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Summit Lake Report
Thurston County, WA

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Details

05/28/2012
56° - 60°
Bottom Fishing From Boat
Smallmouth Bass
Cloudy
Plastics
Noon
56° - 60°
05/28/2012
3
1222

Tried Summit with my old buddy today for the first time. Windy as all get out. We got blown all over the place but caught some fish. I would classify it as a dinkfest, but there were some borderline decent fish to be had.

We caught fish, probably 40 or more, from 8:45 until around 2:00p.m. We caught them on dropshot set ups with Reapers, Sniper lures, assorted minnows. We caught them on tubes and Spinnerbaits, as well. Crankbaits get another double thumbsdown from me, as do jerkbaits. Oh, we got a couple on lipless cranks, though.

We caught the bigger fish out in open flats and most of the dinks came from under or near docks. The biggest fish of the day, though, was lost at a dock, by me, yeah. A 2.5 or3 pounder or so that ran under a dock and around a piling.

My buddy caught a few trout on a crankbait, if that counts. We threw everything back. Every fish over a pound was a red-eyed male. Not a single female was caught. My biggest 5 fish was maybe 8 pounds, if I was lucky. My buddy's biggest 5 were maybe 4 pounds, lol.

Whitecaps prevailed and water temps were a low of 56.1 up to just over 61 degrees.

I enjoyed today. It was a good day. Fish were small but lot's of action and good times fishing with an old friend that I have not seen much of lately.

When we decided to bag it we were putting stuff away and this duck flies in and lands 10 feet from my boat. My buddy says "Oh, it sees that baggie you have". Next thing I know he says "Hey, that duck is on your boat". I look back and sure enough, so I took her picture. Dumb duck...


Comments

rockjiggr
5/28/2012 8:37:00 PM
I saw you guys out there on the far southeast end near the island. I thought that might be you- should have known from the tell-tale red striped jacket and the Tracker.

Yeah, dinkfest for me too. My biggest was only about a pound but I was really hoping more for perch today and was working the deeper edges. I did have one nice one that got off at the boat. I kept 6 smallish bass as well as 8 perch and a couple of trout that took a drop shot kut-tail worm. All the bass I kept were female, all the perch were male. Both trout were loaded with snails- dont see that often. I dont often keep bass to eat but I do like to eat the smallmouth from this lake since it is deep, clear, cold, and clean. These fish are prime for table fare.

Yes, windy and my batteries are about 6 years old and overdue for replacement. I barely had enough juice to keep the bow pointed into the wind for most of the day. Tough day but still gorgeous out there.
Elijah.Loves.Fishin
5/28/2012 11:18:00 PM
that is too funny about the duck. great job on the water!
arniejl
5/29/2012 5:38:00 AM
rockjiggr, so that was you as we worked that flat along the island? Out there a couple hundred feet off shore? Cool, I would have said "Hi" if I would have known. The guy that was with me loves bass and I told him that it seems that there are way too many bass in this lake and it is cool and deep, you want to keep some? He is always mad at me because I ask him to fish with me but I tell him that he has to release everything that he catches. He gets mad at me:) But still, we kept none of them.
rockjiggr
5/29/2012 7:10:00 AM
Yep, working the flat. The area that I was at was around 30' but there is a hump out there that comes up to about 20-24. Good place for an early season holding spot. I have caught a few nice ones there in the past. I like to work the edge of the flat where it drops off into the deeper water. That island is actually a long ridge that runs east/west and has a few humps along it. With shallower water to the south, deeper water to the north, it is a great transition spot. Lots of perch use the flats as feeding/spawning location with the scattered weeds that are all over it.. That flat has a lot of spawning spots scattered around for bass too with logs, big rocks, and some concrete blocks. Its still a little early for spawn on Summit with temps just getting into the low 60's but it will certainly happen very soon.
rickydbasser
5/29/2012 12:43:00 PM
The duck reminds me of what happened to me on Kapowsin Lake. I saw something struggling back in the pads. I finally investigated. It was a duck tangled in a snarl of disguarded fishing line. It was about to drown. I untangled it and put it back in the water, but it was so weak it kept rolling over on its side. So I set it on my back pedistal seat. I then continued fishing. It sat there for almost an hour. Finally I turned when I heard it stand up and ruffle its feathers. It then proceded to take a big dump on my seat and then jumped back in the water.....Is that being ungrateful or what!!!!?????
arniejl
5/29/2012 6:55:00 PM
Haha, Rickyd. That's a good one!
scarlin
7/3/2012 6:02:00 PM
good report. from the pictures those bass dont look to bad. i need to make it out there to summit sooner or later, on a nice day are there tons of pleasure boats out there?
arniejl
7/3/2012 7:57:00 PM
Not the day that I was there, as far as pleasure boats go, but it was cold and windy that day, that is the only time I have ever been to that lake.
fintime
7/15/2012 5:12:00 PM
Plan on soon making a trip to Summit just for the smallies. A little off topic, but couldnt help notice you have a Tracker Bass Pro looks same as mine also with 40 Merc. Question if you dont mind: Have you experienced any excessive bildge water after fishing? I've had two Trackers and both have leaked. You'd think I'd learn. I suspect it's faulty connections to the live well. Plugging the hull inlet seems to help, but not all the time. Thanks.
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Available Guide

Available Fishing Guide:
Website: Austin's Northwest Adventures

Phone: (509) 668-0298