Meandering

Legendary Lures - Black & Blue Jig

Mon, February 13, 2012

I never used to be much of a jig fisherman despite reading the articles or watching the TV shows.  And when I say “jig”, I’m talking about the standard bass jig; living rubber skirts surrounding 1/8 to 1 ounce jigheads tipped with a variety of plastic or pork trailers (the addition of a pork trailer makes the setup a “jig and pig” while I call the plastic version a “jig and pseudopig”).  More specifically, we’re talking about such rigs in a black and blue combination.  To quote a favorite saying that I picked up from some fishing article or television show that I have modified a bit to address selecting jig colors:  “Color in a jig isn’t a real big factor as long as it is black and blue.” 

Do you need proof? 

Eight pounds and four ounces of proof tops the family and friends’ record book I have compiled and the hog couldn’t resist a black and blue jig teamed with a black and blue glitter jumbo pork frog.  It came from Moose/Elk Lake at Little John Conservation Club on April 5, 2000 and was caught by my ex-brother in law, Tim Townsend.

The previous record, a 6-15 bass from Emstrom’s Pond caught by my brother, Brent, also fell to a jig.  Four of our top ten bass and seven of the top twenty are jig bass and all but one came on some sort of black/blue combo (the lone exception was brown/orange, my second choice). 

Are we smart or stubborn? 

I vote for smart.  For, in addition to his Top Bass, Tim provided plenty of additional black and blue proof during that spring of 2000, catching six bass three pounds or better in a two-month stretch from four different lakes at Little John.  Emstrom’s Pond provided yet more evidence with six bass of four pounds or better between November 2001 and April 2002, all on black and blue jigs.  We have also fished brown/orange jigs and white jigs at both Emstrom’s and Little John with limited success and only a few fish for the record books so if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. 

Although I don’t want to overwhelm with data right now (maybe later in the year), a further peek inside the record book should help convince you to raid the piggybank and purchase a few jigs before a 2012 trip to the local fishing hole.  Tim’s biggest bass, Brent’s biggest bass and my second biggest bass all were caught on black and blue jigs.  The following lake records were caught on black and blue jigs: Moose/Elk Lake (8-4), Emstrom’s Pond (6-15) and Sewage Lake (my personal name for a Snakeden Hollow strip pit, 2-13).  Monthly records for February, April, May, November and December all were caught on black and blue jigs.  The number four bass for March and the number five bass for June fell to black and blue jigs as did number nine for October.  Only January (no record entries for bass), July, August (number three on brown/orange though) and September do not have a black and blue jig bass in the top ten monthly records. 

As I stated at the outset, I had never been much of a jig fisherman in my early bassing days.  However, I’ve long since been convinced that it is a necessary skill for successful year round bass fishing.  In fact, there are a number of years where the black and blue jig bookended my season by catching my first bass in February or March and my last bass in November or December.

Originally, I viewed the jig as primarily a cold-water bait and utilized it mainly during late winter/early spring and late fall/early winter.  However, if occasionally given the nod over some more orthodox presentations it can truly be a lure for all seasons.  Even so, this time of the year always presents an excellent opportunity to post another entry in the record book. 

So slow down your presentation, bump into as much stuff as you can, keep your fingers warm and your concentration high and you may be pleasantly surprised to find that the unusual feeling on the end of the line is actually a hungry (and hopefully rather large) bass.  Talk to you later.  Troy

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