Celebrating the Fourth in style

Horseshoe Lake upholds annual Independence Day hoopla despite coronavirus

W e enjoyed this 4th weekend with friends and way too much good food. The weather was a little spotty with afternoon thunder showers popping up and some high winds, but they did not last long and we went back to celebrating. In fact the showers really cooled things down and reduced the humidity. Crowded grocery stores proved that many folks enjoyed cooking out and there were many sacks of charcoal used and no telling how many ribs, hamburgers, and hot dogs were enjoyed.

For the grill masters, July 4th is the perfect excuse for a big cook out! Horseshoe Lake put on a good Saturday afternoon with a boat parade and a first class fireworks display that weer free to everyone. Our President did a great job on TV at both Mt. Rushmore and Washington D.C. Trump is a great leader and loves our country. Why are there people doing their best to destroy the greatest nation in history? Perhaps these people are simply discontents and have nothing else to do but complain and offer nothing positive.

The weather this summer as been reasonable and the fishing continues to be good. The full moon just passed and the fish have been biting in many places. Horseshoe bream are good in the cypress and lily pads on crickets. Many crappie are still being caught, but they tend to be small. “Shooting the piers” is producing the bigger fish. The catfish are good on about any bait and any way you want to catch them. There is tremendous pressure on the bass with weekly tournaments and only the knowledgeable fishermen are having success. Horseshoe is a tough place to learn to catch bass. Midway Lake continues to be the hot spot to catch bream and bass. Crappie are picking up with the spider rigs, but the big river bream are good close to the buck brush in the shade on crickets and worms. The female bream still have eggs which is unusual for this time of year. Limits of bass are common and good numbers of white bass are caught close to the rocks. Catfishing is good but that is to be expected this time of year. Trot line and limb lines fished at night are producing limits of 10 fish. Bank and pier fishing is allowed for $5. Wapanocca has had a good year and big bream are still being caught in the woods where it is shady and cooler. Crappie have slowed down but the few caught are nice fish. Bass fishing, like in all the lakes, depends on how good the fisherman is. For pier fishermen, the

See CRINER, page A2

Revelers let freedom ring all across Horseshoe Lake on Saturday in celebration of our nation’s independence, including the annual Boat Parade.

Photos by John Criner

No, it’s not the Liberty Bell, but Pat and Nancy Bond showed off one of the many bells on their property out at Horseshoe Lake while decked out themselves in patriotic red, white and blue for the Fourth.

John Criner

Outdoors Columnist CRINER

From page A1

observation pier on the east side of the lake is open and a fair number of good bream are being taken. Tilden Rodgers and Marion Rec draw nice crowds of fishermen for bank fishing for catfish and bream. Several fishermen have reported catching some respectable bass and occasional crappie. Due to the unusual amount of fishing, the AGFC needs to have a restocking. There have been many good catfish suppers taken from these lakes.

Papa and Mama Duck enjoyed the 4th at the home of Nancy and Pat Bonds and a group of old friends at Horseshoe Lake. Pat is the “Bell Collector” and has 24 bells ranging from a foot wide to extremely large sizes. These bells were collected over many years. Many were farm bells rung when the farmers were called in out the fields to eat dinner or perhaps an important event. Several are over a hundred years old and they still work! We enjoyed BBQ and all the trimmings plus many wonderful deserts the ladies prepared. This was definitely not the place to try too loose weight! We sat on the pier and enjoyed the boat parade with a nice cool breeze. The annual spectacular fireworks started about dark. We want to thank Nancy and Pat for the afternoon and all the many things they do for the Horseshoe Lake area like donating the land for public boat ramp on the west side of the lake.

Summer is here in full force so please be careful when you take the family out to fish or just enjoy Mother Nature. Use plenty of bug dope for the mosquitoes and ticks. Due to the intense heat and humidity use sun screen and be careful of getting too hot. Heat stroke is serious. If your face feels very hot and a head ache is starting, stop immediately and get cool and hydrated. Take plenty of pictures and send them to Papa Duck along with details of the trip. Lakeside Taxidermy has done some beautiful mounts at reasonable rates and we offer fast service.

Papa Duck Lakeside Taxidermy 901-482-3430 jhcriner@hotmail.com