NOW is the time for topwater bass!

The end of August and early September has always been my favorite time to target largemouth bass. During this time, bass move into shore during low light periods (especially at dusk) and begin to feed on a variety of prey. The topwater bite can be phenomenal if you hit it just right. Unfortunately, most anglers don't have the patience to be effective when it comes to topwater. If you like to go out and chunk crank and spinner-baits all day, then topwater probably isn't for you. But if you can put up with some longer periods of "down time", then you'll be rewarded with some incredible, story-worthy topwater action.
Nothing is more exciting than seeing a nice "bucket-mouth" execute what angler's have termed "the toilet flush" (i.e., a big bass displacing about 5 to 7 gallons as it explodes into a topwater lure).
What to use: I prefer dark colors- dark greens, blacks, reds and blues. Try the Rebel Pop-R (shown at right), the Zoom Horny Toad, or (my favorite) the classic floating rapala (pictured below).
How to rig: Make sure you tie the line directly to the lure. Don't use a swivel snap as it will hang down and pull your line down as well. Also, use low-visibility line if possible. I prefer Berkley Trilene XT low-vis green 10lb test for topwater. Remember, this is a sight and sound presentation, so you don't want anything else out in the water that will alert a wary largemouth.
The presentation: I call it the "pop-and-stop". Pop the lure by jerking the rod tip 6 to 12 inches. Then stop and allow the ripples to settle. Oftentimes, bass will strike after the lure has come to a complete stop, so be patient. Once you are convinced that you will not get a strike, wait another 10 seconds before popping again. Note: some lures such as the horny toad and jitterbug are made for faster retrieves but should also be occassionally "stopped" to entice a trailing bass to strike.
The hookset: Okay, so you've been totally patient as you pop-and-stop your lure thru the cattails- then suddenly SMACK! a bass rips into your lure, in your excitement you set the hook, only jerk the bait out of the fish's mouth and send it flying past your head and into the back of the boat. When a bass strikes on topwater, they often have an odd handle on their prey, thus they swim down then readjust the prey in their mouth. To ensure that the fish has the lure, do a two count (one-one thousand, two one-thousand) before setting the hook. And don't worry if you miss a fish. Just cast back to the same spot. A surface feeding bass is much more likely to strike a topwater a second time in my experience.
Where to fish: Look for shallow water areas with dark bottoms in 3-5 feet of water. Also, target areas close to deeper water as fish will be swimming in to feed around dusk.
Good luck, and post any pictures of topwater largemouth!

Sunday night on Mauna Loa

So Sunday night was kind of a bummer. I started out from shore with my fly rod. I caught three nice pumpkin seeds using a winged, blue fly. Not too shabby for a beginer. I'm starting to get better with my placement, but still have a long way to go.

Around 7:00pm I went out with my brother and father in the 14' Smoker Craft. The weather was clear and sunny. There was a slight wind coming from north until about 8:00pm, then it died. We fished the whole southern end of the lake with nothing to show for our efforts. Then, on my last cast I caught this whopper on the south west end, just near the cove. I was casting near the drop off near a group of lilly pads with a newly aquired, light green Jitterbug. The tally wasn't so good, but it was nice to get out anyway.



Oh, FYI, the Spiderwire worked. I experienced no tangling or knotting!

Slight chance of rain...

The weather was less than cooperative Saturday morning starting out with a cold rain and moderate wind. But that wasn't about to stop us. Ryan and I just pulled out our ponchos and away we went. Again, we concentrated on the southern end of Spring Lake, just off of the lilly pads. We armed ourselves with Rapala minnows and Thunderstiks now that we know that's what works.

The day started out badly, unfortunately. Ryan hooked into what looked to be a very nice bass, but it dropped off of his line just as he was about to land it. He wouldn't shut up about it the rest of the day. We went on to catch five more. They averaged about this size to the right. I also gave Ryan an honorable mention for this fairly big pumpkin seed. It was caught on a Rapala!


I think it was just one of those days. We experienced MANY reel malfunctions, mostly line knotting and tangling. I've switched from Fireline to Spiderwire to see if that fixes the problem. I think those little crank-baits just don't have enough weight, causing the line to explode out from the spool. We will see.

Spur of the Moment

Ryan and I hit Spring Lake again at about 9:00PM Tuesday night. We weren't expecting much. Just a little fishing and a 12 pack after a hard day at work. We ended up bringing in three bass and a bluegill bigger than my palm! No pics, unfortunately. We took one picture with my phone of the biggest fish of the night. But I closed the fucking thing before I hit save. It was a 10" bass, caught again, on the south side of the lake near the lily-pads. This one was taken with a small, dull green ThunderStik. The bass on that lake seem to favor small, brightly colored crank-baits. I also got a nice hit off my 20 year old Jitterbug, but failed to land him. We're gonna try again near the end of the week now that we know what they like.

Sunday morning largemouth!

Newman and I hit Spring Lake Sunday morning around 9:00am looking for largemouth bass. It was sunny and about 80 degrees with little wind. We got two on the south side of the lake right near the drop off. I got mine on a Mepps Black Magic #5. Then he got both of his on MY neon green Rapala. The first two were nothing to speak of, but check this sucker out! He got it right before we packed it up for the day. It was in about two feet of water right next to his grandfather's dock.

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