Ned Kehde: Guide to Midwest Finesse Fishing: April 2025

This is one of the 172 smallmouth bass that Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, and his partners  caught in north-central Texas and south-central Oklahoma in April. 

April 2

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his April 2 outing. 

John Thomas of Denton joined me for a five-hour excursion to a state reservoir in north-central Texas. This is a different state reservoir than the one we fished on March 25. 

This reservoir isn’t known for relinquishing many lunker-size largemouth bass. According to a 2018 Texas Parks and Wildlife Lake Survey report, there are more spotted bass in this reservoir than largemouth bass. It is also noted that smallmouth bass were stocked in this reservoir in the late 1990s, but state fisheries biologists collected only one of them during their last survey in 2018.

It rained for a brief period during the morning hours of April 2, and we delayed our outing about 30 minutes to allow a strong thunderstorm to pass over the reservoir. After the storm passed, the sky became partly cloudy for several hours before it became overcast around 2:30 p.m. The morning’s low temperature was 61 degrees when we launched the boat at 10:45 a.m., and it was 82 degrees when we trailered the boat at 4:10 p.m. The wind quartered out of the west-by-northwest at 5 to 10 mph, with occasional gusts up to 15 mph. The barometric pressure was 29.55 at 11:00 a.m. and 29.57 at 4:00 p.m. 

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 1:35 a.m. to 3:35 a.m., 7:50 a.m. to 9:50 a.m., and 2:05 p.m. to 4:05 p.m. It also indicated poor fishing.

We fished from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and we caught 28 largemouth bass. We were surprised that we didn’t cross paths with any spotted bass.  We also caught two white bass, two large black crappie, and one bluegill. 

We searched for spotted bass and largemouth bass inside four feeder-creek arms that are situated on the upper end of the reservoir. 

Inside these feeder-creek arms, we focused our attentions on rock-laden steep and flat shorelines and secondary points, clay-and-gravel shorelines and secondary points, three small coves, and several boat docks. 

The water clarity varied from 18 to 24 inches of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 64 to 68 degrees. The water level appeared to be a couple of feet high.

This reservoir is graced with several varieties of aquatic vegetation: American pondweeds, American water willows, muskgrass, coontail, and yellow floating-hearts. 

We employed ten Midwest finesse rigs. Seven of them were effective. The two most effective ones by far were a 3 1/2-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin GrubZ matched with a black 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, and a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ also rigged on a black 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead.  

The most effective presentation was a slow and steady swimming retrieve.

All of the 28 largemouth bass, the two crappie, both white bass, and the bluegill were caught in the lower and midsections of the four northern feeder-creek arms in water as shallow as two feet and as deep as nine feet. Clay and small gravel shorelines and secondary points littered with laydowns and submerged stumps were the most productive areas. We caught only one largemouth bass from a steep and rocky shoreline at the mouth of one of the feeder-creek arms.

In sum, the black-bass fishing at this reservoir began on a slow note, and we caught one largemouth bass during the first 60 minutes of this outing. But as the day progressed and the sky became overcast, the fishing improved significantly.

April 3

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his outing on April 3 with Pok Chi Lau of Lawrence at a 93-year-old state reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

The morning’s low temperature was 48 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 52 degrees. The wind was calm at times, and when it stirred, it was angling out of the west, northwest, north, northeast, east, southeast, and south at 3 to 9 mph. The conditions of the sky varied from being mostly cloudy to overcast to partly cloudy. The barometric pressure was 29.80 at 12:54 a.m., 29.95 at 5:54 a.m., 30.09 at 11:54 a.m., and 30.05 at 3:54 p.m.

The water level looked to be a few inches above normal. The surface temperature was 54 to 55 degrees. The water exhibited about eight feet of clarity. Its shallow-water flats and many of its shorelines are endowed with significant patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, which are interlaced with some wads of filamentous algae. This exurban reservoir is usually heavily fished. But it wasn’t today.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 3:38 a.m. to 5:38 a.m., 4:08 p.m. to 6:08 p.m., and 9:53 a.m. to 11:53 a.m. 

When we made our first casts at 11:50 a.m., Pok Chi caught our first largemouth bass. When we made our last casts at 3:29 p.m., we simultaneously caught largemouth bass number 101 and number 102.

Two of the 102 largemouth bass were caught on a Z-Man’s Drew’s craw Finesse TRD affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. A slightly shortened Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to either a red or a baby blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig inveigled 42 largemouth bass. Fifty-eight largemouth bass were caught on a 3 ½-inch Z-Man’s twilight Trick ShotZ affixed to a baby blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

The Trick ShotZ rig is at the top. The Finesse WormZ rig is at the bottom.

We fished around a main-lake point. We also fished along about 100 yards of this point's main-lake shoreline and about 400 yards of its secondary shoreline inside one of this reservoir’s primary feeder-creek arms.  The slope of this vast area ranges from about 30 to 55 degrees. It is graced with two secondary points and two tertiary points. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, and a significant submerged rock-and-boulder fence. Most of the flat and shallow-water sections of the underwater terrains are enhanced with thick patches of curly-leaf pondweeds and occasional wads of filamentous algae. The water’s edge is often lined with thick patches of winter-dead American water willows and several well-aged laydowns.  We dissected this area twice. It was the first area that we fished and the last one. The first time we caught 29 largemouth bass; two were caught on the Dew’s craw Finesse TRD rig; 27 were allured by the twilight Trick ShotZ rig.   We caught 32 largemouth bass during the second time; one was caught on our twilight Trick ShotZ rigs, and 31 were caught on our Finesse WormZ rigs. They were caught in water as shallow as five feet and as deep as 12 feet. The steeper terrains were the most fruitful. Four were caught on the initial drop of our rigs. Around the shallow-water patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, we allured the largemouth bass by employing a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation. Along the steeper and deeper terrain, we used either a drag-and-shake or a drag-pause-and-subtle-shake presentation. Ten largemouth bass were extracted from the rock-and-boulder terrain around the submerged fence.

We fished along about a 400-yard stretch of another secondary shoreline inside this feeder-creek arm. We also fished around this shoreline’s main-lake point, and along about 50 yards of this point’s main-lake shoreline. The secondary shoreline possesses a 25- to 55-degree slope. The main-lake point has a 55-degree slope. The main-lake shoreline has a 50- to 85-degree slope. The secondary shoreline is endowed with three secondary points. The underwater terrains of this entire area consist of gravel, rocks, and boulders. Some of the boulders along the main-lake shoreline are humongous.  Some of the flat and shallow-water terrains are coated with impenetrable patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, as well as wads of filamentous algae. Portions of the water’s edge are endowed with many patches of winter-dead American water willows, some laydowns, numerous wads of filamentous algae, and a few piles of brush. This area surrendered 29 largemouth bass; all of them were enticed by our Trick ShotZ rigs, The steeper areas yielded more largemouth bass than the shallower and flatter ones. We caught them in water as shallow as two to three feet and as deep as 10 to 12 feet. Two were caught on the initial drop of our rigs. One was caught on a deadstick presentation. The others were caught on either a drag-and-shake or a drag-pause-and-subtle-shake presentation.

Around a main-lake point at the mouth of a small feeder-creek arm and along about a 50-yard stretch of its secondary shoreline and a 300-yard stretch of its main-lake shoreline, we caught 12 largemouth bass. This region of the reservoir possesses a 35- to 45-degree slope.  The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. Much of its flat and shallow-water sections are carpeted with patches of curly-leaf pondweeds and wads of filamentous algae The water’s edge possesses thick patches of winter-dead American water willows, several overhanging trees, and a few piles of brush.  One of the 12 largemouth bass was caught on the Trick ShotZ; 11 were caught on our Finesse WormZ rigs. They were caught in five to eight feet of water. Two were caught on the initial drop. Two were caught on a drag-and-pause presentation. Eight were caught on either a swim-glide-shake presentation or slow swimming presentation around the patches and between the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds. 

We quickly fished along sections of three main-lake shorelines, where we failed to catch a fish.

In conclusion, we fished three hours and 39 minutes and caught an average of 27 largemouth bass an hour. That is a piscatorial phenomenon we used to call bass fishing 10l.  Back in our youthful days, it was our passion on every outing to tangle with 101 black bass in four hours. But now we are geriatric members of the Finesse News Network and the diminishing returns of old age have adversely affected our piscatorial wherewithal. Therefore, we rarely achieve that 101 goal. What’s more, our flatland reservoirs are aging dramatically, which seems to adversely affect our abilities to locate and allure substantial numbers of largemouth bass and smallmouth bass like we used to in northeastern Kansas.  But we are thankful we can occasionally resurrect a few 101 outings in our mid-80s as we did today.  

April 7

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, and Rick Heberstreit of Shawnee, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about their April 7 outing at an 87-year-old community reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 34 degrees, and the afternoon's high temperature was 57 degrees. The wind was calm during the early morning hours, When the wind erupted, it angled out of the west, north, and northwest at 3 to 16 mph with gusts ranging from 18 to 24 mph. The sky was fair. The barometric pressure was 30.03 at 12:53 a.m., 30.00 at 5:53 a.m., 30.03 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.00 at 2:53 p.m.

Many anglers would describe the conditions as being a post-cold front phenomenon, which they say can adversely affect their abilities to catch largemouth bass. Throughout this outing, we found the frequent gusts of wind to be very exasperating at times. The direction and velocity of the wind gusts made it a chore to adroitly maneuver the boat around scores of docks, execute accurate casts, and make alluring presentations with our Midwest finesse rigs. 

The water level looked to be normal. The surface temperature ranged from 53 to 55 degrees. The water exhibited about nine feet of visibility in the vicinity of the dam and about four to six feet of visibility along the shorelines in the upper half of the reservoir.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 7:21 a.m. to 9:21 a.m., 7:44 p.m. to 9:44 p.m., and 1:09 a.m. to 3:09 a.m. 

We made our first casts at 10:48 a.m. and our last ones at 2:48 p.m.  We were hoping to catch at least 51 largemouth bass, and we caught largemouth bass number 50 at 2:47 a.m. and number 51 at 2:48 p.m. We also accidentally caught a bluegill. We elicited seven strikes that we failed to hook, and we hooked four fish that unfettered themselves shortly after they were hooked.

One of the 51 largemouth bass was caught on a 3 ½-inch Z-Man’s twilight Trick ShotZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Fifty were caught on a slightly shortened Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to either a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig or a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig.  

The slightly shortened Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

We caught them on a variety of presentations. One was caught on an accidental vertical presentation.  Two caught on a short deadstick presentation. Three were caught on the initial drop of our rigs.  A few were caught on a swimming presentation. The others were caught on either a swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation.  

As we employed these various presentations, the largemouth bass were caught from about five to about 35 feet from the water’s edge and in water as shallow as three to five feet and as deep as 12 feet. We also fished around 72 docks. Two of the largemouth bass were caught under the docks, and four were caught immediately adjacent to a dock.  

We fished along the dam at the beginning of this outing, which yielded one largemouth bass. The dam is 1,550 feet long with a height of 58 feet. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are adorned with some very meager patches of aquatic vegetation and wads of filamentous algae. It possesses a 50- to 60-degree slope. The water’s edge is graced with a concrete water outlet tower, shallow-water patches of terrestrial grasses, and a few scroungy patches of winter-dead American water willows.  The largemouth bass were caught on the Finesse WormZ rig with a drag-pause-and-shake presentation in about five to six feet of water.

In the lower half of the reservoir, we caught three largemouth bass around a main-lake point and along about a 40-yard stretch of its main-lake shoreline. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, wads of filamentous algae, and a few burgeoning patches of submerged aquatic vegetation.  The water’s edge has two docks, a few patches of winter-dead American water willows, a concrete retaining wall, a boulder retaining wall, and a stretch of riprap.  Our Finesse WormZ rigs with a drag-pause-and-shake presentation inveigled the largemouth bass in seven to 11 feet of water.

We fished along two sections of about an 800-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline in the lower half of the reservoir.  One section is about 60 yards long, and it yielded only one strike. The second section is about 400 yards long. The underwater terrains of the entire shoreline consist of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are occasionally embellished with significant patches of filamentous algae and burgeoning patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. It possesses a 20- to 50-degree slope. The water’s edge is lined with several concrete and stone retaining walls, a few overhanging trees, some meager patches of winter-dead American water willows, and dozens of docks. We caught 16 largemouth bass along the second section of this shoreline. All were caught on our Finesse WormZ rigs. One was caught on a short-lived deadstick presentation. Two were caught on the initial drop. Three were caught on a swimming presentation. The others were caught with either a drag-pause-and-shake presentation or a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake retrieve. They were caught in water as shallow as four feet and as deep as eight feet. Four were caught adjacent to four of the docks.

We spent the rest of this outing in the upper half of the reservoir, dissecting several long shorelines and three main-lake points.

We fished around three small main-lake points and along about a 300-yard stretch of the main-lake shoreline adjacent to these points. This shoreline and its three points have a 30- to 50-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, wads of filamentous algae, and several patches of budding submerged aquatic vegetation. The water’s edge is lined with several concrete retaining walls, one stone retaining wall, a few piles of brush, two overhanging trees, some meager patches of winter-dead American water willows, and 12 docks. This shoreline yielded three largemouth bass. One was caught on the Trick ShotZ rig with a drag-pause-and-shake presentation in about eight feet of water around one of the points. Our Finesse WormZ rigs inveigled two largemouth bass with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about six feet of water.

Along about a 500-yard stretch of a shoreline in the upper half of the reservoir, we caught eight largemouth bass on our Finesse WormZ rigs. The underwater terrains of this shoreline consist of gravel, rocks, boulders, and some silt, which are adorned with wads of filamentous algae, some man-made piles of PVC pipes, and several maturing patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. The shoreline possesses a 20- to 60-degree slope. The water’s edges consist of several concrete retaining walls, nine docks, one small rock bridge, a few minor laydowns, several piles of brush, some patches of winter-dead American water willows, and several overhanging trees. Two of the eight largemouth bass were caught on a drag-pause-and-shake presentation. The others were caught on either a swimming presentation or a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Five were caught around shallow-water patches of burgeoning submerged aquatic vegetation. They were caught in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as eight feet.

We caught 20 largemouth bass along about a 600-yard stretch of another shoreline in the upper half of this reservoir. The underwater terrain of this shoreline consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, and silt, which are endowed with occasional patches of immature aquatic vegetation, many wads of filamentous algae, and a few manmade piles of brush and PVC pipes. The shoreline possesses a 25- to 60-degree slope. The entire water’s edge is lined with 28 docks, many concrete and stone retaining walls, some patches of winter-dead American water willows, some overhanging trees, and three mega laydowns. Our Finesse WormZ rigs inveigled all of these largemouth bass. One was caught on the initial drop. One was caught under one of the docks; three were caught immediately adjacent to three of the docks. One was caught on a vertical presentation. One was caught on a deadstick presentation. The others were caught on either a swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation. They were caught in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as eight feet.

In conclusion, we caught an average of 12.75 largemouth bass an hour. 

April 7

Bob Gum of Kansas City, Kansas, posted a brief log on the Finesse News Network about his outing with Syed Khalid and Sajid Farooqui of Kansas City at one of the federal reservoirs in northeastern Kansas on April 7.

One of the National Weather Services’ stations in northeastern Kansas reported that the morning’s low temperature was 34 degrees, and the afternoon's high temperature was 57 degrees. The wind was calm during the early morning hours, and when the wind erupted, it angled out of the west, north, and northwest at 3 to 16 mph with gusts ranging from 18 to 24 mph. The sky was fair. The barometric pressure was 30.03 at 12:53 a.m., 30.00 at 5:53 a.m., 30.03 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.00 at 2:53 p.m.

The water level was about a quarter of a foot above its normal level. The surface temperature ranged from 53 to 54 degrees. The water exhibited about two feet of visibility.

Many Midwest finesse anglers hereabouts have been confounded by Mother Nature’s windy ways during the past five or six weeks. And today, we had to use a drift sock several times to thwart her unfathomable gusts.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 7:21 a.m. to 9:21 a.m., 7:44 p.m. to 9:44 p.m., and 1:09 a.m. to 3:09 a.m.

I started fishing around 6:45 a.m. Syed and Sajid joined me at 8:00 a.m. We fished until 1:00 p.m.

We fished most of a massive main-lake shoreline and several main-lake points along the north side in the lower third of the reservoir. The underwater terrain of the shoreline and points consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, two riprap jetties, and scores of trees and brush. It has a 25- to 45-degree slope. We caught a mixture of largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, white bass, crappie, and freshwater drum. Our most effective rigs were a 2 ½-inch Z-Man’s coppertruce ZinkerZ affixed to a red 1/16-ounce mushroom jig and a 2 ½-inch Z-Man’s California-craw ZinkerZ affixed to a blue 1/16-ounce mushroom jig. We caught them in water as shallow as three feet and no deeper than eight feet as we employed a swim-glide-and-shake presentation.

Along a shoreline and across a shallow-water flat in the back of a small feeder creek in the lower quarter of the reservoir, we tangled with some largemouth bass, wipers, and white bass. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and silt. The shoreline has a 30- to 35-degree slope. The most effective rig was a three-inch smoke-colored curly-tailed grub affixed to a white 1/8-ounce mushroom-style jig. We caught these temperate bass by making extremely long casts and employing a swimming presentation.

In total, we caught eight smallmouth bass, eight largemouth bass, one carp, five crappie, 10 freshwater drum, five wipers, and 14 white bass.

April 8

Bob Gum of Kansas City, Kansas, posted a brief log on the Finesse News Network about his outing at one of the power-plant reservoirs in northeastern Kansas on April 8. 

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 31 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 59 degrees. The wind angled out of the northeast, east, and southeast at 3 to 15 mph. The sky was fair from 12:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The barometric pressure was 29.06 at 12:53 a.m., 29.07 at 5:53 a.m., 29:08 at 11:53 a.m., and 28.96 at 3:53 p.m.

Water clarity was about three feet in the vicinity of the dam. The surface temperature was 58 degrees along a riprap shoreline on the eastern side of the reservoir and 57 degrees along the dam. The water level looked to be about 1 ½ feet below normal. 

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 8:01 a.m. to 10:01 a.m., 8:23 p.m. to 10:23 p.m., and 1:50 a.m. to 3:50 a.m.

I made my first cast around 6:45 a.m. on the shallow-water flat adjacent to the dam’s spillway. The underwater terrain of this flat is enhanced by a large pile of rocks and boulders. By the time I reached the dam, I had caught 12 largemouth bass on a Z-Man’s smelt TRD MinnowZ affixed to a black 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. I retrieved it with the rod tip at about the four o’clock position and employed a slow swim-glide-and-twitch presentation.

The dam is 11,640 feet long and 100 feet high. Its spillway is 50 feet wide. 

Until 11:00 a.m., I slowly and methodically dissected the riprap shoreline of the dam. I crossed paths with another boat, and I didn’t see them catch a fish.

After 11:00 a.m., I fished about 250 yards of a riprap shoreline on the east side of the reservoir and 30 yards of the shallow-water flat on the south end of this riprap shoreline. And freshwater drum dominated most of the action.

Then, I returned to the riprap shoreline of the dam.  And until 3:00 p.m., when I made my last cast, I concentrated on dissecting the eastern and western ends of the dam.

My most effective Midwest finesse rigs throughout this seven-hour and 15-minute outing were a 2 ½-inch Z-Man’s California-craw ZinkerZ on a blue 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig or Gopher jig and a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD BugZ affixed to a black 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig.  

 In all, I caught 81 fish: 52 largemouth bass, 20 freshwater drum, eight channel catfish, and one crappie. 

April 10 

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his April 10 outing to a scenic federal hill-land reservoir in south-central Oklahoma with Bill Kenney of Denton.

Weather wise, the sky conditions fluctuated from being partly cloudy to clear. The barometric pressure measured 29.47 at 10:00 a.m. and 29.46 at 3:00 p.m. The wind blew out of the southwest at 5 to 8 mph, then it turned out of the northwest at 12 mph. By 1:30 p.m., it was calm.  The morning’s low temperature was 49 degrees, and the afternoon’s high reached 88 degrees.

Poor fishing was forecasted for April 10 by In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar. The calendar also noted that the most productive fishing periods would occur from 3:13 a.m. to 5:13 a.m., 9:23 a.m. to 11:23 a.m., and 9:47 p.m. to 11:47 p.m.

We fished from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The water exhibited between four and six feet of clarity. The water level appeared to be about two feet high. The surface temperature ranged from 59 to 64 degrees.

We began the outing by launching the boat inside a major feeder-creek arm in the lower end of the reservoir’s west tributary arm. We slowly and meticulously fished this creek arm from its mouth to its upper end. We shared the creek arm with several other boat anglers. Our boat was positioned in water as shallow as 11 feet and as deep at 27 feet, and we savored catching 47 smallmouth bass, two largemouth bass, one spotted bass, and two green sunfish.  Most of these 52 fish were abiding in three to five feet of water and relating to shallow rock ledges and large aggregations of submerged chunk rocks mixed with boulders that clutter the main-lake entry point and secondary points. A handful of smallmouth bass, two largemouth bass, and one spotted bass were caught around the ends of the secondary points and two short rocky shorelines adjacent to the secondary points. We failed to elicit any strikes from three minor sand-and-gravel flats. 

We wielded a plethora of Midwest finesse lures such as a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s pumpkin-chartreuse ZinkerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, a Z-Man’s watermelon-red Salty Ned ShrimpZ affixed on a black 1/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, a Z-Man’s coppertreuse Finesse TRD rigged on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, a slightly shortened Z-Man’s coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ fastened on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, a three-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ matched with a black 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s space guppy Slim SwimZ attached to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, a 2 3/4-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD TubeZ matched with a black 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, a Z-Man’s Drew’s Craw TRD HogZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, and a plastisol Finesse TRD-type bait with about a three-inch green feather trailer attached to the rear of the bait and threaded on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. 

The three-inch green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ and the 2 1/2-inch space guppy Slim SwimZ rigs were used with a slow and steady swimming retrieve. The ZinkerZ, TRD TicklerZ, TRD TubeZ, Finesse TRD, and Salty Ned ShrimpZ rigs were all employed with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation.  

After we finished fishing the feeder-creek arm, we probed an offshore main-lake rock- and boulder-laden hump in the middle section of the reservoir’s west tributary arm, and we failed to garner any strikes.

Our third and final spot was a medium-size main-lake cove and one of it’s main-lake entry points located in the upper end of the west tributary arm. We shared this cove with a couple of boat anglers.

The main-lake entry point is flat and adorned with mostly sand, small gravel, chunky rocks, and patches of boulders. The shoreline adjacent to this point leads to the back end of the cove. It is also rocky, but it is steeper than the main-lake entry point with 30- to 35-degree slopes. There are a couple of thick patches of cattails, a few submerged stumps, and a couple of small laydowns that also enhance this shoreline. This area relinquished 23 smallmouth bass and two largemouth bass. 

We caught these 25 black bass from the main-lake entry-point to the back end of the cove. They were allured by a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with either the 2 1/2-inch pumpkin-chartreuse ZinkerZ, the coppertruese Finesse TRD, the shortened coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ, and the Drew’s craw TRD HogZ rigs. 

In a nutshell, we relished catching 70 smallmouth bass, four largemouth bass, one spotted bass, and two green sunfish during this six-hour excursion. And to top it off, Bill informed me that this was the most fish he has ever caught in one outing.

April 11

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his outing on April 11 at a 93-year-old state reservoir in northeastern Kansas with Nick Robertson of Overland Park, Kansas. 

According to the National Weather Service, the morning’s low temperature was 35 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 66 degrees. The wind was calm for a few minutes, and when it stirred, it angled out of the northwest, north, and southeast at 6 to 14 mph; there was one gust that reached 18 mph. The sky was fair. The barometric pressure was 30.22 at 12:52 a.m., 30.25 at 5:52 a.m., 30.33 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.27 at 3:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be normal. The surface temperature was 55 to 56 degrees. The water exhibited more than nine feet of clarity. Its shallow-water flats and many of its shorelines are endowed with significant patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, which are interlaced with some wads of filamentous algae and patches of coontail. Thick patches of winter-dead American water willows grace many of the shorelines.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 9:47 a.m. to 11:47 a.m., 10:07 p.m. to 12.07 a.m., and 3:37 a.m. to 5:37 a.m. 

We made our first casts at 10: 48 a.m., and our last ones when we caught largemouth bass number 70 at 2:40 p.m. We accidentally caught one black crappie.

Fourteen of the 70 largemouth bass were caught on a slightly shortened Z-Man’s Drew’s craw Finesse TRD affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Twenty-seven were caught on a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ affixed to a green-pumpkin 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. Thirty-five were caught on a slightly shortened four-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to either a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig or a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig.  

We fished around a main-lake point, along about 50 yards of this point's main-lake shoreline, and about 500 yards of its secondary shoreline inside one of this reservoir’s primary feeder-creek arms.  The slope of this vast area ranges from about 30 to 55 degrees. It is graced with two secondary points and two tertiary points. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, and a significant submerged rock-and-boulder fence. Most of the flat and shallow-water sections of the underwater terrains are enhanced with thick patches of curly-leaf pondweeds and occasional wads of filamentous algae. The water’s edge is often lined with thick patches of winter-dead American water willows and several well-aged laydowns. It yielded 23 largemouth bass. Five were caught on the Drew’s craw TRD TicklerZ rig; five were caught on the green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ rig; 11 were caught on the Finesse WormZ rig. They were caught in water as shallow as five feet and as deep as 12 feet. A few were caught along the outside edges of the patches of winter-dead American water willows and as far as 25 feet from the water’s edge. One was caught on a deadstick presentation. Two were caught on the initial drop of our rigs along either the outside edges or the inside edge of the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds.  One was caught on the initial drop along the outside edge of a patch of winter-dead American water willows. Around the shallow-water patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, we allured the largemouth bass by employing a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation. Along the steeper terrains that are not cluttered with thick patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, we caught the largemouth bass by using either a drag-and-shake or a drag-pause-and-subtle-shake presentation.

We fished along about a 400-yard stretch of another secondary shoreline inside this feeder-creek arm. We also fished around this shoreline’s main-lake point, and along about 75 yards of this point’s main-lake shoreline. The secondary shoreline possesses a 25- to 55-degree slope. The main-lake point has a 50-degree slope. The main-lake shoreline has a 50- to 85-degree slope. The secondary shoreline is endowed with three secondary points. The underwater terrains of this entire area consist of gravel, rocks, and boulders. Some of the boulders along the main-lake shoreline are humongous.  Some of the flat and shallow-water terrains are coated with impenetrable patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, as well as wads of filamentous algae. Portions of the water’s edge are endowed with many patches of winter-dead American water willows, some laydowns, numerous wads of filamentous algae, and a few piles of brush. This massive area surrendered 28 largemouth bass. Our most effective tactic was to adroitly dissect the gaps and troughs in the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds. Some of the gaps are quite small, and two of the troughs are more than a hundred feet long and five to about 15 feet wide. The green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ rig inveigled seven largemouth bass, the Drew’s craw TRD TicklerZ rig allured another seven, and 14 were caught on the Finesse WormZ rig. They were caught in five to 10 feet of water and 10 to 25 feet from the water’s edge.  One was caught on a short and accidental deadstick presentation. Another one was caught on the initial drop. The others were caught on either a swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation.  The drag-pause-and-shake retrieve was used along the areas that are devoid of the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds.

Around a main-lake point at the mouth of a small feeder-creek arm and along about a 50-yard stretch of its secondary shoreline and a 300-yard stretch of its main-lake shoreline, we caught eight largemouth bass. This area possesses a 35- to 45-degree slope.  The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. Much of its flat and shallow-water sections are carpeted with vast patches of curly-leaf pondweeds and several wads of filamentous algae The water’s edge possesses thick patches of winter-dead American water willows, several overhanging trees, and a few piles of brush.  Three of the eight largemouth bass were caught on the Finesse WormZ rig; five were caught on the green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ rig. They were caught in four to eight feet of water. Two were caught on the initial drop. Four were caught on either a swim-glide-shake presentation or slow swimming presentation around the patches and between the gaps in the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds and many feet from the water’s edge. 

Around the other main-lake point at the mouth of a small feeder-creek arm and along about a 20-yard stretch of its secondary shoreline, we caught one largemouth bass and one black crappie. Its water’s edge, slope, and underwater terrain is similar to this small feeder creek’s other main-lake point and shorelines. The largemouth bass and black crappie were caught on the initial drop of the Finesse WormZ in the vicinity of the outside edge of the patches of winter-dead American water willows in about four feet of water.

Inside this reservoir’s second primary feeder-creek arm, we caught 10 largemouth bass around one of its secondary points.  The water’s edge is endowed with a scrawny patch of winter-dead American water willows. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. The massive patch of curly-leaf pondweeds that covers the gravel and rocks is endowed with a significant trough, which is about 100 feet long. Inside this trough, we caught 10 largemouth bass. Five were caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig, three were caught on the green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ rig, and two were caught on the Drew’s craw TRD TicklerZ rig. They were caught in four to five feet of water. One was caught on the initial drop. The others were caught with either a swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a swimming presentation.

We failed to elicit a strike along sections of two main-lake shorelines.

In conclusion, we caught 70 largemouth bass in three hours and 52 minutes. That is a catch rate of about 18 largemouth bass an hour.

April 11

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his April 11 outing at a popular and heavily fished U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ hill-land reservoir in north-central Texas. 

Frank Gosnell of Sanger, Texas, and I fished from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

It was sunny, and the sky was cloudless. The morning’s low temperature was 50 degrees. The afternoon’s high temperature peaked at 82 degrees. The wind quartered out of the northeast at 10 to 15 mph. The barometric pressure measured 30.28 at 10:00 a.m. and dropped to 30.20 by 4:00 p.m.

Great fishing was in the forecast of In-Fisherman's Solunar calendar. The most lucrative periods occurred from 3:37 a.m. to 5:37 a.m., 9:47 a.m. to 11:47 a.m., and 10:07 p.m. to 12:07 a.m. 

We concentrated most of our efforts inside five feeder-creek arms in the lower regions of the reservoir’s east and west tributary arms, and there were multiple boat anglers everywhere we fished. The vast majority of this reservoir’s submerged terrain is composed of red clay, small gravel, chunky rocks, and countless numbers of large boulders. We also ventured inside a heavily timbered creek arm at the upper end of the east tributary, but it was for naught. 

The water level was at its normal pool level. The water temperature ranged from 59 to 68 degrees. The water clarity varied from 12 inches inside one creek arm at the upper end of the reservoir to 3 1/2 feet of visibility inside another creek arm at the lower end of the impoundment.

Inside five feeder-creek arms and one small main-lake cove, we targeted a slew of rocky main-lake points, secondary points and shorelines, an island, several large clay-and-gravel flats, and a concrete causeway of a small bridge. Most of these areas are graced with numerous patches of submerged Eurasian milfoil that lie in two to nine feet of water. 

The black-bass fishing was mediocre at best; we caught a total of 14 black bass in six hours, which consisted of 12 largemouth bass and two spotted bass. We also crossed paths with two freshwater drum and one white bass.

After launching the boat in a small cove in the lower end of the reservoir, we immediately dropped the trolling motor and probed two short sections of riprap along two shorelines close to the boat ramp. The end of one of these riprap shorelines forms a main-lake point. The two riprap shorelines inside the cove were fruitless, but we caught one white bass and one spotted bass from the riprap main-lake point and an adjacent main-lake shoreline that is also covered with riprap. Both of these fish were abiding in three to five feet of water near the riprap, and they were allured by a slow-swimming retrieve with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s slam-shady GrubZ rigged on a red 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

From that cove, we traveled a short distance southward to a major feeder-creek arm. Around the perimeter of an island situated in the lower portion of this creek arm, we caught six largemouth bass and one spotted bass near patches of Eurasian milfoil in three to five feet of water. They were caught many yards apart from each other. Five largemouth bass were enticed by a steady-swimming retrieve with a three-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ rigged on a red 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ Jighead. One largemouth bass and one spotted bass were tempted into striking a slow-swimming retrieve with the 2 1/2-inch slam-shady GrubZ rig. We caught two more largemouth bass on a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse ShadZ attached to a red 1/20-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ Jighead with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Both of them were abiding in five to seven feet of water and associated with patches of Eurasian milfoil that adorn a rocky secondary point in the lower end of the creek arm. We failed to garner any strikes around patches of Eurasian milfoil that garnish three clay-and-gravel flats, five other rocky secondary points, and a rocky shoreline in the midsection of the creek arm. 

Next, we traveled a couple of miles westward into a heavily-timbered feeder-creek arm in the lower end of the west tributary arm.

We caught three largemouth bass in two to seven feet of water and 15 to 35 feet from the water’s edge along two flat gravel- and rock-laden secondary points in the lower end of the creek arm. Two of the three bass were allured by a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a Z-Man’s sprayed-grass TRD TicklerZ matched with a chartreuse 1/20-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. The other largemouth bass was enticed by a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with the green-pumpkin Finesse ShadZ rig. We also dissected two other rocky secondary points and several pockets that are cluttered with large patches of Eurasian milfoil in the lower and middle sections of this creek arm, but we failed to elicit any other strikes.

After that, we traveled about two miles southwestward to the third feeder-creek arm in the lower end of the west tributary arm. Inside this creek arm, we fished along a clay-and-gravel levee and a boulder-laden shoreline in the lower portion of the creek arm. To our dismay, our best efforts could muster only two freshwater drum from around the clusters of submerged boulders in three to five feet of water. Both of them were caught on the sprayed-grass TRD TicklerZ rig and a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. 

From that creek arm, we journeyed to the upper end of the east tributary arm, where we fished in the back end of a heavily timbered creek arm. The water was muddy with about 12 inches of visibility. The water temperature was 68 degrees. We employed an array of our Midwest finesse arsenal around many patches of Eurasian milfoil in three to five feet of water inside a small bay and near a concrete causeway of a small bridge at the mouth of the small bay, but we failed to locate any largemouth bass or spotted bass in these areas.

After that disappointing endeavor, we traveled to another feeder-creek arm in the lower section of the east tributary arm. It is situated about three miles southeast of the one we just fished. This creek arm features a small marina, four adjoining concrete boat ramps, a short riprap shoreline adjacent to the boat ramps, and two coves in its upper end with flourishing patches of Eurasian milfoil. After executing dozens and dozens of casts and retrieves, we managed to scrounge up one dinky largemouth bass from the midsection of the creek arm in four feet of water near a small patch of Eurasian milfoil. It was fooled by a steady-swimming retrieve with a Z-Man’s hot-snakes Baby Goat rigged on a chartreuse 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. And this was the last bass we caught during this disappointing outing. 

April 12

Bob Gum of Kansas City, Kansas, posted a brief log on the Finesse News Network about his outing on April 12 with Andrew Godwin of Leawood, Kansas, at one of the power-plant reservoirs in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 42 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 73 degrees. The wind angled out of the southeast and south at 6 to 21 mph with gusts ranging from 22 to 32 mph. The sky was fair. The barometric pressure was 30.19 at 12:53 a.m., 30.14 at 5:53 a.m., 30.09 at 11:53 a.m., and 29.97 at 2:53 p.m.

Water clarity was about three feet in the vicinity of the dam. The surface temperature was 62 degrees along a riprap shoreline on the eastern side of the reservoir and 60 degrees along the dam. The water level looked to be about 1 ½ feet below normal. 

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 10:27 a.m. to 12:27 p.m., 10:47 p.m. to 12:47 a.m., and 4:15 a.m. to 6:15 a.m.

We made our first casts around 6:45 a.m. along a 300-yard stretch of a riprap shoreline and across about 30 yards of this shoreline's shallow-water flat.  I caught a fish on my first cast.

The second area we fished was over and along a submerged roadbed on the reservoir’s west side, where we failed to elicit a strike.  

After we fished those two rather windblown locales, we spent the rest of the outing seeking shelter from the wind along the riprap shoreline of the dam, which is 11,640 feet long and 100 feet high. It was so windy at times we had to employ a drift sock to control the boat. At other times, we employed what I call a reverse drift or working the boat backward. We thoroughly dissected this massive shoreline twice.  

During the afternoon hours, our catch rate improved dramatically. Along the dam, we crossed paths with a pair of fishermen competing in a bass tournament, and they were surprised by the number of fish we had caught. 

By 3:00 p.m., our mechanical fish counter indicated we had caught 67 fish, which included 41 largemouth bass, 20 freshwater drum, and six channel catfish. Two of the largemouth bass were 20 inches long. 

Andy’s most effective rig was a Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ on a blue 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig.  Mine were a 2 ½-inch Z-Man’s California-craw ZinkerZ on a blue 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig and a Z-Man’s watermelon-red TRD BugZ on a black 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig.

We retrieved these rigs with a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake in two to 10 feet of water. 

April 14

Patricia and Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about their short outing on April 14 at an 86-year-old community reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 54 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 63 degrees.  The wind angled out of the north and northwest at 9 to 20 mph, and there were gusts that ranged from 25 to 31 mph. The conditions of the sky varied from being partly cloudy to overcast to fair to cluttered with a few clouds. The barometric pressure was 29.89 at 12:52 a.m., 30.00 at 5:52 a.m., 30.13 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.12 at 2:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be about 15 inches below its normal level. The surface temperature was 58 degrees. The water exhibited about three to four feet of clarity. We crossed paths with one minor algae bloom. To our delight, we fished across several burgeoning patches of submerged aquatic vegetation, which we could not identify.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 11:32 a.m. to 1:32 p.m., 11:54 p.m. to 1:54 a.m., and 5:43 a.m. to 7:43 a.m. 

It was another hellishly windy spring day in northeastern Kansas. Our power-fishing and finesse-fishing colleagues have been incessantly plagued by Mother Nature’s windy ways this year.

For us, it was one of our geriatric Midwest finesse outings, which means it was a short one because we are in our mid-80s and our wind-tolerant stamina has diminished dramatically during the past five years.

We made our first casts at 12:50 p.m. and our last ones at 2:12 p.m. when we simultaneously caught largemouth bass number 30 and 31. Besides those 31 largemouth bass, we also caught one crappie.

We spent the entire 82 minutes dissecting about a 450-yard stretch of a secondary shoreline inside a large feeder-creek arm that is contiguous to the shoreline of the dam.  And we fished about 200 yards of the dam’s shoreline.   

The underwater terrains of these two shorelines consist of gravel, rocks, and boulders. The secondary shoreline’s underwater terrain is graced with several stumps, and parts of it are enhanced with patches of filamentous algae and the submerged aquatic vegetation that we failed to identify because we were unable to extract any of it from the underwater terrain.

The water’s edge of the secondary shoreline is endowed with many patches of winter-dead American water willows that are virtually out of the water, a minor patch of cattails that are almost totally out of the water, one dock, a few laydowns, and several piles of brush.  The water’s edge along the portion of the dam’s shoreline that we fished has several significant patches of winter-dead American water willows that are almost totally out of  the water.

We caught 14 of the largemouth bass along the dam’s shoreline and 17 along the secondary shoreline in the feeder-creek arm.

Fifteen of the 31 largemouth bass were caught on a 3 ½-inch Z-Man’s twilight Trick ShotZ affixed to either a baby-blue or a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Sixteen were caught on a slightly shortened Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

Five were caught on the initial drop of our rigs in three to five feet of water. One was caught on an accidental deadstick presentation in about seven to eight feet of water. The others were caught on either an extremely slow swim-and-pause presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation in four to eight feet of water. Sometimes, the wind forced us to stroll as we employed a drag-pause-and-shake presentation. The slow swim-and-pause retrieve was effective around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation; it allowed our rigs to polish the tops of the stems of the aquatic vegetation.  

We caught an average of about 23 largemouth bass an hour.

April 15 

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his April 15 outing with John Thomas of Denton for a five-hour excursion to a federal reservoir in north-central Texas that is known more for its striper fishing than its black-bass fishing. Neither one of them has visited this reservoir since 2023. 

It was another gorgeous spring day. The sky was partly cloudy. The barometric pressure measured 30.33 at 10:00 a.m. and fell to 30.27 by 3:00 p.m. The wind quartered out of the north and northeast at 10 to 15 mph. The morning’s low temperature was 56 degrees. The afternoon’s high was 74 degrees.

The water exhibited two feet of clarity. The water level was 1.35 feet below its normal level. The surface temperature ranged from 60 to 62 degrees.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar indicated that the most lucrative fishing periods would occur from 12:25 a.m. to 2:25 a.m., 6:37 a.m. to 8:37 a.m., and 12:49 p.m. to 2:49 p.m. The calendar also forecasted average fishing for April 15. 

We fished from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The black-bass fishing in north-central Texas has been pretty lackluster this spring, and so was this outing.  We dissected portions of three feeder-creek arms and a couple of main-lake points in the lower end of the reservoir, and it was a grind to catch 11 smallmouth bass and one largemouth bass. We also inadvertently caught four striped bass, one white bass, and one channel catfish. 

This outing turned into a junk-fishing excursion. We ended up employing 13 Midwest finesse rigs, which is a sure sign of a slow and trying outing. Of the 13 Midwest finesse rigs that we employed, we caught seven smallmouth bass, one striped bass, and a channel catfish on a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a shortened 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. Two smallmouth bass and one largemouth bass were tempted by a slow-swimming retrieve with a three-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ affixed on a black 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. A slow-swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a shortened 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s The Deal TRD TicklerZ fastened on a blue 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead enticed two smallmouth bass and one striped bass. A slow-swimming retrieve with a three-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ on a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead allured one striped bass and one white bass. And a shortened 2 1/2-inch sprayed-grass TRD TicklerZ threaded on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead and a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve caught one striped bass.

We caught five smallmouth bass, one largemouth bass, two striped bass, and one white bass from two flat shorelines in the backend of the first creek arm. Another five smallmouth bass, two striped bass, and one channel catfish were caught from two flat shorelines in the lower end of the second creek arm. The submerged terrains of these shorelines consist primarily of sand, gravel, baseball-size rocks, and a few boulders.  One smallmouth bass was caught from a flat and rocky main-lake point. The third feeder-creek arm was fruitless. All of these fish were caught in three to seven feet of water while our boat was positioned in 12 to 15 feet of water. 

April 15

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his short outing on April 15 at an 86-year-old community reservoir in northeastern Kansas. 

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 30 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 65 degrees.  The wind angled out of the north and northwest at 6 to 17 mph, and there were gusts that ranged from 18 to 24 mph. The sky was fair. The barometric pressure was 30.28 at 12:52 a.m., 30.31 at 5:52 a.m., 30.32 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.19 at 4:52 p.m. 

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place from 12:16 a.m. to 2:16 a.m., 12:40 p.m. to 2:40 p.m., and 6:28 a.m. to 8:28 a.m. 

For decades, one of our Midwest finesse axioms has been not to fish the same reservoir more than once a week. But I transgressed on this piscatorial proverb by fishing the same community reservoir that Patty Kehde and I fished on April 14. My rationalization for that transgression was the wind adversely affected our abilities to thoroughly dissect the two shorelines that we fished yesterday. Despite the wind, we somehow caught 31 largemouth bass. Since the wind was slightly less intense on April 15, I wanted to see if I could somehow catch 50 largemouth bass in two hours along the same two shorelines where we caught those 31 largemouth bass in 82 minutes in yesterday's wind.

I made my first cast at 2:17 p.m. and my last one at 4:20 p.m. It was a disheartening two hours and three minutes. Rather than catching 50 largemouth bass, I caught 19 largemouth bass and inadvertently caught one bluegill and one black crappie.  According to a talented power-fishing friend, the fishing was a struggle for him, too; he tangled with 13 largemouth bass and one wiper in about four hours of fishing with crankbaits and a fluke-style bait.

I fished the entire shoreline on the dam, which is 1,440 feet and 45 feet high. It possesses a 45- to 50-degree slope. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and untold numbers of boulders. It also possesses a riprap jetty and an outlet tower. The water’s edge is endowed with many significant patches of winter-dead American water willows that are almost totally out of the water and several piles of brush and logs.

The dam yielded 10 largemouth bass. Five were caught on a 3 ½-inch Z-Man’s twilight Trick ShotZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. A slightly shortened Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig caught the other five.  One was caught on the initial drop on the Finesse WormZ rig in about two feet of water. The others were inveigled on either a drag-pause-and-shake presentation or a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about five to 12 feet of water.

Inside a large feeder-creek arm that is contiguous to the dam, I fished along about a 550-yard stretch of one of its secondary shorelines.  Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, several stumps, a few piles of brush, several logs, some wads of filamentous algae, and occasional patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. The water’s edge is endowed with many patches of winter-dead American water willows that are virtually out of the water, a minor patch of cattails that are almost totally out of the water, one dock, a short stretch of riprap, a few laydowns, several piles of brush, and a dock. It has a 30- to 40-degree slope.

This shoreline yielded eight largemouth bass. Five were caught on the Finesse WormZ rig; three were caught on the twilight Trick ShotZ rig. One was caught on the initial drop adjacent to a partially submerged log about 30 feet from the water’s edge in about eight feet of water. The others were caught along the shoreline in four to six feet of water on either a slow swim-glide-shake presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation.

As my two hours were quickly coming to a close, I swiftly fished along two small segments of a 200-yard of this feeder-creeks other secondary shoreline. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. The water’s edge is enhanced with a few patches of winter-dead American water willows that are virtually out of the water, some overhanging trees, two tertiary points, and a couple of piles of tree limbs.  It has a 25- to 40-degree slope. One of the piles of limbs that are under several overhanging trees yielded one largemouth bass.  It was caught on the Finesse WormZ rig and a drag-and-shake presentation in about five feet of water adjacent to the limbs. 

Besides the Finesse WormZ and Trick ShotZ rigs, I occasionally used two other Midwest finesse rigs that failed to elicit a strike.

Instead of catching an average of 25 largemouth bass an hour as I hoped to or even 23 an hour as Patty and I did in the wind on April 14, I struggled to eke out nine an hour on this outing.

In the 2000s and 2010s, this community reservoir was one of our most fruitful ones in northeastern Kansas. But after it was waylaid with many applications of aquatic herbicides, the leaching in of terrestrial herbicides, the arrival of a lot of siltation, and the effects of a minor eruption of the largemouth bass virus, it has become a struggle to tangle with 25 largemouth bass an hour at this once stellar waterway. Old age might be another one of its woes. It is a year older than I am, and I am totally aware of the diminishing returns of old age.

April 18 

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his April 18 outing.

This has been the windiest spring in north-central Texas since 2022. During this April 18 outing, the wind blew relentlessly out of the south and southeast at 20 to 30 mph. It was also overcast, and rain is in the forecast for April 19 and 20. The morning's low temperature was 65 degrees. The afternoon's high temperature peaked at 85 degrees. The barometric pressure dropped from 29.83 at 8:00 a.m. to 29.81 at 2:00 p.m. 

Because of the problematic wind, I elected to conduct a bank-walking excursion at two community reservoirs in north-central Texas. 

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the most lucrative fishing periods would take place from 3:10 a.m. to 5:10 a.m., 9:23 a.m. to 11:23 a.m., and 3:37 p.m. to 5:37 p.m. The fishing forecast for April 18 was poor.

I fished at the first impoundment from 8:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Then I took a break for lunch. At the second reservoir, I fished from about 11:40 a.m. to 2:10 p.m.

The water at the first reservoir exhibited about 18 inches of clarity. The water level appeared to be normal. The water temperature was 71.2 degrees.

This reservoir’s underwater terrain consists of small gravel and sand. There are a few tree limbs, large oak trees, and patches of boulders cluttering portions of the shorelines in the midsection of the impoundment. There are also several shallow sand-and-gravel ledges extending about five feet out from the water’s edge that parallel the shorelines. Large patches of submerged baby pondweeds and filamentous algae cover the shallow ledges, and some of the patches of baby pondweeds are now matting on the surface of the water. The upper end and lower ends of the impoundment are flat and also graced with patches of baby pondweeds and globs of filamentous algae. The shorelines are relatively flat with 10- to 15-degree inclines.

I shared this impoundment with a power angler, who was wielding a double willow-leaf spinnerbait and a white fluke-style bait. I didn’t see if he was successful or not, but it was a chore for me to catch 13 largemouth bass. One was caught near a patch of matted baby pondweeds in the lower end of the reservoir, and the other twelve were caught across the middle portion of the impoundment around the deep-water side of several of the patches of baby pondweeds that are covering the shallow sand-and-gravel ledges. I also encountered two large black crappie and a large bluegill. All of these fish were abiding in five to seven feet of water, and they were 20 to 35 feet from the water’s edge. 

One of these 13 bass was caught on a slow swim-and-constant-shake retrieve with a shortened Z-Man’s coppertruese TRD TicklerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. Two were induced by a steady-swimming retrieve with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s watermelon-red Slim SwimZ attached to a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. Four were tempted by a slow swim-and-constant-shake presentation with a shortened 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s sprayed-grass TRD TicklerZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. Six were allured by a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a Z-Man’s watermelon-red Finesse ShadZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. 

At the second reservoir, there was about two feet of clarity. The water level was at its normal level. The water temperature was 73.3 degrees.

The lower and upper ends of this reservoir are flat and shallow. The upper end is adorned with a small fishing pier and large patches of submerged and matting baby pondweeds. The midsection of this reservoir is endowed with several tertiary points composed of clay mixed with small gravel, several shallow ledges, and some medium-sized patches of baby pondweeds. 

Five of the larger patches of baby pondweeds that are situated in five to seven feet of water and are closest to the shallow ledges in the middle section of the impoundment relinquished 21 largemouth bass. 

The outside edges of the shallow patches of baby pondweeds in the upper end of the reservoir yielded three largemouth bass. I failed to elicit any strikes from the shallow flat in the lower end of the impoundment.

Of these 24 largemouth bass, nine were induced by a steady swimming retrieve with the 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s watermelon-red Slim SwimZ rig; eight were enticed by the 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s sprayed-grass TRD TicklerZ combo and a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation, and seven were tempted by a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a Z-Man’s Junebug Finesse ShadZ matched with a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead.

In sum, it was a fruitful outing on an overcast and windy spring day. All totaled, I caught 37 largemouth bass, two black crappie, and one large bluegill in five hours. Thirteen largemouth bass were caught from the first reservoir, and 24 were caught from the second one. 

April 21 

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his April 21 outing to a scenic federal reservoir in southern Oklahoma.

Brad DePrator of Sanger, Texas, joined me on this 5 1/2-hour excursion to the same reservoir where Bill Kenney of Denton and I enjoyed catching 70 smallmouth bass, four largemouth bass, and one spotted bass on April 10. 

Brad is an ardent freshwater and saltwater angler, and his focus during this outing was to try something new and tangle with a bevy of smallmouth bass. This was also Brad’s maiden Midwest finesse outing, and from the get-go, he displayed his many piscatory skills. In fact, he quickly caught the first two smallmouth bass of the outing. 

April 21 was a mild spring day in southern Oklahoma. The sky was cloudless. The morning’s low temperature was 47 degrees, and the afternoon high reached 81 degrees. The barometric pressure measured 30.07 at 9:00 a.m. and 30.01 at 3:00 p.m. The wind was mild-mannered and quartered from the south and southeast at 8 to 10 mph. 

Another poor-fishing day was forecasted by In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar. The calendar also indicated that the most productive fishing periods would occur from 5:45 a.m. to 7:45 a.m., 11:32 a.m. to 1:32 p.m., and 6:11 p.m. to 8:11 p.m.

We fished from 9:20 a.m. to 3:50 p.m., and during this time, we took a 30-minute lunch break. 

The water exhibited between four and seven feet of clarity. The surface temperature ranged from 64 to 68 degrees. The water level was a couple of feet high.

We launched the boat inside a major feeder-creek arm in the lower end of the reservoir’s west tributary arm that yielded 52 black bass on April 10. We shared this creek arm with two kayak anglers. The smallmouth bass fishing wasn’t nearly as bountiful in this creek arm as it was on April 10, and it was a chore for Brad and me to catch 10 smallmouth bass and one spotted bass. Ten of these 11 black bass were abiding in three to nine feet of water, and they were associated with seven shallow rock ledges that parallel the sides of a main-lake entry point to the creek arm and six rocky secondary points that are situated in the lower and middle sections of the creek arm. One smallmouth bass was caught in three feet of water from a sand-and-gravel flat in the midsection of the creek arm. We failed to elicit any strikes in the upper end of the creek arm.      

Eleven smallmouth bass were caught from two offshore main-lake humps. One is situated in the midsection of the west tributary arm, and the second one is located in this tributary’s lower end.  Both of these humps are covered with chunky rocks and boulders. The first hump surrendered seven smallmouth bass, and the second one yielded four smallmouth bass. They were dwelling around the perimeter of the humps in three to nine feet of water.

Inside a small bay in the middle section of the west tributary arm, we caught seven smallmouth bass. They were relating to the deep-water sides of five shallow rock ledges next to four rocky secondary points and one flat and rocky shoreline in the lower and middle sections of the bay. They were extracted from three to nine feet of water. 

Across four major main-lake shorelines, and one minor shoreline of an island located in the middle and lower portions of the west tributary arm, we allured 69 smallmouth bass and two largemouth bass. They were abiding in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as nine feet, and they were relating to the deep-water sides of several shallow rock ledges that parallel these shorelines. 

Ultimately, we employed nine Midwest finesse rigs and one drop-shot rig. Two smallmouth bass were caught on the drop-shot rig, which consisted of a five-inch plastisol watermelon-hue finesse worm, about a 12-inch drop leader, and a 1/8-ounce ball-style drop-shot weight. This rig was implemented with a slow drag-deadstick-and-shake presentation. One smallmouth bass and one spotted bass were attracted to a steady-swimming retrieve with a three-inch Z-Man’s watermelon-red Slim SwimZ rigged on a black 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. Three smallmouth bass were enticed by a shortened 2 1/2-inch Z-man’s coppertreuse TRD TicklerZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/20-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig and a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Six smallmouth bass were induced into striking a Z-Man’s sexy-penny Salty Ned ShrimpZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead and a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve. A Z-Man’s 1/10-ounce chartreuse Finesse ShroomZ jig dressed with a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse TRD with either a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve or the initial fall garnered six smallmouth bass. Eight smallmouth bass were caught on a steady-swimming retrieve with a three-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ fastened on a black 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. Ten smallmouth bass and one largemouth bass were tempted by the initial fall or a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a shortened 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ threaded on a chartreuse 1/20-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. Thirteen smallmouth bass were caught on either the initial fall, a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation, or a slow swim-and-constant-shake retrieve with a Z-Man’s hot-craw Finesse TRD rigged on a chartreuse 1/20-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. Twenty-two smallmouth bass were fooled by a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve or the initial drop with a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse ShadZ matched with a chartreuse 1/20-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. And 24 smallmouth bass and one largemouth bass engulfed a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s pumpkin-chartreuse ZinkerZ attached to a chartreuse 1/20-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig on either the initial fall or a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation. 

In closing, this was a great opportunity to introduce Brad to the many benefits of Midwest finesse tactics and Z-Man’s Midwest finesse lures and jigs. We reveled in tussling with 100 black bass and one large bluegill on a beautiful spring day. None of them were big ones, but their leaping and hard-fighting shenanigans kept us entertained throughout the day. Of these 100 black bass, 97 were smallmouth bass, two were largemouth bass, and one was a spotted bass. 

 April 21

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, and Rick Hebenstreit of Shawnee, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about their outing on April 21 at a 93-year-old state reservoir in northeastern Kansas.  

According to the National Weather Service, the morning’s low temperature was 45 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 72 degrees. The wind varied from being calm for three hours to angling from the northwest, west, southeast, and south at 6 to 14 mph; some gusts reached 18 to 21 mph. The conditions of the sky varied from overcast to foggy and misty to cluttered with a few clouds to fair.  The barometric pressure was 29.94 at 12:52 a.m., 30.01 at 5:52 a.m., 30.06 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.00 at 2:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be about normal. The surface temperature was 59 to 60 degrees. The water exhibited from seven to more than nine feet of clarity. Its shallow-water flats and many of its shorelines are endowed with significant patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, which are interlaced with some wads of filamentous algae. Some of the stems of the curly-leaf pondweeds are six to seven feet long. Thick patches of winter-dead American water willows grace many of the shorelines.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing occurred from 5:49 a.m. to 7:49 a.m., 6:15 p.m. to 8:15 p.m., and 11:36 a.m. to 1:36 p.m. 

We made our first casts at 10:29 a.m. and our last casts at 2:20 p.m.

Ten to 20 years ago, we had one federal reservoir, two power-plant reservoirs, three state reservoirs, and four community reservoirs where we could periodically catch 101 or slightly more largemouth bass or smallmouth bass in four hours or less.  We used to call it bass fishing 101. Nowadays, we have only this 93-year-old state reservoir where we can accomplish that feat, and we did it today in three hours and 51 minutes by catching 110 largemouth bass, six crappie, and two green sunfish.  

One of the 110 largemouth bass was caught on a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. Three were caught on a slightly shortened four-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. Nineteen were caught on a slightly shortened Z-Man’s Drew’s-craw TRD TicklerZ affixed to either a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig or a black 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig.  Eighty-seven were caught on a 3 ½-inch Z-Man twilight Trick ShotZ affixed to either a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig or a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig.

The twilight Trick Shot rig,
Twice, we fished around a main-lake point, along about 50 yards of this point's main-lake shoreline, and along about 500 yards of its secondary shoreline inside one of this reservoir’s two primary feeder-creek arms.  The slope of this vast area ranges from about 30 to 55 degrees. It is graced with two secondary points and two tertiary points. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, and a significant submerged rock-and-boulder fence. Most of the flat and shallow-water sections of the underwater terrains are enhanced with thick patches of curly-leaf pondweeds and occasional wads of filamentous algae. The water’s edge is often lined with thick patches of winter-dead American water willows and several well-aged laydowns.  The main-lake point and the two shorelines yielded 36 largemouth bass. One was caught on the green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ rig; three were caught on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig; 13 were caught on our Drew’s-craw TRD TicklerZ rigs; 19 were caught on our Trick ShotZ rigs. They were caught in water as shallow as four feet and as deep as 12 feet. A few were caught along the outside edges of the patches of winter-dead American water willows and as far as 25 feet from the outside edges of the winter-dead American water willows. Some were caught in the gaps and troughs of the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds in four to seven feet of water. Three were caught on the initial drop of our rigs along either the outside edges or the inside edge of the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds.  One was caught on the initial drop along the outside edge of a patch of winter-dead American water willows. Around the shallow-water patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, we allured the largemouth bass by employing a swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation. Along the steeper terrains that are not cluttered with thick patches of curly-leaf pondweeds, we caught the largemouth bass on three retrieves: a drag-and-shake, a slow swim-glide-and-shake, and a drag-pause-and-subtle-shake.  A couple were caught as we were strolling with the wind.

We fished along about a 400-yard stretch of another secondary shoreline inside this feeder-creek arm. We also fished around this shoreline’s main-lake point and along about 75 yards of this point’s main-lake shoreline. The secondary shoreline possesses a 25- to 55-degree slope. The main-lake point has a 50-degree slope. The main-lake shoreline has a 50- to 85-degree slope. The secondary shoreline is endowed with three secondary points. The underwater terrains of this entire area consist of gravel, rocks, and boulders. Some of the boulders along the main-lake shoreline are humongous.  Some of the flat and shallow-water terrains are coated with impenetrable patches of curly-leaf pondweeds. Portions of the water’s edge are endowed with many patches of winter-dead American water willows, some laydowns, numerous wads of filamentous algae, and a few piles of brush. The main-lake point and its main-lake shoreline were fruitless, but the secondary shoreline and its three secondary points surrendered 44 largemouth bass. Our most effective tactic was to adroitly dissect the gaps and troughs in the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds. Some of the gaps are quite small, and two of the troughs are more than a hundred feet long and five to about 15 feet wide. Three of the 44 largemouth bass were caught along portions of the shoreline that is nearly devoid of submerged aquatic vegetation.  Six of the 44 largemouth bass were caught around the wads of filamentous algae. The Drew’s-craw TRD TicklerZ rig inveigled six of the 44 largemouth bass. Thirty-eight were caught on our Trick ShotZ rigs. They were caught in five to 12 feet of water and from 10 to 25 feet from the water’s edge.  Two were caught on a deadstick presentation. Four were caught on the initial drop. The others were caught as we employed either a swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation.  The drag-pause-and-shake retrieve was used along the areas that are devoid of the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds.

Around a main-lake point at the mouth of two small feeder-creek arms and along about a 30-yard stretch of its secondary shoreline, we caught three largemouth bass. This area possesses a 35- to 40-degree slope.  The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. Much of its flat and shallow-water sections are carpeted with vast patches of curly-leaf pondweeds and a few wads of filamentous algae The water’s edge possesses thick patches of winter-dead American water willows. The three largemouth bass were caught on the Trick ShotZ rig. Two were caught on the initial drop; one was caught in about six feet of water, and the second one was caught around a wad of filamentous algae in about four feet of water. The third one was caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about six feet of water and a few feet in front of a patch of winter-dead American water willows.

We fished around a main-lake point at the mouth of a small feeder-creek arm, along about a 75-yard stretch of its secondary shoreline, and a 300-yard stretch of its main-lake shoreline. We failed to elicit a strike along the secondary shoreline. The main-lake point yielded three largemouth bass, and we caught 10 along its main-lake shoreline. This area possesses a 35- to 45-degree slope.  The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. Much of the flat and shallow-water sections are carpeted with vast patches of curly-leaf pondweeds and several wads of filamentous algae. The water’s edge possesses thick patches of winter-dead American water willows, several overhanging trees, and a few piles of brush. The secondary shoreline was fruitless.  These 13 largemouth bass were caught on our Trick ShotZ rigs.  They were caught in four to nine feet of water.  They were caught as close as five feet to as far as 30 feet from the water's edge.  Four of the 13 largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop. Nine were caught on either a swim-glide-shake presentation or slow swimming presentation around the patches and between the gaps in the patches of curly-leaf pondweeds and many feet from the water’s edge. 

Inside this reservoir’s second primary feeder-creek arm, we caught one largemouth bass around one of its secondary points.  The water’s edge of this secondary point is endowed with a scrawny patch of winter-dead American water willows. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks. It possesses a 35- to 40-degree slope. The massive patch of curly-leaf pondweeds that cover the gravel and rocks is endowed with a significant trough, which is about 100 feet long and five to 15 feet wide. This trough yielded one largemouth bass. It was caught along the outside edge of the trough on a short deadstick presentation of the Trick ShotZ rig in about five feet of water.  

We fished along about a 100-yard stretch of a secondary shoreline inside this reservoir’s second primary feeder-creek arm. This shoreline has a 35-to 40-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel and rocks that are graced with vast and thick patches of curly-leaf pondweeds. These patches are endowed with several troughs, gaps, and holes from which we caught seven largemouth bass by employing a swim-glide-and-shake presentation with our Trick ShotZ rigs in about five to six feet of water.

In conclusion, we caught an average of about 28 largemouth bass an hour.

April 22

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his outing at a 63-year-old and heavily fished state reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 52 degrees. The afternoon’s high temperature was 81 degrees. The wind angled out of the south and southeast at 3 to 18 mph with gusts that ranged from 21 to 28 mph. The sky was fair.  The barometric pressure was 29.96 at 12:52 a.m., 29.97 at 5:52 a.m., 29.98 at 11:52 a.m., and 29.94 at 2:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be normal. The surface temperature was 64 degrees. The water exhibited four to six feet of visibility.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 6:39 a.m. to 8:39 a.m., 7:04 p.m. to 9:04 p.m., and 12:26 a.m. to 2:26 a.m.

As a young angler, I relished fishing on wind-blown points and shorelines. But as I became a geriatric angler, my tolerance for wind and waves diminished dramatically, Today, I wanted to see if my 85-year-old body, mind, and spirit had the wherewithal to fish for an hour along the wind-blown shoreline of this reservoir’s dam.

I made my first cast at 1:59 p.m. when the south wind howled at 16 mph with gusts at 23 mph. My last cast and retrieve were made at 2:59 p.m.

The dam lies along the north side of this reservoir. It is 2,280 feet long and 58 feet high with a riprap shoreline and a concrete outlet tower. But because of the wind, I could not thoroughly probe every one of its 760 yards. Thus, I suspect I dissected about 65 to 70 percent of it.

Along this heavily wind-blown shoreline, most anglers would have wielded a swimbait or a grub or a spinnerbait or a crankbait.  Back in those old days, I primarily used either a 1/16-ounce or a 1/8-ounce marabou jig. On this outing, however, I opted to use three of our modern-day Midwest finesse rigs. My first 20 casts and retrieves were with a 3 ½-inch Z-Man twilight Trick ShotZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig, which failed to elicit a strike. Then on my first cast with a slightly shortened four-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig, I caught a largemouth bass on the initial drop. I used that green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig until 2:46 p.m., which was when I crossed paths with Nick Robertson of Overland Park, Kansas, who was walking along the shoreline on the east side of the dam. He said it was too windy to fish in his kayak; therefore, he was walking and wielding a finesse-size crankbait. I told him that I had caught 28 largemouth bass in less than 40 minutes on the green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig along the wind-blown riprap of the dam, and I gave it to him to use. I spent the next 13 minutes using a slightly shortened Z-Man’s Drew’s-craw TRD TicklerZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig and caught two more largemouth bass.

I used a variety of retrieves, which the wind adversely affected by creating significant bows in my four-pound-test Berkley FireLine. The most effective ones were a drag-and-shake presentation and a swim-glide-and-incessant shake presentation. Several of the retrieves were executed by using the boat, electric trolling motor, and the wind to stroll. The majority of the strikes that I elicited I did feel or see. I temporally hooked eight fish that quickly unfettered themselves from the Finesse WormZ rig, and several times the Finesse WormZ was pretzelled around the jig and hook after the fish became unhooked.

What’s more, it was a difficult task to determine the depth of water that most of these 30 largemouth bass were abiding in. All I could do was conjecture that the depth ranged from about three to eight feet.

In retrospect, it was a delightful 60 minutes of reliving the ways I used to fish in the wind, and it was highlighted by tangling with 30 largemouth bass and one pumpkinseed. 

April 24

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his outing on April 24 at an 86-year-old community reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 54 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 75 degrees. The wind was calm for eight hours, and when it stirred, it angled out of the east, northwest, and southeast at 3 to 10 mph. The conditions of the sky varied from being foggy and misty to partly cloudy to fair to cluttered with a few clouds. The barometric pressure was 30.02 at 12:52 a.m., 30.01 at 5:52 a.m., 30.03 at 11:52 a.m., and 29.95 at 3:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be about normal. The surface temperature was 65 degrees. The water exhibited about three to five feet of clarity. I crossed paths with one minor algae bloom. Wads of filamentous algae are coating many underwater objects, and occasional patches of submerged aquatic vegetation are sprouting on portions of the underwater terrain.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur  from 8:08 a.m. to 10:08 a.m., 8:33 p.m. to 10:33 p.m., and 1:56 a.m. to 3:56 a.m. 

I made my first cast at 1:28 p.m. and the last one at 3:33 p.m.

During these two hours and five minutes, I caught 32 largemouth bass, two bluegill, two green sunfish, one channel catfish, and one white crappie. These fish were caught on a slightly shortened 4 ¾-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

The green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ rig,
I fished the entire shoreline of the dam, which is 1,400 feet long, and I fished along about a 500-foot section of this shoreline twice.

 I also fished along about a 400-yard stretch of the north shoreline and a 100-yard stretch of the south shoreline inside a large feeder-creek arm adjacent to the dam. 

The underwater terrain of the dam’s shoreline consists of limestone boulders, rather than riprap. Many of the boulders are about four feet long, 2 ½ feet wide, and 2 ½ feet high.  This earthen dam was constructed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps. And many of these gigantic boulders that the CCC used to cover the earthen section have deteriorated during the past eight decades, and they have become rubbles of rocks.  The dam is 45 feet high and has about a 55-degree slope. The water’s edge possesses winter-dead patches of American water willows, a riprap jetty that supports a concrete water outlet tower, a few meager piles of brush and tree limbs, and several partially submerged logs.

I caught 24 largemouth bass along the dam’s shoreline. Two were caught on a deadstick presentation in five to eight feet of water. Six were caught on the initial drop in about three to five feet of water. Sixteen were caught on a drag-and-shake presentation in about five to 10 feet of water. Nine of the 24 were caught as I was casting at a 45-degree angle to the shoreline behind the boat and slowly strolling with the wind and the electric-trolling motor, and as I strolled, I employed the drag-and-shake retrieve.

The underwater terrain of the north shoreline inside the large feeder-creek arm consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, and some silt. It has a 30- to 50-degree slope. This terrain is graced with several stumps, a few partially submerged logs, many patches of filamentous algae, and several patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. Its water’s edge is endowed with many patches of winter-dead American water willows, a minor patch of cattails, two docks, a few laydowns, and several minor piles of brush and tree limbs. 

This shoreline yielded seven largemouth bass. Two were caught on the initial drop of the Finesse WormZ rig; one was caught on the initial drop around a partially submerged log in about six feet of water and 20 feet from the water’s edge; the second one was caught on the initial drop in about four feet of water near the front edge of a patch of winter-dead American water willows. One was caught on an accidental vertical presentation in about seven feet of water. The others were caught as I employed a very slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation in four to eight feet of water.

The underwater terrain of the 100-yard stretch of the south shoreline inside the large feeder-creek arm consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, and some silt. This terrain is graced with two stumps, a dilapidated beaver hut, many patches of filamentous algae, and a few piles of brush and tree limbs. It has a 30- to 75-degree slope. Its water’s edge is endowed with some patches of winter-dead American water willows, several overhanging trees, a few partially submerged logs, and three piles of brush and tree limbs. It yielded one largemouth bass, which was caught on the initial drop of the Finesse WormZ rig in two feet of water around a pile of rocks. 

In sum, I caught an average of 15 largemouth bass an hour.

April 26

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his April 26 outing.

For the past week, the weather in north-central Texas and southern Oklahoma has been unstable with severe thunderstorms, tornados, and robust winds dominating the weather forecasts. On April 26, Frank Gosnell of Sanger, Texas, and I were hoping we could venture to a federal reservoir in southern Oklahoma and pursue some smallmouth bass. Unfortunately, southern Oklahoma was being pummeled by severe thunderstorms, and north-central Texas was expecting some scattered thunderstorms with 20-plus-mph winds, too. Ultimately, we were forced to change our plans. Instead, we conducted a bank-walking excursion at two community reservoirs in north-central Texas.  

The day started off sunny, humid, and partly cloudy. Around noon, it became mostly cloudy with sunshine. The barometric pressure dropped from 30.04 at 9:00 a.m. to 29.99 at 4:00 p.m. The morning's low temperature was 66 degrees. The afternoon's high temperature reached 84 degrees. The wind quartered out of the southeast at 10 to 15 mph. 

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would take place between 3:32 a.m. and 5:32 a.m., 9:45 a.m. and 11:45 a.m., and 10:11 p.m. to 12:11 a.m. The fishing forecast also indicated great fishing for April 26.

We fished at the first impoundment from 9:20 a.m. to noon.

Then we took a lunch break. We fished at the second reservoir from about 1:20 p.m. to 3:50 p.m.

The water level at the first reservoir appeared to be normal. The water clarity was murky with about 12 inches of visibility. The water temperature was 73 degrees.

This reservoir’s shorelines are endowed with several bald cypress trees, cypress tree knees, several minor points, and a small brush pile. Several shallow sand-and-gravel ledges extend about three to five feet from the water’s edge. The ledges are covered with a foot or two of water and drop off into three to five feet of water. They are also adorned with thick patches of baby pondweeds mixed with vast amounts of filamentous algae. The bottom terrain consists of sand mixed with small pieces of gravel and rocks. The upper and lower sections possess two concrete culverts with a connecting ditch that winds its way across the middle portion of the reservoir.

The upper end of this reservoir yielded two largemouth bass. The middle section relinquished 17 largemouth bass and three black crappie. The lower end was fruitless.

They were all abiding in five to seven feet of water and six to 10 feet from the deep-water side of the thick patches of baby pondweeds and filamentous algae. Sixteen of these 19 largemouth bass and the three black crappie were allured by a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s pumpkin-chartreuse ZinkerZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. The other three largemouth bass were tempted by a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a Z-Man’s watermelon-red Finesse ShadZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. 

At the second reservoir, there was about two feet of water clarity. The water level was at its normal level. The water temperature was quite warm, ranging from 80 to 81 degrees.

Its underwater terrain consists of mostly small gravel and sand. There are several shallow sand-and-gravel ledges extending about five feet from the water’s edge and paralleling the shorelines. Tree limbs, large oak trees, and patches of boulders clutter the shorelines in the midsection of the impoundment.  Several large patches of submerged baby pondweeds grace most of the upper-end flat, the deep-water sides of the ledges in the reservoir’s middle section, and the flat terrain in its lower end. Some of the thick patches of baby pondweeds are beginning to mat on the surface of the water, which hindered many of our casts and retrieves. The shorelines are flat with 10- to 15-degree gradients.

This impoundment relinquished 21 largemouth bass and two large bluegill.

The thick patches of baby pondweeds that cover the upper end of this impoundment yielded one largemouth bass that was relating to the side of one of the patches of baby pondweeds in three feet of water. The other twenty largemouth bass and two bluegill were caught across the middle segment of the impoundment. They were caught near the deep-water side of the ledges in three to five feet of water and near numerous shallow-water beds of spawning bluegills that were occupying the open areas on top of the ledges. And a couple of times while we were fishing, we observed a largemouth bass or two suddenly attack the bluegill that were loitering around the outside edges of the spawning beds in about two feet of water. During the pandemonium of one of those incursions, we pitched our Midwest finesse rigs into the fray, and we immediately caught two largemouth bass. We failed to elicit any strikes from the patches of baby pondweeds on the flat at the lower end of the reservoir. 

Of these 21 largemouth bass, we caught 10 on a steady-swimming retrieve with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s watermelon-red Slim SwimZ matched to a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. A swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a Z-Man’s watermelon-red Finesse ShadZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead allured six largemouth bass. And five largemouth bass and two bluegill were enticed by a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a shortened Z-Man’s sprayed-grass TRD TicklerZ attached to a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. 

All totaled, we caught 40 largemouth bass, three black crappie, and two bluegill in five hours. We caught 19 largemouth bass from the first community reservoir and 21 largemouth bass from the second one. We also hooked several other largemouth bass that were able to liberate themselves before we could land them.

April 27

Bob Gum of Kansas City, Kansas, posted a brief log on the Finesse News Network about his outing on April 27 at one of the power-plant reservoirs in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 54 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 77 degrees. The wind angled out of the east and southeast at 7 to 10 mph. The conditions of the sky varied from drizzling to light rain to misty and foggy to overcast. The barometric pressure was 30.13 at 12:53 a.m., 30.09 at 5:53 a.m., 30.08 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.02 at 2:53 p.m.

Water clarity was about 3 1/2 feet in the vicinity of the dam. The surface temperature was 64 degrees at the dam. The water level was normal.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 10:28 a.m. to 12:28 p.m., 10:56 p.m. to 12:56 a.m., and 4:13 a.m. to 6:13 a.m.

I made my first cast around 7:00 a.m. and my last one around 2:00 p.m.

I fished along the dam’s spillway and its riprap shoreline. The shoreline is 11,649 feet long and 100 feet high. It has about a 70-degree slope. I fished this area twice, and I used a drift sock the second time to temper the effects of the southeast wind.

I also fished the riprap shoreline along the access road to the power plant.

At these two locales, I caught 44 fish: 23 largemouth bass, 10 channel catfish, eight freshwater drum, two flathead catfish, and one crappie.  I failed to land one whopper largemouth bass that I battled along the riprap shoreline of the access road.

The most effective Midwest finesse rigs were a 4.75-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ on a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig and a 2 ½-inch Z-Man’s California-craw ZinkerZ on a 1/16-ounce blue mushroom-style jig with a swim-glide-and-occasional-shake.  Most of the fish were caught in two to 10 feet of water. But I caught several largemouth bass next to the boat as I was about to lift the rigs out of the water and one drum as I was reeling the rig back to the boat just a few inches below the surface.

In sum, I caught an average of six fish an hour and three largemouth bass an hour.

April 29

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his outing on April 29 with Pok Chi Lau of Lawrence at an 86-year-old community reservoir in northeastern Kansas. 

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 50 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 66 degrees. There was an early morning thunderstorm, and at other times the conditions of the sky were partly cloudy, overcast, mostly cloudy, and fair. The wind angled out of the north, northwest, northeast, and east at 5 to 18 mph. The barometric pressure was 29.88 at 12:52 a.m., 30.05 at 5:52 a.m., 30.16 at 11:52 a.m., and 30.09 at 4:52 p.m. 

The surface temperature ranged from 65 to 67 degrees.  The water level looked to be a few inches below normal. The water exhibited 3 ½ to six feet of visibility in the lower third of the reservoir. All of the patches of winter-dead American water willows that grace many yards of this reservoir’s shorelines are beginning to generate scores of green stems and leaves.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 12:02 a.m. to 2:02 a.m., 12:33 p.m. to 2:33 p.m., and 6:17 a.m. to 8:17 a.m.

While we fished, the weather was surprisingly delightful.

We made our first casts at 2:35 p.m. and our last ones when we caught largemouth bass number 40 at 5:07 p.m. We also tangled with one channel catfish, one bluegill, two green sunfish, and four crappie.

Two of the 40 largemouth bass were caught on a slightly shortened Z-Man’s Drew’s-craw TRD TicklerZ affixed to a baby-blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. A slightly shortened Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig inveigled four largemouth bass. Thirty-four largemouth bass were caught on a slightly shortened Z-Man’s watermelon-red Finesse WormZ affixed to either a red or a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.

We fished the entire shoreline on the dam, which is 1,440 feet long and 45 feet high. It possesses a 45- to 50-degree slope. It is not a riprap shoreline. Instead, its underwater terrain consists of untold numbers of gigantic boulders that are deteriorating into rocks and gravel.  It is enhanced with a riprap jetty and an outlet tower. The water’s edge is endowed with many significant patches of American water willows, several piles of brush, and a few partially submerged logs.  The dam yielded 24 largemouth bass. Two were caught on the Drew’s-craw TRD TicklerZ rig. Four were caught on a slightly shortened Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig.  Nineteen were caught on our watermelon-red Finesse WormZ rigs.  One was caught on a deadstick presentation that occurred when our Finesse WormZ rig was hung up on a rock or boulder in about six feet of water, and the largemouth bass somehow freed it from that hang-up.  One was caught on the initial drop of the Finesse WormZ rig in about two feet of water. The others were inveigled on either a drag-pause-and-shake presentation or an extremely slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake presentation in about five to 12 feet of water.

Slightly inside a large feeder-creek arm that is contiguous to the dam, we fished along about a 100-yard stretch of one of its secondary shorelines.  Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, several stumps, a few piles of brush, several logs, some wads of filamentous algae, and occasional patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. The water’s edge is endowed with many patches of American water willows and one overhanging tree. It has a 30- to 40-degree slope. We caught two largemouth bass on our watermelon-red Finesse WormZ rigs with a drag-pause-and-shake presentation in about five to six feet of water.

We fished along about a 75-yard stretch of this large feeder creek’s other secondary shoreline. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders. It has a 45- to 50-degree slope. The water’s edge possesses one overhanging tree, one dock, and a few patches of American water willows. As we approached this secondary shoreline’s main-lake point, we caught one largemouth bass on the initial drop of the watermelon-red Finesse WormZ in about three feet of water.

We fished along about 550 yards of a main-lake shoreline and four of its main-lake shorelines in the lower third of this reservoir. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rock, and boulders. This shoreline possesses a 25- to 50-degree slope; it is also endowed with a shallow-water flat that is littered with many humongous boulders.  The water’s edge has scores of patches of American water willows, a few overhanging trees, some piles of tree limbs, one concrete boat ramp, and one somewhat submerged log. The points were fruitless. The shoreline yielded 15 largemouth bass. Three were caught on our watermelon-red Finesse WormZ rigs around the massive aggregation of boulders on the shallow-water flat; one was caught on the initial drop in about three feet of water; two were caught on a slow swim-glide-and-subtle-shake retrieve in four to five feet of water. The other twelve were caught along the water’s edge; one was caught on the Drew’s-craw TRD TicklerZ rig with a drag-pause-and-shake presentation in about five feet of water; eleven were caught on our watermelon-red Finesse WormZ rigs; two were caught on the initial drop in three to four feet of water; the others were caught in four to seven feet of water as we employed a drag-pause-and-delicate-shake presentation.

Inside a small feeder-creek arm along this shoreline, we fished about 75 yards of its north shoreline and 75 yards of its south shoreline. The underwater terrains of these two shorelines consist of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are endowed with a few submerged tree limbs and bits of burgeoning patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. The water’s edges are lined with patches of American water willows, one dock, and one overhanging tree. The watermelon-red Finesse WormZ rig with a dragging presentation inveigled one largemouth bass along the north shore in about six feet of water; it also allured one on the south shore on its initial drop in about three to four feet of water.

During these two hours and 32 minutes, we were hoping to tangle with an average of 25 largemouth bass an hour. But the fishing was more trying than we expected -- especially during the final 65 minutes. Therefore, we caught an average of about 15 largemouth bass an hour.

April 29

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his April 29 outing.

More rain is in the forecast for April 30 in north-central Texas; therefore, Todd Judy of Denton, Texas, and I ventured to a nearby federal reservoir in north-central Texas before the rain arrived later in the evening of April 29. And when we arrived at the boat ramp, we were surprised to find that the ramp’s parking lot was empty. 

We fished from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

During this seven-hour endeavor, we fished inside six feeder-creek arms, probed two main-lake points, and dissected a portion of a main-lake island. Five of these six feeder creeks are situated in the southwest tributary arm, and the other one lies in the lower end of the east tributary arm. All of these areas are in the lower region of the reservoir. 

The sky conditions varied from overcast to mostly cloudy. The morning’s low temperature was a humid 68 degrees. The afternoon’s high reached 82 degrees. The wind angled out of the south and southeast at 10 to 20 mph. The barometric pressure measured 29.98 at 8:00 a.m. and 29.93 at 3:00 p.m. 

The water level was 1.15 feet below its normal level. The surface temperature varied from 69 to 72 degrees. The water was stained more than usual, exhibiting 14 to 16 inches of visibility. 

According to In-Fisherman’s solunar table, the most productive fishing periods would occur between 12:09 a.m. and 2:09 a.m., 6:24 a.m. and 8:24 a.m., and 12:40 p.m. to 2:40 p.m. It also noted that fishing would be average on April 29.

We targeted a variety of secondary points, secondary shorelines, some pockets and coves, and several concrete boat ramps that are spread out from the lower to the middle sections of the six feeder-creek arms. Most of the time we were afloat, we positioned the boat in 10 to 12 feet of water and fished in water as shallow as two feet and as deep as 12 feet, and the vast majority of these locales were fruitless. 

Inside the first feeder-creek arm, which is located on the north side of the southwest tributary arm, we caught three largemouth bass and one spotted bass around a series of seven rocky secondary points. These secondary points are located in the upper end of the creek arm. These black bass were abiding in three to five feet of water and were five to 10 feet from the water’s edge. The three largemouth bass were caught on a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a Z-Man’s black-blue TRD HogZ affixed on a blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. The spotted bass was enticed by a swimming retrieve with a Z-Man’s pearl Baby Goat rigged on a chartreuse 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ Jig. 

We also dissected a rocky main-lake point and its adjoining secondary shoreline leading into the creek arm, two rocky secondary shorelines adjacent to two prominent secondary points, two secondary points endowed with concrete boat ramps, and the perimeter of a main-lake island near the mouth of this creek arm, and we failed to generate a strike. 

Inside the second feeder-creek arm, which is located on the north side of the tributary and about a mile west of the first one, we slowly dissected one of the main-lake entry points, two major rocky and flat shorelines, portions of two small coves, a submerged ridge of boulders, three rocky secondary points, and three concrete boat ramps. The ridge of submerged boulders yielded four white bass, and one of the concrete boat ramps yielded two white bass. Four of these six white bass were caught on a swimming retrieve with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s Space Guppy Slim SwimZ fastened to a chartreuse 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig. The fifth white bass was tempted by a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a 3 1/2-inch Z-Man’s coppertreuse Trick ShotZ fastened to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig, and the sixth one was caught on a swimming retrieve with the Z-Man’s pearl Baby Goat rig. We failed to locate any largemouth bass or spotted bass in this creek arm.   

After that, we traveled about a mile eastward and fished inside the third feeder-creek arm on the north side of the tributary arm. We caught two largemouth bass and one spotted bass in three to five feet of water in this creek arm. These largemouth bass and spotted bass were related to rocky secondary points in the middle section of the creek arm, and one was caught from a shallow ditch in the upper end of the creek arm. All three of these bass were allured by a slow-swimming retrieve with the 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s Space Guppy Slim SwimZ rig.

Besides the two secondary points and the shallow ditch, we also probed two rocky shorelines, and portions of three coves, and we failed to elicit any other strikes from those places.   

The fourth feeder creek is located about five miles east of the first three. It is situated in the southeast region of the reservoir. It contains a large marina, and the owner is currently expanding the size of the marina by adding a bunch more covered boat slips. This expansion project has blocked our access to several areas that we would normally fish this time of year, and the couple of areas we did fish weren’t very productive. One of the alternative areas that we fished was a riprap-laden shoreline in the middle of the creek arm where the water clarity was less than 12 inches, and it yielded one largemouth bass. It was caught in three feet of water and about 25 feet from the water’s edge on a swimming retrieve with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s Space Guppy Slim SwimZ rig. We also fished along two clay-and-gravel shorelines, around two concrete boat ramps, and at two rocky secondary points where the water clarity was about 15 inches, and to our dismay, they were devoid of black bass. 

After that disappointing jaunt, we decided to travel back to the southwest tributary arm and search for more largemouth and spotted bass along a rock-laden main-lake shoreline, a main-lake entry point adorned with a shallow rock pile, and two rock-and boulder-laden shorelines and another concrete boat ramp inside the fifth creek arm, which is situated on the south side of the tributary. These locales are located inside another large marina.

These marina areas relinquished one spotted bass and one largemouth bass. The spotted bass was caught in five feet of water from a concrete boat ramp in the midsection of the creek arm on a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig sporting a Z-Man’s watermelon-red Finesse ShadZ. The largemouth bass was caught from a steep and rocky shoreline in the back end of the creek arm. It was abiding in about seven feet of water and 15 feet from the water’s edge. It was induced by a swimming retrieve with the 2 1/2-inch Space Guppy Slim SwimZ rig. And as we were fishing our way down a flat clay-and-gravel shoreline adjacent to the steep and rocky shoreline that we just fished, we observed a largemouth bass hovering motionless on top of a small ledge in shallow water. We made several casts to it, and it didn’t move a bit. Its sluggish mood mirrored what many local anglers refer to as the post-spawn blahs.

We finished this outing dissecting a 50-yard segment of a clay-and-gravel flat inside the sixth feeder creek, which lies about a mile west of the fifth one. This flat is also part of a large marina, and it failed to produce a largemouth or spotted bass. We did scrounge up six large bluegill that were larger than our hands, and one decent-size white bass. These fish were abiding in five to nine feet of water and 15 to 25 feet from the water’s edge. They were allured by either a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s pumpkin-chartreuse ZinkerZ on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig, or a steady-swimming retrieve with a chartreuse 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig dressed with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ.

In closing, it appears that the largemouth and spotted bass that inhabit this reservoir are in their annual post-spawn funk, and it was a tedious grind for us to catch seven largemouth bass and three spotted bass in seven hours. We felt fortunate to cross paths with seven white bass and six large bluegills, which helped pass the time between the scarce black-bass strikes. 

 April 30

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his outing at a 63-year-old and heavily fished state reservoir in northeastern Kansas on April 30.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 51 degrees. The afternoon’s high temperature was 68 degrees. The wind was calm for three early morning hours, and at other times, it angled out of the east and southeast at 5 to 12 mph. The sky was fair for three hours, and then it varied from being mostly cloudy to partly cloudy to overcast. (And it sprinkled a few drops on me.)  The barometric pressure was 30.06 at 12:52 a.m., 29.94 at 5:52 a.m., 29.91 at 11:52 a.m., and 29.85 at 1:52 p.m.

The water level looked to be normal. The surface temperature ranged from 64 to 65 degrees. The water in the vicinity of the dam had six feet of visibility. The parking lot was full of tow vehicles, and most of the anglers looked to be in pursuit of crappie.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 1:11 a.m. to 3:11 a.m., 1:43 p.m. to 3:43 p.m., and 7:27 a.m. to 9:27 a.m.             

I made my first cast at 1:08 p.m., and my last one at 2:08 p.m.

This was one of my geriatric outings, which means it was a short one. The entire 60 minutes were spent fishing along the riprap shoreline of the dam, which is 2,280 feet long and 58 feet high. The water’s edge is endowed with two small patches of burgeoning American water willows, a few small piles of tree limbs, and a couple of somewhat partially submerged logs. It possesses about a 70-degree slope. It has an outlet tower that allows water to flow out of the reservoir; this flow produces a tad of current. At times, largemouth bass tend to gather around this current, and I caught two of them around it today.

I fished the entire dam.   

By the time my 60 minutes of fishing came to an end, my mechanical fish counter indicated that I had caught 33 largemouth bass and accidentally caught five green sunfish, which is a spectacular hourly catch rate in the world of Midwest finesse numbers hunters -- especially for those of who are octogenarians.  Of course, our lunker hunting colleagues wouldn’t be impressed with the size of these 33 largemouth bass.

A slightly shortened Z-Man’s watermelon-red Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig inveigled all of them. Seven were caught on the initial drop of the rig in two to four feet of water. The others were caught as I used a drag-pause-and-shake presentation in four to about nine feet of water.

 April 30

Bob Gum of Kansas City, Kansas, posted a brief log on the Finesse News Network about his outing with Nick Robertson of Overland Park, Kansas, on April 30 at one of the power-plant reservoirs in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 55 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 66 degrees. The wind angled out of the south, east, and southeast at 5 to 10 mph. The conditions of the sky varied from partly cloudy to mostly cloudy to drizzling to overcast. The barometric pressure was 30.07 at 12:53 a.m., 29.94 at 5:53 a.m., 29.97 at 11:53 a.m., and 29.86 at 2:53 p.m.

Water clarity was about three feet in the vicinity of the dam. The surface temperature was 64 degrees at the dam. The water level was normal.

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 1:07 a.m. to 3:07 a.m., 1:39 p.m. to 3:39 p.m., and 7:23 a.m. to 9:23 a.m.

We made our first casts around 6:45 a.m. and our last ones around 2:30 p.m.

We began fishing around the main-lake point adjacent to the dam’s spillway and worked our way along the spillway and the riprap shoreline of the dam. Nick caught the first largemouth bass on his second cast, and before the first 15 minutes had elapsed, we caught 10 fish.

After we fished the entire dam, which is 11,649 feet long, we fished the riprap shoreline along the power-plant’s access road.

Then, we fished an offshore hump that is situated about halfway between the access road and the dam.

We spent the rest of the day thoroughly dissecting the east and west ends of the dam’s riprap shoreline and a short time probing a submerged roadbed on a flat along the west side of the lower third of the reservoir.

 Ultimately, we caught 86 fish. Forty-three were largemouth bass. One was a crappie, and the other 42 were either a channel catfish or a freshwater drum. These fish were caught in water as shallow as two feet and as deep as 10 feet.

Nick caught 20 largemouth bass: one largemouth bass was caught on a 2 ½-inch Z-Man’s Bama-bug ZinkerZ on a green-pumpkin 1/15-ounce mushroom-style jig; another one was caught on a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD HogZ affixed to a green-pumpkin 1/15-ounce mushroom-style jig;  two largemouth bass were caught on a 3 1/2 -inch Z-Man’s twilight Trick ShotZ affixed to a black 1/15-ounce mushroom-style jig; eight were caught on a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin-goby Finesse TRD affixed to a green-pumpkin 1/15-ounce mushroom-style jig; another eight were caught on a three-inch Z-Man’s gold-rush Slim SwimZ affixed to a green-pumpkin 1/15-ounce mushroom-style jig. The Slim SwimZ rig was retrieved with a swimming presentation that allowed the rig to polish the rocks and boulders. The other three rigs were retrieved with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation.

My two most effective Midwest finesse rigs were a 2 ½-inch Z-Man’s California-craw ZinkerZ affixed to a blue 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig and a Z-Man’s watermelon-red TRD BugZ affixed to a black 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. I employed these rigs with a slow swim-glide-and-slight-twitch.

We also garnered several strikes on a deadstick presentation.

In sum, we fished for seven hours and 45 minutes and caught an average of about 11 fish an hour, and we caught slightly more than five largemouth bass an hour.