webertime

Right on, thanks guys!

So yesterday my 3 month old Sahara started to sieze up and grind. I'm fed up with it and am going to get a Pflueger Supreme or Supreme XT. My question is which size should I get? The 30 (7.4oz. 6lb/160yds) or the 35 (8.8oz. 8lb/200yds). My Sahara was a 2500/3000 size (switched between spools). My gut is telling me 35. This set up is/will be used for senkos, tubes, D-Shot, and River Smallies. Thanks for the help!

I just got a Lamiglas Excel 703 spinning rod and have fished it in one tournament and for 3 other outings. This is a really really impressive rod for the $$$. Casts amazingly well and you can feel everything. I know everyone says that... but you can tell when you hit Milfoil as opposed to Coontail. You can feel the different textures... Call me crazy if you want but I am super impressed with this rod. ~$90 depending on the store and coupon/code you use. I have multiple $400+ Sage,Scott and Orvis fly rods and this rod is every bit as impressive as those.

Exactly...

BPS Clunn (RCX) is Purple and feels like a broom handle...

Take a gander at Cabela's right now, some sick deals (All Star, Carrot Stix, Quantums).

Browns spend an amazing amount of time against undercut banks. My brother is a Trout guide in VT and New Zealand and he's caught Browns that are almost black on one side and bright on the other because they have lived for years against undercut banks and just swoop out to grab bugs, rodents and birds that fall in. The larger fish (any Trout) will usually be at the head of any given pool because that gives them first dibs on the food drifting down the river. That position does make them harder to catch which is why you might be missing them. If you are getting Stockies you are probably getting them at the bottom or tail of a pool where the current is less and the less "dominant" fish are. Fishing at night with large mouse-type or streamer flies or if you are using spinning gear toss big floating Rapalas, UP stream and drag them down/across back to you. Trout (any river fish of size) will rarely go upstream after a meal, it's just not efficient for them to do so, so they wait for them to get washed to them. Finally if there's rain in the forecast get out there and fish it as it starts to muddy up the water, Browns get waaaaaaaay more ballsy during that time. Biggest Browns I've ever caught were where a stream emptied into a larger river (Your Oregon "river" is the same as my Vermont "river") in the first 2 hours of a rain storm. Good luck! PS Stocked Rainbows are called "Genetic Pollution" around here.

LM: Backwards Fat Ika (green pumpkin/black flake) 5/0 Gamy ewg (7lbs). SM: Tiny Torpedo (baby bass) (5.25lbs)

My Sahara didn't. My understanding is anything higher than the Symetre comes with one. The Sahara up all use the same spools, I ebay'd a Saros spool for ~$20.

Replace the hook with a big steelhead streamer fly... hold on.

Take an egg fly and a brown shaprie... winner winner chicken dinner!

If you ever want to get together I'll show you the joy of Yo-Zuri Pin's and Ika's (and sweet VT'er arm tanlines) 4.5lbs 20"

2" Silver and Blue (or Black) Rapalas. Silver spinners. White or Yellow Jigs work as well. That's not a big (but it is DEEP) pond. With all of the other species that you list I'd tend to think that there probably aren't many of them. They are easier for Largemouths and Crappie to eat than young sunnies & bullhead so their population probably gets kept in check pretty well. My "backyard" pond is 54 acres (only 12' deep) and has the same species. And there really aren't many Perch for that very reason.

Ribbit's, and Rage Shad. I do have a soft spot for Crazy Crawlers and Jitterbugs.

I've been tossing 5" Magic Swimmer Soft since mid April up here. I had a few hits, but never landed anything. I really got kinda bummed out about them, $15 wasted I thought. I relegated them to by 2nd rod/"why the heck not" time. Today I had 3 hours to kill before we had guests and I went up to my local pond. I've already pulled a 7, 6.6, 6 and a few 5's out of there so I know it's got some good fish, but it's usually one good fish a couple smaller ones and about 2.4million G.D. Pickerel... Today nothing was working (Ika, Senko, Subwalk, Rage Shad, Ribbit) so I tied on the Sebile and for the first time gave it a good rubbing with Mega Strike. First cast 5lbs... hmmm 2 casts later, 6lbs, I went on like this for the next hour, 5 Largemouth over 5lbs, a few 2's, a huge Pickerel (5lbs.) and even a Perch that was only 2 inches bigger than Sebile! It was a great 3 hours, just an epic afternoon. Now the problem... The Sebiles are torn up as all get out. Still have most of the print and all the sections are fine but the nose and the hole in the back where you push the hook through are all bored out and torn. What is the best way to repair plastics? mend-it? Lighter and a paper-clip? something else?

I'd throw: 2"-4" silver minnow-type baits (Yo-Zuri Pin's Minnow) 1/8 oz. jighead with a smoke/silver flake curly tail 3" Senko with green or brownish (Hegimite colored) or... Bust out a flyrod and toss Bead-head Wooly Buggers or a Meat Whistle

Western Filament Tuffline.

Go up there around July 4th for the Hex hatch (Gigantic Mayflies). Topwater at night is amazing on the nights of the hatch.

Yes... yes it is... (I want one of those frogs).

My PB Largemouth caught a couple weeks ago (6lbs 6 oz.) Caught out of my a pond a few minutes from my house. This pond is full of Beautiful clean fish (this is the "ugliest" of all the bass I've ever taken out of there). Point of reference my foot is a size 14 and that's a Shimano 2500 sized reel. Any other Vermonter's out here?

My "backyard" pond is 58 acres and in the summer it has MAYBE 18 acres that are not covered/choked in weeds/pads. Nevertheless Largemouth up to 8lbs, BIG Crappie, even a 40"+ Northern, have been taken in the last year. We had great luck with 5 & 6" Senkos, 4" Fat Ikas, Stanley Ribbits (any with a pearl belly), and Nemire Red Rippers. I'm thinking the Yum Money Hound with its mass will kick butt too.

I've got a friend that works for VT F&W and they've used cameras while doing Walleye research on Champlain and found HUGE smallies sharing humps/reefs at 50 feet with Lake Trout... IE they can be pretty much anywhere.

smallish creek/river... unpainted jighead with a smoke grub w/silver flake = perfection... (or tiny BRIGHT colored shallow crankbaits) This is what I kill VT smallies with.

Where in VT are you? Couple weeks until the rivers are full of those!

Who makes the bass magic swimbaits? Lucky Strike, you can sometime score them real cheap at Wally World or Dick's.