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By Louie Stout
Darrin Schaap talks sunglasses
Every serious angler knows the importance of sunglasses. The lenses not only protect your eyes, but allow you to see beneath the surface of the water.
But not all sunglasses offer the same level of protection - or the quality of vision - you need. They may look cool and inexpensive, but are you getting the benefits you need?
Clear H2o Tackle Shop owner Darrin Schaap knows this all too well. When he’s not fishing for bass and bluegills on Michiana lakes, he’s on Lake Michigan trolling for trout and salmon or in Florida chasing saltwater fish.
“Quality sunglasses are more expensive but if you spend as much time outdoors and on the water as I do, you realize they are worth every penny,” said Schaap, a Costa Del Mar dealer.
The benefits may not be noticeable as you try them on or compare with other brands, but there are discernable differences once you get on the water, he added.
“The components in premium glasses are better made, the lenses are clearer and they are more abrasion resistant,” he said. “Quality glasses have more options to enhance your vision experience; you get more frame options and can find a pair to fit your head and nose perfectly.”
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By Louie Stout
LEWISTON, N. Y. – I fully admit I can be a bass snob at times. I just love catching them and honestly, don’t spend much time fishing for most other species.
Family fishing the Niagara River
However, the Niagara River is one of those places where you can go bass fishing, have a blast and never know what you might hook.
It’s a destination worthy of any angler’s bucket list. During the spring and fall, the river is full of fish of many different species that keep you guessing when you get that bite.
About nine of us media types were invited by the “Destination Niagara USA” to sample the mighty Niagara last week. Company personnel from Flambeau, Strike King, Lew’s, Seaguar, Mammoth Coolers and Rapid Fishing Solutions were also there.
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By Louie Stout
Indiana and Michigan DNR Divisions of Fish and Wildlife hit the jackpot last year despite the pandemic.
Both states reported across the board license sales in fishing and hunting. When people were out of work or couldn’t do anything else, they took up outdoors activities
For example, Indiana fishing sales were up 21 percent and trout stamps 16 percent.
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Angler’s First-Ever Bass Breaks Montana Record
By Louie Stout
Sure that expensive bass boat looks good and carries all of your sophisticated equipment.
There’s no question that the electronics unlock secrets of a lake and those premium rods, reels and line make you a more resolute angler.
But is all of that necessary to catch a state record bass?
Apparently not.
A Montana man fishing with piece of crawler on a No. 10 Eagle Claw hook and 6-pound line not only caught a record-breaking, 9.575-pound largemouth, but it was the first bass he’s ever caught.
Brandon Wright from Billings, Mont. was fishing Lake Elmo. He arrived around 10 a.m., cast out the worm and sat back to watch Tik Tok videos on his cell phone.
Fifteen minutes later, the fish bit and Wright became the new record holder, breaking the previous state record of 8.8 set in 2009.
That story brings to mind how the Michigan smallmouth record was broken in 2016. A man was fishing with a nightcrawler from the shore of his cottage on the Indian River when he hooked the 9.98-pound brute.
He had no idea of what he caught and planned to fillet the fish when a neighbor stopped him and suggested he have it checked for a state record.
Thousands of knowledgeable bass boat anglers have trekked across northern Michigan since then and none of them have come close to breaking that mark.
Sometimes, ignorance really is bliss.
Brandon Wright from Billings, Montana