Big fish, fast action; insider tips on tackle and tactics; good times fishing; a chance to travel with In-Fisherman editors as they make the world of In-Fisherman come alive on television, filming in environments where most anglers really fish. The 2003 television season begins the first weekend in January and continues for 26 consecutive weeks. In-Fisherman remains the top-rated, top-watched fishing show on television.

Each show has a central theme and a minimum of three show segments, plus several shorter tips that highlight the central theme. The first show, for example, focuses on Principles of Early Season Fishing. I set the mood by opening the show on the ice for jumbo perch at Devils Lake, North Dakota. Then the show kicks into high gear with a six-minute segment on our “Critical Concept” for the day: “In early season, fish seek food in conjunction with warming water.” We highlight this concept -- that is, teach basic principles -- by illustrating three fishing situations: first, a look at reservoir channel cats at ice-out; second, a look at shallow spring crappies; and finally, a look at ultrashallow early-season walleyes.

Then it’s quickly on to some of the biggest walleyes you’ll see anywhere on TV all season. We continue to address our Early Season theme by focusing on overlooked opportunities for huge early-season walleyes in open water. Some of the footage and tactics are from the record-setting 2002 In-Fisherman Professional Walleye Trail event on Lake Erie, where the tactics produced over 300 walleyes over 10 pounds. But Erie isn’t the only place where these methods work. We outline specific presentation approaches for open-water walleyes on classic walleye lakes and reservoirs around North America.

Each show also has at least one “Staff Tested Tough” tip, a short feature on a cutting-edge fishing product that we’ve spent extensive time testing over the course of the filming year. Minn Kota in-boat chargers have revolutionized the battery charging process for us. No dragging batteries around. No fussing with clips and chargers and multiple extension cords. One extension cord plugged into the in-boat charger when we’re done fishing, and in about six hours, all three batteries in one of our typical filming boats are ready for another day of action.

To end the half hour, a page from one of the most popular columns in In-Fisherman magazine. An “Adventure” segment spotlights the fishing on one of the hottest multispecies fishing vacation spots in the country, the Charleston area of South Carolina. Fishing for huge catfish, crappies, and bass on nearby Santee-Cooper reservoir. Opportunities for big bass on one of several actively managed area bass lakes. More fantastic fishing for redfish on the inshore waters surrounding Charleston proper -- all set in this historic Civil War area, a bustling coastal community, great ships in harbor, fresh seafood, superb restaurants, one of the world’s finest aquariums. To be sure, it’s an all-season destination, but it’s a really fantastic spot for a winter-spring get away.

Count ‘em in this show alone: crappies, catfish, largemouth bass, redfish, walleyes. In-Fisherman television is multispecies fishing at its best, in a fast-action format where the emphasis is on adventure and entertainment in conjunction with teaching about fishing techniques and situations. It is, once again, where the pages of In-Fisherman magazine come to life on TV.

Join me and the rest of the editors, plus In-Fisherman Publisher Mike Carney, in the boat or on the bank. It’s about as much fun as any multispecies angler can have without actually being on the water.

Over the course of the season, you’ll also see trout, salmon, muskies, pike, grayling, sturgeon, stripers, and hybrid stripers; plus virtually every panfish swimming, from perch to crappies and bream.