BY MIKE STEVENS
LAUGHLIN— When fishing for striped bass, bites tend to come in bunches regardless of the venue, and for one angler, it happened in the form of four double-digit models from two different locations, including a 35 pounder.
“I was casting from the shore around Big Bend near Laughlin at sunrise, and It was cold enough to ice up the line and eyes on the rod,” said Mike Bradshaw. “I saw the fish chasing a trout across the river and made a perfect cast in between them. One jerk on the line and the fish smashed my lure. And took off in the current downstream, I turned it and had it to the bank in 10 minutes or so. It happened to be my birthday on that morning, so it was an awesome way to start the day.”
That fish tipped the scale at Riviera Marina at 35 pounds and was caught on a Phoney Frogs USA topwater bait, and when Western Outdoor News replied to Bradshaw (who sent the photo with that info to editors@wonews.com) asking if he caught anything else out there, he casually replied, “Yes. I also got a 21, 20 and 18 at Willow Beach.”
The big striper scene has been quiet of late, but there have been some showing up here and there over the past month along with a fair amount spotted but unwilling to bite. Both the Laughlin area and Willow Beach are receiving regular trout plants, so that should always keep big baits on the radar in both zones.