kenmitch

He got his share of them, but managed to pick them all out eventually. I did have to pick one out for him. The reel had a marginal amount of line on it so I guess it helped prevent some major nesting. When I was out in the yak he played around with the spool tension to try and cast farther, but the issue is clearly his technique at this time. He's no natural when it comes to casting. I'm pretty sure I can get him to see the way, but it might take a few hours of hands on training. I've shown him a couple of different ways to cast, but he doesn't catch on quickly. It'll be fun none the less.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

I took one of my fellow coworkers to the lake on Tuesday and brought one of my spare baitcaster combos for him to try out. He's a baitcaster virgin. I adjusted the reel to where I though it was dummy proof and made a cast while not using my thumb at all. It did over run just a tad so I did a quick adjustment and made another cast to make sure. No thumb action and it looked to good to go.... ....I started reeling in rather rapidly so I could launch my kayak and I got a pretty decent strike. He was more shocked than I was when I got them close enough to grab. Not sure if they hit at the same time or if one was just trying to pull a fast one and take the others meal. My 1st 2 for 1 catch! The larger one was 3.25 lbs I didn't weight the smaller one, but guessing around 1.75 lbs. It was colder than anticipated when I got to the lake so I had to pull out my emergency rain suit to help keep warm. Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

After sitting out the hot summer months I've started to go to the lake now and again. The water level at my local lake (Lake Perris) has dropped around 17ft or so from it's June peak. It's in a limbo phase for me as my better spots are either high and dry or a little on the deep side still. I've been looking around for spots and have had some luck here and there from time to time. Last Tuesday the 19th I went to the lake at 4pm for some quick shore fishing to at least practice some casting. It was the leading edge of a cold front with some decent wind and chop blowing straight in at me. I only fished for just under 1hr as it got dark pretty quickly and was a little on the nippy side. I wound up catching 5 Bass in a 45 minute time span. Overall it was a great 45 minutes or so of fishing. All caught on a rattle trap that I've since lost. Here's the kicker! 6.3 lbs and I was lucky enough to have a fellow angler around to take a couple of quick photos. I would have like to get a better photo or two of her, but she was a bleeder. I looked inside her mouth before releasing her and could find where or even see any damage. I would have hated to keep her, but would have if I didn't think she would make it.

I use the DrMeter PS01 luggage scale that's available on Amazon.

Trick question? It's right there on the right hand side. 19CLUB514

The omega or the omega pro? The extension arm on the pro makes it more versatile than the omega. The omega with the 8" extension arm would be another good option depending on mounting placement and desired angles.

I saw that video last night. It looked like a decent fish, but not sure if it was dive in worthy. I'd probably be tempted to dive in for this one. https://www.bassmaster.com/kayak-bass-fishing/video/kayak-bass-angler-dives-after-fish

I just wanted to add the importance of wearing a PFD at all times. During the colder months it's even more important as extra clothing can tend to make a person sink when it soaks up the water. Of course there's the hypothermia aspect as well. Whatever you choose make sure it's not too bulky to make your PFD of choice uncomfortable or not wearable at all. Stay safe and warm on your adventures!

As long as the lakes you fish can produce your new PB's then it's really just a matter of time before your in the right place, right time, using the correct bait for such a fish to bite. Figuring out all three is the tricky part as sometimes just pure luck rewards you with a new PB. The term luck can be subjective as if your throwing a particular bait while trying to catch a bass then is it luck or is it just the game plan in the end that gets the bass. Just like you I set out this season with the hopes of catching my new PB bass. I'd imagine that all anglers set out with the goal at least in the back of their minds. I'd imagine even WRB sets out with at least a dream of topping his PB. I caught my 1st bass of the season on Feb 26th and she was a new PB of 7.02 lbs! I knew I had a shot at a new PB, but I had no idea it would be the very 1st catch of the year. Funny thing about it was after countless hours and bait offerings I'd more or less given up any hope of catching anything on this day. I fish for fun so whenever I'm faced with outings that don't look so promising I'll just putt around in my kayak and explore the lake for areas that look like they'll be promising for future outings. Whenever I kick into this mode I'll only throw a lipless offering as it allows me to keep on the move. Whenever I see a fishy looking spot I'll cast to it and pretend there's a fish waiting to ambush my lure. It was during one of these practice scenarios that she slammed my Trap! I was shocked when she 1st broke the surface as I instantly knew she was PB worthy! I guess in the end I accomplished what I was simulating, but now instead of later....If that makes any sense. Sadly there were no other boaters around when I caught my new PB, but I did get her to pose for me on my measuring board at least. I'm surprised she even raised her dorsal fins for me. Get out on the water, keep your goal in mind, try different offerings, and when you least expect it it'll happen. Good luck on your quest for a new PB!

Nothing beats getting back on the water for the 1st time of the season! Good luck on your adventures!

Nice ones!

Hard to tell from the photo....Mike Iaconelli would call that a monster bass!

Nice one! My theory which is a wild one....It's from people ticking in the lake too much. The non water compounds in the urine settle to the bottom in turn staining the fish that like to lurk down there. I strongly suggest you don't drink the water no matter how thirsty you get.