Skaneateles Lake 7/24 AM
Did a 1/2 day AM trip starting around 9 am. One of the pitfalls of guiding a lot is that sometimes I get tired and I don’t think as clearly as I should. This AM, I was convinced I had an issue with something on my motor when it wouldn’t turnover. But of course, when the motor doesn’t turn at all, it’s usually the kill-switch becoming unattached. Duhhhh! So we ended up launching 90 minutes later than I’d planned. That mistake won’t happen again.
I’ve guided David for at least 4 to 5 years on and off and he recently bought a place on Skaneateles Lake. He’s had some good fishing recently with minnows and I showed him around a bit and had him and his wife Beth work some different artificials. Fish seemed scattered and not terribly aggressive. We had one fish hit a Skitter Pop mid-AM in 5′ of water. Another bass came dropshotting in 38′ FOW. Others hit SuperFlukes and Tubes as well as dropshotting stickworms. Nothing much over 15″ today – mostly 11″ to 14″. The bite got better as the AM went on. Rockbass were thick in around 20′ to 25′ FOW.
The “Classic Boat Show” is happening on the lake this weekend. If you’re fishing there, be ready for a lot of traffic – both cars and boats in and around Skaneateles and on the lake. It’s also Harborfest at Oswego. That’s a huge event. This is pretty much the peak of summer. Hard to believe it’s all “downhill” from here.