aceman387

Happy Birthday !!!!

The only way it could have been worse is if Brett Favre wearing a packers jersey was hitting on her...lol. from one bear fan to another.

This is really a great topic. It should be required reading for all the young people who are just getting into this sport. I wish i had read this a few years ago when i got back into bass fishing,i would have a lot more money put away and i would be able to fit my truck in my garage...lol. (lets face it buying tackle is fun) I remember reading a quote from Catt years ago that stuck with me,it was something like catching bass has more to do with what's between your ears and less with what's between the folds of your wallet.

Do you have any rubber worms? Buy some berkley power worms in blue fleck or black and try texas rigging them weightless and drag them across those lilly pads slowly,even letting the worm fall into open pockets and slowly fall down. When things get tough i will rig small robo worms and yamamoto shad shape worms the same way. I will rig a 4"yum dinger (senko) wacky and cast it out and use it as a top water lure by keeping the rod tip up and flexing the tip as i reel it in slowly,try doing that across those lilly pads. Buy your self a white spinnerbait,its a good basic all around search bait.

I almost bought one during the winter cabin fever suicidal lull time...lol I even had an alex rod picked out to go with it,but since i fish so much clear water and i love finesse fishing with smaller weightless soft plastics i wasn't sure if i had a need for it. I cant wait to hear your review on it Bill. This winter lull is approaching quickly and this might be the winter i buy myself a baitcasting combo for my jig fishing.

I ran out to my truck to look in my fishing vest and i must have lost them today while i was out in my kayak...lol. There are all kinds of brands and they sell them at bps or a local bait shop should have them.I just go with one of the smallest sizes so the weeds don't get caught on it.

When the spinning reels first came out they were made here,now they are made in china like everybody else.

I fish a few strip pits here in Illinois and my favorite soft plastics are a 4" wacky rigged watermelon yum dinger, yamamoto shad shape worms in watermelon and shad color. I like to texas rig the shad shape worms weightless on a 1/0 ewg hook and toss it near some cover or along the shoreline and let it float down slowly. Drop shotting and small robo worms work great in gin clear strip pits,try using those shad shape worms on your drop shot also. I have good luck using the bps brand triple ripple grubs in watermelon rigged on 1/8 jig heads and just throw it out,let it sink and reel back in,sometimes mixing up the retrieve for a different look. You might hear people telling you to go with all greens and browns but i have caught bass on all kinds of colors from bright pink and black to one of my favorites a blue fleck colored berkley power worm. I have seen other anglers in the pits by me catch bass on spinnerbaits,swim baits, rattle traps,jerk baits etc. I don't know if you peg you worm weights or not but i find it helpful pegging the worm weight to the worm with a rubber bobber stopper,It will come through the weeds with less hang ups. I like fishing the tops of the humps and ledges in the early morning and then parking my kayak on top of them as the sun gets higher and casting out to the deeper water.I look for humps,ledges drop offs,anywhere shallow water leads to deeper darker water.

I am going with an angry Pacu....lol.

I think you will hear some negative feedback coming soon on here but i haven't had a problem at all.I fish mainly gin clear strip pits and quarries so i bought them for their longer casting distance. I bought one of the bass pro shop versions and i prefer the U S ones i have.

I have had three of their spinning reels for over five years now and i have never had to do a thing to them besides lube them. I bought one because it was something different and i liked it so much i bought a couple more later on. I use them everyday.

They are a tropical fish and wouldn't survive the winters here in Illinois.

I solo it most of the time in my kayak because my wife is not much of a bass fisherman. She prefers fishing for crappie or perch with a slip bobber on the rare occasion she does fish. Her sport of choice is bow hunting.

One hungry little guy...lol.

I know of an old guy who caught one here in Illinois (Maple lake,for some of the Illinois guys)I thought he told me it was 18" long. He said it put up a heck of a fight. He caught it on a slip bobber and a worm.

Do you peg your worm weight against the hook or let it slide freely? If I am fishing in thick stuff I like to use rubber bobber stoppers to pin my weight against the hook to minimize weed problems.

I think its pretty tough to outsmart bass when your approaching a shoreline.I think the best thing you can do once you get close to shore is slow to down and fish like a heron does,slow and stealthy.

I bet he has aged considerably since i joined 5 years ago. I am sure my earliest posts must have driven him to double up on his high blood pressure medicine...lol. Fear of another long mike beat down has improved my spelling considerably. Long mike i owe you a guinness at the next road trip. p.s my punctuation still needs some work. Be patient with me...lol.

It looks like a nice serene spot for a kayak or a canoe.I love exploring places like that in my kayak. Nature Rules!

Welcome by the way! Is this site addicting or what....lol

I love bottom contact fishing with a high end rod, i find it meditating. My favorite fall lure is a 5/16 oz black & blue jig with a zoom u vibe craw trailer.

Try typing that in on the search on this section. I could be wrong but i thought Darren m who posts on here often has one.

I was confused by the name. I think you will love those jigs.I researched them during the winter and i couldn't find anything bad about them.I almost bought some but i have so much tackle inventory lying around (soft plastic,jig junkie) i was afraid i wouldn't get around to trying them...lol.

Yikes thats cold! Pretty soon all us will be dressed up like the kid in the christmas story movie who can't put his arms down to his sides...lol.