Leaderboard

We hit 80 yesterday, but struggled to top 50 today under partly cloudy skies and an east wind at 6-10 mph. Water temps cooled slightly, now 53-54 deg. Found bass working shad schools uplake and landed between 25-30 keepers in just over 3 hours. Fun afternoon on the lake. Now we wait and see what 3 straight days of heavy rain does to everything.

Made it out on Sunday in the yak on the power plant. I thought about skipping it and going to a different lake to avoid the crowds after the idiocy I dealt with out there last week, but I decided I'd go and stay until boats got bad or until the fish quit biting, whichever came first. It was a cold morning with a pretty good breeze, I headed straight to my point that I got ran off of last week and it was on right away. There was tiny shad everywhere, looking like they were stunned from the cold snap, and fish were occasionally boiling on them. Water temps had come up about 6* since the week before and I don't know if that or the cold front rolling in or maybe a combination of both, but something had them moving. I had several baits to try but my guides were freezing all day, and that always messes with my willingness to switch up too much. They were chewing a Ned real good like usual, but I had some Geecrack Neko Hack neko rigging tools I wanted to try, so I tossed a Neko rigged Big Bite Baits worm and stuck a nice one. When I say these fish were gorging on dying shad, I'm starting to wonder if it's possible for a bass to eat itself to death? 18.5" and 5.08lbs, a fitting football on Superb Owl Sunday. Very next cast with the Neko, another bite, another heavy fish. I was thinking megabag at this point. This one was "only" 4 and some change. Those would be my only big bites of the day though. I caught fish steadily the entire 9 hours I was on the water, to the tune of over 30 fish and constantly had them boiling around me, but the big ones stopped biting after those 2. I did catch the biggest little bass I've ever seen. I thought it was a white bass when I first saw it flash under the surface. Nope, just a 13 incher that weighed 1.75lbs. Huge winter storm coming again this week. We're looking 6" to a foot of snow on Wednesday and really cold temps, not looking good for next weekend. Might have to finally do some trailer maintenance that I've been neglecting all winter.

It's not that crawfish lack the protein, they lack the size, or they are not available in a high enough concentrations. Big bass are controlled by certain environmental factors 1. Reproduce effectively 2. Feed efficiently (maximize food intake and minimize energy output) 3. Prosper during extreme seasonal changes 4. Achieve good growth rates by domination of the warmer areas of the lake during the colder seasons. This is a quote from Doug's book Big Bass Magic; I believe these to be rules that big bass must follow to survive

If I catch a big bass it is because of my superior bass fishing skill. If some one else catches a big bass, they just got lucky.

Nah - they don't eat big baits...

There are members at Bass Resource who state that they target big bass. If you sit on the deep water abutting the spawning beds like some of us do or pounded Castaic Lake in its glory years like @WRBdid or chuck and wind big swimbaits like @Fried Lemons does, then you're targeting big bass and have a big bass portfolio like @Fried Lemons's, Tom's, @AlabamaSpothunter's, @Catt's, @Pat Brown's, Andy's, etc., then you do indeed target big bass. I'm not part of the Big Bass Crew, but I do catch big bass for my nearly 45 degrees latitude. My approach is to catch a lot of bass and the big bass will come. I average about one four-pounder for every 30 bass. Remember that In-Fisherman said that a bass weighing X in the north is equivalent to a bass weighing 1.5X in the South. If In-Fisherman is right, my four-pounders are Everglades six-pounders and my six-pounders are Texas nine-pounders and my PB is a southern California DD. So, a northern four-pounder is a fine catch. Just ask Minnesotan @gim or Canadian @The Baron, who know how rare they are up north. My approach is basically attrition. I dance with a lot of bass and sooner or later, I dance with a big gal. And some sweet mornings, I get to dance with five or six big gals, but along the way, I get to dance and dance and dance. I do know at least three spots that harbor big bass and when I'm casting at those three specific spots, I'm absolutely fishing for big bass, but otherwise, I'm just fishing and hoping and happy.

Ive been down this road, and struck out. I devoted an entire season trying to beat my own PB of 8lbs, caught thirty years ago. I haven't given up yet, but I made the decision to fish as I always have, and have fun. Lots of good points made here. My own observation is that guys who catch really big bass- there's little if any luck involved. They study the bass, and learn from experience when and where to fish, what baits work best at certain times, and how to fish these baits the best way. My own lake is eight acres with very clear water. Some days, it's hard to catch a keeper, let alone a giant. They'res some in there. One day I'll hook one.

This will sound silly but to catch big bass you must fish for them where they live. Can’t catch em if you don’t fish where they are at. For whatever reason became fascinated catching the biggest bass where I fished. Study big bass habits and learned everything you can about them. For example big bass are females. Female bass are their heaviest weight prior to spawning or “pre spawn’ and feeding heavily to add body weight to get them through the spawn cycle without feeding. The big females don’t eat once they start laying eggs. The big bass will protect their beds but that is a makes basses primary duty. Target the big girls before they go onto beds! Big bass ear high protein prey and avoid spiny prey like bluegill. Sat what big bass avoid eating bluegill!….yes! Big spawner’s will attack any egg eater like bluegills but not as a high protein prey source! The big girls prefer softer ray less spiny prey fish and crawdads. You want to catch big pre spawn bass use lures that replicate their preferred prey source. Tom

Pulled off the floors of my (New to Me) boat to redo plumbing and electrical. Found a 7UP bottle, Doritos Bag, Granola wrapper, and the 7Up Bottle cap. Read the bottom of the cap and the litter bug who built my boat back in '92 in Arkadelphia Arkansas tossed a winning bottle cap! No telling what that dude lost out on! Since I can't catch fish like Alex, Clayton, and Team9, I'll just play in my boat and pretend!

I used to Scuba dive and snorkel in lakes in the northeast. In the mornings you could always see tons of left over crayfish parts left over from the night before on the bottom. It looked like battlefield or something. Even more so in the rocky areas. The crayfish hide in holes mostly during the day and they come out and feed and do their thing, and the fish hunt them like crazy. In my experience the places that have crayfish are virtually paved with them on the bottom. They are a great source of food. One crayfish on it's own may not be a great source but if they can eat lots of them then they are a feast. Not just bass but trout too.

Had an interesting fun fishing trip on Super Bowl Sunday. The water was incredibly swift, my buddy with his robot trolling motor and spot lock was fishing nearby and the spot lock was no match. I beached my craft in an eddy and started casting a swimbait. Whilst doing so, I noticed a bunch of shad swimming by. Got the trusty cast net out and got some, then deployed one on a jighead. Something took off with it and swam really fast, I thought surely a striper. After a few good runs in the current, I got some video rolling. Some bald eagles were up in a nest nearby, noisily cheering me on. If you turn the volume up on the video , you can hear them well. I took this as a sign that the eagles would win the Super Bowl, go birds! When I finally got the fish near the boat, it turned out to be a medium sized drum. They aren’t typically that fast but this one sure was ! I then caught another small drum and decided to go try something else for a bit. Found a slower spot tucked in behind a bridge pillar and tried some night crawlers. My first fish was a nice shellcracker that I let go. Then I got a couple nice bluegill and a yellow perch that I also let go. Well they just kept biting so I decided to start keeping some and ended with nice little mess of tasty fillets. A largemouth even decided to show up and bite a nightcrawler. After I ran out of nightcrawlers, I went back down to the eddy where the drum were. This time I got an even bigger 26” drum but it didn’t fight nearly as hard as the first one. Cleaned the fish and froze the fillets, took a shower and made it to a Super Bowl party in the nick of time. Water temp was 48 the blooper pics near the bottom are a goose that identified as a pigeon, trying to nest on a bridge 60-70 feet off the ground. And an accidental photo of a shellcracker that flipped up right when I hit the button

There's been a pile of big fish caught on Huddlestons & Deps 250s in waters around the country that contain zero trout. Of course you could stick with Bluegill profiles. If there's not alot folks throwing bigger baits, it could be spectacular fishing by showing the unusual.

This says it all. As for skill or luck, the more skilled one becomes the more often his or her location, timing, presentation, and persistence will be optimum for catching a big bass. As you develop your skills, luck should play less of a part in the big bass equation, though now and then it is nice to have luck on your side. 🙂

@Bluebasser86 Mother of Pearl!!!!!!!! Some of the fattest Bass I've seen! Man that's awesome. What's the lake record in that place? I'd fish that place 24/7 😎 @TnRiver46 Fantastic report and what a fun day! Those bream are beautiful too. I can only imagine how happy that drum makes Roadwarrior wherever he may be 🤣

If the big fish is a drum, it’s all skill and I’ve got it 😂

Just got back from our 4th year of going to the Disneyland of bass fishing, Headwaters in Fellsmere Florida. It was an epic trip once again and keeps us coming back for more. We leave from Virginia and drive straight to Palm Bay, Florida for out first night. We get up early the next day and head to the lake which is about 20 miles away. We rig up in the open field or overflow parking area on the opposite side of the access road to the ramp. Speaking of the infamous access road, which in the past was littered with boat trailer parts due to the sad state of the road consisting of massive washboard rough sections and baby powder dust that infiltrates every nook and cranny of both boat and truck, it has now been hard packed with a crush and run and tar mixture that is 500% better. We were actually able to tow in and out with electronics mounted and boat cover off. Ramp area is busy as usual but courtesy is still high and is no problem. There has been spraying both by boat and helicopter to open the canals and launch area from excessive vegetation and continues to be a hot topic amongst users of the lake. This was our first time staying at a farm that was 5 miles from the ramp and you could actually see the access road from the back of the property. Prior to this trip we either stayed in Palm Bay or in set of rooms located on the water of Blue Cypress lake. There were pluses and minuses to our lodgings this trip. The room we stayed at is the only room available on the farm and is somewhat like a studio apartment. It is located in a commercial size shop building. The pluses far outweigh the drawbacks and topping the list is security. The farm is at the very end of an electronic gated road and is very isolated. It was very nice not having to remove electronics and stow gear every night as well as covered parking. The distance to the ramp was another plus. If you want additional information on this location, feel free to contact me. We reserved it for the same dates next year. Now for the fishing! I’ll combine all 7 days to try and keep this from being a novel. The lake was in transition. Florida had an unusual cold snap where water temperatures dropped to the mid to high 50’s. We arrived on the first real warming trend and found the water warming as the week progressed. By the end of the week, we found 70+ degree water. This year was a numbers more than size trend. I estimate over the span of the week, I personally caught 250-280 fish. Broken down by size it was 60% 1-2lb range, 30% 3lb fish and 10% 4lbs and up. Big fish was an 8.15 and I caught a 6 and 7. All of the guides posting on social media were saying that the bass were on the beds but we personally looked at 30 to 40 beds that were not tilapia and only found 4 that had bucks on them. Our pattern was the same every day. First off because of the temperature swings, we had dense fog every morning that delayed us so the earliest we could blast off was 7:30-8:00. We tried earlier one morning and it was treacherous to say the least. I started with a Yamamoto DShad in green pumpkin/black fleck (297) on shorelines tight and out 5 feet from the bank. Weightless on a 4.0 Gamakatsu EWG hook. I stayed on this pattern until the fog burned off or around 10:00am when the bite slowed. I then switched over to a weighted 5” Senko in various colors including green pumpkin/black fleck and numerous others with a combination of green and red. Unbelievably nothing in purple/blue combinations worked as well for me. I used a Bullet screw in nose weight in 1/16th or 1/8th. This combo caught 95% of my fish. I did catch some on a Fat Senko, 6” Senko and a 6.75 Kut Tail. I caught some peanuts cruising weedlines using a Ned and 2.5 inch Scope Shad. The dink bite was too strong with that bait. There were 2 patterns that emerged after the early morning bank bite died off and where we caught our quality fish. Reeds and wood. More specifically isolated reeds and wood. The lake has areas of standing wood that normally produce. There is a submerged old orange grove where I caught my big fish last year but this year it was overrun with cormorants and did not produce. We did find other wood and it yielded some good fish. Far and away the best pattern was reeds and for me the more isolated the better. If I found a reed clump with 3 to 5 single stalks, I threw at it every time. Both my bigger fish came off this pattern and it held up all week. My partners big fish came off a reed bed no bigger than the boat and last in line were the reed islands. Other baits that caught a few fish were chatterbaits, swim jigs and spinnerbaits. My partners big fish came off the 5” weighted Senko but uses a “hitchhiker willow leaf blade” screwed into the tail. Well, there you have it, our latest trip to Headwaters and I’m currently back in Virginia waiting on a predicted 6 to 8” snowfall freezing my tail feathers off with a blaze roaring in the fireplace counting down the days to next year’s trip.

Boy, lots to chew on here. I feel like catching big bass is about knowing where they live, so knowledge, and of course skill to know how to present the right bait to them at the right time. A little luck never hurt, but I rely mostly on the latter and my results show it. I’m working on the knowledge and skill though. I believe you’re right @Swamp Girl about size in the north. Talking largemouth, anything over 4# here is a very good fish but you can expect a good angler to catch one regularly. Over 5# is a really good one, but likely happens a couple times a year for an experienced angler. Over 6# is a once/season event for a very good fisherman who spends a lot of time on the water but could be a once in a lifetime fish for the average angler. Over 7# is a freak. The blessing for my area is the same weights apply for smallmouth. In fact, 4’s and 5’s are very common on Lake Ontario / the St. Lawrence River, with 6+ not at all uncommon.

I like this and it might be why I prefer five four-pounders to one six-pounder. I can luck into bonking a six-pounder on the head by chance, but to land a bag of bigger bass requires cracking the code...for that day...at that pond/lake/bog.

That poor bass has a fish stuck in his mouth😐. What a crappie day its having..... For OP, big baits catch big bass, they also catch small and medium sized bass. But the bigger the bait, the bigger the chance of catching a big one. Is it worth it? That depends on the person, and where they are fishing. I fish tons of lakes with 0 shad, i still throw white baits and lures. Guys also catch big bass on trout swimbaits in places without trout too. The number 1 issue with swimbaits is the time it takes and persistence you need to have. You have to make peace with throwing a big swimbait/glidebait for hours upon hours over and over again with 0 success while knowing at any time a jerkbait/crankbait/bladed jig/jig/Texas rig would actually catch more bass. But you arent throwing a swimbait for hours looking to catch bass, you are doing it looking to catch a big one. So to me its worth it.

There is a old saying that states you can't get a hit unless you swing the bat. That Nessie bait or something like it is something that I personally didn't feel like it would produce for me but I was wrong. I wish to encourage you just to try. I can say that the Nessie works for me.

Couple of mine from 1/4.

this was my logic that got me started. A 6" magdraft is the perfect entry into swimbaits. A modest jig rod can throw it. The profile isn't really any bigger than a bladed jig or spinnerbait with trailer. And bass from 12" and up will eat it. Aggressively. I bought one and it worked. Then I fished it more and it worked more. So this year I have a couple more, a pair of 8", and some hard swimbaits to go with it.

Me too. Meeting someone head-on, both boats should veer to starboard to avoid each other, but I don't know how many times I have seen the other boat turn the wrong way. I will completely take a 90 degree starboard turn well ahead of time just to avoid a boat whose driver doesn't seem to know right-of-way etiquette on the water. Meeting a boat coming from your starboard side, you are the port side boat and the one who is supposed to yield, but I don't know how many times I have seen this violated either by people who aren't aware, or who just don't care. I make a habit of avoiding getting too close to these boats because one never knows which way they will choose to go.

For me, I have had the best success with baits in the 6in range, like the Megabass Magdraft, Deps Slide Swimmer 175, and the 5.5 Volup Swimmer.

I'm not a big swimbait guy, but I do mix in some soft swimbaits. A 6" mag draft doesn't amount to a much bigger profile/water 'push' than a spinnerbait, and I'll throw them in similar situations. I think there is a point where big swimbait fishing becomes 'bear hunting', but I think that stuff in that 6" - 7" range has a place in the regular rotation of an average joe. -Jared

Where is the science on the soft rayed theory? I remember watching “The Nature of Fishing” on YouTube and he said that Largemouths evolved those big mouths because it made them more efficient at preying on bluegill and their relatives. I also am not sold on the ancient war between the bass and crawdads. I think they will jump on them like a fat kid on a bag of Doritos when given the option. They just like to eat them.

I am not in the Big Swimbait camp. Tried it for a few seasons here in the north woods both at night and during the day, and my big bass numbers actually declined quite a bit. I am not implying that it's a waste of time, just sharing my experience. Unless you enjoy throwing big baits and it improves your fishing experience, I would recommend passing on it and simply fishing traditional techniques that closely match the main forage (size, shape and profile) the bass in the waters you fish primarily feed on seasonally. A-Jay

Absolutely. They eat big gills shiners and perch, match the hatch! You’d be surprised what you’ll catch. Also smallies love swimbaits too. I’ve caught a lot of big crappies on big 7 inch wake baits at night. Big walleyes, pike, musky, salmon, brown trout and lake trout will eat swimbaits too.

EPIC !!!! Sounds like a dream day on the water!

A 7" nessie is $10 and you can throw it on just about anything. Test and report back if you get any bites or followers

Mine is forgetting my game plan the instant my foot hits the front deck and I revert to my thought process as a teenager. It's kind of like what happens when you head into a room to do something and as soon as you pass through the doorway to that room, you forget why you were going in there (anyone over 50 can relate). In my case, I research the body of water, the weather for the previous few days as well as the current trend, put together a plan and a back up in case I'm way off base, etc. l go over the plan in my head as I drive to the lake, to the point that I visualize putting it in action, launch the boat, park and untie from the dock and the second my foot hits the deck...................................

Hey, that’s doubles digits. Just say you caught a 12 and leave it at that. 👍🏻

I know you said tackle, but I haven’t reorganized yet so haven’t dug it all out. But you seem bored so here is the bulk of the new reel lineup. I got an unexpected gift certificate from work so the three reels I was on the fence about all made it to the cart. The last one just came in the mail today. There is a new stradic not in this picture also. From left to right zillion, chronarch, two bantams, an aldebaran bfs, and two Mets. these will be the bulk of what I fish through the year. A few more reels will make spot duty depending on the lake and day.

Lake record is 10lbs 15oz, caught not too long ago in a tournament on the guys first cast of the morning on a DT6, he’s got a good video of it on YouTube. Our state record is only a pound heavier. I’ve caught more fish over 7 out of that lake than all other lakes in the state combined, but I’ve never broke 8 yet.

I think I know the answer

Found it online for 30% off and free shipping...

I'm surprised some of those fish can even swim with how fat they are, my goodness.

Fish are not high enough on the intellect scale to have a temper to be angry. Territorial protection shouldn’t be confused with anger. Crayfish (crawdads) are high in protein as a food source, don’t know where your information is coming from? The majority of giant bass caught in California were caught on live crawdads. I am an exception using jigs that replicate crawdads because jigs allowed me to cover more water and not anchor. Tom

I'm with @Pat Brown in terms of speed. My PB and a majority of my big bass have come from ripping a bladed jig or spinnerbait around. I used to think you had to drag a worm to really entice a big on, no more. Also, to another comment, it seems downsizing has done better for me than larger baits. My PB was caught on a mini-max with a cut down split tail trailer. Mentioning the seasons, all of my memorable big fish have come pre spawn or at the tail end of fall right before/at lake turnover. Not to say I havent caught a decent one in summer/spring months but its much easier and more abundant in the pre spawn/fall timeframe. For me, like @Choporoz if I'm intentionally hunting for bigger fish I will up and move if I'm bringing in fish under 3lbs. I have yet to bring in the 4, 5lb+ fish when catching smaller. Everyone needs a bit of luck to catch a big fish but having the skill to put yourself in the position (time, area, season, etc.) with a suitable lure and presentation significantly increases your luck. My opinons may change when/if I can start landing a DD or 2.

I don't really head to the lake with the mindset that "I'm going to catch a new PB today." I just don't. I'm sure some do. For me it's just not a realistic expectation. My strategy is two fold: as others have stated, fish bodies of water that are known to have a reasonable population of sizable bass, and timing. Bass are at their biggest during two periods: prespawn and fall. Doesn't mean you can't catch bigger fish outside of those two periods, but the odds are better. You can determine if a body of water has a reasonable population of sizable bass two ways: in MN, the DNR keeps sampling records posted, so you can check those. Or, you can rely on personal data and/or data from others because you fish there frequently. I fish about 1-2 times/week between April - October and although I rarely have a poor outing, I go enough that at some point I feel confident that I'm going to run into a few just by the mathematical odds. The more you fish, the more likely it's going to happen. I look at it like deer hunting; the more time I'm hunting during the season, the more likely I'll encounter deer. This is yet another reason I also prefer to spread out my fishing during the course of the entire season rather than going on one or two week-long trips. The odds are just better that way.

Except when it doesn't. I've caught just as many big fish (8+ lbers) ripping and burning baits around as I have dragging or dead sticking. I would probably say a significant number more!

Just about every basshead at some point gets the itch to fish for and catch big bass. Some even go for it. However success comes at a cost. IMO it boils down to Location, Timing, Presentation & Persistence ~ The list of bassheads that make it happen is far shorter than the ones that do not. Main two reasons might be fishing on water that has no big bass and or just plain giving up. Is one big bass better than several smaller/juvenile bass ? Only you can decide. Fish Hard A-Jay .

More often than not, I'm known to be long winded (my wife will verify this). This isn't one of those times. What I can say is that we value, respect and love you. Our thoughts, prayers, and good medicine are with you in this journey. It'll be an emotional roller coaster but try to remain positive, Prayers work. Meditation works. Miracles can happen. FWIW, my mom was a 40 year breast cancer survivor and that was when treatment protocols were primitive by today's standards. I believe it was in a large part due to her fierce belief that she would defeat it and she did. Love & Light,

That’s the one I have. I’m actually wearing it in my profile photo. I bought that jacket and matching pants March 2023. It’s lightweight and uninsulated. Good for summer rain gear. I can’t really help you with the sizing though. I tried mine on at the store before purchasing. I’ll be honest, I had to try on 3 different sizes before I found the one I liked too. If it were me I’d go to the store and try it on first.

Well I snagged a like new 7.3 Tatula CT off of FB marketplace for $75. Probably gonna end up on my 7’2” H+F BLX for Magdrafts and Cullshads

The BR crew is doing it all, catching big numbers, big bass, and even big drum plus delicious bream. All the weights are up except for @thediscochef's scale!

I saw 68 degrees just south of your pocket. I never made it around the corner to go check it out. I had mixed results last week. Chatterbaits one day, flashy head spinner w/small Houdini swimming fluke one day, & wacky worm another day. I had one day I saw multiple bass blow up/come out the water busting 1.5" shad and couldn't buy a bite with anything. I think I remember you talking about a 1/8 rattle trap, that might have been perfect, but didn't have anything that small. I tried 1/4 oz without success. Main lake fog was really bad quite a few days. My buddy had to idle back to LaNann from Clear Creek. He cut straight across the lake because of people running by GPS not able to see 50 yards ahead.

I've pulled some big rays in from the bay as well, hard fighting underwater sails. They do have a weird leather feel, the sharks are more like wet worn sandpaper.

Thanks! She hit like a freight train. And yes, I have. Just over 40lbs since mid November. I appreciate that you noticed

Go with 10 lb braid. It breaks any where from 17 to 20+. You could go even lower considering your goal is finesse. If you don’t want deal with all the known defiencies of fluorocarbon consider using 8-10 lb mono for leader material.