SA BASS June 2017 by SABASS

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June 2017

Issue 194

Fishing Tips

Eelgrass

How to... * Drive a Fast Boat Safely * Find Winter Bass >> Falling & Rising Water Levels >> Technology - Fair, or No Fair? >> Winter Tactics for Small Ponds >> Fishing Jerkbaits in Winter

For Everyone That Loves Bass Fishing

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DIGITALLY I hope you have braced yourself because winter is finally here. I know many anglers will go into hibernation for this season and the rest will be out on the freezing water. Whatever you do, take time and think about why you truly enjoy fishing. Whether it is an escape from the rat race, a hobby, or it can even be a way to give more meaning to life. You need to focus on the reason that keeps on reeling you back to the water. Fishing does not have to be a complex sport. As children we learned to fish with just a worm and a piece of string. Those are the memories that still come flashing back when I reel in a bite. Walking into a tackle shop can be very overwhelming, but keep in mind that you can start out with basic equipment as we did. Fishing is a sport which requires a lot of patience, time and money. I did not go into the first tackle shop I saw and bought something of everything. Over time I slowly but surely tried out a new lures, new combinations of rods, reels and lines. Sometimes it worked great and sometimes just frustration. You also will build up your own tackle arsenal over time. Everything about fishing should be a joyful experience. Whether you are flushed with adrenalin when you are busy reeling in that monster bass, or even if you have been struggling with that over-wind for hours. You should use every hour on the dam as a challenge accepted. The reason I truly enjoy fishing is because there are so many memories connected to it. I could say that I have life long memories of fishing; since my childhood to having the opportunity in teaching my own family about the joys of being out on the water. You should go out, even if you have quiet days in freezing weather because fishing should be about the memories you make. Our daily lives consist of worries, frustrations and is already stressful enough, don’t make fishing fall under the same dimension. Make fishing fun and use the time out on the water to detangle your mind. Bennie Wiese / Editor

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About SA BASS magazine:

SA BASS, which is editorially and financially independent, is a monthly magazine catering exclusively for the bass angling community in Southern Africa. SA BASS is distributed country-wide by RNA to outlets, not only in South Africa, but also in Namibia, Swaziland and Botswana. SA BASS is designed as a specialist bass fishing publication and has catered for a well-defined niche market since April 2001. It enjoys the support and endorsement of non-government organisations, but is not affiliated in any way to these bodies or to any other publishing, environmental or political interest group. Our mission is to promote bass angling as a socially acceptable and popular outdoor recreational activity, and in addition, to encourage acceptable angling ethics. As such, SA BASS provides pertinent information on a wide range of subjects. These include providing a platform for informed debate on issues affecting the sport of bass angling, providing information on bass angling strategies and techniques, bass angling waters and opportunities, and also creating awareness of new products. Within this editorial mix, due consideration is given to developing the sport among all the country’s people 04 SA BASS June 2017

(including the youth), and to the practical conservation of the country’s natural resources. Copyright is expressly reserved and nothing may be reproduced in part or whole without the permission of the publisher. All enquiries regarding editorial correspondence, manuscripts and photographs should be directed to: editor@ sabass.com Address contributions to the editor. Manuscripts, photos and artwork will be handled with care, but their safety cannot be guaranteed. Enclose a stamped, self addressed envelope with all editorial submissions. The publisher and editorial staff are not responsible for researching and investigating the accuracy or copy right of the material provided for publication in SA BASS magazine. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the contents of this magazine, the publisher does not accept responsibility for omissions or errors or their consequences. Readers are advised to use this information with the understanding that it is at their own risk. The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publisher, the editor, editorial staff or SA BASS Society.

REGULARS & FORUMS 06

TACTICS “Winter - Finding Where the Bass Have Gone” Many anglers I know struggle to achieve results during winter and they all have one thing in common: they tend to be one dimensional in their approach and rely heavily on the margins (shoreline) to get some fish in the boat. – Divan Coetzee

TECHNOLOGY “Back to the Future” Earlier we spoke about the ethics involved in the use of high tech gadgets to put fish into the boat. Firstly, we need to take note of the fact that these gadgets are available to anyone that has got the money. So, what’s the problem? – Kevin Lofstedt

FLW “Eyes on the Eelgrass” As eelgrass expands its range throughout the Tennessee River system, new patterns are emerging for savvy anglers who understand how bass relate to it – Steve Calhoun

CLASSROOM “Tips for Lipless Fishing” Lures have become really expensive and just the idea of running a crankbait through underwater grass fitted with two treble hooks may appear to be an act of madness by many anglers. – Bennie Wiese

How to use QR-codes 1. Open the QR-code reader/scanner app on your smartphone. Most smartphones models often have an app pre-installed. If not, visit your phone’s app store and download the app. 2. Keep a steady hand while the QR-code is centred on the screen. 3. As soon as it is done scanning, whatever information should present itself for your viewing pleasure.

KLASKAMER “Die Winde van Verandering” Terwyl ek nou die dag deur my menigte aasboksies en -sakke begin snuffel en weer op lankvergete asies in al die kleure en geure van die reënboog afkom, besef ek net weer dat; soos die winde van verandering deur ons kabinet kom waai het, dit in die baarswêreld ook sy spoor gelaat het – Philip Kemp

UNIVERSITY “Falling and Rising Water Levels” Currently we as South African anglers are going through a very difficult phase of bass fishing and to be successful we need to know how to break down and handle different water levels. We need to understand what will happen when water suddenly rises or drops. The anglers that can adapt quickly will be the most successful – Robbie Olivier

COLUMNS & DEPARTMENTS

BOATING “How to…Drive a Fast Boat Safely” In competitive angling, having a fast boat to reach the honey hole first is an advantage, or is it really? What happens if someone has the money to afford all the bells and whistles but is not capable in safely handling a speeding projectile? – BoatTEST.com

INTERVIEW

“In Their Face” One of the lonely bachelors fishing the Mpumalanga Cast-for-Cash tournament trial and part of Team Berkley ABU where interviewed after he was explaining to a beginner bass angler about jerk baits fishing. – SA Bass

SA BASS

MY CAST

READERS-go-BASSING

Cast-for-Cash - Tournament Results

GEAR UP

LIFESTYLE – Boating & Birding – “Dark-mantled Sootyy Albatross”

“Winter Tactics For Small Ponds” Across the country we have anglers fishing small bodies of water. It does not matter if it’s a golf course, farm dam, government park pond, or quarry. The sizes may differ, from so small that you can cast across it up to a few hectors – Bennie Wiese

READERS’ COMPETITION 45

PROFILES “The Bassing Duo” The Bassing Duo, Tristan and Nathan Wickham, are two of our most aspiring and talented young bass anglers currently in the Cast-forCash as well as SABAA circuit. – Corné Schoeman

>> Bivane Dam Resort Readers Competition

CLASS ROOM “The Reel Deal” It is said that a craftsman is only as good as his tools or that a poor craftsman will always blame his tools, and while I not in a position to confirm or deny the truth behind these statements I can, with certainty say, tools make the job easier! – Dewald Viljoen

ON THE COVER “Nathan Wickham with a Letsibogo bucket mouth” Image: John Wickham SA BASS 05 June 2017

>> SA BASS TACTICS

Winter -

Finding Where the Bass Have Gone Many anglers I know struggle to achieve results during winter and they all have one thing in common: they tend to be one dimensional in their approach and rely heavily on the margins (shoreline) to get some fish in the boat. >> Divan Coetzee A selection of my preferred drop-shot baits. Note that they share a common characteristic - a realistic eye

his is all good and well if the fish are shallow, but the reality of the matter is that they aren’t at this time of year. Relying on shoreline cover at this stage oof the season would not be recommended unless there is ssufficient depth. With the margins not producing, many aanglers battle to adjust. Instead of leaving their comfort zzone, and finding where the fish have gone, they prefer tto make lure adjustments which serves no purpose if you ccan’t locate fish. Offering the convenient excuse that the fi fish just weren’t biting today isn’t good enough. I’ve fished eenough tournaments to know that someone always catches tthem, regardless of how tough you think the fishing is. I w would rather confess to not having found fish on the day, tthan say that they simply weren’t biting.

How to find fish H

A selection of spinnerbaits 06 SA BASS June 2017

in various sizes and colour

combinations

With all that said, let’s look at how to find fish in winter. Every impoundment is unique and has its own w nuances so I’ll keep to the basics. In early winter, fish will n lleave shallow water areas as soon as the water temperature bbecomes unfavourable. Shallow bays and flats tend to ccool down quicker than the water around it so fish will lleave these areas and retreat to the first break they find: a drop off, river channel, even water grass. Grass retains heat quite well and is often a few degrees warmer than h tthe surrounding water. Look for banks that have a 45 to 90 degree slope. Fish would rather move vertically through the water column to get shallow as opposed to horizontally, it saves vital energy. Fish will return to the shallows periodically to feed, but the majority of the time they will remain deep. The key here is to find a pathway, a route that links the bass with the feeding area. Bass relate to specific areas for a reason, find out what the drawing card is and exploit it. What I’m suggesting is: go to an area that you traditionally do well in, and just back off slightly into deeper water until you find the first break, the fish are likely to stack up in that area. If the slope is too gradual, and you have to cover a 100m just to gain 5ft in depth, the fish are likely to suspend. Avoid such banks and stick to the steeper stuff. Preferably main lake points and the old river channel. In particular where a channel swings close to a main lake point. The common trend during winter is to downscale on lure and line, this is sound advice but for me personally,

Swimbaits (top) rank among my favourite big bass baits. I like to swing for the fences. Various deep diving cranks - a must have for winter

this is the time to target big fi fish fish. The big females will ill start to gather in anticipation of the spawn, and big fish prefer big baits in my opinion. This doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t throw a drop-shot or shakey head, I do, but rather the magnum versions. If I wanted to target quantity instead of quality, then I would downscale to finesse type baits. Bass typically relate to the bottom at this time of year, some fish do suspend offshore, but they are difficult to target effectively without top notch electronics. Basic sonar will do fine when looking for drop offs and ledges. Getting the bait down and keeping it there is vital. Any presentation that makes a sufficient amount of bottom contact will do – Carolina rigs, jigs, deep diving crank baits, drop-shot, shakey heads, flutter spoons, you name it. Slowing down your approach will benefit you greatly, it is winter after all and bass tend to be lethargic until the water reaches about 16ºC. Don’t get disheartened if you initially don’t achieve results, it took me about two seasons to fully understand fish movement according to seasonal stages, once you figure it out winter becomes a wonderland of opportunity.

Key issues: 6ORZ GRZQ \RXU SUHVHQWDWLRQ )RFXV RQ - deep water, - first break lines, - steep banks, - main lake points, - old river channel and - migrating routes 8VH - Any presentation that makes bottom contact, - big baits for big fish, - downscale to finesse baits to target quantity

>> SA BASS

Technology Fair or No Fair?

Part 2

Back to the Future

>> Kevin Lofstedt*

>> Earlier we spoke about the ethics involved in the use of high tech gadgets to put fish into the boat. Firstly, we need to take note of the fact that these gadgets are available to anyone that has got the money. So, what’s the problem? 08 SA BASS June 2017

ell, as a reader of this magazine, I’m assuming the most of us are firmly in the “catch and release” camp. There are those, however that are not. Good idea to make it easier for them to catch our bass? You tell me! Moving on from this, we should never lose sight of the fact that manufacturers of all these technologies have the same goal. Profits! For us to calmly buy any new gadgetry based on the

assumption that they have any ethical considerations about the fate of bass population anywhere, would be a huge mistake on our part. For them, it’s purely about profit. Let’s for a moment look at the current direction these suppliers of electronic wizardry are taking us in. Currently you can buy a camera which you attach to you fishing line, and you can cast it into an area where you think there might be fish. Retrieve it, review the footage,

>> Using drones are very popular for taking “never seen before” pictures

and if the fish are there, that’s half the battle. Okay, or not okay? Where are we headed? I would like to make a few predictions about the future of our sport, and the electronics that I think are soon to be available to anyone with money. Firstly we need however to look at the trends, and the general direction in which we are heading. In economies they like to do the McDonalds hamburger price comparison between different countries. I prefer to look at the cost of electronics compared with the most expensive rod you own. Now, not long ago, a really expensive rod would have cost you around R4,000. oo. A sonar unit never used to be much more than this. Gradually, electronics manufacturers have brainwashed us into spending huge amounts of money on stuff we “just got to have” if we want to remain competitive. So much so, that when you ask for a price on the current top of range unit, they tell you it’s on special for on R125,000.oo (batteries and transducer not included!) Now here is where I believe we are headed. We are already seeing drones being used to spot fish in the spawning season. So why not take it a step further and use underwater drones! The problem with all current technology is that it requires some effort on the part of the owner to translate what the sonar shows him/her into useful information. For the manufacturers, this is no good and is costing them sales! New technology needs to be

>> What about an underwater drone? foolproof! What we need is actual underwater actual HD footage in real time, showing us exactly where the fish are, what they are eating, etc. Now this could be linked to a HD monitor (TV screen). These fish coordinates can be sent directly back to your GPS, and bingo – foolproof! Nett result? Even the biggest idiot on the planet can go out and catch themselves a huge limit, and then post pictures on Facebook about what good anglers they are. Farfetched? I don’t think so! Some of us will recall a lure that was introduced to the market place. It was called the “umbrella jig” it consisted of 5 or 6 wires in a radial fan, each rigged with a hook and a small swim bait. The idea was to simulate a school of fish, and in turn provoke a bite from one or more bass. I don’t see too many of them around anymore, and maybe that’s a result of them being banned at some tournaments. Good riddance I say! This is just one example of the anglers themselves making a choice, which I believe is a clear illustration on the part of the anglers drawing a line in the sand and saying no thanks! And good on every one of us that said no! Bottom line here is that we the fishermen and -women, need to start setting our own rules as to how far

we are prepared to bend the ethical boundaries within our sport. Words of wisdom: “The greater our knowledge increases, the more our ignorance unfolds” - John F. Kennedy *Kevin Lofstedt is a regular writer and a well known veteran bass angler with three times Southern Gauteng Colours since 1985. He is also the main founder of Clearwater Bassmasters Bass Chapter (1994).

SA BASS 09 June 2017

PHOTO COURTESY OF BRETT MICHAEL HARTIS, TVA

EYES ON EELGRASS As eelgrass expands its range throughout the Tennessee River system, new patterns are emerging for savvy anglers who understand how bass relate to it By Steve Calhoun

10 SA BASS June 2017

aving fished on the Tennessee River his entire life, Buddy Gross knew all about the eelgrass in Lake Guntersville. Yet, in May 2016 when he was looking for productive areas for an FLW Tour stop on Pickwick Lake – another impoundment of the Tennessee River chain – Gross was shocked to find the wavy, green grass growing there as well. Pickwick never has been considered much of a grass lake

“I didn’t know it was in Pickwick until practice when I found it,” says the second-year Tour pro. “Then I started going back upriver from where I found it, because when you find some usually you can move upriver and find more.” He did, and Gross began exploiting the wavy clumps of long, green leaves. Whether the bass preferred the eelgrass as a current break, forage ambush site or some other reason, Gross didn’t care. In the tournament, he mined the spot over four days for 20 bass weighing more than 74 pounds to claim his first Tour championship. Gross figures eelgrass has been in Guntersville, or the upriver Crow Creek tributary of it, for at least 20 years. That coincides with weekend tournament anglers locating it in the early 2000s near the B. B. Comer Bridge area not far from Scottsboro, Ala., and Goosepond Colony.

Now, eelgrass is expanding its range, and anglers are learning ways to tap into its bass-fishing potential.

“Now it seems to be growing all over,” he says. “It’s growing in deeper areas, and I think the lack of rain and current the last few years changed a lot of things, too. It seems to grow in a harder bottom because it likes current. It’ll grow in the bottoms of the ditches a lot of times.” FLW Tour pro Braxton Setzer, who has a degree in fisheries management from Auburn University, has tracked the new growth, too. “It really came on strong the last few years, for sure, and it’s growing out a little deeper than you’d expect at Guntersville,” he says. “It definitely changes the dynamic. Bass will relate to the eelgrass more than hydrilla or milfoil at certain times, I suspect, so this just gives them another option.” Tour rookie Justin Atkins also is sure it’ll stick around in Pickwick, although perhaps not in such profusion as in Guntersville. “I didn’t know it was there until Buddy found it last year,” he says. “Those areas are very precise, and behind that island [Kroger Island, where Gross won] there’s a lot of Indian mounds and gravel, so that is one reason it grows there. But TVA draws Pickwick down in winter, so the grass doesn’t consistently grow well there with the bottom makeup and drawdown. It will be interesting to see how it does there.”

The Expansion Eelgrass is a native grass that’s common throughout the country. Its growth in the Tennessee is probably a sign of overall improvement in water quality in the system. But will eelgrass take to other Tennessee River lakes as it has in Guntersville? Fluctuating seasonal water levels might prevent it from taking hold to a great degree. Wheeler, the next lake below Guntersville, has potential as evidenced by its spotty, decades-old history with milfoil or hydrilla downstream of the Decatur stump flats. Pickwick has it, and Gross already has seen it in Chickamauga, too. He says that originally the eelgrass he found in Guntersville was growing in areas where hydrilla and milfoil were absent.

How to Fish It

PHOTO BY ROB NEWELL

Buddy Gross recognized the potential for catching bass out of eelgrass at Pickwick in 2016 and tapped it for an FLW Tour win.

Atkins, Setzer and Gross say the eelgrass they’ve found on Guntersville and elsewhere grows at depths from shallow to 12 feet deep – occasionally deeper. They’ve focused more on the deeper grass, usually from 6 to 12 feet, on channel ledges and points. While the shallower grass might offer some specific spots, such as open holes where they could try soft plastics or jigs, the deeper water seems to have more allure to the bass they’re seeking. “Bass always are going to live around current-related situations,” Atkins says. “In summer they will get on the front side [of the grass] and in eddy breaks, and in winter when their metabolism is slow they’ll get on the backside. They use it as a current break and feeding chute in winter. “In winter, with hydrilla or milfoil that dies off and comes back green, you were usually going to catch fish. Now I think with the eelgrass they’ve taken to it better. I don’t know what kind of oxygen it puts out, like hydrilla and milfoil, SA BASS 11 June 2017

MORE EELGRASS POSITIVES By TJ Maglio

but it doesn’t completely die like they do and wash away. “I don’t know of anyone who has gotten on a big flipping bite around eelgrass in summer – maybe a swimbait or something if they are using it as a current break,” he adds. “Milfoil grows far apart and creates tunnels, and hydrilla grows tight and tough. Eelgrass is always green and alive. You can throw a 1/2-ounce Trap [lipless crankbait] in eelgrass, let it get a slack line and start working it back. If it hangs up you can snap it and it’ll come free.” Gross favors a Jenko Big Wig Magnum hair jig and Tennessee River Tackle Tremor Head with a paddle tail or straight-tail swimbait, the latter for cooler water. On ledges in deeper water around eelgrass he’ll opt for a 1- or 1 3/4-ounce head to keep the rig down; for shallow water Gross uses a 1/2- or 3/4-ounce head. Gross also will throw a Zoom ZCraw on a swim jig or ChatterBait around the grass and sticks with shad colors for all the soft plastics. Atkins favors a Berkley Warpig lipless crankbait in 1/2 or 3/4 ounce. He also prefers a Berkley Hollow Belly Swimbait with a 1/2- or 3/4-ounce head, depending on how aggressive the bass are. Gross and Atkins fish the eelgrass the same way: ticking the top of the

12 SA BASS June 2017

Electronics and Eelgrass When Gross won at Pickwick, he used his Lowrance electronics to find bass relating to clumps of eelgrass and holes within the grass. “I can tell if it’s eelgrass and see how many fish are around it and everything,” says Gross. “Eelgrass in its early

PHOTO BY PATTERSON LEETH

Editor’s note: TJ Maglio pens FLW’s Bass Science department. He has a degree in wildlife ecology and works with some of the top fisheries managers in the country. Vallisneria, or eelgrass, might be new to some Tennessee River anglers, but it’s certainly not new to that region of the country. It is a native aquatic grass, and if anything the recent spread should be described as a “resurgence” rather than an introduction. There could be many reasons for this, and more study needs to be done to unlock the specific factors involved, but it’s likely in some part due to the (relatively) cleaner and more stable water that flows through the Tennessee River today as compared to 20 and even 40 years ago. One of the frequent goals of conservation biology is to restore native species that have seen decreases. In that respect, the increases in the eelgrass prevalence and abundance in the Tennessee River system should be considered a very positive thing for the health of the system. The fact that it also improves the fishing is just a side benefit. In addition to it being good bass habitat and top-notch waterfowl forage, eelgrass provides other system services that make it a boon to fisheries. It grows dense root masses, creating a “sod” effect in areas with current, which minimizes bottom erosion. Eelgrass also decreases turbidity and clears the water by trapping sediment. It also provides dense cover, which helps young-of-the-year bass and forage species, and harbors tons of aquatic invertebrates, which are hugely important to the whole food chain. In short, eelgrass is a good thing.

grass with the baits, keeping them just above it and snapping the lure to pop it free when snagged. “Take a [Rapala] DT-6 crankbait and as soon as it buries up, you snap it and keep going if a fish doesn’t have it,” Gross says. “Big Traps come through it. ChatterBaits come through it. It’s not like burying up in milfoil. Eelgrass is real crispy.” Gross throws his baits on 17-poundtest Seaguar fluorocarbon line on a 7foot, 3-inch, extra-heavy Hammer rod with a Daiwa Tatula CT Type-R reel. Atkins throws crankbaits on 15-pound test and swimbaits on 20-pound test. Because of how eelgrass breaks free, neither believes it’s imperative to use heavy braided line as might be the case when fishing hydrilla or milfoil.

Tour rookie Justin Atkins says eelgrass creates new patterns for anglers to fish on the Tennessee River, particularly in winter.

stages is real clumpy, and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a hard grass, so it has a [sonar] shadow behind it. It grows really round; most of the clumps will be roundish. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Then they start growing together. The clumps get bigger and start getting together and making different kinds of lines. A grass like hydrilla will start at a depth and create a line for a mile along that contour. Eelgrass kind of just grows in the bottom of places, and it just spreads out.â&#x20AC;?

Gross says that as eelgrass clumps grow together, holes form within the beds. Though heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not sure why they form â&#x20AC;&#x201C; perhaps patches of harder or softer bottom â&#x20AC;&#x201C; keying on those voids can lead an angler to the fish. Aside from how it grows, the grass itself is also distinguishable. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It takes time to tell the difference [in eelgrass and other grasses], but if you see hydrilla on StructureScan, you can actually see the stalk going up and

Eelgrass is distinguishable on sonar due to its bright returns.

Cape Eelgrass >> Minke Witteveen Cape eelgrass (Nanozostera capensis) is the dominant seagrass found in South Africa and occurs in 62 sheltered estuaries along 3000km of coastline, from Olifants Estuary on the west coast to Kosi Bay on the east coast. The Keurbooms system has one of the largest areas of Cape eelgrass, as does the Knysna Estuary, but while Knysna has some formal protection status the Keurbooms does not. Despite its wide range, HHOJUDVV LV FODVVLČ´HG DV YXOQHUDEOH DFFRUGLQJ WR Î&#x2013;8&1 ZLWK D GHFUHDVLQJ population. &DSH HHOJUDVV LV D NH\VWRQH VSHFLHV DQG HHOJUDVV EHGV IRUP D YLWDOO\ LPSRUWDQW KDELWDW VKHOWHU IRUDJLQJ VLWH DQG QXUVHU\ IRU D YDULHW\ RI LQYHUWHEUDWH DQG Č´VK VSHFLHV (HOJUDVV DOVR SURYLGHV RWKHU HFRV\VWHP VHUYLFHV VXFK DV VHGLPHQW VWDELOL]DWLRQ HURVLRQ SUHYHQWLRQ QXWULHQW recycling, and carbon sequestration. So next time you are boating, VZLPPLQJ RU Č´VKLQJ DSSUHFLDWH WKH LQFUHGLEOH VSHFLHV ZH DUH IRUWXQDWH HQRXJK WR KDYH JURZLQJ LQ RXU DUHD

14 SA BASS June 2017

the leaves,â&#x20AC;? Gross says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The leaves will be the harder places, and a hard line [sonar return] will form on those places. Eelgrass will be a hard line from top to bottom. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s such a hard, crispy grass. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s like a shell bed. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be bright white.â&#x20AC;?

ALL ABOUT EELGRASS Fishing eelgrass on the Tennessee chain isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t quite the same as fishing it elsewhere in its range, and the systemâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s current, channels and other governing factors require some study of how the grass grows. Common eelgrass (Vallisneria americana) is known by a variety of names, including tape grass and wild celery or water celery. Often used as an aquarium plant and eaten by waterfowl and some shorebirds, eelgrass in various forms is found throughout the world. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hardy enough to withstand low water temperatures in Canada as well as equatorial heat and high salinity. Eelgrass can grow to about 5 to 6 feet long and has long leaves that usually are about an inch wide or less. With no branches like hydrilla, coontail or Eurasian milfoil, the eelgrass might grow in large areas, and will mat up in shallow water, but not to the same density as hydrilla. Eelgrass might grow in smaller clumps or wide swaths thanks to its rhizome root system (a rhizome is actually a horizontal stem that grows out and produces new plant shoots and roots, allowing the plant to spread). Like most aquatic vegetation, it will capitalize on the best available bottom surface â&#x20AC;&#x201C; it prefers a hard bottom â&#x20AC;&#x201C; for growing and proliferation. Unlike milfoil or hydrilla, which have nodes on their stems that allow the plant to re-establish and grow elsewhere when pieces are broken off, eelgrass leaves that break away canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t produce a new plant. â&#x2013;

IF YOUR WIFE ASKS “DOES THIS SKIRT LOOK GOOD?” AND YOU REPLY “YES ,IT MATCHES THE FORAGE.”

YOU’RE A CAST-FOR-CASH KIND OF ANGLER

The Cast-for-Cash tournament series, the monthly social tournament trail for all those anglers who are mad about bassing and mad about fun. For further information visit www.sabass.com

READERS

GO BASSING

To feature in “Readers go Bassing” send your story and pictures to editor@sabass.com All photos published in “Readers-go-Bassing” are for the exclusive use of SA BASS Magazine. Any photos previously published by other magazines will not be considered.

Th mo is WI nth’s

SIMONÉ SE EERSTE SWARTBAAR Die hele week lank hou ek die wind en temperatuur dop vir Saterdagmiddag se visvang by Rietvleidam. ‘n Baie ligte windjie waai en dis lekker warm. Rietvlei... hier kom ons! Later hou die wind heeltemal op en is dit doodstil. Met die aankoms, was daar reeds twee manne wat hulle nuwe visvangbootjie toets en kyk hoe lank die batterylewe is. Een het aangebied om my swart fluke in te vat en hy los hom op 80m. Ek het lanklaas my lyn so ver uit gesien. Simoné het nog nooit baars gevang nie, en boonop twintig jaar gelede laas visgevang. Soos die natuurmens wat sy is, professionele wildjagter en buitelug entoesias, pak sy die geleentheid by die horings. Ek stel my Quantum “medium heavy” vir haar op met 11kg braid en ‘n 6.6kg voorslag. Ek vra haar of sy kan ingooi ...en sy doen dit perfek met die klein Shimano katrolletjie. ‘n Rukkie gaan verby en ek kry ‘n byt en mis dit. Die tandmerke sit net agter die hoek op die swart fluke. Ek verander haar fluke van Watermelon groen na dieselfde swart as myne as gevolg van die groen alge in die water. Ek vang ‘n kleintjie baie naby die kant, nie verder as 5m nie, en sê vir haar sy moet net die aas so bietjie langer los, naby die kant. Ek gooi weer in nadat ek haar gooi aanskou het. ‘n Goeie gooi en sy bring die aas stadig in. Die volgende oomblik gryp ‘n ding haar aas en die Shimano skreeu bloumoord. Ek laat val my stok en kry die foon en begin ‘n video neem. 16 SA BASS June 2017

Ek stap nader om die rem ‘n bietjie stywer te stel, want ek sien die vis is op loop met haar. Ek sê nie ‘n woord nie; sy doen alles reg. Op die video vra sy, “gaan die stok nie breek nie?” en na so rukkie sê sy “ek raak moeg”. Ek glimlag breed, want die student maak sonder enige hulp geskiedenis met haar heel eerste probeerslag. Toe sien ons hom en die “bliksem” woord glip uit. Ai, my hart! Dik jaloers maar met ‘n massiewe glimlag, stap ek weer nader en haal die vis uit die water. Sy spring op en af van opgewondenheid en ek hol met die vis na die sak toe en kry my skaal. Tyd om daai vis te weeg, fotos te neem en terug in die water te kry is nou baie min. Die skaal stop op 2.7kg, maar ek weet hy is geroes en is nie lekker nie. Wat nou? ‘n Foto van die vis aan die skaal gaan nie werk nie. Ek hol terug water toe, spoel die die vis mooi af sodat hy weer kan asem skep en gee toe die vis vir Simoné. Haar glimlag is reg rondom haar gesig. Sy kan nie ophou glimlag nie. Dit was wonderlik om die oomblik te kan deel. Ek is jaloers omdat dit haar eerste probeerslag was en dan vang sy nog ‘n “bus”. Ek het amper my hengelgerei verkoop (nie regtig nie), maar is supertrots, want sy het alles self gedoen. Die mooi swartbaar is weer veilig teruggeplaas en wag vir die volgende vrou wat verby kom. Snaaks, op daardie selfde plek vang mans nie sulke groot visse nie, maar net die skoner geslag. Baie geluk vriendin... – Dirkie Wessels

BASS LAKE

BEFORE SUNSET My lovely wife, Jessica, some friends and I spent a day out on the water without much happening. After packing up the boat we decided to make a couple of casts from the slipway and quickly got a whole lot of these guys. We ended up having a blast right before sunset. Thanks for a great reading – Stephen Berndt

Please see attached a picture of a 3.1kg bass caught by my friend, Jason, today at Bass Lake. Super amped after a very difficult day of fishing! – Tamlyn Levin

READERS GO BASSING Mail aiil & Win Wi n

E-mail your picture and details of your catch to editor@sabass.com and stand a chance to win a BASS HUNTER BAITCASTER REEL COVER & SPINNING ROD SOX sponsored by MIAS Woodmead Please send us good crisp pictures of good quality. Pictures sent electronically must be at least 250KB. (We prefer pictures of 1MB). Potential cover pictures must be at least 3MB.

KEEP ON TRYING

All photos published in Readers-Go-Bassing are for the exclusive use of SA BASS magazine. Any photos previously published, or published by other magazines will not be considered.

After trying for hours without much to show for my efforts, I finally managed to make a cast tight into some reeds with a small paddle tail and got rewarded with a good fish. Best wishes. – Gavin Duck SA BASS 17 June 2017

>> SA BASS CLASSROOM

Tips for Lipless Fishing

Lures have become really expensive and just the idea of running a crankbait through underwater grass fitted with two treble hooks may appear to be an act of madness by many anglers.

here are those who dared to steer lipless crankbaits into the grass knowing that their only limitation in success is not making that cast. In fact, you want your crankbait to always be in contact with the grass. Here are some useful tips on how to fish a lipless crankbait.

Ticking the tops If there is grass in a dam you will find bass staging in it, most of the time! To use a lipless crankbait is an extremely effective way to cover a lot of water fast. Even if the bait is very easy to fish with, you want to make sure you are feeling the bait ticking the top of the grass continuously. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Idiot baitâ&#x20AC;? is what some of the anglers referred to if they talk about lipless crankbait. However fish that will bite under normal conditions will not react favourably, if the bait is not present in the strike zone, or in a reactionary manner. Simply casting and retrieving the bait when the bass are not active will not produce the any results. If you find the bass they are either aggressively feeding, or hanging out until they choose to feed. On the other hand during their feeding mode, anglers are often rewarded 18 SA BASS June 2017

You always want to be in contact with the grass

>> Bennie Wiese* with fast action and large numbers of catches. Their feeding period is normally much shorter than the period a bass spends in inactive mode. By allowing lipless crankbaits to come in contact with the top of the underwater grass it creates erratic movements and so it resembles a baitfish trying to get away. Most lipless baits have rattles inside which produce noise. By making contact with the grass along the vibration and with the sound suddenly changes it creates a (desired) reaction strike.

The yo-yo retrieve This is one of my favourite lipless techniques. A general myth when fishing dense grass is that it requires flipping a jig or stickbait into the holes of the grass in order to be effective. This is not the case the following techniques are also useful, they are simply, but not as efficient when it comes to covering a lot of water. A lipless crankbait is more ideal for such a scenario. Just allow the bait to sink to the desired depth, if possible on top of the grass line, and then begin to retrieve your bait. As you reel it back to the boat, drop the tip of the rod and slow your retrieval speed and so allowing the lipless bait to sink a couple of feet. Then instantly raise your rod tip and speed up the retrieval rate causing the bait to rise. By doing so, the action is much like that of a yo-yo allowing the bait to cover a larger area of the strike zone plus tempting the bass as a result of the erratic movements

and the change in sound. Time and time again when the bait hangs up in the grass and you jerk it loose it’s then when the strike occurs; bass can’t resist the change! Distinct edges or grass lines are the highest percentage areas for strikes. The edges present ambush points and act as underwater highways for bass, if bass are not relating to the outside edge of the grass line, cast into the grass and retrieve the bait “yo-yo” style out towards the edge until you find exactly where the bass are holding.

Gear When targeting bass with a lipless crankbait it has its advantages, it has the ability to cover an incredible amount of water. A good quality 7½ft medium heavy rod which allows the angler to make an extra-long cast as well as having enough backbone to rip the bait free when it gets hung up in the grass. Since grass lines vary in depths you can often utilize different pound test of line. For example, if the grass is shallow you can use 17 to 20lb test line. On the other hand, if the grass is deeper, 15lb test line is the favourite, this allow the bait to sink more quickly. When choosing colours you need to try matching the colour of the baitfish to match the bait which would normally be found in the dam. The understanding of the predatory nature of bass will

Use a good quality 7½ft medium heavy rod, 15lb test line and a lipless crankbait

help with the understanding of the importance of lipless crankbaits. By making contact with the grass and ultimately translating into rapid changes in movements, sound, and vibration, bass can’t help but revert to their predatory actions. Take note your arms and shoulders you might not agree with popular opinion at the end of the day, but your realization of the effectiveness of this style of fishing will certainly eliminate any uncertainties! This is only one of the many views I have about fishing with lipless crankbaits, but it work great for me. *Bennie Wiese is the editor of SA Bass magazine and an experienced provincial bass angler.

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SA BASS 19 June 2017

>> SA BAARS KLASKAMER

Die Winde van Verandering Terwyl ek nou die dag deur my menigte aasboksies en -sakke begin snuffel en weer op lankvergete asies in al die kleure en geure van die reënboog afkom, besef ek net weer dat; soos die winde van verandering deur ons kabinet kom waai het, dit in die baarswêreld ook sy spoor gelaat het.

‘n Raasaas of ‘n “buzzbait” soos ons dit ken

>> Philip Kemp*

oor jy omblaai en dalk besluit om nie verder te lees nie, want politiek is nou nie juis jou ding nie, wil ek jou gerusstel. Hierdie artikel handel oor alles behalwe die blinkkoppe in ons huidige kabinet, maar eerder oor ‘n paar blinkkoppe met blink idees in die wêreld van baarshengel. Kom ek vertel julle meer. Ek het so ‘n tydjie gelede gaan rondkrap in die baarshengel-anale om juis uit te vind watter veranderinge die meer ervare baarshengelaars in hul tegnieke gemaak het om baars vas te trek. Soms was dit dan juis daardie klein veranderings wat man van muis geskei het. As baars altyd gedoen het wat ons van hulle verwag het om te doen, sou hulle so voorspelbaar gewees het dat dit vir geen baarshengelaar ‘n kuns sou gewees het om een aan die hoek te kry nie. Ek het dus gaan kyk na tegnieke wat deur die ouer blinkkoppe gebruik is om baars te vang as niemand anders ‘n vis aan die hoek kon kry nie. Van hierdie idees sal dalk vir jou absurd klink, maar tog het dit vir hierdie ervare blinkkoppe groot sukses gebring.

Vlakwaterhengel George Cochran, ‘n boorling uit die Amerikaanse staat Arkansas, en twee-maal die Bassmasters Classic wenner sowel as die FLW-wenner, is welbekend vir sy vermoë om in baie vlak water te hengel. Hy is baie lief om ‘n kunsaas wat ons lanklaas gesien of van gehoor het, te gebruik. Wie het al van ‘n Strike King Spence Scout gehoor? Hierdie harde kunsvissie van balsahout gemaak en met ‘n wit of chartreuse frokkie, lyk glad nie soos enige ander aas wat ‘n baars al gesien het nie. Dit was juis hierdie klein verandering wat Cochran gehelp het om ‘n menigte baars in baie vlak water te vang. Die geheim was juis om die aas oor dekking te gooi en dan oor stompe, gras en takkies in te katrol.

Hengel ‘n raasaas (buzzbait) stadig Gedurende ‘n B.A.S.S. toernooi het George Cochran voor die laaste dag in die derde plek gelê. Hy het op daardie 20 SA BASS June 2017

stadium in ‘n area gehengel waar hy baie baars op ‘n harde kunsvissie gevang het. Hy kon egter die keer nie ‘n byt kry met die kunsvissies nie. Tog was daar baars wat gedurig die oppervlak van die water gebreek het agter kos aan. Hy het verskeie bo-loperase probeer sonder enige sukses. Hy haal toe ‘n raasaas of anders genome, ‘n eierklitser uit. Gewoonlik word die raasaas vinnig op die wateroppervlak gehengel om sodoende die water om te klits en sodoende die baars se aandag te trek. Toe hy dit so hengel, het die baars elke keer net die oppervlak gebreek maar dan omgedraai en nie die aas gegryp nie. Hy het toe dieselfde aas net stadiger onder die wateroppervlak begin hengel met groot sukses. Die tegniek het hom gehelp om tweede te eindig in die toernooi. Weereens het ‘n klein verandering in die tegniek hom gehelp om vis te vang. Vir een of ander rede hengel ons almal die aas bo-op die oppervlak, maar dink nie daaraan om dit net onder die oppervlak te probeer nie.

Breek deur digte dekking Randy Dearman van Onalaska in die staat Texas hengel reeds sedert 1983 professioneel en het verskeie kere onder die top tien geëindig tydens die Bassmaster Classics. Na swaar reën in ‘n toernooi het die opdrifsels so dig teen die oewer saamgepak dat hy met selfs sy swaar half-ons loodkop (jig) nie kon deurbreek nie. En dit terwyl die meeste baars onder hierdie digte opdrifsels gaan skuiling soek het. Hy moes aas swaarder as een-ons gebruik om deur die opdrifsels te breek. Deur ‘n een-ons koeëlsinker bokant die half-ons loodkop vas te pen, kon hy die 1½-ons loodkop deur die digte opdrifsels kry met groot sukses. Die tegniek het hom gehelp om die toernooi te wen.

Twee paddas in ‘n ry As ‘n gesoute en ervare hengelaar het Randy Dearman al hoe meer begin eksperimenteer met ander tipe tegnieke en net soos die winde van verandering in sy tegnieke, het die praktiese andersheid hom soms gehelp om die ander

Die StrikeKing Spence Scout. As jy een het; bewaar hom met jou lewe!

meer tradisionele hengelaars een voor te wees. So het hy met ‘n StrikeKing holpadda in ‘n toernooi oor digte gras en rietopdrifsels gehengel. Die baars het letterlik op die vibrasie wat die padda bo-op die opdrifsels gemaak het, instinktief na die aas gegryp maar elke keer gemis omrede hulle nie die padda kon sien nie. Daar waar die baars die oppervlak gebreek het, was daar nou ‘n opening in die opdrifsels en as ‘n ander hengelaar sy padda in die opening sou gooi, sou die baars die padda kon sien en hom suksesvol gryp. Randy besluit toe om twee paddas, ‘n voet uitmekaar, met vleglyn (braid) en ‘n draaiskakel (swivel) te verbind. Die baars sal dan na die vibrasie van die eerste padda gryp en Randy sou dan die padda wat op die eerste een volg in die opening wat deur die baars gemaak is, intrek. Negentig persent van die tyd sal die baars dan die padda wat op die eerste een volg, gryp.

Eienaardige Carolina strop (C-strop) Waar baars skool, sou Randy somtyds in plaas van ‘n

sinker, ‘n half-ons loodkop voor d. Die die oorspronklike aas vasbind. yp en baars sal dan die loodkop gryp omrede daar ander baars ookk in die omtrek is, sal hulle probeer om aars die loodkop uit die ander baars se bek te steel. Die baars sal dan meeste van die tyd die tweede aas an gryp en die hengelaar kan dan n moontlik met twee baars aan die lyn sit. Die winde van verandering waai sterk in ons land. Hoekom probeer ons nie ‘n paar van hierdie vreemde tegnieke nie? Hierdie veranderinge is dalk net dit N praat ekk wat die ou “grootbekke” soek. Nou nie van ons kabinet nie. Lekker hengel. *Philip Kemp is ‘n gesoute swartbaarhengelaar en ‘n gereelde bydraer.

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SA BASS 21 June 2017

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>> SA BASS BOATING

How to… >> BoatTEST.com*

In competitive angling, having a fast boat to reach the honey hole first is an advantage, or is it really? What happens if someone has the money to afford all the bells and whistles but is not capable in safely handling a speeding projectile? n the water, the sensation of speed is enhanced. For most people, 50 mph (80km/h) in a boat feels like 70 or 80 on the road. Those who have run triple digits on the water know that there’s more to operating a boat than slamming the throttles forward and hanging on. Attention needs to be paid to the boat’s trim, over-revving the engines when running in waves and, of course, the conditions. Following are the details that require attention travelling across the water at high speeds. Before slipping into the bolster or high-backed bucket seat of any performance boat, a driver needs to know what kind of hull bottom design 24 SA BASS June 2017

is beneath him. Traditional offshore performance boats have Deep-V bottoms with at least twenty degrees of dead rise at the transom. To run fast in calm water, they require lots of positive trim and are actually happier running in some chop. Bass boats have similar designs with shallower dead rise, a keel pad and a broad bow flare that help create lift. But that perform best and most safely in smooth water. Stepped V-bottoms literally have steps designed into the running surface that generate lift and require less positive drive trim. These boats run flatter and faster on the same power compared to a conventional V-bottom. Catamarans are airentrapment designs with two hulls connected by a flat deck in between. They are designed to run on top of the water and are the fastest of the three designs power for power.

Equipment A boat that is designed to run 60 mph (97km/h) or faster should have hydraulic steering. It provides more precise control by using pressure in the system’s hoses to move the drives or outboards when the steering wheel is turned. Conventional cable systems lack the precision or durability to hold up in performance applications. For running in offshore conditions, heavyduty trim tabs such as Mercury Racing K-planes or similar units from Livorsi

Marine with position indicators at the helm are a must. For the boat’s interior, the captain and a companion travel in stand-up bolsters with dropout bottoms or high-backed bucket seats in sit-down boats.

Trim tabs Trim tabs or after planes are a pair of flat, movable surfaces that extend aft from the boat bottom; one on each side of center. Each surface is individually adjustable up or down and, on the more sophisticated installations, by a remote control switch. These “trim tabs” are not to be confused with the small adjustable fin located on the gear housing just above and behind the propeller and used to help offset steering torque. It is also called a “trim tab”. After planes offer another method of trimming your boat in addition to power trim. When a boat’s running attitude exceeds five degrees, it is beginning to run increasingly less efficiently. Therefore, stern-heavy boats that need to run at a slow plane (20 to 25 mph) will be greatly aided by after planes both in the efficiency and comfort departments. Other benefits of after planes are faster planing, control of list or boat roll, and additional fuel savings made possible by allowing the boat to run at a lower engine RPM while remaining in an efficient planing attitude.

On the water, the sensation of speed is enhanced

Basic hull designs

Know neutral On any performance boat, the captain should know what neutral or level trim is. With the boat on the trailer, use a level to find neutral for the drives and tabs, if equipped. This will vary from boat to boat because of transom angle. Have someone at the helm raise or lower the drives until a level pressed against the bottom of the anti-cavitation plates on the drives zeroes out. Do the same by aligning the tabs with the running surface. Note the position on the trim indicators for the drives and tabs. Remember that trim tabs can be lowered to keep more of the boat in the water in rough conditions or to level loads, but unlike drives, the boat won’t go faster if the tabs are raised past neutral. Once they lose contact with the water, they make no difference. A cavitation plate (anti-ventilation plate) is a permanent horizontal plate on the vertical shaft of the outboard right above the propeller. It sits just at the water level when the boat is up on plane, that is flush with the bottom of the boat, for a planing designed hull. It prevents ‘cavitation’ of the propeller - prevents air from the surface of the water being picked up by the action of the propeller. Cavitation

When a performance boat is trimmed too high in following seas, it will stand up on end and then stuff the bow severely on re-entry

drastically reduces a prop’s effectiveness and efficiency. It basically pushes air rather than just water. Over-revving can also result.

Blow-out Many high-performance boaters are aware of a phenomenon that limits their top speed below what would otherwise be pos¬sible with the available horsepower. This phenomenon is com¬monly called “gearcase blow-out,” “propeller blowout,” or just “blow-out.” Following is an explanation of why blowout occurs and how to correct it. Since low pressure is the cause of cavitation, anything that fur¬ther

Indicators that show the position of the drive and trim tabs are critical on any highperformance boat

Most bass boats have a V-hull design with shallower dead rise, a keel pad and a broad bow flare that help create lift SA BASS 25 June 2017

connection of exhaust to torpedo cavitation by creating a higher pressure fence much like the difÂŹfuser ring or flare on the aft end of a through-hub exhaust propeller, which deters the exhaust from being drawn forward into the low-pressure side of the propeller blades. Within the range given, the higher the bump, the higher the speed protection, but with slight additional drag.

On the plane Hydraulic steering provides more precise control and should be installed on any fast boat

reduces the pressure on any side of the torpedo will hasten cavitation. Trimming the unit out will cause lower pressure on the underside of the torpedo, around the skeg; but an even more insidious culprit is the effect of a surfacing propeller pulling the aft end of the torpedo to the right with a right-hand rotation propeller. This causes lower pressure on the left side because of the angle at which the gearcase is forced to run through the water. This is commonly called the â&#x20AC;&#x153;crabâ&#x20AC;? angle. The typical combination of a surfacing right-hand propeller and trimming out for best speed creates an extra-low pressure pocket on the lower left side of the torpedo. However, cavitation itself does not cause the â&#x20AC;&#x153;blow-out.â&#x20AC;? Blow-out occurs when the very low pressure cavitation bubbles eventually reach back to the aft end of the torpedo in sufficient quantity to suddenly pull in, or connect up with the engine exhaust gases. The cavitation and exhaust gas linkup is more prevalent with a nonthrough-hub exhaust propeller. Once the connection is made, the exhaust follows the cavitation bubbles forward and floods out over the lowpressure side of the gearcase (the left side with a right-hand rotation propeller) and feeds back into the propeller blades, causing a sudden and drastic reduction of lift or thrust generated by the low-pressure side of the propeller blades. This partial unloading of the proÂŹpeller creates four sudden reactions: 26 SA BASS June 2017

A go-fast designed for all-around performance will plane off easily in A cavitation plate prevents air from the surface most cases. Use enough power to get of the water being picked up by the action of the the bow to drop quickly to maintain propeller good forward visibility. Some older t É¨F CPX MJGUJOH FĂŞFDU PG UIF SBLF designs propped exclusively for top end diminishes, causing the bow to drop. required the driver to nail the throttles and wait for props to catch after overt É¨ F IBSE TUFFSJOH UPSRVF UP UIF SJHIU spinning initially. is suddenly reduced, causing the On some boats with high bow boat to veer slightly to the left. rise, losing forward visibility can be a t É¨F SFEVDFE MPBE PO UIF QSPQFMMFS problem. Make sure the way is clear allows the engine to rev up by 200 ahead and get the bow down quickly. to 300 RPM.

Head-on

t É¨F XFUUFS CPBU CPUUPN BOE SFEVDFE Especially in a performance boat, propeller efficiency cause the boat the captain is responsible for keeping to go slower by perhaps a couple of the least comfortable passenger as miles per hour. content as possible. That means How to correct blow-out keeping the boat riding level fore to aft With the latest gearcase designs, and laterally. For virtually all designs, blow-out should not be a problem the approach is the same when running into head seas. Start with the drives and below 80 mph. However, if the problem exists, tabs trimmed down with the tabs at contact your dealer. A special gearcase neutral or slightly below to extend the is available for many outboards and length of the boatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s running surface. some stern drives that should cure the To pick up speed, trim out the drives problem. The special gearcase has an a little at a time so that the boat is still extended torpedo nose, more rudder riding level and skimming across the area, improved high-speed cooling waves cleanly. water intakes, and a cupped skeg, Following seas which greatly reduces â&#x20AC;&#x153;crabbingâ&#x20AC;? and Running with the waves is a little steerÂŹing pull to the right. more challenging because using too Other than running with excessive much negative trim will cause the bow trim-out, the most signifiÂŹcant cause to stuff into the back of the lead wave of the blow-out is a torpedo that has and excessive positive trim will cause been buffed in a way that rolls off the the stern to â&#x20AC;&#x153;tripâ&#x20AC;? off a wave and throw trailing edge of the torpedo. the bow skyward. This often results Some gearcases eliminate this in the bow slapping down, which, problem by casting the torpedo in depending on the impact, will hurt a slightly conical shape, leaving a passengers or eject them. To run safely slight raised sharp edge just ahead of in following seas, use enough positive the trailing edge of the torpedo. This drive and tab trim to run slightly bow patented feature, which can vary from up. If the bow starts hopping, the trim .005â&#x20AC;? to .050â&#x20AC;? in height, retards the is too high and needs to be tucked in

a little. If the bow plows through the water and pulls to one side or the other a little more positive trim is required.

Quartering seas Anytime waves are parallel or quartering to a boat, the captain’s trimming skills will be put to the test. If a boat is running parallel to the waves, lower the tab on the opposite side of the boat to level the ride and set the drives at neutral. With waves hitting the boat from the aft quarter on either side, take the same approach. Use the tabs to level the boat and trim out the drives incrementally. If the boat doesn’t have tabs, use the drives to level the boat.

Turn smart Performance boats were never meant to be turned like personal watercraft or ski boats, but people still seem to want to try it. With a nonstepped V-bottom, before turning, either trim down the drives or pull back on the throttle to reduce the speed and set the boat in the water. Hold the steering wheel in a constant position to complete the arc and maintain consistent throttle to keep the boat on plane. Drivers of some stepped hulls get in trouble when turning a stepped hull because they use the same approach as turning a non-stepped hull. Never apply negative trim to a stepped hull prior to turning. This forces the bow down too far. It will dig in and the stern will snap around, causing the boat to spin out or “swap ends.” When turning a stepped hull, leave the drive trim where it’s set, raise the tabs (if so equipped) and make the turn with the same steady hold on the steering wheel and the same consistent throttle pressure. Be ready to correct the wheel against the turn if the boat feels like the rear end wants to kick out.

Keep a lookout Hitting another boat, a piling, or some obstruction can ruin your whole day. When going fast, you should know the waters you are in and stay safely in deep water. Keep any eye out forward and left and right for other boats. Move away from them and don’t play chicken. 28 SA BASS June 2017

Walk on the wild side The key to running any performance boat is that small things make a big difference. A positive tap on the trim buttons could be all that is required to “free up” a boat to run those big speed numbers. It can also be the difference between being in control and causing a disconcerting handling problem. How a captain responds to these scenarios is crucial. When running at speeds above 80 mph (129km/h), he can’t just yank back on the throttles and hope the boat settles. If a boat starts chine-walking, pull back on the throttles a little or trim down the tabs slightly to stop the oscillation. An experienced pilot can “drive out” of a chine walk without slowing down, but that’s a move best left to veterans. The easiest way to stop a boat from porpoising is to trim down or apply a little more throttle because the boat is searching for more speed.

Rolling over When observing from behind a boat, the propeller turns clock¬wise when underway with a normal righthand propeller. As water resists the clockwise rotating propeller, it causes the boat to roll slightly in the opposite direction (counter clockwise) or down on the left (port) side and up on the right (starboard) side. To offset this slight imbalance, the driver’s seat is placed on the starboard side. Boats differ signifi¬cantly in the degree of their reaction to prop torque.

Most important Don’t drive fast in low light conditions. No matter how good you think you are, don’t drive fast. Every year, people are killed driving into unseen breakwaters, pilings, boats, barges, and even islands. Each year, driving fast in low light conditions claims scores of deaths. (The same precautions apply when encountering fog – Ed.)

a light. By definition, these are people who like the thrill of living dangerously. If you are one of those people, just remember that over about 350 people are killed in the USA each year in boating accidents and speeding. Out of control boats are the biggest single cause of death. Never drink and drive a boat! It sounds obvious, but all too many people do it. If you are going to break this cardinal rule, at least don’t drive fast. For years, our advice to boaters who see Cigarette-type high performance boats speeding along is to always head behind them. Chances are they don’t see you, and behind them is the safest place to be. *This article is edited and re-printed with permission from The BoatTEST. com The BoatTEST.com team is a group of highly trained professionals, all of whom have years of experience in their respective fields. These include writers, editors, on-camera boating experts, field technicians, cameramen, video editors, producers, and musicians... all coming together to make the final content you see here on BoatTEST.com. We hope you enjoy their work as much as we enjoy working with them.

Safety first Fast boats are fun but in the wrong hands they can be dangerous. Unfortunately, it seems that the people with the least amount of experience are often drawn to race boats like moths to

Scan this QR-code and see a boat blow-out at 131km/h

>> SA BASS PROFILES

The

Bassing Duo

>> Corné Schoeman*

Tristan Wickham Tristan Wickham with a Witbank Dam trophy

he Bassing Duo, Tristan and Nathan Wickham, are two of our most aspiring and talented young bass anglers currently in the Cast-for-Cash as well as SABAA circuit. Nathan (15) started bass fishing at the mere age of 3 years old. Tristan (17) however really only started bass fishing at the age of 13. They both were introduced to the sport by two other well-known bass anglers, John Wickham and Carlos da Silva although Tristan was also personally influenced by Ruan Wahl and Johann Zwarts. In 2017 they have already competed in seven competitions with an outstanding Cast-for-Cash win on Witbank Dam with a five fish limit bag weighing in at 6.01kg. Due to a delayed start because of mist, it was a race against time and these two young guns delivered a well deserved victory under pressure. For Tristan, coming into the weigh-in station knowing you are weighing a good bag, is one of his thrills about the sport. Nathan however likes the excitement of the pull away and landing that kicker every angler hopes for to seal the deal. One of their dislikes in the sport is the pressure to perform. Being competitive one looses the enjoyment of the outing sometimes because one are hungry for that win. Loosing that “if only I caught it” bass you needed is also devastating for Nathan which I can totally relate to. Unfortunately at their young age they are also subjected to sport politics, which is one of the worst parts of competitive angling. With their feet firmly on the ground, they have stood tall against this. Although Tristan enjoys fly fishing for trout and deep sea angling, Nathan is a bass fanatic. Their favourite dams include Witbank, De Hoop, Loskop and Albert

Nathan Wickham Nathan Wickham with a Letsibogo Lunker

Falls which they have been formidable opponents on. When it comes to advice to young upcoming anglers both of them agree – never give up and spend a lot of time on the water, developing your techniques. One must be able to adapt in all kinds of weather conditions and find that pattern to bring home the glory. Their “go-to” rig and lures are jerkbaits, crankbaits, drop-shot, stickbaits and Texas craws. Tristan’s proudest moment was when he won SABAA Wrangler Angler in 2015 at Arabie Dam. Nathan is our Junior National Champion 2017, which was held at Wriggleswade earlier this year. As I wrote this I know we are still going to see great things from these two gentlemen and I>> have hopeBlunt for Barry the preservation of our sport for future generations. Any junior angler interested in bass fishing should approach their local bass club for details. You can also contact SA Bass or SABAA for any information. *Corné Schoeman is a regular contributor and member of Team Bass Couple who is currently ranked fifth on the Mpumalanga Cast-for-Cash tournament trial log.

SA BASS 29 June 2017

June 2017 Results Gauteng 1: Team Madfin - 5.95kg 2: Team Quantum - 5.84kg 3: Team Bass.co.za - 4.95kg 4: Team Greens - 4.93kg 5: Team Mav erick - 4.83kg 6: Team Valet Storage - 4.52kg 7: Team Fishing 247 - 3.09kg 8: Team Lombaard - 3.07kg 9: Team T-Shirts - 3.04kg 10: Team Cobat Transport - 2.74kg

Back: Adrian Swartz, Kamlesh Parbhoo, Charl Engelbrecht, Steve Engelbrecht Front: Ian van Rooyen, Herhold Venter, Ian Brown, Gordon Brown, Frans Swanepoel, Lesley Montgomery

30 SA BASS June 2017

Mpumalanga 1: Team Core - 6.01kg 2: Team EQB - 5.05kg 3: Team Knotts Outdoor - 4.7kg 4: Team Knotts Nissan Woodmead - 4.46kg 5: Team Cube Design Innovations - 4.115kg 6: Team R&R - 3.865kg 7: Team X-Factor Six 8 - 3.71kg 8: Team Last Cast - 3.02kg 9: Team Bass Couple - 2.48kg 10: Team X-Factor - 2.375kg

L-t-r: Tristan Wickham, Nathan Wickham, Tewie Wessels, Martin Ferreira, Hugo Lerm, Joao Mendes, Bennie Wiese, Hennie Schoeman, Ruan Wahl

Limpopo 1: Team Fear no Fish - 5.222kg 2: Team Beli VC - 5.042kg 3: Team Bouw er - 4.418kg 4: Team TFF - 3.387kg 5: Team JV Hidrolies - 3.01kg 6: Team Filterman - 2.793kg 7: Team Slabbert - 2.722kg 8: Team Leo - 2.386kg 9: Team Oud &Jonk - 2.217kg 10: Team Limpopo Fuels - 2.213kg

Standing (back): Stefan Badenhorst, Justy Varkevisser, Eugene Bouwer, Leon Lordan, Attie Barnard Front (kneeling): Alexi Kuises, Reed Eastman, Theo van Rensburg, Johnny Verster

SA BASS 31 June 2017

KZN 1: Team Gamakatsu Outdoors 365 - 9.53kg 2: Team Strike King Bass Warehouse - 4.145kg 3: Team R & R - 4.025kg 4: Team SPRO Outdoors 365 - 2.66kg 5: Team Epic Bass Warehouse - 2.58kg 6: Team One 3 Fishing - 2.075kg 7: Team Kingfisher - 1.03kg

L-t-r: Neels Beneke, Robert Olivier, Bryan Leppan, Michael Cannon, Ross Summerell, Ronnie Thompson, Gareth Hughes

Encountering Fog >> Hannes Lindeque* We are in winter and that means our Cast-for-Cash anglers will most likely encounter fog some time during the tournament season, whether it is at the start, or a few kilometres away. It is everybody's responsibility to take care in such conditions and blame cannot be shifted to tournament organisers, other boaters or anybody else. Everybody has to take care! As for organisers it goes without saying that a tournament cannot start if there is no safe light and visibility of at least 500 meters. If an organiser does make the decision that the tournament can start and you (as a qualified skipper) feels uncomfortable, then it still remains the skipper's prerogative to participate in the start or not. Don't leave the ramp area, or don't launch at all... there is a reason it's called "safe light". Nobody can be forced to take off and “race” in unsafe conditions. Then what is expected of the skipper? Safety first; that is your own safety and your boat partner's. Then also, in a civilised community it is expected that we will look after our fellow angler's safety as well. Therefore; in any low light conditions you have to know your position and turn on your boat's navigation lights. If you can't see… stay where you are!

32 SA BASS June 2017

Move to the right, beach, shut down the main engine and listen for oncoming boats. If you do decide to drive, then; slow down and move aside, not only to not hit other boats, but also to watch for any other objects in, or on the water like canoes, fence posts, drifting logs, etc. Remember to maintain a safe speed so that you can take proper and effective action to avoid collision and be stopped within a distance appropriate to the prevailing circumstances and conditions. (Safe speed is at which you are willing to hit something.) Remember that it is not safe to overtake, even if you are convinced that you are a “better” skipper with more experience. All boaters who didn't move aside and want to continue driving, will have to fall in a single line with a safe distance between them (depending on the visibility). Because the main motor is running you are suppose to have your PFD (lifejacket) on and if not, get it on! At the end of the day – every skipper is still responsible for his own and his partner's safety. *Hannes Lindeque is the founder and publisher of SA BASS magazine since 2001, the tournament director of the SA BASS Cast-for-Cash bass angling tournament trial and FLW South Africa.

Cast-for-Cash The SA BASS Cast-for-Cash bass tournaments are qualifying rounds to the FLW SA Championship. Each team consists of maximum two persons per boat who are allowed to weigh five fish per day. Because it is a catch-andrelease event, teams are penalised for weighing any fish that cannot swim away from the way station. The top five heaviest bags for the day are declared winners at prize giving. Apart from the cash prizes contestants also have a chance to win various lucky draw prizes, but they have to be present at prize giving to receive the prize. Next event: Visit our websites for full results and tournament dates www.sabass.com and www.flwsouthafrica.com

Misty April 2017 - Cast-for-Cash Report >> Hannes Lindeque

Sponsors & Benefit Providers: SA BASS would like to thank the following sponsors in supporting our Cast-for-Cash FLW tournament trial: Garmin SA, MasterCars Wonderboom, Yamaha SA, Brilliant Effects, Cube Design Innovations, Bass World, Arma Irius and World of Fishing. Our April Cast-for-Cash Winners: Gauteng: Team Madfin; Frans Swanepoel & Lesley Montgomery with 5 fish - 5.95kg Mpumalanga: Team Core; John Wickham & Tristan Wickham with 5 fish - 6.01kg Limpopo: Team Fear no Fish; Stefan Badenhorst & Alexis Kuisis with 5 fish - 5.222kg KZN: Team Gamakatsu Outdoors 365; Neels Beneke & Robert Olivier with 5 fish - 9.53kg Western Cape; - Season completed MISTY This month the SA BASS Cast-for-Cash / FLW mobile weigh station was at Witbank Dam where Mpumalanga had their tournament.

Young Nathan Wickham weighed the heaviest fish for the day before noon and for the rest of the day the weigh station was quite. Only fifteen minutes before the tag board closed did the teams start to come in for the weigh in. Eventually all teams managed to catch and weigh fish but it was Team Core; Tristan & Nathan Wickham who snatched the prize money for the day. With this win they moved from sixth place into second place on the Mpumalanga log standings, fighting for a spot at this year's FLW South Africa Championship to be held in July. Their aim is to qualify and represent FLW South Africa later this year in the USA at the Costa FLW Series Championship. The Costa FLW Series consists of five U.S. divisions â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Central, Northern, South-eastern, South-western and Western. Each division consists of three tournaments with competitors vying for valuable points that could earn them the opportunity to fish in the Costa FLW Series Championship. The top anglers from Canada, China, Mexico, South Korea and South Africa will also compete. The 2017 Costa FLW Series Championship is being held November, 2 to 4 on Kentucky Lake in Paris, Tennessee, USA. Visit our website www.sabass.com for all the dates and venues

We are grateful for the amount of rain we had because Witbank Dam had risen from 21% to 107%. For the first time this season we had great weather although the start of the tournament was delayed because of the heavy fog that only lifted at 09:30. While we waited everybody enjoyed a cup of hot coffee and the company of fellow anglers. After proper proceedings the green flag was raised. All the teams set off in a single line start but beyond the gates the race was on. The skippers had to chase through the gorge to get to their fishing spots on the main dam. SA BASS 33 June 2017

>> SA BASS UNIVERSITY

A 9.6kg bag we caught for the win at the Castfor-Cash tournament at Albert Falls. A sudden water rise brought these fish in from the main lake points to the flooded vegetation in the back of bays. We had to adapt our plan on the day

FALLING AND RISING WATER LEVELS >> Robbie Olivier*

urrently we as South African anglers are going through a very difficult phase of bass fishing and to be successful we need to know how to break down and handle different water levels. We need to understand what will happen when water suddenly rises or drops. The anglers that can adapt quickly will be the most successful. You might have caught them in two feet of water the weekend before the comp but a sudden drop will most likely make those fish pull deeper. There are three phases I like to label water levels in: 1. Falling water level - Pros: Groups fish together; Cons: Generally slows down the bite 2. Rising water level - Pros: Fish become more active and aggressive; Cons: Fish are scattered out 3. Stable water level - When the water settles and stays stable for a while it is by far the best time to catch them. There is no exact formula to predict exactly what to do in ether scenario because there are many variables at play, but the ones that are the most important to me in making a calculated discussion on the day are: 34 SA BASS June 2017

1. Current Season I am in - Where are the fish and what are they looking to do next? Be prepared for their next move. 2. What structure are they relating to? - Identify all the areas that have the structure you looking for beforehand. 3. What forage are they feeding on? - Understanding the forage the bass are currently feeding on and how they react to the levels can help predict there next move and narrow down where to find them because the bass will essentially follow the forage. For example: If I am in fall and I’m catching good shallow fish I know the fish are just waiting for a reason to start migrating deep and a big sudden temperature drop can spark them to move. So I must prepare myself: Plan A - Go to the back of the pocket where I’ve been catching my fish. If they are not there I will move to Plan B - I am assuming the fish are moving out or have pulled back so I will have marked or checked secondary points in the bay where I think the fish will stop or hold. Plan C - Main point of the bay. A good tip here is that the fish don’t necessarily swim along the bank when the water

A 9.53kg bag caught for the Cast-for-Cash win at Inanda Dam - These fish were in the shallow grass during practice but falling water moved them to shallow drops and depressions nearby. We predicted the fish would do this and prepared accordingly.

is falling and the fish move out. Especially in a shallower bays they are more likely to pull back and use the channel within that bay too navigate their way to the mouth, So little depressions, leaks and other structure either in, or right next the channel can be hot spots. So the best thing is have an open mind. Do not become stuck on one pattern. The fish don’t just swim to the other side of the dam. They simply react to the conditions and move accordingly. Either shallower, or deeper - further back in the bay, or further out in the bay. So let us put it all together. After your first day or two of practice you should have a good indication of what’s happening. 1. Establish whether the water level is rising or falling. Check the weather and find out if they are releasing water from the dam, or if the dam is receiving water from up stream. 2. Establish the current season the fish are in and what they are going to do next. This will make it easier to predict their movements. Are they planning to go deep, or shallow, or are they shallow (or deep)? Transitioning fish can be very difficult to catch, but if you know where they are going you can catch them as they starting to move out. You can still catch the stragglers leaving from where they came from. 3. Establish what they are feeding on and where the largest amount of forage will be according to the season you are in. Bass follow their food and wherever the most forage is the largest population of fish will be. Understand the forage; if it is sun fish - they like to be in shallow vegetation, if it is crustaceans - they like to be in rocks and trees.

I hope this can help you become a better angler. Benjamin Franklin once said, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” *Robbie Olivier has qualified four years in a row for nationals and has Protea and President Colours.

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SA BASS 35 June 2017

>> SA BASS

Winter Tactics Across the country we have anglers fishing small bodies of water. It does not matter if it’s a golf course, farm dam, government park pond, or quarry. The sizes may differ, from so small that you can cast across it up to a few hectors. >> Bennie Wiese*

owever, many of these waters will have the same diversity of larger bodies for example water grass, weeds, deep drop offs, standing timber and even rock piles. Many of the small ponds are loaded with under sized bass and are the perfect venues to introduce beginner anglers, or to take the kids to have a fun day. But don’t be fooled, some of these ponds will be home to trophy size bass. If I think about it, few bass were caught that could have matched, or even improved the official South African record. We will always have anglers fishing these ponds in the warmer months up to the end of autumn, but when winter arrives fewer anglers will return. Here are the views of two Cast-for-Cash / FLW anglers, Richard Dunn from Team Transaxle and Steven Williams from Team Berkley ABU. Both of them spend a lot of time on the road due to their work commitments but whenever they get an opportunity they stop and fish ponds at golf clubs, guest houses or farm dams. They agree that winter can be a prime time for catching monster bass. Their theory is that if you have a few warm days it will quickly heat up the pond and the bigger bass will get active. “Think about it; how quickly will the water heat up if the pond is not very deep and you have two or three day’s nice winter sun? Normally on your bigger dames it will

36 SA BASS June 2017

take around two weeks for the water to warm up if you have consistent weather.”, said Richard. He started to laugh and took another sip of his coffee. “I don’t think these small bodies of water can get too cold for bass. If you monitor the daily temperature it will give you a good indication on when to go fishing. Even if you are fishing from a boat you will have to monitor the water temperature. A two degree rise is the magic number for me and it doesn’t matter how cold the lake gets. An increase of two degrees in stable weather is all it takes to get bait fishing moving.” Richard told me that some of his best fishing days were in winter on bright, sunny days, and often in midday, when the sun was directly overhead. “I’ve seen winter bass bites going from zero to unbelievable within minutes of the sun coming out. Depending on where you are fishing, all dams will not have clear water and many of the smaller ponds will be murky which for me are not favourable fishing conditions. But during a period of mild winter weather, small, murky ponds can produce awesome action. Fish the clear dams when it’s cold and when it warms up a bit then switch to the murky ones.”

Winter approach Although many ponds have similar characteristics as larger venues it does not mean that the bass will be all over. “Rocks will always attract some type of bait fish in winter and therefore I target rocky areas first because shallow rocks heat up

Steven Williams landed this beaut at Rhenosterkop

“Look for those shorelines smaller dams even when fishing quickly on sunny days, warming the water around them. from the bank. He overlooks with deep water close by, all shallow water areas as well You will find that bass cruise stair-stepping ledges, big as flats and points with a slow, along the dam wall’s rip rap in slope. “Look for those search of a meal. A light jig with bowlers and hard bottoms.” steady shorelines with deep water close a trailer is a good choice. Just by, stair-stepping ledges, big hop or swim it slowly around bowlers and hard bottoms. These are prime areas to start. If the the rocks”. area you are fishing does not have these key points then look for If there are any reeds or weeds available it will also attract bass. Richard told me that he doesn’t catch as many manmade structures like rip rap, channels or ditches.” The basics for winter fishing are that bass will normally big fish around them in winter as he does around rocks. Standing timber is a good choose when fishing cold, murky hold to deep water and will follow structures to the shallow dams. Because of the low visibility bass tend to hang tight areas when they are going to feed. See what bass can relate to, what type of fodder is available and where the bait fish to stumps and logs. are most comfortable. No pressure Steven explained. “In most small ponds bass will mainly “If you’re ever going to fish a small dam, or pond, winter feed on frogs, crabs and insects but in winter bass will feed on is definitely the time to do so. Chances are good to catch some bait fish. Bass are opportunistic and will also feed on birds or better quality bass and even your biggest bass for the year.” said mice when the opportunity arises. Therefore don’t be scared to Steven Williams. use bigger baits even in winter. As a youngster growing up in KZN he noticed that If crabs are still active you can target shallow rocky areas many anglers stopped fishing the smaller ponds during using a black and blue, or Junebug, or brown jig.” winter which reduced the fishing pressure. He used the Extra thoughts: “Winter is a great time to fish private opportunity and caught some very nice bass during winter. farm ponds from the shore because there are no snakes and “From the end of autumn bass don’t see many lures and the ticks around and not many insects in your face.” fishing pressure is about none extant on these venues.” Conclusion; don’t put your rods away this winter and Smaller ponds can be fished more thoroughly and the see how many hidden ponds you can find. Always dress best time to do so is when the water temperature ranges warm and take extra dry clothes and a towel with you. You between 9 and 13ºC. Our winters are not that cold and don’t want to get influenza for when you accidently slip we will have two or three cold fronts when we have a mild into the water. winter. The water may stay in that temperature range for Lastly, always remember to practice catch-and-release longer periods triggering a really unbelievable big bass bite. and respect the land owner’s privacy. Steven has caught many bass around 6lb in water colder than 8ºC, so never let cold water discourage you. Steven explained that he can easy find bigger bass in

*Bennie Wiese is the editor of SA Bass magazine and an experienced provincial bass angler. SA BASS 37 June 2017

>> SA BASS CLASS ROOM

The Reel Deal It is said that a craftsman is only as good as his tools or that a poor craftsman will always blame his tools, and while I not in a position to confirm or deny the truth behind these statements I can, with certainty say, tools make the job easier!

>> Dewald Viljoen*

n our arsenal of tools as anglers there are few things that anglers fight about as passionately as their fishing reels. The ups and downs of every brand and model are discussed in detail on Facebook pages and internet forums to the point of death, and yet, in my experience most anglers understand the workings of their hi-tech fishfinders better than that of their fishing reels! So I took it upon myself this month to clarify a few things regarding fishing reels, and since this is a bass magazine I want discuss some points surrounding baitcasters.

The first point I like to address concerns gear ratios. To explain gear ratios in laymanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s terms, think of the gearbox on your car. The lower gears (first and second) give you torque and power for pulling away and pulling your boat out the water, etc. Mid range gears (third and fourth) are for general driving, over taking and it is probably where your car will spend most of its time working. High gears (fifth and sixth) is for high speed cruising and is great for covering distance.

A low profile baitcasting reel 38 SA BASS June 2017

To apply this to fishing reels let’s start with the low gear ratios. Since every brand is a little different I will stick in a general spectrum to simplify, 5:1 – These low ratios are for the hard work. This is the ratio you want to use for drag around crankbaits and for any application where brute power is required, such as extreme cover, or extreme sized fish. This is the strongest and most durable gear ratios. 6:1 – The mid range ratios are the best ratios for general fishing purposes and even though their popularity has waned a little in recent years it is the best ratio for anglers who want to get away with as few setups as possible. A 6:1 ratio will have approximately 20% shorter lifespan than a 5:1 under normal use. 7:1 and up – The high range ratios are for scenarios where contact with the lure or a high work rate is required. Applications like jerkbaits and short range pitching suites these high ratio reels perfectly. Heavy crank baiting and regularly fighting oversized fish will wear high ratio gears out very quickly and you will only get around half the lifespan of a 5:1 out of them. The next thing that most anglers pay little attention to the drag systems on their reels. The purpose of a drag system is to slip! On a bass reel the drag is not so much to prevent line breaks or to tire out the fish, as it is to protect the mechanics of your reel. A locked down drag will put enormous strain on the contact areas of the gears in your reel, every time you fight a fish. It is better to put your thumb on the spool if you want to stop a fish or break a snag than to lock down the drag. This is something to be especially wary of when fishing with high breaking strain braids. Most manufacturers’ maximum line recommendations and maximum drag figures are within a few pounds of each other for this very reason. I see more catastrophic reel failures because of locked down drags than of all other reasons combined. Finally the relationship between bearings, durability and casting performance. First off, any modern baitcaster should have at least five bearings including the anti reverse bearing. Three of these should support the main spool shaft and pinion gear. The fourth should be at the base of the drive shaft. This is pretty much standard on every major brand and you need not worry about it if you are buying a well known brand. If it is an unknown brand check the reel diagram in the box for bearing placements. If there is no diagram, don’t bother buying it! When it comes to bearings and casting performance there are a lot of myths out there. The reality is this: just upgrading the bearings in your reel is unlikely to improve the performance of a good reel. In an entry level reel it might upgrade the performance but is it worth the money to put an expensive bearing in a low quality frame? When you Google “world record casting” you will find several interviews and discussions around casting distance. What is interesting is that many of these specialists recommend a good reel, but most of

Some basic parts of a baitcasting reel

them will tell you that the right rod and good technique are far more important than the reel. It will be worth your while to rig your reel on every rod you own and compare casting performance that way to get maximum efficiency out of every setup you own. In a future article we will discuss how to get maximum distance out of different reels and baits and how to spool and set up your reels for different scenarios. Until then, watch out for that over wind! *Dewald Viljoen is a custom lure maker and the owner of Hot Reels Service Centre.

Services Repairs Maintenance Contact us for a quote on any reel service or repair Tel: 078 548 1301 Email: hotreeltec@gmail.com Authorized Service Center SA BASS 39 June 2017

>> SA BASS INTERVIEW

In Their Face 2QH RI WKH ORQHO\ EDFKHORUV ȴVKLQJ WKH 0SXPDODQJD &DVW IRU &DVK WRXUQDPHQW WULDO DQG SDUW RI 7HDP %HUNOH\ $%8 ZKHUH LQWHUYLHZHG DIWHU KH ZDV H[SODLQLQJ WR D EHJLQQHU EDVV DQJOHU DERXW MHUN EDLWV ȴVKLQJ 1DUGXV +DUPVH GLG QRW EOLQN DQ H\H DQG WR JLYHV KLV YLHZV RQ MHUNEDLW ȴVKLQJ LQ WKH ZLQWHU >> SA Bass

or many years hard jerkbaits have been producing bass all over the world and they do catch bass year round in most conditions. Nardus started off by picking a jerkbait and tying it to his line. “You can catch bass on them any time. I believe they work best during winter and early spring; that is if you can find a suitable retrieve. The correct retrieve will drive bass wild and if you can be patient enough you can also be rewarded

Nardus starts by fishing rocky points, ledges, or drop offs first 40 SA BASS June 2017

with a strike just because your bait has been sitting in their face long enough.” There is no limit to when and how to use jerkbaits Nardus explains. “Jerkbaits are very effective in cold weather conditions and I will start to fish rocky points, ledges, or drop offs first. It’s not that easy to fish them through grass patches, but it’s possible that they will work better around grass edges.” Nardus told me that the only limitation he has found for these awesome baits are muddy cold water because jerkbaits lose their effectiveness in these conditions. Most jerkbaits have rattles, or clackers, in them but does not have the solid vibration like lipless baits to help the bass home in on the lures. “This one is just my theory, but I prefer to fish jerkbaits in clear, cold water conditions. The water temperature can be anything between 8 to 15ºC. I have found that the clearer the water is, the farther you will draw the bass in striking the lure.” Nardus does a couple of different retrieves then changes to a deep diving suspended jerkbait to target the deeper water. “Now and then a slow steady wind will work but the jerkbait didn’t get its name from just casting and retrieving it. You must go out and experiment and find that triggering retrieve of jerks or twitches and pauses that drives a fish crazy enough to strike.” When it comes to fishing suspending jerkbait in cold water you need to work on the bass’s reactionary and the teasing appearance of an easy meal all in one cast. Nardus reveals his favourite retrieve to start off with. “I like to start with very slow wind to get my jerkbait to depth. Then I use a jerk-jerk-pause-jerk-pause-jerk-jerk retrieve. The pauses in between the jerks can between 10 to 30 seconds. Jip you have to be patient sometimes and let it sit still there in full view. The bass will move closer to the bait, watching it and with the slightest movement will grab it without you realising it. Most of the time when the bass are a bit more active they will react on the jerkbait when you jerk it and if they are less aggressive they will strike on the pauses.”

There is no limit to when and how to use jerkbaits T

Jerkbaits are very effective in cold weather conditions

Nardus use this indecision to adjust his retrieve, more or less jerks or twitches, or longer and more pauses depending on what the bass wants. “I prefer a 6’6” medium-light action rod for getting the right snap on the bait”, Nardus explains. “Eight- to ten-pound test fluorocarbon line is perfect; especially with suspending jerks and I like a slower 5.1:1, or 5.2:1 ratio reel for achieving the right rhythm.” Many of today’s jerkbaits have weight transfer systems built in that helps to get the maximum casting distance out of them. “You need to start off with a very long cast; as far as possible. I will then crank the bait down four or six turns and brings the bait to life with my favourite twitch-pause action.” “It’s mostly a cold-water technique so think ‘slow’”, Nardus offers. “Once I get it down, I like a twitch… long pause… twitch, twitch… long pause… twitch… long pause… twitch, twitch… long pause stroke.” Nardus prefers a softer twitch and longer pause when the water is at its coldest. As the water warms up above 14ºC, the twitches become more erratic and the pauses become shorter. When Nardus gets confronted by post front conditions he relies on jerkbaits because they can really out fish many

Jerkbaits work best during winter and early spring

other baits. “Because bass will be slow to feed, I will look for bass that suspend around flooded timber, rocky drop offs, or brush piles. I will then try to get the baits to the proper depth prior to getting to the cover and then let my bait soak in the proper depth right next to the cover. In my view the bass that are suspending around cover after fronts and they are very vulnerable to this presentation. It all depends on what structures are available in the venue.” One very important fact to remember when using jerkbaits is to pick the correct rod tip. Don’t fool yourself by thinking just because the there is a bill on the jerkbait that you can fish it like a crankbait. Your reel should only be used for taking up slack line. “It’s important to twitch a jerkbait with slack in your line”, Nardus said. “If you fish these lures on a tight line, you’re limiting the lure’s action. The erratic action is what makes the fish attack it.” Working the bait with slack line is also helpful when you consider that the bass are in a sluggish winter mood. If the lure is moving too far forward when you jerk, you’re probably discouraging nearby bass from biting. Don’t let the cold weather force you to stay home, pick out a couple of your favourite jerkbaits and hit your favourite venue. You might be surprised at what you catch. SA BASS 41 June 2017

>> SA BASS CONSUMER NEWS

1. 13 FISHING TRICKSHOP “RED DAWN” KIT >> Available from World of Fishing

Show your true colours with the new 13 TrickShop Concept Reel Parts Kits. Precision engineered to fit all Concept Reel models (A, A3, C, E and Inception), they offer a whole new level of customization. Available in a wide range of colours, trick out your 13 Fishing reel today with the new 13 TrickShop Concept Reel Parts Kits.

2. DRAGON LURES INVADER >> Available from World of Fishing.

Invader is made from materials with individually selected softness to achieve optimal action of the lure in its different sizes. Its action is rather short, fast and firm movements of the tail which move on the back part of the body as swinging movements. It mimics small, rather slim fish which tries to hide itself from the predator attack. The effect is very natural during different retrieves and techniques. From the beginning Invader showed shocking effectiveness. Available in all fish catching colours.

3. RAPALA DT-6 SERIES >> Available from World of Fishing

The DT-series crankbaits have accounted for numerous tournament wins and record catches in the DT’s first year, attesting to its design and fish-catching function. The Rapala DT-series lures are made from the top seven percent of select balsa wood. Perfectly consistent wood combined with carefully placed internal weights, a tapered fuselage and a thin tail creates an incredible crankbait action found only in the DT-series. Connection of characteristic worm and shad elements result in the creation of new lure 42 SA BASS June 2017

with action which differs from our previous offer. Wide range of use when it comes to fish species, fishing methods or the way of loading should let this lure to become quickly one of our sales leaders.

4. SAVAGE GEAR HOLLOW FROG IMITATION >> Available from Bass Warehouse

Savage Gear is known for making some of the most realistic lures on the market, and the Savage Gear Hollow Frog with Imitation Legs doesn’t disappoint. Built from a 3D scan of an actual frog, the Savage Gear Hollow Frog with Imitation Legs has a devastating walk-the-dog action that’s perfect for targeting bass in and around heavy cover. The Imitation Legs on the Savage Gear Hollow Frog are detailed all the way down the muscle tone and jointing to give them an astonishingly real appearance. On the pause, the Savage Gear Hollow Frog with Imitation Legs looks exactly like a frog that is poised to kick off and scurry away. Complete with an ultra-sharp single hook, the Savage Gear Hollow Frog with Imitation Legs has more than enough realism to trick bass into biting.

5. DIP MASTER FIGHT EVO BRAID II >> Available from Bass Warehouse

Dip Master Fight Evo braided line is a new

generation line, made from High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) nano fibres with unidirectional molecular structure. Thanks to the addition of a revolutionary lubricating fibre, this braided line features an outstanding smoothness and abrasion resistance. Extremely strong with exceptional knot strength and zero elasticity, the Dip Master Fight Evo braided line offers fantastic precision and sensitivity for an amazing fishing experience.

BAIT COMPANY R

6. ZOOM Z-CRAW JUNIOR >> Distributed by Sensational Angling Supplies

Zoom Bait Company announces the release of the new Z-Craw Junior; a downsized version of the popular ribbed crawfish lure introduced last year to overwhelming acceptance. We’ve shrunk the original model down from five inches to three and a half inches for times when bass demand a smaller bite to eat, yet we’ve retained the same forward facing ribs and fluttering craws of the full sized Z-Craw. In its single year of existence, the Z-Craw found a purpose not only in punching the thickest cover around, but also on the back of swim jigs and vibrating jigs, as well as structure-hugging wobble heads. This new smaller version will handle all of those same applications, and will quickly turn into your favourite lure for tempting finicky bedding bass as well. It’s

smaller than its predecessor, and while it has finesse applications, you’ll be surprised at how many big bass it fools.

7. ZOOM Z-3 ORIGINAL WORM >> Distributed by Sensational Angling Supplies

Zoom Bait Company announces the reintroduction of the Original Zoom Worm, a finesse worm that dates back 40 years. Except now, it will come in hand-poured triple laminate patterns instead of the conventional injection colours that originally comprised its line-up. This release comes a year after Zoom brought out the “Z-3” triple laminates in the Swamp Crawler product, another finesseoriented worm. Anglers across the country have clamoured for additional products to be released in this line-up, and the subtle 6-inch Original – with its flat tail, slight egg sack and lightly-ribbed body – seemed a likely choice to fulfil the needs of drop shotters. Like its predecessor, it combines the best attributes of hand-poured worms with affordability and Zoom’s legendary quality control. The new version will be just as tantalizing as the original, but the build process will be more like that of traditional “garage pours,” a labourintensive, multi-step effort that produces a softer body and a wider range of colour options. Up until now, this has been difficult to replicate in a mass production setting. Nevertheless, its shape will remain true to the original upon which the Zoom brand was built.

CLASSIFIEDS CLASSIFIEDS CLASSIFIEDS The size of each classified advertisement block is 44mm (w) x 40mm (h). Advertisers can book one or more blocks per issue. The cost is R271.00 VAT excluded, per block, per issue and is payable strictly upfront. Advanced payment can be made into our BB Print bank account at ABSA, account number 404 881 8651, branch code: 334 645 before the 25th of each month to appear two months later. Proof of payment plus a contact number must be faxed to 086 234 5026 or e-mailed to advertise@sabass.com

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Championship – 13-15 July 2017

44 SA BASS June 2017

Bivane Dam Resort

Leave your worries behind the mountain

Accommodation Answer the easy question below and stand a chance to win one of TWO FREE weekendâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s accommodation at Bivane Dam Resort BIVANE DAM RESORT Hidden away in the ancient hills of Northern KwaZulu-Natal, the magnificent diversity of nature sets the stage for a water wonderland, namely the Bivane Dam. The marriage of the water, hills and a high level of plant diversity has produced an idyllic natural space within which, with sensitive handling, it has proved possible to accommodate both active recreation and the serene experience of nature. It provides a sustainable water supply for the local irrigation scheme and secures primary water for the town of Pongola and surrounding communities. Situated about 55km from Vryheid, Bivane Dam is easily accessible and nestles near the centre of a triangle formed by the towns of Vryheid, Pongola and Piet Retief. It has become a sought after destination for water activities such as bass fishing, boating and skiing, while the turbulent waters below the dam wall are ideal for canoeing and river rafting. The resort offers first class caravan and camp facilities, ten comfortable chalets with inspiring views and a bush camp.

12km from De Hoop Dam

The prize includes two weekends (two nights, Friday to Sunday) in one of their lovely 5/6 bed chalets. The chalets are fully equipped and full self catering. (Normal weekend tariffs are R1050.00 per chalet per night - mid season).

For more information or bookings, please contact Bivane Dam Resort on 083-283-8291, or e-mail info@bivanedam.co.za or visit www.bivanedam.co.za

QUESTION: Bivane Dam Resort provides to which town sustainable water supply? To enter simply e-mail the word â&#x20AC;&#x153;DESTINATIONâ&#x20AC;? and your answer followed by your name and telephone number to: competitions@sabass.com to reach us before 28 June 2017.

RULES:

Regretfully no pets are allowed. Prize winners are responsible for a R300.00 key deposit which is refundable. The winner must make the booking directly with the sponsor. The prize is NOT valid during high season (between 7 December 2017 and 10 January 2018). The prize may not be exchanged for money To enter simply e-mail the word â&#x20AC;&#x153;DESTINATIONâ&#x20AC;? and your answer followed by your name and telephone number to: competitions@sabass.com to reach us before 28 June 2017. The first correct entry drawn on the closing date will be the winner By entering this competition you agree to all rules and accept that the decision of the publisher is final and that no correspondence thereto will be entertained This competition is open to all readers of SA BASS except employees of SA BASS, BB Print and Impala Water and their immediate families.

Tel: 082-925-7251 GPS co-ordinates: S 26Âş 24â&#x20AC;&#x2122;17.11â&#x20AC;&#x2122;, E 30Âş 22â&#x20AC;&#x2122;53.38â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122;, Lothair (Ermelo) SA BASS 45 June 2017

>> SA BASS LIFESTYLE

What An Experience!

ur family went on a birding excursion, with fellow birders from all over the world, organised by Birdlife South Africa out on the Atlantic Ocean in search of sea birds. This type of excursion is known as a pelagic birding trip. As many of you saw on Facebook I posted photos of our trip. Many people commented and said that they are jealous that we went on a cruise. Just to set the story straight; we didn’t go on a cruise per say, we went on a pelagic birding trip and used a cruise ship as our vehicle. It was by no means a cruise, in my opinion, and I am sure every other birder on board would concur. I saw it as the perfect opportunity to use a hotel on water to go south of South Africa to see the amazing birdlife the sea has to offer. No other country as far as I know has done this sort of thing, even though many a birder has gone on an actual cruise to see pelagic birds. Even the crew could not believe what they were experiencing. There were hardly people sitting in the drinks bars, coffee bars or even sitting for very long for breakfast or lunch in the dining areas save for the handful, like Rudi and Abbey, my non-birding daughter, who themselves found lots do to keep them entertained. The outer decks on the stern and both sides of the ship were crowded by all the birders and this is where you would find us from the minute the sun came up until it set again. In my photo, you can see just about a fifth of the people on the decks. I jovially questioned one of the crew members about 46 SA BASS June 2017

>> Jo Dreyer ttheir work and said that I couldn’t understand thei why his fellow crew members bothered packing wh w oout the swimming pool deck area’s deck chairs each morning and packed it away each evening eeac wi w without a single person using them. He said they pa p packed it out in the hope that a few would give in to the temptation of taking a load off, but this w was not to be. The crew would beg us to please sit at the bar for a drink during the day as they si w were bored. It was just bizarre. Birdlife South Africa decided to use a cruise sship to house as many birders as possible and go out to waters that are not that easily accessible without it being either dangerous or unpleasant or just plainly, too expensive. A decent-sized cruise ship was perfect! The MSC Sinfonia did not even think twice when approached by the idea and rightfully so; the trip was a resounding success and not expensive i at all. We were a total of about 1965 birders who braved the cold Atlantic Ocean’s waters and parts of the Indian Ocean to seek out otherwise rarely seen birdlife. We travelled as far as 300 to 400km south of Cape Agulhas and Cape Point to the continental shelf travelling at slow speeds as little as two knots. We were pleasantly rewarded with many rarities as well as common, but unseen birds, unless you could hitch a ride on a trawler, this is not a common experience! Words and photos cannot describe what beauty we saw and the feeling of being humbled by the vast expansion of water we have on Earth. Our oceans beam with life and I even got to see a Great White Shark for a very brief moment before it disappeared into the dark waters. We saw different large whales that I couldn’t identify as well as a huge pod of pilot whales. The Sooty Albatross, also known as the Dark-mantled Sooty Albatross, is a beautiful specimen of the sea. It is not a very commonly seen bird so high north of the Atlantic, but is however more commonly sighted than its fellow Lightmantled Albatross which is a near-threatened, rare vagrant to our region. The light-mantled however was seen by some on the ship, but sadly, I was not that lucky. Oh well, next time. The Sooty Albatross is however vulnerable and is also near-threatened but more commonly found sub-Antarctic

than the light-mantled; so you’re lucky if you get to see either one or both. When this particular sighting was announced the scurry from one side of the ship to the other was nothing but entertaining. Imagine almost 2000 people running from one side of the ship to the other! Need I say more? Andrea and I, with the exception of a few other birders, decided to remain seated with our legs hanging off the side of the ship and patiently waited for it to come into view and of course hoped we weren’t making a mistake. Our patience was duly rewarded; the sooty came into plain view and I was able to capture the photo in this article without fault as it soared slowly past us giving me the perfect opportunity to get the perfect shot. The Sooty Albatross as well as the Light-mantled; are easily identified by their almost all-over dark brown plumage. The only difference between the two is that the light-mantled has a much lighter neck fading to dark brown, along the back; sometimes the entire back and neck is a beige-brown colour. The tail is dark brown as well as the under wing and belly of both species. Both have a fine white stripe down the middle of the tail and sometimes a little white strip on the tail edges. The eyes are dark brown with a thick white outline. At close range a yellow strip is noticed on the sooty’s beak and a light blue strip is noticed on the light-mantled’s beak. They breed on the Tristan, Gough and Prince Edward Islands south of the Atlantic usually in colonies of about sixty bird pairs. They nest amongst vegetation on inland and seaward cliffs of oceanic islands and inhabit sub-Antarctic and subtropical marine waters. Although they are able to mate annually, they normally only do so biannually. I was not able to find data regarding their nest itself or the eggs. Their diet consists of squid, crustaceans, cephalopods, fish and ocean carrion. We do not have a real understanding of what is out there unless we take a trip and go explore. Television might tell us a lot, but it does not tell you nearly enough. You need to experience it yourself to really appreciate what’s out there. I most certainly did and will do it every year! Happy Birding Tel 0861 282 282 info@armaiuris.co.za

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SA BASS 47 June 2017

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