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Got my first decent fish in awhile and a few of her friends this evening. They were all over the small June bug yum dingers.

A buddy and I had a 70-fish Day combined (all LM Bass) recently fishing in kayaks. We both caught fish in excess of 21 inches (5 - 6 1/2 Lb. range) and lots of 3 pounders etc. We were fishing coontail and slop and so there was a lot of hard cranking and lifting. We used everything: frogs, toads (Ribbits), Yum Dingers, Power worms, whopper Ploppers, buzzbaits, and even a few crankbaits and spinnerbaits on the edges. When the day was over we both had sore wrists and elbows and scratched up fingers and thumbs. It took about 48 hours to fully recover from the soreness but it still felt gooood.

Man, we were fishing a night tournament last night and things got hairy. We were running about 45 headed from one spot to another and there were a few boats in the area. So as we're running we see a boat headed our way so we turned left to go past and they turned left a little so we turned right to go around. Guess what?? They started drifting right a little. Thinking they would see a 21 foot white skeeter with our light on. We straigtened up and the other boat again just kept coming at us. About 50 yards away maybe closer it became obvious something awful was about to happen so my partner just jerked left and we did a 45 mph donut on the water. I ended up in his lap and soaking wet but we missed the other boat. Thank God. We chased the ppl down and it so happened to be a real good friend of ours who was real shaken and wet like us. He was apologising like crazy and said he never saw us. With everyone soaking wet and real shook up we parted ways. Then I got to thinking about my son and wife and how close they were to losing me and I'm pretty shook up. So to all y'all guys gonna be out these holiday weekends coming up be careful.

Got this big girl on a jig, between a dock and a pontoon on a hoist. What a crazy fight, considering I had about 8 inches to work with between boat hoist and dock. It pays to spend the dough on Sufix 832! Close to my PB, it went 22". I put her back, of course.

^ Previous [June 20, 2018] Today was an example of the power of "PMA". It was a Wednesday, Jeremy and I got off work and met up at his place for an after work fishing trip. We launched the boat at 2:30pm, and headed to our first spot. It was shallow, water temp ~70F, we could see bass all over. We both were catching little ones left and right, and having a great time. Then there was a moment where I turned to look behind us and out of nowhere there was a guy in a bass boat on his trolling motor that came right up to us, like less than 30ft away... At first it was all cool, and he asked if we had caught anything. So we told him yeah been catching little ones... Then he proceeds to go right around the back of us, and cut right in-front of where we were headed. Once he gets like 50ft away, he starts up his big motor and just has it idling as he stands on the trolling motor and drives down the next 1/2 mile of shoreline that we planned to fish not even making a single cast... Jeremy and I both look at each-other and are like... "Well, that was rude..." What happened next was - we both continued fishing the shoreline that the dude just cruised through - like nothing had ever happened... (I just checked the time stamp on my images) Less than 5 minutes after that guy cut in-front of us Jeremy makes a cast and hooks into his "fish of the day"... We both continue catching them just like before, Jeremy even breaks his one day total record today catching 30+ bass. Two hours after his catch, I make a cast with a lizard to the outside edge of a log parallel to the shoreline and nothing, I then make a second cast over the log to the inside edge between the log and the shoreline and hook into my "fish of the day"... While I was in the process of landing my "fish of the day", Jeremy doubled up with a nice 3lb 05oz Largemouth. Fishing was so good we didn't arrive back at the ramp till 8:00pm. (We have to be up at ~3:30am for our work schedule.) We both made it work, so good times... Looking back on this day, we could of easily got frustrated and moved to another location and missed out on all of this. Instead we kept positive and continued on with our original plan we had from the start and it payed off. There has been countless times over the past 3 years from when I first learned Positive Mental Attitude from Gerald Swindle that it has saved my fishing day. Whether you choose to believe it or not, PMA is indeed a powerful tool in the tackle box. WolfyBrandon

How we each choose to commemorate important catches is certainly a personal choice. Mine is to get a customized canvas print made from my own photography. I’ve posted about these prints in the past and below are the latest additions to the “collection”. They include my PB smallie caught last September, a couple of DD bass from an awesome trip south of the border last November, along with a most memorable ‘double’ from that same trip. If you’re interested in having something of your own done (and you’re only limited by your own imagination), contact info is included below. The process is easy and relatively fast. Orders are printed within 3 business days of payment, then shipped free right to your door. Normal turnaround time from payment receipt to your wall is 6-12 days. A-Jay https://www.facebook.com/TheAntzlProject/

P90X or Gold's Gym membership then....

Knowing the signs of trouble and what to do can make a difference. A-Jay

You're overthinking this. It's a 7' deep pond...there is no "deep" water. The surface and top couple feet will have the most oxygen because it mixes with the wind and gets the most sunlight (photosynthesis). Don't worry about a thermocline in this situation, either. It's a simple process of elimination. Start in the shallows and around any cover with a variety of presentations. If you don't get bit, they either aren't there or they are but aren't biting. Fish a little deeper; maybe off the ends of the cover that reaches out the furthest; any weedline edges if there are such things. Expect slower action on sunny calm days and better activity on cloudy breezy days. Maybe fish in the evening or at night. Fish move around in a pond regularly, so after a couple hours, don't hesitate to go back through the shallows and see if anything has moved in or become active. Sometimes a simple wind change is enough to stimulate the bite. I've been fishing similar ponds all year. Some days I catch 3, some days I catch 30. Unless you know something is out in the deeper sections, it's usually a waste of time to just randomly cast into these holes, except in winter. The active fish will be moving or near the bank.

Second best of the summer on the frog. Mid day 90 degrees and full sun. Absolutely choked it and I had to horse her through 20 feet of thick vegetation. Went for 4.63, snapped a few shots and she was on her way. Update: Went out in the kayak for round two and caught a 14 incher, on a frog again. I’m on a frog kick here in Virginia!

I know this is a bass forum but, struck out on bass today. Caught this guy on the Saginaw river today. I think it is a flat head. If it is a flat head it is my first one. I was throwing my chatter bait with boot fluke white trailer to some wood and bushes. Before it floated to the bottom he grabbed. I’ve fought a lot of salmon while trolling and this guy will give 18 lbs king a run for its money. I have never felt anything like this while casting. I was using 10lbs big game line. After I netted him the chatter bait fell out of his mouth. He bent the kvd snap all up. He gave my Black maxx rod and reel everything he had and the rod and reel came through with flying colors.

But I'll never know. Decided to stop by the little river in the town just north of the house about 10 minutes after work this morning. Loaded with gar and when the river gets low, they're really aggressive. I know most shun gar, but they're hard fighters, aggressive, and very acrobatic, on top of the fact that they're dang near impossible to hook. I was fishing a 6' 8" M/F Mojo with a 30 size Pflueger when I got that telltale sharp tap of a gar's beak slapping my grub. When I set the hook, it moved really slow, kind of started wondering if I hadn't missed the fish that bit and snagged a different fish, which happens because of how stacked up they get at times. A normal fish down there is 28-36 inch range, but when I saw this mammoth longnose gar's body, I seriously thought I might have hooked a rogue alligator gar that had somehow found it's way up the river. It was gigantic, I was positive it would swim into one of the 2 log jams pushed up against the concrete walls, but when I was able to slowly finesse it away between leaps and wild tailwalks across the small pool, I started to realize I had a real shot at landed this monster. I grabbed my grippers that were attached to my scale from my open bag and walked to the most opportune spot to try and beach it, really wishing I had a pair of gloves like I normally would so I could just grab the beak. The fish made several more slow, determined runs and at one point stopped and did some massive headshakes that resulted in my line being between it's teeth, I knew the clock was ticking on my 8lb leader then. One failed attempt to clamp the grippers on it's beak, then I lead it to shore once again and clamped further back and drug it onto shore, I could not believe the girth on the fish. I've never seen a gar look fat before, but this looked like a giant muskie's body with a gar head. I had a tape with me, it went right at 53" long. Tried to get a weight, wouldn't open it's mouth, so I tried to pry it open with pliers despite knowing it was a bad idea, and I was right. One huge headshake and I was dripping blood all over and just as fast the fish had propelled itself back to the water and bolted off. The pictures are terrible because they don't really show how truly massive the fish was, but it gives a little idea anyways if you take into consideration the size of the objects around it. It was as big around as my leg with scales the size of nickels.

Plot Twist: OP got drunk and super glued it and forgot.

I know this one. Wrap some painters tape shoulder width centered on the ferrule, and do the spread your legs thing. Then rub a birthday candle on it to keep from happening again.

My buddy demonstrates when you "long arm" a 2 pounder

In the past, several folks have messaged me about various Bass Pro Shop products or to ask questions about sales, rewards, return policies, etc. I wanted to let everyone know that I resigned last week. I was not fired, given the option to resign or anything like that. I simply resigned. I absolutely hate that it came to that, as I really enjoyed working there and loved my coworkers. If anyone has product questions, etc, you can still ask and I'll try to help you. I still have numerous friends that work there. For now anyway. Most are looking for new jobs. It's just not the same BPS that I hired into several years ago.

You 2 gentlemen stay safe out there. From what I here, gator bites hurt like a butt cheek on a stick!!

The List doesn't mean anything Mike

Green aquatic plants create dissolved oxygen (DO) during sunlight via photothynsis and consume DO at night. Wind creates DO via wave action, only other sources would be running water like a stream or river or man made areation system. DO may rise but also dissipates fast when water gets over 90 degrees, bass can't survive, under 3 mg/L. Your shallow pond bass should be under green grass mats when the water gets warmer becuase it's cooler and better oxygenated. Deeper man made impoundments arecactotally different eccosystem. There maybe several thermo layers of water, the thermocline is the upper layer where water temps drop about 4 degrees within a few feet, not the middle or bottom layer. Tom

Try a true penetrating oil and let it sit as long as you can.

Turned left, isn't it each go right in approaching boats which is taught in boater safety????

Of course the one time I forget to pick a team, my boy MDJ who I have relied on all season, is leading....when it rains it pours

Going 45 at night, one guy didn't see the other boater, and the other one keeps going left to avoid the first? Is this how fresh water guys do it? I'm glad no one was injured or worse, but ya'll really need some boating lessons, and a bit of common sense.

Very content knowing there's nothing I routinely fish on that list. Still manage to get a few though. A-Jay

The prettiest little fish we have in Kansas, a male longear sunfish in full blown spawning colors from a little creek.

There's people like that everywhere you go anymore. Key is to not let them get to you and just do what you do despite them. I try to focus even more and catch fish behind guys when they cut me off, making sure they splash around on the side of the boat so they can see them a little more than usual too Good job keeping your heads in the game and catching some good ones.

A turkey buzzard soaring along the cliffs at Susquehannock State Park. Below is the Conowingo Dam.

Stephen B nailed it. I prefer Tatsu even at it's high price because it is going to last longer than any other fluro I've used. Many times I've stripped it off and reversed it without issue. And it is by far my fav leader material with braid.

Blue Hour at the International Bridge - Sault Ste Marie, MI. A-Jay

It was brand new line so it may have been this issue.. I went out today and was able to throw small square bills with no issues.. I don't play soccer but this looks like fun lol

Doesn't matter, in the long run. Looking back over the last several years, I can't recall the last time I paid retail for a rod or reel (and that includes fly rod set-ups). I buy on sale. I buy one generation old. I buy with credit card points. I buy gently used. I have no burning need to buy the "latest and greatest" because at the end of the day it'll have zero impact on my fishing. I do the same with vehicles, boats, clothing, pretty much anything I can.

Yum Houdini Shad

BF, Your egg beater is wrong-handed! Unless it's for me ;-). I put my spinning handles on the right side because I'm a lefty and learned to crank with my right hand first and it naturally made sense to do the same with my egg beaters. Those Wishing for Less Stiff Casting Rods, If you can't find the casting rod you need on the shelf, BUILD it. Casting finesse lures on casting gear is why I started building rods. My first two builds spend more time in my hand than any other rods. However, once I learned how to make a spinning handle with proper ergonomics to stop the pain shooting up my forearm, I now spend more time with a spinning rod in hand than ever before. When it comes to rods, once you get to the $100ish range, you start getting into true standard modulus graphite blanks with little to no glass involved. Those blanks do tend to feel stiffer than they actually are. As you go up from there and get into the intermediate and high modulus stuff, the blanks get more responsive and they react and respond quicker and feel less stiff during casting and buttery smooth with the right lures. Blanks designed with casting rods in mind are generally designed with more fudge factor built in. Casting rods are generally expected by manufacturers to take more abuse in the way they are used, especially by us self respectin' bass fishermen. Additionally, they experience more torsional forces during the shock loading of hook sets and during the fight. Abuse to the fibers that provide hoop strength which are fewer in number than longitudinal fibers will result in a higher failure rate among casting rods. So, they are designed with more material and inherently more stiff in general. However, if you treat your stuff with at least a little respect, a great casting rod can be built on blanks designed for spinning applications.

Both are amazing lines but are very different lines. Tatsu in general is more manageable and holds less memory. Shooter is more abrasion resistant, and is better overall for pitching/flipping IMO. Tatsu is an amazing lines as it fuses two different resins to create the most versatile line available. It has a hard inner resin for strength and utilizes a softer outer resin for manageability as it is more supple. Hope that helps!

Strike King Caffeine Shad is a solid Producer and a viable Fluke alternative. A-Jay

Rods. I am a firm believer in investing in great rods over higher end reels.

Soooooo....you've met my ex-wives?

You want my rant? Why this obsession to throw finesse baits on a baitcaster? Can you do it.....yes, but is there a better tool for the job? I say there is....a spinning rod/reel. It's what it is designed for. The stigma of throwing a spinning setup has long been discredited. If you take your cues from the pro's how many do you see throwing dropshots, ned rigs, senkos, etc., on baitcasters? Not very many and only if they have upsized their weights and taken it out of the finesse category. I love my spinning rods and have an equal number of spinning and casting on my deck every time I go out. Rant over, carry on.

Caught a long and super skinny one today.. dinks were out in full force too.

With the temps rising, the midday bite has fallen way off. So I’m hitting it in the morning with success. 7 this morning on the black/blue and junebug Dingers. Largest went 3.2. I was catching them in twos, on almost back to back casts. And this one(top middle of the collage), was just mean. He smashed the bait, and fought like Ali. Then I discovered a potential reason why—obviously some eye trauma(not caused by me).

Because I'm a firm believer in our lord and savior - Green Pumpkin

Caught these last Saturday in Minnesota flippin pads and swimming jigs. Had a 22lb bag between the 2 of us

Used Sexxy shad 5XD to catch these Bass. All with in 1 week..

Finally got one on a Magnum Squarebill (or as I like to call it “the Mondo”).

I caught this one at one of our conservation area lakes. It hammered a green Freddy b. This lake is covered in Lilly pads, and has all sorts of aquatic vegetation. For me it's one of the best places in the world for frog fishing.

All about the Top Water today! Some good fish. MegaBass Pop-X did most of the damage. A few came on spinnerbaits as well.

I hope this pattern continues through the Sunday tournament