Start with the fact that approximately 2 million surface acres of water are available to fish. Add the fact that there has never been a Bassmaster Elite Series tournament held here, and the last B.A.S.S. tournament here was in 1981. Mix that with wind and suddenly cooler water temperatures, and you have the ingredients for a great unknown. That was the prevailing mood on the eve of the St. Croix Bassmaster Elite at the Pasquotank River.
“It’s so big and then we have had terrible weather,” said Brandon Palaniuk. “I don’t know what to expect. The first day I didn’t catch any keepers And then another another day of practice I got one keeper, and another day in practice I got 27 pounds.”
Palaniuk, who is ranked 10th in the Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings after two events, added, “This is one of the most confusing places I’ve ever been to. It seems like it should be so simple, but I don’t know a lot of variables. And I guess maybe it’s just because it’s the first time that I’ve ever been here, and maybe I just don’t fully understand it. There’s just so much water you can’t even touch.”
The combination of unfamiliarity and the vastness of the fishable water, which includes Ablemarle Sound and significant rivers like the Chowan and Roanake, forced Bill Lowen to pick one spot and explore it over the three days of practice.
“I feel like the playing field maybe shouldn’t be so big,” said Lowen, who is 4th place in the AOY standings. “It sure isn’t helping anybody figure out a game plan in three days. I spent three days in one creek, and I don’t feel like I’ve seen the whole thing. And then when the wind blows you get three footers and stuff inside the river.”
Will Davis Jr. claims, from the safety of his pickup truck, he saw eight-foot swells on Ablemarle Sound one day. On the positive side, Davis said he caught back-to-back 6- and 7-pounders one day in practice. It’s not a lack of big fish that will determine the winner here. Largemouth bass in the 8- to 10-pound range aren’t unusual in local tournaments.
“I stayed in that creek all day and it never got better,” Davis said. “I never caught another keeper. I’ve gotta go down there and try it again. It’s hard to cover a place in three days of this magnitude.”
No matter what an angler has found during practice, being able to get there and back on a windy day has to figure in the game plan. For AOY leader John Garrett, that factor prevailed.
“It’s probably the most difficult place to practice that I’ve ever been to with the conditions we’ve had,” Garrett said. “If we had good conditions, I think this might be one of the best playing fields we’ve ever had because there are bass everywhere. But I’m not one of the guys who is going to make a crazy run (Thursday). There’s probably gonna be people who do it, and it’s gonna pay off for them. Everything told me to stay close, so that’s what I’m going to do.”
Whether to gamble or play it safe on a relatively unknown, massive body of water, that’s what this tournament seems to come down to. We’ll soon see which school of thought prevails.
