In 2005, Minnesota's largemouth bass state record was broken by Mark Raveling (left) when he and fishing buddy Jay Carlson decided to fish Lake Auburn just west of the Twin Cities. Photo by Tim Lesmeister.

If the 2006 largemouth bass open-water season even closely resembles 2005, it should be a dandy year. In 2005, the largemouth bass state record was broken by Mark Raveling of Spring Park when he and his fishing buddy, Jay Carlson, decided to spend a day in October casting topwater lures to the edge of the milfoil on Lake Auburn just west of the Twin Cities.

Give credit to the weather if you must, but every bass angler I talked to last year was catching fish. Danny Suggs had a four-day period on Minnetonka where pitching a Texas-rigged tequila sunrise Berkley Power Worm up to the docks was his ticket to non-stop action. Karen Savik, a national tournament professional, was relying less on her big, heavy jigs and finessing loads of bass with a smaller jig/worm combination. Matt Pretzel won a tournament on Lake Waconia with a limit of fish averaging 5 pounds per fish with a deep-water jigging technique that worked all summer for him on the lakes he fished.

Last year could be a hard year to follow, but anglers are hoping that 2006 will provide the necessary conditions to repeat 2005's bass action.

"There were a lot of factors besides weather that made last year great," Suggs said. "I think catch-and-release is keeping more big bass in the system. Milfoil is spreading and it looks like that weed has a positive effect on the bass numbers, the bass sizes and the forage base. And anglers are getting smarter and catching more fish. That's a good thing -- as long as they release them."

"Just competing in a few local tournaments raised my fishing skills to higher levels," said Pretzel, who started fishing state, regional and local events eight years ago. "When you have some money or prizes on the line, you tend to work harder and you learn how to coax fish even on a tough bite."

Savik said her ability to keep an open mind will often be the difference in a good day or a great day on the water.

"Too many fishermen get locked into one approach that works for them and they never vary," she said. "I've seen guys pitching jigs into milfoil in 6 to 8 feet of water when the bass were suspended 10 feet from the weedline and hitting crankbaits. Sometimes a slowly sinking plastic worm is the best option, and other days, a fast-moving crankbait. You just have to give them what they want."

What those bass want is a lake where the spawning conditions are perfect, the forage base is adequate, the cover is plentiful and the anglers put them back when one does decide to take a ride on a line to the boat. What anglers want is stable weather and a body of water where those lunker largemouths are easy to pattern. Here are a few lakes where you could find that combination -- if the weather cooperates.