the reel ess

A MH-MF 7' rod and some light, burner speed reel. This rod can do everything from topwaters to frogs. It's not the perfect tool for either of these extremes, but it covers the most bases everywhere in between. I actually have this combo and I use it for bigger treble lures like the Whopper Plopper, Spook and CC Spot.

Same. I fish for my mental health and to recharge my batteries. I can't do that if I'm concerned about somebody with me. I'm my favorite fishing buddy. I have two kayaks so I can take a buddy. But when people ask me to take them and I tell them they'll have to use a kayak, they usually change their minds.

I'll use the skirt until it falls off. If it's a rubber band, they always fall off. Then I'll put a toad or something on it.

Well, I only use 3/8 oz. for the most part. Others are 1/2 o.z. If I'm really wondering, I'll weigh them on my wife's food scale. Or if they come in a small baggie that's marked, just keep them in it.

He's long-arming it. ? Just kidding @WRB

I don't get to fish at night where I fish. And it's probably not a great idea in the kayak anyway. But for me, a heat wave is OK as long as it's a stable weather pattern. I'll still get some bites and some quality fish. But the window of opportunity gets smaller. The bite becomes best for me early or late. My last two PBs came in the heat of July. If I go in the morning, which is my preference, I'm usually finished by 10:00, even if I fish another couple hours. Last August 8th I got 2 fish over 7 lbs. I remember the date because it's my birthday. They're still in there, their metabolism is high and they'll eat if you can get a bait in their face.

Yes, I speak from experience when I say you'll experience more heartache than success using UL tackle for bass. There's a reason there are no or very few UL setups specifically for bass. Not that it can't be done, but it won't be ideal.

Live worm, I'm sure, though I can't remember it. I probably caught my first bass on an artificial with a Mepp's Comet Mino in-line spinner. Those catch everything.

I've had a Booyah jr for years and never used it. I tied it on my MH spinning combo and I'm going to give it a go next time. The last two outings I missed more than I caught on the full sized popping model. I attribute some of that to the frog being new. I did bend the hooks out a bit. But some of the bass simply weren't getting the bait.

Use a good brand. Tactical Anglers makes a quality snaps of this type.

I'll add one thing. A lot of times there's an opening in the pads close to the bank. I like to cast to the bank and try to walk it across that opening and onto the pads. A good many bites come in that clear spot or right after you walk it onto the pads.

I toss the frog out, usually with an overhand cast so it makes a plop when it lands. I'll sometimes let it sit a few seconds. Occasionally you'll get a bite before it moves. Then I twitch it back across the pads with the rod high so the line doesn't get tangled in the pads.

The fish just leveraged the bait out because the wire is so thin. I've had a fish work the split ring out of a Chug Bug before. The fish fell into my kayak as I was lifting it with only the front treble in its mouth. Fish long enough and a whole lot of oddball things will occur. I use this same kind of clip on most treble lures. I tie directly to spinner/buzzbaits. Do you have a pic of the spinnerbait?

10+ to me. I've noticed when bass get bigger than about 8.5 they start getting that bug-eyed look. This fish has googly eyes. But if there's one thing I've learned from weighing my own fish, it's that they're always at least a half pound less than I think they'll be.

It's in the Webster's dictionary. 2b. So it's not improper. But I can tell you from living in the south all my life, it probably came about because people didn't know every species of small sunfish so they needed a catch-all name. I mean, I'm from the south and I call them what they are. But most people aren't as fanatical as most on this board. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bream

Nice. I just subscribed.

About the same to me. But I only have one combo rigged with straight mono anymore. That's my spinner/buzzbait combo. My spinning combos are both rigged with 20# braid and I use a mono leader as needed. My jig and topwaters/cranks rods have 30# braid. I use a mono leader on the latter.

I went in BPS at Myrtle Beach to get some artificial inshore baits. I had my basket filled with about $35 worth of soft plastics, shrimp baits, etc. The salesman walked away and I put it all back. I went to Pauly's Island bait & Tackle and they hooked me up with white Gulp Mullet, jigheads, a Johnson Spoon and Trout Tricks all for under $20 and I caught fish. I still have that spoon and use it for bass over the lilies. I ended up using up the Trout Tricks on a finesse C rig for bass. My rambling point is not to believe the big box store salesperson.

Welcome to SC. I'm a couple hours east of you in Lancaster Co. If I were you I'd hit the Reedy River with that yak. You might even find some smallies. To your east is the Broad River that has good smallies. It's about halfway between you and me. There are also lots of trout streams in the upper state.

Go to their Facebook feed and see the comments. That'll tell the tale. I've seen several of these bargain basement sites that will gladly take your money and maybe deliver your goods months later. Most things that are just too good to be true are not completely true.

Unpopular opinion here. I think topwaters are the lures for which color means the least.

I like to be there just after first light, whatever time that is.

I take a rainy or overcast day as an opportunity to throw topwaters all day. But as mentioned, all the usual baits. If they don't want topwaters, I'll do whatever I have to.

I use a 7' MH for most topwaters, especially the heavier ones like WP and Spook. I know it gives me better casting distance. I use a 6'6" M for lighter ones. But I'll eventually replace that with a 7 footer as well. I don't think I need anything longer. But I can't really know that unless I try, right? One reason I prefer a longer topwater rod is the line angle is better from a kayak. You're so close to the water sometimes you start your retrieve off by pulling the topwater under.

It would be my luck to someday catch a huge Quasimodo PB.