It's that time of year throughout much of the southern United States. The bass are slowly inching their way out of their deep-water wintertime haunts into the shallows where they'll start cleaning house and getting cozy on their beds.
Drop-shot rigs and jigging spoons are being replaced with flipping sticks, braided line and high-powered reels, and anglers are adjusting their mindsets from watching their graphs to watching the banks.
You can count Florida pro Chris Lane among those who are always happy to see the drab wintertime brown replaced with the vibrant green of spring. Like many of his Florida counterparts, the Bassmaster Elite Series competitor couldn't be happier than when he's pounding a chunk of plastic through a nearly impenetrable mat of shallow grass.
But this year Lane is especially giddy about the chance to boat some serious springtime poundage. It's not because he has a top-secret prototype lure or some off-the-wall technique that'll fool more fish. So what is that makes this year different? In a word: control.
The Power-Pole is becoming more common in bass-fishing ranks, but it's still far from being considered a must-have accessory by many pros. Lane is one of the few who feels the device is an absolute necessity. So much so that he's actually equipped his boat with two of the shallow-water anchor systems.
"Boat control plays a huge role in my fishing - especially because I love to fish shallow," he said. "A lot of guys are just catching on to the idea of using a Power-Pole, but once they try the double rig, they'll never want to go back.
"The reason for having two Power-Poles is that it completely locks you in place," he added. "A single Power-Pole is great, but you have to take wind and current into consideration in order to position your boat properly. You're at the mercy of the elements.
"With the double rig, you can pin yourself down any way you want and the wind doesn't matter. I really think it'll help me catch more shallow fish this year."
Spot-On Spawn Fishing
One of the areas Lane feels the double Power-Pole rig will be a huge advantage is when fish push up on the beds to spawn. But effectively mining bedding bass isn't as simple as pulling on top of them and Poling down.
"Before you ever approach an area where you think there are bedding fish you need to set yourself up," he said. "Don't just go down the first bank you see and start throwing at beds.
"The sun is the biggest factor you want to take into account," he noted. "Try to position the sun at your back. You don't want to go into the sun and get that glare coming off the water blinding you. If that means you have to go all the way to the back of a creek and then work your way out, so be it. Catching bedding fish can be difficult, so you want to give yourself every advantage before you make a cast."
With his double Power-Poles, he can position himself perfectly in the sun without having to account for bow swing from the wind. And once Poled down, he never has to worry about the trolling motor.
"Not having to mess with the trolling motor is probably the coolest thing about it," he said. "You can get yourself in position with the trolling motor, then you lock yourself down and that's it. If you spook the fish coming in, you can just sit there silently and wait for her to settle down. Once you're in position, there's no need to move."
Master of the Mats
Bed fishing is the most obvious application where the Power-Pole can assist an angler, but Lane is eager to try out his rig on Florida's endless miles of matted vegetation.
"I can already tell you I'm going to be using my Power-Poles a lot on Harris, Kissimmee and all the other shallow grassy lakes we go to," he said.
He's already been able to use the Power-Poles to boost his productivity in the green stuff.
"What I've been doing is letting the wind blow me through a patch of grass as I flip," he noted. "When I get bit I'll mark it on my GPS. After I've drifted through and got 4 or 5 bites, I'll go back up and make the drift again. But the second time through I use my Power-Poles to stop and concentrate the areas where I got my bites. You can be really thorough that way.
"I can do the same thing going down a shoreline or a grassline," he added. "I can go and power-fish a shoreline, then turn right around and cover that same shoreline, but use the Power-Poles to stop and fish each piece of cover hard with a jig or a plastic.
"The double Power-Poles really let you focus completely on your fishing. You don't have to worry about keeping your boat in a certain position with the trolling motor. Once you're locked in, you're locked in. You can flip to the same log or patch of grass 100 times and you never have to touch your trolling motor. I love it."
Unexpected Extras
Of course, the end-goal of adding any accessory to your rig is to increase efficiency while on the water. Lane believes he's done that with his Power-Poles, but he's noticed some latent perks that come along with the contraption.
"It's great when you're loading your boat," he said. "You don't have to worry about tying off to a dock or your boat swinging out in other anglers' way. I can just pull up to the dock, lower the Poles down, and I don't have to worry about anything else.
"It's also nice when you're staging during a tournament," he added. "A lot of guys get blown around with the wind and have to keep starting and stopping their big motor to stay in position. I can just get out of the way, put my Poles down and relax until my number comes up."
Notable
> Lane said depending on where you position the Power-Pole on your boat, you should be able to anchor in anywhere from 7 to 9 feet of water.
> Chris' brother Bobby also has a dual Power-Pole setup.
> "People always ask me about the weight the Poles add," he said. "They're not heavy at all. Even with two on my boat you can't notice any difference in terms of how the boat handles or the top speed. They're not nearly as heavy as most people think."
