Glaucus

To each his own. I'm not going to say you're BSing because I'm not you and I don't know you. It's perfectly plausible that someone fishes purely for the challenge. I think most of us fish for the fun and the whole concept: catching fish, and catching big fish. Then there's the guys who fish for the money. Then there's the guys who fish for all of those reasons combined. Personally from my perspective, nothing sounds bad about being on private water and catching big bass with ease. I did have the time of my life wading and kayaking rivers for Smallies this past season with my wife and good friends. We caught a ton of fish and made a lot of memories. That's the whole point to me, so private water sounds like a blast. I have fished private water, but few and far between and where I live, there isn't much of a difference. But to get on private water in a big bass state sounds like a dream.

Yeah I'm really not seeing his logic all things considered. People foam at the mouth for a chance to fish an awesome private lake. Like you said about changing states then because of the challenge, we can even go as far as to say well then change gear and baits. Go back to a wooden pole and worms. More challenging than taking a good, sensitive rod and a tried and true lure.

I don't get to fish very many private waters here in Illinois. I'm a public pond hopper and river rat.

It's been warm for this time of year in central Illinois. 55 degrees today. Rainy and windy though. 30mph winds tomorrow. Finally Saturday is supposed to be calm, moderately sunny, with no rain and a high of 35. A bit cooler but the water temps should still be in decent condition all things considered. I'm going to hit my favorite river up that day. Just 48 more hours. Haven't felt a tug on my line for far too long. Taking one of my new Fenwicks and the Ned Rig. Should at least 1 or 2 Smallies. I hope.

Some people fish for fun. Put me on a lake where I can easily catch big bass all day, I'm going to have fun. Catching is the whole point.

Lake Fork Guy dropped a video. He found spawning bass already. At one pond he found fry and a fry guarder and at another he found one on a bed.

Sheriff is one impressive bluegill. Their smallest bass Moby is a different kind of bass, a different kind of savage. He would eat the family if he could. Bama says he's never seen a more aggressive fish. Future DD easily.

A ML Fenwick rod of your choice and a Pflueger reel of your choice, depending on your budget. You can go with the Eagle rod with a President reel ($120 total), to an HMG rod with a President XT reel ($180 total), to an Elite Tech rod with a Supreme reel ($250 total). Or mix and match. Whatever you want. Fenwicks and Pfluegers are really good rods and reels for the money.

The best YouTube fisherman ever is ndyakangler. He absolutely slays giant smallmouth kayaking down rivers. He's mellow, only talks fishing while he fishes, and isn't over dramatic about anything. My daughter (2yo) falls to sleep watching him. It's her nightly ritual. She has to watch him catch the fishies.

His bass and crappie came from a river. I believe his catfish did too. Dunno about the main bluegill. The new gills came from a river too. Not sure what you're talking about. Most of his fishing for straight up videos is in private ponds though.

If you watch Bamabass, you'll want a pet bass.

I'm from Illinois. I know of a lot of people who take fish as pets. No issues. What the letter of the law says is different. But it's like the law from a southern state that it's technically illegal to walk down a sidewalk eating an ice cream come on a Sunday. But it isn't enforced and nobody cares. I'm not going to tell you to do it, but I'm going to tell you that I've never known anyone to get in trouble for it, and I've never met anyone in any position of authority who would even care. Some laws are just stupid. Like collecting rain water is or used to be illegal. Nobody cares.

Thanks gentlemen. So this rod I'm primarily looking at, the 6'8" M/MF, is listed as a topwater and jerkbait rod. I want it for squarebills mostly, shallow to medium divers. The problem with a true crankbait rod for me is they're either 7' + which is an absolute abomination in my hands because I hate rods that long as they feel so awkward, or they're a true moderate action which I also absolutely hate (extra fast and moderate actions are actions I really personally don't like), or they're dirt cheap rods or rods that cost way more than I'm willing to pay. These EVX rods hit on everything I like, as I said. So would you guys say this will be an adequate squarebill rod?

I wouldn't use that in a pond for basically the same reason I wouldn't use a deep diving crankbait. Ponds are typically shallow with a lot of vegetation/grass/moss/algae. It'll get gunked up and hit the bottom fast.

I mean, he can do that stupid crap that will result in less bites and more bent hooks and missed fish, but I'll keep doing it the right way and so will everyone else I imagine. Pretty much guarantee he is pulling your leg though. Also, yeah, if you were going on like you did in the OP, that's probably why he fibbed.

Chatterbaits are better for me but it's anecdotal and really a personal thing

My first truly amazing day of fishing was thanks to a 3/16oz Strike King Lil Mr Money spinnerbait. Caught my PB LMB of 7lbs on that thing, as well as 40 or so other LMB, good ones and dinks alike. That was nearly 7 years ago. And that's a 7lb North Central Illinois LMB too. Absolutely amazing. That really turned me on to spinnerbaits, and that season that's mostly what I did. For some odd reason, since that day and since that season, the spinnerbait bite has been few and far between for me.

I'm a weird case probably. For spinning gear I'm truly a Fenwick rod and Pflueger reel fanboy. For casting gear there are several companies I like and my choices come down to whoever has the exact specs in the exact price ranges that I'm looking for.

Rod shopping for/with my dad I came across a couple of rods that caught my attention. They appear to have everything I want in a rod. Definitely would be a bait monkey purchase, but I want them. If they're worth getting. Okuma EVX casting rods. The 6'8" M and MH both in MF/F actions. I use a lot of trebles for smallies and I don't like 7' rods at all. Right actions, right lengths, good price. Are they any good?

Unseasonably warm here in central Illinois. I'm gonna hit up the river after Christmas and see what's up.

I'd say most landlocked fishermen could leave the bank behind if they really wanted to. People who can afford an arsenal of rods and tackle can afford a 500 dollar kayak or a cheap Jon boat. Nobody needs 60,000 dollar plus bass boats to fish, they're a luxury item. I think a lot of people get so caught up on not being able to afford a bass boat that they forget about other legitimate options.

Got my dad all hooked up and now the bait monkey is hitting me hard. I'm looking at the Okuma EVX casting rods. Specifically the 6'8" M/MF-F topwater/jerkbait model. I'm looking at it for squarebills and smaller whopper ploppers. Will this rod do me well?

Safari style hat. See profile pic. More protection from sun.