Holetail

Thanks, pretty happy with the results. Water temps were in the low to mid 50’s but the fish were still pretty active. Temps are going to be much warmer up there this week so you may have a better bite than usual. Never fished Shohola, but would be interested in hearing a report when your week there is over. Good luck

Followed up on day two with 26 more largies and 5 pickerel. They were still loving the swim jig and Fogy but got a few on an underspin as well. No real size with the largest bass at 2 lbs. Most of the fish came from one end of the lake where the pad fields are. In another month, this place will be a frogging paradise. I did get to see our resident Bald Eagle a couple times. Flew past me and into the tree to watch me catch a few. Such an awesome bird. Fished another lake on Sunday where I only caught 7 bass and had to work hard for them. Front came through overnight bringing bluebird skies and a stiff breeze. Also seemed to **** the bite down. Finished the weekend with 60 bass so I’m not complaining.

First day on the lake in PA was amazing! My best numbers day ever with 27 bass and 4 pickerel. None of the bass were giants but very few dinks. Guessing largest was around 2.5 lbs. Most of the bites were on the swim jig but they could not resist the Fogy either. Picked up a few each on a speed worm and a weightless fluke. Going to hit it up again in the AM.

Also, there are large pike in another private lake I have access to so I’m hoping to hook into one of them. We don’t have them in NC and my grandfather was instrumental in stocking them 25 years ago. Would be cool to catch one of “his” fish…

Figured I would revive this thread rather than start a new one. I’m heading up to PA for a long weekend to see family and get some fishing in. Taking the kayak so I’m hoping to hit some areas I haven’t tried yet at my club. My cousin said water is still pretty cold. But wanted to see what the BR members are catching in the NE PA area? Last year the swimjig and chatter bait bites were on so I’m hoping that’s the case again. Thinking spinnerbaits and a swimming worm will work too. Bass see next to zero pressure and there are pads everywhere so I am optimistic. Definitely a better fisherman than I was a year ago and have a few new skills that will come in handy. Here’s a pic of my little slice of Heaven one of the better fish I got last time I was there.

Got out for a couple hours yesterday afternoon. Winds have been crazy lately and yesterday was no different. Could make some headway during the sustained 10-15, but the gusts of 25-30 made it a struggle to not go backwards. Only managed two fish but had several pickups that I couldn’t get a hookup. Guessing it’s bed fish mouthing the bait to move it off their bed? Been happening quite a bit lately. Got one on a new Fogy and had another slash at it right at the kayak. Did get this 2.5 on a Tokyo rig when it just slammed the bait. I did everything possible to lose her including snagging line on the bow, letting her jump 4-5 times, missed with the net and she bounced off the hull, hit her with the net… HAHA. Somehow managed to land her eventually. Super skinny fish so I’m thinking postspawn?

Been stuck on the bank with only some short sessions for the last two weeks. Trying to cross off some “honey dos” and keep the wife happy. Finally got out on the kayak this morning. Had a cold front come through so it was a chilly 45 when I started. Wasn’t expecting much and wasn’t surprised the bite wasn’t great. Did manage to catch one on a speed worm and my first fish on the Fogyneither had much size to them. I lost three more on the Fogy due to weak hooksets. Out of practice I guess. Spawn is definitely on here. Lots of beds and even got to watch a fish fanning out a bed which was really cool. Had one spot nearby that I counted around 10 bass all staging together on one piece of cover. Hoping to get back out sooner than later.

I got a set of BPS HPR rain gear on sale at Christmas. Don’t really need insulation if I layered up. Jacket has neoprene cuffs and plenty of pockets. I fished 6 hours in the rain in January from my kayak and stayed dry. I also wear it just to break the wind as a shell layer and was pleased. I know it’s not the best gear, and won’t last as long as some, but it works for what I needed it for without breaking the bank.

Maybe look into the EWG tungsten heads by Harmony on Amazon. The head is much smaller and I’ve had good luck with them. Was skeptical at first, but the hooks have stayed sharp, haven’t bent, and definitely reduce the amount of salad coming in. Specifically using the 1/16 oz but have some 1/32 oz I’m hoping to try next time out.

I would recommend either the Dobyns Sierra 702 or the Kaden 712. They are toward the top of your budget but worth the cost over the Fury 702 IMO which is a fine rod as well. Good luck

May have had the best night fishing in quite a while. Started off with this girl on an EZ Shiner…But better than that was watching this guy beat me with 5 fish to my 4…His biggest of the night was right at 2 lbs all on a 3” blue / black rage swimmer. He picked those out of my paddle tail box and I sort of chuckled because I don’t think I’ve ever caught anything on them. He hasn’t wanted to fish with me much the last year because “senko fishing is boring” but we had a blast and he wants to go again on Thursday. Good to have my fishing buddy back from the world of iPads and Fortnite. Just for the record, I did catch the largest at 2.25 on the bait he picked and almost burning it back that he also figured out and clued me in on…

Another weekend with another wicked front blowing through. Water temps down 5-6 degrees since last time out. Figured they would have moved back to deeper water. Had a plan to work a back pocket at far end of the lake where the water should be warmer. I actually Wasn’t expecting much action until I picked up a small one on my third cast. Decided to stick to my plan and picked up a decent 2 pounder on a tube. Struggled a bit after that but wanted to try out some new setups so I accomplished that at least. Went back to spot I caught the first one and this girl crushed the mojo rig. Really like the new 1 power Dobyns for the mojo rig. Little lighter action worked just like I hoped. Rod loaded into backbone nicely with plenty of power to handle this 2.75 pounder.

For quick bank trips I use a hiking Fanny pack to hold the bare essentials, but for longer outings it’s a backpack. Try not to haul too much tackle with me so I load one 3600 with what I plan to use that day from larger boxes at home. Toss in some plastics and good to go. I recently picked up two of these from Academy. Got them to use in the yak since it can fit under the seat but also work great to stay organized when tossed into a backpack. Has a small but adequate sized box plus 10 ziplocks in the binder. Great for plastics and I ever toss a few spinnerbaits, jigs, etc in them.

January 2nd at 7:24 AM. Not a monster but the first. Off to a great start this year due to the kayak and actually getting better at this fishing thing

Had a pretty good day with 8 fish total. Also broke two off and lost two. Ned rig was the ticket, but I did catch one and lost one on a Little Dipper. Forgot how much fun a swimbait bite is. Fish was skinny so only went around 2. Better days are coming!