Ever since Brian told me a couple of days ago about trout recently stocked in Clinton Reservoir, I had planned on beginning with a quarter-ounce Phoebe spoon. To launch and also get into the boat, we had to wade barelegged, so we learned right away that the water was significantly colder than last week. Maybe colder than two weeks ago on that 92-degree day. My guess--52 degrees. Brian's Eagle graph unit is a great piece of equipment but doesn't have a thermometer.
We motored off and traveled not 10 yards after I cast my Phoebe--we'd made our way out over 22 feet of water--when I had a small fish on, almost certainly one of those trout. It got off, and I got hit again, missed that. I really wanted the one I had on badly. To have brought home a trout for my wife. Brian did end up catching one from very shallow water, and he offered it to me, but that's just not the same. I laughed about it and the trout went back.
Brian had said we'd troll down along the shoreline opposite to the one we trolled last week and the week previous. That's where we headed, but before we got there, I had caught an 18-inch pickerel from seven feet of flat water, and a 12- or 13-inch smallmouth from over 22 feet of water. How deep the Phoebe traveled, I don't know, but not very. We weren't moving at top speed. The Minn Kota electric has speeds one through five, one the slowest, and I might have selected two or three.
We trolled that shoreline a long way before Brian caught a 12-inch smallmouth on a plug. Once again, we were determined to explore the lake, rather than concentrate on spots by casting. Nor did we concentrate on them by repeated trolling passes.
We went around a bend and headed back towards where a very long, narrow cove ends, though we didn't go as far, electing to circle an island. On the way back, Brian had another on, but his ultralight was in a rod holder. That ultralight had too much give to set the hooks of the jointed Rapala. I missed a terrific hit on my Mepp's Aglia Long. Missed another hit, less pronounced.
At the island, Brian caught another smallmouth and missed another hit on the ultralight in the rod holder. We headed back towards the shoreline we had followed down, Brian catching a yellow perch out over 22 feet of water on a Big O-type crankbait. Slowly making our way back, Brian missed another hit on that ultralight in that rod holder, caught another smallmouth about 10 inches long, and then, over that shallow flat but in closer to shore where it's only three or four feet deep, caught the trout on that jointed Rapala. Right when I was about to switch to the Phoebe.
Forty-nine degrees when we got off the reservoir. Wading up to my knees in bare feet, the water felt warm. Got the shivers but not the shakes like last week, because today I wore merino wool long John's and an upper body base layer. I also put on layers of wool shirts and put shoes on after I had got in the boat. Brian was dressed warm, too.
