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Archived Fishing Reports.
Please see the Home page for the latest report. The following
reports are in most current order.
Old
Hickory 6-25 to 7-2, 2010
 In
this last week I have managed to be on the water about 4 days. I had
a trip with John and Sherri Fey on the 26th and Bruce and
Mike Rang on the 2nd. The rest of the time I was just out
checking different parts of the lake. I was pleasantly surprised
with the quality of fish I had caught on the lower end. Two
consecutive days catching multiple fish in the 4lb range and having
weights over 14lbs. in 5 keepers each day. I thank John and Sherri
for the trip and wish you well. We caught them in and around deeper
boat docks on the main channel and also a few deeper pockets. Hope
you are able to expand on our pattern. With Mike and
Bruce, we fished mid-lake and the river. We found fish everywhere we
stopped. We caught them on ledges, bluff walls and points. Jigs,
jigs and more jigs!! I don’t think I will put down a jig until the
Fall. It has consistently caught fish for the last month for me.
Look for breaks on the bluffs, Wood on the channel and bends in the
ledges. Fish a jig you can feel good and go catch them! Be safe out
there, Matt WWW.TENNESSEEBASSGUIDES.COM
Old Hickory 5-21-10
 Well it has
been crazy since the flood. I know many people have been hit hard
in this area. I have been really busy and just waiting for the water
to get back to a safe condition. It has seemed like an eternity. My
prayers go out to all affected. The Volunteer State has stepped up
and we are working hard to get back to normal. Normal might take a
while but it is safe to be on the water and the fish are biting.
Other than floating debris, the bite is pretty good. I spent about 4
hours on the lake today and caught about 14 pounds in my best 5
fish. The fish I caught came from various depths and on different
baits. I would have to say that grass and wood cover are holding
some good fish right now. Also, secondary points in the creeks gave
up some quality bites. I used a buzz bait for a while and a crank
bait. Then switched to plastic. I caught my best fish on the
plastic. Numbers were good and the quality was not too bad either. I
fished mid-lake then headed to the lower end. Water was a little
stained and cleared closer to the dam. Water temperatures were from
the low 60’s to 70. It is a great time to get out and catch some
fish. The numbers should continue to be good as these fish move out
to their summer homes. Just be safe out there and if you would like
a trip just call. Thanks, Matt
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory 4-20-2010
 I made it to the
lake this morning to cool air temperatures. The lake was calm and
water temp was 65 degrees. It was a great day for a trip and I want
to thank Chris and Greg for a day full of laughs. We fished mid-lake
creeks and it did not take too long to catch a few buck bass. Points
of pockets in the creeks were holding fish especially if there was
wood present. After a few stops we had caught about 8 fish, then
decided to fish a little deeper, close to creek channels. Sure
enough, we caught some better quality fish. I did not snap the
camera enough today thinking we would find some big fish. I was
wrong!! We found keepers and late in the day I got this picture of a
chunky keeper. I’m really not sure how many fish we caught today but
I don’t know if I ever laughed as much as today. I had a great time
today guys and thanks for your trip. Have a great visit in
Tennessee.I look for the coming weeks to really pick up in numbers
of fish as well as SIZE! It looks to me as if the lake is down a few
feet from summer pool and the spawn has not kicked into high gear
yet. Keep your eyes open it will happen soon. The mid-lake is fairly
stained right now so fish any dark spot you see. Baits I have had
success with lately are – spinnerbait, brush hogs and shakey head
worms. If you would like a trip just give us a call. I will be on
Kentucky Lake the next few weekends and after that back to home
waters. Be safe out there, Thanks, Matt
March 13, 2010 Old Hickory Lake
Well, its been a long
Winter. Now it is time to get out and catch some fish. As the water
temperatures reach the 50’s and progress, these bass have one thing
in mind. This is a great time of year to catch bigger fish as they
move to their spawning flats. Lipless rattlebaits can be very
effective now. Any noticeable piece of cover can hold a fish.
Multiple casts to dark spots is productive. Choose a variety of
baits that can be fished vertical as well as horizontal. Pay
attention to each fish caught and zero in on the most effective
presentation for the day. Things happen fast in the Spring. Before
long it will be time for sight fishing. Matt
Center Hill 3-8-2010
Monday John and I started the morning off on
main Channel Bluffs fishing deep wood with the night crawlers.
We marked a lot of fish off the structure suspended with only
one taker on the night crawler, we decided to switch patterns
and crank a bandit 200 Fire tiger and John threw a clown
colored suspending jerk bait paralleling the bank . John
fished the jerk bait very slow and began picking up a spot
here and there. I fished the bandit with a quick retrieve and
pause and caught a good 18.5" smallie. We continued the
cranking on the bluff which had a fairly shallow point no fish
came on the points but just on the sides within 50 yards of
the point with a 20" smallie. So we fished the remainder of
the day with the hard baits and had a ball concentrating on
the shallow sunny sides of the points. When we came to a
deeper tree we would try the night crawlers and Tuffy Minnows
with only one big Bluegill. Water Temps raised during the day
and we stayed in 51 to 53 degree water. Fish were coming up to
feed or look for spawning areas I believe and the biggest
largemouth hit in 2 ft of water of a stump about 2:30 in the
afternoon. Totals for the day were 3 smallies, 4 spots, 2
Largemouth and 1 Bluegill. Another good trip to Center Hill. I
apologize for the pictures I left the camera at home and used
the cell phone. The above pics were our 5 largest fish of the
day. Give us a call if you would like to fish the Hill this
spring. I have limited dates available since it is time to
get the feet wet in our great Middle TN streams. Mike Dial
www.tennesseebassguides.com NOTE;
Mike has some great pictures but I'm having trouble converting
them from the cell phone-they will go up as soon as I figure
out what to do....Rick
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We arrived at Hurricane Ramp Tuesday to find the
Water had risen 10 to 12 feet and water temp 43. We fished points
and back into Mine Lick with live bait Creek Minnows and night
crawlers. It was a tough day to get a bite. We managed 5 Kentuckys
in the 12 to 16 inch range on night crawlers and did not get a hit
on the creekminnows. All the Kentuckys came in 30 ft of water off
one point.Wednesday John and I put in about 8 again at Hurricane
and ran down to Indian Creek and found water temps 46. We kept the
boat in 6 to 10 ft of water and cranked Bandit 200s in Tennessee
Shad. We managed to put 3 nice Smallmouth in the boat and loose 3
more before noon when I believe the Front moved in and the wind
died down some. We did fish the Yellow Hair fly some with no
bites. Smallmouth are back at The Hill better than in the last few
years from the reports I am hearing. It will only get better as we
approach spring. We are still booking trips on our winter special
so give us a shout.
 
Center Hill/ Guide Mike Dial
John and I fished Center Hill Tuesday and had a
slower day than in the past few trips. We still managed 16
Kentucky's and a bunch of bluegill. Water temps were 66 and with
the rain and clouds the fish were still in 30 to 60 feet of water
on or near wood and close to the channel. Night crawlers were the
ticket as long as you had enough weight to drop fast enough by the
Bluegills. We did look in creeks for surface action but did not
find any. We saw two other boats all day and had the lake to
ourselves. Even with the rain a great peaceful day on the water.
Again this pattern will last thru winter and catching a limit of
Kentucky's is not hard to do on Center Hill. Mike Dial
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Center Hill First of
October
With Football season underway and leaves
starting to turn Center Hill is becoming one of my favorite
destinations. Football size spots become very active and
aggressive. My clients and I have been catching limits with the
top fish in the 15 to 16 inch range with a few 18 inchers.Using
All Pros Ultra Light APX and Live bait has been the ticket in 30
to 40 ft of water with night crawlers and crawdads. This pattern
will continue and the average size will go up as water temps fall.
When fishing the live bait you never know what will end up on the
other end. Hand sized bluegills, channel and flatheads,
smallmouth, largemouth and a suprise 10.5 inch rock bass. My
partner last thursday has fished Center Hill steadily since
impoundment and he said that is the biggest Rock Bass he had seen
on the lake.
Sunday Amber Stoesslein and Tony
Barksdale had a great day with 37 spots and lots of bluegill. 3
limits of Spots 13 to 16 inches makes a great fish fry for family
and friends.If you want to learn a simple way to fall and winter
fish, on what is one of the most scenic lakes in Tennessee, I am
booking live bait trips through mid January and as the water cools
Clients and I will be chasing the big smallies that still haunt
the lake with creekminnows. If you are wondering I am still wading
the streams just slowing down in the winter. So give us a shout if
you want to learn a fun and simple method of fishing the Fall and
Winter on Center Hill.Stay Tuned for more reports from Center
Hill.
  
Long time stream
fishing client and friends Charlie Faulkner and wife Margaret
joined me today on a cold,foggy,windy and misty day on The
Hill. We put 28 Kentuckies,1 Walleye,1 Channel Cat along with 8
bluegill.. We lost 6 or more good fish. All fish were caught on
nigh tcrawlers
in 30 to 80 ft of water. The larger kentuckies were suspended 15
to 20 feet down. Most fish came of one 200 yard stretch of bank
some were on wood structure and some were just suspended near the
channel drop. This pattern will continue on into winter and
spring. Charlie lives on the hill and now has learned a simple
method to fish this sometimes very tough lake. "Despite the
weather, really had a good time, renewed my faith in
fishing Center Hill. Charlie
"Give us a shout if you are ready to learn and have a great time
fishing while viewing some great fall colors. Mike Dial
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory
09-07-09
 I
have been on the lake 2 times in the last few days. Friday I spent
with Lynda Gessner and Robbie Hartline. Good luck this week ladies.
We fished mostly mid-lake and found bait but a tough bite. We
eliminated some water and found promising things as well. Monday, I
fished with Mr. Donnie Davis from Louisiana. We had a great time on
the lower end of the lake, minus all the boat traffic. We started
the day off with a decent keeper, but had to work hard to get 5. The
bite was very subtle. I look for things to pick up pretty fast. If
the weather cools and pushes the bait in more, soon we will be able
to catch fish all day. Right now slow down and be patient. Be safe
and get out and watch the girls this week. Thanks, Matt
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Summer Muskie Action
It's been a while since
I've posted any muskie action, not because the fish aren't bitin,
just a heavy summer workload. Since Memorial day, my job has
taken up most of my summer. Now if you know me, you know I'd
rather be fishin! Anyway, work is slowing down(ice business) and
them muskies are calling my name. I've had a few trips this
summer, with mixed results, and alot of fun. I've taken muskies
on the Collins river, Great Falls lake and Center Hill. As it
normally is in the summer, early and late have been best, with the
exception of fishing moon rises and sets which always gives you a
chance at anytime of day. My latest trips have produced 42 to 46
inch fish, taken by myself and either friends or clients. The
evening of the 25th of August was a record setting day for me on
the Collins but not a record I'll go around bragging about. In 3
short hours of muskie fishing, I managed to have six strikes, and
two hook-ups. I boated exactly ZERO! Talk about snake bitten.
Got me exicted none the less as I am working on a new lure and
will have to work out the "kinks", but it did produce all of my
strikes on the 25th.
Looking forward to some
serious time on the water coming up soon and hope to see more
people out chasing toothie critters, whether it be with me or
not. It's somthing to consider, if you're looking for heavy
action. Let's hook up! Pictured are recent including one good-un
taken at night on the "Hill".
Dwayne Hickey
 
Old Hickory Lake 7-24,25-09
I fished Friday and Saturday
this week. Friday I checked some things out in the river. John
Schaffer joined me again. We started out a little slow, but things
picked up after the fog lifted. These cool nights have turned them
on pretty good. Managing to catch a limit of 5 keepers took about 3
hours. After that we culled another limit upgrading our weight to
about 14lbs. The fish were pretty solid and we caught a good 5lb
fish. Saturday did not turn out so well. The first stop produced 3
keepers the biggest was 2.39lb. I thought it would be a great day
after getting 3 quick fish. But motor trouble came my way. I ended
up limping about 8 miles with the trolling motor, then called a
buddy for a tow to the ramp. I was pretty disappointed. I think the
bite was strong Saturday and I was looking forward to a good sack.
Monday, took boat for service to tracker marine service center in
Hendersonville. Look for results in a day or so. This leads me to
saying I forgot my camera in the boat. Sorry, John!! I will email
you pics later this week. As for the fishing, I’m tired of all the
traffic. If I can stay in the river and catch quality fish, that is
were I will be. A jig and spinnerbait was all I needed these days.
Of course, 8 more rods on the deck always makes me feel prepared. Be
safe out there, Thanks, Matt www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old
Hickory 7-10-2009
Today I fished with John
Scaeffer. We got on the fish early using a jig. Most of these fish
were caught on rocky shorelines close to deep water. Managing a
limit by 7:15 we switched up and headed to drops and ledges. Our 1st
stop produced more keepers, the best fish around 3lbs. We continued
to catch at least one fish on most of our next stops. Next, we moved
into some creeks and fished docks with success. The mood of the fish
was great. At days end we had about 11lbs. Numbers of fish was not
the problem. Bigger fish are still somewhat hard to come by. We
caught fish on numerous baits but a jig was by far the best bait.
Even deep, a football jig did the damage. Water temps were in the
mid 80’s and the color is great. It is a great time to go catch some
fish. Thanks and be back next week. Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguide.com
 
  
The last month I have had
some awesome bluegill trips on area lakes and private lakes netting
21 pounds of fillets we cooked up with friends on the 4th .The last
few weekends I have had some great stream trips with great numbers
and quality Rock Bass and Smallies. Numbers from 4 hours of fishing
27 combined to 7 hours fishing 78 smallies and Rock Bass.
Benji,John,Michael,Dave and Steve have fished with me and the above
pictures are
just a sampling of what we've caught.
Fishing with Steve from Virginia after the 4th rains gave us higher than
normal water (15 inches higher). The water was almost to swift to
wade. We fished large eddies and had a great day with no giants but
Rock bass up to 9.5 inches and dozens of smallies in the 13 to 15
inch range. What a blast when they got into the current. 4 inch
sliders and slider bass grub have been great lures along with Case
Jacks worm . Color has not made a difference. The fish are very
activ e in the middle of the day. We have also fished with crawdads
and Creekminoows. If you would like to learn about the greatest way
to beat a hot day and catch good numbers of fish give me a shout. I
have limited weekdays left and and a few weekend days. And an added
bonus to a great day on the water,Tomatoes are plentiful in Jackie's
and my garden so I will be serving BLT's for Lunch the remaining
summer months. Jackie and I plan on venturing out this weekend for
some more stream fun and I will report later in the week.. Mike Dial
Stream Smallmouth Guide www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old
Hickory 6-24-2009
Today I fished with a friend of mine, Shawn Cantrell. He had never
been on the lake before and we were spoiled quickly. We managed a
nice limit in about 15 minutes. After that bite died we moved on to
fishing some docks close to the creek channel and caught more solid
keepers. The fish were active and biting pretty well up to about 10
o’ clock. Then things slowed and we moved to drops and ledges.
Though we did not find any good schools of bigger fish, we did catch
some good fish at each stop. Around 1 o’ clock we found some wolf
packs of smaller fish off the drops, feeding. The highlight of the
day was catching a nice largemouth and watching the smallmouth
following it try to eat the worm out of its mouth.No doubt the fish
were feeding well! It was a great day for numbers and some good
fish. We caught fish on crankbaits, shakey heads, jigs and assorted
plastics. The lake is stable at summer pool and the water color is
nice. Water temperature was in the 80’s . Be safe out there and good
fishing, Matt Crabill www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory 6-12-2009
 Today
James and I got out to check on a few places. We managed to catch a
small limit pretty quick. After refining our search we culled a bit
and came up with about 13lbs. I took this 1 picture thinking I would
take more Saturday, then I didn’t fish. But James had a good
Saturday by himself. Catching a limit early and culling, for a
little over 9lbs. Friday we caught most of our fish on crankbaits.
Most of our stops held groups of fish. One stop, close to deep water
held the better fish for the day. Slowly the fish are moving out to
their summer homes. Fish are still feeding shallow, but be sure to
check out the deeper breaks. Til next week, good fishing, Matt
Crabill www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old Hickory 5-09-2009
Today I made an
afternoon trip to the lake. James met me at 4o’clock and away we
went. We fished secondary points, drops and some ledges to see if
we could get a big bite. We managed to catch some smaller fish but
no big ones. After about 2 hours we tuned in to a worm bite that
produced better quality fish. Then we covered some grass and boat
docks finishing out about 10lb limi If I was fishing the lake
this weekend I would start the morning on topwater around some type
of cover. Then move to some docks as the sun burns down. If you get
a limit, then start looking for the kicker fish. My top 5 baits
would be a buzzbait/sammy, a jig, a crankbait, a worm or creature
bait and last a spinnerbait. Good luck out there, Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Collins River Muskie
Action
Finally the rain has
ended and summer is here. It seems like it's been forever since
the river has been right to fish. But in the last couple of
weeks the weather has stablized and the fish are moving good in
the river. First, let me say that I've been catching a few Muskie
out of Great Falls lake and even a couple at Center Hill. Water
levels were up (briefly) at Center Hill and fish were moving into
the coves and cuts. I actually got to go up into the Blue Hole
and catch a Muskie before water levels went back down. As for the
Collins, we've taken some decent fish as of late. My fishing
partner Hugh Cutrell got a nice muskie last week and my client
Gary Pazadoir from Atlanta and I had a great time on the Collins
on May 31st. We started around 1:00 p.m. and it was hot. Water
temps were in the high 60's and the Muskies were moving. I got a
fiesty 36 incher around 2:00 on a "Secret Weapon spinnerbait and
lost another one on the same lure. I had Muskies chasing and
following that lure all day long. Gary had several follows on a
Terminator bucktail and finally a fat 42 incher T-boned his lure
and after a brief but intense fight, I netted the fish. About ten
minutes passed and another low forty's fish hit, but was lost.
All in all we had follows and hits from at least 18 different
Muskies. Plenty to keep us busy till dark! The top water bite
will be coming this week and lasting till late fall. Gary has had
the opportunity to fish muskies all over the country, and I agree
with the comment he made about the Collins. "This is the best
little river I've ever seen for quality Muskie fishing." Thanks
to the T.W.R.A. for maintaining this little "Jewell" of a Muskie
river! Give me a call for a summer trip!
Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory 5-15-09
 This
is a multiple day re port
for the lake. I was out on Friday, Saturday and Monday. If
you want to catch some fish, now is the time. I have been
catching numbers of fish for the last few weeks. Managing
to put 5 keepers in the boat has not been too tough. The
lack of bigger fish had surprised me. This week I was able
to locate some better fish. Friday, I was just prefishing
and checking some stuff and caught a bunch of little guys.
I also caught over 7 keepers the biggest is in one
picture. Saturday was the USA Bassin tournament. James and
I found fish quickly. Starting with a 4.14 largemouth,
then a keeper, a 2lber and a 3lb. Later we caught another
keeper, and culled another. We ended the day with 12lbs
and change.Monday, I did some on the lake footage with
Tennessee Wildside. We caught fish pretty fast, just no
size. So we changed up and found a little pattern that
produced some good fish. We ended the day with 10-12lbs.
Water temps varied from
61-67degrees. The main lake is still muddy and tons of
current. The creeks have good color and a bunch of fish in
them. For 3 days I have caught fish on multiple baits.
Crankbaits, winning on Monday. Shakey head jigs doing some
damage, a jig coming in a close second and a buzz bait.
All these baits have produced well. If I would go out
today, I would start with topwater around cover then go
through this selection. Don’t forget to try a fluke around
grass. Be safe out there and enjoy the holiday. I will not
be on the water for about a week, so this report will have
to do til then. Thanks, Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory
5-09-2009
Well, I weathered
the storm today. It was ugly early but ended up being a
good day. First if you go “BE CRAEFUL”. There is so much
floating debris on the lake it is like an obstacle course.
The water came up today about 3’and there was plenty of
muddy places to fish. Once this rain stops and the lake
stabilizes it should be great fishing. The bite is still
pretty good now, you just have to work for keepers. I
managed 5 keepers today. I caught them all on crankbaits.
From shallow and deep. The fish are pretty scattered. But
I caught a bunch of little guys. I’ll be out next week,
til then if you would like a trip give us a call. Thanks,
Matt
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old
Hickory 5-7-2009
T oday
I fished with my friend James. 2 of the 3 pictures are
from the first thing this morning. The day got better and
we ended up with about 12 to 13lbs. We found numerous
keepers and plenty of short fish scattered through out the
lake. We caught them shallow, deeper, on wood and rock. I
would have to say that there are quite a few patterns that
are going on. Water temps varied from 63 to 69 degrees in
the areas we fished. I have a club tourney this weekend
and will have another post Sunday. After today I have a
good idea what I’m going to do, but pick your poison. Like
I said, we caught fish on a bunch of baits. Right now is a
great time to get out and try some new techniques. If you
would like a trip contact Rick or myself. Thanks, Matt
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Streams April 2009
The Middle TN
Streams are on fire this week. I have not gotten in a full
day just mornings before and evenings after work. So far
this week we have had 35 fish between 15 and 18 inches
dozens of smaller fish mixed bag of Kentuckys, Largemouth
and Smallmouth.
And the queen of the stream a 21 incher. She was still
full of eggs which made her very hefty. I did not weigh
her but she was over 6 pounds. Anytime you can catch the
numbers and size we have been catching this week it is
truly awesome. All the fish came on hornyheads. The
streams will continue to improve as the summer gets going.
The best thing about our middle TN streams is low fishing
pressure and no Ski boats and jet skis. The most peaceful
and relaxing way to fish that I know as well as a chance
to catch a true trophy smallmouth! I am beginning to get
booked up for full day trips so if you want to learn the
techniques of stream fishing ,give me a shout. Mike Dial
Stream Guide
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Dale Hollow
4-23-2009
These are two of
twelve Smallmouth that Bill and Chris Green caught with
guide David DuVall on Dale Hollow on 4-23-2009. Largest
fish was 5lb 14 ounce. The Hollow sure cranks out some
great fish.
 
Spring Stream
Report
The
Last
 Month
I have not had too many opportunities to wade due to high
water. I have opted for crappie trips with clients above
Jefferson Springs on Priest and been blessed with great
trips with friends
on Great Falls, Center Hill, Bedford Lake and Kentucky
Lake out of Birdsong Marina.
My true Passion is wading for smallmouth and rock bass on
Middle TN streams. All I can say is it is time to
summarize the boat and start wading for me. Thursday
afternoon I got in 3 hours after work and Jackie joined me
for 1 hour on one small stretch of stream. We had 10 fish
between 15 and 18 inches and several smaller Spotted Bass
and Smallmouth. All fish came on 5 to 8 inch Hornyhead
stoneroller Minnows. It surprised me to see the fish on
top water chasing the bait as I reeled in. So we started
throwing in the whitewater and burning the minnow across
the top of the rapids the fish would chase it for 10 to 15
feet and then explode up and come down on the bait. What
an exciting technique and way to fish. We caught our
largest fish this way. Topwater is on in the streams.
Friday morning I was on the water by daylight and back in
the car by 7:30 for work. I had 17 Smallies and Rock bass.
The smallies were nailing the 6” Case Jacks Worm twitched
just below the surface and the 8 to 11 inch Rock bass were
hitting the Prowler Big Butt Tube dead sticked with a
split shot. If you want to consistently catch large Rock
Bass try the bigger plastics. It only gets better as we
head through summer to fall. If you want to learn how to
fish and read a stream while catching some quality fish
give me a shout. Mike Dial Stream Smallmouth Guide
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old
Hickory 4-22-09
Well, I
made it to the lake today. The water temp was 59.6 at the
Davis corner ramp this morning. A friend met me early and
fished til early afternoon. We had a good time catching
up. Also, it put someone in the boat to take pictures.
While he was with me we did well. Catching most of our
fish on shallow running crankbaits. The 1 in the picture
was the best fish caught while he was along, in fact he
caught it. We caught numbers, not quality. I spent most
of the time in mid-lake creeks and the temp got up to 64
by the time I left. After my buddy took off, I spent time
with a shaky head and managed 1 after another. At days end
I caught 7 keepers and who knows how many short fish. I
figure the best 5 would weigh about 9lbs. Right now the
fish are in transition. I saw a few on bed, but there are
plenty more coming. The next few days of stable warm
weather should help the bite. Be safe out there and if you
would like to get out for a trip give Rick or myself a
call. Thanks, Matt www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
 
Winter Muskie Action
Winter Muskie
fishing has been up an down this year with some decent
fish being caught. Heavy rains and high water have
hampered some of my trips, but when water levels have
been fishable, Muskies have been caught. I've recently
been seeing some real nice fish at Great Falls lake and
also Center Hill. Muskies are moving up to there
spawning areas with the warm days and can be caught.
I've had follows, and hits from fish that pushed the 50
inch mark. Looking forward to stable weather when fish
will be more predictable. Like I said, the Collins
river has produced some nice fish for me and my clients
this winter, as these pics indicate. Good luck out
there, and if it's muskie your after, let's "hook-up".
Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
January
Muskie Action
The action on
the Collins this January has been fairly consistent with
several decent fish being caught. Gliders and
crank/twitch baits have been the ticket with some action
coming on spinner baits and live bait. Water levels
with the recent rains have
hampered getting out on some days but usually we've
found the Muskies to be consistent providing you stick
with it. The largest for the month was a 44.5
inch(25lb.) fish that inhaled a Crane twitch bait. My
fishin buddy, Mr. Wayne Bomar from Shelbyville Tn. and
Hugh Cutrell was with me on Jan. 30th when the Muskie
hit Wayne's lure hard! The action is getting good as it
always does in the cold months, and I have a few dates
left, but there going fast. Bundle up, and let's chase
some toothie critters! Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory Lake
1-1-09
 Happy
New Year! There is no better way to start the year than
a day on the lake. The air temp this morning was
30 degrees, but it warmed up quickly. It ended up making
it in the 50’s and was pretty comfortable. As for the
fishing I guess the pictures tell that story. This is
Nick Tate. He is part of the University of Tennessee Bass
fishing Team. That is right, Bass fishing at the college
level. If they had that when I was in school I would
probably have a degree. It almost makes me want to go back
to college, what a perk! We met back in the fall and I
promised him some fish in the winter. So, in about a six
hour day we managed to catch a mixed bag of fish, these 2
being better.
As for the lake water temps in the mid-lake
are in the upper 40’s. Water around the steam plant
remains in the 60’s. Most of our fish were caught on
crankbaits and jigs. If anyone wants to brave the weather
I will be glad to hit the lake. For the month of January I
will take $50 off our regular price. Just contact Rick or
myself. Bundle up and be safe out there. Good fishing,
Matt Crabill
 
 
Dale Hollow Christmas 2009
My Friend John and I ventured up to
Cedar Hill Resort for a Merry Fishmas. The few days we
were there we saw sleet, Heavy Rains, Lots of Wind and
times with no wind, Clouds and Bluebird Skies.
The Fish cooperated
very well even with out a stable weather pattern. We
caught fish in 5 Foot of water and as day went on off
the bottom in 30 feet of water. Float in fly with a
tuffy minnow (substituted for the fly) also caught
fish 12 ft down suspended in 80 ft of water. 5 inch
Creek minnows caught the bigger fish while the Hoppys
Jig in Chartreuse and white tipped with Tuffy minnow
caught some good fish also. All the Smallies we caught
were in the slot. We also caught Spots and Trout. Water
Temp was 49 until Friday we found water at 51.The key to
our success was to slow down and present our baits very
slow while fishing the main channel points and slides on
the steep banks. Most of our fish were on the points. We
had action all day and everyday of our trip. We were in
the rain all day on Wednesday and did not see but 4
boats and very few on Christmas day. Mike Dial
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
  
Dale Hollow
Dec 2008
2 good
friends of mine (and 2 good fishermen) sent me these
pictures above from Dale Hollow Lake that they caught this
past week using a variety of techniques including the
Float N Fly and Jigs. When Jerry Williams and Roy
Armistead team up it's hard to tell what they will put in
the boat. They also caught a ton of big Crappie this past
week as well. Roy and Jerry thank you for the great
pictures and I look forward to fishing with you both soon.
Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory 11-26-2008
Today I took my son Jacob to the lake. We had
 a
good day of fishing. The White bass were thick in the
steam plant. That was good because my goal was for Jake to
catch some fish. We quickly figured out what depth the
fish were in and caught them for a few hours. The water
temp was about 68 degrees. After that we fished some
shallows where the water was 57 degrees. We were able to
catch a few nice bass flipping a jig with a prowler pro
chunck around brush. Hope all who visit the site have a
great holiday season. The fish will bite all year long.
If your need a trip give me a call. Thanks, Matt
www.tennesseebassguides.com
WINTER TIME MUSKIE
NOW
IS A GREAT TIME TO GET IN ON SOME FANTASTIC WINTER MUSKIE
FISHING CONTACT DWAYNE @ 931-273-7937 FOR MORE INFORMATION
AND SPECIAL PRICING
 
Muskie Action
11-27 08
I hooked up
with Hugh Cutrell and Tom Kelly today for some winter
action on the Collins River, hoping to find some active
fish and once again, we were not disappointed as the
Muskies were moving and looking to feed. Although the
water was fairly clear, the fish were slamming our eight
inch glide baits. We were a little "rusty" at fishing
gliders as we missed some good hits. You have to follow
that lure with each twitch or the Muskies will be there
and gone in a flash. We did manage to boat four on this
day, with Tom getting this nice 42 incher out of one of
the deeper pools. Another good day on one of the best
little Muskie waters in Tennessee, with a total of 8
hits, 4 landed, and a little good natured "ribbin", as
when the three Amigos with our "egos" are in one boat,
it makes for a really fun day of fishing. Give Rick a
call for winter rates that run from Dec. 1st thru Feb.
and get in on the action! Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory
11-1-08
 I
know it has been a while but I have been on the run
lately. I managed to slip out to the lake with my son
today. We had a great time just riding around checking out
different areas. I found water temperatures from the mid
50’s to mid 60’s. That was within a 30 minute time period
so I know the sun had not made much difference yet. There
is a lot of bait in the back of creeks and the fish are
there also. The bite is much better later in the day, as
the water warms. We only caught 1 keeper but had numerous
short fish. My son is learning patience as well as how to
tangle his line in his reel. It is hard to get much
fishing done with my son in the boat, but I like his
company and watching him learn. I should get out Friday
then I can give up some more info. If this weather stays
warm in the day, November will be great. Thanks Matt
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
October Streams
 The
last 2 weeks our streams have been fishing steady. The
Rock Bass have been super active and plentiful. The
Smallmouth fishing has been up and down. It seems you
just got to be at the right spot when they want to come
out and feed. Live craws caught these stringers of rock
bass along with various Slider 4 inch worms on orange
Slider heads. Fishing the deep holes is still the best
bet for all day steady action. On one outing Charlie and
his son caught well over 70 Rock bass and we did keep 30
plus for the dinner table. Charlie caught a T.A.R.P.
Rock Bass at 10 inches and we had a a lot more that were
pushing ten. I was on Center Hill last week and the
Spots are still wacking the crawfish on the bluffs a
long with the occasional smallmouth. Fished on Priest
yesterday with my son we fished for about an hour and
did more running than fishing.( My boat had not been out
in a long while and we just wanted to ride) From Mona to
the West Fork it is full of shad and we did see a few
fish blowing up in them. I had one Largemouth in 13 ft
of water off wood with a white grub. I love this time of
year on our Middle TN Waters. As the wading slows down I
plan on being on Center Hill more this year. If
interested in learning our streams for wading grab the
waders and give me a shout I do wade 365 days a year.
Mike Dial Stream Smallmouth Guide
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Muskie Action
I have not been
on the water as much as I would have liked this summer but
when I have found time to chase Muskies I've scored on
almost every trip. Guided trips have been slow but
usually are during the hot summer months. My most recent
trip came this past Saturday, a two boat trip down the
Collins river with three brothers, Bill, Jim, and Richard
Fitzgerald. I had to recruit help from fellow guid e,
Dewayne Finger who knows how to chase Muskies on the
Collins and Great Falls. Right off the bat, Dewayne's
boat had a hook-up and Jim had a nice 42incher pulling
them around, but finally ended up in the net. We'd only
been casting for 20 minutes. In Muskie fishing hits don't
usually come by the truck loads, but we had enough action
throughout the day to keep our eyes wide open waiting for
that next follow or blow-up. And that kind of action
happened for pretty much the whole 9 hour day. We ended
up putting 4 Muskies in the boats (including a 43 incher)
and had some missed fish that somehow did not feel the
hooks! Spotted 15 Muskies, most of which were coming at
our plugs. Our lurs of choice for this day was mostly
spinner baits. It was a great fall day on the water and I
thank you guys for coming down to fish. Leaves are
starting to present a problem, but if you can get a
spinner bait or crank bait down under, look out. The bite
on the Collins will be consistent throughout the fall, and
Great Falls has been producing a few big fish this
summer. That action will pick up starting about now.
Trolling or casting the "wood" will produce if you stay
with it. Thanks to my friend Dewayne for making the float
trip a success. Pictured is Jim fighting his 42 incher
and Bill will a 43incher. Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Streams 10-7-2008
 Fishing
today was slow for the smallmouth
but the Rock Bass were crazy. We caught over 40 big rock
bass. Small stonerollers and shiners and Case Jacks Worms
and Slider with orange tail were the ticket. My client and I
stood in one spot and caught 8 Rock bass with a few being
right at 10 inches. He did loose two good smallmouth is
biggest for the day was just 13 inches. With the Weather
starting off very windy and then a cool rain most of the
afternoon, I believe the smallies were just holding tighter
to cover. The rain I hope we get tomorrow should really
improve our streams for a while. Some of the places I catch
my bait were bone dry yesterday so I am hoping the rain will
get them flowing. This time a year with the low water if you
find them stay on them catch and release and you will have a
blast. Mike Dial Stream Smallmouth Guide
WWW.TennesseeBassGuides.com
Center Hill 10-2-2008
 Took
a vacation day and headed to Center Hill with a good friend.
We arrived at 8 and fished till about 4:30. Our plan was to
take night crawlers and Crawdads for the Kentucky's. We had
a fair day catching some hand-sized gills and some decent
spots. Most of the fish we caught on the bluffs in 15 to 25
feet of water. Water temp was 73 to 75. The Highlight of the
day was this 19 inch smallie I caught around 2pm. Things
are getting ready to bust wide open in our Middle TN waters.
I believe the leaves were even changing as the day went on.
What a great relaxing day although it was very windy on the
hill.
 
Streams 9/28/2008
Andrew and I got in a few hours of fishing
on one of my favorite stretches of stream from 11:30 to 2:00
today. One would think with the low water, leaves covering
the water and high sk ies
that the fishing would be slow. I will brag a little on my
son. He is 10 and still not a fishing addict like his father
but when he does fish he can cast and catch like a pro. On
his second cast with a 6 inch watermelon red Case Jacks worm
he landed an acrobatic 18.5 inch smallie. I did catch some 4
to 5 inch stonerollers and with in a few minutes I landed an
18 inch smallie. The Rock Bass were holding tight but he
lost a giant right at his feet. It was well over 10 inches.
We caught several more quality stream fish and I just wish
we could have stayed into the late afternoon. Middle of the
day was excellent and the early mornings and afternoons have
been on fire also the last few weeks. Save some boat gas
money grab your sneakers and get in one of our many miles of
stream s for some fantastic action. I have limited dates
thru October, if you would like to learn more about wading
our peaceful Middle TN Streams give me a shout. Mike Dial
Stream Smallmouth Guide
www.TennesseeBassguides.com
Old
Hickory 9-26-08
 Today I fished
with Dan Garland and his friend Chuck. Catching quality fish
was tough today. We were able to catch some keepers, but most
were small fish. The fish are in transition right now,
following shad shallow. The better fish were caught on plastic
baits around 6ft. of water. We did see some 4lb or better fish
feeding, but our baits could not coax a strike. I apologize
for not taking a picture sooner in the day. I thought the bite
would improve and we would get some good pictures. That is the
way it goes sometimes. We had a great day of fellowship and I
was able to show them a lot of water for future reference. I
think the next few weeks should show much improvement in
feeding activity. Anglers should soon start catching larger
fish in numbers. Thanks for a memorable day guys, keep those
$20 baits out of the trees so you can enjoy your Starbucks.
God Bless, Matt Crabill! www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory 09-19-08
 Today I fished
with my 6 year old son. We don’t get out as much as I’d like
to, so the day was all about him. We fished the lower end, not
covering much water. Most of our time was spent fishing
shallow running crankbaits and spinnerbaits. It was a good day
watching him reel in a bunch of bass. We caught numbers but
the size was down. He did manage 1 keeper and it didn’t matter
that it was just a keeper. That fish was as big as they come,
in his mind. He never stopped talking about that fish all day.
He wore me out! You would think he just won the Bassmasters
Classic. He called his mom, grandparents and everybody in
between. This is what it is all about. Getting children
excited and carrying on the sport. Nothing beats the smile on
his face, I will carry that image in my mind for this life
time. So for anyone heading out, there are plenty of fish
shallow chasing bait. If you back off and fish a little deeper
you should be able to find a few better fish. If you get the
chance, take a kid fishing. Thanks, Matt Crabill.
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
 
Old Hickory 8-27-08
Today I was on the lake with Guy Tatum. He was
preparing for an upcoming tournament. The bite has been a
little tough so we mixed it up a bit today and found some good
keepers. Saturday I had caught some on the lower end on
crankbaits ,and the bite continued today. I expected the water
to have a little more stain, but was nicely surprised. The
lake is up a little with good color. There is bait on every
point, boat dock and we’ll just say everywhere. We were able
to catch some around scattered cover in different areas. We
also did pretty well on a jig. Once we found fish we didn’t
over fish an area. I believe if we really wanted to load the
boat we could have. We had a great day and I think he has a
good starting point. Our best 5 went about 11lbs. Thanks for
the trip Guy, tear’em up out there. Thanks, Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Middle Tennessee
Streams 9-5-2008
I started off wanting some Rock Bass for
eating and quickly realized everything was active. I threw
Sliders and Tiny Brush Hogs and had action on about every
cast. Smallies were crashing minnows along with Rock Bass.
The R ock
Bass in the picture were all very light colored which meant
they were out feeding and not tight to cover They darkened
up on the stringer. On three occasions fish would be
cruising by and I could flip right out to them and they
would nail the orange head slider with various colors of
sliders. Randy at Murfreesboro Outdoors finally got some 20
paks of 1/16 ounce slider heads and they were the key to the
success today. In 3 hours of fishing I landed 35 plus Rock
Bass keeping my limit with half being between 8 and 10
inches and 21 Smallies with 3 being right at 15 to 16 inches
and the rest 10 to 13 inchers with a few smaller. . What a
special day on the river and it will just get better thru
October. Forgive me for the pics but I did the best I could.
If you want to have an exciting time fall fishing our
streams, give me a shout.
Hickory 8-23-08
I have managed to
fish 3 times in the last week and a half. I had a few computer
problems and can finally send mail. So I just wanted to say, the
last few times on the lake have been tough. I had been spending
time in the river looking for schools of fish. Finding numbers
has not been too tough this summer. Hooking up with better fish
has been a challenge. I decided to fish the lower end, Saturday
during a club tournament. I managed my 1st keeper early. Not too
far from that area, I landed an 18 inch smallie. Knowing I had
points for the day, I decided to fish a soft shad the rest of
the day. That ended up being a pretty good call. I managed to
finish out a limit and catch numerous fish. They were not big
fish but a limit weighing around 9lbs. I will be out again Wed
and have another post up. The next one will have some pictures.
If your out there, try throwing a small crankbait and a prowler
soft shad.
www.prowlerelures.com There are millions of baitfish around
any cover you can find. I think the quality fish are starting to
follow these pods of bait and get that easy meal. Thanks, Matt
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Stream UpDate 8-2008
 July
and August Fishing has been average this year. I
apologize for not getting many reports out this summer. Computer
and camera problems and being blessed with some lifestyle changes
slowed my fishing down the last two months. The Gar Fishing has
been great this summer which helps when things are slow. A 3 to 4
foot gar in waste high water makes for an interesting fight and on
the lighter side comical.. The Trophy Smallies have been few and
far between but the numbers have been good in the 15 inch range.
Ten inch Rock Bass have been great and the numbers are average.
The same pattern has held early and late in the day and has been
best very late. There is a mid day bite in the deepest holes with
craw-dads and minnows and Sliders fished very slow. Fishing the
Case Jacks Worm Early and Late on top has been very effective and
of course live bait will work all day. With the Cooler temps we
are hav ing, the top water bite should be great in the mornings
and start around 5 in the evenings. Our Streams were effected by
the last two years of drought in that the amount of ground water
flowing into the stream beds is not as prevalent
 this
summer. This has caused the streams to be warmer this year than I
can remember causing a night bight just like in our lakes. I waded
two weeks ago and had a ball throwing the Jacks worm and Case King
Grub( between 9pm and 11pm across the top they would hammer it. If
you know your waters it is safe to wade at night. If you are not
familiar with a stretch I would not go.
This Report was not possible
with out my
new computer sponsor. If you need a Web-site built or help with an
existing web-site or your business or personal computer needs work
done ( from rebuilding to trouble shooting in the Middle TN Area)
please call Monica Hammers 615-267-0650. Any work she does for you
let me know and I will give a 20 dollar discount on your
next guided trip with me.
September and October should
be an exciting time to wade our Middle Tennessee Streams. So give
me a shout if you would like to learn a very simple and the most
peaceful way to enjoy fishing in Middle Tennessee.
 
Old Hickory 7-31-08
Today I fished with one of my buddies, James Vandyke. We had a
pretty good day. We caught fish is
waves, kind of like the rain, coming and going all day. At times
the static electricity was so heavy our
rods would crackle and once, James line looked like it was just
floating in the sky. It was pretty cool to see, but I would not
suggest going out in a storm to see it for your self. About the
fishing, we caught fish on docks, bridges, ledges and the jumps.
It took us the day to catch a limit of keepers, but we had
numbers. I would say the fish are pretty scattered right now, but
can still be caught in various ways. I spent some time with my
flippin’ stick today, just to get a good feel for it. If your up
for a new one, All Pro has a great Bill Lowen APX swim jig
series. This stick has an awesome tip on it. Enough backbone to
get fish out of thick stuff, yet not straighten the hook. This
stick defines sensitive power! Prowler tubes, creature baits and
trick worms worked best for us today. Get out on the lake and
enjoy the summer action. Thanks, Matt
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old Hickory 7-4-08
Today I fish ed with Johnny Rice from
Ohio. We went to high school together years ago. They were in town
for the yearly 4th outing. The morning
started out a little slow. There was so much activity on top I
thought we would surely have a good morning bite. We ended
up catching fish flipping wood and grass. After that we went out
on a ledge and caught numerous keepers including one pictured. The
next stop was a bluff wall. That is where the spot
was. We ended the day shallow fishing the docks, boating the big
fish. So if your wondering, where are the fish? Only in Old
Hickory style, they are everywhere. Watch for schooling fish on
the ledges, fish docks with brush and work the grass. See you next
year John, Matt. www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
50 INCHER
I fished Saturday with
Hugh Cutrell on the Collins River and finally hooked and landed
my first 50 inch Muskie. This girl has been a long time coming
as I have had a few on but had never landed. This fish was in
extremely shallow water and I never saw her until she came
crashing out of the weeds and enhaled my soft plastic jerk
bait. The fish jumped four times before Hugh slid the net under
her. The Muskie in the Collins can reach 50 inch class size if
catch and release is practiced. Early and late is the time to
get em on the Collins and trolling is the best way for a monster
on Great Falls. Dwayne Hickey
 
Tim's Ford 6-26-2008
TBG Guide Jon
Simmons sent in the two pictures above of 2 great Largemouth that
he and his father Carl caught on Tim's throwing a big swim bait.
Jon said these two beauties nailed the swim bait almost as soon as
it hit the water......Great fish. Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory 6-24-2008
 I spent the
day with a good friend Mr. Ken Jenkins on Old Hickory Lake. We
fished out of Ken's boat and was the first time I have been back
on OH in a couple years. Ken and I
had 25 total Largemouth with 7 of the 25 being good solid fish
like the one that Ken is holding . Best estimate was 5 that
would go in the 12lb range. Rapala DT 6's
www.rapala.com and Prowler
Soft Shad & Worms
www.prowlerlures.com worked the best for me. Just a great day.
My boat is out of the shop I'll be back on the water and will be
posting Tim's trips on the home page beginning the end of this
week. Good day with a very good friend.....Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
Old Hickory 6-13/15-08
 I was
fortunate to fish on Friday and Sunday this week. I had great
company on the lake. Friday I fished with Lynda Gessner and Robbie
Hartline of Missouri. Sunday was with Michelle Armstrong of North
Carolina. These ladies will be fishing the women's Bassmasters
this week the 19th-21st. Let me tell you,
these gals can fish. Their skills are sharp and they know their
stuff. Friday we fished on the lower end of the lake finding many
active fish. I didn’t get any pictures of the small keepers we
caught thinking we would land some bigger fish. Most of the
keepers came off scattered wood or rocky banks. We caught numbers,
but could not find that big bite. Sunday was a different story. We
fished the river and had a limit in about 20 minutes. Everything
we fished produced keepers. Wood, rock, grass, you name it. These
fish were so aggressive that in one picture you can see it ate 2
baits. Michelle and her husband flipped in, she set the hook and
caught this hungry fish that had both their baits in its mouth.
The bigger fish came on top and off lay downs. It was the perfect
day. I’ll take 16-18lbs in 20 minutes any day. I wish the best for
these gals this week. If you get a chance check out their weigh
ins. Saunders ferry park ramp. Thanks for 2 great days ladies.
Matt Crabill www.tennesseebassguides.com
Middle Tennessee Stream
Up Date June 2008
 The last few weeks our Middle
TN streams have put out great numbers of quality stream Rock
bass and Smallies. My Clients, Doug Markham( put together a film
to be shown late July) and I have caught several 15 to 17
inchers but Camera Malfunctions have hindered getting them
online. Today Doug Stewart and I were on the water by 6:15 and
off by 3. We threw Plastics early and thru mid day. Plastic
Crawfish landed this 19 incher ( Doug's biggest stream fish to
date) I threw Case Jacks worm and Sliders. We picked up fish all
day long with it slowing down around noon. So we threw big
Creekminnows which yielded me a nice 17 incher. We had 20 plus
chunky Rock bass and 25 or more nice fiesty stream smallies.
Thanks Doug for another great trip and the next outing will be
for your largest Shellcracker and Largemouth. If you are
interested in learning the most economical way to fish and catch
quality fish give me a call. Mike Dial Stream Smallmouth Guide
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old
Hickory 6-9-08
I slipped out of work a little early today and took my son fishing
with me. We spent 4 hours and managed to catch some good keepers
and numerous small fish. The one in the picture was the biggest of
the bunch. It brought me great pleasure to spend quality time with
my boy. We need to work on his hookset but he will sure be a
fisherman in time. He never complains and does not want to leave.
I can’t ask for more than that at this point. As far as the
afternoon of fishing, I checked some drops on the lower end and
had no luck. Most of the fish were caught on points in the creeks.
Close to deep water was the best bet for me. I know there are
plenty of fish shallow, but I like to drop back and fish 8-12ft
this time of year. I caught some on crank baits, but most came on
jigs. Hope this helps a little. Good fishing Matt. Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old Hickory 6-02-08
 Today
I fished with Ronnie and Louie Richards. Louie was a little tired
due to lack of sleep but he woke up quickly. Today was one of
those days when the fish just ate everything. We caught fish right
off the bat. The top water bite was just great. By saying top
water I mean every kind of bait. After that bite died we started
c-rigging secondary points. The fish we’re there and not afraid to
bite. Louie even did the impossible, catching a fish by a nearby
fish attracter bouy marker. Who would have thought that the fish
really do use those things. As the sun burned across the feet of
Ronnie I thought we should try the docks. Low and behold the fish
even bit there. We had around 12lbs in our best 5 today and were
able to catch a couple limits, alone with too many short fish.
All I can say is today was text book fishing. Ambush points in the
morning, travel routes for those fish on the Old Hickory highway
and docks for those in between fish. So here are a few pictures of
the guys and some fish, also I saw Jon Simmons out today. Here is
Angel with one of their catch. Talking with him, his day was just
as good if not a little better. His only thought for the day is
how do I get my phone out of 20 ft of water? Now is a great time
to hit the lake. The fishing is good and you can catch numbers.
Just keep your phone in your pocket and keep casting. Thanks for a
good day guys and good fishing, Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old
Hickory 5-29-08
Today I had the
pleasure of fishing with Wayne and John Westmoreland. They had
purchased the trip in a silent auction for fellowship of Christian
athletes. We had a great time. The bite was good early and John
had a great smallmouth in the boat pretty quick. Our best fish
were caught off main lake wood and rock. Also some main lake
points produced well. Like I said the early bite was great. We
caught one after another til about 10:30, then had to work for
them. Most of the fish came on texas rigged lizards and some on
c-rigs. Overall it was good. Our 2 best fish are pictured and we
had another largemouth that went about 2 lbs, then a bunch of
keepers. Of course we had the 20 or so short fish. The fish are
making their way to summer haunts, hopefully this will be a more
productive summer. Thanks for a great day on the water guys. Maybe
we’ll get out again sometime. Good fishing, Matt Crabill www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old
Hickory 5-21-08
Today I fished with Steve Swiantek and
Kevin Rollins. We started out fishing in the river than went to
mid-lake. Our fish in the morning came on plastics. Mostly
casting or flipping different cover. Most of our fish in the
mid-lake area were caught on a rig today. I managed a few on
crankbaits, but a lizard was the way to go. A few places had a lot
of fish stacked up, but most were scattered. Bigger fish were few
and far between. We did manage a few good ones and a mess of
keepers. These post spawn fish can be tough. The bigger fish
should be showing up in deeper water soon. I had a great time out
today, looking forward to the next trip together. Be back on the
water Saturday. Good Fishing Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old Hickory 5-16-08
I
spent the day fishing with Jeremy Donaldson. He had won a trip
through a drawing at Bass Pro Shops. We spent most of the day on
the lower end of the lake. Water temps were in the mid-60’s.
After spending time going through different baits we narrowed it
down . The best fish came on plastics. We fished boat docks most
of the time. Most of the fish came from 4-6 ft of water. If they
didn’t hit it on the fall, just pop the rod tip let it fall again
and there they were. We managed a few on crankbaits, and fishing
the grass. But, over all the docks produced. Not any monsters but
respectable keepers. I look for the grass bite to come on very
soon. Watch for the bait, if you see bait the keepers are not far
behind. Here are a few pictures. Jeremy, I had a great time. Maybe
we can get out again. Matt
 
Great Falls Muskie
I fished April 13th with
two of my muskie "buds" Mr. Wayne Bomar and Danny Kurtilla on
Great Falls Lake. We decided to devote most of our time
trolling, which is a good way to find Muskies in the river
system. We stayed with it all day, covering water that ranged
from 58 degrees to 74 degrees. Late in the day our patience was
rewarded as Danny landed this nice 42 incher while trolling a
white-knuckle double jointed perch. Wayne also had two more
"rips" but did not hook up. These new lures will be a big part
of my casting and trolling arsenal this summer as they are
proving to trigger strikes, and that's what it's all about!
Check em out at whiteknucklelures.com Great Falls is THE place
to catch trophy Muske this summer, and it all starts now. Give
Rick a call, Dwayne Hickey
 
Collins Muskies
I fished Friday and Part
of Saturday with Randy Wong from Maryland. Randy is no stranger
to fishing for big fish and some of his catches have been
published in Magazines such as In-fisherman, just to name one.
We started Friday with a nice 36.5 incher right off the bat and
had many more follows. Later in the day I landed a Muskie that
went exactly 36.5 inches. (The brother to Randy's fish). We
had another good hit but missed the hook-up, and as I said,
several follows. Saturday evening we hit the river again and
the fish were moving some, as the follows kept coming, and Randy
landed a feisty 30 inch fish on a suspending Rapala Husky Jerk.
Later in the evening, a 33 incher would come straight up from 8
feet of water and inhale a "pull bait". I'd have to say the
fishing was a little tough for the weekend with many follows, a
few hits and four fish landed. From now through summer there
will be action on most every trip, and the larger fish will
start showing up more often. I had a great time fishing with
Randy and only wish he could have got that big' un, but it will
happen as we plan to do it again this summer. One of my
favorite times of year to fish is when toothie critters are
coming off beds, and that's now! Give Rick a call and see what
all the "fuss" is about! Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old Hickory 5/8-10/08
I got out
on t he
lake 3 times this we ek
in preparing for a tournament. Thursday I fished for about 4
hours in the river. It rained the whole time. I was able to
catch a 5 keeper limit that was just that. The fish didn't have
much size to them. Water temp in the creeks was in the mid 60's.
I caught them on spinner baits, Buzz baits and prowler soft
shad. Most of them came off new grass growth and rock. Fairly
shallow, but close to deep water. Friday was a different story.
My buddy Dan and I had a pretty good day. We fished mid-lake to
the lower end. The main lake is in the 60's and the creeks are
in the low 70's. Most of our fish came on plastics. Watermelon
colored baby brush hogs caught most of the fish. A jig and craw
combo and crank bait got the biggest fish. We found most of the
fish around chunk rock points. It took a slow presentation, but
they were there. We had plenty of keepers and numerous short
fish. 2 of the better fish were over 21 and 3/4 inches long. Too
bad they were spawned out. For Saturday's tourney I didn't fair
too well. I had a 3.72 early then had some technical
difficulties. I managed to stay around fish all day. We caught
so many small fish. Every time I would hook a good fish it
popped off at the boat. So, I think I have figured out the
problem the other day. If your interested in a trip I have some
open dates available. I think I can put you on fish right now,
we just have to get them in the boat. Looking forward to serving
you this season, Matt
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Collins Muskie Action
I fished with Gary
Pazdzior from Atlanta on April 30th on the Collins river hoping to
get into some post spawn Muskies. This was one of those days
Muskies fishermen dream of as we found active fish between 9:30
a.m. to 10:30 a.m. (which both of us missed our chances) and again
between 2:00 and 3:30 p.m. The river had good color which made
our glide baits very affective when worked fast accross logs and
blow-downs. Gary's second fish of the day "crushed" his glider
and after a good fight, we had a 30 pound Muskie in the net! A
few short minutes later I had a good' un and then it was Gary's
turn again. I put my pole down and let Gary enjoy one of the best
feeding frenzies I've seen in a long time. All in all, we boated
six fish and missed hook-ups on at least five more, with follows I
lost count of. The Muskies are off bed and if you stay with it,
there will be times during the day to catch big fish as these pics
indicate. Great job Gary and I look forward to fishing with you
again in May. Now's the time for you to catch a Muskie to
remember, give Rick a call. Dwayne Hickey
Old Hickory
5-2-08
I managed to get
on the lake today for 3 hours before the storm moved in. It was a
pretty tough bite. The fish wanted a moving bait. I caught some on
cranks and a prowler soft shad. I did not have any good picture fish
just some of the old hickory specials, 14 inch cookie cutters. My
best fish broke off my $20 bait. So if your lucky someone will get a
good crank. The small fish are getting aggressive so beware, you may
have to cull through them to get a limit. The secondary points in
the creeks held my fish today. Also, just subtle depth changes. Good
luck, Thanks, Matt www.tennesseebassguides.com
ALL PRO ROD COMPANY
GREAT FALLS MUSKIE TOURNAMENT
June 14,2008 from 6:00am until
4:00pm. $20.00 per person plus $5.00 big fish pot. 1st place 60%
payout plus an All Pro APX Rod ($280.00 value) 2nd Place 40% payout
plus a $25.00 Mapco Gas Card..3rd Place Interstate Deep Cycle
Battery. All Pro also is putting in $50.00 for big fish pot. Door
prizes given away at the end of the tournament. Sponsors. All
Pro Rods...Tennessee Bass Guides...Drifter Tackle...Interstate
Batteries...Mapco...Doug Markham Out Doors. For additional
Information call 931-273-7937 or 706-483-4224.
Pickwick 4-7-2008
All Pro Rods VP Billy Campbell took a day off to
fish Pickwick and did he ever score. Billy being a man of few
words didn't give me much information other than it was a great
lipless crankbait bite. Nice!!!!!!!!! Fish Billy.
Old Hickory 4-8-2008
Today I
fished with a super nice client that will go un named. We st arted
out looking for staging fish in suspected areas. It was not long
before we had a keeper. This was fairly easy
to duplicate through most of the day. Points coming
off channel swings held most of the fish.
Some did come in shallow cuts or backwaters. Water temperatures
varied from 65degrees in mid-lake creeks to 55degrees toward the
lower end. We managed to catch them on crank baits, spinner baits
and plastic. It was really an awesome day.
Our best 5 weighed 14.25 lbs and if we would not have lost a few
we would have had about 17lbs. The fish this season are very
healthy overall. They are just stuffed full of bait. Here are some
pictures of the fish caught. If your out there watch for floating
debris. The lake is at summer pool, but who knows what the rains
this week will bring. Thanks for spending a great day on the lake
with me stranger and good fishing to all. Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Muskie Action
I
fished with Jason Barry and Paul Dudley March 14th on the Collins
with water conditions just about right. We started off slow but
soon were getting fish follows, with Paul missing a small Muskie
on a Bionic Bucktail. It seemed like all the fish wanted was to
follow our lures as we had a total of nine follows for the day,
but late in the afternoon the fish "turned on" as Jason had a good
solid strike. That fish managed to shake loose but the next one
was hooked solid and after a good fight, the fat Muskie was in the
net. One nice fish landed, a 40.5 incher that weighed in at 20
pounds. Good fishing with you guys, and thanks for showing
patience as it payed off. Look forward to fishing with you again
soon. The female Muskies are at there fattest now just before
spawn. There's still time for some heavy fish to be caught!
Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory
3-14-08
 Today I had the
pleasure of fishing with Mark Thompson from Laverne. We headed out
at sun up to a warm rainy morning. We started fishing around the
steam plant to take in some warm water. It’s in the 60’s right
now. We caught a few short fish and left. We started our way
toward the lower end to see what the creeks and cuts had to offer.
The water temperature on the river was 49 degrees. Some of the
creeks varied from 50 – 54 degrees. The fish in the picture was the
best one we caught today. We had another one measure and one we
should have put on the board. Other than that we caught a bunch of
short fish. The crankbait bite was off today. If I had to go
tomorrow I would throw a jig and pig and plastic. Slow and steady.
There may be a few big females up now, but wait til the water warms
another week. Mark, I had a great time today thanks. Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old Hickory
3-7-08
 I
made it to the lake today before the snow started flying. I just
wanted to get out and check the water temp and a few places on the
lake. It was 41 degrees launching the boat and dropped to 35, by the
time I came home. The main channel held 48 degrees. The steam plant
area was in the low 60’s. If we could get some consistent warm
weather these fish would move up. The fish are ready, but the global
warming trend has not started here yet. Either way, Spring is coming
and there will be some good ones to catch this season. In the mean
time watch your water temperature, once we get some consistent mid
50 degree water these fish will go crazy. Here are a few pictures
of what Marty and I caught today. I just wanted to slip in this
picture from Percy Priest last week. The water temperature there has
been between the low 40’s and mid 50’s. The fish have moved pretty
shallow although the cold weather keeps many more from committing to
shallow. Once this weather gets straight you will see many more
good fish like this one, getting caught. This is my buddy James in
the picture with the best fish of the day. Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Muskie Action Collins River
I had a recent trip in late
February with Mr. Will Hardy from Minnesota. Will Has 2000
Muskies caught during his lifetime and it was a good trip and a
learning experience for me as well. We caught 4 Muskies on this
trip, the largest at 42 inches. Too bad the cameraman (me) forgot
to take the cap of the camera on the big fish, so there is no
picture. Will and I do have a great picture in our head of that
big fish hitting at the boat on a figure "8" and the fight that
followed. Great fishing with you Will and hope you catch many more
fish this year. The Muskies are going shallow now and will be
looking for spawning areas soon. But there's a "bite" before the
spawn, and heavy fish! Thanks, Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Dale Hollow 2-28-29 &3-1-2008
 On Thursday and
part of Friday morning I had the pleasure of fishing with Joe
Crosby of Swarming Hornet Lures. Joe was trying to see if the
smallmouth would hit the fish head spin in the cold water. The
water was to cold for this lure to work at this time, but you can
bet it is going to be a killer as the water warms and they move
up. We went to the yellow jig and ended up with twelve good fish.
On Saturday I fished again with Jason and his friend Kyle. The
fish were real finicky. The fish did not hit and they did not
move the line at all. When you went to pick up your tip it felt
like you had a blade of grass and you had better the hook. We
had a total of 10 with none being under four pounds. They were
beautiful fish. We would have had eleven if Jason had not lost
the 71/2 pound Smallmouth. David DuVall
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
Old Hickory
Lake 2-13-2008
Today I had the
pleasure of fishing with Dave and Don Herber of Oregon. That’s right
today! It was 24degrees when I put the boat in the water. As we
launched on our journey the snow started to fly and continued most
of the day. Other than a few short visits from the sun it was pretty
chilly. Who says the fish don’t bite in that kind of weather. It
started out a little slow, but got better. The first fish of the day
was a drum. Then, the nice stripe in the picture. Throughout the
day we caught white bass and largemouth. Jigs and crank baits
fished slowly did the trick. Let me say that a good rod helps on a
soft bite. I have been using the AllPro APX series rods
www.allprorods.com for
awhile now and they are amazing. You want sensitive, they got it.
Light in the hand, that too. These rods are top notch. We had five
keepers that weighed in the 10lb. range. Don’t let the snow and cold
discourage your fishing fix. These are just some of the fish waiting
to be caught on Old Hickory. Dave and Don, thanks for a great day
on the water. Hope to see you again. Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
Old
Hickory 2-2-2008
Today I had the pleasure
of fishing with Todd Dowling and Ed Campbell. They were in town for a
convention and just wanted to catch some fish. Since
they only had 4 hours to fish and the main lake was 41 degrees, I opted to
take them to the steam plant area. The mid 50 degree water was full of fish
beginning to be caught. We threw crank baits most of the time and did pretty
well. We managed to catch over 50 fish. Everything from skipjack to bass,
some nice stripe and one good walleye. Fishing points, bluffs and channel
swung banks has been some slow going. The fish are there it just takes time. I
think we made the best of our 4 hours. I had a great time guys. I look forward
to getting back out in the spring when your in town. Thanks, Matt
  
Muskie Action, Collins River
This was an exciting week as I chased Muskies with Adam
Glickman (Muskie Hunter Magazine) and his girlfriend Nicole, both from
Northern Minnesota. Both took the long drive to the Volunteer State to
chase some Tennessee tootie critters. The season up north closes the last
of November and Adam needed to "scratch the itch" and escape frigid temps.
We fished the 21st, 22nd, and the 23rd and let me tell you that it was
Cold! Water temps never reached above 38 degrees, but the Muskies didn't
seem to mind as Adam caught and released a total of 13 solid fish. The
largest were two that went 40 inches, and the rest from 32 to 39 inches.
Four fish were taken on glide baits, three on suckers, and 6 nice fish taken
on the Rapala X-Rap. The X-Rap was an excellent lure to "throw back" when
Mr. Muskie would blow up on the glider. Time after time, the fish would
"inhale" the X-Rap on the next cast. The Muskie action will continue
through the winter months, and although we did not raise any big fish this
trip, winter is THE time to catch the fish of a lifetime. Adam and Nicloe,
I had a great time fishing with you guys and hope the film footage turns out
to be good for your new website. Pictured are 3 of the 13 fish taken.
Dress warm, and let's chase some Muskies!!! Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
   
Tim's Ford 1-11-2008
First let me say I
apologize for the wrong date on the pictures-I'm not
sure why the old digital jumped backwards. All
pictures were shot today. I fished Tim's Ford today
with Mr. John Elliott from McMinnville Tennessee.
This is the second time that John and I have fished
together and we have another trip scheduled for
February. With the holidays, a bout with the flu
and having my boat wrapped out of the way, it was
great to be back on the water. We struggled early
until we figured out a slow but decent pattern. We
managed 4 Smallmouth and 3 Largemouth for the day on
crank baits. The fish were in the 8 to 10 foot range
and would attack the bait. Everyone has their own
comfort zone when it comes to line size when
throwing crank baits and mine is always 6lb test P-Pline
www.pline.com
with baits that will run as deep as the Rapala DT14.
www.rapala.com
I will occasionally opt for 4 lb test when throwing
a #5 Rapala Shad Rap and 10lb test when using baits
that run deeper than 14 feet. Rod of choice is
either a All Pro APX 7' Med Tennessee Handle
spinning rod or a 7'6" AllPro Atlantis Med Light
www.allprorods.com on the real small baits. The
smaller diameter line give these baits a greater
freedom and the sensitivity of the rods are
unbelievable. More to come next week. Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
     
Dale Hollow 1-3-2008 &
1-4-2008
TGBI Guides Billy Campbell and
David DuVall braved the 9 degree start time
temperatures on the Hollow this past week to put
more than 30 brown fish in the boat. With the
deep cold weather we lad last week the water
temps are running 46 to 47 degrees. Best bait by
far was the yellow jig with a few being caught
on a float n fly. Billy and David both were
throwing the jig on 6lb test line and on a All
Pro 7'6" Altantis Med/Light spinning rod. The
extra lenght of the rods make a big difference
in getting a good hook set when fish are deep
plus it gives you an extra advantage when you
get a good fish to the boat. Great fish
guys....For Billy and David....Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
12-29-07 MUSKIE ACTION
 
Today
was a good day to stay home, nice and warm and
just watch
it rain, but I decided to step out of the
comfort zone and go Muskie fishing with Hugh
Cutrell and Tom Kelly on the Collins. We
stopped by a local creek and caught a couple
decent creek minnows and hit the water around
8:00 a.m. with on and off rain showers all day.
The only action recently has been on minnows or
jig-minnow combinations and today was no
different with low clear water. We spotted fish
all day (when it wasn't raining) and was able to
catch and release this 33 and 42 incher and also
missed two fish. Muskies are still not wanting
to charge anything yet, but will take a
jig-minnow(or soft plastic) combo. worked VERY
slowly! Hey, I'll take em' any way I can get
em'! Some "hot" winter action is coming soon,
and I've got my eye on a big girl (over
50inches) if Tom or Hugh don't get her first!
Tight Lines, Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebasguides.com
 
   
Dale hollow
December 24 & 25-2007
TBGI Guide and All Pro Rods Vice President Billy
Campbell sent me a slew of great pictures of
Smallmouth that was caught using a Float N Fly on
Dale Hollow this past week. Billy-Jason (Billy's
Son) and Gary Gibbs have a long standing tradition
of fishing the Hollow on Christmas Day and each year
Santa seems to be good to them. There are several
ways to fish the FNF "But" it's much easier when you
are using the right equipment including a high
quality rod made for specifically for that
technique. check them out at
www.allprorods.com Great fish guy's.......For
Billy Campbell....Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
   
Percy Priest
12-20-2007
I
met Pastor Ron Kairdolf at fate Sanders Marina at
6:45am this morning. We went to our first stop and
Ron caught one in either the first or second cast.
Next stop much the same thing. We moved down lake
near Pool Knob where we caught another 5
Largemouth. The rain kicked in about that time so
we hit a couple more spots on our way back toward
the marina and caught 4 more Largemouth. All off out
fish were caught on a Rapala #5 Shad Rap Crawfish
color.
www.rapalalures.com With light line and the
All Pro APX Rods we had a great time.
www.allprorods.com Pastor Ron has been fishing
with Rick and I on and off all year and we have more
trips planned on both Priest and Tim's. 11 Total
Largemouth for the day plus just a great time with a
great guy. I'm going to take some time off to visit
family for Christmas but I'll be back on the water
as soon as I get back and will keep you posted.
Merry Christmas and I hope you will have a great new
year in 2008. Terry Hicks
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
Collins River 12-19-2007
After a long layoff (due to
starting my own business) it was back on the
Muskie Hunt with Brad Welch from Nashville.
Brad's an avid fisherman and wanted to try his
hand at Fly fishing for toothie critters and I
was all for it. I brought along some
big minnows as a backup, knowing with clear, low
water the Muskies would be hard to fool. We hit
the water around 8:00 and fished hard till dark
and early on Brad did fool a 32 inch fish and
the fight was on. Folks, fly fishing for
Muskies is a blast. He almost tricked a 40
incher into taking his fly. It was a great day
on the Collins although we could only get
follows on our crank baits, (super shad raps,
stalkers) we were able to catch and release
(unharmed) six Muskies, all on live minnows.
Pictured is Brad's fly rod catch, a nice 40
incher, and this REAL NICE 47.5 inch bruiser!
I had a great time fishing with Brad and look
forward to another trip in the near future. I
have more open dates now that I have opened my
own business. The Muskies are out there waiting
on you!!! Have a safe and wonderful Holiday
season, God bless, Dwayne Hickey
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Tim's Ford
12-17-2007
I f ished
Tim's Ford this morning with Pastor Ron Kairdolf
from Murfreesboro. We put in at 8:00am and fished
the upper end of Tim's and never ran much more than
a mile or so either way from the ramp. Air
temperature was 29 degrees when we put the boat in
the water and the water temp was 51.7. We had a
little color and the fish that we caught were
holding in the 8 to 10 foot range. We threw a
variety of baits but everything we caught was on a
crank bait in including a Rapala #5
 Shad
rap.
www.rapalalures.com It's hard to beat that
little bait and especially when the fish are shallow
and finicky like they have been. I like to throw
these baits on a AllPro Atlantis 7'6" Medium Light
Spinning Rod
www.allprorods.com and either 6lb or 4lb PLine.
www.pline.com The
small diameter of the line and the sensitivity of
the rods are fantastic. Ron is holding the largest
of the 6 total that we caught in the 5 1/2 hours
that we fished. I plan on fishing one more time this
week and then will take the week between Christmas
and New Years off to visit relatives. Take a look at
these 2 huge Crappie that good friend Roy Armisteads
caught on Dale Hollow on the 14th. Roy has been
catching several like these plus numerous Smallmouth
almost every trip. I hope to be able to fish with
Roy after the first of the year. I appreciate
everyone that had visited the site this year and
wish you and your families a blessed and safe
holiday season. Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory
12-14-2007
This will probably be my last post for this year. I
will be gone over the holidays, but I wish you all
the best. Friday Marty and I braved the 40 degree
weather on Old Hickory. Water temp was 53.3 degrees.
We fished some of the bluffs on the main river
channel and missed several fish. We made our way to
the steam plan area and found 68 degree water. This
is certainly the place to go when the water chills.
We managed to catch a little bit of everything.
Bass-Stripe-Drum and even Shad. All were a tug on
the line and that was about it. Speaking of tug. Let
me tell you about my new All Pro APX Rods.
www.allprorods.com These rods are phenomenal you
can feel everything. Try them you will love them.
Not to late to drop a hint to your spouse for
Christmas. Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Dale Hollow
12-14-2007
I
had an invitation to go to Dale Hollow yesterday and
fish with Mr. Ken Jenkins and I gladly obliged. Ken
was there practicing for a Smallmouth tournament
that he is fishing today and tomorrow and it was
nice to sit in the back of the boat for a change and
let someone else worry about finding fish. The two
fish above was our largest and over all things was
slow for us. We talked to several other boats and
got the same story from them as well. Just one
observation on my part. We only tried artificial
bait because of the tournament rules that Ken will
be fishing under. Some of the best strings of
Smallmouth (That I Know Of) that have been caught on
the Hollow this winter so far has either been
fishing big tuffy's on a minnow/jig combo or big
shiner or creek minnows fished on a hook and split
shot rig. Sometimes live bait "WILL" make a big
difference and I believe it would have yesterday.
Ken marked several good schools of fish that just
wouldn't hit anything we offered-But I do believe
they would have gladly ran off with a 4 inch creek
minnow dropped in the laps. Worth a try if your
headed that way. Ken as always I had a great time
fishing with you and look forward to our Tim's trip
in a couple weeks. Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
.JPG) .JPG) .JPG)
Percy Priest
12-12-2007
Met Mr. Charles
Teasley at Fate Sanders Marina at 6:45 AM, went to
our first spot. We caught four fish in four casts.
The largest being three pounds. I should say Charles
caught four fish!! Charles likes using his new
AllPro APX spinning rods
www.allprorods.com and the silver black back
Rapala crank bait I had given him. I thought man we
are in for one of those days!! But it two more spots
and three hours before we caught our next group of
fish. We caught six more bass in eight or nine casts
using the same No. 5 Rapala Shad Rap in shad color.
www.rapalalures.com Charles works the night
shift so we called it a day at 11:00 am. Thanks
Charles we will do it again soon!! It felt good
getting back on the water. Since Doc got my knees
back in working order!! Keep your line tight Terry
Hicks
www.tennesseebassguides.com
   
Combo Report
Dale Hollow 12-7-8-9-2007
 T his
is a combo report that covers Friday and Saturdaya
and Sunday of this past week. Top pictures and
Report from TBGI Guide Jon Simmons: What a great
time was had by all on a weekend trip to Dale
Hollow. Brian
Durdin, Lee Pearsall and TBGI Jon Simmons had a
wonderful trip to the Hollow this past weekend.
These are some of the best of the fish that we
caught on a two day outing to Dale Hollow. All fish
were caught from 10-40 feet on a mixture of jigs and
live creek minnows. Fish Saturday were shallow and
very
 reluctant
to bite. Sunday the fish were deeper but seemed more
in the mood to take our offerings. We had a great
weekend, most fish came from main lake points and
cuts. What a great fishery!!! We will all be back
soon. Fish ranged from 2 pounds up to the beautiful
4lb. 15 oz beauty in the bottom picture. God Bless
hope you enjoy these as much as we did. Jon Simmons
www.tennesseebassguides.com. Report From 2 good
friends Roy Armisteads and Jerry Williams..The 3
pictures in the body of this post was caught on
Friday. Everything we caught was on a small hair fly
on 4 lb and 6 lb test. Most of our fish were dee.
Along with several Smallmouth we had 14 big crappie
that weighed up to 2 1/2lbs each.....Great day and a
ton of fun. Jerry Williams AllPro Rod Company
www.allprorods.com
Tim's Ford
12-7-2007
 Not
much new to tell about Tim's. It was another tough
day with one keeper that we caught on a Rapala DT
10. Water temperatures remain in the 53 to 53.8
range just about every where we were today. We have
a good wind-clouds-everything you want except
willing smallmouth. I know I keep saying this but
it's true. IT WILL GET BETTER! Yesterday I took
time to look back over my records and pictures from
last year and we had a real strong last of December
and it stayed good all the way through until early
summer. I'm sure it will be the same scenario this
year. The lake has yet to turn over and that surely
will be happening soon with the water temps falling
the way that they have. All ramps that I have used
in the past month or more are still in good
shape-State Park-Holiday-Turkey Creek and Devils
Step. The Bass Club ramp is ify.......might rethink
putting in there. The gentleman with me is Mr. Roger
Barnes, he loves to go even when things are as slow
as they have been......I'll do a make up trip for
him in a couple weeks.......I know there's not much
good news at this point but there will be. Rick
McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Tim's Ford
12-4-2007
Tim's Ford remains tough to say the least. I fished
the upper end of the lake today by myself and
struggled all day-no keepers. Water temperature was
53-54 degrees with some color. I threw everything
except my cell phone and maybe I should have tried
that.....Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory
11-29-07
Today I got on
the lake for 5 hours. I was curious what the water
temp would be and the mood of the fish. I fished a
mile on either side of the steam plant and found
temps from 56.5 to 65.5. I was pretty surprised and
expected active fish. Water was fairly clear and the
bite was ok. I managed to catch a stripe and spot on
a rapala dt7. The rest of the day I fished a shaky
head worm around bluff walls and boated 4 more
spots. Managing to catch 5 keepers is always a goal
even if they didn’t weigh much. I think if I had
more time the fish were warming up. This next cold
spell should bring the temp down a little more. Most
of the fish came in 60 degree water, I look for the
bite to stay steady. There are a lot of people
enjoying the warm late fall days and the fish are
there to be caught. Give us a call if you would like
to catch some fish or book for the spring. Thanks
Matt Carbill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
Tim's Ford
11-26-2007
Well the 3 week break is over and I'm back at it on
Tim's Ford. I fished with Mr. Roger Barnes today and
had a so so day. We decided just to fish crank baits
only and cover as much territory as possible. We
caught several on a DT10 with 3 of our better fish
pictured above. Water temperature was 56.7 when we
put in and stayed just about right there all day. We
have to be ever so close to things breaking
loose.....Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
JUST TAKING A
BREAK
 I
have had several e-mails asking me if we have
stopped fishing....NO.... I just decided to take a
little break since Tim's Ford has been so extremely
tough for the past 3 weeks. I'm not going to take
clients just to take them, so I have rescheduled
several trips and a video with the Rapala people for
December and January and will be back on Tim's this
coming week......Just seemed like a good time to
catch up on last minute late fall house projects,
spend more time with my family and save that $3.00
per gallon gasoline. David Duvall has been catching
some fish on Dale Hollow and will be sending me his
pictures and reports Monday or Tuesday. The rest of
the guys will be sending reports and pictures is as
well.. I appreciate the e-mails and we are going to
have a great winter.....Rick McFerrin Owner
Tennessee Bass Guides LLC. P.S. Hope you enjoy the
picture of the Nov 8-2007 Tim's Sun Rise. Fantastic.
  
Old Hickory
11-09-2007
Today I fished with Brent Shelton and his daughter
Missy. Other than slow fishing, we had a great
day. The water temp was 57.4 in the morning and
came up to 59.8 at days end. I expected it to be
pretty slow early so we fished finesse worms,
landing a few small fish. It was tough all day and
the bass did not start rounding up the bait until
late. I had a spot that got hot late in the day. We
were able to finally land some keepers. In all we
only caught about 10 bass, 5 lbs. of keepers. We
did catch one big stripe and had a great time. I
look forward to fishing with Brent again in the
spring. Good luck on your next trips coming up
Brent. Thanks for a good day on the water. I have
more open dates right now, and the bass are on the
bait. It is a good time to catch some good keepers
if the weather will cooperate. Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
   
Tim's Ford
11-07-2007 & 11-08-2007
This is a 2 day report for Tim's Ford. Water
temperature continue to drop into the low 60's and
water levels are dropping slowly as well. At least
at this point you won't have any problems with ramps
from Devils Step back toward the main portion of the
lake. As you well no if you live here in Tennessee,
we just went through the deepest cold front of the
year this week. Low temperatures for the past 2 day
was in the mid 20's and high in the 50',s Wednesday
David DuVall and I had a 2 boat corporate trip with
Pro Marketing from Spartanburg SC. It was 24
degrees when we put in and we battled a high
pressure system all day long. Between the 2 boats we
managed 15 total Smallmouth, Largemouth, Spots and
Hybrid. All fish were caught on live tuffy's and a
white hair fly. The top 2 pictures 2 the right was
from today. I fished with Mr. Ken Jenkins and the
day was just as tough as it was yesterday although
we did manage a couple good fish. These were caught
on soft plastic jerk baits. It will get better,
there are multiple signs pointing in the right
direction. To book your late fall, winter trips just
give me a call at 615-308-9936 or e-mail me at
rickm@dtccom.net
Rick Mcferrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Old Hickory
11-02-07
 Today
I got on the water and fished for about five hours.
I took Marty Blakely along for the day. We found
water temps to be around 62 and clarity slightly
stained. Since the water had cooled 10 degrees from
last week, I did not know what to expect. We
immediately started catching fish on docks with
6-8ft of water under them. Using a finesse worm
slowly, the fish would pickup and slowly swim off.
As the sun warmed the backwaters I could see bait
everywhere. Upon investigation we started catching
fish on random casts with different baits. The bass
were running the bait like cattle. Looking for some
bigger fish we flipped docks and wood close to
channel swings. It paid off. For the day we had
our limit weighing about 10#s. No big fish but not
bad for right now. The jig and shaky head worm bite
is good. The fishing is pretty good. I look for
some bigger fish to show up soon. If you would like
a trip give us a call. Thanks Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
Tim's Ford 11-2-2007
This has been one of
the tougher and more frustrating weeks that I have
ever had on Tim's. The bite has been slow to say
the least. I fished today with Mr. George Schwab who
won a consumer contest that was sponsored by
Anheuser Busch. Much like earlier trips this week we
had some early top water action on a Prowler Soft
Shad
www.prowlerlures.com and then it was hunt and
peck. "BUT" Near the end of the trip either the fish
turned on a little or I had finally figured
something out. We had 4 of our fish in a 45 minute
period on a DT14 Craw colored crank bait
www.rapalalures.com No big fish today but
welcomed ones taking everything into consideration.
George has played in several movies and video's
through the years including The Green Mile with Tom
Hanks and was a pleasure to fish with all day long.
George and Mrs. Schwab will be fishing with me again
in April of 08 and I look forward to that trip.
Water temperature was 66 degrees at daylight and
never warmed much through out the day. Action will
heat up soon on Tim's and I have some scattered
dates open. We also have our new
CHRISTMAS GIFT CERTIFICATES
available. Give us a call at 615-308-9936
or e-mail at
rickm@dtccom.net Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Tim's Ford 10-30-2007
I'm not sure how many
ways you can "TOUGH" but I think today qualified for
all of them. I fished Tim's today with Mr. Danny
Clem from Murfreesboro. We started out with 38
degree air temperature and thick fog that kept us
from leaving the ramp until almost 7:30am.
Truthfully when the fog lifted we had crystal blue
bird sky's and nowind and we struggled all day.
Early we had 8 or 10 Spots flash at a Prowler Soft
Shad
www.prowlerlures.com but just wouldn't grab
them. We did finally catch some Spots and Smallmouth
on the Soft Shad and Crankbait. We also caught one
on a Jig and Prowler Chunk. I will up date you on my
trips the rest of the week. Danny is coming back in
January to do some "Live Bait" Smallmouth fishing
with me and I will look forward to that. Rick
McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
Tim's Ford 10-26-2007
It was fantastic to
get back on the water today after the crazy week
that I have had. The last time I did the Doug's Show
with him, we gave away a trip which Mr. Clay Styles
won. Water is in great shape and the temp has
dropped to 68 degrees. We were a little short on
numbers (9 total) but long on quality today. The
Largemouth top left weighed 4lbs 1oz. The center
fish 3lbs and the Largemouth top right 5lbs 10oz.
All were caught on windy banks with a crank bait.
Clay, Doug and I had a great time....More to come
next week. Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Tim's Ford 10-20-2007
Sorry for this late
report. My computer crashed last Saturday 10-20-2007
the day I fished with Mr. Jay Szarek and his father.
We caught and released several Smallmouth and
Largemouth early in the day on Crank Baits-Spinner
Baits and Jig/Chunk combos. Most of our fish would
nail the bait and you sure didn't have to wonder if
you have a hit. Like I said I'm sorry for the late
report I just got my new computer back late
yesterday (Thursday) plus Daniel my youngest son is
on break and he has had mid day basketball practice
every day this week which kept us from going to the
lake. I will have more and better info on Tim's
this next week. Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
 
Old Hickory Lake Oct. 17 and
19
I was able to
get out a couple days this week and see what the
fish are doing. Water temp is 71.5 . Tuesday I
fished for 3 hours and caught a dozen or so.
The biggest 2 came off, of course. Both were
keepers, the rest of the fish were a little
short. I found them relating close to shallow
water but at the drop off. The bite was strong
and I think with more time, could be real good.
Cory Sutton, a friend of mine joined me on
Friday. After the storms past last night the
bite got a little slow. The fish were not quite
as aggressive as Tues.. But they were relating
to the same flats, breaks and structure. We
managed to catch about twenty with some mixed
keepers. Cory caught the biggest in the pics.
I'll say there are bait fish everywhere. This
can be tough but don't get discouraged. Crank
baits have been good, plus they help cover
water. Jigs have been great for me. Just be
through when flipping cover. Also, don't rule
out the shaky head. Take your time be patient
and cover water. As the water cools things
should get better. Matt Crabill
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
Tim's Ford 10-18-2007
This was my second
trip this week with Mr. Roger Barnes and it was much
tougher than it was on Tuesday. Right at daylight
Roger caught a Smallmouth and then we went almost 4
hours or more before we had another hit. I finally
found an area holding fish on a short stretch of
channel bank and we caught another 11 from it and
lost 2 nice Smallmouth that came off at the boat.
All our fish were caught on either a spinner bait or
a DT 10 in a Parrott color. I'll be back on Tim's
this Saturday with another client and will update
you then. Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
     
Tim's Ford 10-16-2007
I fished with Mr.
Roger Barnes again today on Tim's Ford. As I
explained in past posts, Roger moved here from
Florida a couple years ago. Roger was a full time
captain and salt water guide in Florida but had very
little experience fishing deep fresh water lakes
like Tim's. We hooked up a year or more ago and have
fished together multiple times since. Roger is a
good fisherman and a great person. We have another
trip booked on Tim's for later this week...(He like
those All Pro APX Rods) as well as 2 or 3 more for
this winter. 16 total today all released unharmed.
Rick Mcferrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
  
Michael's First Fishing Trip
Percy Priest 10-15-2007
I had a absolute
great time with the father and son team of Gary and
Michael Hackle today on Priest. We received a call
from Gary explaining that he wanted to take his son
on a fishing trip, but neither of them had ever
fished before. As Gary said, we don't have any gear
and we need someone to teach us the basic's. With
that in mind we met at Priest today and started out
by explaining what we were going to do and what
tackle we were going to use. It wasn't long before
Michael was making great casts and pulling those
Bluegill in. Gary and Michael caught 20 or more
today and for Michael's first trip he looked like a
pro. Gary you have a very polite and courteous son-I
really enjoyed my time with you both. Terry Hicks
www.tennesseebassguides.com
Editors Note: Here at
Tennessee Bass Guides we pride ourselves in being
able to meet your individual fishing needs. From
those that have never even held a rod in their hands
to those that are pre-fishing for tournaments and
everything in between. Single boats to large
corporate events-artificial to live bait. Give us a
call and let us help you plan your next (OR) first
fishing trip. Rick McFerrin Owner Tennessee Bass
Guides LLC. 615-765-7303
 
Tim's Ford 10-13-2007
 Back
to clear sky's and no wind today but the water
temperature has dropped another full degree on Tim's
in two days to 73.3. It didn't take Mr. Steve
Maxwell and I to put our first Smallmouth in the
boat and then number two then a Largemouth then a
good fish lost and then by 9:30am it slowed way down
and we picked up a fish here and there. Prowler
Soft Shad
www.prowlerlures.com Crank Baits and Secret
Weapon Spinner Baits
www.secretweaponlures.com was the lures of
choice for us today. Truthfully I lost count on the
total numbers (Senior Moment)-but I will tell you
that they are still banging the crank bait when you
get bit....Steve I'll call you to set our return
trip soon. Thanks for a good day on the water. Jon
Simmons sent me the picture bottom left of a great
Largemouth that was caught with him Saturday as
well. Jon fished with Gary and Steve Hinkle and
experienced a good jig and chunk bite. Nice fish
guy's. Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
   
  
Tim's Ford 10-10-11-2007
What a difference a
day makes. Yesterday 10-10-2007 I fished with Mr.
Jack Speak and his grandson. We struggled from the
beginning. It was the first day after a major front
blew through and we were faced with mile high
sky's-high barometric pressure and little to no
activity at all. We did manage the 7lb 4oz Flat Head
Cat in the picture above along with 10-12 smaller
Smallmouth and Spots. Just a tuff day. But today I
fished with Mr. Warren Smith and had a fantastic
day. The air temp was 49 degrees when we got to the
lake and the water temp was 74.6 degrees. The wind
blew 15-20 at times and we stayed on the windy banks
all day. Warren and I caught and released 25 total
today. 20 Smallmouth and 5 Largemouth. We had
several fish back to back and they would slam a
crank bait and a spinner bait. I also stuck
something "big" that we never saw but it's swimming
around with a spinner bait that belongs to me.
Warren I'm looking forward to our next trip with you
and Connor in the next couple weeks. By the way I
see I set the date one day off on my camera----I'm
digitally challenged Rick McFerrin
www.tennesseebassguides.com
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