Today I had a great group of clients that were here on Lake Travis for a corporate retreat. Since they were staying up river we fished the Pace Bend area of the lake for most of the day. If you fish Travis at all you know it fishes very differently from the lower end of the lake.
I fish all over the lake, but its always is a treat to fish up river... there is a lot more brush and shallow cover, and fishes more like a lake in my opinion. The lower end of the lake feels more like fishing a river system to me.
I had a group of three clients today of varied skill levels, so my priority was putting them on spots that everyone could effectively present a bait and have a chance of catching fish. Lately the topwater bite has been good, but today the weren't hitting it. I'm sure if we stuck with it we could have stuck a few, but why be stubborn when you can catch them on soft plastics. Sometimes you can't make them eat what you want to throw... this goes back to my firm belief in don't fish spots, fish patterns. Let the fish tell you what they want, after all, that's the beauty of bass fishing. Every day is different and its a constant evolving puzzle to figure out.
The hot baits of the trips were Texas rigged senkos, drop shots, spinnerbaits, and swim jigs. Fish are still out deep, but with this cooler weather and increased water levels from recent rains, some fish are moving up shallow. We had quite a few fish come out of 5 feet of water or less.
The treat for the day was in the last hour of the trip. Christian caught his personal best! We didn't get a weight on her, but she was a solid fish and put up a great fight! He caught her on a dropshot and barely had her hooked! He did a great job of fighting her to the boat, putting the rod top under water to prevent her from jumping and shaking the hook, and brought her right to the net!
If you are in Austin and are looking for a fishing guide, give me a call. Lake Travis is fishing very well right now and should only get better as we get into fall. I have also been out on Lake Bastrop and Lake LBJ and they are also producing solid fish! Book online or give me a call and lets get you out on the water!
Tight Lines!