There's a reason we call our favorite sport "fishing" and not "catching".
We've all been there.
One day, or one weekend you can't seem to do anything wrong.
The fish are cooperating, smashing anything you throw at them.
And then there are days or weekends where no matter what you do, the fish just don't want to bite.
Last weekend I called a buddy of mine, Burt Watkins from Avon Park, and we headed out to Lake Istokpoga for what we hoped would be a repeat of a week earlier when I'd gotten into some good fish.
For starters, I was surprised by the number of trucks and trailers when we arrived at the Cowhouse Rd boat ramp.
I like using this ramp, particularly when I fish alone because I can see my boat after I drop it in the water, unlike the state ramp on Rt. 98 where you drop your boat in the water, pull it up on shore and then you have to drive around to the parking area, where you're no longer able to see your boat.
Anyway, there were a couple of fellows putting their boat in the water, and they mentioned that they'd just come from the state ramp and that the parking area was completely full and that guys were parking in the grass.
They mentioned that a couple of tournaments were taking place.
Of course, my first thought was whether anyone would be in my "spot".
I would guess most fishermen have a "spot".
In fact, I would guess most of us have a number of "spots".
I certainly do, and although I don't mind sharing my "spots", I'm always a little disappointed when I head out to my favorite lake and someone's already fishing my "spot".
We finally got the boat launched and found a place to park the truck and as I recounted my success of the previous week to Burt, we motored over to my "spot".
Three bass boats were already fishing the area, probably already catching "my bass", so we idled in about 500 yards south of where I'd tangled with a big fish a week ago and started flipping.
Within a few minutes, I saw my line move and lowered my rod and set the hook a little harder than usual.
A hefty two-pounder came flying through the air, only to free himself from the hook, and I felt vindicated that the bass were in this area as well.
Ten minutes later I hooked and released a small male, not realizing at the time that this would be my last bass of the day.
Everybody has an opinion as to why a bass hits a lure.
Hunger, water temperatures, moon phases, the shape, size or color of the bait, or even the action.
I'm no scientist, or biologist, but I believe bass have a natural responsive instinct to predators, meaning that whether they're hungry or not, whether the moon is in the right place or the color of the lure is pumpkinseed or red flake, they'll strike it if they're there.
And that's the key!
After an unproductive hour in our first spot, we moved to another section of the lake, only again to find a number of boats already there.
One of the boats was moving west, so we idled in and positioned the boat to move east.
This meant we'd be fishing water that had already been fished, but I wasn't too concerned.
I've often followed another boat and caught plenty of fish.
Maybe the fishermen in the boat I followed weren't covering the area as well as I did, or maybe, as I believe, the bass move in and out of the reeds, always providing a brand new opportunity regardless of whether someone had already been through the area or not.
But on this day, there were no takers - nothing, not a single hit!
Maybe the guys that had just been through the area caught everything in their path.
Or maybe, they were also following someone else that had caught all the available bass.
Or maybe, there were no bass there in the first place and the bass had simply moved.
I've raised bass in large aquariums, and one thing I've observed is they are always hungry.
Or at least they are always willing to strike something that looks like food that happens to fall into their vicinity.
Sometimes, as I've observed, they need to be "coaxed" into striking.
Dancing the bait provocatively in front of them nearly always provoked a strike.
Even bass that had just eaten a couple of shiners, or half a dozen nightcrawlers (still holding the worms in their mouth) would strike at the lure.
So my assumption, when I'm fishing and not "catching" is that there were no bass where I fished.
I know many of you might argue this point, but I just have a hard time believing that a bass will just shut down and ignore a free meal being danced in front of his or her nose.
So where did the bass go?
If the weather conditions are stable or even improving, why wouldn't they be in the same place you found them a day or a week earlier?
I don't know. If I did, that's where I'd be fishing.
Buck Perry says the home of the fish is deep water.
But in the absence of deep water, what's their next choice?
Going deeper into vegetation?
Or perhaps finding a different type of vegetation or cover, or a different area of the lake.
John Wood, tournament director for The Okeechobee/Istokpoga Team Trail, reported that they fished a tournament Sunday on Lake Istokpoga and the guys who won the tournament, Ed Stoodhuff and Brad Bay definitely found them.
By 8:30 a.m. they had five fish weighing a whopping 37.13 pounds.
Their two largest, a 9.30 and a 9.19 took first- and second-place big bass pots.
Their smallest bass weighed in at over six pounds.
An incredible day, to say the least.
They were obviously "catching" and not just fishing.
Another 9-pounder was weighed in and finished third for big bass and earned the angler nothing.
Lots of nice five-fish limits were caught and released proving once again that the fish are in the lake somewhere, you just have to find them.
Don Norton is a professional tournament bass fisherman, bass fishing guide, and custom rod builder. He has also taught a few fishing classes at the South Florida Community College. He lives in the Golf Hammock area of Sebring with his wife Lexie, mother-in-law Ruth Charvat, Ranger, a huge black lab and Riley, a large golden retriever and is the owner of a custom rod building company appropriately named "The American Fisherman". He can be reached at 216-339-6571, 330-635-6682 or by email at donorton13@gmail.com. His website address is theamericanfisherman.com.
Friday, February 01, 2013 - www.newssun.com/FRI-2-1-13-FishColumn