Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2015 i Bassmaster

“On man-made reservoirs, I will determine the depth of the thermocline and not fish below that.”— Elite Series pro Gary Klein GET DOWN DEEP Has anyone ever had success Carolina rigging a floating-minnow- or jerkbaitstyle lure to get down super deep? If so, how would you fish it? Alan Murphy, North Carolina Elite Series pro Hank Cherry I did it about 15 years ago. We used to do it around points on Lake Norman. There was a hot-water-discharge plant that created lots of current, and the shad would pull up into that. Below that [warm] water, the water was cooler, and we could get the bait down there where the bass were. We would use the smaller 4-inch-style jerkbait on a heavy Carolina rig and get it to float up…

BASSfest takes place here this month, and although that’s reason enough to like this place, there’s much more for an angler to love. Get Up Close. The Elite Series pros and a select group of Bassmaster Open anglers will compete on Kentucky and Barkley lakes, and seminars and a meet-and-greet with the pros happen on Day 3. 250 Square miles of water on Kentucky Lake 184 Length in miles of Kentucky Lake World’s Biggest Fish Fry. You have to love a town that cooks up more than six tons of catfish the last week of April every year. 2,000 Miles of shoreline along Kentucky Lake Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area. The USDA Forest Service manages 170,000 acres on the peninsula between Kentucky and Barkley lakes. It’s a paradise…

By the time you read these words, there could be yet another Florida shoal bass record in the books. At the rate anglers are going in the Sunshine State, there could be several. Two teenage anglers set shoal bass state records within eight days in March, both catching their record fish from the Chipola River in Jackson County. Jamie Coleman, 18, of Altha, Fla., used a small green topwater plug to capture a 4 1/2-pound shoal bass March 17, just eight days after 17-year-old Tucker Martin of Chipley, Fla., set the record with another 4 1/2-pound fish. The fish were 4.50 and 4.49 pounds, respectively, when weighed on certified scales and verified by Florida fisheries biologists. But Coleman and Martin will share the record because Coleman’s fish was only .01…

THERE WAS NO hiding from video cameras during the final rounds of BASSfest at Tennessee’s Chickamauga Lake in June 2014. When the tournament aired on TV, it clearly revealed Kevin VanDam and winner Jacob Wheeler sacking huge bass on a bucktail jig, which is commonly called a “hair jig.” The hair jig is new to the general bass fishing public — a handful of pros have somehow managed to keep it hush-hush for several years. KVD still isn’t inclined to talk about it. Wheeler had been tightlipped but has decided to give up the goods on the hair jig to B.A.S.S. members. Since the hair jig was outed at Chickamauga, he figures there’s no stopping the inevitable tidal wave of these lures that will soon flood the bass fishing world.…

WHEN MIKE MCCLELLAND was a young boy, years before he could drive himself, his parents would take him to nearby Table Rock Lake and leave him to spend the day fishing by himself. Perhaps that’s how he learned to locate bass so well. Certainly, it’s where he started learning to study the fish, the water and everything else around him at the moment. Now, 17 years into his pro career, the lessons he learned during those years have paid dividends many times over. McClelland is a seven-time Bassmaster winner and a 10-time Classic qualifier. He’s also considered one of the best bass-finders on the Elite Series tour. “In retrospect, my hardest lesson to learn,” admits the Arkansas pro, “was making myself stop fishing in unproductive water. I think this is…

Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota — In this natural lake, cast deep-running crank-baits and jigs to rockpiles and bottom contour or content changes outside the grass flats. Combs explains, “You have to look for subtle changes. A good example is where a gravel bottom turns to sand or chunk rock. These places can be deep. These are the types of spots the bass move to when they leave the shallows.” St. Johns River, Florida — Look for deep shellbeds (8 to 12 feet) that are exposed to current. Also, look for the upcurrent sides of bars with breaks where shells have washed in. Use a side-imaging graph (Humminbird 360) to find these shellbeds. Lake Erie, Ohio/Pennsylvania/New York — Cast tube jigs or drop shot rigs around rockpiles and other prominent bottom…

Jason Jaco Texas 10-6 Lake Austin, Texas ◆ Strike King 6XD (sexy shad) ◆ Water clarity: clear ◆ Depth: 20 feet ◆ Weather: overcast, windy Greg Menchen New York 6-1 St. Lawrence River, New York Berkley Gulp Minnow Joshua Erickson Washington 6-5 Potholes Reservoir, Washington LiveTarget Rainbow Smelt jerkbait Jerry Wayer Tennessee 10-6 Indian Lake 1/2-ounce Strike King Red Eye Shad Bill Kunz California 10-5 Lake Don Pedro, California Boss umbrella rig with Keitech Swing Impact Fat Rick Flacke Florida 11-6 Bay Lake, Florida 10-inch Culprit Ribbontail Worm (black) Chris Matejka Minnesota 6-3 Lake Mille Lacs, Minnesota Zoom Fat Albert grub (green pumpkin/ red flake) Bob Ousley Texas 11-14 Lake Raven, Texas 3/8-ounce Strike King KVD Scorcher spinnerbait (blue gizzard) To request an application, write to editorial@bassmaster.com or B.A.S.S., The…

The Bassmaster Live coverage is what every bass tournament nerd has dreamed of ... what every bass angler interested in improving his skills has needed. IMAGINE YOUR FAVORITE football team playing its hated rival. Now, instead of a football field, spread the players out on 90,000 acres. OK, the only way you can watch a play is to wander around and hope to stumble upon a player. Perhaps you’ll strike gold and find Tom Brady. Honestly, though, you’ll be doing well to see a third-string linebacker who starts on special teams … sometimes. This has been the thorn in the side of bass fishing’s Big League for years. Fans have not been able, as the game is being played on massive fisheries, to watch their favorite athletes perform. We get…

Pin It Down The only reason you see bass boats without shallow-water anchors like the Power-Pole or Minn Kota Talon is because that particular angler hasn’t saved up enough money to buy one yet. For fishermen still saving, here is a very effective do-it-yourself anchor pin that will set you back less than $50 for the components (www.mgs4u.com). This is a modular system that will allow you to make poles up to 16 feet long, if you so desire. Once you push the fiberglass pole into the lake bottom, either tie it to a cleat or run it through a metal O-ring attached to a rope to secure your vessel. 1 Mix two-part epoxy. This stuff will keep the components together as long as you have use for the pin.…

A research team at Grand Lake at Eagles Nest Preserve near Athens, Texas, discovered that bigger bass were more likely to have a small home range and not move as much. Researchers have now added artificial habitat to create “fish cities” to encourage bass to decrease their activity and increase consumption. | Utah anglers are asked to kill all Northern pike they catch in Utah Lake as per state law, according to the state Division of Wildlife Resources. | The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources will postpone classes on avoiding invasive species set to begin July 1…

Experts are calling the Golden State’s drought one of the most severe on record. This round of water worries began in 2012 when more than half the country experienced drought. Conditions worsened in 2013 as scientists confirmed the driest year on record. Although overall precipitation in 2014 increased slightly, there were signs that California’s troubles were far from over. January is typically the wettest month of the year — in 2014 it was the driest on record. Temperatures in 2014 were also some of the warmest on record, with February’s heat surpassing all other Februarys since the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration started monitoring weather phenomena in 1895. Precipitation and temperatures in 2015, at the time of this writing, are not a lot better. Snowpack conditions, which represent about one-third…

Talk about celebrating anglers. On June 7, Iceland will celebrate its annual Fisherman’s Day, a salute to Icelanders who work on fishing boats. Fishing vessels stay docked while fishermen spend the day with family and take part in festivities around the country. Festivals include concerts, mackerel and herring feasts, air shows, rowing challenges and even strongman competitions. We’re down for a fisherman’s day with music, fish fries and other celebrations. But we’re not sure about a strongman competition. Although who wouldn’t want to see Randy Howell and Mike Iaconelli carrying giant stones and pulling RVs by harness?…

Like first impressions, you only get one chance to start your fishing day. You want to do it right. This month, it’s especially important because the weather’s getting warmer and the “dog days” are coming. June is more summer than spring, no matter what the calendar says. Our experts are on a big midland impoundment. The water temperature is in the high 70s — about 10 degrees cooler than the air — and clarity ranges from 2 to 4 feet. The weather’s been warm and steady, but rains from three or four days ago brought water levels up, so lake authorities are running water out at the dam, creating a distinct current all throughout the reservoir. The spawn is over. There’s a light breeze coming out of the west at…

I briefly considered wearing a pirate’s eye patch so I would have good night vision in one eye. THERE’S NEWS I can use in the Short Casts section of this month’s Bassmaster. Shadetree scientists have tested eyedrops that apparently improve a person’s night vision significantly. According to our article on the chemical, Chlorin e6, or Ce6, the group, Science for the Masses, talked a researcher into being the guinea pig in testing the drops for improving vision at night. The fellow should get a medal. Although Ce6 had a good safety record, the idea of putting it in my eyes as a human test subject is a little off-putting. The drops made the guy’s eyes appear like something out of a science fiction movie, yet the solution worked. The volunteer…

Itemize equipment and set a specific value on each one — even if you bought the boat as a package. PAYING FOR BOAT insurance is a step anglers accept as a necessity, but an alarming number of anglers are underinsured and probably don’t know it. It doesn’t matter whether you’re buying a new or used bass boat or making payments on an old one, it’s imperative to make sure your coverage is adequate. Remarkably, many bass anglers assume they’re covered on a broader scope than they really are. Perhaps the most common misjudgment is the type of coverage they buy. The least expensive route isn’t always the best, especially given today’s investment in new boats. Sure, you can save money by opting for a “cash value” policy rather than replacement…

Skeet Reese Birthday: June 30, 1969 Hometown: Auburn, Calif. Your win at Guntersville was your second victory on one of the best lakes in the U.S. How does it compare to past accomplishments? It’s hard to duplicate tournament success on a place, so to be able to win there again, it’s still kind of tripping me out. I’ve been out here 15 or 16 years now, and to still be able to compete, and to compete against what’s probably the strongest field we’ve had in history, that’s a great feeling. Tell us more about tour roommate and longtime friend Byron Velvick turning you on to the swimbait bite at Guntersville. John Murray and Byron and I stay together on tour and usually rent a house, and after the first day…

Pick Your Junebug In these pages, “junebug” typically refers to one of the all-time most popular colors of soft plastic baits. But junebug can mean more than that. Popular Plastic. This dark purple hue with various greenish or bluish flakes consistently ranks among the Top 5 soft plastic colors among bass anglers. It’s probably because of the color’s versatility, representing a variety of prey and working in various water clarities. Or maybe it’s just that it subconsciously reminds us of the basic purple plastic worms we fished with as kids. May Beetle (aka, June bug). Entomologists everywhere are cringing because the various beetles of the scarab family that are commonly called “June bugs” aren’t actually bugs at all; they’re beetles. They’re usually brown or green, quite hairy on the underside,…

June 21 marks this year’s summer solstice, the day with the longest period of daylight hours in the northern hemisphere. What better to do on the longest day of the year than fish? Although the solstice often occurs June 21, that isn’t always the case. The date varies. Next year, for example, the solstice is June 20. It also can be June 22 (as it last was in 1971), although none of us will be around for the next June 22 solstice because it won’t happen again until 2203. So what’s up with that? Most Western countries use the Gregorian calendar, which has 365 days in a regular year and 366 in a leap year. The actual time it takes the Earth to orbit the sun, known as the tropical…

An obscure measure introduced in New York’s state budget in March would exempt the most expensive boats from state sales tax. According to www.capital newyork.com, the “yacht credit” would make the portion of a boat’s price above $230,000 exempt from taxation. The measure was aimed at getting wealthy boat owners from setting up offshore shell companies and registering their boats in Caribbean islands instead of New York. “Your average Joe in New York who wants to go out and buy a small 16-foot bass fishing boat for his own personal use will actually pay sales tax,” said Ron Deutsch of the Fiscal Policy Institute. “But someone going out and buying a yacht isn’t going to be subject to the same tax.”…

New Jersey lawmakers have been considering a special fishing license that would provide a financial incentive for existing anglers to recruit new anglers. The New Jersey “Fishing Buddy” license, proposed in bill A-4025, would provide half-price fishing licenses to existing anglers and new anglers who purchase their licenses together. The program would be available to anglers ages 16 to 65 who hadn’t purchased a license since 2010. New Jersey has experienced a steady decline in fishing license sales for the past 25 years, going from 233,787 in 1991 to 141,499 last year. Lawmakers hope the financial incentive will reverse the trend in a state where an estimated 1 in 9 residents either fish or have fished and where freshwater and saltwater angling annually contribute $2 billion to the state’s economy.…

“THAT’S A RIFFLE runner!” exclaims a middle-age angler holding a slender bait-fish in his extended palm. “You are crazy! That is a blue dot,” chides a veteran river rat from a town farther upstream. Conversations such as this routinely occur among river fishermen when discussing indigenous minnows, chubs, dace, darters and shiners caught from local waterways and used for smallmouth. While readily able to distinguish a smallmouth bass from a largemouth bass, few fishermen can identify small baitfish species by their proper names. Instead, preyfish are tagged with local nicknames, which are handed down to each new generation of fishermen. In this particular case, the preyfish that generated heat between two bait-gatherers is actually a streamline chub (Hybopsis dissimilis), a late-summer bait for river smallmouth in the Allegheny and Ohio…