We made the plans last week and this week the weather cooled down very fast and we got an inch or more of local rain here in Anson County.  Robert had been slaying the Bluegills and other pan fish and figured with the weather change, we might not be too successful top water fishing with the fly rod, etc. 

I got up around 0500 and had my usual daily shave and shower and my bride was already up.  After the S/S, I drove to BoJangles and got us a biscuit before I headed out the door again.  My fishing gear; fly fishing vest, fly rod, camera, boots, etc., were already stored in the trunk of the Buick ready for the thirty minute plus morning drive to Robert Webster's campsite on Lake Tillery.

The early morning temperature was in the high 50s with a misting rain and Robert had already given me directions to the Lake Tillery Family Campground but I made a wrong turn and had to give him a call on the cell phone and he got me back on the right track after a couple tries......grin if you must!  It is easy to understand why my bride gave me a GPS for Christmas a few years back after we made a trip to Savannah and Charleston, SC and Juliette, Georgia.....another grin is in order.

I didn't do a photo pictorial essay of our fishing, etc., but managed to snap a few.  Below is pix of Robert in route to some of his hot fishing spots on the lake:

The wind was gusting pretty good on the Lake and a few times it looked like the waves were about to white cap on us.  We fished hard and Robert managed to get several good keepers using a small black jig on a light rig.  I tried several different popping bugs and a stone fly nymph and managed to land a few and a couple small keepers.  The weather as Robert had predicted, apparently moved the Shell Crackers off their beds into deeper water, whereas the water temperature registered 72 degrees F. on his fish/depth finder.  We even tried some red worms but only the small ones would take the bait.  Robert elected not to troll for any Crappie since pan fish was on our want list.

Robert gave me a scenic ride past the Morrow Mountain State Park boat landing and to Falls Dam where I had fished there many, many years ago with my Father-in-Law Henry Adcock, deceased and landed some good fish there too.

Since the shellcrackers and other pan fish were not cooperating, we called it a day and headed back to the boat landing and within a short while we were back at Robert's campsite with a fish fry on the agenda.  Robert had some Crappie, Bluegill and White Perch he caught earlier already thawed out and soaking in salt water ready to begin his magic with the frying pan and hot oil.  Robert has an addition to the front of his camper shed with everything needed at hand to do some serious fish frying, etc. and also has a wonderful scenic view of the Lake.  The next visit, I will take the time to get some pictures of his camper/campsite to add to this page.  Robert invited one of his friends Bob McLean of Mt. Gilead, NC over for the fish fry of which Bob had caught his limit of Crappie earlier that morning and below a few pixs taken along the way.  Click on the thumbnail pixs for a larger screen view:

Robert soaked the Crappie fillets and other Lake Tillery caught fish in a salt water solution, drained them and coated those "beautimous" fish in a special mixture of Moss Fish Breader Mix and cornmeal.  Robert immediately fried them in a high wall skillet until they were golden brown.  We sampled on a few of them as evidenced by the partial fish skeleton pix above while the cooking was taking place and it wasn't long before Bob McLean arrived with some Dill flavored potato chips to go with the fish, slaw, iced Tea and sliced dill pickles. 

While Robert had the fish in the skillet frying away and giving off a wonderful aroma permeating the area, I heard a loud thump type sound coming from his camper when he opened his refrigerator door and asked what it was and he stated it was a bottle of wine that had fallen out.  He also told me, "I couldn't have any wine because I would be driving home".......I had to grin real big on that one; share his fish but not share his wine......what is wrong with that picture?  Looks like Robert has switched from the Bud Light to the nectar of the grapes!

I believe Robert and myself consumed about nine (9) fish each which included a couple of the Crappie fillets.  In defense of Robert and myself, the fish were not monstrous in size but just right!  Robert fried the balance of the Crappie fillets right before I departed so as my bride could have some still warm fish when I arrived home and she really enjoyed them with some of the Stoney Gap coleslaw.  Robert even had some designer style spring pattern paper plates out........I know Robert will grin on that one for sure.

I have personally cooked a humongous amount of fresh water fish over the decades along with a fair amount of salt water fish (mostly fresh whole flounder) and those pan fish Robert fried today was some of the best if not the best I have ever eaten and I am not just saying that to boost Robert's ego up but it certainly is a fact!  The absolute best fresh water fish I have ever consumed IMHO is the Walleye and they were caught in Fontana Lake and pan fried by Johnnie and Leonard Hogue of Archdale, NC in October 2000.

All three of us had a wonderful meal together and as I have stated many times on this website, "Two of the Greatest Ships that ever sailed, Friendship and Fellowship" and that is what Life is all about.  I give thanks to God through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior for his many blessings and the opportunity to enjoy what he has created for all of us, if we will only take the time to do so, acknowledge him and tell others of his salvation!

In summation, we had a great time on the lake, even though we didn't slay the fish today but the fish fry made up for any short comings we experienced on the lake.  I am as "tight as a Georgia tick on the back of a coon hound in the month of July"  as I type this short story.

Web published by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 06-04-15.

VIEW ADDITIONAL FISHING TRIPS AT THESE LINKS

Lake Tillery Fishing 07-16-15

Lake Tillery Fishing 07-22-15

Lake Tillery Fishing 07-30-15

Web published updates by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 07-31-15.