The Dirty South

[Chaz Hickcox]

So the wonders of fishing in the South.  You know back home LM Bass were the top of the food chain, minus the stocked Stripers (obviously the two species can coincide together because they don't cross paths too often).  Anyways, back to fishing in the south.  One can fish all day long, using what should be lures prescribed for only the wonderful creature known as a bass.  However, one has no idea down here in the dirty south what the he11 you may catch.  Running a lure just under the serface, and wham you get hit.  But no, what you saw were two thin long tooth filled jaws of a longnoesed gar snapping your favorite soft swimbait in two.  You did nothing wrong that hot sunny day, that dock looked perfect for an apex predator to ambush your bait from.  Well you were still right.  Then, a windy, cloudy day.  The perfect day for a buzzbait, oh and yes it was.  You spend the whole day catching bass after bass.  Some really niced sized 3-4 lbers.  Some really healthy 11 inch dinks.  Then you get the hit of a lifetime.  A large flash of silver and down goes your favorite buzzbait.  You saw the approximate length, and you feel that this is no 4 lber.  He11 yeah!  From the amount of fighting going on this has to be your first double digit bass.  Strange though, he doesn't jump.  He's fighting more like a striper than your coveted black bass.  Then you get him next to the boat.  What you thought was the silvery white side/underbelly of a large black bass taking your bait under, is actually brown.  Ugly, and full of teeth.  It's an 8lb BOWFIN  >.  He bent your Strike King Tri-blade Buzzbait, and he was never meant to be caught.  So, there you are, getting rained on, and you finally realize why you can't land a bass bigger than 5lbs, the Gar and the Bowfin have stolen their pride.  Any larger than 5lbs and there would be too much conflict for food.  So, when 5lbers are the dinks back home, were stuck with them being the good catch here.  I guess the fish know this to be the Dirty South as well.  Fighting for everything.

[skillet]

 You ain't from around here are ya' ...

;Dskillet ;D

[Chaz Hickcox]

You ain't from around here are ya' ...

;Dskillet ;D

Nope, out west, just in from Az

[BassShephard]

Very nice Bowfin! I actually love it, I hate catching the same type of fish over and over I like variety that said I do hate when you target a certain fish with there favorite bait and you keep catching something completely different or like you said when they tear your baits up.

[Mepps]

That was an entertaining write up, nice fish!

[Dan:]

Interesting prose? I still need to catch one of those bowfin.

[skillet]

 Don't know how Arizona LMB would do against such competition. The ones here in the South seem to be doing quite well, thank you. There are eleven states that make up the "South". All of these great states have record holders above 15lbs, except TN (14.8 close). Maybe you're just going through an adjustment period. You know, just moving here and everything. Give it a little time, you will probably do OK ...

skillet

[Chaz Hickcox]

Bass, Largemouth 16 lb. 7.68 oz 28.0 in., Canyon Lake

Randall E. White, Mesa 4/22/97

That's Az's State Record

[brgbassmaster]

HAHA nice i once caught a big ol bowfin on a rapala skitter pop. thought i had the lake record bass on when it hit and started fighting.

[Olebiker]

Sounds like you've been listening to too much Goodie Mobb and OutKast.

[Steven Ladner]

You should have lipped him. Band-Aids were made for a reason

[fishn hard]

I grew up in NC That is the best fish that i ever eat my mom would make a stew and they were great next time you get one put him on ice and send him 2 Pa lol