Big O Comes Back Lifetime of Lures
Transcription
Big O Comes Back Lifetime of Lures
Big O Comes Back Lifetime of Lures Ish Monroe and Elite Series anglers show Lake Okeechobee on the rise again The go-to baits of B.A.S.S. owner, longtime TV host Jerry McKinnis Keep YoUr Cool www.BoatUSAngler.com onn The WaTer WaTTer Wa Trustworthy Towing Battery Jumps Fuel Delivery FREE BoatU.S. Towing App! Soft Ungroundings 24/7 Dispatch Service Over 500,000 Members BoatU.S. has the largest fleet, ready to serve you with over 300 TowBoatU.S. and VeSSel ASSiST ports nationwide. Upgrade your towing today! 1-800-888-4869 BoatU.S. Angler BoatUS.com/towing Price includes $24 Membership dues. Details and exclusions 2 can be found online at BoatUS.com/towing or by calling. Summer 2012 16 24 34 39 Dr. Frankenbass Riverboat Ride A Texan works on becoming the Johnny Appleseed of superior bass genetics Flora, fauna and fantastic fishing on the Amazon River PLUS With Unlimited Towing for just $149 for Saltwater, and $58 for Freshwater, there’s no need to panic or lose your temper if your boat breaks down. Give us a call — we’re on the clock 24/7 ready to lend a hand when you need assistance. 15 46 www.BoatUSAngler.com Big O Comes Back After hurricanes, droughts and development, Lake Okeechobee rises again Sanders: Remembering Wejebe 10 BoatU.S. Angler Reports Jerry McKinnis’ Tackle Box 32 Elite summer lures 3 Baron of Balsa Lee Sisson’s 40 years of elite lip jewelry 22 Wall of Pain 50 Zona: Two days that stick in my mind BoatU.S. Angler To enjoy summer more, teach kids the three R’s: rigging, reels and rods. (James Overstreet photo) Yes, we can protect your pooch. Woof! We’ve Got Your Best Friend Covered COVER PHOTO: Ish Monroe pulls out two fish that helped him win an Elite Series event and showed Okeechobee is back. (James Overstreet photo) Finding That Rock, The Hard Way PUBLISHER Richard Schwartz Chairman, BoatU.S BOATU.S. ANGLER MANAGER Steve Levi Let The Fishing Commence I t’s graduation season as I write, and the kids are out of school for summer. Time for their reel education to start. Here’s a short list of the lessons your kids can learn on a floating classroom this summer. Let the fishing commence. SELF-RELIANCE “Bait your own hook.” (Or better yet, “Row yourself out to that point if you want to fish.”) PREPARATION It’s called a bailer. Every johnboat has one. THE VALUE OF A DOLLAR Those plastic worms aren’t free. And neither is the gas for that old 2-hp Evinrude. PROBLEM SOLVING Speaking of, that ole Evinrude sometimes refuses to kick. NAVIGATION Only way trigonometry ever stuck for me. SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT You have to have nightcrawlers before you can fish with nightcrawlers. Or, for you panfish enthusiasts, exactly how old is that cup of maggots in the fridge? EXECUTIVE EDITOR Michael Vatalaro MANAGING EDITORS STORY TELLING You’ll never have to ask them what they did that day. TIME MANAGEMENT Fish or cut bait? (Sorry, I couldn’t resist). SELF-PRESERVATION It’s called a bailer. Every johnboat has one. TEAMWORK The kid with the net is just as important as the one with the rod. Speaking of teams, 105 colleges and universities across the country, plus one from Canada, sent 182 teams of collegiate bass anglers to the BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship on Pickwick Lake out of Florence, Ala., in May. Participation in this event has grown more than 400 percent in the past few years, showing that education and fishing can go hand in hand with support from the schools. For the story, see page 13. In the meantime, make sure the young anglers you know get plenty of time to study the three “R”s, Rigging, Reels, and Rods, and you’ll enjoy summer that much more. n BoatU.S. Angler magazine is online: BoatUS.com/angler/magazine BoatU.S. Angler 4 Anglers who insure their boats with BoatU.S. Angler now receive pet insurance coverage through the BoatU.S. Marine Insurance Program. Effective June 1, the program automatically includes $1,000 of coverage for injuries as the result of an on-the-water accident, as well as a death benefit, for no additional cost. “At BoatU.S. Angler we know accidents don’t just impact your boat and ‘human’ family or guests aboard — sometimes pets get hurt too,” said BoatU.S. Vice President of Underwriting Mike Pellerin. “If your boat suffers a covered loss and your (or family member’s) dog or cat onboard suffers an injury, we’ll pay up to $1,000 for veterinary expenses, or for final arrangements should the worst happen, for each pet aboard. For more information go to This is just another way we BoatUS.com/insurance/pets take care of our members.” Don’t leave your lower unit behind – slow down! (Scott Sommerlatte photo) Steve Bowman Mike Suchan ART DIRECTORS Franklin Bachrach Jaime McQuilkin DIRECTOR OF ADVERTISING Elio Betty 703.461.4383 INTERNET www.BoatUSAngler.com CREATIVE SERVICES CSE/JM Associates 1200 Scott St. Little Rock, AR 72202 888.372.6544 Fax 501.372.0431 www.groupcse.com The faster you get there, the more fish you can catch, but speeding through skinny water increases the chances you’ll strike a submerged stump or rock. That can lead to someone being catapulted off the boat and injured. And it’s almost guaranteed a high-speed encounter will destroy the outboard’s lower unit. According to the claim files, striking submerged objects is the No. 1 cause of loss in the BoatU.S. Marine Insurance program, which winds up costing everyone a lot of money. You may be able to avoid such an incident by wearing polarized sunglasses, keeping an eye on the GPS, paying attention to water levels and download a charting software app. But the best guarantee is to slow down in shallow or unfamiliar waters. Better to arrive a few minutes late than not to at all. Help at your fingertips Are you ready to handle a boat engine breakdown, grounding, or dead battery far from the launch ramp or marina this summer season? Don’t forget to download the free BoatU.S. Towing App to your smartphone, and if you do have a problem on the water, you’ll be able to summon assistance. In addition to on-the-water towing dispatch, the App can be used to summon roadside assistance when you’re trailering your boat down the highway. ç The BoatU.S. Towing App is free to download. ‘It’s Been A Lifesaver’ Fishing pro Jonathon Vandam had to call for a tow on the James River in Virginia on July 4th, 2011, when his engine cut out. Fortunately, he remembered he had his BoatU.S. See his complete story in a short Angler card in his wallet. video at BoatUS.com/Angler “On the 4th of July, in no time at all, they were out to get me and tow me back to the ramp, which was about 10 miles away,” Vandam said. “It’s been a lifesaver.” www.BoatUS.com/towing/app Your Membership in the Boat Owners Association of The United States Has Benefits Trailer Assist: 24-hour On-the-road Towing Service Printed in the USA Copyright, 2012, BoatU.S. Angler. All rights reserved. BoatU.S. Angler Magazine is published three times annually and is mailed directly to BoatU.S. Angler members and select fi shing clubs in the United States. Subscription is $6 annually to BoatU.S. members. No part of this publication may be reproduced without permission from the publisher. Contact 703-461-2878. Postmater: Send change of address of BoatU.S. Angler Magazine, 880 South Pickett Street, Alexandria, Va. 22304. Summer 2012 dispatched directly by BoatU.S. with f lat-tire assistance, battery jumps, fuel deliveries, and lockout service. Trailer Assist will provide for towing to the nearest facility or safe location up to 100 miles from point of breakdown. Towing Dispatch: 800.391.4869 Membership: 866.906.0013 24-Hour Water Towing: As a BoatU.S. Angler member you receive 24 hour on-the-water towing dispatched and paid for by BoatU.S up to the towing service level you’ve selected. One membership applies to ALL recreational boats you own, borrow or charter. Tournament Incentive Program: The Weigh-to-Win Program pays the highest placing registered BoatU.S. Angler member in most B.A.S.S., FLW, and PAA events. www.BoatUSAngler.com 5 BoatU.S. Angler SHOWING HER TEETH A mako shark fights angler Conway Bowman, fishing with Capt. Lou Fodor out of San Diego. Makos are the fastest sharks and are considered one the world’s great gamefishes because of their beauty, aggressiveness, and jumping ability. Their smiles are menacing, with large, triangle-shaped, hooked teeth on the bottom visible even when their jaws are closed. Makos, which are found all over the world, can grow to more than 1,000 pounds. BoatU.S. Angler Photo by Pat Ford 6 Spring 2012 www.BoatUSAngler.com 7 BoatU.S. Angler EARLY TO RISE Missing some sleep can be well worth it if you get on the water in time to enjoy one of nature’s masterpiece mornings. GREAT GOBS Photo by David hatfield Photo by James Overstreet With a mouth much bigger than its eyes, this Great White Egret positions its catch just right, before swallowing. The three-foot tall water birds also dine on frogs, small mammals and sometimes reptiles and insects. These birds, which adapt well in areas humans habitate, were chosen in 1953 as the symbol for the National Audubon Society, which was formed in part to prevent killing of birds for their feathers. EPA sued over E15 A suit challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to allow gasoline containing 15-percent ethanol to be sold could be decided by summer’s end. The National Marine Manufacturers Association, joined by oil industry, automobile manufacturing and agricultural trade groups, filed the suit July 13, 2011, maintaining that the EPA’s partial waiver allowing E15 for some engines and not others violates the federal Clean Air Act and other laws. In November of 2010, the EPA approved 15-percent ethanol as a fuel additive, but only for use in 2006 and newer cars and light trucks; then in January 2011 modified its approval to include vehicles in model year 2001 and newer. At issue in this lawsuit is the fact that E15 has been shown to damage non-road engines, especially inboard and outboard boat engines. Boaters who trailer their boats often fill-up at gas stations where E15 gas might be sold. A s par t of the waiver, the EPA made it il lega l to use E15 in any other eng ines, but concer n remains that the public cou ld mista kenly use the f uel in the w rong eng ines, resu lting not only in mechanica l damage but in potentia l ly 12-PT-182 QuadLink ad Angler:Layout 1 5/24/12 Jose Wejebe, host of The Spanish Fly, was the whole package. (Courtesy The Spanish Fly) Read Tommy Sanders' tribute to Jose, P 15. Fishing world loses icon in Wejebe The saltwater fishing world, and especially those who worked with Jose Wejebe, lost a great friend in early April. Webeje, host of Outdoor Channel’s The Spanish Fly, died when the single engine plane he was piloting crashed shortly after taking off from Everglades Airpark. Wejebe rose from rags to riches. He was born in Cuba in 1958, and his family escaped Fidel Castro’s revolution by immigrating to Miami. He plied the South Florida fisheries as a youth learning his trade. “He basically quit high school to become a captain, to become who he was,” show producer Mike McKinnis said. “He knew who he was going to be when he was young. He worked toward learning how to fish, getting a boat and becoming a captain.” Wejebe learned the intricacies of saltwater fishing from the best, including Stu Apt, Flip Pallot and Lefty Kreh. His travels and passion for learning new fishing and rigging techniques took him all over the world, where he explored new and non-traditional methods. What made The Spanish Fly so successful was Wejebe was the whole package. “It’s passion for what you do. He had it like nobody else in everything—fishing, photography, underwater photography, flying an airplane, if you can believe that,” McKinnis said. “He had the knack of being charismatic and entertaining, but really down home. That’s an interesting combination that not many people have—star power but to be and feel humble on TV.” Wejebe was 54. —Mike Suchan Mom just has to wait Right before Mother’s Day, TowBoatU.S. Capt. Dave Anderson made a tough call, one that accomplished female tournament angler Janet Parker will forever be grateful. Anderson declined a cell phone call from his own mother while assisting Parker with a dead battery on Day One of the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Central Open on Table Rock Lake. Parker found Anderson’s decision to shun his own mother rather humorous, but there was nothing funny about being powerless. “On my second location, I caught a keeper, but the fish were not really cooperating, so I decided to make a run further north, but my boat wouldn’t start,” the Little Elm, Texas angler said. She was forBoatU.S. Angler tunate to have had the foresight to sign up for the BoatU.S. Angler membership right before the event. “I always had the ‘It won’t happen to me’ attitude, “ said Parker, who runs a Ranger Boat wrapped with a recognizable Minn Kota Talon graphic. “Fortunately when I was at registration, I had a little voice say I better sign up for both the BoatU.S. Angler Unlimited On-the-Road and On-the-Water Towing services. I figured if I never used it I’d only be out $72, but if I needed it – it’d be priceless. Guess what? It proved priceless.” Tournament officials allowed Anderson to take a new battery to Parker, who was introduced to fishing by another female angler, her God Grandmother, Viola Lassiter. 10 Don’t be caught dead. voided war ranties. T he suit contends that the EPA hasn’t done enough to prevent the public from misf ueling. A s a cond ition of the par tia l waiver, the EPA requires retailers to d isplay a war ning sticker on E15 gas pumps, declaring that its use in non-approved eng ines is il lega l; the lawsuit declares that this measure is inadequate. If the court decides against the EPA, that could delay or prevent E15 from being sold. However, it’s likely the agency would appeal the decision, industry observers say. “Regardless of what the court decides or when the case is finally settled, it’s important to note that the EPA is not requiring the use or sale of E15,” BoatU.S. President Margaret Podlich said. “Many states will have to change their laws to allow an increase from 10 -percent ethanol, but E15 could be showing up already in some markets across the Midwest states, and that’s why we think it’s ver y important for boaters to get in the habit of checking the labels on gas pumps.” No matter where you fill up, or whether it’s your car, boat, outboard gas tank, or tow vehicle, Podlich said, “take a peek at the pump and check the label PM before you1grab the nozzle.” — Ryck Lydecker 4:04 Page Deep water opening A recreational and commercial fishing ban for deep water snapper-grouper in depths greater than 240 feet in the South Atlantic is no longer in effect. Since Jan. 31, 2011, this closure had a significant economic impact on businesses throughout the South Atlantic region, one the American Sportfishing Association worked to lift. “The deep water snappergrouper ban demonstrated the severe impacts that can result from faulty science and inadequate consideration of socioeconomics,” said Mike Leonard, ASA’s Ocean Resource Policy director. “Thankfully, the South Atlantic Council and NOA A Fisheries acknowledged the severity of this ban and are now contemplating other, less restrictive measures to address overfishing issues without closing off a massive area of the ocean to fishing.” Works with ALL 12V battery maintenance chargers Keeps four 12V batteries charged with one charger. 99 95 $ “And I reminded Capt. Dave that he’d better call his mama back,” Parker said. Summer 2012 www.PulseTech.net • 800-580-7554 www.BoatUSAngler.com Use promo code FSAM212 for FREE SHIPPING (excluding AK and HI) 11 BoatU.S. Angler Most anglers not deterred by lost access Nathan Adams of New Zealand manned the pole on this record bluefin tuna. (Courtesy houhora Big game & Sports Fishing Club) As a Construction Management major at Georgia Southern University, Tanner Parker has made a study of tensional stress and load factors. However, a high-speed collision with a piece of floating debris shortly after takeoff at the 2012 BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship on Pickwick Lake introduced a load of stressful tension the 21-year-old never could have expected. “The boat behind me saw the whole thing, and they said my boat did a 360 when I hit whatever it was that I hit,” said Parker, fishing solo and grateful to be unhurt. “As soon as I realized I wasn't hurt, I dialed TowBoatU.S. Captain Shane O'Neal, who I had met the night before while signing up for a membership. My hope was to get off the water quickly, fix was what was broken, and get back out there fishing. “TowBoatU.S. got me off the water very quickly and was able to make trips to three different marine dealers, one of which was an hour-and-a-half away, but I eventually realized I didn't have the time to get back out there and fish the ledges that day.” Parker wasn’t the only one singing the praises of BoatU.S. Angler. University of Texas angler Kyle Marek found himself broke down at the opposite end of Pickwick from the launch ramp. It took 45 minutes for TowBoatU.S. to get him and over two hours to pull him back to the launch ramp. Still he couldn't have been more grateful. One in five anglers polled by AnglerSurvey.com reported having to cancel or quit fishing a particular location last year because they had lost access to a favorite fishing spot. While most were able to move to a different location, about a third of the affected anglers – or seven percent of all survey respondents – said it caused them to quit fishing altogether. Besides the seven percent who said it caused them to quit, 35 percent admitted they fished a little less frequently. “While access issues can often be overcome by fishing somewhere else, we are still losing some anglers each year due to problems with fishing access. When we add up the anglers lost year after year, whether as a result of marine fishery closures or dilapidated boat ramps, access remains a major long-term problem for sportfishing and fisheries conservation,” survey designer Rob Southwick said. To help prevent the loss of more fishing areas to development, budget cuts or government closures of fishing areas, anglers need to speak up and let leaders know that quality fishing access is important to them. Pole Poll Have you ever had to cancel a trip or stop fishing specific locations because you could no longer access them? No 79.7% Yes 20.3% Weigh in at AnglerSurvey.com College anglers grateful for BoatU.S. Angler 22ND ANNUAL BOATU.S. TOP 10 BOAT NAMES Pacific Bluefin Tuna Could Be Biggest Ever “Big Tuna” is a nickname that has graced everything from NFL football coaches (Bill Parcells) to mafia hit men (Anthony Accardo, 1940s Chicago mob boss) and even a documentary, but they pale in comparison to the real thing caught by a New Zealand angler. Nathan Adams, referring to the catch as a “fish of a lifetime,” recently boated a 738-pound Pacific bluefin tuna (Thunnus orientalis) that could become a new world record. If the fish is approved by the International Game Fish Association, it will set an all-tackle world record, replacing a 716-pound, 8-ounce Pacific bluefin landed off Westport, New Zealand, in 2007. Adams, 42, of Muriwai, just outside of Auckland, was competing in a tournament when he caught the fish, but that was only part of an amazing day of fishing he and partner Alan Langford experienced. They also boated a 788-pound black marlin to set a Muriwai Sport Fishing Club record, while the pair’s group battled 12 billfi sh in 11 12 days as part of the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council Nationals competition. The fact the fi sh was caught in competition with stringent rules has fi shing fans believing that the IGFA will verify the catch. The big fi sh are slated to be mounted and displayed at the Muriwai Club. While the display, compared by Adams’ wife to “mounting a sofa,” will take up a lot of wall space, in a different venue it could pay for a lot of walls. Last year a 700-pound plus tuna, in perfect condition, was sold in Tokyo for $396,000. The pair hooked the bluefin near Houhora off Northland's east coast and then the black marlin off Ahipara on the west coast as part of the nationals tournament, February 18-25. The two big fish cleaned up several major prizes, including Langdon winning the New Zealand champion angler billfish title. The record Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) was a 1,496-pounder caught by Ken Fraser in Aulds Cove in Nova Scotia, Canada in 1979. —Steve Bowman Summer 2012 1. Seas the Day 2. Nauti Buoy 3. Aquaholic 4. Dream Weaver 5. Pegasus 6. Serenity Now 7. Second Wind 8. Liquid Asset 9. Miss Behavin' 10. Blew By You “BoatU.S. Angler's towing service is the greatest thing ever,” Marek said. “If I could buy a lifetime membership, I would.” The 2012 BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Champions, Ben Dziwulski and Ethan Cox of North Carolina State, didn't need a tow, but they did haul home a $1,000 Weigh-to-Win bonus check from BoatU.S. Angler as a result of their membership. Signing up for the programs is simple. Just dial (918) 742-6424 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. CST, Monday-Friday and ask for Kendell. What’s in a name? tallying its Top 10 Boat Names for more than two decades. "When you get a boat, there are certain things you have to do, such as registering it and buying insurance or towing coverage," Trotter said. "However, picking a boat name opens up a creative side." This year's list included three newcomers: Nauti Buoy, Serenity Now, and Blew ByYou, a popular racing sailboat moniker and clever word play on an old Roy Orbison song made famous Making the decision to buy a boat comes easy for some people. Picking out a name for the boat, however, can prove to be much harder. "A boat name reflects the life and loves of the owner," says Occoless Trotter of the BoatU.S. Boat Graphics department in Alexandria, Va., which helps boaters design their own boat names. "But, it's hard to sum it all up with just a few words." BoatU.S., the half-million-member boat owners group, has been by Linda Ronstadt. Two other boat names made the list for the second time: Dream Weaver and Pegasus. All others are multiyear repeats. Some names that did not make the list but appeared more than once include Pandora, a reference to the planetoid at the center of the fi lm Avatar, as well as boat names that invoke favorite songs—with Margaritaville and Dream Weaver resonating strongly among boat owners of all types. Can boaters learn anything from the Titanic? As the world marked the April 15 centennial of the Titanic, boaters should appreciate the improvements in safety. In 1914, two years after Titanic's loss of 1,503 lives, maritime nations gathered in London and adopted the International Convention of the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS Convention) to put in place measures learned from the tragedy. Do those lessons learned relate to today's recreational boater? BoatU.S. set to find out. Slow down: Excessive speed and ice combined in the disaster, teaching boaters to slow down in unfamiliar waters or at night or in fog. Call for help: Titanic’s radio had a range of 200 miles and “crackling” airwaves led rescuers to misinterpret her position. Today's www.BoatUSAngler.com U.S. Coast Guard Rescue 21 system covers over 40,000 miles of U.S. coastline. Accurate location information is available if your boat has a DSC VHF radio and it is properly connected to your GPS/chartplotter. If you travel offshore or boat alone, an EPIRB or personal locator beacon can speed your rescue. Always have your VHF on and tuned to channel 16, and cell phones should only be considered a back-up device. Give guests a safety briefing: No lifeboat drills were held on the Titanic, the crew lacked training and there was no public address system. Today, recreational boaters can show guests where and how to use safety equipment like the VHF radio, distress flares, fire extinguishers and inflatable life jackets. Have a life jacket for everyone aboard. The Titanic did not have enough lifeboats for all her passengers. Do you have enough correctly-sized life jackets for everyone aboard? Are they readily accessible? 13 BoatU.S. Angler Mexico ‘Sea Visa’ Leaves Confusion In Wake Recreational fishing trips into Mexico from California have declined 50 percent since the need for controversial “sea visas” went into effect at the beginning of this year. That’s according to the Sportfishing Association of California, which says the inequity, added expense, and confusion over who exactly needs a sea visa have led to many canceled trips. Foreign boaters now need the costly visas to travel within 24 miles of Mexico’s mainland. Previously, boaters entering those waters from the U.S. and returning without visiting port needed only to provide identification and proof of vessel ownership, if stopped at sea. Those visiting Mexican ports by private boat needed inexpensive visas similar to those used for land travel. But all that changed January 1, 2012, when Mexico began to enforce a new federal law requiring visa cards and passports for all foreigners entering Mexican territory in an effort to tighten the country’s own homeland security. Entering by sea suddenly became pricey, especially for U.S. recreational anglers who typically run multiple single-day trips per year. Sea visas currently range from $28 for one- to three-day travel, to $250 for one year, according to published reports. Visas for those visiting Baja, Calif., by land and staying less than a week cost nothing, but aren’t accepted at sea. Inconsistent enforcement further complicates matters. In one well-publicized case, a Mexican patrol boat turned back a forhire fishing vessel despite the fact that it had sea visas for all passengers. The incident cost the skipper of Malihini more than $6,000 in fuel and ticket refunds. Word of similar incidents involving recreational boaters has anglers, cruisers, and sailboat racers wondering which rules to follow. “Most cruisers and sailors are confused," said Tony Olson, a San BoatU.S. Angler Diego Vessel Assist captain, "but some boaters I've talked to aren't even aware of the new requirements." Pressure from the recreational boating community and the U.S. State Department has compelled Mexico’s Consul General office in San Diego to meet with various Mexican federal and state agencies to find a clear and fair way to implement their law and to clarify the rules for the boating public. Until Mexico irons things out, few boaters are venturing south of the border and, sea visas are only available at a handful of for-hire fishing landings in the San Diego area. Boaters should keep in mind that Mexico is a sovereign nation, says David Kennedy of BoatU.S. Government Affairs. “Ultimately, it’s a foreign-policy matter between Mexico and the United States,” Kennedy said. “We’ve been in communication with the U.S. State Department’s Mexico Desk voicing our concerns about what this may mean for recreational boaters. We’re urging the State Department to help clarify for American boaters what’s actually required and how to comply.” —Jack Innis License sales up 30 percent From January through March 2012, fishing license sales increased 30 percent compared to the first quarter in 2011. Southwick Associates, in a project with American Sportfishing Association (ASA) and the Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation, attributes the increase to the warm weather and largely favorable fishing conditions across the country compared to the cold, wet first quarter in 2011. This report is based on license sales reported by 13 states strategically selected across the U.S. Twelve of the 13 states reporting into the fishing license sales index recorded sales increases in the first quarter. 14 Summer 2012 We Lost A Lot Remembering Jose Wejebe Jose Wejebe had a real passion for the sea. (Courtesy The Spanish Fly) T he human mind will go through some incredible contortions when it’s confronted with something it cannot and does not want to come to terms with. It will grasp for things like disbelief, denial, and the hope that somehow what’s happening is all a bad dream from which you will soon awaken. That’s the way it felt for all of us who knew the one and only Jose Wejebe. That’s the way it still feels, a few weeks into the aftermath of his passing. We lost a lot. We met Jose 20 years ago at an event called the S.L.A.M. tournament in Key West, Fla., a celebrity event that paired famous sports and media figures with a local saltwater guide to make up a two-person team. We were just getting started in the business of producing fishing tournament shows in those days, getting to know the players and how their personalities mean so much to the success of a show. Jose was paired with Kim Bokamper of the Miami Dolphins. Jerry McKinnis took a cameraman out to shoot tape of their first competition day. The boat driver for Jerry was another Florida f lats guide. Jose was convinced that the place he was going to fish was the absolute “ juice” as they say, so he was none too happy about a rival guide seeing this place. So he requested that the boat driver wear a blindfold. A lso, Jose had scratched the lens of his eye just before the tournament and was wearing an eyepatch himself. That night as we all gathered for the scoring event, Jerry was asked to stand up and say a few words about his day. Jerry: “Well, it was pretty rough—there I was in the boat with my driver blindfolded, trying to follow a one-eyed Cuban.” Funny stuff, but we were convinced that this guy Jose was one of the stronger personalities we had ever come across. That would www.BoatUSAngler.com turn out to be one of our most prominent understatements of the late 20th century. Two years later we were working with him on the first season of “The Spanish Fly,” his television show that came to set the standard for its category, and was truly one of the very best things on television regardless of category. Jose, who was born in Havana and fled with his family from Castro’s revolution to start anew in America, had a singular passion for life under the sea. True, he had amazing fishing skills, both self taught and learned from befriending the greats of the sport like Stu Apte and Flip Pallot. But he also was endlessly curious about all aspects of saltwater life, seeking out and soaking in that knowledge like a sponge, so to speak. In the space of a 30-minute show, he could explain to us how a certain species of fish lives its life, how it fits into its world, and then show us the most unique and meaningful way to fish for it. And as if that wasn’t enough—by the end of the program, we would have a better understanding of one of the most difficult to explain passions on earth: Why we sportfish. He had friends all over the world and legions of fans, of course. He lived for them and he wanted them to experience it all. His generosity of spirit made him become, not a gatekeeper who doles out bits of knowledge and keeps most of it for himself, but someone who gave us pretty much everything he had in that great repository of saltwater knowledge that was his mind. He let us all take off the blindfolds. Gone too soon, of course. But we don’t weep for the life of someone who realized that we are all here for just a short time, so the thing is to grab hold of life and live every minute to the fullest. We celebrate that life and take that joyous memory with us as we go forward. n 15 BoatU.S. Angler COOLIDGE, Texas — It takes a lot to get Texans to turn their attention away from trophy whitetail deer. Indeed, you might consider big bucks to be part of the Lone Star State’s holy trinity– deer, barbecue and high school football– about which every resident worth his boots has an opinion that he’ll take with him to the grave. It’s not just passion, it’s religion, too. So when you learn that Mike Frazier went to a deer show in Mesquite three years ago toting an aquarium, of all things, you might think that the hot sun had addled his brains into a stringy mixture reminiscent of brisket that’s sat on the smoker too long. But then a strange thing happened at the show. Deerobsessed Texans gravitated toward the big tank, first one or two, then a few more, then so many that they threatened to cave it in. By Pete Robbins This Texan works on becoming the Johnny Appleseed of superior bass genetics BoatU.S. Angler 16 Summer 2012 www.BoatUSAngler.com 17 BoatU.S. Angler Mike Frazier overlooks his forage pond and the larger Camelot Bell lake in the background. They’d come to see mammalian genetics but it was fish that held their attention. That’s because Frazier, who raises trophy deer himself on his Camelot Bell ranch in the small hamlet of Coolidge, had taken the three-legged stool of Texan obsessions and added a fourth leg. No deer, no barbecue, certainly no pigskin prodigies, but he’d brought along four teen-class largemouth bass that made jaws drop. Those four bass, between 13 and 16 pounds apiece, represented a decade’s worth of work toward building the staterecord bass. He can’t quite get the words out, but it’s clear that if things go according to plan, his 40-acre pond may end up responsible for the world record too, thereby giving credence to the idea that everything is indeed bigger in Texas. Meet the Man The mild-mannered Frazier, a metallurgist by trade, would seem to be an unlikely man to become obsessed with building the biggest bass to swim the earth. Likewise, Coolidge would seem to be an unlikely spot for his experiments. It’s a town of fewer than 900 people. Waco is 40 miles away, Dallas is nearly 90 and the bright lights of Sixth Street in Austin are just under 100. It’s close to nothing but central to many things. The closest town with any amenities to speak of is the booming metropolis of Mexia, best known as the hometown of the late Anna Nicole Smith. To the extent that there’s any sense to this story whatsoever, it’s the Playmate connection that explains it all. There’s something in the water here in east-central Texas that produces bigger, curvier, sexier females than anywhere else on earth, and Frazier has happened onto that magic recipe, just with largemouth bass instead of blondes. Now he wants to take what he has learned and spread it, to become, in his own words, the “Johnny Appleseed ” of superior bass genetics. “My goal when I started was 12 to 15 pounds, but my goal has changed,” he said. He turned 61 earlier this year and has worked on family ponds for decades, and this 40-acre pond is the culmination of a lifelong effort to raise big bass. “I’m glad I waited as long BoatU.S. Angler 18 Frazier shows off the aquarium where he hopes to display record largemouth bass. as I did to build my dream lake. I did a lot of things wrong with my dad’s ponds and I learned a lot.” He’s distilled the lessons down to three key elements – environment, genetics and forage – but within each of those categories he’s worked diligently to build a plan that generates double-digit bass like clockwork. It’s All in the Genes Frazier readily admits that “baby fish is not my expertise.” He was fortunate to get a genetic strain that has the potential to grow this big, because unlike Anna Nicole, whose God-given good looks could be enhanced by silicone, makeup and no doubt a bit of airbrushing, the size of an adult largemouth is strictly limited by genetic constraints. “Harrell Arms, who managed ponds for Ross Perot and George Bush, he got the fish for me from a man in Florida,” Frazier said. “I got 250 out of a group of 60,000, but I got the first seining, which holds the bigger fish.” Indeed, the fry that come from what he now calls the “Camelot Bell strain” of bass are not pencil-necked pipsqueaks. They’re super-predators in training. Frazier said his friend Richard Doss, an aquaculturist in Grand Saline, Texas, said “these fry have shoulders on them. Fry are either a razor blade or a stump and these ones are stumps.” It was a matter of timing, too. Th ree years after getting Frazier his fry in the late 1990s, Arms made a comment that the genetics of the farm-raised strain were deteriorating. “It was a particular group of fi sh that went through there at that time,” Frazier said. “They had that deep girth, which enabled them to put on a lot of extra weight.” Summer 2012 Frazier has two “offices” – the front seat of his truck and the front seat of his bass boat. Fishing at Camelot Bell is a team effort – Mike Frazier is every bit as excited as his guests when someone catches a big fish. He added that their ability to grow so big is partially the result of the fact that they don’t have a bookend at either the mouth or the tail. “Most fish turn up at the butt-hole, but these continue to grow deeper, past the bottom fin,” he said. Additionally, their enormous heads give them an advantage even over other oversized largemouths. They seem to grow at fairly typical rates for Texas until they hit about 10 pounds, at which point these kick it into another gear. The jumps from 10 to 12 and from 12 to 14 move forward more like time-lapse photography than the typical growth pattern for pond-raised largemouths. “As their head gets bigger they can eat bigger forage,” which he has provided to them on a silver platter. Building Bigger Bass Genetics alone does not ensure trophy bass, though, at least not in the numbers that Frazier’s lake holds. He’s worked hard to build an ecosystem ripe for a big fish freakshow. First, he wanted to ensure that there would be no super-predators other than big bass in his lake. No gar, no big catfish, nothing else that could dip into the bait population or feast upon the smaller bass. “It’s so easy to mess up on where to build,” he said. “Never build in a place that catches a lot of water or you’ll get invasive species from downstream and upstream. We built our lake on a hill and filled it entirely with runoff. It took five years to fill.” Invasive species aren’t just water-borne. He’s also made an effort to keep out hydrilla and other hitchhikers like zebra mussels. Accordingly, no outside boats are allowed on the water, because it would take only one inadvertent foul-up to irreversibly alter his carefully manicured ecosystem. Every double-digit bass caught in his lake – he’s caught 200 to 300 of them himself – has come over the side of his own Champion bass boat. Halfway down the earthen dam, which is reinforced with riprap, there is a T-shaped pipe with screens at both of the otherwise open ends. That pushes the dead water out. The lake has only run over once in its history. “If you have run-over, you’re losing the best water,” Frazier explained. “The top four feet is the most fertile water.” www.BoatUSAngler.com Frazier leads his clients on a guided tour of his 40acre lake, demonstrating where to cast and how to approach the key structure and cover. Frazier said that the fish on his lake have a distinct pattern of coloration. When one eventually produces a state or world record, he’ll know it’s one of his on sight. The Camelot Bell lake was designed specifically with big bass in mind. Just as he invested in the proper fry to build his dream, Frazier has likely spent a fortune in dirt work to create the perfect habitat. He’s built spawning coves and water that extends down to 35 foot depths, and placed some of the gnarliest, lure-catching cover known to man in his pond, to complement the brushpiles, standing timber and shoreline reeds that also provide habitat. Just as important as the cover, though, is the structure he’s built into the lake, long grooved ridges he refers to as “church pews” or the dredged out bay he calls the “clay pit.” There’s also an old tank dam and points and ridges galore. It’s not the size of Lake Fork or Falcon, but it has their characteristics compressed into a smaller arena, a fantasyland of bass fishing, if you will. Even with the right genetics and the proper playground, the bass couldn’t grow to gargantuan proportions if they weren’t fed properly. “Your log jams and other cover, none of that makes fish grow bigger,” Frazier opined. “But your cover is your fertile water.” In order to provide the calories that big bass need to grow bigger, he started off with no bass at all. That may seem illogical, but he wanted the prey to get a foothold before the super-predators came along. At first he put in redear sunfish and coppernose bluegill, which serve to keep the pond in check through their different diets, with the former primarily feeding on snails and other crustaceans and the latter eating the pellet fish food that Frazier dispenses daily from a feeder at lakeside. Indeed, if you’re a panfish fanatic it seems downright shameful to see that these plate-sized one- and two-pounders going crazy by the feeders only to see the big green orca shapes come up behind them and start cutting into their numbers. They’re bass food, pure and simple and they reproduce at a rate that virtually forces the bass to gorge on them. The panfish were just an appetizer, though. Shortly after the bass took hold, Frazier added both threadfin shad and the larger gizzard shad to diversify the food chain. The shad spawn twice a year and provide tons of protein for the growing bass. While he worries that there is no super-predator besides the largemouths to keep the gizzards in check, so far they have been a boon to his record-building plan. If the panfish were an appetizer and the shad the main course, Frazier’s final calorie-packing dessert came in the form Summer 2012 Frazier keeps an underwater cage secured at dockside, loaded with smaller “culls.” on the day we visited he had what he believed to be an 8.5-pound male ready to send to an aquaculture facility for examination. of tilapia. W hile his lake is a private, closed environment, the cues for growth came largely from the public waters of the Lone Star state. Longstanding trophy fisheries like Fork have earned their reputations on the fins of shad-fed Florida-strain largemouths. The recent contenders for the throne, south Texas fish factories like Amistad and Falcon, have made their bones on the strength of bass gorging themselves on tilapia. He’s built the best of both worlds. One final step that Frazier has taken to ensure that trophy bass thrive in his lake is to remove smaller bass. Indeed, the two- threeand four-pound bass that the average tournament competitor would kill for are just a nuisance to him. The fives and sixes that crown tournament-winning limits are likewise just a distraction. They all get removed upon being caught, taken away to another pond that has no doubt become an angling fantasyland of its own. “It’s not necessarily important to take out all of the small ones,” he said. “You have to take out weight. The lake can only support so many pounds of fish per acre.” The Camelot Experience When you get in the boat with Frazier, before anyone makes a single cast he’ll fix his steely gaze on you and say something along the following lines: “This is a team effort. There are three of us in the boat today. If any one of us catches a state record, or a world record, then we will split the resulting endorsements three ways.” He’s not kidding. He fully expects it to happen, so he’s just preparing for the inevitable. While 16-pounders have been taken out of Camelot Bell, the lake’s hook-and-line record is a 15.80 pound behemoth caught in February of 2012. While you may not get many bites, the ones you get will bring you to your knees. Frazier said that the majority of the anglers who’ve fished his lake have caught their personal best on it. www.BoatUSAngler.com 21 If you make the trip – and it’s not for everyone, especially considering its four-figure price tag for a day on the water – you’d better bring your heart pills. “We’ve had hooked fish that just pulled the boat around,” Frazier said. “Last summer my friend Chris Mahfouz caught one that only weighed 14.75 that tail walked and then dove under the boat. His partner couldn’t fish the rest of the day.” Read that last quotation again. It’s hard to decide which is more unbelievable – that an angler couldn’t continue to cast in a lake that may have more double-digit bass per acre than any place on earth or that Frazier used the phrase “only weighed 14.75” without any sense of irony. Despite the hefty price tag, Frazier’s guided fishing operation is likely a money-loser. All of the dirt work, forage replacement and other ecosystem-enhancements are costly. Even if he sells off his brood stock – and the current price for a fish over 12 pounds is into five digits – he may not be able to recoup his investment. After spending a day with the man, though, it’s evident that he gets paid back in enjoyment. The record may come out of his lake, or it may come elsewhere from his genetics, but he firmly believes that it will come somehow. Indeed, the pale fish with a bronze back and nearly turquoise sheen are instantly identifiable as his own and it will only take one glance at a photo of the record to know that it’s a Camelot Bell fish. If that day comes, and Frazier surely believes deep in his heart that it will, everything changes. At that point, Coolidge, Texas, near nothing but not far from anything, becomes the center of the bass universe. At that point Camelot Bell will become a mythical place for generations to come, just like in the Arthurian legend, a place of idealized beauty and riches. And just like in ancient times, Mike Frazier will have proven that chivalry is not dead in the fishing world. He’s babied the big girls to unbelievable lengths, building a bass fishing amusement park where you must weigh at least double digits to go on all of the rides. n BoatU.S. Angler WALL OF PAIN One ER’s Extraction Collection Photos by Jerry Cunningham Experiencing the great It’s obvious from this portion that Rapala lures are popular in the Ozarks, but everything from spinnerbaits to grubs to a Hula Popper and a Zara Spook have ended up stuck in some unlucky angler. outdoors occasionally comes with a dose of pain. Nothing symbolizes that better than this display at Baxter County Regional Medical Center in Mountain Home, Ark. In the lower right is the chain from a chainsaw, ouch! But this section might hold the most fishing lures per square inch, with spoons and Rooster Tails illustrating the dangers of the trout tailwaters. The ER’s geographical location—between Bull Shoals and Norfork lakes and near worldclass trout fishing tailwaters below those two dams—provides plenty of opportunity for close encounters of Another example of variety, from old to new, that adorns the wall. the barbed kind. The doctors aren’t exactly sure when they began accumulating these extractions, just that over the years it’s even when you successfully catch a fish, more danger lurks at the dinner table. Someone in the ER couldn't resist a bit of humor in describing the "catch of the day." grown. (Maybe that should read: "groan.") BoatU.S. Angler 22 Summer 2012 www.BoatUSAngler.com 23 BoatU.S. Angler Story and photos by David A. Brown Flora, fauna and fantastic fishing on the world’s largest river system Two anglers set out from their mothership to fish a stretch of abundant Amazon waters. The river flows nearly 4,000 miles and bisects the South American continent. 24 25 AMAZON AT A GLANCE é Guests enjoy an Amazon sunset from the boat deck. ç A boat makes it way below bluffs along the Amazon River. è Aluminum bass boats for day trips are towed behind The Otter. I t’s 9 p.m. on Rio Jatapu and the darkened stillness draping this Amazon tributary gives way to swooshing passes of sonar-guided bats gorging on clouds of moths hovering overhead. My guide, a short, burly man who goes by “Yuca,” has wedged the bow of his aluminum bass boat onto a rocky outcropping so we can fish one of his favorite spots for pirarara—the beautiful redtail catfish, whose stunning coloration bespeaks the visual splendor of the world’s most biodiverse jungle. Stationed on that bow, I felt highly vulnerable with my back to whatever wildness may approach, so when Yuca shined his spotlight over my head to scan the jungle for a third time, I had to know what he was searching for. His nonchalant reply cap- tured the adventurous, if not occasionally danger-laced appeal of Amazon fishing: “Jaguar no good.” Indeed, sharing a 20-foot boat with a large, carnivorous feline would not be good. However, "good" woefully understates the magnificence of an unspoiled habitat that threatens sensory overload, while filling the soul with an instantly addicting euphoria that left me mentally clinging to this wild and wonderful memory, even as my U.S. bound plane departed at trip's end. GO DEEP, FISH CLOSE Because the Amazon's prime fishing grounds stretch many miles from the river proper, and because reaching any launching point is an adventure in itself, and because the sheer vastness makes time a precious re- The main target was the peacock bass. source, you'll want to give yourself at least a handful of dedicated angling days. Best bet for such missions is the all-inclusive option of a self-sufficient river boat. My week-long trip aboard The Otter was pure blissful seclusion – a complete departure from the civilized world with only a satellite phone, which we never touched, linking my group of 12 to lives that seemed light years away. The 60-foot, four-deck, twin diesel wooden vessel equipped a dozen air-conditioned 2-person rooms with private baths, while the Otter’s kitchen, dining hall, laundry service and sunset deck with Jacuzzi provided comfy digs with three square meals a day. The staff, along with eight guides, slept aboard a supply boat that paralleled our course and towed the aluminum bass boats If You Really Want To Catch More Bass? Bass Angler Magazine is the one magazine geared towards helping you catch bass. Published 4 times a year, each issue is packed with 30+ exclusive articles focused at showing you new ways to catch more and bigger bass. You’ll simply be amazed at how much you will learn! Order your’s today just mail $19.95 to: BAM Subscriptions PO Box 2805 San Ramon, CA 94583 BoatU.S. Angler or on the web use Promo code:“US11” 26 www.bassanglermag.com/subscribe Summer 2012 in which we took our day trips. This mother ship strategy provided a creature comfort journey with the benefit of short range vessels capable of reaching shallow backwaters rich with jaw-dropping beauty and thick with rod-bending treasure. ANGLING ABUNDANCE Predictably, peacock bass topped the target list for most of this group. Bold and beautiful, these aggressive predators are the Amazon’s top angling draw. Most common are the royals, with their olive backs, golden sides presenting dark vertical bars and reddish-orange accents on the lower fins and bottom jaw. Paint that fish with yellow dots and you have the speckled peacock. “Tucanare” in Portuguese, peacocks hit a variety of lures, but traveling fishermen come for the surface game. Jumbo Zara Spooks and giant chuggers like Creek Chub Knuckleheads will get plenty of attention, but a properly employed Woodchopper makes the kind of commotion that really ticks off the big fish. A tight cadence of reeling and violently ripping the lure across the surface produces the noisy slurps that draw those show-stopping hits. When fish boil and miss, follow-up casts with shallow divers like Bomber Long A’s and Smithwick Rogues often score the connection. If you value quantity over quality, stick with those subsurface presentations near stumps and stickups for non-stop action with juvenile peacocks. Peacocks will forever rule the Amazon sport-fishing scene, but the under-utilized www.BoatUSAngler.com catfish resources offer fine diversions during lulls in the casting action. The pirarara win the beauty contest with its lemon chiffon underside, olive hue above the lateral line, dark green forehead freckles and brilliant reddish-orange tips on its tail, pectoral and dorsal fins. Fully extended, the prominent dorsal resembles a cockatoo’s crest, while the stout pectoral spines are strong enough to serve as handles for lifting the cat vertically. The largest river system on the planet in terms of volume, the Amazon flows some 4,000 miles from its Peruvian headwaters to Brazil's Atlantic coast and moves approximately 20 percent of the world’s fresh water. Within such a sizeable flow, lots of forage—living and not—rolls past lots of holes, rock piles, log jams and points. Such is the making of dependable catfishing. Along with the pirarara, Amazon waters hold a diverse assemblage of whiskered residents, from the slender suribim, to the speckled pintado, to the hulking jau and piraiba. Several smaller species such as golden colored barbado (known for venomous spines) and the jurupensem (called pico pato, or “duck beak” for its extended upper jaw) further the assortment. Amazon cats—especially the aggressive suribims—will hit artificial lures, but consistency comes by soaking something smelly in an area of opportunity. I discovered that a freshly cut piranha, plus moving water plus submerged structure equals a good shot at Amazon catfish. Between peacock outings, several in my group used 27 Originating in Peru’s snowy Andean peaks, several river systems feed into the Marañón River, which combines with the Ucayali River in northeastern Peru to form the Amazon River. Locally known as Rio Amazonas, the Amazon changes its name to Solimões across parts of western Brazil, but returns to its common name after merging with Rio Negro at the rainforest port city of Manaus. With the planet’s heaviest river volume, the Amazon moves approximately 20 percent of the world’s fresh water. Draining some 2,722,000 square miles – roughly 40 percent of South America – the river’s freshwater discharge into the Atlantic Ocean reaches as high as 300,000 square meters per second in the rainy season. November through June sees Amazon water levels rising with the rainy season. During this time, the river reaches up to 25 miles wide with an average depth of 120 feet (40 meters). When late June-October brings the dry season, the river narrows to 7 miles or less. The Amazon and its tributaries cover 350,000 square kilometers during the wet season; 110,000 during the dry. Rio Negro’s later rainy season begins its rise in February, with a dry season roughly matching that of the Amazon. Often called The River Sea, the Amazon flows approximately 4,000 miles (6,400 kilometers) - the world’s second longest river behind the Nile. Most of the Amazon flows across Brazil and enters the Atlantic at the country’s northeast corner. Best part about this aquatic wonderland – tannic acid from abundant vegetation stains Amazon water tea-brown and prevents mosquito breeding. —David A. Brown BoatU.S. Angler ENJOY THE VIEW Flying over the Amazon region, the dense canopy gives the illusion of verdant sameness; however, nothing could be further from the truth. From water level, I marveled at a mix of dense jungle foliage often spiked with the umbrella shaped ceiba trees, high barren bluffs of reddish orange clay, smooth white beaches and even isolated creeks strewn with chunk rocks as big as king size beds. Each morning, we could count on spotting several tucans high in tree tops or flying across the river. Scarlett macaws, parrots, kingfishers, gavions and many other colorful species made frequent appearances. Deep within the flooded forests of macarecuia trees spiking backwater lagoons, colonies of yellow-rumped caciques built their distinctive woven basket nests high above the placid waters. Caimens (Amazon alligators), pink river dolphins and fast-moving monkey troupes accented the experience. On foot, the rule of avoidance is watch where you grab for balance. There’s no lack of creepy crawlies, including spiders and several species of aggressive ants. Amid the leaf litter, our guide Amarol twice spotted tiny poison dart frogs. About the size of a quarter, these shy amphibians are harmless to the touch, but the slime they excrete holds a neurotoxin used by indigenous hunters who dip their blowgun darts in the paralyzing potion. Back in Manaus, a completely natural tract of rainforest habitat abuts the Tropical Hotel, where we stayed before flying back to the U.S. Exploring the property’s outer boundary, I found leopard tree frogs, various lizards and centipedes crawling along branches and came nearly face-to-face with a two-toed tree sloth hanging upside down in a web of vines as she enjoyed a nocturnal feast of leaves. When trip schedules afford tourist time in Manaus, visit the ornate Teatro Amazonas – an opera house built in 1896. Also worth a visit are the Justice Palace near Teatro Amazonas, the Rio Negro Cultural Center and Mercado Adolpho Lisboa (the city's oldest marketplace, circa 1882). The popular beachfront park of Punta Negra has volleyball courts, a playground, bars, eateries and an amphitheater for spectacular Brazilian dance performances. —David A. Brown BoatU.S. Angler The Otter, a 60-foot, four-deck vessel with all the amenities, served as home base. Macaws take flight. The toothy piranha are quick hitters. Caimens are a common sight. Two youth paddle out for let’s make a deal. Yuca shows off pirarara, or redtail catfish. 28 Summer 2012 this formula to create memorable moments, like our first night on the river, when a river giant that never surfaced had Bassmaster Elite Series pro Ish Monroe doubled over before snapping 80-pound braided line. My turn came the following night when I talked Yuca into an after-hours mission that yielded the poignant jaguar comment. We ran about three miles from The Otter and when Yuca located an attractive stretch of rocky bank, he spent several minutes idling 30 yards out as he scanned the shore with his spotlight. Judging by the dozens of ruby glimmers dotting the shallows, I figured he was looking as much for caimens as he was for a suitable banking site. Mine was the first bait out—a silver piranha head weighted with a half-inch bolt. It didn’t take long for the current to roll my rig into the rocks and when my line came tight with a constant angle, Yuca casually grabbed my rod and worked his magic. After a 20-minute soak, my line tightened again but Yuca didn’t assist. Instead he spun his index finger in a circle for the universal “reel, reel, reel ” signal. Ten minutes later, my chunky redtail hit the deck and we decided to leave the jaguars to their evening agenda. Traditional fish-finder rigs comprising 2- to 4-ounce egg sinkers and 7/0 circle hooks work best for catfish, but Amazon tackle shops are few and far between, so improvise as needed. When my supply of lead weights dwindled, Otter owner Gilberto Castro provided stainless steel nuts and bolts as replacements. Twice anglers TRIP POINTERS Our trip originated in Manaus, the capital of Brazil’s northwestern Amazonas state. The main port and hub for regional river traffic, Manaus sits near the mouth of Rio Negro, where this dark flow converges with the relatively clear Amazon at The Meeting of the Waters. (Aerial view and satellite charts show a clear convergence.) A commuter flight from Manaus took us northwest to the modest riverside town of Urucara on Rio Uatama (pronounced “wah-ta-ma”), a northward branching Amazon tributary. We launched around 4 p.m., cruised all night and by the next morning, we had reached Rio Jatapu (“zha-ta-poo”), www.BoatUSAngler.com returned from catfishing with river stones tied to their braided line. HUNGRY AND HOSTILE Tugging on thick Amazon catfish was great fun, but we also had a blast trying to convert the lightning fast strikes of ravenous piranhas into fresh catfish bait. The areas we fished hold silver piranhas, which max out at a pound or so and the ghastly black piranhas that regularly reach pie plate proportions. I boated a big black that went three pounds on the hand scale. Thirty minutes later, fellow Floridian Larry Thornhill lifted one that could have beheaded mine in one bite. For bait, the Otter cooks gave us chunks of beef, the tough fibers of which hold well to hooks. We also caught piranhas on chunks of small peacock bass and various river oddballs like the bicuda—a slender, toothy fish similar to a pickerel—and a large sardine-like forage fish called “apapa.” Wire leaders or at least long-shank hooks are a must. We also fared well with 1/4-ounce jig heads, as this kept the bait and weight in-line for a streamlined presentation. Banking the boats against vegetation inside creek mouths off the main river produced the best action for black piranhas. The silvers seemed less particular and we caught these smaller but more numerous fish around rocky outcroppings and along current lines off sandy beach points. Because piranhas feed in packs, usually on carcasses, theirs is a grip-and-shake style of feeding intended to saw bitesize chunks with their triangular teeth. I hooked more fish by steadily reeling on the strike than I did by trying to out-quick piranhas with a snappy hook set. (We had only J hooks, but circle hooks would help this game.) Any shake-off was always followed by a new attacker, as long as some sliver of bait remained. Between bites, guides showed us how to beat the surface with our rod tips to create distress sounds that attract piranhas. MEMORIES MADE Making new friends is one of traveling’s greatest gifts and I found the Otter’s fishing guides and staff a warm and friendly bunch. Guides had their personal styles, but when they learned of my interest in flora and fauna, they patiently endured my photo shoots. Most did a good job of pointing out animals I would have overlooked. I also found the Brazilians living in the river’s sparsely distributed farming and fishing settlements warm and welcoming. A widow and her son offered fresh coconuts from their backyard; kids at the tiny village of Santa Luzia invited us to join their soccer game; youngsters often paddled out to mooch soft drinks from anglers. Locals readily showed us their modest abodes and most accepted fishing tackle and sometimes a little cash for priceless items such as hand-carved canoe paddles and weathered machetes. Unique souvenirs, no doubt, but none so priceless as the memories of this ecological wonderland for which my heart yearns. n Portuguese is the national language of Brazil, but I found a few English speaking staff at the Manaus Airport, as well as the Hotel Tropical Manaus where we spent our final night. During our week on the Otter, I was able to communicate with several guides and boat staff in basic Spanish, while a couple of guides knew enough English to offer instruction. Brazil requires a passport along with a tourist visa for entry (convenient service at www.traveldocument. com). Proof of a current yellow fever shot is also required. Optional hepatitis A & B shots, along with malaria medication are worth considering. Large levels of tannin wash into the Amazon system, thereby a smaller artery where we’d spend most of our week. Most North Americans traveling to Brazil funnel through Miami. We flew Brazil’s TAM Airlines (www. flytamairlines.com) and the service was remarkably thorough and generous for coach travel. A shuttle van took us from the main terminal to the jet port where we packed into a small twin engine plane for a 30-minute flight to a small landing strip in Urucara. Another van drove us about a mile through the sleepy town to the river, where a rickety gangway spanning the steep river bank led to a barge now serving as a loading dock for cruise boats and the many commuter vessels traversing this area. 29 making the water ineffective for mosquito production. However, if you spend much time in the cities and towns, the Malaria risk increases. Brazil’s national currency is the real (pronounced “heyal”), but American dollars work for just about everything but small street vendors. Pay attention to currency exchange rates posted at banks and hotels to ensure proper conversions. For trip details, contact The Otter or the Amazon Clipper through Ron Speeds Adventures at ronspeedadventures.com. For information about various trips throughout the Amazon region, please visit www. brazil-travel-guide.com/ Amazon-Cruises.html —David A. Brown BoatU.S. Angler It could pay to sign up with BoatU.S. Angler 2012 EVENTS AND PAYOUTS Events Payment Bassmaster Classic-1 event Highest placing eligible entrant $1,500 FLW Tour Championship-1 event Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $1,500 Bassmaster Elite Series-8 events Highest placing eligible entrant $500 FLW Tour Majors-6 events Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $500 Bassmaster Opens-9 events Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $300 FLW Tour Opens-4 events Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $500 Bassmaster Weekend Series-100 regular season events Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $150 EverStart Series-20 events Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $300 Bassmaster Weekend Series Regional Divisionals-4 events Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $250 EverStart Series Championship-1 event Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $1,000 Sanctioned Weigh-to-Win events and post the highest-placing finish among program participants. 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For questions or help signing up, contact Kendell at the Weigh-to-Win Office (918) 742-6424, or send email to weightowin@dynamicsponsorships.com State Qualifier State Qualifier to the National Championship $250 Federation Nation Regional Divisional Events-6 events Boater Highest placing eligible entrant $250 National Championship-1 event Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $1,000 Professional Anglers Association (PAA) PAA Bass Pro Shops Series-4 events Highest placing eligible entrant $500 Association of Collegiate Anglers TBF PROGRAM State Qualifier State Qualifier to the National Championship $250 TBF Regional Divisional Events-7 events Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $250 National Championship-1 event Highest placing eligible entrant Boater $1,000 BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship-1 event Highest placing eligible team $1,000 20 12 20 12 Square-Billed Crankbait Luck-E-Strike Series 4, copper perch “If a square-bill is good, you don’t need to be throwing anything else. From April through mid-June on impoundments, if you have any off-color water, it’s squarebill time. On a river, a square bill is good year round. The biggest key is to find the off-color water, which will hold resident, shallow fish. You can cover more water and multiple depths and I generally fish it faster than most guys do. As for size, you can catch numbers on the smaller sizes, but every tournament you are going to win, you are going to be fishing the big one.” —Rick Clunn Frog Jig SPRO Bronzeye Frog, Killer Gill Jewel J-Lock flipping jig “The frog would be my top choice. The key is that it floats and is highly visible. Those shallow fish are looking up and they are not afraid to go and get it. You can put a frog places easier than a jig or worm like under docks and overhanging trees – anything that provides an ambush point for the bass. Killer Gill has a shad pattern with a frog profile, so you kind of have the best of both worlds with that one. I recommend throwing it on anywhere from 60to 80-pound Sunline braid to get the job done.” —Dean Rojas “I like to flip a jig around a lot of the same stuff that I throw a crankbait because there are times they will hit a jig and not a crankbait. I am going to flip it in there, hop it a few times and put it somewhere else. I use a 5/8-ounce jig, which is pretty heavy, but I will use different trailers to control the fall rate. If you want it to fall fast, use a Zoom Chunk, a little slower, a Zoom Speed Craw, and the slowest, a Zoom Super Speed Craw.” —Kevin Short Best Summertime Lures We surveyed the top Bassmaster Elite Series anglers to find out which summertime baits they don’t leave home without. Here is what they had to say. Big worm Generic ribbontail worm, plum Deep-diving crankbait Bomber Fat Free Shad BD7, citrus shad “In the summertime, the kind of fishing I like to do is offshore. The deep-diving crankbait is one of the best summertime baits there is. It’s a great search bait – you can cover a lot of water with it from points and humps to any other offshore structure you can find.” —Edwin Evers BoatU.S. Angler 32 “There are so many different brands, you just have to let the fish tell you which one to throw. Just make sure it is at least 10 inches in length. You are fishing deep and a big worm like that rigged with a 3/8- or ½-ounce sinker is easy to cast and gets down to cover. You can fish it so many ways, dragging it or hopping it and as deep as you want. It comes through brush piles and other cover easily. That time of year, the size of the forage is large, so the fish are feeding on those bigger profiles.” —David Walker Summer 2012 Carolina rig Big Bite Bait Kriet Kreature, tilapia “The advantage of a Carolina rig is, you can catch a lot of fish with it and cover more water than a lot of other baits. Put a big weight on (3/4-ounce) and really probe those points. That’s what I use when I’m fishing water I don’t know, because I can find the better rock and brushpiles. It’s a really good locater and you can fish it real deep with a big weight. A Carolina rig would be my first choice to get out there and cover lots of water.” —Jeff Kriet www.BoatUSAngler.com 33 BoatU.S. Angler O THE BIG Chris Lane, the 2012 Bassmaster Classic champion, reacts to another big catch during the Elite Series event on Florida’s Lake Okeechobee, helping to show the fishery has recovered. (James Overstreet photo) COMES BACK IN A BIG WAY Elite Series event shows Lake Okeechobee has recovered from setbacks By Steve Wright OKEECHOBEE, Fla. — Lake Okeechobee is America's “mystery lake.” Though it was formed 6,000 years ago, European explorers in the 1700s believed it to be a myth. For many early Americans, the big lake didn't become a fact until U.S. Army colonel Zachary Taylor fought the Seminoles in the Battle of Okeechobee on Christmas Day, 1837. 34 Apple snails have an unusual characteristic of laying their eggs above water. (Steve Wright photo) It's hard to imagine this 730-square-mile lake being a secret, but that was long ago. In the last century, Lake Okeechobee has continued to hold mythical status among American anglers; they've long heard stories too good to believe. If you've made a "bucket list" of places to fish before you die, Okeechobee is undoubtedly on it. The 2012 Bassmaster Elite Series PowerPole Slam here in March signaled that the fishing at Lake Okeechobee now might be as good as it has ever been. If you know about the often troubled times at Okeechobee, that also may be difficult to believe. But the weigh-in scales tell no lies. The name Okeechobee reportedly comes from two words in the Seminole language — oki (water) and chubi (big) —thus "big water." It's a fitting name for a lake that serves as the headwaters of the Everglades and holds a trillion gallons at its average depth of nine feet. Yes, only nine feet. The big lake became known to the world in 1928 when the Okeechobee Hurricane caused a massive sheet of water to spill from the lake. The original death count was 1,836. But the exact total remains a mystery; many migrant farm workers' bodies were washed into the swamps and never recovered. In 2003, the National Weather Service raised the death count to "at least 2,500." Following the disaster, the Herbert Hoover Dike was built around Okeechobee. Earth removed from inside the dike formed a rim canal that remains the safest way to navigate this shallow lake – go around or risk running aground. Like an ocean, Okeechobee is large enough for you to understand the curvature of Earth: When you boat to the middle of it, a scan of the horizon in every direction reveals no dry land — only water, and the greenery growing from it. Lake MichiBoatU.S. Angler A snail kite swooped over Okeechobee to grab this apple snail clutched in its talon. (Steve Wright photo) gan is the only one larger within the lower 48 states. Other than its size, that lack of depth separates Lake Okeechobee from everything else. Combined with acres of aquatic vegetation and the subtropical temperatures of south-central Florida, Lake Okeechobee provides near-perfect habitat for growing fish. It has been called " The Panfish Capital of the World." Okeechobee is noted for growing large crappie and lots of them. W hen the bream, both redear (shellcrackers) and bluegill, go to their spawning beds for the first time each spring, many devoted bass anglers shift gear. "I do enjoy that," said Bill Rose, who moved here in 1978 from Peoria, Ill. "Even though I fish for bass most of the time, I take a break when that first wave of shellcrackers comes in to spawn. I've caught a lot that weigh 2 ½ pounds. They average about 1 ¼ to 1 ½ pounds." A 2 ½-pound bream is a myth to me, but I'm anxious to be convinced. The freshwaters of Florida are best known for largemouth bass. When Bassmaster magazine recently published a list of the 100 best bass fishing lakes in the U.S., seven Florida waters were included, second only to Texas' eight. And Lake Okeechobee was listed No. 2 overall, runner-up to Falcon Lake, located on the Texas-Mexico border. Topping off the excellent fishing, Okeechobee simply provides a unique experience. From the prehistoric-size alligators peering from its surface to the endangered snail kites swooping above it, there's always something that catches your eyes. "Every time I come back here, it looks different," said Steve Kennedy, a Bassmaster Elite Series veteran from Auburn, Ala., 36 who has been fishing Okeechobee for 10 years. "It's unlike any other place we've ever fished." Over the past 30 years, Okeechobee has seen more bad times than good. Phosphorous and nitrogen contained in rainfall runoff caused massive algal blooms that covered 40 percent of the lake during the 1980s and '90s. Algal blooms suck dissolved oxygen from the water. The effects start at the bottom of the food chain, killing the macro-invertebrates, which support fish, waterfowl and every other predator. The 21st century has marked a series of highs and lows for Okeechobee in terms of its water level. The highs were caused by hurricanes and tropical storms that muddied Okeechobee and stunted the growth of aquatic vegetation. For bulrush, eelgrass and hydrilla to thrive, they need the sunlight that penetrates clear water. Two hurricanes in 2004 (Frances and Jeanne) were particularly tough, as the combination of high water and strong winds ripped out the plant life and clouded the water. "It wiped out all the vegetation," said Florida native Chris Lane, the 2012 Bassmaster Classic champion. "It turned the water to where it was pretty much puke brown for years." The lows came in the form of droughts, one of which dropped the lake to record low of 8.82 feet above sea level in July 2007. The target level set by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is 12.5 to 15.5 feet. It was during the drought in '07 that truckloads of toxic mud were removed from the lake's basin – thousands of truckloads. It was an attempt to restore the hard, sandy bottom of Okeechobee and its water clarity. Apparently, the plan succeeded. The Bassmaster Elite Series tournament, held March 22-25, produced some extraordinary results. Summer 2012 Air boats are a common site in this lake which has an average depth of only 9 feet. (Steve Wright photo) "The first time I fished Lake Okeechobee was in the mid- to late-'70s," said 56-yearold Shaw Grigsby from Gainesville, Fla. "It's real different now. This is as good as I've seen Okeechobee. It's real, real healthy. That year-class of five-, six-, seven- and eight-pounders is just crazy. It's absolutely crazy." Grigsby's words came after weighing a five-bass daily limit totaling 30 pounds, 7 ounces on March 24. But he was hardly the only Elite Series angler proclaiming the present-day wonders of bass fishing at "The Big O." On that same Saturday, Kevin VanDam caught an 8-pound, 14-ounce largemouth, which was the biggest bass caught in the fourday event. That's a big bass no matter where you fish. VanDam, 44, speaks with some authority on bass fishing, as the seven-time Bassmaster Angler of the Year and four-time Bassmaster Classic champion. " There are so many big ones out there on this lake that, if you get in the right areas when they move up, it's just crazy," VanDam said. "It's about as incredible a lake as you're going to see down here (in Florida) right now. "I've probably fished four or five tournaments here. I've seen it go through a lot of changes. It's totally different from the last time I was here. It's the best I've ever seen it. Every bank on the lake now that has reeds on it is spawning habitat. They've www.BoatUSAngler.com kept the lake at perfect levels the last few years during the spawn. So there's just a tremendous class of bass between five and eight pounds." Serving as further proof, Ish Monroe of Hughson, Calif., had an opening day bag Okeechobee bass fishing. The Springville, Ala., resident knew there was a chance to catch surface-feeding bass at first light. So Howell tossed out a big topwater lure first thing one morning. "It's called 'The One.' It's like a big Pencil Popper with three treble hooks on it," Howell said. After a school of bass attacked the lure, Howell reeled in one attached to each hook. They weighed 4, 3 ½ and 3 pounds. In other words, Howell caught 10 ½ pounds of bass on one cast. "I've never seen that happen before," said Howell, who had his limit in the livewell with two more casts – five bass on three casts. It has been a long road back to health for Lake Okeechobee. But A great blue heron works on will it remain You can't its lunch. (Steve healthy? Wright photo) imagine how much depends upon that answer. Lake Okeechobee is the literal heart of Florida. A limestone trough lies at the bed of the state's freshwater lifeblood. It stretches north from the headwaters of the Kissimmee River, south through Lake Okeechobee, into the Everglades and finally into Florida Bay – a vast stream that supplies drinking water, irrigates crops, recharges acquifers and provides habitat for much of of 34 pounds, 5 ounces – almost a seven- the state's wildlife. pound average – on the way to winning the Canals and ditches were being carved tournament with a 20-bass total of 108 into Florida shortly after it became a pounds, 5 ounces. state in 1845. When Hamilton DissHowever, one cast made by Randy How- ton purchased four million acres here ell might have made the biggest state- in 1881, his ultimate goal was to drain ment about the present state of Lake Okeechobee. That's about the only thing 37 BoatU.S. Angler he didn't achieve in earning his nickname, the "Drainage King." For most of the 20th century that effort to drain the swamps for farmlands and housing accelerated. But it has finally slowed as Floridians have come to realize the importance of their waters and wetlands. Now there's a focus on the long-term health of this area. It would take an article much longer than this to mention the agencies and projects that are intertwined in this massive effort. More so than largemouth bass, snail kites may be the ultimate sign of Okeechobee's health. These little-known birds are considered the most threatened snail from its golf ball-sized shell; other prey species in the U.S., and Florida is the than the occasional crawfish, it's the only only state they inhabit. Snail kites are thing snail kites eat. (Apple snails, fittingthriving in the other parts of their native ly for Okeechobee, are sometimes called range – Central and South America. But "mystery snails.") they are an "indicator species" for FloriThe snail kites appeared plentiful during the Bassmaster tournament in March. Once you knew what to look for, it took little effort to find one gliding low, occasionally with an apple snail clutched in its talons. But the snail kite population has crashed from 3,000 a decade ago to 900 now. The good news is that's 200 more than were counted a year ago. Apple snails feed on aquatic vegetation. So more aquatic plants leads to more apple snails and therefore more snail kites, right? And apparently, that means more bass, too. But nothing is quite that simple, especially where mankind confronts Mother Nature like it does in Florida. This is the state where a gift from Japan at the 1884 New Orleans World Fair – water hyacinths ¬– spread so fast that waterways were choked with the invasive species a decade later. The water hyacinths have since been controlled, but not eradicated. In Florida, if it's not one environmental crisis, it's another: A new species of apple snails is now spreading through its waters. Native to South America, this species probably arrived through the da's wetlands, in other words, canaries in aquarium trade. It grows to the size of a the coal mine. If they vanish, everything baseball. W hile it is considered one reaelse better be nervous. son for the recent increase in snail kites, The snail kite is a medium-sized hawk. it may prove too big for juveniles to efMales are mostly gray; females are mostly fectively consume, and it may overcrowd brown; both have distinctive white patches the native apple snails. at the base of their tails; and both have a W here w i l l a l l t h is lead? T hat's a sharp hook at the end of their beaks. That myster y, just l i ke L a ke Okeec hobee hook permits them to remove an apple ha s a lways been. n ish Monroe searches for bass amidst the now healthy aquatic vegetation. (Seigo Saito photo) BoatU.S. Angler 38 Summer 2012 THE OF BARON BALSA By Pete Robbins Lee Sisson keeps on cranking out baits, looking for the next great thing Balsa B crankbaits, halfway finished. www.BoatUSAngler.com 39 BoatU.S. Angler A Balsa B2 in chartreuse with a black back is responsible for numerous major tournament wins. Have you ever thrown a crankbait? If so, you owe at least a tip of the hat to Lee Sisson. D epending on which lure you used, there’s a good chance he designed it, manufactured it, consulted on it or inspired it. Even if he didn’t have a direct hand in its creation, those who did might have borrowed a few of his ideas, either purposefully or inadvertently. In some cases their borrowing effectively amounts to theft. That doesn’t bother Sisson, though, because by the time someone sees fit to appropriate one of his ideas and present it as their own, he’s already moved on to the next project. The next project might involve a new category of lure, or some altogether different item. Lately he’s put his effort into a bass boat alarm system and a lure dunk that harnesses the power of ultraviolet rays. Tomorrow it might be something in a totally different category. Nevertheless, he always comes back to balsa wood crankbaits, a dying breed whose advantages he proselytizes tirelessly. Sisson is a man with an existential conflict – he’s constantly searching for the next great thing, but always circles around to the wood that started his career in 1972. He can’t escape it. He’s tried other substances for luremaking, like Jelutong, a similar wood, and though his designs have won multiple Bassmaster Classic trophies and hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of dollars, he’s more concerned about what comes next than about the legend he’s already built. B uilding a B etter B ass -Trap Sisson, the son of a Louisiana attorney, was a high school football star in Baton Rouge with a wealth of options as to where he’d play at the next level. The big powers came calling, but they promised only a chance to compete for a spot, and BoatU.S. Angler 40 Summer 2012 www.BoatUSAngler.com only as an upperclassman. The sidelines and bench did not appeal to him, so he accepted an offer to play for nearby Louisiana Tech. A prime driver in his decision to play for the Bulldogs was a blonde quarterback a year ahead of him, who’d go on to a Hall of Fame career in the NFL. Terry Bradshaw was part of the effort to recruit young offensive lineman, but once Sisson got to school Bradshaw played an even larger role. “He took me out and got me into a school of bass,” Sisson recalled. “I knew right then and there that was what I wanted to do.” Then he trotted out his standard line: “We both helped each other with our careers. He got me into fishing and I taught him how to scramble.” As he fished local jackpot tournaments on Louisiana waters like Lake D’Arbonne and the Atchafalaya Basin, during college and shortly thereafter, he recognized that the hard lures of the day were not capable of fishing deeper than about six feet. Sure, if you found a brushpile you could drag a worm or a lead head jig through it, but when bass were keyed in on the action of the diving plug, there were no options. Sisson, a born tinkerer, set out to fill that gap and created what would later become the Bagley’s DB3, the first deep-diving crankbait. While it didn’t necessarily enhance his reputation beyond Louisiana, the innovative lure put more than a few dollars in his pocket. Meanwhile, he’d found a calling. When Jim Bagley of Bagley Bait Company came to Baton Rouge for an in-store promotion, the savvy recent college graduate glued himself to the industry stalwart’s side and by the end of the 41 day had a job offer to move to Florida, which he accepted without hesitation. B ringing the H eat During his salad days in the fishing industry, Sisson fed continuously on Jim Bagley’s knowledge. “I played on a championship football team in high school and a championship team in college, but Jim was the best coach I ever had,” he recalled. Bagley would create challenges for his employees, forcing them to produce a certain number of sales or products by a given date. To this day, Sisson doesn’t know whether those goals were based on corporate needs or Bagley’s imagination, but as a general rule they contributed to better products. “Normally we could get about 97 percent of our lures to run right out of the package,” he recalled. “But with a smaller bait it’s harder to perfect. When we came out with the Diving Honey B, about 80 percent ran right. Jim came back and said he had an order for a hundred thousand of them, so we’d better get it to run right. “ The harder the challenge, the more I liked it.” At that point in time the industry was also different. Bagley, he said, “had the ability to make everybody feel special,” once opining to Sisson that “when you’re climbing the ladder, you should push the guys ahead of you and they’ll drag you along with them.” Indeed, while a spirit of competitiveness was imbued throughout the herd of salesmen and designers, there was also a camraderie. At in-store promotions, Sisson and the representatives from competing companies would bet lunch on who could sell more of each other’s lures in a given morning. “The first time I went to a show I met Bill Norman, Lew Childre, Cotton Cordell and Ray Scott,” he recalled. “They were all out of the same mold – carnival barkers.” Sisson was a witness to history, as Childre “changed the rod business,” taking the sport from “big round reels and rods that weighed 40 pounds,” to the forerunners of the tools anglers use today. He brought the pistol grip from Japan along with Fuji BoatU.S. Angler Sisson’s creation of a deadly muskie lure was a happy accident. guides and revolutionized how the baitcasting technique is executed. Along the way, there was resistance – Childre showed up to one event to find his booth decorated with a handmade sign that said “Brought to you by the people who brought you World War Two” – but the converts outweighed the naysayers. Sisson was an early Childre supporter, but admitted that he was one of the doubters when Johnny Morris started Bass Pro Shops. “Talk was that Johnny was going to blow his dad’s money. We all wondered how you could make any money in mail order.” There were some missed business opportunities, too. Childre brought back the inspiration for the Mr. Twister grub from France, but Bagley and Sisson elected to pass on it. A few years later, John Fox brought them a “big old ugly thing with spinnerbait blades kind of pop-riveted together.” Once again, they passed. Shortly thereafter the Lunker Lure buzzbait was introduced, producing numerous tournament wins and millions of sales. “I also thought a fiberguard on a jig would never work,” he laughed. “I’ve been wrong about a lot of things.” Today he jokes about it easily, but the satisfaction derived from the successes far outweighed the disappointment when he was wrong. Crankbait sales zipped along throughout the 70s and 80s, buoyed by multiple Bassmaster Classic wins, riding the coattail of Ray Scott’s salesmanship, and much of that was due to Sisson’s ingenuity. B roadening H is H orizons A key component of Sisson’s job at Bagley’s was the euphemistically-titled “field research” – in other words, time on the water. Oddly enough, despite fishing in Florida for 40 years, as a general rule Sisson does not care for its typically grassy bowl-shaped lakes. Perhaps more surprisingly, the former Elite Series angler “won more money in muskie tournaments than in bass tournaments.” As Bagley sought to expand his reach into largely untapped northern and midwestern markets, he sent Sisson as his envoy. “I built a 12-inch crankbait to fish for muskies, but it was cold and I broke the lip off.” Like several other of his accidental creations, this one was a success. “It would glide like a dying shad,” he said, and it drove the toothy critters crazy. He was so green at that point that on his first trip to Wisconsin he didn’t quite know what was at the end of his line. “I knew muskies had stripes and northern had spots, but my first fish didn’t have either,” he said. He called over local muskie expert Duke Verkuilen who informed him that he’d caught a “silver” muskie. RegardBoatU.S. Angler Salesman’s sample rings show off some of Lee Sisson’s designs. less of how it looked, he knew he was onto something with his new creation. At the end of the weekend, he drove home to Florida, retooled the lures, then drove right back in time for the next weekend’s tournament. Between the lures and his knowledge gleaned from bass fishing, he immediately cleaned up, winning four boats in a row on the Eagle River Chain of Lakes. “The fishermen up there hadn’t been exposed to southern bass techniques, particularly boat control,” Sisson recalled. “They thought that the trolling motor was for trolling, but it’s really a positioning motor.” Always an educator, after a while 42 he gave several impromptu seminars to spread his growing understanding of the habits of the big fish. “The next year they beat the snot out of me,” he said. Of course it was Sisson, and in turn Bagley, who laughed all the way to the bank. While his tournament dominance may have ended, they went from annual regional sales of 30,000 lures to annual sales of 300,000 in just a short while. Next he convinced Bagley to enter the saltwater markets. Not only was there a need for new products, but this was where the big money lay – a freshwater crankbait might cost six bucks and a local tourSummer 2012 nament might see a few hundred dollars awarded to the winner, but in the saltwater arena the pots, and even the side-pots, were enormous. “You’d see a thousand dollars change hands on the dock at the marlin tournaments,” he recalled. “The IRS guy would be there, too.” Clearly, if he and Bagley developed a winning lure they too could clean up. Once again, Sisson set out to do the appropriate field research, and just as he did in Wisconsin he turned heads. It wasn’t necessarily because he produced any noteworthy catches, although he caught his share of fish, but rather because of how he www.BoatUSAngler.com got there. He can only wonder today how many captains of big Chris-Craft and Hatteras yachts decided to give up drinking when they saw his 18-foot Skeeter Starfire 12 miles offshore battling a sailfish. Once again, the time on the water paid off in the development of the Bagley’s Head Knocker. “At the time what we were trying to do was to build a lure that ‘smoked,’” Sisson said. “Something that came up, captured air, then went back down, creating a bubble trail.” It was skirted like the typical Kona trolling lures, with a ringed collar, but featured a tube that slid up over the line, which caused it to “shake, rattle 43 and come up and gulp air.” One end of the tube was bigger than the other, so the tube could be reversed for maximum effectiveness depending on trolling speed. He never tired of the expansive saltwater options – extending his reach to the snook and tarpon in the mangroves of the Everglades, as well as to the Arthur Smith Kingfish Tournaments, but fishing for bass increasingly fell by the wayside. He continued to develop products to catch more bass, even after he left Bagley in the mid-80s, but even off-the-water pursuits started to overwhelm the time devoted to chasing bass firsthand. BoatU.S. Angler “If I had run my business to get rich, it would have been a lot different,” he said. “But during my hunting period I left every Wednesday afternoon and I’d be gone through the weekend. You might say I have an addictive personality.” e lite at s iXtY p lus While Sisson may have burned through species and designs and experiences with the fervor of a man who’s never satisfied with the status quo, in reality his career has been a long, circular slog back to where he started: chasing bass, trying to do it better than anyone around him, with tools of his own design. Like many of his best creations, his return to the bass game was accidental. One spring less than a decade ago, when hunting had overwhelmed the portion of his brain previously reserved almost exclusively for fish, he found himself at Mark ’s Outdoors near Birmingham, when that establishment was about to hold its annual tournament on Lay Lake. The event typically draws in excess of 500 boats, including many of the top bass pros, but it’s also an effort aimed at both commerce and conservation—many of the top manufacturers show up to give away thousands of dollars worth of gear. Perhaps more importantly, each boat is tasked with releasing a bag full of bass fry provided by Mark ’s at its initial stop of the tournament. Out of that effort to resuscitate the resource came Sisson’s own bass fishing rebirth. “I was up there and someone asked me to fish as their co-angler,” he recalled. “I didn’t even have any rods or tackle with me, but I decided to go, and the bug just jumped up and bit me.” Energy renewed, he joined the Lakeland Bassmasters near his Winter Haven home. The club has a storied history, producing reigning Bassmaster Classic champion Chris Lane, his brother Bobby, current Elite Series rookie Kyle Fox, and the oldest rookie in Elite Series history, Sisson himself. His path to the Elites was, once again, almost accidental. In 2008 he fished five Elite Series tournaments on the amateur side, finishing seventh at Clarks Hill, fifth at Old Hickory and absolutely falling in love with Lake Amistad. Given his busy consulting schedule, though, in 2009 he elected to fish all of the Southern and Central Opens, six tournaments in all, as a boater. While he didn’t set the world on fire, he did notch a 20th place finish on Alabama’s Lake Wheeler and a 14th place finish on the Atchafalaya Basin, along with a small check at Santee Cooper. In 2010, he started off fi shing the Southern Opens, but bombed at Okeechobee to start the year, fi nishing 167th. Indeed, he had done the same to start 2009, fi nishing an even-worse 186th at the Harris Chain. Th is time, he decided to cut his losses and focus on the Centrals. It was a wise choice, as he never missed the money again, fi nishing 30th at Amistad, 15th at the Red River and sixth at Texoma. Th at put him fourth overall in the point standings, outside the cut for the Classic, but well inside the cut to make the Elite Series roster for 2011. Sisson couldn’t think of a reason NOT to fish the BoatU.S. Angler 44 B aCK Elites, so he plunked down the not-insubstantial deposits and prepared to fish against a group of anglers who’d grown up on his baits, even if many hadn’t been born when he’d first produced them. The first tournament was on the Harris Chain, and even though he essentially lost all of the second day of competition to mechanical difficulties he finished 13th among nearly 100 of the world ’s greatest anglers. “I told my wife it was pretty easy,” he said. “I spoke too soon.” The rest of the year proved more difficult, with a money finish at Lake Murray surrounded by a few tough lessons elsewhere. “ This is not a sport for 63-year-old rookies,” he opined, looking back at a few missed opportunities from his Elite season. Still, he had the option to come back in 2012, but with his curiosity sated, he elected to let that opportunity pass and return to his most enduring passion: solving on-the-water puzzles from off the water. “I feed off of the consumers,” he stated. “ The excitement and the energy in their eyes. Most of the ideas I have are either accidents or just listening. You find a need and fill it. Then your buddy sees it and he wants one. That’s cool. Then after that, when somebody will give you some money for it, you know you’ve accomplished something.” Summer 2012 underneath all of Lee Sisson’s best creations lies a heart of balsa wood. The tools of the trade and some balsa wood bodies. Thousands of crankbait lips await their future on the water. www.BoatUSAngler.com to B alsa Just as spawning fish return to the same areas year after year after year, it is in Sisson’s genetic code to tinker and solve problems. His offspring exhibit that same tendency. One son spent his youth pulling apart computers and video games, getting them to work better. Now he’s in the computer security industry. Another is a jeweler, building six-figure pieces of art. “I wish I had his talent,” Sisson said, modestly. Now he’s come full circle, even with the products he uses: “Forty years ago I was fishing out of a Skeeter, using Lew’s rods and reels and Bagley’s lures. Now I’m fishing out of a Skeeter, using Lew’s rods and reels and Bagley’s lures.” He’s not just using the lures, though – after several ownership changes, he’s working directly with Bagley’s to get the products back to their previous industry status. One of the new owners is another big name in the world of balsa lures – Jarmo Rapala, grandson of Rapala namesake and originator Lauri Rapala. In addition to staying busy consulting for Bagley’s, Sisson spends his “retirement” trying to solve other problems. He’s built and marketed a “two-way boat alarm” in response to tiring of taking his gear out of the boat every night at hotels. Those calling the customer service line, whether it be late on a weekday, or even a Saturday, are often surprised to find Sisson himself answering the phone and guiding them to a solution. He wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s also developed a “secret sauce” that adds a UV-sensitive hue to any soft plastic 45 lure, allowing them to become more visible in deep or dirty water, and expects to do the same thing with crankbait paint in the near future. “We’ve been using UV all this time on crankbaits with chartreuse or fluorescent orange and we never knew why it was so effective,” he said. What’s odd about Sisson’s quest for the perfect situational lure or the solution to a given problem is that he’s chosen a sport where there can never be certainty. “It’s not like golf, where the hole is right there and you just have to get to it,” he said. “Here you can’t see the hole.” When he returned from his self-imposed bass fishing exile a few years back, he was surprised to hear anglers talking about special crankbaits that “hunted” – veering off sharply at random intervals before returning to center. He’d never known a good crankbait that didn’t hunt. Each particular model has its own particular “acoustic signature,” he said, and unlike plastic plugs where consistency can be attained relatively easily, in balsa it all comes down to the particular piece of wood. “One of the things I like about balsa is that it has a quicker action than plastic or a heavier wood,” he said. “But the true mystique of balsa wood crankbaits is that no two are the same.” Indeed, a Bagley’s ad from decades ago touted this fact, comparing them to snowflakes. So in that sense, Sisson knows that his search for a better bait, even, dare he say it, a perfect bait, is illusory. Even though they’re carved from the same machine, each one captures a particular moment in time. That’s the design signature of a man whose passion always tilts toward the next big thing, but who also knows that history and experiences matter. n BoatU.S. Angler McKinnis enjoys the companionship of Coach Bobby Knight on their annual fishing trips. Fishing is about friends for McKinnis, but his favorite lures still produce good results. Billy Westmoreland and Jerry McKinnis hold a stringer of Lake Cumberland bass in 1969. Lifetime of Lures The favorite go-to baits of B.A.S.S. owner, longtime TV host Jerry McKinnis J erry McKinnis may be the most traveled angler in the world. After 44 years of taping “The Fishin’ Hole,” he’s like a character in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby: “I've been everywhere and seen everything and done everything." His latest escapade is the owner of B.A.S.S., the time-honored staple of the bass fishing world that brought us so many well-known anglers and an industry within an industry to boot. McKinnis cut his teeth as a full-time minorleague baseball player who dreamed of fishing in Photos courtesy Jerry McKinnis. Forrest Wood and Jerry McKinnis do some “fly” fishing for steelhead trout in British Columbia. Longtime show host and B.A.S.S. coowner Jerry McKinnis opens up his vintage tackle box from a lifetime of fishing. (James Overstreet photo) 46 his spare time. A chance meeting with a young Forrest Wood (pre-Ranger Boat era) set them on a parallel course to become fishing icons. Whether it’s been fishing for smallmouth or largemouth bass, or chasing steelhead in the North, snook in Florida or rainbow trout in the West, McKinnis has built an incredible tackle box of knowledge and experiences unrivaled by anyone. It’s the lures, though, we are most interested in. Take a look at some of the time-honored and well-worn items in his tackle box that he couldn’t live without. Turn the page to see his tacklebox favorites è Kevin VanDam, Mike McKinnis, Jerry’s son, and Jerry show off a mess of smallmouth. Jerry’s Tackle Box Dowagiac Minnow: This was McKinnis’ fi rst lure. “When I was a kid and fi shed with my dad, this is what we fi shed with. You just throw it out there and reel it back. It’s actually a horrible lure but it’s all we had. I used to deliver the Wellston Journal in St. Louis, and to get paid you got vouchers, so I saved up my vouchers and got that lure.” package McKinnis has owned for 25 years, helped produce a 10fi sh stringer on Alabama’s Lake Eufala that ranged from 10 pounds to 14 pounds each. “That sounds almost ridiculous,’’ he said, “but it happened.” Wiggle Wart: “The original Wiggle Wart, not one of the new ones today. I’ve fished it especially in the Ozark lakes. That color right there in the spring is dynamite.” Lucky 13: “When I guided we fished Lucky 13s and poppers a lot. They caught so many fish. I didn’t know in order to catch a fish I needed to throw it in that brush. Man, I threw it out in the middle because the worst thing on earth would be to lose a lure.” Sammy/Zara Spook: “When I fish with a topwater bait, I fish a Zara Spook a lot. My original one is up in a case. The Spooks I used to fish with for smallmouth always had the harness that ran all the way through them. You can’t buy them anymore. I’ve got one or two of them, but I mostly fish with a Sammy today.” Tube jig: For decades this lure has been a mainstay for decades. It was especially good on Crooked Creek and the Buffalo River, two smallmouth streams that were constant sites for McKinnis’ “The Fishin’ Hole.” Blackberry Jelly Worm: “A Mann’s blackberry Jelly Worm: Tom Mann made a watermelon, strawberry and a blueberry and so on. I believe a stringer of fi sh Mann and I caught on that worm was the biggest ever caught on film on public water.” These worms, from a BoatU.S. Angler (yes, that wooden tray comes from one of Jerry’s vintage tackle boxes.) 48 Bill Rose Lure: “Bill Rose was a great, great fisherman. He used to make his own lures. I don’t remember what he called this, but he poured the head in this little mold and he’d put them in his oven. We made fun of him. We thought it was the stupidest looking bait. When we were around the dock and Bill wasn’t around, we’d say he couldn’t fish today because he’s got to bake new lures. But I think back and that’s a heck of a lure. Nowadays we fish with lures that are similar … And I made fun of him.” Berkley Frenzy: This lure isn’t made anymore, but it’s one McKinnis uses religiously. “The reason why I fish this is because so many crankbaits that you’re told are going to run 7- or 8-feet deep, don’t. They may hit 7 feet for like 4 feet and then they’re right back up. This lure actually would dive that deep and stay there for the biggest part of your cast. I know it’s not as beautiful as a lot of the crankbaits we have now, but boy it was a fish catcher.” Zoom Trick worm: “I fish a wacky-style worm, and I use a Zoom Trick Worm an awful lot.” McKinnis will often add a finishing nail to the head to add weight and change the rate of fall. Little Doc: “When we guided, my neighbor, Garland “Doc” Hurst, would carve his own lures as he was guiding. He’d get a piece of root and carve it while going down the river. Then he’d paint it, hang it on the little rail, let it dry and started fishing. If fish were biting at all, he’d catch a fish or two on it. Then he’d sell it to the fishermen for a dollar. A dollar was really something. If you could do that twice a day and get an extra two dollars, that’s pretty sweet because you were only getting five dollars to guide. We called these ‘Little Docs.” Sting Ray grub: The Sting Ray Grub became special almost by accident. McKinnis and Billy Murray, a long-time cameraman, were on their way to join Bobby Murray (Billy’s brother) and Jim Bagley in the Everglades for a snook fishing show. They stopped to visit Tom Mann, who gave them the grubs as an afterthought. The snook weren’t biting. It was so bad Bagley and Bobby left. Trying to make something happen, McKinnis tied on one of the grubs and immediately caught a tarpon. Billy followed and before long they were piling up snook and tarpon. McKinnis used the grub to catch fish all over Summer 2012 Scrounger Head: “I think this could possibly be the fish catching-est lure out there — people just don’t fish with it. They don’t completely understand how to fish it, but this is a fish-catching son of gun. Not just in 2 feet but in 22 feet of water.” www.BoatUSAngler.com the country. “It still works when fishing is tough,’’ he said. “I’ll get bit sure as the world.” Jigs: “The bottom two are Bill Rose’s jigs. We didn’t fish with anything but bucktail jigs back in the 50s, 60s, 70s. I guess probably nobody fishes with a bucktail jig now. They’ll fall slower than most of the jigs today. A bucktail will trap air and it makes them fall a lot different. We’d always have a little orange in there or a little blue on black. There’s today’s jig on top. I guess the biggest reason I put this in there is to remind you what today’s jigs look like, but in those days we wouldn’t have a plastic trailer.” Little George/Silver Buddy: “The Little George is a creation by Tom Mann and named for former Alabama Governor George Wallace. That’s all Mann fished. They were fish catching dudes. I have an idea they’re fish catching dudes today, too. I also fished a lot with a Silver Buddy. I fished these a lot with Billy Westmoreland, who was the big smallmouth fisherman over on Dale Hollow. Billy fished with little jigs some, but the majority of his big smallmouth were caught on Silver Buddies and nobody ever knew that. They figured he caught them all on jigs.” Chatter Bait: “I’ve got a whole box of Chatter Baits. When I started to fish them, I had this one and a couple more. Mine were always too heavy for me, and so I whittled it down. And as you can tell, this is just beat all to heck. I ended up getting a whole box of them because I thought I’d lose this one. I’ve had this thing for five years. I just fish it all the time. I never lose it, and I never get any new ones out of the box.” n 49 BoatU.S. Angler Braggin' Board 2012 BoatU.S. Angler “Catch of the Month” Spring Winners Two Days That Stick in My Mind T he rash of anglers getting hooked So I’m sitting there looking at the crankbait, in B.A.S.S. tournaments of late and those hooks are in there good. I remember brings to mind two days that leaning over in pain, and this idiot cruiser boat sucked. Well, one for sure. And goes by throwing a 4-foot wake. As I’m bent what I take from both, besides some scars, is over, the wake hits the side of the boat and the a lesson learned. free hook embeds in the inside of my leg. The fi rst was probably 20 years ago when There is no way in hell that I could physically I was getting ready for a tournament in do this again if I tried. I’ve become a human Michigan. It was one of those magical “Ferris safety pin. I’m bent over. I cannot stand up. I Bueller’s Day Off ” deals, a calm summer day remember lying on the deck, bleeding, trying where every single pleasure boat was out and to dig out the hooks with my hands. As I’m I was in the boat alone. doing this—this is no joke—my right thumb I was a typical Michigan beach bum kid gets hooked past the barb. So now I’m toin the summertime, wearing flip-flops tally screwed. I’ve got hooks in four different and jams… rememchunks of flesh. ber those? The jam Nothing good is shorts had a bluecoming of this. I repurple floral pattern, member a john boat and I didn’t have a going by, and I’m shirt on because I wailing like a baby. was the Coppertone I’m screaming to the man at the time. guy, and he comes So I hook a fish on over. I will never fora crankbait, and I get his reaction. Th is was doing the Bassguy was one level master deal where above, maybe below, you’re leaning back the dudes in “Delivon it. I remember erance.” He was like the fish coming the ZZ Top cousin to the surface, not very big, probably 3 they no longer communicate with. pounds, and he did one of those head So he sees me all entangled in hooks, sees shakes. With that and my hard lean, the my eyes all watered up—eh, I’m a wimp and crankbait f lew back at me like a Nolan can’t handle pain—and he lets out the most Ryan fastball. It nailed me right in the demonic laugh. Can’t say I blame him. Seeing stomach, and two barbs of one treble me in those floral shorts, on a fancy bass boat hook buried next to my bellybutton looking like a complete jackass must have I’m like, ‘Ah no, is this for real?’ I’m get- tickled his sensibilities. ting ticked. I always had needle-nose pliers He did help me, which was awkward to work on stuff in the boat, but I usually enough because of the areas I was hooked seemed to leave them sitting somewhere —use your imagination. He got my hand other than in the boat. And this is long loose, but I’ll never forget the pair of inbefore the braid trick where you can yank dustrial pliers he handed me to remove out the hooks. the hooks. Gnarly, nasty pliers. BoatU.S. Angler 50 But they worked. Yeah, it hurt. From that I learned to make sure I had needle-nose pliers in the boat. The other incident was on a pontoon boat with Cory, a buddy who never fi shed but would come and hang out. He was 18 and I was 15. He could drive. I couldn’t. I remember rearing back with a jerkbait and absolutely imbedding every single treble hook into his scalp. Don’t know why, but I started laughing hysterically, just like the hillbilly guy laughed at my expense. It wasn’t really funny because my fi shing had to end, but boy did that make me laugh. I had nothing to dig them out, so he wanted to get to the emergency room. He drove one of those low-to-the-ground Fieros—they were cool, but not that cool. As he’s getting out of his car, one of the free hooks got stuck in the roof, and he’s safety-pinned to his car. I thought, "How unbelievable is this?" as I ran into the ER. There were two nurses and a doctor there, and I told them my buddy had a fi shing lure stuck in his head. The doc gave me a straight face and says, “To dig them out, we’re going to need your buddy.” I told him the problem, that he’s just outside the door, stuck to his car, and first thing that came out of that doctor’s mouth was, “Wow! Grab a camera! I’ve got to see this!” So we all run out, two nurses, the doctor and me, and we’re all looking at my buddy pinned to his car, and we all just laughed hysterically. Poor Cory. I don’t know where it is now, but there’s a picture of him stuck and me right next to him with a thumbs-up. Those were defi nitely the two most memorable hook-yourself or hook-your-buddy experiences. And looking back at those, it’s weird how vividly clear the details are. At least I learned something. n Summer 2012 May Saltwater Winner Carol gravelin / holiday, FL / redfish April Freshwater Winner Blake Davis / Lowndesboro, AL / 14 lb. Largemouth Bass A new contest begins every month! April Saltwater Winner John Williams / Tallahassee, FL / 42" rockfish Our Proud Sponsors May Freshwater Winner Jeff Wieland / Bend, or / 10 lb. Bull Trout www.BoatUSAngler.com 51 Enter your big catch! www.BoatUSAngler.com/contest BoatU.S. Angler FRESHWATER or SALTWATER We’ve Got You Covered No matter where you boat and fish, BoatU.S. ANGLER protects the things that are important to you. Our ANGLER policy is designed by boaters for boaters with custom made coverages for anglers like you. 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