Basement Filming Studio?

My most recent post noted that I’ve been at work on my basement, gaining order in the area where I keep fishing gear. A part of that has been carving out a corner as a filming studio.

That sounds fancier than what I have in mind. I don’t even have electrical outlets and will need extension cords just for lights. But I want a space with a standardized setting, controls of lighting and minimized external sound for filming intros and other video elements and possibly some video shorts for my Fishing on Foot YouTube channel.

As you might guess, my videos are mostly filmed knee deep in a stream or the surf or from the bank of a pond or lake, and that should never change if I don’t want boring videos (which I don’t). That said, sometimes there’s need for some off-the-water filming, and I’ve battled to find the best spot for such needs in the past. And I do have a couple of ideas for shorts series that could be done in that kind of setting.

I’m not sure what the set will look like yet. I’ve figured out the best corner, opened sone space and put a few possible elements in place. I have ideas about the rest and have even bought some paint. In truth, it’ll probably be an evolving space — changing as I look at it and work within it and identify possible improvements.

And who knows when I’ll first use it in a video. For now it’s just one element of the bigger basement project.

Video-related, if you haven’t checked out Fishing on Foot and subscribed, I’d certainly appreciate you doing so!

First Tackle Box

 

While working on some way-past-due fishing basement sorting this evening, I came across an old brown tackle box that I hadn’t given thought to since my son took on my basement mess more than a decade ago. It was my original tackle box that I probably got when I was about 10 years old, which means it has been around a half a century or so.

It’s empty now, and while both trays are still in it, the brackets that attached them are broken. I’ll clean it up soon, and when things are more how I want them in the basement, it’ll serve a decorative role.

I believe the old, brown tackle box held every hook, weight, bobber and lure I owned for three or four years before I got a fancier 6-tray Plano box that had trays on both sides. Initially everything moved to the new box because I didn’t own enough stuff to fill it.

A few years later, the old brown box got a new life. The new box contained mostn of my lures and some hooks, weights and bobbers. The old brown one became my “saltwater box” and was filled with stuff like leaders, egg weights, nickel hooks, foam popping corks, pliers and a bait knife. Plus, a few MirrOlures and packets of Loves Lures, I’m sure.

I don’t recall when the box went out of service. I’ve used stowable trays in various tackle bags and backpacks for decades. I’m still glad I have both it and the green one, though, and glad the green one still contains some of the lures I enjoyed using in my teens.

I look forward to getting them both cleaned up and finding the best places for them.

Walleye Shad Lure for Cool-Water Bass

 

The Bandit Walleye Shad was created primarily for targeting walleye. That’s evident by its name. That said, I’m convinced that this relatively new crankbait has diverse value for a variety of fish species and fishing situations. Most notably, I expect the Walleye Shad to excel as a bass crankbait from late fall through early spring.

The Walleye Shad has all the characteristics of an excellent winter bass crankbait. Flat sides create a narrow profile that make it look like an easy meal, and a very tight wiggle suggests the movements of winter chilled forage.

Another feature that provides huge winter appeal — and one that is uncommon in crankbaits — is that the Walleye Shad was designed to suspend when it’s not in motion. Like with a suspended jerkbait, you can pause it at any point in a retrieve, and it will hold irresistibly in the zone.

Winter chilled bass won’t waste calories chasing, and baitfish naturally hold in place when the water is cold, so the having the capacity to pause a crankbait in key areas provides a huge advantage for winter bass fishing.

The Walleye Shad cones in four sizes, meeting a big range of situations, and a good mix of colors. A handful are the ultra bright colors that walleye trollers favor and that I don’t really see as bass colors. However, about half the colors are natural forage imitations that I’d consider very good options for bass fishing.

I haven’t been in the right setting to prove my Walleye Shad theory yet, but I have little doubt that I’ll do so again and again. Maybe once I’ve tallied that real experience, I’ll post a fresh blog that shares models, colors, locations and presentations that have worked best for me.

Kind of makes me want to go fishing!

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!