My rig’s pointed west with the happy thought that there might be gold out there. I’ve only been to California three times, but during those trips I absolutely fell in love with the place. The bass fishing is fantastic.
I remember one trip in particular. I was filming on a small lake when I noticed a bass swimming around a marker buoy. She was sort of suspended. I trolled over towards her to take a closer look. What I saw was unbelievable. I didn’t know bass grew that big. Honestly, I didn’t. Her eyes looked like the bottom of a Coke can. She had to weigh between 15 and 20 pounds. In all my years of bass fishing I’ve never seen anything like it.
We were in a marina. The fish weren’t scared of our boats at all. The water was real clear. Every so often you could see one of them. The place was full of what looked like 10-pounders. I left there thinking I’d gotten a real education. I’m from the South. We have big bass, but not big like they have out there. Ours are big. Theirs are giants, freaks of nature.
Of course I’ve fished Clear Lake and the Delta, too. The weights from an Elite Series tournament on those waters are almost frightening, and that’s why I love it. It’s an adrenaline rush to know that the 5-pounder in your livewell doesn’t amount to that much.
We’re going there at just the right time, too. The water’s warming and there’ll be a full moon on Sunday, May 3. That’ll put some on the beds with others in the pre and postspawn. Plus, when you look at the habitat, there will probably be several ways to catch the winning weight. We don’t have very many tournaments where all that stuff comes together like it has for this one.
Here’s the deal: At some point during every day on the water out there I know that I’m going to be casting around a true giant. I’m not talking big. I’m talking the fish of a lifetime, 10 pounds plus. Maybe I won’t catch her, but I know I’ll have the chance — somewhere, at some point, with some lure. It’s not like it’s a hope. It’s a definite possibility. It’s real. You know what I’m sayin’?
I’m not telling you I like the drive out there. It’ll be something pushing 30 hours for me. That’s brutal. And I’m not telling you I like the run from the river to the Delta every morning. That’s brutal, too. But, that’s a small price to pay for the opportunity to catch your lifetime best bass.
Alright, it’s time to stop talking about giant bass. It’s time to get ready to catch some of them.
Next week we’ll talk about time on the water, why it matters and how to get the most of it. That is, unless I catch a real California giant. Then you’ll have to suffer through all the details of how I caught her. I’m sorry, guys, but I just can’t get that huge marina bass out of my head.