Guntersville Calling

When Jimmy Mason sends word that the bass are biting at Guntersville and suggests we get together to do some story and photo work, I don't need any convincing. Not long ago, Jimmy sent such a report, and plans are now set for us to fish together next Monday and Tuesday.

A 69,100-acre impoundment of the Tennessee River, Lake Guntersville is one of the nation's most renowned fishing destinations and somewhere most bass fishermen like to visit anytime they get the opportunity. Bluff lined and famous for expansive grass flats, Guntersville is a fish factory, and one of those places that holds and extra charm because as you fish there, you know that any bass that takes your lure could turn out to be a genuine giant.

Early winter tends to be a good time at Guntersville because the fish get congregated, and you can catch them quite a few different ways. I suspect we'll spend some time slinging YUMbrella Rigs, which means it's possible that I'll get to catch more than one bass in a cast, which is always fun. Jimmy also mentioned that the jerkbait bite has been good. By my way of thinking, few things in bass fishing that are more exciting than pausing a Rogue presentation and having a bass suddenly knock the slack from the line and nearly take away the rod.

The forecast calls for stable weather early next week, and we should be fishing just ahead of a winter system. There's not saying for certain what will really happen, but those definitely are promising conditions. I'll find out in a little less than 100 hours (not that I'm counting it down, or anything like that!)

Big Brown Kind of Day

We couldn't have scripted it better for what we wanted to do. Late winter is prime time for big browns on Arkansas' White River, and we had heavy cloud cover and plenty of current, with four of eight turbines in Bull Shoals Dam turning. We wanted to throw Rogues and had an excellent jerkbait flow. We also were fishing with Cranor's Guide Service, which specializes in targeting big trout on the White and Norfork rivers.

Jumping straight to the outcome, nothing about the day disappointed. Throwing nothing but Smithwick Rogues, we caught at least a dozen browns in the 16- to 24-inch range, plus two that would have stretched past the 25-inch mark on a measuring tape. The two biggest fish, which both came late in the day, probably weighed 5 and 6 pounds, and both were males with beautiful color and big crazy-looking hookjaws. We also caught a couple dozen stocker rainbows and smaller browns.

The top-producing color, without question, was Avocado Shad, which, as the name suggests, is sort of an avocado green on the back with opaque white sides. It looks an awful lot like a stocker rainbow in the rainbow, which certainly might help explain the appeal to the big brown trout.

Walleye Quest

I arrived in Cleveland today and will spend the next couple of days walleye fishing on Lake Erie. I'll be riding with folks who can really teach me a lot about trolling lures, rigs, locations and more, so I'm looking forward to learning and shooting photos almost as much as I'm looking forward to catching fish.

We'll mostly be fishing Walleye Bandits and Rogues, I think, and I'm especially looking forward to seeing some of the newest Rogues in action.

Of course I just like the idea of getting out on Erie. There's something unique and wonderful about spending time on any of the Great Lakes, and I haven't done so since last May.

New Rogue in Town

Smithwick Perfect 10 Rogue

Word's out that Smithwick has introduced a new Rogue. I haven't seen one of the new Perfect 10 Rogues in action yet, but here's the scoop, as I understand it. Unchanged are the Rogue's body shape, trademark roll and suspending design. New are a tungsten rattle, which creates a different sound than is found in any other jerkbait, and a new material and lip design that allow the Perfect 10 Rogue to get down faster and to respond quickly to every twitch of the rod. The Perfect 10 Rogue comes in eight color patterns, all somewhat translucent and reflective.

I'm looking forward to introducing Perfect 10 Rogues to brown trout in the White River in a few weeks, and I suspect that those salmon, steelhead and walleyes guys who have learned about the new Rogues are already envisioning how they will put them to work. However, I'm guessing the first glowing reports will come from bass fishermen, as we are just moving into the prime jerkbait season for bass. In fact, it's very possible that a Perfect 10 Rogue could plan an important part in Tulsa this weekend. The only bad part about that would be skyrocketing demand of a brand new bait, which might make them harder to get ahold of for trout fishing on the White!

Smaller Boat Brings Big Success to Steve Kennedy

Photo courtesy of the PAA

Forsaking fiberglass and the slick rides normally associated with professional bass fishing, Steve Kennedy chose his aluminum flatbottom to fish the final event of the Bass Pro Shops PAA Tournament Series presented by Carrot Styx. That boat allowed him to snake his way to the extreme head of Neely Henry's Canoe Creek, where he spent all three days of the tournament.

Kennedy, who lives in Auburn, Alabama, only a couple of hours away, threw a variety of baits to coax enough fish from a fairly small area, with the bite growing tougher each day. His most productive lure on the final two days was an old floating Smithwick Rogue, a lure he's long liked to throw in creeks and small rivers during the dog days.

Kennedy's three-day total of 38.12 allowed him to survive a final-day charge by fellow Alabama pro Greg Vinson and to win the event by only a couple of ounces. Vinson brought 17.92 pounds to the scales on the final day by flipping in super shallow water.

South Carolina pro Todd Auten wrapped up the PAA Angler-of-the-Year title with a fourth place finish at Neely Henry.

The Wonderful White

Frank Saksa knows Rattlin' Rogues and brown trout.

A guide on Arkansas White River for the past two decade, Saksa was a pioneer of fishing jerkbaits on the celebrated tailwater. Time has taught him how to approach the river's hefty browns at various water levels and the kinds of casts, jerks and pauses that trigger strikes.

I've spend the past two days in the boat with Saksa, who guides out of Gaston's White River Resort (www.gastons.com), and I've seen first-hand what the browns think about an XCalibur Stick Bait or a Smithwick Rattlin' Rogue. Good casts, erratic jerks and long pauses are among the keys to success, but there's no substitute for a guide who knows where to drift, how to position the boat and how to direct you at any water level.

Of course, a river that's loaded with hefty browns doesn't hurt either. White River veterans consider 2- to 4-pound browns average on the White, and 6- or 7-pound fish aren't uncommon when the bite is on. When he turbines are turning (the more water the better), Saska likes nothing better than throwing big jerkbatis for heavyweight brown trout. I agree!