Unfamiliar Waters No Problem For Top 10 Angler In Flw Everstart Series Northern Division
Lake Champlain was the only lake on the FLW EverStart Series Northern Division schedule that Lon Fleming had ever fished before, but with the weather has hot as it was in South Carolina this summer you really can’t blame him for fishing the northern series where temperatures were somewhat milder.
“I had fished Lake Champlain about six times before and I love the lake because it is so much fun to fish. I did pretty good in the tournament,” said the Piedmont, S.C., angler who finished 20th with two five-fish limits that weighed over 30 pounds and won $1,249.
“I went to Lake Champlain because it was a great time to go up north. South Carolina was hot as blue blazes and Champlain is just a great place to go fish,” Fleming said. “I went up there with the full intention of only fishing Lake Champlain, but my buddies said I needed to fish these other tournaments (in the Northern Division) so that is what I am doing.”
And doing very well, too.
Following Lake Champlain in June, Fleming fished the EverStart on the Thousand islands at Clayton, N.Y., in late July, finishing 26th with two five-fish limits at 30 pounds, 12 ounces, and winning $1,013. From there he moved on to Lake Erie out of Buffalo, N.Y., in August where he finished 53rd with two more five-fish limits that weighed 27 pounds, 11 ounces.
“I had never fish Thousand Islands before, but I kind of figured something out there,” Fleming said. “Then I went to Lake Erie, and I had never been there before either. I only had a day and a half of practice there, but I did manage a limit of fish every day. I just kind of hung in at Lake Erie.”
Fleming came to the Potomac River this week, another fishery he had never been on, ranked 10th in points in the Northern Division, with a real shot at claiming the the points title – until nature got in the way.
“I’ve been practice fishing on the Potomac this week and, listening to guys who have fished it many times before, fishing is not anywhere as good as it used to be,” he said. “A lot of the grass beds that were here six or eight weeks ago have gone away. Hurricane Irene in August apparently did a lot of damage to the grass and it also spread the fish out a lot more than before. In addition the recent rains from tropical storms have muddied up the river pretty good so it is not as clear as it was before.”
While he is finding bass, so far Fleming said they are not the quality he needs to win with.
“There are some fish being caught but finding the right sized fish is going to be the key to the tournament. There are a lot of small fish being caught,” he said. “I am sure some people have got some fish in the 3- to 4-pound range, though.”
Unless he can find some fish of that quality, Fleming said he doubts he will be able to move to the top of the points this week.
“I am 50 points behind the leader and I don’t think I am on fish that good. The fish may move in and there may be bigger ones that I thought,” he said. “So, I am thinking if I can finish the tournament in the top 10 in points it will be great.”
And any catch at all will put him in the EverStart Series Championship that will be held on Kentucky Lake in Buchanan, Tenn., Oct. 27-30. The top 40 pros and top 40 co-anglers from the Central, Northern, Southeast, Texas and Western divisions qualify for the series championship.
“I think if I can catch one fish on the Potomac I am in the championship,” Fleming said. “I have not fished that lake over there in Tennessee, either. This is all brand new. Going to new water every time for a tournament makes it a little more difficult.”
FLW EverStart Series – Northern Division
Sep. 29-Oct. 1, 2011
Potomac River
Smallwood State Park
