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[April 26, 2018] 1st Bass of 2018 19'', 3lb 03oz Smallmouth Bass Winter is finally over, but it's been a rough early spring. The weather has been non-stop rain/snow every day, and it wasn't until last week my area finally got the warming trend I've been waiting for since the beginning of the year. I had plans with my buddy Jeremy that Monday (4-23-18) would be our first fishing trip of 2018. Monday is one of our scheduled days off from work, and having the extra time to fish would help us on our first trip out this year. The day was looking good with a forecast of clear skies and a high of around 62F. Sadly, while I was at work on the 21st (two days before our fishing trip), there was a big wind storm which got me sick later that evening. I was in bed all the next day, and Monday morning when I woke up at 4:00am for fishing, I was still sick and had no energy so I had to cancel our plans. Jeremy did head out with another friend that day since I couldn't make it, and they both managed to catch some good bass, which was their first fish of the year. We rescheduled for Thursday the 26th, which would be a shorter after work fishing trip. We had till 7:00pm to fish, when we launched the boat and were headed to our first spot it was 3:30pm. We decided to start where he had caught them last Monday and adjust from there. I had 4 combos, and was throwing (1) a Lipless (2) a Crankbait, (3) a Chatterbait, (4) a Grub. Water temp was 50-53F, and Clarity was Stained 1-2ft. We fished the first spot for a good 30 min without a bite. I made a cast with the grub on the new combo I put together for this year and was working it slowly along the bottom. When I lifted it up it felt like it hit something, but then started pulling back, so I reeled and swept the rod back and it was fish on. It was a good fish, it felt heavy and I could feel it head shaking... then a few seconds later the hook popped out. Never got to see it, so it will be another one that haunts me. I had learned that the new Medium-Heavy combo I just put together for this year, was more like a Medium compared to my other combos. I just didn't make a strong enough hookset to really drive the hook in. We fished that first spot for over an hour and that was the only bite, so it was time to move. Second location was a bit warmer at 53F, with more stain to the water around 1ft Clarity. 25 min into fishing Jeremy hooks into his first fish of the day which was a good Smallmouth probably around ~2 pounds (didn't weigh it). I was throwing all 4 baits, mixing up retrieves and nothing, not even another bite. By this time it was 6:00pm and we had an hour left. Started to think about the one I lost and how it might be a 1 bite a day deal and how I might have missed my opportunity. There was a lot of little things that day, like snags, multiple break offs from fishing an open hook, line twist since I recently put new line on all my combos for this year, etc. I still managed good Positive Mental Attitude though, knew the water was warm, we had bites / caught one, and we still had time. We both had different ideas on what should be our third (and last) location. I mentioned mine was near some deeper water which I found to be good during the early season in years past. It's also a place that I believe is over looked and doesn't receive a lot of fishing pressure. I mentioned we can run to it, spend 15-20 min fishing it, and if we don't get a bite we can head back. The one possible down side is that it's on the shady side of the lake, and our results today were in the direct sunlight. We decided to head to my spot for our last location. Third location, 6:12pm, water temp was 54F. I decided to change Grub colors from Green Pumpkin to Junebug as the water was still stained at 1ft Clarity and we were in darker conditions being in shadow now. I also changed just to fish something new to see if it helps. 10 min into fishing our third location Jeremy hooks into his second bass of the day a Smallmouth probably around ~1.5lb (didn't weigh it). 5 min after his fish, I make a cast near the last dock and seconds after my grub hits the bottom I see my line moving off... I wasn't about to make the same mistake again, so I reeled down and gave a good hookset with the new combo and it was fish on. It had me wrapped around the last piling for a few seconds... got it to the boat and figured I had better lip this one, and that's the one in the first picture. Landed it at 6:27pm, and even managed to hook a second one at 12", 13oz. Jeremy hooked his third of the day (similar size to mine) at 6:48pm. We headed back to the boat ramp at 7:04pm. Edit: Bonus picture from this day, Canada Goose nesting in a flower pot. WolfyBrandon

Took my second trip of the year and second in two days . Today it was sunny with a north wind at 5 to 10 mph and air temp at about 65 . The bass were still shallow on wood and I caught them on the same Strke King Spin Dance spinnerbait as yesterday . I got in one heck of an argument with some guy who claimed they were not 15 inches . I was at the cleaning station and he was in his boat . I filleted one and tossed the carcass out in front of him and told him "to measure that one " . LOL that made him mad and he was a big SOB . He beached his boat and I thought uhoh. He grabbed his measuring board and started measuring my fish . After he measured them and saw they were legit he then lectured me about catch and release . I just kept right on filleting .

Today is my last day on the job! At age 66, and showing up for work virtually everyday for over 50 years, I've decided to retire. It's time to spend more time fishing, playing guitar, gardening and generally driving my wife crazy. Tom

Part of a 21.90 limit. Missed big fish by .05 pounds. Got lucky and won the event.

an approaching front provided perfect conditions today and the spots were eager to bite. this 2.5 lb beauty fell for a GP Zoom 5” lizard in 6 fow.

My New PB fishing with my students!!! Huge girl for around here!

The topwater frog bite was on today in Virginia! Missed one bigger than this but this 7.5 pounder hit it as soon as the frog landed. Awesome fight! Overcast and no wind = topwater heaven. Tight lines!!!

I am like Mike L and kickerfish1....I accumulate, not replace, and it has been over the course of several years. Several of my reels purchased have been old models, not new. TD-Z 105H and ML, Airy Red, Chronarch 101A and 100B, Scorpion 4x4. Guess you could say I've been downgrading.

Started working on the deck. Ran some PVC from back battery compartment to the front and ran the trolling motor wire through them. Also got the bilge pump installed. I ordered wire for the depthfinder and lights. Really starting to feel like it's getting close now.

Rather than tie up a lot of threads stating my humble opinion, I thought I would start a new one to get some other opinions/clarification. Here's my question: Does anyone really "finesse" fish anymore? I'll readily admit, I'm old school in a lot of ways but every thread I read that has something to do with finesse fishing it has it's fair share of comments that include...braided line up to 50lb test and non braid up to and over 20 test . All throwing baits designed for finesse presentations. To me, that's not finesse, that's throwing a finesse bait on a heavy rig. Make no mistake, I have heavy setups with 35lb braid for fishing in the slop, bed fishing and dragging baits but for the most part, I use 12lb test mono/fluro on my crankbaits, topwater, jerkbaits and spinnerbaits but for "finesse" baits including; Senko, Dropshot, Ned, Shakeyhead, Fluke and a few others I use MAXIMUM 8lb test mono on spinning gear. To me and this is just my opinion, finesse fishing includes your line. It makes a difference with finesse baits (leaders aside). In 15 years of going to Michigan and catching 3-4-5lb hard fighting smallmouth, I have only had one breakoff due to line and that was due to my buddy wrapping the line around his hand while helping me land a big smallie. He thought it was spooled with braid. I have had the inevitable musky/pike bite offs as well but heavier line doesn't help with that. I fish the heavily grassed Potomac with these same setups. With the quality of line and drag systems on the reels today, why do we feel like we have to overpower the fish to that degree? I realize I'm not in SoCal and not fishing for that 15+ pounder but that's a pretty small population and I would upsize if I was going there. I've landed my share of 8 and 9 pounders on 8-12 pound test depending on the rig. Just for reference I attached a 14lb Northern Snakehead I caught on 8lb test mono and a weightless Senko on the Potomac, buried in the thick grass. Some bass as well on my normal setups. Is true finesse fishing dead?

White bass were putting on a show tonight. They were all over the shoals and going hog wild, we lost count around 110 because a big Striper tried to eat a white bass boatside and we tried to catch it for a while. Then I got stuck in the Rapids for 2nd night in a row and broke a prop. Luckily they are $15 for my mud motor and I keep 4 in the boat but we were doing all this in the dark standing in the river. Won’t forget this one for a while, I even threw a long A at that Striper and caught a skipjack in a strange way so I let it swim around live bait style

It's been a cool spring in New England and, as every season for the past 25 years, I had been anxiously awaiting the opening of Quabbin Reservoir in central Massachusetts. Quabbin is a highly regulated body of water because it's Boston's water supply, but it's also one of the best smallmouth fisheries in New England. Anyway, my first outing was April 23 and I can report that the weather was beautiful! Seasonally cool, sunshine and light breezes. If you want details on how the big smallies were caught there on this day, you'll have to ask someone else. I was humbled. Undeterred, I headed out a few days later with Bassmaster Brad, a very savvy fisherman. Yesterday's rain had stopped and it was supposed to become partly sunny. We were ready to get 'em. Smallies. Big ones. So what's this? It's a lake trout. These salmonids take up residence in the depths in the summertime but mix in with the smallmouth until the surface temp reaches the low 50ºs. (Today's temps ranged from 46º to 51º.) Another one? This laker sucked my blade bait offering off the bottom. My blade was nickel; Brad was fishing gold. Nothing wanted the variety of hair jigs or suspending jerkbaits that they were offered. Nor soft plastics for that matter. Hmmph. Mid afternoon the wind was up but we kept covering water hoping to bump into an active pod of smallmouth. Brad put out a drift sock and we made repeated passes over an area that's been productive in the past. Hey! Finally. If you've noticed that the blade bait hanging from the upper lip of this smallie is missing parts, you're right. Go to the Tackle Making Forum for information on how to make this simple, inexpensive bait. Catch you next week with another true tale from Quabbin. Will Wetline

Hmmm. My 2nd largest LMB (7-1) came on a 4" Flick Shake worm and 1/16 oz. wacky jig. Personal best smallmouth (5-12) on a drop shot 4" worm. I suggest that location , not lure size is why smaller fish are caught.

This sounds just like me. I don't really upgrade, just add to the collection. I'm fishing a fleet of Sweden-made Ambassadeurs and haven't found a compelling reason to change. They are serviced and repaired as needed and as long as parts are available, I'll keep them going. Rods are replaced when I break one or new ones added when I need something that I don't have. Tom

Agreed ? My confidence is in plastics! Once the boat comes down off of plane the first thing I grab is a Texas Rig, Wacky Rig, Shaky Head Weightless T-rig, Carolina Rig, Jig-N-Craw, Mojo Rig, Rage Rig, Drop Shot or anything that takes me to the bottom. I'm gonna be casting, flipping, pitching, punching, hopping, dragging, shaking, dead sticking, or skipping. I don't care if its grass, brush, timber, rocks, docks, pads, lay downs, shore line or off shore. I don't care if its pre- spawn, spawn, post spawn, summer, dog days, fall, winter, morning, noon, or night. Give me 2 rod-n-reels with any of the above techniques & I be happy, happy, happy!

I'm not calling anyone weak. I'm calling the argument that some inanimate object somehow gives you confidence is false hope. What happens to your confidence the day that magical lure doesn't work? Then what? Do you fail? Or do you adjust? Have confidence in your skills in locating active fish, and using a bait that matches the situation. I have confidence in my problem solving skills. To me, a confidence bait is darn near the same as the next new magic bait.

I know I'll get a lot of push back or eye rolling, but fishing from shore is no different than fishing from a boat. If there is cover where pitching and flipping (including punching) in front of you, then it makes sense to do it. If there is open water or no clear targets, casting would make more sense. I pitch most often to pads, wood (and sadly tires, shopping carts and the like), flip to small openings, and punch around mats as conditions dictate.

Use a spinnerbait rod for that bait. That jig hook takes some power to drive home.

They look like healthy fish to me, I doubt the lake will miss a few. I had a guy do something similar at weigh in during a tournament a couple years ago. We'd already had words on the water when he didn't approve of me catching a keeper off "his spot", despite us being there first. I have a hard time biting my tongue with guys like that but I'd rather chew my tongue off than have someone do something stupid and end up on the news.

Rolled down to BC today hoping to find some active fish, wasn't disappointed. Fished a jerk all day and varied the cadence as the day warmed. Lots of bass off the bank with a few up close locked on beds. Water 58-61

My latest installment . Three years in a row . I pushed it through and snipped it off . Those dredger hooks are too sharp .

Usually one rod and reel every year or two. This year? When I build a new house I have enough pvc tubing laying around from rod purchases to do the plumbing myself. :/

I'm past all that "new and improved" thing. It took me years to accumulate what I have now. Some I had to wait to buy because what I wanted I couldn't afford at the time. But now If I need something new it's only to replace something that can't be repaired or improved upon. Mike

My reels are 30-35 yrs old, don't plan on replacing them but they are scheduled for Delaware Valley Tackle & Hi-Performance Reel Tuning Upgrade. I have recently purchased a Lew's Speed Spool LFS Series Casting Reels & a Powell Inferno Medium Heavy Extra Fast rod. Rods get replaced when broken I'll be replacing a depth finder

Someone lands you "below the belt" and you'll quiet down pretty quickly also... oe

No scale issue. I was going to call the DNR since I was pretty sure it is a lake record but she was tired and I wanted to get her back in the water ASAP. The Length to Girth chart put her at 7.3 but I don't know if she was that big. I asked the question in the forum if the charts are accurate during the spawn most said yes. BTW I am 6'3 295 lbs

Today I came home to find my brother had named the rods in my lockers with duct tape shallow crank, Carol deep cranks, Chrissy Jerk rod, Julie and 7 more....... my wife just happed to notice that all were ex girlfriends with the exception of one being her girl friend. ......she didn’t see the humor. .....stills makes me ?

Having owned both deep-v and mod-v hulls I'll offer this. On flat water, while fishing, a mod-v is more stable. A deep-v will ride smoother in waves when running. Any boat hull type will be unsettled if a large wake hits the boat broad side.

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Heavens Peak, Glacier National Park.

3 years of college before I ran out of money. Joined the Army as a forward observer for a special 2 year hitch that gave me enough money in the GI bill to finish college. Graduated from college went to work in Wal-Mart management for exactly one year before I decided I'd rather spend my life on boats than in a store. Joined the Coast Guard, became a Boatswain's Mate and retired after 18 years of service. Went back to work for the CG as a civilian SAR controller for 7 years and now as a commercial fishing vessel safety specialist. Been doing this for 6 years. I am going to retire again in 3 years. Paul Barnard (my user name is my last name spelled backwards)

Her girlfriend huh..... Hold up. You dated Chrissy and Julie too? Thats the name of my babies mama, and of my weird ex-girlfriend..... LMAO

No reason to get another set up. Although I do have 2 different setups for jigs. One for casting and one for pitching. But that is just personal preference not necessary. What gear do you have and what weight/style of jigs?

i fish was days like today. I took a buddy out today and put him on his first tarpon. The look on his face when that 125lb beauty jumped for the first time was something that I will always remember. If you ever have a chance to go tarpon fishing do it.

I started throwing jigs from the bank last year. I would throw them into laydowns and area other anglers always passed up due to cover. Worked well for me, plan on doing it more soon.

There are numerous ways for water to get into a casting reel. That's why they often have a drain vent. If properly cared for nothing to worry about.

That's what keeps us keep going out on the water,it's a never ending challenge.

There's a member from this forum from Texas that's caught plenty of big bass on swimbaits. Haven't seem him post here in a while but he does post in the swimbait forum we are both members of. Fishermen tend to stay quiet on what exactly they catch their big bass on and you will never truly know what they use unless you see them catch the bass in front of your eyes. The Texas state +18 pound record largemouth bass was caught by a crappie fisherman with a small minnow so anything is possible. You never know 100% what a largemouth bass of a lifetime will hit , they might hit a crappie minnow, a small inline spinner, a beetle spin, a mimmic minnow, a chicken nugget,etc but that would be unlikely compared to fishing with a buzzbait, oversized Rat-L-Trap like you like using, or swimbaits and big topwaters I like to use. Bass fishing is something that even the best bass fishermen can not know 100% and its safe to say that I have a long life ahead of me to try to figure out what the big bass in my area like the most.

I have fished the Everglades many times by myself at nighttime and yes its not for the faint at heart. The Everglades becomes alive at night with many animals making sounds. Its best to bring a friend along, have a headlight, fish 15 feet or so away from the shoreline, and be very,very careful where you step. I usually do my night bass fishing in public parks and other public bodies of water. I enjoy it very much since they are less fishermen on the water, less boats,no jetskis since they seem to be terrified of the night, no sun to burn my skin, and peace and quiet while hearing the sounds of frogs and other animals.

Dang! I could've written this! Lol! I'm still using my old Quantum 1310's I bought in the late 80's. Up until the last couple of weeks when I bought a Lew's Tournament MB and a Mach Crush rod, the newest outfit I had was a Quantum 1310CP on a BPS Crankin' Stick that's probably 10-12 years old. I add to the collection every once in a while, and I'll replace broken stuff, but I've never done the swap out the whole arsenal thing.

Congratulations on catching a big bass on a frog, that is worth more to me than catching a big bass on a jig or other bottom bait. Lol

"Man what a perfect cast!", I thought after I watched my zoom lizard fly around a bush and land straight down the middle of a culvert drain pipe. Steady rain the last two days has had a mixture of clean and muddy water flowing down the creeks and into the ponds, and the bass and bluegill are stacked up just on the edges of the current flow waiting for any morsel to drift by. Lots of bass 6-10" long populate this pond with the occasional 18"er that's usually skinny and not surviving well. I've fished this pond for three years and I have a pretty good idea of what's in it, so boy was I in for a shock as I watched my lizard flow out of the drain with the current and disappear into the murky water, then felt that normal little "thunk" and watch my line start moving out towards deeper water... I set the hook. But this hook set didn't follow with a fish coming towards me as usual. Instead the rod loaded up, and I listened to 12lb flouro SCREAM as the drag started peeling off my curado 70! Then I saw the belly flash and the enormous head and mouth come up and roll just under the surface. She took off again pulling drag but quickly gave up. I let out a few choice words in the process, followed by "you've got to be kidding me!" I drag her onto the bank in complete shock and amazement, and immediately pick her up and runto the car, and my tackle box in the trunk, 50 feet away! I just had the rod and a bag of lizards in my pocket. This is a giant, and I needed my scale!? What?!? She weighed in at 6.74 lbs and stretched just a hair over 23". My new PB weight LMB! I weighed her three times because I really couldn't believe it. She's full of eggs and getting fed up for the spawn. Solid and healthy in a pond I never imagined could support a bass larger than 3lbs. I weighed and measured her, snapped a couple pics and got her back in the water for that beautiful release. I was still pretty much in disbelief when I took the pic, and was getting rained on having a hard time getting a good shot and angle to show just how big she was. Her length makes her a citation fish in VA. She's my 4th citation this year. Following up the 23" bass I caught on Sunday. I feel the bass gods are treating me well this year, and this will not be my last, nor my biggest giant bass of the year!

It's always amazing how a DD bass becomes 7 lbs to 8 lbs on a scale. What makes anyone think I not using state of the swimbaits, glides etc? When I say numbers I mean numbers every week. Whatever... Tom

I'd add that "uni" is short for universal and for very good reasons. If you could only tie one knot, this'd be it: 1) It is actually a better arbor knot for tying onto a reel . . . than an arbor knot; 2) It is one of the top "junction" knots between: a) a backer line and main line; or, a main line and a leader; 3) It is a top knot for tying on terminal tackle, can be tied "single" or lined "doubled;" 4) and, you can cinch the knot down and not pull it all the way snug for a really good loose operating loop knot alternative. Brad

Hmmm...Upgrading to me would literally mean moving from something cheap or entry level to something nicer. If owned an older GLX but sold it to buy a newer GLX is that considered upgrading? There is quite a cult following of the older models and some prefer them to the new. Same thing could be set about any rod or reel when the newest one comes out. If I add 3 new rods or reels to my arsenal but sell nothing I am technically adding to and not necessarily upgrading. So now for the question on how often do I upgrade? I am not sure as mainly I am buying something to fill a niche like this year I bought my first new BFS outfit. The last 5 years or so most of my gear is mid to higher end so there really isn't a need to upgrade any of it other than if I feel like a new model is better than something I have now. If something is broke or no longer functions properly it either gets sold super cheap, given away to someone that may have a need for it or tossed out and I may or may not replace it. If your gear works to your liking I see no reason to upgrade unless you feel the need to have the latest models.

I am confident I have absolutely no shot at the heaviest bass on the board. And so I want to submit my entry for the lightest bass. Unfortunately I didn’t have a gram scale with me when this fine specimen inhaled my Splash-it. And the funny thing is as I type this I still can’t believe it got all three hooks inside it’s mouth....

Every time ebay posts a coupon code, unfortunately.

Only takes one time of getting a treble hook stuck in your finger past the barb from a smallie head shake to start finding other ways lol

I do it when I don't feel like taking out the jon boat. Works for me in ponds which is mainly where I fish. You can't get to as good of spots on the shore compared to the jon boat but it still is really fun.