Today’s Throwback Thursday historical photo features an angler everyone should know, but surprisingly many today don’t. He was responsible for coining the term “structure,” along with dozens of others still in use to this day. I selected it because it is also a reflection back to the simplicity of bass fishing he espoused, and directly opposite of the current topics at the forefront of bass angling, such as forward-facing sonar, that seem to have taken over the world of bass fishing discussions this summer.
The photo dates back to around 1973 and was featured in an early 1974 story in Fishing Facts magazine where Buck Perry had been brought on as the Education Editor for the magazine. If you look really close at the image, you’ll start to see the simplicity I referred to.
First, you’ll see just two rods on board. The one in his hands was for trolling, and the other sitting by him was for casting. He used Spoonplugs, ‘metal crankbaits’ if you will. designed to run at specific depths. By altering between models, he could effectively strain the water column down to 25 feet or more in search of fish holding “structure.” If he switched to an outfit with wire line, he could double that depth capability easily.
Buck said the hardest part was finding the fish, but once he did, he’d anchor down and cast to them, today’s equivalent of firing up a school and getting bit on every cast.
You’ll also notice he has a single depthfinder, and it’s not even a flasher. It was a needle-type depthfinder of his own design. He wasn’t interested in looking for fish, loathed the term “fish finder,” and would occasionally just glance at the depth finder for reference. His lures were his eyes underwater, and the depthfinder just verified what he ‘found’ through his Spoonplugs.
You’ll also notice the transducer bracket is a portable clamp on model off the back of the boat. Buck usually just carried a 5 hp motor with him along with his tackle and the needle meter, preferring to rent boats wherever he went across the country. That is also why you won’t see a seat in the boat, and instead, him sitting on two seat cushions, a cup of coffee at his side.
He did carry a single tackle box, the double-sided flip open kind, popular of the day, with multiple stacked racks, but usually just when venturing out on long trips to unknown waters. More frequently he could carry most everything he needed in a paper sack, or just lay a handful of baits out on the boat deck to be used. Look close enough, and you’ll see several Spoonplugs out on the boat sitting in front of the depth meter.
Buck passed away in 2005 at the age of 90, but his book, “Spoonplugging,” is still considered a “must read” by many. It defined his approach to fishing and the many terms he created so that anybody could be transferred the same knowledge, and speak on the same terms regardless of location or water type.
