Crestliner2008

First off, are you fishing from a boat or are you shorebound? If in a boat, google Dan Gapan and "Slipping" a river system. This knowledge is paramount to your success. Dan has been guiding on the Mississippi for generations. His books are true masterpieces to the art of river fishing. Learn to slip and get a copy of his book, "Big River Fishing" and you will be well on your way to having many successful days on the water.

I don't have Facebook either!

I like Fireline. Have been using it for years. Especially in the lighter tests. I highly recommend the Crystal version. Just recently loaded one rig with 10# test PP. Looks promising. Do not overfill your spools. Do not "snap cast" hard - that should eliminate your wind knots.

1/16 oz. ball head jigs with a 2" curly tailed grub. Any color that perks your interest.

Look at getting yourself a 6' - 7' spinning rod with a medium-light rating. Match it with a light reel such as a 1500 series Shimano Sahara. If that's too expensive, look at an Abu Cardinal 101. Fill the reel with 6# test fluorocarbon - or a quality monofilament - and you're good to go. Get a couple of dozen 1/8 oz. ball head jigs and some 3" - 4" curly tailed grubs of your color selection. Put the curly tails on those jigs and you'll get your share of smallies in short order. Just remember to always cast up-stream and retrieve down stream, or quartering down. Target eddys, current breaks of any kind and especially bridge pilings. Good Luck!

Elwood "Buck" Perry commented to a reporter one time, that he wanted the fish to see his line, so it would know where the lure was! Kinda makes sense on some level, doesn't it! However, to answer your question, a fluorocarbon leader is probably a good idea when using sub-surface presentations, with a braid as your main line. I do not subscribe to the notion that fluorocarbon is totally invisible, but it does reduce visibility of the line somewhat, if that is something you are concerned about. Don't believe it has no stretch either....it does. The biggest benefit of a fluoro leader is in it's abrasion resistance. Braided lines (all brands) abrade quite easily, when run across rocks, trees and even some tough weeds. Fluorocarbon abrades somewhat less. But again, do not believe that it is impervious to nicks and scratches either. It's all about putting the odds in your favor and increasing your confidence level. Try it and see for yourself.

This topic does speak highly of the tenacity and strength of this knot, doesn't it! A razor blade or sharp knife is the easiest removal tool.

Cabelas and BPS carry it. Google it on their site for the brand each carries. Sometimes you can get it in the salt water bait section of Dicks too. It was awhile ago that I bought some, so I don't remember the particular brand, but as long as it's "tie-able" wire, you should be set.

Try rigging the Sweet Beaver on a 1/8 oz. weighted swimbait hook. Keeps the bait level on the fall, snag resistant and a very productive presentation. R.I. makes some fine baits.

We've been dealing with a lot of rain & wind the past couple of weeks. It has finally settled down now and we are finally getting back out on the water. Launched the boat at 8 am, with water temps in the mid to upper 50's. Light and variable breezes made the trip very pleasant. We were on our way home by early afternoon. Here are a few of the pictures taken. Picked up a decent laker right off on a blade bait: I also picked up a nice smallie, but on a tube in 30' of water: We do not fish bedding fish at all, so finding quality smallies such as this, at this time of the year, can be a challenge! I missed a crushing bite on a swimbait in this area as well, but was never able to seal the deal on it. It happens. My partner also nailed a good smallie: We picked up a couple of smaller bass, but they were taken also in deeper water, vs. the shoreline bedding areas. We marked several large schools of young-of-the-year perch, but could not buy a strike from the fish associating with them. All we could get was the bait itself, on the drop shot: Fun morning to be on the water. First pleasant fishing day in weeks! Hope some of you Mass anglers were able to hit the water as well.

Get some tie-able wire and use it to connect your lure to your main line. No more visible that the braid you are using. Personally, I would not use braid as insurance against bite offs. Braid is much less abrasion resistant than normal fluorocarbon leader material. Which is why most braid fishermen use fluorocarbon leaders. However, even fluoro won't guard against pike bite offs, unless you start getting into the really heavy stuff, such as 50 - 75 pound tests. Only steel works. The tie-able wire is not bad to work with and does cure that problem.

Very nice!

As has been said, fish eddys, points, wing dams or bridge pilings. Anything that interrupts current flow is paramount. Get yourself a few dozen 1/8 oz. plain ball head jigs and a variety of 3" curly tailed grubs in your choice of colors. Always cast upstream, bringing your lure down current as much as possible. You'll get bit.

Welcome to the forum! Best there is. Some good advice already given, but if you are really concerned about it, try back reeling, instead of relying on the drag. Extremely effective technique. I use to back reel all the time, but getting older now I enjoy listening to the whining of the drag being stripped off. Music to my ears.

Absolutely! Rigged on a weighted swimbait hook, these baits are equally as effective as spinnerbaits for bass under windy conditions. I like the SK Shadalicious myself, but even some solid body models, such as the Keitech Swing Impact on a jig head or swimbait hook will work.

Scout out the bait fish schools with your sonar. Where the food is, is where the bass will be, regardless of whether or not they are relating to humps, points or channels. If I can find bait, I can usually locate some active fish.

Fat Ika, rigged reverse.

Great visual! I'm still chuckling. BTW....toss in a few dryer sheets in your boat when you put it away. Will keep bugs and critters away.

For mosquitoes, I use Ben's 100% DEET lotion, which I apply to exposed skin areas BEFORE to going fishing. After applying I wash my hands and apply a small drop to the top of each hand and rub the tops to distribute a light film there. This way my palms & fingers are not coated with the lotion and any perceived fish repellancy is diminished. Now I also treat all my fishing jeans, shirts and hats with Permetrin spray. This insecticide works wonders on ticks. And one treatment last for 4 machine washings. I also have 3 pairs of socks treated with this, as well as my shoes; this, combined with the DEET, makes shore fishing so much more bug free.

Blade baits & hard jerkbaits work.

I've caught countless numbers of decent crappie on a simple 1/16 oz. ball head jig head, dressed with a 2" curly tailed grub, of your color choice.

Check out this site: http://www.thetrustees.org/places-to-visit/berkshires/goose-pond.html

The 1 1/2 oz. Musky Size Johnson spoon is a great big pike bait, with or without a trailer. Just make sure you use a steel leader!

Try a Berkley 5" Flat Back Shad swimbait on a 1/2 oz. - 3/4 oz. shad shaped jig head. The action is great.

I agree....this is awesome!