Category: Articles
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Top Smallmouth Bass Baits of 2016
By Andrew Ragas At the end of every season, I reveal the secret baits that caught the most fish for me. Now that my 2016 bass fishing season has concluded, we glance back at the dominating baits and presentations that screamed success for big fish. Revisiting the old standbys, and revealing some new.
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A Compendium of Chicago Muskie History
By Andrew Ragas Most anglers observe fishing history through the words of those who’ve recorded and documented their catches for story-telling purposes and fame. Muskies living nearby, and being caught from waters around the Chicago urban area are all worthy of coverage and a big deal to the regional fishing market. Muskie fishing around Chicago…
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Late Fall Multi-Species Piscifun and Early Winter Muskies
By Andrew Ragas I’m afraid to report that the end of 2016 open water fishing is nearing an end for me. It’s Sunday December 4th, and I’m currently getting dumped on by three or more inches of snow. When I’m back south in northern Illinois for the winter months, I tend to not bother with…
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Is Social Media Ruining Fishing Spots?
By Andrew Ragas Last month, my friend and old Fishing-Headquarters Online Magazine colleague and contributor, Jim Gronaw, wrote an insightful column pondering whether Facebook is ruining fishing. You can read it here. Though the online super-site is an integral tool for networking, information gathering and education, it can be negative on fisheries. The disheartening realities…
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No Politics About Catching November River Walleyes
By Andrew Ragas In many large Midwest river systems, walleyes are a prime target during the fall and early winter months. What most of the angling population keeps forgetting about is that small to medium size Midwest rivers are populated with large numbers of unmolested, unexploited walleyes that are only accessed by anglers suited up…
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Spring Bass Fishing on Waters That Warm Fastest
By Andrew Ragas Spring bass fishing has always been personally challenging, engaging, and exciting for myself and guests throughout the years. More heavyweights tipping the scales between 4 and 8 lbs. are caught and released in May and early June than most months combined. Catching them consistently however, isn’t easy. While their movements from ice…
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Early-Season Jerkbait Bass
By Steve Pennaz This past February, on a bitter cold morning better suited for hot coffee and a roaring fire, I met Elite BASS Pro Chad Grigsby at a just-opened Perkins to outline our plans for taping an episode of “Lake Commandos.”
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Tips for Catching More Smallmouths This Season
By Andrew Ragas With ice fishing coming to a close, there’s no better time to begin preparing for this year’s open water season, and evaluating bass fishing expectations. As a new season approaches, I often analyze my performance from the previous year, and review techniques and strategies that worked and didn’t work, and build upon…
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Some Fishermen Have No Problem Stealing Spots
By Bob Hodge Marc Cooper has become a bit of a prospector over the past two years, but he’s not looking for gold nuggets or trying to uncover the next Comstock Load. He’s prospecting for trophy blue catfish.
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Smallmouth Bass Outside of the Box Presentations
By Andrew Ragas Regardless of how much we know about bass fishing, and the methods we employ to catch smallmouth, the tackle industry and the world of bass fishing continues to evolve. The status quo and modern mainstream techniques rule the minds of bass anglers. As new techniques and product introductions gain momentum and popularity,…