Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition 3812 May 24- June 7 2019 | Page 12

10
May 24 - June 7, 2019
HOW TO...
VOL.38 • ISS. 12
Lures That Create Spring Hook Ups!
presents
^
When bass are on the menu one of author Cal Kellogg’s
confidence baits is a Robo worm hooked Texas style and paired
with a split shot rig. This husky Lake Berryessa smallmouth couldn’t lay
off a Robo worm dragged right along the bottom in 14 feet of water.
A
Spring Presentations
That Catch Fish!
bait have disappeared and then using
h yes, spring! The season when
our fisheries heat up and anglers both the reel and rod tip I twitch the
minnow beneath the surface, propel it
feel most alive. On some spring days,
forward for a foot or two and then allow
the fishing is great and the possibilities
it to float back up to the surface.
seem boundless. On other days’ things
After that I wait once again
backslide to a winter like
for
any rings and surface
pattern and the fish develop
disturbance
to dissipate.
a severe case of lockjaw.
Generally,
the
strike will occur
Never the less there
during
this
period,
but if no
are some time tested
strike
comes
I
continue
the
approaches and presen-
twitch
and
wait
retrieve
until
tations that consistently
the
bait
is
out
of
the
strike
zone
produce fish during the
or
back
to
the
rod
tip.
spring, provided you don’t
The colder the water the
find yourself fishing during
slower
I work the bait. In
one of the doldrums days
general
I find that this approach
when nothing seems to
works
best
during the early
work. Let’s approach this
morning
hours
before the sun
on a species by species
by Cal Kellogg
hits
the
water
and
late in the
basis.
evening once the sun is off the water.
I have my best results when the water
Black Bass
clarity is good. I catch largemouths,
There are two presentations that I
spots and smallmouths this way, but find
really like to employ for reservoir bass
during the spring. One approach is super it particularly deadly on smallmouths.
My second spring bass presentation is
exciting. The other, while being less
really
old news. Actually, it’s so old, it
exciting produces lots of fish.
is
sort
of new again. I’m talking about
My “exciting” presentation is built
a
plain
old fashion Texas rigged worm
around either a 4 3/8 inch F11 or a 5
teamed
with a ¼ or 3/8-ounce weight.
¼ inch F13 Rapala floating minnow,
In
my
experience, it has become
but you can substitute a floating/diving
increasingly
rare to see an angler tossing
minnow from other manufacturers too.
a
worm
on
a
classic Texas rig with the
My favorite color for most situations is
bullet
weigh
resting right up against
silver/black but other finishes are also
the
worm.
More
often you’ll see them
effective and it seems like everyone has
tossing
a
split
shot
rig or some sort of
their personal favorite.
Carolina
rig
variation.
The presentation works like this.
During the summer and fall, I favor a
After knotting a Rapala to a spinning
split
shot rig typically, but during the late
or baitcasting outfit rigged with
winter
and early spring I love the classic
10-pound mono I cast the bait out near
Texas
Rig.
At this time of the year the
rocky structure along the bank that has
bass
tend
to
hold tight to the bottom and
immediate access to deep water.
stage
offshore
of spawning structure in
Once the bait hits the water I reel up
water
that
ranges
from 10 to 30 feet deep
the slack, but take care not to move the
CONTINUED ON PG 21
bait. I wait until all the rings around the
FISH SNIFFER
HOW – TO
^

Yo-Zuri L Minnows are
deadly trout baits whether
trolled, casted from the
bank of a lake or reservoir
or worked in a river. These
baits sink, can be cast long
distances and feature an
intense wobble that really
triggers strikes.
>

Fish Sniffer editor
Cal Kellogg rounded up
this limit of spring stripers
while trolling Yo-Zuri’s but
Cal doesn’t always troll for
his bass in the spring time.
Often, he will soak bait for
them and when bait fishing
is the order of the day,
bloodworms are his favorite
spring bait.
^
When it comes to spoons
for fast trolling, the Speedy
Shiner is one of the best. Fish
Sniffer contributor and avid Norcal
trout angler Kristy Carpentier
tempted this quality rainbow while
pulling a pink and chrome Speedy
Shiner!