BASS FISHINGBass Fishing Sports Blog

The temporary boat ramp at Orange Springs was finished and usable more than a week ago. Downriver and slightly lower in elevation, the temporary ramp at Kenwood was not ready by early Wednesday, but the parking area had been scraped to offer hard-packed sand, and the launch ramp was expected to be finished “any day.” By the time you read this, the Kenwood launch site is likely in use.

Saturday, Kris Akridge tried out his home lake, Alto. with speckled perch in mind, he drifted Hal Glide jigs out in the midlake depths. But on this day, only yearling bass seemed interested in proven crappie producers. when he called it a day, the Hampton angler had released 25 small largemouths that seemed interested only in orange-colored speck jigs.

Determined to catch speckled perch, Akridge and his friend, Roger Hickson, went Sunday to the place they felt was surest to produce. They tried to launch at Kenwood early that morning, and after finding the access gate still locked, drove the small distance to Orange Springs. there, they launched easily. although it was still early, the men were surprised that only eight trucks with empty boat trailers sat parked along the river channel. Fishing Beetle Spins and minnows “in open pockets in the hydrilla” in the river Akridge and Hickson took more than 50 specks, releasing all but the largest 33 fish. when they ramped out, at least fifty boat trailers sat parked on the newly exposed river bank at the ramp.

Dennis Hart and his sons, Lee and Lake, started visiting Rodman as soon as they learned the temporary ramp at Orange Springs was finished. Saturday, the Alachua anglers cast soft plastics, crankbaits, and rattling jigs in the river channel to catch and release 30 stout bass up to 5 pounds. That was so much fun they returned Monday to boat 25 more fish. among these, Lee took a 5-pound beauty and Lake nailed a fine 7-pound specimen. Wednesday, Dennis and Lake launched at Orange Springs again. This day offered the fastest bite — forty bigmouths topped by a 5-pound chunk and four more solid fish about 4 pounds each.

It was once a whispered-about secret of area bass and speck fishers, but Lake Wauburg hasn’t made the fishing report much at all through recent years. in fact, the smallish lake just south of Paynes Prairie on Highway 441 has received small attention from area anglers. Ryan Sullivan and Megan Ouellette think it’s still pretty excellent. the UF sweeties were casting along a Wauburg shoreline Friday evening when a demanding tussle arrived suddenly. the watermelon-colored Bass Assassin Tapout that Megan cast to a boat dock produced a solid bite, and it wasn’t long before the young couple knew that this was a big fish.

Following a drag-slipping battle complete with gill-rattling leaps and round-and-round the boat bulldogging, Ryan netted Megan’s big bass. after admiring and photographing the beauty, they released the whopper that they estimated at between 7 and 8 pounds.

Just as the dewatered Rodman Reservoir is in the crosshairs of freshwater anglers, Suwannee has to be considered the center of fish-catching along the gulf coast.

Allen Martin and Dan Dorosheff are among the league of anglers that have enjoyed fantastic Suwannee action recently. the Lake City fishermen tight-lined shrimp in creeks near the river’s mouth last Tuesday to take 25 redfish. Fourteen of the reds were “slot fish” from 20- to 25-inches long. the most fascinating part of their tale, though, was the variety of species drawn by their baits. Using spinning tackle with relatively light line, they caught reds, speckled trout, sheepshead, flounder, black drum, and stumpknockers. Martin figures that had to qualify them for a “Suwannee Slam.”

Suwannee fishers with a bent toward competition should check into fishing Santa Fe High School’s 4th Annual Raider Slam Inshore Tournament coming up Jan. 7 out of Suwannee Marina. Cash prizes will be awarded in Redfish, Trout, and Bass categories. for more, contact Mike Metzler (352) 213-3743 or Dennis Hart (352) 284-9243.

Last weekend in Islamorada, a pair of very young Gainesville anglers scored an impressive victory. T.J. Bowen (8), and Philip Hess (9), third-graders at Gainesville Country Day School, were named Grand Champions of the 47th Annual 2011 Islamorada Junior Sailfish Tournament. Fishing aboard “Contagious” with Capt. Brian Cone and Shannon Attales, the boys released 8 sailfish — including a 70-pounder — during the two days of competition. It was an incredibly successful first sailfishing experience for the boys who responded to their victory by Tebowing. Fantastic job, guys!

Gary Simpson, a veteran tournament angler, operates Gary’s Tackle Box at L & S Trim.

The downpour place a part of Marion County under water — and there was a lot of hope early this week that it might have also raised the level of Orange Lake significantly.

A few customers of Fish tales Bait and Tackle in Ocala, though, went to check out the lake early this week. they returned with the disappointing report that very little change could be seen in its water level. Apparently, the weekend deluge did not extend quite far enough north to help the sadly low favorite of fishers.

The effects of the extended soaking were very significant in most parts of Florida. Lake Okeechobee, for instance, is suddenly as high as it has been all year.

Here in Alachua County, we’ll have to keep waiting.

It did rain in a big way along the St. Johns River and the hotly sought saltwater shrimp that have inhabited the river in fantastic numbers since the start of August don’t normally tolerate such an influx of new water very well.

When I called my shrimping sources Wednesday, I fully expected to hear that the crustaceans had headed for the ocean and already become scarce. But, the strong run apparently won’t die so easily. Jimmy Darby of Messer’s Westside Bait and Tackle in Palatka reported that as soon as the rain let up, folks resumed their productive cast-netting. Monday night, cast net throwers as far upriver as Welaka and Satsuma were still pulling in quick five-gallon limits. Darby went on to offer an fascinating prediction.

“I’ve always noticed,” he said, “that above average seasons for speckled perch fishing on the St. Johns system always seem to follow the best shrimping years. I’m hoping that will hold right again this year.”

I know that I never doubt such studied observations made over long years.

During the rainy weekend that apparently failed to banish the shrimp, the Florida Baptist Children’s Homes Bass Tournament was held out of Palatka.

“The serious, top-notch fishermen showed up. we had the best of the best,” Tournament director Mike Oglesbee said.

The nasty, wet Saturday was not one for weekend warriors. as a result, only 50 teams competed for the heavy, guaranteed cash prizes. Shawn Jannotti and Stanley Hunt weighed the best five-bass limit at 19.12-pounds and collected the $3,500 top prize. their bag of bass included an anchor fish of 6.43. in second place, Heath Arnold and Larry Reynolds’ five bigmouths weighed 15.12. Dennis Redd and Chris Heron had a 7.04-pound beauty in their limit that totaled 14.94 and Eric Lewis’ 14.78-pound total included the tourney’s largest single fish. The 7.66-pound specimen was worth an extra thousand bucks to its captor.

Two Tuesdays ago, Paul and Rudy Rothseiden launched at The Cedar Key ramp and headed to Seahorse Reef. When the Alachua father-and-son arrived at the far end of the reef, multitudes of baitfish were packed at the surface in a vain attempt to escape predators below. Trolling and casting Floreo Jigs, the Rothseiden men took several Spanish mackerel — seven of which were large examples pushing the 30-inch mark.

I was able to find only one angler who ventured out onto the gulf flats between the wet weekend and this report’s Wednesday night deadline and he said that the water color in Waccasassa Bay had darkened considerably. I can’t say whether the water on Seahorse Reef is likewise cloudy from the wind and rain, but I do know that the reef probably won’t see much boat traffic over the coming weekend. The Cedar Key Seafood Festival is slated for Saturday and Sunday. Speaking from experience, this will be a tough weekend to pull a boat through the streets of the island community.

A new Ranger Boats dealer, LTD Motors in High Springs will hold its first BoatFest Oct. 21-23. Attendees can meet professional bass anglers Bernie Schultz and Terry Seagraves and saltwater pros Bill Scholze and John Henninger. Someone will also win guided inshore fishing trips and a marine cooler filled with top-notch tournament tested bass tackle. to boot, the BassMasters of Gator Country will hold an ever-well loved Casting Kids event for youngsters. Go to ltdmotors.net for more.

Gary Simpson, a veteran tournament angler, operates Gary’s Tackle Box at L & S Trim.

Quick water, faster fish.    

Hey there Hot Stick! Got a no-doubt fish trick to share with kayak nation? Send it in. We welcome Fish Friday submissions. it won’t bring you fortune, just a little bit of fame and the positive fish karma that comes from helping fellow ‘yakkers. look us up at editor@kayakanglermag.com.High Water HungerBy Jeff Small

A heavy drip of rainwater leapt from the tip of my nose as I swung my head away in disgust. Another tardy hook set sent me digging through an assortment of finesse lures.  I had worked hard for three hours without landing a single smallmouth.  the river’s water still had excellent clarity, but was quickly swelling.

Fighting my way to the top of an eddy, I launched a small soft plastic craw to the current seam, then let it sit. this tactic had brought me countless 18 to 20-inch smallmouth over the last several months. Long casts and deadsticked presentations in clear water had been the keys to success. But it became my rut. My run of being able to call big fish before they bit seemed to be ending.

Missing another small hit, I released some frustration by reeling in as fast as I could to tie on a different lure. But before the paddle tail grub could reach the kayak, I saw a cavernous white mouth open up and suction the bait in.  the drag screamed, the pissed off expression left my face, and my internal voice whispered softly to me, “Summer is over, start fishing like it.”

I left the same paddle tail grub on that rod and dialed in on a solid pattern that produced nearly a dozen smallmouth between 17 and 18.5 inches. Swimming the bait as opposed to deadsticking it made the difference. Long narrow strips of calm water on steep banks blending quickly into screaming fast current held the fish. Casting to the bank, lifting the lure slowly toward the current and subsequently dropping the rod tip allowed the grub to stay close to the chunk rock bottom.  near the fast water, the brown bass would rocket up to nab what had to look like an injured minnow. 

On the back side of the flood’s enormous streamflow bell curve, I got right back on the river with a friend. the smallmouth had been on a watery treadmill for two weeks and were ready for a meal.  Within the first mile, my friend Alan nailed a personal best smallmouth, measuring 20.5 inches. Was it caught on some sort of finesse bait that had been the main show all summer? Nope. A chartreuse spinnerbait burned back to the boat confirmed that fall is here, and the smallmouth are ready to chase!

Jeff little is a river kayak fishing dynamo. the Wilderness Systems staffer runs Blue Ridge Kayak Fishing and Confidence Baits, a custom lure manufacturer. little is the author of In Pursuit of Trophy Smallmouth Bass, My Life in a Kayak, and the River Kayak Fishing Skills DVD series.

Photo: Alan’s personal best 20.5-inch high water smallie. Courtesy Jeff little.   

Kevin won the tournament collecting $5,197 for first place and $2,000 for the Ranger Cup bonus while Jeff took the huge-fish award of $632 for the boater division with a 6-pound, 13-ounce bass and placed fifth among boaters, winning $1,039. Bradley took the huge-fish award of $326 for the co-angler division and ranked ninth among the co-anglers, winning $346.

Collectively, the Chandlers earned $9,540 at the tournament.

Kevin had a two-day haul of 33-06 to win his second BFL tournament this season; he captured first place at the June BFL Piedmont Division event at High Rock.

Chandler made a second-day charge to capture the event. After Day 1, he was tied for third with 15-14 and had to overtake his buddy Jeff, who had an opening round catch of 16-07 and Lexington’s David Wright, the Day 1 leader with 16-15.

Chandler responded with a Day 2 catch of 17-08 to take into the lead with 33-06, catching most of his fish with spinnerbaits.

“I’m a jig fisherman, and I plotted to fish the jig throughout the tournament,” he said.

Chandler changed his mind after a Wednesday practice round at the lake.

“I was fishing a jig when my partner caught a 5-pounder behind me with a spinnerbait,” Chandler said. “After he caught a few more with the spinnerbait, I knew what bait I was going to fish.”

Several anglers made runs at Chandler.

Maiden’s David Williams followed his Day 1 catch of 13-11 with a Day 2 bag of 17-05 for a two-day total of 31-00, good enough for second place and $2,598. Brian Morgan of Newton had 15-08 on Day 1 and 13-13 on Day 2 for 29-05 that gave him the third-place prize of $1,733. Lexington’s Chris Baldwin had catches of 14-11 and 12-15 for a two-day weight of 27-10 for fourth place and $1,213.

Completing the top 10 were Allen Eaker of Cherryville, sixth, with 26-07 that paid $953; Todd Harris of Pfafftown, seventh, with 26-05 that paid $866; Dustin Clontz of Albemarle, eighth, with 25-13 that paid $780; Rodney Bell of Salisbury, ninth, with 24-10 that paid $693; and Eric Jeter of Asheville, 10th, with 24-08 that paid $606.

Wright finished a disappointing 11th with 24-05 for $549. He had misgivings despite leading the opening round.

“the fish I caught on opening day were in the process of leaving those places rather than coming to them,” Wright said.

Consequently, his crankbait bite faded on Day 2.

“I’ve been throwing the worm all summer, so I decided for this tournament I would stick to the crankbait since the crankbait bite had been improving,” Wright said.

Wright used a thin-profile “Tap-like” crankbait which delivered the first day but not the second.

Thomas Jones of Kannapolis topped the co-anglers with 21-07 and earned $2,599. Kerry Murphy of Mooresville ranked second with 16-07 and received $1,299.

Other co-angler scores were Paul Reich of Sanford, third, with 15-05 for $867; Ralph Hollifield Sr. of Winston-Salem, fourth, with 14-00 for $606; and Charles Wood of Thomasville, fifth, with 13-11 for $520.

In a survey by AnglerSurvey.com, 60 percent of the respondents opposed the increase of ethanol found in gasoline from 10 percent to 15 percent that was recently allowed by the EPA.

Opponents argued that the increase in ethanol can damage fuel tanks and lines of older boats and motors resulting in clogged and stalled engines.

“it is vital that boaters educate themselves on the specific damage fuels mixed with ethanol can pose to certain boat motors and take steps to minimize the harm to their engines,” said Rob Southwick of Southwick Associates.

Tony Garitta is a fishing columnist for the Dispatch

Ive been fishing in this pond since I was 3yrs old and now Im 23. You used to be able to catch good size bass in there like 3 to 5lbs. Some people even bigger than that. Now u cant catch one over a pound. The last big fish I saw caught in there was in 2006 its 2011. so is there an explanation for this?

That's simple to answer. You people killed off ALL of the big fish by not Catching and Releasing. by keeping/harvesting the larger fish, you've killed off the population of big fish. so now you get what you get, DINKS. a body of water will only sustain a certain population. this happens on many lakes in the South and South-East too.

I know, I have a lake front home in NC and a nice Bass on that lake is only 2 pounds. I show people pictures of the fish I catch out in CA, and they are stunned at the size of fish I catch. Everything is so over fished out there and telling people about Catch & Release is like a foreign language to them. Too many fishermen keep what they catch out there. they decimate the fisheries and wonder why things happen the way it did.

There's a very simple explanation. And it's sort of a bit of common sense too.

When people fish a small city pond that is loaded with decent sized to big bass, they generally keep them. When people start keeping what they catch, they deplete the source. so in other words, if you and others kept what you caught, you quickly over fished the place. Those bigger ones that were kept? Those were more than likely females that support the growth of the pond's population. And everyone knows bigger fish produce biggger offspring. so… congratulations on wiping out your pond. Hope you learned a lesson.

They all could have died from contamination or eaten by a larger fishy or you just happened to catch all the fertile ones and there's just a few rare ones left

My bf and I were going to go to Las Vegas for our summer vacation. but, his dad is really ill and we don't want to go too far. We both like camping and fishing and chose to take a fishing trip. so for 6 days we are going to fish at a different lake everyday. We are going to have our own "tournament". What are some prizes I can get for him? like biggest fish, most fish, first fish. any thought's?

Largest fish- Could be a new scale to weigh the fish

Most fish- a new livewell to keep the fish in. (It doesn't have to be a really expensive one. just a big a cooler or something or maybe a new pump for the person of the livewell.)

First fish- get a spinnerbait kit (if using lures) or a new box of worms (if using fake bait)

If it is just between you 2 you could get a trophy made, or make one yourself. then whoever wins gets to keep it until your next outing. maybe spice it up with trinkets from each place you fish? a patch or pin or squashed penny from the area or something like that. Just an thought…

When he wins all categories(b/c he is a man and no woman can outfish a man), offer him 30 minutes of anything goes…just kiddin

Make it interesting, like fear factor. Loser eats a fish eye or somethin like that.

Largest fish – Bass pro or gander mountain gift card (depends on how far you live from one)

i need 2 know how 2 catch big fish i can catch a lot of bass but no big ones n i cant catch walleye very much.

By MARC FOLCO August 19, 2011 12:00 AM

Fishing has picked up some with lots of huge bluefish in the nine-pound range with a few into the teens around The Islands and in Quicks’s Hole. Closer to shore, larger blues are scarcer but lots of snapper blues in all the area rivers, bays and estuaries. a few larger blues are off Gooseberry along with some huge scup, but lots of dogfish are moving in.

Stripers are also scarce inshore in the Bay with a few larger ones around The Islands with the major concentration of them off the Cape, around Chatham and in Cape Cod Bay and Plymouth Harbor around Bug Light. The Canal has picked up the past couple of sunrises with a few stripers in the 30-pound range being caught on mackerel pattern swimmers and surface poppers.

Fluke are biting at Cleveland’s, Lucas Shoals, the rips south of Quicks’s Hole and Robinson’s, in the Westport River, both inside and outside the mouth and also off Sankonnet Point. There are some keepers but expect more throwbacks by about 10 to 1. Bucko’s Parts and Tackle reported that a 24-incher was caught in the Westport River from the Route 88 Bridge. also some huge sea bass and scup off Sakonnet.

The scup bite is still on at some inshore spots with some keepers being caught from Fort Rodman, the Padanaram Bridge, the hurricane dike and the Mattapoisett Town Wharf. a few tautog are starting to bite but mostly shorts. Lots of huge sea bass throughout Vineyard Sound and around Quicks’s.

Tuna fishing is good south of Noman’s with small and medium bluefin. Giant bluefin can be had in Cape Cod Bay as close at five miles from Barnstable Harbor.

While there are said to be a few sightings of false albacore and bonito in the Bay, there have yet to be any confirmed reports.

Massachusetts coastal waters are home to endangered marine animals including sea turtles and whales. Entanglement in marine debris and fishing gear such as rope, netting, and hooks are leading causes of serious injury and mortality for these animals. The Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF), the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), and the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies (PCCS) question all boaters to immediately report sightings of entangled marine animals, alive or dead, by calling the Marine Animal Entanglement Hotline at 1-800-900-3622 or 866-755-NOAA or by hailing the U.S. Coast Guard on VHF Channel 16.

An entanglement response team at PCCS is on-call and committed to providing safe and effective disentanglement of marine animals in the waters off Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and new Hampshire.

Untrained people should resist trying to assist the animal, advises MarineFisheries, as attempts can be detrimental to the animal and result in serious injury to those involved. Cutting ropes or gear on your own may also cause problems for the entangled animal and boaters do not have the legal authority to perform disentanglements or touch another person’s fishing gear. Sea turtles and most large whales are protected endangered species and it is illegal to handle them without a permit.

MarineFisheries announced Thursday that it’s been determined that the commercial black sea bass quota of 222,440 pounds will be reached by the end of the day on Sunday. Therefore the commercial season will close Sunday night after which it shall be unlawful for commercial fishermen to land or possess black sea bass until the season reopens in the spring of 2012.

Marc Folco is the outdoor writer for The Standard-Times. Contact him at

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The guys holding up their fish and it's still alive wreathing in pain. He's the champ he just caught and killed the largest fish, congratulations. now fry it up and feed the family.

No, most tournaments have penalties for dead fish. Most fish caught in a tournament are released. Thats why they have Live Wells! As for the people who do not catch and release, thats there option. If I'm running low on fish in the freezer or have a fish fry coming up I'll keep a few. The one thing I don't like is people who keep more than the limit and dont fallow the rules and regs for fishing. There is nothing wrong with catching fish and killing them!

I do a lot of lake shore fishing. I see a lot of huge bass but I can't seem to get them to hit anything during the morning and afternoons. I'm looking for suggestions for artificial baits I could try out.

A purple flamed tip worm is a very excellent one to try. I have caught many huge bass using one. Cast and let it sink, then slowly reel in and pop your wrist a small every three to four strokes. be sure you really set the hook when they take it and believe me, when they hit it you will know it. Excellent luck.

If you have seen allot of huge Bass in the lake I would recommend using a Top Water Zara Spook lure that knocks with a single bearing inside the lure early in the morning around 3:00am to Sunrise.

The Wallmart brands just don't knock unless you get the small chrome one and it does wonders too.

Large mouth Bass feed early in the morning I mean early when it's still dark before Sunrise.

After the Sunrise A Rattle Trap would be a excellent start, but keep in mind that your best time to nail one of these huge jokers will be at the time I specified above.

Bass Angler has excellent tips I read his paragraphs.
Excellent Luck.

I would go with a black crawdad or black worm that is texas rigged and bounce it off the bottom, that seems to hit for me all the time, and all i do is fish for bass or walleye from the shore. if i was you you could also use a jig w/rattlers and a tail and also throw on a rooster tail.

If you wanna walk the banks a buzzbait is fantastic to start off the morning. I usually do that and then chunk a spinner maybe, or a worm. if the water is honestly deep where you are fishing you can also use a rattle trap. I have had fair action with all of those.

Man, I have been slaying them on my lake with a YUM Buzzfrog rigged weightless on a 5/0 EWG Gamakatsu hook. seems to be best when the sun is low (dusk/dawn) or when theree is a slight chop on the waters surface. this bait is virtually snag proof, weedless and simple to fish. the single hook makes for solid hook ups. Don't set the hook until you feel the weight of the fish on.