Fishing

Bass Fishing

The One-Two Punch

February 1, 2012 David A. Brown

It’s great when that first cast meets with aggressive reception, but often, it takes some dialing in to determine the fish’s preference. Notwithstanding the oft-proven merits of junk fishing, a handful of examples show us that certain lure pairings hold particularly strategic benefit. Like a boxer setting up his opponent with jabs and then sneaking in a body shot or a Major League pitcher throwing the changeup, there’s more to successful bass fishing than randomly grabbing lures and hoping for the best.

[…]

Bass Fishing

Fish stems and rocks

February 1, 2012 Paul Elias

This month, I’m picking Lake Ross Barnett, near Jackson. To find the bass, we’ve got to shrink the lake and concentrate on where they’re most likely to be and the lures they’re most likely to take. This month, bass have spawning on their minds, and they’re looking for warm, shallow water, and structure in the water in those two areas. […]

Content

Crappie Connection

February 1, 2012 Chris Ginn

To hear Chotard Landing Resort manager Mark Johnson explain it, the shoreline of the lake just outside his back door stretched from the Louisiana levee to the Mississippi levee just about a year ago. […]

Content

Crappie Hotspot Series: Lake Washington

February 1, 2012 Phillip Gentry

The next stop on the Mississippi Sportsman Crappie Hotspot Series tour is Lake Washington. Located approximately 25 miles south of Greenville on Highway 1, Washington is a closed-off oxbow of the Mississippi River; as such, fluctuations in the river don’t affect the lake in the same way as other oxbows, making it a unique fishery among Delta lakes. […]

Freshwater Fishing

Crappie fishing notes

February 1, 2012 Phillip Gentry

Veteran angler Jimmy Chambers of Hollandale grew up fishing Lake Washington for bream and crappie and jug fishing for catfish. Deemed a closed-off oxbow, Washington differs from most open-end oxbows like Chotard and Albemarle that directly fluctuate with the Mississippi River. Chambers says that to understand crappie fishing on Washington, you need to understand two things — water levels and cypress trees. […]

Bass Fishing

Tandem-rigged baits serve targeted purposes

February 1, 2012 David A. Brown

How quick are you on the follow-up cast? Can you reel up the first rod, grab a different one and drop a new bait at the point of a missed strike in, say, 10 seconds? A little less? No matter your speed — and assuming you can do it with accuracy — you simply won’t present a follow-up bait faster than a tandem rig. […]