Jar11591

Dear Raider, Why did we just get an ice storm in mid-March? Signed, Cabin fever may be fatal

Bottom line: it's another thing to blame a bad day of fishing on!

The most economical jerkbait (and best all around IMO) is the Matzuo Phantom Minnow. I think it retails for $2.29 and it has more action than any other jerkbait on the market. They aren't very durable though.

Amelia Aerhardt must have been flying it. Jk jk. But in all seriousness, whatever happened to it is probably not what they are telling us on the news.

Oh yea they still have the algae bloom. Every summer it turns to pea soup just like you said. Awesome lake to fish though. The bloom doesn't seem to effect the fishing.

I've never noticed any increase or decrease in success from those calendars. I don't plan fishing trips around those calendars, but I do usually check out the days that I already plan to fish.

7' MF with 6-8lb fluoro or mono, throwing 4-5 inch senkos, hulagrubs, smaller cranks and jerks is how i fish for smallies....Oh yeah, and the Chugbug.

My favorite jerkbait is a Matzuo Phantom Minnow. It's really cheap, but it darts around better than any other jerkbait I've used. It sells for like $2.29 or something. I don't see Matzuos in stores a lot though. For crankbaits, my favorite is the Rapala DT-6, and i didn't just jump on the DT-6 bandwagon. It has always been my favorite. Been killin smallies on the DT-6 for years.

I will as soon as I dig them out from their storage spots.

I use smaller lures when fishing for smallies. Equipment differs as well due to different structure type that smallmouth prefer like rocks, islands, humps and slightly deeper water. You don't have to use heavy line either. 8lb will work all around. Smallmouth IMO are way more fun to catch than largemouth. They fight twice as hard and you're not constantly picking weeds off your lure. You may get snagged once or twice though.

Thanks a lot. I found that it goes 2.4-3 meters lol. So i think that's 8-12'.

Here it is. Can anyone ID this cb?

I would, only there is 2 feet of ice on all the water still. This is more from an organizational standpoint, a result of cabin fever.

I have a few old crankbaits that aren't in production anymore, or are unidentifiable, and i want to know the specs on them. Is there a way to determine approximately how deep a crankbait runs, besides the obvious option of testing it out at different water depths to see when it hits bottom? I know as far as lip sizes go, its generally the bigger the lip the deeper the dive. But is that a definite solution, or are lip shape and angle a factor as well? When i purchase new cranks, i always save the part of the packaging that has the depth on it to avoid situations such as these. Also i know line type also plays a role in diving depth, but I'm wondering solely about the baits.

2 1/2" Storm Chugbug in Tennessee Shad color.

This is great news. I have always thought the law meant no more than 3 rods per person on boat, which makes it really hard to choose which setups to bring with me. I wish I had found that out earlier.

My biggest goal this year is expand my number if confidence-baits. I want to start getting better at techniques like jigging and jerking.

Really? I sure hope that's the case because it's tough deciding which 3 setups to take with me. I'm gonna have to check in to that. I really hope you're right.

I know in NY state, the legal limit of rods per person is 3, so I always take 3. I have more than 3, but I pick 3 to take based on where I'm fishing. Do any other states have a maximum rod law?

I catch the majority of my bass on soft plastics. Mostly senkos, brush hogs, worms and salamanders. But sometimes they wont touch the rubbers and they tear into the hardbaits. Most days for me it's the opposite, but sometimes its neither or both. But different presentations would help I'm sure. If you catch a bass on a crank, then throw a weightless senko or T-rigged brush hog right where you caught the crankbait bass. Chances are there are more bass around it, and soft plastics are a much more life-like presentation, in both appearance and texture.

1-2 fish for a whole day of fishing (8+ hours) would be kind of lousy for me, unless those fish were huge. But when i fish weekdays after work, if I catch 1-2 fish in a couple hours I'm happy. A "good" day for me is when i catch at least 4 or more for a whole day outing. 4 is a little on the low end. I think if you start using soft-plastics, you will see your catch rate skyrocket. If you open your options a little more, you can let the fish tell you what they will bite on. Of course i get skunked sometimes as well.That being said, if you're happy with catching 1-2 fish an outing, then who cares, right?

Today was the nicest day this year by far. But like you said the extended forecast is not looking good. The temperature goes up and down and up and down. The bad part is the nights are still in the teens and 20's. I think we might have been fishing by this time last year...

Most people are very unconvinced when I tell them this. Google is great isn't it? It can validate or disprove any claim in a matter of seconds.

Smallmouth are considered black bass as well. Black bass and true bass are one and the same. Black bass are: LM, SM, Spotted, Redeye, Shoal and all of their sub-species and they are all members of the sunfish family with bluegill, pumpkinseed etc.

As far as NY goes, you cant beat the Adirondack Mountain lakes and ponds. There are thousands of them, and you can find any fish you are looking for. And for boat rentals, all major lakes have marinas that you can rent a full-sized boat or a dingy. Smallmouth are definitely more prevalent in the Adirondacks, but largemouth can be found as well. For largies, i would say Brant Lake and Loon Lake are you best bets. Saratoga Lake isn't bad either, but the boat traffic is INSANE. I avoid that lake like the plague, but i hear about huge bass and pike being pulled from there a lot. If you are looking for smallmouth, Schroon, Sacandaga, and Lake George will be your best bets. Also out by Cooperstown there is Glimmerglass Lake State Park. Not sure about the fishing but I'm sure you can rent a boat there.