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12
Tribune & Georgian
Friday, September 13,2013
Anglers
Terry Lacoss
Special to the Tribune & Georgian
Joe Bruce recently took his
grandson Nathan Bruce to
Amelia Island Bait & Tackle,
where Jimmy Johnson rec
ommended he purchase a
Hula Popper for local small
bass lake fishing.
That next morning
Nathan tied on his brand-
new Fred Arbogast Hula
Popper to the business end
of his spinning line and made
a lengthy cast out into the
middle of an Amelia Island
freshwater lake. After engag
ing his bass reel, Nathan
popped his surface plug hard
on the surface, which soon
resulted in an explosive sur
face strike, cartwheeling
jumps and a nice 4-pound
summer bass.
Casting a surface plug into
the middle of a small Amelia
Island freshwater lake often
results with exciting and ex
tremely violent surface
strikes from freshwater bass
that could possibly weigh
north of 10 pounds.
Bass fishing during the
summer can simply be fan
going after summer bass
tastic, but most avid fisher
men pass up freshwater for
saltwater fishing where big
migrations of game fish have
arrived for the summer sea
son. However, largemouth
bass have to eat too, and can
be readily caught during the
heat of summer.
Look for some of the best
summer bass fishing to come
after the sun sets, when the
water temperature begins to
cool. Also, bass fishing dur
ing the first few hours after
the sun rises also offers ex
cellent hot summer bassing.
Along with warm-water
temperatures, large schools
of golden shiners and shad
are numerous in many of
Amelia Island’s small la
goons, lakes and ponds. Also
keep in mind some of these
small freshwater impound
ments are connected to salt
water by a small creek. The
mixing of saltwater and
freshwater in some of Amelia
Island’s bass lakes set up ideal
conditions for both big bass
and a healthy stock of forage
foods.
Also keep in mind summer
bass are often found in
schools while feeding on
baitfish schools that are
holding in the deeper por
tions of the freshwater lake.
Giant summer bass will hold
under the schools of baitfish,
waiting for wounded baitfish
to slowly sink to the bottom,
and make for an easy meal.
Also, giant lake bass will
often come to the surface
and explode on a wounded
baitfish as well.
Simply said, the larger
adult largemouth bass will
wait for the younger school
ing bass to attack a school of
baitfish and lazily feed on
the wounded.
Famous lure maker Fred
Arbogast had this very same
factor in mind when he
carved his first wooden Hula
Popper. The Hula Popper
looks like a large frog with
its mouth wide open. In fact,
the more productive Hula
Poppers are painted like a
frog. Other famous surface
plugs include Heddon’s Zara
Spook, Storm’s Chug Bug
and the ever-popular Rapala
floating Silver Minnow.
If you are new to catching
summer bass, I would rec
ommend filling your spin
ning reel with 8-pound
monofilament fishing line
and tying a No. 11 floating
Rapala to the tag end of your
fishing line.
Cast the Rapala close to
shoreline cover, or simply
right out into the middle of
the lake, and allow for all of
the ripples to disappear.
Tighten up your fishing line
and give your surface plug a
couple of hard jerks. This
will typically cause the float
ing Rapala to make a shallow
dive, and then float back to
the surface.
Obviously, if the floating
Rapala is retrieved properly,
it is the perfect impersonator
for an injured baitfish. Be
patient and give the Rapala a
good workout and you will
certainly be rewarded with a
trophy summer largemouth
bass.
Many of Amelia Island’s
small freshwater lakes and
lagoons are located on re
sorts or private property, so
be sure and receive permis
sion before fishing. Also,
catch-and-release fishing is
almost always recom
mended to protect these
small bass lakes from be
coming overfished.
Submitted photo
Small bass lakes located on Amelia Island often produce
largemouth bass to 10 pounds. Jacob Austin is with a large
mouth bass he caught and released while fishing at Omni
Amelia Island Plantation.
Georgia’s archery season for deer kicks off Saturday
Deer hunting season is always highly anticipated in Georgia. Last year, more than I 10,000
archery hunters harvested more than 60,000 deer.
Deer hunting season is one
of the most highly antici
pated times of the year for
many in the state, according
to the Georgia Department
of Natural Resources’
Wildlife Resources Divi
sion. Archers get the first
opportunity at bringing
home a deer beginning Sat
urday, Sept. 14.
Last year, 113,566 archery
hunters harvested more than
60,190 deer. Statewide
archery season runs through
Oct. 11, although hunters
may hunt deer with archery
equipment through the en
tire deer season (Jan. 1 in
Northern Zone and Jan. 15
in the Southern Zone).
“Spring and summer sea
sons with abundant rainfall,
like Georgia has experienced
this year, generally produce
abundant natural foods,” said
John W. Bowers, chief of
game management. “These
conditions often contribute
to an increase in deer quality,
but can also make it a chal
lenging year to hunt deer.”
Beginning this season, the
number of firearms either-
sex days is reduced in most
counties. A few factors went
into this decision, including
the decline in the number of
fawns that survive into fall
and an increase in doe har
vest rates.
Many public lands offer
specialty hunts, including
primitive weapons hunts,
adult/child hunts and ladies-
only hunts. Dates and loca
tions for these hunts are
listed in the 2013-14 Geor
gia Hunting Seasons and
Regulations guide. Georgia
offers more than 90 state-op
erated wildlife management
areas (WMAs) for the pub
lic’s use.
State-managed public
hunting lands are funded
through a combination of
state license fees and match
ing federal funds from the
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Serv
ices’ Wildlife Restoration
Program. Hunters account
for $977 million in retail
sales in Georgia each year
with a $1.6 billion ripple ef
fect and almost 24,000 jobs.
Hunters are allowed a sea
son bag limit of 10 antlerless
deer and two antlered deer
(one of the two antlered deer
must have a minimum of
four points, 1 inch or longer,
on one side of the
antlers). Special regulations
apply to archery-only coun
ties and extended archery
season areas. Counties in the
metro Atlanta area (Clayton,
Cobb, DeKalb, Forsyth, Ful
ton, Gwinnett and Rockdale
counties) offer either-sex
archery deer hunting Sept.
14 to Jan. 31.
To pursue deer in Georgia,
hunters must have a valid
hunting license, big-game li
cense and a current deer har
vest record. If hunting on a
WMA, a WMA license is re
quired. Licenses can be pur
chased online at
www. gohuntgeorgia. com/li-
censes-permits-passes, by
phone at 1-800-366-2661 or
at a license agent (list of
agents available online).
For more information on
deer hunting seasons, regu
lations, licenses and WMA
maps, visit www. gohuntgeor
gia.com/hunting.
Hunters encouraged to
review tree stand safety
tips
Many hunters utilize tree
stands to give them a leg up
on their quarry. However,
sometimes these are improp
erly installed or show signs
of wear after several years.
As a result, hunters may find
themselves a statistic in a
hunting-related tree stand
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incident, according to the
Georgia Department of Nat
ural Resources’ Wildlife Re
sources Division.
Not every tree stand is the
same. Hunters should be fa
miliar with their particular
model’s features. Following
are recommended safety tips:
• When using a non
climbing portable or ladder
stand, hunters should se
curely fasten the stand to the
tree and install ladders or
steps according to the man
ufacturer’s directions.
• Hunters should always
wear a Fall-Arrest $ystem
(FA$)/Full Body Harness
during ascent and de
scent. Be aware that single
strap belts and chest
harnesses are no longer rec
ommended and should not
be used. Failure to use a FA$
could result in serious injury
or death.
• Hunters should always
attach their FA$ in the man
ner described by the manu
facturer. Failure to do so may
result in suspension without
the ability to recover into the
tree stand. Be aware of the
hazards associated with full-
body harnesses and the fact
that prolonged suspension in
a harness may also be fatal.
• Have in place a plan for
rescue, including the use of
cell phones or signal devices
that may be easily reached
and used while suspended. If
rescue personnel cannot be
notified, you must have an
alternate plan for recovery or
escape. If you have to hang
suspended for a period of
time before help arrives, ex
ercise your legs by pushing
against the tree or doing any
other form of continuous
motion, or use your suspen
sion relief device.
• Consider your personal
physical condition before
going out. If you do not have
the ability to recover or es
cape from a FA$, it is recom
mended you hunt only from
the ground.
• Hunters should always
use a haul line to pull their
gear and unloaded firearm
or bow into their tree
stand. Never climb with
anything in your hands or
on your back. Prior to de
scending, lower equipment
to the ground on the oppo
site side of the tree.
• $taying awake and alert
is important. Hunters
should avoid taking medica
tions that cause drowsiness
prior to hunting. Also, never
use alcohol or drugs before
or while hunting.
• Hunters should always
inform someone of where
they are hunting and what
time they expect to return.
For more information on
safety, call (770) 761-3010
or visit the site www.geor-
giawildlife.com/hun ting/ed
ucation.
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Weekly Tide Chart
This Week’s Tide
HIGH TIDE
LOW TIDE
AM
PM
AM
PM
9/11 Wed.
12:30
1:09
6:51
7:40
9/12 Thurs.
1:29
2:12
7:48
8:44
9/13 Fri.
2:31
3:16
8:53
9:50
9/14 Sat.
3:34
4:19
10:02
10:54
9/15 Sun.
4:37
5:21
11:08
11:53
9/16 Mon.
5:39
6:21
12:10
9/17 Tues.
6:38
7:16
12:48
1:07
TIDES CALCULATED FOR OUTER BAR
Cumberland Wharf, Cumberland River add 40 min.; St. Marys
entrance add 15 min. Crooked River Entrance add 1 hr. 23 min.; St.
Marys, St. Marys River add 1 hr. 21 min.; Crandall, St. Marys River
add 2 hr. 10 min.; Harrietts Bluff add 2 hr. 9 min.; Dover Bluff add 1
hr. 10 min.; Satilla Cove add 1 hr.; Christmas Creek add 25 min.;
Satilla River, Todd Creek Entrance add 43 min.
ccaneers
& Tackle
2.882.6277
ibome St. • St. Marys, Ga
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