THOMASVILLE – Temperatures have been cold in January so far for South Georgia. Imagine being out on the lake attempting to catch fish.

That’s the task in front of Thomas County Central’s bass fishing team which will return to the water on Saturday, Jan. 25 at Lake Seminole.

“Thankfully, we haven’t faced any extreme cold weather yet. We’ve only had two tournaments so far this year. We did one back in October at Lake Eufaula, and then we did another one in November at Lake Hartwell. The temperatures weren’t so extreme,” Wilson said. “We’ve got the bulk of our season coming up; 10 tournaments we’re going to be fishing over the next three months. It’s going to be a busy time, and I’m sure we’ll be running into some cold weather.”

Central’s anglers are equipped with cold-weather gear that they utilize while fishing on the water such as gloves, parkas, and toboggans. 

“You actually stay pretty warm out there. Their hands might get a little cold, but we do have gloves for them,” said Wilson, who described the challenge of locating fish. “Sometimes, especially on those cold days, it’s a grind to find five hungry bass that you can put in the boat. It can be tough.

“They can deal with the bitterness of the cold if they’re out there catching fish. That makes it a lot more enjoyable.”

Central is not immune to fishing in frigid conditions. It only has to look back to a year ago.

“Last year we had a team that did very well on a cold day at Lake Seminole. They finished in the top 10 on a very cold day. I don’t think the temperature got much above 40 degrees (Fahrenheit). The wind was blowing, and they did very well. They were able to find some fish,” Wilson said.

“The kids are learning a lot about bass fishing. I think we’ve got some very good boat captains that teach the kids every time we go out; what the bass should be doing this time of year, where they should be, how to locate.”

Central will travel to Lake Oconee and Lake Lanier in February. It will also compete at Lake Seminole again in March.