We had just crossed the Ohio River when the first Dogwoods caught our eyes. Fishermen like you and I often look to Mother Nature’s signs for guidance when deciding which species of fish to target at the various times of the year and when to best pursue our hunts. When the Dogwoods come into bloom is when the crappie move shallow in search of suitable bottom and cover for use to procreate their young. Spring here in the South has sprung. The clusters of white petals are gracing the tree branches and we are headed to Tennessee's Reelfoot Lake in search of a few slab specklesides. Al, the Ice-Master, Scout, and Jonniefishalot accompany me on this trip and each are well seasoned anglers who as well as myself, find thrills through the tugs and the yanks on our monofilament.

Reelfoot Lake is located in the uppermost Northwestern reaches of the state. The lake is known as a fish factory and supports some of the finest crappie fishing to be found anywhere in North America. Well I'm real glad of that let me tell ya! I'm anxious and ready for some of this "finest crappie fishin," stuff. The ice in the Northerly states has gone away and we four, four-season fishermen, are looking to get a head start on the early open water season. A few of the Reelfoot slabs should provide, for each of us, a thrill or three just fine.

I bring the Expedition to a halt in front of the Samburg Motel where from the doorway of the laundry, the owner and our host Dorothy, "Dot" Bunch greets the four of us with a warm, welcoming smile. Dot and her late husband George continued the operations of the motel which George’s mother Reggie and father Elmer started more than fifty years ago. The past is still clearly present here in Samburg where the local residents and business owners have managed to keep the historic structures from meeting the wrecking balls of so called "progress."

How many towns that you know of still have a "General Store?" Samburg does and it too is owned by Dot and her son Tim Bunch. The Bunch Grocery and General Store has all the staples one might need and serves well as the local watering hole. Whatever our needs, we could find it all here including and perhaps most importantly, the latest word on the bite-of-the-day. Our accommodations weren't of the fancy frilly type that interior designers dream up, no sir, they were simple and holding their own for their age and I have to add here, absolutely clean as a whistle. Why, ya know those crummy, thin white towels and wash cloths ya get at most inns and resorts? We didn't get em! The Bunch's supply their guests with the same type of towels that most of us use in our own homes. That's kinda nice I gotta say. Well, if you’re reading this, you are probably a fisherman and may not give a hoot about what color your towel comes in so maybe I aught to get on with the fishin part.

So let's get at it!

It was Thursday. We checked in at noon and by 2:30pm we four very anxious anglers were ready to hit the water. We would be using two boats, both supplied by the Samburg Motel, rather than using our own. The lake is a flooded forest which was naturally formed by an earthquake in the early 1800’s. Navigating the waters of this lake without hitting tree stumps is next to impossible, so caution is in order when operating any and all craft here whether it be our own or one of another's. Shallow bottomed Jon style boats are best suited for use here. A nasty spring cold front had settled into the area and strong winds were limiting access to most of the water. We managed to find fishable water though and spent the afternoon familiarizing ourselves with the boats, a small section of the lake and also the extra long crappie poles which had been supplied for our use by the B&M Rod Builders. (www.bnmrods.com) The bite of course was tough and we only managed a speck or two but the nice sized Reelfoot bluegills kept us a grinning.

Come Friday morning, we're all standing around bright and early outside the Bunch General Store, awaiting the arrival of some old windage who is gonna be our guide for the day. His name is...., um...., uh...., now what was that name again? Oh yeah, I remember now, Don Finch! The Don Finch will be guiding us today. They say Don Finch is some sorta legendary guide on this lake and has been guiding fisherman and waterfowl hunters since almost forever. Why, some believe Don Finch knows these waters so well that he can run this lake blindfolded without ever nicking a stump. I'll bet I could do that too after a hundred years or so of guiding. Well, soon enough this big ole red Dodge Ram comes pulling up towing just about the sweetest looking Wareagle Jon boat one ever did see. This boat has it all, including two electronically controlled 360 degree, swiveling eyeballs up front. I'm a thinking, that's how he runs this water without bumping those stumps. Those things aren't just headlights, they're something else as well, probably his secret stump detectors disguised as headlights. So out jumps this Don Finch, the legend. He's all dressed in camouflage so that, I guess, no one can see him. I couldn't even see him myself! No wonder they said we were being guided by a legend. Who of us could say differently when we couldn't even see him? Why when he stepped inside that camouflaged Wareagle with his camo outfit on, he just simply disappeared. This is gonna be an interesting day for sure.

It was an interesting day alright. Not only did Mr. Finch the legend put us on a crappie or two, he provided plenty of entertainment at the same time. He’s a storyteller and I'll just bet he has a different tale to tell for every hour of every day of every week of the year. I am not gonna say ya should ever believe a word of his tales but can't hardly say that ya shouldn't either. So how does one go about catching the Reelfoot crappie? Well, we drifted with the wind over the emerging weedbeds most of the morning. Don set up a Spider Rack on the bow of the boat and in each rod holder he placed a long whippy crappie pole and baited each with minnows stuck on double crappie rigs called Reelfoot Rigs. The rig consists of a 3/8th or 1/2 ounce egg sinker tied to the bottom of a heavy monofilament leader and has two #4 long shanked Aberdeen hooks attached, which is spread about a foot apart. By using heavy mainlines along with this heavy leader, the loss of tackle is minimized when hanging stumps. Don placed a few more rods off the gunnels and yet a couple more off the stern. The cold front had shut down the bite the day before and so by using this set-up and drifting across the flats, we were able to add a few more fish to the livewell that certainly would have been missed by any other means on such a tough bite. The fish that we did catch came from various depths over ten to twelve foot of water on an open flat. Our camouflage hidden fishing guide sure was a fine fellow to spend time with, I'll tell ya he even put us on a few Specks to keep us smiling. But I'm also here to tell ya first hand, I felt a bump on the bottom of the Jon as we passed through some of those stumps while on our way back in.

We had two guided fishing trips on Friday. Our second guide trip of the day was with Tim Bunch. Tim has been working these waters for more than thirty years and guides for both fish and waterfowl. This man is a guide’s guide. He is an absolute fishing machine and when other local guides are having a tough time of it, Tim is filling his client’s creels. Tim took us out for a late afternoon bluegill bite and bite they did. We worked the bases of the Cypress trees within some great stands and we slipped within the lily pads. We dabbled tiny hair jigs suspended from the tips of the B&M long jigging poles amongst the roots of the Cut Grass and we cast small black Beetle Spins along the channel edges. In no time flat, we had been given the short course to success for Reelfoots hearty bluegills and would now be able to repeat the same presentations while on our own hunts throughout the rest of our stay. The Reelfoot bluegills are of real good quality. Their heads are knobbed and they are thick across the back. Some folks come here just for the Gills alone. My kind of place, don't you know!

By Saturday morning, the weather conditions were much improved. We hit the water early and motored straight to the deep stumps. The strong West winds had kept us away from the deeper water until now and hopefully we would find a few big slabs still hanging deep. We found only a few willing to accept our offerings, but the largest crappie of the trip all came from this deep end of the lake. The bite was still slow though, and the crappie needed some warmer water to really get them going. Perhaps after a bit of solar warming, the late afternoon bite would pick up and so off we went to start a brand new hunt. There were Gills to be caught and all four of us gleam at the site of a big ole Hootchie Momma circling in wide sweeps and straining at the pressure of our sticks. We hopped and jumped all the day long. We caught a fish here and there. We slipped, dabbled, spun little spinners and dipped a few worms. We didn't catch ‘em all, but we managed plenty throughout the long sunny day to keep us happy and even squealing from time to time. By mid afternoon, Mr. Fishalot was getting a bad case of the shakes. He just had to pull out that baitcaster of his and tie on a jerkbait. I just watch that man with marvel when he starts to chasin those Bucketmouths. He goes into some sort of overdrive when he's got bass on the mind. I can't even begin to understand what that bass craze is all about, I just watch in awe. Well, it didn't take long before one of those green fish crushed the sides of that Bomber that J was a jerkin. It was a "goodin" and put our buddy right into La-La Land for two hours after. Ya know, that jonniefishalot is some fisherman. He must have some sort of secret smell or something because fish just seem to take a liking to him much the same as you and me.

Now I haven't had a whole lot to say about our partners, Al the Ice Master or our buddy Scout, Al’s boat partner. They slipped away from J and me early in the afternoon to find a few of their own fish. We found them again late in the day, drifting a shallow flat where they seemed to have struck it rich on some now active crappie. Time was getting on and our day was at its end but with Scouts encouragement, we joined in for a few more minutes of fun. We made one last drift and topped off our creels with just a couple more specks and even had the pleasure of doing a little tug of war with a real fine freshwater drum, a Sheepshead.

A fine day it was and that completed our visit to Tennessee's Reelfoot Lake.




Hey wait a minute!
Hold on there just a second!
I didn't even tell ya about Peanut and the boys midnight rendezvous.
Oh maybe we better save that little tale for another day.     ;o)

Any