On Lake Tohopekaliga, the target area is the north end of the lake, right in the town of Kissimmee. There are a number of small bays and coves in the area, and Alley probes the most protected waters at their backs, looking for mixed vegetation in one to three feet of water.

Although Istokpoga and Walk-In-Water are not normally known for January spawns, these two lakes can see some bedding fish during the latter part of the month if the winter is extremely mild. Again, protected waters in the 1- to 3-foot depth range are key areas, and most are on the northern or northwestern sections of the lakes.

"These early fish are going to find the warmest water they can find that's protected from the north winds that accompany cold fronts," Alley explained. "The northern sections of virtually any lake will offer that. Not only do they get more protection from cold front winds, but the angle of the sun during the winter will also put sunlight on these areas for a longer portion of the day than a lake's southern sections get. The end result is that water temperature in the protected shallows on the northern side of a lake can be 4 or 5 degrees warmer than in the more exposed southern section. I would never be looking for the earliest spawners in those southern waters, unless you had some shallow canals that would provide protection."

While the waters in Alley's back yard offer some of the best opportunities for a January spawn, veteran anglers have learned not to ignore Lake George, even though it lies well to the north. In 2004, in fact, Mann noted that bass were spawning on the lake before they spawned on the Kissimmee Chain!

Lake George traditionally provides an early spawn, and three major reasons are Salt Run, Silver Glenn Run and Juniper Run. These three spring-fed tributaries on its west side provide warmer water along that well-protected shoreline. In addition, 6-mile Salt Run draws large numbers of bass from the main lake, and it is not at all uncommon for bass to be bedding in the spring boil area at the upper end by Christmas Day.

One tip-off to spawning bass that lake veterans have learned to look for is uprooted eelgrass floating in mats on the surface. In some cases, this is the result of anglers trolling motors, but in most cases it's because of bass fanning beds. Find an area with floating, chopped eelgrass, and it is a good sign that bedding bass are in that area.

Alley does not have that luxury on his lakes.

"These early spawning bass are not going to be lakewide," he acknowledged. "You find them in small concentrations, and you may run 500 yards of good shoreline and then find a wad of them in a 100-yard section. You need to stay on the move to find them, but once you get into a bunch, they will normally tell on themselves if you run a reaction bait through them."

Alley's normal procedure is to cover the right water fast. If cover allows it, his preferred "searching lure" is a Bomber Long A jerkbait, in either chrome with a blue back or gold with a black back. If vegetation makes that a poor choice, he swims a plastic lizard, rigged Texas-style with a 3/16-ounce bullet weight. Once he contacts fish, he can slow down and start working individual beds with the lizard. The key, however, is to find that concentration.

"It can take some looking, and you need to be in the proper water," he said. "But, given the fact that these early spawners are generally the larger fish, it's worth the time it takes to find those January spawners."