J Francho

Agile Coach for software development. I occasionally write code.

You're welcome to fish Honeoye all summer. You practically have it to yourself. And you'll catch a ton of 11" fish. Maybe even luck into a 5 pounder. You seem determined to prove everyone wrong, so I think you're the guy to do it. I'll be next door at Conesus culling fives.

Done it several/many times. You have to check the bottom makeup before attempting. Typically, it's just the skeg that is in the muck around here. I don't think I've ever tried in sand. I suppose you run the risk of hitting something unseen, but that risk is always there.

Docks and fallen trees.

I've been doing quite a bit of boat shopping, and draft is one of my sticking points. Many of the boat makers don't list draft, but suffice it to say 20" is about average. From experience, it took around 30-36" to get my 18' aluminum up on plane from a stand still, but on plane I only needed around 12-15".

Just in time for tomato planting!

I'll add that I'm not a big fan of riding down waves with the wind. That's the situation where I feel least in control.

Ideally, you wouldn't go out in rough water. Almost always it's getting back that is the issue. As the sun rises, so do wind speeds, and height of waves.

Or use a ruler. Catch and release records are by length.

Right. Read my tongue in cheek response again.

Striped bass <> Smallmouth Bass.

I have rarely ever seen a bass jump, unless it's one that is hooked or broke a bait off and the hook is stuck in it's face.

I'd be curious what you cannot cast that you can troll that you'd use every day. Sounds like a unique situation.

Not so sure the data bears this out. Good post, and thanks for putting it up here!

I'm sure it would get bit, but it's probably not something I would try. In my head it's like putting wheels on wheels to get something to roll when it's already rolling - a little redundant, not necessarily better. I feel like the kick of the trailer would interfere with the kick of the blade, too. I don't want to discourage anyone though. You can pretty much put any trailer on anything with a hook.

Regulations clearly say catch and immediate release. Transport is illegal.

I think they're just scattered in the slop that makes up most of the place in summer. Seeing as there are 20+ lb. bags to be had on a relatively decent day so minutes away is more likely the reason no one has it figured out.

Rebel Deep Wee-R and Deep Craws will go pretty deep. Those were go to baits back in the day because they ran true without spinning out as much as compared to many other baits. I'm gonna say trolling is THE way, and I probably won't ever do it again, but lacking anything other than rudimentary sonar and basic paper mapping, this was one way to solve the issue. The only reason I see today to troll for anything is because you can't cast what you are trying to entice the bite with. That situation rarely, if ever comes up in brown bass fishing.

I've read Buck Perry's books and it's similar. He complicated things that wouldn't make much sense where the structure was really just a gradual down ward slope a 100 miles wide. When I read his stuff it felt like we were already doing what he said, just not using his baits. By then there were better cranks than his spoon plugs. Most of my trolling techniques, with regard to turning, current, wind, and speed control I learned from uncle on his salmon charter.

Trolling is something rarely covered here, and barely covered in magazines of the past, at least with smallmouth as a target. Do some digging, and the techniques detailed for walleye and pike apply. I trolled the south shore of Lake Ontario for smallmouth starting at the tail end of the 80s, through the 90s, and into the early 2000s. The formula was catch any more than three on a spot or a pass, and it was time to switch to vertical baits. I still use the same techniques, except the only thing coming from the boat are SI frequencies and pings from the graph. Im looking for carpets of bait. That's where I focus. The Great Lakes are like deserts with small pockets that are an oasis for smallies. Much of where I fish lacks classic structure, so fish are scattered and concentrate in unlikely areas. yes, trolling is boring if you're unsuccessful. And bass boats are terrible at it. An open plan tiller with a throttle plate is the tool for this - one hand on the throttle, the other holding your favorite combo. I suppose livebait is always an option, but the price of the preferred fair far exceeds effective artificial baits. If you want to try them, a selection of leeches, pike minnows, soft shell crabs, and night crawlers will do. They often prefer one over the rest, that preference sometimes lasting days, causing many to declare one is better. Those guys married to one live bait get skunked. A typical split shot rig always worked best for me. So does a drop shot, if the snot moss is thick.

Yeah, but the car doesn't hug you when you get home from fishing. Glad she's okay.

I don't agree at all. Either is easy to walk with and neither poses any kind of problem for me. It's all in the wrists!

Oh man, is she doing okay?

Ran out of gas, lol.

Way cuter than trash pandas!