king fisher

I'm a firm believer in match the hatch. If the bass are eating dark craw dads with bright orange claws, any lure I fish will have some bright orange on it. Fish are no different than people. If someone wants you to count the number of small brown birds in brown bushes, you will not use color as a key in finding the birds. You will be looking for movement and shape. If you art told to count the number of birds with a yellow head in the same bushes, you will key in on the color yellow more than movement or shape. Figure out what they are eating and try to match color of the prey. If they are eating a variety of prey then a more visible color, with lots of action may help.

In a river that size at that water level, I would cover every inch of it with a number 3 Mepps, or Vibrax. You would be able to put an inline in every riffle pocket, edie, run, pool, and tail out from top to bottom quickly. It all looks very fishy. Some of slower water looks perfect for a floating Rapala. Twitch it on the surface in the pockets next to shore than steady retrieve through the middle. With these two lures, you should be able to catch any species of sport fish in that water. Also perfect water level for a fly rod, with wooly buggers, and string leaches.

Wouldn't even think of fishing for Salmon or steelhead, without wearing rubber gloves, and using scent. Never tried it with bass don't know why. Would hate to become as fanatical about scent for bass, as I am for salmon. I like being able to handle the lures with bare hands, and not worry about having the wrong scent on. More I think of it, the more I'm sure I don't want to take even one step down that road.

You can buy willow blades made for salmon and steelhead that are called magnum willow blades, that have a large cup to them, making it possible to spin at very slow speeds. They come in an endless number of sizes and colors. A place in Alaska called Spinner Dave's, and one in Oregon called Fisherman's Shack are two of many you can order online from, that carry these blades.

Looks like a Canadian plug called Lyman. Similar to a J Plug, but made of wood, and has a solid line tie and hook hanger. Made in many different colors and sizes. Very popular for Lake trout in Canada, and the North West.

I'm not sure, someone correct me if I am wrong, but I think they still make the Mudbug, and Lazy Ike. Great lures, but I always preferred the original Bomber, over the Mudbug, flat fish over Lazy Ike. Probably a northwest thing. I always thought of the Lazy Ike as a Midwest lure. Heddon Sonic was the first lure I used specifically for bass. Still out fishes other lipless crank baits I have at times. Another lure I wish I could still buy is a Scorpion spinner bait. I think they were made by a company called Bass Buster, again correct me if I'm wrong, I'm not sure on the brand It was a short arm single Colorado spinner bait, that I went swimming to save more than once when I was a kid. Only owned one and it is long gone.

What is everyone's favorite lure that is no longer in production, or is still made but changed and not as good as the original? In other words, what lure would you like to see made in its original form again? Mine is the Rebel Deep Wee R, and original bomber in black and orange.

Sounds like a perfect way to get a drag free drift while fishing for small mouth in small rivers. Just like using a strike indicator while fishing nymphs with a fly rod. I know the perfect spot to try this technique on my favorite small mouth stream. Will give it a try as soon as possible. I have had luck in the past drifting a senko without a float, but had trouble getting the drift right due to not being able to mend the line correctly with a spinning rod. I'm sure using a float will give me a more natural drift. For those who say they don't think using a bobber is sporting, I will say the same thing I say to fly fishermen that refuse to use a strike indicator. More fish for me.

In my opinion for the size of river you are fishing, an inline spinner fished with a light to medium action spinning rod, and four to six pound test line would be the ideal combo to start with. Inline spinners will catch any species of fish, in small riffles, runs, and pools. Can be cast upstream and retrieved straight down, or swung across the current. Even retrieved straight upstream paused and dropped back into likely spots can be an effective way to fish them. I prefer Vibrax or Mepps in size 3 most of the time but other brands, in smaller and larger sizes work great too. There are times when a Panther Martin will significantly out fish any other blade. I will go against most of the advice here and recommend a size appropriate swivel for the inline spinners. Any one that tells you an inline wont twist your line has never fished all day with a spinning rod tied to an inline spinner in fast moving water. You can use a barrel swivel and a leader if you are worried about a snap swivel keeping the blade from spinning at slow speeds. I have fished inline spinners in rivers for everything, from blue gill to king salmon and have never had trouble with the action while using a quality snap swivel of appropriate size for the lure, line combination. ( the swivel in your picture is way to big and will have a dramatic effect on the way it spins.) With the exception of spoons, I wouldn't use a swivel with any other lures. Tubes and jigs, would be better for deeper holes with little to no current. Floating Rapalas, small crank baits, swim baits, and many soft plastics may be better lures to use once you find the depth and current the fish are holding in. Many times I have found fish in small streams covering water quickly with an inline spinner, then tied on every lure in my box trying to find a more effective offering, Switched back to the spinner finding it was the best producer.

Forgot to mention the lake. I will be fishing El Salto without a guide. Will spend most of the time fishing for numbers, but would like to try targeting larger fish for a couple of days. Will not mind fishing hard for one or two bites, if I have a better chance at a trophy. I will have both medium and heavy gear to fish any size or type of bait.

I'm will be fishing for bass in Mexico the end of this month. Some local anglers say the fish will be in one to 5 five feet of water, and feeding on Tilapia. Water is stained, temp. in the high 60's low 70's. Spinner baits and crank baits are preferred for numbers of fish. Planning on dedicating a couple of days to big fish only. Was thinking of using some large swim baits, or maybe a glide bait. Don't want to break the bank, would like to keep the cost under $50 dollars a lure. Any suggestions?

Life is to short to ever pass up a deal on fishing gear. You never know when everything you own will not get a bite, but you have no doubt the one thing you didn't buy would load the boat.

When you die. If you have still have money in the bank, and storage space at your house, you don't have enough tackle. Only down size if all you want to do is catch more fish. If you want to be a true fisherman keep everything down to the last hook.

I bought two 90.s. One sank and the other didn't. Caught lots of fish on the one that didn't sink. Threw the one that sank away. Only time mine would spin was when I fished it very fast. Was catching more fish with a slower retrieve, so I didn't have a problem. I did try a small swivel, and it worked fine.

Don't get rid of anything, you can't replace, when your best friend starts killing them on the lure you just gave away.

I have always been a big fan of Rapala. Have caught everything from Crappie to Blue Marlin with their products. I have had great success catching fish with DT 6 and DT 7. One day I fished every crank bait in my box, and the only crank bait to get a bite was a DT 10, and rest assured, the bait monkey has visited my crank bait box. The down side is, I have had the bills pull out of a half dozen DT baits for no reason. I didn't slap them on the water, cast them against a rock or bridge, or even catch a big fish on them. Just seems that some of them will come apart just casting them. Very frustrating, and expensive. I would think Rapala would have addressed this issue by now. Now I only fish them when my more durable baits don't work.

I believe all fish use many different factors to find and catch their prey. Movement, size, smell, sound, color, and any other advantage they can find. If the prey they are feeding on is a certain size, and moves in a specific way, but its color doesn't stand out in any way then the fish would have a difficult time finding and catching the prey by keying in on its color. The opposite would be true if size and movement were varied, with no distinct features to key in on, but all of the prey had a distinct color patch, or certain flash. Then the fish would probably be concentrating on this aspect to find its food. The smaller the prey, the more chance, of the fish keying in on a single trait to find it. It would be much easier to notice large prey regardless of any particular features. Most of the time the best lure will match a combination of features. If there is no particular prey that is abundant at the time, then a lure that is large, with lots of action, flash, and color might be the ticket. If there are lots of one kind of prey that the fish are used to feeding on at that time and place, then match the hatch could be very important. The same applies to a hunter. If a person is hunting for a well camouflaged animal, that tends to move around, then the hunter will be looking for a certain movement to spot the animal. If the animal moves very little, but has a color that doesn't blend in then he will concentrate on looking for that color. Just a theory, may be completely wrong, That is why I'm very good friends with the bait monkey I try everything.

Thanks to the readers for the input. I'm going to do some more reading on trolling for bass.I didn't know trolling was bass fishing taboo. I have trolled, cast, vertical jigged, drifted, and plunked, for many different species of fish, both fresh and salt. Usually troll to locate fish, then switch to another technique if I think it will catch more or bigger fish. My main concern is with catching fish. never get bored with any style of fishing. I'm always too busy trying to adjust to the situation to get bored. I'm going to try trolling deep diving crank baits for bass along the rocky shoreline of my favorite lake next chance I get. Might catch a brown trout along the same shore.

Do any readers here, troll for bass. If so when, where, how deep, what conditions and, what lures. I fish a lake with miles of cliffs and rip rap shoreline that look the same. Seems like a way to cover lots of wate, and find hot spots to slow down and cast too. Would it be a good idea or just a waste of time?

August 1976, first cast with a jitterbug, two and a half pound bass. Biggest fish of my life at the time, and the first fish of any kind on a surface lure. Still fish the jitterbug for many different species of fish fresh and salt water.

In June 1976 I was 13 years old, Camping with the boy scouts on a lake we accessed with canoes. I had three bass lures for a five day camping trip. We would canoe to a rip rap bank, then get out of the canoe and fish from shore. We caught lots of bass but snagged lots too. On the second day, I had just lost my Heddon sonic. The last bass lure I had. I was walking back to the canoe to get a crappie jig and bobber when I looked down and in the rocks was a Heddon river runt. I fished that lure for the remainder of that trip, and every time I went fishing for the rest of that summer. It was my only bass lure. I snagged it many times, but managed get it back every time. That Christmas I got some other lures including two spinner baits. A friend and I were fishing from shore, on a small lake. I loaned him one of the spinner baits. A purple tandem Colorado. His first cast he hooked a big bass that snapped him off. We continued fishing the same spot for an hour with no luck. Then I caught the spinner bait he had lost. I couldn't believe my good luck. I put the spinner bait on and started catching fish. Ended up being the best bass fishing day of my entire life. I still own that spinner bait, but have lost the river runt. I always try lures I find as soon as I find them. Hoping someday to get lucky again..

Inline spinners have been one my favorite lures for all fish. For trout in streams, the Panther Martin has been my best spinner. No other spinner even comes close. For bass both large mouth . I have had the best luck with French bladed spinners like Mepps, or Vibrax. I don't know why, and am curious if anybody else has had the same experience.

I saw a video where two kids ran an experiment on a small pond. One fished a Senko, wacky. The other fished gummy worm candy rigged wacky. The guy fishing the gummy worms landed a few bass. The guy with the Senko was hook a fish. I'm not going to start fishing gummy worms, and will not be giving away any of my Senkos. Just goes to show some days bass will do strange things.

Rebel Jumping minnow. Very easy to walk, casts far, cheap

When I was 13 I fished a section of shoreline on a small lake. I would cast parallel to the shore from points on the bank. One day I decided to troll my only lure,(purple tandem Colorado spinner bait) , by holding my rod with one hand out as far as I could, and walking slowly along the bank.. Part of the bank was large rip rap. Fell in many times trying to jump from one rock to the next and still keep my bait spinning. I spent most of that summer walking that bank back and forth trolling my spinner bait. Would be in better shape if I started using that technique now. Might even catch more fish.