This Guy Digs Low-Water/No-Water Days in a Big Way

Who can blame him, either, when you consider he caught a mixed bag of 41 fish in Back Bay this past Friday from 3 to 7 p.m. That total broke his old record of 32 fish that he caught during a nor'easter this last fall.

As Ryan Land explained, "When the 250-hp boats are unable to launch, those are the days I get my absurd kayak numbers."

The third fish (right) he landed Friday was, in his words, "an absolute mega bass and may have been my personal best to date, but with no scale, I am not sure. Measuring 24 inches long, she also was thick and heavy. I know for certain that fish was well past 6 pounds, and I am betting it was an 8-pound-class bass. Whether it broke my 8.25 record I never will know, but I do know it certainly was the biggest bass I have landed in Back Bay."

From there, Ryan went on to catch three yellow perch, three pickerel (two of which measured 20 inches), and one crappie, all of which were mixed in between what seemed like endless bass.

"Of course, at least 20 of those bass were 8-to-12-inch dinks," he said, "but it still was an absolute blast...and the kind of day I long for. A few other notable bass included a nice one over 3 pounds, as well as at least three more in the 2-pound class."

Ryan estimated his keeper bag would have weighed about 18 pounds. The feeding frenzy was going after every bait he had tied on, but the majority were hitting topwater. He ended up losing his favorite topwater bait to a solid fish...perhaps a pickerel...that broke him off. He also had a leader knot fail on his magic one-eyed striped rattletrap and lost several nice fish on a wacky-worm rig that had an undersized hook. He further had a 4-pound-or-so bass jump and throw a weightless Texas-rigged worm right next to his kayak.

In summing up his experience Friday, Ryan described it as "near-total chaos, between losing favorite lures, untangling rods, dunking reels in the bay, and getting multiple hits on single retrieves. I even watched a bass swoop in and try to take my lure from the mouth of a bass I was already hooked up with and fighting. It simply was beautiful," he concluded.

We've likely all heard the phrase: "It's like shooting fish in a barrel." Reckon now, after reading about Ryan's blowout day, we all have very few, if any, lingering questions about what exactly is meant by that phrase. The only question still lingering in my mind is this: "What's the fishing going to be like once this long period of low water finally passes?" Got a hunch I may not like the answer when it's revealed.

There's a Right and a Wrong Way to Hold a Bass

Graphic by Les Booth

That's the gist of some information I came across on the Internet yesterday while researching an entirely different matter.

As reported by Phil Monahan of Orvis News, Indiana angler Les Booth, for more than a decade, has made it his mission to get anglers to stop using the horizontal-one-hand-lip-grip hold when they show off their bass. "Even the world's most famous bass anglers do this," said Monahan, "which then promotes the practice among members of the amateur-angling community."

The problem, as explained by Booth, "is a muscle thing. Bass (and all sunfish) eat by sucking prey into their buccal cavity (mouth). It's a five-step process that works like this: 1. Open jaw; 2. suck in water and prey; 3. close jaw; 4. expel water out gills; and 5. swallow prey (food). It's that simple.

"However,  the force required to generate the suction is considerable and requires a great deal of muscle strength. The muscles needed to do this are all jointly connected to the operculum fulcrum point (OFP). This is the same point where, in an improperly held fish, all the pressure of the fish's body weight--suspended without support--is focused. When those muscles are strained or injured, let alone torn, the fish's ability to generate the necessary suction to capture prey is greatly reduced or possibly eliminated."

Rob Woodruff of Woodruff Guide Service
shows how to properly support a bass's body.
(Photo by Jenny Mayrell-Woodruff)

Booth goes on to offer the following solutions to this pervasive problem:

     * Simply holding the fish with two hands...in a horizontal position...works best.

     * A purely vertical hold by the lower lip is OK for smaller fish only. Large bass...those fish over 3  pounds, though...suffer an elevated potential for internal damage when held this way.

     * The best solution for handling any fish you plan to release is to use what Booth calls the Lite-  Touch method, which involves minimal contact with the fish; horizontal, two-handed support; and  short duration of handling.

     For anyone interested in reading Les Booth's complete discussion of the problems associated with the lip-grip method, click on the following link: https://ofieldstream.blogspot.com/2009/06/lip-grip-is-out.html.

Let Us Never Forget 'Em

A Mixed Bag...No Other Way To Call It

About the time competitors in the West Neck open tournament were weighing in this past Sunday, Ryan Land was launching his kayak at Munden's Point. And right out of the starting blocks, a big 'ol catfish blew up on his spinnerbait. As described by Ryan, "whiskers" fought like h-e-double hockey sticks until he put the fish back in the water. Might have kept the catfish for table fare, except for the fact his cooler was much too small to hold it. And, too, Ryan had brought the cooler along for a mess of perch.

After spending much of the trip looking for perch but finding only four, along with two pickerel, he changed tactics and managed to boat three small bass from the grass with a topwater bait. Then, on the paddle back to the dock, he used a rattletrap to hook into what looked like about a 3-plus-pound bass that ultimately jumped and spit the bait.

"All in all, it was a fun day," said Ryan, "even though I wasn't weighing any bass bigger than 1.5 pounds, let alone having five keepers."

I Didn't Ask for That Kind of Day, But I Got It Anyway

Since yesterday's tournament marked the eve of my becoming an octogenarian, I really had hoped maybe I could turn around some of my misfortunes of late and have a decent day on the water. Other than for the fact I managed to safely net all the nice fish my partner caught, however, the day proved to be just one more in a long list of "what could have been but ultimately wasn't."

An old bait like the one I had used earlier in the week with relative success proved to be absolutely no help whatsoever to start the day, so I was quick to opt for another of the same ilk. Hadn't used it very long before I made a long cast (for me) that landed to the left of a cypress tree. And while working it with an altered version of its normal operation...as I've been doing for a couple outings now...I watched as a fish swirled ever so gently beneath it before sucking in the bait and making a mad dash behind and to the other side of the tree. He then provided an obligatory heavy splash...letting me know he was a decent sized fish...before burying my bait's hooks on the other side of the tree and wrenching himself free.

Later, I was fishing a soft-plastic bait that had been gathering a healthy dose of grass and/or slime on nearly every cast. The bait just had landed to the rear of two trees standing side-by-side, and I was detecting a heaviness that I felt certain was another wad of grass and slime. Accordingly, I simply kept reeling until the "mess" I fully was expecting to see was only a few feet behind the boat. Suddenly, though, I realized what I was feeling wasn't a "mess" at all. Instead, it was a fish.

At only that late point did I try to execute a hookset, which as you would expect, was "too little too late." I only momentarily felt the tug of and saw the swirl of the healthy fish that evidently just had been "hanging on for the ride" all the way from aft of those two now distant trees.

As I indicated earlier, the day wasn't a total loss. I did manage to net all my partner's nice fish. And, too, I caught a dink bass and small white perch. Beyond that, I convinced myself to respool my worm rod with some hi-vis braided line, given the difficulty I was having in the conditions yesterday to see where my line was and what it was doing in the water.

My partner also has persuaded me to at least try a longer rod, since I absolutely refuse to take his advice about going back to spinning gear for my worm fishing. I lived that nightmare once and have no intentions of ever looking back. I equate that period in my long life to my Navy career. As I've said many times over the years, "I wouldn't take a million bucks for my experiences during those 20 years, but I also wouldn't give you a nickel to repeat any or all of them either. In other words, "Once is enough!"

Always a Good Thing When Everybody Catches Fish

Most folks who showed up this morning for the day's open tournament at West Neck Marina came prepared for rain. As it turned out, though, very little of the wet stuff visited itself upon us, despite looking like it could at any moment.

In the end, those nine anglers in five boats who came out to test their skills against one another caught a total of 24 bass, for a cumulative total weight of 55.15 pounds and an average weight of 2.29 pounds.

With today's small turnout, we only paid two places, plus big fish and the optional side pot. Standing in the winners' circle at days end were the following:

The team of (from left) Wayne Hayes and Ken Testorff finished in 1st place with a five-fish limit weighing 16.10 pounds, which also gave them the side pot. Their big fish weighed 3.93 pounds.

In 2nd place, with another five-fish limit, was the husband-wife team of Andy and Diana Morath (right). Their total weight was 13.36 pounds, anchored by a kicker that tipped the scales at 4.94 pounds. Andy opted not to jump in for the photo.

Here is the finishing order of the other competitors:
     * Jim Calhoun, five fish, 11.99 pounds total weight, 3.49-lb. big fish.
     * The team of Gary Coderre and Dave Anderson, five fish, 7.69 pounds total weight, no big fish.
     * The team of Richard Hall and Thomas Wright, four fish, 6.01 pounds total weight, no big fish.

For planning purposes, the next Dewey Mullins Memorial Bass Tournament is scheduled for Sunday, June 4, 2023, with a safe light (about 6 a.m.) starting time and a 2 p.m. weigh-in. The next open tournament is set for Saturday, June 17, 2023, also with a safe light (about 6 a.m.) starting time and a 2 p.m. weigh-in.

A Hidden Gem of the Lure World

That's the way Wired2Fish writer Walker Smith referred to the floating jerkbait. He explained that while "many of us enjoyed incredible success with these lures throughout our childhoods, as we explored the banks of local ponds and streams, they've become largely overlooked in recent years."

There's at least one pro fisherman, though, who didn't fall into that trap of overlooking them.

According to Bernie Schultz (right), "The floating jerkbait is one of the best year-round bass-fishing lures an angler can possibly use.

"It doesn't matter if you're targeting spawning fish, elusive winter fish, or anything in between, this lure consistently will produce impressive limits," according to this veteran angler. "What's important to understand is that the thing which makes it so effective can be boiled down to one word: versatility.

"In the spring through the fall," said Schultz, "it can be used at the surface or as a twitch bait, and in the winter and summer months, you easily can weight it in order to make it suspend on the pause. With one lure, you're able to cover a large section of the water column, depending upon the conditions."

This bass pro's favorite floating jerkbait is the Rapala Original Floater, which he described as "perhaps the most popular and time-tested lure of its kind. Its side-to-side action, coupled with its subtle rolling tendencies, make it an attractive choice for anglers at all skill levels.

"The Original Floater has a dual action of which many anglers aren't aware," Schultz said. "Not only does it move from side to side throughout the retrieve, it also rolls on its side...we call it the 'Rapala roll.' Essentially, visualize the body axis rolling to one side and all the way to the other, but at the same time kicking to each side. The balsa construction facilitates this unique behavior, which is why it really hasn't changed much in 65 years."

He went on to explain that as the days become shorter and the cooler nights arrive, baitfish begin their annual migration to the backs of creeks and, of course, the bass are hot on their tails. This autumn feeding frenzy can set up quite nicely for some stellar floating-jerkbait action.

"The first consideration revolves around matching your floating jerkbait to the size and coloration of the prevalent forage," noted Schultz. "This time of year, there's going to be a dominate forage species on which the bass are focusing. It could be shad, perch or shiners...there's always a primary target. So when you initially begin your dissection of a fishery, identifying the forage should be your first order of business."

Because fall is schooling season, Schultz makes a concerted effort to find the areas where the feeding opportunities are the greatest. He utilizes both his eyes and his electronics to determine his plan of attack.

"I'm essentially looking for schooling activity either on the surface, near the surface, or below the surface," said Schultz. "That's how I break it down. Then, I cater my cadence to those clues.

"When bass are busting bait on the surface, it's often a matter of simply getting your floating jerkbait to the fish," he continued. "I make a long cast to the activity and let my bait sit completely still on the surface...sometimes that's all it takes. But if that doesn't work, I simply give the lure erratic movements with downward twitches of my rod to elicit a reaction strike," he noted.

"If they're aggressively chasing bait, it can be hard to do anything wrong with a floater," Schultz said. "But if they're being finicky, experimentation is necessary. They'll absolutely eat a floating jerkbait, but you just have to figure out their preferred cadence. I'll use a 'jerk, jerk, pause' cadence, and I'll also try a steady reeling retrieve. As long as you keep it on the surface, you'll crack the code."

When you see schools of bait on the surface without any bass activity, Schultz cautions anglers not to worry, 'cause the bass aren't far away. He suggests using a slower cadence in order to mimic an injured baitfish and draw bass towards your offering. When they won't eat a steady jerking retrieve with no pauses, he begins pausing his lure between every other jerk for a few seconds.

"You also can make your jerks less aggressive to further coax them," said Schultz. "Basically, I'm going to slow down everything until they tell me what they want. More times than not, whatever cadence gets the first fish to bite will get the next fish to bite, too."

Although the words "floating" and "winter" don't often go together in the winter months, Schultz has enjoyed some outstanding catches by utilizing an old-school tactic taught to him by legendary anglers Dion Hibdon, Guido Hibdon, Randy Moseley, Randy Blaukat, and Stacey King.

"You can take a weighted 13, 14 or 17-sized Original Floater and catch some monsters on bluff banks throughout the winter," Schultz said. "There's a whole faction of fishermen who know that, but a lot of the younger guys haven't heard of it. Of course, we used to drill holes in 'em and insert bullet weights to add weight, but now you can simply add Storm SuspenDots or Storm SuspenStrips right in front of and behind the front hook hanger to achieve the same result."

According to Schultz, it takes a painstakingly slow approach to match the lethargic mood of winter bass. He makes long, quartering casts to bluff banks or subsurface timber, allowing the weighted floater to reach its maximum depth and utilizing super-long pauses.

"Your twitches need to be subtle, and your pauses must be up to 20 or 30 seconds," he said. "It's laborious and tedious, but it's ridiculously effective. You didn't see many 25-pound winter bags back in the day, but when you did, they often were caught with this technique. And trust me, it works just as well today.

"As spring bass start moving toward their spawning grounds, they're notorious for holding tight to cover, such as flooded brush, cypress trees, lily pads, and grass lines. Fortunately, these are ideal places for using a floating jerkbait," he continued.

Schultz doesn't use this lure to cover water quickly in the spawning period, opting instead for a much more detailed approach. It's not as much about reaction strikes this time of year, but rather drawing the fish toward the bait.

"I usually choose a 9, 11 and 13-sized floater throughout the entire spring," he said. "I'm looking for a smaller profile, and I'm not trying to get the bait down to any particular depth. It's all about shallow water. The tougher the bite and the smaller the bass, the more likely I'll be to use a 9, but the sizes I use most frequently are the 11 and 13."

During the post-spawn period, when the females are off the beds and the males are guarding fry, Schultz fishes down long stretches of bank with floating jerkbaits, which can yield some impressive results. They don't see this profile and action very often, and its lifelike action is quite believable to territorial bass.

"You're looking for bass that are either guarding fry or still protective of a particular bedding area," Schultz said. "We're talking about fish that have gone into an area for spawning and staked claim, so they're going to attack any intruders. Your presentation won't be any different than the spawn; look for high-percentage, shallow-water targets near potential bedding areas and experiment with surface or near-surface retrieves."

When summer rolls around, the fishing can get tough, but Schultz has learned that an aggressively fished floating jerkbait can draw reaction strikes from stubborn, warm-water bass.

"This is when your cadence should become more aggressive," he said. "They're starting to leave the banks, and you'll probably be forced to cover more water. Primary points, secondary points, grass lines, submerged grass beds, and docks become your most high-percentage targets. I'll also start using the modified slow-rising or suspending models during this period and concentrate on the 4-to-6-foot range. If you cover water sufficiently, you'll get some really nice bites with these lures."

While you certainly can get away with using generic equipment when fishing a floating jerkbait, Schultz has discovered a few particular subtleties that can make for a more successful experience.

Most floating jerkbaits can be fished with either casting or spinning gear. If you're using a lightweight balsa lure, however, your setup can be a bit more important.

"If I'm using the smaller floaters, such as the 5 or 7, I'll probably opt for spinning gear because they can be a little challenging in terms of casting distance, especially in the wind," Schultz said. "But I'll certainly use a casting reel if I feel I can cast it effectively. You'll probably find that a 7-foot medium or medium-heavy action rod will work best for this technique with both setups."

Schultz makes a point to use lighter line when fishing a floating jerkbait in order to give the lure as much action as possible.

"I primarily use 8-to-10-pound line, but I'll occasionally bump it up to 12-pound test if I'm around particularly thick cover," Schultz said. "When I'm fishing the lure on the surface, I use Sufix Superior copolymer due to its increased buoyancy. If conditions dictate a sub-surface approach, I'll use fluorocarbon line, such as Sufix Invisiline Castable Fluorocarbon."

Although it's largely dependent upon a fishery's primary forage, Schultz has found confidence in two particular colors of jerkbaits for most situations. Most of the time, he uses silver or gold with a foil finish...an excellent starting point for those who are new to the technique. He contends these colors will work just about anywhere.

The next time you get on the water, don't forget about the effectiveness and versatility of the floating jerkbait. It may not be the sexy choice, but in Schultz's words, "It has caught giant bass for decades and will continue to do so."

For a 5-Hour Fishin' Day, No Complaints

Wayne and I wanted to check out some alternative fishing spots ahead of the approaching rain, so we headed to West Neck early this morning and shoved away from the dock about 6:30. Upon our return at 11:30, we were ready to start formulating our open-tournament game plan for this coming Sunday, May 21st.

In those five hours on the water, we managed to put a dozen fish in the boat, with the biggest a 4-pounder. Besides finding some spots, we experimented with some different baits and found a few that were working today.

Our buddy, Skip, also was out today and found some fish, as well. As he explained, though, he was having some problems getting and/or keeping the fish hooked. Still managed to get one to avoid the skunk.

Will let everyone know by way of this note that, if you're planning to fish Sunday's competition, you should plan to arrive at West Neck, sign up, pay your fees, launch your boat, and be waiting in the boat basin no later than 5:30 a.m. That will allow the TD and his admin assistant time to sort out the money and stuff the envelopes before our safe-light (about 6 a.m.) departure. Wayne will announce weigh-in time before we leave the boat basin. For anyone who has forgotten, the entry fee is $80 per boat (including big-fish pot), $20 for optional side pot, $5 for launch fee (unless you store your boat at West Neck), and $3 for each extra vehicle.

And, as usual, if you have any questions, call Wayne at 757-478-3387.

Hey, Yur Kickin' Mud!

If I ever hollered that to my tournament partner, I have a pretty good idea what his response to me would be. It'd likely be something along these lines: "No s**t! How 'bout ya tellin' me somethin' I don't know!"

For openers, I've been fishin' the North Landing far too long to even consider making that statement to a fellow fisherman, certainly not one who also has spent a lot of time there himself. There simply are darn few places you can fish in our "little pond" where you won't kick at least a little mud from time to time.

Dirt-shallow water often sends many anglers diggin' in their tackleboxes for soft plastics and topwaters, which we all know will get the job done. Some also will pick up a shallow-running crankbait. However, I doubt very many will opt for a crankbait like the Mann's Baby 1-Minus, which, as advertised in the name, runs a maximum of 12 inches.

These baits don't look like much, and there definitely are flashier and sexier-looking crankbaits on the store shelves, but these little rascals flat-out will catch fish...and have been doing so for a lot of years now.

I imagine all of us have used a lot of shallow crankbaits over the years that had a serious problem with durability. Given that you're supposed to slam these kinds of lures into all types of cover in order to provoke reaction strikes, why use one that splits, cracks or breaks in half after only a few weeks of abuse?

With a Mann's Baby 1-Minus, you can bang 'em on rocks, dock posts, stumps, and laydowns, and just as they used to say in the old Timex watch commercials, "They'll take a lickin' but keep on tickin." The lure has a one-piece molded body and lip, so bill separation never is anything you need to worry about. Regardless of how many errant casts you make (Boy! Does that ever apply to me!), or how often you crank the thick stuff, the bill stays in place without any special precautions.

The paint on these crankbaits also is very durable...a major selling point for a lot of potential buyers. After a few months, you may notice a little hook rash on the side of the body, but it's seldom bad enough to alter the color quality or appearance of the lure. When you bang around in shallow cover, you won't have to worry much about rock chips, slips or anything similar.

While you can high-stick normal square-bills when fishing super-shallow water, smart Baby 1-Minus anglers try to avoid that technique when possible. Why? Because if you're out of position and forced to set the hook upward, instead of to the side, you'll be driving the top of the body (the part with no hooks) into the hard roof of the bass' mouth and risking pulling the bait away from them.

This crankbait provides two awesome options in shallow water. If you utilize a slow retrieve speed, you'll notice it bulging right beneath the surface. When it's early morning, and the bass are aggressive and "feeding up," this is an awesome way to whack a quick limit. This same presentation also is great when fishing over submerged vegetation.

If you keep your rod tip further down and retrieve the Baby 1-Minus at a moderate speed, it dives about one-foot deep, give or take a few inches, depending on your line type and size. When fished like this, it has a surprisingly tight wobble. That statement sounds contradictory, but it just means while there's not a wide side-to-side swimming action, the body of the lure rolls on its side throughout the retrieve. In short, whether you're fishing for aggressive bass or finicky post-frontal fish, the unique action of this crankbait will produce bites.

Shaking a Baby 1-Minus in your hand produces the same kind of sound as shaking a maraca. It has a bunch of internal beads that produce an authentic rattling sound, instead of a thump or knock. It was designed to sound like this for a reason.

Most of the time, bass inhabit insanely shallow water, even when it becomes heavily stained or muddied. The heaviest stain often will be located close to the shoreline due to precipitation runoff, so that's where you can find the bass. This time of year, bass want warmer water, which makes this situation a common occurrence.

When the bass are in this shallow, muddy water, they need a little help finding your lures. They can't see very well, so extra sound and water displacement can be necessary. The Baby 1-Minus accomplishes this goal with its loud rattles and aggressive rolling action.

Shallow-water anglers can come to think of this bait as a must-have. How can you go wrong on a bait that, as one angler described it, "is built like a tank, operates effectively in skinny water, and has rattles that are great weapons in dirty water"? Those are some hard-to-beat qualities.

Whether It's a Jiggle or a Wiggle, Try Something Different When the Tried and True Fail

In my previous blog post, I discussed how I had to alter the conventional method of working a Booyah Zell Rowland Prank Cranking Popper in order to achieve any degree of success day before yesterday. Afterward, I started doing some Internet research and stumbled across a piece written by Ethan Martin (left), a fly-fishing guide and owner of TaleTellers Fly Shop in Lynchburg, VA.

In an Aug. 4, 2020 post on his blog (https://taletellersva.com/blogs/techniques/how-to-fish-a-popper), Martin focused on the most effective ways to work a fly-fishing popping bug to catch more bass. While our gear differed, the same general principle was involved...or so I believe.

Following is a modified version of Martin's pro advice.

"Cast your popper and let it sit. Don't move it. Don't twitch it. Let the popper stay perfectly still," he advised.

"As fish see insects plop and chill on the water, they get conditioned to dead-drift presentations (just like trout). Cicadas, hoppers, beetles--really all sorts of insects and animals that fall on the water--don't actively move around immediately after they hit the water. Typically, for the first few seconds after creatures whack the water, they chill out, trying to get their bearings. Now I've seen hoppers chug back to shore after landing, but they typically still sit there for a few seconds first.

"If there's a bass around, they usually will come quickly to inspect the floating object, and if they're hungry, or there's competition around, they will launch like a bullet to eat the object in a few seconds. If they come up really slow, like a brown trout rising to dries, you can assume there's not many other fish around, or they may not like your fly. If the rejection happens fish after fish, I'd swap patterns for something smaller or a different color.

"If they don't eat after a few seconds of letting the popper sit, move on to the next method: 'Give 'em a twitch.'

"When you combine the 'let 'em sit' philosophy with the twitch, you'll be using that net a lot more often. Now a twitch is not an active retrieve. It's a jiggle of the rod tip or a slight lifting of the rod (pretty much what I was doing day before yesterday). This is where you will entice a lot of picky fish.

"Here's how I like to do it," said Martin.

"Let your bug hit the water, pause it for approximately five seconds, or until the ripples subside. Then wiggle the rod tip or slightly lift the rod to give a little bit of action to the fly. Then wait a bit longer. If nothing eats it or is underneath staring down the popper, cast to your next target.

"The twitch works really well when you have an 'inspector.' You'll see her staring down the fly and then turn as if she doesn't want it. As soon as the bass turns off the fly, I either lift the rod tip or give it a slight jiggle to give that fish a little more affirmation that the bug is 'alive.' Sometimes, that twitch action is enough to make her whip around at a mind-boggling speed and obliterate your fly.

"This combination presentation of 'letting it sit' and 'giving it a twitch' is deadly in summer months. In fact, it's how most successful fly anglers I know fish throughout the summer for smallmouth," concluded Martin.

Learned a New Way to Fish a Popper

It wasn't a "hot" topwater bite today, but at least I managed to slow down my retrieve enough to finally catch some fish with one. It wasn't just a matter of slowing down, though. The fish wouldn't have anything to do with a popper fished the conventional way, so I had to improvise. I finally found that if I could keep the bait in one spot and just wiggle it ever so slightly, with some pauses thrown in between some of the wiggles, a few fish ultimately would attack my offering.

The best fish I could muster with the wiggling popper was a 2-10 that really crushed my bait.  I knew from the git-go, it was a decent fish, cause he was slipping some drag, and I could feel him shaking his head for all he was worth, too. When I finally got the fish inside the boat, he was bleeding profusely. A quick inspection revealed that he initially had gotten the hook in his gill plates, and as a result of all his efforts to shake free, the hook had torn out of his gill plates and snagged the lip.

I doubted the fish would survive his ordeal, but when I eased him back into the water, he wasted no time getting away from the boat. I sat and watched the area for a few minutes to see if he would go belly up, but that never happened, at least not in the immediate surroundings.

Also hooked a dink with the popper; he only swirled under the bait but got too close to the pointy things.

Further went on to boat a 3-5 and two more dinks today on a spinnerbait.

Talked to Skip, who was out today as well, and learned that he caught a total of seven fish (see representative photos below) on a fluke. Said his biggest would have gone about 2 pounds.

Plan to try getting another day on the water next week, prior to the next open tournament on Sunday, May 21. Will likely continue trying to refine my wiggling-popper technique.

As D. Mac Sees the Fishin' Scene...

My friend and blog contributor D. Mac likes to fish. He also follows fishing events on the local and national scenes, as evident in his latest report, which was in my email inbox this morning.

He started by taking note of a two-day event this past weekend on the Pasquotank, involving the Jon Boat Elite Trail. What really grabbed his attention was the fact that the fella who finished the competition in first place had 46 pounds of fish. On Day 2 alone, he weighed more than 30 pounds. "WOW!" is how he registered his feelings.

D. Mac then let me know he went fishing this past Saturday morning, which he described as "probably the nicest weather day for me this year...not the best bass-catchin' day, though." He went on to note that he boated only five fish "after a really tough bite where I was. They didn't seem all that hongree after a really big full moon Friday night.

"Then there was that $&^% cliche about 'winds east fishing is the least' factor. However, the red gods blessed my frog with a 6.4 pounder," he continued. "Hooked another nice one 'bout 2 o'clock but lost it after a textbook-classic tail-walk that threw my frog and peeeed in my Cheerios. My buddy of 50 years with me said, 'That was 5 pounds plus.'

"Any way ya slice it, nice to get out. I didn't fish Sunday. Instead, I went to Bass Pro to look at boats and buy more frogs, baits and hooks."

Oh, and don't let me forget to pass along this recommended-reading link from D. Mac: https://www.fieldandstream.com/fishing/world-record-largemouth-line-class-bass-texas/?utm_term=FAS%20Strike%20Zone%20-%20050723&utm_campaign=Field%20%26%20Stream_The%20Strike%20Zone&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email. According to him, this Field and Stream article definitely rates as a "what the heck" for their website.

Fishing: It's All About Having the Right "Touch"

My partner and I really were looking forward to the Dewey Mullins Memorial Series tournament yesterday. We felt like what we had learned a week earlier very well might be productive a second time, and as we know now, of course, it was, even though we then and still don't completely understand why.

That's OK, however, 'cause it's the good part of yesterday...the one we want to remember. Unfortunately, there's also a bad part...the one, if you will, that we'd just as soon forget, if that were possible. It happened just as my partner was working a big bass to the boat. Given the aerial demonstration it had put on for us, we knew it was in the 6-to-7-plus-pound-or-so range. My duty was clear: Perform a Midas-touch netting job. After several harrowing moments, though, the rambunctious fish was...you guessed it...gone, and all I had in the net was air.

Over the years, I've blown a few inconsequential netting jobs, but Sunday marked only the second time ever that I've cost a tournament partner a big fish, and I feel as big a boob now as I did back the first time. I couldn't have blamed either fella for feeling as though they wanted to "reach out and touch me," too... with something like maybe a 2-by-4.

On both occasions, that big fish was right there...alongside the boat...for several moments, no less...plenty of time for even an old codger like me to slide the net under that bass and lift it into the boat. For whatever reason, though, I didn't get the job done.

I have a pretty good idea how both those fellas felt, 'cause I once, many years ago, found myself on the receiving end of a similar situation. I was fishing the Chickahominy with a really nice preacher friend when I, too, got hooked up with a big bass...'twould easily have been my PB to this date. We didn't have a net, so when I had maneuvered the fish alongside the boat, the preacher reached over and, instead of lipping or belly-landing the fish, took hold of the line. The fish subsequently made one final thrust, causing the snap swivel I was using to explode and allowing the fish to go free.

The climax to my day yesterday came about an hour before weigh-in. Wayne and I had returned to West Neck and pulled into a cove, to try and get out of some of the wind. In very short order, I succeeded in making two back-to-back errant casts that went so far off the mark that I had to cut my braid...and leave a hazard in the water for some unsuspecting angler who ventures into the same area.

I truly dread ending a fishing day on that kind of note because experience has shown me that, more times than not, I simply will pick up where I left off the next time I head to the water. That thought will haunt me as badly as the botched netting job yesterday. So, oh boy! I can hardly wait for my next trip. It ought to be a real doozy! Harry and Charlie Hall of Fame, here I come!

No One Ran Away from the Pack Today

It's still difficult to make any sense of the current bass-fishing picture, but that didn't stop 19 anglers in 10 boats from coming out today to test their skills against one another and try to earn a little spending money. At the end of the day, these anglers brought a total of 38 bass to the scales, for a combined total weight of 72.58 pounds and an average weight per fish of 1.91 pounds.

Leading the charge yet again today was the team of (from left) Don Carter and Rob Peppers. They had a five-fish limit weighing 12.29 pounds, anchored by a big fish weighing 3.83 pounds. In addition to winning 1st place, they also captured the side pot.

Coming in 2nd was the team of (from left) Donald Armstrong and Andy Morath. They, too, had a limit weighing 11.73 pounds, anchored by a big fish weighing 3.54 pounds.

And rounding out the winners in 3rd place was the team of (from left) Wayne Hayes and Ken Testorff. Their five-fish limit tipped the scales at 11.39 pounds, and their 4.08-pound big fish earned them big-fish honors for the tournament.

Here is the finishing order for the remainder of the competitors:

     * The team of Gary Coderre and Dave Anderson, five fish, 9.13 pounds total weight, no big fish.

     * The team of Bobby Moore and J. P. Twohig, five fish, 8.77 pounds total weight, no big fish.

     * The team of Steve Bailey and Dennis Dean, five fish, 8.28 pounds total weight, 1.66-pound big fish.

     * Mark Ingram, five fish, 6.39 pounds total weight, no big fish.

     * The team of Ryan Land and Matt Underwood, three fish, 4.60 pounds total weight, no big fish.

     * The team of Rob Chatham and Craig Jones, as well as the team of Jimmy Crist and Eric Killian, didn't weight any fish.

Congrats to all the winners, and thanks to everyone who came out today to participate. For planning purposes, the next tournament is an open event. It will be held out of West Neck Marina on Sunday, May 21, starting at safe light (about 6 a.m.). Everyone planning to fish is encouraged to arrive, be signed in, and have your boats in the water no later than 5:30 a.m. This 30-minute head start allows the tournament director and his admin assistant time to prepare the money envelopes.

Please refer any questions to the tournament director, Wayne Hayes, at 757-478-3387.

We hope you'll be able to come and join us on May 21.

Current Overall Statistics

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Making the Most of a Rainy, Stormy Day

It's highly unlikely that folks in the Great Bridge area of Virginia Beach ever will forget what happened Sunday, April 30th. That's the day an EF-3 tornado went through their neighborhood, causing millions of dollars in damages.

It's also very doubtful that Nick Koenig ever will forget what happened to him the same day. While fishing a trail event at Bob's Fishing Hole, he got hold of a real beaut.

He was flipping the Virginia side of Northwest River, closest to the park, when this 10.76-pounder fell for a custom-made flipping craw made by Brad Higginbotham, owner of Thrive Fishing. Nick was using a 7'4" heavy Lew's TP1 black speed stick, coupled with a Lew's custom lite reel purchased at Bob's Fishing Hole.

Besides being a lure maker, Brad (below, right) is the one who netted this monster fish for Nick.

"If You Lose or Break Something, Just Go Buy More...That's Why They Make 'Em"

I know a fella who has said that to me...and others, too...a lot of times. And, let's face it: I doubt that there's a single piece of fishin' equipment for which someone doesn't make a replacement. If you're inclined to lose or break a lot of things, though, replacing all of them very well could put you in the poor house.

Here's where this discussion is going. Yesterday, I started researching wacky rigging of stick baits. And I was a little surprised to find so many folks seemingly concerned about the cost involved, especially if you're one of those anglers who just sticks a hook through the middle of the worm and throws it in the water. The common thought process...if that's the way you do your wacky rigging...is that your bait will last only long enough to catch one bass...seldom, if ever, more.

The problem comes when the bass jumps during the fight or starts shaking its head back and forth, thereby causing the worm to be flung off your hook. As I learned from my research, though, there are a couple of things you can do to likely keep using the same piece of plastic for more than just one fish and thereby "save yourself a bunch of money," as one writer put it.

One solution is to use a rubber O-ring to fasten the bait to the hook, thus reducing the chance of it coming off when a fish bites. However, there's a substitute that works even better than the O-ring, which leaves the hook parallel to the length of the worm. That substitute is a piece of shrink tubing. The 3/8-inch size is perfect for 5-inch Senko worms, and the 5/8-inch size fits 7-inch Senkos.

Cut the shrink tubing into lengths of about 3/8 inch each. To rig them, push the narrow end of the worm through the tubing and pinch it with your hand. Then stretch the worm (gently, so as not to break it), so the tubing slides up easily toward the egg sack.

Position the tubing so the worm and tubing are balanced at the tubing...usually, this will be at the narrow end of the egg sack. Then put your weedless wacky hook through the center of the worm and both sides of the tubing.

Said one angler who uses this alternative, "I have caught as many as 45 bass on the same Senko."

I personally find that claim a bit difficult to believe, but I'm no judge. My problem is that I've just spent too much time around braggadocious fishermen...starting with one who lived nextdoor to my folks throughout all of my childhood.

To hear ol' Jack Gearhart tell it, he had seen all, done all, and knew all. My favorite story he often told was one about the day a moccasin took him by surprise while he was out fishing in his tin boat. He got a bit too excited and forgot where he was before putting three or four slugs in the snake. Reckon I don't have to tell you that he got a bit wet before reaching the shoreline.

There are some who advocate using a lighter once you place the heat shrink over the center of a worm. "Simply heat it up with your lighter and watch as it contracts and grips your stickbait tightly," they say. Pierce the heat shrink and the bait with your hook point. Usually, piercing the worm would cause it to be damaged when hooking a fish or getting snagged, but in this case, the heat shrink acts as a protective cover. Once you have done this, you have a wacky-rig bait that is almost impossible to get off. Expect to catch many fish on a single Senko.

May 2023 Bass Fishing Forecast

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