By Andrew Ragas The stage is set for early fall. Big bass bonanzas are on the minds of anglers who are planning late season smallmouth trips. Upon making final arrangements and departure, a week of incoming warming weather is on the long-range forecast. Water temperatures that should be cooling into the upper 50’s for high’s

By Andrew Ragas September is a month of transition and changing of seasons. With shortening daylight and colder nights, the entire food chain reacts and acclimates to these changes. On many clear water fisheries with sand bottom composition, trophy smallmouth return the shallows where they are most comfortable in cooling waters, and roam sand beaches.

Andrew Ragas It’s early May, and we’re just a few days removed from Wisconsin’s gamefish season opener. The snow banks and memories winter left behind are yet to melt, ice-out on many northwoods lakes is only starting, and fish haven’t woken up from their winter slumber. The anticipated future forecast for the month is cold,

The most popular weekend pastimes of autumn are Sunday football and hunting. While majority of fishermen have already winterized their boats, the most serious anglers remain on water, utilizing the fall season for targeting their biggest fish of the year.

By Andrew Ragas Fall fishing success is usually determined by location rather than presentation. Lake smallmouth are deep structurally oriented fish in fall. By now 90% of the entire lake’s bass population is living in 10% of the lake, in and around wintering locations. The best peak period of autumn occurs after the completion of

By Andrew Ragas During summer’s dog days, some anglers give up on smallmouth bass. Others, meanwhile, are too stubborn to change their fishing ways. “I’m a shallow water guy,” boasted the angler launching his $80k rig before me one morning last August. “If I can’t catch them beating the bank, I’m probably not going to