Month: August 2015

BLACK BASS
Many of the bass here have spawned. The last two weeks of March were real hot for spawning bass. Creek backs and rocky shorelines held spawners. Those fish have not left those areas at all in fact many of the fish were in those exact areas to begin with. Livingston is definately one unique lake when it comes to black bass migrations. The bigger bass over four pounds have a more distinct migration than the smaller bass. Livingston is without a doubt a lake that you can number os bass shallow under any condition in any season.

The Carolina Rig is being fished a little more every year on Livingston. Fishing for black bass after their spawn can be tricky. Initially the female bass are sore and not ready to feed, they are in a lull state. Using their side fins as “kickstands” they prop themselves up on the bottom and just sit there for a few days and heal up from the spawn. The Carolina Rig set up with one of Top Brass new Finesse Carolina Kits and a weenie worm or french fry will entice the moody females to bite. Since the bass spawn is intermittant through February, March, and April their is always fish in the “lull” state that I am talking referring to.

WHITE BASS
The white bass made their usual run up the creeks at the beginning of March and then turned right around after a few days and headed back to the river. They got up into the backs of the creeks ready to spawn but the water was low with no current. Since we had no rain the creeks had no running water, a necessity for a white bass spawn. At the time of this writing their have not been any white bass being consistently caught day after day anywhere which is usually the norm this time of year. I cleaned twenty four on March 24 th and females were still full of eggs, but the eggs were not that pretty gold/yellow color that they are at the beginning of the run. These eggs were not held together by the clear membrane that surrounds them and there were no red veins surrounding the egg sacks. They appeared to me that the eggs were overdue and soon to be discharged freely. So we may not get a white bass spawn at all this year. I am not a fisheries biologist by any means but I see enough fish and clean enough of them that I can put two and two together and give a pretty logical assumption. Mother Nature has her ways some of which we do not understand but maybe she knows what she is doing by not giving us our normal average rainfall this year. We’ll see.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Black bass are spawning this month in the shallows. Spinnerbaits, Texas rigged lizards, and wacky worms are the best baits for the big females. On the warmer days they will occasionally come up to get a surface bait like a pop r, zara spook, or boy howdy. Buzzbaits and tiny torpedoes can do wonders on bedding fish as well.

White bass are in full swing making their annual run up the creeks. Harmon, White Rock, Bedias, and Nelson are all loaded with whites. Rattle traps and small jigs are the ticket. Twenty five fish a piece with a minimum length of twelve inches are the laws for white bass. Harmon Creek Marina has excellent facilities and is located right near one of the best areas of Harmon Creek.

Crappie are shallow and spawning along the shorelines. Fish the creeks with live minnows and crappie jigs and you should do well. Around the bridge piling in some of the creeks I have seen people catching them regularly.

Catfish are hitting an assortment of baits. Prepared dough baits, nightcrawlers, shad, and chicken liver all will work for catching catfish. The catfish are in the shallow water already but will really move in next month as they usually spawn just a few weeks behind the first waves of the other spawning fish species.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

After fishing seven tournaments last Fall from here to the Canadian border in New York I feel confident in saying that a bass is a bass no matter where you are. I fished tournaments in New York, Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, Missouri, and Texas. Once I was near the bass the catching them was relatively easy. I had to learn to look past the unfamiliar scenery and terrain in order to fall back on my previous knowledge. Fish positioning around shallow cover was the same everywhere. Stumps, rocks, laydowns, various vegetation, or anything else along the shallows proved to hold fish the same way they hold fish here in Texas.

I lived on the road for three and a half months last Fall from mid July through October, the tournaments were simply too far from home to travel back in between competition. So I would pre-practice days on ends for the next tournament. I got a first hand look at how some the other Top 100 pros would approach tournaments and who pre-practices and who doesn’t.

Surprisingly some of the pros high in the standings don’t pre-practice. They show up to the tournaments and fish them cold turkey. Most of them have several tournaments under their belts on those waters, however it is still impressive that some of their tournament performances are very successful with three days of practice. Their practice time is limited because of various speaking engagements and also public appearances. Some of them are busy shooting their fishing shows in between tournaments like Jimmy Houston, Roland Martin, and Larry Nixon.

Fishing the Top 100 has been a real incredible experience. Everyone in the Top 100 is there for a reason and the competition is tough. Weighing in a limit everyday of competition has always been my goal but I am learning more and more that weighing in a heavy limit everyday of competition is what it takes to be successful in the Top 100.

The best way for me to describe fishing the Top 100 is to compare it to golf. Fishing the BassMaster Top 100 has been like getting my tour card and playing on the PGA Tour. No golf tournament competition is as solid as that of the PGA Tour and the same can be said for the Top 100.

I have four more B.A.S.S. Top 100 tournaments and four more B.A.S.S. Invitationals for the second half of the season this Spring. The upcoming tournaments are in Mississppi, Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina and even one here in Texas at Lake Texoma. It has been a nice break to be home through the holidays but I already have tournament fever and I am ready to hit the trail.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

With the Sunday Morning Tournament held out of ~StowAway Marina reaching five fish limit weights of over twenty five pounds it is obvious that the bass fishing in Conroe is improving. Various attempts seem to be paying off for an improvement in Lake Conroe’s black bass fishing.
The improvement has been a gradual comeback which I have noticed throughout this Spring, especially back during the spawn. During the spawn my clients and ~I enjoyed very quality black bass fishing. Many of the spawning females that we boated were from four to five pounds. So many of the fish were in the same size range it seemed that they were all twins. The majority of these fish, if not all of them, were Florida strain black bass released by the Lake Conroe Restocking Program. Through the prespawn and spawning stages of the bass, we caught numerous males and females in shallow, a positive sign for a successful spawn. A good spawn combined with the efforts of the Lake Conroe Restocking Program can be the most influential improvement to Lake Conroe’s bass fishing.

Another factor to be figured into the comeback of Conroe’s black bass is the sixteen inch limit. With more of the fish shy of the sixteen inch limit remaining in the lake since September 1, 1993 there were more of those fish able to spawn this year.

All throughout the Spring there were good reports of big bass coming to the scales. Most of the bass fishermen fishing spinnerbaits and worms along the bulkheads and shallow timber were rewarded with good catches. Several fish over eleven pounds were weighed this Spring and even a couple over twelve. This is proof in itself that the fish quality is improving.

“Catch and Release,” is becoming standard among bass fishermen. Catch and release is a way we can all work together as bass fishermen to keep up the bass population. Catch and release fishing is like a restocking program in itself. This method of fishing is simple and rewarding. Always have a camera on hand, when the fish is caught quickly take a picture and get the fish back into the water. Revive the fish by holding its mouth open and moving the fish back and forth in the water. This rejuvenates the oxygen level in the fish’ gills. Always work fast when the fish are out of the water and try to handle the fish as little as possible. The more that a fish is handied the higher the possibility of a fungus eventually growing on the fish. To catch, photo, and release a keeper or even a trophy black bass shows true sportsmanship. You will find this very rewarding and habit forming and if a young angler is present you will have just done the future of bass fishing a favor.

After the spawn the black bass started to scatter and were not as easy to pattern. This is when I started concentrating my guide parties on catching crappie. The crappie population on Conroe this year as been incredible and long stringers of them common. Many of my clients that I take out are first time fisherpeople (men,women, and kids). To witness those people catching these crappie fast and furiously brings me great pleasure and job satisfaction. Catching fish brings the best out of people young and old. The crappie fishing has a great impact on the youngsters. There is no time for them to lose interest and they quickly become “experts” telling everyone in the boat how to catch ’em. Catching one, two and sometimes even three limits of keeper crappie consists of catching four ti~mes that many fish. The short crappie to keeper crappie ratio is about four to one. Days of catching over a hundred crappie have been pretty common.

All in all, the Spring and early Summer have Proved Lake Conroe to be one of the best fishing holes around. But don’t take my word for it, come on out and rediscover Lake Conroe. Good luck fishing.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Black Bass:
The lake is just over two feet low and the water temperature has been in the mid to upper eighties for the last few weeks. All through June the bass were aggressive except during the week that the lake level fell over a foot. Buzzbaits, crankbaits, and crawworms have all been exceptionally productive on shallow bass. Most of the bass on Livingston are in one to five foot of water. Believe it or not on some of the hottest days you will pull solid keepers in less than two feet of water. Concentrating on shallow cover is the key; stumps, laydowns, rocks, and reeds(toolies).

White Bass:
Good limits of white bass have been coming off of the 190 roadbed, 190 flats, mainlake points, and Pine Island. Jigging 3/4 oz Cobra Jigging Spoons has been one of the hottest producers all summer. Stripers have also been mixed in with the whites quite often and will also hit the Cobras. The birds will give away the schooling activity most of the time but if they are not schooling graph the humps and ridges and find schools of whites close to the bottom on the top of the structures in 14-25 feet of water.

Catfish:
Plenty of catfish have been caught early in the mornings around the bulkheads especially after a good rain. Night crawlers, shad, chicken liver, shrimp, or prepared dough baits will usually do the trick. Later in the day head to a creek channel or the main river channel and fish deeper through the hot hours.

Crappie:
Crappie have been pretty good around marina boat docks and standing timber in 10-20 feet of water. Minnows and crappie jigs have been responsible for most of these fish. Crappie jigs in black/chart., black/blue, and pink/white have been working. Remember through the hot months that the crappie will suspend so figure out how many turns off of the bottom that they are.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

This time every year people everywhere are making resolutions for the new year. We say that we are going to cut back on our spending, spend more time with family, slow down and enjoy life more, and the list goes on and on.

I have been guilty of making resolutions for the new year and not following through with them. Sometimes the goals and resolutions that we set are unreasonable and difficult to follow through with.

However, just the thought of analyzing ourselves once a year and making some simple changes is very constructive.

One change could improve the lives of thousands of youngsters in our society. That change is to take a young person fishing. There are too many youngsters out there in our society who have never experienced a fishing trip. For example, take the children and teenagers who live deep in the heart of some of the big cities around the state and country. We become critics and wonder why some of them cannot stay out of trouble.

Well many of these kids have never spent time in the outdoors. They have never had a real experience with Mother Nature and they are missing something.

Young people have an overwhelming instinct to be interested. They encounter many things these days and have many options when it comes to developing interests.

We can easily tap into this interest by occasionally taking young people out fishing. Give them a new experience that will develop an interest and hopefully be a positive influence.

When I started college in 1989 1 was meeting all different kinds of people from all over the state and country. Many of my fellow classmates had never been fishing. I didn’t know what to think of this, I thought that everybody fished, especially men.

This is when I realized how fortunate I was to have a dad who would take me fishing on weekends. But you don’t have to be a dad to take someone fishing. My interest would have developed for fishing and the outdoors if my mom, uncle, grandam, or any other adult would have taken me.

It doesn’t have to be a big expensive ordeal to take a young person fishing. ~I remember the times we would leave the boat at home and fish off of Mr. Adens pier on Johnson’s Bluff. As a kid, I probably had just as much fun doing that as I did going in the big boat. Remember that young people enjoy simple things, they don’t have to be impressed to be entertained.

Fishing develops patience, character, and an understanding and respect for the environment.

Well, fishing is not the solution for everything but it is no doubt a positive influence on youngsters. So when you are making those New Year resolutions think about a young person around you and plan on taking them fishing.

Fishing is allowed in designated areas of all the marinas around Lake Conroe and also from Lake Conroe Park on FM 105.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Anxiously awaiting the first tournament of the 96-97 B.A.S.S. Central Division season on the Arkansas River reminds me of my first B.A.S.S. event. My first event was this same tournament last year on the Arkansas River and what a rough one it was.

My traveling partner and I had located an area full of bass in practice. Quality fish where I felt that I could get an easy limit each day. In a three day tournament a limit a day has got to be your number one goal. Well one draw back to these fish were that they were 65 miles from the tournament headquarters and there were two locks on the river that I would have to lock through to get there. Each lock takes approximately 30 minutes. So I was looking at two hours of travel time one way. As rumor had it many of the fishermen made the run and had success with the limited fishing time on the unpressured fishing areas that were so far away.

I intended to make the run if my partner did not win the toss. Once you meet your partner you have to flip a coin to see who’s boat you take and also to see who’s fish that you go to first. My first day partner was from New Jersey and he was willing to make the run. We left in our flight and started our long run. Two locks and two hours later we pulled into my area. I quickly get the trolling motor down and start fishing. I made a few cast and eased up to a big laydown. I made a cast down each side of the tree and let the spinnerbait fall as it reached the end of the log. No fish, so I picked another target and cast. My partner is flipping a jig and flips into the same laydown I had just fished and sets the hook. A three and a half pounder comes to the boat and into his livewell it went. First of all I was amazed that the fish had not hit my spinnerbait because I know that fish had just seen it and secondly this guy was catching my fish. We fished our way around and this guy catches two more quality fish on the jig fishing behind me, used water. I come off of my game plan and put the spinnerbait down and tie on the exact jig he is throwing.

I pull up to a big tree top in the water on the edge of the bank. I have good position on it so I make about ten casts into every little nook and cranny. No fish, so I pick another target and cast. This “guy” flips in there and sets the hook. A solid fish is in the tree tangled up and dangling under a branch. I get on the trolling motor and crash into the tree trying to knock the fish off, just kidding, trying to get into the tree far enough so that I could reach it. I did and he has four solid fish in his livewell. I back off of the tree that I had just crashed into, banged into all of the branches, and even ran the trolling motor all over and figure I had better make a couple of casts into anyway. I make several flips and feel there are no more fish in it or that if there is they are so spooked that they won’t bite and then I flipped to another tree. My partner flips in there and sets the hook. It’s another three pounder and my mind is now totally gone. I was a FISHING FRUITCAKE from that point on. I somehow managed to catch a keeper fish to keep from blanking that day before we had to head back, but that was totally by mistake because I was in la la land kicking rocks with a fat lip.

Day two and three went about the same and I ended up way…. way back in the standings. It took me a while before I could analyze the tournament and see what all I had learned. One thing I had learned was how to get waxed by your partner on your own fish. But looking back now it is kind of a humorous memory. Maybe I could have been a little more tuned in and a little more aware and the outcome would have been better for me.

Well I will be there the third week of this month and with the knowledge of what not to do and with a little luck maybe I will come out on top.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

The line between catching fish and not catching fish is remarkably fine,this line is more prevalently fine when fishing for bass. There is art to catching any fish, especially with black bass. Maybe the art is the same with all freshwater fish but there is no doubt that there is more emphasis put on catching black bass than any other freshwater fish in this part of the country.

Through reading, learning, and hours on the water you can balance yourself on this line so that you consistently catch bass. Initially learning the seasonal patterns and migrations of bass and then on to learning how bass react to the many weather variations. Billions of pages of information could be written to try and explain all of the patterns and how bass relate to weather. What is funny is that some of the best bass fishermen in the world admit to totally understanding very few of these pages. Their performances portray a seemingly total understanding of all of the pages and at times their comprehension seems to exceed these pages. When learning an art such as bass fishing the more that you learn seems to reveal the fact of what you do not know. I break down all of the different techniques, weather conditions, patterns, etc. into individual levels or lines. The lines run from left to right with the left being the simplest form of that subject. Your learning does not always begin here but for most bass fishermen who seek the complete knowledge their learning backs up to the left to where they master the basics of each “line”. The more you learn the further to the right your knowledge carries you on the “line”, however the line is infinite to the right.

This line can also be equated to the line I referred to earlier which is the “fine line” between catching fish and not catching fish. If you deviate from the line you get away from the correct knowledge that lies along this line and suffer the consequences of not catching fish. Getting into the “flow” of Mother Nature can help steer you down this line. Becoming more environmentally conscious when on the water like making sure you leave nothing behind from a day of fishing, increase your awareness by listening to the rhythm of nature(the birds, insects, etc.), and developing a deeper appreciation for the outdoors. These three bits of information would be found way on the left of the “in the flow” line, some of the simplest starting points of this level.

This line level system is a simple way to look at the knowledge that you amass through your fishing experiences. There is no limit to the number of levels in your system and you can label them anything you like. My system goes unwritten but this is the way I perceive the knowledge I have attained throughout my fishing career. Remember there is always another level and one little experience or bit of knowledge can get you to another level where you can advance your understanding of that level information.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

This has always been one of my favorite times of year to fish Lake Livingston. The weather has somewhat stabilized and the bass are going to be very predictable and in easy patterns for the rest of the summer. Buzzbaits, spinnerbaits, crankbaits, worms, and jigs are all going to be top producer for the next few months.

The water is really getting clean and the river is already getting that emerald green color which is a sign that fishing is good all over the lake. Up north there is not a stretch of bank that I can think of where there is ample cover that you cannot get a bite. When conditions are good like they are right now this lake shows its true colors.

I live up on Bethy Creek which is about five miles up the river from Carolina Creek , just up the river from Bethy is Harmon Creek. These three are the major creeks for about a ten mile stretch of river above the jungle. All three are excellent for bass and in between the creeks are dozens of small tributaries and small pockets off of the river which all hold good fish. Down in the jungle Caney and White Rock feed in and they are two of the best creeks on the lake.

Don’t be intimidated by Livingston’s size and timber. The river is marked with poles on either side of the river and most of the poles have a red or green sign on them. Remember when traveling upriver keep the red signs on your right and traveling down river to keep the red signs on your left. Red Right Up(RRU) and Red Left Down(RLD). That’s a simple way to keep yourself in the boat lane. The upper end can’t get too rough because there is not that much openwater for the wind to get a hold of. The jungle is an exception however.

As you may know about Livingston the bass remain shallow all year around. During the dog days of summer you can catch bass in two feet of water and less, so think shallow when you fish Livingston.

Fishing the shoreline cover is the best way to catch bass on Lake Livingston. Logs, stumps, reeds, boatdocks, and rocks are some of the best cover to fish. The early late bite is awesome on Livingston but they can be caught all day by concentrating on shallow cover that provides shade for the bass.

The entire lake is full of bass, I am kind of partial to the north end because I live up here. It is going to be a good summer of fishing of Livingston so come out and enjoy it.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

There are a number of different patterns for black bass on Lake Conroe right now. A number of fish are spawning throughout the lake. Caney, Little Lake, Atkins, Lewis, and Live Branch are some of the creeks that I have been hitting and finding bass on the bed in the backs of all of these creeks.

The new Stanley Tuba Tube has been my top choice for the spawning bass.

The shallow bite from 0 to 5 feet of water in the backs of these same creeks has been good on the Stanley Platinum Wedge ¼ oz spinnerbait. The best colors in this bait are golden bream and chartreuse white combination. The double willow gold bladed spinnerbait has been a productive bait for me and my customers all spring.

Points have Carolina rig and crankbait fish on them. Most of these fish are post spawn. The bait of choice on the Carolina rig is the Bass Assassin chartreuse pumpkin fry assassin, and the grasshopper fry assassin.

Medium diving crankbaits like the Bandit 200 and 300 series baits chartreuse/blue back, and also the Norman Middle N’s in chartreuse and pearl/green back.

The topwater bite has been good early around shallow docks and rip rap on Rico’s and white buzzbaits.

Wacky worms in junebug, green pumpkin, chartreuse pumpkin, and grasshopper have been effective on the shallow fish. Mustads weedless Finacky hook is the best hook for the wacky worm with its built in 1/32 oz weight attached to the hook shank.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Largemouth bass are spawning all over the lake. The trick is finding water clear enough to sight fish them. The backs of Bethy, Harmon, Carolina, Caney, and White Rock all have some pockets way in the back where you can find and see bass on the bed.

Stanley new Tuba Tube has been my number one producer for the sight fishing that I have been doing.

The buzzbait bite is strong early on the lake right now and should continue all spring. The best bite on the buzzbait is naturally early and late, but the bite can go all day in over cast conditions.

Stanleys ¼ oz buzzbait in white or chartreuse is the best one to throw.

Berkley Power Worms in red shad are always a good choice here for bass holding on visible cover.
Target fishing the shoreline cover like rocks, laydowns, stumps, boat docks, and reeds is a strong pattern with a 5/16 oz Stanley Jig. Black/blue, black/chartreuse, and white are the three jig colors that I mainly throw here at Livingston.

White bass fishing has been excellent on Bedias, Nelson, and Harmon creeks. Rat-L-Traps in chrome blue back are a top choice as well as any topwater bait when they are schooling.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Current Water Conditions: Overall the lake is in good shape with the majority of the north end being very fishable right now. White Rock and Caney have some fishable water as well as parts of Carolina and Harmon. Running the creeks and looking for clear water is the ticket on the north end and looking for the warmest water possible will also help in your black bass pursuit.

Black Bass: A 1/4 oz Stanley jig with a number 11 pork frog is the number one bait for bass this month. They will be holding tight to structure and not in a real aggressive mode for the most part. Slowing down your bait to match their sluggish attitude will definitely help you land a few largemouth’s. If you are a tournament fisherman this is a good time of the year to work on the jig bite. Slow rolling a spinnerbait is also a productive tactic.

White Bass: It is almost time to start busting them up the creeks. Late this month and all next month the whites will be making their annual run. All of the feeder creeks and tributaries way up the river will be loaded with whites. Stripers also are caught during this run so have your drag set to handle one of the big fish if you are lucky enough to hook one.

Crappie: Most of the marinas are reporting good catches of crappie in 15-20 feet of water on minnows and jigs. Brush piles and standing timber producing most of the sac-o-lait.

Catfish: Shad, nightcrawlers, dough bait, and chicken liver are working well for catfishing. A little rise in the water level will get the catfish feeding in the shallow water flats and along the main river channel in the jungle.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Current Water Conditions: Overall the lake is in good shape with the majority of the north end being very fishable right now. White Rock and Caney have some fishable water as well as parts of Carolina and Harmon. Running the creeks and looking for clear water is the ticket on the north end and looking for the warmest water possible will also help in your black bass pursuit.

Black Bass: A 1/4 oz Stanley jig with a number 11 pork frog is the number one bait for bass this month. They will be holding tight to structure and not in a real aggressive mode for the most part. Slowing down your bait to match their sluggish attitude will definitely help you land a few largemouth’s. If you are a tournament fisherman this is a good time of the year to work on the jig bite. Slow rolling a spinnerbait is also a productive tactic.

White Bass: It is almost time to start busting them up the creeks. Late this month and all next month the whites will be making their annual run. All of the feeder creeks and tributaries way up the river will be loaded with whites. Stripers also are caught during this run so have your drag set to handle one of the big fish if you are lucky enough to hook one.

Crappie: Most of the marinas are reporting good catches of crappie in 15-20 feet of water on minnows and jigs. Brush piles and standing timber producing most of the sac-o-lait.

Catfish: Shad, nightcrawlers, dough bait, and chicken liver are working well for catfishing. A little rise in the water level will get the catfish feeding in the shallow water flats and along the main river channel in the jungle.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Current Water Conditions: As of January 20 the lake is in great shape in comparison to this time last year. The water is up around normal pool which is what we desperately needed for the spawns this spring. Upper lake is a little off color due to the rainfall that we have had but as always there are clear pockets to be found holding fish. Water temp is varying around 60 degrees and if this continues or perhaps the water gets even warmer this month could be incredible.

Black Bass: 1/4 to 3/8 oz Stanley Rattling Jigs in black with a black no. 11 pork frog is going to be hard to beat this month. A Texas rigged black/chartreuse tail lizard is another top choice. Fish timber and rocks in five feet of water or less and try to find water that has a greenish tint.

White Bass: The conditions are currently perfect for the white bass run. If conditions stay the same as far as rainfall goes this could be the best run in about four years. Two years ago we had too much rain and last year we did not have enough. White bass like a little flow over the shoals before they will spawn in full force, lets hope the conditions are good this year. Livingston is a premiere white bass fishery and this could be a colossal year for the lake with the current conditions. Roadrunner jigs in white and chartreuse are the ticket this month up the creeks. Carolina, Bethy, Harmon, Nelson, and Bedias are all hot spots this month.

Catfish: Shad, nightcrawlers, dough bait, and chicken liver are working will for catfish. Fish the banks after the rains and the river and creek channels other times.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

By now most of us have had experience with the new versions of braided line. Opinions of the line vary from each fisherman of its uses and applications. Many fishermen use the line for a few special techniques and use monofilament for the rest of their fishing. After being on the market for a couple of years the craze for braided line has subsided somewhat. At first it seemed as though the braided line would end every fishermans worst nightmare of breaking a fish off. For some fishermen this may be the case but for myself and many other fisherman that I have talked to, it was not as “bullet proof” as we percieved it to be. Now I am certainly not advocating that braided line is weak I am just referring to some of the realities of fishing braided line through experiences of many fishermen. And through this type of communication you may be able to pick up tips as I have to give you more success with braided line and monofilament.

Like the rest of the middle-aged and younger fishermen I grew up fishing monofilament. Developing confidence in the monofilament took years. Not just having confidence in the line itself but confidence in my selection of the right pound test for each method of fishing. Also learning to push the limits of the line when leaning on fish or trying to overpower one around timber was not something that could be learned overnight. I think for these very reasons I hear so many various comments, positive and negative about braided line. It has only been a few years since braided line has been on the market and fishermen have used the line long enough to comment on the line through experience.

Of course we know that braided line has very little stretch ,is extremely strong,and thin in diameter. Automatically flipping and pitching a jig or Texas Rig comes to my mind because of the powerful hooksets that come with this territory. My problem when I first started using braided line for these techniques is that when I got bit I would resort to my old monofilament eye crossing hookset. The first few times I broke the hook of my Texas Rig right at the kink shank of my worm hook. On another hookset I broke the reel seat and sent the reel slamming through the first two eyes of my rod. Finally learning that I could get the same result by using a milder hookeset with braided line I began to have successful hookups without tearing up tackle. However at times I would catch myself setting the hook too hard with braided line and something would give, whether it be the hook, my rod, or the line itself. One way to solve this problem is to have the drag set so that even if you set the hook extremely hard it will let out some line to compensate for the power.

Using braided line on the Carolina Rig has been my favorite use of the line yet. Being that the line has very little stretch the bottom features are not absorbed in the line and you can feel every detail and feature of the bottom. The line is so sensitive that it seems as though you can hear the features through your hands. Using a fifteen to twenty pound test monofilament leader when Carolina Rigging has been common among fishermen using braided line. The monofilament leader takes some of the shock out of the hookset and gives you just a little more of a threshold when you are detecting a strike. Also if you hang the rig up on the bottom the monofilament will break first if the hook is hung and all you have to do is add a leader and hook rather than start all over.

Many fishermen use the thin diameter of the braided line for getting crankbaits to dive to deeper depths. Using braided line in these situations is like changing to a new kind of rod or reel, cranking with braided line is so much different than with monofilament. Relying on the stretch of monofilament and the shock absorbing recovery of a fiberglass rod is a confidence in me that would be hard to replace with the tricks of braided line.

Braided line can fit into your arsenal somewhere no matter what type of fisherman you are. I tend to drift back and forth from monofilament and braided line in a few situations but have confidence in both. Definitely some of the new generation of young fishermen who are raised on braided line will use it exclusively and probably uncover some new techniques by doing so.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

With the hottest portion of the summer well under way bass anglers are still trying new and old techniques to draw strikes. The climax of summer marks a difficult time to be on the water after largemouths. The wind has laid, the sun beats down, and the sticky humidity makes fishing a little less comfortable than an easy chair under the air condition. However, there are many of us diehards that are always out there trying to fool one more bass.

Many techniques have come and gone and repeated themselves earlier this year. Crankbaiting, Carolina Rigging, Topwater, Spinnerbaits, and various others. All of these techniques shine at one time or other and many work almost all the time. This time of year bass prefer a slow moving bait due to the high water temperatures. Lake Conroe’s structure fishing for bass is dominated by the Carolina Rig.

There have been several new products come about to enhance this fish catching method. in the past I have picked up on a few tricks to Carolina Rigging. Using twenty to twenty five pound test line reduced break offs when hung up. The heavy line also held up much better than lighter line during the aggressive hooksets that Carolina Rigging requires. Obviously, bigger fish are not as serious a threat when using heavy line. Using a slightly less pound test line as the leader would decrease the loss of the complete rig when the hook was hung up. The leader line would break before the mainline sparing the weight, bead, and barrel swivel. A seven foot, heavy action rod made casting long leaders a cinch and hooksets on long casts bit easier.

There are many other tricks to enhancing the Carolina Rig and gear to fish them. The heavy monofilament was satisfactory to me until I tried some of these new braided lines. I say “new” braided lines meaning a new type of braided line. Braided lines have been around for years, yet not made from materials like Kevlar, Dacron, or polyethylene.

In the articles that I have read the lines have been complimented on the impact they have had on jig fishing and flipping heavy cover.

I have been using Fenwick’s Tron Thread which is thirty pound test with a diameter of ten pound test monofilament. The multi-filament fishing line has some unique characteristics that seem to cater to Carolina Rigging. Iron Thread has a “stretch factor,, of 7.6%. Monofilament has an average “stretch factor” of 25%. So basically, the line will stretch 1/5 less on a hookset when using braided line. This means that the hook will penetrate within the first couple of feet of the hookset using braided line rather than at the end of the hookset when using monofilament. An adequate hookset can be obtained with a shorter arc of the rod and with less power.

Being that Iron Thread has a low “stretch factor” there is more feel to the line. In other words the line does not stretch to absorb light strikes and bottom features like monofilament. Sensitivity is one of the keys to Carolina Rigging and the multi-filament magnifies bottom features and light strikes.

Another enhancement is various noise making devises within the rig. Don Iovino’s Brass and Glass which is brass weights and glass beads designed to make a clicking sound when the brass weight engages with the glass bead.

The latest Carolina Rigging accessory designed after a proven fish attracting principal is a product from Big Cat. Big Cat introduced rattling weights which are available in popular Carolina Rigging sizes. The weights have an appoxy capsule portion with 8-10 lead beads that rattle inside the chamber to create a real racket. The weights produce excessive amounts of noise when fished through brush and rocks. Each time the weight drops off of a branch or rock it falls to bottom or another structure causing the rattles to make noise and attract fish. The weights have become popular with guides and tournament angler’s who are always looking for ways to catch more fish than competitors.

These new products are interesting and extremely advantageous to use. Soon we will all be using these products just to keep up with new standards and competition on the water. About the time we all get used to these new products and start to take them for granted someone will discover a new improvement that caters to Carolina Rigging.

Until then, good luck fishing and remember to apply a powerful sunscreen and carry plenty of water when fishing through the “Dog Days”.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Living on Lake Livingston for the past six years has lead me to several understandings about bass fishing and this lake itself….change. Because of the “change” that I am referring to this lake sometimes gets a bad rap from bass fishermen who visit it occasionally. Being that the massive Trinity River feeds this lake and that there are a number of substantial feeder creeks, change is common. Rainfall is the most dominating factor of change for Lake Livingston. Heavy rains north of the lake along the Trinity River, including as far north as the Dallas area can almost demolish efforts to catch black bass on the north end of the lake. Heavy local rains can dirty up the creek backs and within a few days a whole creek can be unfishable. The bad rap from fishermen comes from when they visit the lake and catch fish, some given time they come back under the same conditions but rains have moved their fish up or down the creek in search of clear water. Their prior information is almost worthless and locating fish starts over.

Learning to deal with this lake is really very simple however you have to consider the whole lake to understand it. The easiest black bass to catch are in the major feeder creeks, smaller tributaries, and ditches that feed both. In these areas the fish that are in the clearest emerald green water are the ones that I target. My information is somewhat biased because I live on the north end of the lake where rainfall affects the lake most. The creeks on the north end are long and some of them can be traveled for miles. This allows for bodies of clear water even during periods of heavy rainfall.

Rule 1. Local rainfall dirties up the backs of the creeks first and then water moves toward the mainlake at a speed relevant to the amount of rainfall. If there is a heavy rainfall then the main channel of the creek may be wiped out, however up and down the creek there are small ditches and draws holding pockets of clearwater. These ditches and draws hold clear water even though the creek they feed is dirty because they receive very little run off and/or there is a silted in sandbar at their mouth that acts as a buffer to the dirty water.

Rule 2. Heavy rains upriver will bring muddy water down and cause the river, the jungle, and much of the main lake above the 190 bridge to be off color. If the major creeks were in good shape to start with they will remain that way unless the river just keeps pumping in some astronomical amount of muddy water. Sure the river and main lake will be dirty and the off colored water will trying to push into the creeks but most of the creeks are lengthy. The off colored water usually does not push very far into the bigger creeks unless the lake is on severe rise and even if it is it takes time and is not something that happens to a big creek overnight.

Rule 3. If the lake has been in good shape and suddenly there are heavy local rains and there is dirty water on the way down the river from heavy rains up north there will be some fishable water. Somewhere between the mainlake and the backs of the creeks there will be bodies of clear water in the creek channels along with pockets of clear water in the ditches and feeder creeks. This clear water may be temporary but is usually loaded with bass seeking clean water.

There are hundred of scenarios we could draw up and have rules for. These three rules are very general, however they are very true and given to you through my own experience living here on the lake.

Last November when the BassMaster Tournament Trail came to this lake it was just after the major flood that we had in October. The lake had been flooded and had not recovered from the heavy rains. Rick Clunn summed up the lake evaluation during the tournament by saying, “What the rains have done is made a very large lake very, very small.” Meaning that all of the BassMasters were concentrated in the clear water pockets that were scattered up and down the lake.

During periods and rainfall, clear water with a dark emerald green color is the ticket. This lake is an excellent lake to fish during the Fall. Most of the tournament trails are complete except for the classic in a few trails and this would be a good time to make a trip to Lake Livingston and practice flipping, cranking, spinnerbaiting, and topwater.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Still attempting to get my act together on the BassMaster Invitational Circuit I headed to the Arkansas River last month to fish the first Invitational of the Central Division. The section of river we were able to fish was about 100 miles long. Like last year I chose to fish the southern portion of tournament waters. It was my intentions to fish backwaters and creeks being that it was Fall and that the shad would be back in the creeks spawning again with the bass along with them.

This never fail Fall pattern proved to hold up again as I found a good load of fish back in a main creek. The creek was textbook: deep, with timber, with milfoil, with coontail, with lilly pads, and with small tributaries draining into it. I fished these fish for two days during heavy rain trying to figure out the best way to catch them. Normally I would have just figured that out during the tournament but in this case time was a major factor. These fish took two hours to reach one way so fishing time totaled about three and a half hours. Even late into the second day with all of the rain the water remained clear and it seemed that the runoff was not going to change the water clarity. There was so much aquatic vegetation that I figured any major runoff would be filtered by the matted thick grass that choked the creek.

With my “ace in the hole” fish located I went north for the third day and practiced near the harbor. The tournament would run out of the harbor and it is always good to have a few fish located there just in case.

At the pairings meeting on Wednesday night I drew a guy from Kentucky for the first day. We agreed to head South to my fish the next day. So far so good.

The next morning we leave out in Flight 2C right on time and we are headed out the harbor when we hit a wall of fog just before we reach the Arkansas River. The fog was so thick that we could barely see the front of the boat. Fortunately we were near the bank so we at least had a landmark. My partner said he had a creek nearby that he had caught fish in during practice, so we idled to it. We did not have many other choices being that it was too dangerous to travel in the fog with 152 other tournament boats on the water not to mention the spectator boats, barges, and rock dikes lining the river and harbor.

We stayed in the harbor all day and I caught a limit of fish. I felt confident about the day but knew I could have done better down south on my backwater fish. Anyway I was off to a good start and was in the top 50. My partner for the second day agreed to go South and fish my fish.

We left out Friday morning in Flight 1B and headed down river on our two hour journey. Travel time is only one hour but to go that far South you have to lock down twice which take about a half hour each.

After the second lock it was about thirty five minutes to my fish. I shaved the corners of the river, ran on the insides of the channel buoys, and screamed by the ends of rock dikes trying to cut the distance down a bit in order to get there faster. We turned off of the river and headed into the creek running wide open all the way, I could not wait to get there. During that time I totally forgot about the tournament and all I wanted to do was to get there and enjoy the awesome fishing that was in store for us. As I neared the back of the creek and began to slow an ice cold chill hit me as I realized the water was the muddier than Trinity Bay on a North wind. I quickly looked around and knew this place was impossible in the time that we had to fish. I picked up a spinnerbait made several casts trying to figure out what to do. My partner a very knowledgeable bass fisherman from Oregon agreed that it was hopeless in the time that we had.

Between the second day of practice and the second day of the tournament two days had passed and enough run-off had drained into the creek and ruined the entire backwater. Sure the fish were still there but muddy water initially sickens the fish and makes them lull and not bite. You can still get reaction bites if you get your bait close to them. Well actually the fish in this situation were new to me because I had never fished for bass in water that was this muddy. It was not off color or stained it was rolling mud. Anytime I had ever encountered water that was this muddy I would just go someplace else and fish. This was my key area that was ruined but I did have two lesser backup areas. We fished them and scrambled up a couple of fish each for the day but my expectations were no where near fulfilled.

The third day treated me worse than the second and I fell out of the hunt but I also relearned an old lesson. The lesson being don’t count your chickens before they hatch. I thought that I had a for sure honey hole down in that backwater and my plan backfired with me not ever even considering a back up plan. So in a sense I was not mentally prepared because I had not thought out alternatives for all of the possible situations. Looking back it is as simple as pie, you have to roll with the punches and roll with the weather that Mother Nature deals out. You have to get “into the flow” of Mother Nature. I was obviously no where near the “flow” in this tournament.

In tournament bass fishing there are always variables that can help you be a hero or cause you to be a zero. At any rate my learning continues and I’ll start the whole tournament process over in Georgia late this month at Lake Hartwell.

Also, a special congratulations to my friend and traveling partner Brian Utecht for finishing up in 12th place in Arkansas Tournament. Brian’s fish held up through all of the rain and he mastered three baits during the tournament to coax his fish into biting in a twenty yard stretch of shoreline. Good job Bro.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

The Carolina Rig is a method of plastic worm fishing that is very effective for structure fishing for black bass. There is a wide variety of structures in the lakes of East Texas.

On Lake Conroe there are pond dams, old road beds, old railroad trestles, creek channels, ridges, and submerged timber. Most of these structures are below the surface, some of these as deep as fifty feet.

The Carolina Rig is designed for deep water fishing with a plastic worm. This method of fishing separates the weight from the worm so that very heavy worm weights may be used without taking action away from the worm. The heavy weight of the Carolina Rig makes fishing deep water structure much easier. Even in water twenty feet deep or more the Carolina Rig with a one ounce worm weight will get down to the bottom quickly and allow you to stay in contact with the bottom. Constant contact with the bottom structure will keep the bait in the strike zone longer. When fishing deep water, long casts are necessary so that more water is covered on each cast.

The Carolina Rig is rigged in a very unique way. To rig a worm Carolina style you need: three quarter to one ounce brass worm weight, glass bead, barrel swivel, and number two hook. Before rigging cut a piece of line about three feet long for your leader and put it aside. Take the line coming from your rod and run it through the brass worm weight. Next run the line through the glass bead. Slide the weight and bead up the line and tie the line to one end of the barrel swivel. Tie the three foot leader to the other end of the swivel. On the loose end of the swivel tie on the number two hook. Then rig the worm onto the hook as if it were a Texas Rig.

The purpose of the brass weight and glass bead are to make noise and attract bass. Each time the Carolina Rig is pulled across the bottom the brass weight and glass bead engage they create a clicking sound. The clicking sound resembles the sound that a crawfish makes when it pops its tail for locomotion. Black bass feed on crawfish and are naturally attracted to the imitation of the brass and glass. Using brass worm weights instead of lead weights is better for the environment. Each time a rig is hung up and lost the weight falls to the bottom and contaminates the water. One weight is not harmful but figure every time someone goes fishing they lose five to ten weights. Over the years these lakes build up a high content of lead and become contaminated. Brass weights do not emit hazardous elements and are environmentally safe. In the future lead fishing weights will be outlawed and brass weights will take their place. Using a seven foot heavy action rod will make the Carolina Rig much easier to handle and cast. The two to three foot long leader is very awkward to cast when using shorter rods. Long casts are necessary and the long rod handles them with ease. The rod must have plenty of length so that when a strike occurs on a long cast a powerful hookset can be attained. On a long cast there may be ninety feet of line out and a long rod will allow you to generate the power to overcome the stretch of the line.

Fishing the Carolina Rig is one of the simplest methods of worm fishing there is. Once you are in an area that you want to fish simply cast the Carolina Rig towards the structure you intend to fish. Let the rig settle to the bottom. Often, this is when a strike occurs because the weight falls to the bottom quickly and the worm is left suspending and slowly falling to the bottom. This fluttering action that the worm has when falling to
the bottom is one of the most important features of the Carolina Rig. After letting the rig settle on the bottom for about twenty to thirty seconds begin retrieving the bait. Hold your rod parallel to the water and in a direction forty five degrees away from the bait. Slowly turn the handle on the reel so that you make a full revolution of the handle about every ten seconds. If you reel your rig across some bottom structure, like a tree or a log, let it settle to the bottom. You should be in constant contact with the bottom, but when you come into the strike zone you want to let the bait flutter to the bottom in the strike zone. Strikes on the Carolina Rig are not always very obvious. Sometimes several taps on the line are all that will be felt. Other times a pulsating pressure will be felt. Also, fish will actually inhale the bait and nearly jerk the rod out of your hands. Most of the time the bites are subtle and a great deal of concentration is necessary to detect these strikes.

Once a strike is detected a sweeping hookset will increase your chances of landing the fish. Because most bites will occur with a lot of line out if you sweep the rod to set the hook a more direct line to the hook is attained. If the rod is jerked straight up, the weight must be lifted before a direct line to the hook is achieved. When the sweeping hookset is used the weight must still be lifted to create a direct line to the bait but more power is generated in the hookset.

Fishing line is also an important aspect of the Carolina Rig. Fishing the deep waters of the lake requires a line that is strong enough to handle the torture of being exposed to rocks, trees, and other rough bottom features. A new type of line was introduce to the world of bass fishing in 1993. A line composed of braided Kevlar and polyethylene was introduce. This line is very small in diameter yet extremely strong. Monofilament, a plastic based product, is our conventional line. To compare the two and their qualities almost seem unfair. A piece of monofilament with a pound test rating of ten is equal to the diameter of the Kevlar braided line with a pound test rating of thirty. The Kevlar braided line is much more sensitive and does not have a high stretch factor. Because the line stretches very little, there is hardly any loss of sensitivity due to the line absorbing sensitivity.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

If you are not currently a member of Texas Black Bass Unlimited (TBBU) you sure need to be. TBBU is an organization that works for fisherman and is operated by fishermen. It’s a hard working group of folks that certainly look out for your best interests when it comes to issues involving the outdoors. And in the past year TBBU’s hard work allowed the organization to donate $100,000 toward the completion of the Texas Freshwater Fishing Center in Athens, Texas.

During 1996 TBBU will continue an aggressive campaign involving habitat improvement in lakes across our state. You and future Texas anglers will be the big winners of this fine program by having the opportunity to catch more and bigger bass.

And don’t think that the younger anglers are not a major concern of TBBU. Youngsters across the state are being introduced to TBBU youth programs that teach the fun of outdoors, fishing, and the importance of conservation. The anti-hunting and fishing movement continues to target the sports that we love so dearly. Pro-sporting organizations such as TBBU are essential in assuring that our future generations hear the real message.

TBBU is an organization that will keep you informed and one that you will be proud to associated with. I encourage each of you to take an active part in assuring that your kids, (and their kids), have an opportunity to enjoy the sport tomorrow that you enjoy so much today. Join TBBU and make a difference. – Lake Mohave