Hennepin Canal Report – March 14

Posted on by Troy Jackson

And off we go with the first fishing report of 2025. With extreme winds and less than two hours of daylight, I opted to do a bike and hike attack on a reliable stretch and was rewarded as The Hennepin Canal came through with my first two bass of the year.

5:54pm – First bass of 2025 weighing 1-8 (15″) on a chatterbait

Stats
Date: March 14
Location: Hennepin Canal
Time: 5:50pm-7:10pm
Totals: 2 bass
Weather: Partly cloudy/very windy, 80F
Water temperature: Not available
Lures: Z-Man Chatterbait (white) with a Yamamoto Zako trailer (Tennessee Shad) – 2 bass
Top Bass: 1-11 Chatterbait
Top 2 Weight (only two at 12” or better): 3-3 (1-11,1-8)

Starting lienup for the trip

Tune of the Trip
My Girl (Gone, Gone, Gone) – Chilliwack (1981)

Winning lure  – ZMan Chatterbait

 

Notes and Nonsense

Bass #1 – Three casts into the evening and within casting distance of my truck I was on the board. The bass hit as I ran a chatterbait parallel to a submerged log, a textbook catch. It’s cool when it works out that way and I thought that I was really going to knock them dead as there were plenty more logs to target on my trek. One odd aspect of the first catch of the year was failing to take a picture. I guess that I was so excited to land the fish that it completely slipped my mind. Fortunately, I had the GoPro running so there is video proof that allowed me to grab the screenshot above.

6:28pm – Second bass of the year weighing 1-11 (15.5″) on a chatterbait

Bass # 2 – It took just over thirty-five minutes and half a dozen more logs before I was able to find another bite. This one came from a collection of submerged logs on a spot that is an annual winner.

New Rods – I picked up a pair of Berkley Shock rods this winter upon finding them marked down from $52 to $21 at a local store. Both are 6’6” with one being a medium heavy casting rod and the other a medium spinning rod. As I pondered the purchases and inspected the rods, I was not completely sold on the feel and action, but it is always tough without a reel or being able to make some casts. It took me two trips to the store before I committed to the purchases, and I am pleased with results. The casting rod feels good with a chatterbait and landed the first two bass of the year. I have yet to give the spinning rod much of a workout so time will tell.

Trip #1 – In the interest of transparency, the March 14 trip was my second time on the water. On March 2, I took a bike ride on the same stretch of The Canal and wound up getting shut out during an hour and a half of casting.

Sketchy weather and a wild few weeks of work on the horizon are likely to limit my opportunities to get on the water. At least I accomplished my annual goal of landing my first bass in March. We will see what the next dozen days hold in store to see if any more March bass will show up in the fishing log. Talk to you later. Troy

Top 5 Update

Posted on by Troy Jackson

We are off and running with another year of the Top 5 project courtesy of a pair of catches from the Hennepin Canal.

Weight: 1-8
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: March 14
Weather: Overcast/very windy, 80F
Location: Hennepin Canal
Lure: Z-Man chatterbait (white) with Yamamoto Zako trailer (Tennessee shad)
Structure: Submerged logs
Angler Comments: My third cast of the trip resulted in my first bass of the year, and it was large enough to kick off my Top 5 as a bonus.

Weight: 1-11
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: March 14
Weather: Overcast/very windy, 80F
Location: Hennepin Canal
Lure: Z-Man chatterbait (white) with Yamamoto Zako trailer (Tennessee shad)
Structure: Submerged logs
Angler Comments: It took several casts at varying angles to a collection of submerged logs before I found a bass that was interested.
Top 5 Weight: 3-3 (1-11,1-8)

It’s great to get on the board and I am looking forward to many more. Stay tuned for the full fishing report on these catches and good luck to those who get out there on the water. Talk to you later. Troy

2025 Pre-Season Fishing Prep

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Before we get too deep into another year on the water, I want to pass on a bit about some of the regular pre-season preparation. While I am a bit late on this post, I did get most of my intended tasks completed in time to enjoy a couple open water outings this month. But those are tales for next week.

One of the main off-season tasks is re-spooling my reels. Many years ago, Julie bought me a Berkley line station that includes a line stripping tool. Each winter, I take the apparatus down off the hook in the garage, strip all my reels bare and apply fresh line. I am a longtime monofilament man with my choice being Trilene XL-Smooth Casting (clear) in 12-pound test for my casting reels and 10-pound test for my spinning reels.

Next up is to take an inventory of my gear and replace what is needed. While I technically don’t really need much new stuff after forty-plus years, I always make a few purchases. This year, they included straight shank worm hooks after viewing a tip from a YouTuber over the winter. I also grabbed a small utility box for terminal tackle and a bag of twin tail spinnerbait trailers. There were a pair of unanticipated purchases in the form of two new Berkley Shock fishing rods. They were on sale at a significant savings at a local store and I just can’t pass up something like that ($21 apiece with regular price $52 each). Now I need to find a marked down spinning reel.

Before repair

After repair

This winter, lure repair was also on the to-do list. Treble hooks catch logs just like they catch fish, and a pair of recent snags had damaged two trebles. Just to add here, a lure retriever is an invaluable tool that has saved me hundreds of dollars over the years. Instead of losing those lipless crankbaits to the depths, all I have to do is replace bent or broken hooks after a successful salvage. These days “cheater” glasses are also a crucial tool when trying to expand split rings and apply the new trebles.

Beyond the gear, there is the annual renewal of my Little John Conservation Club membership. As of 2025, I an now a thirty-year member so after seeing dues increase to over $200 a year (unless I opt to participate in work days), I now pay a whopping $10. Been waiting for that change, now I just need to take advantage of the fishing as I neglected the club completely last year.

Of course, do not forget your Illinois fishing license which comes due on March 31. Many years ago, Dad and I learned not to put that one off as we searched for an early morning option on our way to the fishing hole. As I recall, we had to wait for a hardware store in Knoxville to open to make our purchase. Nowadays anglers can take care of it online but as a traditionalist, what fun is that.

The truck has a recent oil change, the sandbags are out of the bed, and my bicycle tires are aired up. I still need to figure out some boat seat repair and one of these days I will need new oars but overall, I am ready to go.

And the preparation has already paid off so stay tuned for the first Top 5 post and fishing report of 2025. Good thing that I have the fishing log ready, and the databases and spreadsheets updated for the new year. Talk to you later. Troy

2024 Bass Recap – Lures Part II

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Part II of the 2024 Lure Recap features the heavy hitters that landed 471 of my 626 largemouth bass.

Chatterbait – 59 bass vs. 33 bass in 2023
Z Man Chatterbait (sexy shad or black/blue) with various swimbait trailers
Top Bass: 2-15 Lake Storey – October 11
Top 5 Weight: 12-14 (2-15,2-14,2-12,2-6,1-15)
Comments: For the second straight year, a chatterbait spent a lot of time tied to the end of a rod. From March through November, this lure type was in the starting lineup, and it paid dividends anywhere I threw it. A chatterbait caught Bass #1 of the year on March 3, Bass #626 on November 17, and plenty in between including the Top Lake Storey Bass of 2024 at 2-15. I am still more of a spinnerbait guy and probably always will be but the chatterbait has become an important tool in my tacklebox with my favorite targets being flats, riprap banks, and rockpiles.

Buzzbaits – 77 bass vs. 25 bass in 2023
Booyah Buzzbait (snow white shad) and Big Bite Baits Suicide Buzz (citrus shad)
Top Bass: 2-12 Hennepin Canal – August 14 and August 25
Top 5 Weight: 13-3 (2-12,2-12,2-9,2-9,2-9)
Comments: After a down year in 2023, buzzbaits were back in 2024 as I spent a great deal of time on the shallow waters of The Canal. Last year, I also tried a new offering, the Big Bites Bait Suicide Buzz that features swimbait body as opposed to a skirt. The first catch on the new bait was a 2-4 from The Canal in August and it later landed one of my Top Buzzbait Bass of the year at 2-12. It is tough to beat a buzzbait when the weather warms, and The Canal is custom made for topwater commotion.

Topwater Frogs – 79 bass vs. 25 bass in 2023
Spro Flappin’ Frog 65 (albino, killer gill, natural red)
Top Bass: 3-10 Hennepin Canal – September 29
Top 5 2023: 15-10 (3-10,3-6,3-3,2-14,2-9)
Comments: After several years of proclaiming myself to be among the worst frog fisherman around, things are beginning to look up. I give credit for my recent success to a couple of factors. First up, is the commitment to a new model of frog beginning in the summer of 2023, the Spro Flappin’ Frog 65. The second factor is that my stomping grounds on the shallow, weedy Hennepin Canal are ideal for a frog to get stomped.

Lipless Crankbait – 81 bass vs. 14 bass in 2023
Strike King Red Eye Shad (sexy shad or red craw)
Top Bass: 2-6 Lake Storey – September 16
Top 5 Weight: 10-2 (2-6,2-2,1-15,1-14,1-13)
Comments: My catches on lipless crankbaits reinforced their effectiveness across the calendar year. The first lipless crank bass came from The Canal on March 3 and the final lipless crank bass was landed at Lake Storey on October 14. All the fish were caught on the Strike King Red Eye Shad model and were quite well distributed throughout the waters that I fish. Thirty-two bass came from The Canal, twenty-six from Lake Storey, and twenty-three from the Knox County public strip mines. For me, these baits shine when looking to cover water quickly and are effective on flats, along weed edges, and when run parallel to riprap banks.

Spinnerbaits – 87 bass vs. 63 bass in 2023
War Eagle (white/chartreuse)
Top Bass: 3-0 Hennepin Canal – May 4
Top 5 Weight: 13-6 (3-0,2-15,2-10,2-8,2-5)
Comments: When I caught the bass fishing bug in the early 1980s, spinnerbaits were among the most popular lures. Over the last forty years, they have fallen out of vogue among many anglers as allegiance has turned to chatterbaits, swimbaits, and swim jigs. Not so much for me though, as I will always be a loyal spinnerbait fan. I need to do a bit of research to confirm, but I suspect I have caught more bass on spinnerbaits than any other lure over the last forty-plus years. And for 2024, the spinnerbait came through again as it was the second most productive lure, trailing plastic worms by one bass. I spend a lot of time on The Canal and a spinnerbait is a winner around any wood you can find. Same goes for Lake Storey during the drawdown period in the fall. In recent years, my go to spinnerbait has been the War Eagle brand in various blade configurations.

Plastic Worms – 88 bass vs. 191 bass in 2023
5” Yamasenko wacky rig (various colors), Yum 7” Power Bait Power Worm (blue fleck/firetail), Zoom Ultravibe Speed Worm (junebug or white pearl)
Top Bass: 3-2 Knox County public strip pit – July 13
Top 5 Weight: 11-15 (3-2,2-11,2-6,1-15,1-13)
Comments: The plastic worm has been a staple in bass angler’s tackleboxes for close to seventy years. And they have been a winner for me as long as I have been chasing bass. While I cut my bass fishing teeth on the popular Texas rig presentation, the last twenty years have found me relying heavily on the Senko wacky rig. The wacky rig dominated my 2024 worm haul with seventy-three bass, but I did invest some time in a new presentation that I call a “swimming worm.” The swimming retrieve landed a dozen fish and was precipitated by advice from a fellow angler I encountered on The Canal last summer.

Lots of highlights in that list of lures and catches as 2024 produced a personal record 626 largemouth bass. The number of lure options available on the market these days can get overwhelming, and every angler has an opinion on how to best invest your time and money. And many variables come into play when choosing what to tie on the end of your line once you hit the water. Weather, water, structure, and time of day are significant, while experience and confidence are invaluable when it comes to making your choices. It all boils down to getting out there and getting on the water. Talk to you later. Troy

2024 Bass Recap – Lures Part I

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Next up in the 2024 Bass Recap is the lowdown on the lures that fooled the fish. Read on for Part I as I work through the list of lures from least bass caught to most.

Jigs – 2 bass vs. 1 bass in 2023
Strike King Rattlin’ Pro Model Jig (green pumpkin) or Googan Gridiron Jig (rotten pumpkin) with plastic craw trailer
Top Bass: 2-4 Lake Storey – October 11
Comments: My first jig bas of the year came on March 17 (Hennepin Canal) and the second on October 11 (Lake Storey). Overall, landing two bass on jigs was productive considering I only made a couple dozen casts with the lures all year. Both of my catches were on offshore wood cover that had failed to give up a bite on the faster offerings of a chatterbait or spinnerbait. In these instances, I opted to slow down with a jig as a backup presentation and it was a winner. Perhaps there is a lesson there and I should slow down more often.

Popper – 3 bass vs. 0 bass in 2023
Zell Rowland Pop-R (purple shad)
Top Bass: None at 12” or better
Comments: All my popper bass came from a pair of remote Knox County public strip pits on September 7. The lure was a Rebel Pop-R “signature series” model from the mid-nineties endorsed by longtime bass pro and Pop-R aficionado, Zell Rowland. I had been loading up on little bass with a Senko or small swimbait and wanted to see if I could get anything larger to commit to a topwater offering. Nope on “anything larger”,, but it was fun to break out the Pop-R for old times’ sake and verify that it can still fool some bass.

Crankbaits – 19 bass vs. 28 bass in 2023
Rapala Shad Rap (blue), Bomber Flat A (baby bass)
Top Bass: 1-13 Lake Storey – October 10
Top 5 Weight: 6-10 (1-13,1-11,1-1,1-1,1-0)
Comments: The last several years have seen a significant decrease in my crankbait numbers. While they are still quite effective, I just don’t throw them as much as I did in years past. Much of the reason relates to “discovering” the Hennepin Canal in June 2021. The shallow, weedy water of much of The Canal set up better for other presentations such as spinnerbaits, topwater, and chatterbaits, so I rely on them much more heavily. Still, it seems odd that I did not land at least one bass on either a Mann’s Baby 1- or a Strike King Squarebill in 2024 as they have been effective on The Canal and proven winners at Lake Storey as well as several strip pits.

Grubs – 34 bass vs. 23 bass in 2023
Lunker Hunt Finesse 3” Swimbait (perfect pumpkin or smokin’ shad)
Top Bass: 1-6 Knox County public strip pit – March 30
Top 5 Weight: 5-14 (1-6,1-3,1-2,1-2,1-1)
Comments: After quality 2023 catches boosted my confidence in what I generically refer to as a Ned Rig presentation, big bites were absent in 2024. Grubs did produce plenty of bass last year (and some bonus large crappies), but I am wondering if my 2023 Top 5 Grub Weight of 14-15 was an anomaly. However, I still have faith and expect the Ned Rig will remain a viable option on my early season strip mine hikes as it sets up well for fooling fish in those cool, clear waters.

Swimbaits – 45 bass vs. 2 bass in 2023
Keitech Swing Impact (electric blue/chartreuse), Strike King Rage Swimmer (sexy shad or pro blue/red pearl)
Top Bass: 1-9 Knox County public strip pit – September 8
Top 5 Weight: 7-3 (1-9,1-9,1-6,1-6,1-5)
Comments: I made a choice to commit to giving swimbaits a fair shake in 2024. Prior to last year, my “career” swimbait catch total sat at ten bass. So, adding forty-five catches marked a significant jump in production and reflected my commitment. Was it worth it? Yes, as I added forty-five bass on a presentation that I have neglected for years despite ringing endorsements across the bass fishing community. Also yes, as I am a stubborn angler and rarely step away from confidence lures unless the bite gets really ugly. In the case of swimbaits, I put down other lures that likely would have produced in the weather and water conditions in favor of experimentation. On the greedy side, I wish the presentation would have produced bigger bites.

Propbait – 52 bass vs. 46 bass in 2023
Whopper Plopper 110 (bone)
Top Bass: 3-0 Hennepin Canal – June 29
Top 5 Weight: 13-7 (3-0,2-15,2-9,2-8,2-7)
Comments: I was a late convert to the Whopper Plopper as I didn’t dedicate much time to tossing the lure with only fifteen catches from 2017-2021. However, in the last three years, I have landed one hundred fifteen bass on the lure, including my best yearly total last year with fifty-two bass. Many “in the know” anglers on the internet view the Whopper Plopper as a lure past its heyday or even a gimmick ala the old fishing adage that “it is designed to catch more fishermen that fish.” To each their own as I have found the obnoxious lure to be productive and fun to fish, especially in the shallow waters of The Canal.

Solid success on this first batch of lures but the real heavy hitters are yet to come. Stay tuned for Part II. Talk to you later. Troy

2024 Bass Recap – Partners

Posted on by Troy Jackson

A regular part of my annual recaps is a look at who I got to chase fish with and how we did. Read on for a summary of each trip and the final tallies racked up by the 2024 trio of fishing companions.

March 31 – Jayce with Top Partner Bass at 3-4 on a chatterbait

Date: March 31 with Jayce
Location: Hennepin Canal
Time: 1:10pm-3:10pm
Weather: Overcast/windy, 58F
Totals: 4 bass (Troy – 3, Jayce -1)
Top Bass: 3-4 Jayce on a chatterbait
Top 4 Weight (combined only 4 at or > 12”): 7-9 (3-4,1-9,1-9,1-3)

April 13 – Brent with Top Bass of the trip at 2-4 on a jerkbait

Date: April 13 with Brent (bank fishing)
Location: Knox County public strip pits (7 lakes)
Time: 11:25am-7:15pm (6.00 hours fishing)
Weather: Sunny/windy, 64-74F
Totals: 65 bass (Troy – 43, Brent – 22)
Top Bass: 2-4 Brent on a jerkbait
Top 5 Weight (combined): 7-11 (2-4,1-10,1-6,1-4,1-3)

June 14 – Julie with Top Partner Bass #4 on a Whopper Plopper

Date: June 14 with Julie
Location: Hennepin Canal
Time: 6:40pm-8:40pm
Totals: 7 bass (Julie – 6 bass, Troy – 1 bass)
Weather: Sunny/breezy, 81-73F
Top Bass: 2-10 Julie on a Whopper Plopper)
Top 5 Weight (Julie only): 8-12 (2-10,1-10,1-10,1-8,1-6)

July 13 – Brent Top Partner Bass #2 at 2-13 on a Senko

Date: July 13 with Brent
Location: Knox County public strip pits (2 lakes)
Time: 5:45am-8:30am, 9:30am-1:15pm
Totals: 43 bass (Troy – 28, Brent – 15)
Weather: Sunny/breezy, 68-89F
Top Bass: 3-2 Troy (Senko), 2-13 Brent (Senko)
Top 5 Weight (combined): 14-3 (3-2,2-14,2-13,2-11,2-11)

August 3 – Brent with Top Bass of the trip at 1-10 on a spinnerbait

Date: August 3 with Brent
Location: Knox County public strip pits (3 lakes)
Time: 5:45am-11:40am (5.25 hours fishing)
Totals: 64 bass (Brent – 36 Troy – 28)
Weather: Sunny/breezy, 68-88F
Top Bass: 1-14 Troy (Buzzbait), 1-10 Brent (Spinnerbait/Popper)
Top 5 Weight (combined): 8-6 (1-14,1-12,1-10,1-10,1-8)

October 11 – Brent Top Partner Bass #5 at 2-9 on a lipless crankbait

Date: October 11 with Brent
Location: Lake Storey, Knox County, IL
Time: 7:40am-3:10pm
Totals: 23 bass (Brent – 12, Troy – 11)
Weather: Sunny/breezy to windy, 51-77F
Water temperature: 69F
Top Bass: 2-15 Troy (Spinnerbait/Chatterbait), 2-9 Brent (Lipless Crankbait)
Top 5 Weight (combined): 12-12 (2-15,2-15,-2-9,2-4,2-1)

July 13 – Brent Top Partner Bass #3 at 2-11 on a topwater frog

Partner Numbers
Total Bass: 92
Top Bass: 3-4 Jayce
Top 5 Weight: 13-15 (3-4,2-13,2-11,2-10,2-9)

Always a treat when I can get on the water with family, and I look forward to doing it again in 2025. More recaps in the works with a look at the lures that fooled the bass along with bonus notes and video from a successful year on the water. Talk to you later. Troy

40 Years Ago – January 19, 1985

Posted on by Troy Jackson

On January 19, 1985, I made my first entry into a fishing log.

Forty years, and a pile of notebooks later, the habit is still going strong.

The inspiration to start documenting my fishing trips has been lost over the years. Was it something that I saw on a fishing show or read in a fishing magazine? Perhaps it was a concept offered up by an early idol, “The Bass Professor” Doug Hannon? Maybe it was a fondness for stats derived from being a sports fan? I suppose it could have been a combination of all the above but whatever it was, the habit stuck.

It is fitting that the initial entry was a fishing trip with Dad at Lake Bracken. While Dad had already been fishing “forever”, the early 1980s were when I got bit by the fishing bug. The rest is history as we could write quite a book of our fish stories over the years. Lake Bracken was a great classroom and in those days we generally had the place to ourselves whether walking, rowing, or trolling around the private fishing hole in search of some bites.

And funny enough, this log entry represents one of the few times that we failed to get a bite at Bracken. The spot was chock full of small bluegills, crappie, and green sunfish. None of the above showed up through the ice on this day but there was plenty of catching to come in 1985 and beyond.

AS 2025 progresses, I intend to revisit some of the log entries in that old green notebook. It’s a fun ride looking back on the days of limited angling knowledge, meager tackle, free time, fresh air, and a good batch of fishing partners.

Talk to you later. Troy

2024 Bass Recap – Locations

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Lake Storey Top Bass (tie) at 2-15 on October 11 caught on a spinnerbait

I fished a lot of water and covered a lot of miles chasing bass in 2024. However, the locations can be broken down into three classifications. The Hennepin Canal (23 pools), the Knox County public strip mines (23 lakes), and Lake Storey. Below is a closer look at the numbers from these locations ranked by the number of bass landed (least to most).

Lake Storey Top Bass (tie) at 2-15 on October 11 caught on a chatterbait

Lake Storey – Knox County, IL
(5 visits – 9/16 through 10/11)
80 Bass
35.50 hours
2.21 bass/hour
Top Bass: 2-15 (tie) Spinnerbait/Chatterbait both caught on 10/11
Top 5 Weight: 13-6 (2-15,2-15,2-10,2-8,2-6)
Comments: 2024 was a record year on Lake Storey as the 80 bass vastly exceeded my best yearly total according to data dating back to 1997. The previous best was 45 bass in 2007. The 2024 catch rate of 2.21 bass/hour also represented a significant uptick as the overall catch rate from 1997 through 2023 was a combined 1.11 bass/hour. While I fell an ounce shy of the three-pound mark for a Top Bass, among my catches were many solid, healthy fish. What was the secret to success? Practice, presentation, and precision are good places to start and concepts for another time.

Hennepin Canal Top Bass at 3-10 on September 29 caught on a frog

Hennepin Canal – Henry, Bureau, Rock Island County
(45 visits, 23 pools – 3/2 through 11/17)
270 bass
136.00 hours
1.99 bass/hour
Top Bass: 3-10 Frog on 9/29
Top 5 Weight: 15-15 (3-10,3-6,3-0,3-0,2-15)
Comments: One of my aims in 2024 was to expand my exploration of The Canal. As I explored, I also looked to land enough quality bass to establish a ten-pound or better Top 5 limit on each stretch of The Canal between Colona and the feeder basin just west of Sheffield. I made good strides towards the latter goal and the 3-10 bass represented my largest Canal bass to date. For 2025, I am looking to fill in the blanks on stretches lacking a double-digit Top 5 while still in search of my first four-pounder from the historic waterway.

Knox County strip mine Top Bass at 3-3 on July 13 caught on a frog

Knox County, IL Public Strip Mines
(11 visits, 23 lakes – 2/25 through 9/27)
276 bass
49.00 hours
5.63 bass/hour
Top Bass: 3-3 Frog on 7/13
Top 5 Weight: 14-13 (3-3,3-2,2-15,2-14,2-11)
Comments: The strip mines offer a multitude of fishing holes if you are willing to put in the effort. 2024 featured a combination of the regular haunts along with exploring several spots where I previously had limited experience. Results were all over the place with struggles on productive water, surprises on unfamiliar water, and exactly what I have come to expect on other fishing holes. The overall catch rate looks impressive, but I had to weed out a lot of small bass to get a handful of quality bites on a few different spots. The jury is still out on how I plan to attack the strip mines in 2025 as there are so many choices but only so much time to get on the water.

The recaps continue with posts on the way covering lures and partners. Stay tuned and talk to you later. Troy

2024 Bass Recap – Intro

Posted on by Troy Jackson

2024 established a new BYOB (Best Year of Bass) mark with 626 largemouth bass landed. Today’s post is the first of a collection of submissions that delve into various details of those catches.

2024 First Bass – March 3 at 8:55am on the Hennepin Canal

2024 Bass Stats
Bass = 626
Outings = 61 (ranging from 1.00-hour to 8.25-hour trips)
Bodies of water = 47
Bass Fishing Hours = 220.50
Bass/hour = 2.84
First Bass of the Year: March 3 at 8:55am on the Hennepin Canal
Last Bass of the Year: November 17 at 3:10pm on the Hennepin Canal
Comments: Forty-seven bodies of water make me seem like quite the bass fishing vagabond. However, the truth is not as epic as it may seem. Twenty-three spots represent different pools on the Hennepin Canal covering Rock Island, Henry, and Bureau Counties. Twenty-three other spots were Knox County public strip pits. And the other fishing hole was good, old Lake Storey.

First Bass Video below

 

Top 5 Bass (Weight, Location, Date, Lure)
3-10 Hennepin Canal 9/29 Frog
3-6 Hennepin Canal 9/29 Frog
3-3 Knox County public strip pit 7/20 Frog
3-2 Knox County public strip pit 7/13 Senko
3-0 Hennepin Canal 6/29 Spinnerbait
Top 5 Total Weight: 16-5 (3-10,3-6,3-3,3-2,3-0)

2024 Last Bass – November 17 at 3:10pm on the Hennepin Canal

Access
Bank Bass (Northerner boots, hiking, and biking) = 232 bass
Little Boat Bass (over 40-year-old 8’ johnboat) = 314 bass
Big Boat Bass (1987 Bass Tracker Pro 17) = 80 bass
Comments: Nothing out of the ordinary here with eighty-seven percent of my bass coming via hiking, biking, and rowing. The remaining bass were caught on Lake Storey while fishing out of Dad’s Bass Tracker.

Last Bass Video below

 

Public vs. Private
Public Water = 626 bass
Private Water Bass = 0 bass
Comments: As best I can tell, this is the first year that all my catches have come from public water. Looking back over the logs, 2009 and 2022 were lean on private water catches but did include a few. I do need to invest more in my Little John Conservation Club membership as I am in the neighborhood when I fish the Knox County strip mines. However, there is something rewarding about catching public water fish where everyone can take their shot. Many of my public strip mine fish require considerable effort in hiking or dragging a boat and one of these years I will have to scale back on such adventures. But so far so good, and I intend to keep chasing those fish in 2025.

Next up is a breakdown of the locations where I caught my bass. Talk to you later. Troy