Latest Catch Pics Thread

[thediscochef]

On 4/6/2023 at 9:01 PM, TnRiver46 said:

Dink ? alert

 

 

the real miracle was that I got to fish this evening, haven’t been since the classic and I was starting to have serious withdrawal symptoms. Shakes, night sweats, nightmares, crabbiness, irritability, etc. I can’t remember the last time I missed a whole week or more like that . 
 

So if you’re gonna post dinks might as well make an interesting story out of it. I went to launch the little tiny kayak and noticed 3-4 buffalo spawning underneath the dock. I snagged one briefly and it took off and pulled the hook. So I then paddle along casting a crappie jig and some kind of loud noise is echoing all throughout the cove. We are near a marina so I just figured it was somebody running some power tools working on a boat. Well the noise won’t stop , sounded like a bunch of people beating pontoon boats and floating docks with a baseball bat . I paddled into the marina and the splashing and noise was deafening. Buffalo were spawning and splashing and jumping all over, it was wild. I caught 6-8 of them, fun stuff on light tackle. They had some tubercules or something like it all over them, easy to hand land in the kayak like gripping sandpaper. 6 lb tatsu is tough, I was ripping them up over dock cables with a spinning rod haha. Some guy that lives on a house boat in there came out to chat, he said he can’t hardly sleep when the buffalo are beating the boat like that 

 

also got another little largemouth, a green sunfish, and a yellow bass 

 

buffalo will hit a finesse lure in the mouth, i can't explain why. tons of fun. Their spawns can be a spectacle

[TnRiver46]

2 hours ago, thediscochef said:

buffalo will hit a finesse lure in the mouth, i can't explain why. tons of fun. Their spawns can be a spectacle

Thursday night me and my wife were sitting inside by the fire with the windows open and could hear them sloshing around like crazy in the water maybe 100 yards away. They were hitting tied up pontoon boats so hard they were moving back and forth. Up the river a ways they flood into a shallow creek and the local news does a story on them every year 

 

 

[Andrew cash]

This is off topic but I can’t figure out how to reply to the flea market forum to people I want to buy stuff from. Can somebody help me? Thanks 

[12poundbass]

3 minutes ago, Andrew cash said:

This is off topic but I can’t figure out how to reply to the flea market forum to people I want to buy stuff from. Can somebody help me? Thanks 

Welcome to Bassresource. Swing by the Introduction section and tell us a little bit about yourself. Share some of your stories and fishing knowledge in other threads. 
 

New members need to build their post count a bit before they can post in the flea market. 

[NorcalBassin]

Took out the kayak for the first time this year. Wasn't super excited to see they blocked vehicle access to the water with rocks (to keep trailers/boats out), but no way that was going to stop me on a nice day like this.

 

Water temps were mid-50's, but I couldn't get them on anything other than senkos and small underspins.

 

No plus sized fish, but just about all of them were fun size fish.

 

 

 

 

 

She was kind enough to keep me company in the last cove before I had to head back in. No idea what she was saying, but she was pretty talkative. ?

 

[Swamp Girl]

7 hours ago, NorcalBassin said:

Took out the kayak for the first time this year. Wasn't super excited to see they blocked vehicle access to the water with rocks (to keep trailers/boats out), but no way that was going to stop me on a nice day like this.

 

Water temps were mid-50's, but I couldn't get them on anything other than senkos and small underspins.

 

No plus sized fish, but just about all of them were fun size fish.

 

 

 

 

 

She was kind enough to keep me company in the last cove before I had to head back in. No idea what she was saying, but she was pretty talkative. ?

 

 

I lived in Wisconsin for 30 years and about 20 years of that was on farms, so I speak cow. If she said, "Moooo. Mooooo. Moo," she was saying, "Atta, boy! Thatta bass!" 

 

Cows can be quite encouraging when it comes to bass fishing. 

 

However, if she said, ""Moooooo. Moo. Mooo," this site doesn't allow me to translate that, as some cows sass like sailors. 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

10 hours ago, NorcalBassin said:

Took out the kayak for the first time this year. Wasn't super excited to see they blocked vehicle access to the water with rocks (to keep trailers/boats out), but no way that was going to stop me on a nice day like this.

 

Water temps were mid-50's, but I couldn't get them on anything other than senkos and small underspins.

 

No plus sized fish, but just about all of them were fun size fish.

 

 

 

 

 

She was kind enough to keep me company in the last cove before I had to head back in. No idea what she was saying, but she was pretty talkative. ?

 

Beautiful country and fish.

 

Man it's crazy how much Kayak fishing has exploded in 20 years. 

 

That first picture really drives that home.   I wonder what a boat ramp would look like around here if they closed it to boats.   I would have said it would be empty until your post.  

[Jmurphy87]

Got out this morning, figured it would be busy at a local park but it close by my apartment. Got some gas for the car and headed to the park, there was a few people there on the one side and the other spots had people on them already also. I headed around the corner to a spot that I hit frequently, didn’t want to get water over my boots again but it didn’t take long. I decided to just stay in the water with my boots full of water and up to my knees. I started with a tube, didn’t get any hits on the tube. Decided to tie on the mini max 1/2 with a matching zako trailer and work the weed line. I had the wind in my face and just kept going, turning my brakes down more and more to work on some control into headwinds.
 

I was getting ready to leave and decided to fire off a long cast down the shallow bank,there’s a couple of deep pockets in the middle of the weed line and I wanted to go over those.   I didn’t get hit over the pockets coming back through the grass I felt it get heavy and I reeled and swept the rod and felt it load up. I watched my line moving a little bit differently and that’s when I knew it was a fish and not just hung up in the grass again. I saw the fish and was definitely happy, it wasn’t huge but decent nonetheless.

 

 I got some insight on why the fish have been acting so strange, I figured that the spawn was getting close. I could tell by this fish that it is closer than I expected. All in all a decent fish for less than 30 minutes at a very pressured fishery. I feel like I am starting to get this body of water more and more.

 

I have went from getting skunked here all the time to usually being able to catch something. It still skunks me here and there but to me that’s normal. Feels good getting there and making progress.

[Swamp Girl]

Beauty, @Jmurphy87! You wrote that you felt the rod load up. I see the word "load" used fairly frequently here and in articles.

 

What does it mean in the context of bass fishing? I think I know, but I want to be sure.

[Jmurphy87]

2 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

Beauty, @Jmurphy87! You wrote that you felt the rod load up. I see the word "load" used fairly frequently here and in articles.

 

What does it mean in the context of bass fishing? I think I know, but I want to be sure.

How I use the term is, that when you are bringing a lure through the grass you will get hung up here and there. Which will cause the rod to get a bend due to the hook or hooks being caught on something. You get that resistance, the difference is when a fish hits the lure it starts to put a different resistance on top of the other one, or stronger should I say. Like when you are ripping a lipless crank or like today a chatter bait out of the grass it loads the rod more and you can feel it have the heavier load on it. That’s how I explain it, I hope it helps you out. I am definitely not the best person at explaining things lol but I try.

 

 I am definitely looking forward to seeing some of your catches and stories this year. I can’t wait to hear them.

[Swamp Girl]

@Jmurphy87, thanks! So, you feel the rod load up with the weight of a solid bass, as opposed to just weeds? I have felt that, for sure, and I'm glad I asked because I thought it meant something different. 

 

3 minutes ago, Jmurphy87 said:

I am definitely looking forward to seeing some of your catches and stories this year. I

 

Me too! I'm going shore fishing on Tuesday at three small bodies of water that may or may not hold bass. They're all on Highway One, Maine's major highway, and I've driven over and past them for years. I've never seen anyone fish them, but they sure look bassy. Then I'm fishing Thursday afternoon at a quantity pond and Friday morning at a quality bog. Fingers crossed that my rod loads up! 

[Jmurphy87]

8 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

@Jmurphy87, thanks! So, you feel the rod load up with the weight of a solid bass, as opposed to just weeds? I have felt that, for sure, and I'm glad I asked because I thought it meant something different. 

 

 

Me too! I'm going shore fishing on Tuesday at three small bodies of water that may or may not hold bass. They're all on Highway One, Maine's major highway, and I've driven over and past them for years. I've never seen anyone fish them, but they sure look bassy. Then I'm fishing Thursday afternoon at a quantity pond and Friday morning at a quality bog. Fingers crossed that my rod loads up! 

Yes correct, you feel the weight of the fish. Because with weeds there stationary so it’s more of a dead static drag, the weeds will move some of course but nothing like a fish. Like when you are coming through grass  with a lure you feel the resistance but then it pops free. The fish on the end is what makes all the difference, they pull back head shake or swim off a different direction. I am extremely ocd about how my lure feels coming through grass, so when I get bored I like taking cranks and working them through grass so I can feel the difference and I like to be patient and get them through cleanly. This is always fun.

 

 I am sure you will catch them, good luck and I am definitely looking forward to hearing about how your trips go ?

[TnRiver46]

Beautiful Easter sunrise, got crappie and white bass with grubs in the kayak and some largemouth cranking off the dock after breakfast 

[Team9nine]

Wind from the East, fish still gonna’ feast ?

 

Finally stuck another quality fish after what has seemed like forever - lol. The best of 15 today. Probably about 5.5-ish or a bit over. Very nice pre-spawn belly on this one.

 

The lucky jeans strike again 

 

 

[LrgmouthShad]

8 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

Wind from the East, fish still gonna’ feast ?

 

Finally stuck another quality fish after what has seemed like forever - lol. The best of 15 today. Probably about 5.5-ish or a bit over. Very nice pre-spawn belly on this one.

 

The lucky jeans strike again 

 

 

That's a gorgeous fish. Very nice

[Susky River Rat]

Slow day again but got it done!

[Woody B]

Caught 11 today in 6 hours.   7 spots, 4 LM.   None big.  Lake is 2 feet higher than yesterday with 2 mud lines.  The combination of ~15 mph wind and all the water they're pulling had the main lake white capping.   I got a couple on cranks, a couple on a bladed jig,  with the rest on a shakey head.  

[AlabamaSpothunter]

1 hour ago, Team9nine said:

Wind from the East, fish still gonna’ feast ?

 

Finally stuck another quality fish after what has seemed like forever - lol. The best of 15 today. Probably about 5.5-ish or a bit over. Very nice pre-spawn belly on this one.

 

The lucky jeans strike again 

 

 

Congrats on a truly beautiful fish!  

[Fat Ika]

Finally tried out the 4" savage gear rtf bluegill. 

[thediscochef]

On 4/8/2023 at 7:10 PM, TnRiver46 said:

Thursday night me and my wife were sitting inside by the fire with the windows open and could hear them sloshing around like crazy in the water maybe 100 yards away. They were hitting tied up pontoon boats so hard they were moving back and forth. Up the river a ways they flood into a shallow creek and the local news does a story on them every year 

 

 

The Texas forums always have someone experiencing buffalo spawn for the first time and it's funny lol

Love those fish, one of the few native sucker-ish fish that reach size

 

 

First solid spotted bass of the year during about an hour 30 at the ole Ray Bob. probably 2ish lbs. In the usual spottie spot, with a spot remover minimax. Maybe I was trying lol

[Swamp Girl]

Your trip reports are so exciting, PhishLI. 

[Bluebasser86]

Had my first kayak tournament of the season Saturday on Big Hill Lake in Cherryvale, KS. It was a combination Kansas Kayak Anglers and Kansas Bass Nation tournament so it was quite a few fishermen on a not so big lake that was also 5' low, so even smaller than normal. Big Hill isn't a place I have fished much, and I haven't had much fun the times I've been there. 

I got the the lake Thursday evening an hour before dark and made a few cast before dark from the bank by the dam. Caught a couple largemouth, a smallmouth, and this thing.

 

That was a mistake because I ended up staying up past midnight chasing spawning walleye and catching nothing but spawning white bass. 

Friday I launched in the creek in the only small access point. I hurried dropping my stuff but there was still a kayak and a boat waiting for me even with me just throwing my stuff in a pile on the ground next to the kayak. Jumped back in my truck, dead battery ?. Thankfully I had cables and the other kayaker gave a quick jump. I helped him launch and let the boat launch before I finished putting my stuff together and started fishing. The bridge by the launch had spawning crappie on it, so it was crawling with bank fishermen, boats, even people hauling crappie 20' up to the bridge. I really wasn't sure what to start with, I thought it was going to be a prespawn bite but the low 60* water and full moon had me second guessing. I started with a spinnerbait and swimbait and quickly had a few short strikes but not hookups. It seemed way too early in the year still, but the little voice in my head was screaming at me that these fish are spawning. I cut off my jig and switched to a black and blue Zman Bang Stick with a very light 1/8oz tungsten weight and 4/0 Owner Cover Shot hook. The water was too dirty to sight fish, so I started super slowly dragging it around likely areas. I pulled it past 1 stump, them recast a foot to the right and caught a nice 16.5" fish when I was dragging it back, I knew then, they're spawning. I caught a couple more, it seemed every time I'd pick up that rod, I'd catch another. Not knowing how many there were to be caught, I went way up the creek and started catching spawning white bass and a few catfish.

Late in the afternoon, I pulled into a little pocket and caught a small one and a 19" fish real quick. There was big shad everywhere in there, I had my starting spot. I left the creek and caught a few small ones on the main lake and called it a day early.

Tournament morning, I wasn't surprised when a majority of the anglers were launching in the creek. I headed straight to my little pocket and 1 other angler joined me. It was a very small spot, but we talked, he was going to fish the south bank and I was going to fish the north. Lines in was 6:30, I sailed my cast into a tree on the shore, shook it loose, and there was a fish on it immediately. My first cast curse fish was 15.25" on the Bang Stick. 20 minutes later, I was dragging my bait back and it felt like it just hung in the trees, but it didn't feel quite right, so I swung on it. Turned out to be a 17.5" fish that looked like she was about to pop.

Maybe 5 minutes later, same bite, almost same results, but this fish looked like it had already spawned and it was 17.75"

I fished down my side and picked up my other rod that had a Strike King Rodent in Okeechobee Craw and a little 1/4oz weight and started dragging that. Right at the entrance to the pocket, I got a very light tap. It turned out to be a 19.50" fish and the hook fell out in the net.

My next cast, I caught a 14.5" (the male I assume), so I had a limit and it wasn't 8am. A few cast later, I caught a 15.50" to cull the 14.50". I fished that pocket for a long time, caught several more small fish, before I moved across the creek. I caught a small one immediately. 10 minutes later, I made a cast with the Bang Stick and got a small backlash. I cleared it and when I got my line tight, it was moving off the bank. That fish was 16.50 to cull the 15.25.

After that was a long dry spell. I caught a few dinks but nothing even close to helping. Around noon, I moved to a bank that leads up to the pocket I'd fished, between it and the bridge. I had missed a big one on a glide bait the day before on practice, so I knew they were there. I fished the Bang Stick super slow and I started getting bit way further off the bank, almost straight under the kayak, but they were still small. One cast I timed on the video at almost 50 seconds from splashdown to hookset, was finally the fish I was looking for. She streaked off and made it know she wasn't another dink like the rest. No this was a beautiful 18.25" fish that bumped me up to 89.50" on the day. 

I caught several more, but nothing that helped. I had terrible service, so I didn't have any idea how anyone had done except the guy fishing the pocket with me, he had around 75". Everyone at awards was grumbling about tough fishing, but there's always a couple that found them. Well it turned out, I was that guy this day.

I won both the tournaments, took home 2 cool plaques, enough money to cover my entry fees the rest of the year, and qualified for state the first tournament of the year!

 

 

 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

10 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Had my first kayak tournament of the season Saturday on Big Hill Lake in Cherryvale, KS. It was a combination Kansas Kayak Anglers and Kansas Bass Nation tournament so it was quite a few fishermen on a not so big lake that was also 5' low, so even smaller than normal. Big Hill isn't a place I have fished much, and I haven't had much fun the times I've been there. 

I got the the lake Thursday evening an hour before dark and made a few cast before dark from the bank by the dam. Caught a couple largemouth, a smallmouth, and this thing.

 

That was a mistake because I ended up staying up past midnight chasing spawning walleye and catching nothing but spawning white bass. 

Friday I launched in the creek in the only small access point. I hurried dropping my stuff but there was still a kayak and a boat waiting for me even with me just throwing my stuff in a pile on the ground next to the kayak. Jumped back in my truck, dead battery ?. Thankfully I had cables and the other kayaker gave a quick jump. I helped him launch and let the boat launch before I finished putting my stuff together and started fishing. The bridge by the launch had spawning crappie on it, so it was crawling with bank fishermen, boats, even people hauling crappie 20' up to the bridge. I really wasn't sure what to start with, I thought it was going to be a prespawn bite but the low 60* water and full moon had me second guessing. I started with a spinnerbait and swimbait and quickly had a few short strikes but not hookups. It seemed way too early in the year still, but the little voice in my head was screaming at me that these fish are spawning. I cut off my jig and switched to a black and blue Zman Bang Stick with a very light 1/8oz tungsten weight and 4/0 Owner Cover Shot hook. The water was too dirty to sight fish, so I started super slowly dragging it around likely areas. I pulled it past 1 stump, them recast a foot to the right and caught a nice 16.5" fish when I was dragging it back, I knew then, they're spawning. I caught a couple more, it seemed every time I'd pick up that rod, I'd catch another. Not knowing how many there were to be caught, I went way up the creek and started catching spawning white bass and a few catfish.

Late in the afternoon, I pulled into a little pocket and caught a small one and a 19" fish real quick. There was big shad everywhere in there, I had my starting spot. I left the creek and caught a few small ones on the main lake and called it a day early.

Tournament morning, I wasn't surprised when a majority of the anglers were launching in the creek. I headed straight to my little pocket and 1 other angler joined me. It was a very small spot, but we talked, he was going to fish the south bank and I was going to fish the north. Lines in was 6:30, I sailed my cast into a tree on the shore, shook it loose, and there was a fish on it immediately. My first cast curse fish was 15.25" on the Bang Stick. 20 minutes later, I was dragging my bait back and it felt like it just hung in the trees, but it didn't feel quite right, so I swung on it. Turned out to be a 17.5" fish that looked like she was about to pop.

Maybe 5 minutes later, same bite, almost same results, but this fish looked like it had already spawned and it was 17.75"

I fished down my side and picked up my other rod that had a Strike King Rodent in Okeechobee Craw and a little 1/4oz weight and started dragging that. Right at the entrance to the pocket, I got a very light tap. It turned out to be a 19.50" fish and the hook fell out in the net.

My next cast, I caught a 14.5" (the male I assume), so I had a limit and it wasn't 8am. A few cast later, I caught a 15.50" to cull the 14.50". I fished that pocket for a long time, caught several more small fish, before I moved across the creek. I caught a small one immediately. 10 minutes later, I made a cast with the Bang Stick and got a small backlash. I cleared it and when I got my line tight, it was moving off the bank. That fish was 16.50 to cull the 15.25.

After that was a long dry spell. I caught a few dinks but nothing even close to helping. Around noon, I moved to a bank that leads up to the pocket I'd fished, between it and the bridge. I had missed a big one on a glide bait the day before on practice, so I knew they were there. I fished the Bang Stick super slow and I started getting bit way further off the bank, almost straight under the kayak, but they were still small. One cast I timed on the video at almost 50 seconds from splashdown to hookset, was finally the fish I was looking for. She streaked off and made it know she wasn't another dink like the rest. No this was a beautiful 18.25" fish that bumped me up to 89.50" on the day. 

I caught several more, but nothing that helped. I had terrible service, so I didn't have any idea how anyone had done except the guy fishing the pocket with me, he had around 75". Everyone at awards was grumbling about tough fishing, but there's always a couple that found them. Well it turned out, I was that guy this day.

I won both the tournaments, took home 2 cool plaques, enough money to cover my entry fees the rest of the year, and qualified for state the first tournament of the year!

 

 

 

Hey man big congrats, way to find them and bring home the hardware.

 

One thing I've learned this year that will stay with me forever, if you think they might be spawning, they have already been spawning.  

[PhishLI]

14 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

My next cast, I caught a 14.5" (the male I assume), so I had a limit and it wasn't 8am. A few cast later, I caught a 15.50" to cull the 14.50". I fished that pocket for a long time, caught several more small fish, before I moved across the creek. I caught a small one immediately. 10 minutes later, I made a cast with the Bang Stick and got a small backlash. I cleared it and when I got my line tight, it was moving off the bank. That fish was 16.50 to cull the 15.25.

What a rally! Congrats on the win!

[Swamp Girl]

You are a heckuva, fisherman, @Bluebasser86! Congrats on the wins and those beautiful fish!