Bass Fishing

Jig Fishing in Heavy Grass

The grass is showing signs of thickening and it's time to find some of those Guntersville hogs in the heavy grass. This time of year there are several ways to find big fish; one of them is flipping a 1oz. Tight-line Jig in the heavy grass along the grass beds. The key is finding productive grass.

One question I always get asked is how do you find that productive grass? There are some key elements that I believe the grass must show for me to fish it. Remember there is a reason that bass head to the heavy grass in the heat, the water is generally cooler under the grass mats and the bait is generally buried in the grass. So the elements are simple, the grass must be thick enough to block some of the heat from the sun, so the water cools underneath it and next the bait must be visible at some point around the grass edges.

Take those two basic elements combine it with a few more natural surroundings and you will have a formula for a good flipping area. The other natural elements I look for is pretty simple, the grass must have a deep edge on some side of it, an area that the bass can quickly move deep if spooked, I believe some depth of around 10 ft. or more is all the depth you need.

Next the grass must offer enough breaks or holes in it for the fish to ambush bait, and for you to flip a jig in it. If I don't see enough holes to flip in I generally find the bass don't feed in it and move on. Lastly I look for activity, not necessarily bass activity, but carp activity, if the carp are active and creating movement the bass are more apt to react and feed just out of pure reaction. When I see that kind of activity I can promise you that the bass are present and will react to a big Tight-Line Jig dropped on its head.

Fish Lake Guntersville Guide Service
www.fishlakeguntersvilleguideservice.com
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Call: 256 759 2270
Captain Mike Gerry

The Hunt for Big Bass on Guntersville

It’s fair to say that over the many years I have been fishing this lake the hunt for a new record bass for the lake has never been stronger. Day after day I hear from customers what I can do to break the old 14.8 lb Guntersville record, where do I go and what should I fish. I have a few ideas for you all that want to try it. I believe there a 3 possible ways to catch that Guntersville record largemouth.

The 1st is to work the deep muscle beds with a couple of different types of baits, pulling the old ball and chain or what is traditional known as a Carolina rig in the deep muscle beds is one technique I recommend. You see a Carolina rig pulled up or down the muscle beds where the big bass are following the muscle for food can put that lunker in your boat you’re looking for.

Next deep crank bait bumping and popping off the bottom around the muscles is also a technique I would recommend. There is probably no better reaction bait for for deep structure than a DD22 crank bait. It has all kinds of movement coupled with bottom bouncing off of structure causes big strikes. It is definitely the best reaction bait down deep you can find.

Last, Guntersville is known for its frog fishing and no top water bait catches more big fish than a frog or what many of us call a rat bite. Big fish will just collapse a frog if worked over grass and I have seen some monsters hit them with tremendous force. The biggest tip I can tell you here is fish heavy rods with 60 lb braided line and set that hook with some force, because if it’s a big fish it will take some strength and strong tackle to get it in.

Call me I’ll help you hunt for the next Guntersville trophy!

Roadbeds and Crank Baits are a Good Match

We all know the common spots to use a crank bait on, like points and ledges, but we often forget the importance of cranking a roadbed. With today’s technology all the old road beds are very clearly seen on our Lowrance units mapping. We run over the top of them and generally forget that a roadbed acts as a highway for bass to feed on. Bass run up and down them constantly, often those of us who do fish roadbeds, fish them with a worm or jig something that entices a bass to eat. Pulling a Carolina rig is definitely a technique that catches feeding fish on roadbeds.

Often though the fish are not active and you need to create a bite, by getting them to hit as a reaction bite, a crank bait is the ideal reaction bait especially if you run a deep 20 plus foot runner and make it bounce and twitch off the bottom. When the bass are running the road bed not feeding reaction baits are just the ticket, parallel the area with your deep running crank bait and you will catch those big bass using it as a highway. Remember roadbeds are often silted in and have structure on both sides so fish thoroughly hitting the area from both sides and from different angles.

Often you will see that the bass are stacked in one small area or twist, or edge on the roadbed so when you get a bite fish that area hard until you find the other bass stacked there with them. Roadbeds very often hold big schools of fish, so be prepared to catch plenty of fish from a small area. Sometimes you can even see them on your Lowrance unit stacked in that little corner, near some change in the bottom structure. So next time you pull out your crank bait, find a roadbed and have some fun!

It’s Time to Think Top Water

With all the weird weather this year the one thing missing for me has been a top water bite, it's gone from warm to cold and cold to warm so many different ways that I never felt the top water bite was really on. Well I am here to tell you it finally is and I have some favorite ways to catch them on top!

The first thing I must tell you, if you're an avid frog fisherman the Tru-Tungsten Mad Maxx frog in blue or green color is as good as it gets, we are catching frog fish and plenty of them. We are catching them on the bank edges, over and around grass, on the river channel, under boat houses and around docks. The Mad Maxx frog is producing some monsters and it's a lot of fun! One of the best secrets about the Mad Maxx frog that a lot of people don't know is with the very specifically placed weight the Mad Maxx is easily skipped under boat houses and docks, when a fish hits it the frog is generally hidden under the dock and the explosion and sound excites you know end!

Next is the Secret Weapon Buzz-Bait, this bait produces a little different sound and because of its small willow leaf blade attached to the end of the bait displaces water differently and causes some great explosions. This buzz-bait in red is a dangerous weapon on Guntersville. Pulled just fast enough to stay up on top of grass is producing numbers and plenty of action. These two baits are best in class not only catching ability but in hooks as they both have extremely sharp hooks that catch fish; you can get them all bent up or smashed and crushed from a big fish, perform a little straightening and maintenance and they are ready to go again. The good times are here, the top water bite is on!

Guntersville Lake needs Management & Control

With all the pressure our lake is getting it’s time that the local communities and state agencies get serious about lake control and management. I have said this before and will continue to nag at our local governments to put the controls in place to make our lake even better than it is today. To me this says our two surrounding communities must get involved from the highest levels to manage this great resource. We need a group formed to communicate and make recommendation to the state and local agencies that fit the needs of our lake and enhance the fishing, a group that has access to the local mayors, city fathers that are dedicated to the good, and will be guaranteed the positive ear of the of our leaders.

The only tax revenue these communities can count on is the fishing industry producing visitors, hence producing tax revenue from hotels, restaurants, and the like. If the lake goes downhill it will affect this tax income and the result will be more revenue loss to these communities. What I believe is this:

We need a restocking program that puts a minimum of 250,000 fingerling bass in the lake every year.
A fully dedicated DNR resource that for at least 10 months a year checks creel levels, licenses, and proper size enforcement of the keeper bass limits.
We need to change the limit per boat to no more than 10 bass being kept in any one day regardless of the number of people in the boat.
The size limit needs to be moved to a slot limit that enhances the spawning process, and produces better and healthier bass.
The tournaments coming to our communities need to meet strict enforcement of how their tournaments are run; they should be paying a tournament fee to the local community where their event is being held. They should be forced to have available water tubs and aeration to make all best effort to keep fish alive during the weigh in process. Certain times of the year we should be controlling the event times and numbers of kept bass to help insure their safety during the hot months. With 5 bass per angler going to 3 per angler in the heat. The tournament fee should be used to help place this type of equipment where needed to help ensure the process. Tournament anglers should all have working live wells and have the best interest of our lake be forced upon their participants. They should also be managed for the number of hours and time limits with staggering weigh in times to accommodate more than one tournament using the same ramp and equipment to manage the health of the fish.
Out-of-state fishing licenses are extremely cheap compared to other states, we should raise these prices and use the money to better enhance our state wide fishing and game management. If the state won’t raise the prices then the 2 communities should charge and out-of-state license fee, so any outsider coming here pays to help us manage the cost of a great fishery. The fisherman coming here are good solid middle class and above, and another $50 dollar yearly fee to fish inside the local lake community area would not deter their coming to Guntersville. I believe if they knew the money was being used to improve fishing they would gladly pay it!
Lastly our communities should control the spraying of the grass on our lake to protect the fishing and boating industry. No company or group or individual should be allowed to destroy the bass environment like they just did in Roseberry Creek. This killing of the creek grass is as big a tragedy and destruction as those individuals keeping short fish to eat. This is the slaying of bass in a different light; they have just ruined the best spawning grounds on the lake. There should be laws and controls that never allow this to happen again, this is personal gain and politics at work and it is sickening!

It is my objective to make this the best lake in the country, these ideas are just a few of the ways we can start the process.

Fish Lake Guntersville Guide Service

www.fishlakeguntersvilleguideservice.com
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Call: 256 759 2270
Captain Mike Gerry

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