ESPN

What major American city deserves the title of the best bass city in the United States? Is it Orlando and its fantasyland of big bass lakes? How about the lunker lairs within a stone's throw of Dallas, or San Diego with its pothole reservoirs and pot-bellied bass?

In this Bassmaster two-part series, we make the case for 10 great bassin' cities, tell their story, and let you choose the winner with your vote. Along the way, you will learn some important geography lessons — from a bass-fishin' point of view. (Hey, at the very least, you'll know when it makes sense to pack the bass gear on your business trips.)

The thought of bass in and near America's major cities may seem as out of sync as a skyscraper in Podunk. But if that's your thinking, brother, it's time to get out and see the world. In the coming profiles, you will see how bass have worked their way into the hearts, minds and cultures of 10 of our greatest cities. Credit these critters — principally the largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass — for their amazing adaptability to varying temperatures and conditions. Given half a chance in our urban areas with improved water quality and habitat, bass populations have rebounded and, in some cases, soared to unprecedented heights. And if you fortunate country folk with bass lakes in your backyards think city dwellers have been short-changed in quality bass water, you will be surprised at the blue-ribbon bass angling that falls within reach of millions in metropolitan areas from coast to coast — often within big-city limits.

The Contenders

• Birmingham, Ala.
  
• Charlotte, N.C.
  
• Chicago, Ill.
  
• Dallas, Texas
  
• Detroit, Mich.
  
• Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn.
  
• Nashville, Tenn.
  
• Orlando, Fla.
  
• San Diego, Calif.
  
• Washington, D.C.

How did we narrow our list to these Top 10?

The following requirements helped cull our Bass Capital candidates:

• Cities with a population over 240,000
  
• Waters with healthy bass populations within 80 miles of the city limits
  
• A critical mass of enthusiastic and active bass anglers
  
• Opportunity for big fish

So here it is, America. The ring announcer is introducing the candidates. Read away; then make your choice. Voting begins on our Web site March 1 and ends March 15, 2006. The winner will be announced on BassCenter in March and profiled in the May issue of Bassmaster.

ORLANDO, FLORIDA: Bass fishing's magic kingdom

As if Walt Disney hadn't already brought fantasyland to Orlando, Dean Rojas weighed in five bass that averaged more than 9 pounds each at the BASS Florida Top 150 Tournament on West Lake Tohopekaliga in January 2001. It was the greatest single-day catch in BASS tournament history.

Amazingly, 22,750-acre Lake Toho is only one big drop of water in a zone of bass-thick central Florida lakes. Orlando is the hub, not only of world-renowned bass waters in the Kissimmee Chain (Toho, Cypress, Hatchineha, Kissimmee), Apopka, Weohyakapka and the Harris Chain, but of scores of lesser known lakes, phosphate pits and anonymous honey holes aggressively managed for superior water quality and habitat restoration.

"We have 104 lakes comprising 4,600 acres within the city limits of Orlando alone," says John Evertsen, Orlando's supervisor for surface water management, avid bass angler and ambassador for Pure Fishing.

Among top city waters are Turkey Lake, Baldwin, the Butler Chain and Lake Underhill, a lake the city manages in partnership with Bass Pro Shops.

"The chances of getting a bass over 10 pounds at Underhill are better than on the Kissimmee Chain," boasts Evertsen. The five-county Orlando area (Orange, Polk, Osceola, Lake and Seminole counties) has a large grassroots bass following. Polk County alone has 40 bass clubs, and tournaments take place every month of the year throughout the region.

Each season has its favored techniques in this bass-rich region. Some of the area's most exciting fishing comes at the mouths of canals on the Kissimmee chain during the summer/fall rainy season.

"They try to keep water levels down at this time of year," says Mark Barnes, vice president of education for the Lakeland Bassmasters, the largest club in the Florida BASS Federation. "When they open the gates, just toss a lipless crankbait, a small hard jerkbait or a crankbait. Seven- and 8-pounders are nothing when that water's flowing."

The spotlight will be on Orlando this February when it hosts the 2006 Bassmaster Classic at Lake Toho, which has come back strong since its drawdown and rehab two years ago. Fans and tournament officials anticipate a rip-snortin' Toho hawg rassle before they crown the next Classic king.

Orlando Profile

Population: 900,000 (metro population: 1.8 million)

Major bass waters within reach: East and West Tohopekaliga, Kissimmee Chain, Apopka, Harris Chain, Clermont Chain and small local lakes, including 104 ponds within the city limits.

Hometown heroes: Terry Segraves, Alan Cagle

History makers: Orlando was the site of Dean Rojas' record breaking one-day, five-fish catch of 45 pounds, 2 ounces at the 2001 Florida Top 150 tournament. His 20-fish tournament winning catch of 108 pounds, 12 ounces also remains a BASS record. Still high on his win at the 2004 Classic, Takahiro Omori opened the 2005 CITGO Bassmaster season with a victory on Lake Tohopekaliga.

Tournament facts and highlights: The site of the 1977 Bassmaster Classic, the 2006 Classic returns to Lake Toho and the Kissimmee Chain this February.

Bettor's Upside: Timing. The 2006 Bassmaster Classic will give the already popular Orlando area (47 million business and leisure travelers in 2004) added attention.

Bettor's Downside: Orlando may be the one place you can call a "Mickey Mouse" city and get a smile of approval. Still, the turnstile tourist industry, led by Walt Disney World, diverts attention from great bass fishing.

The oddsmaker's case: Lots of water. Big bass. Easy-to-get-to, year-round angling. A mix of big-name lakes and well-managed municipal waters. Orlando has to be among the favorites.

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA: Trophy bass central, southern California

The trend these days is to keep record fish alive so they can swim out their final days in giant aquaria before the admiring eyes of the angling public.

Hope that Sea World in San Diego has a tank ready for the next world-record largemouth bass.

"For trophy fishing, there's no better place in the United States to catch giant bass," says Dean Rojas, who knows a thing or two about magnum bass. Rojas grew up fishing San Diego area lakes and trained for his record-setting exploits as a pro guiding here. "I believe, deep in my heart, that someone will catch the next world record there … It's just a matter of time."

Oh, and have they come close! Every year, San Diego lakes yield big-bellied bass in the upper teens. Three lakes — Miramar, Hodges and Dixon — have produced 20-pound-plus largemouth.

San Diego is bass central in a state that has produced 22 of the top 25 bass ever officially recorded. And, with stocked rainbow trout helping to pack on pounds, its bass grow fast. The region's biggest is a 21-pound, 11-ounce Lake Dixon monster taken by trophy hunter Jed Dickerson.

Several lakes, including Otay, Hodges and Henshaw, are flat and vulnerable to the usual arsenal of shallow water artificials. Others, like El Capitan, Poway, San Vicente, Jennings, Murray, Dixon and Wohlford, compel anglers to strain depths of 35 feet or more.

San Diego lakes are clear and clean. All supply public drinking water. (The San Diego City Water Department manages nine of them.) Most are less than 1,000 acres. Lake Dixon, one of the front runners to produce the record, is only 75 acres.

"They are small, fun lakes to fish," says Rojas. "All are capable of producing 10-plus-pound fish."

Local restrictions limit angling pressure, which gives bass a better shot at reaching record-setting proportions. Lakes may be closed seasonally or for several days during the week. Some limit boat angling to rental craft.

Anchoring the bass community is an elite corps of southern California trophy hunters — guys like Mike Long, Jed Dickerson, Butch Brown — who target monster bass exclusively.

A rare breed of angler for a rare group of waters.

San Diego Profile

Population: 1,223,400 (metro population: 2,700,000)

Major bass waters Within reach: San Diego City Water Department lakes: Hodges, Barrett, Miramar, El Capitan, Murray, San Vicente, Sutherland, Upper and Lower Otay. County lakes: Dixon, Henshaw, Guajome, Cuyamaca, Jennings, Loveland, Santee, Poway, Ramona, Morena and Wohlford.

Favorite son: Dean Rojas

Local heroes: Mike Long, Jed Dickerson, Butch Brown, Todd Holder, John Kerr, Gregg Silks

History makers: The late Bill Murphy, who died in 2004, pioneered modern trophy bass techniques in southern California waters. Tiny 75-acre Lake Dixon yielded a 21-pound, 11-ounce bass to Jed Dickerson in May 2003. Some speculate it was the 20-pound, 12-ounce bass that Mike Long landed and released in 2001.

Tournament facts and highlights: Weekly local club events almost exclusively.

Bettor's Upside: No city can boast more bass in the upper teens and twenties than San Diego. If biggest is best, San Diego is in.

Bettor's Downside: Small lakes don't attract major tournaments. Deep, clear waters can frustrate the itinerant angler.

The oddsmaker's case: So many giant bass in the record book will keep San Diego in the running.

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA: A rare case of spotted fever

Anglers beware!

Spotted fever is running rampant in northern Alabama.

"The spotted bass fishing near Birmingham in late March and early April is just unreal," proclaims Tommy Jacques of Wetumpka, Ala., who had his best year in 2003 when he placed in the Top 10 in 13 of the 15 local tournaments he fished. "I have seen 30-pound sacks (five-fish limit) of nothing but spotted bass take the money."

Birmingham is the only Bass Capital nominee to feature spotted bass — both the Alabama spotted and northern spotted species — as tourist attractions. But make no mistake, the spot's big cousins are here in abundance, as well. Mixed bags of spotted and largemouth bass are the norm in tournaments on many area waters. Big bucketmouth are plentiful in area reservoirs and often spectacular in waters like Lake Guntersville northeast of Birmingham. And legendary Tennessee River bronzebacks hole up in run-of-the-river lakes like Wilson and Wheeler. Five-pound-plus specimens are common with confirmed 8- and 9-pounders sometimes making the news.

Natural beauty may be Birmingham's trump card when the Bass Capital tally begins. Roaring rivers and creeks have sculpted breathtaking canyons and reservoirs, including 21,200-acre diamond-blue Lewis Smith Lake with its 200-foot depths.

Rivers pump the lifeblood of this water-rich region. The major waterway is the Coosa River, mother of Jordan, Lay, Logan Martin, Neely Henry and Weiss lakes. "It's beautiful scenery and wild water," says Jacques of the Coosa. "You can run into Class III and Class IV rapids along the way."

They love their bass fishing passionately around Birmingham. Come to one of the region's major lakes any weekend of the year and you will likely find a bass tournament in progress.

Lake Jordan in Elmore County, south of Birmingham, is arguably the best "spot" lake in the state, though some might argue for Smith. "Your next world record spotted bass will come out of Smith Lake," declares Jacques.

Another top "spot" spot is Lake Martin, with gin-clear water, staggering depths and a burgeoning largemouth population.

Birmingham Profile

Population: 242,820 (metro population: 1,079,089)

Major bass waters within reach: Lewis Smith Lake, Lake Martin, Guntersville. Tennessee River and Wilson and Wheeler lakes. Coosa River reservoirs: Lake Jordan, Lay Lake, Logan Martin, Neely Henry and Weiss lakes.

Local heroes: Gerald Swindle, Tim Horton, Randy Howell

History makers: Dalton Bobo lost by 1 ounce (after a 4-ounce dead fish penalty) to Dion Hibdon in the 1997 Classic held on Logan Martin. This was the closest Classic in the history of the event.

Tournament facts and highlights: Rick Clunn won his first Classic on Lake Guntersville in 1976. His winning weight included the heaviest one-day limit in Classic history — 33 pounds, 5 ounces.

Bettor's Upside: Mix of big spotted, smallmouth and largemouth bass in river and reservoir settings a big plus. Scenic rivers and reservoirs are sure to lure extra votes.

Bettor's Downside: Many superb waters unfamiliar to voters outside the South.

The oddsmaker's case: Locals may not have the numbers of big cities of the South. But they will show up big time for the vote.

DETROIT, MICHIGAN: A mass of bass in the Motor City

"Detroit has, without a doubt, the best urban fishery in the country," declares Gerry Gostenik, a regular competitor on the Bassmaster Tour. "We have great walleye and the best musky lake in the world in our front yard in Lake St. Clair. Great largemouth … and, oh, those awesome smallmouth!"

Gostenik, a former University of Michigan biologist who turned pro seven years ago and now guides around Motor City, is hardly alone in his claims.

"Lake St. Clair is one of the favorite stops for the pros. They love it because there are so many big smallies," says Steve Jones, who guides out of the Professional Fishing and Archery Center in the town of Mt. Clemens on the north shore of St. Clair.

"It may take 20 pounds or better to win some tournaments — sometimes as much as 26 pounds!" says Gostenik, who, with a client, boated and released 137 keeper bass one day last fall.

When big winds and weather visit Lake St. Clair's 420 square miles of water, anglers high-tail to the St. Clair River, which drains Lake Huron and feeds Lake St. Clair from the north, or the Detroit River which links it to Lake Erie to the south.

"You also have a number of channels on the St. Clair River," says Jones, naming the South, Middle, Bassett, Chematogan, and the Canadian Channel Ecarte. "These are dredged out and hold a lot of fish." "In the summer, a lot of the fish in the rivers are 30 to 50 feet deep. This is one of the only places in the Great Lakes where you can fish that deep current for big bass," says Gostenik.

South of the Detroit River is more big water — the western basin of Lake Erie, which has a smallmouth reputation that challenges St. Clair. Drop shotting is the hot tactic on Erie these days, with anglers often turning to tubes and soft plastic goby imitations.

And if big water is not to your liking, no sweat!

"The nice thing about the Metro Detroit area is that within a half-hour to 45 minute drive, you also have terrific inland bass waters," says Gostenik. His favorites include Cass, Sylvan, Kent and Pontiac lakes, while Jones names Kensington Lake in Livingston County and Square Lake in Oakland County.

Detroit Profile

Population: 951,270 (metro population: 5,400,000)

Major bass waters: Lake St. Clair, St. Clair River and channels, Detroit River, western basin of Lake Erie, hundreds of inland lakes.

Local heroes: Kevin VanDam, Kim Stricker

History makers: Kim Stricker edged out Kevin VanDam in a Bassmaster Top 100 Pro event on Lake St. Clair in 1994.

Tournament facts and highlights: In 1999, Larry Nixon wins Michigan Top 150 Pro event over Roland Martin. Davy Hite wins the 2001 Michigan Tour Pro event with Nixon, Stricker and VanDam posting Top 12 finishes.

Bettor's Upside: World-class fishing on St. Clair and Erie rivals smallmouth fishing anywhere in the country. Smallmouth action — and size — awes even the most jaded Southerner.

Bettor's Downside: Big open water intimidates many bass anglers at the boat ramp. Windy days rough on bass boats. Could cause minor voter backlash.

Oddsmaker's case: Lake St. Clair and western Erie have earned a reputation nationwide for spectacular smallmouth. Could be the North's best bet for an upset over Southern favorites.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS: Anglers call Chicago their kind of town

Chicago's bass are back!

The area's hard-hit recreational waters have made a dramatic comeback with water quality and habitat improving year after year.

Most noteworthy is Lake Michigan, where even exotic zebra mussels have played a role, filtering water and increasing clarity and light penetration to spark vegetative growth. And the bass are thriving.

Poster fish for Chicago's bass renaissance is the smallmouth. Bronzeback numbers have exploded since the early 1990s.

"Lake Michigan is a place to catch the smallmouth bass of a lifetime," says Ed Bohn, dubbed the "Godfather" of Chicago's smallmouth bass fishing by the local media. Bohn believes smallmouth growth has accelerated with the proliferation of another exotic, the round goby, which the brown bass seem to love. Smallies move in and out of Lake Michigan harbors from Burns Ditch and Hammond in Indiana to Jackson, Burnham, Monroe, Montrose, Belmont and other harbors in the city; and Winnetka, Waukegan and North Point harbors to the north.

As for aesthetic appeal, the Chicago skyline, harbors and parks also provide the most beautiful lakefront backdrop of any urban freshwater fishery in the country — an observation echoed frequently during the 2000 Bassmaster Classic.

But there's more to Chicago bass fishing than the Big Pond. Classic competitors found fish in the rapidly recovering Chicago and Calumet River system when high winds and waves pounded Lake Michigan in 2000. Highly touted rivers like the Fox and Kankakee west and south of the city receive only moderate fishing pressure and offer consistently good smallmouth action.

The northeast corner hosts an abundance of natural lakes, the southernmost lakes left by glacial retreat during the last Ice Age. South of the city are hundreds of strip mine lakes left by Peabody Coal operations, including those in the Mazonia Braidwood State Fish and Wildlife Area. The region also offers several bass-rich cooling plant lakes — Heidecke, Braidwood and LaSalle.

Perhaps the Chicago angling scene's most valuable asset is its dedicated angling community. Guided by Mayor Daley's Fishing Advisory Committee, the city sponsors city-wide angling tournaments for Chicago's diverse population. Crown jewel in the operation is the city's Fish 'N' Kids program, led by Fishin' Guy Bob Long. The program served over 12,000 area children in 2005.

Chicago Profile

Population: 2,819,016 (metro population 8,600,000)

Major bass waters within reach: Lake Michigan; the Chicago/Calumet River system; Kankakee, Fox, lower DesPlaines rivers and Illinois River headwaters; Fox Chain o' Lakes and other natural lakes; strip mine lakes; Heidecke, Braidwood and LaSalle cooling lakes.

Heroes and favorite sons: Al and Ron Lindner, Ed Bohn, Ken Schneider, "Fishin' Guy" Bob Long, Spence Petros, Carl Malz

History makers: In 1957, the late Buck Perry, father of structure fishing, ushered in the modern era of bass fishing when outdoor columnist Tom McNally reported Perry's unprecedented catch of lunker largemouth bass on "fished out" Lake Marie in the Fox Chain o' Lakes.

Tournament facts and highlights: Woo Daves outwits Windy City winds en route to victory at the 2000 Bassmaster Classic. The city suspends its catch-and-release-only restriction on the rebounding Lake Michigan bass fishery to enable the tournament to take place.

Bettor's Upside: Bass coming on strong throughout the area. Burgeoning bass population on Lake Michigan is something to watch.

Bettor's Downside: Patchwork quilt of local waters features no single classic bass lake.

The oddsmaker's case: Avid angling contingent could vote early — and often.