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Post by Deleted on Oct 27, 2015 13:36:15 GMT -5
Decided to head out at least one more time before putting the boat away for the season; got down there around 7:30 AM......temps around 37 degrees. Surprisingly I hit the water and the surface temp was still right around 57 or so. I decided on trying a shallow bite first and hit many areas along the shoreline. I ended up catching 5 small bass (10" average) within inches of the shoreline areas. The small bass were feeding and showing themselves as they chased forage at the edge of the water. It was easy pickings as soon as they made a little commotion. I didn't get them all; but I was happy with 5 for the day. I then headed out to deeper water and struck out; I had one hit in about 18 feet but missed him. I tried anywhere from 7' out to over 20' and nothing was biting. The wind started to kick up a bit and by 11:00 I had enough and decided I didn't wear enough layers to be out there any longer (I thought a t-shirt, sweatshirt and a very thick hoody would have done it)......wrong! Unless we get a drastic weather change I'm not sure if I'll be back out there this season or not. All-in-all a good year down there on the lake. I didn't catch anything huge there this year but I certainly caught enough bass to keep me very happy. To those of you that will still be out on that lake this season; best wishes and stay warm, haha!
Frogman
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Post by themadone on Oct 29, 2015 14:59:14 GMT -5
I was there that morning as well. The wind was nasty. Pulled a couple of small Bass right at the shore on twist tails. Rigged for Crappie by the dam and only found sunfish in 5-6 feet of water. Bite was very slow. I'll probably try a few more times before hanging up the rods for the winter.
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Post by wader105 on Oct 29, 2015 18:58:53 GMT -5
i went out today for about an hour and a half around 3:00ish. water was a tad murky from the wind was at least 20mph with much bigger gusts. wade fished the jetty and some of the nearby shoreline. no takers on the fire tiger today but i did get 2 on a top water pop-r. lost the first one approx a pound, but was able to land the second - just under 2 pounds. if that's my last trip this season, i'll winter a happy man. thanks to all with great info for my first (but not last!!!) season on chambers.
one more question for next season - is there some special reg no fishing the north end (from where to where?) at the beginning of the season?
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2015 7:12:07 GMT -5
"madone"; pretty sure I saw you down at the corner of the dam fishing; I was the one in the Jon Boat that came by you and sat at the Dam for a little while. That was the only calm water on the lake that I could find by that time. With next weeks forecast who knows; I might be able to get the boat out yet again. "wader105"; yes......the whole northern end of the lake (stumpfield) is closed off until early June for migratory birds (that's what I was told). It's a shame because I am thinking there could be some excellent Bass fishing back in the stumpfield early in the season. But there are plenty of other areas where the Bass hang out as well so it's not the end of the world.
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Post by wader105 on Oct 30, 2015 9:07:49 GMT -5
frogman - tx for the info about the "stump field" restricted area. since i'm still trying to get my bearings on the lake (wader-wise), the only access i see in that area is from Birdell. i presume the stump field is to the right and left of that access area??? do i also figure correctly that you are able to access/fish from the jetty? and what's the june date that you can fish from the stump field? are there signs? just trying to do the right thing here.
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Post by Harry Miles on Oct 30, 2015 9:58:22 GMT -5
The stump field opens the first day of bass season.
You can fish the rock wall as long as the water stays low, once its up to normal pool, I imagine it would be pretty risky to walk it since the water usually isn't very clear. But there is definitely shore access on either side of it for wading.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2015 14:49:56 GMT -5
As far as the stump field; if you are standing at the boat launch and look to the left (to the end of the lake), the very end of the lake, that is the stumpfield. There are literally a few hundred stumps in there. I always knew there were a lot but when they dropped the water level two years ago for repairs I was absolutely amazed at how many were actually out there. The lake is closed from that end out to about the first point (a pretty large area) and if I remember correctly they just have a few buoys in the water. This past season I actually saw a boat or two enter that area while it was restricted and was very surprised the rangers weren't out there to nab them. As far as the foundation (or jetty); that area is open during the Spring and can be fished any time. I see many people wading out onto the foundation when the lake is at full pool; it's really not very deep even at that time. But most folks fishing out on there carry a wading stick with them to feel the bottom in front of them. Once you get close the water drops off VERY quickly; that could certainly ruin a day of fishing by taking a step and dropping into 10 ft (or more) of water. If you choose to fish that area, always bring a wading stick and be safe.
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Post by themadone on Oct 30, 2015 15:18:51 GMT -5
"Frogman" That was me. I was wearing a tan vest and a blue skull cap. I think I saw you hang out and pull something off the dam.
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Post by wader105 on Oct 30, 2015 19:30:11 GMT -5
frogman et al excellent info on the stump area. if i look at the map (see link below), sounds like you're describing the whole #1 inset. also, not a bad thought about the walking stick on the jetty/foundation (not sure why you call it that - but interesting). i've been wading along most of the southern section (closest to the boat ramp) of the jetty and it does indeed drop off very quickly and very deep (= over my head). i've only been fishing the lake for about a month or so - how low would you say the lake is currently compared to what it will be in the spring? chesco.org/DocumentCenter/View/15053
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Post by themadone on Oct 30, 2015 20:42:53 GMT -5
Wader, that's a source of some minor debate. Some people say it's down 5-6 feet, I'd say more like three. I will admit that I'm new to the lake as of this past May, so their estimate may be closer to what you would see during peak runoff. My question is that if it's down so much then why does the jetty exist at all, as it would be swamped with less than an additional foot and firmly underwater after two. If it really does get another five feet than the only people who could use the jetty aren't wearing waders, they're wearing scuba gear.
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Post by wader105 on Oct 31, 2015 9:51:53 GMT -5
mad1 fer shure!!! 5-6 feet down would definitely put it over my head!!! right now the southern-most jetty is just breaking the surface and some spots are only 2-3 inches under water. i was trying to gauge the high water mark by looking at the shoreline changes for evidence of what had been underwater and what was usually out of water. i thought it looked like maybe down a foot but not more than two.
the jettys are an interesting config i've never seen before in a structured (man-built) lake, not that i've seen that many, but interesting and i do like it from a wader"s perspective, especially if you want to fly fish - it allows you to get far enough away from the shoreline to get a decent back cast for some distance on the cast instead of always roll casting. there seem to be 2 or maybe more jettys that form somewhat rectangles that provide some different depths within and adjacent to the rectangles - truly interesting!!! i can't wait for spring to explore that whole western shoreline more in detail.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 31, 2015 19:19:18 GMT -5
"madone"; yes; I actually pulled one small bass off the dam; it was about 10" long, haha! I have been fishing that lake for several years now; VERY regularly and I would say that last week the water level was down about 2-3 feet AT MOST! Several weeks ago it was down much further; maybe 4-5 feet because they were pulling water for the Coatesville Resevoir. It filled back up a little so again, down two to three feet max. As far as the jetty/foundation......before the lake was filled I was told that area was actually a foundation for an old house (and yard etc.) It serves no purpose for the lake (as a jetty); its just part of the land from before the lake was filled. I have seen many folks fishing off of the area all season long even at full pool without any issues whatsoever; but again.....just be careful. Even at full pool that part is shallow enough that I can barely get my 14' john boat into it. Also; you are correct with your map; pretty much all of section #1 is buoyed off for the Spring. As Harry had stated earlier it opens up when Bass season opens. I have asked numerous times as to why it's closed and I was told each time its for migratory birds. Kinda strange though that area is closed throughout the Bass spawn. I would love to be back in there in the Springtime before all of those weeds come in. I can just imagine the giant Bass laying back in there up against the stumps. And believe me; there are giant bass in there.....my personal best out of that lake is 6-1 and I have seen bass of equal size being caught by others. There are also very large pickerel in the lake (in excess of 25+"). There are also musky in the lake as well; I had one hooked last year and up to the boat for a good minute or better; I went to grab it with my boga grip and it freaked out and cut the line. I have seen others catch a musky or two out of there as well. My son and I conservatively calculated the one I had hooked at about 30". I have personally seen a musky caught out of there that was 27" and have heard stories on others being caught; all around that size. So to "madone" and "wader105"; stick with this lake; it's a great lake. It gets pretty busy sometimes throughout the summer days though. I have already left there by 9; 10; 11 am in the summer because it was so crowded. When it is crowded like that though you need to think outside the box; you need to be fishing a bait or lure that know one else is using. The beauty is though that many, many folks are down there throwing the same bait so it's not hard to throw something different. I had my "secret" bait down there this year and tore up on the Bass (most times); although I certainly had a few trips of very little bass as well.
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Post by wader105 on Nov 1, 2015 9:49:27 GMT -5
frogman - thanks for the additional info - really appreciate the sharing from you chambers-vets. each time i hear one of you guys refer to something below the surface, i go back to that vid posted by blunderbus59 in sept to see if i can relate what you're describing to what was there before the fill. that vid is so awesome for someone to have the foresight to film that is just outstanding. each time i fish chambers, i look back at that vid and am better able to relate to what was/is really underwater, like the area just to the right of the dam. unfortunately, i didn't see any old house/farm structure in the vid that you guys refer to as the "foundation". would love to see that if anyone has vid or pics of it. just a bit of a history buff, i guess. always good to know what has come before to appreciate better what you have now.
also, it's prob a very good thing that there's no access in that #1 area during spawning. this is such a small lake with lots of predator fish/fowl that it's good to let the bass have the best chance to spawn and replenish the lake. we need to do our part as well. any thoughts?
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Post by blunderbus on Nov 2, 2015 8:36:11 GMT -5
@ wader105 - I'm glad to hear that you are getting some use out of that video I did so many years ago. I'll echo the others and say that the lake has the potential to be excellent if managed correctly. I used to catch some really excellent smallmouth out of there in the early 2000's but their numbers have appeared to drop off dramatically. However the largemouth and crappie population seams to be doing very well.
Hoping we have a few more weeks of open water fishing before the ice sets in.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2015 12:53:58 GMT -5
With this weeks forecast we might just get another good day or two out on the lake blunderbus. I too would like to say thanks for the video you posted; that was good stuff. Is anyone catching any smallmouth out of the lake any more? I heard they used to be in there (and quite a few of them). As many fish as I have pulled out of that lake over the past 4-5 years I have only been lucky enough to hook one smallie; that was two years ago on a rock pile as the lake level was dropping for repairs. I can't say I target smallies on there at all; but if I knew there were still a few in there I would certainly give them at least a little bit of attention. I'd love to hear from everybody as to the smallie status of the lake? I love catching smallies but the closest place around us for smallie action is Blue Marsh and I typically don't fish that lake except a handful of times each season when my buddy wants to take his Bass Boat out.
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