soflabasser

I am not surprised since I have caught bass on a bare hook, cut bait, bread balls, hotdogs, etc.

Lots of stores are missing fishing gear since so many people are fishing now. I see more people fishing now than I have ever seen in the +20 years I have bass fished. Fortunately I have caught lots of nice fish this year while finding new places to stay away from the crowds.

The apple does not fall far from the tree. I could care less what another fisherman is doing. I rather focus on my own fishing and catch my own fish. I have had this happen several times. Most of the time they are inexperienced boaters who do not know how to fish well and want to see what you are using since you are catching fish on the bank yet they are not in boat. It is amazing how desperate some boaters can get to catch a bass!

I have lived through Hurricane Andrew, Hurricane Wilma, and many more in the +3 decades I have lived in South Florida. As long as you prepare well in advance and take the hurricane seriously you should be ok. As for fishing I have caught lots of nice fish before and after a hurricane passing.

Something about this story is very fishy and I do not mean the muskie. These fish have very sharp teeth that are more likely to cut into meat like a knife, the wound she has appears to be more like the wounds you would expect from a mammal like an otter.

It usually takes me less than 1 minute to land a 5 pound or better largemouth bass since I use heavy enough gear to quickly catch the fish and release it quickly. The sooner you release the bass the better it is. It is ridiculous for anyone to take more than a minute to land a small fish like a 2 pound smallmouth bass.

I see lots of members here have encountered rude people while fishing and I have encountered them as well. Many people are inconsiderate jerks and only care about themselves and they could care less about anyone else. Where I live you have to wear a mask in public and distance yourself at least 6 feet away yet I rarely see that. This is the law in Miami-Dade County at this moment in time and this law exist to protect people, those who do not respect this law are inconsiderate jerks to say the least. I see lots of people not wearing mask and walking less than 3 feet from you. The worst fishermen are the ones that go to where you are fishing when they see you are catching fish, that is unsportsmanlike behavior and I will gladly leave a spot to not fish with those types of people. This is why I do my best to fish far away from the common fishing spots, even if they are good. Besides I value my fishing time with my Wife and much prefer fishing with her than anyone else.

Welcome to the forum

A true fisherman will enjoy fishing for anything that bites and will be happy just going fishing. Beginners need to understand that it takes years to be a very good fisherman. The more knowledgeable you become the more you learn that you do not know everything and you need to constantly adapt to new situations. Fishing is a hobby that you will learn for a lifetime.

I do not care much what tournament fishermen or anyone from social media that is sponsored by a lure company says to use. I rather use lures that I know works well in the places I fish and if needed I will experiment with different proven lures until I find what works best.

Welcome to the forum

I have Penn reels that are +20 years old and still work great.

Flathead catfish prefer live bait so it is best to use live bait for them. You can also catch them on fresh cut bait but live bait is usually better.

My favorite way to catch a bass is on a topwater so for me topwaters are lures that I bring often in my fishing trips. I have other lures and use them when needed.

Welcome to the forum

Good subject. I trusted my instincts this past weekend and caught some nice fish in a place I have never fished before. It feels great when you can catch fish in a new place.

I prefer fishing in places where there aren't other people whenever I can since I value my time spent in the Outdoors. Some of those places you rarely see anyone which is great since I can focus on my fishing and watch all the wildlife around me in peace.

I use the same rods and reels I use for bass fishing for carp fishing. For bait I mostly use bread. Have caught several carp over 40 inches long.

Well said. That is one of the reasons I do not care much for what tournament bass fishermen say. Same goes for people in social media that hype up products since they are sponsored and many of them are not being 100% honest about the product they are endorsing. The truth is you can catch lots of nice bass on sub $100 combos.

I use 30 pound test green colored braid for most of the frog fishing I do and sometimes use 50 pound test if needed.

It is nice to fish with high end gear but it does not guarantee anyone that they will catch more big bass than someone using normal quality gear. A highly skilled bass fisherman can fish with a sub $50 combo and they can out fish a regular bass fisherman with a +$500 combo.

Welcome to the forum

I have casted big baits on a 4/0 Penn Senator while fishing from land in the ocean and have casted big baits on spinning reels. Both can be done if you know how to use your fishing gear. I still prefer catching a fish on a spinning reel and I have lost count of the big fish I have caught on spinning reels much bigger than any largemouth bass or any black bass species.

I use spinning gear for most of my topwater fishing. A 6'0''-7'0'' medium action to heavy action rod with a size 4000 reel is my favorite combo for topwater fishing and other techniques.

Try catching a decent sized shark or any big fish on a spinning reel and you will see why I prefer catching fish on spinning reels over other reels.