Tough day but it was fun. Tried Clear Lake for the first time today. Launched and started fishing the docks. Got the big one under a dock on a bed. I seen him swim in there then I seen the bed. I threw everything at him. A couple times I skipped a craw colored crankbait up in there past the nest then gave it a rip and let it just sit there two inches above the bed. Fish would just look at it.

Skipped a spinnerbait up in there and let it sit on the gravel nest. Nothing:( Slow rolled it over it, nothing.

Tried a tube countless times. Tried a white Sniper Bolt on a drop shot but could not get it in there so I took the boat in to it and dropped the shot right on the center of the bed. Pulled away 30 feet and waited. Gave a couple twitches, nothing.

Finally, decided the tube was the best chance. I kept skipping it in there, most times past the far edge of the bed, then dragged it in. This was the most effective. After about 40 minutes I was about to give up then I seen another boat coming and figured I had better stay. The boat never did come, it went the other way.

After all that time I decided that I was going to skip that tube in there 20 times a minute if I had to to try and piss that fish off. Finally, he started reacting to it. I could see he was getting irritated. Finally, he picked the tube up and swam it off the nest.

I set the hook, nothing. This happened at least 25 times over the next half an hour. He would pick it up, then he would take it off the nest and drop it. Sometimes I tried to hook him sometimes I waited.

I just kept at it until he made a mistake and turned away and took my tube further up under the dock. That time I set the hook and it was solid.

First time I had ever tried so hard to get a specific fish but it was cool. My scale turned off right after I turned it on so not positive it was accurate after I turned it back on, but it said 4 lbs. 10 oz. Nice male, whatever it weighed.

Started to rain shortly after that and I plucked another off a dock and that was my last bite.

Seen two other boats and they both said that fishing was slow, one of them said they had nothing, but I think neither did, not sure.

Surface temps. 64.3 or so.

Seen at least 20 or 25 more bass lurking around. Some smallies, some largies and many I could not tell as they were in 8 feet of water and all I could see was fish shapes.

Reaction baits, once again, did absolutely not a thing for me. Countless casts with cranks, jerks, and spinner baits. Did have a couple followers but no takers. Not a single reaction bait fish for me this year, which is fine, because my confidence is in plastics and jigs anyway.

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