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Nighttime
Muskie
By Ted Takasaki and Scott Richardson
Muskie fishing is heart-stopping in the best of times. The chance for a
true monster waits on every cast.
But imagine adding darkness and the quiet of a summer night to the scene.
Other senses compensate when eyes can’t help. Ears focus on the
“sputter, sputter, sputter” of a topwater’s prop slicing the
surface. |

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On
The Move For Summer Crappie
by Mike Frisch
Crappie are a very popular target in many areas during the spring. At this
time, these fish move shallow to feed and also, a bit later, to spawn.
After that time, however, these fish take a back seat to other fish
species in some places. That's probably a mistake because crappie
can be a fun species to pursue during the summer season as well. |
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The sense of touch magnifies every vibration of a big spinner
blade or two churning the water. You make a figure eight. The
surface explodes at boatside. You can’t see it. You just hear a crash;
you feel the water splash all around and you connect to the throbbing
power of an angry ‘ski at the other end of the line.
No other fishing thrill can match it. It’s heart attack time. |
Here's
a look at ways to target these scrappy panfish after their early season
runs to the shallows. Crappie are often found in shallow bays and
other backwater areas after winter's ice is gone. Once they've completed
their spawning ritual, these fish often head back to main lake areas and
deeper water. One place that they congregate in the summer in natural
lakes is along deep weedlines. |
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Dancing
With The Fishes, Jitterbug Style
By Ron Kruger
It’s about as old as "plugging" for bass, and the crazy dance
for which it was named..
Jitterbug is a clever name for a venerable lure first offered back in 1939
by Fred Arbogast, and unlike the thousands of lures that have come and
gone since then, they’re still making them, |

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Mowin’
The Lawn For Bass
Chop Up The Grass For More Big Bass
By Colby Simms with Ray Simms and Jim Lyle
Throughout all of the warm-water season, bass can be found utilizing
aquatic vegetation in every body of water where it’s present. Most
waters have at least one type of vegetation, while many of them have
numerous types. |
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and
you can still find them on most tackle shelves.
That’s because this unique bait with its crazy dance across the surface
still catches bass as well as anything, especially at night and especially
on ponds.
The term "jitterbug" was popularized by band leader Cab Calloway
during the early 20th century to describe the wild and crazy antics of
swing era dancers who gyrated across the dance floor in ways never seen
before. By the 1930s, jitterbugging was a "hep-cat" craze that
swept the country. This was about the time Fred Arbogast started whittling
wood with bass in mind. |
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Even
the few bodies of water than don’t have any aquatic weeds or grasses
growing in the lake, will experience times when the bass population will
inhabit flooded vegetation, when the lake level rises above normal.
Various grasses and weeds are tremendous places for bass to hold and feed.
They provide security from other predators, shade from the sun, and an
ambush point from which to attack baitfish and other prey items.
Vegetation also produces oxygen when it’s warm and sunny, and bass, as
well as their prey, find the higher oxygen levels attractive too. |
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