BaconStealer303 Posted January 4, 2015 Posted January 4, 2015 My worst would have to be Illinois and Indiana... Granted I haven't fished in too many other states there is just a lack of quality fisheries around here 1 Quote
greentrout Posted January 4, 2015 Posted January 4, 2015 Heading home after an afternoon of crappie fishing.Bluff LakeNoxubee National Wildlife Refuge, Starkville, MississippiGod's country.  Old school basser... 1 Quote
Super User Scott F Posted January 4, 2015 Super User Posted January 4, 2015 My worst would have to be Illinois and Indiana... Granted I haven't fished in too many other states there is just a lack of quality fisheries around here  In Oswego you live right next to the Fox River an excellent smallmouth fishery. You are 20 minutes from the DuPage River, another great smallie river. In an hour, you can be fishing the Kankakee. If you find these 3 rivers not to be quality fisheries, your standards are WAY too high. 1 Quote
Super User HoosierHawgs Posted January 4, 2015 Super User Posted January 4, 2015 Indiana is somewhere in the middle IMO. There are good sized fish here, and some decent fisheries for sure (Raccoon, Eagle Creek Reservoir, Monroe, Patoka, and a small, but well kept shoreline of Lake Michigan). But some fisheries like the White River are trash. Not well kept IMO. But in terms of top states to fish, CA, NY, MI, The Carolina's, AL, TN, and FL all have world class fishing IMzo Quote
RipzLipz Posted January 10, 2015 Posted January 10, 2015 IMO IN has terrible bass management. They used to draw down Monroe during the spawn, hurting the quality of bass. Anyone remember Turtle Creek Reservoir? That place was a bass factory until all the numbers of quality bass myteriously disappeared and now it's a haven for carp and catfish. I'm guessing the discharge temps got too high at some point but not much the state could do about that since the was owned by Hoosier Energy. How many times are they going to drain West Boggs before they get a grip on that place? Griffey Reservoir in Bloomington was tremendous in the 70s and 80s, but the DNR didn't manage the weeds and they've drained it twice in about 20 years. Pretty frustrating. Even though Monroe is so tough to fish, strangely it's probably your best bet for a giant on public waters, if not Patoka. Our reservoirs aren't intended to be bass factories - flood control and drinking water. But I feel our DNR and corps of engineers could do a better job of managing those 2 bigger lakes in the state. Maybe take some lessons from those in TX? I've pretty much given up fishing public waters during warm weather in south central Indiana due to pressure, boaters, jet skiers and the plethora of morons on the waters. However, I do have buddies in Bloomington that tell me Monroe is pretty good at night, as I'm sure Patoka might be. Private waters are filled with giant bass (for Indiana), capable of producing fish in double digits. I fish mostly old coal strip pits on the SW portion of the state. The public pits that I've fished are OK but can be tough if getting pressured. Did some wading in Big Blue River for a few years prior to the big flood in 2007 or 2008 and the stretch I fished was loaded with 2-4lb smallies but that all changed after the flood. Being blessed to have access to private waters, I love fishing here in IN. But as my neighbors have pointed out, it can be tough here, especially for casual fishermen and during the hot months from mid June to end of August. That's when I'd fish at night. LM only, I'd have to say in no order AL, CA, FL and TX are best. For combos of LM and SM, northern states like MI, WI, MN and I'm impressed with ME from what I've seen on TV. However I've only fished in just over a half dozen states other than my own, so those are just my opinion. Seems to be fine fishing all across the South (across the Ohio), so don't be offended if your home state wasn't mentioned. Anyone near the Great Lakes I *** you for the smallmouth fishing you have available to you. Just hope it continues and the invasive fish like the Asian carps stay out. 2 Quote
beagle 25 Posted January 11, 2015 Posted January 11, 2015 Where I live in Indiana I have found good fishing. Sullivan lake is better than most give it credit for. I also have access to a private lake that produces >5 lbers on a regular basis. I wish turtle creek would rebound 20 years ago it was world class and I pretty much live in the shadow of Hoosier Energy's stack. I've fished other places around the state but non as good as what's around here. Quote
hoosierhawghunter Posted January 12, 2015 Posted January 12, 2015 IMO IN has terrible bass management. They used to draw down Monroe during the spawn, hurting the quality of bass. Anyone remember Turtle Creek Reservoir? That place was a bass factory until all the numbers of quality bass myteriously disappeared and now it's a haven for carp and catfish. I'm guessing the discharge temps got too high at some point but not much the state could do about that since the was owned by Hoosier Energy. How many times are they going to drain West Boggs before they get a grip on that place? Griffey Reservoir in Bloomington was tremendous in the 70s and 80s, but the DNR didn't manage the weeds and they've drained it twice in about 20 years. Pretty frustrating. Even though Monroe is so tough to fish, strangely it's probably your best bet for a giant on public waters, if not Patoka. Our reservoirs aren't intended to be bass factories - flood control and drinking water. But I feel our DNR and corps of engineers could do a better job of managing those 2 bigger lakes in the state. Maybe take some lessons from those in TX? I've pretty much given up fishing public waters during warm weather in south central Indiana due to pressure, boaters, jet skiers and the plethora of morons on the waters. However, I do have buddies in Bloomington that tell me Monroe is pretty good at night, as I'm sure Patoka might be. Private waters are filled with giant bass (for Indiana), capable of producing fish in double digits. I fish mostly old coal strip pits on the SW portion of the state. The public pits that I've fished are OK but can be tough if getting pressured. Did some wading in Big Blue River for a few years prior to the big flood in 2007 or 2008 and the stretch I fished was loaded with 2-4lb smallies but that all changed after the flood. Being blessed to have access to private waters, I love fishing here in IN. But as my neighbors have pointed out, it can be tough here, especially for casual fishermen and during the hot months from mid June to end of August. That's when I'd fish at night. LM only, I'd have to say in no order AL, CA, FL and TX are best. For combos of LM and SM, northern states like MI, WI, MN and I'm impressed with ME from what I've seen on TV. However I've only fished in just over a half dozen states other than my own, so those are just my opinion. Seems to be fine fishing all across the South (across the Ohio), so don't be offended if your home state wasn't mentioned. Anyone near the Great Lakes I *** you for the smallmouth fishing you have available to you. Just hope it continues and the invasive fish like the Asian carps stay out. Monroe to me and quite a few other guys I know is a nightmare. Patoka on the other hand has been nothing but good to me. Especially at night with a 1/4 ounce chatterbait over a submerged grass flat. Catch several nice fish at night there. But turtle creek was definitely the best fishery in Indiana up until they ruined it. Indiana treats its fish like it treats it's deer herd. The state could give a d**n about the wildlife. They just do what makes them money and nothing else. When speaking with kvd at the spring fishing classic last year he said if you can catch fish in indiana,you can catch them anywhere. So indiana is definitely the worst state for fishing that I know of. I've fished table rock, guntersville, Ohio river, private lakes in Florida. Guntersville is my favorite place to fish by far. So many big fish and very easy to catch a 5+... Quote
hoosierbass07 Posted January 12, 2015 Posted January 12, 2015 Indiana is somewhere in the middle IMO. There are good sized fish here, and some decent fisheries for sure (Raccoon, Â Â Raccoon is one of my main bank fishing (and kayak fishing) lakes/parks and I don't think it's good at all. Â I did catch 2.15 pound bass last spring. Â But Raccoon is not that great. Â This year I'm going to try and fish it hard from my kayak in the early spring and see how it is. Â Â Â It ticks me off a little - I record a lot of fishing programs and when they are titled "Fishing the Midwest" I think of Indiana. Â And yet it's always Minnesota or Oklahoma, over and over and over again. Â Do they ever do programs from Indiana? Â Nope! Â 1 Quote
strvmmer Posted January 13, 2015 Posted January 13, 2015 I'm surprised by the hate Delaware is getting. I've had some epic days catching largemouth there. Quote
Preytorien Posted January 13, 2015 Posted January 13, 2015 Pretty much in Indiana I've concluded a couple of things..... Â 1. The White River, north of Noblesville is pretty darn good for smallmouth, not Great Lakes good, but I can catch them all day wading the river. It's clean, accessible in quite a few places, and it's not even close to crowded. However, once you get below Noblesville, and especially into Indianapolis, the fishing might be good, but usually isn't. The water's not as clean, deeper (not as much wading), and runs quite a bit faster. Â 2. With the exception of a few banner days here and there, I've never really smoked em' on the main Indiana reservoirs. I tend to do better in ponds and small lakes. They hold good fish. Â 3. I conclude with a lot of the other Indiana guys, the DNR focuses heavily on hunting, but the fishing quality in our state seems to escape them. I lived on Morse Reservoir for 9 years, and in that time they drained it once and significantly lowered it twice. That's not DNR behavior concurrent with fisheries management. But then again, apparently that's not their goal.....unfortunately. It's not KVD who I've talked to, but I've also heard it said by several guys I know who fish all over the country that if you can catch em' in Indiana, you'll do pretty good anywhere else. High pressure, bad fisheries, weird weather, etc all come into play. 1 Quote
RipzLipz Posted January 21, 2015 Posted January 21, 2015 Where I live in Indiana I have found good fishing. Sullivan lake is better than most give it credit for. I also have access to a private lake that produces >5 lbers on a regular basis. I wish turtle creek would rebound 20 years ago it was world class and I pretty much live in the shadow of Hoosier Energy's stack. I've fished other places around the state but non as good as what's around here. That fish in my profile pic was caught in your neck of the woods, near Clay City, from private waters. Great fishing in that area if you're lucky enough to gain access to the private places. I've set my PB the past 2 years from that pit. My criticism about IN fishing was aimed only at the larger public lakes and our DNRs approach towards improvements in those fisheries, or lack thereof, compared to other states. Public streams and rivers can be fine fishing in certain areas, but those areas can be much more difficult to access compared to places like Monroe, etc. The fish we are lucky enough to catch from a private area shows that our area has the potential for great public fisheries. I just find it frustrating that more isn't being done for those public areas that are lacking or need better management. 1 Quote
Chris186 Posted January 21, 2015 Posted January 21, 2015  For the worst Im gonna say RI, and I live here. There just isnt enough big water, I think its like 20,700 acres of water TOTAL. The biggest lake in the state is 1,051 acres, with only 4 bigger than 500 acres. So imagine all the tournaments on small lakes, yes there are 25 boat tournaments here on 100 acre lakes. They get POUNDED. Not to mention Bass managment is pretty much doesnt exist, all the state really cares about are their salt water ramps and their trout lakes. Freshwater ramps are mostly HORRIBLE, some are decent, some lakes dont have ramps. Three quarters of the lakes and ponds are 10hp and under, unless you have a permit for a tournament, then its anything goes. All that being said, there are big fish here, but in recent years I havent heard of anything over 8lbs. Those are few and far between, a 4lber is a big fish in this state. Quote
tnt2671 Posted January 21, 2015 Posted January 21, 2015 i havnt fished in a lot of different states outside of Massachusetts and Connecticut but i will say being on the  Ct. River on a beautiful 75 degree september day is a little piece of heaven! on the flip side sitting here at 1 o'clock in the morning posting up on fishing forums when it hasn't been above freezing for a freaking week and theres still a good month and a half of this dreaded winter left totally sucks!! Quote
SneakySnook Posted January 22, 2015 Posted January 22, 2015 This time of year Florida is a great place to fish with a flipping rod or the worst place to fish if a cold front hits. If you watched the Bassmaster Open this past week the weights were low because of the cold front that hit. The funny thing is that wasn't even that bad of a cold front. If we would have had a colder front come down you would have seen lots of zeros. Good part about Florida is we can fish year round. 1 Quote
TorqueConverter Posted January 22, 2015 Posted January 22, 2015 Iowa is terrible especially West Okoboji. No one should ever fish there. Pleasure boaters should also stop pleasure boating there too. They're making it hard for me to not fish there. 1 Quote
brgbassmaster Posted January 23, 2015 Posted January 23, 2015 I have fished Michigan, new Mexico, Texas, Alabama, Missouri, Arizona, Mississippi, and by far Michigan wins as best state. I have never seen a place where u can go to just about any man made lake or natural and catch 3-5lb smallies. And laregemouth in the same lake. Michigan has some of the best untapped largemoth fishing. All u hear about is the smallmouth. And best part is you can catch them from punching mats to fishing 30 ft deep and every technique in between. Now for hardest definitely new Mexico. Tournament winning limits in the 6lb range lol a big bag is 11lbs. I have seen a 17lb bag and people went crazy. And most of the time people don't even limits out. Nit to mention the lack of water in that state. The ones that do are at like 30% capacity. Lived there for 3 years. Quote
Fishing Cowgirl Posted January 23, 2015 Posted January 23, 2015 This time of year Florida is a great place to fish with a flipping rod or the worst place to fish if a cold front hits. If you watched the Bassmaster Open this past week the weights were low because of the cold front that hit. The funny thing is that wasn't even that bad of a cold front. If we would have had a colder front come down you would have seen lots of zeros. Good part about Florida is we can fish year round. Â I agree. You can catch some great fish here and fish year round. But the Florida fish are finicky and do the "Ninja Bites" or be Mafia bass (They only get in trouble when they open their mouth). It can take 30+ lbs to win a tournament on the Kissimmee Chain or Okeechobee, or you're pushing to make a 20 lb bag to make a check a week later. When I was a Marshall on Okeechobee in 2012, I was kinda surprised when I listened to several of the Elites saying they were just trying to "Survive" Florida. I even saw KVD scratching his head and flipping reeds. (then an hour later he catches an 8 lber). Everything "looks" like it should be holding fish and your electronics will light up with all of them, but you end up throwing everything in the tackle box at them and they just aren't interested. Some of say there are 90% of the fish in 10% of the lake. Then its they are here today, gone tomorrow. Quote
Super User F14A-B Posted January 23, 2015 Super User Posted January 23, 2015 Florida is my favorite state for bass, I stated as such in this thread months ago, I lived there for a decade. Florida is anything but "easy" however, once you taste the honey, the work & effort required is always rewarded... Plus, there's always, as Dwight Hottle says, those indigenous swimbaits, lol..then if your feeling really defeated, you just go saltwater fish... 1 Quote
jacob95 Posted January 23, 2015 Posted January 23, 2015 I live in Northwest Indiana and we don't have double digit bass here but I don't think the fishing is terrible. I have caught pretty big bass from Indiana lakes but nothing like Southern lakes. I'd love to live in FL, GA, AL, or TX. Quote
Penguino Posted January 24, 2015 Posted January 24, 2015 New Jersey easily wins for worst state. New Jersey lakes and ponds are so polluted, that half the fish are dirty or sick. Also, New Jersey has a ton of bass anglers for such a small state Quote
Super User FishTank Posted January 24, 2015 Super User Posted January 24, 2015 The southern states are the best fishing I have experienced.  TN is awesome for small mouth and Florida has all kinds of lakes loaded with large mouth. 1 Quote
FrogFreak Posted January 25, 2015 Posted January 25, 2015 I live in one of the worst (North Dakota) right on the border and fish in one of the best (Minnesota). MN has just about everything you would want. No pressure, small lakes, large lakes, access to one of the great lakes, rivers (how about the Mississippi??). Not huge LMBs but a ton of 3-5 pounders. SMB are readily available as well. It's a lot like Michigan and Wisconsin in that most people fish Walleye. So even on a day when there are a bunch of boats on the water, they aren't fishing for bass! The big downside is that you can only fish for 5 months or so if you don't ice fish it can be a long wait. From what I can see, TX is probably the best place for me to winter when I retire. That's the life, TX fishing in the winter and MN fishing in the summer baby! Quote
Rush50 Posted February 5, 2016 Posted February 5, 2016 I'm from upstate NY but I now live in Delaware. The best freshwater (that's all I do) fishing I've experienced was in Minnesota. NY is nice, too. But Delaware is by far the worst. The "lakes" here are all man-made by damming a saltwater tributary. Over the years they became freshwater but they are only 8-15' deep, at best. Average lg mouth are 3lbs. Occasionally someone might pull in a 5-6 pounder, and there have been a few 8s but they are very rare. There are no walleye or pike. We have some pickerel but they are very small, 2-3lbs at best. I can't wait to move and get back to real fishing. Quote
ranger7717 Posted February 5, 2016 Posted February 5, 2016 On 1/21/2015 at 0:49 AM, tnt2671 said: i havnt fished in a lot of different states outside of Massachusetts and Connecticut but i will say being on the  Ct. River on a beautiful 75 degree september day is a little piece of heaven! on the flip side sitting here at 1 o'clock in the morning posting up on fishing forums when it hasn't been above freezing for a freaking week and theres still a good month and a half of this dreaded winter left totally sucks!! not sure what this "dreaded winter" comment is about...live in central ma most of my life and this is by far one of the easiest winters we've had in a long time - i work outside most of the time. but anyway, i agree with you about the conn river - great fishing and great scenery. as far as best fishing for a northern boy, i absolutely LOVE lake champlain...so many choices - so many types of fishing Quote
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