Blade-Runner

Another vote for the Shimano Clarus. I have a 6'6" MH/F that has served me well for years. Excellent for finesse blades up to Ledgebusters...

1/2 oz. War Eagle Screaming Eagle.

Handled one, really thought it was nice, but for 5$ less went with: 7'2" "Crankin' Carrot Stix" parabolic. This is my first and favorite "do it all" crankbait rod. Love it.

You're a little far north for threadfin, but I'd suggest a stocking of suitable forage species. Everybody gets crazy thinking about impacts of shad stocking on resident species (particularly YOY bass and gills), but it appears that you have the lake surface area and established adult fish predatory size structure to take advantage. I don't know if some of these authorities are fisheries biologists, but introducing forage species to attain your management goals doesn't always result in messed up growth patterns or diminished competition species... Place some prominent high-growth forage in your lake and grow your bass...It will work. With 50+ acres you have plenty of area and the predatory base established to get some serious growth going on w/ your gamefish.

I'm contemplating the same set-up you are (and re-evaluating what I'm using currently)... I am going w/ my Daiwa Viento 6:3.1 and I'm leaning towards the St. Croix 6'8" M/XF in the Avid or Legend Tournament Series (not based on the internet celebrities' opinions around here - on my own test/tune). It's hard getting that right fit for a "finesse" baitcasting setup that isn't so technique and lure weight-specific that it borders on your heavy-cover gear yet isn't light enough to be cause for using your spinning rods. I'm going to use the Viento I already own w/ 12-lb. Berkley 100% Fluoro and either the aforementioned St. Croix's or the 6'7" Falcon MH/XF Cara or Lowrider. Irrespective, I want a strong, light(er) rod but a fast, sensitive tip... I find that both St. Croix and Falcon "downgrade" their medium-power's enough to be multi-function and versatile enough to handle the heavier jigs/weights I sometimes fish on lighter line...

BTW - I *** you for getting in on the "running of the true basses". Nothing quite like it no matter what part of the country you're in. I'm grabbling for the 7 ft. spinning rod, the 1/8-3/16 jigheads, white curly-tails, and some gas money to get to any headwater I can find...

Man you can really feel that extra foot or so when setting the hook w/ a lot of line out... Especially when you're not using braid or you're in deep water, etc... "Give me a lever long enough and I'll move the Earth..."

Wiper.

7 footer unless you're river-fishing or you want a top-water specialty rod. My .02$ and I'm much worse of a fisherman than 90% of these guys... Post-edit: A sub-7-footer is nice for pinpointing spinnerbaits/drop baits if you fish over-hanging brush in reservoirs in your area.

You know more about the water you're fishing than any of us. And I'm not going to just recite some information out of a magazine that we've all read at some point or another... You know where deep, "ice-safe" channels exist...You know a lot of shallow, spawn-certifiable water exists. The reservoir you're fishing presents a tough situation. This time of year, although synonomous w/ big fish, pre-spawn aggression, etc...is still an unpredictable time. Maybe the most unpredictable of times... I'd just absolutely cover water w/ presentations you're confident with...If you have to "fish slow, fast..." so be it. Or, if you can spinnerbait/crankbait the shallows from the bank towards the channel drop to death, I'd do it...If you've got prototypical "channel to shallow" ledges or points that are obvious, well - hit them...If the reservoir is how I'm picturing it and they could be anywhere - I'd just bite the bullet, work my butt off, and put the bait of your intelligent choice/command in front of as many bass as possible... Sometimes you've just got to chunk and wind...

Nothing-looking, worthless-appearing banks w/ little-to-no cover but dark mud bottoms. NE to NW orientation. Shallower water but not *too* far off the main lake. Pre-spawn crappie-ish areas but use bass-size lures and abnormal patience...It will work. At least for a few fish.

Read the other posts fairly closely but didn't see it mentioned... Just wanted to add that in areas w/ decent current that that runoff "mud" band can exist high in the water column whereas the lower depths could be clear(er) than the top current area. I've experienced this scenario not only in a hydroelectric impoundment (not w/ <8 in. visibility, like you, though) but also in medium-size undammed river systems. Just because that top layer is muddy and colored doesn't always mean that the bottom layers aren't settled and/or clearer...

I've experienced very similar conditions to what you have described... Upon trying and contemplating, I found that catchable bass were found suspended, but high in the water column, just off deep cover. I'm not going to go ichthyologist on you, but I noticed that in the lakes I fish, bass would move out along laydowns, treetops, etc out towards deeper/open water but stay shallow. No-one ever fishes these areas. I'm talking about the top 1-4 ft. of water over 20 ft. just off of a downed tree, etc. Most folks are casting towards/parallel to the wood cover with their boats sitting right over where I'm catching the fish. The best baits I've used for fishing these areas are medium-heavy weight spinnerbaits fished w/ various retrieves, as well as mid-running cranks/lipless cranks. I find fish in the same areas (w/ similar water temperatures) that I would find them in clear lakes while utilizing a suspending jerk, but the water has very little visibility. It's almost as if they stay in that higher temperature surface area, located where the closer cover elements to their wintering depths exist, and hang (literally) in that zone. The fishing conditions aforementioned are synonomous w/ (in my locale) the 50-55 degree water temperatures and w/ visibility in the 4-12 inch range... It's just one of those patterns that most people don't think to try. As soon as it's high water, they are flipping and pitching...I have been trying something different and it's working...And these are dirty lake largemouth BTW!

A certain weight/brand spinnerbait I throw on a specific weight/brand of line and with a certain rod/reel combination.

What an awesome report! Thanks for sharing... The background reminds me of all those Boundary Waters areas we all *wish* in the back of our minds we could fish w/ a bass boat, multiple rigged rods, and a foot-controlled trolling motor!

7' MH Fast Action

7'2" E21 Carrot Crankin' Stix "Parabolic" action. I absolutely love it. Throwing everything from 1/4 oz. spinnerbaits to Bandits to 1/2 oz. traps to DD22s and Ledgebusters. That TOUR KVD feels awful good but I'm glad I got the carrot.

"When not to use flourocarbon?" When the inconsistency in product quality, memory and ill-handling characteristics (irrespective of various sprays and line lotions) tick you off to the point where you go back to the quality monofilaments you've used for 10-20 years to catch fish successfully... That said, I still use each of the "Big Three" (fluoro, mono, braid) for specific applications.

I've been hitting the municipal electric-only's and some local small lakes in the last week. They've heated up to the mid-50's (after bumping 60 10-14 days ago)... Have one public lake in particular that has been coughing up at least one 3+ lb'er every trip so far...It's fun fishing but it's high pressure, small water. And definitely not a numbers lake. Probably 100 casts to every fish hooked... We tested Prairie Creek (Delaware County) on Sunday and the surface temp. at the bottom 2/3rds of the lake was 47 degrees! I'm saying Thurs/Fri. of this week (forecast upper 60's and clear) are going to be the best shot so far of the year at a big pre-spawn. I'm going to be on the water...

Welcome to this excellent website! Now "volunteer" to take me fishing and duck-hunting at Reelfoot! ;D

Agreed w/ above suggestions. In that price range, the Premier would be about the top of the line. I would just cut it off as under 100$ and get a Premier cranking rod. Of course, the BPS crankin' stik is a great mid-range choice, and even the older Berkley Lightning Rods (IM6) made great crankbait rods (I had a 7' MH that was outstanding for 3/8 oz and up cranks, DD22's, and Ledgebusters)...

1/2 Oz. Black/Blue Rattling Jig w/ Large Bulky Dark Vibration-y Trailer As mentioned before, tight to any available cover...That's where they'll be.

It's worth it just so everybody will ask you to take out your carrot and let them hold it. But seriously, the parabolic E21 has been great for spinnerbaits and crankbaits. Only used it for a week but I really like it so far.

If it ain't chartruese, it ain't no use.

15# Big Game, 17# Berkley 100% Fluoro, 50# PowerPro.