the reel ess

This is not exactly shocking. I got 2 blocks of cream cheese, a bag of Fritos and a loaf of bread for $15.01 this evening. This is where we are in America.

Just look for light kayaks. I mean any old raft will get the job done. But 12' seems to be the perfect size for fishing in my opinion. My first fishing kayak, an original Pescador (the original Wilderness Tarpon mold) was 12'. It came time to replace it and I settled for a 10' Pescador Pro to save a couple hundred bucks. I still have the older one for buddies. The 10 footer doesn't track nearly as well as the 12 footer did. The back is always getting blown around by wind. There's not enough skeg built into it. But I certainly like the stadium seat better. Alas, I can't see any way to get the stadium seat into the original 12' Pescador. I certainly wouldn't want to fish from one shorter than 10'.

Right now, for the most part, I'm targeting areas that have no grass, areas deep enough that grass won't grow. If I'm having to pull grass off my hooks, I look for deeper water nearby. I've gotten a total of 2 bites since late fall in shallow water. By that I mean water not near any deeper water. All the rest have at least been near deep water, most near a creek channel.

I just layer up and put handwarmers in my pockets. But then I live in the south.

Many who answer no will keep a limit of spawning crappie. The only thing that elevates bass is our belief that they're special. We think of crappie like cattle: food. We think of bass as we do our pets. That said, I hardly ever keep any fish. I even take care to get them returned as quickly as possible. I'm just not against taking fish.

Well, I feel certain he could get you on the list.

I fish almost exclusively from a kayak. It can be better for pitching/flipping because you can get close to your target without spooking fish. And it makes a sidearm cast easier. I have learned to skip a jig or T rigged bug type soft plastic from a kayak. I haven't punched from it because there's really nothing to punch where I fish. I only occasionally fish cranks. Instead, I usually go for lipless cranks. I have no problem with either of those.

Its a catch 22 with setting the hook on frog bites. You want to feel the fish before you set it. But the fish is headed back into the thick weeds with its new meal. When you set the hook the fish will use the weeds to dislodge the hooks if you actually get a hook in it. You also move a lot of weeds before the line gets tight enough to set a hook. I usually don't wait to feel the fish and just swing away. I feel like the longer you let the fish swim the less likely you are to land it. Occasionally, you can get a second bite from a bass. Rarely will you get a third. I missed a very good bass last spring twice in two casts. But I caught a 7 pounder on the frog in the early fall.

That's why I like to pick up a rod and see things like "jig" or "Frog" printed on them. ?

I have a H-F Falcon Bucoo 6'10" pitching stick. It's a $100 rod. I love it. It has plenty of backbone to yank a big fish out of a laydown. I use it with the drag all but locked down. But it also has a little tip to help with the skip and placement. The only rod I like better is a LowRider, but it's an old Trap Caster. I actually used it for my first jig rod. Then I decided I needed a more jig-specific outfit. My question would be do you fish heavy cover with your jigs or do you fish a jungle? Like, do you punch mats? If I was going to punch mats, I'd use my XH-XF frog rod. It's a discontinued rod from Cabela's Tournament ZX line. I do use it as a spare T rigs rod in the colder months.

For someone to steal?

I used to believe it was nearly impossible to catch bass in cold water. Wrong. I used to think topwaters were just gimmicks to separate me from my money. Some still are. I am now biased toward small waters and being left alone, for the most part. Or, I should say, I'm biased against the bass boat rat race and competing for small bass.

Ditto on the Lunkerhunt. I caught two on it before it was full of water and the legs were gone. $10 down the drain. Never again.

Welcome to SC. Lake Keowee is beautiful. I've been there but never to fish. It's a deeper highland reservoir, right? So your current boat is probably a good one for that.

Good point. When you're on a dock, all or most fish you catch are away from it.

I fished with a FL guide who had straight braid on all his combos. I asked him why he didn't use any other lines. He said he fishes too much to be losing lures every time out. With 30# braid you can usually unsnag most lures.

No, I haven't noticed any difference in number of bites. But our water is usually not crystal clear. I use the green Power Pro. I have gone back and forth with using a leader. But when I did, it was 15# Big Game mono. It kind of negates the purpose of 30# braid to use a leader of lower strength, in my opinion. Sometimes I rig up a C-rig and I'll use mono as the leader. Also, I have a dedicated frog combo (and T rigs in cold weather) that has 50# PP on it. Never a leader on that one.

My dad took my sister and me fishing with him when I was a toddler in the early 70s.. He worked shifts and would be off on Fridays when my mom was working. He would tie up to a stump and fish with minnows and a cane pole for crappie. I would nag my dad to buy me some worms on the way to the lake so I could sneak out and bream fish on Saturday morning. I'd fish a couple hours before breakfast while they would sleep late. I talked to a lot of bass fishermen who came by the dock and I wanted to do that so badly. We got a pontoon boat when I was maybe 10 and started taking others crappie fishing with us and having neighborhood fish fries. I already had a Zebco 33 and fished for everything that would bite. I got a baitcaster when I was 13 and then the bass fishing was on for me. My dad bought an aluminum bass boat and he got into it with me. I'm 51 now. My dad died almost 5 years ago and it got difficult to get him to go with me because I fish too long and too hard even if they aren't biting. But I got him to go to a buddy's pond with me the fall before he died and he caught some bass and had a good time. A good memory to hold onto. Anyway, I've been around fishing my entire life, but I've been serious about it more than 40 years.

I fished one in West Miami with a guide for peacocks. He said it was technically public land, but Cemex had leased the rights to mine it. You can get yourself on a list to go there, but I have no idea how. We had to sign in with a guard. There's a YouTube video of Bill Dance fishing with a guide there. There was a crane working in the corner when we were there. I caught some nice peacocks, but also a 7 lb. bass. It was artificial baits only, but the guide snuck some live shiners in. That's what we caught most of the bigger ones on. If you want his info PM me.

I fished with a guide in FL who said he's had a gator just get too cozy around the boat and eventually tried to get in the boat with a client. He said he went back the next day armed and it did the same and he shot it. But he's been guiding for years in places where there are plenty of them.

I have no idea, but I'd sure give one a try.

30# braid on the baitcaster. 20# braid on the spinning. People will tell you not to use braid with some lures. I just set me drag and use the right rod. Whatever leaders you feel necessary based on water clarity and the application. I'm using more straight braid, but that's just me.

Ditto the pitching and skipping. But also pay attention to what the guy in front is doing. Do what he isn't. Pitch where he didn't. Boaters tend to cast forward if they're really covering water. You're at a different angle and you can get to fish he probably didn't. Pitching the jig or T rig is fantastic because you can pitch it, let it sink and yank it right back if you get no bite and look for the next target. Also skipping a Trick Worm or a fluke under docks and overhanging trees can be killer. I'll sometimes throw a topwater a lot longer than the guy in front will. Just showing them something different.

A free milk crate with 6 PVC rod holders zip tied in. Something I've learned over the years is the black PVC and black zip ties have more UV and weather resistance. This has been independently verified by zip tie aficionado Dave Frieburger of Roadkill fame.

They smell like a seafood restaurant's dumpster. But I caught a lot of bass on the Chigger Craw. They would swim around all day with it. Gave plenty of time to set the hook. I fished with those since I was a kid and only caught one on it a couple years ago. I think they're better suited to small bodies of water that have weeds and frogs present. They don't resemble baitfish to me. And shallow bass are much more prone to take a topwater.