I hope everyone enjoyed on Veterans Day and would like to thank all of those who served or are currently serving.

Being a veteran myself, some of my toughest times spent away from home were made easier by thoughts and dreams of fishing.

One of the longest fishless stretches in my life came while spending two years in Germany. Once stateside, the post where I was stationed actually had fishing ponds that the Army kept stocked with trout during the cooler months.

One pond that I still think about today was located right outside the Officers Club. Being part of the honor guard, we often visited the Officers Club to present the colors for whatever function they had.

Our downtime in between retrieving the colors from the dining hall was usually spent sitting around the pond. There was a bass in that pond that would swim just below the surface like if it were waiting to be fed by someone.

The bass was easily over 8 pounds, and at that time in my life it was the biggest bass I had ever seen.

I had planned many times after to attempt to catch that fish, but the situation was never right. Plus, the Officers Club was definitely not the place for an enlisted soldier to be hanging out.

Thinking back, I’m glad that I left that fish alone and often wonder how big that fish really was. I’m sure that fish is long gone by now, but the memory will surely last forever.

The tough bite continues for largemouth bass fishermen. Striped bass are really starting to bite on the outgoing tide.

Anglers fishing for stripers are jigging 1-ounce Hopkins jigs, trolling broken back rebels, or drifting live bait. Remember, the limit is two striped bass per person per day, and they must be over 18 inches long.

Largemouth bass are still being caught on reaction baits but the bigger fish continue to elude anglers.

Fishing the outside edges of deep weed lines are good areas to try right now. Bluegills continue to bite while fishing baby night crawlers off the bottom.

A lot of nice sized bluegill are being caught while fishing around the docks at Paradise Point.

The trout bite has begun to pick up anglers fishing off the bank anglers are starting to report good catches while using power bait.

Trolling for trout continues to be slow but should start picking up shortly as the water temperature continues to drop. Bass fishing is very good for smaller fish.

The larger bass are likely to be following the trout up shallow, this time last year anglers were catching big fish while tossing swim baits around main lake points.

New Hogan Lake
Bass fishing continues to be good for anglers fishing jigs and worms down to 40 feet.

Fish are really starting to gorge themselves as they prepare for the winter ahead. Reaction baits are most effective while fishing wind blown points.

When I first started fishing I would never change my line until it started to break. Since then, I learned that line changes are necessary, especially when faced with different water conditions.

When fishing stained dirty water you can get away with a heavier thicker line.

When fishing a lake where you can see more than 10 feet down, it’s recommended that you switch to a smaller diameter line less visible line.

Twenty-pound test may seem small to some but it’s very visible in clearer water. Thicker line also gives off more vibration, as water cannot pass through it. Lighter line cast further, is less visible, and more sensitive.     
 
To contact Jarod Ballardo, e-mail jgbbass@yahoo.com.