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Less than 10 min. after I told Jeff that my reel would arrive tomorrow, the doorbell rang, and there it was. Oh Happy Day. Here she is. Hootie

Today, I did something that I've been trying my hardest to do for two months: catch a jig fish. I fished it and fished it (not exclusively, but often) for that time period without even getting a bite. Imagine my exuberance today when I finally caught a jig bass! Did a little dance move and whooped in the air......May many more follow!

I used to do this every winter until I bought a boat and started fishing the power plant lakes. Find the deepest water in the pond and suspend a couple minnows right off the bottom or even fish them on the bottom with a slip sinker rig. It's not the most exciting fishing but you'll catch way more fish in extremely cold ponds doing that than you will on lures. A suspending jerkbait is about the only lure I'll fish in very cold ponds. Soft twitches and long pauses will get them, but you have to be very patient to do it. I took this one on the second of February a few years ago a day or two after ice out from a pond on a 78 pointer.

A PROFESSOR OF MATHEMATICS SENT A FAX TO HIS WIFE ... IT READ: Dear Wife: You must realize that you are 54 years old and I have certain needs which you are no longer able to satisfy. I am otherwise happy with you as a wife. I sincerely hope you will not be hurt or offended to learn that, by the time you receive this fax, I will be at the Grand Hotel with my 18 year old teaching assistant. I'll be home before midnight. Your Husband. When he arrived at the hotel, there was a fax waiting for him which read as follows: Dear Husband: You, too, are 54 years old and by the time you receive this, I will be at the Breakwater Hotel with the 18 year old pool boy. Being the brilliant mathematician that you are, you can easily appreciate the fact that 18 goes into 54 a lot more times than 54 goes into 18, so don't wait up. Your Wife.

The Glenn Lau video Bigmouth Forever identified bass, Largemouth bass, as being 2 separate groups; individual bass and school bass. There isn't a clear consensus if bass are school fish, lots of evidence they are individuals that may group together as adults. We can agree that bass school together when they are fingerlings or fry, the question is how long do they stay as a school? There isn't a lot of scientific data available to read or reference. Bill Murphy* references Mike Lembeck a DFG California biologist who, in 1974 tracked 200 bass during a 3 year period with implanted transmitters, making over 800 observations. The Lembeck study concluded the bass he studied were individualistic. The bass in Lembeck's study ranged from 1 1/4 lb to 14 lbs, several 8 to 10 lb bass were in the study. It was clear in Lembeck's study that bass, at times, hang out in groups. Murphy's analogy is the saloon theory; you have a local saloon you always go to, there's a bunch of people there and ounce in a while the same people are there at the same time. Lembeck was never able to identify groups of bass moving together for extended periods of time. Lembeck did locate his bass off shore on a deep hump grouped with other bass, never more than 2 of his bass in the transmitter study at one time. Big bass grouped together, but would come and go as individuals. When the bass grouped together in one spot they would be found in large numbers of bass. Buck Perry, a early pioneer on deep structure fishing formulated a theory that big bass were school fish that moved as a group from deep water to shallow water during periods of activity he called migrations. Perry didn't have tracking studies or sonar to prove his observations. Perry found large schools of big bass populations that had never been tampered with. Murphy believed fishing, in most lakes, the bass tend to disperse in groups and create individuals. Like Murphy, I have found large groups of bass over 4 lbs located at one spot and caught several 5 bass limits exceeding 40 lbs. These big bass schooled or grouped together for a reason, feeding together. The question is did they come together as individuals or do they stay together as a school? Mike Lembeck and Bill Murphy say they are individuals coming together at the local saloon. I have watched a large group or school of big bass swimming together and feeding together several times in the clear deep structured lakes. Glenn Lau believes they stay together ??? Something that needs more research. Today's Elite bass anglers are winning tournaments targeting groups of big bass off shore. The A-rig is proof that bass are out there in lakes across the country. Tom * Book: In Pursuit of Giant Bass (pages 30-34).

Denver is worrisome. Before they got blasted by the Pats almost as bad as the Seahawks beat them in the SB, I had them as a sure bet. The Pats, if they stay healthy, look like the team to beat in the AFC, heck, the NFL.

When you can get a good visual of weed lines below the surface (In clearer water), the pockets and edges are no-brainers. The real mystery for me is the heavy weed cover lakes when the weed-tops are 2 to 5 feet from the bottom and look nearly solid....but there are inevitably invisible bass that come out of nowhere to hit a passing spinnerbait or rattletrap ticking the tops.

Congrats. You might have to change your handle.

I feast upon the souls of my tournament competition, er...I mean, I like beef jerky.

7 & under I like Roboworm or Slug-Go SS 8+ I really like Uptons. Sometimes I feel like I'm the only person who doesn't throw senkos.

Add bacon to that....best sammich eva.

I throw everything on a spinning rig and never worry about it. As long as the line test and the bait's weight are within the rod's parameters you can successfully use any bait you want.

And considering the way the Saints are playing, it was probably the only way the guy was going to get his hands on a ball!

Yep, don't swing on them when they blow up, just crank until the rod starts to load then lean into them, like a crankbait hookset.

Watch this - It will help speed up the process. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLOoWcoPIK4 A-Jay

Don't rule out braid.

I did a little dance too when I finally caught my first jig fish. In fact, I probably did... a jig. Congrats!

Take a bucket full of shiners and some slip floats out to your local pond this winter and tell me it's a joke

It's like fine wine. Gets better with age. It also cures baldness.

Live bait

This one.

I'm slightly confused. When I take 1 rod or 7, it's to fish them but yes I take only 1 when bank fishing. On the boat. Well that's a whole different story.

If you have one rod and you get pleasure from it, more power to you. If I could have one, it would be the champ 734. However, I consider myself pretty common in that I have an average job. I just don't party, smoke, hunt, have kids or a house so I spend my money on my favorite hobby. Therefore I own two of the 734's lol

Just trying to learn a new technique. What are the ideal conditions/time of year? What about your gear loadout? Im particularly interested in learning about the Cotton Cordell Red Fin or Ripplin Red Fin.

My neighbor was 74yo and he passed away last week. We talked all the time about politics, crime and the weather. A little Tim Allen over the fence chat. I mentioned I was going bass fishing and he perked up but said nothing. In the news paper his obituary said he was an avid fisherman and they had a picture of him holding a bass in his boat. I feel really bad I been living here going on eight years and all this time with the both of us being retired I could of taken him fishing. We could of fished together. He was a quiet nice old man who kind of kept to himself. I would offer to help him at times but he refused my help. My point is if you have a neighbor talk to him and see if he fishes. You could learn from these elderly gents. Don't miss out on the good fishing trips you could of hand like I did. I moved into a neighborhood were there all old timers who lived here for ever. I'm the youngster at 64yo. I enjoy talking with some of them about how things have changed through the many years. My street was a stagecoach trail and a nearby house was a layover. There is so much untold facts and history. I fear once we lose these people the stories will be gone forever. God bless, happy holidays. Remember to enjoy thanksgiving. Bigbill

Great link, i MUST start trying this! Thanks

ML to XH............it all depends on the jig and the cover,

If only it were that easy. It depends on the rod, the jig, the line and the cover being fished. Not all rods are rated the same and not all jigs are 1/2 oz.

That's actually the model I was looking at. I've heard it is super smooth, and casts a mile away with ease.

There are some people who think that GYCB senkos are THE only bait of this type to use, and then there are some people (like me) who really don't care and will use any brand of stick and still catch just as many fish.

Cold pizza, beef jerky, granola bars,lots of water, and some gatorade. Hard candy is great too, I like the little rootbeer barrels, and I am a tootsie roll fiend. Sunflower seeds were a staple when I quit dipping, but they make a freaking mess so I don't bring them on the boat much. I got into the bad habit of having a cigar or two when fishing this summer, but I nipped that in the bud this fall as well.

Got got yesterday morning for two hours.Keitech swing impacts slow rolled off the bottom and yo-yoing Rat L Traps produced 6 LM and 2 picks.All bass were around 2 lbs.Water temp was 44 deg.Still time left.Sorry about the pic size when you open them.I need to fix

I'm surprised there isn't more love here for the Quantum Smoke. TackleTour gave it their esteemed "editors choice" rating when they tested it. I'm tempted to try one.... Tight lines, Bob

Word on the street is that he has already hawked the ball for a bowl of gumbo and a bottle of boonesfarm.

I would highly suggest against it The hole you cut to install a floor pan should provide plenty access. Keep us posted!

Spawn/postspawn, Overcast, slight ripple on the water. Don't get too excited when you see a wake gunning for your lure.

St Croix MH/F

Just a few more

The green fish have really big mouths that is why they call them largemouths. The brown fish have small mouths that is why they call them smallmouths.

I am a Saints fan and was cussing this guy out from my livingroom in Alabama. Was a d-bag move man. Makes us all look completely classless. Sam, I am with you that I'd like to add more but... don't want a warning either lol

It is roumored that Gruden might be interested in LSU.

Jon Gruden seems to like his current gig with ESPN, I don't think he's going back into coaching.

One can only hope that another Saints fan caught up with that puke, stomped him into the ground, and returned the ball to the lady.

The young grandson walks up to his grandfather who is siting in the recliner watching TV and he asks his grandfather, "Grandpop, can you make a sound like a frog?" "Well," said the old man, "I guess I could but why?" "Because, grandma said that when you croak we can all got to Disney World."

Cold weather, light weight. Sitting in front of the fireplace, in my shorts and tee shirt with a FLW magazine. That's about the extent of my cold weather fishing. Hootie

Awkward! Reminds me of the time I was at an acquaintances house. I had made the "error" of letting his 4 year old son hold whatever it was I had in my possession (it could have been about anything-I can't remember now). Anyway, It's time to leave and I pick up the object. Boy makes a grab for it, yelling "Mine! Mine!" (or something to that effect). in retrospect, I should have just let go of it and asked his father (who was right there) to deal with it. Instead, unfortunately, there we were in this "death struggle" for some stupid item. Father just looks at us stupidly. (Later, after I won the battle, I made a face at the little boy and kicked him in the shin)

X2

This reminds me of a story I may, or may not have told here once about a guy at work who was a "prepper" for things like this. He would boast how much water/food/etc.. he had on hand in case of an emergency. I said to him one day " that's great, but, ..................how many rounds of ammo do you have stockpiled" He said "none", I said "thanks for the food and water"

David Hayes caught the World Record smallmouth bass in 1955 on Dale Hollow Lake. Some believe the next World Record will be found on the Tennessee River: http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/smallmouth_record.html Almost exactly four years ago, November 2004, my fishing partner and best friend, Speedy Madewell, boated a 10 lb beauty. I netted the fish and weighed it, he released the monster! Since that time we have had some luck with other big bass, including the bronzebacks in my avatar (January, 2005). Last Saturday Speedy and I fished the river with limited success: an assortment of species including largemouth, smallmouth, Kentucky bass, striper, cats and drum. We may have caught forty fish or so, but no size and most importantly, no browns of note. Around 11:00 things changed. With poor results off either bank and limited water release by the TVA, we moved to the "middle of the river". Actually, we decided to fish along the river channel, defined by navigational buoys. The drop is well defined, but relatively small, only 3-5' in 15-25' water. Still,this represents significant structure for fish in open water. After landing a few nondescript fish, I got a nice strike drifting along the ridge. I set the hook hard and didn't budge the fish. However, there was very little fight and I saw another drum in my future. After 10-15 yards of retrieve, the drum dove and turned into a big catfish, just digging to the bottom, but no run. As I brought the fish closer to the boat, Speedy asked, "Gonna need the net?" Without any emotion I replied, "Yeah, it's big and ugly." Speedy runs the trolling motor on the forward platform of a BayRanger 2180, center console. So, with the net on the floor opposite me, it takes a minute to get set up. With little current, we let the boat drift. This time of year the water clarity on the Tennessee is about 3, maybe 4 feet. As my partner came over to my side he asked, "What's ya got?" I replied, in a steady voice and without inflection, "The biggest flipping smallmouth I have ever seen." The fish appeared to be a Trident submarine as it rose toward the surface so both of us could get a good look at her, but then she bolted. She initially ran about 15 yards forward, then after a 90 degree turn, another 20 yards toward the middle of the river. My situation was precarious. I'm in the middle of the boat and have to hustle to get to the front, around and over the trolling motor while at the same time maintaining rod position with a sizzling drag. I was starting to have some fun! The pig came up, but did not jump. I got her turned around, but she had already decided she didn't like the Ranger. When she was halfway back, she bolted again, but this time dove deep. It took a few minutes to get her a little closer. Most smallmouth, especially biggun's, tend to fight the best on the first run after a close encounter with the boat, but even later, they never give up. This fine lady staged at rod length, tugged mightily and would not come up. I asked my buddy what he thought I should do? He responded, "Doesn't matter. That fish ain't ready and she's going to do anything she wants!" Well, I've caught a few big fish and I was in no hurry. My rod appeared parabolic with the line straight down into the river. I said to my friend, "This is when you have to believe in your equipment." And then.......the line snapped. stupid, Stupid, STUPID! We weren't catching anything interesting, so although I noticed a burr on my line before the last cast, I didn't do what I always preach: "If it ain't perfect, it ain't good enough." When there is any doubt, retie your line, leader or hook. So, could that smallmouth have been the New World Record? I don't know, but it wasn't boated, so it doesn't count. You might ask, "Really now, how much do you think she weighed?" I don't know the answer to that either, but what I can tell you is, she was... HUGE! :