Spring Largemouth Bass Fishing: Slow Presentations for Success

Illustration by Samuel A. Minick In early spring, bass move onto reservoir flats to warm up prior to spawning. They’re sluggish in cold water, so they’ll ofte

Escape Winter with Stunning Fishing Photography: Dream of Summer Adventures

As I type this, the South is in a deep freeze, the Northeast is getting clobbered yet again with some absurdly named winter storm, and the West is just barely s

California Drought Impacts Fishing: Low River Flows & Emergency Declaration

While a lot of weather attention is now focused on the eastern side of the country, whats happening (or perhaps more appropriately, what is not happening) in C

Custom Paint Jobs for Hardbaits: Are They Worth It?

If you were to search the Internet back in 2005 through roughly 2008, you would find 150 listings—give or take—for custom painting of hardbaits. Run that same

Best Paint Colors for Wooden Drift Boats: A Community Poll

As you may remember, Ive gotten myself into a hell of a project restoring a totally wooden drift boat given to me by my good friends at Boulder Boat Works. The

Master the Clouser Minnow Knot: A Spring Fly-Tying Guide

Photo by Gorman Studio I can feel it coming, like a shad senses spring freshets trickling into the sea. Scientists have a word for this seasonal compulsion: z

Spring Bass Fishing After a Harsh Winter Freeze: What to Expect

If you live in the northern part of the country from Minnesota across to Maine, you probably haven’t seen open water on your local lakes in many months given th

Top 10 New Bass Lures Ranked: Expert Performance Review

Photo illustrations by Bill Cahill You walk into a tackle shop and are immediately drawn to that flashy end cap displaying a brand-new bass bait. You examine

Preserving Fishing Paradise: The Art of Keeping Secret Fishing Spots Private

One question I often wrestle with is whether or not to name certain places in the stories I write. After all, Im an angler too. I appreciate solitude on a fish

The Surprising Link Between Bass Fishing and Immune Health

Not long ago, I was having a conversation with my friend Jim Burris, who is not only an avid bass fisherman, but a fish biologist at Duke University Medical Cen

Snowboarding as a Winter Activity: Anticipating Fishing Season

Whew... I thought I had a case of the shack nasties!  Turns out I have nothing to complain about. The folks over at Scumliner Media and Headhunters Fly Shop in

Effective Bass Fishing Strategies After Ice-Out

For many bass anglers, ice-off is both cause for celebration and frustration. Yes, you can launch the boat again, but now you’ve got to manipulate bass in frigi

Choosing the Right Boat for Trout Fishing: Raft vs. Drift Boat

Many of you know that my partner Tim Romano is a rowing fool. He has a handful of boats, from inflatables to an old wooden dory (drift boat) he is restoring. T

Big Mouth Billy Bass Prevents Robbery: An Unexpected Hero

When the singing Big Mouth Billy Bass first popped up on shelves at every Wal-Mart, Target, Bass Pro, K-Mart, truck stop, and Stuckys in America, all I can reme

Potential World-Record Spotted Bass Caught in California - Powell Rods

Keith Bryan, owner of Powell Rods, won a team bass-fishing tournament last month on New Melones Lake in California, but even more noteworthy was the fact that

Spring Bass Fishing: Using a Compass to Find Early Season Bites

When you’ve been cooped up all winter, it’s very easy to get on the water for that first run of these season and start pounding the first bank or piece of struc

Catch Trophy Largemouth Bass with Trout Swimbaits: A Proven Strategy

Photo via Tackleexpress.com Before bass nut Matt Peters moved from California to Georgia, he used to fish the San Diego reservoirs with big trout-­imitating s

Maximize Your Bass Fishing: Finding the Warmest Water & Hot Bites

Photo: Eric Engbretson To find the hottest bass bite this month, launch the boat and motor north. “Cold northerly winds blow right across the north shore and

Essential Bass Boat Safety: Prevent Accidents & Protect Lives

Take a look at the video below. Its a scary scene recently shot by a news chopper on Claremore Lake in Oklahoma. Both anglers in that bass boat were jerked out

Crayfish Storage: Keeping Live Bait Alive for Weeks - Fishing Tips

Crayfish are one of my favorite live baits for smallmouth bass in late spring and throughout summer. Rather than catch them as needed, I like to keep a few do