Winter Showdown On Tap For First Bassmaster Opens Event At Clarks Hill Reservoir

Is there a Winter Showdown On Tap For First Bassmaster Opens Event At Clarks Hill Reservoir?

By The Fishing Wire

Evans, GA — A true winter showdown is on tap for anglers fishing the first tournament of the St. Croix Bassmaster Opens presented by SEVIIN season at Clarks Hill Reservoir. Even with the cold temperatures and a daunting practice forecast, the potential for big bags is high, and 2024 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Team Championship Classic Fish-Off winner Tyler Campbellbelieves any section of the lake could produce winning bass.

“You typically see some solid weights this time of year,” the 2025 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour qualifier said. “There is a potential for 25- to 30-pound bags, and once every couple of years there is a double-digit-class bass caught. It wouldn’t surprise me to see a mega-bag, but low to mid-20s is about the average winning weight this time of year.

“Six of the Top 10 anglers could be doing something completely different from one another,” the Emmanuel University graduate added. “It is a very diverse fishery, and I think it will show out. I’m excited about it.”

Competition days are scheduled for Jan. 23-25 with daily takeoffs and weigh-ins to be held at Wildwood Park in Appling, Ga. The full field will compete the first two days of the event before the Top 10 competitors vie for the trophy on Championship Saturday. The winner, given they are signed up for all four tournaments in Division I of the Opens, will punch their ticket to the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour.

Those registered for all of the Division I events will also earn points based on their finishes throughout the season, with the Top 50 anglers from Division 1 as well as the Top 50 anglers from Division II of the Opens qualifying for the Elite Qualifiers Series, a three-tournament series that will determine the nine anglers moving on to the Elite Series in 2026.

Straddling the border between South Carolina and Georgia, the Savannah River impoundment has hosted plenty of Bassmaster events in the past, from the 1973 Bassmaster Classic won by Rayo Breckenridge to several Bassmaster Elite Series events in the early 2000s. Last February, B.A.S.S. returned to Clarks Hill as the College, High School and Junior Series took on the massive reservoir and brought impressive bags of largemouth and spotted bass to the scales.

Depending on how much rain the lake receives, Campbell anticipates that anglers will be able to spread out and fish their strengths.

“You will see some guys run to the very north end. The cool thing about Clarks Hill is you can win in any region of the lake. Guys will catch them deep and shallow. It is really weather-dependent. If we get a couple of good, bright, sunny days, you will see the shallow bass turn on.”

This is the first time in a long time Elite Series veteran Jason Williamson, who won the last Elite event that was held on Clarks Hill in May 2010, will be fishing a true winter tournament. December was mild across the region, but as soon as the calendar turned to the new year, Old Man Winter made his appearance.

“It’s been cold. So, the water temperatures are going to be pretty low,” he said.

He isn’t going away for this tournament, either. While this coming weekend is supposed to be relatively mild temperature-wise, forecasts call for heavy rains to accompany a cold front on Saturday and Sunday. When anglers start practice on Monday they will be greeted with 20-degree air in the morning.

It will only get colder, as another weather system is expected to move into the area with the potential to drop several inches of snow. Whether the snow forecast actually comes to fruition is yet to be seen and likely won’t be accurately determined until one or two days out, but it could throw a wrench into some competitors’ game plans before some milder weather moves in for the tournament days.

With this set of ingredients, Williamson anticipates plenty of spotted bass being caught in deeper water. Those bass will likely be chasing blueback herring, a staple baitfish in the Savannah River. Natural rock in deep water and deeper brushpiles will be key elements. Shaky heads, drop shots and minnow-style baits like a Zoom Winged Fluke will all come into play.

“The spots are going to bite. The herring are going to be out deep,” he said. “The consistency will definitely be with the spotted bass. Guys that are good with their electronics, finding bait and structure, those are the guys who are going to shine. Sun and clouds are going to make a big difference. Cloud cover hanging around early in the mornings will change the game big time.”

While largemouth may be more lethargic that time of the year, Campbell anticipates whoever wins will likely land some of the better largemouth the lake has to offer.

“(For the top half of the field) I would say it is going to be predominantly largemouth, but there will be plenty of quality spotted bass too. But guys near the top will have all largemouth or three or four largemouth and a spotted bass or two.”

Natural rock on top of deep humps will hold largemouth offshore. On the bank, meanwhile, Hurricane Helene provided plenty of new laydowns for the bass to hunker down around. Shallow crankbaits, jigs, spinnerbaits and ChatterBaits could all produce quality bites if the conditions are right.

“Conditions will be set up for power fishing,” Campbell said.

Daily takeoffs are scheduled for 7:15 a.m. and anglers will return for weigh-in beginning at 3:15 p.m. Full coverage of the tournament will be available on Bassmaster.com.

Visit Columbia County is hosting the event.

2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Title Sponsor: St. Croix

2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Presenting Sponsor: SEVIIN

2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Supporting Sponsors: AFTCO, Daiwa, Garmin, Lew’s, Lowrance, Marathon, Triton Boats, VMC

About B.A.S.S.

B.A.S.S., which encompasses the Bassmaster tournament leagues, events and media platforms, is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting-edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), TV show, radio show, social media programs and events. For more than 50 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, St. Croix Bassmaster Opens Series presented by SEVIIN, Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier Series presented by Lowrance, Strike King Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Strike King Bassmaster High School Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Team Championship, Newport Bassmaster Kayak Series presented by Native Watercraft, Yamaha Bassmaster Redfish Cup Championship presented by Skeeter and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour.

Memories Of Christmas Past Are Melancholic

Memories of Christmas past are melancholic for me this time of year. Almost all my memories have hunting and fishing involved and most include family time, too. But those times are only memories now.

Most memories when I was in elementary school involve decoration with homemade, nature sourced items. We sprayed pinecones and sweetgum balls different colors and used them in a variety of ways, from making small “trees” by piling them into round pyramids to making wreaths for the door.

We collected “smilax,” also known as greenbrier, to outline out front door. We built manger scenes with pine bark and green pine limbs. And we made toothpick and ice cream stick decorations.

One of my jobs from ten years old on, after I was allowed to take my .22 out into the woods by myself, was to shoot down mistletoe. Many of the big oaks in the woods on Dearing Branch had clumps of it, mostly way up in the top. I prided myself on bring down a twig with every shot.

Through middle and high school I did all that and included hunting trips after a big family lunch. Daddy often took me out quail hunting when we had pointers. After we stopped trying to find quail, even back then wild coveys were getting harder to find, I would go rabbit hunting with my friend with his pack of beagles or squirrel hunting by myself.

After I went off to college a trip home usually included all the above. Then after Linda and I got married we would visit my folks in Dearing then drive to Salisbury Md where her folks lived.

We bought our first bass boat in 1974 and that year I found out bass would bite in late December, addicting me. Most every year after that I would go to out place at Clarks Hill the day school got out and stay by myself until Christmas day.

By then Linda had a job in a doctor’s office and had just one day off, so I would meet her at my parents house for Christmas dinner then head back to the lake when she headed back to Griffin. I would stay at the lake until I had to come back to Griffin the day before school opened back up.

Those days were my favorites. For about ten days each Christmas it was just me and my dog Merlin at the lake. I seldom saw anyone else. I ate when hungry, slept when sleepy and fished or built brush piles the rest of the time.

The lake was so uncrowded that, after reading the regulations carefully, I kept my 30-30 in the boat. As long as the boat was not moving from motor power and the deer was not in the water it was legal to shoot one from the boat. If I read the regulations right.

I killed five over a six year period. They were so unused to seeing a boat in the winter that they would just stand and stare at me. All were young does, but that is what I wanted to shoot for the meat.

One year I went back to the lake after dinner on Christmas Day and did not see another person for five days. I would not have seen anyone the sixth day but I had to go into town for gas for the boat!

I caught many bass and learned a lot fishing the lake when it was completely peaceful and the water was down from five to seven feet, exposing rocks and stumps for me to fish later when the water came back up.

The first brush I put out really fired me up. There was a bare bank with two stumps on it and nothing else for 100 feet. I seldom caught anything on that bank. Up in the edge of the woods, someone had cut a big cedar tree and cut the trunk out for a post. The remaining top was about 15 feet tall.

I dragged it to the edge of the water and tied the base to a stump right on the edge of the lake. After flipping it over, the top was out in seven or eight feet of water.

The next morning, I went to that bank and ran a crankbait by the tip of the tree and caught a two-pound bass. That fired me up to put out many more brush piles that year and the next few.

In 1975 I found with my first depthfinder what turned out to be an old underwater roadbed running across a ridge. I took two big cedar trees out there and dropped them on the edge of it, anchoring them in 15 feet of water and 50 feet apart with five-gallon buckets of cement.

Those trees are still there. They never rot since they are never exposed to air. And I still catch bass out of them on many trips to the lake!

I have great memories of staying at the lake during Christmas but, unfortunately, after my parents died in 2000, I have a hard time going to the lake and staying by myself. I get way too melancholy remembering all the spring and summer trips with them there.

I guess the ghosts of the boat club and all the memories get to me when I am all alone.

B.A.S.S. Announces 2025 Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers Schedule

B.A.S.S. Announces 2025 Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers Schedule

By The Fishing Wire

Birmingham, AL — B.A.S.S. has announced the schedule for the 2025 Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers series, and the slate offers up three of the hottest fisheries in the country for anglers to compete for the opportunity to walk across bass fishing’s biggest stage.

For the 2025 season, the St. Croix Bassmaster Opens Series presented by SEVIIN evolved into an eight-event season comprised of two divisions, each featuring four tournaments. Anglers placing in the Top 50 in each division’s Angler of the Year race will advance to the newly installed Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers series. This stand-alone series will feature three events, spanning from September through November, to qualify anglers for the Bassmaster Elite Series.

“This schedule is strong and will be a challenge for the group moving from the Opens to the EQs,” said Executive Director of Tournaments Hank Weldon. “It’s a diverse schedule, and I think we’re catching each of those fisheries at a really good time for anglers and fans alike. I’m looking forward to seeing how the new EQs shake out this year.”

The first EQ event is scheduled for Sept. 18-20 at Lake Champlain in Plattsburgh, N.Y. Champlain checked in at No. 6 in the Northeastern Division ofBassmaster Magazine’s 2024 100 Best Bass Lakes list. Both largemouth and smallmouth bass are abundant in this lake that features everything from shallow grass to deep, rocky structure.

Next up is Pickwick Lake in Counce, Tenn., Oct. 2-4. Giant largemouth, smallmouth and spots can fill a bag on this body of water which ranked ninth in the Southeastern Division of Bassmaster Magazine’s 100 Best Bass Lakes list, and bags of more than 25 pounds are the norm.

The third and final EQ stop on the slate will be Nov. 13-15 at Lake Okeechobee in Clewiston, Fla. Okeechobee is known for giant largemouth — just ask Bassmaster Elite Series pro Scott Martin who, in the 2024 St. Croix Bassmaster Opens presented by SEVIIN season-opener at Lake Okeechobee set an Opens record for the heaviest one-day bag with the massive 33-pound, 2-ounce limit he weighed in on Day 1 of the event. Martin went on to set another Opens’ record at the same event for heaviest winning catch with a three-day total of 90 pounds, 6 ounces.

In addition to the 100 anglers qualifying from both divisions of the Opens, all current Bassmaster Elite Series anglers will be eligible to compete in the Elite Qualifiers, as well as the second- and third-place finishers from the 2024 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Championship presented by Lowrance.

B.A.S.S. remains committed to the “win and you’re in” concept for the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour. Anglers who fish every event in a division of the Opens will receive a berth to the Classic if they win an event. The same applies to the three-event EQ series, taking the total to 11 berths to the Classic, which is an increase of two berths from years past.

Also new for 2025, the number of anglers who will qualify for the Elite Series has been increased to 10 (nine qualified in each of the past two years). Additionally, the EQ series rules will mirror those of the Elite Series, meaning the “no-info rule” is currently in effect and soliciting information for these bodies of waters is now prohibited.

EQ entry fees will be $3,500 per event. For full details please visit Bassmaster.com.

2025 Elite Qualifiers

Sept. 18-20, Lake Champlain, Plattsburgh, N.Y.

Oct 2-4, Pickwick Lake, Counce, Tenn.

Nov. 13-15, Lake Okeechobee, Clewiston, Fla.

2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Title Sponsor: St. Croix

2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Presenting Sponsor: SEVIIN

About B.A.S.S.

Reading About Fishing Can Give You Tips To Help Catch Fish

Sometimes ideas that help catch fish come from reading about others’ fishing trips. That is why I try to give some details of where what and how when I am lucky enough to catch a bass.

Years ago on a Saturday afternoon before a Sportsman Club night tournament at Jackson I was reading a fishing report from a Texas lake to post on my website. It said a jig and pig was working well for bass at night.

I did not have one tied on for the tournament but went out and rigged a rod and jig for fishing. That night, with less than two hours left to fish, I had one small keeper in my livewell and was not very happy.

I decided to try the jig and pig, I had not thrown it all night. But in the next hour I caught five keepers, culling the one in the livewell and winning the tournament.

That jig and pig worked well during night tournaments for the next four years helping me win or place second. Then the club decided they would rather fish during the day when it is hot, there is lots of boat traffic on the lake and the fish didn’t bite. So we stopped fishing at night when it is cool, there is little boat traffic and the fish do bite.

Reading about other fishing trips almost got me into serious trouble when I was 19 years old and a sophomore at UGA. An article in Outdoor Life magazine talked about the good trout fishing downstream of the Hartwell dam on the Savannah River.

I skipped classes one Monday and drove over there early that morning. When I got near the river I stopped at a small store/bait shop to ask for information.

The owner showed me an ice chest full of rainbow trout and said his two sons caught them that morning before school. He said the hatchery truck dumped fresh trout in the river at the old steel bridge and told me to turn at the next right and it would take me to the bridge and I could fish there.

I bought a can of kernel corn since he said that is what they were hitting, they were used to eating pellet food in the hatchery. When I got to the bridge about 10:00 AM I found a place to park and crawled down the steep bank to the edge of the river. It was almost a half mile wide there and there were streams and rivulets running over an expanse of flat rocks all the way across, with scattered bigger pools of water.

I tied on a #2 Mepps spinner and put a kernel of corn on one of the hooks. I waded upstream of the bridge casting to small streams and pools in the rocks, and caught a limit of ten rainbow trout before lunch.

After going back to the truck, putting my fish on ice and eating a sandwich I started fishing downstream below the bridge to look at new places. After about an hour I had caught two trout and had them on a stringer attached to a belt loop. I was right in the middle of the expanse of rocks, maybe 200 yards from the bank and that far downstream of the bridge.

A car went over the bridge and the driver blew the horn. I turned and waved and turned back to fish, but something was not right. Looking back upstream there was a fog bank rolling down the river almost to the bridge.

I realized the Corps of Engineers had released water at the Hartwell dam about four miles upstream. The ice cold water rolling down the river caused the fog.

I grabbed my fish and took off running across the slippery rocks as fast as I could. When I got to the bank I was standing in water about ankle deep. By the time I put my rod and can of corn on the steep bank and hooked my stringer to a bush, the water was up to my waist and I had to hold on to a bush to fight the current!

Looking back to where I had been a few seconds before, a torrent of ice cold water several feet deep rushed across the rocks. If it had caught me there is no way I would have survived. Whoever blew that car horn saved my life.

I stopped at the store and the owner told me someone had drowned there the week before after being caught by the current. I told him I thought the Corps blew a siren at the dam to warn folks when they released water and he said they used to but locals complained about the noise.

I “thanked” him for warning me and left, glad to be alive.

Read fishing tips and try them but be careful!

Lake Guntersville Weekly Fishing Report from Captain Mike Gerry

11 Pound Guntersville Bass

Also See:

Jeff Nail’s Lake Lanier Bass Fishing Report

Lake Hartwell Fishing Report from Captain Mack

Lake Lanier Fishing Report from Captain Mack

Lake Guntersville Weekly Fishing Report from Captain Mike Gerry

Lake Country Fishing – fishing reports on Lakes Sinclair and Oconee, and more. (subscription required)

Texas Parks and Wildlife Weekly Freshwater Fishing Reports

Texas Parks and Wildlife Weekly Saltwater Reports

Fishing Report 1/18/24

I was on the water just a couple times this past week as the cold and wind were just not my
preferred fishing conditions. We did have some success, but it seemed like every time we
located fish the wind would blow us off the location and force us to have to move to make
the trip enjoyable.

We were preparing for the rattle trap season so all we fished, was the SPRO Aruka Shad rattle
bait the entire time we were on the water each day. The results were great for size and
average for numbers but getting ready for trap season that was a great result.

It’s time to set up your spring fishing days for bass or crappie, I believe it’s going to be a great
year as the numbers of small fish caught this past fall was impressive. Leaving me assured
that the lake is healthy and full of fish.

Come fish with me we have days available for the
spring we wish with great sponsor products Mercury Motors, Boat Logix mounts, Vicious
Fishing, Toyota Trucks, Duckett Fishing, Missile Baits, Tight-Line Jigs, Lowrance Electronics,
Costa Sunglasses, Dawson Boat Center, Power Pole, Lew’s Fishing and more.
Looking to entertain your customers we do corporate trips, family trips and have a group of
guides available to entertain your customers, or family so you can thank your employees for
the job well done or entertain a family affair. Call me today for details!

Bait Size Matters

As winter slowly moves on it is a time of year where size matters; at no time during the
fishing year is the size of your bait more important than now! If your wanting to catch big
quality bass, fish with big baits, like 7 inch swim baits, ¾ oz. jigs with large trailers that give
the jig a bulky look; even ¾ to 1 oz. spinner baits with large willow leaf blades will produce
that big bite.

The thing many fishermen do not realize is that slow lethargic large bass pick their prey and
the bigger the better as their feeding is very selective and large presentations entice that big
fish. I know you all have heard that saying that this time of year (winter) you’re fishing for a
few bites; I believe this is true so if the bites are limited than the presentation of large bait
becomes even more important. Size does matter; large bass are selective, they want slow
moving baits, easy prey and that large presentation as they can lead you to that 30-pound
sack we all hunt in winter fishing. Large baits do have some negatives as some days it can
reduce the number of bites, but the bigger fish make it all worth it. Be color aware as
wintertime fishing color does matter!

Some of the baits I like with large profiles are ¾ to 1 oz. Spinner baits with big willow leaf
blades that get to the bottom easily and becomes a great large profile bait to slow roll on the
bottom this time of year. I also like ¾ oz. football jigs you combine that big jig with a Missile
Bait D-bomb trailer or Drop Craw, or big Missile Craw and it will produce big bites with this jig
as it really entices those big females. Don’t underestimate the power of a big swim bait, some
of those very expensive large swim baits when worked slowly over shallow grass can become
your best friend; these baits can be very expensive, but wintertime proves their worth.

Big baits produce big fish, and you’ll have a big time on the water; you just have to get on the
water to prove it; call me I’ll help you become a big bait fisherman!

Fish Lake Guntersville Guide Service

Come fish with me I am booking for the fall and would love to take you fishing call today 256
759 2270. We fish with great sponsor products Mercury Motors, Ranger Boats, Boat Logix
Mounts, Toyota Trucks, Cornfield Fishing Gear, Costa, Duckett Fishing, Dawson Boat Center,
Vicious Fishing, Power Pole, and more

St Croix Rods for LARGE-LURE ANGLERS

Trying To Fish So Much I Wear Out and Don’t Rust Out

I always said I would rather wear out than rust out, but sometimes I overdo it. In the past three weeks I have camped at and fished club tournaments on Lanier, Oconee and Bartletts Ferry and spent a day on Seminole for a Georgia Outdoor News article. Sixteen days camping and on the lake out of the first 21 this month was almost too much!

On November 1 I went to Don Carter State Park, one of my favorite campgrounds in Georgia, and set up my slide in pickup camper. The next day I met James “Lanier Jim” Harmin and he fine-tuned my Humminbird depth finders and showed me how to use them to find deep fish. He installs Humminbird electronics and is an expert on them as well as catching Lanier spotted bass.

Friday I looked around some of my old fishing spots but did not find anything that looked good. Saturday I got up and drove to Bolling Mill ramp, it was closed to my surprise, then on the way to another ramp my brake caliper tore up a rim and two tires. It took the rest of that day getting back on the road and back to camp.

Sunday seven Flint River Bass Club members showed up to fish our tournament, but two had trolling motor problems and went home. After seven hours of casting two more went home early. I caught two keeper fish the last hour of the tournament to win with 3.86 pounds and my 2.62-pound spot was big fish. Don Gober had two at 3.05 for second. That was it!

After getting a lot of help from Oakwood Tire finding a rim and getting a tire mounted so I would have a spare on my trailer, I came back to Griffin, dropped my camper and boat off and took off to Big Jim’s Fish Camp on Seminole. I had a nice cabin there and a great fried shrimp dinner that night and Tuesday night.

Tuesday morning I met guide Chris Taylor and got the information and pictures I needed for my article. After a good nights sleep, I came home Wednesday, got up Thursday morning and wrote the article, then loaded camper and boat and headed to Oconee.

I camped Thursday through Sunday at a great Georgia Power Campground, Lawrence Shoals, and went out for a few hours on a miserable day Friday. Saturday in the tournament 18 members of the Potato Creek Bassmasters fished for eight hours to land 48 keeper bass weighing about 96 pounds. There were six five bass limits and four people didn’t have a keeper.

Mike Cox won with five weighing 12.40 pounds and Kwong Yu had five at 10.21 pounds for second. I came in a close third with five weighing 10.14 pounds, Doug Acree came in fourth with five at 9.66 pounds and Tom Tanner had big fish with a 5.36 pounder.

I rested at home Sunday through Thursday morning then went to Bartletts Ferry to stay in another Georgia Power campground, Blanton Creek, where they do not allow boats in the camping area. It was miserable cold so I fished very little Friday and Saturday.

Saturday practice messed me up, though. I didn’t go out until 11:00 and went exploring in a creek I seldom fish. In a little over an hour I caught four bass on a jig on the two bluff banks I fished in that creek. One weighed close to four pounds.

At 3:00 I went to a local tournament weigh-in and the winner had just over ten pounds with five bass. He told me he caught them off bluff banks in the creek I had caught mine.

I had a plan for the Sportsman Club tournament the next day – fish bluff banks in that creek all day rather than fish the usual places there.

In the tournament eight members landed 28 bass weighing about 36 pounds in seven hours of casting. There were three limits and no one zeroed.

Kwong Yu won with five weighing 6.87 pounds, Zane Fleck was second with five at 6.50 pounds and Raymond English came in third with four weighing 5.62 pounds. Jay Gerson was fourth with five at 5.59 pounds and Wayne Teal had a 2.33 pounder for big fish.

I fished buff banks hard for more than four hours and caught one small keeper spot. I finally went to some of my old places the last two hours and landed three keepers. My four weighed 5.12 pounds and I came in fifth!

So much for figuring out something in practice!

No more tournaments until the first weekend in December when all three clubs finish up our years tournaments. I will be “Thankful” this week for some rest. But maybe I will go to Jackson and practice a few days!

Then And Now Why Some Wildlife Is Increasing and Some Decreasing

Fishing Tips

Then And Now

By The Fishing Wire

By Bob Jensen

I looked out my office window today and saw a flock of swans flying by. For me, that was a pretty big deal. I’ve seen more swans in my home area in recent years. Certainly more than we saw just a few years ago, but I still consider it a new experience. Oddly, or maybe not so oddly, we’re seeing more and more of some types of wildlife and fish life. And also not so oddly, we’re seeing fewer and fewer of some types of wildlife and fish life. What we see and what we do in the outdoors has certainly changed from then to now.

Fishing has changed in a lot of ways. It used to be that keeping the larger fish was the way to go. On many bodies of water today, it’s beneficial to the fishery to keep the smaller fish. Northern pike are a good example of this. On some lakes, keeping the smaller pike is encouraged. A body of water can support a certain amount of fish poundage per acre. For instance, if a particular lake can support a hundred pounds of fish per acre, there can be twenty, five pounders, or fifty, two pounders. Take some of the smaller ones, the ones that we used to throw back, take’em home and eventually we’ll have bigger pike. That’s an over-simplification, but it makes sense. And when prepared properly, those two and three pound pike are outstanding on the table. The same concept holds true for panfish in many lakes. In some cases, we’re doing the fishery a favor by keeping the smaller fish.

On some lakes smallmouth bass have taken the place of walleyes. Largemouth bass have always been in these lakes, but they lived in areas where the walleyes didn’t. As smallmouth populations grew, they moved into the walleye’s neighborhood. The smallmouth flourished. They were more aggressive than the walleyes and forced them out of the areas that were originally walleye territory.

When I was younger, pheasants and jackrabbits were abundant near my boyhood home in Iowa. Now pheasant numbers fluctuate up and down, but there aren’t as many as there used to be, and I haven’t seen a jackrabbit in a very long time. Weather plays a role in pheasant populations, but habitat, or habitat loss, is a very important factor. Since 1990, Iowa has lost 2,637 square miles of habitat. That’s a strip of land nine miles wide that stretches from Davenport Iowa to Omaha Nebraska. That’s a lot of habitat!

In an earlier era, we never ever saw an eagle around home. When we went on our annual fishing trip to northern Minnesota, we would usually see an eagle or two, and it was always a thrill. Today, we see eagles in the back yard. And it’s still a thrill. I’m hopeful and certain that it will always be a thrill.

We also see more deer, geese, and turkeys than we used to. Seeing deer, geese, and turkeys aren’t quite as thrilling to me as eagles, but I sure do like to see them, as long as they aren’t on the road in front of my pickup.

Most people who spend time outdoors will agree that the outdoor world is changing. It’s up to those of us who enjoy the outdoors to do what we can to make those changes, on land or water, changes for the better.

Photo Caption—As the outdoor world changes, it appears that deer and turkeys are learning to read.

Deer Stand Memories

“There’s a kind of hush all over the world,” sang The Herman’s Hermits in 1967. The weather a week ago Sunday and Monday reminded me of that feeling when sitting on a deer stand. The fog and misty rain wetting the leaves and tree branches, and me, made everything in the woods hushed and quiet.

It is fun most days sitting in a tree hoping deer will wander by, but rainy, foggy days were always my favorites. Everything is very calm and peaceful. Even tree rats scurrying around on the ground searching for breakfast don’t make much noise.

Some noises are still loud. The “crack” of a Whiteoak acorn quietly falling 30 feet to smack a limb over your head will get your attention. But most sounds are muted and there is a special quiet to the woods.

The patter of water drops on the black plastic bag I used for a makeshift rain cover is relaxing, bringing back memories or raindrops hitting the tin roof of the old farmhouse where I grew up. But unlike the plastic bag roof, it did not leak drops down my collar, bringing me back to the present.

A flicker of movement gets my full concentration, but most likely it is the flip of a squirrel tail. I look at it through my scope, cranking it up to maximum power to try to prove grey squirrels have some grey hair. They do not.

Sometimes the movement is from a magic deer. The woods Houdini can suddenly appear, seemingly popping out of the ground where they stand. It is no surprise they make no noise in the wet woods, but they can walk through dry leaves just as quietly, the same leaves that made your walk to the stand sound like big foot sitting beside you chomping on ice cubes for breakfast.

If a deer does appear it is time to check it out closely. Although it is legal to shoot a deer without visible bone above the hair and count it as a doe, not one of your two bucks, you look closely. Then you don’t care because you are hunting for meat, not horns, and don’t plan on filling both buck tags anyway.

The quiet is conducive to deep thoughts as well as more shallow ones. Will a doe or buck come down the trail 30 yards down the ridge from your perch in the Whiteoak. Are you hidden well enough for deer “that never look up” to miss seeing you when they look up? Can you get your crosshairs on them without spooking them?

More important, how many other hunters have been on this ridge where some of the oaks are more than 100 years old? Did the dirt farmer that scratched out a living here, terracing the steep hillside and moving rocks so he could grow crops to feed his family in the early 1800s hope to shoot a deer with his musket for some meat?

Did his children and grandchildren that lived on the land after he did shoot squirrels here for a stew, or wait for deer, maybe sitting on the big boulder almost under your tree? The old man that sold you his final piece of property before dying told you he hunted here, as did his ancestors. Remembering brought a tear in his eye, giving up the last of his ancestral land.

It almost made you regret buying his families land but if you had not, someone else would have. And they might have developed it and a subdivision might be covering the ancestral lands now.

I have insured through a “Land Conservation Covenant” that nothing will be built here before I die. I hope some future hunter will enjoy the peace of this place like I do but I fear some may sing the Joni Mitchell song from 1970: “You don’t know what you got till its gone. They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.”

Beau Browning Knows Bass and Qualified For the Bassmasters Classic

By The Fishing Wire

Z-Man® officially welcomes Bassmaster Elite Series angler Beau Browning to the family

Ladson, SC – Freshly qualified for the 2025 Bassmaster Elite Series, twenty-three year old Beau Browning recently paused to reflect on his earliest fishing memories. At seven years old, little Beau was already fishing Arkansas high school bass tourneys—and winning.

“It’s kind of funny now to remember this old cable-drive trolling motor we had,” recalls the newly minted Z-Man pro. “At the time, I was pretty little and didn’t even weigh enough to steer it with my foot. So, I’d actually hop up there and stand on the pedal with both feet or even kind of stomp on the thing just to get it to move. Somehow, I made it work.”

Indeed, he did. For even as a first-grader, the young Browning was regularly out-fishing kids more than twice his age, “winning most of them.”

Beau’s boat captain (and father), the great Stephen Browning was adamant from day-one that he’d pilot the big motor, but otherwise, let his son figure things out on his own. “He never wanted me to run the trolling motor,” notes Beau’s father, who plans to fish select Bassmaster Opens against his son in 2025. “Never wanted me to be the reason he succeeded or failed out there.”

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Stephen and Tammy Browning celebrate their son’s Elite Series berth at Lake Martin.

Even from the beginning, the elder Browning never even needed to nudge son into fishing. “For Beau, like a lot of us, something about catching bass just clicked,” notes the legendary Z-Man confidant. “Back when we lived on Lake Catherine (near Hot Springs, Arkansas), I’d often wade out onto the shallow flat behind our house and test different baits. We have a picture of little Beau standing in the water, holding a stick, pretending he was fishing with me. Couple years later when he was 5 or 6, he’d hop into a little boat with our Boykin Spaniel and go explore the lake.

“Beau tells people I wanted him to be a golfer,” Stephen Browning continues. “But back then, they didn’t yet offer college scholarships for bass fishing. So I never pressured him into tournament fishing because I thought he was a good enough golfer to get a scholarship.” A year later, following his dreams, Beau finally earned that fishing scholarship with University of Montevallo. (On the college circuits, Beau often finished in the Top 10, winning at Lake Dardanelle in 2021 and Norfork Lake in 2022.)

This past May, while somehow managing to fish a full slate of tournaments, Beau Browning graduated with a major in communications and minor in digital marketing—savvy choices for an angling professional today.

Z-Man Pro-Staff and Promotions Manager Joey Prochazka still remembers young Beau at all the big fishing events, papa Stephen’s smiling shadow and ever-curious companion. “Pretty early on, we knew we’d eventually be welcoming Beau to the big leagues,” says Prochazka. “Through our friendship with Stephen, Beau’s been a part of the Z-Man family for a long time. We’re super happy today to welcome him to our official pro team, even though he’s been an honorary member for around fifteen years.”

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Beyond his undeniable angling skills, Prochazka emphasizes Browning’s natural ability to connect with people: “Everyone who meets Beau comes away impressed. At just 23, he’s got the bass dialed in, of course. But it’s his positive energy and laidback, approachable personality that continues to make him a fan favorite. Beau’s a good soul who takes the time to treat everyone like a friend.

“Let’s just say we’re happy Beau took up fishing, rather than golf,” Prochazka laughs.

It’s a sentiment not necessarily shared by the bass or his fellow competitors. In just his first full year on the Bassmaster Opens Elite Qualifiers (EQs), Browning qualified for the prestigious Elite Series. Helping secure his spot, Browning earned four top 20 Opens finishes, including 13th at Leech Lake, Minnesota and 9th at Okeechobee—both with Z-Man baits.

“I made the Elites thanks largely to two Z-Man baits. One was a Mag FattyZ™, customized with strands of silicone for a larger fuzzy dice profile. That thing worked everywhere,” noted Browning.

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Browning says the new Tungsten ChatterBait Elite EVO has become his go-to bladed jig.

“The other one’s the lure everyone’s talking about these days, the Tungsten ChatterBait® Elite EVO™. I get asked about this all the time, and while the JackHammer™ and EVO both have their days, I now throw the Tungsten EVO ninety percent of the time. My dad’s the same way.

“For me, it comes down to how well I’m able to stay in tune with the bait, when the blade hits the head. The vibration’s so powerful and sharp that it tells you everything, like when you hit a blade a grass, or when a bass comes up and just nudges the lure. The tungsten is the ultimate transmitter of underwater sound, and it goes both ways— attracts big bass and transmits messages straight to your rodtip. It’s also the perfect ChatterBait for a newbie because you feel everything.”

Watching his son ChatterBait his way to success brings a smile to the elder Browning’s face. “I’ve always been a shallow water power fisherman who likes to catch the easy ones. But even though we both love the ChatterBait, Beau’s really on the other side of the spectrum: He excels at catching finicky fish, often with a spinning rod. I think there was only one day he didn’t weigh a limit during all the (BASS) Opens. That shows me he truly understands the game. And we’re so excited to go along for the ride and watch Beau grow in the sport he loves.”

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