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For the past month Tube Dude has been telling me that the perch bite would come on at Willard when the water temperature dropped below fifty degrees. I was out of town all of last week, but figured that the cold spell would bring the temperature below the desired 50 degrees. This morning, after church, I loaded my tube in the truck and drove out to the light pole. I hucked it over the dike and started fishing. Water temp was 48.5. In short order I caught my first perch (first one ever at Willard) and in the next three hours landed four more. All were between 13 and 16 inches and were caught in 18 feet of water. Perch were suspended at either twelve feet or some were at 7.5 feet. All were caught on a gulp minnow tipped with worm. When TD talks, I listen. Of course, if he'd have told me to take my fish basket with me, they'd have came home with me for dinner.
Larry
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Good looking Perch, Larry. I thought I saw a tube way out there near the west wall today. But then it kept blending in with the rocks, so I figured I was just seeing shadows............[unimpressed] You did better than I did today
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"OCD = Obsessive Catfish Disorder "
Or so it says on my license plate holder
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Very nice!
You have made me reconsider the big pond.
I thought the 12" I got when I saw you last was good. Now I have been deflated.
It would be kind of difficult to get the banana boat over the dike and too far getting out and back from the marina. But then again the north marina area worked.
RJ
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[#0000FF]What? You mean some of my blather actually works?
Glad you left them there for me to harvest later.
You up for a get together Wednesday?
[/#0000FF]
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Wednesday should be good. Anything changes, I'll let you know.
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Wouldn't be any fun hauling the banana boat back over the dike. I bought a smaller tube with backpack straps just for Willard. I'm still amazed I haven't broken a rod or an ankle this year, even with a smaller tube.
Larry
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Wow, a 16" perch is a monster, if you don't mind me asking, were you vertical jigging or fly fishing? Congrat Larry, on your first perch and likely biggest I have heard of anyone catching at Willard.[cool]
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Dragging gulp minnows until i'd see them on the sonar and then jigging a chartreuse gulp minnow tipped with a night crawler. I need to get some markers or an anchor to mark them when I find them. Kept drifting off and would have to hunt them again.
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Nice fish. I went to the bay yesterday but it was a little to breezy for me to try to float. must of slowed down or just not as bad at the corner. I was hopping to find some of them too.
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There's Always Time For One More Cast
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You might consider the South west corner for access. There is a gatted road on to the dike and a gravel beach not to far away. Worth checking it out.
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With the beach, it's less than half the rocks to deal with. Fishing was good a few weeks ago. Also, the road gets really rough when you go past the cornerest.
Larry
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