The Bass Are Ready

I'm calling it the official start to bass season. OK, not technically "bass season" if you are a keep and eat it kinda fisherman....and not really even "bass season" if you are a catch and release kinda fisherman. NY a few years ago opened up bass fishing for all year....but keeping them for the table is still only an option part of the year.  ....but that's all a tangent....I'm calling it the official start to BASS SEASON!!! Meaning....it's worth your time to get out.

Either out of ignorance, or wimpyness, I've never really gone after bass until at least April. And even then I didn't expect much top water action. Well, this winter decided to play in my favor and was nice and mild. Heck, my wife and I only shoveled the driveway 3 times this winter. The lack of snow was a blessing considering we had bald tires on the van. Those tires are replaced and the weather in March has been fantastic....even bordering on too hot for a few days.

I took advantage of this great weather (although today was a bit chillier) and got out for one my famous 1 hour trips (1 hour-ish trips.) I met up with my longest surviving fishing buddy and hit Twin Rock pond. A nice little pond that I'd likely never tell you the location of even if you asked. See, I think as much as it's great to share fishing spots with people, and I often do, there are some that I'm going to keep for myself. Suffice it to say that this pond is easily found on Google maps, and even has an updated image showing the current shape and size of the pond. Like many of the ponds I fish it has houses surrounding it. See, I've already given away too much info.

We met up about 9am this morning and started having success! I hooked the first two before he started catching some.

Thanks for playing, Mr. Bass

Yes, top water bass in March

Using his go to favorite fly, the white foam ant (this one with extended legs) he found himself wrestling some bass, and a huge bluegill!

So tiny....nice try punk!

A decent sized blue

Before he met me at Twin Rock, he was fishing Lions pond. Using the Fishin' Clips from Grasshopper Outdoors that he won at the Guys, Flies & Pies fly tying party last month, he had an easy way to break down his strung up rod for a quick ride to the next pond. Notice (above) how easy the clips stored away on his pack while fishing.

Ready to rock, ready to roll

Although we only fished for an hour, it was a good way to get out of the house (full of sick kids...myself included) for a bit. I can't wait till the bass heat up even more!

Topwater Bass in MARCH!!!

I got out fishing today for an hour with my 5 year old son. We hit a pond we found a few years ago that has been really good to us. It's a simple retention pond in a fairly new neighborhood and I don't think it gets much pressure at all. I've only seen one other kid fish it....I think.

We started off close to the car and saw a few fish. After trying for a few minutes I was able to catch a bass on a fly I tied months ago.

First fish of 2012

"Dad! I gotta pee!" is never quite what I want to hear when we've only been fishing for 10 minutes....especially since we were right there in a neighborhood. So, we hiked around to the back of the pond where there is a dirt bike and snowmobile (for winters when we actually have snow) trail and he was able to find a little privacy.....then it was back to fishing.

We made our way around the pond to the smaller section, which was shallower, and saw some movement near the shore. I switch up to a gurgler and started casting. Immediately I was getting hits...likely from bluegill. Not many casts later however, I had a bass explode and take my fly! It was game on! For the first time EVER, I was catching bass on top in freaking MARCH! Not March after the official day of spring.....but March BEFORE the official day of spring! I was loving it! This is my kinda winter! Shovel 3 times and start bass fishing in March! Bring it on every year till the end of time! Thank you global warming!

My son got to reel him in

After that first bass we ended up catching 2 more on the surface, and missing 4 or 5 others too. Crazy they were hitting like that. I suspect the shallower water, close to the inlet from the runoff from the neighborhood, got that water to warm up and get the fish active.

Splash!

Besides catching bass on the surface, something else I never thought I'd be doing in March was kayaking....especially in Lake Ontario. A friend of mine brought up a second sit on top kayak 2 weeks ago and we went out. The temperature was in the mid 40's and I stayed pretty warm. It was great paddling again, especially in a comfortable sit on top....I definitely need to figure out a way to get one of those!

Miles and miles of open water

Downpour

Last night while my son's baseball team warmed up before the game, I got out fishing. I managed to hook and release 4 bass and 1 bluegill in the 20 minutes I fished.

T trying to take credit for my fish

The only bluegill of the night

We headed back across the parking lot to the baseball fields and watched a few inning. Then, once the fields manager in charge saw lightening in the distance she blew the air horn and the game was over. We strolled back to the car and were fortunate to get inside before it poured. It was the hardest rain I've seen all year.

Incoming

Waiting for the traffic to die down

On our way out we went back to the pond and it was amazing to see all the water running into the pond. This raging water wasn't even a trickle when I was fishing it an hour before. In 10 minutes or less it went from nothing to this raging "river."

Unfortunately, when a game is canceled because of lightening, it's also not safe to go out and fish. I have to admit, once I was home and had most of the kids in bed, I thought about going back out...but random strikes of lightening kept me home and dry.

Oh, and one of the best parts....we started off the evening with some official Guys, Flies & Pies pizza!

Pepperoni Pizza Pie

A Good Week For Fishing

Last week was a good week for fishing. Some how the stars aligned and I got out 4 times! As noted in previous posts I was able to get out with 2 of my boys and my wife....and the fourth trip was another one of my sons.

Seth and I got out after his baseball team photo session. He called mom and asked if we could go fishing. No, I did not pressure him to do this, unless saying "it smells like fishing out here" counts. Mom said "yes" and we were off. After a quick trip to the post office to send out a shipment of GFP t-shirts (a few left if anyone is interested in one), we hit Twin Rock pond.

All of the 4, 1 hour trips this past week were to Twin Rock, and were all successful, so we had high hopes. After a few minutes of pounding the water I caught a bass and Seth reeled him in.

A standard size bass

 Soon after he was into a fish or two of his own!

Seth's bass on a Clouser minnow

Bass on a new popper

The fat one of the day

Seth's second

Bass on the fly

That fly caught at least 10 bass, and on one of the last casts A fish snapped the line. I saw the popper floating on the surface just a few feet from the shore. I walked over to it and with a new fly on the line I was able to wrap the tippet around the lost popper and recover it!

Unfortunately the rain is back. And it's not just back for a day or so.....it's been raining for two days straight and looks like there is rain in the forecast for the next few. I still may make a trip to the pond but it would be nice to have the clouds stop dripping first.

Quick Shots

This time of year I do a lot of quick shot fishing "trips." See, I am married and have 5 kids, so other responsibilities get in the way of fishing. I have been known to grab the rod from the back of the van and fish for 15 minutes while my wife and kids wait for me. Sometimes that 15 minutes is all I got to fish for the week. Thankfully this week has been better than a 15 minute fishing "trip."

As previous posts show, I've been able to get out twice this week with 2 of my boys. Last night, my wife and I got a chance to get out and fish together....for one hour. So, I took her to the pond I knew was doing well based on the last two quick shots I did.

It was still going well. Within a few minutes I caught a bass. Most of the bass seem to be about 10 inches or so...but I'm still searching for the monster of the pond. My wife was slow to start, but she finally got herself two small sunfish.

Hey Fishy Fishy

She ended up coining a new phrase after loosing a bass and having the line come back and whack her in the face. "I've been bass whacked!"

From Cleaning Lockers to Fishing for Bass

First, how about a picture of a bass to keep your interest?

One of 9 bass for him that night

This past week, my 13 (and a 1/2.....I want the credit) year old son and I went out fishing. It was a looooong time in the making considering earlier in the week we had to clean out his locker to find homework that was due WEEKS ago. Hopefully he'll get some credit for those assignments. Kids keep testing your patience for sure!

His locker

So, after cleaning the locker, and spending the next 5 days trying to get him to do the work, he finally finished and we were able to go fishing!

We first went to Lake Ontario to a place where an old power plant sits. Years ago, and all through my teenage years, this plant use to be in operation and this place use to be a favorite place for me to fish. Since then, I realized there were better places to fish, and the shut down of the plant killed the flow of water, and a recent copper theft led to an oil spill. So, we weren't too hopeful for much luck at this location. We ended up fishing the lake side for about 10 minutes before giving up and taking off to another place.

Stop two was one of my favorite local ponds. Unfortunately, a day or two can make all the difference. This pond just a week ago was clear on the surface, but this weekend, after a few days of sun, and lack of rain, the pond was 80% covered in scum. So, we took off.

Our third stop was at a place I call Twin Rock pond. It was a good decision to go to this place since the water was pretty much clear, and this pond often give up a good number of bass.

We ended up having a great 2 hours on this pond and we each caught 9 bass a piece. One of my favorite fish, was the one that got away. I had a huge hit right as my fly landed and before I could get a second cast at it, my son tossed his fly under bobber rig out and had the fish hit. We both lost the same fish and  had a good time recounting our attempt. A while later, we had a double.

This was the first night he released all his fish alone. He got pretty good, and with a little encouragement he lipped even the biggest fish he caught. 

Bass Thumb

A nice 10 inch bass

 I even convinced him to take my picture.

It was a great night and he was telling me we need to go more often. I resisted saying he has to do his homework more often. Hopefully he'll realize the more he does his homework ON TIME, the greater the chance he can get out fishing!

And, I learned that I have to use stronger tippet when using poppers that I spent a long time to make. Small tippet likes to give poppers away to weeds.

A Bass Popper Painted With The Copic Airbrush

I had a chance over the weekend to take a few minutes and a few popper heads and tie some tails on them. My wife snapped these photos on her cell phone.

"Tying" the legs on

This fly is the first popper I've ever poked rubber legs through. I love the look of legs and it was nice to give it a try. I'll definitely be adding more legs to more poppers.

Bass-o-matic

We were able to convince my parents to watch the kids and my wife and I got out and fished for about an hour. My first fish of the day was this monster!  I'm also sporting the The Fish Fighter Mini-Foam Fly Clip, which is a great place to let your flies dry before they go back in the box!

You're jealous!

I keep telling my kids "a few more weeks and this water will be on fire!"  ....and then those poppers I've been tying will be put to the test!

First Bass of 2011

My 8 year old son and I got out fishing today. The wind was much stronger than I would have preferred. We started off at a place I call Twin Rock. In past years this pond has offered up many bass and a bluegill that is massive. With the wind today casting was challenging with my 5 weight.

After working one spot for a few minutes with no luck, we headed down the shoreline. My son climbed up on one of the twin rocks and tried his best before giving up to throw rocks. I kept casting into the wind. It eventualy paid off. I caught a massive bass that almost made my rod bend.

Posting this from my phone for the first time, and the photo won't post. I'll try to post it later.

Foam Bass Popper

I've always thought that foam should be able to make a good popper. Sure, I've thought about how to form it into a popper, but to date, I have never done it.

However I did find a nice video on how to do it. Thankfully he sped up the playback so it's only 6 minutes instead of probably 30.

Do Clothes Have Mojo?

Earlier today Cameron at The Fiberglass Manifesto posted on Facebook saying that JP Ross Fly Rods is now advertising on the TFM website! This is great news of course, because JP Ross Fly Rods are awesome, and now more people can discover them and start enjoying the fine craftsmanship that he puts into each of his rods!

In the post on Facebook, I replied that  "I have one of those hats! It helps catch fish and makes you look ten years younger!" To which Cameron replied "it's got mojo? I need to go fly fishing soon and find out."

Well, many of us up North might be too snowed in to go out and test out the mojobility of the hats today (Cameron might be out in the balmy southern weather testing it out now, who knows), so to all those not wearing one on the water today I offer this proof. 

Here's a picture of my daughter minutes before she hooked into a fish. Notice the JP Ross kids hat she's wearing.

JP Ross Kids Hat

Now, check out this picture after she pulled in our families biggest bass ever....a nice fat 20 inch largemouth.  Sure, the hat is not on her head, but who (at age 6) can fight a fish like that (mostly by herself) and not lose their hat?

20 Inch Largemouth Bass

So, do clothes have mojo? If my daughter can pull in a fat bass while wearing a JP Ross hat, I'd say who am I to question the hat? Now, think how mojorific you'd be if next month at the event you win BOTH a JP Ross hat and a shirt from The Fiberglass Manifesto!

Punk Rocker

Over the weekend I found a few minutes to try something I've wanted to try for years....stacking deer hair. I've seen flies with stacked deer hair before and always loved the way they looked, but I've never tried it. I tried spinning deer hair once before, and didn't do too well and never tried it again. Recently I've been following the work of Pat Cohen on http://gotbronze.blogspot.com and been extremely impressed. He ties a pattern called a Punk Rocker which combines two of my favorite things....deer hair and mohawks. I've tied a fly or two in the past with mohawk, but never did they turn out even half as cool as his flies. So, last night with a little bit of time (trying to avoid the Miss America Pageant that my wife and mother were watching in the other room) I sat down and tried to tie up a punk rocker...or at least my version of one.

I learned a few things from doing this. No matter how many ties I thought I was almost done, I wasn't. Once I used the hair packer and pushed the hair back I found plenty of bare hook ready and waiting to be covered. I need to use a bit more hair each time. Pat has a video about another one of his deer hair flies, and shows that he uses about 3 pencil sized clumps for top and bottom of each section. I'm pretty sure that's why it seemed like I needed more and more. I also learned that shaving this thing down to size/shape is pretty hard to do. I am now even more amazed how well Pat's look. Shaping is something I definitely need to work on.

Here's a picture of what I was trying to do:

If you are interested in trying these type of flies, I suggest checking out his video he posted a few weeks ago, it has a lot of good info on how to stack hair. I just watched a few minutes of it and picked up a few hints I wish I had remembered while tying the fly above.

Here's a link to the video. It's 30+ minutes, so grab something to drink and sit back and enjoy!

http://gotbronze.blogspot.com/2011/01/1-3-11-hot-butt-toad-tutorial.html


Keep up with his work on his blog at http://gotbronze.blogspot.com

Tubes for Bass

Eumer Pro Fishing Accessories shows a great way to mix and match poppers with tails. I've wanted to try this for a while, but haven't done it yet. I've often wondered if there was a good way to rig them so if you got snagged you could break off the hook and not lose the popper head. This would allow for less crying like a girl when a nice popper head was lost to a tree.

LINK to Eumer

Crease Fly Took A Swim

I had a few minutes today so I took one of my crease flies for a swim. Went to one of my favorite local ponds that is only about .25 acres or less, and often gets weeded over in mid summer. With todays wind and cooler temps it wasn't weedy on top at all.

I rigged up my line with about 5 feet of sink tip and put the crease fly on. This worked well since the line would sink, then when I stripped in the fly it would dive down, but still float up to the surface if given enough time. I could see how this fly and this line setup could be very effective during the summer. I've always thought that fish are more willing to bite if they don't have to come up to the surface. I do however love fishing the surface, so I do that plenty, but this setup gives me an option to go under and still have a chance to not hook into anything since the fly is trying to float.

In the end I didn't catch anything, but had a few hits out of the spot above. Still good to toss a fly even if only for a short time.

Before this stop, I took my daughter to a tiny local trib to look for salmon and fat browns. There aren't any in there yet, but in the next few weeks that will likely change!

Legged Gurgler

I had this idea to thread some rubber legs through some foam. So last night I tied up this legged gurgler variant.

Of course, there are some variations to the original gurgler pattern, but that's what tying's all about.  When tying this, I did use supper glue at both points where the foam is wrapped. Fishing this pattern this summer I found that the foam likes to rotate around the hook. Hopefully the super glue will help keep it in place....hopefully.

The rubber legs did exactly what I expected....pointed straight down. I want to figure out a way to get them to stick out to the side a bit more. But, for now, having tried this idea out, it's got the brain working on other ideas! 

Here's a cool step by step of how to tie a more traditional gurgler.

http://www.danblanton.com/hotflyLeeGurglerinst.html

Great Bass Fishing Video from Catch Magazine

I could watch this video all day long!




It reminds me my popper collection is getting low, and they might need to be tied a bit larger too!