August 18, 2014 3:26 pm
By Jim Root
If you’re like most people you’ve probably heard stories of how legendary the smallmouth bass fishing is in NY. From Ontario, Erie, St. Lawrence, Oneida, Champlain, Cayuga, Susquehanna, you can find yourself hooking up with smallmouth in the 5-7+ pound range on every trip if you know what to look for, what to bring, and what to expect. Come unprepared, however, and you will leave with a coldness in your heart as deep as those lakes.
1. Go Big.
Forget everything you’ve been told about smallmouth fishing. Our fish are a different breed. Ask anyone who’s ever caught one here and you’ll learn quickly that these brown fish have a serious attitude problem. The real fight won’t begin until the fish can see the boat. With that in mind, you want to leave your medium light spinning rod and four-pound-test fluorocarbon line at home. These fish require a different strategy, and heavier game plan. Your three main baits are going to be cranks, tubes, and drop shot.
I prefer to use a 7 foot, medium heavy spinning rod like my Dobyns Champion Series 704SF. This is a great rod because it affords you the sensitivity you need to feel when you’re getting bit, but packs plenty of backbone to allow you to have some input while reeling in the fish. Liter rods will leave you at their mercy. This rod, combined with 10 or 12 lb Seaguar InvizX, will let you horse those fish a little more. It will also let you work a tube if you choose. However I prefer the Champion 734C for that, with the same line. For my cranks I use a 765CBGLASS. Not only is this a great rod and useful for many different depths, it’s strong enough to fight those bigger fish and still have the give in the tip that you need when throwing cranks.
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Tags: Smith Mountain, Gary Dobyns, Champion Series, Fusion, Snowlizard, Erie, Strykr, Ontario, St. Lawrence, Champlain, Cayuga, Douglas, Santee Cooper
Categorised in: Team STORMR
July 21, 2014 1:40 pm
If you live above the Mason-Dixon line you’re either enjoying some of the best fishing you’ve seen in years, or you’re missing out on it! The current temperatures and moon phase is producing a feeding frenzy of both Large and Smallmouth bass. Temperatures have been moderate and slightly cooler at night. While the moon phase has fish targeting crawfish and feeding so heavily on them, you can actually see fish regurgitate them when they’re being reeled in or after they’ve been in your livewell. This is a great time to throw tubes, jigs, and soft plastic craws. You should use mixed colors like black and blue or Alabama Craw, to imitate the kind of transition that they’ve been going through since the full moon on the 13th.
Early July 2014 has been a really exciting time because the fish have been feeding very aggressively, making them easier to locate than they normally are, particularly this year with the absence of grass in the lakes that were hit hardest by the coldest winter I can remember. Rocky points, isolated rock piles, bridge pilings, and ledges are all holding big largemouth and smallmouth right now. A seven foot, medium heavy rod with a fast action reel (gear ratio of 7:3:1), 17lb fluorocarbon line, a big hook, half ounce pegged tungsten weight, rig it Texas and you’re good to go! You can fish them a few different ways: drag it, pitch it, or snap it by raising it up and down quickly in a 6-12 motion. Let the fish dictate for you how they want it. If you’re jig fishing, use a 1/2 or 3/4 ounce in either green pumpkin or black and blue.
This is also a great time to improve your ability to fish deep. Start the morning by targeting laydowns or lilypads with frogs, Sammies, or other top water baits. But as the sun comes up, leave the bank for a little bit and force yourself to target the deeper fish now while they’re feeding so well.
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Tags: bass fishing in july, Team STORMR, STORMR, Fusion, jim root, deadliest catch, wild bill
Categorised in: Team STORMR
July 7, 2014 9:59 am
Bryan New is one of the newest members of the STORMR team. He’s enjoyed a very successful season on the FLW tour as a co-angler with 3 top ten finishes on tour and 2 in the Rayovac Series as well as qualifying for both the Forrest Wood Cup and the Rayovac Championship.
In this article originally posted at Fishing the Back, Bryan details how he makes the most of his time on the water. While the piece was written with the co-angler in mind, we feel that this information is good whether you are fishing from the front deck or back of the boat.
By: Bryan New
As a co angler, most of the major decisions are out of your control. You have to fish the water the boater wants to fish, you are positioned where the boater positions you, and you have no idea where you will go next. On top of all of this, you are fishing behind some really good fishermen. This is why it is important to fish hard all day. Wasted time is a wasted opportunity. In this article, I will discuss 5 tips for saving time on the water, and how they help me.
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Tags: Brian's Bees, The Rod Glove, McCorkle Concrete, Shane's Baits, STORMR, Lake Norman Bait and Tackle, Charlie's Worms
Categorised in: Team STORMR
