Editor’s note: Jason Christie continues his list of the famous fisheries he would like to visit in 2015. Read part 1 here.
July
Lake St. Clair – Michigan: This is a tremendous smallmouth lake tucked between two of the Great Lakes (Huron and Erie). By July most have come off the spawning cycle. They’re hungry and the weather is nice. It’s like the opposite of why you’d fish Lake Okeechobee in January — the weather there is pleasant while a lot of the country is burning up, and you’re up there catching a lot of smallmouth bass.
August
Lake Champlain – New York/Vermont: Continuing north to the New York/Vermont border, you’re following that fair weather to one of the nation’s premier bass lakes. Champlain offers excellent largemouth and smallmouth action. You can use a spinning rod or a flipping stick – whatever you want to do. The scenery is some of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen, and the fishing is right there with it.
September
Cayuga Lake – New York: This is a tough month because of the heat, so you still want to be up north. I fell in love with Cayuga this year during the Bassmaster Elite Series event. It also has a good mix of smallmouth and largemouth bass, and you can catch them shallow and deep. When we were there, it was really fun fishing. I define that as a place where you can catch a lot of fish and catch them a lot of different ways. It’s fun to have a lot of rods laid out and catch fish on everyone one.
October
Lake of the Ozarks – Missouri: I think this is one of the forgotten lakes, but it has a lot of good fish in it. It has kind of fallen off the map in terms of national events, but Lake of the Ozarks is a strong fishery. October is an excellent time to fish shallow with a Booyah buzzbait or flip docks.
November
Toledo Bend Reservoir – Texas/Louisiana: This big lake on the border of Texas and Louisiana has a lot to offer. In the fall a lot of the grass is topped out, so I can punch deep hydrilla. I can also flip trees and bank grass, walk a Zara Spook or burn a buzzbait.
December
The Kissimmee Chain of Lakes – Florida: These Central Florida lakes hold a lot of big bass, and if the weather stays mild, you could potentially hit the early edge of the spawn at the end of the year. If you’re lucky enough to be there on a full moon when a wave of spawners moves up, you could have a banner day.
Now there’s nothing wrong with sticking to your home waters if that’s what suits your lifestyle. But I think getting out and experiencing different fisheries broadens you knowledge as an angler.
So whenever you can, visit different fisheries, learn all you can from these new waters. The knowledge you’ll gain will make you a more versatile and well-rounded angler. And that will only help you back on your home waters.