2004 Fish Reports

12/2/2004

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

11/1/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

Over the past 3 weeks I've been busy bow hunting and I just finished a pheasant hunting trip to South Dakota. This weekend I will be guiding in the Annual Illinois Celebrity Quail & Pheasant hunt held at Rend Lake. I had a great time last year!

To date I've not killed a deer but, I've had opportunities to kill young deer and passed them up. This year I'm hunting for bucks with a rack that will score 150 points or better, as well as mature does. I'll keep you up to date as the season progresses.

My South Dakota trip was very successful. The group I hunted with killed 112 roosters! A story documenting the trip is at http://midamericaoutdoors.com/maohunting.htm.

Crappie:
Crappie fishing is still very good. Even though the numbers are down, the size is bigger with 
many 12 inch fish being caught. Rumor has it a 3.75 pound crappie was caught making it the 
second biggest crappie recorded being caught on LOE!

Once again, the trick is to fish flats, shelves, and points with a depth of 8 to 10 feet. Weeds 
(on the bottom) seem to hold more fish but, wasn't absolutely necessary. Fishing the main channel 
(or just off it) was necessary. I concentrated on the mid-section of the lake. The slower the 
retrieve, the better. Almost to the point were you are dragging the bottom. Some fish were 
caught shallow (2 to 4 feet) primarily in the morning. The morning bite is the best, both in 
quantity and size.

Bass:SEE http://midamericaoutdoors.com/egypttourn_results.htm
Bass fishing has been very good! Bottom bouncing jigs and worms has produced quantites and size.
Reports are of keepers weighing in with a 2.75 average. Concentrate your efforts on the main lake
points.

Channel Catfish:
No Report 

Weather Conditions: 
Wind – 5 to 20 MPH South Southwest (2 weeks ago we had a tornado!)
Precipitation – On and off rain
Air Temperature – 65 to 80 Degrees 
Water Temperature – 62 degrees
Water Clarity – Clear
Lake Level – 18 inches below normal pool an rising 

Crappie – Very Good

Bass – Very Good

Catfish - No Report

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

10/4/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

Crappie
Crappie fishing has been very good! The only reason I don't label the fishing excellent is because you will catch a lot of crappie 8 to 9 inches in length. For every 15 crappie you catch, 3 will be 10 inches or bigger. I caught (Friday evening to Sunday morning) 71 crappie. Seventeen were 10 inches or bigger, in length. I only fished the morning or evening and for a total of 7.5 hours. Friday I was keeping 9 inchers (Uncle Rich wants a fish fry) and was reminded on how hard a 9 incher is to fillet. Sunday was my best day (morning 1.5 hours). I caught 25 total, 1 - 13 inches, 1 - 12 inches, and 3 - 10 inches.
I fished with my good friend Jim on Friday & Saturday. Saturday evening Jim out fished me by catching 2 - 12 inch crappie and 1 - 13 inch crappie!

The vast majority of my fish were caught with a 1/16 once chartreuse with a red eye jig, tipped with chartreuse and red tube jig. Jim was changing colors and jigs frequently. Jim caught good crappie on white Crappie Assassins.

Once again, the trick was to fish flats, shelves, points with a depth of 8 to10 feet. Weeds (on the bottom) when present seemed to hold more fish but, wasn't absolutely necessary. Fishing on the main channel (or just off it) was necessary. And I concentrated on the mid-section of the lake. The slower the retrieve, the better. Almost to the point were you are dragging the bottom. Some fish were caught shallow (2 to 4 feet) but, primarily in the morning. The morning bite is the best, both in quantity and size.

Bass 
No Report

Channel Catfish
No Report 

Weather Conditions
Wind – 5 to 10 MPH North Northwest
Precipitation – A little rain this past Friday, other than that, no rain.
Air Temperature – 35 to 76 Degrees 
Water Temperature – Sunday Morning 10/3/04 67 degrees on the South end and 71 degrees on the North end
Water Clarity – Clear
Lake Level – 21 inches below normal pool 

Crappie – Very Good

Bass – Fair

Catfish - No Report

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

10/1/2004

Yesterday evening around 4:15 PM I left the dock and headed for customer's house for a 5:00 appointment. Well, I had a little bit of time and my fishing gear so, as I rounded one of my favorite points I stopped and made a few cast. Six cast later I had 6 crappie and one measured 12 inches! Pictured is the 12 and 13 incher.

I took all the energy inside me to leave the point and uphold my commitment to the customer.

After a short meeting, I made a b-line for my point. As soon as it came in sight I could see another fisherman was there so I waited, fishing a flat not to far from the point. The fisherman left after 20 minutes had passed.

Well, to make the story a little shorter. I fished the point for 45 minutes. I caught 2 more crappie. One was a 10 incher the other is a solid 13 incher and well worth the effort!

All my fish were caught on a 1/16 ounce red and chartreuse tube jig. I cast the jig past structure and used a very slow retrieve. The fish hit at the bottom of the retrieve and just off the structure. The hit was very light (the bigger the fish the lighter the hit) and I had to watch my line to see the initial pick-up.

The point is in the vicinity of the mouth of Shawnee Bay. Sorry, I can't be any more specific than that because it is a favorite point for a few other fishermen and well, fishermen have feelings too, you know.

Clarence and friends caught 60 crappie yesterday morning.

THE BITE IS ON!

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

9/30/2004

EMERGENCY REPORT
THE BITE IS ON!

Last night Uncle Rich and I fished for 2 hours and caught 11 fish. Average size was 9 inches and no big ones. On my way back in I talked to Clarence. In the morning him and 3 others caught a total of 100! When I met him he had just got on the water and had a few. He showed me one and it was a solid 14 incher!

Clarence shared what he had caught them on. He showed me a chartreuse and red tube jig, on a 1/16 ounce chartreuse with a red eye jig head. Even though when I started talking to him he was fishing with an all chartreuse twister tail 1/16 ounce red eye jig. Like most of us are doing, he is concentrating on points and/or shelves with weeds (rooster tail weeds) that are 2 to 8 foot deep and working his jig in a manner that he says imitates a darting minnow.

The bite is on! If you want to catch crappie now is the time!

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

9/28/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions ( and maybe a story or two) 

I've been hearing the crappie catching is improving. A week ago Jim went fishing with his daughter Ellen and the both of them boated over 50 crappie and Ellen's first 3 fish were keepers. In Jim's boat that means they have to be 10 inches or bigger. Jim reported catching a lot of small crappie but, the action was pretty solid and he was fishing with his daughter whom he is very proud of.

I talked to Clarence a couple of days after Jim's outing and Clarence was cleaning a boat load of crappie! One Clarence reported as weighing 1.5 pounds! Clarence backed up Jim's report adding that most of his fish were caught on all chartreuse tube jigs.

I couldn't stand it any longer, I had to go out there and find out for myself. So, when my brother-in-law Chuck and a friend Dan showed up for a couple of days we made it a point to go fishing in the morning and evening. Well, the fishing wasn't the greatest but, it was just enough to be entertaining. We did end up catching about 12 crappie (none were keepers), many very small sunfish (Chuck just has a knack for catching fish that have a mouth 3 times smaller than his hook) and Dan switched over to bass fishing and caught 4 bass, the biggest being 17.5 inches. So, this wasn't great or even good but, it was enough for me to call my fishing buddy Uncle Rich and announce the bite is on!

Dan's Bass

On hearing this, Uncle Rich was just beside himself (I tried explaining that was his shadow but, you know Uncle Rich...). Uncle Rich had purchased a vintage Ranger bass boat (1978) over the summer from our good friend Dallas and we spent a few weekends rehabbing it. The boat was ready to go with all the electronics working and batteries fully charged. We were on the water and casting our jigs by 4:00 PM. Three casts later I landed our first crappie and 2 cast after that Uncle Rich landed a 13 inch crappie! Well, that set the order of things for the rest of the evening. Uncle Rich and I kept neck to neck on how many fish we caught but, Uncle Rich always caught the bigger one. And yes Uncle Rich is spitting on his bait again. In fact one time he didn't even try to hide it (he's better than Dizzy Dean at hiding a spitter) and after openly spitting on his jig caught a crappie on the very next cast!

Mess o' Fish

Just a Mess

Of special note, we met a very nice gentleman while we were fishing. His name is George. George was nice enough to keep us informed of Sunday's sporting events. George inquired as to the method we were using to catch our fish and asked if we were using the pit bull minnows I wrote about this past spring. I told George that I had to quit using those minnows because after you paid for the rabies shots and took the time to muzzle them (which is extremely hard to do without reading glasses) and bought leather gloves to bait your hook, I just couldn't afford them. George told me I was full of ... I couldn't hear the last word because we had drifted out of hearing range. I'm sure George told me I was full of good advice.

I'm happy to report Uncle Rich's bass boat was very comfortable and worked perfectly.

Crappie
Crappie fishing is fair to good. The pattern use is fish an all chartreuse 1/16 ounce jig in front of the heavy weed beds on or just off of the main channel. You should fish the jig slow enough to just tick off of the more sparse weeds that are just in front of the heavy weed beds. That should have you fishing a slow to medium retrieve letting the jig drop 4 to 8 feet. Now you can try any of the other colors mixed in with chartreuse but, all chartreuse will out fish the others. I also added a gold hair pin spinner to the jig. That worked real well this past Sunday evening when Uncle Rich and I boated well over 25 crappie from 4:00 PM to dark. The best bite occurred from 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM. We fished the area known as wood duck house point. 

Bass
Bass fishing is fair. Bass are being caught using crank baits, worms and lizards and some are being caught on spinner baits. A friend of mine, Dan from Oak Lawn. Ill. caught a 17.5 inch bass using crawdad crank bait and fishing just in front of the weed beds. This fish was caught north of Bethal Bay.

Channel Catfish
No report.


Weather Conditions
Wind – 5 to 10 MPH North Northwest
Precipitation – None
Air Temperature – 50 to 85+ Degrees 
Water Temperature – 72 to 78 Degrees 
Water Clarity –Clear
Lake Level – 20 Inches Below Normal Pool

Crappie – Fair to Good

Bass – Fair

Catfish - No Report

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

9/1/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

Labor Day weekend is on top of us and the weather forecast is for the temps to be seasonal to slightly cooler than normal with a chance of rain on Friday. As far as I'm concerned even with the chance of rain on Friday the forecast is for almost perfect conditions to spend the last big summer weekend on LOE. The crappie fishing is improving and the bass and catfish are still being caught in numbers and size.

Crappie
Crappie fishing is still improving. Try casting tube jigs and small spinners with a slow retrieve parallel to weedy banks on the main channel and points. Jim from North Shoreland reported catching 15 Crappie ( and some blue gill) this past weekend while fishing with his grandsons. Jim and his grandsons were using jigs and wax worms. The sizes were small to keeper size but, being the sportsman that Jim is, all the fish were returned to the lake to provide another day of fun.

Bass (This is the same report I gave last and it is still working)
Bass fishing continues to be good. With most of the fish being caught by fishing the shad rises. Concentrate your efforts on the main channel and in the mouth of bays adjacent to the main channel. KastMaster, Bass Assassins, Flukes, Pop-R, Torpedoes are all working well. Bass are still being caught using rubber worms, lizards and bottom bouncing the points. The reports from the lake are the afternoon and evening bite is the best with a few being caught in the morning. Trolling the main channel and the main bays are catching a few. 

Channel Catfish
Channel cat fishing is good on jugs and trot lines. 

Weather Conditions 
Wind – 5 to 10 MPH South Southwest
Precipitation – None
Air Temperature – 60 to 85 Degrees 
Water Temperature – 76 Degrees on the North and South end 
Water Clarity – Clear
Lake Level – 12 inches below normal pool (we got some rain early this past week)

Crappie – Fair

Bass – Good

Catfish - Fair 

By the way, if your looking for indoor (dry & clean boat storage) it's time to reserve a place in my storage facility. I have few spaces left as of today!
Call 866-447-4874 and leave a message.

Happy Labor Day!

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

8/20/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

Bass
Bass fishing continues to be good. With most of the fish being caught by fishing the shad rises. Concentrate your efforts on the main channel and in the mouth of bays adjacent to the main channel. KastMaster, Bass Assassins, Flukes, Pop-R, Torpedoes are all working well. Bass are still being caught using rubber worms, lizards and bottom bouncing the points. The reports from the lake are the afternoon and evening bite is the best with a few being caught in the morning. Trolling the main channel and the main bays is catching a few. 

Channel Catfish
Channel cat fishing is excellent on jugs and trot lines. 

Crappie
Crappie fishing, even though still slow, is improving. A pattern is developing. Casting tube jigs and small spinners with a slow retrieve parallel to weedy banks on the main channel and points.

By the way, the weed banks composed mainly of milfoil and or rooster tail, are starting to disappear. This is happening along the main channel and from the central to west central part of the main channel. I believe this is largely due to the cooler than normal temperatures?

Weather Conditions 
Wind – 5 to 10 MPH South Southwest
Precipitation – None
Air Temperature – 50 to 80 Degrees 
Water Temperature – 77 Degrees on the North and South end 
Water Clarity –Clear
Lake Level – 14 inches below normal pool

Crappie – Slow

Bass – Good

Catfish - Excellent 

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

8/13/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

Bass fishing continues to dominate the catching on LOE. Many fishermen are reporting numbers of fish are being caught by casting to the shad rises (blow-ups). KastMaster, Bass Assassins, Flukes, Pop-R, Torpedoes are all working well when fishing the blow-ups. Look for the blow-ups to occur in the main channel and anywhere from the north end to the central section of LOE. The mid-morning and early evening blow-ups are the best. Bass are still being caught using rubber worms, lizards and bottom bouncing the points. My brother-in-law Chuck and I went worm fishing on Tuesday evening. We missed 2 fish and that was the extent of it. Bud, Tim and I spent a half a day trolling this past Friday. We were using deep diving Rapalas ( 8 to 12 foot) that are silver and black. Bud's bait had red flakes in it. Bud caught and landed 2 bass. One was 17 inches and the other measured 16.5 inches. Both were returned to the water. Bud caught one fish trolling the north end of the lake and the west bank. The other was caught in Shawnee Bay at the north end and on the west bank. Bud trolled at about 3 to 5 miles per hour and at the edge of the drop-offs. I noticed others are trolling as the week went on. So far the cooler than normal weather has not adversely affected the fishing.

Channel Catfish
Channel cat fishing continues to be excellent.

Crappie
Crappie fishing is slow at best with no pattern.

Weather Conditions 
Wind - 5 to 10 MPH North Northwest
Precipitation - None
Air Temperature - 49 to 70 Degrees 
Water Temperature - 79 Degrees on the North and South end 
Water Clarity - Clear
Lake Level - 12 Inches Below Normal Pool

Crappie - Slow

Bass - Good

Catfish - Excellent

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

8/2/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

I apologize for the late report but, a member of my family spent some time in the hospital. Everything is fine now and my mother is well on the road to a speedy recovery. 

Bass
Bass fishing is good. The numbers aren’t as good as what it was in early July, but the size is up. Many reports of bass 5 to 7 pounds being caught. The majority of the fish being caught on rubber worms or lizards. Early in the morning try fishing a rubber worm, without a weight, over the weeds. Swim the worm over the top of the weeds and then hesitate, letting the worm sink once you are past the weeds. Then crank the worm back and cast again. Be prepared for the water to explode at any time. Your tackle should be at least medium /heavy.

Once the sun is up, add a slip sinker to your line & rig it either Texas or as a Carolina rig. Then bottom bounce the rig parallel to the weed beds on the main channel or along the sides of the points.

I good friend of mine Bud, was fishing with Tim Besix who is new to bass fishing. Bud and Tim where trolling Beaver Bay, when Tim hooked into and landed his first 14 inch bass. Being the sportsman that Tim is, Tim released the fish back to the lake to grow into a true trophy. Tim was trolling with a deep diving shad colored crank bait. Hats off to Tim and his first bass and to Bud, for taking a friend fishing.

Tim Besix

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

7/12/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

The dog days of summer are here and weather conditions are dominated by the humidity and heat. 

Bass
But, even with the steamy conditions bass fishing continues to be good to excellent with the majority of the fish being caught on rubber worms or lizards. Early in the morning try fishing a rubber worm, without a weight, over the weeds. Swim the worm over the top of the weeds and then hesitate, letting the worm sink once you are past the weeds. Then crank the worm back and cast again. Be prepared for the water to explode at any time. Your tackle should be at least medium /heavy.

Once the sun is up, add a slip sinker to your line & rig it either Texas or as a Carolina rig. Then bottom bounce the rig parallel to the weed beds on the main channel or along the sides of the points.

Channel Catfish
Channel cat fishing is good using cut shad large minnows or night crawlers. Here’s a picture of a couple of fiddlers that were caught the other week by Robert & Hart in the North Shore area of LOE using night crawlers.

Robert & Hart Crappie
Crappie fishing is slow at best with no pattern.

Weather Conditions 
Wind – 5 to 10 MPH South Southwest
Precipitation – Scattered Thunderstorms
Air Temperature – 70 to 90+ Degrees 
Water Temperature – 85 Degrees on the North and South end
Water Clarity –Clear
Lake Level – 6 to 8 Inches Below Normal Pool

Crappie – Slow

Bass – Excellent

Catfish - Good

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

6/28/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

Congratulations, to Hart and Robert for catching and landing a 15 ½ lb carp while fishing off of Uncle Rich’s dock! Hart caught the monster fish. Both boys worked it hard for 45 minutes. Then Hart reeled it in while Robert used the net. Hart is pictured to the left of the fish. To the right is Uncle Ray. You can see in the picture the rod used to land the fish is medium/light at best with 
6 lb test line. The young men did a great job of teaming up to land the big one.

When asked if Uncle Ray had any reservations about handling the carp, Uncle Ray reportedly commented, “Heck no, that fish is better looking then some of my girl friends!” Everyone in the family says extra special prayers for Uncle Ray.

For those of you that are wondering, Uncle Ray is only indirectly related to Uncle Rich.

Teamwork Pays Off	Hart, Uncle Ray & Carp

Bass
Bass are hitting the best of all the fish. Most of the fish are being caught bottom bouncing rubber worms or lizards using Carolina or Texas rigs. No reports on size but, many bass are being caught. Five pounders are not uncommon. Fishing is best in front of or in the weed beds and on the points.

Channel Catfish
I talked to a few fishermen that are using large minnows or cut shad, fishing off their docks, using a slip sinker and fishing on the bottom. They all reported catching channel cats, with the evening bite being the best.

Crappie
I‘ve been talking to Clarence and he has been fishing LOE since it opened in 1967 and he has never seen a year like this. Crappie fishing is slow at best with no pattern.

Weather Conditions
Wind – 5 MPH out of the Northwest.
Precipitation – None
Air Temperature – 60 to 80 degrees 
Water Temperature – 82 Degrees on the North and South end 
Water Clarity –Clear
Lake Level – 6 to 8 Inches Below Normal Pool

Crappie – Slow

Bass – Excellent

Catfish - Good

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

6/20/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

Fishermen are reporting catching bass on the surface using Bass Assassins on the shad rises or blow-ups. Bass are also being caught over the weeds on weightless rubber worms, lizards or Moss Boss. See the report form 6/10/2004 because trolling is still a good option to the other methods.

From some reason crappie are still frustrating many fishermen with very few being caught. Trolling or drifting in the 10 foot mark is catching a few. 

5:00 to 8:00 AM is still the best time to be out there. 

Weather Conditions 
Wind – 15 MPH out of the Northwest.
Precipitation – Scattered Showers
Air Temperature – 60 to 80 degrees 
Water Temperature – 80 Degrees on the North and South end falling from a high of 86 degrees after the passage of the cold front. 
Water Clarity –Clear
Lake Level – At Normal Pool

Crappie – Slow

Bass – Good

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

6/10/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

Bass fishing continues to be your best bet. Fishing for bass over the weeds using a rubber worm or lizard rigged Carolina continues to produce numbers. Toss into the weeds barely, and bounce it back all the way to the boat. Dark colors are working well with black, purple or blue being the favorites.

Trolling the main channel with deep diving crank baits (10 feet), white, silver, silver and black is catching some crappie. Pay attention around points because that is where most of the action is. Trolling speed should be 3 mph max and drag your bait over the deep side of points bumping the bottom. You could catch a good bass.

The early bite is the best especially on the weekends! 5:00 to 8:00 AM is the best time to be out there. The late bite (last 2 hours of day light) would be your next best bet but, you’ll have to put up with the early evening sight seer’s. During the afternoon you’re better off sitting back with a nice cool refreshment or taking a nap or going to the store to buy more fishing gear or tackle. Take your pick. 

Grass cutting and working on projects should not be an option. Let UBetcha Outdoors do that for you! 866-447-4874 ask for me, Mike O.

Weather Conditions 
Wind – 8 MPH out of the South.
Precipitation – None
Air Temperature – 70 to 90 degrees 
Water Temperature – 78 Degrees on the North and South end
Water Clarity –Stained
Lake Level – At Normal Pool 

Crappie – Slow

Bass – Good

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

6/2/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions

Holy cow! Hard work, is well, hard work!

For the past 2 weeks I’ve been finishing projects that I started earlier in May and behind schedule. That meant all my time was allocated towards finishing the projects and there was no time for fishing. 

The last time I was on the water was 5/15/2004. I was fishing with a good friend of mine Jim. The weather conditions were overcast with on and off rain. The winds were fairly mild with gust up to 15 MPH and the temperatures averaged 68 degrees with lows in the low 60’s and highs around 75 degrees.

Jim and I started fishing for crappie off the main channel in the middle section of the lake. Jim and I were both using Crappie Assassins on a 1/16th jig and casting to the weed beds or structure off the shoreline using a slow retrieve and letting the jig nick the structure on it’s way down. Jim was using a gray and white Crappie Assassin. I was using a white and neon Crappie Assassin. Jim caught 4 crappie and kept 3. The biggest was 12 inches. I caught none. Needless to say the action was slow. So, we decided to try bass fishing.

That was a great decision because the bass fishing was excellent! Before the day was over we landed a limit of fish (we only fished 2.5 hours in the morning and 3 hours in the evening. Jim was fishing with 17 pound test and was broken off at least 4 times. I was using 6 pound test and broke off twice. In all fairness Jim had more hits than me which probably accounts for why he broke off more. Or, it had something to do with the fishing line he gets from his family every Christmas. Regardless, the action was great and the biggest fish landed measured 18 inches. Jim caught and released it. My biggest was 15 ¾ inches, it was released as well.

Jim and I both tied a 6 inch rubber worm, on a Carolina rig, with a 3/8 ounce slip sinker and bottom bounced the rig off submerged points on the main channel of the lake. The worm we eventually both settled in on was a black and purple Culprit with a twister tail.

For those that don’t know what a Carolina rig is, here is a description.

A Carolina rig consists of a rubber worm or lizard, a worm hook (sized right for the lure you’re using) a swivel, and a weight appropriate for the depth you’re fishing. The deeper the water, the heavier the weight. To assemble the rig first strip and cut 3 feet of line off. Next thread the slip sinker onto the line that is attached to the reel and rod. Then tie the same line onto the swivel (do not use a snap swivel because often the snap will let loose). Tie the 3 foot of free line onto the opposite end of the swivel. Adjust this line to the desired length (we used 12 to 18 inches) and tie the end of the line to the worm hook. The last thing you do is thread the rubber lure onto the worm hook by inserting the hook about ½ inch into the head of the lure, pull the hook through the body of the lure, slide the lure up the hook and over the eye of the hook and then insert the hook into the body of the lure so the hook goes almost all the way through without puncturing the other side (this will make the rig almost snag-less) keeping the rubber lure as straight as possible.

The way you fish the rig is to toss the rig next to the feature or structure you intend to fish letting it go all the way to the bottom of the lake. Let the line sink until you see it go suddenly limp. Then, pump the rig back to you slowly, starting at the 2:00 position and ending at the 11:00 position. When you see and or feel the line stop or bump, reel your line in removing some of the slack without putting additional tension on the line and watch for the line to move. If the line moves, immediately take the rest of the slack out by reeling your rod tip towards the water and then set the hook with all your might! If the boat doesn’t rock sharply when you set your hook, you’re not setting it hard enough. Your drag should be set so that with a 2 pound weight on it, it just barely slips on the set. If your lure doesn’t come back at you (you may, or others in the boat may have to duck) then the fight is on and good luck!

Two weeks later Jim was back on the lake trying the same method. It worked again but, not with the frequency we encountered earlier.

Weather Conditions 6/2/2004
Wind – 8 MPH out of the South.
Precipitation – None
Air Temperature – 67 to 83 degrees 
Water Temperature – 78 Degrees on the North and South end
Water Clarity –Stained
Lake Level – Above Normal Pool & Going Over the Spillway 

Crappie – No Report

Bass – No Report

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

5/27/2004

I have been out of communication for the past two weeks. Expect a new fish report next week!

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

5/11/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions 5/8/2004

With hopes the crappie spawn wasn’t over, Bud and I went fishing Friday evening using the same gear we’ve been using since late winter. All we caught were bluegill. The spawn is pretty much over. It’s time to break out your summertime gear.

Summertime crappie fishing employs the following methods:

Casting Road Runners or jigs over the weed beds during the early and late evenings. 

Trolling crank baits, spinner baits or spoons at the 8 to 10 foot mark. 

Drifting minnows or jigs down the center of the main bays and channel. 

Anchored on points or brush piles, vertically jigging minnows or jigs during the evening or early morning. 

Also, the bluegill should start spawning in June and the channel cat action should be on the increase with the warmer water temperatures.

Over the next many weeks we’ll try all these methods and I’ll let you know what’s working the best.

Weather Conditions
Wind – 5 to 10 MPH out of the South.
Precipitation – None
Air Temperature – 58 to 86 degrees 
Water Temperature – 70 Degrees on the North and South end
Water Clarity –Stained
Lake Level – Normal Pool 

Crappie – Slow

Bass – Fair

See tournament reports at http://www.midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

5/3/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions 4/30/2004 thru 5/1/2004

I finally made it out on LOE this past Friday and I am happy to report the bite was on! And the bite continued through the weekend even with the wind, rain, thunderstorms and drop in temperatures. I guess it was time, the crappie just got tired of waiting around for the weather to settle down.

Uncle Rich and I not only caught crappie, we also had a nice mix of hand sized bluegill and large mouth bass that ran from under 14 inches to the ones that I lost and I swear they were bigger than 16 inches and may have been a state record. Uncle Rich said that if it was a state record it was an awful small state like Rhode Island or Chicago. Hmmmmm, anyways, we caught fish.

Not only did we catch fish but, Uncle Rich’s good neighbor and long time friend, Ace caught his first bass of the season. It measured just about 18 inches and weighed 2+ pounds. I did not hear what Ace caught his bass on and I was afraid to ask because when I left Uncle Rich and Ace they were engaged in a heated discussion on whether Chicago was a state of the Union or providence in Canada. And everyone knows that Rhode Island, during the Civil War, succeeded as a state because it was rhode hard and put away wet, hence the name. Hmmmmm?!

Ace’s Bass. Congratulations Ace!

Crappie Sized Pan Fish Assassins

The other reports coming from LOE was that most everyone was catching fish. The crappies are spawning all across the lake and were caught in the shallows adjacent to or in the weed beds with the bigger fish coming off of main channel weed beds. Just find a pocket (clearing in the weeds) and cast to it with a bobber and let it sit or buzz your bait across it hesitating just a bit, and let it drop into the hole. Minnows are working as well as artificial bait so, if you can afford the minnows……

Normally I feature fish caught on LOE but, here are some nice Northern Pike that were caught last year by my good friend Danny and his Dad. Thanks Dan, for sharing!

Dan with a 40 incher	Dan’s Dad & a 47 incher!

Weather Conditions
Wind – Breezy 10 + MPH and gusting to 30+ MPH. The wind was primarily out of the South and West and switching.
Precipitation – Friday, Saturday, Sunday
Air Temperature – 38 to 70 degrees 
Water Temperature – 67 Degrees on the North and South end
Water Clarity –Stained
Lake Level – Above normal Pool and going over the dam

Crappie –Excellent

Bass – Good

See tournament reports at http://www.midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

4/26/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions 4/19/2004 thru 4/25/2004

I couldn’t make it on LOE this past week due to finishing and starting outdoor projects for my customers.

As far as the weather is concerned, we had at least 3 weather fronts pass through the area. It started raining on Thursday (with fog) and rained everyday through Saturday. Air temperatures varied from the 50’s to the 60’s. Wind, once again, was the primary weather feature. 

Crappie and bass are reported being caught and the spawn is beginning on the south end of the lake.

There are two methods of fishing for crappie that are producing the most fish. The first is finding large weed beds located in the main channel and buzzing (just under the surface) Road Runners over the weeds. White Road Runners are reported as producing the most, is working all day and is producing the best in the late afternoon.

The other method is dragging jigs off the weed beds (10+ feet) along the main channel at the 8 to 5 foot level. Find a jig you like the best and keep it in the water. This method is producing well in the early morning hours.

Weather Conditions
Wind – Breezy 10 + MPH and gusting to 30+ MPH. The wind was primarily out of the West and switching.
Precipitation – Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Air Temperature – 50 to 60 degrees 
Water Temperature – No report
Water Clarity –No Report
Lake Level – No Report

Crappie –Fair

Bass – Fair

See tournament reports at http://www.midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

4/19/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions 4/13/2004 thru 4/17/2004

This past week featured our annual crappie camp and gathering of friends and family. It is a tradition that started about 20 years ago with just a couple of people and has grown to approximately 30 plus people. 

Campers start arriving as early as Monday and the centerpiece is the crappie challenge on Saturday. On Saturday we fish to see who can catch the biggest (by weight) 7 crappie and the single biggest crappie (by weight). The award is getting your name on a plaque that has been recording the winners for the past 10 years. Also, there is some modest wagering going on and the biggest 7 splits the pot with the biggest single crappie.

To participate in our camp you must be invited by one of the current participants and approved by me or one of the founding fathers. Our goal, every year:

1) No one gets hurt
2) Everyone has fun
3) Catch fish

Our rule is, anyone who keeps us from achieving the number 1 or 2 goal will be asked to leave camp and won’t be invited back. So far, the rule has not been broken.

After trying different dates to hold the gathering we finally settled on the closest Saturday to April 15 unless Easter weekend falls on that Saturday. Then the gathering will be held the Saturday before Easter. 

Once again we had a great time. No got hurt and we caught fish. Even though, the quantity was down drastically. In fact some of our best fish (size and quantity) were caught earlier in the week on Tuesday and Wednesday when the air temperature was as low as 30 degrees! The rest of the week the temperatures were summer like and the wind blew all the time

Through the week nice size crappies were caught. Russ and the people in his boat caught a 16 ½”, 15” and a 14”. My son Adam and his friend Justin boated a 15 ½”, 14”, and a couple of 13”. Twelve-inch crappies were not uncommon. Special recognition goes out to Clarence Cox who caught a 2 ¼ pound crappie this past Friday.

The problem continued to be the quantity. The best catches were 8 to twelve fish per day. Most of the crappies were females with eggs. This should mean the spawn is right around the corner and we should have been fishing the pre-spawn. Which should mean we can catch many fish. That didn’t happen. 

Most of us were dragging, casting, drifting, trolling Road Runners in front of the weed beds. When that didn’t work we went to jigs, jig and minnow, minnow rigs or Rapala Countdown plugs and tried fishing the wooded structure as well. For all our efforts we were rewarded mostly with small sun fish (blue gill, red ear, rock bass) and some bass and crappie.

The Saturday event was won by Steve Raetz Jr with a total weight of 5.4 pounds for 7 crappie.

The prize for the single biggest fish was split between Steve Raetz Sr and Rick Mueller. Both crappies weighed in at 1.1 pound.

For honorable mention, my son Adam came in second place for the third or fourth year in a row. He was the only other person that could weigh 7 fish. 

I fished with my son Jacob and Uncle Rich. Uncle Rich was up to his old tricks again, spitting on his bait, dropping minnows into the bottom of the boat but, no voodoo or face painting. Uncle Rich caught 2 crappie and I caught 1. Maybe next year I’ll let him paint his face, just a little. 

Anyone from camp that has pictures please, send them to me. Here’s a couple my brother Charlie took.

Rick’s 1.1 lb Crappie	Bart’s 1.0 lb Crappie

See tournament reports at http://www.midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions 4/10/2004

The bite is starting. 

The fishermen I talked to all reported catching numbers of fish off the weed beds in 6 to 8 feet of water. The most popular method is casting and retrieving Road Runners or jigs or dragging and drifting the same bait. Popular colors are chartreuse something with an edge going towards white as the secondary color. Movement seems to be key to the pattern. Medium to fast is catching the most. The fishermen I talked to are averaging 30 crappie a day with 2 people in the boat. No one reported catching crappie that are spawned out or on the bank.

On the other hand, I have received reports that some bass are being caught that are spawned out. If this indeed is happening it most logically would apply to the north end of the lake and I am sure the spawn on the south end is still 2 to 3 weeks away usually a week after the main population of crappie spawn.

Uncle Rich and I didn’t get a chance to fish this past week. Both of us were busy completing projects. These were projects, that if we didn’t complete them, would have made us feel guilty for not following through on our commitments, and that would caused a bad karma to develop within our aura, and that would have caused us to catch less fish, if any at all. Uncle Rich explained to me that bad karma is the worst thing that can happen to a fisherman. And that you can’t put enough chicken feet into a boat to reverse the situation. 

Plus by completing some of our projects our wives will let us participate in the annual crappie fishing gathering and camp out this Saturday. 

Weather Conditions
Wind – Breezy 10 MPH and gusting. The wind was primarily out of the west.
Precipitation – None
Air Temperature – 46 to 61 degrees Saturday
Water Temperature – North Shore area 60degrees, Egyptian Hills 60 degrees 
Water Clarity – clear
Lake Level – Above normal pool with water going over the spillway

Crappie – Medium

Bass – Medium
See tournament reports at http://www.midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

4/5/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions 4/3/2004 thru 4/4/2004

The consensus of the all fishermen I talked to, and the little bit of fishing I did, is the crappie bite this weekend was slow. Weather dominated the weekend with slightly cooler than normal temperatures and wind, lots of wind, blowing from the northwest.

But, when you caught one, it was worth the wait with 12 inchers common and fish 15 inches plus landed.

Jim’s 15 1/4” Notice the gloves!	Dave’s 13”

While in Sugar Creek we met a tournament bass fisherman. He asked us how big a crappie had to be before it was considered exceptional. He said he caught a 14 incher that day (Sunday) and released it. He then reached into his live-well and pulled out a 16 plus incher crappie. I assured him that was exceptional, for LOE. Just as interesting though was he caught it using a large chartreuse skirted spinner bait with a chrome willow blade. The same bait he used to catch a 4 pound bass! He was fishing a weeding shelve, keeping the spinner bait just above the weeds.

So, the point here is the big crappies (females) are now aggressive and are chasing. This should be the beginning of the pre-spawn.

Quantity was the problem. You had to work all day to catch more than 6. With cold fronts rolling into the area on an every other day basis, the crappie are still stacked at the 5 to 12 foot mark with lock jaw. And that is were most of the fish are being caught! Some are being caught in the shallows so, if you are close to a shelve with some weeds on it, cast just in front or just over the weeds (paralleling the weed bed is a great tactic) you may hook into a good one! That’s how Charlie caught his 12 incher.

Charlie and I fished from Sugar Creek to Beaver Bay and points or coves in-between. All of the fishermen we talked were in that area and the ones we talked to were fishing in the wind in the main channels and bays.

It was a pleasure fishing with my brother Charlie. He found one thing that worked and basically stuck with it and out fished me.

On the other hand, I did miss Uncle Rich’s company. Uncle Rich is more diverse in his tactics with an unlimited imagination. In fact the last time I talked to him he was going on about the merits of voodoo and adding chicken feet to his tackle box. I told him that would be okay, as long as it improved the weather and brought more fish into the boat. But, face painting would not be allowed.

Weather Conditions
Wind – Breezy 10 MPH and gusting. The wind was primarily out of the northwest.
Precipitation – None
Air Temperature – 34 to 66 degrees Saturday and 37 to 54 on Sunday (It felt a lot colder on the water!)
Water Temperature – North Shore area 04/2/2004, 58 degrees, Egyptian Hills 54 degrees
Water Clarity – Stained
Lake Level – Above normal pool with water going over the spillway

Crappie – Slow

Bass – Slow
See tournament reports at http://www.midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

4/01/2004

Reporting On Fishing Conditions 3/31/2004

Late winter/early spring weather conditions have dominated the LOE area for the past 3 days. After experiencing summer like conditions during the previous week, this return to more seasonal temperatures has slowed down the action a bit. But, fish are still being caught by those who are willing to go out there and spend the time.

The 2 methods that are producing the most are white Road Runners fished at a medium to fast retrieve, on the north end of the lake. And, vertically jigging brush piles off of points at the 12 to 16 foot level in 16 to 20 feet of water in the mid area of the lake.

A good friend of mine Dick landed this fish last week using the jigging method I described previously. It is a 14 incher that was returned to the water to make some other fisherman happy.

Weather Conditions
Wind – Breezy 5 to 10 MPH and Gusting!  Out of the East/Southeast
Precipitation – On and Off drizzling
Air Temperature – 36 to 47 Degrees
Water  Temperature – North 60 Degrees, Egyptian Hills area 51 Degrees
Water Clarity – Stained to Muddy in the Back Bays
Lake Level – Above Normal Pool and Going Over the Spillway

Crappie – Slow

Bass – Fair

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

3/29/2004

Reporting On Fishing and Conditions for 3/26/2004 thru 3/29/2004

Most reports coming from fishermen on LOE are the crappie are slow and the bass fishing is hot and some channel cats are being caught chasing minnows and jigs.

I talked to 2 reputable fishermen on LOE that absolutely killed the crappie on Friday and Saturday. They were both using jig/minnow rigs on brush piles, off points in 16 to 20 feet of water and fishing 12 to 16 feet deep, vertically jigging. Color of the jig was not important, having a small minnow on it was key. They reported catching many big 12 to 14 inch crappies.

On the other hand, I talked to more fishermen that mark fish stacked in the 5 to 12 foot level, 10 yards from shore, in water that was deeper than 8 feet and couldn't buy a bite. Most were using a shallow water pattern.

I did witness a fisherman catch a crappie and a bass using a 1/16 ounce white Road Runner and fishing it at a medium to fast retrieve. This was on the north end of the lake were the surface temperature is 63 degrees. The fisherman (after lying to me by telling me he wasn't catching any fish and then hooking into one right in front of me) admitted to catching 3 crappie on the white Road Runner in a short period of time.

On Sunday night Uncle Rich caught a crappie and a bass on an orange and chartreuse tube jig, tipped with a minnow. The bobber rig was set at 2 1/2 feet. He is not only spitting on his minnow but, I witnessed him drop his minnow into his shoe. He also likes to drop minnows in the boat because he says the sound of the minnow thumping the bottom is a distress signal and it should trigger crappie to go into a feeding frenzy. The minnows will stay alive longer if you leave a little bit of water in your boat. Next week we will try large minnows to see if large thumping works better.

Does anyone know where we can buy pit bull minnows? I understand they raise them in the Rhinelander, Wisconsin area.

Right now I believe the crappie are staging or are in the pre-spawn. If the weather holds the spawn could start in the north end within the next week. All and all, the many fronts that are passing through the LOE area have the crappie on hold waiting, for the right conditions. Feeding occurs daily. You gotta be there to catch'em . Just talk to the guys that are fishing the deep water pattern!

Weather Conditions
Wind - Breezy 10 MPH and gusting. . The wind was primarily out of the south shifting from the southwest on Friday to the southeast on Sunday.
Precipitation - Heaviest rain fell on Friday with scattered showers and some thunder on Saturday and Sunday.
Air Temperature - 75 to 55 degrees all three days.
Water Temperature - North Shore area 03/18/2004, 63 degrees, Egyptian Hills 53 degrees.
Water Clarity - Clear
Lake Level - Above normal pool with water going over the spillway.

Bass - Fair to Good
See tournament reports at http://www.midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

3/21/2004

Uncle Rich and I went fishing this past Thursday, 3/18/2004. We started fishing at 4:30 PM and went fishing just down the cove from the North Shore boat launch. Uncle Rich and I were using a 1/16 ounce, Southern Pro, chartreuse/pumpkin seed, tube jig. We were bobbered up to the 2 ½ foot level and were fishing in 10 foot of water, 20 yards from a rip-rapped point, were we marked fish suspended from the 4 to 7 foot mark.

I was casting and retrieving very slowly. Uncle Rich tipped his rig with a minnow. Uncle Rich can afford minnows because he has more money than me. And he let the rig drift 20 feet behind the boat. Using that technique he caught 3 crappie, 2 that measured 12 ½ in. and one 12 incher. I caught a 15 ½ inch bass and 1 blue gill.

Uncle Rich (on the left) had the better technique and I believe he’s been spitting on his rigs again!

This past Saturday, 3/20/2004 me and my good friend Bud, went fishing from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM. We started fishing in a spot that is 2 coves down from the Egyptian Hills marina. The average depth of the cove is 7 feet and we used bobber rig that I described above. At times I was casting a chartreuse/black 1/16 ounce Road Runner. We tried different depths and different colors, chartreuse/white, chartreuse/silver, blue/white. Nothing seemed to work. After 2 hours we went to the North Shore point. Same thing couldn’t buy a hit. It appears we would have faired better if we afforded minnows and had Uncle Rich to spit on the rigs.

Weather Conditions
Wind – Breezy 15 MPH and gusting. Both days. The wind was primarily out of the west.
Precipitation – None 3/18/2004. Thunderstorms and minor precipitation in the late morning and early afternoon on 3/20/2004.
Air Temperature – 60 to 65 degrees with the high on 3/20/2004 in the 70’s.
Water Temperature – North Shore area 03/18/2004, 53 degrees, 03/20/2004, 55 degrees. Egyptian Hills area 03/20/2004 53 degrees.
Water Clarity – Stained
Lake Level – Normal Pool

Crappie – Slow

Bass – Fair to Good See tournament reports at http://www.midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

3/16/2004

I apologize for not having a fishing report last week. I just closed out the hunting side of my business (for this season) and I had some wood cutting and other chores I had to complete. Now, I'm proud to say, I'm back on the water.

To make-up for missing a couple of reports I'm committing to 2 reports per week through June. My reports will better help you get on the fish if you have a good contour map of the lake like the one Hot Spot sells.

I hope this will help you catch more fish and Uncle Rich says, howdy!

Weather Conditions:
Wind - Direction was Predominately from the south, changing to the west on Sunday west, and to the east on 3/15/2004. Wind speed averaged 8 MPH with gust up 26 MPH.
Precipitation - Minor precipitation during the early morning hours of 3/14/2004.
Air Temperature - Morning 28 to 40 degrees - Afternoon 50 to 60
Water Temperature - North End 49 to 58 degrees - South End 47 to 50 degrees
Water Clarity - Stained
Lake Level- Just barely above normal pool with some water going over the dam.

Crappie: Slow to Medium and Improving
We are starting to catch crappie on the south end of the lake with fish being caught in the main channel and shallow bays of the Egyptian Hills area of the lake. Jigs and at times minnows are catching the majority of the fish (that I know about). I personally caught my fish on a pumpkinseed and chartreuse 1/16 once tube jig and a 1/4 once black and chartreuse Road Runner.

Method of fishing varied but, fish were caught vertically jigged over brush piles found anywhere from 16 to 12 foot deep. And you had to fish directly into the brush-pile to catch them. If you didn't get snagged on the brush, you weren't fishing it properly. Also, in the early morning and late afternoon a shallow water pattern developed in the shallows. Jig and bobber rigs set at 2 feet (or just above the weeds) fished slow would produce fish. Monday morning I fished a Road Runner slowly over weed beds found on 5 to 8 foot shelves and managed to catch 4 aggressive females.

Between me and four other fishermen (some fishing from Friday to Sunday, others just on Sunday afternoon and Monday morning), we caught 44 crappie. Running in size from just under 10 inches (throw backs) to 13 inches. The overall consensus, crappie fishing is still a little slow but, improving!

Bass: Good and Improving
Even though we really didn't fish for bass, bass were caught by some of us. The average size fell into the slot (14 to 16 inch). While I was fishing I talked to quite a few fishermen that were pre-fishing or fishing in tournaments. Everyone reported catching a few and one boat reported landing a 5 1/4 pound and watching a fisherman they knew land 4 1/2 pounder.

I saw everything from jig and lizard, to rubber worms, to crank-baits being thrown in a variety of colors.

For the 3/13/2004 tournaments report go to -
http://www.midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Hoo, hooooo the bite is on!

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

2/13/2004

After leaving the Pyramid Acres parking lot, south boat dock, we found fished stacked from 5 to 11 feet, in 16 feet of water. This was just between the boat dock and the first no wake buoy. Down went our bait and after fishing the area for an hour with no hits, we headed for Elks Cove.

In Elks Cove we fished the south side which protected us from the southwest wind. With the sunny conditions we warmed-up well enough to take off our gloves and hood. Once again we found fished stacked from 5 to 11 feet, in 16 feet of water. And we got some hits. Uncle Rich got more hits than me and I believe it's because he spits on his bait. Unfortunately, we didn't get a lot of hits and we didn't land a fish. After fishing here for 2 1/2 hours we gave up and went to the weedy shelve that is on the spill-way side of the buoy line.

Here we bobbered-up, suspending tube jigs at the 3 to 5 foot level and retrieving at a slow to medium speed. We didn't catch anything here either but, I did observe a fisherman casting frantically on the power plant side of the buoy line. And he was catching fish. As the sun settled on the horizon I motored slowly towards the fisherman hoping to learn the secret.

As I approached,I noticed the water temperature climb from 44 degrees to 49.5 degrees. A few gulls were dive bombing the water, catching shad. The fisherman had found the main flow of warm water coming from the power plant. I asked him how the fishing was. He said, he was catching a few of them, all bass, and the biggest were 16 inches.I didn't ask him for anymore information. He was busy and I didn't want to over-step my bounds. I believe we was fishing a rattle trap or something similar and he was using a fast retrieve.

I wonder if he spits on his bait, too.

Fishing Time: 1:00 PM to 5:15 PM

Conditions
Sunny
Wind: South Southwest 5 to 10 MPH
Air Temperature: 39 Degrees
Water Temperature: North End 44 to 49 Degrees
Southeast End 31 Degrees - Back bays and 1/4 of the main channel is frozen.
Water Clarity: Stained
Lake Level is 6 inches above normal pool and going over the spill-way.

Crappie:Slow
The Pyramid Acres marina counter worker reported crappie are being taken by a few of the fishermen. One person I talked to said he caught one. The one boat that was fishing Elks Bay while I was there didn't catch a fish.

Bass: Good - See tournament report at -
http://midwestbasstournaments.com/egypttourn_results.htm

Mike O.

UBetcha Outdoors
1515 Webb Town Road
Tunnel Hill, IL 62972
Phone:866-447-4874 mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

2/04/2004

It's time to concentrate on what's going to happen. The daylight hours are getting longer. The sun is moving ever so slowly towards the north. The weather is going to warm up and the pre-crappie spawn is going to happen over the next 60 days.

On LOE the pre-spawn occurs first on the north end of the lake. The reasons for that are:

The north end of the lake is more open.

It represents the widest area of the lake that is due north and south. It is less affected by the shadows that are present on the more east/ west portions of the lake.

Also, that's where the power plant is located and it's warm water discharge.

The pre-spawn will happen the later part of February with the prime time occurring at the beginning of March. Be ready to cast to the many weed covered shelves that are the primary feature of that side of the lake. Those areas will produce many crappie of good size late in the day especially when the air temperature is 45 degrees or warmer. Use this pattern and keep your bait just above the weeds. If you're not bumping the weeds a lot, you need to go deeper. If you're not finding the weeds, go somewhere else.

The fishing pattern I just defined works but, is limited to the later part of the day and when the weather is right. Most of us can't fish everyday. When we do have the time, we like to fish as much of the day as we can. Let's face it the more time your bait spends in the water the greater the chances of catching a fish. So, here's what I would do with the rest of the day.

All the fish are not on the shelves waiting for the right bait to be presented, in the right fashion, causing them to bite. During the pre-spawn most of the fish are suspended just off the shelves in 8 to 15 feet of water. Look at your graph. You'll find the average depth of the fish you're marking to be 12 feet. They can be just off the shelves or on the flats in open water. Structure may not even be a factor. When this is the case schools of shad will probably be the reason why they are there. It's time to fish the old fashion way. Drift or troll slowly, controlling the depth of your bait.

Adding some meat (minnows) at times will aid in your success. Once again, the more time your bait spends in the water, the more successful you'll be. And, to increase your odds, put more bait in the water.

In the state of Illinois you are allowed to fish with 2 fishing rods. Illinois also allows you to fish with 2 baits per pole. When I started fishing LOE with my father-in-law Mel we used crappie rigs that incorporated 2 hooks. The rigs had 2 wire T's that were a foot apart and a dropper with a snap, a foot under the bottom T. We would snap on a 1/4 ounce bell sinker on the dropper. Sometimes using a 3/8 ounce bell sinker when the drift was faster.

What we were doing was controlling our depth. We would start bouncing the bell sinker off the bottom of the lake and then crank the line in a foot at a time until we started catching fish. Once we started catching fish, we never varied the depth and focused on drift or troll in the area we caught fish. We didn't have a depth/fish finder so we marked the shoreline and did our best to go over the same area. Using this method we caught our share of fish. Now with modern technology the same method works even better.

The stores still sell the minnow rig I just described. I am more apt to bait it with tube jigs than minnows because I've been taught that color makes a different. With tube jigs on LOE, chartreuse with any other color combination is a good bait to have on the end of your line.

Always keep a rod ready to cast to the shallow shelves you will inevitably pass close to. If you start catching fish this way then crank in your trolling/drifting rig and have fun catching the more aggressive fish.

By combining both of these methods you will find that you'll put more fish in the fry pan by catching crappie all through the day instead of when fishing conditions are just right to catch them in the shallows.

I'll be trying this next week, as long as the daytime temperatures are above 32 degrees and the ramps aren't iced-up

E-mail me with any questions or advice: mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

Mike O. UBetcha Outdoors

1/26/04

They braved the colder than forecasted temperatures and the Sunday morning ice storm to provide us with this report. They fished for 2 hours on 1/23/04 and for 7 hours on 1/24/04. They woke up Sunday 1/25/04 to the sound of falling ice and were lucky to get home safely.

More importantly, they did catch fish but, the action was slow. The fish they caught were a good size, with crappie measuring 10"(1), 11 1/2"(7), and 13"(2).

1/23/04 thru 1/24/04
Partly Cloudy to Cloudy
Wind: Changing Friday was at least 20 MPH from the South. White caps made many parts of the lake unsafe. Saturday AM 10 MPH, mid-day 15 MPH, PM 10 MPH, from the South/Southwest.
Air Temperature: High 43 Degrees, Low 14 Degrees
Water Temperature: North End 43 to 47 Degrees, Southeast End 35 Degrees
Water Clarity: Stained
Lake level is at or slightly above normal pool.
Back South bays have a skim of ice.

Crappie: Slow
Some fish are being taken off the weed covered shelves and points, in the North end of the lake, using jigs (no particular color preference) and jigs tipped with minnows and bobbers set at 2 feet or just above the weeds. Also, fish were seen being caught casting jigs in open water. The assumption would be the fish were over structure or schools of shad.

Bass: Some bass were taken while fishing the bobber and jig method. Other than that, see the tournament report for 1/18/04.

E-mail me with any questions or advice: mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

Mike O. UBetcha Outdoors

1/21/04

We fished from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM. We encountered only 2 fishermen.The first were crappie fishing over the stumps in Elks Bay. There were 2 fishermen in the boat, they were vertically jigging, had only been out for 1/2 hour, and hadn't caught anything.

The second boat we encountered was in the Lake of Egypt Marina bay and reported he was fishing earlier in the day and only caught 1 small crappie. He was casting a chartreuse jig and a bobber set at about 2 feet.

Rich and I were fishing with a 1/16 of an ounce black/chartreuse and red/chartreuse tube jigs. We were casting weighted bobbers set 2 feet over the north end weedy points. Also, we tried jigging above the average level we marked suspended fish. We caught nothing.

My depth finder marked a lot of fish in the Lake of Egypt Marina bay. This is the second bay on the Northeast side of LOE. Hindsight is telling me that if I had tipped my jig with a minnow and worked the bay accordingly, I would have caught some crappie. But, that's what I like about hindsight, it's 20/20.

Well, at least Uncle Rich got a January boat ride and now is in the market for insulated Carhartts.

1/21/04
Clear, Mostly Sunny
Wind South/Southwest: 10 to 15 MPH
Air Temperature: 41 Degrees
Water Temperature: North End 46 to 50 Degrees, Southeast End 35 Degrees
Water Clarity: Stained
Lake level is above normal pool.
Back South bays have a skim of ice.

Crappie: Slow
Fish are suspended at the 9 to 5 foot level mainly at the drop-offs on the north end of the lake. In the Lake of Egypt Marina bay, which averages 8 foot deep, many fish are suspended a foot off the bottom.

Bass: No specifics to report at this time. See the tournament report for 1/18/04.

E-mail me with any questions or advice: mikeo@ubetchaoutdoors.com

Mike O. UBetcha Outdoors

1/13/04

Well it's January and I'm fishing my favorite lake, Lake of Egypt. My brother-in-law, Chuck Schultz and I finished our chores early enough this past Tuesday to spend an hour or so at the north end of the lake. I fished all the favorite areas I could, in the short period of time I had before dark. That amounted to the Elks Bay and the second point on the west side of the lake from the power plant.

Chuck and I didn't catch any fish but, we did straighten out some of the kinks we had in our equipment.

I did get a chance to talk to a few of the fisherman and found out that generally the fishing was slow for bass and crappie. The weather was too pretty. On LOE during the winter the fishing is best when the weather is the worst causing an increase in demand for power and an increase in the flow of warm water coming from the power plant.

Of course I got the normal report of how I should have been here last week when 2 pound crappie and 5 pound bass were being caught by everyone on the lake! Yah, right. Like I'm believing that one.

1/13/04 -
Clear, Mostly Sunny
Wind West/Northwest- 5 to 10 MPH
Air Temperature 54
Water Temperature 48
Water Clarity Stained
Lake level is slightly above normal pool with a trickle of water going over the spill way. All bays open, no ice.

Crappie - Slow
Jigs & Minnows fished slow over the weeds or vertically jigging at 8 foot over 15 feet of water.

Bass - Slow
Bass Assassin Jigs Spinner Baits All baits worked at a medium to fast speed over the weeds and drop-offs.

Mike O. - UBetcha Outdoors