Day on the Lake with Jonathon VanDam

Spend a day on the water with JVD and see how he looks at a lake he's never seen before.

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In Bassmaster’s “Day on the Lake” series, Elite Series pros are challenged to fish on small lakes they’ve never seen before, giving them seven hours to locate and catch bass while we log their every move. This month, Bassmaster Elite Series pro Jonathon VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., accepts the challenge. VanDam, 25, grew up in the fishing business. His uncle is superstar Elite Series pro Kevin VanDam. His father, Randy, operates the largest bass boat dealership in Michigan and holds the Ohio state record for smallmouth (9 pounds, 8 ounces). Here’s how JVD breaks the ice on Dec. 10, 2012, when he took on Lake N, a small reservoir.
In Bassmaster’s “Day on the Lake” series, Elite Series pros are challenged to fish on small lakes they’ve never seen before, giving them seven hours to locate and catch bass while we log their every move. This month, Bassmaster Elite Series pro Jonathon VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., accepts the challenge. VanDam, 25, grew up in the fishing business. His uncle is superstar Elite Series pro Kevin VanDam. His father, Randy, operates the largest bass boat dealership in Michigan and holds the Ohio state record for smallmouth (9 pounds, 8 ounces). Here’s how JVD breaks the ice on Dec. 10, 2012, when he took on Lake N, a small reservoir.
8:38 a.m. VanDam hunts in vain for a mapping chip for his graph that shows a detailed image of Lake N.
8:38 a.m. VanDam hunts in vain for a mapping chip for his graph that shows a detailed image of Lake N.
8:25 a.m. VanDam swings aboard his first keeper of the day.
8:25 a.m. VanDam swings aboard his first keeper of the day.
8:25 a.m. VanDam’s first keeper of the day, a 2-pound, 1-ounce largemouth, hit his jig at the edge of a submerged brushpile.
8:25 a.m. VanDam’s first keeper of the day, a 2-pound, 1-ounce largemouth, hit his jig at the edge of a submerged brushpile.
10:24 a.m. VanDam sticks a keeper bass on a shaky head worm.
10:24 a.m. VanDam sticks a keeper bass on a shaky head worm.
10:24 a.m. VanDam catches his second keeper of the day, 1 pound, 4 ounces, off a long, brushy point on a shaky head worm.
10:24 a.m. VanDam catches his second keeper of the day, 1 pound, 4 ounces, off a long, brushy point on a shaky head worm.
10:54 a.m. VanDam slams the hook into a big fish that picked up his jig.
10:54 a.m. VanDam slams the hook into a big fish that picked up his jig.
10:54 a.m. VanDam’s biggest bass of the day, a 6-pound largemouth, hit a jig near a retaining wall.
10:54 a.m. VanDam’s biggest bass of the day, a 6-pound largemouth, hit a jig near a retaining wall.
12:32 p.m. VanDam battles a big bass that hit his jig off a main-lake point.
12:32 p.m. VanDam battles a big bass that hit his jig off a main-lake point.
12:32 p.m. VanDam swings aboard his fifth keeper of the day, a 4-pound, 4-ounce largemouth.
12:32 p.m. VanDam swings aboard his fifth keeper of the day, a 4-pound, 4-ounce largemouth.
12:32 p.m. VanDam’s fifth keeper of the day, 4 pounds, 4 ounces, hit a jig off a brushy point.
12:32 p.m. VanDam’s fifth keeper of the day, 4 pounds, 4 ounces, hit a jig off a brushy point.
12:39 p.m. VanDam probes a deep pocket off the main lake with a jerkbait.
12:39 p.m. VanDam probes a deep pocket off the main lake with a jerkbait.
12:49 p.m. VanDam probes a laydown tree on Lake N with a jig.
12:49 p.m. VanDam probes a laydown tree on Lake N with a jig.
1:45 p.m. VanDam catches his sixth keeper, 1 pound, 12 ounces, off a dock on a jerkbait.
1:45 p.m. VanDam catches his sixth keeper, 1 pound, 12 ounces, off a dock on a jerkbait.
Jonathon VanDam’s two biggest bass of the day from Lake N weighed 4-4 and 6-0. Both came off isolated brush and hit a Strike King jig.
Jonathon VanDam’s two biggest bass of the day from Lake N weighed 4-4 and 6-0. Both came off isolated brush and hit a Strike King jig.