• Off the pier 11-8-2009: Three more fall victim to the Scumfrog

An opportunity to fish off the pier resulted in three more fish on the Trophy Series Scumfrog this evening.

It all started when I heard lots of splashing out in the deeper water. Bass were schooling and chasing. I could see the silver sides of shad skipping around in an attempt to avoid becoming a snack. Even a kingfisher was taking advantage of all the fun. It dove down right smack in the middle of the melee and snatched up a quick meal.

The frenzy was too far outside my maximum casting distance, so I settled with fishing off the pier again. Luckily, fish were also chasing smaller schools of shad there too. All I had to do was get something to bite the frog.

First fish came close to the pier underneath a floating cypress limb. Decent fish, actually. I did not weigh it, but it felt and looked like a solid 2lber.

Then I had lots of nothing. The fish were there, but nothing wanted the frog. I started thinking maybe these fish weren't bass. I don't think the crappie are making their shallow run yet, but it's possible. They could have also been white bass. Whatever they were, shad would scatter as they hit, I would cast my frog, but nothing would bite.

Maybe they were skittish. I got to thinking that if they were bass, maybe I could persuade them with a white frog instead of a black one, seeing as how they might mistake the white for a shad instead. That plan did not work. I put the black one back on.

The next two fish bit much later after the excitement in open water died down. Both were caught in about a foot of water 100-110 feet away. I missed the first one on the initial cast, but nailed it on the second. About 15 minutes later, the other one bit in almost the same spot. They weren't much to look at, but you could tell they had been gorging on shad.

I think it's going to rain tomorrow, but the bass are finally starting to behave like fall bass again. Let's hope it stays that way so my next chance to fish in the boat will yield some results. I really want to get out on Caddo Lake, but I think she's still on the high side and probably still closed to boat traffic. I need to drive up to one of the launches and check.