Ned Kehde: Guide to Midwest Finesse Fishing: June 2025

Bob Gum of Kansas City, Kansas, with one of the smallmouth bass that he caught on June 5.

June 1

Talban Kantala of Cypress, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his outing on June 1 at a massive saltwater bay on Texas’ Gulf Coast.

It’s that time of year to hit the Texas Gulf Coast, where non-resident sea trout begin migrating inshore in greater numbers during the summer months from the Gulf, providing excellent opportunities to catch them while wade fishing.

The morning was partially cloudy and cleared to full sun around 10:00 a.m. The Weather Channel reported a morning’s low temperature of 75 degrees and an afternoon’s high of 86 degrees. The barometric pressure was 29.88 at 6:30 a.m. and 29.85 at 10:00 a.m. Low tide occurred at 5:57 a.m. at 0.01 feet, with high tide expected at 4:51 p.m. at 1.22 feet. A nearby NOAA station reported water temperatures averaging 84 degrees throughout the morning, with salinity levels ranging from 7.74 to 7.81 parts per thousand. Wind speeds ranged from 1 to 5 mph out of the southwest, with intermittent gusts reaching 6 mph.

I fished from 6:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. During these 3.5 hours, I caught and released seventeen sea trout, two sand trout, and one Spanish mackerel.

I decided to revisit a spot that had been productive for me during June and July of 2024. When I arrived at the elongated offshore island, which is about a quarter mile from the shoreline, I positioned myself at the western end of the island. I was wading in four to 4 1/2 feet of water. While wading out, I noticed several schools of finger-sized mullet. The bottom consisted of sandy areas mixed with oyster shells and rock. I shared the area with twelve other wading fishermen positioned east of me. The water clarity was about 14 inches and had a nice green hue.

I started with a 2.5-inch Z-Man's New Penny Salty Ned ShrimpZ fastened to a chartreuse 1/6-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ Jighead. I immediately felt several strikes as the lure fell to the bottom, but I failed to get a good hookset. I noticed several wade fishermen east of me catching sea trout, while I struggled to get bites for the next 20 minutes. Eventually, the sea trout began moving toward my area with the incoming tide. I landed my first 14-inch sea trout while slowly hopping the lure along the bottom. The bite picked up around 7:00 a.m., and for the next hour, I hooked into sea trout on nearly every cast. At times I caught them on back-to-back casts. Most of these fish ranged from 11 to 16 1/2 inches in length. I caught a total of thirteen sea trout and two sand trout during this 60-minute stretch using the same technique.

There were also several pods of dolphins about 40 yards out from where I was wading. Generally, I associate dolphins with scaring fish away, but in this case, it appeared they were herding the sea trout toward me. I hooked into sea trout when the dolphins were nearby. The bite began to taper off at 8:00 a.m., and the dolphins moved farther away.

An unusual first-time catch occurred as I was getting ready to reel my lure out of the water to make another cast. I hooked into an 18-inch Spanish mackerel just a few feet in front of me. Surprisingly, its sharp teeth did not cut my 15-pound fluorocarbon leader.

For the next 45 minutes, it was a chore to elicit any strikes. I employed a 2.5-inch Z-Man's pearl Slim SwimZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/6-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig and a 3.5-inch Z-Man's Meat Dog Trick ShotZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/6-ounce Z-Man's Finesse ShroomZ jig. I tried various swimming retrieves from fast to slow, and I also slowly bounced the lures along the bottom with little success.

After that, I wielded a 2.5-inch Z-Man's Salty Ned ShrimpZ in the rootbeer-gold hue and rigged on the chartreuse 1/6-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig. After a few casts, I enticed two more sea trout while slowly bouncing the lure along the bottom. Shortly after 9:00 a.m., I began making my way back to shore, stopping halfway back by the island. To the west, the bottom drops into a 15-foot hole. I waded in that direction and stopped in about 4 1/2 feet of water. I observed several predatory fish foraging on schools of mullet swimming near the surface in the distance. I made a cast in that direction and hooked a 14.5-inch sea trout using the same bottom-bouncing technique. In the same area and right before 9:30 a.m., I landed my largest sea trout of the day, which measured 17 inches. It was beguiled by the same hopping presentation with the rootbeer-gold Salty Ned ShrimpZ rig.

During the final 30 minutes, the bite dissipated, and I decided to call it a morning. My best catch rate for sea trout and sand trout occurred between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. when I caught fifteen of them while staying in one spot.

June 2

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

Norman Brown of Lewisville, Texas, and I thought we would roll the dice and journey to a state reservoir in an exurban area of north-central Texas. 

Since May 2024, this reservoir has been stressed by low-water levels that receded to as much as 15 feet below its normal pool and muddy-water conditions with six to 14 inches of clarity. John Thomas of Denton and I fished this reservoir on Mar. 25, and we could barely scrounge up seven largemouth bass and one spotted bass in 4 1/2 hours.

When we arrived at the boat ramp at about 7:15 a.m. on June 2, we discovered the ramp’s parking lot was empty. We were also surprised to see that we were the only anglers on the reservoir, too. We were disappointed that the water was still muddy, but we were overjoyed to see that the water level was back to full capacity.  

June 2 was sunny. The sky was partly cloudy. The morning's low temperature was 68 degrees, and the afternoon's high temperature soared to 98 degrees. A moderate breeze meandered out of the southeast at 10 to 15 mph. The barometric pressure dropped slightly from 29.88 at 7:00 a.m. to 29.85 at 2:00 p.m.

According to In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar, the best fishing would occur from 5:02 a.m. to 7:02 a.m., 5:24 p.m. to 7:24 p.m., and 11:13 p.m. to 1:13 a.m. Poor fishing was also in the forecast.

Unfortunately, the water conditions worsened as we moved further up-lake. Besides that, the fishing was also wretched. In the lower end of the reservoir, we fished from 7:30 a.m. to 8:10 a.m., and we struggled to catch one white bass from the perimeter of an island and one spotted bass from a main-lake point. Usually, we catch a goodly number of black bass and white bass from these two locales, but not this time. After that 40-minute struggle with muddy water and a paltry catch rate, we decided to trailer the boat and travel to a federal reservoir about an hour’s drive away.   

We fished from about 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the federal reservoir, and the water conditions and black-bass fishing were much better. The water exhibited three feet of visibility. The water level was about half a foot high, and the water temperature ranged from 75 to 81 degrees. 

We caught 20 largemouth bass, four spotted bass, one channel catfish, and one white crappie during this four-hour endeavor.

Eight largemouth bass and three spotted bass were caught inside a feeder-creek arm in the lower end of the east tributary arm. Two of these 11 black bass were caught in three to five feet of water around two large patches of Eurasian milfoil along the perimeter of an island. One was caught on a moderate-paced swimming retrieve with a Z-Man’s hot-snakes Baby Goat rigged on a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. The other one was caught on a Z-Man’s black-blue-flake TRD TicklerZ rigged on a 1/16-ounce green-pumpkin mushroom-style jig and a slow-swimming retrieve.  

The other nine black bass were caught in three to eight feet of water around clusters of submerged boulders that adorn a flat secondary point near the mouth of this feeder-creek arm. Six of the nine were allured by a slow swimming retrieve with the black-blue-flake TRD TicklerZ rig. Two were enticed by a moderate-paced swimming retrieve with the hot-snakes Baby Goat rig. A slow swimming retrieve with a Z-Man’s black-blue-flake TRD HogZ fastened on a blue 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead inveigled one of the nine black bass. 

Around another cluster of submerged boulders that embellish a main-lake bluff point located a short distance south of the feeder-creek arm that we just fished, we caught two largemouth bass. Both of them were caught on the hot-snakes Baby Goat and a moderate-paced swimming retrieve.  

Along the riprap shoreline of the dam and around a large water-outlet tower situated in the center portion of the dam, we caught four largemouth bass and one spotted bass. We also encountered a channel catfish. Three of the largemouth bass were caught along the riprap shoreline of the dam in five to 10 feet of water. One was caught on a steady retrieve with the hot-snakes Baby Goat, the second one was caught on a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ affixed on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Jighead, and the third one was caught on the black-blue-flake Baby Goat and a steady-swimming retrieve.

Two largemouth bass, one spotted bass, and a channel catfish were caught next to the water-outlet tower that is situated in the center section of the dam. This tower is surrounded by 37 to 53 feet of water. These fish were suspended about five to eight feet below the surface of the water and within a couple of feet of the tower’s walls. One largemouth bass, one spotted bass, and the channel catfish were caught on a slow swimming retrieve with the black-blue-flake TRD TicklerZ, and the other largemouth bass was induced by a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with the green-pumpkin TRD TicklerZ. 

Along a wind-blown roadbed that extends out from a main-lake point in the midsection of the east tributary arm, we caught one largemouth bass in three feet of water. It was caught on a moderate-paced swimming retrieve with the black-blue-flake Baby Goat. 

A shallow clay-and-gravel ledge that runs perpendicular to the roadbed was fruitless. 

Around a clay-and-gravel entry point to another major feeder-creek arm in the midsection of the east tributary arm, we caught one largemouth bass. It was caught in five feet of water from the top of the point on a swimming retrieve with the black-blue-flake Baby Goat. 

Another largemouth bass was caught from the side of a flat and rocky secondary point in the lower end of this feeder-creek arm. It was also allured by the black-blue-flake Baby Goat and a swimming presentation. 

Inside a minor cove in the middle section of this feeder creek, we caught one largemouth bass and one white crappie in three to five feet of water near a large patch of Eurasian milfoil. Both of these fish were caught on a slow swimming retrieve with the black-blue-flake TRD TicklerZ. 

In conclusion, we caught a total of 20 largemouth bass, five spotted bass, one white bass, one channel catfish, and one white crappie in four hours and 40 minutes. One spotted bass and one white bass were caught from the state reservoir during our first 40-minute jaunt. Twenty largemouth bass, four spotted bass, one channel catfish, and a white crappie were caught during our second four-hour outing at the federal reservoir. 

June 4

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, and Rick Heberstreit of Shawnee, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about their June 4 outing at an extremely heavily fished and 87-year-old community reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 57 degrees, and the afternoon's high temperature was 73 degrees. The wind angled out of the north and northeast at 7 to 12 mph. The sky fluctuated from overcast to fair with a smoke-laden haze. The barometric pressure was 29.93 at 12:53 a.m., 29.98 at 5:53 a.m., 30.01 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.00 at 2:53 p.m. Eastern Kansas was walloped with substantial amounts of rain on June 3, which caused the water levels in many waterways to rise, and many of these waterways became stained.

The water level looked to be about one foot above normal. The surface temperature was 73 degrees. This reservoir is inhabited by zebra mussels, which usually keeps the water nearly crystal clear, but its clarity diminished at some spots from 10 feet to 4 ½ feet and from five feet to 1 ½ feet. To our delight, this reservoir’s underwater terrain is experiencing a rebirth of its submerged aquatic vegetation; most of this vegetation is bushy pondweeds and coontail. Significant sheets of duckweeds are decorating the surface in the upper half of the reservoir. 

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 6:20 a.m. to 8:20 a.m., 6:29 p.m. to 8:29 p.m., and 12:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. 

We made our first casts at 10:32 a.m. and our last casts were made at 2:32 p.m.  During these four hours, we caught 74 largemouth bass and inadvertently caught one crappie, two bluegill, four warmouth, and 21 green sunfish.  The first 25 largemouth bass were caught in 58 minutes.

One largemouth bass was caught on a shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s PB&J Finesse WormZ affixed to a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. Seventy-three largemouth bass were caught on a 2.75-inch Z-Man’s Junebug TRD BugZ attached to either a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig or a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig.

These are our Junebug TRD FattyZ rigs.

We caught them on a variety of presentations. Two were caught on an accidental vertical presentation.  Two caught on a short deadstick presentation. Sixteen were caught on the initial drop of our rigs. A few were caught on a swimming presentation. Most were caught on either a swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation. We noted several times that several of the largemouth bass caught us rather than us catching them; in other words, we were totally unaware that they were hooked.  In short, there was no dominant presentation, and we declared several times during this outing that we were catching them every which way.

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 10 to 12 feet. We also fished around 77 docks, and six largemouth bass were caught around the docks.

We fished along the dam at the beginning of this outing, which yielded 22 largemouth bass. The dam is 516 yards long with a height of 58 feet. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are adorned with some submerged 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, thick patches of terrestrial grasses, and a few patches of American water willows.  These largemouth bass were caught on our TRD BugZ rigs in three to about seven feet of water. Some were caught along the outside edges of the patches of American water willows and terrestrial grasses. Others were caught around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation.

We fished several segments of a massive main-lake shoreline in the lower half of this reservoir. The entire shoreline encompasses about 1,800 yards. It possesses a 25- to 40-degree slope. The water’s edge is cluttered with about 60 docks, several concrete and stone retaining walls, numerous overhanging trees, three tertiary points, about 30 yards of riprap, and patches of American water willows.  The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, and two sections of this shoreline are endowed with an offshore hump of rocks and boulders. Occasional patches of submerged aquatic vegetation enhance the underwater terrain. Our TRD BugZ rigs inveigled 15 largemouth bass along this shoreline in water as shallow as four feet and as deep as 12 feet, and they were allured by a variety of presentations.

We caught two largemouth bass around a main-lake point in the lower half of this reservoir. Its underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, some wads of filamentous algae, and burgeoning patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. It possesses a 25- to 30-degree slope, which dramatically plummets into deep water. The water’s edge is lined with a stone retaining wall, two docks, and patches of American water willows. The initial drop of the TRD BugZ rig allured the two largemouth bass along the outside edge of the American water willows in about three feet of water.

We fished along two main-lake shorelines and around a main-lake point along the middle section of this reservoir. Each shoreline was about 100 yards long. This area has a 30- to 40-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, boulders, and many patches of bushy pondweeds and coontail. The water’s edge is augmented with patches of American water willows, a few retaining walls, 10 docks, an array of overhanging trees, and a few piles of brush. We used our TRD BugZ rigs to catch 13 largemouth bass. Eleven were caught on a swim-glide-and-shake presentation around the patches of coontail in about six to eight feet of water and near the outside edges of the patches of American water willows in three to five feet of water. Two were caught on the initial drop of the TRD BugZ rig in about four to five feet of water.

In the upper half of this reservoir, we fished around two main-lake points and along about a 250-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline. This area possesses a 35- to 50-degree slope. The underwater terrain contains gravel, rocks, boulders, and patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. The water’s edge has concrete and stone retaining walls, six docks, a few patches of American water willows, three overhanging trees, and some sheets of duckweed cluttered the surface. The points were fruitless. We tangled with six largemouth bass along the shoreline. One was caught on the PB&J Finesse WormZ rig with a drag-pause-and-shake presentation around the patches of submerged vegetation.  The TRD BugZ rig with either a swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation allured five largemouth bass around the patches of submerged aquatic vegetation.

Along about an 800-yard stretch of another shoreline in the upper half of the reservoir, we caught 13 largemouth bass on our TRD BugZ 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 many patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. The shoreline possesses a 20- to 60-degree slope. The water’s edges consist of several concrete retaining walls, 10 docks, one small rock bridge, a few minor laydowns, several piles of brush, one dilapidated rock and concrete jetty, many patches of American water willows, and several overhanging trees. Three of the 13 largemouth bass were caught on the initial drop of the TRD BugZ immediately adjacent to one of the concrete retaining walls. The initial drop inveigled another largemouth bass in about three feet of water adjacent to a patch of American water willows. The others were caught as we employed three different retrieves: a slow swimming presentation, a swim-glide-and-shake presentation, and a drag-pause-and-shake presentation.

We quickly fished along two small sections of 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, occasional patches of aquatic vegetation, some manmade piles of brush, and wads of filamentous algae. 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 American water willows, many sheets of duckweeds, some overhanging trees, and three mega laydowns. Along these two segments, we eked out three largemouth bass on our TRD BugZ rigs. One was caught on the initial drop adjacent to a concrete retaining wall and a patch of bushy pondweeds in about 3 ½ feet of water. One was caught with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation under an overhanging tree and around a patch of submerged aquatic vegetation in about six feet of water. The third one was next to a dock with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation in about seven feet of water.

In conclusion, we caught an average of 18.50 largemouth bass an hour and 25.50 fish an hour.

June 5

Bob Gum of Kansas City, Kansas, posted a brief log on the Finesse News Network about his outing on June 5 at one of the power-plant reservoirs in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 57 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature was 73 degrees. The wind varied from being calm to angling out of the west, east, southeast, and northeast at 3 to 12 mph. The conditions of the sky fluctuated from being fair to partly cloudy to mostly cloudy to foggy and misty to cluttered with a few clouds. The barometric pressure was 30.03 at 12:53 a.m., 3:06 at 5:53 a.m., 30.06 at 11:53 a.m., and 3:03 at 2:53 p.m.

The surface temperature was 76 degrees within a quarter mile of the hot water outlet. The water clarity was about 4 1/2 feet along the dam. The water level was several feet below normal until the recent rains quickly raised the level to about six inches below the lip of the spillway. Those recent rains also flooded patches of terrestrial vegetation.

Several years ago, this reservoir’s managers used aquatic herbicides to kill most of the submerged aquatic vegetation, and the vegetation has not enjoyed a renaissance. What's more, some of those applications killed a significant number of walleyes, and around the same time, the largemouth bass virus walloped this reservoir’s once glorious population of smallmouth bass, and they have not experienced a significant rebirth.

The lack of submerged aquatic vegetation and smallmouth bass makes this reservoir a rather lackluster waterway for Midwest finesse anglers to fish. Consequently, the fishing pressure has declined dramatically. For example, there was just one other tow vehicle and boat trailer in the parking lot when I launched. 

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 6:53 a.m. to 8:53 a.m., 7:12 p.m. to 9:12 p.m., and 12:43 a.m. to 2:43 a.m.

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

I spent these hours dissecting rocky points, rocky sections of shorelines, stretches of riprap shorelines that had fluctuations of depth, and a couple of mid-lake humps.

My most effective Midwest finesse rig was a Z-Man's Junebug TRD TicklerZ on a blue 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. A 2 ½-inch Z-Man’s watermelon-red ZinkerZ on a red 16-ounce mushroom-style jig was my second most productive rig. I could retrieve the TRD TicklerZ rig a little more quickly than the ZinkerZ rig, which allowed me to dissect more of the underwater terrains.

It was a struggle to eke out two largemouth bass and 15 smallmouth bass, and accidentally tangle with one white bass, three channel catfish, and seven freshwater drum.

These fish were caught in two to 10 feet of water. I primarily employed a swim-and-glide presentation that occasionally made contact with rocky underwater terrains. 

During these seven hours, I tangled with an hourly average of  2.4 black bass and four fish.

June 5

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his June 5 outing. 

From 7:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., John Thomas of Denton, Texas, and I fished at one of several federal hill-land reservoirs in north-central Texas. Upon our arrival, we discovered that the main boat ramp was closed, and water was covering the ramp’s parking lot and a nearby picnic table area. Ultimately, we found a secondary high-water ramp that was open.

According to In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar, the most productive fishing would occur from 12:46 a.m. to 2:46 a.m., 6:56 a.m. to 8:56 a.m., and 7:16 p.m. to 9:16 p.m. The calendar also forecasted poor fishing for June 5.

The morning was overcast, and around 11:30 a.m., it began to rain. After the rain stopped around noon, it became sunny and humid. The morning’s low temperature was 68 degrees, and the afternoon’s high reached 88 degrees. The barometric pressure measured 29.97 at 7:00 a.m., and it dropped to 29.94 by 2:00 p.m. The wind quartered out of the northwest, north, east, and southeast at 5 to 15 mph. 

The water level was 5.97 feet into flood stage. The water was murky, exhibiting between 12 and 14 inches of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 76 to 80 degrees.

We searched for largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, and spotted bass across two rocky main-lake shorelines, nine rocky main-lake points, around the perimeter of a main-lake island, inside two major feeder-creek arms, and along the riprap shoreline of the dam. Though these areas had an abundance of threadfin shad, most of them were devoid of black bass.

The underwater terrains of these locales consist primarily of clay, small gravel, some sand, silt, fist-size rocks, and numerous sandstone boulders.

The black-bass fishing was as atrocious during this outing as it was on May 3, and we failed to find any large aggregations of largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, or spotted bass that inhabit this reservoir. Besides the wretched fishing, the trolling motor on my boat malfunctioned several times, and we spent quite a bit of time trying to keep it functioning well enough to fish.  And after six exasperating hours of fishing, we struggled to eke out nine largemouth bass, three dinky white bass, one freshwater drum, and a large bluegill.

We inveigled one largemouth bass from the perimeter of the main-lake island. This island is located in the lower end of the impoundment. Its shorelines are flat with clay-and-gravel terrain. The terrestrial vegetation that decorates its shorelines is flooded. This largemouth bass was caught near a large patch of flooded buck brush in three feet of water. It was enticed by a moderate-paced swimming retrieve with a Z-Man’s black-blue-flake Baby Goat rigged on a blue 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. 

After that, we dissected about 75-percent of the riprap shoreline that covers the 12,850-foot dam, and it yielded one largemouth bass, one freshwater drum, and a large bluegill. All three of these fish were abiding in five to eight feet of water and within 20 feet of the water’s edge. They were allured by a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a shortened 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ matched with a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead.

From the dam, we moved to two rocky main-lake shorelines, and we caught three largemouth bass from one of them. These shorelines are a couple of miles apart from each other. One is about 100 yards long and is located in the midsection of the reservoir, and the other one is about 50 yards long and is situated a short distance from the dam in the lower region of the reservoir.  

The rocky 50-yard main-lake shoreline near the dam relinquished three largemouth bass. This shoreline has 30- to 45-degree slopes. Its submerged terrain is composed of mostly large sandstone rocks and boulders. These three largemouth bass were caught on a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with the 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s Junebug TRD TicklerZ rig.

The other 100-yard main-lake shoreline in the midsection of the reservoir was fruitless.  

We failed to locate any black bass around the nine rocky main-lake points, but at one of the points, we encountered a few white bass that were surface-foraging on threadfin shad in 21 feet of water. They fed on the surface for just a few moments, and we caught two of them before they disappeared. Both of them were caught on a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ attached to either a blue or chartreuse 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead and a steady swimming retrieve.    

As for the two major feeder-creek arms that we fished, we failed to locate any largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, or spotted bass inside the first feeder-creek arm in the lower end of the reservoir. 

Inside the second feeder-creek arm, which is situated in the middle section of the impoundment, we caught four largemouth bass and one white bass. Three of the four largemouth bass were caught in eight feet of water near the face of a rock bluff on the east side of the creek arm. The fourth largemouth bass was caught in 10 feet of water next to another rock bluff on the west side of the creek arm. The white bass was caught in 12 feet of water from the end of a third rock bluff in the lower end of the creek arm. All five of them were enticed by a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s black-blue-flake TRD TicklerZ matched with a blue 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. We failed to elicit any strikes from five secondary points and two clay-and-gravel flats in the middle portion of the creek arm. 

As we began slowly motoring back to the boat ramp, we stopped and spoke with two boat anglers. They reported that they had not garnered a strike in seven hours, which is very unusual for them.  And as our conversation came to an end, we all agreed that there is something awry with this reservoir. What’s more, when we reached the boat ramp, we spoke with another boat angler whose trolling motor had become inoperable, too.  

In sum, the black-bass fishing was awful, and we were befuddled that we could catch only nine largemouth bass in six hours. 

I’m hoping my trolling motor repairs will be quick and simple. Otherwise, I may be off the water for a while if the repairs become more complicated. 

June 12 

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a brief on the Finesse News Network about his June 12 outing with Bill Kenney of Denton, Texas. 

From about 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., Bill and I fished at a heavily pressured federal reservoir in north-central Texas. 

In-Fisherman's solunar calendar forecasted average fishing for June 12, and the most lucrative fishing periods would occur from 5:49 a.m. to 7:49 a.m., 11:36 a.m. to 1:36 p.m., and 12:03 p.m. to 2:03 p.m. 

It stormed during the early morning hours of June 12, and some areas in north-central Texas received as much as six inches of rain. After the storms moved off to the east around 7:00 a.m., it remained overcast throughout the morning. At 12:37 p.m., the sky became partly cloudy and sunny. The morning’s low temperature was 68 degrees. The afternoon’s high temperature reached 86 degrees. The wind angled out of the southeast at 5 to 10 mph. The barometric pressure measured 29.88 at 9:00 a.m. and 29.83 at 3:00 p.m.

The surface temperature ranged from 76 degrees at the dam in the lower end of the reservoir to 81 degrees in the upper end of a minor feeder-creek arm in the west tributary arm. The water level was 1.40 feet above normal.  The water clarity varied from 18 inches to three feet.

The black bass bite was stellar for this reservoir; we enticed 31 black bass, three channel catfish, one white bass, and one bluegill.  Seventeen of these 31 black bass were largemouth bass, and the other 14 were spotted bass. 

Sixteen of these 31 black bass were caught at main-lake locales.  

Eleven of the 16 were extracted from less than three feet of water across three flat main-lake shorelines that varied in length from 50 to 75 yards. The submerged terrains of these shorelines consist of clay, small gravel, chunky rocks the size of softballs, and patches of boulders. 

Two largemouth bass and one spotted bass were caught next to a shaded concrete wall of a large water-outlet tower at the center portion of a riprap-laden dam. The depth of the water surrounding the tower is 53 feet. The largemouth bass were suspended five to eight feet below the surface of the water. A 50-yard section of riprap along the dam was fruitless.

Two largemouth bass were caught in 11 feet of water around the tip of a main-lake bluff point. Two other main-lake bluff points close to the first one were unproductive.    

Fifteen black bass were dwelling inside two major feeder-creek arms and two minor feeder-creek arms. Eleven of the 15 were caught inside the first major feeder-creek arm. One was caught from the second minor creek arm Two were caught in the third major creek arm. One was caught from the fourth minor creek arm. 

Of these 15 bass, 12 were abiding in three to five feet of water and associated with submerged boulders on flat clay-and-chunk-rock secondary shorelines in the lower and middle sections of the creek arms. The other three were caught in less than three feet of water from the flat gravel-and-chunk-rock shallows around the perimeter of an island in the lower end of a major feeder-creek arm.

As for lures and presentations, 13 of these 31 black bass were allured by the initial fall or a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a shortened 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s black-blue-flake TRD TicklerZ matched with a blue 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. Six were enticed by either a steady swimming retrieve or the initial fall of a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ affixed on a red 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. Five were caught on either the initial fall or a steady swimming presentation with a Z-Man’s pearl Baby Goat affixed on a blue 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. Four were tempted by a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s Space Guppy Slim SwimZ fastened on a chartreuse 1/10-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig. Two largemouth bass were caught on a swimming retrieve with a Z-Man’s black-blue-flake Baby Goat rigged on a silver 1/8-ounce Z-Man’s Trout Eye Jighead. One largemouth bass was caught on a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with a shortened 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s Sprayed Grass TRD TicklerZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Finesse ShroomZ jig.

During the past few weeks, our most lucrative spots at this reservoir were patches of Eurasian milfoil located in five to seven feet of water in the lower and midsections of the feeder-creek arms in the lower end of the reservoir, but during this outing, those patches of milfoil were virtually bereft of black bass. 

June 13

Nick Robertson of Overland Park, Kansas, posted a brief log on the Finesse News Network about his outing on June 13 at a community reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 69 degrees, and the afternoon's high temperature was 80 degrees. The wind varied from calm to angling from the northeast at 3 mph. The sky fluctuated from partly cloudy to overcast to fair. The barometric pressure was 29.90 at 9:00 a.m. and 29.88 at 1:00 p.m. 

In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar noted that the best bass fishing would occur from 12:23 a.m. to 2:23 a.m. and 12:50 p.m. to 2:50 p.m.

I fished in a float tube or “belly boat” from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm.

I spent these four hours fishing on the west side of this reservoir’s middle section.

The water along the main-lake points and shorelines exhibited about three to five feet of clarity. I was unable to take the water’s temperature. The water level looked to be slightly above normal. 

 I fished along many yards of two main-lake shorelines, along a secondary shoreline inside a feeder-creek arm, around three main-lake shorelines, and around several large boat docks inside another feeder-creek arm.

The underwater terrain consisted of gravel, rocks, and boulders; much of it was graced with patches of submerged aquatic vegetation. The water’s edges are enhanced with some laydowns and patches of American water willows. 

The submerged and emergent vegetation yielded about a third of the 33 largemouth bass that I caught.  The most productive areas consisted of boulders and laydowns. My largest fish was found under one of the boat docks.

 Six of the 33 largemouth bass were caught between 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. Eight were caught between 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Another eight largemouth bass were caught between 11:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. And 11 were caught between 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

My most effective Midwest finesse rigs were a 4.75-inch  Z-Man’s watermelon Finesse WormZ on a blue 1/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, a Z-Man’s green-pumpkin TRD HogZ affixed to a red 1/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, the skinny half of a Z-Man’s watermelon-red SMH WormZ on a blue 1/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, the fat half of a Z-Man’s watermelon-red SMH WormZ on a blue 1/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead, and a three-inch Z-Man’s bad-shad Slim SwimZ on a black 1/15-ounce mushroom-style jighead. Nearly all of the 33 largemouth bass were caught with a swim-glide-and-shake presentation. Three were caught on a deadstick presentation. The Slim SwimZ was fished with a straight swimming retrieve.

 In sum, the belly boat with waders was a comfortable and peaceful way to thoroughly dissect the shorelines and points with the Midwest finesse rigs. Thanks to Mr. Kehde for introducing me to this incredibly useful fishing tool. Ultimately, I caught an average of slightly more than eight largemouth bass an hour. What’s more, I spotted several Baltimore orioles and repeatedly stole fishing spots from a great blue heron. 

June 16

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a brief on the Finesse News Network about his June 16 outing.

Mike Trometer of Farmersville, Texas, and I fished at a popular and perplexing federal hill-land reservoir in the Dallas metropolitan area. It is the same impoundment that Todd Judy of Denton and I fished on June 9.

When Todd and I fished this reservoir on June 9, it was mostly a cloudy day. We fished from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., and we caught a mixture of 16 largemouth and spotted bass.

On June 16, it was sunny and extremely humid when we launched the boat at about 6:45 a.m. The humidity was so wretched that we began sweating while we launched the boat, and the humidity level was high throughout the day. The sky was partly cloudy. The morning’s low temperature was 73 degrees, and the afternoon’s high warmed to 95 degrees. The barometric pressure measured 29.92 at 7:00 a.m. and 29.94 at noon. A mild breeze meandered out of the south at 5 to 8 mph.  

The water level was 2.38 feet into flood stage. The water was dingy with 14 to 18 inches of clarity. The surface temperature varied from 79 to 83 degrees.

According to In-Fisherman’s Solunar table, the fishing forecast was poor for June 16. It also noted that the best fishing would most likely occur between 3:22 a.m. and 5:22 a.m., 9:34 a.m. and 11:34 a.m., and 3:46 p.m. and 5:46 p.m. 

We fished from 7:00 a.m. to noon.

We targeted a variety of black-bass lairs in the lower, middle, and upper regions of this reservoir, and the fishing was awful everywhere we fished.

In the lower end of the reservoir, we caught one largemouth bass and three spotted bass in three to eight feet of water from two large main-lake points. These points are flat with clay, gravel, small rocks, and a few scattered boulders forming the foundation of the submerged terrains. One spotted bass was caught on a quick-paced swimming retrieve with a 3 1/2-inch chartreuse plastisol swimbait rigged on a white 3/8-ounce fish-head style jig.  The second spotted bass and the largemouth bass were allured by a moderate-paced swimming retrieve with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s pearl Slim SwimZ matched with a blue 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. The third spotted bass was induced into striking a Z-Man’s pearl Baby Goat fastened on a blue 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead and a moderate swimming retrieve.  

The shaded side of a rocky main-lake island surrendered one spotted bass and one largemouth bass that were abiding in three to five feet of water. They were caught on a steady swimming retrieve with the 2 1/2-inch pearl Slim SwimZ rig. The sun-drenched areas around this island were unproductive. 

Two rocky main-lake shorelines yielded one largemouth bass each. Along the first shoreline, a largemouth bass was caught in five feet of water near a large submerged boulder on a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a 2 3/4-inch Z-Man’s black-blue-flake TRD TubeZ affixed on a blue 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. The second largemouth bass was associated with the second shoreline. This shoreline possesses a 40-yard stretch of riprap. This largemouth bass was caught in eight feet of water on a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a Z-Man’s Bama Bug TRD BugZ rigged on a chartreuse 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. 

A series of 11 concrete support columns underneath a major interstate-highway bridge were fruitless.

In the midsection of the reservoir, we dissected a couple of riprap sections of a shoreline that border an old concrete spillway and three rocky main-lake points. 

One section of riprap shoreline is about 35 yards long, and it was devoid of black bass. The other section is about 50 yards long, and it yielded two largemouth bass. The two largemouth bass were caught in less than five feet of water and within five feet of the water’s edge on the initial fall of two back-to-back casts with the 2 1/2-inch pearl Slim SwimZ rig.

At the upper end of the reservoir, we probed a 75-yard stretch of rock-and-boulder-laden shoreline and several large concrete support columns under another highway bridge. This shoreline is also adorned with many patches of flooded bushes and other types of terrestrial vegetation and a couple of minor laydowns. And after making scores and scores of casts and retrieves, we failed to elicit a single strike. 

Overall, it was a disappointing day of bass fishing.  Ultimately, our best efforts produced seven largemouth bass and four spotted bass in five hours. We also inadvertently caught a feisty blue catfish, one white bass, and a white crappie. 

Besides employing our Midwest finesse rigs, Mike also employed several power-fishing tactics which included twitching a green-and-yellow floating frog across the surface of the water through the openings and around the edges of the flooded bushes; pitching a large pumpkin-hue flipping tube into and around patches of flooded bushes; swimming a white swim-jig with a five-inch shad-colored swimbait attached as a trailer around the outside edges of the flooded bushes; slowly retrieving a 1/4-ounce black-and-chartreuse inline spinner around and over submerged rocks and boulders; slowly swimming a brown Chatterbait with an attached five-inch brown plastisol shad-shaped worm trailer around the riprap shorelines and rocky points; bouncing a medium-diving crankbait off large boulders and rocks along rocky points and shorelines; and bumping a black spinnerbait embellished with double silver Colorado blades into flooded bushes and limbs of laydowns.  And we were surprised that he was unable to provoke any strikes. 

June 19

Ned Kehde of Lawrence, Kansas, and Rick Hebenstreit of Shawnee, Kansas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about their June 19 outing at an 86-year-old community reservoir in northeastern Kansas.

The National Weather Service reported that the morning’s low temperature was 60 degrees. The afternoon's high temperature was 90 degrees. The sky was fair. The wind was calm for 11 hours, and when it began to stir, it was either variable or angling out of the south at 3 to 21 mph.  The barometric pressure was 29.97 at 12:53 a.m., 30.02 at 5:53 a.m., 30.04 at 11:53 a.m., and 30.00 at 2:53 p.m. 

On this last day of spring, it felt like summer, and it was the first time that we had seen jet skiers, water skiers, and recreational boaters afloat this year at our community reservoirs.

The water level looked to be slightly above normal. The surface temperature was 83 degrees. The water exhibited about three feet of visibility in the upper half of this reservoir and about five to six feet of clarity along the dam.  

In-Fisherman's Solunar calendar noted that the best fishing would occur from 5:43 a.m. to 7:43 a.m., 6:07 p.m. to 8:07 p.m., and 11:32 a.m. to 1:32 p.m.

We made our first casts at 10:30 a.m. and the last casts at 2:30 p.m. During these four hours, we caught 25 largemouth bass and 20 smallmouth bass, and we accidentally caught two bluegill, two green sunfish, three freshwater drum, and five channel catfish.

A radically shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s PB&J Finesse WormZ affixed to a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jighead caught two largemouth bass and one smallmouth bass. A Z-Man’s Canada-craw TRD TicklerZ affixed to a green-pumpkin 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig inveigled three largemouth bass. Five largemouth bass and five smallmouth bass were caught on a 2.75-inch Z-Man’s Junebug TRD BugZ attached to either a chartreuse 1/15-ounce Z-Man’s Micro Finesse ShroomZ jig or a chartreuse 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig. Fourteen smallmouth bass and 15 largemouth bass were caught on a shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s purple-haze 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.

This is the Z-Man's purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig. Unfortunately, this color is no longer manufactured.

We caught them on several presentations. Eleven were caught on the initial drop of our rigs. Five were caught as we were strolling and employing either a swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a drag-and-shake presentation. Three were caught as we employed a swimming presentation around patches of Eurasian milfoil. Most were caught on either our standard swim-glide-and-shake presentation or our drag-pause-and-shake presentation. For a description of how we stroll, please examine this link: https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/six-midwest-finesse-retrieves/153946.

We caught the 45 black bass in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as 10 feet.

The most fruitful locales were in the lower half of the reservoir. We failed to elicit a strike around three main-lake points and along about a 70-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline in the upper half of this reservoir.

We caught 28 of the 45 black bass between 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. They were caught in the lower half of the reservoir, which possessed this reservoir’s clearest water.

We caught two smallmouth bass and three largemouth bass along an offshore submerged rock and boulder fence in four to six feet of water. One largemouth bass was caught on the PB&J Finesse WormZ.  The Canada-craw TRD TicklerZ rig allured two largemouth bass. The two smallmouth bass were caught on the Junebug TRD BugZ rig. Portions of this submerged fence are endowed with patches of Eurasian milfoil, and three of the five black bass were caught around these patches. This offshore spot is in the lower third of this reservoir and between the mouths of two large feeder-creek arms in the lower half of the reservoir.

In the middle section of the reservoir, we fished along about an 850-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline and around two main-lake points.  This area has a 30- to 75-degree slope. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, and portions of this terrain are enhanced with significant patches of Eurasian milfoil. The water’s edge is endowed with several laydowns, a few stretches of overhanging trees and terrestrial vegetation, occasional piles of tree limbs, and long stretches of dense patches of American water willows. This area yielded six largemouth bass and three smallmouth bass. The Canada-craw TRD TicklerZ rig beguiled one of the largemouth bass. Our Junebug TRD BugZ rigs allured the three smallmouth bass and five of the six largemouth bass. Three of the six largemouth bass were caught under a magnificent overhanging tree in three to four feet of water.  One largemouth bass was caught along the front edge of the American water willows in about four feet of water. The three smallmouth bass and two of the six largemouth bass were caught around patches of Eurasian milfoil in four to six feet of water. 

In the lower half of the reservoir, we fished around a main-lake point and about a 35-yard stretch of its main-lake shoreline. The shoreline yielded two largemouth bass. The underwater terrain consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, and all this terrain is endowed with thick patches of Eurasian milfoil. The water’s edge is endowed with overhanging trees and occasional piles of tree limbs. It has a 30-degree slope. The largemouth bass were extracted from the patches of Eurasian milfoil. One was caught on a swimming presentation with the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig. The second one was caught on a swimming presentation of the PB&J Finesse WormZ rig.

Inside a small feeder-creek arm in the lower half of the reservoir, we caught one smallmouth bass along a secondary shoreline. The underwater terrain of this shoreline consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are adorned with occasional patches of Eurasian milfoil. The water’s edge is endowed with a laydown, some piles of tree limbs, and a massive congregation of three overhanging trees. This smallmouth bass was caught on the PB&J Finesse WormZ rig with swim-glide-and-shake presentation under the overhanging trees in about four to five feet of water.  

We caught six smallmouth bass and eight largemouth bass along about an 800-yard stretch of a main-lake shoreline in the lower half of the reservoir. It possesses the entry to the reservoir's spillway, three main-lake points, and one tertiary point. The underwater terrains of the shoreline and points consist of gravel, rocks, and boulders that are occasionally coated with submerged patches of Eurasian milfoil. The water’s edge is lined with many patches of American water willows, one dock, several well-worn laydowns, a few overhanging trees, and occasional piles of tree limbs. The slope of these areas ranges from 25 to 50 degrees. These black bass were caught on our purple-haze Finesse WormZ rigs. We caught them in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as eight to ten feet. A few were caught on the initial drop. Others were caught as we employed either a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation, and two were caught as we were strolling.

Four largemouth bass and seven smallmouth bass were inveigled along the riprap shoreline of the dam, which is 2,200 feet long. This shoreline has a 45- to 50-degree slope.  The water’s edge is dressed with numerous patches of shallow-water American water willows. The underwater terrain of riprap is partially adorned with patches of Eurasian milfoil. Our purple-haze Finesse WormZ rigs allured these 11 black bass. We caught these black bass in water as shallow as three feet and as deep as eight feet. A few were caught on the initial drop. The others were caught on either a swim-glide-and-shake presentation or a drag-pause-and-shake presentation, and we were strolling several times with those two presentations.

We finished this four-hour outing by quickly fishing around one main-lake point and a riprap jetty at the mouth of a large feeder-creek arm in the lower quarter of this reservoir.

The underwater terrain of the point consists of gravel, rocks, and boulders, which are somewhat enhanced with Eurasian milfoil. The water’s edge is graced with patches of American water willows and several overhanging trees. It possesses a 40-degree slope. This point yielded one largemouth bass that was allured by the initial drop of the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig in about three to four feet of water near the outside edge of a patch of American water willows. We caught one smallmouth bass on the purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve around a scanty patch of Eurasian milfoil in about five feet of water.

We caught one largemouth bass around the riprap jetty. This jetty has about a 35-degree slope, and its submerged riprap, which consists of rocks and boulders, is partially coated with scanty patches of Eurasian milfoil. The water’s edge is lined with a few patches of shallow-water American water willows. The purple-haze Finesse WormZ rig with a drag-and-shake presentation in about five feet of water allured this largemouth bass.

In sum, the heydays of May are no more. Therefore, we caught an average of 11.25 black bass an hour at this reservoir rather than the hourly average of 19.25 black bass that Ned Kehde and Travis Perret of Overland Park, Kansas, caught at this reservoir on May 21.

June 26

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a brief log on the Finesse News Network about his June 26 outing with Norman Brown of Lewisville, Texas,

Norman and I conducted a six-hour jaunt at a state reservoir in north-central Texas. We last fished this reservoir on May 29.

During the May 29 excursion, it was sunny and the wind was angling out of the west-by-northwest at 5 to 10 mph. It was a productive black-bass endeavor; we caught 22 largemouth bass and three spotted bass in five hours. 

There was plenty of bright sunshine on June 26. About 40 percent of the sky was adorned with puffy white cumulus clouds. The morning’s low temperature was 72 degrees, and the afternoon high reached 91 degrees. The wind angled from the south at 10 to 15 mph. The barometric pressure measured 30.01 at 6:00 a.m. and 30.00 at noon. 

According to In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar, the best fishing would occur from 4:51 a.m. to 6:51 a.m., 5:22 p.m. to 7:22 p.m., and 11:38 p.m. to 1:38 a.m. 

We fished from 6:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

We concentrated our efforts on a main-lake flat, the shoreline of a chunk-rock covered dam, five rocky main-lake points, a short rocky main-lake shoreline that is about 50 yards long, a 200-yard stretch of secondary shoreline inside a major feeder-creek arm, and two rock-laden bluffs. 

The water was dingy from the aftereffects of several severe thunderstorms that saturated the north-central Texas’ landscape during the past couple of weeks. The water exhibited 12 to 15 inches of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 81 to 84 degrees. The water level was a foot high.

The majority of this reservoir’s underwater terrain consists of clay, gravel, chunky rocks, and boulders. A few areas inside a couple of feeder-creek arms possess flooded stands of timber. These terrains are graced with a variety of aquatic vegetation: American water willows, American pondweed, yellow floating-heart, Eurasian milfoil, coontail, and muskgrass.

Ten largemouth bass were caught in three to 18 feet of water across a main-lake flat and around an adjacent main-lake point. This flat and its main-lake point are endowed with several patches of yellow floating-heart vegetation and American water willows. Five of the 10 largemouth bass were allured by a steady swimming retrieve with a 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin Slim SwimZ and a chartreuse 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. Two largemouth bass were enticed with a slow swimming retrieve with a 3 1/2-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin GrubZ affixed to a black 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. Two largemouth bass were tempted by a slow swimming retrieve with a shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s pumpkin Finesse WormZ fastened on a 1/16-ounce green-pumpkin mushroom-style jig. One largemouth bass was tempted by a slow drag-shake-and-deadstick presentation with a shortened 4.75-inch Z-Man’s black-neon Finesse WormZ rigged on a red 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG mushroom Jighead. Our pumpkin and black-neon Finesse WormZ rigs were trimmed to four inches from their original 4.75-inch size.

One largemouth bass was caught from the other four rocky main-lake points. These points are in the middle section of the reservoir; they possess inclines of 35 to 50 degrees. This largemouth bass was caught next to a submerged boulder on the side of the point in five feet of water on a slow swimming retrieve with the 3 1/2-inch Z-Man’s green-pumpkin GrubZ rig.

The shoreline of the riprap dam is about 75 yards long. It is on the northeast end of the reservoir. It yielded one dinky spotted bass that was abiding in about five feet of water and 15 feet from the water’s edge. It engulfed a Z-Man’s black-blue TRD TicklerZ affixed on a blue 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead.  

A rocky 50-yard main-lake shoreline adjacent to the dam was devoid of black bass. 

Along one of the two bluffs, we caught one spotted bass. This bluff is located near the dam on the reservoir’s north end. This spotted bass was suspended about seven feet below the surface in 21 feet of water and 30 to 45 feet from the water’s edge. It was caught on a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with the black-neon Finesse WormZ combo. 

At the midsection of the impoundment and at the mouth of a major feeder-creek arm, we fished along the other bluff and its adjacent 200-yard secondary shoreline. Along this bluff and the secondary shoreline, we caught six largemouth bass and one spotted bass. Three largemouth bass were caught in five to eight feet of water on a slow swim-glide-and-shake retrieve with the black-neon Finesse WormZ rig. Two largemouth bass were caught on a 2 3/4-inch Z-Man’s mudbug TRD TubeZ rigged on a red 1/16-ounce mushroom-style jig; one was caught in 13 feet of water on an accidental deadstick presentation, and the other one was caught in six feet of water on a slow swimming retrieve. The sixth largemouth bass was caught in five feet of water on a slow swimming retrieve with the pumpkin Finesse WormZ. The spotted bass was dwelling in five feet of water and was attracted to a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with the black-blue TRD TicklerZ combo. 

We failed to garner any strikes from the second main-lake shoreline located in the middle portion of the reservoir.

In conclusion, the black-bass fishing in north-central Texas has been challenging this month. During this six-hour endeavor, we inveigled 17 largemouth bass and three spotted bass in six hours. We also tangled with six white bass, two large bluegills, and a chunky channel catfish.

June 27

Steve Reideler of Denton, Texas, posted a log on the Finesse News Network about his June 27 outing.

From 7:00 a.m. to noon, John Thomas of Denton and I fished at a state reservoir that is located in an exurban region of north-central Texas. It is a different state reservoir than the impoundment Norman Brown of Lewisville, Texas, and I fished on June 26. 

I haven’t fished at this impoundment since June 2, when Norman and I fished it briefly for about 45 minutes because the water was a muddy mess. The black-bass fishing was almost nonexistent; we struggled to catch one spotted bass and one white bass before we decided to load the boat on the trailer and move to a federal reservoir about an hour’s drive away.  

According to In-Fisherman’s Solunar calendar, the best fishing periods on June 27 would occur from 12:46 a.m. to 2:46 a.m., 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., and 1:14 p.m. to 3:14 p.m. It also noted that the fishing would be average.

The morning’s low temperature was 72 degrees, and the afternoon’s high temperature peaked at 98 degrees. It was sunny, and about 60 percent of the sky was decorated with clouds. The barometric pressure increased a fraction from 29.97 at 6:00 a.m. to 29.98 at noon. There was a light breeze out of the southwest at less than 5 mph for most of the morning. At about 10:30 a.m., the wind velocity increased to 10 to 12 mph.

We concentrated our efforts on the east side of the lower and middle sections of the reservoir. These locales consisted of two main-lake islands, four main-lake shorelines, four prominent main-lake points, three main-lake bluffs, and the dam's riprap shoreline.

This reservoir’s underwater terrain is composed of mostly red clay, gravel, rocks, and boulders. Some of the shorelines are adorned with flooded buck brush, stickups, overhanging trees, and some laydowns.

During this outing, the water was still muddy, but we could see signs of it beginning to clear. Instead of the four to six inches of clarity that we endured on June 2, the water clarity had increased to 12 inches, and in a couple of spots, it displayed 14 inches of visibility. The surface temperature ranged from 79 to 84 degrees. The water level was at its normal pool for the first time in many months. 

One of the two islands that we fished is located at the lower end of the reservoir. Its shoreline is flat and cluttered with baseball-size rocks, boulders, and flooded stickups. This island is usually one of the most lucrative spots in this reservoir, but on this outing, it yielded one largemouth bass and one spotted bass. Both of these fish were caught in less than five feet of water around the outside edges of the patches of flooded stickups with a Z-Man’s pearl Baby Goat rigged on a blue 3/32-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead and a moderate-paced swimming retrieve. 

The second island is situated in the middle section of the reservoir. Its shoreline is lined with boulders and large rocks. We were astonished to see a massive aggregation of white egrets roosting in the trees and meandering around the ground and shoreline of this island. At times, we fished within 30 yards of their nesting areas, and they seemed oblivious to our presence. We wielded several of our Midwest finesse offerings as we watched the nesting birds’ shenanigans. As we dissected the submerged rocks and boulders that adorn this island’s perimeter, we failed to elicit a strike.   

The four main-lake shorelines are situated in the midsection of the reservoir’s east shoreline. They possess 20- to 30-degree inclines with a submerged terrain consisting mostly of large rocks and boulders. These shorelines range in length from about 50 to 150 yards, and they failed to yield a spotted bass, largemouth bass, or smallmouth bass. 

The first of four rocky main-lake points yielded four largemouth bass. This point is broad and relatively flat. It is blanketed with boulders the size of a coffee table and large rocks the size of softballs. These four bass were associated with a couple of large clusters of submerged rocks and boulders graced with patches of flooded stickups in four to six feet of water. One was beguiled by a steady-swimming presentation with the pearl Baby Goat rig. The other three were enticed hy a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation with a slightly shortened 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s black-blue TRD TicklerZ matched with a blue 1/16-ounce Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead. 

The second main-lake point relinquished one largemouth bass that was associated with a small patch of large rocks. It was enticed by the 2 1/2-inch Z-Man’s black-blue TRD TicklerZ rig with a slow swim-glide-and-shake presentation.  

The fourth main-lake point yielded one largemouth bass. It was relating to a cluster of large boulders near the water’s edge in three feet of water. It engulfed a Z-Man’s black-blue TRD HogZ affixed on a blue Z-Man’s OG Mushroom Jighead as it was being slowly retrieved with a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve next to the cluster of boulders. 

The three main-lake bluffs were the most productive areas. They relinquished seven spotted bass and two largemouth bass. All of these fish were caught around submerged boulders in less than five feet of water on the swim-glide-and-shake technique with either the shortened black-blue TRD TicklerZ or the black-blue TRD HogZ rigs. 

One spotted bass was caught from eight feet of water along a small riprap-covered dam on the east side of the reservoir.  It was caught on the shortened black-blue TRD TicklerZ rig and a swim-glide-and-shake retrieve.

Overall, the black-bass fishing remains sluggish at this state reservoir, but it was more productive than a couple of federal hill-land reservoirs in north-central Texas.  During this five-hour jaunt, we caught a combination of 17 largemouth bass and spotted bass. We also caught one large bluegill from one of the main-lake bluffs.