|
In
the lull between the close of deer season and the area lakes warming
up, you'll find me pouring Spinnerbaits. Spinnerbaits are great!
They require no special skill, cover lots of water, are relatively
weedless, and catch lots of bass, big bass. The following is how
I approach spinnerbaiting in the tidewater area from “ice-out” on
into April.
I like to use a 5 ½' casting rod spooled up with 14-17lb
mono. I've used many brands of spinnerbaits. I like my own the best,
but Terminators, Strike King and Stanley will work just as well.
I prefer to use a ½ oz to 3/8 oz lure with single #5 or 5.5
gold willow leaf blade. I find dark colors (black, blue, purple,
root beer) work best in the spring. I always use a twin tail trailer
too. I find the undulating action of the tails really bring the
bait to life. I don't use trailer hooks but I do make certain that
my hooks are razor sharp.
Ideal conditions are just after a warm spring rain. The runoff has
washed in bait, raised the water level and made the water murky.
These are all positive factors to make fish move shallow. Key areas
of the lake to hit are points, flats and underwater humps. The key
to identifying good areas are shallow (1-3') water with deep (8-12')
adjacent to it. If it has cover on it, so much the better. Just
be sure to keep the boat “out of the fish”. By that I mean remain
out in the deep water, casting up onto the flat. If you can cast
your bait up onto the edge of the shore and slowly pull it into
the water. Sometimes bass will be sunning themselves in water less
than a foot. It's quite exciting when a bass turns into a torpedo
and almost beaches itself trying to inhale your bait. Be certain
to work the deep water adjacent to the flat as well. Stealth is
paramount. Any noise you make in the boat or sloppy casting will
send “ol' mossback” scurrying into the depths quickly.
The retrieve should be very slow (AKA Slow rolling). You should
never see your lure during the retrieve. You should be able to feel
the blade turning though. Learn to concentrate on that and be a
line watcher. Often, you can feel a slight variation in the bait's
vibration just milliseconds prior to a bite. Whenever there's a
funny feeling, your line moves, or the blade stops, set the hook!
I use a sweeping motion so as not to introduce any slack to the
fish.
These methods have brought me several 4-6 pounders. You'll catch
the “dinks” too, along with pickerel and bowfins. Give it a shot.
Believe it or not, there was a time (1990) when I had absolutely
no confidence in these lures. Now, I always have one tied on. Remember
that fishing is life!
Return to Top
Fishing in deep water is still probably the most misunderstood type
of fishing that bass anglers have to deal with on a regular basis.
Deep water can be productive almost any time of year that the bass
aren't on the beds, but during the winter is when it can be especially
effective.
One of
the reasons that many anglers struggle with fishing deep water is
because we're all so accustomed to fishing around and casting to
visible cover. This makes fishing around non-visual targets difficult
for the average angler. “Deep,” of course, can be in the eye of
the beholder. But to me, anything deeper than 10 feet can be considered
deep. Most times (and only in certain fisheries during specific
times of the year) will I explore anything more than 50 or 60 feet,
though bass can be caught at greater depths in some places. When
searching for places to focus your fishing efforts in deep water,
remember the difference between cover and structure. Cover is some
physical object separate from the actual bottom contour. Structure
is the actual bottom contour (breaks, drops, humps). These structure
elements serve as a kind of thoroughfare for the bass to travel
from one place or another in search of food and optimum water conditions.
The presence of cover on some form of structure is what you should
be looking for.
Most
of the short cuts to finding deep-water structure occur long before
you get to body of water. Start with a contoured lake map and identify
all of the depth changes and bottom features, marking them with
different colored pens or markers. Once these areas are identified,
you can begin finding bass by understanding that their entire life
cycle revolves around two core areas: their spawning areas (flats)
and their wintering areas (deep water vertical break areas). The
structure breaks that connect these two areas are their migration
highways. For the most part, the bass winter in the deepest water/vertical
break areas available, usually in the main lake.
When
I arrive to the lake and get into the areas that I want to fish,
I will fast idle the area in a zigzag pattern, keeping a constant
eye on my electronics. I will look for any irregularity of signs
of activity such as cover on the bottom (brush piles, weeds) or
pods of bait that appear as black clouds. I keep zigzagging up and
down the potential area until I find something that I like. When
I do, I will throw a marker buoy on the area and continue to circle
it to establish my boundaries. If I see something else or find a
definite end to something I will drop a second buoy.
Using
a search-type of bait (a Berkley Frenzy
crankbait, a PowerBait
Power
Lizard
on a Carolina rig or a big Berkley Classic jig) I begin to
fan cast the entire area. I am trying to establish contact with
the bottom or with cover or near bait. It's important that as you
catch fish, you keep mental or written notes of the area you are
in. Take note of the water depth at which you are fishing, water
temperature, water clarity, wind – anything that might help you
in the future. Also look around and take visual note of landmarks
so that you can more easily find your newly discovered honey hole
the next time you hit the water.
There
are also some general guidelines for fishing deep-water structure.
During periods of active feeding, such as low light, rain, or wind,
the fish generally move shallower and hold looser to cover. During
periods of high pressure or under adverse conditions the bass tend
to be a little deeper and tighter to cover. Structure with hard
type cover on it is better in the spring and late fall (shell/rock);
structure with soft type cover and areas where debris has been deposited
by the current are better in the summer. Structure areas with more
vertical breaks are better during the winter periods. Generally,
the same sweet spots on structure tend to produce over and over
each year.
One of the best ways to get and keep a bait in front of fish relating
closely to structure in winter is with a drop shot. This finesse
presentation is especially suited to clear water and heavily pressured
areas. Using 6- or 8-pound Berkley Trilene 100% Fluorocarbon
line, a spinning reel and 7-foot-6-inch medium action rod,
I will rig a small, wide-gap hook using a traditional drop shot
set up. With a tungsten weight anywhere from 6 inches to 2 feet
below the hook, I will either nose hook (in open water) or bury
the hook, Texas rig style (in and around heavier cover), a Berkley
Gulp!
bait. These baits disperse scent so powerfully in the water,
it helps me catch bass even when I don't put the bait right in front
of the fish. By shaking the rod tip, I am able to give the bait
a lifelike appearance without moving it out of the strike zone.
Winter
can be a great time to catch fish. With cold temperatures, most
anglers and boaters are content to stay off the water, leaving most
of the best spots with little fishing pressure. With a little homework
and the right gear, you can be catching the big ones while everyone
else is sitting at home.
Berkley
Pro Jay Yelas, who currently fishes the FLW Tour, is a former Bassmaster
Classic winner from Corvalis, Ore.
Return
to Top
If we're going to be honest about it, fishing in the winter isn't
always the most pleasant activity. It can be cold, windy and sometimes
getting the fish to cooperate can be frustrating. But just because
the calendar has been flipped to December doesn't mean that you
should park the boat and resign yourself to hanging lights and watching
football.
Catching fish in the winter requires some knowledge about the body
of water that you are fishing and a decided amount of patience.
Slowing down your presentations will go a long way towards ensuring
you get more than a runny nose for your time on the lake. So before
you head out for your next day of fishing, try focusing on these
three types of structure.
Bluffs
A lot of tournaments are won year round on rock bluffs. Big smallmouth
and largemouth both like to hang on these bluff ledges during this
time of year. But enticing strikes from finicky bass in winter can
be a challenge. Fish each spot slowly and don't limit yourself to
just one lure or technique. In clear water, natural colored worms
can be very effective for a smallmouth bite. A Berkley PowerBait
Hand Pour Finesse Worm fished on a dropshot rig that is worked slowly
on the ledges works extremely well.
But don't forget that crayfish also inhabit these rock bluffs and
a big jig tipped with a PowerBait Chigger Craw will also work. Just
keep the retrieve slow. Lipless crankbaits like a Frenzy Rattl'r
fished parallel to the bluffs is also can entice strikes, but be
careful that your retrieve isn't too fast. Also remember that shad
and other baitfish swim these bluffs during winter so a Berkley
Gulp! Jerk Shad Texas rigged with a wide-gap hook and swimmed through
the desired depth can result in a lot of hook ups.
Main-lake points
Main-lake points hold bass pretty much year round. But during winter,
when the lake is low, they really start to bunch up on these structures.
Find a point that is just out of the swift, main lake current and
there is likely to be a bunch of bass feeding on baitfish and crayfish.
If there is deep water nearby, that deeper water is likely to hold
bass, too.
These out-of-the current spots can hold huge schools of bass, bunched
up, usually in one very small spot. This means either dragging bottom-bumping
lures, or fan casting, Carolina-rigged lures like a PowerBait Power
Lizard or a Gulp! Turtleback Worm and looking for that instinct
strike. Wood cover along these spots always harbor the bigger largemouth's
in the area. Try laydowns, washed in debris, stumps and brush piles
and go after them with a jig and trailer.
Humps
Smallmouth bass and a surprisingly good number of largemouths, can
both be found around islands, submerged humps, sand bars and ridges,
located throughout lakes. Because of low water levels in winter,
many are now visible; others can be found by paying attention to
your electronics. Smallmouth relate to the edge of the swift current,
waiting for an easy meal. Largemouth tend to hug the bottom and
hang out in the cover (stumps, ledges).
Fishing these areas can be tough when the weather is extremely cold,
but slowly down and finesse are of the utmost importance whenever
fishing these areas. Dropshotting small, straight-tailed finesse
worms like the PowerBait Hand Pour Finesse Worm or Carolina rigging
small, finesse lures, such as worms, lizards, grubs, jerkbaits and
crayfish imitations, will entice more strikes in very cold water
than baits with a larger profile. Lighter line also works better
in these situations, so make sure your spinning reel is in good
working order.
Don't let a little cold keep you off the lake this winter. There's
a lot less boat traffic this time of year and still a lot of fish
to be caught. Just make sure to slow down your presentation and
downsize your line and focus your attention on these three wintertime
hotspots and pretty soon everyone will want to go with you.
Berkley Pro Scott Suggs is the 2007 FLW Champion and the first
angler in professional bass fishing to win $1 million in a single
tournament.
Return
to Top
 A
big part of locating bass on any body of water is identifying which
seasonal pattern the fish are in and having an idea about how fish
behave during this pattern. These patterns can vary from place and
depend a lot on latitude. Just because it's technically fall on
the calendar, it can still be 80-90 degrees in parts of the south.
Just the same, it can still be officially summer in Minnesota and
still get pretty chilly. Fish weather and fisherman weather aren't
always the same, so just monitor the water temperature if you're
uncertain about which pattern the fish will be in.
But since it's now officially fall, I want to talk about fishing
for fall bass. I break this pattern into two: early fall and fall
transition. Fishing in this part of the year can prove challenging
but it's not impossible.
In early fall, bass get a sense that winter is coming because the
water temperature is beginning to cool from what is has been throughout
the summer. Since they instinctively sense that winter is on its
way, they begin to feed pretty heavily on the baitfish that are
moving into shallow water. Most people think that if the fish are
really chowing down then the fishing will be easy. Wrong. They aren't
just eating anything, they are keying on a certain kind of bait.
Because they are keying on certain bait (shad, crawfish, etc.),
it is extremely important that you match the hatch. It's a big thing
especially for fly fisherman, but bass fisherman should apply it,
too. Whether it's baby bluegill, crawfish, dragonflies or anything
else, I need to know so I carefully examine every fish that I catch
by looking down their gullets or carefully feeling their belly to
try to determine what they've been munching on. If the belly is
squishy, they've probably been eating soft bait fish like minnows
or shad; if it feels crunchy then there's probably a crawfish shell
in there that hasn't been digested. An object turning end over end
is most likely the spine of a bluegill.
During this early fall time, I like to hit creeks and pockets with
drains or any place that has an influx of freshwater water because
it will draw in more of the baitfish that the bass are eating. I
might throw a Berkley Power Tube or Power Craw in these areas, Texas
rigging them and keeping them close to the bottom. But as good as
these areas can be, don't overlook the backsides of windswept points.
During this time of the year, bass love to get behind these points
and face into the wind and ambush and kind of baitfish that get
pushed towards the banks by the current. A Berkley Frenzy Diver
in whatever color or pattern that coincides with what their eating
can very effective. The point is that fishing the early fall requires
moving around a lot and trying to find these areas where the fish
are feeding.
Later fall will find the bass heading back towards wintering areas
so focusing on isolated points or cover near vertical breaks is
a great place to start looking for these fish. These later-season
fish will also be a little easier to catch, so don't let the cooling
weather keep you off the water.
But it's the early fall where you might need a light jacket in the
morning and an air conditioner in the afternoon that provides some
challenging fishing with the possibility for some hefty fish. All
it takes is a little detective work to match the hatch and the ability
to determine the seasonal pattern and you will be well on your way.
Berkley Pro Staffer Mike Iaconelli is the 2006 BASS Angler of
the Year and the 2003 Bassmaster Classic champion.
Return
to Top
Pro
Angler Kevin Wirth
|
Flippin'
and pitchin' heavy vegetation is an often overlooked tactic
for hot weather largemouths.
The
heat of summer can bring some of the toughest bass fishing
of the year. But, according to many experts, much of that
toughness is caused by anglers themselves. That's because
far too many believe that all the bass are deep. They aren't.
Many fish, in some cases the biggest ones, head for the heavy
weeds and vegetative growth of July, August and September.
Such places offer high dissolved oxygen levels, shade and
protection from the sun. At the same time they are darn near
perfect for ambushing prey. That's all a bass needs to be
happy.
Fishing
vegetation can be tough, however. To do it effectively we
need a plan. A day on the water observing professional angler
Kevin Wirth fish lily pad fields helps us develop such a plan.
"That's
the thing most anglers miss, the pattern within the pattern,"
says Wirth as he lips his fish and heads towards the livewell.
It's a respectable 4-pound largemouth that fell for a plastic
bait tossed precisely to the base of one lily pad among a
field of thousands.
When asked to explain
the pattern within the pattern he quickly points out that
all the pads don't hold fish. And even if they did |
|
he couldn't fish them all effectively. The Southern impoundment
he's fishing this day is full of pads, tens of thousands of
them.
"You
notice I'm fishing only the pads on the end of the points
(made by the pads) and further refining my pattern by only
fishing those with big, thick stems. That's where the big
ones are holding."
Wirth
goes on to explain that big, mean bass are much like rich
humans. They claim the best neighborhoods. In this case, the
best neighborhood was under the huge, thick root of the lily
pad with the biggest stem growing on the end of the point.
In
Midwestern impoundments look for a spot where brown meets
green, mostly that'll be wood, drift, laydowns, stumps, near
weeds. Old wood and thick, mossy weeds are usually best. Keep
moving until you find a bass or two.
And
remember Wirth's advice; don't try to fish all the good looking
spots.
Return
to Top |
Defined
by water temperature rather than calendar, winter fishing is generally
the period where water temperatures are 38-48 degrees. Water is
at its coldest point of the year after fall migration and before
pre spawn. The good news is largemouth bass can still be caught!
Location
and when to fish are keys to winter fishing. Fish during the warmest
part of the day and near hard, sun-warmed surfaces. A few degrees
can make the difference. 2006 BASSMASTER Angler of the Year and
2003 BASSMASTER Classic Champion Michael Iaconelli says, “In
colder winter months bass seek the deepest most vertical break areas
in any given part of the lake. I look for the sharper break on main
lake points and deeper channel bends. On tidal waters, I’m
looking for an area out of the main fast current.” Sharp drops
allow fish to change depths without having to travel very far!
Ike doesn’t
overlook shallow bass and won’t slow down! “I approach
winter patterns like I approach spring, summer, and fall. I always
try to generate that reaction strike.” Starting shallow before
heading deep, he throws tight wiggle crankbaits like Berkley’s
Flicker Shad, Frenzy lipless rattle baits with a yo yo retrieve,
and metal baits like spoons and Silver Buddies. These imitate winter’s
dying shad. Most fishermen overwork blade baits like the Silver
Buddy. Less is more…you don’t have to rip them to get
bites. A short “burp” of 6 inches off the bottom and
semi-tight line back down will entice sluggish winter bass to bite.
Most bites occur on the drop. These baits are great at any depth.
Eliminating
the shallow bite, Iaconelli goes smaller, deeper and lighter. He
parallels break lines, dragging until baits hit bottom cover. “I
like to pop with a light snap of the wrist and that sometimes triggers
the bite.” Bait presentations allowing you to fish in one
spot for a while are best. Bass still eat, but aren’t willing
to chase prey. In addition the food chain is moving very slowly.
When forced to downsize, Iaconelli uses dark 3-inch grubs, bottom-dwelling
craw imitators like heavy Stone Jigs (with pork chunks), as well
as The Bomb, a new, smaller finesse football jig. Keep baits on
the bottom, where winter bass spend their time. You probably won’t
feel a tap…if you feel mushy weight, don’t try to figure
out what it is…set the hook!
For even
more finesse, Ike rigs a 5” Power Bait Shaky Head worm. Ike
likes this worm’s buoyancy for shaky head action in one place,
sometimes biting it down to 4 or even 3 inches. Furthermore, he
says drop shot rigs also stay put, and are the perfect wintertime
finesse presentation. Find baitfish on your depthfinder, then drop
shot at that depth using 3 or 4-inch soft plastic baits. With a
4-8 inch leader above the weight, Ike leaves Gulp worms in one spot
once he contacts bottom cover, allowing the bait to quiver and release
its attractant. According to Iaconelli, “When you find them,
there are a ton of them down there!”
Fishing
in the winter can be rewarding, but safety and comfort are essential.
A PFD is a must. Heavier clothing and fishing in deeper water can
prove to be a disastrous combination if you fall overboard. Loose
layers trap body heat and let moisture escape. Taking a buddy, letting
an onshore contact know where you are and when you plan to return,
and being prepared for emergencies make winter fishing good sense.
Return
to Top
The advent
of catch-and-release has been great for the sport of fishing. It
has literally re-cycled fish/opportunity for other anglers. However,
there is a proper method to returning fish to the water after you
catch them, that assures the fish's chances of survival.
Here
are some basic tips:
-
Don't play or fight
a fish any longer than necessary. This way when you do catch
and release the fish, it's not fatigued or stressed.
-
Do not touch or handle
the fish any more than necessary. Doing so removes a protective
slime coat that helps protect the fish from disease. It might
be a good idea to wet your hands before handling the fish.
For the same reason the use of dip nets is not encouraged
with fish you plan to release. And if you do use nets, those
with rubber webbing seem to be less harmful in this regard than
those made of twine.
-
If a hook is swallowed, cut it off as closely
to the eye of the hook as possible and release the fish, rather
than trying to remove the hook. Studies have shown fish have
a better chance of survival if you do this.
-
There is nothing wrong
with taking photos of a catch, but consider that the fish cannot
breathe out of water. Take the photo and return the fish to
water as soon as possible.
- Fishing with barbless hooks aid in the
survival rate of caught and released fish. The same is true of
anglers using circle hooks. These hooks are designed to turn when
taken by the fish and hook it in the corner of the mouth rather
than be swallowed.
Return
to Top
courtesy of
Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife
February is the pits.
Mother Nature punctuates dreary weather with a pounding cold rain,
snow or damaging ice storm. But, it is not necessary to sit around
the house and mope about the seemingly endless days of highs in
the low 40s with low gray clouds and no sunlight. This bleak time
is also the beginning of fishing season.
For many of us, fishing in mid-winter isn't any fun. It is cold.
You spend an entire day in the biting winter wind with numb hands
and burning face for maybe a couple of bites. This style of fishing
appeals mainly to the diehard.
However, you don't have to wait until it is 75 degrees outside to
start fishing. A three-day warm front from late February to mid-March
that pushes air temperatures into the 60s kick-starts the fishing
season. Farm ponds offer productive fishing for largemouth bass.
Stream smallmouth bite heartily and sauger make their spawning runs.
If you wear a layer of old-school thermals or thin polypropylene
with wicking properties under a layer or two of outer garments,
you'll stay comfortable while you fish in late winter and early
spring. Packable rain gear is great for this time of year because
you can wear it in the morning when it is cold, shed it in the mid-afternoon
warmth, and put it on again at dusk when it gets cold again. They
will usually fit in the back of a fishing vest, a pocket or tackle
box.
Farm ponds offer impressive late winter and early spring fishing
because they warm up much quicker than a large reservoir like Lake
Cumberland or Barren River Lake. If the sun shines for a couple
of days after a warm rain muddies the water, big female largemouth
bass move up into surprisingly shallow water.
Old-timers impaled a gob of nightcrawlers on a large hook and probed
shoreline stumps, downed trees and cuts in the bank to catch huge
female bass in late February and early March. They used fiberglass
rods up to 12 feet long with a limber tip and a beefy butt section
to haul big bass out of the heavy cover. This method came to be
known as jig-fishing and still works extremely well.
Large bass move shallow to take advantage of the great feeding opportunities
provided by warm, cloudy water. The shallows draw small bluegill
and other prey and the murky water shields lurking bass. They gorge
themselves to provide nutrients for the eggs developing in their
abdomens and recharge after a long, hard winter.
In addition to jig-fishing, running a square-billed shallow-running
crankbait parallel to the shore triggers strikes from shallow bass,
as does a spinnerbait fished in the same manner. A jig slowly crawled
in and near shoreline cover also works well for these fish.
Stream smallmouth
bass also wake up from their winter slumber in late February and
early March. In late fall, stream smallmouth migrate, sometimes
up to several miles, to find their wintering holes. They seek pools
with a deep, current-free middle section with flowing riffles and
shoals on each end.
Concentrate your efforts on the flowing shoals and riffles. A 1/8th-ounce
black, olive, olive and chartreuse or brown bucktail or rabbit hair
jig is deadly at this time of year. Fish them neat with no trailer
slowly along the bottom or swim them just above bottom. A sleeper
lure at this time of year is a 4-inch pumpkinseed lizard with green
flakes fished in the same manner as the hair jig.
In smaller streams, these holes may only be waist to chest deep.
Smallmouth bass spend the winter in these holes in a semi-dormant
state and feed only under conditions advantageous to them. A three-day
warm front in late winter is one of those optimal conditions. Read
More
Return
to Top
Among
anglers, there is perhaps no more controversial topic than whether
or not, as conservationists, we ought to fish for bass while they
are spawning. Battle lines on this issue were drawn in the sand
long ago – some northern laws that prohibit it date back to the
1800s – with no end to the argument in sight.
Those against fishing for bass during the spawn contend that it
disrupts the breeding cycle, resulting in fewer fish in the future.
However, studies indicate that fishing during the spawn, even if
specifically for trophies, does not appear to harm the bass populations.
Obviously, taking a spawn-ready female from the bed will, if she
dies, reduce the numbers of young bass produced. But bass produce
thousands of spawn every year, leaving the surplus millions of juvenile
fish to become food for other species – so numbers aren't an issue.
Further research has shown that if a big female hasn't spawned yet
and is released in good shape, then it is likely she will spawn.
Contrary to some beliefs, a bedding bass is not easy to catch, particularly
the big females. It is true that the small males are often aggressive
in their guardian duties, but the trophy fish is very difficult
to catch. To catch fish during this time of year, I use two methods,
depending on whether or not the water is clear enough to see the
beds.
If the water is reasonably clear, I look for hard-bottomed coves,
a place where the bottom will be mostly pea gravel and chunk rock.
Once there, I get on the deck of my boat and watch for the mostly
round nests, areas that have been cleared off by bass fanning their
tails. Once I spot a nest, I either look for a bass or its shadow.
Once I spot the fish – be it a small male or a large female – I
use my spinning reel, spooled with 10-pound Berkley Trilene 100%
Fluorocarbon line (especially if the fish have already been pressured)
or a casting reel spooled with 17- or 20-pound 100% Fluorocarbon,
and cast a white, Texas-rigged Berkley PowerBait Flippin' Tube,
with the hook barely piercing the skin of the bait.
I position my boat far enough away from the nest so as to not spook
the bass, but close enough that I can still see what is going on.
After casting just beyond the nest (if the fish hasn't already gone
for the bait), I hop the tube into the nest, working it through
the nest area searching for the “sweet spot.” The sweet spot – for
some unknown reason – is an area of the nest that, when a bait reaches
it, will cause the fish to attack. It may take several minutes or
several hours to get the bass to react, but when it does, it will
turn itself sideways and scoop the bait off the bottom in an effort
to remove the intruder from the nest – not always to eat it. Because
the hook is barely in the bait, it will be easier to set the hook.
If the first approach doesn't work, a like to turn to a dark colored
Berkley Gulp! Lizard and try the same tactics. However, unlike the
white tube, the dark lizard is harder to see in the water. If the
water is too murky to see the nests, try Carolina rigging in the
shallows. And if you're after smallmouth bass, look for underwater
cover to hold bedding fish.
Fishing
the spawn can be fun, difficult and rewarding all at the same time.
Just be sure to practice catch and release so that other anglers
will have the opportunity to enjoy the fishing, too.
Berkley Pro Jay Yelas is the reigning FLW Tour Angler of the
Year and a former Bassmaster Classic champion from Corvalis, Ore.
Return
to Top
Post-spawn
fishing for bass can encompass everything from hatched eggs to shady
summer haunts, but it pretty much begins as soon as the bass start
leaving their spawning beds and runs throughout the summer. Though
some anglers love this time of year and others hate it, once you
get post-spawn bass pinpointed you could be in for some of the best
fishing of the year.
Just because the bass have quit spawning doesn't mean they've quit
being bass, so some of the tactics for spawning bass will still
work. One of my favorite spawning baits is also very effective during
post spawn. One of my favorites is a Berkley Power Lizard in green
pumpkin, one of the most productive bass baits ever made. After
the spawn, I'll Carolina rig the Power Lizard and fish it for post-spawning
bass in areas where I expect to find the fish coming off their beds.
Even when I'm fishing offshore areas, I'll still fish the lizard
-- either Texas or Carolina rigged -- to catch bass during the rest
of the year. But if the post spawn coincides with the shad spawn,
I'll look for some shallow chunk rock or rip rap that will hold
spawning shad and target the predatory bass nearby.
Sometimes post-spawn bass will take to the shallows or other staging
areas until they leave for their summer hangouts. When I go after
post spawners in the shallows I prefer a Berkley Power Tube jig.
I'll rig the Power Tube with a lightweight slip sinker if I want
a slow fall to let bass see the bait longer. If the bass aren't
feeding actively, and I want to trigger a reaction strike, I'll
use a heavier sinker like a 5/16- or a 3/8-ounce and fish it around
any type of cover I can locate. I'm betting on getting a strike
as soon as the bait hits the water and begins to fall. If the bass
don't take the bait on the fall, I'll pop the lure up one or two
times off the bottom. If I still don't get a strike, I'll reel the
bait in and pitch to another piece of cover.
Remember, the post-spawn period is much longer than the pre-spawn
and spawning periods, so learning how to fish this time of year
will ensure you're catching fish even up into the dog days of summer.
Scott Suggs is the 2007 FLW Champion and the first angler in
professional bass fishing to win $1 million in a single tournament.
For more information on Scott Suggs visit www.scottsuggs.com
Return
to Top
 Stay
Safe on the Water and Catch More Fish
The pleasure
boats are gone and the water is now all yours. But don't venture
out for your next winter fishing trip without following these top
ten tips:
1.
Check the bellies of fish you bring up and if you find silt, that's
an indication that the fish has been glued to the bottom. So take
your time presenting the bait or lure, stay in one spot for a longer
time and use presentations with smaller baits like drop shot or
shaky heads. Find the deepest water close to shore and fish more
vertically than horizontally.
2.
With the pleasure boating season over there are fewer potential
rescuers to assist you in an emergency, so never fish alone. Leave
a float plan behind with your spouse, friend, or anyone else who
is willing to call authorities if you haven't checked back in at
a predetermined time.
3.
A spray of line conditioner, such as Reel Magic, will help keep
your lines ice-free. Use a smaller line size so you can get better
hooksets with less line resistance. Low stretch line is best in
the winter as well.
4.
Wear layers of clothing – preferably synthetic or wool – but never
cotton. It's a poor insulator when wet
5.
Use attractants such as Jack's Juice, which can sprayed
on a soft plastic lures. Fish are sluggish in winter and attractants
encourage them to hold on longer.
6.
Bring along high-energy foods such as granola bars and warm drinks.
It's important to keep hydrated in winter's dry air. Stay away from
alcohol, which dilates blood vessels and cools your body's core.
7.
Cold water drains energy and body heat rapidly. If you fall overboard,
a life jacket can give you the time you need to pull yourself back
in the boat before the effects of hypothermia set in. Vest styles
can provide warmth both in and out of the water while automatically
inflating life jackets allow great freedom of movement and fit over
bulky winter clothing. Also, make sure you have a method to get
back in the boat, such as a built-in boarding ladder or a short
length of rope with loops for footholds that is firmly attached
to a cleat or other fixed object.
8.
According to US Coast Guard boating fatality statistics, January's
and February's cold weather represent the greatest fatality risk.
Always check the weather before you go. With hypothermia a very
real threat, sudden squalls can be deadly.
9.
Now is the time to disconnect water pressure and speed hoses behind
the helm gauges to prevent freeze damage.
10.
When you're done fishing and before you leave the launch ramp, trim
the outboard motor all the way down, remove the kill switch and
turn the engine over for a just a second to pump out any water that
may still be inside the motor. Remove any mud or plant debris from
the boat or equipment and thoroughly drain livewells or anywhere
else water may have pooled to stop the spread of invasive species.
Storing the boat high and dry for two days before fishing a different
body of water can also help. Remember, it's your fishery.
Return
to Top
Frankfort,
Kentucky - Bass tournaments are an exciting and popular activity
on Kentucky's lakes. However, tournaments held during the heat of
summer place a great deal of stress on fish.
"We don't promote summertime tournaments because of the potential
for increases in mortality of fish," said Gerry Buynak, assistant
director of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources'
fisheries division. "We recommend that tournaments not be held when
water temperatures are over 80 degrees."
Higher temperatures mean less oxygen in the water and more stress
to fish held in a boat's livewell. If anglers don't take measures
to cool the water, maximize aeration, maintain a healthy salt balance
and flush ammonia from the livewell, fish can die either during
the tournament or after they are released.
"If anglers cannot move their tournaments to cooler time periods,
they need to learn the best techniques for taking care of fish in
warm water," said Buynak. "If you are going to have a summertime
tournament, maintain aeration and use ice and salt in the livewell."
Anglers should first fill their livewells in the morning when the
lake water is cooler. Switch the livewell to recirculate so it is
not taking on warm lake water, and keep it running continually throughout
the tournament day. Add two 1/2-gallon frozen bottles of water to
the livewell and about 1/3 cup of untreated salt for every 5 gallons
of livewell water.
"After about a three-hour period in the livewell, the ice will be
melted, bass waste will be building up and you could have an ammonia
problem," said Buynak. "The recommendation is to change half the
water in the livewell after three hours, then add ice and salt again."
Taking care of fish in the livewell is only one part of keeping
bass alive during summer tournaments.
"You've got to have the full range of resources to keep them alive,"
said Dave Dreves, fisheries research biologist for Kentucky Fish
and Wildlife. "Proper set-up at the weigh-in is also very important."
Tournament organizers can reduce stress on fish by lowering the
creel limit, staggering weigh-in times and keeping weigh-in lines
short and efficient. Summer tournaments can be held at night or
shortened to four hours to reduce stress on fish. For full eight-hour
tournaments, a weigh-in and release can be held halfway through
the day to shorten the amount of time fish spend in the livewell.
"The big thing is, the less time in the boat, the better," said
Buynak. "At the weigh-in, have an iced, aerated trough for fish.
The water should be salted and cooled 5 to 10 degrees below the
lake temperature. When releasing fish, take them out further from
the bank where there is deeper, cooler water."
Fish survival is not only good for the resource, but it puts a positive
face on the tournament fishing sport. Tournaments can encourage
good fish handling even more by penalizing anglers whose fish die.
"A lot of tournaments have penalties for bringing in dead fish,"
said Dreves. "That's one reason anglers want to keep their fish
alive. But the reason these rules were instituted was to promote
good care of the fish during their time in the livewell."
Buynak recommends anglers and tournament organizers review the B.A.S.S.
sponsored manual "Keeping Bass Alive," which outlines in complete
detail the best methods for handling bass during tournaments. Basic
guidelines and information on how to get a copy of the manual are
available at fw.ky.gov/bassguidelines.asp.
Author Hayley Lynch is an award-winning writer for Kentucky Afield
magazine, the official publication of the Kentucky Department of
Fish and Wildlife Resources. She is an avid hunter and shotgun shooter.
Return
to Top
The
intense sun and summertime temperatures in the 90s stifles the desire
of most of us to move around much. A glass of tea in the shade or
a nap in an air-conditioned room are much more inviting than digging
a hole for a fence post or putting up hay.
Black bass are just like us. Their activity slows down in the heat
of a summer's day. Bass suspend in the water column and rest like
a human sitting on the porch in a rocking chair, letting the heat
of the day pass. While fishing topwater baits at night, dusk or
dawn is an effective way to catch bass, many anglers believe that
they can't catch bass during the heat of a July afternoon.
However, you can effectively target bass suspended over deeper water
in the middle of the day by downsizing your lures and tackle, then
slowing down your presentation. If you can find the fish, this can
be one of the most reliable ways to catch bass than at any other
time of the year.
“Bass are going to pick off an easy meal, but they aren't actively
feeding,” said Chris Hickey, black bass research biologist for the
Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. “But, once you
find them, they'll spend all summer there.”
Water temperature, dissolved oxygen and the lake's water fertility
all play a role in where bass will suspend during the dog days of
summer. “It's an issue of comfort,” Hickey explained. “They don't
want to sit in 3 feet of water that is approaching 90 degrees. Their
metabolism increases as water temperatures increase, and that can
stress them. They find a neutral zone of comfortable water temperatures.”
That cozy zone usually resides just above the thermocline - the
breakpoint between the warmer, oxygenated water on top and the colder
oxygen-depleted layer underneath. Fish rarely venture into this
bottom layer because of the lack of oxygen.
“They'll chase food under the thermocline,” Hickey said, “but can't
hang out there.”
In fertile reservoirs such as Barren, Taylorsville, Nolin, Green
and Guist, the summer thermocline is roughly 12 -16 feet deep. Bass
suspend over humps, points and channels at this depth in July and
August.
A lightweight jig-and-pig combination in green pumpkin, black-and-blue,
green-and-brown or brown-and-orange swum just above these structures
will produce strikes. The channel drops in the lower one-third of
Barren River Lake are a dynamite place to practice this technique
in summer. You may catch all three species of black bass. A skirted
grub worked in the same manner as the jig is another excellent presentation
for these fish. Good colors to try include watermelon with red flake,
pumpkinseed or black.
Don't overwork your jig or skirted grub. Simply swim them just above
bottom on a slow, steady retrieve. You want your lure to stay in
the strike zone in front of the fish for as long as possible. A
lot of anglers would try a crankbait for these suspended bass, but
the erratic nature of the lure often turns off idle fish.
“Bass don't want to spend their metabolic energy chasing prey in
summer,” said Jeff Ross, assistant director of fisheries and former
black bass biologist for Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. “They are in
a lazy mode. They aren't going to chase a lure.”
Things get a little more complicated for clear, low fertility lakes
such as Cumberland, Paintsville, Laurel, Dale Hollow and most mountain
lakes east of Interstate 75. These lakes can hold dissolved oxygen
in their depths. This is the reason they can support cool water
fish species such as walleye, striped bass, trout and smallmouth
bass.
Black bass, especially smallmouth bass, often suspend 6-10 feet
deep over ledges that start at 40 feet and fall off into the old
river channel. Bass also hold at the same depths over 25-50 feet
deep long, sloping points.
Use a 4-inch finesse worm or a 3-5 inch grub rigged on a 1/16-ounce
lead head jig to catch these fish. Cast your lure over a channel
drop or long point and slowly retrieve it. If this does not produce
a hit, then let your lure sink for five seconds on the next cast
before you begin your retrieve. Keep adding five seconds to every
cast until you find the active zone of the fish.
Slow down once you find this active zone and watch your line intently.
Often the line will suddenly go slack, tighten or move to the side.
A bass probably has just inhaled your lure.
Avoid lines heavier than 8-pound test if you're bass fishing in
a clear, infertile lake. Set a light drag and let the fish run.
There is little structure in deep, rocky infertile lakes for the
fish to hang upon and break your line. Many anglers may balk at
using such light line, but in these types of lakes during the day
in summer, lures fished on heavier lines simply don't get bitten
by bass.
Slow down and swim a lure for suspended bass during these long,
hot lazy days. It may be the fastest bass fishing of the year.
Return
to Top
 You
may not know it by looking out the window, but signs of summer's
departure are already starting. You may not even realize that
fact by stepping outdoors. It's still hot outside, the breezes
are warm, and dew covers the grass in the morning. However,
it is September and we can't avoid the fact that another summer
is slipping away. As summer makes its exit, the fish start
to detect the changes in their surroundings. If we want to
continue to catch fish, we need to make some changes also.
Take a look into the water, and pay close attention to the baitfish.
The bluegills and bullheads that were tiny just six or eight
weeks ago are noticeably bigger. There are also fewer of them.
Many of the baitfish that were spawned in the spring have
been eaten by the larger gamefish. That means that the food
supply has diminished in the past few weeks, and it will continue
to get smaller as fall closes in. The gamefish are still hungry,
in fact, they're hungrier. If we can put a bait in front of
them, they'll eat it.
The key then, is to find the fish, then give them what they want.
In reality, that's always the key. Now and for the rest
of the open water season, especially if you're looking for a trophy
sized fish, you should be using larger baits. As the waters
start to cool off, fish will recognize that as a sign from Mother
Nature that they should put the feed-bag on. One big meal
will be more attractive to them than several smaller meals.
If largemouth bass are the quarry, a big bulky bait will be a good
bet. From Berkley, Seven inch Power Worms or Gulp! Turtle
Back Worms will be good, but don't hesitate to try a ten inch worm.
You might not get as many strikes, but big baits catch big
fish. Also try the new PowerBait Sabertail Burly Bug. This
is a bulky bait that has been outstanding since its recent introduction.
It often works best to rig these baits on a rubber-legged jig like
a Northland Jungle Jig. This style adds bulk, and that's what
the bass want now.
Same thing is true for walleyes, smallmouth, muskies, and northern
pike, even crappies. Larger baits will take the larger fish
of all these species.
Different bodies of water will be affected by the changes in weather
also. Just as larger bodies of water heat up slower early
in the year, they also cool off slower in the fall. Smaller
bodies of water will often provide the best bite early in the autumn,
while the bigger water provides the most action later on. Throughout
the Midwest, you can generally find a body of water near where you
live that is offering some action.
The fishing action at the end of summer can be a little slower than
we're accustomed to, but by moving around you'll still catch fish.
And this brief lull in the fishing action signals that some
of the best fishing of the year is getting very close.
-- Bob Jensen was introduced to the sport of fishing as a toddler
and has been an active angler since. Bob has been involved in fishing
education, promotion, and communications for the past seventeen
years. Visit his website Fishing
The Midwest
Return
to Top
 Every
year we learn more about fishing. In fact, much of the time, every
time we go fishing we learn something. The past few summers have
been a very good learning experience. Here are a couple of things
I've learned relative to summer fishing that can help anglers catch
more fish.
On the largemouth bass side of the world it has again become obvious
that we need to keep doing things differently if we want to be successful.
Just this past week my nephew and I were chasing bass in shallow
water. We were fishing reed beds. Action was ok, but it wasn't as
good as it usually is on this lake using the same techniques at
the same time of year on previous trips.
When fishing reed beds, spinnerbaits are usually a good bait to
throw. They come through the reeds with minimal hang-ups, the blade
calls fish, and you get bit often. Not on this trip though. The
bass just didn't seem to want a spinnerbait.
When fishing reeds it's a good idea to pitch a jig to the heavier
clumps or wherever you see darker water. Pitch the jig in there,
let is settle to the bottom, jig it a few times, then pitch it to
another clump.
We did that. Interesting thing happened. The bass didn't eat the
jig when it was jigged slowly, but when we started reeling it quickly
back to the boat, they smacked it. We started working the jig the
same way we working the spinnerbait. We would cast it out and just
starting reeling. We would delay it just a split-second near heavy
cover, but mostly it was a straight retrieve. The bass liked this
presentation. They really liked it.
The best set-up was a three-eighth's ounce Jungle Jig with a four
inch Power Grub. A watermelon jig with a white grub was good.
Maybe the blade on the spinnerbait was too much for the bass, or
maybe they had just become conditioned to the spinnerbait. Whatever
the reason, the jig fished like a spinnerbait was clearly the way
to catch'em on that day.
Another break in tradition. Walleye anglers often stop using minnows
in the summer. It has been believed by some walleye chasers that
after a certain point in the summer, walleyes prefer crawlers and
leeches to minnows. While it is true that crawlers and leeches will
catch walleyes in the warmer months, minnows will too.
Some anglers suspect that minnows lost favor because they're hard
to keep alive in the summer. With the advent of effective aerated
minnow buckets, minnows are now easy to keep alive even in the warmest
weather. Frabill is the leader in aerated minnow storage systems.
Their units are quiet and effective, and walleye anglers are finding
out that walleyes like to eat minnows in the summer, sometime even
better than leeches and crawlers.
It's important that we don't get locked into fishing ideas too firmly.
The fish don't always do what we expect them to do. If we keep an
open mind to fishing presentations, we're going to catch more fish.
Bob Jensen is host of Fishing the Midwest on www.WalleyeCentral.com
and www.MyOutdoorTV.com
Return
to Top
 Joe
Balog knows Lake Erie's rock piles and reefs, the humps and bumps
that are home to hungry smallmouth bass.
"I've
been fishing these areas since I was a kid growing up in Brecksville,"
said Balog, 34, whose top national tournament wins have come on
Lake Erie. "You can catch bass just about any time of year on Lake
Erie. If you're after trophy bass, the ones that jack up your pulse
after you set the hook, October is prime time."
Balog
now lives in Harrison Township, Mich., traveling the country to
compete in bass tournaments and appear at fishing seminars and shows.
More often than not, his down time is spent on the bow of his Ranger
boat, casting for bass or hunting ducks. A fishing invitation from
Balog is an opportunity to learn new bass-catching tricks. Always
on the cutting edge, Balog takes pride in fishing with the latest
in angling electronics and fishing tackle.
"Drop
shot rigs are the key right now," said Balog as he backed his Ranger
boat down the Mazurik launch ramp on Marblehead. "And Pelee Island
is the place to be. The Bass Islands and Kelleys Island will light
up in the coming weeks, and the Ohio shoreline from Huron to Lorain
is pretty darn good in the fall."
By the
time we arrived at the Wagon Wheel reef complex on the west side
of Pelee Island, southwesterly winds had begun to pick up. Balog
had to focus on controlling the boat with a bow-mounted electric
motor as I struggled to keep the sinker on my drop shot rig in contact
with the rocky bottom.
The smallmouth
bass were cooperating, but waves began to crash over the bow of
the boat. We decided to escape the wind and try the north shore
of Pelee Island. The bass were usually smaller there, said Balog,
the only time he was wrong all day. His first bass was a stout fish
that weighed a shade under 6 pounds.
"The
bass move to shallower waters as Lake Erie cools down in October,
and become more aggressive," said Balog. "The bass that are fairly
scattered in the summer begin to group up for the winter. If you
catch one, there should be a few more in the same area."
Bass
fishermen complain that the prime areas along the Huron and Vermilion
shorelines aren't the hot spots of past years. Balog believes the
smallmouth bass are around but have changed their habits.
 "You
might catch one smallmouth bass from a good spot off Vermilion in
summer," he said. "In the middle of October, after the water temperature
drops into the low 50s, the same spot may be holding 50 fish."
Balog
had the latest in electronics on the dash, a Hummingbird side scan
sonar unit. The side scan sonar showed him the piles of rock and
rubble as far as 50 feet away on each side of the boat, and sometimes
bass hovering around the rocks.
"Identifying
structure is the big key," said Balog. "The side scan unit has been
a shortcut to success."
Balog
enjoys a perch or walleye dinner, but smallmouth bass are precious.
Every one is handled gently with wet hands and quickly released.
"Lake
Erie's smallmouth bass are so pressured, and the big ones are becoming
increasingly hard to catch," said Balog. "The fisheries biologists
checking smallmouth bass at the FLW tournament in Cleveland in 2005
found the average trophy bass caught was about 9 years old. Some
were 14 years old.
"We've
got to protect our bass in order to have great fishing in the future."
Return
to Top
 Frankfort,
Kentucky - We have experiences in the outdoors that can be transcendent,
although the conditions are rough. Catching crappie after crappie
in cold March sleet, bagging your biggest turkey ever in a chilling
April downpour or taking a limit of ducks in weather so cold hot
coffee quickly freezes on the rim of your cup make great memories.
Although these encounters test your mettle and enrich your life,
few outdoor pursuits compare to December fishing for smallmouth
bass in the snow. The activity seems incongruent - floating in a
boat on ice-free water with white frozen snow lining the banks.
You seem completely out of place, casting a hair jig, the float
and fly or a shiner with snow in your eyelashes. You feel you should
be at home; that it is dangerous to fish in such weather.
Except it may be the best weather condition for catching the largest
smallmouth bass you'll ever hold.
"On an overcast snowy day, light will be greatly diffused," said
Gerry Buynak, assistant director of fisheries for the Kentucky Department
of Fish and Wildlife Resources. "This brings the smallmouths up
shallower and they can be easier to fool. They are more likely to
strike an artificial lure because of less light penetration."
Anglers should take advantage of this. In our premier winter smallmouth
lakes such as Lake Cumberland, Dale Hollow Lake and Laurel River
Lake, anything than can get smallmouth out of their usual deep-water
lairs is a blessing. These lakes are so clear you can see where
you chipped paint from your jig head in 10 feet of water. This water
clarity pushes smallmouths deep for most of the year during the
day, but snowfall and a leaden sky bring them up to feed.
"I also think it is a pressure-related thing," said Ted Crowell,
former assistant director of fisheries for Kentucky Fish and Wildlife.
"Snow brings along with it low barometric pressure. It is just like
when it rains in summer. This turns fish on."
Crowell has spent many a winter day chasing smallmouths at Lake
Cumberland and Dale Hollow. "It is unbelievable, the fish you can
catch in December in the snow," he said. "There's nobody else on
the lake. There's nobody in the parking lot. It's great."
Also, unstable weather places predators at an advantage over prey.
The changing weather of a snow storm and the cold of winter disorient
baitfish and smallmouth bass gobble up all they can. This is especially
true for larger female smallmouths who must store up fat reserves
for egg development in early spring. They need to eat.
The plummeting water temperatures of December also stress baitfish
such as shad or alewives. They swim in circles and quiver as they
fight death. This is why the float and fly technique is so deadly
in winter. A small, light craft hair or duck feather jig suspended
on light line 8 to 12 feet deep perfectly imitates baitfish in their
death throes.
Another highly productive technique is suspending a large crappie
minnow or medium-sized shiner under a bobber 6 to 10 feet deep off
points. The bobber flutters on top until it abruptly torpedoes toward
the bottom. Smallmouth bass that hit live bait in winter don't fool
around. They strike fiercely.
Both of these techniques produce, because the baitfish suspend in
the water column in tightly packed schools in winter. Smallmouth
bass cruise under these schools looking for those alewives or shad
acting peculiar and pick them off.
A black 1/8th to 3/8th-ounce rabbit fur or bucktail jig swum just
above bottom and down those main lake points produced winter smallmouths
for your grandfather and they do the same today. The old-school
pork rind is still the best trailer. Find the smallest pork rind
possible or cut a bigger one in half. Although the soft plastic
chunk trailers prove much easier to handle and take on and off the
hook, pork is still the best choice in cold water.
Don't let snowfall scare you from chasing bronze this winter. Don
some waterfowl hunting clothing or coveralls and a pair of warm
boots. Grab some hand warmers, a thermos of strong coffee and your
fishing rod. Five-pound smallmouth bass are waiting for you if you
brave the elements.
-- Lee McClellan
McClellan is an award-winning associate editor for Kentucky Afield
magazine, the official publication of the Kentucky Department of
Fish and Wildlife Resources. He is a life-long hunter and angler,
with a passion for smallmouth bass fishing.
Return
to Top
 Now
is a good time to think about some things you can do to take advantage
of the great fall fishing opportunities that exist across the Midwest.
The
fall season provides perhaps the best opportunity for catching numbers
of big fish. Sure you can catch a big one before it spawns in the
spring, but fall fish are preparing for winter by bulking up, so
they're hungry. They're thinking about eating, not about spawning.
That makes them more susceptible to an angler's presentation.
As
with any fishing, the key thing is to fish where the fish are. I've
caught walleyes in the fall in two foot of water on wind-blown shorelines,
and in thirty feet of water on deep humps. Same thing's true with
largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, northern pike, muskies, and crappies.
Keep moving until you find them. If you suspect them to be in deep
water, some sonar work will pay big dividends. The 798 Humminbird
sonar that I use has a color display that really exposes fish holding
on deeper structures.
Remember
that in the fall, big baits catch big fish. It's more efficient
for a gamefish to eat one big meal instead of several smaller ones.
Therefore, big baits are the way to go. If you're after largemouth,
try a Reed-Runner spinnerbait with a big blade and tip it with a
big trailer, something like a four inch Power Grub. If a slower
presentation is desired, go with a rubber legged Jungle Jig with,
again, a bulky soft bait trailer like a five inch Power Hawg or
Sabertail Tube. Make sure the jig color contrasts with the trailer
color.
If walleyes are the quarry, try a Roach Rig or Fire-Ball jig tipped
with a redtail chub, one in the five inch range, maybe even a little
bigger. When it comes to fall walleyes, a redtail is hard to beat.
Don't crowd them in the minnow bucket, and keep them aerated. We
always take at least three or four dozen redtails on the water with
us in the fall. To make sure they stay lively, we keep them in a
Frabill Aqua-Life Bait Station. If there are any left at the end
of the day, they're just as lively as they were when the day began
with this minnow bucket.
Make sure you're using fresh, strong line in the fall. Too many
anglers use the same line they've used all spring and summer, and
things usually work out o.k. But knowing that the odds for hooking
a truly big fish are better in the fall should be incentive enough
to spool some new line on just in case the line you're using has
a nick. Your line is the only thing keeping you stuck to the fish:
Use good stuff.
There are lots of reasons to go fishing in the fall. The colors
can be spectacular, the crowds are gone, and the big fish are eating.
If you keep the above ideas in mind, you'll be on your way to taking
advantage of these fall fishing opportunities.
-- Bob Jensen
Watch Jensen on Fishing the Midwest television on www.WalleyeCentral.com
and www.MyOutdoorTV.com
.
Return
to Top
|
