jr231

I know it's cold, but do you own a kayak ??

Better than no brown trout lol

Killin it ! Sounds like too much fun. @Fuzz you can simply use the @ symbol and the person's user name to get their attention , instead of quoting their huge post and clogging up the thread. Not pickin on ya just a FYI.

Haha yeah, or just let her use two sigletts as the earrings.

You know you're gonna buy more stuff... I think utilizing what you already have is a great idea tho. About the 3 fish, on 3 different bodies of water, on the same lure before you switch... that IS going to lead to alot of rough days. I wouldn't do that! So try and make use of the gear you own, and get confident with each technique/lure you are interested in fishing. About what You should start with; the simple answer is whatever your conditions call for... I'm willing to bet a jig is a good start. If you're anything like me you spend a lot more time thinking about fishing than actually doing it. So trying to be good at everything limits your effectiveness. Being great at a handful of things is much better than to be just ok at a bunch! If you were confident in a jig, jerkbait, and soft plastic technique (t-rig/ dropshot/weightless etc) then you can catch fish year round , anywhere bass live !

Second the hi viz braid with a leader. Usually floro for me because it sinks. Also second the semi slack line . Most of the time slow is best. Slow it down, then slow it down some more. Try several retrieves before giving up. Such as a hop/pause with different speeds , or a drag.. then kind of burn it. Let the fish tell you what they want. The only way to get better at something is to do it. Like most things in life, reading can give you ideas, but nothing beats hands on experience...

Is the area pressured ? Everyone and their brother uses senkos. I have access to allot of private waters. And years ago when I first started fishing them, all I needed was a 3/0 hook and a couple bags of senkos and I'd catch bass of all sizes, all day long. Now I don't catch nothing but the yearlings with senkos at those spots. They're on to me

Yep. Big is a relative term to location. Same can be said about bigger bass eating smaller baits... Ever caught a hog on a 4" senko ? It Happens !

@Dorado I see alot of people dogging that live Target sunfish.. I stuck a 4lber last year with it on the softest take I've ever seen ! Also see alot of complaints about the trokar hooks (saying it rips too big of holes ) but I think they're solid and a definite upgrade !! . A lure I'm going to give another shot this year is the rapala oringinal floater. Such a classic that got me hooked on artifical over a decade ago when I was just a youngin' fishing off the back of a paddle boat. I've really gotten away from it using all the latest and greatest.. but I'm hoping I can stick a couple hogs this season with it.

Try both types and see what works best for you

Jerkbaits and jigs both work great in cold water. IMO they both work great year round. I always see people talk about only certain times for jerkbaits... But I catch with them in the middle of summer, and throughout the whole season. Fall always seems great for them as well. Jigs are where it's at. Versatile hog catchers. Pick one or the other is tough... Im going to edge it for the jig though

Man I've lost 3 jigs in one day before... i feel like if I'm not losing jigs, (or at least getting hung up) then I'm missing out on fish..got to get in there where bass like to hide and ambush their prey! I suggest you eat hamburger helper a couple nights or don't buy pop at work or whatever and save a few extra dollars to get you a few more jigs! Strike king makes awesome jigs (for the money) and you can get them at any walmart. I recommend the swim jig, and a finesse jig. As for trailers just about anything will do. Half of a stick worm or a curly tail grub. Try a rage chunk on the finesse jig. Killer for me on a slow bite and can be fished a bunch of different ways before I give up on it.. Another suggestion is to try the jika rig. Use the search bar, or Google it.. it's basically a drop shot weight with a split ring (or two) and your preferred hook. I usually run a creature style bait or floating worm. You can fish it anyway you'd fish a jig without the bulk of the skirt . Awesome rig for sure with many possibilities and variations. Also... Read the jig thread at the top of the fishing tackle section... Pages and pages. Good luck.

That super duty right above this is a steal.

Blasphemy. This is an experienced summary (regardless if he caught fish, I can tell by his statement about retrieve speed ) and I agree 100 percent. You can play with the retrieve and get them kicking out sideways pretty decent with just a slightly faster rotation of the reel. They catch bass. I've caught a few nice ones on the scatter rap shad.. one time using the regular scatter rap pulled 3 in a row out of the same hole. Blueback herring and yellow perch are my best colors.

Depends on the time of year for me... Also water clarity, speed of current , and depth. I like floating/suspending jerkbaits in rivers... Rapala is the best bang for your buck IMO, and I feel better losing 7 bucks to a snag than I do a 20 dollar jerkbait. I agree with scaleface also about the small jig with meatier plastic; much harder to get wedged .. Senko/fluke styles seem to work in every body of water I fish in.. If you're getting skunked reach for a mepps , I've caught more species on this than any other lure!! And don't even use them often..

In the ponds I fish, after rain when the water is high and murky, I usually find a big one in the shallows. Alot of good advice given. Senkos, jigs, shad rap, top water popper, and a jerkbait have caught my biggest bass. My best bait/presentation this year was a "jika" rigged rage bug and keitech crazy flapper. Dragged along the bottom or top of grass, pitching, also "stop and pop" on long parallel casts to the bank. If all else fails... Nose hooked 3-4" sunfish almost guarantees it in a pond that small. I'd use a baitholder style hook.

Jerkbaits work year round! Anything that will imitate a baitfish will get bit all year. It's the retrieve and your timing / location that are the biggest factors. I think it's when in doubt... Throw a jig.

You're using the small paddle tails ? The swing impacts ? Try the crazy flapper on a jika rig when you need a change up. Location and timing are more important than the lures you're using. They are a Good company, and im glad you're having fun catching bass. My thoughts are you are on some active fish. Which is an awesome feeling !

Yea his tips are fish where big bass are and use a live sunfish as bait

Alot of that has to do with your location and resources. Such as the amount of time you get to spend on the water , boat and #of DD bass in the lakes you fish.

I thought for sure the question was going to be.... "Why/how come ?" My favorite...." Can you fix this? "

Probably 14 or so years ago ... Me and my best friend would troll jointed rapala minnows off the back of a paddle boat... We caught bass, and this is where I developed a love for using artificial. Still a huge fan of rapala.

About a decade ago when I was 13 or 14.. I was bobber fishing in a state park in Michigan. Just trying to catch anything I could... I ended up having a huge take on my bobber! It was a giant splash not even 10 feet from where I was standing. I reeled in out of excitement and the fish ended up taking my worm... I battled it on my little ultra light and got it to the walkway I was fishing off of...and at the time it was the strangest thing I've seen.. the fish was about 20+" , had an eel like body with a round head and had teeth ! Not only that but it made a very strange grunting noise out of the water. I had no idea what I had... My step father was a paramedic and was sitting outside of the park on call, his buddy told me it was a dogfish... Which made sense to me cuz of the weird noises it was making out of the water.. I know today that it was a bowfin. And it's not so strange after all... But at the time, it was very exciting and odd.

I'm from Michigan and definitely do not say ashphalt lol As for the senko ?? I've always pronounced it how it's spelt. Senko sen as in sending and ko as in co-host . Senko. Definitely not sinko lol. I think a company made a knock off and called it the sinko. Not sure though. Years ago, before I even used a senko I used the hula grub.. and we called them Gary's too. His plastics are fish catchers. Period.

Go back and get her.