Practice with Crews on the St. Johns

Shaye Baker caught up with John Crews for one of the official practice days of the upcoming 2022 AFTCO Bassmaster Elite on the St Johns River. Come along as he joins Crews for a day of practice.

Crews is rooming with the same guys he has the last couple seasons: Ed Loughran, Derek Hudnall and Bryan Schmitt. It’s currently 5:30 a.m., and the house is coming alive. It’s time for breakfast.

Crews’ breakfast of choice consists of oatmeal, blueberries and bananas.

It’s still dark as the anglers make their way outside, all looking to trailer about an hour before launching their boats. The playing field is expansive here on the St Johns this week, with the opportunity to run hours in several directions. Breaking this size of a fishery down in practice is often easier done by trailering to different ramps instead of making long boat rides, especially with locking necessary to enter certain parts of the fishery.

The weatherman has been calling for a 3% chance of precipitation today. There’s a heavy dew in the air that has already exceeded Crews’ predictions in my personal opinion.

The mist/dew in the air is evident on Crews’ custom truck tag as well. The day starts out in the low 40s, and the sun is expected to come out, with high temperatures predicted to reach the low 60s.

Time to hit the road. Crews hops up in the cab of his Toyota Tundra and we roll out at 6 a.m., right on time. The gates won’t open where we’re headed until one hour later.

Judging by the light drizzle on the windshield, it looks like we’re still in that 3% chance of rain.

Time to uncover the boat. Crews opted to leave it covered for the drive, to try to keep his boat as dry as possible.

Here’s a nifty feature of Crews’ Bass Cat Puma STS, a light projecting the BassCat brand onto the ground below his trailer step.

Crews unloads his weaponry for today’s battle from the back of the truck and straps it all down on the front deck of the boat.

Crews and roommate Derek Hudnall discuss the day, while waiting for the gate to open at the ramp.

A look at the front end of Crews’ boat reveals the Lowrance Ghost trolling motor, which is quickly becoming more commonplace.

Crews is among a group of anglers opting for multiple brands of electronics, each offering different features that when combined, provide a better edge on the water.

Crews’ prop is protected by The Prop Alert, made with bright material and reflective strips to make it known that you’re running into trouble if you hit that prop.

The gates open for the ramp at Rodman Campground, and it’s time to roll in.

But first, he’s got to pay the ramp lady. A fee is collected from each angler as they enter.

That 3% is starting to look more like a 100% chance of the wet stuff. The heavy dew that turned into a mist changed to rain.

Crews is representing, as always, his Angling for Autism decal, a cause he is passionate about.

It’s about to be game on, as the boat gets launched.

Crews and roommate Loughran share launching their boats, allowing them to float without a driver. Loughran will hitch a ride with Crews and board his rig.

Crews puts Loughran out, and now it’s time to head out onto the lake to search for a game plan.

The cockpit of Crews’ boat will be critical today. He hasn’t spent a lot of time on this particular part of the fishery yet, and Rodman is full of standing timber. Using his units to navigate will help him make his way around the fishery safely.

The rain has stopped, and Crews is all smiles.

A look from the back deck of Crews’ boat as he idles out, trying to decide where he wants to start his day.

Crews doesn’t go far, opting to get a better lay of the land from the front deck before running much on the big motor. There’s no vast catalog of waypoints on his graph to guide him, no vast history on this lake for him to pull from. Today is about just going fishing, looking at a blank canvas and trying to paint a pretty picture.

A few of the tools of the trade arranged neatly on the step of Crews’ boat, ready when the time comes.

Crews starts out sampling some stumps. Like many other fisheries, most of the trees were left standing when Rodman was dammed up. Years later, almost all of the trees have fallen over right at the waterline, leaving a minefield of obstructions just above and below the surface.

Crews looks out across miles of stumps, knowing they reach even beyond where the fog will allow him to see, while trying to make sense of which are most likely to hold bass.

Warm gloves, not something you expect to see as part of the outfit for fishing in Florida, are a necessity this morning.

Crews swaps back and forth between a baitcaster and a spinning reel, another tool not often related to fishing in Florida. But with the present conditions this week, the bite has been a little tough.

A quick look at the forecast, rain chances taking a 33% drop soon, from a 3% to a 2% chance. These meteorologists really seemed to be getting this thing dialed in, so planning by the hour is possible.

A couple other boats can be seen in the distance as the fog and mist start to lift.

The first stop didn’t yield much for Crews in the way of bites, but he’s learning a little more as he goes. He decides to spend more time focused on the electronics.

Crews opts to try a new bait.

The first bass enters the boat. Crews knows how to hold one.

But he also knows that won’t fly come time for the fish to hit the scales on Thursday, so he gives us a more realistic look at the first fish of the morning.

Not long after that, a little better fish enters the boat…

… and then another. Crews is pleased with the direction he is going with the sizes increasing.

It’s so cold, these Florida strain bass will just lay still in your hand and pose for a picture.

Crews takes a snack break, while continuing to keep searching.

Rodman is full of cover, like many areas of the St. Johns River. Though standing timber and stumps seem to be the most prevalent on Rodman, lily pads are scattered throughout, adding to the habitat.

Some lily pads have collected floating debris and vegetation to form mats, typically a great thing to look for when fishing in Florida.

But not all mats are created equal. Though you can catch fish at times punching through any kind of overhead cover, mats of hyacinth, hydrilla and pennywort are typically some of the better bass producers. And others are not, and are commonly referred to as “junk” mats.

Crews shows off a nice one.

One last look before slipping this one back into the water, hopeful she has a short memory and will hang around a couple days to see him again come tournament time.

Another chunk for Crews, as he starts to put something together.

Time for another snack. The dietary plans of professional fisherman vary widely. For Crews, it’s about eating a little as he goes.

The sun finally peeks out from behind the clouds and lights up the deck of Crews’ boat.

The sky is still heavily clouded, but the sun gives us hope that the air temps are finally going to climb out of the low 40s.

Crews slips another quality fish into the boat as the sunshine lingers on for a few minutes at least.

Add quality keeper to the list.

A quick look around the deck of Crews’s boat reveal some of his sponsors, many having been with him for years as he enters into his third decade as a professional bass fisherman.

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The sun has stayed out longer than Crews expected …

… though it is still patchy at best.

Blue skies try to break through the clouds, but as the evening comes on, the sunshine is short lived and the clouds cover the sky again.

Crews idles around some more, scanning through some of the standing timber with his graphs.

Vegetation lines the shallows of Rodman …

… stretching on for miles at times.

Another nice fish for crews, as the day grows darker.

Time for one more snack before heading to the ramp.

And that’s a wrap, not just a boat and truck wrap, but also a wrap on the day. It’s been a good day of practice for Crews, with some promising bites and something to build on going into the tournament.