Brush bristle bargain | The Arkansas Democratic Gazette

BALD KNOB – The latest installment of the No License Fishing Waters Tour with Joe Volpe was a resounding success.

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission offers access to certain private fishing waters throughout the state through an online permit system. For a small fee, an angler applies for permits which are granted by electronic drawing. Volpe and I fished the Alum Fork of the Saline River and a small lake in Beebe. We made three permitted trips to Alum Fork. The fishing was excellent the first two visits. The fishing was poor the third time, but a show involving a doe, coyote and wild hog made up for it.

The trip to Beebe was unproductive.

The last permit was for Sunday on a 47-acre irrigation lake in Bald Knob. It is about a quarter mile from US 67 and adjoins a frequently used Union Pacific rail line. Trains came every hour or so, including perhaps the longest I’ve seen. I have always loved trains and it always gives me pleasure to see them and be near them. Additionally, the wide array of urban artwork adorning the sides of boxcars on a nearby siding fascinated me.

The lake is irregular in shape. Most of it is square, but a large handle forms an ax head at one end. At the bottom is a small group of houses. Two Goldendoodles patrol a fenced yard. We don’t like foreigners. The smaller dog wants to be friendly, but he follows the lead of the bigger dog. His ears perk up and his face looks eager as you kiss and praise him. This angers the biggest dog. The casting provokes him even more.

You need a kayak to fish this lake. The shore is brushy and steep because the lake is currently about four feet low. As a result, the water is only about a foot deep for a good distance toward the middle. Low water exposes many brush piles that would be submerged at normal levels.

Additionally, there is no convenient access to water. Volpe and I found a single gentle descent to a narrow strip of dry bank that was just big enough to launch a kayak. I brought my Hobie Pro Angler 12. Due to the shallow water, I didn’t immediately install its Mirage Drive pedals. I stowed the device on the aft deck and maneuvered the craft with the hand paddle.

My first challenge was knowing where to start with an unremarkable can of wind-whipped chocolate milk-colored water. The morning was overcast, but the clouds were clearing when we arrived following the passage of a cold front. I scanned the water for bait fish but saw none.

With no other visible forage sources, I drifted upwind and worked the transition to deeper water with a buzzbait. I didn’t get any bites this way, so I lingered on the small number of exposed brush piles. I fished them with a Zoom Tiny Lizard, black/flake red. I pulled a few small largemouth bass out of tiny openings in the middle of the piles.

As I made the turn toward the “axe head” I found many more brush piles, but they were barely wet in such shallow water. I was encouraged to see small fish fry near the shore. A bass attacked them, but it didn’t take my bait. The lure only served to panic the baitfish and scatter them.

The opposite bank was wooded and shaded. Some woodland cover was near the bank. Usually I would consider this water to be prime fishing water, but it was too shallow. I worked this water with a jerkbait, but my only taker was a 14-inch channel catfish.

Rocks reinforce the bank at the residential bend. There is also a lot of tree cover where the sea wall transitions from mud to rock. Again, this should be prime fishing water, but I only caught a few green sunfish and two miniature largemouth bass.

From there, I could just see Volpe’s cap and light shirt illuminated against the gray brush. He had barely moved all morning.

Unable to touch the bottom with my paddle, I set up the Mirage Drive and dragged a stickbait as I pedaled across the lake to confer with Volpe. I hooked two large fish which broke free before I could identify their size and species. Both bites occurred when the stickbait bounced off the top of a deep brush pile.

Volpe had caught a big pile of crappie and a largemouth bass. The bass weighed 3.3 pounds. Each of the crappie measured at least 14 inches. He caught them all throwing and retrieving a small soft plastic worm spread across two brush piles.

“I hooked a bass,” Volpe said. “I don’t know how big it was, but it almost ripped the rod out of my hand.”

All the fish we caught were very light, with only light marks. The crappie was almost solid silver.

“My best fish are on deep brush piles,” I said. “I wish I had brought my depth finder and an anchor. I bet we could search those brush piles and load up.”

I continued trolling and caught a 14 inch crappie that came loose from a deep brush pile. I was happy to have unlocked a model that suited me, but it took too long. It was time to leave.

Volpe said he would happily make the trip again.