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Thanks Randall.

I have also been learning to fish the jig. The bite is so different than plastic worms. Just a little "tic" and I learned to get the hook set!!!

Thank you sir!!

Randall. Any advice for fishing Varner this time of the year if you don't use a boat. I stopped by there Sunday late afternoon just to check it out. Saw a 5 pounder that was caught off the fishing pier. Fellow was there with his young daughter and she caught a small bream. He just put the small bream on a hook and 5 mins later had a doubled up rod! What would you do if you were just walking the bank casting. Many thanks to you.

Illegals fishing...call the law.....I tell you what is happening in many locals, the law is just so stretched with dealing with all sorts of crap that they are not and do not deal with the illegals. They just avoid dealing with them in traffic stops and such. You think they are going to come down and stop them from fishing?!?! I don't think so.

I watched a few videos on YouTube of bass fishing. I got so fed up of watching guys parade around the boat waving fish in the air and acting like gladiators for several minutes. Whether you use a net or not the best thing has to be to get the fish to the boat as quickly as the circumstances allow you to. Unhook quickly, take a good quick look and photo if you want and get the fish back in the water. Excessive playing the fish is not good either. The lactic acid build up in a fish that has been played until he just about gives up will kill him in a short time. Try to avoid gut hooking unless you are keeping your catch for food. One thing I do which I dare say many fishermen do is to bend down the barb on my hooks when I am in the catch and release mode. It makes it so easy to remove the hook and adds some sport in that you have to really work at the hook set and the retreival as not to lose the fish. With the fish being attacked by $30K bass boats, hundreds of dollars worth of rods and reels and a fish finder that will allow the angler to actually see the fish.........bending down a barb is the least you can do to give the poor fish a chance.

I go to BPS only for things I cannot get at Wally world or the net cheaper. I look for sale items first and then new fangled things that will only be there. Checked out Dicks Sporting and they have a good store also.

You should have let him know very fast that you did not appreciate him boating so close to you. If jerks like this are not challenged, they will treat others the same way. I would have verbally let him know that what he did was not safe, very unsportsmanlike and you did not like it and would he move on. Sometimes it is better to stand up for what you believe is right and be prepared to back it up if you have to. It makes complaints more viable to take action on them.

You know he is there. Wait a few and go back and try again.

Thanks RW. I did not even think about the smaller diameter lines with higher ratings.

I just picked up a Pinnacle EX25 reel. Largest size line listed on the reel specs is #6/120yds. If I want to bump up to #8 test line at less than 100yds, what problems might I need to compensate for using a small spool, or will there even be a problem? Many thanks.

Get some Senko worms. Rig them weightless and also rig them with a small split shot weight about a foot up the line. Fish them slow and on the bottom. Stay until after dark and keep fishing. Plenty of after dark action. From the bank you can also drop shot. The heavy weight will get you some long casts. If you do get a strike, take up ALL the slack and stick hard as you will have lots of line out. I fish from the bank a lot and nearly always catch something using these methods.

I did not have any baitfish in my trap, but I did try the split shot rig with a plastic worm and caught fish on it when the sun went down. Thanks for the tip. Another weapon in the arsenal!

What methods do you guys use when bass fishing using minnows or small bream or other baitfish. I would like to try using some live bait in the small lake I fish. Thought I would set a minnow trap and see what I get, probably small bream and other fingerlings and then use that. Other than a bobber, weight and hook, what other techniques can I try. thanks

Next time bend the barb down on your hook and let the fish have the worm for a few seconds. Wait until you see the line moving off and let the fish take up the slack and then set the hook. You will more than likely get a hook in his gullet that can be easily removed since you don't have the barb on the hook. Make sure you have a set of long needle nose pliers so you can very carefully go in either through the mouth or through the gills to turn the hook or just pull the eye of the hook through and clip the line while holding the hook. After you catch one fish then you will have an idea of what size you have been missing and you can adjust your hookset/reaction time. Make sure your hooks are razor sharp, your drag is not too sloppy, all the slack is reeled up before you strike etc.

Did not do well, but the water temp was still warm, and the morning was beautiful and the sun came out and was even more nice. Some days you just have to appreciate being out fishing even though the bite is not on.

I am in the Atlanta area. The low tonight will be 46. Coolest of the year. How would you guys fish the first cool morning of the year. I am going to Stone Mountain Lake which is a beautiful old couple hundred acre body of water.

Funny!!!!! The dummy here never knew that was the way to pronounce RAPALA.

Had a couple of packs of Manns Hardnose toad looking things. Did not have much luck fishing them. Got to looking at them and had an idea. I took a jig and one of the Harnose toads and cut the toad right down the center into two parts. Put one part on the jig as a trailer and have been catching bass with it! Be sure to hook it so that when the jig is in the water and on the bottom, the flat cut side is down.

I was reading through the info from the DNR here in Georgia. They list all the lakes that have been tested and show up as clean and safe to eat fish from. Even they say that larger fish should not be taken and eaten as they accumulate more of the stuff you should not eat. Smaller fish are the ones to take and eat.

Get a copy of Bill Murphys book " In search of Giant Bass". You will understand more of the traits of larger fish and if you want you can change your tactics to fish for them. There will always be the situation where you just luck out and catch a big one using standard tactics, but if you really want to fish for big fish, you have to change your approach to suit them. They have a much higher survival insinct than smaller fish and are not fooled often.

I am reading Bill Murphys "Giant Bass" book. He contends that the bass that are released are going to pass traits down to their offspring that are going to cause bass to become even harder to catch as a result of being caught and then released. Anyone think this is true?

Tribble Mill Park out in Grayson. About a 15min drive east out 78 from Stone Mtn. Lake. 700 acre park with a large and a smaller lake about 40 acres that you can walk around on a nice path and fish the whole thing. No charge to fish it!. No live bait except for worms and crickets. 6 bass limit, 15 bream. Beautiful park and lake. Watch out for the chiggers if you walk it. Spray your clothes and stay out of taller grass.

My brother gave me a couple of Zebco telescoping crappie rods that even the guides move up and down on the rod so that the 9 ft rod colapses down to about 2 1/2 ft. Model 9040 9ft in length. Came with Zebco model 99 spinning reels, which were just their regular reels flipped upside down with a lever that your pinky finger could control the line release with. Any one have any info on these? They are going to work great for use in my inflatable Sea Eagle boat where space is limited.

Anyone here have any knowledge of using alfalfa hay bales sunk in your fav fishing spot to attract fish. My brother tells me a story of leaving a boat ramp one day and tying on lure just wanting to test his line and catching a fish bingo! He tried again and caught another! He and his partner never even fired the motor up and stayed right there in front of a house that was next to the ramp and caught and released about 150 bass. The fellow who owned the house finally came out and told them that he appreciated them releasing the fish and when asked about the abundance of fish around his boat dock the guy told them that he had sunk alfalfa hay bales to attract small bait fish so that larger fish would be attracted. He liked to fish with his grandkids off the dock. Anyone ever use this kind of hay to attract baitfish.