The Popper Hatch

From the Middle of the Lake

Look closely and you will notice one important thing. The water is empty. Not of fish, but of fishermen. And 360 degrees around me the view was the same. There are plenty of bass, gills and pickerel to be had. And all willing to crash your well-placed popper. But it's virtually unfishable unless you "get in". I guess that scares folks off? And do you want to know what makes it even funnier?.....There is an Orvis Proshop less than 3 miles away on the same road. 

The Mule Deer Diver was once again the bug of the day.

The pond was a a place of constant rise forms. fish were looking up and feeding right up until dark.

I spent the entire evening stalking feeding fish. See a rise find a hole in the algae and lily pads, and "plop" your bug in it. Pause a few seconds, and give a short twitch. 

Between the algae and fish, I rotated 3 poppers. And lost one of them to a large pickerel that hit and snapped me off like a durned barracuda. A heckuva rush, but the score remained...Pickerel one.....Ralph Nuthin.

The last fish of the evening. 

The rise forms stopped with the setting sun as if a hatch had ended.  Between a dozen fat gills and twice that many bass, both the rod and the shoulder got a good workout tonight.