The Baron

I’d suggest a little Maine/Ontario competition too, but I’ve seen too many of your posts to be that foolish! 😝

I got on quite a roll in September-October with an Owner Flashy Swimmer 3/16oz. 3/0 with a white paddletail - the Strike King 3 3/4” Rage Swimmer, the XZone 4” Swammer and the Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper were good producers - all in white or something close to it. Several good fish, including my PB 5.35# on the Swammer. 👍🏻 This one’s not my PB, but I like the photo more.

Wow @Creek Pirate that's an epic result on those jerkbaits! We've had an easy winter so I expect even the protected bays of Lake Ontario will be open very early this year. Fingers are crossed I might be launching our little See Bass in April and chasing fat pre-spawn smallies to start my season. If that happens, I figure jerk baits, slow rolled Keitchs and slow dragged finesse football jigs or small tubes might be my go to's.🤞

Yes, a 6’10” M rod will work fine if it’s a fast action. Some unmarked, less expensive rods are a bit soft but if your rod is marked as a fast action it’ll work fine. There is a case to be made for a longer rod and a medium-light if you’re fishing smallmouth in open water. But unless you’re really into dropshotting and want a dedicated rod then just use what you have a enjoy.

My 16yo. daughter doesn't fish much (I invite regularly but it always seems I'm going too early, it's too hot, too windy, I'm going for too long, or she just doesn't feel like it when I invite)... but she announced at the dinner table the other night that's she's looking forward to fishing this year. That swelled my heart. So, my goal for 2024 is to take my daughter fishing and have a "good" couple hours of action. On the rare occasions she's come, she smiles ear to ear when she has a fish on. And a couple times she's lost a nice one she just laughs and casts again. I would LOVE to see her catch a good one, but just a couple hours of her smiling and me netting would make my season. Wouldn’t hurt at all if she got interested enough to come more often. 🥰 Beyond that, I'll just be happy every time I turn the key on our little bass boat and stuff my cell phone into a dry bag for the day.

Thanks guys. I’ve got a St. Croix Mojo Bass 7’11” heavy/mod-fast that’s rated for 1/2-2oz. Thought if I can find a couple entry level glide baits that fit in the upper end of that I’d give it a try. Might add a 300-size reel for the task, and for pike fishing.

I'm now barely competent with several presentations, so am interesting in adding glide baits to that list.😝 Can anyone direct me to some good articles/threads or YouTube videos on the very basics of glide bait fishing? How about recommendations for a couple "affordable" glide baits - the River2Sea S-Waver looks like a good option? And am I right they don't come with hooks, so what hooks would go on the 120/168 sizes? Are there any other beginner glide baits you'd recommend?

Hey, what's in the hockey bag? My jig. You mean "jigs". Nope. 🤪

Outside storage. I have the boat here at home so I can clear snow off and keep an eye on it. It’s double covered - my summer rain/sun cover, then the heavy duty canvas cover. But the canvas cover is very tired and covered in tape patches.

The cover I’m looking at is made specifically for our boat model. It’s just the material I’m looking to understand (I want heavy duty),

The canvas cover for our Bass Tracker 165 is at the end of its life, so I’m shopping for a new one. I’m looking at a cover that is described as made from “Premium 100% Solution Dyed Marine Acrylic 9.25 oz. Fabric utilizing either Sunbrella® or Outdura®. ” I’m not familiar with boat cover lingo. Is this a heavy duty cover, good for winter storage or trailering?

You sound much more intelligent than me, @ol'crickety I just work, watch YouTube videos and complain about winter. 😆

Good to see some areas of the world are still living and not just existing. lol I hadn't been here in a bit - no fishing here.☹️ But I just paid for my boat insurance and that's about the only bill I can pay that makes me smile. Good to know it's all tucked in here, ready to go when the weather gets warm. I'll hopefully get out on Lake Ontario in April for the early catch and release only bass season, and catch some monster pre-spawn smallies. 🤞

I've never placed lower than top 10 in a bass tournament. I've never entered a bass tournament. I've never caught a fish on a Carolina rig (have fished with them a bit, plan to try more next year)

To the OP... how can I stop my wife from going to Costco for paper towel, and spending $400? African or European?

Merry Christmas!... from the snow-less "Great White North" 🤪

Oh yeah, I also forgot about the other dozen 5-plus’ that I caught… … kidding. 😂😫😎😝

Wow, some great fish pics. We don’t grow largemouth quite like that up here, but I upped my PB by a considerable margin with a 5.35# in September. Was fishing an Owner Flashy Swimmer with a white paddletail when she entered my life. I’d just had a birds nest and used the locked drag trick to help fix it. Pretty sure she came up out of a tree laying down a steep drop from about 3-12ft. I knew I got bit, but she was coming toward me on an angle and I saw the line swimming when I set into her. When she turned and made her first dash I had to give her all the length I could with my arms and rod as I spun the drag star quickly, so she could get some line. I got a good hookset as a result, but darn lucky she didn’t break me off on that first run on a locked drag with 14# fluoro. She gave a great fight and a good friend netted her for me. We’ve been friends for over 20 years, used to hunt together a lot but both got into fishing in the last few years. This was the first time we fished together, and both caught our PB largemouth - his 3.55#. He fishes the St. Lawrence River for smallmouth though and has caught several 5+ smallies, so the trade for me taking him on a back lake largemouth trip will be him putting me on my PB smallmouth.🤞🏻 (I need to beat 5lb. 7oz. and dethrone my son. lol)

Wow! Congratulations on one heck of a trip!

I would've started casting onto their deck and ripping rods off, but that's just me. Of course, being Canadian I'd have to apologize after each combo hit the water. lol

I broke the tip off my Dobyns Fury dropshot rod by storing it in the rod locker which it barely fit in. Not sure if it broke in the locker or when being pulled out. I bought it second hand, so no warranty. But I have a good reason to buy another new rod now. 😝 The other rod had the 3rd guide break off, likely when I was untangling rods on the deck, but I’m not sure. I don’t see any damage to the blank, so I should be able to just get that guide replaced.

Well, the boat has been winterized and tucked in for the long, cold Canadian winter. But, although I do wish winter did not exist, it was a great fishing season. The first handful of reasons that come to mind are… 1. I winterized the boat… meaning, I have a boat!😁 After becoming totally addicted to fishing (again - I took a 30 year break🤪), I saved for 3 years and ended up with an older but completely refurbished Bass Tracker 165. It proved to be a fantastic purchase, and allowed me to invite friends and fish with my son in a lot more comfort and range than the canoe we were using. (Plus, hopefully my 13yo son sees the pride of saving towards a goal, rather than living on credit for instant rewards). 2. I have “real” electronics now. I got such a fair deal on the boat, I was able to upgrade to a Spotlock trolling motor and a Garmin Echomap UHD 93sv right away. I’m still learning how to use the Garmin, but it’s been a game changer for me. 3. I learned more about bass fishing in this single season than any season prior, strengthening my game considerably over multiple techniques. The boat was definitely a gateway for that. 4. I caught my PB largemouth this fall. 5. I didn’t lose too much tackle and only broke two rods. 😝 6. I can’t wait for next year - and I’ve only got six months to prepare. 🙄😆 Is anyone else having to live on memories and dreams for the winter? How was your season?

I find smallmouth extremely moody, either on or off so I may catch one or two early but most often I target largemouth most of my day. 5-10 fish is a “good” 3-4hr. outing for me most days, less is very common, more not so much. The lakes I fish have a nice average with plenty of 2-2.5# largemouth and adding a 3-4# is common. So I’d say about 12# is what I can expect if I’m able to catch 5.

I fished with my son on Saturday. Sadly, I missed a couple beautiful days during the week and Saturday was post cold front and windy. We fished everywhere from the bank to 20ft. of water, even finding some fairly green weeds on a few spots. I caught two largemouth about 1.5-2# and a couple small pike, my son only a few small pike. That’s probably it for our season, unless the weather next Saturday is fantastic I’ll be winterizing the boat.😢

@ol'crickety Such beautiful scenery! Fall is a tormenting time for me - I love the cooler days and the colours, but I dread what comes next. ❄️ 🥶 Sadly, I’m likely not far behind you on packing things up. I’m hoping to push a little later in the month before winterizing the boat and sealing it up until spring.😢 Every fishing day left for me in 2023 will be a blessing, sadly this weekend is forecast to be cold and very rainy. 😖