Now you see me, now you don’t

Wal-Mart Open anglers expect the sight-fishing bite to be in full force with Thursday's sunny weather

ROGERS, Ark. – A light fog hung over Prairie Creek Marina on Beaver Lake this morning to kick off day two of the FLW Tour’s Wal-Mart Open, but luckily for competitors, it was not enough to delay competition. Instead, anglers looked forward to a bright sunshine today to replace yesterday’s dreary conditions that should also improve the sight-fishing bite, for which Beaver Lake is famous.

One angler hoping to reclaim the sight-fishing bite is Agawam, Mass., pro Al Gagliarducci, who finished day one in the 31st position.

“The fish are spawning, and I’m going to try to do some sight-fishing today,” Gagliarducci said. “You should see them better today if the sun comes out. It took a lot longer to catch them yesterday than it should have.”

With the sun hiding behind the clouds yesterday, the anglers who fared well needed a backup method, and for Gagliarducci, those backup deep-water patterns produced decent numbers of fish yesterday. The deep-water bite could also be a little more dependable, as the deep fish aren’t moving around as much.

“I had deep fish to go to also, and they’re staying there,” he said.

Gagliarducci also reported that this week’s cold front has chilled the once 60-degree water temperature down to the mid-50s.

Even with the cold front and dreary skies yesterday, anglers still brought in good numbers of fish. Expect more of the same at today’s weigh-in, which begins at 3 p.m. at Prairie Creek Marina. Fishing legend Guido Hibdon currently leads the pack with a day-one catch of 18 pounds, 4 ounces.

Thursday’s conditions:

Sunrise: 6:44 a.m.

Temperature at takeoff: 42 degrees

Expected high temperature: 67 degrees

Water temperature: 56 degrees

Wind: from the east-northeast at 7 mph

Maximum humidity: 51 percent

Day’s outlook: sunny