August if finally hear and we are heading down the back stretch of summer. Don’t look for the Texas heat to leave us anytime soon. Although the fishing can be slow some days in August, it too like the weather can also be hot! You may find a pile of big heavy jig fish in the grass or it may be a huge school of bass busting all around you in the middle of the day. August is a month that an angler better be ready to take advantage of an opportunity when it shows itself, or risk the chance of a bad day fishing. It will still be hot in August. Anywhere from 95 -105 degrees. You expect almost no wind while your out there, this will make it feel hotter. Now that the lake is falling do to summer draw down and evaporation, the grass will be matting up on the surface which will cause gnats to hatch and you can expect clouds of “grass gnats” to be swarming around your face while your fishing. You will have to focus on each cast and make the best of it until that big fish bites. Pitching heavy 1oz. jigs with craw worm trailers is the # 1. tournament winning pattern in the summer months on Rayburn. 50 – 80LB braided line or 30LB mono is the norm when pitching these baits. A stiff rod and high quality reel is a must. Take a 1oz. Stanley jig in Blk/Blu , Pumk/Grn, and Camo are all top color choices. Cam o seemed to be the best color last month and should remain good in August. Matching these jigs with a Blk/Blu, Pumk/Grn (with green pinchers), and a TX smoke craw with the Camo. Learning the fish the grass takes time but once an angler puts in the time it will eventually all pay off. Hawg craw, Road Kills, Stanley Tuba Tube, and 10” or 11” worms are some of the best soft plastics to pitch into the grass. There are times when the soft plastics will out fish the jig and they will also get more bites from smaller fish. These baits are also good choices for the beginner to start learning to fish the grass with. They are easier to fish, the fish will hold them longer and you don’t have to set the hook as hard. Use a 1/2oz. bullet weight that is pegged on the head of your bait. Use the same line you use for the jig and you don’t need as stiff of a rod when using a soft plastic. I like a 7 1/2ft. flipping stick when pitching soft plastics. I also like to use Daiwa reels with the flipping switch feature so I can set the hook on a suspended fish with out having to engage my reel. Other baits to have in the boat in august are Rat-L-Traps, wacky worms, chugbugs and Pop-Rs, 7” worms and big crankbaits. Keep that Rat-L-Trap (chrome/blue back) near by so when they come up feeding you can quickly fire it into the feed frenzy. You can also throw a topwater bait such as a baby chugbug or Pop-R into these schooling bass. The bass just started schooling around the 3rd week in July so they should be picking this month. These same baits can be used around the grass beds early and late in the day. Wacky worms can be fished all day long over or on the edges of the grass beds. Use a straight tailed worms in Redbug, plum, greenpumpkin, or watermelon on a straight shank 3/0 mustad hook. This is a good numbers bait but it will also land some monsters. Some days you may need to throw a TX rigged worm in the grass, good colors are watermelon/blue and red bug. If your after big fish and you don’t like to pitch jigs then a big crankbait may be your best bet. By using a DD22, Risto Rap, or Bandit 600 series you can crank that deep grass edge, the timber, creek or river bends. Make sure you have good hooks on your baits when fishing these lures. A big bass can quickly throw a heavy crankbait and break your heart at the same time. Because of the heat many fishermen and bass don’t come out until the sun goes down. There are some huge fish caught fishing at night and it is usually very relaxing out there after dark. TX rigged worms, black spinnerbaits, and topwater baits are the best choices. Be sure to be careful when fishing at night. If crappie is what your after then don’t let the heat scare you off. The crappie will be on the deep brush piles or the HWY 147 bridge pilings. These fish will be holding in 20 – 30ft deep. Minnows and jigs are the primary baits. I had some clients last month catch the biggest stringer of crappie since I have been guiding, 50 fish most all ranging from 1 1/2 LBS up to a little over 2 LBS. Let me assure you that these are big fish for the summer. So don’t let the heat keep you from having a good trip. If you would like to book a fishing trip this summer please give me a call or email me. I will be running a special on 4 hour crappie trips in the month of August, $100 for 1 or 2 people. (Mon. – Fri.) Enjoy the summer fishing and remember to be safe. Good Luck! If your in the market for a new boat please go by Terry’s Marine in Nacogdoches. He has several new models of Ranger Bass Boats on hand. You can call me to take a demo ride in a Ranger 518VX. Terry is also a full sales & service dealer for OMC outboards. Shane Allman is a full time guide on Lakes Sam Rayburn and Toledo Bend as well as a full time touring professional on the FLW and EverStart Tournament Trails. You can book a trip with Shane by calling (409)698-2227 or emailing him at allman@jas.net .

Water Temp: 88