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Cold this morning and a little windy, but we found a calm pocket behind a long point. She grabbed a blade bait on bottom about 15 feet deep. 23.5" long and 6.3lbs. Another couple weeks and she would have been alot heavier. Still, She's my new longest LMB! Shes my second citation largemouth of the year. PB by weight is still 6.5lbs (23") from a couple years ago.

Went to Caddo Lake yesterday with a friend of mine I've known since the fourth grade. Chatterbait was king for me. Caught 2 on the 1/2oz breaking bream Project Z and 1 on the 1/2oz chartreuse sexy shad Project Z. My friend caught 1 on a perch colored 3/8oz or 1/2oz Booyah spinnerbait. Didn't weigh any of them, but just guessing the biggest one was around a pound and half give or take a little. We had a blast. Can't wait to do it again. ? Today I went to a little bayou around the corner from the house. I've fished it a few times and never caught anything. It looks pretty good for bass, but I've yet to catch one in there. Anyways I was gonna try again today. Had a weightless Texas rigged green pumpkin Z Craw on my Lew's spinning rig and on my second cast hooked into this 2lb 4oz white perch. The biggest one I've ever seen in person, much less caught. May have to give up on bass in there and just fish for perch or bream.

Still fighting tough conditions over here, with water temps hovering around 43 degrees, but had another enjoyable afternoon out on the water. Last couple stops saved the day for me.

At 67 yrs old I can still tie any lure on with a Palomar knot in under 20 seconds!

My boys said they would take my man card of they caught me skipping! There isn't a lot of situations around here that requires skipping. Toledo Bend has boat docks but the majority are floating docks with no room under them to skip. Most over hanging limbs can be fished by roll casting or backhanded cast. How far can I skip? Maybe 5 yards before my knees give out ?

second time out on Lake Norman this season under blue bird skies and a pesky, chilly NE wind. fished up the river, muddy stain and swt in the low 50’s. caught an even dozen pale spots on main lake and secondary points in 12-17 fow. this 18” spot was bf.

This is what I use every time I’m at a pond bass think I’m a tree get em every time!

First smallie of the year. Fought very hard for such cold water. Only fish in 2 days in fishing 4+hrs each day....

@Catt: Oh, yeah? Well, at 69 I can name that tune in 19 notes. So there! Besides, if you aren’t using a snap, you are depriving yourself of one of bass fishing’s most annoying mistakes - forgetting to check your line for wear and fray. When you tie on a lure directly, you are almost guaranteed to remove frayed line; when you use a snap - if you are like me - you tend to forget to check your line and the next thing you know ... there goes ten bucks worth of lure hanging from the lip of a nice bass that broke you off at the kayak. (Oh, and give me 17-pound fluorocarbon and a breeze and I’ll provide you with a couple of minutes of entertainment while I wrestle with that sucker.) Still, I’m with you. I tie directly.

Most people can't even cast 40 yards

This is a pic from an autumn morning hiking excursion that my wife and I took to Hawksbill Crag in the Upper Buffalo River Wilderness in 2017.

Don't have a kayak, but here's my canoe with nine. Notice, the tips of rod cannot be snagged by vegetation as they are beneath the foredeck or the gunnels. My tackle bags were stowed forward, beneath the rods. They were attached to cords. I'd pull the one I wanted, then push it back to the front of the boat with my paddle.

Pretty pleased with my first bass of the season!

My daddy introduced me to the sport. He was a meat fisherman and never understood catch and release. That said he taught me the basics and mechanics of fishing, fish identification, how-to clean and fry fish, and a healthy appreciation for the great outdoors. I would also add the community in general had a great influence on my fishing. I grew up in the rural South and at that time you could ride your bike to numerous fishing spots and there was never a worry about your safety. That community looked out for everyone. There was never a time when l didn't know that if I needed anything on these adventures the nearest house would kindly oblige. And they knew the reverse was true. It was a tremendous time and an outstanding place to grow up. There were many that would gladly take any fish you took to them and were always more than happy to share their fishing knowledge and on occasion a bait. My daddy and those folks laid the foundation for me to be the fisherman I am today.

It takes a lot of work to make it into the block list; so a similar effort needs to be met in order to be removed. If a company wishes to be removed from the block list, they can reach out to me directly.

... So the marketing gurus at Pure Fishing found a way to move those Skeet reels getting dusty in the back-room! Purple should cover over yellow pretty easily... oe

Hey guys/gals! My dad and I made it out for the first time this year here in Iowa and we didn't leave disappointed. Just jigging for a couple hours and I'd say it was a success.... This one was about 5 lb and caught one other just over 4 lb! Thanks!!

So I'm in Plattsburgh, NY for business... My hotel is pretty much in a shopping plaza... With an 24hr Waly World...

Way to go Jo Lee! It was heartbreaking watching Christie today, but Lee made the right adjustments. Heck of a Classic. For me the big lesson here: don't be afraid to pick up a spinning rod and scratch up some bites.

Here's another bad pic of a good river fish. They're starting to wake up around here...she pulled like a tank.

Got a few this evening with my G-daughter Mackayla. She got the first fish on a 4 inch red and green sparkle watermelon senko. I got a couple more about the same size on the Zoom fluke.

Only the second trip with the boat this year, but everything running good. Needs a good cleaning when things warm up enough, though. Surface temps just 43 deg and change, but managed 7 bass in a little over 3 hours, so everything is good

ITS ALIVE!!!!!!!!!

As fans of any spectator sport we have the right & luxury of rooting for our favorites as well as making assessments of the participants actions before, during & after the fact. Other than remaining at and fishing from the dock on the final day, I would not characterize any of these angler's performances as choking; far too many variables involved. At that level, seems like anyone of these guys could win and the difference between being at the top of the leader board (and especially staying there) and finishing somewhere else, is often very slim. It's one of the aspects of these derbies that I really enjoy & can appreciate and what may make winning back to back so improbable and impressive. On a separate note - the BASS LIVE streaming of these tournaments is SO GOOD, (especially this one) that it makes me wonder how I ever enjoyed the 'edited' TV version 2 weeks later . . . . . A-Jay

I buy rods and reels independently of each other and move them around from one to another. Once in a while I find a combination that I keep together, but that's the exception.

Choke? Look at all the weights from day 3, he wasn't the only angler to have a slow day. Yeah, I'm surprised he couldn't get 5 too, but Hartwell is a very tricky lake and that's been proved time and time again. I've heard some people knocking his choices, but I want to know why does everyone seem to think you just pick up a spinning rod with a wacky rig and immediately start loading the boat with keepers? Christie is one of the best in world, it just wasn't his day.

I wear nothing but sunscreen and one sock but I'm not telling where I wear it

Both at the same time. Kind of hard to use one without the other.

Speaking of a fast rise, I'm also SUPER impressed with Mark Daniels Jr. The dude wins the TBF championship in 2013 and makes the Forest Wood Cup. then he becomes a FLW pro for 3 years, makes the Forest Wood Cup again, switches to BASS and then makes the Classic in his rookie year.. oh and then finishes 15th! MDJ has done quite a bit in the last 4 years. Pretty insane. He's going to break through soon.

Birthday present.

Hit up the Susquehanna Fishing Tackle cabin fever sale. Everything was at least 10% off and they had great giveaways that included a Curado K. Unfortunately I didn't win anything but got some great deals on things I can't find at any of the local shops, Cabela's or BPS. I wanted to pick up some TRD tubes but they were all sold out. So I picked up the HogZ instead. I'm curious to see the difference between the TRD and Roboworms Ned worm.

Don't want to spam the forum with these videos, but I here are the latest:

She likes to fish, but not to the point that I can't go alone or go with "the guys". And that seems to be an ideal balance

edit this thread is from 2006

Thanks guys. That was a great review A-Jay. Thanks Poolshark. It's nice to know you use it for inshore and other baits. I went ahead and ordered the 200d.

Before I left work Friday I bought a 3/8oz bluegill Z Man Elite chatterbait(lost it yesterday on Caddo Lake) and a bluegill H2O Express hollow body frog. I recently joined the B.A.S.S. and received my baits in the mail yesterday. A red craw Storm Arashi rattling square 3, a blue back chrome shad Livingston Lures Dive Master Jr., a green mist Berkley Juke 100 shallow and a special red craw Berkley Wild Thang 8.5. Wish they had came Friday so I could've tried them out on Caddo Lake yesterday. Can't wait to use them. ?

If you use spinner baits with the closed loop, you can use a snap. If you use the "R" bend style, The snap will ride up and hang up on the blades, so you'll want to tie direct on those. Some guys are able to close off the R bend with line or rubber bands so they can use a leader. But I haven't found a method I like so I use spinner baits that have the closed loop.

Sand! That's an idea I haven't heard before. Then again, I haven't used them in the salt yet (for striper). Probably all the striper fisherfolk here in VA know that trick. I'm new to the striper game. I scoffed at my buddy who offered me his rag when I caught my first eel in one of the reservoirs I frequent. That was a mistake. Mistake yet to be repeated. Sand is a great idea.

No reason to go to Melvern other than to mark all the new brush piles.

When I am fishing a bass tournament the biggest difference from fun fishing is time management and making the right decisions. Where to start fishing is your 1st decision and it's usually critical to how your day sets up. I don't focus on what other competitors are doing and concentrate what I and my partner is doing to catch 5 bass. Pre fish and have a plan and a back up plan, then adjust as need and try not to get over stressed and fish out of your comfort zone. Make sure you know the tournament rules, start time and weigh in time, check in boat location, minimum size and total number of bass and any out of limit areas like the marina and any restriction regarding distance from other boats. my 1st club event I checked in early because of the drive home was over 3 hrs and was DQ'd with the winning weight because of a rule. Tom

We use them to live line for striped bass, cobia, and even tuna. A rag and a little sand makes handling them a whole lot easier.

A perchin we will go

Congratulations to The 2018 Bassmaster Classic Champion ~ Jordan Lee Only the third angler to win the Superbowl of bass fishing back to back. He kept his head down, adapted to the constantly changing conditions, “fished hard and had fun”. This one was a blast to watch live. A-Jay

Skipping is my best skill but I dont do it from that far. 50 feet is probably my max. , but I prefer 20-30 feet. Better control at that distance. Even though its much closer than the average cast the subtle presentation does not spook the fish. One of my favorite patterns is fixing to start. With the warmer days, fish begin moving under docks after 11 a.m or so, and skipping is the ticket then for a good catch. I LOVE SKIPPING !!

Wesley Strader falling apart last week after jumping out with such a big lead was amazing. And then this week to have the same thing happen to Jeff Kriet in much the same way shows you that this is the most competitive and unpredictable format in pro bass fishing and makes for some incredible tv. It really doesn't matter how you start out, it only matters how you finish.

I went back out today to Purtis Creek in east Texas ended up with 6 or 7 small males. Not bad, just no size. Sort of all looked like this one. Brad

Chances are they won't stop you for incorrect #'s. It's another fine they can add on if the CPO is having a bad day. My letters are a custom font.

Took the old lady on a hike

4 today, this was the biggest, ~2.5lbs. T rigged junebug Yum Dinger. I was instructed to smile.