A big thank you to Joe Scmidt a.k.a (fishin'_christian) for his generosity on this trip to my old stomping grounds up at Banks Lake. This years infernal cold weaher has wrought havoc on trying to pattern and plan bass and crappie trips ahead of time. Today was no exception to that rule. Banks water temps are normally 10 degrees warmer this time of year, but a steady cold breeze made catching any numbers a tough proposition. I got a chance to fish out of Joe's decked out and masterfully set up pontoon boat which made fishing and casting a breeze. We probed a deep rock wall with varous plastics on light jig heads and I was able to connect on three decent Largemouth Bass and Joe had several bites as well. Joe also had a big mouth pig come up and try to engulf his top water frog but it missed it! Water temps were barely 50 degrees and we were searching for for that magical 52 degree bass and crappie water temp. My hottest bait has been the three inch cinnamon Tiny Ika leach, though Joe and I also tried cranks and spinner baits along the submerged road bed. Joe missed a nice hit on a small trout colored Yo Zuri crankbait as we headed to the launch in ever increasing white caps. Joe did pop a largie on a topwater when we stopped to check out Alkali Lake on the way back to Yakima. Just a week of 70 + degree weather will kick the Bass pre spawn binge into full gear. Can't wait till that happens! Jiggy

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