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Post by genesis273 on May 12, 2023 10:12:28 GMT -5
A friend of mine is trying to get into more bass tournaments. He asked me to go with him to the Tony Bennett Bass Bash down on Patoka Lake tomorrow. I assured him that I'm not a great angler and if he really wanting to win or rank high he should call someone else. But, if he's just looking for someone to go along and have fun then I'm all in. Lol!
I booked us a VRBO place just outside of Birdseye for tonight. It's a little over a 4 hour drive and I don't want to do that tomorrow morning.
I'm leaving work at 11 and he's picking me up around 12:30 or 1 to head down there.
We've neither one fished Patoka Lake before so this will be a new experience for us both.
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Post by genesis273 on May 12, 2023 10:20:44 GMT -5
Looking at the weather down there for tomorrow, looks a little stormy. What is the usual rules on that for a tournament? Fish at your own risk? Reschedule the tournament?
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Post by featherduster on May 12, 2023 10:49:48 GMT -5
Trust me you guys will have your heads handed to you on a platter.
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Post by genesis273 on May 12, 2023 10:51:18 GMT -5
Trust me you guys will have your heads handed to you on a platter. Ok, I guess I don't know what that means. Lol! We have zero expectations on winning this thing. Just looking for a fun experience. |
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Post by whitetaildave24 on May 12, 2023 11:24:57 GMT -5
I’d say just take your rain gear, go down there, and have some fun. You’ll learn a little about the lake and how to fish it and come back with more experience than you started. As long as it’s not a big lightning storm the tournament will go on. If you want to really blow your expectations out of the water just join the newest trend and shove a bunch of weights down any keepers you catch! Only kidding. Have fun with it.
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Post by genesis273 on May 12, 2023 12:24:36 GMT -5
I’d say just take your rain gear, go down there, and have some fun. You’ll learn a little about the lake and how to fish it and come back with more experience than you started. As long as it’s not a big lightning storm the tournament will go on. If you want to really blow your expectations out of the water just join the newest trend and shove a bunch of weights down any keepers you catch! Only kidding. Have fun with it. Rain gear is packed and I have a change of clothes for afterwards. Really looking forward to fishing a new spot and the new experience! My only expectation is be stress free. I hear Patoka can be tough to fish. That's coming from the locals.....up here....4 hours north...lol! My biggest concern is finding a good place to eat when we get down there this afternoon. Lol! |
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Post by featherduster on May 12, 2023 13:03:30 GMT -5
French Lick has some good food joints as well as Jasper.
Some of the guys that are going to be bass fishing during the tournament fish that lake all the time.
The traffic through INDY will be bad it always is and the INDY cars will be practicing this weekend.
If your just fun fishing I would concentrate on BLUEGILLS they have a great population of them.
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Post by treetop on May 12, 2023 14:25:27 GMT -5
I was a back up guy many years ago for sort of a buddy that works at one of our suppliers I consider myself to be somewhat good at fishing believe me you
I got it handed to me every time. Ronnie would get us on fish he’d be catching them I just got a suntan most days
I did win biggest fish once think I won around 250 bucks it was a side bet believe it was 10 bucks to get in.
A lot of them are gone now the DNR got involved you now have to get permits to hold them all kinds of rules and regulations
When I went you showed up payed your money got your number and unloaded your boat and waited till start time and had to be back at weight in time
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Post by genesis273 on May 12, 2023 17:39:50 GMT -5
Easy trip down. Headed into Benny's for dinner.
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Post by beermaker on May 12, 2023 17:56:57 GMT -5
I suggest forgetting about the tournament and heading to West Boggs. I have lived in reasonable proximity of Patoka my entire life and have never known it to be good for anything other than pleasure boating. My retired buddies in Jasper go to Boggs day after day.
If you are in Birdseye (not said too often), take a 25 minute drive to Huntingburg and get a Gaslight pizza. Well, maybe not if you will be on the water all the next day!
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Post by gumbootbill on May 12, 2023 18:42:49 GMT -5
Good luck tomorrow.
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Post by genesis273 on May 13, 2023 4:05:40 GMT -5
Boat is in the water and ready to roll! Beautiful morning!
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Post by greghopper on May 13, 2023 4:14:25 GMT -5
Boat is in the water and ready to roll! Beautiful morning! How many boats are there ? |
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Post by genesis273 on May 13, 2023 4:32:51 GMT -5
Boat is in the water and ready to roll! Beautiful morning! How many boats are there ? 30 boats signed up. We're boat #8. We were the second boat in the water. We timed it perfectly I think. Once we got inspected, launched and tied off, several others started arriving. |
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Post by treetop on May 13, 2023 5:25:53 GMT -5
Just a FYI they are on to the lead weights trick
Good luck buddy
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Post by genesis273 on May 13, 2023 13:57:20 GMT -5
Wow! We got our tails strapped! Two crappie for the day is it. We had a great time though!
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Post by genesis273 on May 13, 2023 14:07:47 GMT -5
Total of 44 boats with about 88 (a couple single man boats) and only 4 bass checked in. I guess I don't feel so bad now. Lol!
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Post by esshup on May 13, 2023 21:36:01 GMT -5
WOW. Did you fish the shallows? The bass should be bedding now.
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Post by beermaker on May 14, 2023 7:29:01 GMT -5
Total of 44 boats with about 88 (a couple single man boats) and only 4 bass checked in. I guess I don't feel so bad now. Lol! Refer to my previous comment. A work friend bass fishes competitively all over the mid-west and south. He always says that Patoka is good for nothing but testing out his boat before the season starts. I don't know if it's lack of good habitat or maybe bad management. It seems like tiger muskey were stocked a few years ago. Perhaps that caused even more trouble. |
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Post by genesis273 on May 14, 2023 8:43:27 GMT -5
WOW. Did you fish the shallows? The bass should be bedding now. We checked out shallows all over the Lake. We didn't find one bass on a bed anywhere. One of the local anglers (he was helping with the event) told us the bass had left their beds a little over a week ago. The common theme from everyone we spoke to at the lake, gas station and Benny's, was that the bass fishing was extremely tough there and especially for those who aren't familiar with the lake. |
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