The Holy Grail

Ever since I was a teenager and watched Roland Martin catching those giants out of Lake Okeechobee I have considered the Big O to be the Holy Grail of Bass Fishing.  I'm sure there are a lot of other Bass fishermen that feel the same way around the country and dream of a chance to cast a line into the waters of the Big O.  That dream is about to come true for me and I couldn't be more excited.  Thanks to a great bass fisherman in his own rights Tim Zdrazil who will be making the trip to the Big O to pre-fish for a tournament and letting me tag along.  So folks dreams do come true if you wait on them and don't give up. It was my luck that work has me in Florida to support the launch of Exploration Flight Test One or EFT-1.  This is the first test flight of NASA's Orion spacecraft scheduled to launch on December 4th.  I had some software I built that needed to be loaded on the spacecraft prior to launch.  That upload happened late yesterday evening and was very successful which took a big weight off my shoulders and is allowing me to now focus on the Holy Grail.

The only bad news in all this is I had to leave Texas before the new prototype of the Throw-n-Thunder Lures BHOA Special or Coleslaw that I helped in designing arrived.  It is a killer new color that really takes care of the bass in the Southeast Texas Bayous and I'd bet that if I could have debut it on the Big O it would have taken a giant.  Here is a picture of the prototype, isn't it awesome?

Even though I won't have the BHOA Special I will be armed with a full set of TNT Spinnerbaits and I can almost bet that the Rumble Bee with painted blades  or Table Rock Shad will call in one of those Okeechobee Big Girls.

Y'all should know by now that I'm a jig fisherman big time.  Like the American Express saying goes, I don't leave home without my Santone Lures Jigs.   I'll be carrying both the Rayburn Swim Jigs and Rattin' Jigs and  I know that the Big O giants won't be able to turn down these offering.

I have yet to find bass that I couldn't catch on either my TNT Spinnerbaits or my Santone Lure Jigs.  I just wish I could have brought along my new Dunamis Rods along on the trip and I know that I'm going to miss them!!  I do however have some of the Rage Fish Attractants Liquid Mayhem in both the Crawfish and Shad Garlic favors to aid in my quest for a Big O Giant.   With these fine baits and fish attractants I'm set; the rest is up to me to do my job making good casts, working my baits well and setting the hook.  So stay tuned to this Bass Fishing Channel as there will be a full report coming and hopefully it will have an awesome video to accompany the report.

Until next time, Tight Lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!

Liquid Mayhem Fish Attractants Review

As promised here is my review of a new fish attractant from Liquid Mayhem Fish Attractants called Liquid Mayhem.  As I've stated in previous articles I believe in the use of fish attractants as cover scents, but wasn't too sure they really attracted fish to hit your bait.  Most fishermen are finding out that they get more hits and the fish hold onto their baits longer when they use a scent.  Why is this you might ask?  That answer is simple, you yourself have a scent and the things you touch also have scents.  Some of the things we come in contact with before we hit the water like, soap, sun block, gas, oil and foods transfer their scents to your hands.  The problem with this is most of them don't smell good and aren't very tasty to fish.   If you are having problems catching fish and your buddy is really hammering them on the same exact bait then I'll bet you have a scent problem.  A scent problem can be easily fixed with a good cover scent, something the fish like to smell and taste. Unlike a lot of the attractants on the market Rage uses really natural scents made from things like crawfish, shad and minnows.  This has to taste good to the fish and even if it doesn't attract them to your bait, once they get it in their mouth they hold on long enough for you to get a good hookset.  That in itself is a benefit worth it's weight in gold to a fisherman.

As for me, I've been using cover scents for years and will say that until testing these Liquid Mayhem Fish Attractants products I didn't believe any of them actually attract fish.  Well a trip to the bayou yesterday really changed my mind on this subject.  The water in the bayou yesterday looked like chocolate milk and I really had little hopes of getting anything to bite.  I applied some of the Liquid Mayhem Minnow Garlic to my jig and what happened was totally unexpected.  Not only did I catch fish, but I caught a fish that was very close to my personal best on that bayou.

As you might know I'm a huge fan of Garlic and in fact for a number of years not only me but lots of fishermen have found that the scent of Garlic helps them catch more fish.  That is why I picked the Minnow Garlic as one of the scents from Rage to test. 

Now applying Liquid Mayhem to your bait is easy but can be messy.   Messy in this case is a good thing as it gets the scent on you and helps cover anything that you might have on your hands that would cause a fish not to hit your bait or to spit it out before you can set the hook.  Here is a short video that show how to apply it to your bait.

I've saved the biggest benefit of using Liquid Mayhem for last and this one is what really sets this product out in a league of their own.  All of the other scents on the market have to be reapplied about every 10-12 casts because they wash off in the water.  Not Liquid Mayhem; it stays on your bait a very long time.  In fact one application will stay on your bait and doing it's job to cover your scent for more than 30 minutes.  What does that mean to you?   That means your bait is in the water more as you don't have to stop as often to reapply.  This translates into more casts and more chances to catch fish, which is a huge benefit for tournament fishermen!!!

The bottom line is I'm sold on Liquid Mayhem it is a far better product than any of the other cover scents/fish attractants on the market today.  I will not be doing any fishing from this point on unless there is Liquid Mayhem in my tackle bag or boat!!!

Until next time, Tight Lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!

Halls Bayou Tourney - 11/22/2014

The Bayou Bassin' League held their second fall/winter tournament on Halls Bayou on 11/22/2014.  There wasn't as many boats in this tournament, but that was likely due to the weather forecast and also there was 2 saltwater tournaments also on that day.  The hard rains never came during the fishing though we did have a few showers.  The biggest problem we had weather wise was the wind and I do mean we had wind.  It blew most of the day but got worse later in the day with reports of 20mph with gusts as high as 35.  This didn't stop any of us and I'm pretty sure we all fished hard all day.

After talking with folks they all caught fish all day long just like my son and I.  The only problem was that most of the fish caught were just under the 14 inch minimum. However as with all tournaments there were some of the teams that found keepers and some that found more than others. I guess you could say my son and I were in the middle of everyone.  We did catch fish early on Santone Lures Rattlin' Jigs and in fact I lost one pretty good fish due to a failed knot.  I still haven't found a braid to fluorocarbon knot I trust.   My son put our first keeper in the well on a Santone Rayburn Red Jig, but it was a Redfish for the side pot though it did make us feel better to know we had something.

I finally switched to a Throw-n-Thunder Lures White on White quad blade Spinner Bait named "Money".  I was hoping that it would be true to its name and get us in the money.  Well it almost did just that.  It didn't take long to get the first keeper for the day which turned out to be our best bass and 2nd best for the tournament.  I also found out that a lot of folks also caught bass on white Spinner Baits early.  Also from what I heard it seemed that our gameplan was sort of backwards for the day.  Spinner Baits early with worms and jigs later in the day was what got the big stingers. However "Money" did get me a nice 26 inch Redfish that I thought had a good chance of winning the side pot.

Enough with what my son and I caught and lets get to the results and pictures.

Once more Chad and Tyrone were able to put together a limit of fish which was the only limit for the day.  They were also able to bump me out of Big Bass and also won the side pot for Big Redfish.  I gave them my congrats as everyone else did, but I think all of us will be following them around the next tournament, just kidding.  These guys are some great Bayou Bassers!!!  Fact is they had so many fish they had to ask a couple of young men to help them hold them for a picture.

Now Mark and Doug upped their game a little from our last tournament and jumped in for 2nd place.

 

Here are the winners with their Trophies.......they were awesome trophies by the way.  Congrats again to Chad, Tyrone, Mark and Doug, way to go guys!!!

Now filling the 3rd place and the last money slot was a couple more guys that normally have good stringers, Dennis and Dwight.

Mike and JD finished 4th

My son Josh and I were 5th and proud to make the top five in this group of fishermen!!!  Josh was off reviving our Redfish so he could be caught again as this picture was taken.

Speaking of my Redfish it did give my new Spinner Bait rod from Dunamis Rods a full test.  I was a little worried with all the redfish in the bayou it's lighter action wouldn't have the backbone to handle them.  Well I have no worries any more, it did an awesome job fighting and landing this good red.

 

For those of you interested in fishing some of our Bayou Tournaments you can click on this link for the Bayou Bassin' League website for more information.   You can also go to their Facebook page by clicking here BBL Facebook  to see more pictures and stay up to date on things happening real time.   There are still a lot of great tournaments this fall/winter and we would enjoy having more teams come and try their hand on these bayou bass.

December 13, 2014 - Clear Creek - Egret Bay Boat Ramp FM270
January 17, 2015 - Dickinson Bayou - Dickinson Hw3
February 21, 2015 - Austin Bayou - 2004 Bridge Ramp near Danbury
March 21, 2015 - Buffalo Camp Bayou - Lake Jackson (Launch TBD)
May 16, 2015 - Sabine River - Beaumont Area (Launch TBD)

Before I end this article I have to once more extend thanks to our BBL Sponsors Hook Spit Tackle, Choice Pipeline & Bear's Flooring for Sponsoring the BBL!  Without their help and sponsorship we wouldn't be where we are today.  Hook Spit is allowing the BBL pre-tournament meetings to be held at their store and has also provided store gift card for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishes as well as providing gift cards for raffle! Choice Pipeline & Bear's Flooring has stepped up and is provided the trophies for the tournaments this year!

If you are interested in sponsoring the BBL you can contact Jake or Ken on the BBL website or just send me an email at BHOAdventures@gmail.com and I'll put you in touch with them.

Until next time, Tight Lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!

Upcoming Reviews

I've got a couple of new and exciting products that I'll be taking to the Bayou and testing to see if they do everything they are suppose to do.  Like I've said before about 50% of the products out there are really meant to catch fishermen and not fish so that is why I do these reviews.  Now really I only fish with and review products that I feel will hold up on their end of the bargain.  If I don't think a product will help me catch fish, then it is likely you won't see me review that item unless someone makes a special request.

Now the first product that I'll be testing is from the old tried and trued Creme Lure company.  They have been in business for a very long time and also helping fishermen like myself catch fish all that time.  My first really big bass came on a Creme plastic worm so they have always been one of my favorite lure companies.  Now that they are based right here in the Lone Star State is an added bonus as by now you should know I support Texas companies as much as possible.  Creme may have out done themselves with this new product called the Reel Scremer.  It is a swimbait, but it has a very new look and feel to it. 

They are thinner than most swimbaits and have ribs running length wise down the body.  It appears like they are going to have some excellent action.  They currently come in 9 colors and they are some dandy colors as you can see (I only have 8 of the 9 colors).  Creme recommends some methods of fishing these baits but I'm going to go to another Texas Company for the method I'll be using.  That company is Santone Lures and the method will be HT's S3 swimbait heads.

The S3 heads just plain and simply take swimbait fishing to the next level.  They allow you to present swimbaits in multiple different ways which give the swimbait action that bass can not refuse.  If you have never seen the S3 in action then you need to take a couple minutes and watch the video I've attached below.

The bottom line here is that the Creme Lures Reel Scremer paired with the Santone Lures HT's S3 might just be one of those matches made in bass heaven.  Time will tell and once I'm able to put them to the test I'll will write up a full review for you fine folks.

Now the next product is from Rage Fish Attractants and yes it is a fish attractant.  I know some of you will quickly say none of those types of products work.  Well I'll have to agree somewhat with you on that thought.  From my personal experience I will say I've never used a product that I thought actually attracted fish, but I have used some that I felt covered up my scent on the baits.  I do know that things like Sun Block, Gas and Oil on your hands will transfer to you baits and will keep the fish from biting.  I've seen it happen first hand, so if some scents will run bass off then why can't some scents attract bass?  I believe it is possible, though I've not found one up to this point.  Now I do believe in spraying or dipping my baits in a Garlic Scent to cover my smell or anything else on my hands that might cause a bass not to bite.

The product I'll be testing is the Liquid Mayhem and I'll be testing two flavors.  The first is the Bass Attractant which is said to be made from real Crawfish.  Now I know bass love crawfish so if this stuff is made from real crawfish the worse it could do would be cause a bass to hold onto the bait longer which would be a big plus.   Now if the bass smell or sense the crawfish and it causes them to eat your bait, then that is a real added bonus.  So I'll be fishing this scent on baits that are supposed to resemble crawfish or in other words Jigs.

The second flavor I've selected is their Walleye Attractant.  Why you might ask did I pick that flavor for fishing the Southeast Texas Bayous?  The answer is simple, it is made from really minnows and has Garlic added.  As I stated above I'm a real believer in garlic scents to cover anything that might transfer to baits from my hands.  So selecting this attractant was based on it having garlic.  Again as with the Bass Attractant, if this flavor covers the bad scents and gets the bass to hold the bait longer it is a win, win situation.  If it does in fact attract strikes then that will be an added bonus.

Only time spent on the water will tell if these new product will hold up to my expectation.  As always I'll fish them hard and long to give them a good chance to prove or disprove their claims but I am a little excited by their prospects. 

If you want to get more information on any of these products then you can follow the links I've provided below.

Creme Lure Company

Santone Lure Company

Rage Fish Attractants

Until next time, Tight Lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!

Bayou Bassin' League - Halls Bayou

That is right folks it is quickly going to be that time again as the Bayou Bassin' League will be hosting a tournament on Halls Bayou on November 22nd.  There will be a pre-tournament registration meeting at Hook Spit Tackle Shop at 6:00 PM on the 21st.  Hook Spit is located at 2800 West Main St. in League City between Landing Way Drive and Amber Lane.

This is a team (2 Man) tournament with an entry fee of $60 per team.  The launch and weigh-in will be at the Hall Bayou Fish Camp, located at 11721 Landrum Rd, Santa Fe, TX 77510.  The Start time will be at 7:00 AM or when it is light enough to safely leave the ramp.  Weigh-in will be at 3:00 PM and you need to be in the weigh-in line to at 3:00 PM to qualify.

As always the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and Big Bass will receive cash prizes and 1st, 2nd and Big Bass will receive awesome trophies!!

This is a great time of year to be Bayou Bassin' and Halls Bayou is a great place to go catch some nice bass.  I'll be at the registration meeting and fishing in this tournament so please stop and shake my hand if we haven't met.

For more and up-to-date information on this tournament you can visit the BBL Website at Bayou Bassin' League or their Facebook page at Bayou Bassin League Facebook

Until next time Tight Lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!

Thunder Strikes Again!!

Folks I was so excited about my new spinnerbait rod and it's review in my last article that I forgot to mention the baits I used.  Of course you can likely guess if you watched the video but I wanted to make sure y'all know and also tell you where to get your hands on some.  These days I'm only fishing with one brand of spinnerbaits and those are Throw-n-Thunder Lures spinnerbaits.

On Monday when I hit Halls Bayou I threw two of their newer colors and let me tell you they are awesome.  I caught fish on both of them and had the conditions been better who knows how many and how big of Bass I would have caught.  I mean in worst possible conditions to be fishing spinnerbaits I was able to catch fish and I'm talking a good enough stinger to have placed high had it been during a tournament.  That in itself should speak volumes about these baits.  I've said once and I'll say it again, you really are Throw-n-Thunder when you are fishing them!!!

So what were these new colors?  Well the first one was the White-Blue Shad and as I thought the bass hammered it.  The bass in the bayou this time of year are mostly feeding on shad and this color really does mimic their colors a lot.  With it's awesome 4 or Quad Blade setup it looks like a school of shad and really rings that dinner bell for any bass that see it come by.  Even in poor conditions I picked up a couple of bass on this beauty!!

I would have likely caught more on the White-Blue Shad had I continued to fish it, but I was testing some new colors so I had to throw the new Rumble Bee with the painted blades.   I have to say the moment I saw the painted blades on this Rumble Bee I knew the bass were in deep trouble.  This bait was just meant to attract the bass and that is exactly what it did for me.  As the conditions tended to improve further in the day the Rumble Bee really light them up.  I just wish I would have had a bigger memory card for my camera (only the list of things to get) so I could have captured all the action.  If you watched the video you saw me lose that one big fish.  I wish I would have had the camera pointed in the other direction so you could have seen her and wouldn't have to go on my word that she was 5+ pounds.

Now I bet you are thinking "Those painted blades won't attract the bass as good as those flashy nickle or gold blades".  Well friends I'll have to tell you that these painted blades create even more flash than those that shine.  At least they do in the water conditions on the bayou and Lake Fayette.  The fact is I'm sold on painted blades right now, but that doesn't mean I won't keep some of the TNTs with nickle or gold blades in my box.

The bottom line here is Throw-n-Thunder Lures in my opinion is producing the finest spinnerbaits on the market today!  As I said in my last article, I only fish with what I think is the very best, so that means I only fish Throw-n-Thunder.  Follow the links I provided here and get yourself some of these and Throw some Thunder on your next day on the water, you won't regret it!!

Until next time, Tight Lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!

Dunamis Rod Field Test

Headed down to Hall's Bayou yesterday morning to what turned out to be a not so perfect day for fishing Spinnerbaits.  The skys were clear and blue with a very bright sun which I've found over the years is not spinnerbait conditions.  Still I had a new Spinnerbait Rod from Dunamis Rods that needed to be tested and the only way to test a spinnerbait rod is to fish spinnerbaits.  That is what I did, I fish spinnerbaits all day, my favorite Throw-n-Thunder quad blade spinnerbaits.

Once the reel was seated on the rod I had realized it was perfectly balanced and along with being one of the lightest rods I own makes it easy to fish all day without getting tired.  That is huge for an old guy like me that can get tired fast with a combo that is heavy and unbalanced.

The morning was tough as it was a High Slack tide which is another condition where I normally would be fishing a jig deep in the cover.  After about an hour on the water the tide started its change and I hoped the water movement would get the bass out of the deep cover.  Still this time gave me a chance to get used to my new rod, the feel and how she casts.  Not all rods cast the same so it takes some time to used to one and how to make pin point casts that are needed on the bayou.  I really started loving my new rod before the first bass hit as it was letting me make longer casts but still allowing me great placement and most importantly soft bait entry into the water. 

For the Highlights you can watch the video.

 It didn't take too much time after the tide started to move out before I had my first hit and it was bass on.  The rod did exactly what I wanted, it let me feel the strike yet allowed the bass to load up on the line before I set the hook.  Kind of hard to explain in words, but basically with a stiffer rod I tended to pull the bait away from the fish when I first felt the strike, call it quick on the trigger.  With my Dunamis Rod this didn't happen.  In fact on this day if a bass hit I landed him, with the exception of one which wasn't the rod's fault.  It is hard to get a good hook set when the trailer folds back and covers the hook.  It happens from time to time and it always seems like it is on bigger fish.  You would think that bigger bass have bigger mouths and that wouldn't be the case but it is and I'm at a loss to explain why.

One other thing I've decided is to get a bigger memory card from my video camera.  The last couple of trips the memory is full on the camera before the fish really start hitting.  This was the case yesterday as well where I ended up catching most of the fish after the card was full.  All in all I would have had a pretty good limit of bayou bass that would have weighed in the 9-10 pound range.  That would get you up in the top group in most of our bayou tournaments.

Back to the rod; It is very pretty, but most importantly it does exactly what I need it to do.  Josh of Dunamis Rods spent a lot of time with me finding out not just what I wanted but most importantly what I needed in a rod.  He asked questions that I'd never thought to tell him, so I've got to say that without his help I might still be losing fish (over 50%) while fishing a spinnerbait.  So the bottom line here is Dunamis Rods are now my go to rods, in fact, I have a jig rod on the way as we speak.  I only fish with products I believe are the best and that I have full confidence in, so I'm happy to say for rods that is Dunamis!!!

Until next time, Tight Lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!

Bayou Bassin' 101

With it raining cats and dogs outside I decided to get ready for my trip to Halls Bayou on Friday.  While getting my tackle ready for the trip I was thinking about my battle plans.  Oh yes you need to have a plan of attack on every fishing trip or you will find yourself at the ramp after a long day with not a lot to show for your time.  Now if I was going to a new area to fish part of my planning would be to call up Google Earth and take a bird's eye view and see if I could find some likely places bass would be hanging out.   This is an awesome tool for us fisherman that some of us might have overlooked.   You can see spots on lakes, rivers and even bayous that are likely spots to hold bass and give you a better chance at catching a good stringer.

For Halls Bayou where I know just about every inch something like Google Earth isn't needed.  I still don't go in blind mind you, I still have a plan of attack even on water I fish a lot.  So to help anyone wanting to try their luck on some Bayou Bass here are a few basics that might put a few fish on your line.  The one thing you have to remember is the currents and water levels change daily on a bayou due to the tides.   Even those changes are different from day to day as some days have little tide moment with very light currents, while others have large movements with strong currents.  On a normal day you could see 4 basic conditions, Outgoing Tide, Incoming Tide, Low Slack Tide or High Slack Tide.  If you know where and how you can catch fish in all 4 of these conditions on most days.  So lets take a look at each of these and where you should look for bass.  Of course I can't cover everywhere a bass might be on the bayou in this article but I can give you some ideas as to the places to look.

1. Outgoing Tide

You can see in the picture above the direction of the current.  Bass like most fish don't like to fight the current so they look for places that might slow or block the current and bring food to them.  As you can see there are some reeds with a small point that could be one of these current blocks.  In fact the current will be pretty strong as it come off the point and bait fish will break out of it to the eddy that is formed on the back side.  The bass will lay in the eddy up close to the reeds for cover so if you can make your bait look like a bait fish breaking out of the current, you are likely to get a bass to hit.

Also in the above picture you can see a Down Fall tree in the water.  The bass will position themselves on the down current side of the tree to get a break in the current.  They will wait there until bait fish, crawfish, shrimp or even a crab is pulled over the tree by the current and pounce on their meal.  In this case you want to work your bait so that it comes over the tree in a way that looks like something the bass wants to eat.

2. Incoming Tide

 

If the tide is incoming the same spot will also hold fish they just change their location in relations to the current breaks.  Because of the change in direction these current breaks have changed slightly and so the bass position themselves differently.   Everything pretty much stays the same from your presentation stand point except the direction you are working your bait.  You always want to work your bait with the current or at worse across the current slightly.

3. Low Slack Tide

Low slack tide can be one of the most difficult times to fish.  You can still catch fish but they will not be in the structure unless it is in deeper water.   Even if they aren't in the structure itself they will be somewhere close to the structure in deeper water.   They are generally not actively feeding in this period, but if you can find them you can get them to bite.  Even if they aren't actively feeding when presented with what they think is an easy meal they generally won't say no.   So here is where you need to slow down and maybe even break out your finesse tackle.

4. High Slack Tide

High slack tide is just the opposite to a low slack tide with one exception, the bass still aren't actively feeding in most cases.  In this case the water level is up and the bass have moved back deeper in the structure.  You have to go in and get them so a prime tactic is pitching and flipping.  So break out that big stiff rod with heavy line and your favorite pitching or flipping bait and go get them.  You will find them back at the base of the down falls and in hole or pockets in the reeds.  If you can put your bait on their head quietly, you might just get a pull and a good fight.  Remember get them out of the cover as quick as you can so they don't get you all tied up.

Well there you have it a Basics 101 of Bayou Bassin'.  I didn't cover everything here but it should give you a good start and hopefully get you some hits if you decide to try your hand at some bayou bass.  I'll try and give you some more tactics that have worked for me on the bayou in some future articles.

Until next time, Tight Lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!

I'm a bit Excited!!!

Why would I be excited on a Monday you might ask, well I'm excited because my new custom spinnerbiat rod will be here soon.  If that doesn't cause some excitement in a fisherman's life then nothing will.  I contacted Josh with Dunamis Rods a couple weeks ago, one because I liked the looks of his rods and two because I've been having problems keeping fish on lately spinnerbait fishing.  Not sure the exact problem, but as I told Josh, it is like I'm pulling the bait away from the fish.  I tried a crankbait rod and didn't lose fish like I did with a heavier action rod so I set out to have the right rod built for my needs.

Josh has been absolutely great during this whole process.  He has spent a lot of time (hours) on the phone, email and also direct message to find out exactly what I think I need.  You don't get that when you go to Bass Pro, Academy or other sporting goods shops.  I've also contacted some other custom rod builders over the years and had a few rods built, but never have I had someone take an interest in not only what I wanted, but what I needed in a rod.  Josh could have easily just taken an order from me and built the rod I though I needed, but he didn't.  He took it to the point I have a lot of confidence that the rod he has built for me is going to be the rod that solves my spinnerbait problems.

Not only that but from the few pictures I've seen it is one pretty rod to boot, check for yourself.  Here is the fore wrap.

 Here is his very special aft coloring that I'll let him explain to you.  All I can say is it looks very awesome to me!!!

 The best part about all this is now that I'm on the Pro-Staff for Throw-n-Thunder Lures I'm going to need a great spinnerbait rod to go with their great spinnerbaits.  In fact I just received a bunch of new ones that I'm itching to get in the water very soon.

I really believe I might just have a match made in Fishing Heaven with my TNT Spinnerbaits and Dunamis Rod.   Only time will tell and I believe that time will be this Friday morning on Halls Bayou.  I'll be video taping so y'all stay tuned for the results when these two fine products and myself pit our wits against those Bayou Bass.

Until next time, Tight lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!

Clear Creek Tourney 10-25-2014

Yes I'm late making this post but it has been one of those week folks.   As I'm sure each of you know sometimes work can just drain the life out of us and that is what has happened to me this past week.

Now back to the results of the Bayou Bassin' League tournament held on Clear Creek Bayou last weekend.  It was an awesome day weather wise as we got ready to leave the boat ramp at first light.  It was a bit foggy so to be safe we waited until everyone could see before we started out for a day of tournament fishing.  The water was muddy and the further up the bayou you went the muddier the water got, but this did not stop the bass from biting.  After talking with all the fishermen after the tournament it seemed that there was a very wide array of baits that caught bass. 

I caught fish all day, and also had my problems all day.  If you remember my post about Blockade Runners Camp the weekend before the tournament you will remember we were catching Speckled Trout and their legal length is 15 inches.  Well for some strange reason 15 inches stuck in my head for the first part of the morning and I turned go some keeper bass, bass need to be 14 inches.  How many keepers I turned back I don't know but it was at least enough to give me a limit.  Still I don't think that would have moved me up into the top 3.

This was a team tournament but both my partners couldn't fish so I went it alone.  This in itself wasn't a biggie as I've done that before and placed well.  What made this an issue for this tournament was the two really good bass that I lost right next to the boat.  I don't care where you put the net in the boat it is just never in reach when you are fishing by yourself it seems.  This was the case of the two really good fish that I lost so it would have been really nice to have had a net man onboard.  At my age I've gained a ton of fishing wisdom, but with that ages comes stiff knees and I just can't get down to lip fish like I once could.  So I lost two fish that would have made a real difference in my final weight.  Well I'm not going to cry over that "Spilled Milk" it is all part of fishing.  However I have warned both my tournament partners that one of them had better be able to fish the next tournament with me.....LOL

So I'll stop rambling and get to the results and the pictures.  So here is your Top 10!!!

 As you can see there were a few good fish caught during the tournament.  I'm not going to say how big the one fish I lost would have weighed, but she would have really pushed hard on the Big Bass.
The winners Chad and Tryone are always at the top in these tournaments and really fish the bayous very well.  Congrats to them on another win and also for Big Bass!!

In 2nd place were some new comers to our Bayou Bassin League Dennis and Dwight, who showed they were right at home on the bayou catching a very nice stringer.

The other benefit of coming in the top 2 is the awesome trophies you get to display and brag about to all your friends.  I want to send out a big congrats to you guys!!!

Catching another nice bayou stringer and coming in 3rd was Mark and Doug.

In 4th was one of the BBL organizers Jake Knight and his partner Brad.  Really do need to thank Jake and also Ken Howard for getting the BBL off the ground and started.

Now coming in 5th was the owner of Hook Spit Tackle Shop and a BBL sponsor Wade Bullard and his partner Mike with another good bayou stringer.  They did catch their fish on Santone Lures Rattin' Jigs.

So where did I finish, well even with all my problems I was able to sneak into 8th place.  Most of my fish and the two good ones I lost came on Santone Lures' Rayburn Swim Jigs in the Acid Perch color.  Speaking of Santone Lures is one of the very bright spots in my rough week as they placed me on their Pro-Staff.  This is very exciting for me as I love their jigs and will do all I can to get the word out to all bass fishermen about their awesome products!!  That wasn't the only awesome news this week though, Throw-n-Thunder Lures also placed me on their Pro-Staff and you've seen those big bass spinnerbaits they produce so I'm absolutely thrilled to be a member of their team as well.  Wow, with Santone and TNT in my corner bass fishing is really getting exciting again for this old man.

For those of you interested in fishing some of our Bayou Tournaments you can go to the Bayou Bassin League website for more information.  http://www.bayoubassinleague.com/home.html
We have a full line up of great tournaments this fall and would enjoy having more team come and try their hands on these bayou bass.

October 25, 2014 - Clear Creek - Already finished
November 22, 2014 - Hall's Bayou - 2004 Hall's Bayou Camp
December 13, 2014 - Clear Creek - Egret Bay Boat Ramp FM270
January 17, 2015 - Dickinson Bayou - Dickinson Hw3
February 21, 2015 - Austin Bayou - 2004 Bridge Ramp near Danbury
March 21, 2015 - Buffalo Camp Bayou - Lake Jackson (Launch TBD)
May 16, 2015 - Sabine River - Beaumont Area (Launch TBD)

Before I end this article I do want to take a moment to thank Hook Spit, Choice Pipeline & Bear's Flooring for Sponsoring the BBL!  Without their help and sponsorship we wouldn't be where we are today.  Hook Spit is allowing the BBL pre-tournament meetings to be held at their store and has also provided store gift card for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishes as well as providing gift cards for raffle! Choice Pipeline & Bear's Flooring has stepped up and is provided the trophies for the tournaments this year!

If you are interested in sponsoring the BBL you can contact Jake or Ken on the BBL website or just send me an email at BHOAdventures@gmail.com and I'll put you in touch with them.

Until next time, Tight Lines and Take a Kid Fishing!!!