NCbassraider

Norman is tough fishing. It's way over-crowded and there are not many large mouth, all spots. Don't really ever hear of any big Bass coming out of there. I avoid it at all costs.

I am around them everyday and have never seen one tail slap. I also could not find any video on youtube of it occurring. If it happens it is rare and certainly not typical behavior and no chance in hell louder or a bigger splash than a beaver. I have had a beaver sneak up and hit my boat like a tsunami. Beavers do it as a warning if you get too near a den as they are territorial. Otters are not territorial and would have no reason to do so. They communicate to their young in other manners.

Lot of inaccurate info in here. Beavers are vegetarians. Otters don't tail slap, they dive and run. Beavers tail slap only if you get too close to their lodge. They are territorial and two established Beavers will keep others out. They even run off their young eventually. Otters constantly roam so they have no reason to tail slap anything. Most states wont let you relocate either as they are rabies carriers. Besides, they will just come back. Otters will decimate a pond or small lake. A family of 4 can clean out a small pond in a short period of time. THey eat about half their body weight a day in fish and the adults take big fish first. I have lived this nightmare and have been trapping them non stop. If you own a body of water, educate yourself on what otter scat looks like and watch for it constantly. Use trail cameras and check them every few days. Otters come and go, even in a great fishery they will come in and out with days in between.

Otters do decimate bass populations in certain situations. I have river otters that have found there way into my 8 acre private pond that was once full of monster LMB. The otters have depleted the population of bass. These are river otters that are so over populated at the coast of NC they have worked there way up the river systems and now into my pond which is a canned hunt for them. My trail cameras have identified so may that I have had to hire a trapper and get a permit to get rid of them. The adults weigh over 30 lbs and eat half their body weight a day in fish. So far we have removed 8 otters and there are still more. My fish population is almost gone, however. What a shame. The adults go after the biggest fish and a bass is no match for an otter. Good news is they most likely cleaned out the carp first.

I agree, I love winter fishing. Of course being in NC, we have similar winters which are quite mild but I wear gloves and stay out for hours. To me, there is nothing better than the jerk bait bite and I fish jerk baits and Ned rigs almost exclusively all winter. My lake has monster crappie that attach jerk baits in the winter, so you never know what will be on the end of the line in the winter. Here is a 7lb LMB last winter and a 2 lb 8 oz crappie. Both on jerkbaits.

Most pros just see $$ and think it's cool to throw them around or hold them parallel by they're bottom jaw. Ike is the worst about this. Makes me crazy to see that clown handle fish. Some may see MLF mishandling penalties as over the top but I find it refreshing. Immediate release also keeps them close to their beds during spawning. Can't see why anyone would be against helping preserve the species. The old school manner in which fish have been handled in tournaments is ridiculous. Some don't make it in the live well and many don't make it past the weigh in. No telling how many that actually swim off at the marina die of stress or infection.

Skin infections are common and can occur for different reasons. Seeing the disturbing number of people on this site alone that lay their fish on marine carpeting or dirt and grass, I'm guessing mishandling would be one of the top causes of these infections.

It's not over reacting, they are made to be in water, not laying on dirt or marine carpeting. Simply handling them with dry hands puts them in danger of infections that can lead to death. The slime you feel on your hands after handling them is the very thin coating that protects their scales and skin from bacterial infections. Many "old schoolers" will tell you this is an over reaction, however they are most likely just trying to justify their lifetime of mishandling fish. Not every mishandled fish will die but some will and that should be enough to make us all respect the fish. There is plenty of info and studies out there so look for yourself. I tag and transfer bass on my property and have seen the progression of infections on mishandled fish. It is a slow process. Some recover, many don't.

Nice fish but there is a good chance it's dead or dying now. Keep them off the ground people. I'm continually shocked by how many anglers still lay these fish on dirt/grass or marine carpeting.

They're fun to catch and we've got some monsters in my lake. I'm not really targeting them but the big ones hammer jerk baits this time of year.

Great day on the water today. Caught about a dozen LMB including 2 over 3lbs and over a dozen Crappie including this 2.5 lb slab. All on Yo-Zuri jerk baits.

I'm not sure it matters when, just the fact that she was caught on multiple occasions. It kind of proves my point, they are reactive and bite on instinct. They don't analyze. That particular fish was obviously a very aggressive bed protector. They are tagged using a specific fish tagging gun with numbered tags that I log by hand into a journal after weighing, measuring and making other notes at to what part of the lake, what date and lured used. I'm just trying to chart their growth, health and movements. It is by no means a GPS device to help you track a poacher.

I own a 10 acre lake/pond and I started tagging certain bass a year ago. In that time, of the 20 fish I've tagged one has been caught 3 times since. Also, there was a 20+ pound State record somewhere, maybe TX or CA, that had been caught and verified something like five times before she recently died of natural causes. They're easily spooked, not necessarily smart as in they can process information. They react. They are instinctual. A lot of pressure on a small pond can spook them into not biting. I've seen Zona temporarily live-well schooling bass on a big lake because he has found that releasing them right away may cause them to spook the rest of the school into not biting.

Anyone fish RR in and around Cabaruss County? I have access to the river on the back of my property but have never fished it. Would love to hear what the Bass population is like and what other types of bass may be in there. I know when they built RR Golf Course, the maintenance crew bragged of some big largemouth they caught out of the river when stocking their ponds on the course.

Nice fish. Def not 6 @ 20" but probably 3-12 to 4-8oz max. Def a nice hog! Be proud of any bass over 3 pounds...and invest $15 in a scale so you don't ever have to wonder again. Plus, a State record could be on the end of every cast.

I get the "blind squirrel" theory and that applies everywhere, however that's not really where I was going with this. Most people are clueless as to what a fish really weighs or just FOS. Sometimes both.

Meh, that may be a stretch, but ok, I get your point. Although I'm pretty sure the top anglers are hunting hogs not dinks.

Fair enough, however you left this fact out of my quote which is quite compelling... Think about this, the record bass caught on the MLF circuit is 8lbs 5 oz. These are the top pros fishing the best lakes year round. 10 pounders are not as common as many here claim they are.

We all know fish tales are common place and no other activity exaggerates like fishing does. In my experience, most that claim they caught a 10 pounder did not. The alarming rate of anglers on this site that don't carry a scale will help my argument. I see pics on here daily that people claim are 5lbs that are maybe 3lbs so I doubt almost every claim of a 10 lb bass. Think about this, the record bass caught on the MLF circuit is 8lbs 5 oz. These are the top pros fishing the best lakes year round. 10 pounders are not as common as many here claim they are. My PB is just over 7 lbs and I've been fishing my whole life. I have 100's of catches over 5 lbs and most people would believe that any of them were 10 lbs. The fish in my profile pic is 6 lbs and I am constantly asked if it is 10.

Nice fish but keep them off the ground and marine carpet. A few seconds is enough to jeopardize their health. Just because they swim off doesn't mean they survive.

The update is I love this thing! It is a true mini Bass boat. My friends that have tournament boats are amazed at the stability of the casting decks and how freely you can move on it without worrying about tipping. This boat is durable and well made and the live well is top notch. It is heavier than other plastic hulled pond boats but nothing two guys can't handle. I ordered a custom aluminum dolly from a website that can be seen in my pictures and it makes it easy to move and launch. There is a trailer available from the manufacturer also. Highly recommended and worth the wait if back ordered. If you do purchase go through Cabellas as they seem to always have the best pricing and the updates on my boat's progress during build out was great.

That's a big boy there. Gotta be over 30lbs, right? Just think, they eat half their body weight/day so if you have a mating pair with a few pups in a pond it won't take long for them to clean it out.

Leaders are just old school and industry driven. A lot of pros that use leaders will admit when they re-tie during an event they don't bother with the leader. There is an abrasion argument there but the visibility issue is a joke. Bass don't look for the line and evaluate presentation. If so they would identify treble hooks and every other abnormality associated with lures. They simply react. Not to mention, they can clearly see mono and flouro underwater. Try fishing straight braid, you will love it. I miss less strikes because I can always see the line and I never loose a fish because of a knot or line break.

You don't need a leader, it's just more knots that can fail. I fish straight braid with more success than ever.

I own a small lake about the same size but a bit deeper with more structure. It is man made and about 80 years old so there are some monsters in there. There is also a lot of food, making the big fish tough to catch. It is filled with bait fish and frogs and in a 10 acre body of water, it is a canned hunt for the big bass. They know where to eat and get their fill any time they wish. There are times when the bite just shuts down. Right now water temps are dropping and they are really feeding and chasing. I see massive schools of bait fish everywhere so the big, dominant fish have no trouble feeding. All we are catching now are the juveniles. Typically, the biggest bass in my lake are caught in the winter months when food sources are lower.