WHO I FISHED WITH:
This morning, Thursday, April 4, I fished with first time guests, Matt Harper, and Joe Souza.



Matt is a builder in the north Austin area, whose employees thought enough of him to purchase a fishing gift certificate for him to enjoy. With his wife unavailable on the date he had reserved, Matt invited his friend, Joe, who runs a machine shop in the Georgetown area and another in the Temple area.



Here is how the fishing went…





My next open dates are: 12 & 16 April, and 03 May (AMs)






PHOTO CAPTION: Matt Harper (L) and Joe Souza first got to know one another through their church in Georgetown. The men really worked their slabs today under bright, low-wind conditions to land 58 fish.

WHERE WE FISHED: Lake Belton

WHEN WE FISHED: Wednesday, 04 April 2024 (AM)

HOW WE FISHED:

We had yet another morning right at 45°F before sunrise. This morning winds were light and from the west at sunrise, thus there was not as much of a chilly bite in the air as we had yesterday morning. With decreased wind velocity, fish interest was also decreased as compared to yesterday.



Still, we enjoyed a low-light bite in the first hour following sunrise, after which things got a bit tougher as the winds went slack prior to shifting out of the southeast on the lead edge of a warm-up.



We struggled a bit both finding and catching fish during this calm, but, as soon as the slightest ripple began from the southeast, the fish turned on and kept getting more aggressive right up until the winds peaked around 10:30 AM. During this time I hit two distinct areas several hundred yards apart and in similar terrain in about 30 feet of water.



I thoroughly coached Matt and Joe on using the white, 5/8 ounce, Bladed Hazy Eye Slabs they were using with a slow-smoking tactic in conjunction with Garmin LiveScope. The harder the wind blew, the faster the fish moved horizontally, the more willing they were to chase vertically, and the higher they would suspend off of the bottom. It is really amazing how white bass activity coincides with wind velocity.



These three areas I described gave up all of the 58 fish, Joe and Matt would catch this morning. That catch included 4 freshwater drum, 1 hybrid, striped bass, and 53 white bass.



100% of today’s catch was made on the white, 5/8 ounce Bladed Hazy Eye Slab used with a slow-smoking tactic.



Find the MAL Original and the 3/4-ounce Bladed Hazy Eye Slab at the Liberty Mart on Adams Ave. uphill from Temple Lake Park, or here: https://whitebasstools.com/



TALLY: 58 fish caught and released



OBSERVATIONS: The first flocks of laughing gulls have begun to arrive on Lake Belton. Here is the water temperature profile for Lake Belton, measured before sunrise on April 3rd …

0 feet, 63.8F
5 feet, 63.8F
10 feet, 63.8F
15 feet, 63.8F
20 feet, 63.8F
25 feet, 63.8F
30 feet, 63.8F
35 feet, 63.8F
40 feet, 63.7F
45 feet, 62.9F
50 feet, 58.9F
WEATHER DATA:

Start Time: 7:20A

End Time: 11:45A

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 45F

Elevation: 11.46 feet low, 33 CFS flow

Water Surface Temp: 63.5F on the surface.

Wind Speed & Direction: W5 at trip’s start and for 90 minutes, then calm for 60 minutes, then shifting SSE then S at 2-7

Sky Condition: Cloudless blue skies

Moon Phase: Waning crescent moon at 25% illumination.

GT = 100

Wx SNAPSHOT:






AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:

Areas 1482, B0274G, B0275G
Bob Maindelle

Full-time, Professional Fishing Guide and Owner of Holding the Line Guide Service

Belton Lake Fishing Guide, Stillhouse Hollow Fishing Guide

254.368.7411 (call or text)

Website: www.HoldingTheLineGuideService.com

E-mail: Bob@HoldingTheLineGuideService.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/bobmaindelle

Twitter: www.twitter.com/bobmaindelle

Nice post and fish. Good job.

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