Thursday, December 29, 2011


A simple secret to Crankbait fishing

Crankbaits are one of the best tools you can have in your bass fishing arsenal.  They come in many different shapes, sizes and colors.  Different models dive to a wide range of depths from surface waking (less than 1 foot) to 20+ feet.  Some have a tight wiggle and others have a wide wobble.  They each have a time and place when they'll shine.

Here’s a video that explains one simple tip that can help you catch more fish on a Crankbait… no matter which model, color, shape and size you are using.  



Monday, December 19, 2011


Has anyone been following this story?  Some local fishermen fear that this could result in the lake being closed for fishing tournaments and perhaps even make the lake private. 

Towns bordering Candlewood Lake will begin talks about buying the lake.

BROOKFIELD -- Built more than 80 years ago to produce electricity, Candlewood Lake may become a publicly owned lake managed primarily for recreation and the environment.

The Housatonic Valley Council of Elected Officials on Thursday authorized its executive director, Jon Chew, to set up meetings to discuss purchasing the lake from its current owner, FirstLight Power Resources. Candlewood Lake, at 5,420 acres, is the largest inland body of water in the state.

The council met Thursday at Brookfield Town Hall.
New Fairfield First Selectman John Hodge, chairman of the council and a member of Candlewood Lake Authority, told the council that FirstLight officials raised the purchase issue during discussions FirstLight between and the authority this week.

"They're very agreeable to selling it off," Hodge said
The buyers and owners would be the five towns that border the lake -- Brookfield, Danbury, New Fairfield, New Milford and Sherman. Hodge estimated the lake might cost $10 million, based on FirstLight's estimates of its worth.

Hodge said ownership would allow the towns to control what he called "a jewel of the region."

Charles Burnham, spokesman for FirstLight, said Thursday that FirstLight mentioned the sale to town leaders as something they might find advantageous.

"We welcome the discussion of this option," Burnham said.
Hodge said Thursday the authority and area town leaders want to manage the lake to increase its value to western Connecticut.
"As the lake goes, so goes the region," Hodge said.

Hodge said FirstLight, as a company interested in increasing it profits, has less interest in the lake as a center of recreation.
"FirstLight is there to make money," he said.

Hodge said, the towns and Candlewood Lake Authority would like the annual drawdown of the lake to last a full 60 days or longer. The drawdown lowers the lake by several feet every year to kill the Eurasian watermilfoil growing near its shoreline.

"In an ideal world, the drawdown would begin the first week of December and last for 60 days or so," he said. "But FirstLight has told us one of the most profitable times to make electricity is near Christmas."

Burnham pointed out that FirstLight agreed this spring not to pump water into the lake to reduce the chance of zebra mussels getting into the lake. That meant the company wasn't generating power at its Rocky River hydroelectric plant in New Milford.
"It's been difficult to make it profitable," Burnham said.
Hodge said Thursday it might take five years to discuss all the issues surrounding a purchase and reach a deal with the utility.
The towns will have to decide whether they would continue to generate power at the Rocky River plant or simply use it to raise or lower the lake, he said.

"But let's see where it leads," Hodge said.

Written by Robert Miller
at bmiller@newstimes.com
or at 203-731-3345.

ARTICLE SOURCE: Towns can consider buying Candlewood Lake



 

Friday, December 9, 2011

Cold Water Bass Fishing - Getting Really Good

Had a chance to get out bass fishing last night with a friend.  Just went to a local pond and fished from shore for a change.  Air temp was down around 35 Degrees...  Burrrrr!  Glad I purchased cold weather gear.  Anyway, we've had a few fronts come through over the last few days and then the air temp dropped and that triggered some of the bigger bass to feed.  No giants, but several bass up to 3 1/2 pounds.  The moon was out last night (almost full) and there was not too many clouds.  We tried small suspending jerkbaits at first, but didn't connect.  It took a small Keitech Fat 2.8" Swing Impact on a 1/8 oz jig head to get these bass going.  Cast it out and start a steady retrieve back to shore.  They were mostly around the last bits of deep weed left in the pond, but the trick was not letting the swimbait make contact with the grass, because it get a little green slim on it and that was enough to mess up the wiggle of these little swimbiats.

If you can brave the cold weather, there is still some great bass fishing going on right now... even at night! 

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Fall Fishing Season

As we head into December 2011, we've been pretty lucky here in the northeastern United States as far as weather is concerned.  Every year at this time I'm faced with the debate of whether to winterize my bass boat or not.  Some years the lakes don't freeze over and I can still use it.  Other years, we’ve gotten hit with a nasty snow storm before I had a chance to winterize my boat... and therein lies the dilemma... "to winterize, or not to winterize".

This year I will again take the gamble and see how much more fishing I can squeeze out of 2011.  It really gets interesting when you start hearing “talk” of a snow storm.  Do I run out and fog my engine just in case?  I think the safe bet is to do so and if the weather stays mild and I want to take the boat out, just burn off the fogging oil and hit the motor when I pull out.  Perhaps the best of both worlds.

I have spoken with other northern bass fishermen who feel that since the boat is only really going to sit for a couple of months, there really isn’t a need to fog the motor.  Some guys farther up north don’t take that chance because they might be iced in for up to 4 months.

It certainly posses some interesting things to ponder…  what do you northerners think?

Friday, December 2, 2011

New Fall Fishing Video Tip

Hey we posted another video on YouTube... this one is about jig fishing for bass in the fall.  Check it out:


http://youtu.be/1yGvKHRrAy0