FINDING FISH ON NEW WATER In October 2021 my brother Ben and I decided we would sign up for the One-Man Lake bass tournament, taking place on the last stretch of the English River before it dumps into the Winnipeg River. It is a big body of water with a good reputation for big bass, so we were excited to get out there and try our luck. I always tell people that if they want to become a better overall angler, they need to constantly fish new water. That, and don’t just go fishing on the nice days, fish in…
Author: Jeff Gustafson
Jeff Gustafson
Jeff Gustafson, known in the fishing world as "Gussy", grew up on the shores of Lake of the Woods in Kenora, Ontario. He took out his first guide trip at age 14 on Lake of the Woods and has made his living in the fishing/outdoor industry ever since. A graduate of the University of Manitoba, Gussy has always been self-employed as a fishing guide, outdoor writer and photographer as well as fishing promoter. Today his fishes the Bassmaster Elite Pro bass circuit and as many local bass tournaments as he can find the time to enter. You can find him online through his website at www.gussyoutdoors.com.
EDITORS NOTE: Jeff has been writing for Hooked since the magazine was incorporated. This is the 16th year. He is a prolific producer of content, with stories and videos covering the globe. We at Hooked are very appreciate of his work. ————————————————————————————————————————————————- One of the questions that I get asked quite often is “what motivates you to keep doing what you do” – making a living within the fishing community. The first thing that always comes to mind is that I just want to avoid having to get a real job – a Monday to Friday gig, where I might…
IT’S ALMOST THAT TIME! Months ago, when ice started to form on our lakes and winter was setting in, it was hard to believe that we would get to be in a boat again. I love ice fishing, but winter just always seems so long, especially back in December. Well, another open water season is upon us, and we get to enjoy warm weather, great fishing and being back in the boat for the next several months. Let’s make the most of it. GETTING THE MOST OUT OF YOUR ELECTRONICS It seems like I’ve been writing about electronics a lot…
FINE TUNING YOUR ICE FISHING For the past eleven years I have been lucky to pursue my dream of fishing competitive bass tournaments in the U.S. I’m made some good friendships with the anglers that I compete against, many of whom are from the south and have never experienced ice fishing or even ice on their lakes. Ice fishing is a topic that comes up quite frequently and most of these guys can’t fathom how drilling a hole in the ice and waiting for a fish to bite could possibly be fun. Yet, for those of us who live in…
Hitting the rocks for pike I’ve mentioned the great fall pike fishing that we have several times in recent years and my approach to catching these toothy critters but I have so much fun with it, we’re going to hit it again. A couple falls ago, while filming an episode of the Lund Ultimate Fishing Experience TV show with my wife Shelby, we had an incredible couple of hours on Lake of the Woods, using suspending jerkbaits to catch pike after pike. These were all big fish as well, we had fun. When most anglers think about catching pike, they…
BOAT EFFICIENCY FROM THE MASTER EDITORS NOTE: Over the years I have fished with a number of top level professional anglers, many who are very successful on the various tournament circuits. I have never met anyone as efficient as Gussy. Everything is geared to SPEED on the water, because time costs money. We just had Jeff at our 15th Anniversary Celebration and those that fished with him were blown away. So if you want to be a better angler hear how the Bassmaster Champion gets it done. We all carry a bunch of stuff in our boats to make our…
ANOTHER SEASON ON THE ELITE CIRCUIT EDITOR’S NOTE: Gussy is currently on the road to the southern U.S and his first Bassmaster Elite event. Every year he gets his new boat ready for the long road ahead. For the past eleven years I have travelled south in January to start my fishing season in the US, competing in professional bass tournaments. I’m fortunate that Lund is a great supporter and helps me get into a new boat each season. Usually, I’ll get my boat in December and have a few weeks to get it rigged up the way that I…
NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO We’re spoiled here in Sunset Country in that we have so many great options for fish to catch under the ice. Similar to Manitoba, walleye, lake trout, crappie, perch and pike get most of the attention but there are some other species out there that are great to eat, fun to catch and can save the day when our target species doesn’t cooperate. WHITEFISH The first thing you need to know about whitefish is they are plentiful in many of our lakes, especially the ones that are deeper than average, but maybe not quite as deep as the…
CHANGING HOW I FISH I was very happy and excited to get in a summer of fishing around home in 2021. I’ve been on the water as much as ever, fishing some tournaments on the weekends, guiding a few days here and there during the week and putting in a lot of time learning the new Humminbird Mega Live technology that I have installed on my boat. It is forward facing sonar, similar to what Garmin and Lowrance have had available for the past couple of years, but with some added features. It’s been a lot of fun to play…
TRICKS LEARNED FROM THE TOURNAMENT TRAIL As a kid growing up there were many weekend mornings where if I wasn’t out fishing or playing hockey, I was probably watching fishing shows on TV. In fact, I used to record them on VHS tapes that I’m sure my parents still have sitting in a box. BASSMASTERS THE FAVOURITE Bob Izumi’s Real Fishing Show was one of my favourites, so was the In-Fisherman but The Bassmasters TV show, which would feature a tournament somewhere across the U.S. was the one I liked the most. Most of the fishing techniques I learned as…