Innholdsfortegnelse for July/August 2024 i Bassmaster

July 1 Canada Day. There’s no better time to finally book that summer fishing trip up north. 16 World Snake Day. Make sure the little ones are well versed in the difference between a water moccasin and a water snake. 31 National Avocado Day. Upgrade your morning biscuit with a transformative avocado toast topped with a fried egg, a touch of lemon and a dash of everything bagel seasoning and thank us later. August 4 U.S. Coast Guard Day. A reminder to check your running lights, PFDs or life jackets. 20 World Mosquito Day. A day honoring a bass angler’s most reliable friend and a reminder to restock your insect-repelling treatments.…

Conservation directors from 30 B.A.S.S. Nation chapters recently converged with biologists and administrators from state and federal fisheries management agencies in Tulsa, Okla., for the 2024 B.A.S.S. Conservation Summit. The biannual summit seeks to foster collaboration between anglers and agencies to help benefit both fisheries and anglers. This year, speakers included Chris Horton from the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation and Conner Beven with the American Sportfishing Association. Both speakers urged participants to get involved and be advocates for protecting aquatic resources and access. Agency representatives from Michigan, Kansas, Florida and Pennsylvania emphasized the value of data collected by state systems in relation to tournament management.…

Michael Wakefield That is great, now if we teach people not to pollute it would be even better! Danny Sutton Awesome job everyone. Thank you for all your efforts. Barb Elliott Congratulations to a great bunch of motivated people! Huge shout out to Carl Jocumsen and his wife for organizing and provinding these events so people can get FOCUSED on what is IMPORTANT…..Stewardship - lead by example!!!! Floyd Walls Each and everyone of y’all are awesome…

My boat seems like it’s not as fast as it once was. What could be causing that? Ryan Jasinski, Gainesville, Fla. There are several things, says veteran service technician Dewey LeCount of Moore Boats in Ligonier, Ind. Weight is the biggest issue. Abundant soft plastics, sinkers and jigs add up and can slow you down. Take time to reduce tackle you don’t need. Dings and nicks in the propeller can be another difference-maker. “If you haven’t had your stainless steel prop rebuilt for years, you could be losing cupping,” says LeCount. “Nicks in the blades also can cause you to lose as much as 5 mph. It’s like having bald tires on wet pavement.” A damaged skeg or even chipped paint on the gearcase causes air bubbles and adds drag,…

National Top 10 Lakes from the Western Division 1. Clear Lake, California 2. Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, California [1,100 square miles] Local bass anglers will be the first to tell you that the California Delta’s tidal waters are not what they used to be. But despite numerous troubles, ranging from sea lion invasions to extensive vegetation spraying by the state, this complex system of tule-lined rivers and sloughs, vegetation-choked flooded islands and dilapidated docks remains one of the best places to be in the West for catching quality fish. The heaviest one-day limit here came during an April NewJen event in which the top team brought five largemouth to the scales for 30.70 pounds. There were 10 bass over 6 pounds weighed in, with the biggest going 8.85, at that one.…

IT’S PART EASTER egg hunt, part shell game, but mat fishing is not random. At least, it doesn’t have to be. The key is presenting your baits on well-planned casts to logically selected targets. Nationwide, Bassmaster Elite Series pros find mats of all shapes and sizes. Some produce better than others; and within the good ones, certain areas offer higher opportunity levels. Spend enough time on any mat and you’ll likely catch something. Spend the right amount of time on the right ones and you’ll catch ’em consistently. Here’s how the Elites dial in their mat missions. THE RIGHT NEIGHBORHOOD If you think a mat is a mat is a mat, you’re already behind the curve. We’ll get to the physical features in a moment, but location is the sensible…

Water type: TVA lake Water temp: 85 to 90 degrees Clarity: 1 to 2 feet Depth: 3 to 20 feet Structure: Laydowns, rock, ledges, bridges Cover: Docks, overhanging trees Forage: Shad, bluegill Weather: Mostly sunny with afternoon clouds Wind/current: Calm wind, afternoon current increase Experts: A trio of Elite Series pros explain how they tackle the brutally hot days 1 KNOW THE FLOW Jacob Powroznik North Prince George, Va. First move: Homework is key for Powroznik, as checking the TVA’s power generation schedule tells him when to expect his windows of opportunity. “That current is such a big deal that time of year; it puts them where they need to be. They could be suspended [when the water’s not moving], but when the current starts running, it draws the bait…

I’VE SAID THIS before, but it bears repeating: I dread Bassmaster’s annual 100 Best Bass Lakes issue. Yep, the issue you are holding in your hand right now. Why? It takes a lot of work. I mean, a LOT of work … and I don’t rejoice in tremendous amounts of work. That said, when the work is done and the magazine is printed, there’s not an issue I’m more proud of. As you’ll read, we don’t just identify and rank, willy-nilly, 100 lakes in the nation that happen to have bass. We go in search of the best, then let the data place them in their rightful, earned spot within the rankings. What you don’t see, however, is what’s left on the cutting room floor. And sometimes the lakes that…

July 11-13 St. Croix Bassmaster Open presented by SEVIIN, Lake St. Clair, Michigan 24-26 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier presented by Lowrance, Lake Champlain, New York 26-27 Bassmaster Junior National Championship, Chickamauga Lake, Tennessee 27-28 Yamaha Rightwaters Bassmaster Kayak Series scored by TourneyX, Susquehanna River, Pennsylvania August 1-3 Strike King Bassmaster High School National Championship, Chickamauga Lake, Tennessee 8-11 Tackle Warehouse Bassmaster Elite, Lake Champlain, New York 15-18 Humminbird Bassmaster Elite, St. Lawrence River, New York 22-24 Strike King Bassmaster College National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops, Lake Hartwell, South Carolina 22-24 St. Croix Bassmaster Open presented by SEVIIN, Leech Lake, Minnesota…

Ken Burk Little Lake Orange, Fla. Bryce Marhin Oshawa, Ontario, Canada Paisley Marhin Oshawa, Ontario, Canada Andrew Bentley Vestavia Hills, Ala. Starting The Season Off Right I am the lucky father of a great young lady, Karly Vodarsik, whose interest in fishing grows every year. I am so proud of her developing skills in casting a spinning rod and having the patience to spend time building memories with her dad (me) that she probably won’t understand for years to come. Attached is a picture of her first bass of the year fishing a great body of water in New Jersey. It is our first fish together this season. P.S. Your magazine is a GREAT combination of a tool I use to keep learning and some entertaining reading when I am…

Bob-Bet Bait Box Bill Perry, email $15 to $20 The Bob-Bet Bait Box is a favorite among collectors due in part to its witty jingle: “Just half a turn, and there’s your worm.” It was designed to wear on the angler’s belt and could be rotated to open the curved lid. The graphics and design date to the 1930s, when it was offered by Walter S. Cole Co., of Beaver, Wis. It was later sold with a decal label, like this one, with the maker listed as Frabill Manufacturing Co., Milwaukee, Wis. They are fairly common fishing items, which keeps them affordable for collectors. Creek Chub Baby Crawdad Ken Dixon, email $10 to $20 The No. 300 Creek Chub Crawdad and the No. 400 Baby Crawdad are among the famous…

ACTIVE ANGLER It’s a technology Elite Series pro Kenta Kimura wishes he had at his home just 30 minutes outside of Osaka, Japan, a technology that might be taken for granted by American anglers accustomed to convenience at their fingertips: Humminbird LakeMaster VX. An essential tool for breaking down lakes before and after tournaments, Humminbird’s LakeMaster VX technology provides ultra-high-definition mapping for anglers both on the water and off. The digital charts include navigation lanes to make accessing those areas easier, and they provide Kimura with a way to research waterways in extreme detail, even when he’s not on the water. BLUE-COLLAR BREAKDOWN The art of scouring lake cartography has been a tournament angler’s pastime for generations. Long before high-definition sonar and ultra-detailed maps came to our onboard graphs and…

OF ALL THE angling principles his dad taught him during countless nights on the Coosa River, Will Davis Jr. points to pier lights as the most profound. Sure, it’s partly about fish attraction, but there’s much more to the picture. The second-year Bassmaster Elite Series pro out of Sylacauga, Ala., has enjoyed nighttime bass fishing for as long as he can remember and, while solitude is a common after-hours benefit, it’s not guaranteed. Thus, the generational wisdom. “Dad and I used to fish a lot of Tuesday-nighters at Lay Lake, and he always showed me how to run pier lights — the glow on the water,” Davis said. “When you’re running, if something blocks that light, you need to turn or shut it down, because something’s in your line of…

IF YOU’VE REACHED this point in the magazine, reading carefully along the way, you’ve no doubt perused the annual 100 Best Bass Lakes list. One name that’s missing from the list is Lake Monticello. But stay tuned. Remember the name of the lake and remember the term “Titan Bass.” Monticello, a tiny, 1,520-acre fishery in southeast Arkansas, was once a budding national power on the bass-fishing scene. It was producing bass in the 12- and 13-pound range, and the parking lots at local boat ramps were filled with truck tags from all over the United States. But then a perfect storm happened — and not the good kind. First, that fishing pressure took its toll quickly on such a small place, especially during the early spring months when the sight…

You’re fresh off of a Hobie Bass Open Series kayak tournament win at Wright Patman Lake in east Texas. It’s not your first championship, but it’s the first one in a while. How does it feel to be back up there? I love these big, national kayak tournaments because of the camaraderie and the community. There’s not a lot of animosity. A lot of times, people bring out the worst in people, and there’s a tension that’s not a good thing. But these entry fees are around $300, and even though the winnings are nice — the last win was $45,000 — the kayak fishing community seems to bring out the best in people. You’ve got a boat now, and a house on the Tennessee River. You’ve also got a…

Straddling a perch on the border of New York, Vermont and Quebec, the vibrant city of Plattsburgh is a bass angler’s dream destination from May to August. Excellent launch ramps, a plentiful parking situation and a quality assortment of dockside restaurants and amenities make Plattsburgh a no-brainer for regular Bassmaster Elite Series events on Lake Champlain, including the 2024 Tackle Warehouse Bassmaster Elite to be held there August 8-11. Oh, when you visit, be on the lookout for Champy the lake monster! 86-12 Kyoya Fujita’s winning total at the 2023 Dakota Lithium Bassmaster Elite at Lake Champlain…

National Top 10 Lakes from the Central Division 1. O.H. Ivie Lake, Texas 2. Lake Fork, Texas 3. Bussey Brake Reservoir, Louisiana 4. Mille Lacs Lake, Minnesota 5. Caney Creek Reservoir, Louisiana [5,000 acres] Historically speaking, Caney Creek is the most prodigious bass fishery in Louisiana, with five of the state’s Top 10 largemouth bass caught here through the years. No one will argue with you on this much — Caney Creek is still absolute fire. The Caney Creek Bass Club is regularly logging “3 Bass Blast” weights in the 18- to 22-pound range. A pair of teenagers caught a state record five-bass stringer in January that weighed approximately 50 pounds, anchored by a 13-5 giant. Winners of a Louisiana Team Trail tourney in March caught a 22-pound limit, and…