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On the board in 2025 😎 Beat the Arctic blast by hitting a local stained reservoir with 46-48 deg water. Pulled out a jig and actually fished the bank, focusing on treefalls and docks. Paid off with 3 keepers, and also snuck in a few crappie - I couldn’t help myself - lol.

Tornadoes occur during sever weather, they knew that but went out anyway. Can't fix stupid 😉

That was plain ignorance on their part. I’m sorry but there is no excuse for that the only one I feel bad for is the dog.

Technically the 3rd of the day / year but the first one worth taking a picture of...got all 4 of them today on a tequila sunrise roboworm.

I wrote a book about stairs…..It’s a step by step guide.

Frog/Fluke/Weightless Worms (mag speed worm/mag speed craw/mag trick worm/Senko/etc.)/lipless crankbait/bladed jig/Jerkbait/glide bait/swim jig/drop shot/c rig/punch rig/heavy grass jig/big soft swimbait on beast hook. When I'm fishing over healthy grass a trick I employ is using heavy monofilament line to help keep my baits up in the water column/slow the rate of fall. Pretty invaluable when fishing OVER grass 😉

Both the largemouth and smallmouth record fell in NYS last year. A few years ago I would have said both records will stand for good. The last couple years, mammoth smallmouth caught from the St. Lawrence River and the Finger Lakes have been making the rounds on social media and had me questioning my previous stance on the smallmouth record before that one fell, but when a 12 pound largemouth broke the record last year I couldn’t believe it.

Just imagine how far they could have cast if they'd cast with the wind!

Found the picture of yellowtail caught in Baja many years ago. Yes that's me in the 70s.

Wow! What a story. I assume that many of us have had to weather storms, either on the water or just off the water like @wdp. I was camped on the Mississippi River when a tornado hit. It threw all the boats on the shore and crumpled a new, expensive aluminum dock. I had double anchored my boat about 50' out and waded to shore and my boat was the only one still floating the next morning. @softwateronly's point about how quickly a storm can be on you is a good one. It was quiet before that nighttime tornado hit. I know because I was awake. Another time on the Mississippi, a violent squall line hit when I was on the water. Blue skies. Pleasant day. And here comes a thundering squall line, frothing the water. Spend some decades on the water and you'll get walloped unless you're real lucky.

Had something similar happen to me about 15 yrs ago. Was fishing a very warm day in Feb. Bass were biting great as front was moving in later that afternoon. Had caught quite a few good ones in 5-7 lb range, then found an early spawner on a bank along the dam. Worked that fish for about an hr & couldn’t get it to bite. Stayed too long & looked up to see a huge, dark wall cloud moving in super fast. Threw the 30 lb thrust minn kota into high & had my jon boat going about as fast as it would go towards ramp about 100 yards away. Hit the bank just as storm was hitting me. I could hear pine trees snapping & debris off branches, pine cones & leaves blowing everywhere. Had split second to decide to run for a ditch over a small hill and ducked into a big rut in the fetal position. Lasted about 10 mins. When it was done, the smell of pine was so strong from all the broken pines trees. Scariest moment of my life. Turned out it was 100+ mph straight line winds. I was stranded too. Trees blocked my only exit. Had to wait to be rescued by a 4 wheeler about 5 hrs later. Left my truck and boat overnight til Forest services cleared gravel road the next day.

A friend of mine followed a Chinese Balloon for almost 200 miles. Turns out it was just bird **it on the windshield 🤪 A-Jay

This is actually the Shimano R&D department testing out their new prototype DC braking system.

If that wasn't sudden, and I mean SUDDEN, no forecast or signs at all, then these guys are the ultimate Darwin award winners and specialize in stupidity.

canoeing for crappies. Reminds me of “a river runs through it” …….. “closed mouth cal communes with the crappies”

Pearl white Fluke weightless would be my first choice. Allen

I love fishing floating glides in shallow weedy lakes.

The weed growth up here can almost get to florida levels, and the Xcite Baits maximus 10.5" worm is my absolute favorite for the thickest of stuff. It's a big, subtle, and durable high float worm that can snake through the densest milfoil. During the summer and my big worm time, I like a one two punch of the maximus worm and a 8" hags tornado which is also good float, but more bulk to "hang up" more. Besides worms, frogs, flukes, punching, etc. I've done a couple things that are less popular that have been successful for me. Number one is a Dirty Jigs 3/4oz Cali swim jig w/ a r2s 120mm D walker on my frog rod and straight braid. I'll throw it at the thickest stuff and power it through. It's somewhat a chore to fish, but it catches if they're there. I like to think of it as horizontal punching, in my mind I'm blasting it into their home and they immediately attack it. Definitely not subtle, but somewhat novel. The other one is really new to me, and I only have last year as guidance. I started the year after the spawn because of work obligations and wanted to learn the jighead minnow/hover strolling thing. So as I was learning it, the weeds filled in like they always do and I kept working it and learning new things about it and basically came all the way back to a jigworm. So I basically upsized the jigworm to a 7" fluke/minnow bait and shook it while retrieving thru the weeds. It was way better getting though the junk than I imagined. A light head weight, smaller hook even though exposed, the bulky bait, and constant shaking was really effective at staying clean and I think calling bass to it. Slightly different profile, decent water displacement, and what I think looks like an oblivious and vulnerable meal just rooting away at the cover got bit. The retrieves took some time, so it's not best at covering water quickly. If you made it here, thanks for reading my coffee fueled bs. scott

The dog should be placed in a new home with someone with half a brain. Idiots

I know they made poor decisions and am not defending them, but sometimes I wonder if people realize how erratic, sudden, and specific tornados can be. If you live with them in your area, it's not truly possible to plan for them and there's a giant grey area of should I and imminent danger. Being cognizant of that is something I always try to keep in mind. We also have tornado sirens here that are incredibly useful for determining your timeframe. Being in a big box store or a car or a forest or a slab foundation home or even at the boat ramp can all be more dangerous than in a boat on the water. scott

I have a few ideas in mind, but nothing final for sure Here's what I can do, I can setup a telescope on my kayak with a camera and take pictures of Mars and claim it was a UFO, which seems to be the latest theme of confusing planets and UFOs.

Just imagine the backlashes if they tried to cast into that!

Pick me in drinking tonight. Draft yuengling lager!

Even if you could find them for those reels,aftermarket spools are expensive. Just pony up and buy a BFS reel by either Daiwa or Shimano, if money is an issue buy a Kast king BFS, they’re running like 119$ I believe with 20% off online.

I think the last time I fished a big pond that was almost covered with weeds I thought I would use a frog, toad, etc. Turned out the weightless Senko saved the day. I like a Trick Worm. I've also done well with a weedless spoon with trailer and a lizard with very light pegged bullet weight.

You’d make more money if you write about UFO’s and particularly drones.. seems to be back in vogue again. 🤷‍♂️

@Blue Raider Bob I'm out of reactions today, but I definitely chuckled. ^^^ Took the canoe out on the 30th and ended the year with a slow morning and a good afternoon bite. The water was discolored from the rain the 2 days prior, but it warmed up to 40 in some spots. I found the dozen or so bass on the remaining green milfoil in 15 ish fow and caught them on the bottom with a jighead minnow and weirdly blanked on a jig and blade bait. Only a few that got pics... scott

Idk if this thread has been started yet but I'd like to see everyone's best basses of 2024. This doesn't necessarily have to be LM or SM specific, just your most memorable and favorite catch of the year. Because ultimately the memory is what makes the catch, right? I'll start. I caught this one evening in late March, it was 7lbs 5oz on a bone choppo 75. Not even two months later, an EF3 tornado tore through my home lake and shut me down for a solid three months on this water body. The marina signs are still being held up by stacks of rubble. I digress. I was working the lure slowly, to a point where I could feel each turn of the prop in my hand. The fish hit super lightly, as if it just came straight up under the lure and just opened its mouth. It wasn't until I felt it pull and set the hook that "I Knew". It wasn't a particularly long fight, but on a medium light rod it felt like an absolute giant. Pulling it out of invasive milfoil with that light rod was a task. Of the 7lb fish I have caught, this one might be the most balanced and healthy specimen I've ever caught. It's for sure the biggest bass I've caught all year, but also the most memorable. My hand was cramping holding it for pics and weight. Time out of the water was maybe 60 second, but it's maybe the most memorable 60 seconds of the year. Let's see em

My perfect pitch has held up great, I have had it 3 years and put it through some hard work no issues with mine.

I do systematically target tougher pieces of cover. You've see photos of the bogs I fish. Lacking electronics, I don't tackle lake structure systematically, but I do regularly fish open water and have a good memory for where I've caught bass and return to those spots. I also cast big lures, so I am hoping for Nadine and her sisters, but happy to catch their little cousins in the meantime. So, we're similar, as long as you're willing to ignore that I don't catch DDs like you do! 😉

WhenI first got into bfs, I got the Gomexus spool for my tat 80 (already had the reel) Filled it with 10 lb braid, medium light rod, 1/8 Oz rattletrap. First cast took all the line, all of it!! Lol!!

You sir are dedicated

NC Winter Bass Fishing ain't for the faint of heart. 😎😎😎🎣🎣🎣 But I reckon we gonna find one this weekend. Snowy front hitting Sat-Sun.

And I will third it. YGK really is fantastic line and very well made. Yeah, you're looking at $25 for a 200m spool or $35 for 300m, but you get what you pay for. Before I used YGK I used Berkley X9, Power Pro, 832, and J Braid. Each of them were ok lines, but had their issues. J Braid was great on spinners, baitcasters not so much. 832 is downright lamp cord. I feel they underrate their line to give it the illusion that "it's strong for its rating". Power Pro is ok, but it's a very rough line. Much more so than other 4 carriers I've tried. In thin diameter it likes to dig in. Berkley X9 is good on casting reels, not so much on spinning. Other than that, Berkley too is way off on their measurements. They say the 6lb is 0.08mm, and to the eye it's marginally thicker than #0.8 (0.148mm) YGK. I only use USM lines if I'm in a pinch these days.

That's pretty crazy brother, but there's something very commendable about your patience, and ability to not give up. Mark my words, in the near future you're going to have some electric days. It always works like that, just when you're about to give up and find a new hobby, the dam busts.

The Duo JB family is diverse. The 100sp is kind of like a pointer 100, round with lots of flash and roll. Unlike the rest of the bigger JBs the 100sp lacks a weight transfer system, but still casts very well. The 110sp is a little flatter, which makes gives it a little sharper action. Its the least stable of all tehe Duo JBs ive fished. If you work it too hard, it will blow out or hang the line. the 120sp is a slightly longer flatter version of the 110. The flat sides give it more of a side to action. Its more stable than the 110. I have no experience with the 130sp, but I'm told its just a larger version of the 120sp. All of the bigger JBs other than the new Raz which ill be trying soon, and the 85sp have a heavier, more aggressive action than a MB. They work well in combination with visions 110s, as if one doesnt work the other likely will. I've been a huge fab of Duo for some time, everything they make is quality. They are the only stock hooks that are in the same neighborhood of sharpness and quality of G finesse, Owner, Ryugi and so on. While the finishes don't have the complexity of MB or variety of LC, they're very good. Prism Gill, River Bait, Ghost Gill. Optishad, Morning Dawn, just so many good ones. They used to be the best deal going for about 14$, but like everything they recently took a price jump going to 17$, which is a big difference when you're buying a half dozen at a time.

I'm hoping to keep my open water streak going though January but it is looking dicey and would need some serious luck. Here's one of my last bass of 24 and hope I can post here before Feb. scott

Buzz Worms comes in 8" & 12", I've had better luck with the 8" in green pumpkin blue tail. I would also suggest Yamamoto's 10” Ichi Worm, it's made from Yamamoto’s Mega Floater Formula, which makes the tail stand up off the bottom. It's heavy enough to good distance unweighted.

Mister Twister® Mag 8" BUZZ Worm

For distance you will need at least an 8 carrier, for heavy cover at least a 4 carrier. Think of it this way 4 carrier as off road tire and 8 carrier as a street or highway tire. I been using the KK brand of braid. Their best one is the Hammer braid

Highs hit the mid 60s here today, but the price to pay for that was the SW winds gusting 25-35 mph. Still had to go though - might be a while before we see any temps close to that again. Changed to a murky water lake with 46-47 deg water and caught 4 small keeper bass and a handful of crappie. That’s a wrap for 2024 fishing.

I got out the last hr and a half of the day, so stayed close to home. Temps in the mid 70s . Enough breeze for a nice ripple on the water. Caught 6. Most were relating to eel grass edges. Caught fish on speed worms, dingers, and flukes. Biggest fish was a little tank. He crushed the june bug dinger a few feet from the grass bed. The bed runs probably 400 feet continuously- the pic shows part of it at the end. It was a good way to end the year. Got a warm feeling approaching my house. Any of y’all are welcome to come fish if you’re in the area! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!’

Pair of smalls on the last day of 2024. Caught on the shade line of a bluff. Bite died once the sun got too high in the sky.

Took my last trip of the 2024 season last Saturday. Weather was nice, fishing was pretty decent, but I've been drug down by crud that my kids brought home from school right at the start of winter break. Done a good job avoiding it, but it finally got me and I've been feeling it for about a week now and after 4 hours on the water, I was wiped out and cold despite the unseasonably warm weather. Still managed to boat over 30 of them, including one fairly nice one to wrap up the season. Ned rig caught all but 3 or 4 of them.

NYE. Last day of 2024. Yesterday was gorgeous with a high of 80°. But it was our 36th wedding anniversary. And truth be told, I was not tempted to go fishing lol. Today is bluebird skies but much cooler and breezier. About 54° when I launched the boat. Not getting a bite on anything. Swim jig, topwater, chatterbait, Texas rigged Zoom Trick. Not even a Senko TR. Then I put a green pumpkin Rage Bug on a 3/0 EWG as a weightless TR and finally, two bass decided they would eat it. Not big, but 7 other anglers were fishing and these were the only two fish caught, so I’ll take that with a smile. Not a bad 2024 and a good way to close it out!

I just found this in an old thread: @WRB is one of the all-time greats.

Hoping to add a few more.

I’ve caught 2 in my lifetime, a 10-14 and an 11-3 but this one was just shy of 10. She would have easily been over if she wasn’t spawned out.

This one was a "DD" I believe. FM