Sam

Can't argue with what TOXIC penned. One Fish Anna is tough in the summer months. Even tougher in the early spring. You have to know the places that will hold bass to be successful on Anna. There are some beautiful homes on the lake so the people have money and nice pleasure boats. You all may have more fun and less aggravation if you do as TOXIC suggests and stay at a motel and use a guide for the week. You have to do the math but if you do come on down to One Fish Anna you want to have some fun and catch some nice ones and a guide may be answer. Let us know what you decide to do.

Of course they go deep in tidal rivers. They go deep in creek channels, too. But they like structure. They like wood, stumps, rocks, grass, tires, brush piles, piers, docks, stickups, submerged humps, sunken boats and bridges and just about anything on the bottom, be them deep or shallow. When fishing a tidal river it would be in your favor if you started your "fanning pattern" with your crankbaits and plastics about 20 to 30 feet from the bank and then go towards the bank with your pattern. By doing this you will hit the deep water; the drop off; and then the shallow and warmer water. Other times it will be to your favor to move your boat 30 feet from the bank and cast 360* until you find the pattern. Just remember that the bass like for the tide to be moving and they like good ambush points. Find the ambush points and you find the bass. And you have to know the forage in the river. Crawfish are on the bottom; shad, bluegills, minnows and bream swim around the banks. What is the forage in your river? That is where the bass will be. Now, after penning the above we have to discuss the definition of "deep." "Deep" can mean three to five feet in some parts of the river or creek. "Deep" can mean 15 to 20 feet in other parts of the river or creek. With rivers always changing due to mud and sand flats, "deep" can mean anything and "deep" can move from place to place. Bass like to be by structure as they believe it makes them invisible and it serves two purposes: first, to hide from other predators; and second, to ambush their prey. So to a bass "deep" means anything that is lower than the normal bottom depth. "Deep" means any part of a river, lake, creek or pond that has a hole, a channel or road bed that forms a depression on the bottom, six inches to 30 feet or more from the high tide level. I suggest you throw some crankbaits deeper than usual to try to entice a bite. If you don't get bit then fish the banks like the rest of us, throwing back deep now and then. Experiment. That is part of the fun of bass fishing.

Bass have "highways" they use to get to and from their spawning areas. Right off the bat I see a creek channel and a road bed. These are good highways for the bass to get to their spawning grounds. The bass will go from one structure to another on their way to shallow water as the water warms. Look for highways and structure and you will find their favorite routes.

Yep. Lots of homes on One Fish Anna and college students hit the lake for the Easter and Spring breaks while their families open the homes in April. Of course, the weather has a direct impact on the pleasure boats so you may not encounter any. Then again......... But don't let that stop you. Do your research and hit One Fish and have a good time.

Think spinnerbait. You can throw the Chatterbait like you throw a spinnerbait. As for getting it out of the grass and weeds: get as close to it as possible and try to dislodge it. Easier said then done. Just throw the bait and see what happens. Good luck.

Lake Anna is in Virginia, south-south west of DC and to the west of I-95. Look it up on Google.

Abbott and Costello's most famous skit. If you listen to it slowly it makes perfect sense. Here is a tee shirt that memoralizes the skit. Baseball season is upon us with spring training right around the corner and college baseball starting this Friday, February 16th at the southern schools. Enjoy!

Keltonz, please note my input regarding One Fish Anna below. Ski boats, pontoon boats, jet ski boats, kayaks may be all over One Fish Anna in April depending on the weather and they will clog the water and those jet skis travel in packs and they will disrupt your fishing. If April is still cold then they will not be out. Would hate to suggest One Fish Anna now without knowing what the finicky Virginia weather will be doing. It could be in the 70's or we could have an ice storm in April. Too many tournaments on Lake Anna. From the Lake Anna Wednesday series to the FLW and BASS clubs, FLW and BASS Region tournaments to the individual guys fishing the place gets beat up pretty good. Tournaments start in March with clubs from all over the state hitting One Fish Anna before the spawn. During the week you will not have to be concerned with the club and Region tournaments other than the Wednesday series. The lake is so big that you should not have any problems during the week with other clubs out there. Of course, there may be some guys prefishing for their tournaments but they should not bother you. One Fish Anna gets that name because fishing can be slow and difficult. Lots of places to fish but with those tournaments they get clobbered starting in March. Lots of dinks in One Fish. I noticed in the 2018 Freshwater Fishing in Virginia booklet that there are boat rentals on One Fish Anna. Sturgeon Creek and Lake Anna Marinas can tell you about renting a bass or other boat. Check them out on the Internet and give them a call. The 2018 booklet states "Anna, Route 1 South west on Route 208 to lake." Check it out on Google Maps to find the boat rental place and give them a call to confirm they still rent boats and what kind. As for places to stay, I have no idea. You can head up to the Spotsylvania County area and their motels but I don't know if they can handle your boat and the recharging of the batteries. So ask the guys and gals at Sturgeon Creek and Lake Anna Marinas about homes for rent or motels and parking your boat ,refueling, and recharging the batteries plus places to stay near or on the lake. I think Lake Anna Marina has a motel and places to park your rig and recharge your batteries. Not sure about gas but you can ask them where you will have to go to refill your gas tanks. You can also call a local realtor that handles rentals on One Fish Anna and ask them about lake houses for rent. Now with all that penned, I have no idea about Deep Creek. You may find the same obstacles at Deep Creek as you do on One Fish Anna. Travel advantage goes to One Fish Anna when you factor in travel from Northern Virginia to One Fish or heading up to Deep Creek. Of course, living in Northern Virginia means you have a Virginia fishing license. If you go to Maryland you will need a Maryland fishing license and although I have no idea of its cost, everything is more expensive in Maryland than Virginia. So do your research; get a copy of the free 2018 Freshwater Fishing Guide at your favorite tackle shop, and get those spinnerbaits, lipless crankbaits, shallow running crankbaits, Chatterbaits, and topwaters all cleaned and ready to go plus your Senkos and trick worms. Let me know what you find out and what you finally do. Good luck and if you do go to One Fish Anna all the best for a fun and safe time.

Hey Mark, great having you with us. Check out the Central Fishing Locations and ask your query there. The Texas guys will answer your call. Keep us posted on your beautiful bass you will be catching this summer. Post pics, too.

Left to right, with the understanding that I will NOT hit the windshield!!!! (Again)

Scaleface, beaver huts are great to fish. I start with a wacky Senko all around the hut. Then go to a Texas rigged Zoom trick worm on a shaky head. Don't throw crankbaits unless I am over 20-feet away from the hut as it can extend under the water making it a wonderful crankbait eater. And remember to watch for snakes. Snakes love beaver huts. The snakes usually will leave you alone and you never know they are there. But they are there, watching you. So stay in the boat and don't walk on top of them.

Fly, the last time I remember fishing with a fly rod and a fly was when I was in high school and my cousin and I were fishing the Audubon Park Lagoon in New Orleans. Trying to cast across the lagoon, I lost my balance and fell in. All I remember was my cousin falling down in laughter; me being wet; and laughing all at the same time. Have not fished a fly rod since.

I got rid of my old reels. They just failed and finding parts was difficult. Now, my new reels will become my old reels. But with that said, Big Bill, I love looking for antique lures. I have a bunch of which I have no idea of their value. I enjoy walking around consignment and junk shops looking for old lures. Give it a try and you can find some interesting oldies out there.

Believe it or not, my Bass Pro Shops medium heavy IM6 seven-foot baitcaster is great for lipless crankbaits. Coming in second is my David Fritts 6-foot 6-inch Medium Speed Stick Cranking series rod. For tournaments I use my G. Loomis CBR 873 7-foot Medium Crank Bait Series rod. All three work lipless crankbaits beautifully as the hooks seem to set well when I pull the rod left or right when seing the hook. I also take one or the other of the Fritts or BPS crankbait rods for tournaments. Other than for the G. Loomis, the other two were priced at a fair level.

John, there are two types of jerkbaits: Floating with yellow eyes and Suspending with red eyes. These jerkbaits are designed to float parallel to the surface when jerked. If you add weight to the nose the baits will point downward, which may or may not look "natural" to the bass. Tournament guys will use a snap to change baits quickly and most snaps do not infringe the movement of jerkbaits, depending on their size. A swivel will add weight. So, to answer your question: Experiment. Fish with and without the swivel and snap and let us know what you find out. Should be an interesting experiment and we all are interested in your findings.

Welcome to a guy whose state gave us the Wash-A-Tau coon hound. That dog needs to be Arkansas' state dog. You will learn a lot on the Forum and we expect you to add to our discussions. Just remember to yell "Geaux Tigers!" when you set that hook!!!!

You harvest the smaller bass to give the larger ones more forage to enjoy and grow. If you want to ponder that philosophy, hit I-95 north at 7 AM and give yourself a few hours of restful pleasure sitting in traffic!!!!

Glad you decided to join us. Looking forward to your posts. Welcome to the Forum.

Fantastic!

R, the Carolina rig can be used all year on lakes, rivers and ponds. Are you asking us how to rig the Carolina rig; what baits work best; or when and where to throw it? The set up is designed to keep the 1/2 ounce weight on the bottom as the worm or lizard follows on a leader about 12 to 18 inches. This allows the bait to move without being impacted by the weight. Lizard's are a bass' favorite snack and they will hit plastic lizards on a C-Rig. Finesse and trick worms work well, too. Some guys use a crankbait. Others creature baits. Anything goes. It's a Carolina rig. Cast, let sit for about 10 seconds, and then drag it slowly back. You are going to do two things: First, feeling the bottom for rocks, grass, wood, tires, and in New Jersey, dead bodies, etc. Second, you are actually fishing for the bass with your bait. Now, to be different, I use GLASS BEADS. Clear glass beads. I also have some "weird" beads I purchased at a bead store in order to have a different "click" from the glass and red plastic beads. Bead size is up to you, just make sure they protect the swivel knot and are not too large. Buy your beads at Joanne Fabric as they are less expensive then in a tackle shop or via the Internet and they have an excellent selection. As for color, as stated above, I use clear beads. But the glass cut reflects light better than plastic beads which is an advantage. I usually throw a green pumpkin with black flake Zoom lizard or a Junebug Zoom Trick Worm. Since you will be on the bottom in darker water you can always dye the plastic's tail in yellow JJ's Magic or another brand. So get your "heavy" rod with your baitcasting reel spooled with 20 pound test fluorocarbon line (some use mono for this presentation), a 1/2 ounce weight with a strong swivel of the size of your choice, your two glass beads and then add about 18 inches of your 12 pound leader with an EWG hook size of your choice depending on the size of your bait and start casting. Put a small spot of fast drying glue on all three knots to help protect them from coming apart. Have fun and let us know how you do.

Glass rattle tubes inside the frog. Don't think it made any difference. My H2O frogs work great without any beads or scent soaked sponge inside the body.

Dan, welcome. Stay with us and ask your questions and add your input to our posts.

Keep us in the loop. Be careful out there and keep an eye on the weather. Tight Lines!