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5/08/2001
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Article/Press
Release
Sloppiness
and Leech Lake BASS
By Dan Craven
Leech
Lake Guide Coalition
Fortunately
for the bass and unfortunately for us, most largemouth fishing on
Leech Lake takes place in extremely heavy cover.
This makes for a healthy bass population, but some difficult
fishing if you don’t possess the right equipment.
This article focuses on “putting it all together” to help
you catch bucketmouths on Leech Lake.
 Largemouth
Bass are an extremely adaptable fish.
They are found all over the fruited plains, thriving in
ponds, lakes, reservoirs and rivers.
As well, bass can inhabit a wide range of covers and depths.
As a largemouth bass lake, Leech Lake is quite unique.
Many of the areas that hold bass are quite a distant from one
another. Prime
bass-holding sections are often miles apart.
Particular
areas that hold bass are: Steamboat Bay, Sucker Bay, Moonlight Bay,
east flank of Bear Island (Boy Bay and Headquarters Bay), Waboose
Bay, Federal Dam Canal, Kabekona Bay, the Narrows and Shingobee Bay.
Other areas of the lake do hold some bass, but these are the
key locations.
Small
areas within the aforementioned bays hold the majority of the bass.
For instance, Sucker Bay is massive and the bay as a whole
doesn’t support widespread populations of bass - only a small
percentage of Sucker Bay is productive....
In
Leech Lake the bass are very particular about their surroundings.
Most of the bass live in heavy cover and in quite shallow
water. In most northern
lakes, bass are caught in deep water.
This is rarely the case on Leech Lake.
Ninety percent of the bass come from water less than five
feet deep, and usually shallower than three feet.
Many bass over four pounds seldom frequent water deeper than
two feet! So, as a
rule, shallower is better....
Cover
is extremely important to bass.
The Leech Lake area is blessed with an abundance of bald
eagles, osprey, blue herons and many other types of avian predators,
all of which feed on young largemouth bass, so the fish adapt and
live most comfortably in heavy cover.
Wild
rice, canary grass (flags
– the stuff duck hunters hide in), pencil reeds and various sloppy
aquatic plants are where Leech’s bass live and feed.
You need to fish in and along the edges of heavy cover.
Specific areas, even though the whole area appears the same,
produce most of the fish. After
finding one of these “spot on the spots”, stick it in your
memory bank, because bass will frequent the same areas year after
year.
Special
equipment is necessary for pulling bass from Leech’s heavy cover.
Light line, wimpy poles, and insufficient reels do nothing
but frustrate fisherman and leave bass with lures dangling from
their mouths. As a
rule, twenty-pound test line is a minimum.
I generally use twenty-pound Berkley XT and up to fifty-pound
test Fireline. Six and a half-foot to eight-foot, heavy action rods are
standard equipment. A
lighter, muskie bucktail rod is not too heavy for this type of
fishing.
Reels
such as Abu Garcia’s 5500 or a Shimano Calcutta are worthy.
A reel must hold plenty of line and cast half-ounce lures up
to 40 yards. Larger
spinning combos will work, but they don’t afford the same leverage
as baitcasting gear.
Lures
need be “weed-free”, or as close as possible.
Wild rice is wonderful for cover, but it is a buggar to work
lures through. Weedless
spoons such as Northland’s Jawbreaker are right for the job.
They can be thrown a long ways (heavy for their size) and
they still hook well. Other
spoons to consider are the Moss Boss, Barney Spoon, and WeedWalker.
Floating rubber lures such as “mice”, “rats” or
“frogs” (Super Frog, Scum Frog, Scum Rat and the Ghost) are
excellent for catching fish where little else can be fished.
Spinner
baits, such as Northland’s Reed Runner, are great for fishing
reeds, cane, and rice edges. Living
rubber tail jigs, such as a Stanley’s or Northland Jungle Jig with
trailer, are the best at times.
Throw your jig about 15 feet in the air and let it “plop”
down in the heaviest of cover.
Sound attracts hawgs in the slop; use it to your advantage.
Interestingly
enough, slop fishing is frequently most productive on the hottest,
flattest days when many Leech Lake fish are “off”.
Give Leech’s bass a whirl.
The fish are large and full of spunk.
And as always, practice catch and release.
Did
you remember the camera?
Dan
Craven is a professional guide with the Leech
Lake Guide Coalition. The
coalition, which is based in Walker, MN, offers guided expeditions
for walleyes, muskies, jumbo perch, largemouth bass, northern pike
and panfish. They can
be reached at 218-547-3212.
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