Dardanelle dog days

August in Arkansas means fishing will be less than ideal in Walmart FLW Series event

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – Ask just about any touring bass pro about their least favorite month to fish in the Southeast, and chances are pretty good August will rank up pretty high in the informal survey.

Aside from the stifling heat and humidity, bass in southeastern impoundments just get rather funky in August. It’s like they go on a three-week vacation in the middle of the water column, somewhere between 2 and 30 feet.

Even on the best lakes, August is usually a challenge. And that certainly looks to be the case at the BP Eastern Division event this week on Lake Dardanelle in Arkansas. Hot weather, warm water and erratic water releases throughout the Arkansas River system have the bass on a bit of a hiatus right now.

The biggest problem Walmart FLW Series pros have found in practice is a lack of consistency: no rhyme or reason to patterning the fish.

A few scarce bites can be had up shallow, a couple on shallow ledges and even a nibble or two out on deep brush piles, but trying to make sense of it all can be maddening.

“Largemouth bass are notoriously lethargic in the heat of the summer,” noted Kellogg’s pro Clark Wendlandt. “Even when you get a bite, they don’t thump the bait with the same enthusiasm as they do other times of the year. Even on reaction-type baits, it’s just like your line just kind of gets spongy, and it takes a second to even realize a fish has got it.”

During practice, tournament anglers lay out a smorgasbord of lures and let the fish sort of vote on what they want based on their aggressiveness.

“But when the fish turn their noses up at everything you’re offering, you start to wonder what the point is in even practicing at all,” Wendlandt suggested. “At some point you’re just bruising your own confidence by not getting any bites and making critical decisions based on a lack of bites.

“Sometimes I think you’re just better off fishing in the tournament on completely new water each day with no preconceived notions as to what’s there,” he added. “And this is going to be one of those tournaments – at least for me.”

For that reason, Wendlandt spent the whole final day of practice just running, idling and looking at different water.

“I hardly made a cast all day,” he said. “I just wanted to see what’s available, so if I happen to get two or three bites in the tournament on a certain type of bank or cover, I’ll know where more of that kind of water is.”

For at least one pro, the dog days at Dardanelle have literally been just that. Kellogg’s Dave Lefebre pulled off the water early on the final day of practice and took his whole family up to Missouri to purchase a Norfolk Terrier puppy for his kids.

“We had been looking to buy a puppy for the last several months and were particularly interested in Norfolk Terriers,” Lefebre said. “There are only a few places in the country that specialize in Norfolks, and one of those is in Missouri. So we went up to take a look, and of course we had to get one. So now we have a new addition to the family – Isabella. She’s only 10 weeks old, so I won’t be getting much sleep this week.”



As for the fishing, Lefebre, too, limited his practice this week, pulling off the water at about 10 a.m. each day.

“It’s that time of year when it’s hard to get a handle on what’s going on, and there’s no sense in sitting out there and getting discouraged by it,” Lefebre said. “This is a put-the-trolling-motor-down-and-fish kind of tournament. The fish are not grouped up or aggressive enough to really tell you anything worthwhile, so you just go fishing for the day.”

Many pros were complaining about fishing conditions in practice, but a lot of that stems from not really putting the pedal down on their best places yet.

“If you get a bite in a place in practice – leave immediately,” chuckled Chevy pro Dion Hibdon. “And don’t come back until the tournament – there’s no sense in even showing fish that might bite a lure at all – save that for the tournament, when it counts for something. I think a lot of guys practiced just that way here, so we’re not really going to know what guys can catch until weigh-in time.”

Logistics

Anglers will take off from Lake Dardanelle State Park located at 100 State Park Drive in Russellville at 6:30 each morning. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at the marina beginning at 2:30 p.m.

Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Walmart store located at 2409 E. Main St. in Russellville beginning at 4 p.m.

Children will also be treated to a Family Fun Zone prior to Saturday’s weigh-in from noon to 4 p.m. at Walmart. Activities in the Family Fun Zone include a trout pond, a Ranger boat simulator and assorted fishing-themed games. All activities are free and open to the public.

The entire field competes for the first three days of FLW Series events. Co-angler winners are determined on day three based on the heaviest accumulated three-day weight. The top 10 professionals continue competition on day four, and the winner is determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from all four days.

Thursday’s conditions

Sunrise: 6:30 a.m.

Temperature at takeoff: 69 degrees

Expected high temperature: 91 degrees

Water temperature: 83 degrees

Wind: NE at 5 to 10 mph

Day’s outlook: sunny