2017 Fishing Underway!
Obviously Cross Country season, deer season, and the holidays took their toll on my Angler’s Paradise updates. It’s not that we have not had a lot going on. We had some good fishing through Oct., and I just posted a picture of a 6lb fish my guided client caught on a day of high, muddy, cold water just before the bowhunters started filtering in. Deer season was good, with two nice bucks harvested during rifle season.
Now as the calendar has turned and deer season is a memory my sights have turned to the pursuit of that State record bass. Most really giant bass is caught in the late winter, early spring before the water warms and the spawning activity begins. Water temps keep the metabolism down and that makes it much easier to play a giant fish back to the boat. I have personally seen two fish 10.5 or greater landed on 8lb test and a 3″ grub during March trips where the warm coat never came off.
Yesterday was a rare day in Jan. Mid 50’s and very little south wind. We shoved off at 10:00 and fished until 4:00. The bites were not as numerous as I had hoped for, but like many of my winter bass experiences, the quality was really good. We boated 6 fish total and only had one that was less than 15″. 5/6 were caught on a 3″ grub, the 6th and biggest fish (5LBS) was caught on an Alabama rig.
Remember, 50 degree days even with some wind are very fishable down in the pit. The wind can rarely get you right in the face and is never as fierce as it is coming across a big body of water. Holler if you see a good weather day that fits with a desire to catch some crappie or pursue that fish of a lifetime.