Remembering a New Year's Eve Day Past

It was Dec. 31, 1977, and Oklahoma native John Lee Smith was fishing Toledo Bend Reservoir when he achieved what, to the best of his knowledge, still stands as a record for that impoundment. On that date, he caught 10 bass weighing a grand total of 86 pounds (see photo of the mounts at left)...plus six more weighing between 6 and 8 pounds. 

Incidentally, Smith had the 10 biggest fish stringer-mounted since he caught them all the same day. I also should point out that he caught every single fish on a jig and eel.

As noted by Smith, "The stars evidently were aligned perfectly on that New Year's Eve: 45 degrees, wind calm, and a low barometer. I read a story about a guy in Arkansas fishing Lake Millwood on the same day who caught a bunch of 9-10 pounders, so I figure the weather conditions were the ultimate."

By any standard, Smith's numbers are enviable. More importantly, they're the rule...not the exception...for this self-acclaimed "old big bass fisherman." Here's why I make that statement.

In the years preceding when Florida-strain bass were stocked in Toledo Bend, Smith caught four bass in the 9-pound class, 378 in the 8-pound class, and 562 in the 7-pound class. And just for grins and giggles, he added another estimated 700-plus bass in the "measly" 6-pound class (I say that, in case you haven't guessed, with tongue in cheek).

"What a great lake it was, and what a blessing to have been there along my journey!" he remarked.

Said Smith, "Ninety-eight percent of these fish were caught on the same rig between December and March, with the majority coming in January, after cold weather had settled in for at least two weeks. You can read about how and see where (in a personal map) I caught these bass in my book titled The Journey of an Old Big Bass Fisherman," which was published Feb. 29, 2016. "Took me hours to get the map accurate. I marked the spots with an 'X', along with a description of what the hole was like."

Expect to find details like this in the book: "Brush piles were on 20-to-25-foot drops, but on the river bank, with a drop of 15 to 45 feet, fish were holding at 25 to 30 feet on tree roots that stuck out from the steep bank.

"The rig I used was a 3/8-ounce black/yellow hair jig with Uncle Josh spring lizard water dogs. I fished it all day and very rarely got hung up. 

"The average number of big bass per trip out of one brush pile was 2 to 7, and the average number of casts was 20 per pile.

"Brush piles were created when bulldozers cut boat lanes. They would push the trees until they were maxed out weight-wise, then turn and push them to the side. One particular boat-lane stretch of about a mile had a slope on the west side, which created a slide when they pushed the trees over the edge.

"We would anchor in the boat lane and cast into the pile on the slide. It was not a matter of whether you would get a bite but rather if you would get the fish, or he would get you."

From the time Smith (pictured left) moved to Shreveport, LA, in 1967, until he left some 30 years later, "Other anglers would just shake their heads anytime he showed up to fish an event," wrote Jimmy Watson, sports reporter with the Shreveport Times. "He figures he won more than $100,000 in local tournaments on Caddo, D'Arbonne, Bistineau, Cross, and the Atchafalaya, along with Toledo Bend. He began fishing the latter impoundment the day it opened to the public and quickly learned many of its vagaries."

Currently residing in north Dallas, near his grandchildren, Smith lives on a 52-acre lake designed by Bill Dance. He fishes there two or three times per week, while also teaching others to fish. But, as he shared with Watson during an April 2016 book-signing visit to Shreveport, he had hopes of fishing "a private lake south of Dallas in the coming months that has yielded a record 17.2-pound largemouth, as well as a 17.11-pounder. It costs $1,500 per day to fish it.

"The man who owns it," continued Smith, "put fingerlings in there and let it sit for eight years. Now the rule is if you catch a bass weighing 7 pounds or less, you have to take it out. You have a 90-percent chance of catching a bass weighing at least 10 pounds if you fish there."

A political consultant during much of the time he lived in Shreveport, Smith also does art sketches (about 100 per month) for two publications in Florida. Many of his sketches also are included in his book, The Journey of an Old Big Bass Fisherman. Retail price is $19.99. To order a copy, click on this link: https://app.thebookpatch.com/BookStore/the-journey-of-an-old-big-bass-fisherman/c786cec2-98a7-46e5-ab42-419e6412f908 .