davecon

2 things- SLOW DOWN Google maps is your friend

If you want finesse and can fish the edge of the docks without having to skip, it’s hard to beat an old fashioned Original Rapala. I know they are out of vogue right now but the bass don’t know that.

When I was in my teens and twenties we waded all the time. Keep in mind that this was before “catch and release” was ever thought of. We had to go to croaker sacks to keep the fish in because if you put them on a stringer the gators would try to steal them. We didn’t think anything about it, it’s just what we did. However, with the influx of northerners feeding gators for some strange reason the gators have lost most of their fear of humans. I’m getting pretty old to wade nowadays but probably would in the right places. Wouldn’t be in a residential area though.

St Croix Premier 7’0” ml.

While it was my grandfather that got me started(this whole thing is his fault) I am pretty much self taught. I grew up in an era with no social media, no magazines devoted to bass, no fishing television shows, etc. you just had to figure it out yourself. To top it off, I’m in Florida where good/experienced fishermen wouldn’t give you the time of day, especially a teenager. They wouldn’t say sh#% if they had a mouthful ! Where to fish ?, what rod ?, what reel ?, which lures when ? How to work a lure? Seasons ? I’ll admit it was a long tough road but when you learn the hard way you tend not to forget it. It amazes me the info available at one’s fingertips today ! I wish I had had a fraction of that data available when I was learning.

Suggestion - find a decent cheap one from Walmart or some bargain bin. Pay a couple bucks for it, let the fish tear it up and be done with it. Used to run in to the same problem with tarpon. Gets expensive with a normally priced spinner bait. p.s. - don’t tell anybody tarpon and snook will hit spinnerbaits !

Google Earth is your friend !

You might want to look in to a kayak. New ones aren’t that expensive and used ones are sometimes reasonable. Will open up your world for a minimum investment, especially in Polk county. While she doesn’t catch a lot of big fish she sure has a lot of fun - on YouTube - “The old lady angler”. Quite entertaining. Also check out on YouTube - the bass guy. If you watch closely you can pick up some helpful tips.

Don’t ask me why because I have no clue, but a black Zoom trick worm rigged Texas style with a 1/16 or 1/18 sinker. Been using it for years and it catches big fish also. Biggest on this rig was 11.5 and I know I’ve caught at least 60 7 plus on it. To look at it in the water you would think no way, there is nothing to it ! Obviously the bass see it differently. Keep it simple !

Have both. Prefer the ML. Odd thing is I like the cast ability of the Premier series over the Avid series and I have both. Seems I’m always picking up that 7’ ML Premier. Recently added a Premier L. Had to special order it because it’s usually not stocked. Paired it with a 1000 series reel and 5 lb braid. It’s not as versatile but boy is it a lot of fun !

I fish mostly for Snook and in the spring/early summer the best lures are 3 inches long. I have to replace the hooks with 3 or 4 x hooks but some of these snook are over 40 inches long and can peel off 150 feet of line before you can blink. I use 10 and sometimes 5 lb braid on ml and L spinning rods. Been doing this for many years. Actually have very few breakoff’s. Have caught thousands of snook and hundreds of tarpon on these rigs. Would I prefer stouter tackle/lures ? You bet, but when they won’t hit the big stuff the lighter stuff works fine thank you very much.

I fish for snook often. Bycatch is redfish and tarpon. Bent trebles is part of the game. I buy 4x replacements but they get bent as well. I have a 3700 tackle box filled with replacement trebles in every size I use. Also have a split rings and a really good set of split ring pliers. I buy the hooks in packages of 100. One of the things I do when returning from a trip is check the hooks on every lure I used and replace if necessary.

Glen Lau - book and videos.

Pre-rigged black eel with red fins, 3 hooks, a little spinner on the front using a Shakespeare Wonder Reel on a Shakespeare Wonder rod. Was with my Dad and Grandfather. Can still see the fish, the lake, the wooden row boat, what clothes we were wearing, etc. Fish weighed 6 pounds. That was 62 years ago !

Can’t explain why but the Tiny has always worked best for me.