Holding Water And Big Fish

I watched Kelly Gaullop's streamer fishing video and it got me thinking about predatory fish in still water. I have always had success in the mornings and evenings when fish are generally feeding. I tend to key on fish in the shallows more in the evening time than I do in the morning. If I remember right though, most of my big fish (25 and over) have been hooked during non-feeding times. These fish were not feeding. According to the theory, they were attacking something that was in their area and they were not feeding off of it.
So what is "holding water" in a lake? Where do big fish go when they are not feeding. I believe they hold in slightly deeper water than feeding water. I also think that this water is relatively close to feeding water (shallows). I think that they mostly sit near structure (drop-offs) so that they can be safe and rest in an optimum water temperature. This allows them to move in and out of feeding water without using much energy because the feeding water is close by.

Link:http://flyfisherman.com/ftb/kgtrigger/

Lone Lake 10/5/2007

Here we go again....back on the ferry and over to Lone. I had been tying flys at my lunch hour all week. When I arrived it was cold out (47 degrees) and the water was calm. The fish were rising close to the boat launch. The clouds smelled like rain but I could see small signs of blue skys. I elected to go without a raincoat.
As I entered the water I had a gameplan of heading to the back of the lake. Like every other day, my game plan quickly changed. The fish were slamming my fly on the corner before I even got to the backside of the lake. I landed 10 fish in the first 2 hours as I slowly worked my way backwards. The most impressive thing is that they were mostly big fish.
My fly was toast after 15 fish or so I went to change. That is when I realized my pliers had fallen down into my waders. I found a cheezey version of the pattern I wanted and put it on and decided to head back to the front of the lake. At that point it didn't matter, I ended up landing another 5 fish.
As I pulled into the boat launch Scooter arrived. I ate a tuna sandwich and BSed for a bit. After that we headed out and he had a fish on immediately. I then landed one shortly there after. As the sun broke out, he kept catching fish and I went cold. I changed up several time and only landed one more fish with a Doc Spratly.
We left about 45 minutes before the fishing was going to pick back up again, but that was fine I was pretty tired from fishing all day. I did happened to pull another fish from the right shoreline just off of the boat launch.

Equipment: 5/6 weigh tLine: Full Sink, 5 weight patterns: Dave Special, Peacock Bugger, Doc Spratley, Green Seal Bugger/ Leech with (red wrap around the head)

Methods: Trolling and mostly stripping at medium slow retrieve

Lone Lake 9/30/2007

The forecast called for gusty wind and rain but I had to fish, so I hopped on the 7:00 clock ferry and headed over. When I arrived at the lake it was raining lightly. YES! There was no wind and I had the lake all to myself. After I put in, I did a tour of the cove near the boat launch and it was gunkier than last year at this time. Nada..... no fish, just a couple of little teasing hits. Since the cove was slow it meant either I used the wrong pattern (Dave Special) or I was in the wrong location. I worked my way over to the spot that GUARANTEES fish. On my around the corner I picked up a little 13" bow. Before I went to the GUARANTEE I headed down the shoreline. I remember picking up a 25 inch beast off the shoreline in the fall last year. I casted to the shore 3 consecutive times and got hits but no takes on each try. I wondered why no hook ups? I then changed to a peacock bugger, knowing that the fish are more likely to stay on with this fly. Sure enough, first cast......bam it was a 14 inch largemouth. I hate bass, but this one fought hard and he was a worthy opponent, so I let him return. I casted a couple of times before I headed to the GUARANTEE hole. Now I like the GUARANTEE hole but I am getting tired of trolling. I decided to troll across it before I hit the back side of the lake. Sure enough.... a couple of hits and bam... nice 15 inch bow. I kept going and nailed another fish on the way to the backside. I am guessing I had been fishing for about an hour and a half now. As luck would have it, as soon as I flung my fly at the shore....bam a nice 19" bow hit it. It was hot the rerst of the day. Welp except for the fact that I kept losing fish. I am guessing I had 40 fish on and 17 to 20 to the net.



Equipment: 5/6 weight

Line: Full Sink, 5 weight

Patterns: Dave Special, Peacock Bugger

Methods: Trolling and mostly stripping at medium slow retreive

Weather: light to heavy rain, no wind