ARTIFICAL FROGS By Ken Poor For many years I would throw an artificial frog for a few cast, every now and then, and then it went back into the storage tray. Then I started fishing with a guy that always had a frog tied on the end of a rod and he would catch bass…
COLD MUDDY WATER AND BASS By Ken Poor Over the years, I have caught many bass through the ice while ice fishing. I mention this because I have heard many people state that bass don’t bite in the winter. First let me say, in the north bass season is typically closed during the winter months,…
BANGS LAKE Lake County, Illinois By Ken Poor Great fishing opportunities are available on many of the lakes located in Northeastern Illinois. The combined effort of community groups, environmentalist, fishermen, and an increased public concern about lake water quality, has resulted in vastly improved fishing. Bangs Lake is an excellent example of quality lake management…
EARLY SEASON TRICKS AND TACTICS By Ken Poor When people put human characteristics on fish or other types of animals – Mother Nature must smile at the concept. That had to be the case recently when record setting warm weather lasted just long enough to trigger a serious case of spring fever in many northern…
SPRING PANFISH By Ken Poor All across America early spring has always been the favorite season for catching bluegills or crappie. Early spring is an exciting time to be outdoors and an even better time to be on the water catching shallow water panfish. It’s time to put away the icefishing gear and get the…
KIDS AND FISHING By Ken Poor Children love to fish, but a successful fishing trip with a child requires plenty of thought and preparation plus an abundance of patience. Children have a short attention span, typically about fifteen minutes per task, and they need action to hold their interest. Given the choice of catching one…
MUSKIE BY THE SEASON By Ken Poor SPRING Spring is finally here after a long cold winter and everything gets a new start including muskie hunters. Reels have been stripped cleaned and oiled and refilled. A few new lures have been added, and muskie hunters are ready to get out on their preferred lake and…
SLIP FLOAT SET-UP By Ken Poor Most of us got our introduction to fishing sitting on a rock or riverbank with an old bamboo pole and a red and white fixed plastic bobber. The fixed bobbers is easy to use and a good way to introduce a child to fishing. But the fixed floats have…
SPINNER BAIT BASICS FOR LARGEMOUTH BASS By Ken Poor Spinnerbaits can be bulged just below the surface, worked slowly on the bottom or slow-rolled down a deep weed edge to cover the in-between depths. They are a great lure for flipping or pitching into tight cover and they can be used to make long cast…
BASS PATTERNS AND THE STRIKE ZONE By Ken Poor Understanding the seasonal and daily movements of bass is part of the key to catching fish consistently and is called patterning. Patterning bass starts with knowing when and where the bass should be both seasonally and during different times of the day. After you develop a…
FINESSE TACTICS By Ken Poor Finesse fishing is for the most part, downsizing the lure or bait you are using and then fishing it very slow and precisely in the strike zone. Anytime you are faced with extreme seasonal weather conditions, finesse fishing should be your “go to tactic”. Certainly the hot weather during the…
CAROLINA RIG By Ken Poor The Carolina Rig is one of bass fishing’s oldest, most versatile techniques and is just as effective today as it was when it first became popular over fifty years ago. Fishermen, who have learned how to use it and understand its versatility, also know that variations of the Carolina Rig…
DOOR COUNTY TRIP REPORT DOOR COUNTY, WISCONSIN An old fishing hole revisited By Ken Poor The temperature in northern Illinois was hot and humid as I loaded the essential fishing gear into my boat, packed my duffle bag with sufficient cloths to last for a few days, and headed north to Door County, Wisconsin. After…
CLUBS AND TOURNAMENTS By Ken Poor Fishermen are, in general, a competitive group. Just about all fishing trips end with talk about who caught the biggest fish, the most fish or who had the big one on that got away. Ask any guy who has fished with his wife or girl friend and “allowed” her…
Muskies begin their spawn in late winter about the same time the ice begins to melt on the northern lakes. Ice-out normally occurs from mid-March to mid-April. The peak of the muskie spawn usually occurs from late March to early April and tapers off by mid-April. Areas where muskies spawn include heavy vegetation in the…