Redear, With our PA weather closing in now for winter, I have to mention the wool success to end the season (well,I'm still hopeful-the lakes haven't completely frozen up yet!). My son, grandson, and I got to spend some time at our hard fished local lake for the late Fall trout season, so we tied up our usual 1/24 oz Boolie jigs with a small chunk of natural off-white wool as the top layer of the tail (below was the usual 2-4 strands of of gold flashabou & a 1" piece of rabbit or mink zonker strip). Despite the lake's edge sometimes iced out a few feet, and those few others out there that fished bait & spoons catching next to nothing, our Wool-Bools got us nearly 70 very nice rainbows in several days out (all released)! Some days ,to keep somewhat warmer, we fished in bright sunshine (post cold front,clear skies) from about 1 to 3 in the afternoon, and trout still loaded on to wool backed jigs (maybe the fish wanted just to keep their mouths warm with the wool!!). I'll have to see if Keith at Hawn's jigs can post on here with a few photos I'd sent him of some of those fish.
One disasterous afternoon out, my 31 yr old son Sean, quickly nailed 7 beauties to my zero !! Discovered the trout were laying particularly low that day and would only take something that sank ultra slow - Sean ties his jigs a bit heavy handed on materials and also went with a lighter Hawn's alloy 1/32 oz head. His jig must have been just floating around down there for lethargic trout to munch on. Crazy thing was, after he caught number 5 , and I was still floundering around hitless, we heard a duck quacking loudly in the background ; Sean commented "See ,Dad, even the ducks are laughing at you!!" Of course, I learned from my mistake and loaded the wool topping on my next tied Boolie, and actually scalped the little wise guy over the next few days!
I noted that many of the bigger trout took the wool lined jig as it sank,landed on bottom , and SAT there for an instant. Does this stuff have a mild natural scent to it? For one thing, the way wool holds liquid, next season I intend to dunk it in corn juice for trout, cats, and carp! Red told me he has observed clear water brown trout, in particular, watching the jig hit bottom. He calls it "the rule of 3" -he watched them move from a neutral position to look at the resting lure,then return to their former holding spot, then they'd wait for a bit and proceed to go back for a second look before returning. BUT, the THIRD time, Red maintains they come back to the jig and ALWAYS take it! Same rule of 3 for tight holding smallmouth bass!
