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On Saturday I got the bass boat out, updated my maps on my Garmins, and generally made sure everything was good to go. I took the boat out to Smithville Lake today to mainly work with the Depth finders and peruse the lake bottom though I was prepared if I found fish. I only had 4 hours because of plans later. Smithville is 7190 acres so it takes a bit to warm up. Water temperatures varied from 39.5 to 41.5 degrees at the surface and winds were gusting to over 30 mph today. After scoping out some very large points all the way to the river bed at 43 feet and finding little to speak of, I moved to a very large creek and followed its channel. About a quarter mile from what will be the spawning beds in a couple of months, the creek channel bends sharply toward the bank to an area protected from the wind. There is a lot of timber in this lake and the channel edge was lined with it. I had a feeling that this calm water near the bank with 17 feet of water in the channel might be a good spot. I pulled up into about 4 feet of water and cast into the 17 feet deep channel, dragging a finesse jig past the largest tree which was in about 8 feet of water. I didn't feel a bite but you jig guys know how it is when you get that odd feeling of heaviness through your rod, so I set the hook and landed this decent fish. My scale was showing a bit over 6 but then settled in at 5 lb 14 oz. She was 22.5 inches long. And of course I forgot my camera so I had to use my phone. The angle kind of makes her mouth look small but oh well. She was a pretty fish though you can't tell from my pathetic camera skills.

Took boat out for second trip.oil leak totally fixed,ran like a top and not a drop of oil.so smooth and fast.Ran trolling motor 6 hours and still had 70% battery life left.Love this boat so much,don't know how I lived this long without it.First foot control trolling motor,but getting the hang of it,so much easier fishing into the wind.Water was high and 47 degrees,but I caught 3 on a jig and rage craw.She's no longer a virgin.First of many.Did I mention I LOVE MY BOAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The other night my wife and I were watching a late movie. There was a couple on the shore of a lake that were " getting busy ". Clothes were coming off, things were getting " steamy ". At this point my wife and I turned to each other, excitement in our eyes, and at the same time said " Man, did you see that fish jump!!. It had to be a 5 pounder!!! It's been a long winter Jim

I've been practicing my flipping and pitching in the backyard, and I swear I have felt a bite.

This website has hands down made me a better angler. @Glenn you have put together the best resource center available and the members go out of their way to share wisdom. From members sharing their top secret fishing holes to divulging details on techniques, baits, etc - I have attained lifetime skills that I get to pass onto my children. Just wanted to express my gratitude

What I have noticed and I'm a relative newby here, is that there is a level of maturity and respect that is lacking on other sites. It makes it easier to share info.

I haven’t seen any clearance here in WI either but I know what you mean. I bought a 100 dollar rod and felt like I mortgaged my house for it lol. I get a little jealous at everyone’s gear

An inch

Pretty tough today. Only gotta couple. Waters way up after being way low about 10 days ago. Got this decent one though

I buy on Ebay all the time. When I'm buying new reels, I stick to the dealers who sell a lot of volume and have very high seller ratings. Never had an issue doing it this way in 10 years. The link below shows what I'm talking about. Ebay Dealer Selling a Daiwa Tatula CT LH This dealer has over 3600 transactions with a 99.99% positive feedback average. I would feel as comfortable buying from him as I would from Tackle Warehouse.

Some interesting stats on this whole question from Ken Duke: Https://www.bassmaster.com/news/age-and-pro-angler-part-1 Https://www.bassmaster.com/news/age-and-pro-angler-part-2

When you wake your old lady up setting the hook in your sleep!

Bought a vise and brass bobin at BPS for 25 bucks. Boy did this make my life so much easier ! Did some work on 4/0 Gamakatsu Finesse Wide Gap Hooks with the mono (40lbs). I know its not perfect but it will do for now. Just can't wait to pop those on their lips

Today was a little slow for us again, we ran across a school this evening that helped us recover from a slow bite and end the day on a good note. First fish this morning was a 3+ but shook me at the boat. Caught 2 keepers right after that in the shallow grass on a craw but that was it for the rest of the morning. At 5pm we ran across a school in sandy creek. We hit spot lock on the ultrex and sat there for at least an hour and caught a dozen fish in 5-10ft on c rigs and an a-rig. I’ve heard reports of catching em real shallow but we haven’t been able to get that to work

Probably a tree pounder!

I defer to those with much more experience in the sport than I have for an authoritative answer. But one thing I have noticed from learning about the history of professional fishing is the rise of versatility. There was a bass master article about this at some point. In order to survive in the Elite series right now, you have to be versatile. Back in the day, there were people that only fished a spinnerbait or only fished deep or only fished shallow. Today there are anglers that have specialties (Bill Lowen likes fishing shallow, Hank Cherry throws a jerk bait all the time, etc.) but it seems like every tournament you have guys with 35 rods rigged up covering every bait at every depth. Junk fishing and versatility have taken over specialties. That's changed the game. There's a crazy amount of behind-the-scenes work that goes into an Elite tournament. Unless you're Boyd Duckett, most of the guys can't afford to fly to tournaments. They drive extremely long distances in a truck to get there. After they set up, they spend two days staring at their electronics on the water for 12 hours a day. They rig up rods and baits at night and don't get much sleep during practice. If they make the cut on day two, there's a total of four days of fishing. That's a strain on anyone, let alone someone who's not in their physical prime. My grandparents are around Rick Clunn's age and a 7 hour road trip puts them on the couch for two days. For the record, he won an Elite series tournament on the St. John's river in 2016 at the age of 69. That's a testament not only to his skill and experience but it also says that he's in great shape. Don't count him out

Just came off the water, bite picking up on the old trusty spinner bait and swim bait no size to brag about but some nice 2 and 3s showing up. Biggest of the day throw me but it came on a baby ribbett, had my head in the clouds and didn't set the hook. I'm sure she was 6 to 7 pounds had a big belly. Hope this helps someone and as always blue pro crappie fat guy camo hat come say hello. I'm good, thanks for asking, enjoying my time off, holla at me if you make it up, I'm headed back to work on the 14th.

When driving, If we pass anybody of water I start breaking it down. "Whoa, rivers up today. Bet they got lock 2 open. You see how the water is pooling up on the east bank behind those boulders? Nice south wind. I could get the Kayak right up there and run squarebills all day!" Then I get "Will you watch the road and stop looking at the water!" It's been since thanksgiving since I have fished. Only a few more weeks to go...

Got this fish out back a little while ago on a June bug senko. Saw a swirl against the bank across at the neighbors bulkhead and skipped it over, apparently to a bed .This was the female. Caught the smaller buck a couple casts later in the same spot. Saw another guarding a nest out 5 feet or so from my boatramp.

I tend to fish plastics (worms) Texas rigged or weightless, a few cranks and spinnerbaits. Never tried chatterbaits, jerkbaits, flukes, drop shot, c rig, split shot, ot grubs. Very little experience with creatures. Got to branch out. What have you never tried?

When your wife wants to paint the bathroom, and she asks you what colors you like, and you reply with "black and blue or green pumpkin."

Get a room! (And maybe Netflix an academy award winning movie about getting intimate with a fish while you're in there..)

Can't speak for the authors that you've read. For me, though, I've gone to braid for all my spinning reels. Manageability and hooksetting went from ok to fantastic overnight. Say goodbye to loops....especially for twisty applications like flukes and dropshot

Upon more reflection of this question, I suppose there are more named bass techniques/rigs that I haven't fished than those I have fished. I covet the village idiot's life for its simplicity. oe

I routinely fish a somewhat varied list of techniques. Tried a bunch, some didn't seem to match my style or fisheries. Have not throw the really big hard bodied swimbaits, I'm talking the 10 inch / 6 ounce plus baits; not for bass anyway. Also some of the 'rigs' like the dangle rig & the stupid rig and let's not forget the Geekinhiem rig, will probably never make it into my arsenal. However none of this has discouraged the bait monkey from keeping me on speed dial, which has been going on for many years now. A-Jay

Send it to Shimano for repair.

Do yourself a favor and just keep both of the poles. Even after selling them for what you paid for you won't find a rod of that quality for $129

Keep telling myself I'm not going to buy anymore lures and then I run across a local K-mart going out of business and.... The list is 3 packs of Craw Fatties, 3 packs of Deuces, 6 packs of Matzuo Wide Gap 4/0 hooks and a spool of 10 lb trilene mono for $28 bucks. Everything was over 60% off marked price.

Most of your aquaintances only talk to you about fishong

Call me when it grows up. It will make a lovely garbage can. Its not AI if it can't learn on its own as we intelligent beings can. Think about how a dog knows when it hears a refrigerator door open and close that its time to find its humans. It learned on its own.

That POS would only attract choupic.

I knew "The Gambler" was a good nickname for you Andrew!... you know when to hold em and know when to fold em.... oh wait, check that....you were doing all the holding, I was doing all the folding.

Legend as defined by Advanced Angler A Legend of the sport is someone who has made significant contributions or achieved uncommon accomplishments en route to leaving an indelible mark on the history of the sport. These are individuals who have set new standards, created new trends and driven the bar to new heights. Like I said let's see where these young guns are in 20 years!

St. Croix Legend Xtreme LXS70MF Daiwa Tatula LT SS (Sterling Silver) 3000-CXH Limited Edition

Caught my first bass of the season on Thursday before the storm. The fish was a tank which was shocking as the pond I caught it at is a dink factory. I don't think I've broken a pound and a half at this pond before. Hopefully, this means a good spring is in store!

If you thought the bass fishing bait monkey was bad... There is some good advice above regarding the line and rod being most important 90% of the time. The types of water you fish and the species you're fishing for will have some impact on what weight, but generally, a 5 or 6 wt will cover most trout fishing bases. You can fish dries with them, nymph, and throw smaller streamers reasonably well. Here's where I suggest spending a bit more money and why: The thing with spending money on fly gear... bad gear can make casting a frustrating nightmare and totally turn you off to the sport. My dad bought me a cheap Cabelas 5wt combo with cheap line that I almost immediately had to replace because casting was less than user friendly. Also, good gear will last you YEARS so long as you don't beat up on it. Consider these things one-time investments for years of enjoyment. I suggest expanding your budget a bit, even if it means fewer beers, you'll thank me later. The Fenwick Aetos fly rods generally sell under $200 and can be had on the inter webs for way less (I paid $100 or so for my 4wt). It's action is fast, but manageable for a beginner. Redington is a company now owned by Sage that also makes a lot of high quality products intended to not break the bank for the new fly angler. Still, I would suggest spending the equivalent of $150-$200 on your rod. Line is next. Getting a floating front tapered line will cover most of your bases. For most trout fishing, I really like Rio Gold, but Scientific Anglers, Sage, Orvis, etc all make quality lines. Some may sell for $70-100, but you can catch them on sale. I don't think you need anything incredible to start, but I would suggest spending at least $50 on line. You can learn to tie your own leaders once you get comfortable casting and begin to understand specific purposes, knots, etc a lot better and they're a great way to save money. However, at first, I would suggest buying tapered leaders to save you frustration. I will also suggest using tippet rings for just about any application that isn't dry flies because they'll save your leaders. I would also suggest picking up mono tippet in 4x and 5x to cover most applications. You can learn on a $50 reel and be totally ok. I will also very strongly suggest casting lessons. Sometimes fish commissions do them for free/cheap. Other times you can get them at fly shops/ Orvis stores. You're going to wan to practice at first. A lot. So... if you can expand your budget to $300 or so, you'll be in great shape and won't be in a crazy rush to upgrade everything by your second season.

That thing is about to be turned into a piece of cover.

First, I greatly appreciate all the information shared here. I visit the Bend twice a year for a week stay and have done so for several years. I've caught plenty fish simply from advanced scouting using knowledge I've gained here. Stayed there last Fri thru last Wed. Really found the good fish beginning Sat afternoon in the north Sam Miguel area. Was warm Mon and Tue so fish were looking to bed. Beaver style baits and Crawsomes did the most damage. Btwn out 2 boats we had 6 over 4#, a 5#, and a 6# on Mon and half day Tue. If the water was over 63, they were up. If it was cooler like in Slaughter Creek and parts of Lanana, they were staging. Spinnerbaits and crankbaits were best. Can't wait to get back.

You can't put Aaron Martens in the same age group as KVD, Aaron is 5 years younger, KVD is 50 years old, both may continue tournaments for another decade. Rick Clunn is a very unique individual, still fishes Opens at 71, Larry Nixon still competes on FLW at 67 and both are active legends in bass fishing. Only time will determine where the young guns today end up at the end of thier careers. Today's younger pro's have better eating habits, better physical training and more comfortable traveling vehicles and boats, they should be in better physical condition improving thier stamina. I personally feel my bass catching skills are better today at nearly 75 then they were 50 years ago. There is no doubt my health and stamina is a fraction of what it was 50 years ago. 25 years ago when 50, I was fishing all the time and working full time, catching giant bass regularly and at the top of my career. Bass pro's should also be at the top of their careers in the 50's. Tom

Did you set the hook...

There's nothing wrong with those Strike King cranks your shop sells. Buy with confidence.

That's why it's called fishing & not catching! We do a whole lot more fishing than we do catching! But hey I'm pretty dang good at casting ?

My favorite one is: When Garlic smells like JJ's magic, not the other way around.

I think a lot of the older pros still "want to " win as bad as young guns, but they do not "have to" like younger pros. They have good relationships with sponsors, are well known by fans, and may not need to cash a check at every event. This may affect how much time you spend preparing. Also, I know family affects how much time you can or want to spend fishing. As much as we all would like to think we are getting better (mentally yes), physically we are not. You always hear athletes say Father Time is undefeated. I know losing 10 pounds when I was 25 was a snap. Losing 10 pounds now is a major undertaking.

How old are you? I'm 67 yrs old & can still recall detailed information from 30-40 yrs with great accuracy. Little off subject but I recently took a Hazmat course that included a 16 hr test, I aced it in 8 hrs, 20-30 yr olds took the whole 16 hrs plus. Why cause they have been around hazardous materials for 2-5 yrs, I've around it 40-45 yrs. The equipment has changed but dealing with hazardous materials aint changed.

I am going to take on this topic from another point of view. Last month I read an article about guys doing the same thing on bodies of water they had fished in the past. The article pointed out that what happened the last time they fished a specific body of water they had good results. So when the old pros go back to the bodies of water they have fished in the past they do the same thing, including visiting the same spots they had success. But things change and by the time they change their pattern or location it is too late. They run out of time or can't find the fish again. Just a different perspective on why the older guys may not be doing that well against the younger guys who have no perceived concepts about the lakes and river they fish.

Great Bass ~ Huge Head ! (The bass I mean) Congrats A-Jay

I'm in trouble. Been closing splitshots with my teeth for 40 years.