Bass Fishing And The Virgins Luck

Jacob Villani
Aug 8, 2017
6 min read

The previous day i had experienced some quality bass to which i told Amanda all about , with great enthusiasm i might add, so much so that she simply couldn't pass up the offer to come along, when asked the next day. We were also accompanied by good friend Paul Forrester, who had made the 8 hour journey from Melbourne to come and fish for the weekend. Paul had fished for bass before, and in this particular river too, but had never actually caught a wild river bass, so he was very eager, just like Amanda was, to get out there and get his first.

We set up camp for the night and proceeded to journey to a section of land we have access to, then hiked our way over the grassy fields down to where the river runs.

Once we arrived at the first section of fishable water i got the tackle box out and rigged Amanda's rod with a BJ Custom Spinnerbait. Being new to fishing i thought the choice of lure would make a good starting point for 3 reasons; ease of use, cast ability and more importantly their high snag resistance, because i didn't fancy going swimming to retrieve her lure if she got snagged! I demonstrated a few techniques then we started fishing the pool. I was fishing the Duo Realis Shad, which i had great success on the day before whilst Paul was using a small crankbait.

A half an hour had past with out a hit. Paul and i were thoroughly working the start of the pool while Amanda had made her way to the middle of the pool. Moments later we hear Amanda shout out to us, "Guys i've got one!". We looked to her, and sure enough her rod was loaded up! "It's taking line off me", she shouted to which Paul and i laughed as we brought our lures in and proceeded to walk over to give her a hand landing the bass.

As i approached her she started singing, "i caught a bass, i caught a bass". I laughed and replied "you have to land it first"! And with that i grabbed her line and eased the bass onto the river bank. A quality fish it was, measuring approximately 43cm, and after a few pics the fish was back in the water and we were searching for more. We spent another half hour fishing the pool, without luring another fish, so we decided to move on to the next pool.

After a short walk down river we made it to the next pool which was lined with Willow trees. We all continued fish with the same lures, casting them as close to the Willows as possible. I placed numerous cast in perfect spots but none of them resulted in fish. I knew the fish were there but weren't interested in what i was offering so i started changing my technique each cast to try and see if i could find something that worked. Meanwhile, Paul had made his was further down the pool and Amanda was still at the start of the pool, thoroughly working every inch of the water with the spinnerbait.

My next cast fell way short of its target so i thought i'd try give the lure a few rips followed by 10 second+ pauses. Rip, rip, pause....... Rip, rip, rip, pause....... Rip, pause........ nothing. i begun slowly retrieving the lure and whack, Bass on! 'Finally', i said as i fought the docile fish to the bank. Out of all the bass i had caught recently, this fish was no comparison to the previous fish and put up no fight what so ever, but it still put a smile on my dile none the less!

After a quick few pics i released the bass back to the water and then walked further down stream of the pool to see how Paul was going. Just as i approached Paul gets a hit and at the same time i had launched a cast perfectly in line of where he had just got bumped. I started slow rolling the Duo Realis Shad and just as it neared the spot where Paul got hit i gave the lure a couple twitches and let it pause. I saw a small twitch in the line and struck the fish. The drag started screaming and i knew i had to give the fish some serious pressure as the was a few submerged snags i had to maneuver the fish around. I managed to get the bass past the first 2 obstacles with ease, then the fish started screaming off in the other direction, toward the last obstacle that i had to overcome. I took a dozen steps, pumping and winding as i went, until i was clear of the final obstacle then i cupped my spool and held the pressure on the fish until he was right at my feet. It was a quality Australian bass of approximately 45cm.

Just as Amanda had finished taking a few photos, she made her way back to the spot she was fishing and it was only minutes later that i heard her call out to me. "Jake, ive got another one"! I put my rod down, grabbed the camera, and started running toward her. "I think its only a small one", said Amanda, as i stood by her side. I followed her line to the water and gazed upon one big Australian Bass. "A small one? Amanda thats a pig of a bass" i assured her, as i lept in the water and grasped the fish. I measured it with my palm, which is 100mm. 1length, 2 length, 3 and 4 and 5 lengths! 50cm of wild Australian Bass caught by a lady that had never caught a bass before up until an hour ago!

By this time we were all thinking it was Paul's turn to catch his first Australian Bass and with that thought Paul decided to switch lures from the crank bait to the trusty spinnerbait, which he didn't have. So i reached into my tackle box and gave him one of mine. By then we had covered much of the water, so we started making our way to the final pool, this was Paul's last chance.

It wasn't long until we reached the final pool where the water becomes more narrow, making it easier to cast to the opposite side. Paul, with his spinnerbait and new found confidence, begun working the rock wall, i was casting the Realis Shad amongst the trees, where i could find them, whilst Amanda stopped on her way to the pool, to feed Enki.

Paul and i had started discussing something, to which i have no memory of, when all of a sudden his reel started screaming, and screaming loud! I could tell he was ecstatic but at the same time stern, concentrating all his efforts on landing the fish, as most of us would be if we were hooked up to our first Bass. He worked the rod like a champion, manipulating the rod in every direction and giving the fish nothing as he continued to pump and wind every chance he could. Eventually he landed the fish and thats when the big smile came out! I can recall him stating a single word, 'satisfied', and i was just as much satisfied as he was as it was my own personal mission to take both Amanda and Paul out to catch their first bass so, with Paul finally nailing his first in the dying moments of the session, my mission was complete! :) Not only did they both catch their first Australian Bass, they were all quality fish too especially Amanda's 50cm bass which many would regard as a fish of a lifetime.

Thanks for reading.

Fishing article written by Jake Villani

Please find all the info & links below regarding the lures and tackle we were using,

along with the previous Bass Fishing Blog. Tight Lines!

FEATURED FISHING LURES

- Duo Realis Shad MR

- BJ Custom Spinnerbait | Bass Flash 7g

FISHING LINE AND LEADER

- Yamatoyo Resin Sheller 11lb

Since ive been fishing for Australian Bass i have yet to use any other line except the 9lb and 11lb Resin Sheller braid. Its great quality and very good value for money.