By Scott Norton
We are knocking on the door to the spring transition. It is the most important season to fish all year. This is the season that is split up into 3 separate seasons such as pre-spawn, spawn, and post spawn.
It is good now to prepare for the tackle rush that happens each year. You will see that the most important baits and terminal tackle get bought up with no restock until after the season ends. If you find yourself needing supplies and everything is out of stock checkout your local bait shops. They usually know based off of the previous year’s just how much supply they need to serve the local community. If that did not work then now is a good time to learn new lures or techniques that will make you better or at least forcing you to think outside the box.
As of now the bass can be slow and nonactive especially in the upper elevations. The trick for this is the warming trends. Bass will pull up to the shallows to feed or just to warm up in the sun. This makes them predictable and easy to catch. You can make your time count by making your trips planned around these trends. You can still catch fish on any given day, but the juice may not be worth the squeeze. It is all about stacking the odds in your favor.
Do not forget to check your line from the previous season. I cannot tell you how many times I have gotten on a good bite and either I did not have enough line spooled on my reel or the line was bad from fraying or too much line memory. Rusty hooks are the next problem that leads to being out of the hooks you need. Take inventory of what you have, and your baits will have more time in the water which is the point to have success on the water.
Be aware of the condition of your batteries. If you are on your third year with your batteries keep in mind they may be on life support if you have left them in your boat in the cold. You will experience the shortest trip you have ever had not to mention the trouble you have if you cannot start your main motor. On windy days this situation can turn into a dangerous situation leaving your boat on the rocks.
Be smart be safe and have fun this season. Fish on!
Scott Norton is a Western North Carolina native. Born in Asheville, N.C., he is a long-time hunter, angler and weekend warrior.