Articles

Contained within you will find numerous articles by Steve vonBrandt, 1998 Big Bass World Champ/De and NAFC Hall Of Fame angler, on bass fishing opportunities and conditions in Delaware and Maryland. You can read all of Steves’ articles by visiting the main website at http://delawaretrophybass.com

NEW WORLD RECORD BASS

News Flash–World Record Largemouth Contender

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Certified weight: 10.12 kg. = 22 lb. 5 oz
Length: 29.4 inches
Location caught: Lake Biwa, Japan
Angler: Manubu Kurita

This was just on the TV news about an hour ago, so this is all the info I have. Mr. Okamura, the president of Deps Tackle Co., helped with the interview; I did not catch the anglers name.

We are well past the spawning season when most of the giants are caught at Lake Biwa; most of the fish now are quiet slender (after spawn condition). Not this one!

A Complete Gallery of ALL of the most UP TO DATE photos of this bass are available here in the gallery at http://www.delawaretrophybass.com/apps/photos/album?albumid=6437320

Congrats to the angler on a fine catch.

Lake Biwa shocked the bass world a couple years ago by producing a bass that was well over 18 pounds (The Japan record was caught at Lake Ikehara, and weighted over 19 pounds.).

A 25 lb. bass was caught as by catch in a fisherman’s net earlier this year, so many thought it would be just a matter of time before a record size fish was taken from Japan’s largest (over 70 miles long) natural lake.

More updates from the Deps site:

As best I can summarize before the actual translating: He (reporter) was returning from a previous trip and had been out late that night. The next day around 12 he got a call about the big bass and to hurry as it was over 20 pounds. He arrived with a camera crew. The fish was originally kept in a recirculating livewell but as the day wore on the power died and so did the fish ultimately. Originally they thought of donating the fish live to the local museum for tourism purposes. The fish is now frozen and awaiting certification process.

When the fish was landed, the hook(s) fell out right as he got it in the net. It is still unclear even from the translator whether it is a lure or live bait that was used.

It apears to not have been caught on the “Mother” swimbait as was originally speculated. It also appears to have been caught in deep open water.

ROD: SIDEWINDER THE DOM DRIVER F / E

LINE: TORAY SUPER HARD STRONG 25lb

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Update:!!!!

It’s been exactly 77 years and one month since George Perry caught a 22-pound, 4-ounce bass out of Montgomery Lake in Georgia on June 2, 1932. It has been the International Game Fish Association all-tackle world record ever since.

“I heard about it, but we don’t have any details,” said Jason Schratwieser, the IGFA’s fishing records and conservation director.

Schratwieser said the bass would have to be 2 ounces heavier than Perry’s catch to establish a new record.

“It will tie it if that’s the weight,” Schratwieser said, indicating that IGFA rules stipulate that for record fish weighing less than 25 pounds, the replacement record must weigh at least two ounces more than the existing record.

“It looks like the real deal,” said San Diego County bass angler Mike Long, recognized as one of the top big bass anglers in the world. “The girth looks right. Everything looks right about it.”

Said Ken Duke, senior editor for BASS publications: “It seems closer and more of a real deal than any situation we’ve seen.”

Lake Biwa is Japan’s largest lake and covers more than 259 square miles. It’s also said to be one of the oldest lakes in the world. It is surrounded by mountains and famous for its scenic environs. Its crystal-clear water is more than 300 feet deep.

In recent years Japanese officials have reacted to concerns by commercial fishermen there and tried to eliminate invasive species from Biwa, and black bass, or largemouth bass, are on that list of invasives. An unconfirmed report indicates that a 25-pound largemouth bass may have been netted by one of the commercial fishermen. The Lake Biwa Museum Restaurant serves largemouth bass on its menu.

The previous Japanese bass record weighed 19.15 pounds and was caught by Kazuya Shimada from Lake Ikehara on April 22, 2003, on a swimbait.

Many thought the next world record bass would come from a California reservoir that gets stocked with trout. Dixon Lake in Escondido, north of San Diego, served up a 25-pound, 1-ounce bass in March 2006, but angler Mac Weakley of Carlsbad inadvertently foul-hooked the bass and never submitted it for record consideration.

Other Southern California lakes such as Mission Viejo, Lake Murray and even Lake Cuyamaca, because of the amount of stocked trout they get, have been considered contenders to turn out a world-record bass. The larger bass eat stocked trout and get much heavier than bass at lakes that aren’t stocked with trout.

One exception was Lake Hodges, which turned out a 20-pound, 4-ounce bass in 1985.

Diamond Valley Lake also is considered a top candidate for producing a world-record bass. It is stocked heavily with trout, but bass fishermen must work from rental boats there. The lake’s launch ramp is out of service due to California’s drought conditions.

THE VIDEO OF THIS BASS IS NOW UP IN THE VIDEO SECTION OF THIS SITE. http://www.delawaretrophybass.com/apps/videos/

Bass Tactics For Delaware’s Lums Pond

by steven vonbrandt

Lums Pond, located just off Rt. # 71, in Kirkwood Delaware, is a 190 acre state park, with a very shallow launching ramp, and has room for about 25-30 vehicles with trailers in the main lot by the launching ramp. There is a daily fee at sate parks, or a yearly pass can be purchased at any of the park offices. This is a prime location for bass anglers in the spring and summer, and receives fairly heavy fishing pressure, from weekend anglers and tournament fisherman. Although it has a lot of pressure, there are still quite a few big bass in Lums, along with a decent population of Hybrid Striped Bass. If you follow these steps, you can still connect with a real trophy in Lums Pond this spring.

“Wood Cover”

There is quite a lot of wood, laydowns, and cut off stumps in Lums. Most of the wood is located on the left and right hand sides of the main lake, right after the beach and docks, about 1000 yards up from the launching ramp. The first area to try is the laydowns on the right, as you head up past the beach. This area is overlooked by a lot of anglers, but is a good location for largemouth’s in the two to four pound range. This same area also holds quite a few Striped Bass hybrids that run around six pounds on average, but some in the eight and nine pound class have been caught here. You can’t go wrong by flipping a black/blue jig, with either a blue Uncle Josh Pork trailer, or a Sweet Beaver trailer. Both have worked real well flipped into the laydowns along both shores in this area. The North shore receives the most sunlight in the spring, and as a result, warms first. I like to use a seven foot, Falcon graphite rod, with a Shimano Chronarch, spooled with twenty to twenty-five pound test. Flip all the laydowns in this area, working each one of the branches moving from the outside in, right up to the shore. If this area doesn’t produce right away, move across the lake to the other laydowns, and work them the same way. When you can’t get a hit in this area on the jig, often, you can move off this area a little farther, and rework the same areas with a 3/8 ounce Terminator spinnerbait in Golden Shiner, with tandem blades. Make as much contact with the wood from as many different angles as possible. Keeping a buzzbait rigged for this area is a good idea, and many times, repeated casts to the same areas over and over, at different angles will provoke a reaction strike.

“Points and Drop-offs”

Although it is common knowledge that bass will stage on drop-offs and points this time of year, all drop-offs and points aren’t alike. Look for drop-offs and points that are nearest to the main channel, preferably on the North shore, that contain some type of new vegetation growth under the surface. There are several areas that are eight and nine feet deep, but the average depth is four feet, with some of the shoreline much shallower. The water is very stained to muddy, so the bass will go very shallow to feed. Don’t be afraid to cast right up against the shore in the very shallow water. At first glance, Lums doesn’t seem to have a lot of grass, algae, or emergent weed growth, but there is a wide variety of aquatic vegetation under the surface that hold lots of baitfish, and bass! One of the best spots to connect with some big largemouth’s and hybrids is the sand point and drop-off just across from the dog training area. Work this area well with a white/chartreuse spinnerbait and long shad colored minnow baits, such as a Husky Suspend Jerk, or a Rattlin’ Rogue in blue/chrome,or a Lucky Craft “Pointer”. Last year working this point, and the one directly to the north of the cove with a pier, we caught more than eight bass in the three to five pound class, with a couple of nice six pound Hybrids thrown in.

“Buzz the Flats”

Don’t forget the buzzbait in the spring. When the water warms to sixty to sixty-five degrees, the buzzbait will draw tremendous topwater explosions on overcast days,and sometimes the whole day. Many times in April, we started with the buzzbait early in the morning, looking for active fish, and never switched baits all day. Some days of twenty to twenty-five fish, are not uncommon at all, with most in the three to four pound class. The best areas for the buzzbait in Lums are located on the flats that are adjacent to deep water. A good fish locator, such as a Lowrance, that is made for shallow water performance, is a great tool to have when you first start to explore Lums, as it is one of the larger Delaware Ponds.

Head straight up the lake from the launching ramp until you get to the upper end of the lake. There will be a cove with a fishing pier all the way up on the right. Work this area with repetitious casts using a double-buzz, in black, and a clacker type buzzbait, such as a Terminator Ball Buster or Charon Klacker buzz, in 1/2 ounce, with a trailer hook. Many times here you will get a lot of short strikes due to the muddy water. A trailer hook will increase your hookups greatly. Stay well off shore here, and make as many as thirty casts, from different directions, before moving on. Make sure to hesitate just a second when the bass strike, and set the hook hard. I like to use a 7 foot Lews Crankin stick, or a G.Loomis Crankin stick with seventeen to twenty pound test for this type of fishing.

“Cover Water”

When all of the above methods fail, start covering water. Sometimes the bass are still a little off shore in the early spring, and covering water quickly, until you get a strike, is a good idea. The best lures for this are 1/2 ounce chrome/blue Rattlin’ Rapalas. Position the boat a little off shore, and cast out to the drop-offs and weedlines, retrieving it back with a pumping motion, raising your rod from a 9 to 12 o’clock position. Make sure the hooks are really sharp. When you locate the fish, work the area slowly with the lipless crankbaits, spider grubs, and a 4″ Senko.” Follow these tips for Lums Pond this year in the spring, and you will get a quick start to a “trophy year.” Later in the afternoon, the area directly across the lake from here contains a lot of overhanging trees, and a lot of stumps. These stumps can’t be seen until it’s too late. So make sure you have a breakaway mount on your electric motor, and keep the outboard up out of the water. There is a no-wake policy on Delaware ponds, but you can use the outboards. The bass in these heavily pressured areas become conditioned to sounds more easily, as they can’t rely so much on sight, due to the muddy water. So keep the trolling motor on low, and try to avoid any banging around in the boat. I have caught bass with the trolling motor on, but most of the bass above five pounds were caught with the trolling motor off.

Keep these things in mind this year at Lums, and you will connect with the bass you are looking for. Most people get on the water too late. Start in mid to late March, or as soon as the water temperature gets to around forty-eight to fifty degrees.