Randall Posted January 18, 2007 Posted January 18, 2007 For those of you who havent seen the post yet my fishing buddy and tournament partner Doghouse caught a huge sack of fish yesterday that weighed 41lbs. Two tens, a couple eights and some more big ones. He called me and let me know he caught the three biggest right after he caught them. I asked where and he told me and it came as no surprise to me where since it was a big bass spot I first showed him around a year ago when I first met him as a client of my guide service. We soon became friends after that day and have been fishing together and sharing info on Varner for about a year now. The thing is he never would have had to tell me where he caught his biggest bass because I know that bass and can identify it by its markings. That bass has been caught by my friends, my clients, and myself multiple times and always in exactly the same place at the same time of year when its caught. Its also always been caught on the same bait. Even though its a huge fish over ten pounds its always been released to provide the thrill of catching it for the next person. Its been part of a twenty-eight pound sack, two thirty five pound sacks, a thirty eight pound sack, and now a forty one pound sack. It lives on one of the best spots in the lake. It has been taken two miles away and has found its way back home to a small PVC fish attractor sitting on the bottom. It lives with other big fish in the same spot. Up until now I never had two photos of the fish to match up to show others that catch and release of big fish works, and how big fish are predictable in where they live and what they do. The first photo is two of my friends with her the last time I saw her. They won a tournament with her last Feburary and released her two miles away from her home after the weigh in. I hadn't seen her again until yesterday when Doghouse posted the other photo. I thought I recognized the fish and got the photo out to compare. No doubt its the same fish. Just compare the lateral line markings. Quote
Randall Posted January 18, 2007 Author Posted January 18, 2007 Here she is again from yesterday. Doghouse took her back home and released her after taking a photo. Quote
Super User KU_Bassmaster. Posted January 18, 2007 Super User Posted January 18, 2007 Very Cool!!!!!! Here's a side-by-side. I drew the red line just for a point reference. No doubt that is the same fish. Quote
Super User T-rig Posted January 18, 2007 Super User Posted January 18, 2007 Yep, that's definately the same bass! That just shows how predictable these big fish are! Quote
Super User Catt Posted January 18, 2007 Super User Posted January 18, 2007 Not only does it show how predictable big fish are but it answers dinks question about Why don't "prime spots" produce EVERY year? I fish some of the same spots on Toledo Bend since 1972 and they still produce today Perfect example why we should catch & release 8-) Quote
Super User senile1 Posted January 18, 2007 Super User Posted January 18, 2007 That does look like the same fish. Wow, a 41 lb sack is awesome. Lake Varner is producing some big fish. Quote
Super User Matt Fly Posted January 18, 2007 Super User Posted January 18, 2007 Some lakes just have magical spots. Before I die, I will make a trip to Varner. Awesome way to start of the day, looking at Hawgs. Thanks Randall, takes my mind off the hospital closing for awhile. I want to kiss one of those Varner hawgs some day. Matt Quote
Doghouse. Posted January 18, 2007 Posted January 18, 2007 hey randall how much did that fish weigh when dave caught her last year? I am going to find more of your pets this afternoon ;D Quote
BASS fisherman Posted January 18, 2007 Posted January 18, 2007 It is said that the female bass grow the largest, but would it be safe to assume that that bass is a male because its tail is all chewed up? Quote
Super User SPEEDBEAD. Posted January 18, 2007 Super User Posted January 18, 2007 Thats awesome, 41lbs?!?!?! Ridiculous!!! Quote
foul hooked Posted January 18, 2007 Posted January 18, 2007 Pardon the hijack of sorts! How small is the pvc gizmo? Can you briefly describe it. I'm in the middle of a brush sinking campaign and may consider some pvc options if they aren't too complicated. Thanks for any input. P.S. - Glad to see I'm not the only lunatic willing to fish nasty weather. Great fish fellas! Quote
Randall Posted January 19, 2007 Author Posted January 19, 2007 Pardon the hijack of sorts! How small is the pvc gizmo? Can you briefly describe it. I'm in the middle of a brush sinking campaign and may consider some pvc options if they aren't too complicated. Thanks for any input. P.S. - Glad to see I'm not the only lunatic willing to fish nasty weather. Great fish fellas! The PVC attractors are shaped like a sea urchin but with fewer spines.LOL. I dont have a photo but I saw Bill Dance marketing something like it one time. Its about three or four feet tall and maybe has ten 2inch pipes running together in the center. I am not sure what t weights it down but it has to be something in the pipes. Theres a guy who lives on the lake who put them out and told me where they were and I can tell when I hit them with a crankbait because they have a unique feel when compared to other things on the bottom of the lake like rocks and brush. They are great to run a crankbait through since you almost never hang in one. Quote
Guest avid Posted January 19, 2007 Posted January 19, 2007 Definitly a great story. There is no doubt in my mind that there are "prime spots" The question I have is ... do the biggest fish inhabit the prime spots. Or do the prime spots grow the biggest bass? My hunch is that the best bass will always occupy the best shelter because of their dominance they can push out any intruders. Great stuff. Quote
bassnleo Posted January 19, 2007 Posted January 19, 2007 Great story and huge fish! Imagine what that fish is thinking when it's hooked and caught... Awwww crud, here we go again, why did I fall for that again? ;D ;D ;D Quote
BASS fisherman Posted January 19, 2007 Posted January 19, 2007 It is said that the female bass grow the largest, but would it be safe to assume that that bass is a male because its tail is all chewed up? Anyone? Yes, no, maybe? Anyone at all? Quote
Randall Posted January 19, 2007 Author Posted January 19, 2007 It is said that the female bass grow the largest, but would it be safe to assume that that bass is a male because its tail is all chewed up? Anyone? Yes, no, maybe? Anyone at all? The tail wouldnt mean anything. Alot of tail damage this time of year is from parasitesaccording to a biologist i talked to about it. I caught a six pound male last year at Varner and was told that it would be the equilivent of a world record female. So a male getting that size would be a prety big stretch. Quote
Randall Posted January 19, 2007 Author Posted January 19, 2007 Definitly a great story. There is no doubt in my mind that there are "prime spots" The question I have is ... do the biggest fish inhabit the prime spots. Or do the prime spots grow the biggest bass? My hunch is that the best bass will always occupy the best shelter because of their dominance they can push out any intruders. Great stuff. I think its a little of both. I think big bass occupy the best structure but not always the best cover if it pulls them off the best structure. The reason I think this is that the attractor these fish are in is small and not the heavy type of cover that would offer the best cover. If you were underwater you could easily see the fish in it. There is a brush pile actually a few trees(not far away) from where these fish are always caught that is huge but I always catch smaller fish there in the brush pile. This attractor is on an edge where it drops around eight feet straight down. Quote
foul hooked Posted January 19, 2007 Posted January 19, 2007 Thanks for the info Randall. I may try my hand at fabricating a couple of these. Quote
Mattlures Posted January 22, 2007 Posted January 22, 2007 I realy doubt that the design of the pvc thing itself is the most important factor. The location of the pvc thing is the important thing. If you just drop a piece of cover in a lake it may not hold any fish let alone big ones, but if you put a piece of cover in or by some prime structure you can have a target. A spot on a spot. Quote
Bassassasin12 Posted January 23, 2007 Posted January 23, 2007 unbelieveable. I think this will make all catch and release anglers very proud. Quote
Randall Posted January 23, 2007 Author Posted January 23, 2007 I realy doubt that the design of the pvc thing itself is the most important factor. The location of the pvc thing is the important thing. If you just drop a piece of cover in a lake it may not hold any fish let alone big ones, but if you put a piece of cover in or by some prime structure you can have a target. A spot on a spot. If you saw one of these things they don't really provide any cover for the bass. They just give the bass something to relate to on the spot. Its more like a landmark for the fish. They work real well IMO because they provide something for the bass to relate to and because crankbaits deflect real well off of the pipes and cause reaction strikes from the bass holding there. But it sits on big fish structure already which is why the fish are there to begin with. Quote
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