Flippin the Buckbrush - by  Cyril Bowlin

For all who enjoy bass fishing in Illinois, enjoy the close-up arm wrestling style of extracting huge largemouth from the thick bushes, his or her time is just around the corner.  The months of April, May, and June provide plenty of opportunities for short line fishing here on Rend Lake in Southern Illinois.

For those of you who are still unfamiliar with Rend Lake, it is almost completely ringed with heavy duty buckbrush.  Now the correct name of this brush is button brush, but for all practical purposes to the Fishman and in this article, it is just buckbrush.

Let’s begin with equipment.  Folks, do not come to Rend Lake with 51/2 and six-foot rod’s spooled with 10 or 12 pound line with intentions of yanking big fish from heavy cover.  Crankbaiting points and rip-rap is just fine for this light gear, but when flippin the bushes, you need muscle.  My rod is 8′ in length and heavy action.  My reels are Abu Garcia with a big spool to handle the 25 pound yellow Stren line that I have used exclusively since 1980.  I can hear some of you hollering already - Yellow line!

When flippin a jig in the middle of a bush, the bait falls straight down.  I have heard it said that you could use a “well” rope and get away with it, flippin heavy cover.  But listen to this.  I have used yellow Stren in the water all over the country from Texas to Florida to the crystal-clear waters of Canada with great results.  Two years ago while doing a seminar, I caught five bass in a row, on two different baits, and folks, that’s as clear as you can get.

A 6 or 7 pound bass can suck your bait in from a foot and a half away and the line will just barely twitch.  That’s why I use a yellow Stren.  I can see it!  No matter what line you use flippin check it often and retie when need, especially after fighting a big bass over limbs and logs, as 9 out of 10 times when you’re line gets broken it is your own fault.

There are different patterns to establish even when you know bass are in the buckbrush.  For instance, when Rend Lake water level is 410 or higher, big fish will position way behind the bushes in those very hard to reach places.  This situation makes for successful spawns, but tough fishing.  The key here is to fish banks with steeper drops.  Make sure you can actually see dry land back there.  Stretches of bank where you see nothing but water for 100 yards behind the bush, to me, are not very encouraging.  You can’t get to them!

As the water hits the 408 or 409 mark, the bass will move to the center of these root wads.  When this occurs, flippin the outside or around the bush will produce nothing except the occasional aggressive fish.  To get a hit you have to be at the very base of the bush and no place else. I’ve had to drop my bait smack in the middle of the buckbrush, whether it’s a jig, worm, a salt craw or lizard, pick it up six or eight times and let it fall to get a bite!  That’s when things really heat up.

The battle is over in 10 or 15 seconds.  You can play with spinner bait or crank bait fish out in open water and watch them jump.  That’s fine.  When you hook a big old sow in the middle of a 10 foot around piece of brush, you play with them in the bottom of the boat.  It reminds me of arm wrestling with out the broken bones!  Believe me people.  There is nothing like it.

The good thing about Rend Lake, it being a shallow impoundment, is as long as there is water in the button brush, even in 100° weather, in July or August, there will be largemouth in there as well.  Get your flippin sticks re-spooled and ready to do battle and make it a point to fish Rend Lake in the spring and summer.  By the way, if you have a weak heart, flippin might not be your game.

Until next time, be safe and courteous to other Fishman, and I’ll see you on the boat ramp.