Zcoker

I never do. What the day (or night) brings is what it brings. I deal with it accordingly. Often, I've seen things related to barometric pressure go off the rocker, like with a high pressure bluebird sky with the sun blaring, catching big bass topwarter. That's not particularly a good time to do that and I know a lotta guys who don't even bother. I guess that's my point: just fish no matter what.

I look at it this way: it’s all part of the experience. Not knowing it’s simply that: not knowing. There’s simply nothing experienced other than the “idea” of a big fish. But when you see her, and she’s thrashing all around you, and her mouth is as big and as wide as a grand canyon, that’s an experience that will last a lifetime!

Jitterbug fish. I don’t know why but these big bass seem to want to absolutely destroy a jitterbug. They dive-bomb it mouth wide as if it’s their last supper. The sound of a big bass nailing a jitterbug is downright unnerving!

Very underrated. I modify mine similar to Brasher with a formed front cup, bigger hooks, split rings front and rear. I also fish them with extra heavy rod minimum 65lb braid...no room for finesse in my neck of the woods! They do work better with specific sounds and bending and forming that front cup just right guarantees a big fish.

I fish most all topwater baits at night, so seeing them is nearly impossible. Sure, if the moonlight or starlight is just right and the water calm, I can make out the water trail as I pull the lure back in. No, I rely on sound. When the pitch or sound is uniform and reaches a specific note, I try to hold it steady like that and not long into it the lure gets destroyed. What I feel then is the rod practically ripped out of my hands! There comes a point when I just know that the pitch is perfect. This obviously comes from experience. Now, during the early morning light, the fish seem to be a bit more hesitant, meaning that they may hit it, back off and then may strike it again, as if they are testing it. That's when a good eye is necessary to stop/start the lure to entice the hit. The difference between the night/day behavior could be related to their lateral line, how they sense pry with or without light. What I've come to find out at night is that specific sounds seem to draw in the bigger fish. Can't say why but it sure is a fact.

Ain't lying about the jitterbug. Out of all the lures, that one makes them about as angry a stirred up nest of hornets. Catches big ones, too!

I'm topwater guy all the way because, you see, there's nothing more exciting than watching (or hearing) a BIG bass destroy a topwater lure. At night, especially, it's like the life gets jerked away from your entire being....everything is so calm, so quiet, so serene with twinkling stars overhead and then KABOOM! And you just know that it's BIG. That kinda anticipation is like a drug, keeps me going back for more. All the other styles of fishing are okay and I've tried every single one of them with good results. All types of fishing do have their place. But nothing beats that topwater bite; it's very special and appealing and I always know that she's out there, like a bomb ready to go off.

Night bite is the big bite! Hotter weather means night fishin for me. Daytime upper 90’s no-can-do and it ain’t even summer yet! Temps nice and mild at night. Most all fish top water…and I can’t begin to express what it sounds and feels like when a giant bass annihilates a top water lure on a calm, Florida night!

It can get like that out in the everglades, especially when the water levels get low, cast after cast, fish after fish, keeps ya in shape!

Kinda fortunate here because it's nearly impossible to get skunked out in the everglades. Even if you tried to get skunked, you still couldn't get skunked. It's actually a situation where you have to use baits that repel all the smaller fish in favor of those bigger bites. But even at that, I still get bit. I catch just as many smaller fish using big fish baits than I do using small fish baits. They all gonna eat no matter what and if you so happen to have a bait in their way, they gonna gobble it up no matter what it is. What all this means is going through about 20-30 fish to get to that one BIG bite. That all happens in the daytime. Turn off the lights and it's a different story. No more smaller fish. Things become very strategic and time spreads out. The hits are sneaky and when they do happen, they gonna be BIG hits, sometimes well over ten pounds of bone jarring muscle.

You can use a rubber band to secure the two side treble hooks against the body of the bait. Helps out a lot in weedy areas. I do that sometimes out in the everglades, which is loaded with hydrilla and just about every weed imaginable. Haven't really noticed any difference on the hookups, all about he same, secured hooks or loose hooks. With the bigger bass (which are usually the ones that hit) the hooks break loose anyway.

There may be something to it. Perhaps you've heard of Pat Cullen. He would wash his hands and lures in the lake water before he made a cast. Only in this way would the DD bass hit. He was very convinced of this and sure can back it up--over a 1000 bass 10lbs and up!

Nothing like the bug, espeically the original wooden jitterbugs. If your grandpa's is an old original Arbogast wooden jitterbug, then don't loose it! Those things fetch a hefty price nowadays. Might wanna just grab a plastic one to be on the safe side. In any event, there's something special about the bug, espeically the old wooden ones. Some of the biggest bass around nail them. They shine at night. A calm, quiet night working the bug will produce some of the most vicious strikes imaginable!

Getting harder and harder to predict and actual size to shoot for this year. They gettin bigger and bigger every outing. This big girl hit right at the yak--combat fishing all the way!

I understand what you're saying, I think. Many don't mesh with electronics FFS, including myself. Just pointing out that it's a very big player in the fishing scene and deserves a fair handshake. I can at least give it that. Whether we like it or not, that's up to each of us to decide. Frankly, I could care less about it because it's of no use to me out in the everglades. As I pointed out, I fish old school down and dirty combat fishing, no screen to get in my way. I can see a plenty, day or night, with my own eyes. Everything that I need to know is all around me....natural electronics!

Yes, it's plenty wide and plenty deep with good docking. That's about the only area out there that is paved for boats and trailer parking. I've fished out there a lot and never ran into any issues. It's WAY out of the way for anyone to go snooping around. In fact, I've never encountered much if any foul play out in the everglades as a whole, just the FWC running my tag number at night to get my phone number and call me. Harold Campbell nice little quite and relaxing area to spend a day. Those canals go for miles! Moving water is the ticket.

On another note. We can all be about as old school as can get but there's not doubt about modern day fishing electronics. A fair hand shake is a must. They've opened the door, completely, a game changer that has moved the fishing industry forward like no other. The tournament world is dominated by FFS. Many purest abound but the fact is, no one can compete with these electronic marvels that have basically eliminated the concept of luck. Luck can still be in anyone's favor, no doubt, but to eliminate it from the equation is pretty drastic. Readying the water, seasonal patterns, and all the jazz is all well and good but the guys who know how to read a FFS screen pretty much will lead the pack.

I call it like it is: a skunk is a skunk, no fish, nada, see ya later alligator

Although I do have a fish finder with mapping capabilities aboard my kayak, I rarely if ever use it. Only time I use it is for water temp, depth in a new area, or for the mapping feature to make my way back to the launch site if I so happen to get lost at night. Besides, electronics is kinda pointless where I fish, which is out in the everglades. Extremely shallow, jammed pack with vegetation, not the kinda place where electronics would fare very well. So all my fishing is done by skinning the cat, so to speak, figuring them out, where they are, where they are feeding and hiding, hunting them down, which is my biggest thrill. It's all in the hunt, you see, something about the hunt which makes the adventure all the more exciting. If I so happened to ever catch a fish while using electronics, it would probably be a pretty sterile catch, I would imagine. Whereas hunting them down and finally catching them, that's a thrill like no other, about as real as it gets, a sort of addictive victory that keeps me coming back for more!

I went the high end rod route for saltwater species, some of which cost over $1500, high end Japanese rods like Zenaq and Ripple Fisher. It's one of those kinda things where when you use one once, you'll have to use it again. They kinda grow on ya, if you know what I mean. Nothing else can compare. But, truly, the gains although perceived slight for some folks are expediential for the kind of accuracy needed for certain species. I could not do what I do with certain species if I did not have that high caliber rod (or tool) to do it. I can only presume that it's much the same with bass fishing. Most of my bass rods although not $600 are still in the $300-$400 range. Other rods, to be sure, just don't cut it, in my opinion. I mean, they do work and they do catch fish but just can't compare to the high priced Cadillac kinda rods. Ya do get what ya pay for with most things, like the NRX you rave about here.

Never ever ever underestimate the bank, or presume that only those on the water fare better. Hogwash! I've done extremely well off the bank, park and fish, often far better than on a boat or kayak. I've even won tournaments off the bank, nationally. So to those who beat the bank, keep on beating it!

Wind is my friend because I always catch big fish in the wind, especially at night. I've learned to like it no matter how windy it is. Lotta things that I didn't like before and now like a lot because all situations have something good about them. Maybe not at first glance but something is there that can have great outcomes, like the wind. Other things that I don't particular like is dirty water, which is usually caused by spraying which I hate with a passion. They do it here in Florida to control the vegetation but often just do it randomly for the sake of whatever. Fisheries that were once pristine and choice can be turned into a barren landscape in a matter of few days. Those once green and thriving fishing spots that took hours to learn get wiped out never to be fished again, lifeless. I don't particularly like the cheaters in tournament bass fishing, which I've seen a lot of lately. Some of the stuff that they do just amazes me, like cutting off a bass's tail to use on other fish to gain an inch or so for CPR tournaments. We all know about the walleye weight deal. Lotta shady stuff going on out there and I'm sure there's many other things in the works, just hasn't come to light yet. All in all, that's about it. Most everything else that I don't like I've learned to like in some form or another. It's a matter of choice, really. I can choose to not like a lot of stuff and let them all of ruin my day. Then they're in control of me--not gonna happen! I'm in control and can bend and form the outcome of most anything. My choice. And I choose to have good days everyday!

Florida all the way. If you are into fishing, there's no better place to be, the fishing capital of the world. Northern Florida is espeically nice, crisp, undeveloped with pristine forest lakes and plenty of nice open areas. The weather is about as prefect as it gets, still a hint of the seasons unlike down south here where a cool day is about all we get. St. Augustine/Ormond Beach nice areas, growing areas. Those beaches are pristine, not overly developed with plenty of leg room. St. Augustine a nice town to stroll a day away and then get in a little fishing seaside. I'd say getting in, getting established is a good first step because that's what it's all about down here in the Sunshine state.

For some, a pet will do as the best fishing buddy. I get that very well. Here's my dog, Sasha, who was a very good surf fishing partner. She would lay down and guard the sand spike and bark at the waves when I was reeling in a fish. Then, on the way home, take a long nap lol. Had to put her to down after--get this--25 years. Yes, that's 25 human years! When I put her down, the Vet had asked me what was my secret because he'd never heard of a dog living so long. I said two things: fishing and no Vets. Guarding the sand spike and stuff After a long day of fishing

Sometimes folks blend and it's espeically nice to have that blending take place with something that you both love to do, like fishing. And Like with most things, ya don't really know what ya got until you loose it. I've been through my share of fishing buddies, sure have, some good, some not so good, and some just parting ways. What I've come to see with fishing buddies is that they just happen; they're not something easily planned out or neatly orchestrated. You may get to together with someone for something entirely different and eventfully find your way to a particular niche (like fishing) which may last a long time or not. Just the way it is. Time changes and people change along with it. Going with the flow is about the best ya can do. Keep those doors open because open doors always invite new beginnings!