Over 1000 10+lber.'s this old gent could teach us all somethings

[bigbill]

I noticed all my smaller ponds have bigger bass in all of them. I'm talking 10lb bass++. There not being caught mainly because of the time that we go. I'm fishing between 3:30am to around 9:30am. I mainly fish from shore 99.99% of the time. I'm disabled and can't fish as much as i'd like to but the little time i do put in i notice there are bigger bass out there waiting for us to catch we just need to go every day. Watch the weather patterns too. I notice that the bass can turn on before the rain storm hits, during a lull in the rain storm and after the rain has ended. You just need to keep going and trying. I find the 2 to3 hours before the front hits to be the best time to catch bass.

At Infisherman they go for catching record breaking fish during the moon phases. If i look back in my records when i have caught the bigger fish i'll bet the fronts with a full moon phase has something to do with it. InFisherman says to fish days before the full moon and days after the full moon.

I'm not saying to fish during thunder storms with lightening but i do go out and give it a try in the light/soft steady rain.

I'll bet we have big bass all over our country, while they might not be as large as the ones being bred in CA i'm sure we have state record breakers in each state, i'd bet on that from what i'm seeing here in Ct.

We just need to fish more and fish everyday.

I noticed i go fishing from when the season starts everyday at 3:30am for about 3 months before i get completely burned out. I'm so burned i miss the hot summer fishing and i may fish the fall till november.

With my health getting worse i still try to fish as much as i can.

My hottest lure for big bass has been the Rebel BIG claw crawfish crankbait in green/black back.  I throw it out in the channel and give the rod a sweep back so it dives down then reel it slow.  A shot of yum craw scent helps too.

My hottest topwater bait has been the BPS Topnocker in color #25 again cast it out and walk the dog.  I move it three times in short movements then stop/pause and repeat.  Or you can nock it by little twitches and it almost pops out of the water and back down in the same spot.

These are my hottest lures in my area your area it maybe different but its all about the lure size, lure color and the presentation too plus the time your fishing too.

Bass fishing isn't luck, luck is at the casino, its skill in bass fishing and all the info you need is here on this site.  And remember the best teacher is time on the water fishing.                              BB

TIP:   Reel your reel smoothly.  Watch how your hand makes a circle with the reel handle.  You need to make a smooth even circle with the reel crank handle.  If you reel uneven the lure will go fast and slow up on every turn of the crank.  You need to make every turn an even speed, its the perfect presentation that catches fish with lures.

BTW; I use lures only.

[paul.]

Pressured VS Un-Pressured bass are totally different animals

Catt, weren't you one of the guys who said that a bass' abilty to learn was minimal or nonexistent?  please correct me if i'm wrong. 

if they cannot learn then pressured vs. unpressured bass are NOT totally different animals.  they are exactly the same animal with exactly the same level of vulnerabilty. 

[Big Bait Fishing]

Bizz I gotta disagree with you. I think Butch is #2. Mike has a 20 and several high teens, plus he dominates the tournaments. Many times he wins team tournament fishing by himself and he usualy wins by 5+ pounds.

Plus he ownes most of the lake records in socal.

He has caught trophy bass out every lake here at least 20 different lakes. He is also extremly versitile. He has lake records sight fishing, on swimbaits, on jigs and on senkos.

No disrespect for Butch though, I do think he is a stud

As for the article, I am sure the old guy is a great fisherman but his success is centered around the private ponds. Imagine how many huge bass the guides have caught on Baccarac and El Salto

I do like his choice of baits though. The buzzer is one of my goto night time big bass bait.

don't meen to disagree with you Matt but mike long is not #1 .. i do hear from alot of people that he does catch alot of big bass on live crawdads though .............  :

[Mattlures]

pgersumky Mike is#1 of all bass fisherman including the Elite pros. I am sure you hear every rumor imaginable. Anytime anybody achieves greatness there will be jealousy and haters. Do not belive what you hear. He is watched everytime he fishes. He wins more tournaments then he doesnt win. I am guessing your opinion is influenced from guys who dont like him. Meat him yourself. Fish by him and see. You would change your opinion. Go to one of his seminars with an open mind and block out what you have "heard". I hear things to about everybody who catches big bass in CA. EVERYBODY! Mike is not a crawdad guy but like everybody who has ever chased big bass I am sure he has used them before ,so what. I have used dads, shiners,and crawlers and I ocasionaly still use crawlers but just about all of my big bass come from swimbaits and sightfishing but if I could get them on dads then I would throw dads.

0119 yeah OK   WOW!

Fish Chris ha ha I think the exact oposite then you. I think Norcal has way more big fish ha ha. We may have a higher top end but we got tiny lakes comparred to you guys. Your right about greener grass!   Anyways the article says he searches out ponds that are holding numerous trophy bass. That is obviously a diferent situation then the ponds in your area holding 4-7lbers. We catch big bass in preasured public lakes becasue thats where we have to go to catch them. There are many places in the country like GA and TX where private ponds are very common and where people are managing them for trophy bass.

[senko_77]

sidenote, they were pretty much all private ponds. And yes, that does make a difference!

Shimmy, I look forward to your input every time there is a thread where someone caught big bass.  You are the most jealous person I have ever seen on BR and it always makes the thread way more fun when you come riding in touting why it isn't a "real" catch.  I would love to come up to your home waters and show you how to really catch fish.  Maybe next year during the Opens. 

Keep it up man 

[Glenn]

fascinates me how sometimes we wanna put asterisks beside accomplishments we will never approach ourselves. maybe it's just easier to do that than to admit how we wish we could do something like that, but never will because we don't have the opportunity and/or the ability. as far as i have read, this guy never cheated or did anything even questionable with his fishing. he just went out and worked hard at something he loved using the methods that made him happy. and he's caught over 1000 trophy bass. regardless of whether we wanna recognize or not, and regardless of whatever asterisks we wanna put by this man's name, this guy has done something incredible. and regardless of what constitutes a "trophy" bass where we happen to live, 1000 trophy bass is a number most of us will never even sniff. why can't we just be happy for the guy? i say fish how and where you wanna. enjoy yourself and use the tactics that you like as long as it's legal. and then recognize other people's right to do the same without trying to minimize their accomplishments.

Hands down the best post I've seen here in a long time.  I absolutely agree 100%!

8-) 8-) 8-) 8-)

8-)

[Osprey39]

Pressured VS Un-Pressured bass are totally different animals

Catt, weren't you one of the guys who said that a bass' abilty to learn was minimal or nonexistent? please correct me if i'm wrong.

if they cannot learn then pressured vs. unpressured bass are NOT totally different animals. they are exactly the same animal with exactly the same level of vulnerabilty.

That's not true.  Here's a couple of articles you might want to check out:

Is Bass Catchability Hereditary

Largemouth Bass Angling and Catchability

Fish aren't capable of reasoning but that doesn't mean they can't learn.  After you read the first article, imagine what would happen on a heavily pressured public lake where people actually harvest the fish they catch in some cases.  That's probably why lakes that were great in the 70s and 80s are not as productive as they once were.

[paul.]

thanks for the articles osprey.  good stuff.   just so there's no misunderstanding, i wasn't saying that i think bass are incapable of learning.  i have been convinced for a long time that they can indeed learn.  i'm just trying to figure out if Catt has done a 180 on us.  if i remember correctly (and i might not ;D), seems like a while back there was a thread on the subject of bass learning, and Catt argued pretty strongly that bass could not learn, or at least could not learn much.  i think the thread was originally started by Matt and i bet he remembers it too.  there was a bunch of posts back and forth on that thread arguing both ways.  i think it was eventually closed due to it all being a matter of opinion and no definitive conclusions being reached.  anyway, now Catt is saying pressured fish are completely different from non-pressured fish.  it can't be both ways.  i'm just trying to figure out if Catt has changed his mind.

[Catt]

Pressured VS Un-Pressured bass are totally different animals

Catt, weren't you one of the guys who said that a bass' abilty to learn was minimal or nonexistent? please correct me if i'm wrong.

if they cannot learn then pressured vs. unpressured bass are NOT totally different animals. they are exactly the same animal with exactly the same level of vulnerabilty.

Yelp but they can be spooked

[=Matt 5.0=]

I would LOVE to find a place that had easy to catch 4-7lbers....  :-[

[Glenn]

... there was a bunch of posts back and forth on that thread arguing both ways. i think it was eventually closed due to it all being a matter of opinion and no definitive conclusions being reached.

And so this one is headed that way to.  So let's end this tangent now, ok boys? Let's get back on topic.

Thanks!

[shimmy]

sidenote, they were pretty much all private ponds. And yes, that does make a difference!

Shimmy, I look forward to your input every time there is a thread where someone caught big bass. You are the most jealous person I have ever seen on BR and it always makes the thread way more fun when you come riding in touting why it isn't a "real" catch. I would love to come up to your home waters and show you how to really catch fish. Maybe next year during the Opens.

Keep it up man

Hmm...I could have sworn i said i was jealous of all the big fish he caught. As in most of my posts i make it clear that i am jealous of big bass. Besides this article and the fish in a barrel lake you fish, i don't take away from others catch. If you can show me than i would be pleased and obliged to apologize.

Second of all, show me how to really catch bass??? I have never said i am the best but am up for a challenge any day. The lake you post all of your pictures from come from a lake people are dropping over 400 bucks a day to fish. And yes, as i stated on your thread, i am jealous of that place! So yes you are stating the obvious. However, as i always point out, you get guys like RoadWarrior, Mattlures, Paul, Big-O, Fish Chris and many many more on this sight who catch giants amidst all the pressure. They are great fisherman and you won't find a thread of me ever questioning their skills.

I'm glad you do enjoy my posts and anytime you wanna show me up, i'd love to take the friendly challenge. You ask me not to get ahead of myself as you jump right in and tell me you'd teach me something about fishing!!! That's kinda funny  I like that competitive side you have though, that's what makes a good fisherman.

tight lines

[paul.]

o.k., couple more things and i'm done on this thread. glenn is right. i don't want it to get closed and i certainly don't want to be the reason it gets closed. first, thanks for the clarifying response catt. i think i understand where you're coming from now.

second, shimmy i wanna thank you for putting me in that group. very cool of you. that is flattering beyond belief. but the truth is i don't belong there. not even close. not even in the same ballpark as those guys. i have caught some nice fish from public water, but all the really big ones have come from ponds or small watersheds. some pressure but truthfully not much. sometimes, i am just catching the same few big fish over and over again. and all the asterisks you could possibly put beside big fish catches (minimally pressured water, small water, live bait, sight fishing) apply to a fair portion of the big ones i've been fortunate enough to catch. i guess that's why i identify with the guy in the article so much. but even then, i'll never even get close to that dude in terms of numbers of big fish. there are a few names on this thread that you could put on your list of big fish sticks instead of me though. one is Catt. another is Senko 77. another is randall.  another is fourbizz.  heck, you have caught some really nice fish too shimmy.  plenty of other folks on this site better than me too. but i'm not concerned about rankings. i just try to have fun doing something i love using the methods that make me happy - just like the old guy in the story that started this post.

so there. we are now back on topic.

[Hooked_On_Bass]

o.k., couple more things and i'm done on this thread. glenn is right. i don't want it to get closed and i certainly don't want to be the reason it gets closed. first, thanks for the clarifying response catt. i think i understand where you're coming from now.

second, shimmy i wanna thank you for putting me in that group. very cool of you. that is flattering beyond belief. but the truth is i don't belong there. not even close. not even in the same ballpark as those guys. i have caught some nice fish from public water, but all the really big ones have come from ponds or small watersheds. some pressure but truthfully not much. sometimes, i am just catching the same few big fish over and over again. and all the asterisks you could possibly put beside big fish catches (minimally pressured water, small water, live bait, sight fishing) apply to a fair portion of the big ones i've been fortunate enough to catch. i guess that's why i identify with the guy in the article so much. but even then, i'll never even get close to that dude in terms of numbers of big fish. there are a few names on this thread that you could put on your list of big fish sticks instead of me though. one is Catt. another is Senko 77. another is randall. another is fourbizz. heck, you have caught some really nice fish too shimmy. plenty of other folks on this site better than me too. but i'm not concerned about rankings. i just try to have fun doing something i love using the methods that make me happy - just like the old guy in the story that started this post.

so there. we are now back on topic.

Paul, you are very modest. That is quite commendable.

[senko_77]

sidenote, they were pretty much all private ponds. And yes, that does make a difference!

Shimmy, I look forward to your input every time there is a thread where someone caught big bass. You are the most jealous person I have ever seen on BR and it always makes the thread way more fun when you come riding in touting why it isn't a "real" catch. I would love to come up to your home waters and show you how to really catch fish. Maybe next year during the Opens.

Keep it up man

Hmm...I could have sworn i said i was jealous of all the big fish he caught. As in most of my posts i make it clear that i am jealous of big bass. Besides this article and the fish in a barrel lake you fish, i don't take away from others catch. If you can show me than i would be pleased and obliged to apologize.

Second of all, show me how to really catch bass??? I have never said i am the best but am up for a challenge any day. The lake you post all of your pictures from come from a lake people are dropping over 400 bucks a day to fish. And yes, as i stated on your thread, i am jealous of that place! So yes you are stating the obvious. However, as i always point out, you get guys like RoadWarrior, Mattlures, Paul, Big-O, Fish Chris and many many more on this sight who catch giants amidst all the pressure. They are great fisherman and you won't find a thread of me ever questioning their skills.

I'm glad you do enjoy my posts and anytime you wanna show me up, i'd love to take the friendly challenge. You ask me not to get ahead of myself as you jump right in and tell me you'd teach me something about fishing!!! That's kinda funny I like that competitive side you have though, that's what makes a good fisherman.

tight lines

It's a shame that you have only been here since Oct. of 2009 and didn't get to see me when I was  into tournament fishing.  3 double digits all caught from public water including a 14.7.  One of those double digits was the biggest caught in the BFL Bulldog division since 1997 and the Bulldog division has been FLW's most active division for years.  Not trying to sound cocky, but that just scratches the surface of what I've done.  Need some more?

I fish at the "fish in a barrel" place you refer to because I work there.  Then I go back to my home lakes that are pressured just like yours and lay the whooping on them there, too.  Most of the time I don't post pictures because I like to protect my spots and it's not a big deal to me to brag on an internet forum about EVERY single fish I catch that is 4lbs +.  I post the pictures of fish in NC because there fun to look at with those massive bellies. 

When I swing through the area sometime next year, I would love to wet a line with you and you can show me how the big bass guru does it  ;D

[fourbizz]

Senko77 is our prodigy. He is a stick. He WOULD teach you something about fishing. ;D

[fishinghusker]

to some of us, 3 lbers are pretty good, especially here in Nebraska, our average are probably 1-2 pounds..which is largely due to the fact that it's colder longer here, less of a growing time..i would be happy to bring in 3 lbers all day

[Matt Fly]

What do you call a 70 acre stock pond that Dottie lived at?     A private pay pond that isn't highly pressured.    LOL

   Highly pressured lakes are open 24/7, 365 days a year,   LOL  and I didn't even mention that some of those lakes are closed to skiing only and no fishing on certain days, its alternated between fishing and skiiing.

    LMAO, thats pressure?

   

[Osprey39]

Any of you tough guys that want to come to New Mexico and show me how it's done, come on out! 

(seriously, I wouldn't mind learning a thing or two, lol)

[shimmy]

big bass guru...hmm i just don't ever in my life remember ever calling myself that on this forum or anywhere! The lakes i am restricted to fish out of, it would be interesting to see how you do from them. It's only a win win situation for me if you did drop by and show me something from these lakes because they are desolate enough as it is. Now, don't be a man of words, i expect a heads up when you're down this neck of the woods and let's take your boat out! This raft can only fish pressured waters that are small and i'd love to hit some lakes.

3 double digits in a tournament in public waters is truly amazing. That is an incredible accomplishment and it clearly deserves respect. Let alone your 14.7 is just ridiculous. These types of accomplishments are impossible to discard hence why you have never seen me question accomplishments as such.

In terms of bragging about EVERY fish over 4 pounds, to each his own. While i don't do that about every fish over 4, if i have a fun outing i just might say something about it just like you do for outings that are fun for you. That's what this site is all about. To most people on this site, a 4 pound bass is a great fish to catch any day. Plus you need to keep in mind, in some waters, a 4 pounder is a "huge" fish. It is funny to me though how out of nowhere you feel the need to prove yourself as a better angler than me. I love the competition of fishing and if you truly are a veteran of fishing than you know that you can lose on any given day. And again in all seriousness, if you did show me a thing or two on these small heavily pressured waters i'd only be grateful and i am man enough to admit when i have lost a battle here and there...but...are you??? :

Aside from all trash talking, i think what makes fishing so fun is that you can beat the tar out of someone one day and get spanked the next. Fishing is truly amazing.

Either way, if you don't make it down here and it's all talk, i do hope you keep catchin them cause that's what it's all about. And if you are the little "prodigy" as fourbizz says, then i hope you make us proud.

[Mattlures]

Matt Fly Dixon lake is over 80 ft deep with crystal clear water. It is open 7 days a week to fishing and no water contact. and was arguably the most preasured lake in the country. You do not know what you are talking about.

They have about 30 rental boats that were usualy all rented out every time I went there. The shore was lined with another 50-100 guys. The lake is not fun to fish like this. They have reaised the prices so the preasure is less plus Dottie dying has helped but its still crowded. I didnt fish there this year becuase it cost too much. All our lakes out here are extremly preasured. I have been to Texas recently I saw a couple lakes and you could actualy see large areas of water inbetween boats. Your lakes are huge, they do not recieve 1/4th the preasure per acre then the so Cal lakes do. Its not even close, it would be a lot more fun to fish in Texas. I dont think you guys know what combat fishing is.

[Matt Fly]

I'm well aware of how big that  stock pond is, and there is no water skiing on that lake, lol geez, it is only 70 acres, but its not the only lake in the Socal area I was in reference to.

Dixon is no different than a bunch of private Texas lakes, pay and you can fish them, except we don't have the one bass that has proven to be world record  that everyone seeks.  Thats what made Dixon famous, cause it sure wasn't booked during the week every week in the 90's.

    By the way, there are a bunch of lake Dixons in Socal, they just didn't have a world record swimming in them thus we don't hear about them at all.

    You would of never heard of Dixon if it wasn't for one fish.

     In Texas, our public waters, you don't have to be open at certain times to pay for launch permits and extra fishing fees since we have a license, but then again, I had a valid license too in Cali and still had to wait till sun up every day before I could fish.

   LOL,   Your pressure is on lakes that limit the number of boats due to lake size, open half the day, and no trotlines, no night fishing and for years, you guys could only use one pole at a time.  Now you can buy extra license to use a second pole.

     We have trotlines, 24 hr fishing 365 days, free ramps, no daily usage fees, no 5 dollar trout stamp every day you use that lake even though your a bass fishermen.

  Just what Socal lakes are open for night fishing or open 24/7, 365 days a year?   

  Thats pressure.......  8-) 

[Dan:]

Regardless of WHY Dixon is pressured, it sounds like when an angler can fish it, he must compete with many other anglers on a small body of water. That sounds like pressure to me.

[Glenn]

Ok guys, let's not turn this into yet another CA vs. TX lakes ticking contest. It goes nowhere.

[senile1]

fascinates me how sometimes we wanna put asterisks beside accomplishments we will never approach ourselves. maybe it's just easier to do that than to admit how we wish we could do something like that, but never will because we don't have the opportunity and/or the ability. as far as i have read, this guy never cheated or did anything even questionable with his fishing. he just went out and worked hard at something he loved using the methods that made him happy. and he's caught over 1000 trophy bass. regardless of whether we wanna recognize or not, and regardless of whatever asterisks we wanna put by this man's name, this guy has done something incredible. and regardless of what constitutes a "trophy" bass where we happen to live, 1000 trophy bass is a number most of us will never even sniff. why can't we just be happy for the guy? i say fish how and where you wanna. enjoy yourself and use the tactics that you like as long as it's legal. and then recognize other people's right to do the same without trying to minimize their accomplishments.

Hands down the best post I've seen here in a long time. I absolutely agree 100%!

8-) 8-) 8-) 8-)

I absolutely agree. That was beautiful, Paul.

Daniel, My Brother stated:

If the only thing you get from that article is that he's fishing private ponds, you're missing out on a lot of good information.

GREAT story. Thank you for posting

Excellent point, Dan. There is a lot of good stuff here from how to locate and choose good ponds to the quality of equipment used.