The Wild West

I can't even begin to explain how busy I've been the past few days, hectic living for this guy. I'm not complaining though, honestly a busy Josh is a happy Josh and this winter is really trying a bass addicts nerves. The more time that can fly by and the more business I can accomplish before the ice breaks is all the better cause I plan on wrecking them this spring!

The month of March is really filling up quick as I'm happy to announce that I'll be working the Navionics and possibly even the Capra's Outdoors booths this year at the Northwest Sport Show, so be sure to stop by and say hi. If you have any questions about anything fishing swing by and we'll talk shop.

The last few days have been extra hectic as leave shortly for a upcoming business trip to Southern California and if you don't know me better, business for me includes a rod and reel in hand. I'll be fishing Diamond Valley Lake with the people from Biovex, who'll be in town from Japan. We got a on-water photo shoot planned so I'm hoping the giants show up to help make me look good. I'll also be attending the Fred Hall Fishing Show in Long Beach.

**The heart of the Jewel

Bri and I still got lots to do before loading up the Ranger and make the trek across country, important things to like unwinterizing the rig, making sure the truck is good to cruise a ridiculous amount of miles but my heart is whaling a mile a minute in pure anxiety of being able to get the opportunity to fish Southern California's jewel known as DVL.

This is a new man made reservoir that was originally opened to the public in 2002 and was made for the residents in the area for usable drinking water. The lake is loaded with giant florida-strain largemouth bass and is constantly stocked with rainbow trout. It's also building a reputation as being a trophy smallmouth fishery. This deep rocky reservoir has already shelled out a 16.43 lb. monster largie and smallmouth weights aren't uncommon in the 4 and 5 pound mark.

Mid March should be a good time to fish the Jewel, the fish should be moving up preparing to spawn and if they're not up on the banks than they should be out on the points and drops in large schools. They've been getting some unusual weather and the water temp is on the cold side so the deep bite may still be where it's at if the overnight temps don't start bumping up a bit.

I've been doing my fair share of research and I got to admit I feel out of my norm. I was put in touch with the guys at Last Chance Bait and Tackle for some advice as well as some input on passing lake inspections, which is a long and honestly depressing side of California fishing that I just rather not get into and instead focus on all the positives that could come from this trip. When it comes to fishing it seems like a guy's got to be extremely versatile, it's no joke, either I'm throwing giant swimbaits with very heavy tackle or I'll bust out the fairy wands with light 6 lb. test and do work that way. There's really not much in between. I do plan on throwing some big texas rigged worms, Carolina Rigs, Football Jigs and of course a weightless senko for when I see a cruiser up on the bank. From what I hear it's not much of a reaction style lake, mainly because the lake is so gin clear. It's all about deep water or stealth in the shallows and when I say deep, we're talking 30 to 40 feet.

**Photo of a Matt Lures Bed Bait

There's always the possibility of busting a giant Chicana off a bed as well. I know the spawn is still a little ways off but I'm a firm believer that the real big ones are the first to get to doing the dirty deed and I just got the bait of all bed baits to break up a happy home. My real good buddy Eric Aske hooked me up with a couple baits for my trip and the bed buster of them all is a smaller white version of the Matt Lures Ultimate Gill. Dude, there's no way this bait doesn't get the job done. It's really an awesome bait!

My goals for this trip are through the roof, honestly though they're more on the business side of fishing. I got some meetings planned with Biovex that if everything is on track could mean real good things for the future. Of course I still have one main goal and that's to catch a ten pound giant. I'd really like to accomplish this and where's a better venue than a Southern California donkey pond? I came close last year on Falcon Lake but just never was able to bust that ten. This year could be my year!

Be sure to check in on my Facebook page for on water status checks and pictures of giants with Real Prey Swimbaits choked half down their throat!! Wish us luck!

Mapping Your Way to Fishing Success

Being an avid tournament bass fisherman, the competition that I face on a day to day basis is overwhelming. I'm always looking for that new product whether it be tackle, line, electronics, whatever can promise me that edge over my competition.

Over the years I've seen things introduced to the fishing world that promises success and guarantees the buyer that they'll catch more and bigger fish. Whether the product does just that is up to the fisherman, we definitely don't all fish the same and our styles leave the door wide open for something to be coveted by one angler yet waste away in another ones garage.

When I was first getting into the competitive side of bass fishing I admit I was one who would look for that bait or that product that would cash me paychecks. Most of the time I just ended up a little more broke in the checkbook and carrying a lot more junk in the boat. See the product itself was probably great but my skill at using it wasn't. I recall a time that I went out and bought a fiberglass rod because I heared KVD preaching the benefits of using these rods when throwing crankbaits. I remember hitting the lake with it and wouldn't you know I didn't catch anything. Insulted, I shoved the rod back into my rod locker and I swear it sat there for a better part of six months.

Gimmick? Well had you asked me that then I would have said yes, without a doubt. Ask me that now and the answer would be not at all. See the truth to the matter is I wasn't seasoned on the technique of deep water crankin' and just because I buy that specific style of rod doesn't give me all the inner tools needed to master the technique. Though now that I've spent countless hours practicing the technique of deep crankin', I can wholeheartedly see the benefits as to what KVD was talking about.

There's a million examples one could come up with very similar to the one I just shared. Though from time to time a company will introduce a product that will set a new standard. A product so useful that it rewrites the way fishermen fish. You can't fine tune a presentation if you can't find the fish and the products put out by Navionics are meant to do just that.

Out of everything I own fishing related, what couldn't I live without? That's a really tough question to answer and one that was emailed to me by a fisherman looking for some solid advice. My first answer would have to be my boat, I can't compete or even fish without it. Second would have to be my electronics. Without these I wouldn't know where to fish. That's when I got to thinking, my electronics are very important but without my Navionics data cards showing me what is under the waters surface I wouldn't know where to begin. Even the new addition of Side Imaging is known as a game changer but it wouldn't be nearly as useful if I didn't know what structure was underneath me. To be able to just show up and fish a body of water and have all the lake information at the tip of my finger is essential to my and every other anglers success. My Navionics chip is what breathes life into my electronics!

Now Navionics has stepped up there game once again and introduced a new App for both Android and iPhone. This state of the art and already award winning product can now be at anybodies fingertips even if you don't own a boat. For around ten dollars anyone who owns one of these phones can download Navionics and see exactly what I can see from the deck of my Ranger. Not only can they see but they can follow along with the GPS as well as save waypoints. Talk about a truly good deal, for a ten spot you can turn your phone into a hand held unit? Now were talking about a good deal!

Another key introduction to the Navionics App is the User Generated Content, better known as UGC. This function empowers Navionics customers to modify navigational aids or points of interest on their charts and instantly share it with an entire community of users! Simply input your UGC via your Smart Phone App or PC App and you will join others in creating the best and freshest localized charts available.

No matter your skill level, Navionics offers a product that will benefit you the instant you hit the water. Like any other sport, practice develops your skills. To catch fish you need to be able to think like one, invest in Navionics and take the guess work out of your time on the water. From the crankbait rod to the crankbait itself, it's all useless if I don't know the structure that I'm throwing it to. That's were Navionics gives me my edge!

For more information please contact me via email at Josh@JoshDouglasFishing.com or contact Navionics directly at www.Navionics.com.

Tackle Update: New for Navionics

Problems viewing the HTML version? Click here Navionics World… Anytime, Anywhere. Experience the Navionics World Miami International Boat Show February 17-21, 2011 Booth #1643 BUY Navionics for your Chart Plotter: • Get unlimited access to Freshest Data* • Get a Free Navionics PC App too! For 1 year when you buy Navionics for your chart plotter you get unlimited access to download the freshest data via our Web Store at navionics.com. It’s easy! But that’s not all - you are also eligible to download our PC App to view Navionics on your computer. It’s a great value! NEW! User Generated Content! Join the Navionics Revolution. User Generated Content (UGC) empowers Navionics customers to modify navigational aids or points of interest on their charts and instantly share it with an entire community of users! Simply input your UGC via your Smart Phone app or PC App and you will join others in creating the best localized charts available. NEW! Wireless Plotter Sync! Raymarine and Navionics are pleased to announce the availability of Navionics Mobile with Plotter Sync technology. Plotter Sync enables the wireless exchange of navigation data between Raymarine’s E-Series Widescreen and G-Series navigation displays via mobile devices including the Apple iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. * Customer registration required. Gold cartography is eligible for freshest data updates which include HotMaps Premium, HotMaps Platinum, Gold, Platinum+ (freshest data available March/April 2011). For more information please visit navionics.com

KVD Wins the 2011 Bassmaster Classic!!

It isn't everyday that I write about other tournament bass anglers but at the same time I find it important to give credit where credit is due. On that note, the 2011 Bassmaster Classic just wrapped up minutes ago and the venue, the Louisiana Delta proved to be healthy as ever imagined.

This stretch of waterway from New Orleans to Venice, where the Mississippi dumps into the Gulf of Mexico has been under the gun lately by literally catastrophic events. First, the area gets slammed by Hurricane Katrina and if that isn't enough a couple years later it gets attacked by a BP oil rig that exploded in the Gulf. People all over the world expected this massive waterway to be decimated beyond repair. Many thought the Classic would be relocated, not the case, in fact it was one of the best Classics I can remember. In fact, the final day pumped out sacks close to thirty pounds and the man holding the trophy at the end was the one and only, Kevin VanDam.

**Photo courtesy of Bassmaster.com

The dude's simply unreal, by far the best stick in the world and there's no question. Taking second was Aaron Martens, yes again, Aaron takes second to King Kong. I'm sure he feels like puking on himself right now but should hold his head high, very high. I dream everyday of just qualifying for a Classic, one day God willing I will, but hats off to a guy that not only qualifies but is in the thick of it year after year. There's no doubt in my mind Aaron will hold that trophy over his head one year very soon.

From all the reports I heard, the top anglers were fishing an an area very close to the take off, literally fishing a cast length apart. While most anglers made super long runs, some claiming to have ran over 700 miles in the three days, for the most part just couldn't find the fish that the others could. Fog delays may have been part of this but in the end it just seemed like the ones that stayed close were on the fish to do just what they did, whacked 'em.

The top five were KVD with 69-11, Aaron Martens 59-0, Minnesota's own Derek Remitz with 56-8, rookie Brandon Palaniuk with a very impressive 55-7 and Brent Chapman with a very respectable 54-8.

Some notables were Mike Iaconelli took 11th place with 43-3, Skeet Reese finished 14th with 42-3 and local favorite Greg Hackney finished in a disappointing 42nd place with a weight of 15-1, going to show again that winning on home waters isn't as easy as one would believe.

Early reports prove that attendance and interest in our sport is at in all time high. It's said that over a million people were tuning into the live streaming to watch the weigh in. I can't imagine how many will tune into ESPN 2 next weekend to watch all the on-water action!

Now that the Classic is officially wrapped and in the books, my anxiety to be on the water is through the frickin' roof! As I write this we are being bombed by yet another snowmeggedon which is supposed to dump another twenty inches of the white stuff all across the Twin Cities. It's easy to sit here and feel bad for myself but instead I'm going to be grateful it's now and not two weeks from now when I'll be headed to California's Diamond Valley Lake to try my hand at whacking a ten plus pounder! This weather is also securing the move to Tennessee, trust me!

Congrats to KVD and all the rest of the Classic qualifiers and thanks to all of bass fishing sponsors that make our sport even possible!

Tackle Update: Real Prey Introduces the 5" Shad

Massachusetts swimbait maker, Joe Rainville, owner of Real Prey Swimbaits, just announced the release of his much anticipated 5" Shad. A 1 oz. bait designed to be fished anywhere from the east coast to the west coast and from Florida to Minnesota. The 5 inch size of this bait is ideal for all size bass no matter where you fish, if there's shad this bait will shine. In fact, because the bait swims so natural it'll get bit no matter if the dominant forage is shad, bluegill, trout or alewife. I personally have never thrown a bait that runs as true as a Real Prey and the 5" Shad is no exception.


Besides the baits irresistible action, there's other attributes worth pointing out. Unlike more mass produced swimbaits on the market, the Real Prey's are made of a high module and far more expensive silicone product, instead of more widely used plastisol. The benefits of this silicone favors the buyer far more than the manufacturer. As mentioned the price of the silicone is much more than that of plastisol and the reasoning behind this is because the silicone is far more durable. Durability is very high on my list when spending over twenty bucks per bait. Being that silicone is more expensive you'd think this added expense would be passed along to the consumer, not the case with Real Prey. Instead of being like most companies producing swimbaits who would rather have less expense in manufacturing and less durability in the products so that their consumers would need to buy more product when the baits wear out, Real Prey on the other hand give their customers more value for their buck and depend on old fashioned level of service to produce more and longer lasting customers.


The price of the 5" Shad is $19.99 and the best way to purchase these baits is through Real Prey directly at www.realpreyswimbaits.com and if you spend over $50, shipping is free. Real Prey is in the middle of constructing a brand spanking new website so continue to check in for new developments. If you have any questions or want to order these baits contact realpreyswimbaits@yahoo.com