Stocker Trout Fishing News

Had a fun time fishing Lake Lavon for White Bass on a fly rod Sunday morning. Water was glass smooth, making for an easier paddle to the fishing spot – water treatment plant’s drainage system. Was hoping for a Largemouth Bass or two using the EmmRod and a Slab and Jig Rig. Had one strike but quickly fouled my line and broke off. Switched to the fly rod and fished a Blue and White Clouser, and then a Chartreuse and White Clouser. No takers on either. Moved downstream from the drainage and switched the a pattern that I forgot its name and had a fun time catching White Bass on the fly! Later, I recalled the name of the fishing fly…it’s a Denison Dam Dawber! OPST Commando Head and the coated mono running line made the difference in casting from a sitting position in the kayak! Do keep one at the ready if you decide to kayak fly fish!

Able to get the jon boat prepared for a round of jug line fishing at the local lake – Lake Lavon. Put in at Highland Park, and had a fun time catching catfish for the beer batter fish fry recipe we like. Caught seven catfish – one Channel Catfish and six Blue Catfish. All went for fresh caught shad that we caught with the cast net at the boat ramp. It was windy but luckily able to fish the leeward side of the point to minimize time in the windy areas. Catfish were taken in shallow water – 4-6 feet, as well as further out in about 6-10 feet of water. Did catch and release a Crappie and a White Bass. No worries had more than enough for dinner that evening… beer batter fish fry recipe and the homemade tartar sauce still makes a tasty dinner! Hope to be back out again, especially with the new “fish finder” – Charlie the Maltese Doggie! Listen in on the Team recap of the trip on iFishNews Fishing Podcasts!

Finally able to make it out in the kayak to our local lake – Lake Lavon. Went light with one rod and the small tackle box with slabs and crappie jigs. Planned to try for crappie in the trees but no luck. Did manage one Yellow Bass on a Slab and Jig Rig and bottom bouncing it across a point. Too nice a day to be indoors, glad to get out and stretch the paddling muscles. Do plan to be back sooner than later as the temps warm!

The Field Team continues to push the envelope in their push to expand communication with viewers and listeners. This round the Team hosts its first Live Stream fishing podcast on iFishNews.com!

Planned to go kayak fishing Saturday but sidetracked with weather and a little chill in the air. Quick change to pond fishing in short order… went Tenkara fishing a local pond. Caught a few Bluegill and Bass working a Foam Grasshopper. Overall, this trip showed the convenience of Tenkara with a change in plans from kayak fishing to pond fishing easily accommodated. More important, what could have been a missed day of fishing because yours truly may have been sidetracked by a potential “honey do” or two was avoided! Past experience I have been diverted from fishing when asked, “Oh, I thought you were going to the lake today? No, then can you…?” Ouch! Good thing I had a Tenkara Rod a the ready!

Closeout the week with a little wine while we discuss fishing plans for the weekend! Key items this round: Still liking Strebel Creek Vineyard’s Firehouse Red Wine Blue River trout are still biting after 6 weeks from the last stocking Tenkara fishing local ponds for a quick trip this weekend Temperature drop has a pattern mixed, play it by ear Livestream Podcast planned for Sunday on iFishNews at 6PM Central More videos and podcast in the future are planned!

A follow-on video and podcast of our recent trip Tenkara Fishing a creek. In this fishing podcast, we talk about lessons learned tenkara fishing in close quarters where brush and overhead branches limit the use of fly fishing gear and have clobbered our back cast. Easily remedied with a fly rod and switch and roll casts, we wanted to try fishing with a tenkara rod… a 12′ tenkara rod lined with 12′ of fly line and 3′ of leader and tippet. We learned that the tenkara rod worked well fishing the creek especially the use of the “bow and arrow” cast. We also learned that shortening the fly line to 6′ would help in working the fly under the overhang branches in the creek. Do check out the podcast – be it the video or listen in at iFishNews.com to the podcast version of it!

Too nice a day to spend Easter Sunday indoors. Rained last night and Sunday morning but by afternoon the sun was out. It was windy but not bad along the creek… tight spaces and clobbered with debris did manage to catch a few Bluegill and a Bass on a Foam Grasshopper. Key items to note… 12′ tenkara rod could still be fished in the creek’s tight spaces, the bow and arrow cast worked well accurate casts were easily attained, and floating debris tended to be the deal breaker for fishing a large area of nesting Bluegill… will have to comeback when things clear up. Overall, the versatility and portability of the tenkara rod reminds us why we tried this fishing method years ago! Stay tuned for a follow-on iFishNews fishing podcast to step through the video and lessons learned this trip! Good luck and good fishing!

First of hopefully many fishing podcasts using the iFishNews Podcast format to expand the Team’s reach to current, new, and future subscribers! This first one is a video and audio podcast with video posted on the COAF Field Team YouTube Channel and audio posted on the iFishNews Podcast website and distributed on various RSS feeds. Do join us as we show how we fish and learn to fish by our trials and errors!

Been itching to go fishing with the TenkaraUSA Iwana tenkara rod but sidetracked with the day job. Luckily, there was break in the work schedule… able to fish a couple of ponds. Was a tough go at first… a missed strike at the first pond, else no other bites. And then, a slow start until I figured out the pattern… Foam Grasshoppers! Had quite a few missed strikes but lots of Bluegill and one scrappy little Bass landed. Fish wanted a slow, twitchy retrieve at one end of the pond. Then, a fast retrieve at the other end. Liking the lightweight, cast all day feel of the rod. Plus, the portability from its telescoping function makes it fit in my fishing vest (converted hunting vest) without issue. Do stay tuned for more Tenkara Fishing local ponds!

Been beta testing Zoom to host virtual meetings to update Subscribers on the fly! Calling the updates Vpodcasting since it has video but follows a podcasting format. This round the agenda was: TenkaraUSA Iwana Unboxing Recent Videos Field Team on Zoom Do check out the second of two beta testing of the Team’s Zoom Vpodcasting efforts!

Liking the Foam Grasshopper tied on a size 8 or 10 streamer hook. Mixing things up and tied the pattern on a size 4 hook and used a Beavertail foam cutter to make the body. So far, has worked on Bass and Bluegill at our local pond! Do try tying this simple but effective pattern on Bass in your area!

Was out fishing a local creek earlier this week. Caught a few Bluegill with the 2wt flyrod but was wanting for the tenkara rod as the creek was lined with brush and offered minimal access as well as casting room. Lots of roll casting and switch casting was the key. Unfortunately, lost the video… deleted it by accident. No worries, trip triggered your’s truly to search online for tenkara sales… and with luck, found Tenkara USA was offering a 30% discount on their rods. Nice! Noted the Iwana Tenkara Rod that we have been eyeing for several years was at our price point… $119 plus $14 for shipping. Order is in… now waiting for delivery. While we wait, will take out the old Tenkara Rod and wet a line or two. Due check back on updates on our Tenkara adventures!