Hooting & Hollering

"I'd be hooting & hollering right now," Lisa Snuggs said to TJ Stallings as the two of them watched me stoically battle a bruiser bass.

"He's just concentrating," TJ answered," knowing a big grin would emerge as soon as the bass was in hand.

With the bass hooked on 8-pound-test in a lake filled with weeds and wood cover, I suspect I did look pretty serious. Time was running short to land a pretty picture fish. Noxubee Lodge, which is located in Alabama's Black Belt region, has eight lakes, each unique and all loaded with jumbo largemouths, but the coldest temperatures of winter and strong winds had made the fish pretty fussy, and we were down to our final hour of fishing time.

Thankfully, the bass was well hooked, the line held strong, and TJ did a nice job hand landing the fish. Whether I hooted or hollered once the bass was in the boat, I'm not certain (although I'm pretty sure Lisa did). I do know TJ didn't have to tell me to smile when he took the pictures.

Despite the tough conditions, I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to spend a little time on a couple of the fine lakes at Noxubee Lodge. Having seen so many photos of double-digit weight fish and having heard tales of fish blasting through the pads to attack frogs and buzzbaits, I'm to visit again when it's a little warmer to do some serious hooting & hollering!

Final-Hour Bass

The kind of cold that virtually does not happen in South Alabama has made the fish a little fussy over the last couple of days, and a full slate of activities has limited time on the water. Nevertheless, one heavyweight largemouth decided to eat yesterday afternoon with less than an hour left in our fishing time. We guessed that she weighed about 6 pounds.

The fish were among lily pad stems and a fair amount of wood cover, so a I rigged a small swimbait weightless on a Daiichi Copperhead hook, added a light bullet weight and fished the rig slowly along the bottom. I suppose because of the cold, none of the fish we caught thumped the bait even somewhat decisively. They all were just suddenly there, swimming slowly with the bait.

On to another lake today. Different property but still within Alabama's Black Belt Region. It's supposed to get warmer, and yesterday was much warmer than two days ago. I wonder how the fish will bite!

Ice in the Hole

"So you don't see this very often?" I asked Frank as we crunched though 1/4 inch of ice with every step.

"Almost never," he said. "I just hope the ducks will still come in."

We were wading into a field-side shooting vantage in the duck swamp at Noxubee Lodge, with plans to wait along the woodline for the ducks to fly. It was a spot where the wood ducks come in thick most mornings, at times with mallards or teal coming in behind them. After I got into place, Frank waded a short distance out and crunched around in circles to create a big opening in the ice, which hopefully would be inviting to the ducks.

Seemingly the strategy was sound because a few ducks gave the hole a hard look before shooting time, and a few of those that came around when we could shoot obviously were eying the spot. Seemingly there was too much ice on the whole swamp, though, because the number of ducks that flew near us was minuscule compared to the norm, according to Frank. I did get a handful of opportunities, but failed to cash in on any, missing a few times and being too slow on the draw to even attempt shots at a couple of others.

While I shot no birds and I know Frank was disappointed by the comparatively small number of birds that we saw, I considered the morning hunt a huge success. I got great photos, learned a bunch and thoroughly enjoyed the adventure of crunching into our spot and then watching the swamp awaken on an icy morning.

Back to bass fishing this afternoon. Maybe a big one will bite!

Real Fur & Feathers

With Ugly Bug Central gradually taking shape in my office, I'm continuing to learn how different materials can be used and pondering sources. As chronicled in past blogs, I've gained a new fondness for craft stores and the craft section of Walmart, and my oldest daughter has brought me some fluffy and flashy stuff that has worked nicely.

It would be easy to overlook the obvious. This weekend I am headed to Alabama's Black Belt Region for "Cast & Blast" media event, where I'll be spending some time bass fishing and some time hunting deer and ducks. It just struck me this morning that I could have the opportunity to bring home some real bucktail and bright-colored duck feathers, and maybe even some hair from a wild hog or a coyote. I don't know the characteristics of the latter two and how they would perform as jig skirt material, but there's only one way to find out.

Thinking about it more, my vice is a tabletop sort that's extremely portable. I might just have to tote it along, along with some thread and just a few other materials, just in case there's something I'm eager to get onto a hook! Depending on the order of things, I might even get to test some new creation in the lakes on the same property!

Five in the Books

My 2014 fish list got a nice kick start during last week's ice fishing adventures in Pennsylvania, with five species tallied. The bright-colored pumpkinseeds were probably my favorite addition simply because that's not a kind of fish I always encounter. None last year, I know. The others -- bluegill, black crappie, yellow perch and rainbow trout -- were all on last year's list and are all species I normally stumble across over the course of the year.

Next weekend's plans take me to Alabama's Black Belt Region, where a largemouth bass and maybe another species are two are likely to be added to the 2014 list. (Trip, which begins on Thursday afternoon, is actually a "Cast & Blast" event, but ducks or deer don't go on the fish list.) Word has it that a seriously big bass is a definite possibility in small lakes I will be fishing, so stay tuned!