Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Greetings from Richmond Mills!!!

Young of the year "small" in regards to this thread.

http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Main=26505&Number=339135#Post339135

I hope that I am not sticking my 2 cents worth into the wrong place, but that high waterflow is the "genius" of the Lusk feeding plan. Years ago, I believe they tried fertilizing that very low productivity water, and the water exchange rate is so high that there was not enough residence time for fertilizer in the water, and the nutrients would not get into the food web to increase it. So, Bob now puts the nutrients directly into the fish by feeding, and as you can see, the sizes, growth, and condition on bass and bluegill are way up as a result.

Yes Dave plus without much higher alkalinity the fertilizer would not absorb (work to create a bloom). With that much flow adding enough ag lime to do the job would be prohibitive. Those two limiting factors made the feeding option as the only effective method to grow bigger and more fish. The base of the food chain is mostly pellets (and some plankton but not a high % ).

From what I heard, the flow is 7,000 to 10,000 GPM.

They need to add a hydroelectric system to that lake and put that water to use!!

What a place!

To me, there was nothing normal about fishing this lake. My "deadly" tactics were useless.

To catch the bluegill, you had to cast within a few inches of the shoreline or grass beds using the rig Sunil mentioned above. More than a foot away would not produce anything. In about 60 years of bluegill fishing, moving the rig when you see or feel a bump on the bait, just a very small amount of movement almost always results in hooking into a fish. The bluegill at RM were like cats -- they were going to deal with us on their own terms and conditions. A moved bait, where they had to move a few inches to get it, was a no-no.

I did not see the bass and bluegill intermingling. Whether in my ponds, or in public waters, it seems that the bass and bluegill are usually in close proximity to each other. Not here.

There are monstrous crappie in this lake. I tried multiple types of small tubes and jigs that are usually extremely effective against bluegill and crappie when bounced off the bottom in most places I fish. I got a few crappie, and what they call "flyers." The flyers are some strange looking fish that look like a "photoshopped" fish made from a crappie, a rock bass, and some other sunfish.

As I believe I posted above, I found that the most effective bait for the big bluegill was a Stubby Steve's pellet, then an added live cricket, on a #4 long shank hook. As described by Sunil, the hook was about 18 inches below a float, with a sinker or two in between. Nothing like I'd ever use locally.

The comments by SparkPlug about the size and shape was another topic of discussion. Dave Davidson and Fireishot (Al) were fishing together. They each caught bass that were the same weight, but their lengths were very significantly different. I'm guessing Dave and Al are still traveling, but maybe when they get back they can tell us a little more about that.

Randy caught a chain pickerel that was the largest I'd ever seen. I don't particularly care for pickerel, having grown up catching their much larger cousins, the northern pike and musky. To me, pickerel are usually a lot like snakes. But, this pickerel was longer than most, and very thick and meaty. After being filleted by Bruce, I fried it a couple of different ways. It was very meaty and delicious.

The other thing that struck EWEST and me, after spending about 16 hours together on the water over two days, was the total lack of seeing any baitfish. I don't remember what he caught, but I think I only caught two small bass. Both about 10 inches with a Wr of about 1. All the rest of the bass were very large and fat. Same with the bluegill. I caught a large number of bluegill between 1 and 2 lbs. I only caught a few bluegill that were in the 6-8 inch range, and nothing smaller.

I wouldn't say it is a challenging place to fish. It is a unique place to fish.

Whatever it was, it sure was a lot of fun. With about only 10 minutes left of fishing on the second day, it was a far worse feeling that opening the last present under the Christmas tree.

Good summary Ken. I don't know why, but I caught 12 BCP while BG fishing over two days...totally unexpected. They ranged from 9-12" - seemed in good body condition, must be hammering zooplantkton and other invertabrates like grass shrimp and dragonfly/mayfly/caddis nymphs as I didn't see any evidence of a resident baitfish to keep them fed.

Yep, that kinda flow should produce a few watts!

Heard about this place here and it was mostly Condello catching dinner plates. New info in this thread, and I can see why it works!

+1 Bob!

Early on the first day, I retrieved my cricket rig and had a 1.5" bluegill semi-foul hooked on the line. The guide was surprised.

My guide did mention that there were a lot of grass shrimp and other tastees living in the grass clumps.

Now that the trip is over, how about those water moccasins?

Well, now I'm even more determined to somehow, someday, fish this BOW. A rig consisting of a hook, swung 18" beneath a float, with split shot between the two....and a cricket for bait? To me, this sounds like the all-time classic BG setup. I would expect to find that this method has probably accounted for more BG over the years than all other techniques combined, countrywide.

Another thought....we've had the discussion before about fed fish being hard to catch fish, or at least extremely particular fish. Many have reported not experiencing this phenomenon, while myself and some others are convinced otherwise. I know I see similarities in our HBG pond when compared to RM, particularly in the fact that natural forage is apparently very limited. I know that many here feed in a supplemental manner, striving for more of a balanced scenario....is it possible however, in a situation where pellets make up the bulk of the diet, with little to no natural forage available, coupled with a heavy policy of catch-and-release, that it might result in the situation presented here, where the fish are extremely particular in what they want to see, and how it's presented? Speaking in regards to BG mostly?

I can't help but feel that this sounds like my kind of water, and my kind of BG.....I see similar behavior from my own fish nearly everyday.

Sparkie, you'd think you'd died and gone to heaven.
[Or maybe not, but you know what I mean.]

I'm finally back in the hood, and Dave is on his way to pick up the grand kids. We successfully drove almost 2,700 miles over the last week, and it was absolutely worth it. Dave not once pulled out a gun, and I avoided serious jail time so that made the trip even better.

Dave has the native/feed trained LMB pics, but the difference was incredible. First time I had ever even seen a feed trained LMB, and the new larger Stubby Steve's came through like a champ. Several times, I waited til the feeder threw, then launched the SS's straight up in the air, and let it splash. The fight was on almost immediately.

I may forget to say this again, but B Lusk did good. RM's is unlike any other BOW I have ever fished, and the water flow limitations made this a science project at best. This project was definitely a success. I never ever thought I would say "This BG is only a 1 1/4 lbs". Strong work Boss!

I'd like to add one more thing. Any time an opportunity comes up to attend a Pond Boss get together like esshup (Scott) has coming up, don't miss it. The fellowship made this trip successful and fun for all. Putting faces to names makes virtual friends real, and memories last forever.

Like Esshup mentioned, I too would be interested in hearing how the fish are kept in balance.

Same here Al. I caught a 4 lb LMB and the guide said, "want a picture" and I said "naw, I got a picture of that 5 pounder". Never, ever dreamed that I would utter that phrase.
The trip was great! I have to say that I fished the last session with Bruce, and that is an experience! Basically, Bruce was the guide, and our guide baited my hook. Bruce would not even fish until he had put me on about 8-10 1.25- 1.75 BG (all exceeded my PB).
Our guide was great and open to Bruce's help. He even said that the guides all try to make sure that they get to go with Bruce at least one session. After Bruce could see that I was satisfied, he lead us to a spot where we caught at least 35 LMB between 3-5 lbs.
The fishing, food and friends made this a trip I'll never forget!!!

I hung one LMB that started stripping line off a spinning reel. I never turned it and it broke off. No idea how big but I figure it was a very impressive fish.

I caught several bass in the 4-6 lb. range on the live cricket rig.

What does a LMB who just ate several golf-sized balls of super high protein pellet food need to eat a basic cricket for?

Dessert?

Look for more in the next issue of PB mag.

I will guarantee you that have never seen a lake like RM. It is an absolute enigma. Lots of big fish which you can catch but never figure out. It proves that balance in a fishery is like balancing on a knife's edge in an unstable state between 2 opposite stable states that you try to avoid. RM has lots of big fish in an unbalanced state.

If you get the chance to go to a PB event go - you will never forget the friends you make. Same for RM , Stubby Steve's , TTI Blakemore and Pond Boss -- help support them as they made this trip possible.

This place is the Jurassic Park of Big Bass and Bluegill. It is a freak of nature.

Really, if you would tell someone that you could grow bass and bluegill this size without being able to fertilize and there is 10,000 gpm leaving the lake and, by the way, the pH is below 6, and ... you get the idea? But it works. And the fish are still hungry enough to smack a variety of baits before during and in between feeder times.

Lessons learned here can be applied to each of our bodies of water too. This is one of the things I learned this week. Every body of water is so different for each one of us. Climate, soils, vegetation, water quality and supply, etc. Then we add our own personal goals into the mix which creates many more variables to consider. But the more you learn the more you can apply to your situation. And the more results you get and share is what I call the Pond Boss Forum.

So I got to meet a bunch of this Pond Boss family at Richmond Mill. Everyone probably already knows this, but the PB family has some quality people. They never stopped asking about my pond and providing great feedback. We talked families, we talked business, and we talked fish.

I have to be honest, I am not a great fisherman. I just don't get to do it enough. The guides still were able to put me on fish, were more than happy to tie on new lures or to try another bait, provided some guidance, etc. I was lucky to have two guides with a great sense of humor. Randy and I were laughing along with the guide at one point the boat was rocking. Anyway, it was all fun and games until my first strike on a Stubby Steve crawfish bouncing off the bottom. It literally almost ripped the rod from my hands. Needless to say I lost that fish but gained an immediate appreciation for what we were dealing with in this lake. Big Bass and Big Bluegill. My personal best of both were caught on this trip by the way.

Thanks to the staff there and to the Pond Boss group. A time to remember.

Whoever has the pics of Al's big LMB caught on a big Stubby Steve's pellet please post them !

What is the record LMB for that lake?

Is it catch and release only?

I want to say the record LMB is around the 8lb. range, but that fish may only be 3 or 4 years old. That all needs confirmed.

We were told we could keep all crappie, chain pikerel, and yellow perch that we caught.

As a bonus, Lusk wanted to dissect a few bluegill to see what was going on, so we were able to keep 5-8 per boat or so, but that was a special case.

Generally, for LMB and BG, it is strict C&R.

I want to fry up those BG in the worst way.

We fried them up in the best way. But, I'm sure they'd even be good when fried up in the worst way!