My Fishing Buddy And I Challenge The Pros

[vapredhunter]

Okay, here it is. But before that, yellow is off limits, green is shallow in middle (3-4 feet deep), blue is the deepest (14-18 feet deep), and red is my trailer . The little thumb in the north west corner runs about 6-8 feet deep. Most of it is walkable, but some of it is people's back yards and either they won't let you fish or (north west corner thumb) it's too thick with trees. That thumb, by the way, is the same spot that my buddy George caught the 8# lmb on Christmas Eve and I caught a 8# second week of January (not sure if it is the same one though).

So my take is the white line areas are your shallow water structure close to deep water and if theres any cover its going to hold some fish each day. Thats also where I would spend most of my time in summer and winter after the sun starts getting hot. The red line area is where I would fish most at dusk and dawn. At dawn and dusk I'd parallel cast all of the banks white and red with topwater, shallow running cranks, spinnerbait, buzzbait, as the sun gets up I'd start using a weightless worm still casting parallel but just a little farther out. Then as the sun gets hotter and hotter I'd try some fallen cover close to the deepest water with weighted worm and or fooball jig or casted in to the deepest water you can reach carolina rig as well. In the winter I'd fish the white areas with jerkbaits, Jigs, slow rolled spinnerbait maybe. That little thumb on the northwest is the best looking area on the lake for year round fishing to me.

[logan9209]

I love the "thumb" area, and the left "finger" area. But what I really like the most is the southern point because that point (west to east) runs shallow, deep, shallow. It's good almost year round. I caught 5 there but missed 13 times one time. I know, I suck but then I had only been bass fishing for a month if that. Problem is it takes me 45 minutes to get there. I have kidney problems which causes back pain and leg pains. So imagine carrying 2 cases of hard plastic lures and most of my soft plastics, 2 rods, and a chair (cuz once I get there Ima gonna sit for a while).

The key puzzle I have to solve about the thumb is that there's alot of cover not shown in pic. Cover that also becomes an obstruction. Those bass hardly leave the area. I know this because most that I've pulled from there tend to have quite a bit of black. Also note that most of the lakes bottom (that I can reach or see) holds some type of grass or weed that grows up to 4-5 ft tall. Right now, due to lack of rain, some of that are actually an inch or two above surface.

The lack of lily pads kinda sucks if you want to use top water frogs. It'll be all open water. There are a few trees/bushes in the thumb area and next to my house that I can skip the frog under though. Heck, I've skipped lizards, worms, and the smallest brush hog Zoom makes under those.

[Bassun]

I know this isn't really on topic per se; but there's two things that pop out at me from what I've read. 1 - you said you don't track what your using because you catch most off a black trick worm. If you want to improve your fishing, leave the worm at home at least every other day. Right now it is your confidence bait, and that is a HUGE advantage when you have strong confidence in a bait. However, if you are not even fishing enough others to track what you are catching fish on, I will guarantee you are giving up on fish that can be caught by using different tactics. I know bank fishing is certainly different than from a boat and it does limit you; but don't compound things by limiting yourself. I am willing to wager that if you leave the worms home every other day for the next two weeks, you begin to learn a new pattern and find new ways to catch those fish.

2 - I can't help but to think you should save up for a used row boat. You are so close to the water you could literally drag it in from your front yard, lol. I would do everything I could to find a cheap floater of some type to get out on the water with. Kayak, john boat, big block of Styrofoam, homemade personal pontoon (I actually made one myself once -- and it was "redneck" but I digress) - something, lol. Again, I know this has nothing to do with your OP, which I agree would be a great way to learn, and would LOVE that opportunity myself.

Oh, something to think about, depending on the depth and substrate, can you wade out a bit and fish back or at least parallel to cover? Sometimes seeing things from a different perspective may give you a different idea of what to use. Anywho -- good luck! And you never know ... maybe one of the up and coming pros out of GA happens to be a member here... and decides a good way to help gain sponsorship (which we all know is the name of the game when fishing for cash) is to do a nice PR move and comes out to visit. You never know...

I remember when I was younger I was fishing a local creek and some guy came down the bank and just watched me for a bit. Finally he asked what I was using, so I told him, and he commented that it was a good choice. I was kind of like, duh... I'm catching fish on it... but I didn't say anything. A few mins later we were chatting about fishing and he spilled the beans that he had just a few weeks earlier been on the water with ESPN recording a spot for some show. He was a fishing guide, apparently one of the best in the region I later found out, and had been given a chance to highlight our local river on ESPN. They slated 3 days of fishing time (if I remember correctly) for the 30 minute show. He put them on enough fish in the first few hours of the first day they didn't even need the extra footage. So you never know who may just "stop by"...

Good luck and Tight Lines!

Bassun

[logan9209]

Bassrun, I assure you that I have tried countless time to come up with a devious plan to get some type of floatation device on the water. This lake has a no boat restriction (see OP) and they won't even allow you to step into the water. If I did so I would risk getting kicked out.

The last couple of months I have been trying other lures and I run into problems when I do. 1) Lame I know, but if I don't even get a strike I start getting "ADD". I will change to a different one after 5 minutes. 2) Submerged foliage is a major hinderance, however a lot of replies on here have given me new hope and ideas. 3) until I get another baitcasting reel I am limited to a 5'6" ML Spinning gear that doesn't like anything over 1/4 oz.

While plastic worms are my go to baits, I am learning to fish them in different ways. Shaky head, C-rig, wacky rig, dropshot, and weightless. I've also been working with top water quite a bit over the last couple of weeks. During spawning season lizards were my number one lure. There's nothing like watching a bass trying to figure out whether he should kill the lizard or just move it.

[Bass Dude]

Kind of off topic, but Denny Brauer used to do a show called Bass Class. He would go head to head against a non-pro. He would watch and break down the spots they (the non-pro) would pick and fish then say what he thought...like it should hold fish, or he's too deep for this time of year etc.

Then Denny would go fish. After he was done fishing his spots, he would go and actually fish the non-pro's spot. At the end they would see who caught the most and biggest fish and Denny would go into more detail on why he thought his or his opponents pattern was better.

Sometimes...the non-pro would beat him!!

[Gatorbassman]

BamaBassChaser, you're more than welcome here. Ever heard of Rome, Ga. or Armuchee?

Logan, You live in Armuchee. I'm up there a few times a year visiting my in-laws. I also have a sister who lives in Rome. I love it up there.

[Gatorbassman]

The premise is pretty silly, but I'll play along...

Let's start by funding the party. You are going to need a few $100K plus expenses

for each of your pros, guaranteed. At least another $500K in prize money if it's

"Winner Takes All".

Next...

The Big Boys are going to fish whatever is the best equipment their sponsors offer,

plus the baits and lures they know. These will most likely be "brand names" verses

your knock-offs and bargin bin junk.

Now the pros don't necessarily target "big fish", but then again your 2-3 pounders

don't really qualify anyhow. I call that size "tournament fish". Still, each of them will

have five keepers in the first hour while you are still looking for a bite. Then they

will start culling what would be your PB, from what I gather from your post.

Your only chance of winning would be in a "Big Fish" format where you might just

"get lucky". Otherwise, your chance of winning is ZERO.

All that because you said that a GY Senko is the same as another stick bait. One of the fastest ways to get under RW's skin.....

[Gotfishyfingers?]

I'm not sure if anyone suggested it yet but you should register as a marshal/observer in a elite event or something similar. That way you get to see with your own eyes how the pros fish. It's a great experience and you will learn a ton of stuff!

[logan9209]

Gene, that's pretty cool. Look me up sometime when you're here. Or find me on the banks. I am almost always out. LOL! I didn't realize that I had said the alternative stick baits were on par with GY Senkos. I have never fished with them because they're a little beyond my budget. My wife cringes if I get a $5 crank. Still, the NetBait Salt Licks do produce when other worms or soft plastics don't. It's $3.56 for 15 locally.

Gotfishyfingers?, I didn't know about that. I assumed that you had to be a member of a fishing club to get near those. I do want to get in with a club eventually. But I need some other things to fall into place before that happens.

[Bassun]

Bassrun, I assure you that I have tried countless time to come up with a devious plan to get some type of floatation device on the water. This lake has a no boat restriction (see OP) and they won't even allow you to step into the water. If I did so I would risk getting kicked out.

The last couple of months I have been trying other lures and I run into problems when I do. 1) Lame I know, but if I don't even get a strike I start getting "ADD". I will change to a different one after 5 minutes. 2) Submerged foliage is a major hinderance, however a lot of replies on here have given me new hope and ideas. 3) until I get another baitcasting reel I am limited to a 5'6" ML Spinning gear that doesn't like anything over 1/4 oz.

While plastic worms are my go to baits, I am learning to fish them in different ways. Shaky head, C-rig, wacky rig, dropshot, and weightless. I've also been working with top water quite a bit over the last couple of weeks. During spawning season lizards were my number one lure. There's nothing like watching a bass trying to figure out whether he should kill the lizard or just move it.

Oh dude, I apologize for missing that, lol. Yeah that does make it extra difficult. I totally get the "ADD" feeling, lol. A good tip given me years ago was if you wanted to learn to fish a spinnerbait, for example, don't take anything else with you. Then even if you want to change, you can't so you have to really think about how you can find fish, and present the bait in different ways to succeed. It isn't always the most "fun" fishing like that; but I will admit it works...

Either way, good luck!!!!

[logan9209]

Bassun, I agree, but here's the interesting part. There have been many days where all I had was a black trick worm. I fished that thing for hours or changed to another one when the first one became too damaged to use again. But hand me a spinnerbait, or some other lure, and tell me that's all I can use...........I have been doing that somewhat the last few days though. It's been rainy the last 3 mornings. I would take one spinnerbait and try that for a bit. Then I would change to a different color in the same model or I would change to a different brand and try that one.

Or today, for instance, I used 3 cranks (0-3ft, 4-6ft, and 6-8ft) using the zone system mentioned in another post. Still no hits. I've seen KVD and Dave Mercer crankin in the rain. The only thing I've gotten out of the last few days is that I have got a lot to learn because I haven't been doing near as good as I thought I was. I mean, I knew I wasn't at tournament level yet, but dang.