Tippecanoe River
We were on the Tippy several times in the last 7 days and have had increasingly good water conditions. The fishing has been average with some decent fish caught in the 16 to 14 inch range, good river fish. We have finally begun to catch some fish on poppers again and believe the clearing water as the reason why. We have seen several fish in the 18 to 19 inch range and that is making it more interesting than a week ago. We have floated the lower section of the river from 18 to River Junction 2 of the last 3 days. That section remains a little warmer after releases from the dam. If the river is raised from 350 to say 1500 cfs the lower river is usually a better bet. We saw an increase in flow over the last 3 weeks and the lower river will produce a little better in that situation. I personally believe it is by far the prettier section of the river with much fewer houses and much less pressure. My personal best Smallmouth of my life is still a fish from that section. In 1989 I caught a 22 ¾ inch fish that weighed well over 5 pounds. Now that has been some time ago but it still produces big fish and if you have not fished this section with us before I think you are missing out. It is a shorter run of 8.5 miles compared to the 10 miles below the dam to 18. I you would like to see some new water and have a chance at a big fish let us know and we can get you on the schedule. Give us a call at the store 317-733-3014 or email us at info@wildcatcreekoutfitters.com
Sugar Creek Report
I admittedly had a frustrating trip on Saturday. We had a couple of fish eat hoppers but it was pretty much dead. In frustration I went back that evening and fished on my own determined to wipe the earlier experience off the books. I failed miserably! Man what in the world was I doing wrong. That evening I had a thought. Maybe I am fishing the wrong areas and fishing a little too quickly and maybe a little hopper dropper would be a good idea. So the next day I went on my own for a couple of hours and about 14 inches of 3x fluorocarbon on the back of my hopper and added an un-weighted Clouser crawdad. I extended that to about 24 inches later in some slightly deeper water. I also changed up the areas I was fishing and concentrating on edges and transitions, more running water and high points of rock piles. Finally success! In the areas where the water wasn’t running much I fought the temptation to move the fly. I hooked two big fish while doing this both on the hopper. The crawdad increased my hook ups and the fishing felt a little more normal.
Usually this time of the year terrestrial fishing is automatic and the most fun fishing of the year. I do know that there has been a heavy increase in many of the places I fish lately and I am seeing many more anglers on the water. Fishing pressure is an under realized fishing condition and taking it into account is very important. These fish have seen a lot of stuff come by them by this time of the year so fishing a little more finesse with an unweighted dropper is a good finesse technique. Don’t worry about it bouncing on the bottom. Just because fish are particular doesn’t mean that it has to be dragging on the bottom. A fly that sinks very slowly stays in the strike zone much longer. That is also why it is important not to move a terrestrial to much. I guarantee you that with the initial plop on the water a Smallmouth will see your fly. Just give that fish some time to work up the nerve to eat it. Fishing at a pace is crucial and if you are aggressive by nature like I am then slow down. The only way I know how to do this is to literally slow down everything I do. I cover less ground I tie my knots slower, I try and slow my heart rate a little. This is what I did on Sunday and Monday while fishing on my own. I am glad I did it; it kind of reminded me to fish at a pace that matches the fish’s attitude.
Sugar Creek Poaching
On a wade trip I did on Saturday morning I encountered a bag with a couple of dead Smallmouth in it. My friend John Gosnell who lives there on the creek had found it in the creek and encountered two guys who were poaching these fish. He collected the bag for the DNR and gave a call to the C.O. The C.O. showed up with a Montgomery County Sheriff Deputy. This gives you some idea of how seriously they are taking this 20 inch size limit on the creek. This is a heartening thing for me; after years of watching people kill Smallmouth on the creek to see this protected as it is now is a thrill. I don’t know the rest of the story. The poachers I am sure got out as quickly as possible. It probably will be tough to go back and catch them but at least we know the DNR is doing everything they can to protect this wonderful fishery.
I think it is time to start another Smallmouth special regulation drum beat. I have fished the Tippecanoe River since I was 16. My dad and I would float it on many Saturdays in each season. Even though Sugar Creek was 10 minutes away it was nice to get away to fish some place else. I learned a lot about the Tippy and have always loved it and feel a similar affection to it as I do Sugar Creek. It is also the river, historically, that sees a lot of Smallmouth consumption annually. My evidence has always been antidotal but seeing stringers of fish in the 80’s and 90’s always made me wonder how great the Tippy could be if given the chance. I know the catch and release philosophy has benefited the Tippy and other Indiana rivers. The problem is that I still see fish killed too often on the Tippy. Yea I know the fishing is good so why am I concerned. Well the difference in Sugar Creek and the Tippy is volume. Sugar has a ceiling and can only produce so many trophy size fish. The Tippy has a much higher ceiling and has the potential to rate with such rivers at the St. Croix and Menominee Rivers. The Tippy is a huge river with a giant food supply and the Smallmouth need a chance to get to their full potential as does fishing for them.
I saw 4 young college age guys last night above the 18 bridge spin fishing and every one of them had a fish basket. I talked to two of them and one said he had a couple of Smallmouth in the basket. They also told me it is not the first time they had been there. I gave them a warning about legal size but could do nothing about the fish they had in the basket. Now let me say if their fish were legal they were within their rights to posses a legal limit so brow beating them and treating them poorly would have been wrong. They have done nothing wrong under the law; they just need a little education like we all did.
With the help of people like Rick Cochrum and the willingness of the DNR, we have turned the tide in our favor. Our wish to see our fisheries managed for quality has been granted in more than one situation. It is now time we tackle the river with the greatest potential of all. Sugar Creek is wonderful and is the states best river Smallmouth fishery but the Tippy is potentially on another level. If you are interested in helping us in getting something going for the Tippy and introduce special regulation, whatever they may be, email us back and give us your name phone number address and comments. We will then collect names and add them to a list meant to work on special regulations for the Tippecanoe River. Mind you we are not biologists and we are not going to ask for things we do not understand. We are just proposing that the state manage the Tippecanoe River for quality fishing and the best way to do that is going to be for the biologist to decide. Email us at info@wildcatcreekoutfitters.com or at chad@wildcatcreekoutfitters.com put in your email comments as well it would be much appreciated.
