The Perfect Day?

What exactly is the perfect day to go bass fishing?  That is a tough question as there are very few days where all of the conditions are aligned to make it perfect to catch bass.  That does not mean you only have a few days each year where you should go fishing, it means you have to be able to adapt your method of fishing to the conditions presented you on any given day.  In all my years of fishing I've found that Barometric Pressure, Water Temperature and Water Clarity are the major factors into deciding on when, where and how to catch bass.  Here is how I approach each of the different type of conditions.

Barometric Pressure
It has been widely known for many, many years that Barometric Pressure has an affect of the habits of fish.  This is very true about bass, but the one thing you have to understand is no matter what the Barometric Pressure reading is on a given day, the bass will still eat if they are hungry.  The key will be to put your bait in front of them to present an easy meal.  Your problem is there are also other factors that play a role in where the bass will be and how you should present your baits.  Here is a short guide that might help you catch some bass no matter the Barometric Pressure.

1. Falling Barometric Pressure
As a general rule when ever you can catch the Barometric Pressure falling or rapidly falling it will be the best time to catch bass.  The problem you might face here is there is a reason the pressure is falling and that is because there is impending bad weather coming.  This may mean an approaching front with heavy winds, rains or even thunderstorms.  So you have to be prepared for these conditions before heading to the lake. If you are able to fish during a falling pressure then you will find the bass actively feeding in most cases and easy to catch if you know where they are feeding.  If the water temperatures are good look for cover near the shore of shallow points or creek channels in the back of coves to start your fishing.  In these cases fast moving baits like Spinnerbaits and Crankbaits will draw you a lot of strikes.  This is also a great time to fish a Swim Jig with a good trailer fast in the cover to hookup with a big bass.  Water clarity and available food source will play a role into the type, size and color of the bait you will be fishing.  In other words if the bass are feeding on Shad then you need to to be fishing a bait that looks like a Shad.  So just like fly fishermen do with trout you have to match the hatch so to speak.  It doesn't do you any good to throw a Crawfish type bait if the bass aren't actively feeding on Crawfish.  Again as a general rule of thumb, if they are feeding actively they will be chasing faster types of bait foods.

2. Stable Barometric Pressure
When the Barometric Pressure is stable that means the other weather conditions are also stable.  This can mean some very good fishing if your stable weather is fishing friendly conditions.  What I mean here is "Stable Weather" could be winds blowing so hard that it is not safe to be on the lake.  So you will have to decide if all the conditions will permit you to safely fish.  Also a stable Barometric Pressure could be High, Medium or Low and that means each would call for different methods and locations to catch bass

High Barometric Pressure:
When the Barometric Pressure is 30.50 or Greater it will also mean that the skies are likely very clear and the sun is shining brightly onto the water.  I do not recommend fishing this condition the first two days after there has been bad weather as this condition really shuts down the bass and can be really tough on your fishing.  If you do fish these conditions think Slow!!! The clear skies and bright sun is not pleasant to the bass so they will be holding tight to cover in deeper water.  They are not going to chase your bait so if you can present it very slowly right in front of their face they might eat it.   This is also a great time to think of going to Finesse Methods such as Shakyheads and Drop-Shots.  One of the key locations to look for fish in these conditions is under docks and piers.  Other areas where there is shade offered as protection from the sun can also hold bass.

Medium Barometric Pressure:
I consider a Medium Barometric Pressure to be between 29.70 and 30.40 which would also mean you are likely having Fair Weather.  This is by far the best fishing conditions you can have.  However that does not mean they will eat anything you throw at them anywhere you throw your bait.  So just because the bass should be biting you will still have to locate the bass and find out what they are eating.  Water conditions such as temperatures and clarity will play a big role also in deciding what types and color of baits you want to fish.  I generally apply these rules for water temperature:

• 55 Degrees or Less means you are going to be fishing slower and deeper.  The lower the water temperature the slower and deeper you will need to go in search of fish.  There is also some key structure that will draw fish such as boat ramps, riff raps or other areas with some types of rocks or concrete that has direct sun light shining on them.  The sun heats up the rocks or concrete which in turn hold the heat and warm the water in these areas.  You are still going to have to fish slow with jigs or finesse baits to get strikes but you might have one of the best days on the water.
• 55 to 65 Degrees is what I consider to be your prime temperatures for fishing, but at the same time may be some of the hardest times for locating bass.  The bass could be holding to many different types of structure in many different water depths.  It is your job to find them and catch them so to speak.  Once you locate the fish there are many types of baits and methods that could catch them.  You will have to keep trying different baits and presentation until you find the one that works best on that given day.  If you find fish don't give up on them too quickly if they don't bite at first.  Keep giving them something a little different until you find what they want.
• 65 to 75 Degrees can also be some awesome water temperatures for catching bass.  In the spring of the year this is generally the temperatures that kick off the spawn so you can find fish that are staging for the spawn, spawning or even in post spawn mode.   In all three of these spawning modes bass can be caught and I mean a lot of bass.  If they are staging or in post spawn the are eating and eating a lot so target areas close to spawning beds.  They will be eating the available forage foods so match your baits to these foods.  If the bass are on the beds they are not actively feeding but can be caught just as easy because they are protecting their beds.  Throw lizard type baits and big worms at the beds.  You will need to work them very slow in and around the beds to draw strikes from may just be a personal best bass.  Jigs and Crawfish type baits are also producers on spawning bass so if they don't go for the lazard or worms then give them something else.
• 75 Degrees or Greater means you are going to need to go back to slower and deeper as the temperatures climb higher.  This is also a time to think about night fishing or early mornings and late evening fishing where there are shady spots along the banks.  The fish will move up to feed in the low light conditions and you can have a great hour or two catching them on a lot of different baits.  Also during midday periods go back to the docks and piers and fish your finesse baits.

3. Low Barometric Pressure:
When the Barometric Pressure is 29.60 or Less will generally mean it is also Cloudy and maybe Rainy.  The wind and rain conditions will play a big role into your decision on going fishing or not.  If you do decide to go then you have to understand that Bass don't like low pressure so you are going to have to go back to your deep and slow tactics. Again water temperatures and clarity will play a big role in the type and color of your bait as will what the natural forage is in the area.

4. Rising Barometric Pressure:
Rising Barometric Pressure will generally mean that weather conditions are improving.  It will depend on what the pressure is at the start of the rise as to when will be the best time to head to the lake.  I like to wait for the pressure to be at least 29.60 before considering going fishing.  During the rise the fish will start to become more active but you will still likely have to fish in deeper water or around cover that offers the bass protection.  This can be a really good time to fish, but it can also be a day where you get skunked.  As with all the other pressure conditions water temperature and clarity will play a major role in to your method, bait type and bait color.

As you can see there are a lot of factors that play into the location, method, type and color of baits on any given day.   That is why it is such a good idea to keep a fishing log.  In this log record the conditions, methods and baits that worked for you and they will very likely all work again given the same type of conditions.   Also if nothing worked in certian types of conditions then you know it might be best to just stay home and watch movies during those conditions.  The bottom line here folks is there just isn't any one "Perfect Day" for fishing that I can point out for you.  The way I look at it is any day I'm out on the water fishing is a "Perfect Day"!!!!!

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

ThunderSlaw - The Real Deal!

I did make it out to Lake Fayette to field test the ThunderSlaw from Throw-n-Thunder Lures and the Reel Scremers from Creme Lures on Monday 12/22/2014.  Let me tell you the conditions couldn't have been much worse than what I had out there but I'm going to let the attached video speak for the conditions.

Here are my thoughts on the baits I tested.  Even though two of them didn't catch any fish there are some very good aspects to both of them that I would like to point out.  Also that I do plan on doing more testing on both of them.

ThunderSlaw:

Folks the ThunderSlaw is the real deal hands down!!!  Yes I'm a little biased when it comes to this bait as it is the Bounty Hunter Outdoor Adventures Signature spinnerbait but there is more to it than just having our name attached to the bait.  It really does catch fish and as you saw in the video it catches fish in the worst possible conditions!!!

When I was discussing the development of this bait with the guys at Throw-n-Thunder Lures I knew it was a fish catching color scheme.  Now what the guys at TnT did with my idea is truly amazing.  The skirt design allows you to fish this bait without a trailer of any kind as the skirt itself has just unbelievable fish attracting action.  I'm a total believer in this bait and will throw it in any conditions!!  Why am I so confident in the bait you might ask;  the answer is simple it catches fish.  Monday was actually the second time I fished the bait.  The first was in a Team Tournament on 12/13/2014 that I had to fish without a teammate due to a late cancellation.

Well the ThunderSlaw did it's job and then some during the tournament.  Even by myself without a teammate I finished 8th and that would have been higher had my bass landing skill been better.  In other words I had 3 good bass next to the boat on the ThunderSlaw that I just couldn't get in the boat without a net and of course the net just wasn't within reach, and of course all 3 of them found a way to free themselves from the hook.

So folks please take my advice and get you some ThunderSlaws as soon as they are available for sale in the spring of 2015.  I guarantee these baits will catch you some bass or I wouldn't have let the Bounty Hunter Outdoor Adventures name be associated with them.

Reel Scremers:

The Reel Scremers from Creme Lures is an awesome looking swim bait that have very good action.  Again this is a bait that I feel will be very affective under the right conditions.  It is also a bait that can be fished using multiple methods.  However Monday just didn't allow me to fish this bait in a way it needed to be fished.  The high winds just wouldn't allow me to stay in contact with this bait in a manner that would let me work it the way I wanted.  So the bottom line here is there will be more testing with the Reel Scremers.  I really believe they are going to catch fish given the right conditions, so I need to give them the benefit of the doubt and another shot at the bass before I give any judgement on them.

Well folks there you have it, field testing doesn't always go the way you hope.  Weather this time of year in Texas can be really rough on fishermen and really hard to plan a trip too far in advance.  Even so when the weather is right this can be the best time of the year to connect with a Texas Giant so hang in there as I will have more to report in the near future.

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

Dunamis Rods: Breaking The Mold

The fishing Rod:  A tool, a friend, a masterpiece.  A fisherman’s choice in sticks can at times seem to be a daunting task.  What company sells the best “spinner bait” rod?  Where can I find the best “cranking rod” on the market?  Is it going to play into my favor to buy the “jigging rod” that KVD recommends?  These are questions that I have not only asked myself, but have used to make fairly hefty financial decisions, given the price of gear these days.  Especially considering the demographics of most of us anglers who don’t happen to fish the Bassmaster Elite Series just yet.  Having been through the expensive gauntlet of fishing gear acquisitions, experimentation and buyer’s remorse, I knew there had to be a better way.  That’s when a new concept was introduced to me by Josh Phillips, founder of Dunamis Rods. The result of long conversation and theoretical debate, has truly revolutionized the way I look at the materialistic aspect of fishing completely.  What if… Seriously, think this through in its entirety.  What if there is no “spinner bait rod?”  What if there is no “cranking rod?”  What if the “jigging rod” that KVD uses, markets, and happens to get paid to promote, isn’t the right “jigging rod” for YOU?

  Dunamis Rod’s approaches the angler from a different perspective.  While big label companies will sell you the cookie cutter rod that they can mass produce and market well, Dunamis Rods is hard at work trying to salvage the individuality of the angler, and his/her needs.  The first rod I personally bought from Dunamis was a “drop-shot rod.”  The difference however, is that this particular rod was MY “drop-shot rod.”  Allow me to explain.  A very popular retailer, for example, tells us that a “drop-shot rod” is a 6’ 9” rod with a medium lite power.  I had used this particular rod for over a year.  Please, don’t get me wrong, this company makes a fine line of rods, and nothing should be taken away from that in this article.  That being said, however, I soon found out that I was robbing myself of a rod that could better suit me and the way that I fish.  Josh and I talked about my fishing, my style, my weaknesses, and my strengths.  We threw all of this data into the Dunamis cauldron of amazingness, and then we devised a plan.  Josh took this information, put his hands to work, and developed a new rod.  MY rod.  By the time it was all said and done, I had in my hands a Dunamis creation that I have since fell in love with.  I now have a “drop-shot rod” that is 6’6” and is a true medium.  It also happens to have an extra fast action tip to compensate for MY overzealous hook sets.  Another fine tweak we made was we moved the eyes of the rod much further up than anything you’d see on a typical rod.  The final product ended up compensating for my weaknesses and capitalizing on my strengths.  I’ve never felt more in tune with a piece of equipment before.

  The moral of my story is this.  YOU are not the same as any other angler.  YOU are YOU.  The fishing market has become more efficient by defining things for us.  However, in the grand scheme of things, not every rod marketed in every category is going to bring out the best performance in YOU.  We are not soft plastic lures, so please don’t try to mold us, eh?  Give Josh a call, discuss your interests, fishing and overall needs like I did.  You will be incredibly grateful you did.  Worst case scenario, you will end up with a great friend in the fishing industry.  Best case, you will find yourself in possession of the finest rod you’ve ever owned.  Josh at Dunamis guarantees this for life!  Join the fishing revolution at DunamisRods.Com.

David Hume 

Twitter: @humeprobass

Facebook: David Hume Bass Fishing

Field Testing Monday

That's right I'll be heading to Lake Fayette on Monday for some field testing.  So what will I be testing on this trip?

Up first is the Bounty Hunter Outdoor Adventures signature ThunderSlaw from Throw-n-Thunder Lures.  I did fish the prototype ThunderSlaw in a tournament last weekend and did very well with it but I think a good test on video is still needed.  So the ThunderSlaw will have to hold up to those Lake Fayette bass.

Up next is another prototype from Throw-n-Thunder Lures that was designed by a good friend of mine named Joey.  Folks this is the "Quake" and I have a feeling that it is going to be a big bass hunter, but we are going to let the Lake Fayette give us their thoughts on the bait.

Last but not least is a bait from a really veteran bait company.  The Creme Lure Company has been providing folks quality fishing lures since 1949 and are still in the game big time today.  Their new swim bait call the "Reel Scremer" has been on my list to test and review for a while, but for one reason or another I just haven't done it until now.  I promise that tomorrow I'll be fishing the Reel Scremers!!

Now to fish these Reel Scremers I'm going to use a tried and trued HT's S3 from Santone Lures.  These heads are amazing when fishing swim baits like the Reel Scremers.

So stay tuned in as I'll be posting both my written review of these products as well as the video from Lake Fayette.

If you would like me to Field Test a bait and give my review of it please send me an email at bhoadventures@gmail.com

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

BBL Clear Creek Tournament Results

All I can say is it was a beautiful morning as we lined up for blast off of the latest Bayou Bassin' League tournament series on Clear Creek.  The weather was perfect in the morn with some cloud cover and warm enough you didn't need a jacket.  The water was in pretty good condition and that is especially true considering what it looked like two weeks ago.

Talking with the guys some people like me were on good fish early while some had to grind out the day to find fish.  There were some folks that never found keeper bass which is not uncommon on these bayous.  We've had days were you can catch 20-30 bass and not one of them make the 14 inch mark.  Also talking with folks there were a wide variety of baits used to catch these fish; from worms to cranks and just about everything in between.  So lets get on to the results.

As you can see from the results the Top 10 was pretty dang tight.  The fish we were catching all seemed to be in the 2 pound class for the most part with the exception of a couple that pushed 4 pounds.  Steven and Lupe had one of those close to 4 pounders to anchor their bag and nail down 1st Place.  We were glad to see them back fishing with us after missing the last tournament.  Well we were glad until the weigh-in that is; Just Kidding!!  Glad to have you back and Congrats on a great bag!!

Ray and Cameron have been hitting the Bayous hard lately practicing and it really showed up yesterday as they weighed in a really good bag of bass for 2nd Place

 
 Now 3rd place was a really tight race as you can see from the weights.  Like I said most of the fish we were catching were good solid bayou bass and that made things tight at the weigh-in.  However one of our Tournament Directors Jake and his teammate Terry were able to get that extra little bit from one of their fish to pull down 3rd.

Well ole Mike and Wade might have only weighed in one fish but hey when you only got one go big and that is what they did to pull in the Big Bass honors.

Dennis and Dwight in 4th must have fought one of their bass too hard making him loose a little weight as they were right there only 1 tenth of an ounce behind 3rd.

.Tyrone and Ryan finished 5th, but they are always in the mix on these Bayou Tournaments and this one wasn't any different as they were right in there chasing 3rd place.

As for me I finished in 8th which is the same place I finished in the last tournament on Clear Creek.  My only problem was the same problem I had the last Clear Creek tournament, no teammate.  I had 4 solid bass but was unable to land that 5th bass and I had number 5 next to the boat three times.  If I'd gotten one of those in well I'd been right there in the hunt for one of those awesome trophies.

Now most guys won't give away their secrets for how they caught their bass.  Sure they may say the caught them on worms or cranks but not which worm or crankbait.  Well I'll tell you I caught all my fish on two baits.  The first bait was the prototype of the Bounty Hunter Outdoor Adventures Thunderslaw from Throw-n-Thunder Lures.  I caught two of my keepers on it and lost what would have been my biggest bass of the day right next to the boat.

The Thunderslaw is going to be a very hot spinnerbait and not only on the bayous.  They will be available for sale in March of 2015 but if you just have to have one now let me know and I'll hook you up with one.

Now the the other bait I caught good fish on and always seem to catch good fish with is a Santone Lures Rayburn Swim Jig.  Let me tell you the Acid Perch color is quickly become my favorite color and as you can see it is basically the same color as the Thunderslaw spinnerbats.  This color is prefect when the bass are feeding on shad in any type of water!!

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.

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!!!

Bayou Bassin' League - Clear Creek Tournament

This Saturday Dec. 13th the Bayou Bassin League will be holding the next of their fall tournaments on Clear Creek Bayou.  A registration meeting will be held on the 24th at Hook Spit Tackle Store in League City at 6:00.

This is a team (2 Man) tournament with an entry fee of $60 per team.  The launch and weigh-in will be at the boat ramp in Walter Hall Park in League Texas.  Start time will be 6:30-7:00 AM or when it is light enough to safely leave the ramp.  Weigh-in will at 3:00 PM and you need to be in line at 3:00 PM to qualify to weigh-in.

1st, 2nd, 3rd and Big Bass will receive cash prices and 1st, 2nd and Big Bass will get trophies.  So get your bass boat ready and come on out and join use for some Texas Bayou Bassin on Saturday Morning.

Until next time, Tight Lines and Take a kid fishing.

Lake Okeechobee Report

Where to begin?  Well first off I have to send a big thanks out to one heck of a fisherman and my friend Tim Zdrazil.  He invited me along on a tournament scouting trip to the Big O and I will never be able to thank him enough for helping scratch off one item on my bucket list.  As I stated in my previous article I have always viewed this lake as the Holy Grail of bass fishing and it sure held up its end of the bargain.  Of course I'd been lost without Tim's help so a lot is owed to him.  I met him at Roland Martin's marina which in itself was exciting but nothing could take a bass fisherman's breath away as much as the view we had starting up the canal towards what I hoped would be a day to remember.

 
Needless to say it was a beautiful morning that was full of hopes and dreams.  As Tim cranked up his Ranger and brought her on plain my mind was racing; looking for something in my many years of fishing that prove I could hold my own on the Big O.  As we went by many areas that looked fishy in my book without slowing I wondered where we would stop and I'd make my first cast.  It didn't take too long, time wise to get there, but in my mind it was taking forever.  As Tim slowed the boat he explained the plan to me.  I'm sorry but I'm not going to pass along Tim's game plan here as he does have a tournament in the near future.  We did cover this area well with various baits.  I started with a Throw-n-Thunder Table Rock Shad that I had one fish chase it to the boat but never hit and another that slapped at it but didn't get the hook.  I then switched to a Santone Lures Rayburn Swim Jig in Baby Bass but didn't have any takers.  As we moved deeper in the cover and mean cover like I've never seen on any other body of water, I pulled out a QuickBaits Tube Craw and started pitching.  This produced my first Big O bass.

It wasn't a Big O Giant but it did break the ice for the day.  By the way it is alright for you to laugh at my head gear as I had to video tape the day.  I'll release the video in a few weeks so as not to give away too much on what Tim was using to catch his fish and the area we were fishing.  Tim also caught one in this spot so even though we didn't catch any numbers it might still be promising to fish in a few weeks.

Spot number two was a place Tim had caught a couple of big girls in the past and had also located some schooling fish.  As we moved up into the cover to see if we could flip for a big girl I once more pulled out the tube craw.  We gave it our best shot but no big girls seemed to be home.  We kept working the cover hard until we saw some bass chasing shad in the open and we moved off to see if we could get them to hit.  As we made it to the area I grabbed my Throw-n-Thunder Table Rock Shad and Tim grabbed his secret schooling bass bait.  First casts and Tim hooks up and then I also hook up as we fought a pair of fish to the boat.

Here is a picture of the Table Rock Shad Spinnerbait that I used.  These 4 blade spinnerbaits really look like a school of fish coming through the water and should be the ticket for schooling bass eating shad.

After us both hooking up on our first casts we thought we were on them good. This all changed when cast after cast and no bent rods.  Did this mean we had just gotten lucky on those first casts or did we catch all the bass that were chasing shad?  Neither of us knew for sure so we started to experiment by trying other baits.  I switched to a Santone Lures Rayburn Swim Jig in the Acid Perch color with a smoke purple flake swim bait trailer.  This combo proved to be my magic bait for the Big O but not at first.  The first couple of bass that hit it spit it out before I could set the hook and that is when I remember I had not put any of my Rage Fish Attractants Liquid Mayhem on my bait.  I put some of the Garlic Minnow or what I call Garlic Bread with Minnow Spread on my trailer and the catching began!!  In fact on the very next cast I was hooked up with a really solid fish, and man these bass seemed to be fight twice their size.

 

Here is a picture of the Acid Perch Rayburn Swim Jig that I used. If you notice the RSJ has a flat edge on the head under the line eye.  This causes the bait to wobble during a retrieve giving it an even more natural appearance than other swim jigs on the market.  

I went on to catch 11 bass for the day and Tim was right there with me.  In other words we were having a Big O ball catching the fish and figuring out some things that could help Tim big time in his up coming Tournament.  Here are a couple more of the more solid fish I caught.

 

The only reason we know I caught 11 is Tim took a picture of all my fish.  I haven't had time to watch all the video yet to determine how many Tim ended up with as yet but I'm betting it was 10 or 11 also.

So what did this trip to the Big O teach me.  First off if you have never fished the Big O then you need to go with someone who has.  I would have been totally lost on this huge lake and would have likely been skunked by myself.  The lake is huge and has cover everywhere which means everywhere looks like it should be holding fish.  This is not the case so going with someone that has fished the lake will give your a better chance at having a day to remember like I now have.  Second off I learned that Throw-n-Thunder spinnerbaits will catch fish on the Big O, but I really wish it had been a better spinnerbait day to have been able to fish them more.   The big thing I learned was that Santone Lures Rayburn Swim Jigs will catch bass anywhere you throw them.  Of course that is if you remember to put on some Garlic Bread with Minnow Spread, what I mean is put on some Rage Fish Attractants Liquid Mayhem in Garlic Minnow.

I have to Thank Tim one more time for a day I will always remember.  Hopefully in the future I can have him as my guest on Lake Sam Rayburn and show him why the Rayburn Swim Jig has that name.

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

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!!!