Brad in Texas

Great observations and maybe someone already mentioned it. But, at least some bass/fish seem to be attracted to the commotion common around ramps. We had LMBs bubbling up all over Lake Athens, TX last year and boats launched and many of them never left the area. I was bank fishing one afternoon next to the ramp and several bass chasing bait fish almost beached themselves on the ramp. Very cool idea not to overlook these! Brad

I use those same rings to bind together various plastic lure bags. Works well. And, a large safety pin can be used to keep hooks sorted. Trader Joe's sells these little chocolate mints and they come in little canisters with a clear area on the lid. They are, I guess a little less than 1" deep, around 3" in diameter. Good for all sorts of storage: weights, hooks, swivels, etc. The lids pop off but hold fast and you can see what is inside. My latest idea? When I re-string my guitar, I end up with 6 guitar strings of different gauge sizes and they have an anchoring device on one end (a metal ring). I am thinking these strings might be useful, perhaps as leaders for certain sorts of fishing, say for toothy types. But, any other suggestions would be appreciated for guitar strings. I hate to throw them away, use them too for trellises for vines to crawl up on. Brad

North Texas is at the bottom of the windy Great Plains . . . where the most wind occurs nationally. A map below shows the influences we get from various sources including the effects from the Gulf of Mexico and others. If you fish Texas, you just have to get over it. From my kayak, I have just learned how and where to hide out. Fish love it! Here is a link to a cool map showing current wind patterns. Brad Wind

My grandson, Braden, was the pickiest child eater I ever experienced. He'd only eat about 4 things. For a hamburger, one of these four things, he'd only eat it with the meat patty and buns . . . nothing else, not even ketchup or mustard. He has grown out of it in large part now as he heads into his early teens. I was the opposite and I'd eat anything really impressing my friends' parents. One family made my best friend eat goose liver sandwiches and he hated it. I loved it and they'd poke at Jimmy saying, "Look, Brad is eating his!" Fun to watch tastes expand and "yearnings" to begin to develop in kids for something odd. I still get the occasional yearning, maybe once a year, for sauerkraut served with some sort of sausage; or, a need for some grass-fed beef liver. Eating dove, for me, is another: I really like to eat it about once a year, get heartburn afterwards for what seems like a week or longer, but a year later . . . ready to go again. No, I don't drink out of a hose these days. I have standards I didn't have as a kid! Ha! Brad

All other things being equal, a shorter rod will be more "powerful" as its lever is shorter, its lifting point closer to your hands. But, with spinning rods used the way they were intended, this is rarely an issue so I wouldn't over-emphasize length as regards power. I prefer short rods when I am fishing from my kayak where I rarely make long casts. For fishing from the bank, I typically use a 7 footer because I am often trying to make longer casts to cover more water from a stationary point. If I fished with lots of overhanging limbs? I'd revert to my shorter rod. Situational. I think most of us, if we are choosing one spinning rod, try to find one with a power and a tip that will accommodate what we catch most in terms of size. If you use a rod that is too stiff, it won't flex enough to pin the fish really well once it is on the hook. With spinning rods, we really want and need that full bend. It isn't uncommon for us to select a power that is a step lower than what a casting rod in the same circumstances would be preferable. If a MH casting rod is called for, an M with a spinning rod will normally be better. Anyway, if your average day finds you catching 2 lbs. bass, dial in for that. The best rod power and length for that will easily handle a 6 lbs. bass, even a 10 pounder. Brad

100% fluorocarbon lines don't absorb water. So, that isn't an issue. It certainly could be for most types of monofilaments that do absorb water. Brad

Well, if no backing, secure the line to the arbor using the tape method. I don't believe I have ever read a bad review of Sufix 832. I'd likely get the yellow, whatever they call it, as it is easier to see. Others will have different ideas here but anything over 10 lbs. is overkill for a standard sized spinning reel/rod for freshwater fishing. If you haven't already, be certain that you understand the unique nature of spinning gear, how it is operated to land a fish. It differs from casting gear. Brad

I'd start out a novice with monofilament for a season. Some of the Sufix products, Elite would be one, are not at all like the old mono lines. Very good lines. But, I'd then move on to braid and try to stay with 10 lbs. or less, leaders when required. If the person you are introducing to fishing will only be a casual angler, a time or two a year, just stick with mono. No, to beginning with straight fluorocarbon, perhaps another "no" to ending up with it. But, better fluorocarbon lines are coming out each and every year, so . . . Brad

I don't think there is much to debate here, that each boat steers starboard to clear the other. You want as few "if, then, else" decisions as possible and having just one rule makes better sense. Now those danged British bass guys that drive on the wrong side? They are the ones we really have to watch out for. Ha! Brad P.S. As a kayaker I can say that the most likely "boater" to cut between you and the bank would be a recreational kayaker. They often have no sense at all about the effects of paddling right by you. It'd be maddening if it wasn't so funny. br

Pretty interesting! The largest LMB I have ever caught was on 10 braid to 8 fluoro (Invizx) and it held very well using a Uni-to-Uni junction knot I had tied that day just sort of to make certain I could still tie it very accurately. No, at least in fair tests, I am pretty certain it lost to an Alberto junction knot in the "Knot Wars" series. But, close! The FG knot was about 50% stronger than either. The FG is a plaited knot with totally different characteristics. The issue with a Uni junction knot is you have two (2) knots to possibly fail, not just one. It'll likely fail on one particular side, the side where the fluoro (or other leader material) is wrapped around the braid. Braid bites into fluoro and mono lines; but, they don't bite very well into braid. A tip: Most of us tie a terminal knot from one direction better than the other. When you tie a Uni junction knot, tie it in your "dominant" direction first, then simply grab the two source lines and rotate them so that you are tying the second knot from the same direction. Then, straighten it all out, pull the two knots together to finish the knot. No doubt, a great knot to have available. If you only had one knot for all angling purposes, yep! Brad

It really is harder, takes a bit of adjustment, from a kayak. When you have the rod holding hand and arm back and away, it makes it easy to create slack in the line. Most fish always seem to have that one last flash of power to break loose by throwing the hook. I'd only add that I really like to grab them with my fish grips. That works really well and, in time, you'll get very accurate at snapping it on a gaping mouth. This or a net is a must in many circumstances, else you are going to lose some fish. If you are over-aggressive trying to grab them to offset this, you'll end up with some hooks in your flesh. The other "tip" is to learn to look for how the fish is hooked. They are often wiggling around but if you can determine how well they are hooked, you give yourself a few options to land them. If the hook is dangling from a stretched out hole in their lip tissue, you have to move faster, take a chance before than shake loose. Brad

Agreed regarding the tip being the primary point where a first transmission of the bite originates, this, for both casting and spinning rods. But, I suppose and can't know for certain, that if one holds a spinning rod as it is intended to be held (fingers split forward and back of the reel support arm), that it is a superior hand set-up position better positioned to feel a tiny vibration. I suppose it depends on how one holds a casting reel, for sure, but hand up straddling the reel top wouldn't appear to be as positioned for "feel" as the forward finger of a spinning rod sort of balancing on it. There are few things on our bodies more tactile than an index finger. In any case, a point to ponder, but a really, really small one as regards on the water results I suspect. Brad

From my childhood and youth reading Field & Stream and Sports Afield magazines, such great little rustic ads in those days from little mom and pop businesses all over our country selling all sorts of things, some also indicating "looking for" various needs. It is seemingly long gone today, so much more commercial. Old-timers will remember these old small ads: chinchillas, hunting airedales, chicken egg incubators, raise quail for $$, "how to" manuals, "we buy bulk . . ." and on and on. A kid could dream for hours and hours just reading these ads sprinkled throughout these mags with a whole section of classifieds at the back as I recall. *So, I received a Mepps catalog after an order not long ago and, I'll be danged! They have something in it looking to buy quantities of squirrel tails (ostensibly to be used to make some of their lures). You'd have to really be a squirrel hunter to have the sort of volume Mepps was looking for, like 50 if I recall, but how great to see that there is still sort of a barter going on for such items. Whether squirrel shaped lures would work, or not, their tail hair is still being actively sought out. There is actually a market for them. Greatness! Brad

Another Mepps fan here. Arguably the greatest white bass angler in Texas is Dennis Christian. He actually has an article published on the Mepps website about his technique using a plain, usually silver, Aglia in a couple of different sizes (depending on the size of shad at the time). There is a link to a YouTube video showing very clear and specific instructions on how to use his technique. Must viewing for anyone who likes to fish white bass on major lakes or during the spawn up in rivers and creeks. I used the Mepps Plain Aglias during the white bass spawn on my home lake. It works a bit differently when they are up in the shallows but just as effective. I caught a couple over the lake record, in the 19" length range, several over the lake record of 3 lbs. More important to the black bass "specialists" among us, while I was catching the sandies, I also caught quite a few LMBs, so these little inline spinners will catch all species. One photo'd below is measured up against my 14" boot. And, a small LMB caught on the same Aglia, same day. I think over that 3-day weekend, I had just under 50 sandies and 4 LMBs, a couple of crappie over about a total of 6 hours of fishing. Brad

I think they are already available "pre-order" on TW and other sites. Seems they were listed at $7.99, so not cheap. But, like all tackle and gear, if something lasts 3 or 4X as long, that has to be taken into consideration as regards the true price of owing it. I'm like you and want to see it on the water a bit more. Brad

This is the part or angling where athleticism plays a role. Imagine a pro bass angler with 20 different rods lying on the deck, MLs to Hs, long rods and short rods, different lines and presentations. They have to pick them up and be ready, immediately, to fish with the new weapon of choice. It'd be like shooting basketball free throws with a ball that is different sized/weighted, the rim at different heights. For most Ned Rigs, the hook point isn't all that exposed coming out of the plastic and all I can add here is that it is more about snagging the fish (or letting it snag itself) than it is about aggressively driving the hook into the mouth bone/cartilage/tissue. If you get a bite, you have to take up the slack in the line, doing so will let the bass feel the pressure. Usually, if they haven't already turned, they'll turn away from the pressure source and in doing so, the line back to your rod tip will be pulled taut onto one side of its mouth opening or the other. That's the last critical point: it either snags or it doesn't. Of course, they can get hooked earlier, too. Once snagged, you can then get a bit more aggressive as you need to fully load up your rod, only reeling down to take up line. If you lose the bend in your rod, bass will often shake or jump and get loose. I'm not certain you described how they were getting off? By the way, you are doing great for getting out and getting bit with a new presentation. You are about a quarter inch away from having a big day! Brad

I'm lucky to be living about 200 feet from one of the best bass lakes in Texas; so, the allure is always staring right back at me, like, "Well, what are you waiting for?" Oh, yes, lakes can talk to you! So, I go out often in the late afternoons for 2 to 3 hours and just float around and really enjoy myself, usually catching a limit. For me? It'd be sacrilegious to even bring a radio: I like to soak in the nature all around me. If a boat or another floats by, I do socialize, share tips. Made lots of friends that way. On weekends, I will often look to see what other kayakers have planned, have several I fish with regularly. We have the D/FW Kayak Angling Group on FB and I'd bet there are at least 100 if not multiple hundreds making plans constantly. D/FW is likely one of the biggest hotbeds of kayak anglers in the country. The one thing I have sort of sworn off of is any serious fishing while going out tandem with friends or family in my big canoe. I want to control the vessel, so I take the back, that and two lines out makes holding water a bit harder. I rarely fish well tandem. And, when I do, my fishing is sort of recreational. The only other matter relates to danger. If I were fishing deep in really cold weather from a kayak, I'd want to go out in a group, at least one other. Or, new water. I feel that way now where I want to kayak fish Lake Palestine (19 miles away) in an area stump-ridden that boats have to avoid. But, I'll likely wait for a pal to join me. Brad

This one, sort of the "Alabama Rig" as spinnerbaits go. With that many blades, not only the vibration but the appearance of something chasing just behind and under a little school of bait fish. One other? Take a look at the new ZMan spinnerbait, SlingBladeZ, being introduced at ICAST 2018 I think. No, not a 4 blade configuration . . . but it just looks so well made with some interesting design features. Brad New Spinnerbait

We have so many, American Lotus in our case, they are almost a nuisance. But, since they are limited in coverage to shallow water, one thing I like to do is go into a cove with a creek feed and you can literally use the pads to define where the channel is. One of my favorite places to fish isn't actually in the pads, themselves, but making casts down the edge of them either rather tight, or out a ways into the opening area indicating a channel or low spot. Bass certainly do use these as little highways as do bait fish so they can be on the move there, else sitting just under the edge pads waiting to do what they do best: ambush an unsuspecting target. When I do fish the pads, I stand in my canoe or kayak and pitch to openings in the cover. Shallow water means if a bass is zeroing in on your presentation from a distance, that you can often see an "arrow-shaped" formation pushing a water wave toward it several feet/seconds before it slams it. A 4 pound bass in 4 feet of water is often too large to make a fast dart without displacing some water around it. Very cool! Brad

And, there are really very few 10 footers in true fishing kayaks to begin with. It is not an over-populated space. The Propel 10 I mention, then Native has a Titan that is labeled 10.5 but 10' 9" as I recall. Old Town is releasing a shorter kayak this year at ICAST, I think, Bonafide finally brought out its smaller paddler. There's a short Diablo, a few others. Slim pickings. And, what Jim Mac said . . . some kayaks are just tippy by design, really poor design issues for angling, and if it happens to be one in the 10 ft. range, you'll likely spend a lot of time in the water. I recall seeing one rather large, inexperienced dude try to get in a short kayak off the bank and he looked like he was trying to balance on a beam the whole time. He had enough sense to pop back out instead of flipping out deep. Brad

Sounds great! I look forward to reading more about it. Brad

I own several kayaks, a super canoe, too. Of my kayaks, the one I use more than any other is my Native Propel 10. It is just so easy to load on the back of my truck, so much less effort to get on and off the water. It is 34" wide (10 feet long) so an inch wider than its big brother, the Native Propel 13. It has a super reputation as a great kayak fishing vessel. So, a few things. In general, a longer, sleek kayak will pedal/paddle faster. There is some math behind this. And, again, generally speaking, a longer kayak tracks better and the bow doesn't wander as much to starboard and port if you are paddling. Finally, stability is proportional to the area of the kayak at its water line, this and owing also to its shape. Some kayaks are better "shaped" for stability, others configured for speed. I can stand in my Propel 10 but not as easily and casually as my Jackson Big Rig. But, the Jackson Big Rig isn't even close to the stability of my Meyers Sportspal S-15 canoe. If you think you plan to stand a lot, go a little longer. Finally, even though the top end speed varies a few MPH between various makes and models of kayaks, we all tend to "fish" at the same speed, move from one spot to another at basically a casual walking speed. So, don't over-emphasize speed too much in your buying process. You won't be sprinting around all that often, if ever. Hope this helps! Brad

Good ideas shared above, especially since we don't know your exact intentions regarding how you fish. Say, if you mean to try straight braid, no leader, I'd actually recommend 6 lbs. in Sufix Nanobraid. This would give you a bit more casting distance, and way stronger than required for 3 lbs. bass. Otherwise, for most finesse fishing applications, 10 lbs. braid to a 6 or 8 lbs. mono or fluoro leader is more than adequate. I do like and use the yellow Sufix 832 as it really assists line watching. But, with experience, I find I have learned ways to keep an eye of even drab colored lines. There are those bites that one can see before being felt. Brad

Lake Fork is legendary, of course. From where I am on Lake Athens, I can drive to 20 or so lakes, several within 20 minutes, others within an hour like Fork. Lake Palestine, Mill Creek Reservoir, Cedar Creek, Richland Chambers, Tawakoni, Tyler lakes (3), Neches River, Trinity River, Naconiche, Fairfield, Purtis Creek. Just a few. Gary Yamamoto's (of Senko fame) private lakes are about 20 minutes away though I have never been there. There aren't many places with as many great bass fisheries as east Texas, that is for sure. Yep! "Rain event" sounds, well, formal? As I speak, it is getting ready to rain again. I went out this morning, caught 3 but it seemed slower than usual. One thing that has been happening over the last few days is some monsters down in the pads are grabbing my Keitech and taking off with great power. In 3 cases, these fish have lodged themselves in the stems of the lily pads and then tore off my hook. Different locations for each occurrence and I don't think these are bass. Could be good sized catfish and we have quite a few bowfin, some gar too. I think I'll carry out a rig with heavy braid and see what is up. Brad I have yet to see any of these fish, not a glimpse.

Not quite as good tonight. I boated 3 LMBs in an hour or so of fishing going out in the late afternoon to avoid the heat again. Again, I just really love the straight shanked worm hooks for solid hook-ups! Brad