A generally warm Christmas break and no more ducks meant it was time to chase skis for the first time in 2 months for me. Bounced around Titt dams and Ovid for 3 half days; found water a steady 37 degrees and 4-6' vis. everywhere. Quite disappointed to see that Sanford has already been dropped 4-5'…probably another fish-in-a-barrel free-for-all for the darkhosers this winter. Anyway, very few sighted on the chain, but silly-fat giants had me excited and got my mind off winged quarry finally. Comparatively many more contacts at Ovid, averaging 2.5 biters per hour. Good to see some coontail out there amongst the dead millfoil…first major clumps I can recall on the ole puddle. All in all a fun little stretch slinging again with 11 boated, 10 on gliders, 1 on rubber. The majority of the hooked fish came on extended boatside retrieves with looooong pauses…most hit a good 20-50 secs after first tracking the bait. I always have fancied catching them like that! Completely iced up today though so could be the end of it for a good spell…
"pikerule2" said:
Outstanding Pete!! And thanks for the tips on being more patient with gliders, that is very helpful info.
When the water's below 45, never give up on a follower! They will bite the glider nearly everytime!!
One big girl sighted on Ovid – a follow and a swing and miss was all I could muster from her…upper forties, thick, and without a mark. Interestingly almost all of the sub 40" fish were heavily cut and infected like some that Hemi has shown in the past.
Also JUST missed a Titt chain brute at my feet – heartbreaking swing & miss! Only ~47-48" long, but probably had 8 lbs on the Ovid fish! If they let 'em live that chain would be pumping out 40 lbers…sick proportions this time of year. Biggest landed was 44".
"Jim tenHaaf" said:
So Pete, would you say that if you have a follow on a glider, you slow down more times than you speed up?
for glider follows…
75 degrees = 0.5 sec pauses followed by 3-5 lightning fast twitches…deal usually closed after 1 cycle.
60 degrees = 0.75 sec pauses followed by 1, then 3 rapid twitches…repeat about twice before the chomp.
45 degrees = 2 sec pauses followed by 1-2 painfully slow twitches…and be prepared to repeat 5 or more times with progressively longer pauses in colder water…
…and above all, read the fish's interest…so, unfortunately, whether to speed up/slow down a glider follow – it depends!
"Pete" said:
for glider follows…
75 degrees = 0.5 sec pauses followed by 3-5 lightning fast twitches…deal usually closed after 1 cycle.60 degrees = 0.75 sec pauses followed by 1, then 3 rapid twitches…repeat about twice before the chomp.
45 degrees = 2 sec pauses followed by 1-2 painfully slow twitches…and be prepared to repeat 5 or more times with progressively longer pauses in colder water…
…and above all, read the fish's interest…so, unfortunately, whether to speed up/slow down a glider follow – it depends!
Thanks for the great advice Pete. I am so single-minded sometimes that advice like this really helps…this report really makes me want to bust the boat back out after next weeks warm spell opens everything back up again…….
"Jim tenHaaf" said:
…I'm ALWAYS in "Summer Power Mode". 😯
That's much better than the alternative – being stuck in cold water mode year round like a couple of my usual boat partners! They have no prayer of triggering a summer fish in their lives, and I tell it to them bluntly and often! If these guys would watch Ron Berry move a double 10 or a 10" jake, or Duke work a sq. burt or 7.5" gma in the summer it would blow their minds!! Don't worry Jim, speed kills! (except this time of year…of course!!)
"swanezy" said:
lol i knew you like to go fast. like when we were talkin about weagles couple summers ago
HAHA. Yep. I don't even think my Cady saw the water this past season. Maybe that's why one of my favorite slashers is a DDD. Man, can you rip those things fast… 
And when a fish hits that mid-pull. Nothing better.
"Pete" said:
[quote="Jim tenHaaf"]…I'm ALWAYS in "Summer Power Mode". 😯
That's much better than the alternative – being stuck in cold water mode year round like a couple of my usual boat partners! They have no prayer of triggering a summer fish in their lives, and I tell it to them bluntly and often! If these guys would watch Ron Berry move a double 10 or a 10" jake, or Duke work a sq. burt or 7.5" gma in the summer it would blow their minds!! Don't worry Jim, speed kills! (except this time of year…of course!!)
Well, if you ever need someone fast in the boat in the summertime because you are not in the mood to bark at someone to speed up, just give me a ring. And I'll bring the pizza. Uccellos, of course!
52
37