the reel ess

If you haven't already seen it, here's a fantastic interview with Bill Dance by who I think is a local sports newscaster It's a tad annoying because Bill is trying his best to answer questions fully and the guy only has about 15-20 minutes so he's hurrying the answers along. You could talk with him for 2 hours and only scratch the surface of his experience. But it's still very informative. If you thought you knew everything about him, you'll still learn something from this video. Then there's some golfer at the end. Hope you enjoy it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BmR8FLH2no

I use a 7' MH spinning combo wit 20# Fireline for Zoom Trick Worms, rigged weightless. It gets the job done. You still won't be casting a mile, but you'll get it far enough. Might I suggest you try one of their "neon" colors like Bubble Gum, Methiolate or Limetreuse. They flat work.

A few topwaters. A Pop R, A walking-type bait, like Spook or Spook, Jr. Maybe a Chug Bug. There are two good opportunities to use topwaters every day at least half the year.

Check this out: http://www.stripers247.com/sitemap.php I only have caught them in fresh water and mostly while bass fishing. But I'd like to know how to target them specifically too.

Academy has become my go-to. It's way closer then BPS or Cabela's. Their stuff is QUALITY. And they have big box prices. It doesn't matter how cheap WalMart is if they don't have it.

It used to be light a cigarette. That would cause a bite that made you waste the cig. But I quit more than 20 years ago.

There are ponds upstream of rivers all over the place. Heavy rains will cause small fish to flow over the standpipe/spillway. If you fish behind it, you'll see fish you know aren't supposed to be in a tiny stream. If its a big enough flow, those fish are heading downstream to whatever river or lake is below. Dig a pond and see if crawfish don't appear. Wateree Lake in SC was not stocked with blue catfish or white perch, but they're there in spades. It has become a trophy blue cat fishery. White perch had displaced white bass completely. About 15 years ago they had flood water going over all the dams in the river chain. My dad and I caught more than 60 white perch, white bass and stripers on one trip. I asked the DNR guy what was stocked in Wateree in the last 20 years. Only stripers were.Therefore, white perch were placed there and the white bass we caught that day, and haven't since, came over the dam(s). That's my hypothesis, anyway.

Well, you'd be a pretty shoddy fisherman if you had divorced the lady who mounted a fish for you. You're living the dream.

No care here

Jig, T-rig or what?

I will. But I don't know how much good it will do if I can't find any more.

Qualities: Stretch (being a bad thing), advantage: braid. Stretch is nice when using trebles. Not so when using a strong single hook. Visibility, adv.: Mono. If you want braid, but less visibility, you can use a mono leader. Bouyancy: Mono. Nice for topwaters. Also nice for not yanking topwaters out of the fish's mouth because it stretches. Breaking off if you need to: Mono. You'll probably have to cut the braid sometime if you can't straighten the hook. Price: Mono by a mile, but the braid lasts as long as you want to keep it. If you have two empty reels you can take it off, turn it around and use the other end. Braid's nice for frogs, T-rigs if visibility doesn't bother you, I like it for spinning because the line memory is way less than mono. It isn't great for topwaters because it fouls in the hooks sometimes because it's limp. Mono does a few things well (trebles, crankbaits) but there is stretch and lack of sensitivity to it. You can overcome some by going heavier. It's all I used for 30+ years. I got rid of floro. I just didn't like it. Now I use braid on some combos and 15# mono on others. But I'm not out throwing deep crankbaits and trying to get down 18'. Opinions will vary, but those are my own.

I'll give it a try with some Zoom Ultra Vibe craws I bought by accident. I wanted the Super size but wasn't paying attention when I ordered off Amazon Prime. It's a decent way to buy mail order because of no shipping. But you have to pay attention. I've bought the wrong size twice.

I won't buy Stren mono again unless it's the only mono made. It's pitiful to me that a "premium" brand of mono is inferior to Big Game, which you buy by the pound.

+1 that music. I'd like to add to that Ride of the Valkyries and Hall of The Mountain King.

I've only been catching bass around here by dragging the bottom. Occasionally, you'll get a dink on the Trick Worm. So I thought I'd try a split shot rigged Trick Worm. The split shot was gone after the 3rd cast. But I had my trusty T-rig craw on another rod.

This is a jighead I bought at the Sportsman Classic in Columbia, SC years ago. It came with a bag of the small plastic craws. Not sure you can tell, but the head is concave on the bottom and presumably causes the jig to swim like a crankbait. I never used it, but now I'm experimenting with all kinds of craw rigs. I only have one and would hate to lose it if it can't be replaced. It might have been a small tackle maker in the midwest. I lost the card that came with them. I was hoping someone else on here had some or had experience with them. Thanks, Rob

I was using a 4" Chigger Craw yesterday from my kayak. I cast to just under the ladder on one of only two docks on the reservoir. I started the retrieve but felt "nothing" on the line. I tried to tighten up, but still no resistance. Then it swam sideways. Tightened up and BAM it was on!!! The fish drug my kayak away from the dock, then turned under my yak and pinned me against the pier. I was fighting the fish on the right, but it was under the pier on the left. I was struggling with two other rods, trying to keep their tips safe. I finally got it back to the right and landed it. 5.88 lbs. This is one of 3 bass over 5# I've caught on the Chigger in a month. And I've only fished 4 times. These are two different fish. 5.88 and 6.3 lbs. Both held on to that craw like it was real.

Try firetiger

I've been using a T-rigged Berkley Chigger Craw with a 3/16 oz tungsten weight with some success in a place like that. I would go with 1/8 oz if I was using spinning gear. You can use a weightless fluke or Trick Worm. You could also use a mojo rigged Trick or finesse worm. My friend goes kayak fishing with me. I take 4 or 5 rods rigged with my best guesses of what might work, but all he ever uses is one rod with a weightless bubble gum colored Trick Worm. He just throws it out on his old, mismatched spinning combo (I gave him a rod) and reels it in very slowly. And catches fish!

Congrats. Keep it up with the craws. They seem to be a big fish magnets for me. "Big" is relative. You'll see. Since I'm so old now, I don't really know when I caught my first big bass. It was probably a 3-or-so pounder. I'm sure I thought it was 5 or more. The real secret to catching big bass is fishing where there are some big bass.

I love the Chug Bug

Lately I've only caught fish on the T-rig. Here's the only one I caught today in 3 hours. T-rigged Berkley Chigger Craw.

Only one I caught today. But a nice one. 5.88 lbs. I had another good one come unbottoned before I got to see her. Berkley Chigger Craw, black/blue. They won't let go of this bait!

It's very common when the topwater or jerkbait bite is on for fish to smash the bait and get hooked somewhere outside the mouth.