Hover Lure King of Bass Dragonmaster Lure

Spring 2004
presented by HOVER-LURE® King of Bass

Watching the "Evening Edition" of the Weather Channel, it is 45 degrees below zero wind chill factor in Minnesota and 16 degrees below zero in Chicago. Here in Miami, Fort Lauderdale it is 50 degrees at night and 75 degrees during the day.

The bass down here already think it's springtime. I saw a 6-1/2 pound female cruising the shallows together. I caught the female on a green-bodied Blue-Wing Pond Hawk Dragon Fly with yellow-eyes. It was hovering above the water on a green lily pad. This is how I knew the Bass was 6-1/2 pounds.

Put away your heavy gear and go with a light tackle approach. Personally, I don't use anything heavier than 12lbs. Test "Ande"Line. Casting lures from Crank Baits, to worms, to minnow lures is easier too. Casting the Hover-Lure with a 12lb test line or less lets you get it further and into those hidden areas. As far as the brand of line you choose, Ande Line cuts weed for me better than others I've tried.

Your presentation with light-tackle is to be done in a Finesse-type way. Don't try to drop your lure in a spot falling heavy into it. Try to leave as little as possible commotion in the water. Also, cast to an area that has a light breeze. The wind will flutter the Dragon Fly wings. With the wings moving, twitch your line ever so slightly and wait-BAM! Your on the way to catching.

WHERE TO LOOK

For me I love using my 175 special edition Tracker boat with a F5 HP Mercury and motor guide trolling motor, but for quickest action, I go afoot.

By-Product of highway production, small roadside ponds and lakes can produce Blue-Ribbon Bass that hit driver's windows and fall into the water. Dragonflies come to these roadside waters as the top insect predator, but not top dog on the food chain.

When dragonflies get near the water, their size and quick movements alone get the large mouth's attention. Millions of years of dining on dragonflies, large mouth bass know their protein content is high. When waters are cold and bass are sluggish, proteins a must-crawfish and insects. Hover-Lure dragon fly kits offer over a hundred different end of the bulrush weed line to share. With the spawning rituals in full swing, there's no doubt that a dragonfly cast near a mating pair will get slammed!

Don't forget to take a stealth-mode approach to the shore. Cast your lures to the outside edge of any vegetation and then move your lure(s) inside.

Westside shallows get light first, so go west young man. By working the Western shoreline first, you assure yourself of getting fish quickly. Don't overlook bridges and culverts. These man-made structures soak up heat all day and produce for me in the afternoon when I’m just casting and enjoying the weather, the 70-degree. Call me at (305) 275-6472 at home (305) 975-4830 on cell for available fishing trips at $200.00 for half-day trips and $350.00 for full day trips.

SPECIES AVAILABLE

February in Florida means Giant Large-Mouth Bass and slab-size Crapie/Speckled Perch. Shallow water/shoreline anglers are in for a "Reel" treat. Sunfish-Bluegil, Red-Ear Sunfish, among others, rounds out the shoreline invasion looking for bedding areas and food-insects, frogs and other small critters.

Although cold air can and occasionally does move down to South Florida, the temperature in February is consistently moving up becoming warmer. Long periods of warmth triggers Peacock bass into spawning and big males are ready to straighten out your hooks if not ready. Already I have caught 5 to 7 pound Peacock Bass. Cold mornings should be fished for Largemouth Bass and afternoons spent catching Peacock Bass.

Mornings can bring Tarpon. Look for wind sheltered finger canal ponds and lakes fed by canals. Glassy surfaces with Flying Insects-Dragonflies will have fish on the edge jumping. Before you fish, take time to look at the water, Tarpon roll at the surface. All others slap at the surface. Tarpon can be caught with lures and flies, including Dragon Fly. They average 5-15 pounds.

Snook season opened February 1st and they are affected by the cold also. Find warm waters and you'll catch Snook. Docks, seawalls, bridges, pot holes in hydraulic, culverts and canal intersections with current, hold big snook. Working top water lures slowly will bring about a hit. If you go fishing at sundown, Bass and Snook will slam top water lures. These fish average 5-10 pounds. So, come down to South Florida or to a warm weather sunny place and enjoy the sport of great bass fishing with your Hover-Lure.

Click here for a previous Chris Hunter Forecast.

Casting in canals, waterways, under bridges and roadways

Bait fish like to move in and out of cooler darker water created by a bridge or overpass. Access to those spots can be tricky. Depending on the slope of the bank and the composite of the shore line look for a spot nearest the shaded water. Start your casting into the covered water and work the lure out into open water. Try to reach all of the places under the bridge or underpass. If possible start the next casting sequence from under the bridge. Cast into the open water and bring the lure back toward you into the covered water. These patterns simulate bait fish as they enter and leave the covered water.

Cross section of typical So. Florida canal

Fish use the shallow drop off area (#1) as well as the shore for mating, sunning, and feeding. Fish use the drop off areas between #1 and #2 for staging ambushes, feeding, traveling and resting. The main cannel is used for traveling and staging in the thermodine as well as feeding.

C-9 Snake Creek main canal dam. Where fresh water meets brackish water

While dam gates open periodically they also open after heavy rains. When the gates are open fish activity greatly increases. Bait fish swim up current to keep from being swept into the brackish waters. The weaker bait fish get swept into the currents. This is when game fish are most active feeding. The more powerful game fish like Snook, Tarpon and Jack swim against the currents and feed on the weaker bait fish. Game fish, on both sides of the dam, spend their time resting up when the gates are closed. They also move into fresh water to rid themselves of parasites. Just as sharks gather around underwater springs in the Caribbean ocean, game fish experience the same intoxicating sensation from swimming in fresh water.

A Typical South Florida Canal-fed Lake

Canal fed lakes act as inland estuaries. Currents, created by the opening and closing of flood gates, shape the lake bottom . This procedure repeatedly sends large amounts of water flowing down the canal system that pools into lakes. Heavy Florida rains bring food and oxygen into these lakes which adds to the shaping and composite of the lake bottom. This particular lake is at the end of a spur canal located north of the main canal. Lakes at the end of a canal system hold big fish. Hard to reach or out of the way canal/lakes attract fish looking for sanctuary. Usually a canoe or small boat is the only way in.

The Airport Lake shoreline

This lake has a rock bed with sun, sunken trees and plenty of vegetation. Those combined characteristics make it a great place for bait and game fish. Large mouth bass will hang between the 6 and 12 feet depth. Peacock bass can be found in the shallows at 3 to 6 feet.

Good luck and have fun!

Chris Hunter

Chris Hunter is a regular on and part time co-host of The Florida Sportsman Fishing Show on 790 WAXY AM Radio. Chris is a member of our research/ reporting team at HOVER-LURE. In the 35 years that Chris has been fishing for largemouth bass he has repeatedly won and/or placed second in South Florida fishing tournaments. His passion for bass fishing has led him to explore Europe, Central and South America, the Caribbean islands, North America and Canada. Since turning pro in 1999 Chris holds seminars and fishing classes for adults and children in south Florida on a regular basis. When he's not booking salt water fishing trips for bill fish and tuna Chris follows his passion of light-tackle inland water fishing. Introduced as a child to largemouth bass fishing by his father Williams Ainsworth Hunter, Chris has spent most of his time on the water researching and reporting on what really works for catching fish. For more info on HOVER-LURE Fishing Systems and their use or if you want to look into booking an exciting fishing trip with Chris, email us at info@hover-lure.com.

Take advantage of the Hover-Lures durability as well as its interchangeable parts. The neck of the leaf float is designed to be bent into any position that enables the dragonfly lure to ride higher from or lower to the water. Simply bend the neck to adjust the attitude of the dragonfly. The dragonfly tail can point up or down depending on how the leaf neck is bent. The positioning of the lures wings adds a naturalistic look to the dragonfly. Each species of dragonfly uses a range of wing positions to indicate if the dragonfly is just landing or about to take off or at rest. Watch the dragonflies around you and match their wing positions. Simply use your fingers and pinch the wing tips together.