One Last Cast for the Road
By Chris Jenkins

It really crushes me to stow my rods for two months during the winter, so I prolong it as long as possible. Last December I continued to catch striper on light tackle through most of the month until the water temperature dipped below forty degrees. I even caught speckled trout last December, which was a real surprise to me. The action took place around the Hampton area, and was very enjoyable. I never was a big fan of trolling, so when I can use my medium heavy power St. Croix spinning rod, and ten to twenty pound Berkley braid to land upwards of thirty striper, man I am all over it. I never really give up on my beloved largemouth though, and usually there seems to be some warm front that takes place during December or January that gets those big girls moving.

The last two years this occurrence has enabled me to land a trophy bass and break the winter blues in fashion. Certain lakes seem to offer a better opportunity when this warm front takes place and I make it a point to be there when it happens. Falls Lake in North Carolina happens to be my favorite choice, but I am sure everyone has their own honey hole. A couple of years ago during a one-week heat wave in January, I landed a double digit and lost what would have given the state record a run for the money. Last December 17th I launched under similar conditions and landed a couple of bass that looked like footballs. As usual, the trip was not without tribulation though. I lost my tackle bag on the way there, which had an estimated value of two hundred dollars worth of product in it, and in haste, I launched my boat without a boat plug. I had to re trailer the boat, and drain it while I scrambled for a few lures. Did I mention I backtracked about fifteen miles on rout 85 looking for my bag? Anyway, I had to settle for the two Stanley jigs I had tied on, three old trailers, and a spinnerbait. So, an hour later I am shoving right off again.

As usual, everyone launched and raced out to the main lake to fish points. I acted clueless and idled into the back of a large cove. I dropped the trolling motor, picked up a flipping stick, and started easing my 5/16-ounce double-skirted jig into every brush pile I could find. There was bait present, so I knew there had to be bass as well. I fished for two hours in the back of that cove before I got my first hit, and wouldn’t you know it, I missed the fish. I immediately looked at my Humminbird depth finder to check my depth and water temperature. Six feet deep, and fifty-two degrees, that was the ticket. So, I stayed off the bank and concentrated on isolated wood in that depth. Fifteen minutes later I saw my line slowly meandering sideways and I swung for the fence. The next three fish I caught were all just about as big around as they were long. No ten pounders, but solid five and six pound bass that appeared to be stuffed to the gills with baitfish. Exactly twenty-eight days later on January 14th, I repeated the same process (minus the mishaps), and experienced some great action again. We have had some relatively mild winters lately, and a week long warming trend can really send those big females on a feeding binge. Having experienced this first hand for the last couple of years, I will be watching for any signs of a southerly flow in the jet stream this winter.

As this year comes to an end, I would like to thank all of you for your e-mails. I hope I have provided some helpful information and made your time on the water more productive. I would also like to thank Pure Fishing, Stanley Jigs, ST.Croix, Pradco, Yakima Baits, Gambler, Costa Del Mar, Minn Kota, Humminbird, and Shimano for keeping the dream alive and making time on the water a more pleasurable experience.

I hope you and your family have a safe and happy Holiday season this and every year. If you want to talk fishing, send me an e-mail at: sowbelly.hunter@yahoo.com