John Buck 		John's Club Report
Covering The Pensacola Hawg Hunters
2007 Season

 Email: John Buck
Founded In 1975

Escambia River
Total Fish Caught 12
Total Dead Fish 0
Total Limits 0
Big Fish 2.66
Total Fish Weight 13.34 lbs

 Total Year Standings
Total Fish Caught 292
Total Dead Fish 10
Total Limits 23
Big Fish 4.28
 Total Fish Weight 401.51 lbs

Place
Name
Fish
Weight
1. Tony Boyett 4 5.23
2. John Buck 2 1.89
3. Mack Cramer 1 1.25
4. Bill Myrick 1 1.07
Big Fish Winner
Tony Boyett
2.66lbs		 *** Tournament Winner ***
Tony Boyett
4 Fish - 5.23lbs

Place
Name
Fish
Weight
5. Lee Brannon 1 .98
5. Jeff Weaver 1 .98
7. Ron Fairbanks 1 .93
8. Jim Bailey Sr 1 .86
Also Fished
Dave Dyes - Dewayne Kembro - Pete Potter Kevin Simmons - Frank Kelly - Jere Jaillite Marc Churchwell - Ken Repine

PENSACOLA HAWG HUNTERS
TOURNAMENT REPORT
JULY 21, 2007
Cloudy hot mornings giving way to strong thunderstorms in the afternoons had been the local weather pattern for the past week. I sort of had hopes for the same pattern to hold as the Hawg Hunters fished their July tournament on the Escambia river out of Smith’s landing. With the local rains the river has gotten a good aeration almost each afternoon. The general water level is still quite low, especially the further you get upstream. Salt water intrusion has edged upstream for several miles and brackish/saltwater species are being caught as far up as 5-6 miles.
Our local bass are really very tolerant of the salt water, and occasionally one can get a good bite.

Our morning started out with partly cloudy skies which gave way to bright sunshine by mid-morning. I think a weak front passed through. Surface temps were in the low 80’s and rose to the upper 80’s by the afternoon. The water color was good in most areas, some of the creeks had a hard stain and others were very clear. With an outgoing tide all day, we had hope that we might just get lucky! The tide started falling good early and then it seemed to shut down, and I think we had the most dreaded…. neap tide. Neap tides are notorious for shutting down the fishing bite.

Bill Myrick and I drew out as partners, and we decided to fish some of the deeper areas in creeks near the delta and in the main river in the tight bends. Our plan was topwaters early and then to jigs and worms as the sun got up. I started with a frog and alternated with a buzzbait, and Bill started with a bang ‘o lure. We fished secondary rivers in the lower delta. On our second stop I hooked up with my first keeper. He nailed a frog next to a cypress tree. Myrick switched to a spinner bait and caught a good keeper. We kept working this pattern for most of the day. I managed several fish on a buzz bait but only one would keep. We switched to worms in late morning but neither of us could pick up another keeper.
We each caught 10 or more short fish but only 3 keepers.

At the weigh in we had a real surprise. We figured that most of the guys would have fish, but to our surprise only 7 had fish to weigh. Tony Boyette brought 4 to the scales to take the win with 5.38 lbs. He also had big fish for 2.66 lbs. I’m not positive but I don’t think Tony caught his fish in Escambia. I think he ran around to Blackwater. It turned out to be a good call on his part. I was totally surprised to take 2nd with 2 small fish weighing a grand total of 1.89 lbs!!! Mac Cramer brought in a 1.25 lb monster to grab 3rd and Bill Myrick took 4th with 1 fish for 1.07 lbs. Fish came on a variety of lures, buzzbaits, spinner baits and soft plastics. What a day!! Fishing Escambia River in July on a neap tide is not a winning combination. Since so few fish were caught I believe it’s appropriate to mention those who did bring in a keeper. They were Jeff Weaver,
Lee Bronnon, and Jim Bailey Sr. Last month I thought our tournament performance was dismal and couldn’t get worse…man was I wrong!
I hope that next month we will improve. We will be fishing out of Upper Bryants Landing on the Tensaw River.
Make plans to be there, and just maybe the “dog days of August” won’t bite us too hard.


“Til next time….Keep Your Hooks Sharp!

Creek Chub