Monthly Archives: March 2022

So Close In a Lake Sinclair Club Tournament

Last Saturday 25 members of the Potato Creek Bassmasters fished our January tournament at Lake Sinclair. After eight hours of casting from 7:30 AM to 8:30 PM, we brought 73 12-inch keeper bass weighing about 112 pounds to the scales. There were eight limits and six zeros.

Robert Howell won with five weighting 9.04 pounds and Raymond English placed second with five at 8.67 pounds. Michael Cox came in third with five weighing 7.88 pounds and my four weighing 7.55 pounds was fourth. Stevie Wright had big fish with a 4.37 pound largemouth.

The water in Little River was very muddy but the Oconee River and creeks downstream of the mouth of Little River were a decent color. I just knew I could catch some fish on a crankbait in the 52-degree water in the clearer areas, but at 1:00 my two bites were a two-pound channel cat on a crankbait and a bream on a spoon, jigging it in brush 18 feet deep.

At 1:00 I met a boat going down the bank and they fished my favorite dock before I could get to it, then left. I started to leave, too, but noticed they threw just to the front post, not the back post. That dock has some rock behind it and is usually good for a keeper.
I cast my shaky head behind the dock and sure enough it started moving out. But when I set the hook my line broke! That really disgusted me but I kept casting and managed to catch two keeper bass and a five pound flathead cat on a crankbait and two more keeper bass on my shaky head the last two hours of the tournament.

I was shocked but pleased to place but kept thinking if I had just landed that bass behind the dock and it weighed two pounds, I would have won! And if frogs had wings, they would not bump their butt every time they hopped!

All-New Legend Tournament Bass Series from St. Croix

Fish a Legend

St. Croix set to drop all-new Legend Tournament Bass Series at the 2022 Bassmaster Classic

PARK FALLS, Wisc. (February 28, 2022) – Having the blues is never a good thing, unless, of course, you’re a bass angler with a deck full of St. Croix Legend Tournament Bass rods. Introduced some 17 years ago and consistently refined and expanded over the past decade, this coveted collection of technique-specific casting and spinning rods quickly grew to become a favorite of performance-minded bass anglers seeking an elite combination of St. Croix materials and technologies.

The Rebirth of a Legend Building on its expanding and proprietary expertise with hybrid blank engineering and construction, St. Croix Rod announces its latest expression of angler-centric design, an all-new series of Legend Tournament Bass rods that are lighter, stronger, and poised to elevate the bass-fishing experience with improved balance, performance, and capability in any technique or presentation.

Scheduled to be unveiled at stcroixrods.com and in the St. Croix booth (#2231) at the 2022 Bassmaster Classic Expo in Greenville, South Carolina, March 4, these 24 all-new Legend Tournament Bass casting and spinning rods will feature next-generation hybrid SCIV+ carbon fiber blanks.

Select reaction bait models will feature all-new iACT Glass hybrid blanks.

In addition to their unique combination of proprietary materials, all-new Legend Tournament Bass rods will also incorporate all of St. Croix’s top technologies. Handcrafted in Park Falls, Wisconsin, USA, new Legend Tournament Bass rods will come with a 15-year transferrable warranty backed by St. Croix Superstar Service and will retail between $290 and $345.

Get the Blues Learn complete details on the all-new technique-specific made-in-the-USA Legend Tournament Bass Series in the coming weeks. Plan to make them your own at stcroixrods.com and at St. Croix dealers worldwide on March 25.

I love my St Croix Avid Rods!

Lake Burton and Tidal Savannah River Offer Georgians Two Very Different Bass Fisheries

Lake Burton and tidal Savannah River are about as different kinds of water you can fish in Georgia, but both hold bass. My retirement job took me to both in the past week.

Lake Burton is a beautiful 2775-acre Georgia Power Lake on the Tallulah River in north Georgia between Clayton and Cleveland. Its 62 miles of shoreline are lined with huge houses with big docks, and its steep banks are covered with rock. Views of mountains surrounding it are very pretty.

Crystal clear mountain water is the norm there unless heavy rains stain up some of the creeks. Moccasin Creek State Park is also the home of a fish hatchery where trout are raised, and many are released into the lake, both intentionally and accidentally.

Although it is a good trout fishery, its big spotted and largemouth bass are the main attraction there. It also produces many chain pickerel and crappie.

I fished on a cold cloudy Tuesday with Jeremy Eaton, a local tournament angler, and the fishing was tough. The January snows up in that area had melted and made the lake go up about five feet while dropping the water temperature more than five degrees. That combination gave the fish lockjaw.

I enjoyed the trip and could imagine easing around the backs of coves looking for big largemouth on the bed, especially around the full moon on April 16. And spotted bass will be bedding then, too, and easy to catch out on rocky points and humps. Jeremy marked ten good places to catch bass in April for my Georgia Outdoor News (subscription required) Map of the Month article.

The houses are amazing. Jeremy pointed out a huge house up on a high point at the mouth of Timpson Creek and said Nick Saban built it. He built it to see if he liked having a house on Lake Burton and he did, but rumor has it this one was too small, so he built a bigger one. Its only 9542 square feet with 7 full and two half-baths and the tax office appraised it at 2.6 million. And it is not the biggest on the lake, by far!

Go up to Lake Burton for a nice vacation and take your boat. Enjoy the lake and mountain scenery and catch some trout for dinner, and some big bass to stretch your string.

I fished the lower Savannah River last Sunday with Billy Robertson, a local club fisherman. The views were very different. No mountains in the background, just flatlands that extended forever. And cypress trees and live oaks with Spanish moss beards replaced the barren hardwoods of Lake Burton.

I am not used to fishing current, so when we fished on the river Billy kept the boat pointing upstream and ran his trolling motor on high to keep the boat slowly moving downstream I was surprised. I had to cast fast to hit eddies behind trees in the water and small pockets along the bank.

Back in the creeks where we spent most of our time the current was still strong from the outgoing tide. Although we were miles upstream, above the I-95 bridge most of the day, the tide still affected the river.

We did catch fish. Billy quickly hooked a four-pounder, and our best five of them weighed about 20 pounds. But they were bowfin, fun to catch but we were after bass.

We did catch about a dozen keeper bass that day by casting worms and small jigs to eddies in the creeks but they were small. Most were 12 to 14 inches long but they fought good in the current.

There are bigger bass in the river. A local tournament took off from the ramp we used and it took five weighing 14 pounds to win, 11 for second and 10 for third. Big fish was a four-pounder. But the rest of the folks had five weighing six or seven pounds, just like our catch.

A highlight of the trip was dinner at Loves Seafood and Steaks. Although very expensive, the gumbo was some of the best I have had and the fried scallops were tender and delicious.

Fishing the river is a fun change of pace for us lake fishermen. There are several ramps just north of Savannah in both Georgia and South Carolina. But one warning, if you get off the river itself and go back in creeks on the South Carolina side, you need a nonresident fishing license.

Details of my trip and how to catch bass on the Savannah River will be in the April issue of Georgia Outdoor News.

Go north or south for a fun change of pace for fishing this spring.

Late Ice Season Can Produce Some Unexpected Catches

UNEXPECTED CATCHES ON LATE ICE

from The Fishing Wire

The ice fishing season is winding down. In some parts of ice fishing territory, the season has closed for a couple species of fish. However, there are still lots of fish to chase in the remaining weeks of ice fishing. Perch, crappies, and other panfish are fair game in most places, and so are some species of fish of which we might not think. Some of those types of fish that aren’t frequently targeted can provide lots of excitement in the next few weeks. They can also provide some outstanding table fare. Following are ideas for getting in on that action.

On an ice fishing trip with some friends in the late 70’s I was introduced to a fish that has become a much more popular fish for a good number of ice anglers. We were on Mille Lacs Lake in central Minnesota. Walleye season was still open, so we were after walleyes. This was before sonar use had been popularized for ice fishing. Finding fish was kind of a hit and miss thing. One of the anglers in our group took us to a spot on the west side of the lake where he caught walleyes in the summer. We drilled holes in the ice and started fishing. Walleye action was steady. I caught a couple and had become somewhat proficient in grabbing them behind the head as they came through the hole. Action slowed a bit, then I hooked another. When the fish’s head got into the hole, I casually grabbed it as I had the others. I lifted it from the hole. The fish felt slipperier than the previous walleyes, and when it wrapped itself around my arm, I knew that something was different. I wouldn’t say that I went into a full-blown panic, but I was certainly more excitable than I had been with the walleyes.

My friends told me that the fish that I had caught was an eelpout. I had never heard of an eelpout and had never seen in real-life a fish that looked like an eelpout. They told me that eelpout were not the most desirable fish in the lake. Nonetheless, it was a fun fight. In recent years, eelpout, also known as burbot, lingcod, and a variety of other names, have become very desirable to many anglers. They fight well, can be willing biters, and are outstanding on the table. Ice fishing expert John Crane uses Leech Flutter Spoons and Pinhead Mino spoons tipped with one minnow sometimes and loaded with several smaller minnows other times. He and many other pout chasers like their spoons to be in glow colors. If you’ve never fished for eelpout through the ice, find a way to give it a shot.

Another fish that’s gained popularity in ice fishing are whitefish. Again, I was introduced to whitefish accidentally. It was early March, and we were fishing for perch. We were spread out east to west across a not-so-well-known perch spot that an angler in our group had come across. Action was okay. We were getting ready to go exploring for another area when the eastern-most angler hooked a fish that felt larger than the perch that we had been catching. It was a whitefish. A minute later, an angler fishing twenty yards west hooked up. Another whitefish. They were going through the area, from east to west. Pretty soon everyone was catching. Then, action slowed for the angler on the east while those on the west continued to catch. Then the action stopped. The school had moved through. Had we known then what we know now, we would have moved around to relocate the school. Flashy spoons are good when the fish are active, Drop Jigs tipped with plastic or live bait will produce when the whitefish aren’t as active. Whitefish are also outstanding on the table.

On late ice, in addition to eelpout and whitefish, I or friends that I’m fishing with have caught lots of largemouth and smallmouth bass and some channel catfish through the ice. Even though some species of fish are off-limits now, there are still plenty of fish willing to bend an ice rod. The days are getting longer, the weather warmer, and the bite can be good. Make sure that the ice is safe, and if it is, get on it and see what you can catch.

– By Bob Jensen of fishingthemidwest.com.

St Croix Rods Offer New Designs and Materials

Gun Manufacturers Getting Sued for Advertising

“Available 0 – 60 Approx. 3 seconds. GM Estimates” On-line ad for the new electric GMC Hummer.

As soon as someone is injured or killed in wreck caused by a speeding Hummer, I expect GMC to have to pay millions to the survivors, based on a recent court settlement by Remington Arms.

In that court case that sets a precedent, the judge allowed plaintiffs to sue based on advertising by Remington. The case said Remington attracted an unhinged individual that bought one of their guns and shot students at a school.

I have several Remington guns, including a 12-gauge semiautomatic I have shot doves with since I was 14 years old. I also have a .223 semiautomatic, a so-called “assault style weapon,” set up for deer hunting. Those guns are only as dangerous as the person using them.

Holding a business responsible for actions of fools that buy their products is ridiculous, no matter how much you hate that business. Dick Poleman in his weekend Griffin Daily News editorial crowed “Sandy Hook Parents Beat the Gun Merchants.” No doubt he feels all manufacturers should be “beat“ by the same standards. NOT. Well, maybe he does since his editorials indicate he hates capitalism.

So many gun hating groups tried to sue gun manufacturers out of business a few years ago Congress had to protect them from such suits. Those lawsuits tried to hold gun manufacturers liable for the way their products were used. And many of the groups admitted their goal was to end gun manufacturing in the US.

Now they have another tactic, go after them for advertising. Any fair person would ask if all manufacturers will be held to the same standards. Or was this just one liberal judge making a legal decision based on his prejudices against guns.

Remington settled for many millions of dollars to end this suit. Of course, the lawyers will probably get at least half, encouraging them to file more such suits. I wish Remington had kept fighting. Our legal system is stupid when it means it cost a business more to fight for what is right rather than giving lawyers a pile of money.

What business will be sued next for their advertising? Someone burns down a building using charcoal lighter fluid that advertise “fast lighting?” A shoe company after someone steps off building wearing their shoes that “make it feel like you are walking on air?”

This is similar to holding tobacco companies liable for people smoking and drug companies for people getting addicted to drugs. Seems like there is no personal responsibility for anything in our modern society.

How sad. And how dangerous.

What Do You Do When You Catch A Huge Striped Bass In a Black Bass Tournament?

MASSIVE LANDLOCKED STRIPER CAUGHT

from The Fishing Wire

HOT SPRINGS – Stephen Tyson Jr.’s early competitive fishing Saturday in the Phoenix Bass Fishing League tournament on Lake Hamilton was interrupted by an extended fight with a fish he didn’t count on: a massive striped bass.

When Tyson finally got the striper boated and photos taken before releasing it back into Hamilton’s waters, the big black bass he’d found during practice and in the first minutes in the same area were gone. He had three fish, two short of the five-fish limit, but was just shy of 4 pounds. Other anglers were already in some of the spots he’d targeted to try later where he’d earlier found some big fish in practice, some 6-8 pounds. But he had quite a story to tell and the photos to prove it even if the one-day black bass tourney didn’t quite go his way.

“I caught a 50-something-pound flathead in the Ouachita (River) at Camden. I remember holding that fish, and this one seemed heavier,” he said.

Lake Hamilton is one of the few lakes the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission stocks with stripers. Neighboring lakes Ouachita and Catherine also are stocked with stripers, as are Norfork Lake and Beaver Lake in the northern reaches of the state.

“It gave me a fight,” he said, describing how, once he put the drag on and started reeling in the striper, it began swimming in constant circles around the boat. “I was in a tournament and in (black) bass fishing mode and I had found some nice bass. I saw this big fish (on his Garmin LiveScope) and my first thought it was a bass and I saw it come off the bottom and eat my bait.”

He soon realized it wasn’t a black bass. Tyson was using a jerkbait that dives about 14 feet and caught the fish in 7 feet of water. He was using 10-pound test line. His co-angler in his boat for the tournament had mentioned previously landing a 40-pound striper and thought this one was much larger. “‘This one is way bigger than that! That’s got to be a world record!’” Tyson recalls his co-angler, Philip James, yelling as Tyson got ahold of the striper’s mouth and flipped it into the boat so he could take some photos. “I had a cranking rod by Halo and at one point it was bent back to the reel, and I was surprised it didn’t break off, but somehow the fish didn’t snap the line. It’s not the equipment you usually catch a fish that size on.”

Alas, no one will know how close it came to Arkansas’s state record striped bass of 64 pounds, 8 ounces, caught in the Beaver Lake tailwater by Jeff Fletcher of Golden, Missouri, in 2000.

“When I released it, it really sank it, ‘You let that one go.’ The one thing I regret is not getting it weighed,” Tyson said. “But at that moment, it was literally the first 5-10 minutes of the tournament. I’m not going to stop fishing for bass. Starting out that fast, I knew I had a chance at at least 20 pounds. But then catching a striper that size, oh my god. It’s a fish of a lifetime.”

Tyson said he wants to return to Hamilton soon and target the same area and maybe land the monster again, or perhaps another massive striper. He credits having his sonar to be able to find fish, as it eliminates time in tracking them down, “but you’ve got to put your skills and talent, your technique, to get the fish to bite. It’s key to locating fish, but you still have got to get them to bite.”

Tyson runs a fishing guide service on weekends when he doesn’t have tournaments. The 27-year-old Camden native, who started fishing with his dad at age 3, guides on Upper and Lower White Oak Lake near Camden, along with Lake Columbia and Millwood Lake. “If I have any days off, I’ll book a trip.” Tyson works in packing at American Rheinmetall Systems in Camden, but he said that in April he plans to shift to full-time guiding and tournaments on the BFL and The Bass Federation (TBF) circuits.

“Right now I keep those very small,” he said of tournament plans. “One day I’m going to be at that point that I’ll take off with tournament fishing. But right now, the main thing is keeping my name in the game and running my guide business and spending time with family. I try to stay busy.” Tyson, by being the top Arkansan in a recent Arkansas-Oklahoma qualifying tournament, landed a spot in the TBF National Championship at Lake Conroe, Texas, March 2-4. Also on the horizon later this year is the BFL All-American, scheduled for Lake Hamilton June 2-4.

“That’s my goal, to qualify for the All-American. I feel like I’ll have home lake advantage,” Tyson said.

A Late February Tournament At West Point Lake

Fourteen members and guests fished our February tournament at West Point last Sunday. After fishing from 7:30 AM to 3:30 PM we brought 42 keeper bass weighing about 68 pounds to the scales. There was one zero and four people had five bass limits.

Lee Hancock won with five weighing 11.33 pounds and had a 4.46 pound largemouth for big fish. My five weighing 8.32 pounds was second and Jay Gerson had five weighing a close 8.23 pounds for third. Doug Acree came in fourth with five weighing 6.65 pound and my partner Will Mclean was fifth with four at 6.56 pounds.

I started out pretty good. Will and I stopped on a steep bank with blowdowns on it where I caught a good keeper last Saturday and started casting to the trees in the water. I looked down at my Panoptix and saw what looked like several fish on a small brush top ahead of the boat in 2 feet of water.

I cast a Carolina rigged Baby Brush Hog and watched the weight sink with the bait following it. When the lead hit bottom one of the fish went to the bait. When I tightened up my line a little I felt weight, set the hook and landed a two pound largemouth, my biggest fish of the day. I would not have made that cast and caught that fish without the Garmin Panoptix.

At our next stop on a long shallow point where I caught my biggest fish last Saturday a good keeper spot hit the same crankbait and I landed it. For the next few hours the only thing we caught was a largemouth that was not big enough to meet the 14 inch size limit.

At 11:00 I caught a barely legal 12-inch spot on my Carolina rig on one side of a rocky point then Will got his first keeper on a spinnerbait on the other side of the point. On our next stop Will got another keeper on his spinnerbait. Then he caught two more on his spinnerbait in the next two stops, giving him four to my three at 1:00! Made me wonder what I was doing wrong!

I caught one more keeper, this one on a shaky head worm, on our next stop. At 2:45 with just 45 minutes left to fish we went into a small creek with three rocky areas on one bank. I told Will we would finish up here since we were across from the ramp.

As we fished the first rocky spot a bass boat with two fishermen idled past me and started fishing a short distance ahead of me on the next rocky area. That made me mad but I learned long ago to just accept inconsiderate people and do something else.

Will and I ran to the bank where I caught my first keeper but Kwong was fishing it, so we stopped on a rocky point behind him. My first cast with a shaky head produced my fifth keeper. A short way down the bank I saw a brush pile in front of a dock, cast my shaky head to it and landed my sixth keeper, culling my smallest bass.

Time ran out before Will caught his fifth keeper. I really wish he had caught the little one I culled, but that would have given him a limit when I had only two. That might have messed up my mind even more!

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