JLindsey

I spent a few hours yesterday working shallow cover with nothing to show for it except a few chain pickerel. I made one last cast along the edge of the lily pads when it got too dark to see my line and just about got my arm ripped off. I didn’t have my scale with me but she felt like she was pushing five pounds.

Caught a new PB yesterday - 3lbs 10oz. Took me two hours standing in the rain just to find the one fish, but I haven’t been catching much besides dinks and pickerel lately so I was over the moon when I landed her. I was hopping a little black and blue ZMan micro finesse jig with a TRD CrawZ trailer through the pads.

She’s no giant, but still my biggest of the year so far. 3lbs 3oz Happy Easter!

Cuz they don’t make a cool WHIZZZZZZ noise, duh

On a few of the lakes and ponds I fish, I’m limited to one or two spots. I work those areas with two, three, four lures, catch what I can catch, then pack up the car and head to the next body of water. I’m there no more than an hour and a half. On lakes where accessibility is less of an issue and I can walk the bank, I carry two rods - one with a moving bait, one with a more stationary bait. I find a fishy-looking spot, fan cast, move and repeat.

This is certainly my most interesting catch lately. He’s not hooked - just hitched a ride on my stick bait. These little guys are all over the lakes and ponds near me. Google tells me they’re probably red spotted newts.

The trout guys in my area don’t get it at all. They hear the word “bass” and tilt their head like a puppy dog. Might as well tell them you’re trying to catch leprechauns.

Hit a new-to-me pond today that’s more than a little out of my way, but I found decent incentive to go back real soon.

Breaking off doesn’t trouble me so much. What bugs me is seeing nightcrawler cartons and dead minnows all over the bank.

I had a great day yesterday throwing Fat Impacts in the Bluegill Flash color on a 1/8oz VMC swimbait head. I’ll try ‘em weightless next!

Thanks guys, I’ll definitely check the guides for cracks. Normally I fish a lipless on 10lb braid, but I got lazy today and didn’t feel like taking a third combo out with me. Lesson learned.

After only ever using spinning gear, I finally bought a baitcaster. I spent a few days getting comfortable with it, and finally fished it today. In 45 minutes or so I caught two small bass and a good sized chain pickerel burning a Keitech just under the surface. I learned a LOT today and I’m feeling very accomplished.

Twice today my line snapped while casting a 1/4 oz lipless crankbait. I was using a 6’6” M/F spinning rod spooled with 6lb fluorocarbon. I tied the crankbaits on with a palomar. What gives? Is that line too light? I throw plenty of other 1/4oz lures on this outfit with no issue, it’s only lipless cranks that have me making these 100 yard casts. It was windy today - maybe my line is wrapping around my rod tip and I’m not noticing? This happened a few times last year as well, again, only with lipless crankbaits.

The bait monkey is out for blood. I bought my first baitcasting outfit the other day (a MH/F Lew’s Mach I Speed Spool combo), spooled it with 14lb mono, and took it out and got comfortable with it. Being able to cast it without backlashing got me real excited and eager to try some more new stuff out. I went back to Dick’s after I got done fishing last night and bought an Abu Garcia Vengeance paired with an Abu Ultra Max, which I spooled with 40lb PowerPro. Now I need some new stuff to throw on these, don’t I? I picked some stuff up in Dick’s and hit Walmart on the way home. Keitech 3.8” Swing Impact FAT in bluegill flash 2 packs each of VMC Swimbait Heads in 1/4 and 1/8oz 2 bargain bin Yo-Zuri 95F Minnow jerkbaits 4 cheapo Jawbone spinnerbaits a mess of clearance Cotton Cordell Spots and Bill Lewis Rat-L-Traps in various colors and sizes a handful of 3” Creme Spoiler Shad prerigged swimbaits in various colors Then there’s the Tackle Warehouse order I placed - a Berkley Big Game lip gripper/scale for handling toothy critters, a mess of Rapala X-Raps and floaters, some Rebel Pop-Rs, some Beast Coast swimbaits, a Berkley Choppo, and some Plano boxes. I’ve been doing a lot of crappie fishing lately too, and I feel silly using the 4’6” Shakespeare rod I keep in the car, so I also bought a 6’ Quantum Xtralite combo and a mess of small jigheads, grubs, tubes and tiny Creme swimbaits. Can you tell I’m REAL excited this season?

Northeast PA guy here! I’m up in the Poconos. Welcome!