Reports

7/30 PM out of Myers: Launched the boat around 3:30 pm out of Myers. I was going to scout out some bass areas. Somehow I keep thinking I can push myself on my days off and after trips and keep learning new things. I can, but it’s very tiring and difficult at times.

The weather forecasts over the past week have been awful in their lack of accuracy. N.O.A.H. called for south winds around 7 mph – perfect for drifting and covering shoreline, as well as moving out weedmats. But instead it was sunny and windless. Add in the brutal “pre-storm” humidity and shards of weeds all over the surface of the lake and it makes for a real grind.

One thing I can’t stand about summer boating is repeatedly being flagged down by boaters who want a free tow. I’m happy to help out with a jumpstart. But with towing, it may seem callous, but I find it insane that people who 1.) do very little if any maintenance on their boat and 2.) run around with zero clue re: their fuel level, always expect those around them to stop whatever they are doing and tow them 1 to 3 miles (or more) to their cottage or dock. If you’re lucky they’ll throw you $5 or $10. Yes, if someone’s life is in danger there’s certainly an obligation to help out. And I’m happy to make a phone call or even run a person to a dock, but my boat isn’t a towing vessel. A professional tow by a marina can run people into the hundreds of dollars. I carry towing insurance on my vessel. There’s always the Sheriff and Coast Guard too. When I took my Captain’s license course, our instructor told us that recreational volunteer towing beats the heck out of an outboard and in some instances can be downright dangerous.

But it’s funny. If my car breaks down on the road I wouldn’t expect another motorist to hook up chains to my vehicle and drive me to a garage or my house. We call professionals. Boating just hasn’t caught up yet. But sure enough I get flagged down by a guy about 80′ from the shore who wants me to run him back to his cottage. Sorry but I’m happy to do anything but tow you.

By the time I got to the areas I wanted to bass fish it was 4:30 pm. The bassin’ was a grind over the 3 hours I fished. I finally managed a decent largemouth on a Senko. That was it apart from the panfish. But the bite has been stubborn over the past few days and not starting early in the AM is always a drawback.

7/31 AM out of Taughannock: Guided Joe and his 8 year old son William for lakers. I met Joe at a concert a couple years ago and gave him my card. He’d told me his son loved to fish and Joe wanted to expose him to some different opportunities.

Conditions weren’t looking too easy. I liked the fact that sun was in the forecast, but the south winds around 12 to 16 mph I didn’t need. (Yes, we finally did get our forecast southerlies from yesterday.) I did the best I could and got the guys out to a productive depth near AES. Joe landed the first fish, a 29″ laker. Then William hooked one that he needed a little help with! It was a 30″ laker! A couple more were landed before we headed in. William hooked and nearly landed one all by himself. It got off as I was trying to net it (guide error.) The bite was hot but it was tough feeling the bottom and trying to keep everything in order. As is usually the case in the late summer, fish are showing up close to the park now. Rough day out there in terms of whitecaps by 11 am.

bass cayuga lake