Fish Species Tally?

 

I’m have trouble settling in my mind whether threadfin shad should count in my 2026 fish species tally.

I caught two in back-to-back casts while fishing a causeway at Lake Guntersville last month. Both were snagged on the rear hook of my jerkbait but both fully unintentionally.

I’m not sure why I struggle to count them.

I definitely would count a shad or other baitfish hooked in the mouth, and in truth the smaller and more minnow-like it was the more proud I’d probably be of the novelty of the catch. And I typically would count a foul hooked gamefish, since the snagging would never be intentional.

I suppose with most snagged fish I’m inclined to assume they swiped at my bait and missed but I got them sideways when I set the hook. With a jerkbait fished through a big school of shad, it seems more like they just got in the way. That makes them seem less like accomplishments, but I guess not less of “catches.”

As I’ve put my thoughts in written words and looked at it, I seem to have convinced myself that the shad should indeed qualify as a fish species I’ve caught this year. 

2026 Fish Species List to Date

• brown trout
• rainbow trout 
• spotted bass
• smallmouth bass 
• threadfin shad
• largemouth bass

Anticipating Guntersville Action

 

When the Bassmaster Elite Series kicks off the 2026 season at Lake Guntersville later this week I’ll be tuned in — eager to see which patterns and areas produce best and which angles find the most success. The season opener always brings fresh excitement for bass fishing fans, but Guntersville takes that up a few notches for me.

I’ve been fortunate in getting to spend quite a bit of time on Lake Guntersville over the years with longtime guide and tournament pro and good friend Jimmy Mason. We spend a few content days together every year, fishing for bass and shooting photos and video content for YUM, BOOYAH, War Eagle and other brands that are part of PRADCO-Fishing, which is my employer and one of Jimmy’s sponsors.

That’s Jimmy in the photo from one day last winter, and, yes, I realize be Elites can’t use YUMbrella rigs! They are part of Guntersville’s heritage, but that’s probably another story for another time!

Over the years, I’ve been all over Lake Guntersville and have gained a fairly decent understanding of the fishery, controlling factors and key types of areas. That familiarity adds fun to watching live events and tracking patterns. During the MLF Bass Pro Tour event a couple of weeks back, I watched anglers catching bass from specific spots I’ve fished.

Adding to the personal interest, PRADCO has several sponsored anglers fishing the Elites. Additionally, I’ve spent time in the boat with other anglers in the field during my years as a freelance writer. Knowing some of the competitors deepens the interest in every Elite Series event.

Personal interests aside, Guntersville is an iconic fishing destination and one of best bass lakes in the country, so the fish-catching action will be fun to watch. Undoubtedly, some big bags will come to the scales.

The anglers definitely face challenges. This will be the first of several Elite Series tournaments where no live sonar may be used. In addition, the region is coming off the two hardest winter fronts of this winter. Unlike normal season openers in Florida or Texas, this is shaping up to be a genuine winter pattern tournament.

The Elite Series pros will figure out the bass. They always do. I have my guesses on the patterns that will prevail. Lure-wise, I’ll pick a BOOYAH Flash Point Jr Deep and a One Knocker as winning lures. We’ll find out how it all goes down Thursday through Sunday!

Fishless Fishing Beats Not Fishing

 

I failed to get out prior to last weekend’s winter storm, so with another storm forecast for this weekend, I didn’t want that to happen again. I had some lure photos I wanted to shoot for work and had reached a late-afternoon stopping point with office stuff, so I headed for a close-to-home river access.

You can probably guess by the title that I didn’t catch anything, and I only fished for a little more than an hour. Had I let the afternoon slip away without even trying, though, I’d have felt liken I’d missed an opportunity, and in truth I really enjoyed the river outing.

Don’t get me wrong. I always want to catch fish, and that’s the objective when I go. I focused on the areas where I thought they were the most likely to be and tried a few good winter presentations. Failing to catch fish doesn’t ruin a trip for me, though, and I knew when I left home that going fishless was a definite possibility.

Last weekend’s storm brought a lot of sleet and freezing rain and overnight lows in the low teens. Water temperatures undoubtedly dropped more dramatically than Georgia fish are accustomed to experiencing.

I also chose an area where shoal bass and spotted bass are the main sport fish species. Trout waters might have offered better prospects, given conditions, since trout are cold-water fish by nature.

That wasn’t my choice, though, so I won’t ever know. I’m just glad I chose to go fishing.

Waiting for the Thaw

 

I’d like to be scheming my next fishing outing — and hopefully that isn’t too far away. However, catching fish isn’t quite top of my mind.

Winter storm Fern pushed through over the weekend, and the coldest air behind the storm is arriving now. I’m in North Georgia, and while we didn’t get much snow and our low tonight of 14 wouldn’t be noteworthy in most places, what we did get is a big dose of freezing rain, knocking down power lines and trees.

About 1/3 of the homes in my county and more than half in a couple of adjacent counties lost power yesterday, and we’re among the folks who are still without it going into night two. Our heat is gas, but electricity runs it, so we’re just waiting it out in a cool, dark house.

No emergencies. The house insulates enough that it isn’t brutally cold, and we have means to get to warmer places if need be. We even snuck out and found hot coffee and warmth during the day today. Once the lights are back and more of the rural roads have trees cleared and ice gone, I’ll take a fresh look at the forecast and my calendar with fishing in mind!

Jerkbaits for Winter Fishing Success

 

I spend quite a bit of time with a suspending jerkbait tied to the end of my line from late autumn through early spring for the simple reason that these lures produce very well when the water is cool to cold. Jerkbaits effectively imitate winter-chilled baitfish, and presentations can be slowed way down, but with the lure kept in the strike zone.

In truth a good jerkbait has year-round appeal. Anglers fishing with forward facing sonar who can watch how fish react to different lures and presentations have increasingly realized the versatility of this style of bait. I use them mostly during the cool months, though.

Part of a jerkbait’s high value to me is the broad appeal to different species and in various situations. I mostly fish them for bass in waters around home, but that could be largemouth bass, spotted bass, shoal bass or something else, and I could be on a pond bank, out on a major reservoir or wading a rocky river. The BOOYAH Flash Point Jr, my current favorite suspending jerkbait, is at home on any of those situations.

Beyond bass around here, a jerkbait is tough to top for winter brown trout in waters where browns grow large, and there’s nothing I enjoy throwing more than a jerkbait in inshore saltwater areas for speckled trout and redfish. It’s also great pick for stripers, walleyes and more.

 Jerkbait Presentations 

Through the cooler months, a jerkbait’s suspending pause in the key to its productivity. With jerks or twitches of the rod tip the lure darts, dances and dives to its running depth. Paused, it doesn’t pop back up. Instead, it hangs in place enticingly or drifts suspended in the current.

This looks natural to predator fish, which are used to seeing baitfish that are moving slowly or holding in place. It also keeps the lure close to interested fish, which don’t want to waste calories chasing would-be meals.

The basic presentation is to snap the rod tip to engage the action, often with two or three consecutive snaps, and then to pause and let the lure suspend. The key to maximizing success is figuring out the right sharpness and length of tugs, the winning cadence and the best length of pause, which can be painfully long this time of year. It’s critical to experiment and pay attention to what prompts the fish to respond.

4 Top Suspending Jerkbaits

• BOOYAH Flash Point Jr
• Smithwick Suspending Rattlin’ Rogue
• BOOYAH Flash Point Deep
• Smithwick Pro Rogue 

Antsy to Find Fish

 

Weather app shows flurries at the moment. Snow will be gone by mid-morning, and with temps just above freezing, none is likely to stick around. Still, the day’s high is forecast to remain in the 30s, and the 10-day holds much of the same.

Nothing in the outlook is too dreadful. No ice storms or hard fronts. Thats said, overnight lows appear just low enough to negatively impact fish activity in most local waters, and precipitation in the forecast seems just enough to keep stream conditions a little off following major rainfall a week or so ago.

Add the shortness of January days, and prospects for productive local fishing trips don’t look too promising for the next week or so. It might be a good time to sneak South to Florida and pretend it isn’t winter or pack the ice gear and go north. Neither plan works for me right now, though, so I either need to work on my patience or accept subpar conditions and keep my expectations in check if I go..

In truth, it probably would be a great time to try to gain order in a messy fishing gear basement and do other tackle work that would make me more productive when fishing conditions are better. Maybe I will?

But, hey, trout are cold water fish. They should want to bite. Right? Only one way to find out!

A Few More Fish Species Tallied

 

I mentioned over the weekend that I was Alabama bound to do some fishing and photo work from my job. I also mentioned hope that something worth reporting would come from the trip. From my perspective, it did.

Fishing was challenging overall. No doubt. A hard cold front had the water temperature at Lake Guntersville down 5 degrees from a few days prior, and extensive rain from the same weather system muddied up Weiss Lake and pretty much knocked out the crappie fishing. 

At Guntersville we didn’t catch many bass, but the fish we caught were good ones, and we caught just enough to make for a great photo shoot, which was the main objective. In the process I tallied my first largemouth bass of 2026. Weiss was even tougher. We accomplished what we needed to from a content standpoint, but black and white crappie both remain uncaught by me this year.

Along the way to Alabama I bank fished a bit near Chattanooga and discovered some excellent fishing access that I’m eager to explore more. For details on that, check out my latest post at fishingonfoot.com.

I also caught my first spotted bass and smallmouth bass of the year while bank fishing, so the species tally is now at five. It could be considered six, because I snagged two small threadfin shad while bank fishing with a jerkbait at Guntersville. I’m not convinced I want to count those, though!