A pair of November bass shows up this week. And while neither was large enough to boost either angler’s Top 5 Weight, it sure is nice to still be catching bass as the year winds down.

Weight: 1-3 (spotted bass)
Angler: John KIrkemo
Date: November 6
Weather: Partly cloudy
Air Temp: 70s
Water Temp: 72
Location: Lake Keowee (near the Fairfield Inn on Route 123, Seneca, SC
Lure: Rapala X-Rap (perch)
Angler Comments: Trolled a shallow running silver and black Rapala for a while without any hits. Switched to the Rapala X-Rap which is a deeper running suspending lure and caught this fish trolling through the area indicated on the attached map. I turned around and began trolling the same lure across the same area in the opposite direction and hooked another fish but lost it before I could get it close to the boat. No other hits during 2 hours of fishing.
Top 5 Weight: 10-9 (2-8,2-7,2-0,1-13,1-13)

Bonus pics from John of the Rapala X-Rap and an “X” marks the spot of where to troll it

Weight: 1-15 (15.5”)
Angler: Troy Jackson
Date: November 10
Weather: Partly cloudy, very windy
Water Temp: Not available
Location: Hennepin Canal
Lure: War Eagle Spinnerbait (chartreuse/white)
Structure: Drop
Angler Comments: This was the first bass of the outing, and it bit five minutes after launching. I had high hopes, but the bite turned out to be slow with only two more bass in the next two hours. All good though as they are all “bonus” bass at this point in the year.
Top 5 Weight: 16-5 (3-10,3-6,3-3,3-2,3-0)

Time will tell if we get any more submissions, but the weather up here is still holding out, so you just never know. And those South Carolina bass should still be plenty active with water temperatures in the seventies. Stay tuned for an overdue Top 5 Stat Update soon and there’s a fishing report to submit to cover my November 10 visit to The Canal. Talk to you later. Troy

A new month means a look at the current Top 5 Stats. The last couple of months have been lean for submissions as it can get tough to find a fish to boost the total this late in the year. But they are out there, just have to keep on casting.

Bass Totals (largemouth and spotted)

2024 Totals
March = 15 bass
April = 16 bass
May = 11 bass
June = 12 bass
July = 7 bass
August = 1 bass
September = 4 bass

Top 5 Weight by Month
March = 18-3 (4-6,3-14,3-10,3-4,3-1)
April = 11-0 (2-8,2-7,2-4,2-0,1-13)
May = 14-15 (3-6,3-4,3-0,2-12,2-9)
June = 14-7 (3-12,3-0,2-10,2-9,2-8)
July = 16-2 (3-15,3-3,3-2,2-15,2-15)
August = 1-3 (1-3)
September = 11-5 (3-10,3-6,3-2,1-3)

Boat vs. Bank
Boat = 46 bass
Bank = 20 bass

Boat vs. Bank Weight
Boat = 17-6 (3-15,3-12,3-4,3-4,3-3)
Bank = 18-14 (4-6,3-14,3-10,3-10,3-6)

Public vs. Private
Public = 65 bass
Private = 1 bass

Public vs. Private Top 5 Weight
Public = 19-9 (4-6,3-15,3-14,3-12,3-10)
Private = 1-3 (1-3)

The Baits
Jerkbait = 17 bass (Top Bass 2-8 John Kirkemo)
Chatterbait = 10 bass (Top Bass 4-6 Jim Junk)
Plastic Worm = 9 bass (Top Bass 3-15 Brent Jackson)
Frog = 8 bass (Top Bass 3-10 Troy Jackson)
Propbait = 8 bass (Top Bass 3-0 Troy Jackson)
Popper = 5 bass (Top Bass 3-12 Brent Jackson)
Lipless Crankbait = 4 bass (Top Bass 2-6 Jim Junk)
Buzzbait = 2 bass (Top Bass 2-9 Troy Jackson)
Spinnerbait = 2 bass (Top Bass 3-0 Troy Jackson)
Crankbait = 1 bass (Top Bass 1-11 Troy Jackson)

Monthly Top Bass
March
4-6 Jim Junk
April
2-8 John Kirkemo
May
3-6 Brent Jackson
June
3-12 Brent Jackson
July
3-15 Brent Jackson
August
1-3 Brady Jackson
September
3-10 Troy Jackson

2024 Top 10 Bass
4-6 Jim Junk 3/3
3-15 Brent Jackson 7/19
3-14 Jim Junk 3/18
3-12 Brent Jackson 6/27
3-10 Jim Junk 3/3
3-10 Troy Jackson 9/29
3-6 Brent Jackson 5/4
3-6 Troy Jackson 9/29
3-4 Jayce Jackson 3/31
3-4 Brent Jackson 5/5

Angler Weights
Brent Jackson 17-7 (3-15.3-12,3-6,3-4,3-2)
Jim Junk 17-5 (4-6,3-14,3-10,3-1,2-6)
Troy Jackson 16-5 (3-10,3-6,3-3,3-2,3-0)
John Kirkemo 10-9 (2-8,2-7,2-0,1-13,1-13)
Julia Jackson 8-12 (2-10,1-10,1-10,1-8,1-6)
Jayce Jackson 3-4 (3-4)
Brady Jackson 1-3 (1-3)

Other Species

Bowfin
Troy Jackson 3-13 (3-13)

Channel Catfish
John Kirkemo 2-3 (2-3)

Freshwater Drum
Troy Jackson 2-10 (2-10)

Gar
John Kirkemo 28” (28”)

Striped Bass
John Kirkemo 9-13 (3-5,2-6,1-12,1-6,1-0)

Trout (brown and rainbow)
John Kirkemo 24” (12”, 12”)

A tight race at the top of the Top 5 Bass totals with just over a pound separating the top three anglers. We’ll see what October has in store. Talk to you later. Troy

Our southeast field rep, John Kirkemo, comes through with another submission and additional insights on spotted bass.

Weight: 1-3
Angler: John Kirkemo
Date: September 10
Weather: Evening light with air temperature in the high 70s
Water temperature: 83 degrees
Location: Lake Hartwell at Oconee Point Campground, Seneca, SC
Lure: Black and silver 3.5” floating Rapala
Angler Comments: I was casting the lure toward the top of a tree standing in about 20 feet of water. Only the top foot or two of the tree extended above the water’s surface. The treetop had a few very small leaves but was mostly just thin bare branches as shown in the attached picture. Before I could begin my retrieve, the bass slammed the lure so hard the reel handle hit my finger causing a bruise as shown in the picture. This was not a big fish but was very aggressive. I have been catching spotted bass since late March 2024. In my opinion, spotted bass tend to be more aggressive and fight harder than their close cousin largemouth bass. I discovered this tree top two days ago and have fished it every day since. It always holds a bass or two.
Top 5 Weight: 10-9 (2-8,2-7,2-0,1-13,1-13)

Gives a whole new perspective on “bass thumb” with that catch. Good luck out there and keep sending them my way. Talk to you later. Troy

Welcome aboard to a new Top 5 angler as my nephew, Brady, lands a keeper on a family fishing outing this past weekend.

Weight: 1-3
Angler: Brady Jackson
Date: August 10
Location: McDonough County pond
Lure: Senko wacky rig (pink)
Top 5 Weight: 1-3 (1-3)

Way to go, that Senko wacky rig is a winner, even in pink. I watched Brady’s dad knocking ‘em really well on a red one last week though. Was Brent holding out on his favorite color when rigging up the kids? Talk to you later. Troy