FISHING WITH JOE SILL SR. AND JR.

 Fellow Tennesseans, Joe Sill Sr. and Jr. came down to fish Okeechobee with me! Joe Sr. and his son are both outdoor writers. Joe Sr. is the Director of Marketing for Bill Dance. Needless to say I was a little nervous about putting them on fish. How could I come close to showing them fishing like my childhood idle, Bill Dance? Luckily, the fish were very cooperative! What a great time we had!! We were ripping fish out of the water one after another. The schooling bass were tearing up our Venom skip shads. We must have caught over 70 bass! That’s what happens when you take such skilled fishermen out for a day on the big O, they just catch fish. The fish catching was fun and all, but the best part for me was making friends with great people. 

FROGS, FROGS, FROGS!!!

Frogs, Frogs, Frogs!! Which frog is best and when? I've been testing out different frogs over the years and have discovered some of the many intricate things to look for, as far as knowing the right time to fish a certain kind of frog. I’m going to categorize some of these frogs into groups and try to describe when to use them.

 SOFT PLASTIC FROGS: (such as Venom Bully Frog, Zoom Horney Toad, Gambler Cane Toad, Reaction Innovations Trixie Shark, or Stanley Ribbit Frogs to name a few good ones) They are made of soft plastic and have little feet that kick and splash, the ones with the boot style feet make a bigger plopping splash than the ones with the smaller v shaped feet. They are great rigged on a 5/0 spring style swim bait hook. Rigged this way they are extremely weedless.

There are so many ways to fish these types of frogs, and I feel they are the easiest frogs to catch fish on. They work all year and are great for beginner bass fishermen. The best known way of fishing them is to just cast them out and reel them across the surface making there legs splash and kick on the surface like a buzz bait. Don’t forget to let them fall occasionally so that big slow bass will have time to come up and eat. Bass just love these baits. I've had 150 bass days on them with fish ranging from ½ a pound to 9.5 lbs. They work even when the fish are not biting well. Bass seem to like the v foot frogs more on calm flat water with some clarity and the boot foot frogs when there is surface disturbance and slightly stained water. If I find that the bass are not responding to the surface commotion then I will put the frog on the back of a swimming jig and swim it under the surface of the water. If it’s windy and overcast I will sometimes fish them on a chatter bait, this method has caught some real giants. If its hot and sunny and the fish won’t bite any of the swimming methods I flip and pitch the fog into thick grass with a heavy tungsten weight and a 5.0 flipping hook. In the Winter they work great as jig trailers, or on a Carolina rig down deep.     

HOLLOW BODIED FROGS: (Spro, Furbit, Live Target, Ish Phat Frog, and Scum Frog are good examples)

They are primarily used as top water baits. Just throw it out and walk it on the surface or hop it along. Just like any type of bait sometimes they like it fast and sometimes they like it slow. If they like the frog slow, long pauses are key. When the water is flat and calm I’ll use a frog with a regular shaped head. If the water is a little choppy or stained I’ll go to a popping frog or a frog with a blade like the Furbit. When a fish eats it you have to give the fish a couple of seconds to get the frog in its mouth before setting the hook. These are good for targeting big bass. They don’t always get as many bites as the Soft Plastic Frogs, but when they do get eaten it’s usually a bigger fish. I like to use these when the fish are biting well on top water and when they are hiding under scum or a thin canopy of grass. They help eliminate some of the smaller fish and trigger the giants to come out and play.

EQUIPMENT: In open water or little cover use 7’2 to 7’6 ft Medium Heavy Bait Caster rigged with 20 – 40 braid. (when Carolina Rigging I use 15 lbs Berkley Big Game)

In heavy cover use a 7’2 – 7’11 heavy or extra heavy Bait Caster rod rigged with 65 lbs braid (this is the set-up for the hollow bodied frogs)

I only use Spinning equipment in open water or light cover (you will lose too many fish in heavy cover with a spinning rod) use a Medium Heavy 7’-7’6 rod with 20 - 40 braid.  

Venom Lock r Up football jig

Catching them on the Venom Lures Lock r Up football Jig!

Kasey, Lincoln and Logan!!

 I had the pleasure of a visit from my sister Kasey and my two nephews a few days ago! Lincoln ended up catching a nice Bass all by himself! He could barely keep the rod off the gunnel when the fish was next to the boat, because she decided to go deep, but he used all the strength he had to finally subdue the giant bass! After the fish was in the boat he declared with a loud scream, that he loves fishing!! Isn't that awesome? Now we shouldn't forget about Logan because he caught some nice ones too. He got on a roll and caught fish after fish!! Kasey, now she's just a natural. The most important part was being able to spend some time with them. It's days like these that make me happy to be alive.

162 BASS IN THE GLADES!!!

My friend Andrew and I had a little friendly competition in the Glades on Wednesday March 13, and we ended up catching a total of 162 bass. Most were small, but with a little focus on the bigger fish we were able to catch several 3 pounders and two that were 5 plus.

 

Check those bilge pumps it could save your life and your boat.

  A fellow tournament angler fishing the last tournament I fished on Okeechobee went out to fish the reef in a friends boat and ended up sinking the boat. The boat filled up with water and was flipped upside down by the waves. Fortunately, he and his partner were unharmed because they were able to use there cell phones and call for help. Of course the boat was pretty torn up. I don't know the details of what caused the boat to sink but I do know there was a pretty good chop out there and the boat he was using has a low stern. I think this accident might have been prevented by taking a couple precautionary measures. The bilge pumps should always be checked before leaving the dock. It's so easy to forget about the pumps because we have these auto pumps that kick on and off when needed. Guess what, they don't last forever, that's why the bilge area and pumps should be regularly monitored while the boat is in the water especially in rough water. Always have a spare pump available just in case, and know how to install it quickly. Also, two very important things to remember when anchoring, always anchor with the bow facing the waves, and never reverse into waves.   

Okeechobee tournament win

 The fishing was tough today on the big O. It only took 13.52 lbs to take the win in Carmen's tournament out of Roland s today. We didn't make allot of money but it feels good to win again. Linda Robinson my good luck charm, and I fished together.