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Around about this time every winter, those who are bitten by the bass bug start to feel the ill effects of two or three months away from their favorite fishing.
While this January has offered up a few days when it was possible to launch a boat and cast for largemouths, the calendar doesn't lie. It's the toughest month for open-water fishing in Northeast Ohio, so most everyone has stowed their gear and winterized their boats.
With at least another six weeks of winter bleakness, we have few options: watching our stockpile of recorded TV fishing shows, scanning magazines and the internet for tips to try in the spring or pack up the gear and head to Florida.
For the past several years, I've gone with the third option. A fishing writer, after all, does have to go fishing for tips and tales.
So I found myself Friday on the banks of golf course ponds in Naples, Fla. Light cloud cover and a trifle of breeze provided just enough encouragement to feel confident as I cocked and cast my venerable Pop-R for a retrieve over a weed patch just under the surface.
A pelican flapped and banked to pass over my pond, and an osprey soared hundreds of feet overhead. Pawprints in the mud indicated raccoons had visited the previous night along with shorebirds that stalked the shallows for tiny fish.
Rare is the fishing trip when the first cast gets a bass' attention, so I was delighted when the water erupted under the little chugging plug. A bass barely twice the length of the lure protested as I reeled it in and quickly darted to the depths after I released it.
My January bass fishing was under way in fine fashion.
Florida bass can be finicky during chilly weather. "Cold" in Naples is that rare night when the thermometer dips into the 40s and the daytime high barely brushes past 60. Northeasterly winds 15 to 20 mph add teeth to the chill and push the bass out of shallow water to hunker down out of range of the shore-bound angler.
Friday's bass were back in full form after their short "winter," and the bite was strong. I finished my outing with 14 largemouths, several of which were big enough to fight hard and pose for photos.
My golf course pond excursions are about as simple as fishing can be. One rod, one lure and a pair of pliers to work the sticky trebles from the fishes' mouths. Sunglasses, a ball cap and sunscreen round out my outfit.
As simple as it is, one can't be careless while treading around the water holes in Southwest Florida. Snakes, some venomous, can slither out of nowhere. Alligators are usually in the vicinity and while they aren't prone to attack people, it's never a good idea to sneak up on one -- even accidentally.
I've been scared witless more than once by gators I hadn't even noticed until they charged into the water like a dinosaur torpedo. Such a commotion is rarely experienced by a northern angler accustomed to waterside wildlife that poses no threat to life and limb.
I survived Friday with no snake bites or gator attacks but with a bunch of bass to stoke the fire for a fine 2023 fishing season.
Good to know all is well with my bass game. I'm looking forward to spring with lots of confidence and high expectations.
Jack Wollitz's book, "The Common Angler," seeks to answer the "why" behind our passion for fishing. He appreciates emails from readers. Send a note to jackbbaass@gmail.com.