Over the years since Ross Barnett Reservoir was first impounded on the Pearl River in 1965, there have been plenty of stories written and told about the bass fishing it provides. So what is all the fuss about?

Perhaps it has to do with the "Rez" being one of the Magnolia State's largest bodies of fishing water. Or it could be because it is so easily accessible to the state's capital and largest city. While those might play into the equation, it is the quality of the lake's bass angling and its status as Mississippi's favorite fishing hole that make if of such interest.

At normal pool the impoundment spreads across 33,000 acres, providing a great deal of water to explore in search of largemouths. Surprisingly, overall the lake is not considered particularly fertile, and on rare occasions visibility may be as much as 8 feet. More commonly, however, expect to only be able to see a couple of feet down.

Ross Barnett is noted for producing a lot of largemouths, as well as some spotted bass. Over the years, surveys have put the percentage of spots as low as only 10 percent of the total population, but in the upper end on the reservoir's more riverine sections, the spots make up half the bass present.

Just how good is the bass fishing on Ross Barnett Reservoir? The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks produces several reports that can provide some insight into that question.

To begin with, the MDWFP annually publishes their list of the Best Largemouth Bass Lakes in the state. These picks are based solely on the documented history of the fisheries and the professional opinions of the agency's fisheries biologists. These are the men and women who spend 40 hours or more per week dealing with Mississippi's aquatic resources and are paid to track them.

One oddity of the list is that it can contain major reservoirs, smaller lakes and even rivers. In the most recent listing from 2004, Ross Barnett was one of only five waters in District 4 to make the elite list of the top 15 bass fisheries.

Another measure is the "Mississippi Sport Fishing Index" (more commonly referred to as the "MSFish listing"). This ranking reflects actual creel surveys of what anglers have caught, combined with the biologists sampling surveys. The hard data are then refined into a ranking based on a scale of 0 to 100. The waters with higher scores offer the better bass fishing. Of the 26 major fisheries surveyed and appearing on the present list, Ross Barnett scored 64 to achieve a sixth-place tie with Lake Lamar Bruce and Lake Jeff Davis.

More supporting data are available from the results of the 2003 and 2004 MDWFP Bass Tournament Program. These statistics are gleaned from tournament reports submitted by event organizers on lakes all over the state.