1st Cast Fishing Lures

I am a big believer in the saying that you can never have too much information.  Especially when it comes to fishing.  That may sound a little silly but think about it.  How many times have you tried and tried to get on a pattern that would produce a limit and just can’t quite get there?  Well believe me, we are not alone.  There are plenty of others out there in the same boat so to speak.

I have recently come across a couple of Bass forums and Fishing Forums that I would like to pass along to you.  These are not only great places to ask other anglers their opinions on certain situations, but most are willing to give you free advise on just about anything to do with fishing.  It does’t even have to be bass fishing.

Do yourself a favor and check these out.

BassFishin.com - this site has a great forum plus they also have some very well done video’s that might help.

TheAnglingCenter.com - The Tactical Approach to Fishing is another great site that I have started viewing lately.  Great people and very helpful.  Fantastic layout with new features that are soon to be added for species specific information.

Both of these sites are very user friendly and could possibly hold the answer to your questions.

Tell em you heard it hear!

These days there are so many lures to choose from that it can be very confusing and definitely very expensive!  Bass Fisherman can be very particular about their baits.  If they have a certain lure in a certain color that they have caught more than a couple of fish with then they will stick with it.  Makes sense.  The problem these days is that most of the lures that are on the market have gone through the roof when it comes to price. 

If you will take the time and search the Internet you can still find some great values on Bass Fishing lures.  You can find soft plastics at a discount price that will out perform some of the big name high dollar soft plastics.  As I said earlier, bass fisherman (including yours truly) are a particular group when it comes the our equipment which includes lures.  We find it hard to change sometimes if there isn’t a big name endorsing the product.  I can tell you that if you want a bigger bang for your hard earned buck, then shop around and you will find it.

Cranking is one of my favorite techniques.  I wrote earlier that I have two or three favorites.  But Cranking can be so much fun and very productive.  Using a crankbait such as the Storm Big Bass Suspending Crankbait can be a great tool when the bass are in their summer pattern or even during those early months when the water is cool and the bass are pre staging / suspending and not real active.

Using a Crankbait will allow you to cover a great deal of water to find where the bass are hanging out.  During the summer months we all know that they tend to move off into deep water.  Deep is a term that can have a different definition on different lakes.  In your favorite lake deep may mean 20 or 30 ft.  At Table Rock Lake in southwest Missouri it can mean 45 or 50 ft.  In that case you had better be prepared to drop shot a finesse worm in 40 feet of water in the tree tops.  But that is a topic for another day.  In other lakes around the country deep could be the next drop off from 10 to 12 feet.

Suspending crankbaits that dive to 10 feet or more give you the opportunity to crank the bait down to the desired level and have it stay there to entice those fish up from 12 or more feet.  Believe me, when they are hanging close to the bottom they always have a watchful eye looking up for an easy meal.  Do yourself a favor and give one of these deep diving suspending crankbaits a try.  Remember you will always do better if you are outfitted with the right kind of Bass Fishing Tackle.

This is a Shad colored Storm Big Bass Suspending Crankbait. It dives to 10ft. You know your lake better than anyone else.  What color works better for you?  They come in a wide range to fit your bass fishing needs.

When you are preparing to fish a tournament or even just head out for the weekend there are several things you should do before you ever hook up the boat and head out.  Many are obvious such as making sure that everything in and on the boat is in good working order.  Re-tie your lines and prepare all of your tackle, know what the local regulations are… you pretty much get the picture. 

When tournament fishing there is one piece of preparation that I never slack on and I would suggest that if you want to be a better fisherman and make productive use of your time that you do the same.  It doesn’t matter if it is a lake that I have been to many times or a body of water that I have never seen I still practice this.

 FIND THE BEST MAPS AVAILABLE AND STUDY THEM.  You can save yourself a lot of time and money by studying your maps before you ever leave the house.  You can eliminate a lot of water depending on the time of year and current conditions with the use of a map.  Why fish the flats with a spinner bait if the bass have already headed toward the summer depths.  If you need to find the next drop off from 5 to 10 feet on a point, then your map is the way to go.  These are also excellent record keepers.  Make notes on them when you do find the fish or that secret brush pile.  These days GPS has taken a major role in that area, but we all know that we don’t always fish out of our own boats and unless you want everyone to have your spots marked on their GPS, then take your map.

 There are many good maps available these days.  Look for the one that you like the best and make the investment.

This is just one thing you can do to make your time on the water more enjoyable and productive.

As lakes around the country begin to thaw and we go back to fishing as our number one leisure activity, I have a little story to share:

From the time I was 14, I’d used the same method to bring my rod with me to the lake near the house I grew up in.  As a kid, I never thought to get a bag for my rod and being poor, my dad taught me to wrap it up using plastic grocery bags, which worked until I stopped using the hand-me-down fishing rod.  Within the last year or so, I’ve been trying out different bags and seeing which one worked best for me.

Eventually, I came across the Take It Easy Bag.  It holds several poles and, among other things, is waterproof.  More than anything, I like the fact that it uses a shoulder strap, so both my hands aren’t holding something.  If you don’t use up all the room, you could throw a bag of chips in there too.

So while the weather heats up and summer approaches, you’ll be sure to find me around with my new favorite fishing rod bag.