It is funny how some of the best fishing is actually created by a slow start... This evening, I arrived at Lake Ripley expecting to have a great evening on the water chasing the prespawn largemouth population with a combination of jerkbaits and crankbaits. Instead, I struggled to find any fish whatsoever. My initial offerings of hard baits went unappreciated as I scrambled to cover as much water as possible and locate some feeding fish. I even explored some canals for some early roamers in the shallows, without success.

 Combined with the high winds and overcast skies, I almost gave up on the evening around 7:00 PM. As a last resort, I decided to experiment with some swimbaits at a known prespawn spot. Just two hours earlier, I left the area after hitting it for about 30 minutes. Upon my return, I was shocked to receive a hit on my first cast with a California Swim Babes Tiny E. To be honest, I have never had notable success with swimbaits of any make or model. Over the next 30 minutes, I boated three fish: a 19, 17-1/2, and 16 inch. All three bass hit the lure with a tick, and my rod would load up with weight. The smallest fish hit the same as the largest. With the rough water and high winds, the sensitivity of my Rogue Rod definitely gave me an advantage in detecting those subtle bites. After my third fish, I tied on a Baby E, a larger version of the same swimbait and lost another big bass.

 Swim Bait Rig: Rogue Rods Magnum Bass MB704C with 17 lb CXX P-Line. California Swim Babes Tiny E (0.5 ounce, 4-1/2” long) Shad color; Baby E (1.3 ounce, 5-12” long) Chartreuse Shad color.