Fish Chris and the other Hawg Hunters

[jrhennecke]

I appologise if you have covered this before but I have some curiosity about "Hawg Hunters".

1. To catch fish like you do you have to consistently chase the "big Bite". Are there days when you just say to heck with it and load the boat with "lesser" bass like the rest of us mortals?

2. What class bass does it take to even get you excited? Does it have to be 10# + or even hire after catching the monsters you do?

3. Patience seems to be a key. I don't have it. As far as fishing is concerned have you always had the patience or is it something you developed?

4.The window of opportunity to catch the type of fish you seek would seem to be very small as far as say 15#+. Once the spawn is over what are you targeting and do you fish more at night?

5. Was it always big bass or did your fishing just evolve into it?

[Mattlures]

I am not FC but I like your questions and want to answer them. For me its all expectations. If I get invited to a lake that just does not produce hardly any fish over 8lbs I bring worms. I have made up my mind that I am going to target small bass and have fun doing it.

If I feel that I have a good oportunity to stick a big bass than I will go after them and I rarley give up.

Here is my mind set. If I am drop shotting and I stick a 5lber I am excited. Not jumping or screaming but I am happy. NOW if I am throwing a swimbait and I stick a 5lber. I am disapointed the second I realize its only five lbs. It was not the fish I was looking for. I target big bass 80% of the time but Sometime I will go to a lake specificaly looking to catch a bunch of dinks ecpescialy when somebody tips me in on a wide open dink bite.

I will give you a perfect example. Out here in SoCal we have a lake thats all catch and release. All the bass are northern strain so they are realy stupid. You have to buy tickets to fish the lake and the tickets sell out realy fast so its hard to get on. You get a boat and can bring up to 3 other guys. They dont all have to go in the boat, they can fish in tubes also. Ok so the first day all 4 of us caught over 100 fish each. Most of them were right at 3lbs with a few biggewr and a few smaller. We ended up booking 4 more dates. By the end of the 2nd trip we were throwing 10in senkos and big swimbaits trying to find bigger fish. We caught the up to 5.5lbs. By the 4th trip we were board. it was too easy and we couldnt find anything bigger. We actualy stopped fishing for bass because it wasnt fun anymore. The lake has huge bluegill so the whole 5th trip we just fished for gills and got a couple over 2lbs. The gills were soo much more satisfying then the bass. Why? becasue they were huge and the bass were small and stupid.

Its all in the expectations. I had fished for at least 20 years before I decided I had to have a big fish. I had caught tons of fish up to 9lbs and I had nothing left to prove except a trophy. I needed a big one. Thats when my fishing life changed. In my quest, a 6lber didnt do much for me. It wasnt the one I wanted.

I think most fisherman come to a point where catching small bass just doesnt have the same excitement anymore. You get good at cathing them . You want to progress. There seems to be 2 paths to follow. Either turn into a tournament fisherman and compete agaist other good fisherman or become a trophy hunter and compete against the fish. Both paths require skill and dedication to be succesfull. Both are logical steps as you become more skilled. Its just human nature to want to get better.

[roadwarrior]

We have several Hawg Hunters on board, so I hope they all reply. As an "outsider" I will simply share my observation of how these guys fish:

To consistantly catch big bass, they must be your target and your passion. Our guys are not "lucky", they fish for monsters where the fat girls live. Without exception, only double digits count!

8-)

[Fish Chris]

Good questions.

1) Once in a great, great while, I will fish for smaller bass. That would be like (on average) 1 trip a year to Clear Lk. {yes, Clear Lk. California... the 'supposed' big bass capitol of the West} I will go there with an icebox full of tiny to medium sized live crawdads, and my little micro-light rod, and plan to catch 15 to 30, 3 to 7 lb'ers... maybe an 8 if I'm lucky.... a 9 if I'm 'real' lucky..... But a 10 lb'er of of that place ???

Their are just so many other places that will give me a better shot at a DD bass.

2) Depends. If it's a new lake, or a Northern strain, or the first swimbait fish of the year, or some other outstanding point, an 8 lb'er might do it :-) Otherwise, yes, at least 10 to even make the heartbeat rise a bit. A 13 to get pretty darn stoked. A 15 to get flat out jittery with adrenalin. And a 17.1 to be completely beside myself..... I mean like, heart pounding out of my chest... so whacked out I don't know what to do next.... my hair feels like its tingling.... my mouth is so dry I can barely swallow..... Whoooo ! Hoooo !!!  :-)

3) Hmmmm. I've always considered myself to be a type "A" kind of guy (probably the only fat one you will ever meet :-) Their are certainly times and places where I have very little patience.... Like when I'm on my way to the lake and I have grandpa in front of me driving 20mph !!!

But being on the water..... especially on a day with very little boat traffic... nice weather... by myself... really seems to calm me down, and increases my patience big time.

Aside from all of this, I guess I have somewhat conditioned myself to being more patient as well.

Then their are times when I just have to flat out force myself to be patient..... Like sight fishing for a monster.

4) Fishing for giants after the spawn can certainly be tougher... But a lot of that depends on the places you fish. I caught a 14.40 and a 15.60 last year, after the spawn. Back in the day, I caught all kinds of teeners after the spawn, including a 16.50 in November.

So, it's still possible... But nowadays, I'm ususally off to the ocean for Halibut, Bat Rays, and Leopard Sharks... and come Fall, I'm fishing the Delta for Sturgeon and Stripers.

5) I always "wanted" to catch a big bass..... and "I thought" I was fishing for them. But after catching my first double digit bass of my life in 98" (mostly out of pure luck), and then starting to study big bass, and the guys that caught them consistently, I came to find out that (like many people) I had not been "fishing for big bass afterall, but rather, I had been fishing for small to medium bass, and 'hoping' for big ones".

That was the turning point. Once I found out that I could actually fish specifically for big bass..... "and catch them too" ;-) It was ON !!! :-)

Great fishing to all,

Fish

[jrhennecke]

Thank you for the responses Mattlures and Fish Chris.  Great stuff.

Roadwarrior I agree with you these guys are greatly skilled.  I hope we hear from a few of the other Hawg Hunters.

[Raul]

I appologise if you have covered this before but I have some curiosity about "Hawg Hunters".

1. To catch fish like you do you have to consistently chase the "big Bite". Are there days when you just say to heck with it and load the boat with "lesser" bass like the rest of us mortals?

It depends on with whom I 'm fishing with, the vast mayority of my fishing partners can 't stand "the hunt", I 've caught most of my hogs fishing alone or in a few cases, fishing with a partner that can stand the hunt. That means that normally I don 't fish for big mommas, everyday 1-3 pounders and that 's about it.

I appologise if you have covered this before but I have some curiosity about "Hawg Hunters".

2. What class bass does it take to even get you excited? Does it have to be 10# + or even hire after catching the monsters you do?

An eighter brings grin to my face, a niner makes me blush, a ten makes me feel satisfied, an eleven pumps adrenalin, can 't say more cuz shy of 14 pounds is my PB.

I appologise if you have covered this before but I have some curiosity about "Hawg Hunters".

3. Patience seems to be a key. I don't have it. As far as fishing is concerned have you always had the patience or is it something you developed?

Patience is something you grow in yourself, anfter all ----> what 's the rush ?

I appologise if you have covered this before but I have some curiosity about "Hawg Hunters".

4.The window of opportunity to catch the type of fish you seek would seem to be very small as far as say 15#+. Once the spawn is over what are you targeting and do you fish more at night?

It really depends on where you fish, post spawn is the hardest, mid summer is when I 've caught the most after the prespawn and spawn, and if it sounds odd to you, most of them have been caught during 1 and 4 PM under the blazing heart and scorching sun. When the air temps are in the 100 's, when you feel like jello melting under the sun is when the big mommas are into the bite in my experience.

I appologise if you have covered this before but I have some curiosity about "Hawg Hunters".

5. Was it always big bass or did your fishing just evolve into it?

I caught my first 10+ in 1984 out of a puddle, that day I caught 2 10+ pound fish and a 8.5 pounder, I had fished that pond for several years and nothing great came out of it, lotz of 10 inchers to a pound so actually I fished that pond for the fun, who would have thought that the puddle had big fish in it ? Then it became kinda like of an obsession, I look for the big bite if I can get away with it.  

[ring fry]

Great stuff.  Another thanks you for your responses.

[grimlin]

Awesome read! Great thread.Honestly i would love to sit in the boat and just watch these guys fish for those hawgs.

I know a lot of the greats mention northern strains being easier to catch.I rarely pass 5 fish limit here.What gives?Am i gotta have a harder time fishing for the day in TX when i go down there in may to visit?

[Raul]

.

I rarely pass 5 fish limit here.What gives?

1.- What the fish told you ?

2.- What were you fishing with ?

3.- At what speed you were retrieving ?

4.- Did you see anything in particular where you caught the first one ?

5.- At what depth ?

6.- The conditions were how when you caught the first one ?

And we can continue the questions ad infinitum, you see, nothing happens by chance, the only moment you can insert "luck" ( if you believe in it ) into the equation is when you caught the first one, the rest of the pack comes as a result of applying the same principles you found when you caught the first one ....... that is, if you bothered to take your time to analize what the fish was telling you.

[Branuss04]

I appologise if you have covered this before but I have some curiosity about "Hawg Hunters".

1. To catch fish like you do you have to consistently chase the "big Bite". Are there days when you just say to heck with it and load the boat with "lesser" bass like the rest of us mortals?

2. What class bass does it take to even get you excited? Does it have to be 10# + or even hire after catching the monsters you do?

3. Patience seems to be a key. I don't have it. As far as fishing is concerned have you always had the patience or is it something you developed?

4.The window of opportunity to catch the type of fish you seek would seem to be very small as far as say 15#+. Once the spawn is over what are you targeting and do you fish more at night?

5. Was it always big bass or did your fishing just evolve into it?

I'm not a hawg hunter, but I too like you questions so i'll answer them.  

1. I still love catching tons of bass, but since I caught my 9, catching 2#'ers just doesn't have the same rush as it did before.  I don't have the patience yet to just focus on the big fish though, the other day, i got tired of looking for the big fish with no luck, so I brought out the dropshot and brought in 20 2#'ers.

2. For me, anything over the 6# mark now gets me excited.  It's funny because 1 month ago, anything over 3 got me stoked.  Kinda wierd how things turn when you break your old pb 5 times in one day.

3. Looking back, I've gained lots of patience in the last year, but still not enough.  I'm working on it though.

5.  It has evolved for me.  I was talking to 4bizz about this, and it is funny because when he got me into bass fishing, i was using a $15 trout combo with a 5" senko t-rigged, now i'm throwing $90 baits with a Calcutta.  Kinda funny how we evolve.

[jrhennecke]

These are all great posts and I appreciate the diversity of the answers. It's very cool to see how others aproach the game.

[UrbanRedneck]

1. To catch fish like you do you have to consistently chase the "big Bite". Are there days when you just say to heck with it and load the boat with "lesser" bass like the rest of us mortals?

2. What class bass does it take to even get you excited? Does it have to be 10# + or even hire after catching the monsters you do?

3. Patience seems to be a key. I don't have it. As far as fishing is concerned have you always had the patience or is it something you developed?

4.The window of opportunity to catch the type of fish you seek would seem to be very small as far as say 15#+. Once the spawn is over what are you targeting and do you fish more at night?

5. Was it always big bass or did your fishing just evolve into it?

[jrhennecke]

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1206678361

Here is the picture of Fish Chris's 17#r

[WRB]

I appologise if you have covered this before but I have some curiosity about "Hawg Hunters".

1. To catch fish like you do you have to consistently chase the "big Bite". Are there days when you just say to heck with it and load the boat with "lesser" bass like the rest of us mortals?

I like to think of being a trophy bass fisherman. Unlike most others I like to bass fish and don't use live bait at all for bass, strickly a lure fisherman. I target giant bass when the time is right; October throught May. I will continue to target the big bass the balance of the year and also fish for fun from June to September and at nights.

2. What class bass does it take to even get you excited? Does it have to be 10# + or even hire after catching the monsters you do?

I get excited catching bass period. To get my heart pumping and thinking WR, that takes a bass that appears to be over 28" long or 17+. My goal is to break into 20 lbs. or more.

3. Patience seems to be a key. I don't have it. As far as fishing is concerned have you always had the patience or is it something you developed?

I'm not patient, if anything I'm a little hyper. This drives you to learn everything you can and to be extremely detailed in how you fish.

4.The window of opportunity to catch the type of fish you seek would seem to be very small as far as say 15#+. Once the spawn is over what are you targeting and do you fish more at night?

I don't target spawners intentionally, I do fish the pre-spawn at every lake I can within reason and time allowances. Yes I fish at night during the summer period, however never caught a bass over 12 lbs at night.

5. Was it always big bass or did your fishing just evolve into it?

I always had the dream of catching the next WR bass as a child.

You must fish for big bass to catch big bass,.sounds contrite but it's the truth. Learn to fish jigs, big worms and swimbaits on the major points around the lake you fish and your luck will change.

WRB

[FD.]

This was a great read.  Thanks guys.

[Redlinerobert]

Great questions, equally great answers.  Would love to hear from Fourbizz as well.

[Matt Fly]

I love the pursuit of the big bites at night in the summer months.   I also think heavy pressured lakes are prime for great night action.  

 

I also have found that unless you have a partner who understands the need for stealth, its best done alone.

[Randall]

I appologise if you have covered this before but I have some curiosity about "Hawg Hunters".

1. To catch fish like you do you have to consistently chase the "big Bite". Are there days when you just say to heck with it and load the boat with "lesser" bass like the rest of us mortals?

2. What class bass does it take to even get you excited? Does it have to be 10# + or even hire after catching the monsters you do?

3. Patience seems to be a key. I don't have it. As far as fishing is concerned have you always had the patience or is it something you developed?

4.The window of opportunity to catch the type of fish you seek would seem to be very small as far as say 15#+. Once the spawn is over what are you targeting and do you fish more at night?

5. Was it always big bass or did your fishing just evolve into it?

1. I will when fun fishing sometimes go after smaller fish but 90% of the time I am after a big one over eight pounds.

2. An eight pounder will start to get me excited but it really takes one over ten to really get me excited and that's usually my goal each day. I want fish over ten pounds.

3. I have always been a pretty paitent person.

4. Last year I felt I had four or five good chances at a fifteen pounder and I caught one. Once the spawn is over I do much better at targeting big fish. They are easier to target and more predictable and I do best in fall. I know where they live in all seasons and target  big fish year round.

5. I got tired of catching smaller fish. I wanted a new challenge that wasn't easy and something most people can't do so I started targeting big fish.

[Catt]

Q: To catch fish like you do you have to consistently chase the "big Bite".  

A: You have to fish where the biggest fish in your lake live

Q: Are there days when you just say to heck with it and load the boat with "lesser" bass like the rest of us mortals?

A: I love fishing so I go after what's available; my wife & kids love rafting on Toro Creek but shooting rapids with my back aint a good idea so I'll catch Kentucky bass all day long.

Q: What class bass does it take to even get you excited? Does it have to be 10# + or even hire after catching the monsters you do?

A: Depends on the body of water; I fish some marshes in Southwest Louisiana where a 6 or 7 pound bass is considered a Hawg so when I land one in the range I satisfied.

Q:  Patience seems to be a key.  I don't have it.  As far as fishing is concerned have you always had the patience or is it something you developed?

A: I believe it's not all about patience but more about the lack of knowledge about big bass & basic misconceptions about big bass and fishing techniques for big bass

Q: The window of opportunity to catch the type of fish you seek would seem to be very small as far as say 15#+.  Once the spawn is over what are you targeting and do you fish more at night?

A: I target pre-spawn & night fishing deep structure; bedding bass on Toledo Bend is almost impossible because the bass are so far back in the brush you can't reach them.

Q: Was it always big bass or did your fishing just evolve into it?

A: I grew up on the Louisiana Gulf Coast & it didn't matter if it was Bass, Speckle Trout, Red Fish, Bonita, Cobia, Snapper, or Shark it's always been about big fish.

It takes a rare breed of fisherman using simple techniques to perfection to consistently catch big bass. Doug Hannon

If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you always got Tommy (Catt) Thibodeaux

[WRB]

Thanks for the advice WRB. This thread isn't about catching big bass as it is about the mindset of those that target them. You are right though you have to target them to catch them.

Did you take the time to read your answered questions?

WRB

[bigbill]

I read a local tornie guy state there are no bass bigger than 6lbs in my state of CT. Thats the average big bass, nothing bigger. Thats totally wrong. My biggest one so far is 10lbs. and i seen bigger ones too. I'm up at 3:30am everyday and fish everyday to catch any size bass it doesn't matter. I fish till around 3 months its when i get burned out, lack of sleep for some reason. I find the hawg's seem to be closer to shore in the early am ambushing the baitfish. I'm happy to catch anything but if the hawgs want to bite too thats a plus and it makes my day too. I hammer 3 to 4 small places from shore everyday and each place holds large bass. Trust me its not the 5 to 6 lbers making the babies and keeping the popluation up its the bigger gals doing the job there the unsung hero's.

I think the big bass thing is overlooked in many states. Some states may have larger bass than others but i think there are double digit bass in every state.

I even catch the large pickerel up to 30" what a fight they are too. I like catching any size bass but the larger ones rock. :

Its funny they mocked me on a local website when i talked about 10lb bass but then they started catching them 9lbs and up go figure therte really here ain't that something.

You need to stay motivated and stay going because sooner or later you will catch one too and maybe more than one.

Being disabled i'd like to break the state record for large mouth bass its only 12lb14oz. But i really hope a little kid does it.

[roadwarrior]

Wow! That surprises me. The 12-14 came from Mashapaug Lake. Is that open to the public?

[jrhennecke]

Thanks for the advice WRB. This thread isn't about catching big bass as it is about the mindset of those that target them. You are right though you have to target them to catch them.

Did you take the time to read your answered questions?

WRB

WRB I did not see the answers to the questions just the comments below.  My mistake and meant no disrespect.

[WRB]

Thanks for the advice WRB. This thread isn't about catching big bass as it is about the mindset of those that target them. You are right though you have to target them to catch them.

Did you take the time to read your answered questions?

WRB

WRB I did not see the answers to the questions just the comments below. My mistake and meant no disrespect.

Thats what I thought, becuase my answers aren't highlighted or easy to find, like the replies from folks that know how to use computers.

I don't believe you must focus all your energy on catching giant bass, you miss out on the fun of bass fishing doing that.

Some asked if I knew Bill Murphy and yes I did and didn't, we were in the same club together. Big bass fisherman can be very secretive and loners, Bill and I were both way to competitve to be good friends at that age. I was from Ventura county about 180 miles north of SD and therefor an outsider. I really regret those foolish secretive years wasted on ego and is one reason I share detailed lure presentation and knowledge today.

WRB