Flipping a plastic worm into tiny pockets at the base of the cover is just about as good as it gets. There are times and places where a Carolina Rig can be worked over the bottom in deeper water. But fishing in this area is normally better suited to accurate casting to small target areas. The small-to-medium bass lurk well back inside the brush, which forms the edges of the potholes. But remember that the visible growth may be standing in three or four feet of water, and the fish can retreat as far back as they like.

“Last year, there were a lot of fat bass,” said Hayes, the tournament angler and fisheries biologist. “The tournaments around this part of the river were popping out some great limits of bass. The sight-fishing in the spring last year was tremendous, especially south of Walter’s Camp.”

But an extraordinarily hot summer followed, and fishing dropped.

One of the best fishing days I’ve ever had on the Colorado came while I was using 4-inch blue plastic worms, Texas-rigged, flipped into tight pockets in shore cover on one of the many pothole lakes north of Martinez on the Arizona side of the river.

Another good technique is to cast to the many clumps of drowned trees that line the deeper center channels of these pothole lakes. Early and late in the day, try a popper such as a Pop-R or simply twitch a small Rapala on the surface. There are times, mostly mornings and evenings, when a buzzbait churned across the surface parallel to the tules will get smashing strikes. From mid-morning through mid-afternoon, a spinnerbait fished down a couple of feet is also deadly, as are shallow-diving crankbaits.

Most of the bass -- and there are thousands per mile -- are not giants, but there are enough 5- and 6-pound fish to keep things very interesting. It’s also worth noting that the Arizona’s Colorado River record bass is a 16-pound, 14-ouncer, caught in the Yuma area.

“The fishing next spring looks good,” said Brad Jacobson, a Yuma- based fishery biologist for Arizona Game and Fish. “We have finished all of our fishery surveys, and everything looks real stable. Overall, I think it is doing well.”

IF YOU GO
Martinez Lake Resort is at Star Route No. 4, Box 41, Martinez Lake, AZ 85365. The main phone number is (928) 783-9589, or 1-800-876-7004. You can call the boat shop at (928) 783-4905. Fisher’s Landing, right next door, has a Mini-Mart at (928) 782-7049, and their boat shop number is (928) 343-2776. Fisher’s Landing Campground, which has both primitive and hook-up RV sites, is another option, at (928) 539-9495.

One thing you won’t find in the area is a fly-fishing guide. But Wally Wolfe is the local bass guide and can put you on the right track for largemouths. Call him at (928) 783-9589.

The best map of the area for anglers is the Lower Colorado River (Parker to Yuma), offered by Fish-N-Map Co., 9535 W. 79th Ave, Arvada, CO 80005.

You can get to Martinez from Interstate 95, which parallels the river on the Arizona side. From the Los Angeles or Phoenix area, take Interstate 10 to Quartzite in Arizona, turn south on I-95 and drive about 60 miles to the Martinez turnoff. It’s 11 miles from the highway to the resort.