Doug Wynn

Hey Y’all from the Excel 230 Elite.

I’ve kinda took a break from guiding and reports but have not been idle. The spring guiding was hectic and barely gave me a chance to rest up. Vicki and I took a few days to travel to Dale Hollow Lake. It was a wonderful chance to see a part of the state I’ve seen little of and to fish a lake that has been on my bucket list.

After two days of unreal boat traffic and sparse catches, I was ready to wear the bucket on my head. The only place I’ve ever encountered a similar amount of boat traffic was on Lake Lanier in Georgia in my bass tournament days, and that was well before the advent of wakeboard boats, tritoons, and jet skis.

The scenery around Dale Hollow was beautiful and we did take one morning to try our luck for Rainbow trout in 145 feet of water by the dam. Crappie tackle and tactics don’t translate well to trout. We did manage to hook 5 and saw 3 of those but wild jumps ended the hookups. No crappie came over the gunnels but I did get Vicki some crankbait action in a school of hybrids. We will fish Dale Hollow again but It will be between Labor Day and Memorial Day.

One thing we did take advantage of was a floating restaurant call Mike’s Landing at Sulfur Creek. The food was fantastic and being able to eat 20 yards from the boat was so convenient. Several marinas there had the same set-up. I would love to see something similar on Ky and Barkley lakes.

Three good friends (I’ll call Cuz Rickie a friend) and I traveled to Grenada Lake in Mississippi for the PTG Crankin Classic tourney. 60+ boats fished in tough conditions. We practice two days then fished on Saturday. I went with a pattern I wanted to try and it worked like a charm in practice.

Tournament day saw an unpredicted amount of wind that made fishing in our chosen area a rough experience. We were set up to pull Pico crankbaits behind Off Shore Tackle planer boards. I know now it can be done in 3 foot waves but not comfortably. We placed 8th and won our gas money for the trip. Three good friends of mine won the event. Two of them had fished this event with me the last two years. I guess they had a better guide this year.

Vicki and I are in home remodel mode right now. Our 30 year old decorations and fixtures are being replaced. Flooring of carpet and linoleum is getting replaced by oak laminate. The first job was replacing a six foot double garden tub with a closet and the corner shower with a five foot step-in shower. You don’t think about such things in your thirties but sure do in your sixties!

This will be a great test of two things, all my joint replacements and our almost 50 year marriage. We hope to get the flooring done and our bedroom reorganized before we head to Grenada and Enid lakes (again) next week. Vicki has never experienced crankbait action on these lakes in mid summer. It can be exhausting.

I have been on the lake here and talked to friends who are fishing. Crappie have been scattered along drops in deeper water where baitballs are present. Covering lots of water with an eye on your electronics is key. The lake has started drawdown and the current generated is going to dictate where the bait and gamefish are located. Main lake drops as well as those at the mouth of bays will be my first stop.

Ninety-degree water means if you plan on keeping fish to eat, forget water in the livewell and carry a cooler full of ice to put your keepers on until you clean them. They clean much easier as well as taste better.

Be careful out there! Wear your PFDs when the big motor is above idle. Help those who need help. See you on the water once my sore knees heal after flooring.

Welcome to our slice of Heaven.