10 Years?!

Alton Jones at Falcon Lake in Texas, a couple of months prior to winning the 2008 Bassmaster Classic at Lake Hartwell.

Ten years. Could it have really have been that long? I'm having trouble wrapping my mind around the idea that it has been a decade since I stood close to the stage and watched Alton Jones hoist the Bassmaster Classic trophy. It's the only time I've had to wipe away tears during a tournament weigh-in. Just thinking about it almost has the same effect.

The winning moment is always special because it's such a life-changing event for a professional angler and a culmination of lifelong dreams, but '08 was different for me because Alton is a good friend. We first met at writer's event two decades ago. He and I were the only pro/writer pair to go out on an absolute duck hunters' sort of a January day at the end of the event, and we've shared many days on the water since that day. He was among the first to call and pray with me over the phone when I had a 6-month-old in ICU at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, and he is someone I know I could count on in any situation.

Alton had actually predicted his '08 win. He'd said it in a jesting tone, speaking to me and Bassmaster Senior Writer Steve Price as we enjoyed an epic YUM Dinger bite on Texas' Falcon Lake a couple of months prior to the '08 Classic. I knew he really believed it, though, and I trusted his confidence. Enough so that my own confidence in him soared as the tournament unfolded.

Alton missed qualifying for the 2015 Bassmaster Classic on Lake Hartwell, and everyone who spends any time around the sport knows how difficult that was for him. He is back this year, and you know he is mighty eager to get things started tomorrow morning. While I can't believe it has been 10 years since he held up that champion's trophy, I'm guessing it feels more like 20 years to him!

Sunday Evening Suprise Bass

Autumn, 6, got called to camera duty yesterday evening when the fish that slurped down my Rebel Crickhopper Popper turned out to be far bigger than what normally shows up in the pond where we were fishing. Although, she'd never used the camera that was around my neck when the fish hit, I think she did a fine job of taking the canoe transfer, figuring out which buttons do what and composing a nice photo of me and my catch.

Autumn and I had determined to make a quick lap around the pond before it got dark. She had only fished from the bank before, so just casting from a canoe was a new experience for her. She caught one bass on a 3-inch YUM Dinger and had a few other strikes. Unfortunately, the one Autumn caught slipped away before I could return the photo favor.

Nathaniel looked at the photos after Autumn and I got back home, and we believe it's the same fish he's caught two other times from the same pond. We call her Melody, after his big, goofy dog. Most bass in the pond, which only covers a couple of acres, weigh 1 1/2 pounds or less, and we've fished it enough over the years that we think we'd know it if there was more than one extra big fish. Assuming it is the same fish, she's notably thinner than either time Nathaniel has caught her before. However, our spring came so late and our water has been so high that I think she might have the post-spawn sort of look a bass normally has in around May around here. She didn't look unhealthy. Just much more slender than in previous photos.

Melody or not, that fish, which I landed on an ultralight outfit and 4-pound test line, provided a big surprise and a fun bonus for our Sunday evening outing.

The Asher Rig

Photo by Nathaniel Samsel.

My 8-year-old son Asher discovered a new favorite bass rig this spring. Actually his big brother Nathaniel found it for him. The rig consists of a 4- or 5-inch YUM Dinger nose hooked on a 2/O Daiichi Bleeding Bait "Catch & Release for Plastics Circle Hook, fished on braided line spooled medium sized spinning gear.

The technique? Asher essentially casts around cover and catches fish. Sounds too simple, I know. It works, though, and that's why Asher likes it so much. The Dinger, which is a salted stick worm, is easy to cast with the braid and spinning gear, so Asher can place it accurately. The bait's greatest appeal is on the fall, so many fish hit without Asher doing anything more than casting it and pausing. If they don't hit it then, he lifts the rod tip a few times to make it dart and then just swims it back slowly, and a lot of fish hit it on the retrieve.

Because of the circle hook and the open rigging, no hook sets are needed. Asher just reels quickly when fish hit, and the fish get hooked. The fish tend to target the business end, with the flash of red from the Bleeding Bait hook, and with minimal stretch in the line, he normally connects with the bass almost immediately when they hit.

Naturally, the bass have to be relatively shallow for the "Asher rig" to work, and they can't be in weeds or brush that's too thick for an open hook. Given the right setting, it's an outstanding rig for a young angler or for anyone who is just developing bass fishing skills because the rig itself does so much of the work.

First of '13

Well, it occurred almost three weeks later than I woould have preferred, and I can't claim that it was a very impressive fish, but I'm glad to report that I've finally caught my first fish of 2013. Fish No. 1 (and No. 2, which came on the next cast) were small largemouth bass caught from the bank of a nearby ponds during a short afternoon outing with Nathaniel. Both hit a Bobby Garland Stroll'R fished on a Natural Science Road Runner head. Nathaniel caught one fish, which was a little bigger than mine, on a weightless YUM Dinger.

 

My best guess is that species No. 2 on my 2013 fish list will be a trout. The forecast for the next few day looks good, and the rivers should be settled enough in a day or two for the trout to cooperate. I'm pretty sure that Nathaniel and I will find our way to the North Carolina mountains one day next week to catch some trout.

The Bug Bite

Having had not caught many fish last time we fished the pond and having seen a lot of fish sipping insects on the surface, Nathaniel, Asher and I toted a couple of fly rods along with the other gear when we  headed to the pond last night. In fact, I didn't carry another rod.

It seems like the bug hatch might have been the problem last week because fly-fishing produced several bream and bass last night even without the fish feeding on an obvious hatch.

The most productive specific rig was a Sneaky Pete rigged with a small Tellico Nymph as a dropper about a foot and a half beneath the floating offering. Most of the fish took the nymph, but the Sneaky Pete produced one and drew a couple of other strikes. It also served nicely as a "strike indicator"and probably got the attention of a few of the nymph fish by darting and spitting on the surface.

Asher actually started with a big fly rod popper cast with an ultralight trigger-spin outfit, but the fish wouldn't come up for the popper. Eventually he switched to a YUM Dinger, nose-hooked on a Daiichi Circle Hook and fished weightless, and caught a couple of bass before dark.

Walleye Time Tomorrow

Somehow this didn't post last night. We're on the water catching walleyes now ...

Today was another great day of river  smallmouth fishing, although the fish weren't nearly as eager to take surface lures today. Instead a YUM Dinger was the number 1 lure. If we'd been tournament fishing today I could have weighed close to 20 pounds with just Dinger fish.
Total change tomorrow, from river smallies to lake walleyes. Sounds like Lindy Spinners might be the name of the game. Change of weather too. Cooler.
Better sleep now.

Seriously Bassy Morning

Leaving the water was tough this morning. In fact, Bruce Stanton, Nathaniel and I arrived at the breakfast table a little later than the rest of the gang. It's tough to abandon frequent doubles of chunky largemouths, all up shallow and attacking wieghtless YUM Dingers, Houdini Shads and Yumphibians. It was especially tough for Nathaniel and me because after breakfast it was time to hop in the truck and begin the long drive to Georgia.

Collectively, our boat tallied 51 fish in the 2 1/2 hours between sun-up and breakfast. Our biggest bass probably weighed about 4 pounds. This morning was also extra fun for me because Bruce and I have been friends for 16 years and have spend many days in boats or wading in streams together, but had not had the opportunity to fish together for a few years.

I'm thankful to Jimmy and Chris Houston for their wonderful hospitality. They treat every guest at their ranch as a friend as they share a place that they obviously love.

Alton Jones' Wins Being Sold Short

Alton Jones with his wife, Jimmye Sue, just after his fish were weighed and he was named champion of the 2012 B.A.S.S. Elite Series opener. B.A.S.S. photo

Virtually every story I've read about Alton Jones winning this weekend's B.A.S.S. Elite Series opener has included mention of Jones' "first Elite Series win," and most have had it in the opening sentence. Technically, that description is accurate, but to state it without qualifiers sells short Jones' B.A.S.S. accomplishments.

To me that description suggests that he's broken a new barrier, finally winning at the Elite Series level -- as if his previous wins had all be opens. However, if you take a closer look at Jones' resume', all of Jones six B.A.S.S. wins have been at the highest level of B.A.S.S. competition. They just weren't called the same thing.

Other than this weekend's Elite Series win and of course the 2008 Bassmaster Classic, Jones victories have included an Elite 50 (exclusive field of only 50 angler and part of a string of structural changes that led to the establishment of the Elites), a Bassmaster Tour and Bassmaster Top 100 (each the top B.A.S.S. tour level of the time) and a Megabucks, another specialized top-tier type of event that no longer exists.

However someone wants to dub the win, Jones got this year's Elite Series off to a great start by targeting big bedding bass on Lake George with a 6-inch YUM Dinger. Congratulations Alton!

I Lied

Maybe that Mayfly on the gas pump stayed stuck in my head, because Nathaniel and I did end up slipping out to our favorite pond yesterday afternoon -- and I even used my fly rod. We didn't get much time - maybe 15 or 20 minutes - before an pop-up summer storm pushed us off the pond. Still, that was long enough for me to catch a couple of bass and miss a couple of bluegill on a Sneaky Pete and for Nathaniel to land a nice one 0n a YUM Dinger. Quick but fun afternoon outing.

Smallmouth Bass the MAINE Attraction

"Moose!" Doug Teel called out, pointing everyone's attention to the massive, dark-colored animal that was right beside the truck for an instant and then crashed into the thick Maine woods and disappeared.

Teel, who operates Northridge Outfitters & Guide Service, was driving David Hart, Lawrence Taylor and me from the Penobscot River to his lodge after a day of fast-action fishing. Spotting a moose only added to the whole Maine experience, as did the loons we saw and heard on the water, the steamed lobster we'd have for dinner the next evening and the black bear we would also spot while riding Maine backroads.

Smallmouth bass, however, were the "Maine" attraction, and the clear but dark waters of the
Penobscot did not disappoint. Heddon Torpedoes, XCalibur Zell Pops and Rebel Pop-Rs prompted crushing surface strikes for two full days. Top producers beneath the surface included YUM F2 Dingers an XCalibur Square Lips crankbaits.

Teel's two favorite lures, by far, are a Bullfrog-colored Torpedo, which he presents with patient pauses and steel nerves, an a Bumblebee Swirl YUM Dinger, which he rigs wacky style and weights with a small bullet weight. A Zell Pop, fished the same way as Teal works his Torpedo, was the top producer for me.

YUM F2 Slam

Photos by James Overstreet; courtesy of B.A.S.S.

One of my favorite things about the time I spent working for YUM Bait Company was the opportunity to work closely with top fishing pros. Time spent together at writer events and photo shoots and behind the scenes at tournaments resulted in great friendships and an ongoing personal interest in these pros' professional success. Therefore, I couldn't help but notice that three of YUM's tournament superstars -- Edwin Evers, Terry "Big Show" Scroggins and Alton Jones -- finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd, respectively, in the B.A.S.S. Citrus Slam on the St. Johns river.

Jones, the 2008 Bassmaster Classic Chamption, also took over the top spot in the B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year standings, with Evers and Scroggins close behind in the second and fourth positions.

Evers, who fished exclusivley for spawning fish thoughout the event, stated that YUM's new F2 attractant formula was absolutely critical to his success, helping fish find his bait in somewhat stained waters. His comments about the importance of the F2 attractant echoed those of Alton Jones, who sight-fished most of the tournament using a 6-inch F2 Yum Dinger and led the event for the first three days. Scroggins combined sight-fishing (undoubtedly with YUM F2 baits, although I've not heard specifics yet) with a strategy of running and gunning ledges with Bomber crankbaits.

Congratulations Edwin, Terry and Alton.