Sidebars Archives - Page 55 of 194

June 21, 2026

Flipping or pitching is a great way to get a jig or Texas-rigged soft-plastic bait back into shoreline cover like bushes.

Give a flip — or a pitch — to the bushes for prespawn bass

One of the most-productive methods for triggering a reaction strike from a bass is to drop an intruder into his hiding spot when he’s in ambush mode. […]

Jordan Lake’s bass will make a move toward staging areas outside of spawning areas when the water temperature his 55 degrees.

Jordan Lake boat ramps: Not just for launching

Dusty Wilson

It’s not uncommon for anglers to blast off from the boat ramp at full throttle, skipping across the water like a flat stone to an undisclosed honey hole on the other end of the lake. […]

Steve Pietrykowski marks brush piles with marker buoys before and after crappie head to the bank to spawn.

Follow post-spawn crappie back to deep water the same way you followed them into the shallows

Dan Kibler

Millions of words are written annually about the process of catching crappie as they move out of deep water toward the spring spawn. […]

White perch may be great bait for stripers and blue catfish, but don’t put any live ones in your minnow tank.

Beware of minnow-eating white perch

Dan Kibler

White perch have taken hold in many South Carolina lakes, and it’s not uncommon for crappie fishermen to run into them in pretty good numbers, especially in the weeks before slabs really leave deep water and head for the banks. […]

Lake Wylie has an excellent population of white perch, a favored bait of fishermen targeting blue catfish.

White perch: the best bait for Lake Wylie catfish

Phillip Gentry

In the span of 30 years, the white perch’s range has increased from coastal rivers to just about every freshwater reservoir and river drainage in the Carolinas. […]

White perch are considered the top catfish bait by many Lake Wylie anglers.

White perch: the best bait for Lake Wylie catfish

Phillip Gentry

In the span of 30 years, the white perch’s range has increased from coastal rivers to just about every freshwater reservoir and river drainage in the Carolinas. […]

Plowing under fall food plots and replacing them with warm-season mixes for spring and summer to offer bobwhites with food and cover.

Repurpose fall deer plots into spring/summer quail outposts

Jeff Burleson

Deer hunters make up the majority of hunters in the Carolinas, yet many will frequently chase a turkey, duck or a covey of quail during other seasons. […]

Swimbaits can be fished at the surface or as deep as 30 feet, depending on the weight of the jighead and speed of retrieve, and they catch bass.

Versatility makes swimbaits deadly on South Carolina bass in spring

Brian Cope

One of the reasons swimbaits are so effective in March is because bass will be in all stages of the spawn. Some will be on deeper ledges and secondary points waiting for the right time to move closer to shallow water. Others will have moved to docks at the mouths of pockets. […]

James Grimes’ 6-pound speckled trout is a big one for anywhere on North Carolina’s coast, but the New River holds some much bigger.

Next state-record might be a New River speck

Craig Holt

Although the New River has a reputation for yielding giant spotted seatrout, the state-record trout of 12 pounds, 4 ounces came from Wrightsville Beach and has held up for 55 years. […]

Try and use specific calls that are made for producing specific sounds; don’t try to make a noise that a call isn’t designed to make.

Match the sound you want with the right turkey call for best results

Terry Madewell

John Tanner said even using his own calls, he practices to find just the right tones that produce the sounds he wants turkeys to hear. […]