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Caught 5 today, mostly this size. All of them with a white War Eagle double willow. Right in front of a beaver lodge at the strip pit. Also caught this PB Crappie in the same spot.

Foul hooked a good size channel cat that blew up on my walking bait. Made me think it was a big fish until about half way through the retrieve. Fun though. About seven missed blowups later I managed to stick this 3.5lb CHUNK of a fish and that was the end of the morning. So many missed strikes. Half my fault, half theirs. We'll hope for better tomorrow

For a few weeks this fall, I was thundering, catching between 35 and 70 bass per session and landing one to three four-to-five-pounders per trip, but then I caught 25 the last time I fished and 20 this morning with no four-pounders. I started hot, landing 12 bass in the first hour, but only eight in the next three hours. Their size was so consistent, nearly all footbally 16.5 inchers, which weigh about 2.5 pounds. I caught a couple longer, but not as footbally: So, I caught 16 lmb and four smb. No pattern beyond the first hour, where I went old school and steered a Whopper Plopper through weed fields. After that, just a bass here and there, some shallow and some deep. My camera died for good, so once again, I had to use my cell phone, which takes great pics. See: I'm thinking I forgot how to catch bass. I should start all over again. I hope I can buy a Snoopy rod on Amazon.

I would say that the fall bite is just beginning to turn on here. Been doing well on shad jigs and topwater. Really hoping the water temp settles in the high 60s soon - that's when topwater really gets crazy.

I stand corrected, the Cajun navy is there with a team of mules delivering insulin and other supplies . Great humans like @Catt know what’s up heard from my aunt and uncle in Brevard and they are ok. No power but alive and safe

Cool to see how far first responders are coming in from and how quickly. I've seen California firemen in pictures, with their equipment. I'm sure every department in the local region has sent folks and throughout NC where I live it's all hands on deck shipping supplies and teams to help. Many more are ready but can't deploy because there is no access. I agree with what @Catt said - the church response in NC has led the way. Every church is gathering supplies and volunteers and 'baptists on misson' is coordinating it so it's productive and organized. Our church sent 3 tractor trailers full of supplies Monday morning with more going out throughout the week, and are coordinating with 'baptists on mission' to get supplies to the region. They have one of the best response and distribution setups going, along with Samaritan's purse which is based in Boone, right in the heart of the damage. Also, glad to see 1000 active duty military finally deployed to help. The 82nd is only a few hours away at Fort Bragg and they are trained for things like this. I'm sure there are many guidelines to using military resources domestically (for good reason), but knowing they are there and not being utilized is frustrating. I know there is a massive federal and state response in addition to private, it just sucks that we know people are dying and can't be reached and no matter who does what it will never be enough. The terrain is so difficult it's just unimaginable how long this will take. Places like Swannanoa are just starting to have reports come out, and they are bad. I'm very thankful all of my staff have been accounted for and are healthy in SWVA. Many don't have power or water, but they are able to travel and gas and supplies are available in their local area so it is much better than many places west of them.

Topwater blow-ups

Works alright for me. Tip - Never hurts to give a buzzbait a few minutes.

Championship weekend; part 2. Sunday, the weather was very similar to Saturday, except the wind was a little lighter. Crisp in the morning was going to give way to a warm and sunny afternoon with 10-15mph north winds. I started on my same ramp area with Deric, along with 2 new additions to the area that hadn't fished there the day before, one being the guy that was in second place behind me in KBN. It started a little slower than the previous day, taking me almost 15 minutes to catch my first one, but it was a solid 16 incher. A 15.50 inch fish would follow that one about 30 minutes later. The whole time, it seemed like Austin (the guy in 2nd), was catching fish about every 5 minutes and they all sounded big. He was less than 2" behind me, I was sure he was well ahead of me now and I was going to have to make up ground. The next bite from a keeper sized fish was about 10 minutes later and was one of the strangest sequences I've had with a fish. I missed it, got it to bite again (Ned rig), let it pull my rod down, stuck it, and it popped off. Sure I'd messed up my chance, I casted back once, then again, and it came back. This time, I let it swim with my bait for over 10 seconds before I set the hook. She surfaced and I scooped it with the net, and the hook was barely in the tip of her lip and just fell out in the net. Many of them bit very strange on Sunday. This one would go 17" I bounced around the area a bit, hitting the entire ramp and both loading docks many times before trying a nearby point leading into the ramp. I caught a short, then a walleye, and finally, a 16.50" smallmouth. It was almost 9AM and I only needed 1 more. I remembered how I use to get some on a weighted wacky rigged trick worm on this lake many years ago. Always used a pink or white worm, but all I had was watermelon/purple flake. I tried it anyways and after just a few cast, a 14.75" fish ate it to give me 5 fish just before 9:30. The ramp area was crowded, so I started fishing up the bank I'd caught my last culls the day before, and came up empty. I cut across and fished a shallow point that has produced many times before. My first cast, I got a light tap and my line started moving. I set into a heavy fish with my Ned and had it for a couple seconds before it jumped and tossed it back at me, probably a 17 to 18 inch fish that would have really helped. I thought I could surely get another bite on this nothing looking bank that nobody had been fishing, but I was wrong. An hour passed, then 2, and 3. I had nothing but drum and a couple tiny smallmouth to show for it. I was getting worried and a rockpile up the lake was calling for me. I kicked the motor on high and made a run. 30 minutes later, I covered a lot of water quickly to the rock pile I've taken my family to so many times because it's always loaded with dumb, hungry smallmouth, size is just always in question. This time, it had neither. I caught a single 6" smallmouth and nothing more. Now, I was 30 minutes from where I'd been catching my fish and I had just over 2 hours left. I talked to another competitor that had fished the same ramp area at the end of the day on Saturday and culled a couple times. He said he was thinking of heading there right after he fished another point just around from where I saw him. That made up my mind, I was heading straight back to my starting point. I was shocked to find only 1 other kayak fishing there when I got to it. He was working the area I had been in the morning, so I fished the side that Austin had fished in the morning. I methodically worked it over with a Ned, and finally got one to eat, another 16 inch fish to cull out the 14.75 incher. The guy fishing the other side decided to load up as he'd had a rough day, so I bounced around to where I had started. Not long after I got there, I hooked a good fish that jumped eyeball high and tossed my Ned, another cull gone. There is a large, covered dock in this cove, one of the only none marina docks on the lake, and there is a bunch of brush under it. I was easing my Ned through it, when what I thought was a limb, started to pull back. For some reason, my rod snapped perfectly in half on the hookset, so I got to fight the fish with half a rod and opted to swing it on it's arrival to the kayak. Another 16" to get rid of the 15.50". With just over 30 minutes left, I felt okay, but still was dreading how big the fish sounded from the morning that Austin was catching. I needed another cull. I hadn't gotten bit on a tube all weekend, but something told me to pick it up. I tossed it at the end of the loading dock and scooted it a few times before it disappeared. The fish was super dark when it surfaced, made it look much bigger than it was at first, but at 17.25", it was still my biggest of the day. With just 2 minutes left, I was fishing the walkway of the big covered dock with a Ned, ready to pack it in. That's when my line mushed up. The hookset was solid and a big head came out of the water, a largemouth! It looked huge, I hadn't seen a largemouth bigger than 12 inches all weekend and that big head made it look massive. My heart was pounding when I scooped it, knew I had to hurry to get my picture before I ran out of time, but the hook had gone through it's lip and was tangled in my net! I was frantically pulling on the net and the hook with my fingers and then pliers. It finally popped free and I quickly slapped it on the board, 15.75", no help. That big head and super thick body made it look so much bigger. I laughed at myself as my timer went off. I doubt I'd have gotten a picture in time if it was a cull. I loaded up and headed to the awards, nervous to find out how the others had done. The 2-4 or 5 inch lead I had over others seemed like a big gap at the start of the day, but I'd imagined situations all day during my huge dry spell of what if this person catches a few 18's or better, I really had my nerves on end. The called 3rd place, 161" to Daniel. 2nd went to my buddy Deric with 161.75". Then they finally got the first, 165.75", to me. I had it won when I caught my 5th keeper of the day. So now I'm qualified to fish the Bassmaster Kayak Classic in March on Lake Fork, a lake I've never even seen before. I had also entered the team event for the day, which my partner and I won, and it was announced that I won AOY, just barely squeaking it out in the final event of the year thanks to 2 second place finishes in row plus this win. It was another great season and I'm already looking forward to next year.

Got out today as this was my only chance this week, baby sitting the next 2 days then I have to cook a bunch of stuff for my daughters 30th birthday on Saturday. Hit up a lake I haven't fished in a couple of months, it's got a max depth of 12'. Kind of a grind with more wind then predicted and managed 6 fish. 3 largemouth, 1 smallmouth, 1 crappie and 1 perch.

It’s late in the season but I grabbed some new custom hard baits. The patterns are PNW staples.

Recipe: drive to Taco Bell and get whatever they have under $5 ……. 🤣 drink pairing : water or cheap beer from gas station

The reason the private sector is faster at responding is most don't have to wait on some boards of directors approval or the DOD. This is the reason to support LOCAL businesses! "Improvise, adapt, and overcome" Due to the terrain the Cajun Navy is coordinating teams with horses & pack mules.

30% off Z-Man at TW. $7 EVO's and $11 Jackhammers. Hard to beat that. And if you can, I need to know where!

Oh my god I needed this thread so badly. I’m laughing out loud with every post 😃 Although my vote goes to A-Jay I wanted to give you all a like but I know I wouldn’t be able to so a group one is in order

Guys I live in Johnson city tn. I really wish I could tell you the media is sensationalizing it. I really wish I could but it’s not. Johnson city it’s like we never got any kind of weather but some gust and some rain. Go ten miles east and that’s when things start to get real. It’s wiped out sooooo much. Towns, highways businesses and everything. The nolichucky is now considerably wider. I moved here two years ago from south Louisiana and have been through a number of hurricanes in my life, but I’ve never seen anything like this. Sorry to paint a doom and gloom scenario but that’s what the situation is. Now….that being said, the people here are strong and are gonna rebuild and come back better than ever.

Got out this morning at daylight while still dealing with the remnants of the latest storm. Light drizzle, extremely foggy so boat never saw plane all day. We caught smallmouth, largemouth and a Walleye.......deep clear lake in WV.

Day 2 exploring the strip pit pond. Started out throwing the Ned and the floating worm. They wanted the floating worm, and a caught a quick pair of fish hiding under the duck weed. I moved down the bank but was unable to get anymore bites on the end where the terrain was flat and level. I got back on the old dirt road that paralleled the bank and found a spot where I could make my way down to the water’s edge if I was careful. After getting settled in I noticed the water was a bit deeper here so I tied on my mayor and proceeded to catch another 4 fish all about this size. I had another fish hit my mayor but he was too big for my M/F and buried himself in a lay down and broke me off before I could horse him in. I still had my ML rod with Ned tied on so I started throwing that and my and hooked another big one on my first cast. Of course this one made a beeline for the lay down on my other side. I thought if I shook the branches it may spook it and cause it to run out on its own. To my surprise the lay down wasn’t very heavy (it was more like a big branch) and I was able to move it out of the way while simultaneously manipulating my rod to untangle my line and land it. After the protracted struggle I decided just to get the pic and throw it back. So I’m not sure about the weight. After that I added another smaller fish to the day’s tally and headed home since I was being dive bombed by a cloud of mosquitoes.

SMOKED WHOLE CHICKEN I bought a 5.5 lb never frozen chicken at Walmart. I picked up a couple of roasting ears and a cucumber. I had fresh tomatoes in my garden. I washed the chicken and patted it dry. Then I sprayed it with olive oil and covered it with a dry rub. I put it in the smoker at 225° and cooked it to 157° (about 4 hours). The corn was cut through the husks to the cob then cooked for 6 minutes in the microwave. When done you can hold the end of the cob and with a mitt slide the husks and silk completely off. The chicken was moist and tender. We ate half of it tonight and will have the other half later. I used a little barbecue sauce with mine. COST chicken $6.88 corn $1.00 cucumber 1.00 Total. $8.88 with half a chicken left over.

Swimming for suspended bass around cover, often over 15’-30’ of water.

10 year old thread. The OP has either won the Classic or given up on professional fishing by now. My money is on the latter. 😆

I pay the extra fee to remove 30-60 second ads from my steaming services. No way I could stitch.

We call skunks “dues paying days” and everybody’s gotta pay their dues. Just can’t let it get in your head. I posted about my trip to the St Lawrence and the extremely tough fishing it was. Add 6 hour pull, gas, food, hotel, 3 different licenses, etc., and it’s all added pressure. We were close to getting skunked more than once and I appointed myself the driver of the struggle bus. Never got skunked but it was some of the toughest fishing I’ve done in a very long time.

My reels need to be dual purpose so 200 sized for me. I do however, have one 100 sized curado. If I strictly fished bass then I think I’d like a 150. Line capacity is very important to me because I am a shore angler. If I’m forced to make a few long break offs from snags and such, the reel is now in a less than ideal condition and useless to me for all intents and purposes (casting distance, retrieval rate are compromised). I don’t have the luxury of floating up to the snag to minimize loss of line from a break off.

Update: I finally got it done. There were 3 main options: 1) Hercules under sink brace system 2) Brackets that anchor to the sides of the cabinet 3) Brackets that anchor into the granite via a slit. I decided on option one. I liked 2 and 3 but I didn’t have to patience to find this type and if I mess up the granite, I’m the one who’s screwed. In addition these methods are far easier to do before the sink was in place and the work space underneath the sink is too ding dang tight. Even my small profile drill was too big. I could not square it up. And it sucks to be me but my sink was already in place and like heck if I was going to remove the pipes and garbage disposal. I got around the inability to drill the screws perpendicularly by drilling at an angle instead. It also helped because the screws I used were 1” and going diagonal helped me keep most of it in the side vs poking through. I not use the screws that can with the system. They weren’t bad but the threads didn’t have the “bite” I wanted. I applied new silicone under the sink and supported the sink with a left over lumber and pvc pipes from old projects cut to exact length needed to keep the sink upright. I then installed the braces and had to call it a night. I completed installing the Hercules systems the next day. I also added a strong adhesive and planks as the original installers did, replacing the one that fell and adding two more. Left side Right side I added shims to so that the wire wouldn’t have an opportunity to rub against the sink Brace has been installed and shortly afterward I removed the pvc. planks glued in place. In the picture below, the dark plank is the original from the initial installation. As an inline spinner maker, I am not pleased with how I wound the wire (downright shame) but for this entire project my right arm is injured (anconeus muscle out of commission) and in pain to the point it can’t do much if anything with it. I had to do everything left hand. I will be keeping the pvc and planks (marked with a sharpie stating why to keep them in case I forget) for the next time this happens. I did learn that my daughter was the culprit. Not mad or upset. Things happen. @DaubsNU1: I would highly recommend going with option 2 or 3 because imho, they are solid choices. My injured arm and my uncharacteristic behavior in this case of being impatient (I’m normally calm, cool, methodical) pretty much drove my decision to go with the universal under sink brace. I can now vaguely recall now when the installer gave me the option to be over or under and I chose the latter because the counter would be flush. Screw that. Next time it’s going to be installed on top… unless the wife says otherwise. Anything inside the house “her” department, lol.

Authentication requires a biologist or state warden to examine the fish for added weight and identify species, plus current fishing licenses. Catch & release without all the above the application is denied impossible to authenticate. Tom

Well this guy weighed and measured it, filmed it and photographed it , seemingly jumping through all the hoops and still denied

I learned so much asking the BR crew question after question. Sometimes it's confusing when they suggest ten different things. @bp_fowler: Fishin' smishin'. What's important is that you're rockin' that 'stache and soul patch!

I will say on a lighter note that many of the people that live in some of these corners are like the 101rst in Bastogne. They don’t need rescuing and are taking care of each other.

It’s been happening a lot to me lately as well. Things have started to pick up a bit this last week but, it’s been dink city mostly.

Speaking from experience the fastest responders are the private sector. Of those churches are the fastest with Independent Baptist the fastest of those. The biggest problems will be the fight with insurance companies. 4 yrs after Laura & many still haven paid for damages. Gas generators down here out preform solar hands down. Now we do live the the heart of oil & gas industry.

If anyone wants a good workout, come to TN or NC and help shovel mud. It’s way more exercise than shoveling opinions or typing on the internet. We will be finding deceased for weeks after this, probably in the lakes on the Catawba chain that a few of us fish. As far as the airspace, it might shock you but you need to know where helicopters and planes are going t ok take off and land and refuel and what they’re doing to avoid accidents, confusion, and wasted resources. This is not Florida or New Orleans; the land is treacherous and what roads were there are significantly impassable the further off main roads you get (and even still on some main roads). Even helicopters can’t get into some of the narrower areas safely so it’s rescue squads going on foot through the mud in many places. Politics has absolutely no place in this.

My Dad is still without power, but that's minor compared to what's happening just to the West. Shelby NC (county seat, where I live) is a hot bed of activity. They're the closest mostly back open area to the damage. All of the hotels are full. There's also a bunch of people coming here for gas, water, and other needed supplies. A friend of mine has a helicopter and has been flying supplies up to the mountains every day. One of the biggest problems is the amount of rain, combined with the terrain. The mountains just funnel the water down into the valleys. Why weren't people prepared? A few reasons. You can't prepare to be 10 feet under water. Also, mountain people have never had to prepare for a hurricane. The government, nor anyone else has a magic wand to make this go away.

I just want to take a moment and say that I’m glad our Bass Resource members posting in the aftermath of the devastation hurricane Helene left in its path are alive and well. The loss of life and property that have been shown on the news is saddening, and it is my hope that those 400 people reported as missing are found safe and in good health. As for the talk about relief efforts/support I’d like to offer a little more information on an emergency service response to a disaster. It needs to be understood just saying “I need help, send help” as simple as it sounds just doesn’t work when it comes to government helping after a disaster. The Federal Government needs to know specifically what those on ground in the affected areas need (water, food, money, fuel, tents, etc.), how much or how many, where is it needed and for how long before being resupplied. Next comes the operation of getting the requested relief supplies where it’s been requested all the while coordinating the various government, civilian and volunteer personnel with rescue efforts and getting basic services back on-line. And even with fires and other things happening, California sent over 170 firefighters trained in search and rescue to help with recovery efforts because that’s what Americans have always done, help others out in time of need. I just look forward to reading that everyone’s family and neighbors are safe, well and are getting the necessary help to rebuild their communities.

Hurricanes do happen every year but this never has. Kind of hard to prepare for something that has never happened. Nobody can get gas for the generator and I’m guessing the solar models wouldn’t have worked until maybe today

I throw white jigs more than any other color all year around. They are excellent in clean and dirty water fished slow or fast. 'white' is more of a generic gizzard/baitfish pattern to be fair but it ain't green or black.

I have never used sonar, so I'm speaking from near ignorance, however I have seen bass chasing shad and I have failed to catch those bass...until this summer when a FAST retrieve worked. Burning the bait, I'm guessing, didn't let them realize that it was phony and because they were feeding, they were ready to hit everything that was fleeing.

@Swamp Girl if you enjoy the struggle reports I have plenty of material! 😂

REMINDER! Politics is absolutely forbidden on BassResource. Politics is absolutely forbidden on BassResource. Politics is absolutely forbidden on BassResource. Warnings have been sent, suspensions are next.

You are always welcome 😊

@Rockhopper: I am so impressed by your knowledge of the lake, your ability to explain it so clearly, and all the ways you tried to catch bass. I'd learn a lot fishing alongside you.

Thats just messed up Hannibal 😂 Seems like that was beaten multiple times recently but I don’t keep up with those too closely. I might have eaten a record 😂

It has been reported that the military has been authorized today to provide relief

And the Flying Bait Monkey says you're dreamin', just like Dorothy was.

That Guadalupe Bass is a good looking fish.

Must be a funk up north. I just put a post up in the smallmouth forum about our trip up to the St Lawrence. We thought the fall feed should be closer up there but we were wrong. Probably the hardest I have fished for a week straight. Here’s a pic of the Hotel we stayed in if it gives you any idea how tough it was.😜

I have side imaging on my bow mount but I honestly cannot remember the last time I tried to use it up there, specifically for this reason. It reads better when its not turning, and not turning a bow mount is a difficult thing to do. Side imaging is a far better tool at the console when I'm moving along at 3-5 mph using it from the back transducer. It gives a better feed back, sharper image, and since I'm not constantly turning, its more accurate too. I use mine to locate isolated patches of boulders or rocks when smallmouth fishing. I'll mark it on my GPS, and then approach it later from a distance and make a couple casts to it.

Thanks for the report, Bucks. There is a range of reporting styles at Bass Resource. There are those anglers who only share their successes. Then there are anglers like you who tell the whole story. I prefer your style. We all struggle at times. Reading accounts of others struggling make us feel less alone. Some days the bass are just too tricksy for us.