanda Pickle, and the Harris family all reported success. It seems the dinks were out in droves, but the keeper bass were mixed in with them, keeping things exciting. Several smallies over 2 pounds were caught, including a 3-pounder by Adam Harris. Again, a variety of plastics were the key. Color didn't seem to matter - the bass were feeding heavily.
Rufus Woods:
No bass fishing report, but the walleye bite was on! Larry and Dennis limited every time they went out (at least 4x), sometimes even doubling. Larry Goetz went out as well as John and Adam Harris - all reported success. Needless to say, we had a great fish fry one night!
All told, we had a great time, and all caught fish. Except for an afternoon wind storm (and one the following night), the weather was sunny and mild, with temps in the mid- to upper-70's. Apparently the previous week's temps were in the low 90's, and this week will see mid 80's.
Fall is definitely a good time to be fishing this area, no matter what lake or species you're targeting.
(Larry, Dennis, Mike, etc... please correct me or add to this. I'm sure I missed a few things.)
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Mainly ours. Glad you had a good trip with lots of fish.
