avidone1

I think some members of the bass fishing community are very familiar with pre-frontal conditions. As in LOBOTOMY...................

Yes, sad but true. One a week of 14" bass is ok. One a month of the bigger gals. I still eat one or two 2 pounders a year, and so far I'm not glowing in the dark.................

Great blue herons are indeed a protected species and rightfully so. Magnificent birds, deserving of our protection and respect. Yes, they do eat fish, and I know first hand that they will eat bass, but only in the shallowest of water. If your pond has any depth they should be okay from herons. Now cormorants are another matter for another thread. P.s. There are multiple reasons for a die off in a small pond. algae, change in ph, too much fertilizer or pesticide and so on and so on. don't be too quick to blame a critter who is a natural part of the eco system

This thread reminds me of a time I was bank fishing for snook at a very popular spot. The catching was good and some nice slot wish were reeled in as well some over the slot limit. I saw a guy land a beauty. He measured it and it was over the limit. He cursed loudly and threw the fish back in like he was throwing a bucket of **** out a Bronx tenement window. Tthe fish hit the water hard on its side, was stunned a moment then swam away. I don't doubt that the fish survived. Snook are a very hardy fish, but it was the contempt HE showed for this magnificent animal that turned my stomach.

I fully agree. I also agree with the confidence factor and that's where we can get 'hooked' by pricey baits and those endorsed by the pros. I for one am partial to anything endorsed by KVD> After he came out with the sexy shad colored crankbaits from strike king and I did really well on them, I became a believer. I also have done well with lucky craft products although the "live" series has been disappointing. I have some megabuck, I mean megabass lures, and do not find these baits to be any better than cheaper lures, hence I have no confidence in them. the notion that a bass is going to study a bait and decide to eat it because it has individual scales painted on it to my mind is a lot of hooey. Bass are dumb animals with a rice grain sized brain. If it moves it must be alive. I am a lure junky fer shure, but I truly believe the key to catching bass is FIRST......find them.........second ........ present to their activity level or structure/cover characteristics. And so on. I believe that color should be make the bait visible in the existing conditions, and be kinda sorta natural.

I don't know enough about what it takes for a bass to survive in any particular environment but I most definitely have caught LMB through the ice on completely frozen over lakes

Hydrilla is pretty common down here and is a classic bass habitat. I can also spot coon tail pretty easy. That's about it I'm afraid

I really admire this point of view. I love fishing and have respect for all native species. Being a 'steward' of the water is a really great way of looking at it.

I've been fishing for so many years that I tend not to get excited about the newest lure to end all lures. But that doesn't mean I don't pay attention when something seems to have 'legs'. Keitech baits seem to have an excellent and enduring reputation. Please tell me what makes them so special as opposed to Yamamoto plastics, or zooms to name a few of my favorites.

I've been fishing for so many years that I tend not to get excited about the newest lure to end all lures. But that doesn't mean I don't pay attention when something seems to have 'legs'. Keitech baits seem to have reputation. Please tell me what makes them so special as opposed to Yamamoto plastics, or zooms to name a few of my favorites. Sorry, tried to delete the post because I decided to start a new topic. but I can't see how to delete it. Mod help.............thanks

I have a story some have found hard to believe. I was fishing the Peconic river in Riverhead NY with a classic red and white daredevil. I hooked into something big....real big. It jumped and it was the largest chain pickerel I had ever seen. the beast shook his head and that lure came flying back at me at nascar speed. I had to duck or it would have torn my face off. Scared the hell out of me, but you can bet that lure was a personal favorite for years

I have some local ponds near me. I fish them occasionally as they can be fun on a good day. a few years ago I noticed this great blue heron was sorta following me around. I had caught a few and I got the distinct impression he was looking for a handout. so I caught another maybe 10" bass, and held it up for him to see. He was cautious but definetly walking my way. He got to within about 10 feet and stopped. I tossed the bass up in the air and he caught it and gulped it down, no sweat. It was the coolest thing. I made a friend that day, and don't care that I may have broken a couple of laws.

anything that shows a lack of respect for the fish we so enjoy pursuing bothers me. I remember when I was a kid, my friends dad caught two burlap bags full of Mackeral. they sat in the garage until they 'turned' then got thrown out. such a shame. why on earth would anyone take home a hundred fish when you know d**n well you will never clean that many

I think two pairs of treble hooks can button up a bass mouth pretty good As for anything else, I would think they have a fair chance of shaking it loose.

Two or three? I seriously doubt that unless your "pond" is an oversized mud puddle. Even then I'll bet their are plenty more than that

Not sure why, but I always had a bias against rebel lures. It might go back to the eighties when I had trouble catching bass on them but the rapala's worked fine. I do admit to catching the biggest trout of my life on a wee craw

I agree. Lucky craft ruined the bait market by posting big sales with ridiculously priced baits. Now it's almost at the point where they've got us believing that if a bait isn't expensive then it's somehow inferior and won't catch fish. A spinnerbait is a jig with a blade on it. You can shape, bend it, put rubberbands on it, bullet head it , bobble head it and make it sing holy praises out of it's ass, but it's still a jig with blades

Glad you posted this. I was thinking of using neds rig on the big three inshore species. Glad to know it's a tried and true method. Any tips ?

I have a negative knee jerk reaction to any merger of this sort. It's not a 'thought out' position, just a innate dislike for mega chains dominating any sector of the market. In the case of cabellas it's almost personal. I was buying from cabellas in the early days, before the internet and when their "catalogue" was black and white print copies mailed by request. I know I'm a relic of the past, but I sorta miss the ole days.

Call me a name if you wish, but I really doubt that your 'lost and found' for lures was a noble gesture on your part. It sounds like it was a way for you 'police' other anglers and pass judgement on them. Your 'thieving butt' comment and the fact that you wanted to kick an old man who can only bank fish, is a pretty sad comment. Sorry dude, but better you should take the lures home and quietly give them to some kids, then make a big show out of being the lost lure angel, and being hostile to poor old guys. just sayin'...............

looks pretty good to me. don't forget to give us a report after you've used it a few times

I agree about the roamers being next to impossible to catch. I will always try, but I've learned to move on.

I think the lucky craft Sammy is the easiest to walk, but the super spook ain't hard. anyone remember the old wooden spooks?

I used to do that, but whenever I played the 'feeling game' with bass they always won

thems fightin' words in these parts. LOL crappie are mighty fine eating, and I don't care how you cook em. My favorite is to fry up some bacon, then plop some breaded crappie fillets (I like corn flakes) into the sizzling bacon grease and fry em up real good. UMMMMMMMMMMMM,..UM! Now that's crappie YeeeeeeeeeeeHaaaaaaaaaaaaaaw