Big bass are doing their thing on the bend

“Grandpa Griff taught my dad and I how to bass fish,” said 15-year old Kegan Griffin, “so I thought he was going to be really excited when I called to tell him that I caught a big bass Saturday morning. I guess I shouldn’t have told him about the white perch!”

Kegan was cranking a crawfish colored three-quarter ounce trap over the top of scattered grass in Buck Creek on Toledo Bend when a 9-pound 14 ounce largemouth ambushed it in about eight feet of water.“I was okay until she jumped,” said Kegan, “and then I just lost it. Some guy was hollering that it was the biggest bass he had ever seen and I didn’t know if I was reelin’ frontwards or backwards!”

Convinced that it had to weigh at least ten-pounds, he put her in the livewell and continued fishing.“I would have gone in right then, but we got to the camp late Friday night and I knew everyone was still sleeping,” stated the youngster.“I caught only one more small bass, but I also caught eight big crappie that hit the same Trap before I just had to go find out how much my bass weighed.”

He said that his Dad told him that it wasn’t a double-digit fish as soon as he pulled it out of the livewell. “He weighed her on three different sets of scales including our bathroom scales,” said his Dad, “but she just wouldn’t quite make the 10-pound mark.”

After taking pictures and releasing the fish, Kegan immediately called his Grandpa Griff. “He sounded surprised and said he was happy for me, but he got more excited when I told him about the white perch. ”Kegan’s Dad just laughed while listening to his son and winked with a measure of obvious pride before adding, “My Dad is 83 and his best bass fishing days are behind him, but he’d walk to Toledo Bend to catch a mess of white perch.”

The phenomenal run on mega-bass on Falcon has captured the attention of every bass fisherman in the state, but over the past two weeks Toledo Bend has turned a few heads as well. The 14.6-pound bass caught a week ago in the Bass-n-Bucks tournament may well be the fish of the year on the sprawling impoundment, but the same weekend three more 11’s and two 9’s were taken on the south end of the lake alone.

Unlike years ago, most of the really big bass caught today are quickly weighed, photographed and released so there is no way of knowing how many fish over nine-pounds were caught in February alone. I have received an incredible number of pictures via e-mail lately and it seemed like everyone at the Houston Fishing Show had a picture of a big bass on their cell phone.

I am not at all surprised by the number of lunkers falling victim to Rat-L-Traps and slow rolled spinnerbaits, but the Whacky worm has already fooled its share of good fish as well. The unseasonably warmer surface temperatures and a rising lake have lured the big females into shallower water making them much more susceptible to the slower sinking plastic.

Kegan’s Grandpa Griff apparently recognized the significance of those white perch that Kegan caught while fishing a Trap in shallow water. Last year was a banner year for crappie on The Bend and it looks like they may already be headed for the shallows as well. When they start whacking away at spinnerbaits and Traps they are generally in a pre-spawn mode.

I talked briefly with Jonathan Simon last week and he said that he is going to kick off both the afternoon series as well as the Saturday tourneys on the river later this month. For more information I would suggest dropping by Simon Outfitters on MacArthur Drive. They have entry forms as well as most everything it takes to fool a bass on hand.

The S.A.L.T. club will also host their annual membership meeting at the Yacht basin on Pleasure Island Sunday the 11th from noon until 2 p.m. The club is family oriented and hosts monthly tournaments as well as the big Memorial Day tournament each year. Gumbo and cold drinks will be served and anything and everything they cook is always good!

Doug Patterson says the Men’s Ministry at the First Baptist Church is already busy preparing for their annual wild game dinner on the 24th. This, too, is a family oriented event that draws a big crowd of local outdoors enthusiasts every year. They have drawings for some great door prizes, guest speakers and basically just enjoy a leisurely afternoon talking hunting and fishing. They also turn wild critters into entrees that will have you coming back for seconds and thirds. I will have more information a little later.

Daley’s Hunt N Fish is hosting a team trout tournament on the 31st .I will have all the particulars next week, but I do know that it is going to pay well and the entry fee is only $100 per team. Because the two fish limit can include only one trout over 25-inches, you can opt to fish it alone and still have an equal chance to win. The weigh-in site and headquarters will be at the store on Jade Avenue in Pt. Acres.