So the calendar says spring, but here in California at least, it’s like the dead of winter…cold, rainy and windy. It’s wacky weather like this — sunny and 70 degrees one day, then pouring the next — that can make bass fishing tough. Still, our pal Big Fred Contaoi has been sending us some pix of big bass from Clear Lake lately, so he’s obviously figured something out. In fact, he finished 4th in a big tourney there last week…and the weather was super funky then, too.
But, this is all a long preamble to say that the spawn’s not far off…so it’s time to target pre-spawn bass. Learn how HERE
largemouth bass
Three Hot Baits for Cold Water Bass
This time of year, you can go from Indian Summer to winter overnight. One day, you’ll be fishing in shirtsleeves and then it snows on you the next. When you get a sudden cold front, bass fishing often gets extremely tough. Luckily, all is not lost. Professional bass angler Fred Contaoi has a few tricks up his sleeve to keep the bass chewing — even when they’re hunkered down after the first storm of the year.
While most folks turn to drop-shotting finesse baits and spooning in deep water when the temps go frigid, Contaoi says that there’s a short window in which the bass will still be up in the shallows and he employs three main weapons to get the fish to go.
Fluff Chucker Bass Tourney coming to Delta
Okay all you bass loving, Delta-prowling fluff chuckers out there, it’s time to tie up some of your best bigmouth buggers and get ready for the 2009 Delta Bass-N-Fly fly fishing-only bass tourney May 15.
The event features a basic bass team tourney format — two anglers per boat will fish for a combined limit of 5 bass (largemouth, smallies or spotts — no stripers). The team with the heaviest limit wins some $$ and the tourney will pay out to the top three.
Additionally, there will be a bunch of cool schwag to be raffled up by the likes of Sage , Rio, Simms, Smith Action Optics, Scientific Anglers, Umpqua, Icon Products, Angler’s Inn and Pultz’s Poppers.
The Bass-N-Fly thing was a huge success in it’s first season in 2008, as evidenced by the 32 teams from around the country participated.
Spinnerbaits for Bass: Great late-summer getters!
Looking for a super-effective late season bass bait? Go with good ol’ Mr. Versatile himself: the spinnerbait.
I know, I know…people often think of throwing spinnerbaits for bass early in the season but the truth of the matter is these big flashing hunks of metal and vinyl work great year-round if you know when and where to throw them.
World record bass dies of old age
Dottie, the world-record class largemouth bass at Dixon Lake that has captured the attention of anglers worldwide, died apparently of old age over Mother’s Day weekend. The end of an era, to be sure.
Read the whole story here at ESPN OUTDOORS