Westernbass Magazine August 2011, Page 10

Westernbass Magazine August 2011, Page 10

iGNore The myThS

T 1 IG he n m o y r Th e S

aboutclearwaterfishing

I

t never hurts to consider certain “rules” for

bass fishing. By that i mean unless you actually

have a photographic memory, having certain

angling guidelines make it possible to act on a lot of accumulated experiences from others in order

to get to the crux of the right presentations.

By the same token, we can never take these

agreed-upon concepts so literally they actually

become part of a reality that doesn’t universally exist.

Just because certain ideas (that have been around a

long time or have suddenly popped up) are repeated,

doesn’t mean they are necessarily factual in every

case. For that reason, it is not a great leap of logic to

presume that if something is not actual, then maybe

it’s really mythical. and if that’s the case, we don’t

want to paint ourselves into a corner where we miss

the bite because we stubbornly held onto ideas that

don’t deliver.

When it comes to clear water bass fishing, and

that’s pretty common in the deeper reservoirs in the

West, including those along the Colorado river, i find

10

By George Kramer

there are three common myths that anglers tend to hold on to—sometimes a little too long. Those would be the presumed necessity for small baits, that long casts are mandatory, and that you must switch to fluorocarbon lines.

MYTH #1 You need To fisH sMall baiTs

one of the oldest myths out there is that somehow clear water demands small baits. The worry was the clearer the water, the easier it is for bass to “see” your offering: view the details, discern the sculpting and paint job, and better compare it to the real thing. While seemingly a reasonable assessment, what does that say about the effectiveness of the 13-inch plastic worm or 9-inch swimbaits in certain clear water impoundments?

The answer probably lies in the general Western acknowledgement that many older, clear water lakes