Tour De Bronze 2014

Well, my big bronze trip begins tomorrow, when I board a plane to fly from Atlanta to Green Bay. Travel actually includes two trips in one. After arriving in Green Bay, I'll spend three days fishing Sturgeon Bay and the other bays that bound Door County, Wisconsin. From Green Bay, I fly directly to Buffalo, to fish for more big smallmouths in Lake Erie's eastern basin and to fish for a mix of species (including smallmouths) in the Lower Niagara River and Lake Ontario.

The Sturgeon Bay area, the Buffalo area of Erie and the mouth of the Niagara clearly rank among the finest trophy smallmouth waters in the world, and the first days after they open typically are among the very best for catching the most and the biggest fish. Fishing is still fishing, so it may not happen, but if the weather allows us good approaches to the best waters, chances of tangling with seriously big smallmouth bass are about as good as I could ask for.

At Sturgeon Bay, I think we'll be fishing with Tubes and other Get Bit Baits soft-plastic offerings, plus some hair jigs custom tied specifically for the early-season bite. At Erie, tubes, live shiners and jerkbaits could all play a role.

Of course this trip isn't all about bronze. I'll also be spending time on the Lower Niagara River fishing for steelhead, salmon and lakers, But maybe that's another story for another time.