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Loxahatchee Saturday 1/13/18 7:00-11:00 Partly Cloudy Pre-front conditions Partly Cloudy Water stained 67* Wind NW 5-15 Picked up Rick and went to the South Ramps along Lox Road. Ran west several miles and fished the flats along the spoil bank. Went through the second cut fishing a Horny Toad. Caught a nice bass on the third cast. Rick was fishing a swimbait and had a follower but could not hook up. We thought the top water bite might be the trick up it stopped quickly. We switched to plastics and slowed way down. The bite was slow but steady. They did not want to chase a bait, but rather a slow steady move along the bottom that got the bites. You could barely feel the bite, just a small thud, and a slow movement was all you got. Around 9:00 I felt a small tick, and thought it could be grass. I took up slack and set the hook, I had a 22.2 inch fat bass, about 6 pounds. I got her head up, and kept it above the heavy grass. Around the same time, and in the same area, Rick caught a nice fatty in the same small 30 yards. We ended the day at 11:00, as the wind really started to blow hard. We boated 18 fish, one big Hawg, a number of fatties, and one double with synchronized hook sets. It was a nice relaxing day, with good company.

Somewhere in the mountains of WV.....(and it's not Mt. Storm )

Geo, here are your pics! Thanks for the invite to go fishing! Great time as usual!

Fished in the sideways snow from about 9-1:30, it was cold but not @Bluebasser86 cold. If you're wondering why I'm wearing a life jacket on the bank, I was walking up and down cliffs next to the lake all day like in the last picture. Fish were quite active, Caught 5 but had a big one swipe my lure at the bank when I was pulling it up to cast again. The largemouth and one smallmouth not pictured (~16") took the bait right at my feet

I have the same one on my Smokercraft 18.5’, just don’t have the tilt bracket, don’t even notice it on there weight wise. I’ll never own another boat without one on it.

Im in a blue pro crappie 175 but i probably wont be around have a class in houston on the 17-18th then headed offshore atleast thats the plan right now as always its upin the air till i get there. Look for the main lake point that the main boat lane passes over and is less then 70 yards from the south shore of San Miguel, just passed San Miguel park, has two deep water coves one on each side of the point. Heheheheh hope this helps sir.

This brings up another question. Is the term "good" defining size or numbers? Does targeting and catching (5) 3lb+ bass over an 8 hour day make one a better angler than targeting and catching 50 dinks over an 8 hour day? Frankly, if I'm not in a tourney, I would rather have the numbers than the size. This is dictated by where and how I fish. No argument, a big jig will catch less fish than a 5" senko or a crankbait. When I fish buddy tourneys on my home water, I will throw a jig in one form or another all day, or until my son, who is experimenting with baits, figures out a pattern. If he can establish a pattern, then we stick with it. On a new lake, I'll switch between a jig and a jerkbait fishing structure again, while my son experiments with different baits trying to establish a pattern. If I'm fun fishing or meat fishing alone, or with my dad, the thought process is different. I do the experimenting to find fish, then stick to my guns, until I've fished out the school. I didn't get skunked this year. I got some big pike and walleye, but didn't break the 4lb mark for a bass. Does that make me good? Does it really matter?

The bass were going nuts chasing this swim jig I was tossing from the bank last evening, as a storm moved in from the west, pelting the water surface and my rain jacket. Just before sunset, the clouds cleared and the red sun lit up the sky, and the bite shut down. I sloshed across the wet grass back to my car, quite satisfied with myself.

1-13-17 Water Level & Fishing Report I was able to get out to the Alley yesterday morning with my girlfriend. It turned out to be a good morning. The water level is still up and I could hear fish deep in the reeds, but there was plenty of action in the canal. We fished from 7:15 until about 1 and she was able to pull 43 bass (all on flukes) and I managed to get 41 (between flukes, shakey head, and wacky rig). Average bass was just under 2lbs with big bass weighing 4lbs 3oz. The bass were feeding heavily on bait fish and were even spitting them up when being caught. Bycatch for the day wasn't too horrible, together we caught 15 sunfish, oscar, and cichlids. Overall it was a fun day with beautiful weather.

Well here is what I want you to do. Ignore the cold for a few minutes when we get a warmer day. Try standing your rod up against a tree, walk your line out and then using a cloth under tension pull your line straight as you walk along the line. You need to remove any lure so the coils will straighten out. Adding a line conditioner like Reel Snot helps too.

Having owned several black trucks in a row and now the boat - I can relate. What I've found with the boat is maintaining a coat of quality wax on the hull, besides looking good (initially) can reduce some water spotting. However, if one is not eternally vigilant with rinsing & wiping down the entire hull directly after every use - there will be spots; to what extent may vary but if you're in an environment that promotes them - they will come. Additionally, wax can make spot removal a bit easier -(relative term). What's a very bad plan is to try to use a cleaner wax to remove water spots - hasn't worked for me. Only made the eventual spot removal that much more challenging. So the 'system' for me is a coat of wax applied pre-season on a clean hull. Rinse & wipe down with fresh water only after every use. Vinegar bath when needed. By not adding ANY product to the hull - I'm only removing the spots (and not everything else I've chosen to spray all over it day after day to 'help' because nothing really does) so they come off really easily - just spray & wipe. Otherwise - It's a PIA. YMMV A-Jay

I drive a Ford. My wife drives a Jeep. I prefer the brown one.

It's great to be able to do business with an owner who is also the craftsman building the jig.

Great..... because I’m already a fishing junkie. Catfishing was a gateway drug to crappie ultralight fishing that led to fly fishing that led to bass fishing that led to kayak angling. Too many pleasures and not enough free time! Since there is no limit to dumb questions on this forum, last one. In Arizona, I see occastion desert ‘toads’but definitely not frogs. Can a region without a frog population still have potential for a good froggin bite?

I have the Meetle and had it for a few years ,fished it hard and the drag went out.Took it to Academy to get it fixed and they gave me a new one no questions asked.There H20 line is really good for the money plus there customer service is great.

I think I might have washed mine once since buying it in 2005. I can't remember ever waxing it. People are surprised when I tell them it's 13 years old.

Then we can sell him on the xx perfect pitch as the right frog rod

40 will be fine and will allow you to tie on some 12 lb fluoro for a leader if you wish but I am going to warn you...if you catch the froggin bug...you WILL be buying a dedicated rod. It's the crack cocaine of fishing!

Shimano, Megabass.

Got some from Tacklewarehouse - Powell Max 3D Spinning Rod 7'1" Light Powell Max 3D Mag Bass Casting Rod 7'3" Mag Hvy Frog Several Trokar Hooks Two casting rod sleeves The main thing that I like is this: Cal Coast Fishing Rod Mule (40 bucks) I tried this the other day and it's a MUST for everyone to have. It will make your life easier to transport.

Great game. Real nail-biter till the end.

I use to love to ice fish, that was before I got old and wimpy.

Lews has my favorite reel to date, Tournament MB. But as a whole I like Daiwas lineup the best. I'd choose Daiwa.

Mine says rain and freezing temps monday changing over too snow and freezing temps tuesday, low for both days 19 degress.

Xcalibur

KVD 1.5. sexy shad 90% of time.

IF ANY FISHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN HERE, IT IS GOING TO INVOLVE AN ICE AUGER

This year we are starting a new series of jigs. We are going to release a new custom color each month. This month is the Chris Craw. The series will be available in the Extreme (Trokar) Dredge (Owner Deepthroat) Grid Iron (Owner XXX strong hook) Swim Jig (Mustad Ultra Point) (http://www.siebertoutdoors.com/Chris-Craw-1619.htm

Eagles defense is no joke...they play a lot better at home too only letting up like 12 points a game. Atlanta wasn't ready for it and i would venture a guess they looked past us a little bit and now they have an entire offseason to think about it...

I think it's just outpaced them. I don't know that the quality is genuinely that drastically different; Though it is better in my opinion. But at the end of the day they've definitely done a better job with marketing, and coming out with "shiny new" products keeping them in the forefront of everyones mind when they go ahead to buy a new reel.

So you can use cheaper component's and try and beat the factory but that's like trying to beat an index with a mutual fund. It can be accomplished but not successful very often. I think the factory gides are overkill and ti/sic are good enough. If your downgrading to Alconite then there is real savings. Some nrx rods have recoils and still sell for the same price. To me that's a ripoff. A custom may or may not have a warranty but a factory rod is guaranteed.

Forever known for the Knee-ster-ception...oh wait, nevermind. Sorry Atlanta, just wasn't in the cards this year. Credit to the Eagles and a lot of heart. Foles shook off first quarter jitters.

Once again an Atlanta team finds new and innovative ways to disappoint.

Yup X2 ~ Cheapest & most effective water spot remover - - A-Jay

I stand corrected..Eagles are on to the NFC championship game.

Pats all the way

Wipe down with 50/50 vinegar and water after each outing

It will fit in one slot, I just put a 5/0 Trokar Magnum to test.

I would buy some carbon drag from Smooth Drags. Google --> smoothdrag * I also buy some reels from ebay to convert them to parts. For me, It tend to be cheaper than going to them since I do the maintenance myself to kill the winter time.

You can easily set your home page to whatever page you want. I would recommend gooling the question "How to set home page with _________ (fill in the blank with your browser and operating system). There will be many replies with the procedure. I can't tell you how unless I know the OS and browser. You can also set that same page when you open a new tab. You may need an add-on to do this but thats easy too. Shout if you need more help!

Ima flit floater in the 120 series. THe bills are chartreuse or orange differentiating them from the regular suspending flits. They run between 1-2 feet deep. Also the original floating rapala F13 size. http://***store.blogspot.com/2013/01/ima-bone-floating-flit-120-shallow.html

Ice shifts with temp changes, when the sun hits it, and when weight shifts on it. When it’s only 4” thick, it’ll move in the holes from someone walking by it. I’ve seen it move around on 12-20” of ice when a truck or snowmachine goes by the holes. And it’ll make some god awful noise when it’s real cold and making ice, especially in a big lake. Not usually an issue.

If you are a student of the game it can happen pretty quick after a few years of trial & error. Confirmation of your becoming a good angler is when others are always looking for your advice. I personally think this site is heavily populated with lots of good anglers from the posts & pictures submitted. There is a wealth of information to be gleaned from Bass Resource. The next question to ask is how long does it take to be a great angler?

Yep. same -- I would go with Daiwa.

Alright, I've got all your predictions down on paper now. Looking forward to the games, should be some good ones. But they won't be anything compared to the Steelers/Patriots (hint hint) shootout next weekend.

put it on the grill with lemon pepper YUM YUM!!!

Been using TSI 321 for a while now and have no complaints. I bought a 4 oz. bottle for around 18.00 bucks that should last a very long time. I'm not sure about all of its claims but it does seem to last a good while in my spool bearings.

I been thinking about trying 321 myself, from what I have read it stays and lasts longer then any other oil and the tests that have been done are excellent.

Left Twix.