Bass Fishing Frog Boat Style
A while back, I posted a few articles about rising fuel costs and a potential move toward small boat bass fishing. Right after those initial posts, our political leaders finally admitted the economy was heading south. One of the artifacts of a slumping economy ended up being falling gas prices therefore its pressure on bass fisherman waned for a while.
Now that the economy is slowly recovering and gas prices are starting to rise, renewed interest in small boats is rising as well.
Of course there is the other reason for gravitating to small boats, easier access to more waters than is feasible with an 18+ foot rig with a 150+ HP outboard hanging off the transom.
Just yesterday I came across a unique concept in small fishing boats, something called “The Frog Boat”.
Though the length of the boat is a mere 8-feet, the addition of four pontoons around the corners provides for enhanced stability and as well as a surprising load rating of 500 pounds!
Why exactly is it called the “Frog Boat”?
Well just watch the following video and see 
Pretty interesting concept if you ask me!
Here’s the link to the company’s website: The Frog Boat
Keep a watch for more articles covering various types of small boats to help serve your bass fishing needs…
Closer Look at Canyon Reservoirs
When most people think of the western U.S., especially the desert southwest, they often visualize towering rock pinnacles, vast expanses of wind-blown sand and deep sinuous canyons.
As a matter of fact, many of us yet to travel to this part of this great nation, have only experienced the area and its relatively unique landscape via photos or videos.
Once the opportunity to visit this spectacular region becomes reality, the magnificence and grandeur of the scenery is more than breath-taking. The same reaction holds true for all of us non-native bass anglers when we first experience the nature of fishing canyon reservoirs.
A World of Rocks, Rocks and More Rocks!
Canyon reservoirs are characterized by deep, narrow, rock-rimmed valleys encased by steep rock walls and bluffs often reaching as high into the sky as they dive deep to the reservoir’s bottom.
Depending on the elevation of the water’s surface, many of the reservoir shorelines are merely the intersection of the water with the bluff rock walls. The nature of these shear rock walls can sometimes be a little more irregular providing a staircase of ledges at varying depths or piles of fallen rock debris that toppled from the canyon rim. Each of these situations provides different bass holding types of rock cover including rock piles, boulders on the ledges or overhangs where the bass hide underneath waiting in ambush.
In areas where less resistant rocks are found at the water’s edge, steeply sloping banks and points of weathered rock debris maybe present. Occasionally, these non-vertical banks also provide cover for the bass in the form of flooded brush or even a lonely cottonwood.
The channel in most canyon reservoirs winds its way back and forth across the reservoir bottom undulating from canyon wall to canyon wall. Though suspending fish may somehow be relating to the presence of the channel beneath, the depth to the channel itself are usually too deep for the bass to use directly.
Even in the upper reaches of the reservoir, the water depths are great enough so fishing the channel edges as might occur on other types of reservoirs is rarely an issue unless suspended fish are relating to it.
Another difference between this type of reservoir and the others is a virtual lack of inundated man-made structures such as bridges, roadways, old structures, etc. Even when they are present, they are typically so deep the only time they might be a factor in holding fish is when they suspend over them.
Forage in canyon reservoirs include:
- native baitfish,
- some panfish, threadfin or gizzard shad (where stocked),
- other gamefish (trout!) and
- crayfish.
Classic Canyon Reservoir Example – Lake Powell (Utah/Arizona)
Located on the border between southeast Utah and northeast Arizona, Lake Powell is definitely a classic when it comes to canyon reservoirs!
Lake Powell - Classic Canyon Reservoir!
This huge canyon reservoir is over 185 miles long with > 1950 miles of inundated shoreline formed after construction of the Glen Canyon Dam in 1963.
This canyon reservoir harbors fantastic populations of both largemouth and smallmouth bass as well as striped bass, walleye and crappie which are also common species of other canyon reservoirs in that region.
Though they take a little getting used too when first fishing canyon reservoirs for bass, they definitely offer some phenomenal bass fishing opportunities for those visiting the area!
Timely Pro Bass Fishing Tips
If you are like us, you’re constantly on the look out for different bass fishing tips n tactics you can use to help boat more bass or save time and money when fishing. Not only are we looking for new methods but also learning about new baits that may be available in other areas of the country or in today’s bassin’ world, another country all together!
One of the best sources for new information on techniques and baits are the bass fishing professionals since they depend on staying up-to-date with new developments in order to remain competitive.
In the following video, a number of bassin’ pros on the FLW bass fishing tour out at Lake Shasta in California reveal some of their primo tips ranging from alternative methods for fishing popular baits like Zoom brush hogs and Yamamoto senkos to rigging methods …
Enjoy!
Closer Look at the Smallmouth Bass
The Overview of the Smallmouth…
Smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) are native to a number of states in the eastern part of the U.S. and are found in every county of the state. They are known for their acrobatic abilities and putting up a very strong fight when caught on hook and line.
Like their cousin, the largemouth, smallmouth bass are also referred to by other names including: bronzeback, brown bass, smallie, smalljaws and brownie …
Smallmouth bass mature at age three or four, and occasionally live to be 10 to 12 years old. The usual smallmouth caught by fishermen ranges from 8 to 15 inches long, and weighs less than three pounds. Any smallmouth over four pounds is usually considered a trophy!
Preferred Habitat
Smallmouth bass thrive in streams with gravel or rock bottoms with a visible current.
Smallmouth bass often out number largemouth bass in many streams and rivers wherever they are located across the U.S. In the more southern states, smallmouth can be out numbered by spotted bass in number of river and stream systems.
Smallmouth bass are common in Great Lakes Region and through the lakes of Canada, especially around the islands and reefs and along rocky shorelines. Beyond natural bodies of water, smallmouths can also be found in numerous reservoirs, especially those with steep drop offs and rocky shorelines.
Though smallmouth bass usually do poorly in smaller lakes and reservoirs that are shallow with soft bottoms and abundant aquatic vegetation, some shallow, weedy lakes contain decent smallmouth populations.
Smallmouth bass spawn in May and early June when water temperatures range from 55 to 65°F. Nests are built in gravel or hard bottom substrates in 2 to 20 feet of water. During the spawn, females lay between 2,000 and 15,000 eggs. After completing the spawning ritual, the male typically guards the nest and the fry for a short time.
Once the fry lose their egg-sack, the young smallmouth feed on zooplankton and midge larvae until large enough to feed on typical smallmouth fare.
Forage
Feed primarily on crayfish and other large aquatic invertebrates. Additionally, smallmouths also feed on small fish as well as both hatching and flying insects on the surface of the water.
A Closer Look at the Largemouth Bass
A Little Overview …
The largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoidesis) is one of the most popular freshwater sportfish in most states in the U.S. When you combine its reputation as a fighter, its palatability, and extensive range, it’s easy to understand why.
Its original range was restricted to warmer waters east of the Rocky Mountains, but its reputation as a formidable game fish created a demand for stocking programs from coast to coast extending its present range throughout most of the U.S. and southern Canada.
Like many other game fish, largemouth bass are also referred to by other names such as bucket mouth bass, bigmouth bass, line-side and green bass.
Water Temperature greatly dictates where to find these fish. Cold water (less than 50 degrees F) will mean most of the fish reside in or near deeper water.
Warmer temperatures (greater than 65 degrees F) will get the fish actively feeding in the shallows. It’s those temperatures in the middle (50 to 65 degrees F) when bass behavior is toughest to predict, so some experimentation will be in order.
Largemouth bass spawn in late spring when water temperatures are between 62 and 68 degrees F.
The males build nests in calm sandy or fine gravel areas in less than six feet of water. Females lay between 2,000 and 7,000 eggs per lb. of body weight, however, not necessarily all in the same nest.
The males actively guard the eggs, and later the newly hatched fry. Hatching occurs within 7 to 10 days. Young fish or fry remain on the nest until their yolk sac has been consumed, after which the survivors will then school until reaching about one inch in length.
Largemouth bass typically mature by age four occasionally living upwards of 15 years and sometimes even longer. The typical size for largemouth caught by fishermen ranges from 8 to 15 inches long weighing three pounds or less. Any largemouth over six pounds is usually considered a trophy in most areas!
Preferred Habitat
Common to almost all water bodies, from the smallest farm ponds, lazy rivers and streams to the largest reservoirs, this fish is indeed highly adaptable.
Largemouth bass prefer calm, or slow moving water often associated with areas of rooted aquatic vegetation and overhead cover.
These bass are definitely cover-oriented game fish. They use cover in the form of rocks, weeds, logs, grass, and ledges – to protect themselves from predators and to ambush food items passing by their hide-out.
Although you might catch the occasional largemouth bass out in open water when schooling on baitfish such as herring and alewives, you will catch many more if you focus on structure during most times of the year.
Forage
Within the fresh water food chain in many areas, the largemouth bass is nearly without rival. A voracious feeder, the largemouth will eat aquatic invertebrates, amphibians, and even small mammals and birds (yup seen that one with my own eyes), but its diet consists mostly of small to medium forage fish and crayfish as available.
Basics of the Black Bass
Our Prey
Today, the black basses are some of the most coveted species of game fish here in the U.S. and growing internationally as well. Though the black bass family includes a number species, the two most prevalent and pursued are the largemouth and smallmouth bass. This resource, therefore, will focus on those two species to uncover a few of the secrets to help us all be better at catching rather than just fishing while pursuing our prey.
Why are these two bass family members so popular?
Some of the reasons for their popularity stems from a combination of the size of their populations, the pugnacious attitudes towards forage (real and perceived), as well as to their high-level of adaptability to new waters largemouth and smallmouth bass.
The Technical Overview …
The black basses (genus Micropterus) are the largest of the sunfish family and because of their importance as game fish they are also the most well studied. There are seven living species within this genus, and as mentioned above two species are extensively studied and pursued.
KVD Wins 2011 Bassmaster Classic
Seems like only yesterday when I wrote about Kevin VanDam, the Michigan Wonder-kid (though he really isn’t a kind anymore) winning the 2010 Bassmaster Classic on Lay Lake, Alabama …
Here we are just over a year later and the man has done it again! This time however KVD managed to out distance the rest of the Bass World’s finest on the Mississippi River Delta!
Congrats to KVD for another great win (he also managed to take BASS Angler of the Year again as well) as well as the other anglers competing in the 2011 Bassmaster Classic
Ten (10) Tips for Spring Bass Fishing
In the spirit of sharing useful insight from other bass anglers, here is a great summary article by Ron Kurucz recently posted on Ezine Articles:
Couple of Nice Springtime Bass!
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10 Tips For Spring Bass
By Ron Kurucz
Spring may be the best time of the year to catch largemouth bass, but lots of fishermen don’t make the most of it. Far too many of us tend to fish the same way day after day, randomly casting along shorelines in a hit or miss fashion. If the bass don’t cooperate, we figure they just aren’t feeding and let it go at that. Sure, we manage to catch a few bass, but that’s because even a blind hog will find an acorn occasionally. If this sounds familiar, it’s time to make some changes. This means giving more thought to things like weather, water temperature and the changing patterns bass adapt to as they go through their long spawning cycles. The following tactics can get you started on the right track. Use them and you’ll not only catch more bass this spring, but you’ll also have a much better shot at hooking into a lunker.
1. Get Started Early:
One thing that bass have in common with us is that they think about spawning a long time before they get around to it. That means largemouths – and especially the biggest females – often begin making forays into shallows to check out spawning areas weeks, even months, before the first leaves appear on the trees. During this prespawn period, it’s not unusual to make outstanding catches in March and April, even February or earlier from the mid-Atlantic states on south. One key is to fish during warm spells in the early spring, especially if these periods last several days. It doesn’t take a heat wave to launch big bass on a feeding spree. Often daytime highs in the upper 50s will do it. Look for two distinct patterns. If it’s still early in the spring, fish points and deeper shorelines in water four to eight feet deep using spinnerbaits, rattling minnow lures, jig n pigs or diving crankbaits. Bass use these mid-depths as transitional staging areas before they move shallow into the shallows. Don’t neglect the shallows, however. Even early, big bass often move inshore, but a cold snap will quickly force them back to deeper water. When you find bass in shallow areas, they’ll be hungry. Try them with spinnerbaits, rattling lures or shallow diving minnow imitations.
2. Fish the Weather Fronts:
Those warm periods in the spring are frequently followed by bitter, fast moving cold fronts. Knowledgeable bass fishermen learn to look for these patterns because the best fishing is likely to occur on the last warm day before that sharp cold front passes through. Sometimes fishing peaks as the wind begins to rise and the weather deteriorates. Ideally, you’d like to start fishing in your shirt sleeves and finish in a goose down jacket. Slow moving fronts that don’t create sharp and rapid drops in temperature aren’t usually as reliable, but they may still provide decent fishing. After a cold front passes you’ll almost invariably have very poor fishing the first couple of cold, clear days.
3. Keep Track of the Water Temperature:
Get a thermometer and use it. Although it is possible to catch early spring bass in nasty weather in 40 degree water, your chances improve greatly after the surface water temperature passes 50 degrees. For many anglers, the magic mark seems to be about 57 degrees. At that point, and as water temperatures rise into the 60s, bass often become more active both in mid-depth staging areas and increasingly in the shallows. Largemouth bass begin active spawning when the water temperature reaches 68 to 72 degrees F, and some bass eat less often when they’re actively bedding. However, all bass don’t spawn at the same time. Even at the peak of spawning there will be plenty of fish still feeding aggressively, including some that haven’t spawned yet and some that may have finished. Where it’s legal, it’s also possible to catch fish while they’re on their beds, although such fish should certainly be released. The trick is to approach quietly and use smaller lures or lightly weighted plastic worms and lizards. Even a bass that’s not feeding will sometimes attack these baits simply to remove the threat.
4. Fish the Correct Side of the Lake:
Bass are especially sensitive to temperature changes at this time of year, and will often seek out spots where the water is only marginally warmer. Your thermometer will help, but knowing where to look will save time. Creeks feeding into lakes often carry rainwater runoff that is warmer than the lake water, and bass tend to gather in and around the mouth of these creeks. Such areas also provide likely spawning grounds. Sunlight and wind also influence surface temperatures, and you’ll often catch more bass in coves and along shorelines on the north and east sides of the lake. Not only do these areas get more afternoon sun, but they are also protected should there be chill winds blowing from the northeast. Only the surface layer will be warmer early in the spring, so don’t be surprised to find bass suspended on top. Look for them on the submerged ridges of long points, in shallow coves and over expansive flats where they may be basking. They may be wary, however, so make long casts. Rattling lures are very effective, and they cover open water quickly.
5. Fish Small Bodies of Water:
One of the most effective tactics in the early spring is to pass up the big lakes and spend more time on smaller waters. Ponds and small lakes warm more quickly because they aren’t as deep, frequently have clearer water and are sheltered from the wind. As a result, small-water bass often become active weeks before they do on large impoundments. Fishing pressure is also often less intense. On a massive lake, you may spend hours fishing spots virtually devoid of fish and not even know it. However, you can fish an entire pond in just a few hours and be relatively sure that big bass will at least see your offerings.
6. Don’t Pass Up Murky Water:
You might want to avoid lakes the color of red mud, but moderately stained water with a greenish tinge is better than water that’s too clear. Bass can see lures surprisingly well in all but the muddiest water, and they can hear even better. If other conditions are favorable, don’t let a little mud deter you. Bright, noisy rattling lures and spinnerbaits are your best bets, and chartreuse is probably the best color. Silver also seems to work well, and black is surprisingly visible in muddy water.
7. Pay Attention to the Bottom:
Even many knowledgeable bass fishermen overlook this vital factor. When bass move into the shallows, they’re looking for food and also an ideal spot to fan out a bed. For spawning, bass will seek out a sandy or pea-size gravel bottom before they settle for anything else. You won’t find bass spawning on solid rock or bottoms that are too soft and mucky from accumulated silt. How do you determine what you can’t see? If possible, fish where you’ve caught spawning fish before in previous years. Otherwise, you can often identify the type of bottom by looking at the nearby shoreline. The residue on your anchor may also give you a clue, or you can probe shallow spots with a paddle. Even your depth sounder will help by distinguishing the rock or muck best avoided.
8. Don’t Overlook Cover:
Fishing the right cover is the most important tactics at this time of year. Early in the season before bas go shallow, those deeper staging areas almost always have plenty of stumps, brush or rough bottom structure. As the season progresses and bass begin to move towards the shallows, you’ll want to concentrate on a different type of cover. High water is common in the spring, and you’ll often find bass in flooded brush, willows and trees on points. Fish the tip of a point and both sides, then get in close and cast among the trees and stumps, if possible. Be sure to fish flooded stands of willows and other similar brush in the backs of coves. Bass love to spawn in these areas, and the biggest females will move in earlier than you might expect. Fish flooded brush and willows first by probing the outer edges with lipped crankbaits and rattling lures, then move in close and fish the thickest cover using spinnerbaits and jig n pigs, both of which are nearly weedless. Weighted soft plastic lizards, Texas rigged, are also effective in heavy, shallow cover.
9. Fish Close:
Think of spring bass fishing as hand to hand combat. With few exceptions, you’ve got to mix it up inside to be effective, especially after the fish have moved into the shallows around heavy cover to spawn. Make short, accurate casts into and under willows and clumps of grass or other cover. This is also where flipping is effective. Spinnerbaits, jig n pigs and lizards are your tools now, and you want stout rods and strong line – at least 20 pound test – for muscling whoppers out of cover. There’s one other tactic that you definitely don’t want to overlook in the early spring, and it may come as a surprise. Many weeks before traditional topwater lures begin to be effective, bass often show a fatal attraction for buzzbaits, those splashy, gurgling surface spinnerbaits with the huge blades. Even very early, whopper largemouths will often eat these lures when they won’t hit anything else. Fish buzzbaits close around cover (they seldom hang up) or make long casts over flats. Use a steady or slightly erratic retrieve, but keep them moving.
10. Stick To Proven Lures:
You can cover every spring situation with a selection of spinnerbaits, rattling lures, jig n pigs, buzzbaits, soft lizards and shallow and deep diving crankbaits, but you may not need them all. Of these, the spinnerbait will handle both heavy cover and mid-depths, whereas the rattling lure is a superb choice everywhere except in the thickest cover.
These are just some of the basics. You’ll add refinements, no doubt, and you’ll still have some poor days. Everyone does. But if you’re persistent, you’ll be rewarded. Whether or not you catch fish, treat every fishing trip as a learning experience. To learn more about what baits to use and when to use them visit us at ExtremeBassLures.com.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ron_Kurucz
http://EzineArticles.com/?10-Tips-For-Spring-Bass&id=3693875
Fishing Cape Cod’s Johns Pond
Johns Pond in Mashpee is another one of the Upper Cape’s fantastic fishing resources. Located in western Mashpee close to the Falmouth border, Johns Pond is also a glacial kettle pond just like Peters Pond, Mashpee Wakeby Ponds, Snake Pond Ashumet Pond.
According to the Massachusetts of Division Fisheries and Wildlife, the pond covers approximately 317 surface acres with an average depth of 23 feet, maximum depth of about 65 feet in an average transparency of about 18 feet. It is classified as a mesotrophic waterbody.
Access to Johns Pond is provided via a paved ramp off Hooppole road with parking for 10 vehicles with trailers. The easiest way to find Johns Pond is using a mapping service such as Google maps but it is located north of the Barnstable County Fairgrounds on Route 151. Over 3.5 miles of shoreline surrounds the pond but it is fairly heavily developed with both seasonal and year-round residences.
Johns is a great fishery containing trophy specimens of both largemouth and small mouth bass along with excellent quality rainbow and brook trout that are stocked annually by the state. Optimal times for catching both species of bass runs from early spring to late fall especially during those times when sea-run alewives are present. Typically trout fishing is best from late winter and through the spring and then again to the fall. Where trout tend to cruise and prefer open water, the bass tend to frequent the many weed beds present across the pond.
I recall one time several years ago stopping by the Johns Pond ramp one late winter day in the trout were breaking just off shore. Since I had a rod and reel in some bass tackle in the truck, I geared up with the smallest crank baits in the box and managed to catch several nice rainbows even though it is using bass fishing tackle.
The image below shows a version of the pond contour map with the areas where vegetation usually grows shaded in. Common aquatic vegetation present in Johns Pond includes pondweed, eelgrass in the deeper sections and drop-offs while coontail moss is common in the shallows.
So the next time you’re heading over for some Cape Cod fishing and find yourself in the vicinity of Johns Pond, be sure to stop by and check out the great fishing opportunities it can provide.
January Open-water Smallmouth Bass in MN?
Looking for some great smallmouth bass fishing tips to cure the cabin fever of winter?
What if the tips include open-water fishing for smallmouth bass during January in Minnesota? When I first came across this info, I was more than a tad skeptical …
None the less, it was true and what it really takes is a large river (the Mississippi will do), power plant discharge (ah nice warm water) and of course some hearty fisher-people!
Give this video a look see and find out what we mean!
So the take-away of these winter, open-water smallmouth bass fishing tips …
- Find a large river with open-water;
- Locate power plants on the river and position yourself downstream (the smallies certainly will); and
- Use live bait (definitely tends to be more productive during the winter period …
