5 Cool Tricks with a Tube Bait

Tube Baits may be one of the best baits for catching big smallmouth and largemouth bass. Here are five simple little tricks we used this summer to put bass in the boat.

The tube can be as simple or as complicated as you want to make it. It has thousands of uses. Tactics that work for a tube include drifting, gliding, vertical jigging, flipping, pitching, dragging... You get the picture. Even with all those techniques and options it isn't without its flaws. An exposed hook on a tube jig has the potential to snag when drifting or dragging. A texas rigged tube has problems hooking a fish due to the way the tube is designed. Suspended fish won't leave their mid water position to hit a bottom dragged tube. Once again you get it.

So after a long summer of using a tube here are some tricks we used to catch bass with the tube.

Stuff your Tube Jigs with Sponge and Add Scent

Early on I was having trouble with fish biting and dropping the tube and me missing the fish while I was drifting or dragging the bait. Part of this could be me not paying attention, but lets blame the bait. I would add scent to the bait hoping to get fish to hold longer but it would disperse right away. The cure for instant dispersion was adding a chunk of sponge by running the hook through a small chunk of everyday sponge and inserting it inside the tube. I than used which ever scent I was using that day, usually Yum!, and was able to give myself a few more seconds to set the hook.

Add a Rattle

Adding a little bit of noise to your tube presentation can really improve a fishes ability to find your bait when its on the bottom crawling like a crayfish. Many manufactures right now make tube jigs that have rattles attached. My best advice with rattles is to expirement and let the bass tell you what they want. Some days were better for rattles than others.

Stroke it and Get a Reaction Strike

Somewhere around July I discovered stroking a football jig. I was getting frustrated looking down on my electronics seeing fish suspended two or three feet from the bottom and not eating my drop shot. What I found was I could stroke a football jig up into those fish and get them to react. So one day when the wind was blowing and I was drifting a hump in about 20 feet of water I noticed once again the bass were suspended at about three feet. I immediately began stroking the tube and put five fish in the boat in five casts! Stroking is no more than pulling the bait off the bottom and repeating the motion two or three time before letting it hit the bottom again. The fish react to the quick upward motion and hit it usually on the fall. Rattles really help here because when the bait lands it sets the rattles off.

Use the Tube as a Spinnerbait Skirt

I laughed when I first heard of this. I thought why would a fish ever hit this? Then one day I wanted to down size a spinnerbait and was pleasantly surprised when I used a tube to do so. The trick here is to get the tube over the head of the spinnerbait so all that is exposed is hook and tube. A good pair of bait scissors and super glue will do the job.

Cut the Bait for the Texas Rig

This summer I rarely Texas Rigged the tube since I wasn't doing a lot of flipping but a pretty cool litte trick I learned for Texas Rigging a tube was cutting a slit in the back of the tube and then Texposing the hook. See pictures below.

Those are five of my favorite Tricks to do with a Tube Bait. There are thousands of things an angler can do with these super versitile baits! What are some things you do with your tubes? Let us know in the comments and be sure to like us on Facebook!

3 Ways to Fish When You Don't Have a Bass Boat



powerboat.about.com



Bass boats are a fast, wonderful thing, but sometimes you have to get back to the basics if your boat is down or you don't have a boat. You may even get you to spots completely untouched by boat anglers. Here are three wonderful ways to do that.



bassresource.com



Kayak

The fastest of the three ways I'm going to mention to get around on the water when you aren't Bassin from a big boat is a Kayak. Kayaks can move as your arms can paddle. They can be upgraded to carry a fish finder, multiple rods, tackle and even a cooler. You won't cover as much water as you can in your Skeeter or Nitro but you might also be able to, as I said earlier, reach waters untouched. Some smallmouth infested rivers in the Western United such as the Owyhee river or the John Day (both in Oregon) are either too small for a big bass boat or have areas that don't allow motorized boats. Kayaks are a great Bassin tool to get you to some fun spots. Fishing kayaks retail anywhere from 499$ to 2000$ depending on what you want.

Float Tube



blogs.basspro.com



Much slower than a kayak because you go only as fast as your legs can kick. We at River Lakes Bassin got our Bassin start using float tubes on Ruby Lake, NV. Some of our best memories are on that body of water catching bass on top waters while deep in the back of the marshes. Most float tubes are considerably less expensive than kayaks, retailing anywhere from 89$ for your basic round tube with pockets on both sides and a rest on the back, to a pontoon style float tube with the works up to a trolling motor mount at 700$. All styles are super easy to upgrade if you can work with PVC pipe to create attachments such as rod holders, tackle holders, or fish finder bases. The only thing you need besides the tube is waders, fins and your own tackle. Find a small body of water with bass in out west with your tube and you won't be sorry.

Fish from Shore

Crazy, right? This might not be fast like the kayak or get you deep into the marshes like a tube but it might be the best afternoon Bassin you spend for other reasons. First, you can enjoy this style of Bassin with more than just a couple other people. It is a great way to introduce kids to Bassin and you can be with your family as your kids slay fish all afternoon. Second it might be a good way to spend a summer evening after work. Relax, throw a spinnerbait and just be outside for a little while catching our favorite fish. Third, you might learn something about bass like this. It's how I learned as a kid bass hang out off points and other structure.

If your boat is down or you don't own one and still have that addiction to Bassin we all have you can still get into Gods country and catch bass. I'm telling you, try one of these three methods to catch fish and you'll be very happy you did. What do you all do when you fast bass boat is down? Let us know in the comments below!

Why You Should Plan to Visit Noxon Rapids Resevoir in Montana for your Bass Fishing Getaway

One of the last places most people think of for trophy bass fishing is Montana, but maybe one of the most scenic and least heard of bass fisheries in the world is Noxon Rapids Resevoir on the Clark Fork River. Here are a few reasons why you should plan a summer vacation here.

Scenary

The thing you'll first notice when you pull into the quiet town of Trout Creek is how absolutely breathtaking the surrounding mountains are. If you were to be on the water and not catch a single bass this would be the place to do it. Noxon Rapids Resevoir itself is 30 miles long and is the result of the Noxon Rapids Dam which dams the Clark Fork River in beautiful Sanders County, MT and is part of the Kanisku National Forrest. Aside from Bassin you could spend a day kayaking, hiking or even hunting in the fall.

Affordability

Going on any fishing vacation can be an expensive undertaking. A trip to this Northwest corner of Montana may be the best bass fishing idea there is. A hotel room costs 80$ a night and a cabin on the lake is 160$ at most per night. Those prices are absolute steals in any place in the world, and this is one of the most beautiful. The lodge on the lake also does catering.

Seclusion

The town of Trout Creek has only 261 residents as of the most recent census. To get there you must travel a two lane highway from the nearest town which is Thompson Falls, MT with the nearest large airport in Missoula, MT which is 117 miles away. You may have most of the lake to yourself for a full day. That is wonderful news if you are at all familiar with the over pressured Southern California waters. You may want to look into when the next tournament is going and plan around it, which brings me to my next and final point.

The Bassin is Phenomenal

Montana is much better known for it's fly fishing. Most people and myself included would not have thought Montana even had bass outside of maybe Fort Peck Resevoir. Well this is THE Bassin resevoir in Montana hosting at least eight bass fishing tournaments in 2014 by various clubs and well known Bassin tours such as the American Bass Association and BASS Nation.

If you are wanting a Bassin vacation that is beautiful, good fishing and easy on the wallet you should certainly look into Noxon Rapids Resevoir and Trout Creek, MT. I am certain you won't be sorry!

River Lakes Bassin is Expanding!

We at River Lakes Bassin want to grow to bring you information on more than just the Colorado River Lakes. Here are a few ways we plan to expand!

More Reviews from Different Lakes and River Systems in the Western United States

The Western United States is full of outstanding bass fisheries. Our home river system is just one of the systems we fish. We intend to start hitting more lakes and rivers in the west and giving you the report from each one.

Gear Reviews

We anglers need the best gear at a reasonable price. We at River Lakes Bassin want you to be informed as to what is out there and how it works. All brands and equipment.

News

We plan to cover everything from tournaments, Aquatic Invasive Species, State Wildlife Regulations and Departments to people catching big fish! If its news in the world of wester bass fishing we will cover it!

Tackle, Gear and Swag

Here comes the part I am most excited about! In January we will be implementing an on-line store. We will be producing our own line of jigs to start and growing from there. We also plan to start working with different bait and lure manufactures to provide you with their products as well. We will also be featuring our own line of apparel so you can show the world how much you love River Lakes Bassin.

So starting in January big things are coming! Please keep checking back with us to see whats happening!

Missile Baits Fuse 4.4 Product Review



Fuse 4.4 with claws died chartreuse

 The One Constant Producer of Decent Smallmouth and Largemouth Bass This Summer for me was the Drop Shot Rig and the Missile Baits Fuse 4.4 was the Bait on my hook. Here is why!

Great Representation of the Crawdad

The first thing you will notice when you pull out your Fuse 4.4 to put it on your hook is the two claws hanging off the back. I thought this gave a very realistic look of a small crawfish in the water. Our lakes are very clear on the Colorado River and getting that bait to match the crawfish that the largemouth and smallmouth are feeding on during the mid summer heat is critical and I think Missile Baits hit the nail on the head here.

Great Subtle Action

Any slight movement of the line or rod tip made these little claws come to life without over doing it. I figure most bait down at the bottom of a lake isn't whipping around under the water violently. They move slowly and keep their claws at the ready for any predator that comes by. To get an even better subtle action I used a VMC Ike Approved Wide Gap Spin-Shot hooks in 3/0 and 2/0. I used 2/0 when I cut some of the bait off at the tail if I decided to downsize on days when the bass could get extra fussy. Another way to bring out the great subtle action of the bait was to flip it around and run the hook through the nose. This way I had both ends wiggling.

The Colors are Awesome

Early on in the year I was using a 4 inch Luck-E-Strike Finesse Worm in Watermelon Red-Flake to catch bass on my drop shot and was having a good amount of success with that color. After losing them all as will happen to plastics in bass fishing I could no longer find that style of worm. When I discovered the Fuse 4.4 they had watermelon red flake! Since then it has been my go to color on sunny days. Other colors I've used are Green Pumpkin Red and Green Beret. Varying colors throughout the day or on overcast days was key.

The other thing I did with the Fuse 4.4 was died the claws chartreuse. Somedays it worked better than others but it worked especially well for smallmouth on overcast days.

All summer long the Fuse 4.4 put bass in my boat! It's incredibly soft and easy to use. I feel like there is a color for every situation. Let me know if you have used this bait with any success in the comments below!

4 Reasons Why Fall in Nevada is the Best Time of the Year



hotspotsarizona.com



It's a great time of year to be on the water bass fishing in Southern Nevada on our beautiful River Lakes! Here's Why!

The Fish are Fattening up for Winter

In fall as all anglers know the shad move to shallower water which means the bass are following them to feed up. This means you get to put your finesse rigs back in the rod locker and start throwing baits that move fast in the water like crankbaits, spinnerbaits, jerkbaits, and even topwaters so long as they represent shad.

The Pleasure Boaters Have Gone Home for the Winter

This is especially good news if you like having the lake to yourself or sharing it with the other bassers on the lake. It's truly a wonderful thing that happens in the fall. The water cools off and everyone in a ski boat puts it up until June. The ramp is no longer crowded. The campgrounds are empty. You get to experience the lake as God intended!

The Weather has Cooled Off

This in itself is reason to get to your favorite River Lake. You can have a fire at camp, wear a sweatshirt and not sweat all day while trying to find fish. In fact a day on the lake in fall is downright pleasant!

Let's Not Forget it's Also Hunting Season

Southern Nevada and Nevada in general has some amazing hunting. Around the River Lakes but not on the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, the Nevada Department of Wildlife has established "guzzlers" for the various upland game species in the area. Dove, Rabbits and Quail all use these structures to drink water and will remain close to them through out the year. Well if you want to get off the water and see more of Nevada, grab your shotgun and go look for these species! Check your Nevada hunting regulations for various rules and don't forget to have your upland game license!

So there is just a few of the reasons why you should get out on the water or near the River Lakes this season! Tell us what you think of Fall in Nevada!

3 Reasons You Should Help us Support Fish Habitat Enhancement on Lake Mohave

The Lake Mohave Habitat Enhancement Project is a project that started in 2007 in four different coves throughout Lake Mohave. (Carp, Box, Shoshone and Arrowhead) Since that time the Nevada Department of Wildlife, the Arizona Department of Fish and Game and Lake Mead National Recreational Area Personell have expanded the project to four new coves. (Solicitor, Bass, Princess and Prospect)

The project consists of placing different fish structure on the bottom on the lake to provide habitat for the bass, sunfish, bluegill and catfish within Lake Mohave. Structure consists of PVC structure, Brush Bundles and A-Frame pallets (no longer used). Personell are also working on new habitat types. By all accounts fish are really utilizing this structure and from personal experience it has really provided excellent fishing for both Largemouth and Smallmouth bass. In my opinion this is due to the fact that these structures attract bluegill and green sunfish which bass feed on.

This is not a widely known about project outside of our little area in the world and I would like to highlight 5 of the reasons you should help this project continue its work.

1. This Project Helps you Catch Fish

Every person in the world wants to know whats in it for them. Well you as angler that either regularly fishes Lake Mohave and the River Lakes or vacations to these wonderful fisheries can rest assured that these fish structures improve fishing for all species within the lake. They provide cover and protection for prey species that bass feed on through out the year. So even when fish move deep off shore, you can still find quite a few bass on these structures ready to feed.

2.Increases Healthy Fish Populations

This project, I believe, is the next best thing to simply practicing catch and release for healthy, strong fish populations. Bass need the right amount of cover to maintain healthy populations and to increase in size. Lake Mohave has a shortage of deep cover and by providing that for the fish the agencies above have helped increase healthy, strong fish that you and I can use for years to come.

3. Supporting Wildlife Takes Burden Away from Tax-Payers

If you are anything like me you hate that your tax-payer dollars go towards odd projects that don't really effect you anyway. I feel in order to keep this project going we need to make charitable donations to it so someday it is not shut down due to tax-payers not wanting to fund it. Let's face it. We are not all outdoor enthusiasts like it or not and many people may not want to pay for it. With your support the above agencies can continue to work on these projects.

How can you help?

We at River Lakes Bassin have started a T-shirt campaign over at this link Catch and Release or River Lakes These shirt campaigns are only available for a short time so get in and help now. 50% of all sales profits will go to the appropriate agencies to ensure the Lake Mohave Habitat Enhancement Project continues for a long time!

The Fluorocarbon-Braid Connection

Alamo Lake Arizona

My favorite lake to be on is Lake Mohave. My wife loves it, the dogs love it and the bass fishing is great. But what happens when the government shuts down? Obviously a giant lake in NV should shut down with it right? No It's a lake! Why wouldn't that be public land. Well, it shut down so my wife and I grabbed the dogs and headed for AZ. Alamo Lake specifically. We went two different weekends but there wasn't too much action so I am just going to write about both weekends in one post. We liked the camp grounds a lot but the feral burros everywhere were very loud and obnoxious. Also, they shit. Everywhere. The coyotes were everywhere too. We woke up one morning with one standing and howling right on the other side of our tent wall. It was frightening but at the same time, just a coyote. I was just thankful we didn't have the dogs tied up outside or something. They were also cool to see when we were on the water. Even though they were feral burros and coyotes, wildlife is always cool to see. There was also a tarantula in our campground which did not sit well with my wife. At all. That all being said, the campgrounds were very nice. They were very clean and the people camped near us were all very friendly. We were a ways from the water but it was alright. We had a lot of fun hiking up into the cactus forrest. 

The boys just not doing their part in setting up!

Camp is set-up!

Our shade in the desert.

The road by our camp site. Lots of cacti out there!

Feral Burros

Feral Burros

Little tarantula that found home in our shade. 

Once we got out onto the water we started doing some bassin! The bass bite was not as good as I was told it would be. The water was murky and I couldn't get a bite. Finally we threw in some worms on bobbers and started catching fish! No the ones I had hoped but fun none the less!

Catfish I caught!

Turtle my wife caught!

Crappie my wife caught!

Finally that bite died down a bit and we started bassing! I caught some good fish. Nothing too big but I was still proud and having a blast!

Large Mouth Bassin!

Pretty good size large mouth!

Another good bass!

I didn't catch as many as I probably could if I went back now but I didn't do too bad! I know Rogue had a blast!

Captain of the boat! 

Always so noble!

I think his favorite part though was sunbathing with my wife.

Soaking up the sun one ray at a time

Passed out!

At night camping we love going back to the campground and playing cards, listening to music and drinking highballs. It's a great way to come off the water.

A little game night with the family

They cheat, I know it.

Too tired to hang

Good luck!

One night we were out catfishing until just after the sun went down. We decided to go in and play some cards. It had been a long day. We packed everything up and just as we were leaving the wind started to pick up. It was pitch black and we were a ways away from the dock. We had a spot light but it wasn't doing much. We still couldn't see where we were going. The wind was so bad the waves were crashing over the sides and into the boat. Then the rain started! As if the spray of the muddy lake in our faces wasn't enough. Were soaked, cold and pretty much lost. We couldn't find the dock for the life of us. It was so dark outside and the dock didn't have any lights on it. We drove for awhile and then starting getting into the sunken trees.

Not so good for a propeller. 

Thank God we didn't bust the prop. We would not have a bass boat to this day had we. We got turned back around and out of the trees from there we were able to get to the dock. I went to get the truck and my wife stayed to hold the boat that was crashing into the dock at every wave. After I backed the truck down I hopped out to help guide the boat onto the trailer which seemed impossible with the waves. We got it on enough to where I could pull out and my wife could hold it straight. 

I ran back to the truck. The doors were all locked. Our little beagle had stepped on the lock button. I was so furious and ready to be done I was looking for a rock to crush the window. My wife saw this and quickly stopped me. I took over holding the boat and she ran over to the window and her pup saw her and came running over all excited like and stepped on the window and rolled it down. We finally got the boat out of the water and back to camp. The wind blew so hard all night I didn't think our camp would still be there when I woke up. 

The next day the wind was still blowing pretty bad. I was going to be stubborn though. I drove 4 hours to get there and I was going to do some more bassin! We put the trailer in the water and my wife asked if I had remembered to put the plug in as she always does. I had not. I grabbed the plug and ran into the water to the back of the boat. I was in about waist deep. I reached in and dropped the plug. Between the wind, the murky water and me stomping around there was no finding that plug. We pulled the boat back out quickly and she told me that was a sign. We headed home as God did not want us on the water that weekend he got his wish. 

All in all it was a good couple of trips there. My wife and I had fun. We always have adventures and at the end of it all we always laugh! 

I wouldn't give those weekends back for nothing!

Thanks for reading!

More feral asses

Feral Mules

The Top 5 Baits on Lake Mohave for 2013

As I prepare for my 2014 bassin, I want to discuss the top five baits that I caught most of my bass on in 2013. Now, this is from my own personal experience on this lake and I invite anyone wanting to put their two cents in to please do so and include their friends in on the conversation. 

 5. The 4" Senko.

Simple but effective

One of my favorite baits in any water. They really shine in the clear waters of Lake Mohave. You nearly have to do nothing with this bait and it will catch both Largemouth and Smallmouth. The best time I found for this little gem was right after the post spawn period. I would cast to where I thought the fish were and just let it sink. Thats it! After it hit the bottom I wouldn't twitch it for at least 3 minutes. I just waited for the tell tale tap tap that was a bass eating it up!

I usually rigged it texas style as that kept it from hooking on the rocks at the bottom. Sometimes I would wacky rig with an O-ring, but I would mostly use a 3/0 worm hook.

4. The Suspending Jerkbait

Rapala X-Rap

      

This bait was money on days when the wind was blowing or in general the fish weren't committing to anything we were throwing.  Twitch, Twitch, Twitch, Pause. The pause part was the key to getting hit. We would sometimes have to pause for up to three minutes before twitching the bait again. With me being totally A.D.H.D it was the hardest part, but it paid off. My favorite jerkbait was the Storm Twitch Stick. I thought it matched the size of the Threadfin Shad that are a prime target of bass in Lake Mohave. 


3.  Roboworm Drop Shot

Some Color Options

When the bass go deep in western lakes the drop shot is the go to rig for every angler on the river lakes.  We usually fished them vertically but had some success casting them and slowly dragging them back to the boat.  Pink was the best color, but we also used several other colors.  The straight tail was best for the vertical presentation and if we were dragging we'd use the curly tail version. 

2.  Tube Bait

A Small Mouth Favorite

Kind of a no brainer on the river lakes and any lake that has a great population of Smallmouth bass such as Lake Mohave, Lake Mead and Lake Havasu.  Using it on a tube jig and dragging the bottom was the best way to use a tube bait, but we also used it to pitch to rip rap and along bluff walls, in which case we would texas rig them.  Most colors would work, but red and green were my go to colors. 

1. Rapala Scatter Rap 

Evasive Action Is Awesome!

  

What an amazing bait!!!  This was my number one search bait through out the summer and fall.  The evasive action of this bait was magical!  I would watch a bass hit it and could see three or four of his buddies following it back to the boat with him.  Bluegill color was my favorite and I think the fish liked it too.  The best way to retrieve it was slowly then add a really quick turn or two to the reel just to make the fish react to its evasive action.  

I have always been a huge fan of Rapala and I think they nailed it with this lure!

Thanks for stopping by and reading!  I would love to hear from the readers of this blog about the baits they used throughout the year to catch bass on the our beautiful Colorado River Lakes.