Preston

Alright, my situation is clear lake probably 70% smallmouth 30% largemouth. The lake is in Tennessee where we have had a freak show winter. It snowed one day and the next day it was 60. A cold front moved in 2 days before we start fishing and lets say it stays for the fishing. O yea and the lake does not have that much vegetation if any. And there aren't many flats. Any advise would be great cause im a little inexperienced when it comes to winter fishing. All i know is im gonna be wearing 2 jackets.

good color for smallmouth, even in clear water

Infisherman did an article on this not too long with smallmouth. They said they would return to the spot (or general area) they were caught at. Smallmouth are "home" oriented fish and they stay in the same basic areas but just change depth, now they will leave these areas too spawn and to feed but usually food will be in that spot, because that's why they are there in the first place. With the different season they will move deeper and shallower but will still stay in the basic area. So if you tend to catch big smallmouth in a certain place in the fall, you will probably find them there in most other season just at a different depth. Now this is not my information but that of infisherman, but I do agree with that article because I have found smallmouth at one spot and it never fails to produce in the summer, after I read this I really worked this spot over in all seasons just at different depths and I found I almost always can pick at least one fish of this spot.

This is about my 4th year fishing and ive got a 4 1/2 smallmouth 22 inches caught on a Rapala Countdown, and then a 4 largemouth on a 1/16 ounce bitsy bug jig. Im hunting a 5lb smallmouth this year but i hope this freakshow warm winter in Tennessee wont mess up the prespawn.

All i know is that id be pretty happy if i could net one 2lb fish EVERYTIME i go out. Never get skunked again, man that be nice especially in this time of year.

I would just fish as a usally do but i have gotten extremly mad at a fisherman before but it was for slightly diffrent reasons. We had some young kids swimming around the dock then some hotshot in his brand new Ranger deciedes that our docks seems like the right place to fish. He threw a spinnerbait close to a rods length away from one of the kids and a lost it. I mean i dont care if it was KVD but your not throwing somthing with hooks near my family no matter how good you are. After some choice words the guy got in his boat and cranked up his 250 merc and made the biggest wake he could pull out of that boat for our dock. I dont care even if im only sitting on the dock but if kids our in the water i would just pass the dock and keep going. But avis the way you explained your deal i believe you oughta keep fishing his dock as long as theres fish to catch.

I would love to live on a place like Clear Lake but i dont think id trade Tennessee for the world. Mainly becuase you dont have the chance to catch the world record smallmouth. Some think im crazy but id rather hold the smallmouth record.

Despite some shows not actully "catching thier own fish," fishing shows on TV is a very useful learning tools that is much easier to concentrate on than reading. What do yall think are the most informative shows on TV? I say Infisherman/Angling Edge Fishing University Bill Dance

Winters ruff stuff, im just happy i can find a 60 degree day in the middle of winter every now and again. I love Tennessee. ;D

RW, that's the main problem of mine, the fishing forward. I sortove found a way to help that but it kills your back and ive had some close calls of falling into the water. I sit on top of where the battery is placed but i cant last more than 2 hours without having to get out on the dock and do a routine of walk, lay, and stretch for about 15 minutes. You dont get that much more movement but it helps a little. And fishing on windy days does get very frustrating at times. But i can't complain because i upgraded from a paddleboat. Also we got a great deal on it becuase a family friend had it and sold it becuase he was having problems with his kness. And thanks guys ill check into the Old Town Loon and the Wilderness Systems.

I was wondering if anyone fished out of a kayak and what are the pros and cans of the kayak you fish. I fish out of an Ocean Kayak Ambush. It's 2 seater with a trolling moter mount on the back of it. It has a wide body for stability. I also have a bottom line fish/depth finder. Now i know it sounds redicilous to have a depthfinder on a kayak but i was lucky enough to get it for free. The only problem i have with it is its very large and heavy. And it would be almost impossible for me to take it to a river becuase the trolling moter would get in the way and its exeremly hard to paddle. Though it works great for a still water situation i was thinking about saving up to get a smaller 1 seater for fishing rivers and also for ease of transportation.

I'm going to steal some others guys but i think the best would be 1. bubblegum seed 2. blushing bass 3. fire shad

I used to post on this forum a year or two ago before it changed. When it changed, some of the people that I used to look for stopped posting as much so I stopped coming here. I have just "refound" the greatness of this forum. There are SO many different people here, which makes for a wealth of information and helpfulness. There are kids as well as old-timers sharing their experiences and their points of view on this great sport. I am amazed at the friendliness and the helpful attitudes of all the people here. The people the advertise on this site don't just push their products or there service but actually get on here and post about things that are not at all related to their service, where else do you find that! This is the best bass fishing site on the internet as far as im concerned. With the assortment of articles and this forum I can't think of a better place to learn about this sport, well other than on the water. Another thing is the wealth of information the moderators have. And last but not least, kudos to Glenn on truly giving something back to the sport by running this site. I was just feeling like I had to give congrats to EVERYONE on this forum, for making it such a great place to learn about fishing. And also congrats and making it such a welcome place for beginning fisherman.

I agree with all the guys that this site has everything you need but try not to do what i did and buy a ton of baits. Just get a few baits and learn how to use them and gain confidence in them, THEN get a FEW other baits and do the same and eventually you will have 3 or 4 full tacklebox's of baits like me. But you will know how to use all of them, unlike me . Good luck and you found a great site with one of the best forums youll ever see.

The general rule is natural in clear, such as shad, silver, and bluegill patterns. Then in off colored water you go with all the other stuff that looks like nothing that could possibly be real. BUT sometimes especially with smallmouth the colors you would use in off colored water such as chartreuse and firetiger work wonders in clear water. But the best advice I can give you is stick to the general rule and EXPEREMENT in the water you fish to see what works best for you. Good luck and Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays.

Well alot of it has too do with people just dont know. Ever since i started fishing i started realizing the people i would ride with that were non fisherman would get not way to close, but closer than they needed to. I always try to make it a point to tell them to steer clear of the fishermen and after ive told them theyve stopped from what ive seen. I just think that some of these people just dont think about it becuase tehy dont know the problems they are causing. But fisherman who blow past me while im in my kayak going 70 and are bout flipping me i have a seirous problem with becuase they know better.

Theres no words to describe the feeling of having a person you taught how to fish OUTFISH you on YOUR home lake. I dont know if its bad or good. It happened to me and i was at a loss for words cuase i taught him how to use a spinning reel and how to do eveyhitng. Now hes teaching me, you gotta love fishing.

Oh i know that its ruff, my good friends dad is on FLW and he has to WORK to get there. I was just saying if all it was, was throwing string in water and waiting for fish then it would be easy. And have you ever been tempted to just take a big ol crankbait and just chuck it right out at one of those jetskiers. Never will do it but always will want to.

Biggest i ever got i swore it was a carp untill it got to the boat right before it took off under the boat. The only reason was a had caught a carp the cast right before and it took me about 20 minutes to get the hooks out of his mouth. Anyways i was using a Rapala countdown in firetiger on March 1st of 2002. I threw it out to a point with a patch of stumps on it counted down about 5 feet then started a crank and stop. About half way back to the boat somthing knocked it and it wasnt too much of a fight at first (sortove like pulling in a log) but right when he saw the boat its like he put on a jetpack and headed for deep water. After i got him in he was 4 1/2 lbs. and 22 inches. Not bad for on a kayak.

Do yall ever get the line, "fishing is just taking a pole and throwing some string in water with a hook and waiting for a fish to swim by." I really don't know what to say to it but that those pros found a real easy way to make money.

Well i love fishing for brown bass and there is nothing better than snagging a huge one. What yalls biggest smallmouth and how did you catch it. What lure, what time of year, what presentation, and what was the weather. I figure telling storys lets us brag a little but it also helps others learn.

Whats the most "original" way you fish. It could be anything like coming up with a new rig, new lure, lucky socks, or just a wierd presentation. Everyone has there wierd things that they only do but they work, or at least we think they do cuase then why would we do them?

Now its been too long since ive gotten out but i have to Harpith River about 5 minutes away. But this river at most points isnt much of a river more like a large stream. Ive caught some small smallmouth and largemouth there but i think theres potiontal for bigger fish cuase i caught i 5 lb drum. Well im think about going out there soon and if anybody has any tips of what to use out there. Any help would be great.

1. 1/16 ounce bitsy bug when their around shallow LIGHT cover. I know its small and very finesse but it works great but you just have to be careful with the light line. 2. 3 inch grub on a 1/8 ounce jig head will garentee a fish for me. 3. And my favorite is fishing a Rapala all the diffrent ways you can fish it. Its the most versital hard bait there is and its fun to fish.

I dont know much about this but if your fishing clear water dont wear red. Ive seen to many fish run deep while i was wearing my red Dayton shirt.