by Tom Berg
Many years ago, I was a serious bass fisherman. I pursued largemouth bass for the most part since they were common in the lakes I often fished, but I also loved catching smallmouth bass. There just weren’t very many smallmouth waters near where I lived. And spotted bass? None lived nearby, and I had only caught one spotted bass on a trip to Branson, Missouri. That was about 30 years ago.
But earlier this spring I had planned a return trip to Branson, and bass fishing on famous Table Rock Lake was on my agenda. I knew that the largemouth bass fishing on Table Rock was really good, and I had heard that the smallmouth bass fishing has become excellent in recent years, too. The spotted bass population has always been good here, so I was hoping to catch all three species of bass in one outing. If I could accomplish it, I would call it the bass fishing trifecta!
I had arrived in Branson a couple of days earlier and had met up with my friend and fellow outdoor writer Bill Cooper, and we scheduled a morning of fishing with long-time fishing guide Mike Webb. Mike has been fishing Table Rock Lake (and other lakes in the Branson area) for more than 40 years, and he is a real expert when it comes to bass fishing. He knows every bay and probably every underwater stump in the lake, too!
Bill and I met Mike at the Table Rock State Park boat ramp at 6:00am on the appointed day. The weather was perfect; calm winds, warm temperatures and a few thin clouds in an otherwise beautiful blue sky. We hopped aboard and Mike steered his boat towards a small, nondescript bay nearby. The water was glass calm and the sun was peeking over the trees along the eastern shoreline. What a wonderful day to be fishing!
Mike handed Bill a spinning rod and pointed towards another one for me to use. They were rigged with soft plastic lures – small Yum worms – on a lightweight jighead. Mike instructed us to fish these lures very slowly. Almost maddeningly slowly! “Just crawl them along the bottom real slow,” he said. “Don’t hop them or swim them along. These bass will pick them right up off the bottom.”
It wasn’t easy for me to fish that slowly. I usually like to use a fairly fast-moving bait. But I knew that Mike’s advice was solid. I made a couple casts and within a minute I felt a fish inhale my bait. I set the hook, but it wasn’t a very good hookset. Frankly, I was surprised I got a bite so quickly so I was somewhat off-guard. The fish surfaced almost instantly and jumped. I saw it was a very nice-sized smallmouth bass, but before I could get it to the boat it threw the hook. Darn! I promised myself the next hookset would be better.
We continued moving down the shoreline very slowly, and several feet from where I lost that first bass I felt another hit. I reared back to set the hook, and this time the hookset was good. A heavy fish took off in the opposite direction and peeled some drag from the reel. I kept the pressure on and quickly got him to the side of the boat. It was another big smallmouth bass! Mike grabbed the landing net and that’s when the fish went crazy! It leaped and made a mad dash under the boat, but Mike slipped the net underneath him when it reappeared. Success!
It was a hefty smallmouth bass, with that beautiful bronze color in the early morning sunlight. We measured it and it was almost 19 inches long – a real beauty! We snapped a few photos and quickly released it. Bill was next as he hooked a largemouth and quickly got it to the boat. It wasn’t nearly as big as the smallmouth, but it still gave him a good fight.
We kept moving along the shoreline and it wasn’t long before I felt the familiar tap of a bass inhaling my bait in the unseen depths below. I set the hook and felt another good fish! This one did not jump right away, but when I got it close to the boat it swirled at the surface and we could see that it was a nice-sized largemouth bass. Excellent! I landed it and it measured just over 18 inches long, so I was happy with it. And it was my second bass species of the morning, so I only needed a spotted bass to achieve the trifecta!
I mentioned this to Mike, and he said he knew of a section of rocky shoreline that often held spotted bass. Happily, it was just ahead. On my first cast there, I felt a light hit on my lure. I set the hook, half expecting to miss the fish. Instead, I felt the weight of another bass. This one didn’t feel as large as my first two fish, but it was a fighter. When I got it up to the boat I thought it was another largemouth, but Mike blurted out “There’s your spotted bass!”
He netted it and I put it on the measuring board. It was only a little more than 15 inches long, but it felt like a trophy to me. It was the third bass species of the day and it meant I achieved the “Branson Bass Fishing Trifecta”. What a feeling! I held it up for a photo and released it safely back into the depths.
Bill and I continued to catch several more largemouth and smallmouth bass before it was time to quit, so we both had a great time. Mike Webb really put us on the fish and they cooperated very nicely. Besides his full-time guiding business, Mike is also a professional bass fisherman and a rep for Bass Pro Shops. To book your own fishing trip with him, give him a call (or text) at 417-425-7513 or send him an email at kastkid@aol.com. You can also find more info on his website at www.WebbOutdoors.com.
If you are planning to visit the Branson area, rest assured that there are plenty of great things to do once you arrive (www.ExploreBranson.com). Fishing is always #1 on my list, and besides outstanding bass fishing on Table Rock Lake, there is excellent fishing for bass and giant crappies on nearby Bull Shoals Lake. If you prefer coldwater fish, there is world-class trout fishing on Lake Taneycomo for rainbow trout and brown trout, too. For the non-fishermen in the family, Branson has an abundance of live music shows, restaurants, outdoor adventures and many other attractions.
There are lots of great lodging options in Branson, and we stayed at the famous Lilleys’ Landing Resort and Marina (www.LilleysLanding.com) on upper Lake Taneycomo. It was the perfect base of operations for us as we sampled all of the local fishing. The Lilley family runs a first class resort and I can’t wait to make a return trip. It was also just a short drive to downtown Branson for restaurants and attractions, and the trout fishing on Lake Taneycomo was spectacular! More about that in a future article. Until then, tight lines!
Be the first to comment