WRB

If you "cross their eyes" your ratio may drop zero. Just reel set by cranking and snapping your tip up. By hook setting with your rod you may move the spoon about 12" at 20', by cranking your reel you will move the lure about 12" the fisrt turn and 24" or so with each turn after the fisrt and the bass will be hooked better than trying to rod set. Bass ofter just nip at the spoon and most are hooked lightly in the soft tissue of the mouth. The bass that woof the spoon are not coming off regardless how you hook set. If you have a good sonar unit you should be able to see the thermocline near the depth you are catching the bass on outside structure. At 20 feet this time of year the water is more than likely in the upper 70's and is the reason the baitfish and bass are down at that depth. If you are keeping these bass in the live well, put ice in the water to lower the temperature into the low 70's and fizz those bass if deeper than 30'. WRB

Bass vision; do you have any sceintific data to supports your statements? or just your opinion? Just because the bass has cones/rods in their eye make up doesn't factor in how they process light waves. Have you ever considered that bass may not see color as we do or at all? The evidence that bass may see in the ultra violet range vereses the color spectrum is interesting. The colors we select definately has a major impact on our fishing success, but is it the color or the contrast to the color? Contrast is very important factor at very low light conditions, like at night or deep water. Have you ever wondered how a bass can see a translucent smoke color 4" worm at 50' during an overcast day, when the diffifence may be blue flakes verses red flakes or no flakes? I can't see them laying on the boat carpet or down 3' in gin clear water. WRB

Verticle jigging spoons. Use sharp good quality treble hooks like Owner, Gamakatsu or VMC. The rod is very important and you want a 6 1/2 to 7' medium fast action, not too stiff. Set the drag with a scale at about 2 to 3 lbs using 10 to 12 lb mono or fluor-hybrid line. I prefer white chicken feathered hooks like Owner size 2 for 1/2 to 3/4 ox structure spoons. Just lift and reel set and keep the line tight and rod loaded all the time. WRB note; remember to fizz your bass or slip a 8 oz torpedo weight in its mouth and lower the weight and bass back down to where you hook it, then retrieve the weight.

Actually the photos are not all that good. You shouldn't bend the basses mouth open and should turn the bass upside down or belly upwards if the bass is good size. This does two things, the bass freezes and stops trying to flip around and it prevents bending the lower lip excessively. Supporting the bass by it's under side for a photo is good, just try not to bend the down. Lay the bass on a wet towell and use your rod if you need to take a photo for size reference. WRB

Both bass look like northern strain largemouth bass, big heads and little bodies are common when prey fish cycles are up and down. For a bass to have a long frame it needs the genetics, just lke all animals no two are exactly the same unless they are twins. Different yes, freaks no. Both bass look very healthy and where feeding well in the latter part of their lives and possibly not too good a few years back. WRB

Fall transition is more than colder air, it's shorter day light hours and signals the bass to migrate to their winter locations. The bass should be following and looking for baitfish and beginning to school up on outside structure. If your lake has shad, then target the shad schools. Crawdads are also migrating to deeper water and make good bite size meals. The key to fall transtion is cover water and targeting the middle to lower 1/3 of the lake in general. You might want to look back over your shoulder and fish deeper water and along the banks on the windward side (down wind) between points, the points and anything along creel channels like humps that hold bass. Crank baits, spinner baits, jigs, soft plastic all work well. Frontal conditions are a normal season factor that doesn't bother the bass a much as the fisherman. WRB

Don't know if the members on this site are aware of the size of the lower afterbay at Castaic; less than 2,500 feet long and 400 feet wide ; 1/2 mile X 1/8 mile pond. Pressure is a way of life for these giant bass and they seem to survive OK, unless poached. The afterbay is closed to night fishing. WRB CalTIP #916/653.7664

Good question. Lots of tournament fisherman have made a good living catching bass behind another tournament angler who left the bass after catching one. The thinking that the bass are spooked is uaually not the issue. There will always be at least one bass that is more agressive then the others and you catch that fish first, on a reaction bite. The bigger bass, more than likely if you caught a smaller fish, have already moved a little deeper when you caught that first bass. Try fishing over your shoulder a little deeper and a lot slower and your success rate should improve. The biggest mistake most fisherman make is leaving active bass that are feeding to move onto greener pastures and focusing their efforts toward the shoreline. WRB