Ice fishing and FLW Tour stop #2

Between some ice fishing around home in Sunset Country and traveling to fish the FLW Tour, it's been a busy past few weeks.  Things have been going good though, it's been fun!

I love this time of year because the weather is so nice and the fishing is so good.  Great time to be on the ice.  Here, Chip Leer and I hold a nice lake trout that we caught while filming a recent episode of Fishing with Gussy.  

Our friend Nicole Smith with a nice walleye!

Now is the time of year to catch big pike!  This one fell for a Northland Predator Rig tipped with a large, dead cisco.  

My pal Eric Naig from Northland Fishing Tackle with a jumbo pike!  

Chip Leer with the big trout of a recent three day trip...this one was close to 20 pounds, caught on an Impulse Tube. 

Northwestern Ontario is the top ice fishing destination in the World.  It's a great place to visit throughout the rest of the year as well!  To plan your dream fishing or hunting trip, visit www.ontariossunsetcountry.ca 

After ice fishing for a few days it was back on the road to Lewis Smith Lake, Alabama for stop #2 on the FLW Tour.  I fished a tournament at Smith Lake a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it...would love to go back again at some point!  

Smith Lake has a great spotted bass population and I decided to spend my time chasing them during the tournament.  I had a great practice and caughts several fish over four pounds, most of them on suspending jerkbaits. 

Smith also has a great population of big striped bass like this one.  They are a workout on the lighter bass tackle.  

This was a five pound spot from the last day of practice.  I ended up having a decent tournament, finishing just inside the prize money (top 60) with a 56th place finish.  Unfortunately I did not get my hands on any of these magnum spots during the tournament, but I managed to put together enough fish to cash a cheque for $10,000, so I'm happy! 

I caught just about all of my fish last week at Smith Lake on a new Jackall jerkbait called the Dowzvido 90 SP.  It's a nice bait, with a lip to help it get a little bit deeper.  It's going to be a great bait around home this summer.

Next up on the Tour schedule is a stop at Beaver Lake, Arkansas, a lake we've visited in each of the past two years.  I've had a couple of decent finishes there so I'm looking forward to going back there.  In the meantime, I'm still ice fishing around home and hoping to hit the woods in search of some shed antlers.  Always lots to do in Sunset Country!