Mattlures

Bed fishing has been going on forever out here in Cali. I beleive it happens in all the lakes. We have some of, if not the most presured lakes in the country. Tournaments are held regularly on any of the lakes that are big enough to have them. I do not know of a single lake that has a low population of bass. I do know of some that are overpopulated and they get pounded hard during the spawn espesialy with the tournament guys. Bass breed like cockroaches. What hurts a population is over havesting(which is never done out here) Unstable lake levels durring the spawn and changes to thier habitat, like weed poisoning or an old natural lake without any cover or structure left. I agree with FC I would like to see more of the small bass kept for dinner so the big ones could get bigger!

Cool report Avid. As you will see they dont always catch big bass. Sometimes those little guys want some too! I think your pics look fine!

I wish our little 100 acre lakes had only 30 guys on it a day. It might be alot more easy. Get a good quality trout swimbait and fish it slow. in your mind you should be thinking I am a stupid trout. Make your bait swim like a stupid stocked trout that doesnt know it shouldnt swim by that ambush point.

I realy doubt that the design of the pvc thing itself is the most important factor. The location of the pvc thing is the important thing. If you just drop a piece of cover in a lake it may not hold any fish let alone big ones, but if you put a piece of cover in or by some prime structure you can have a target. A spot on a spot.

Catt... Yup they are predictable theyr are just so much smarter and harder to fool than the little ones. Also on your other question, Agresive behavior doest always mean agresive feeding. A big bass will diminate what ever peice of realestate it wants to simply by its presance. Small bass instictivly know to give the big bass its space. You have seen big bass chase. Yes they will at times but this is not the norm. there are always exceptions. Big bass are eficient. they rarley waist energy chasing prey. They can accelerate very fast and overtake prey if they want to but they usualy only choose to if its worth the efort. Out here the biggest bass will make a short burst and nail a trout or even follow behind the school of trout but I have never seen a gaint crashing throught a school of 2in shad. Sure I have seen 6lbers doing it but not 15lbers. Its just not worth the efort. This is why swimbaits are soo efective on monster bass. Fish them slow and they become and easy big meal that worth a big basses time. Jigs, live crayfish, same thing. If you ever read "In pursuite of giant bass" by Bill Murphy one of his favorite techniques was to stitch big worms. It could take him 10 minutes to work his worm back to the boat.

Catt, not contradictory at all. It actualy proves my point. That lake gets beat to death on a daily basis. Its one of are few lakes thats open every day. In the last(I think 7) years that bass has never been caught by sombody fishing for it. THE ONLY TIME that bass gets caught is when its spawning. It simply can not fight its natural urges to reproduce. That lake is small, around 80 acers and many of the best trophy hunters fish that lake constantly throwing every swimbait and regular bait and live bait that is legal and probably some illegal. Guys sneak in that lake at night and fish when its closed but yet that fish ONLY gets caught while spawning. Prety good example if you ask me

The interview was conducted by Terry Drace in 1973 for Bassmaster magazine Ray Scott wanted Perry to take a lie detector test. As you know Perry did not.

Randall said eficient not agresive. There is a huge diference.

Randall is absoluty corect. Being more predictable does not = easier to catch. If you were to fish virgin waters then the biggest bass would be th easiest fish to catch because in theory they are easyer to predict. In the real world the older a bass becomes the more times it has been caught and released. They learn to aviod danger. They adapt. In Hannon's book he says by nature bass are shallow water fish. This may be true but put some pressure on a lake and the fish, especialy the older ones will become deep water fish who rarley come in shallow. This is what happens out here in Cali. the water is very clear and the fish especialy the bigger ones become very spooky when they are in shallow. This is why night time can be so efective for big bass. Angler mystakes are muted by the darkness. Big fish have adapted. they know the best places and times to feed and will often reside in the best structure. This however does not make them easier to catch. Small fish are stupid and reckless. They mey be less predictable because they have not learned how to be eficient but they they make many mystakes and dont have as much fear of anglers as the big ones do.

I agee Glenn it wasnt supossed to be a Perry post. We have had a ton of those and peoples opinions just dont change much. It seems people from the eastcoast doubts the big Cali fish and people from the west doubts Perry's fish. People believe or disbelieve what they want to no matter how much proof or lack of proof there is! I posted videos Of Butch Brown catching monsters on swimbaits on another site and because it wasnt thier state they could not accept it. It was almost comical reading the responses of how the simple video with a boat mounted camera was faked. I just posted the list because I found it very interesting and I have seen a lot of list that were VERY weak and had many large fish missing from them. This list, even though its a couple years old and I am sure its missing some is still the best one I have found. I cant wait to see if Terry updated it with current info!

Oh boy Got bass, nobody in that pic has been identified. Nothing in that pic has been proven. That is not Perry! Now before you all jump on me I used to be the biggest Perry doubter alive. Now I just dont know but I do like to clear up the facts. That Pic is not Perry. I emailed the editor of Bassmaster about that pic and he said as to the authenticity of that photo its anybody's guess. All they Know about that picture is that it was found when sombody's aunt died a few years ago. The said her family could, did I say COULD HAVE know Perry's family. They also said those palm trees in the back ground looked like the ones in front of the post office where Perry alegedly weighed his fish. Trying to make that picture into proof is a HUGE stretch. That big fish could have been found floating, heck they could have dynomited it. It could have been a big fish caught in Florida. I am a reasonable man and I am uncertain if I believe in the record or not, but IF that were Perryin the Pic it would have been good enough for me. I would have given him the benefit of the doubt. My overall position on the subject is this. I dont think iot should be the record bassed on the lack of evidence and all the discrepencies. I am not saying he didnt catch it though. I am also not saying thats not his fish in the picture. It could be but there is nothing to go along with it and its not Perry or any of his reletives in the pic.

in pusuit of giant bass by Bill Murphy

Avid I do agree with you kind of. I guess it is not fact because it was not a certified scale but consider this. The fish was caught in front of witnesses including the ranger. It was put on a stringer and they went out and called their lawyer. the lake is only around 80 acres. They only went out a little ways but definatly in clear view. Nothing was done to the fish. They brought the fish to the dock and weighed it withan accurate didgital scale, I know it wasnt certified but that doesnt mean it is not accurate. The weighing was captured on video for the whole world to see. The scale stopped at 25.1. Basscenter checked the scale and found it to be accurate. Now I guess you could argue that this is not fact but its prety darn close and I bleive it is reasonable proof. It is the biggest bass ever caught that has been documanted. Duclose's fish is a much better argument for you. his being weighed on a bathroom scale becuase he couldt find any other one and he was worried about the fish dying. He subtracted his weight from the total to get 24lbs. Now obviously the IGFA could not grant him the record because that in fact was not an accurate way to weigh the fish. It could have been 26lbs or 21lbs. I do believe that is was AROUND 24lbs but that is just not good enough for the IGFA or me. The IGFA did make a statement about Macs 25.1 saying the would definatly consider it even though the scale was not certified because off all the proof. They never got the chance. On a side note this thread has remained fairly tame. Quite impresive considering how passionate many of us are with the subject of big bass and the world record.

bassmasta the lake is small and that fish spawns in certain area, not the same spot but a certain area. Mike has caught that same fish once when it was 20.75. Also while everybody was up a dixon after that 25lber was caught Mike went out and caught his personal best at 21.5. He gets so close every year. He told me he was on a fish for 3 days one time that he knew was about 24lbs. He specificaly said NOT 25 but 24. He said that fish was soo locked it wouldnt leave the bed and no matter what he did he couldnt get it to bite. On the last day that he could take off of work he said just before he left he stuck his rod down in the water and poked the fish. Could you imagine? First off who could take that much pressure? I would die of a heart attack! Mike will break 22.4lbs I just hope he is the first to do it. Bass fisherman, that is a good question I believe you send your scale to the IGFA and they check it. IMO your scale is just for your own justification. If sombody Wants to doubt you they will. I weigh all my big fish and even smaller ones, I am very good at guessing weights. If I catch the world record I wouldnt care if my scale is certified. I would keep the fish and have it weighed. I do of course keep my scale wich I have personly checked it to be extremly accurate for my own peice of mind. If I catch a 21lber I will weigh it and know it aint gettin there so I would take some measurement and some pics and release the fish. I may or may not report the location of wereI caught it. In all honesty I dont realy beleive I will catch it. I have a better shot that 99.9999999999% of the population but my chances are still 1 in a million ok maybe 1 in 10,000 Mike I would say has about a 1 in 20 chance.

buzzbaitfool12 you are making assumptions. I actualy agree with you though. It is verry posible but I dont know because I have not been in that position. You have to admit it would be verry tempting. Think of this. You have been hunting that fish for the last 4 or five years being on the lake probably200- 250 days out of the year. You finaly get your shot. You have about 5 people withing 30 yards watching your every move including the ranger. It would be easy to tell if he was intenionaly trying to snagg it. Thier is a drizzle and it is early and dark with a little chop on the water. The fish has hit your jig a couple times already but it was dificult to see and you swung too late. Now you see the big fish go down on your jig and block your view of it. Your line jumps ............what do you do? YOU SWING. now the fish runs towards the dock but you just barley keep it away from the cables. you pull the fish within range but your net man misses. Finaly you get the fish close enough and its netted. The first thing you see is the Jig sticking in the fin and know your screwed. At this point you try to justify it in your mind. I didnt try to snagg it but you know there were witnesses. Thats when they made the call to their lawyer. I assume he told them it was against CA law to keep the fish and advised them to let it go. At this time they knew it was over. Thats why they didnt get a measurement or wait for a certified scale. It wouldnt have mattered. I am sure pure curiosty and self gratification is why they even weighed it the first place. This is my take on what happened. I will tell you this. Mac has not returned to the lake since. He was ruined. He was so close and then crushed. I am guessing he and the other 2 will be back this year after having time to mourn. Also a few weeks after that fish was spotted and Mike Long and John Kerr were on it for a little while and it even went nose down on Johns bait ONCE and then it left and wasnt spotted any more. I do not know what was going on in thier minds at the time I can only speculate. Why I feel the need to defend them is not bassed on my opinion but bassed on their actions. They inevitably did the right thing. maybe they thought about trying to pass it off but they didnt do it. Like I said They told the truth and released the fish. What more could they have done? Their have definatl been cheats and I do not defend them at all they are the lowest. They are worse than guys who put fish in cages to win tournaments.

Actualy Roadwarrior I dont know those guys. I have seen them but dont realy know them. Having a certified scale would be the best thing to do but It is not necessary if you keep the fish. I cant say for sure because I have not asked them but I would guess if that fish would have been caught corectly they would have kept it. Now why do I defend them? I dont realy know. Maybe because I can Identify with them and share thier passion. I to must be a retard because I am hunting that fish also and my scale is not certified. My scale is however a salter and is one of the most accurate made. I honestly belive the sacale issue is no big deal because If I catch that fish it wont be released. If I catch a 22lber I will document it with photos and whitnesses and quickly release the fish. I am closer to action out here and I knpow the mindset. To me not having the scale is no big deal. I think they caught the fish, new it was hooked bad called thier atourny and he said it wouldnt count so just release it. They probably thought about trying to pass it off but who wouldnt at least think about. They did the right thing and releasde the fish. They didnt try and submit it. They didnt lie about it. So I defend them. Does that make sense? I also dont defend all of them. Some of them lie and cheat and are just plain *****. Do you remember the Trew's with theie supossed WR? I instantly called BS on them. Also Just so you know Mike Longs scale has been sent to the IGFA and is certified. Maybe I needto do mine to but I just dont think its that important. If I catch it its going home with me. anything less gets released.

Avid you can doubt the weight of 25.1 that is understandable but the fish was weighed and witnessed and on video. You can only doubt the scale. Here is something for you to think about. Jed caught that same fish in 20003 and it oficialy weighed 21.70. It actualy weighed a few ounces over the world record the first time they weighed it but by the time the fish and game showed up it lost about 3/4 of a pound. so no world record. 3 years later the fish is caught again and it is MUCH larger. Look at the pictures and video. It is obviously well over 22.4lbs. you can dispute this but not honestly. I have said this a hundred times. It doesnt matter if you have a certified scale. If they would have hooked that fish in the mouth they would have called the fish and game or the local biologist and had the fish certified. Yes they huddled in the middle of the lake. If you foul hooked it, wouldnt you discuss your options? I know I would have. but ultimatly they did the right thing and released that fish. You can doubt the scale but there is no way with honesty can you say that fish is not way over 22.4lbs. That scale was also checked on Basscenter I believe two days later and it was accurate. When they caught that fish there were spectators watching including the ranger and nothing was done to the fish to increase the weight. It weight 25.1lbs

No it is not the same plastisol. There are many diferent foms for diferent uses.

The swimbait has probably accounted for more fish in the top 100 than any other single bait and it is definaly my big fish catcher

Avid the reason that fish should be on the list is exactly what Craig said. It does exist . It was weighed photographed and video'd. It is in fact the largest bass ever documented. I am not saying Mac should get the world record. Actualy I agree with him not submitting it and He should not get the record. The record is Perry's until sombody breaks it and certifies it properly. BUT the fish does belong on the list of the biggest bass caught. If for no other reason then the scientific data. Another fish that was not on the list was Paul Duclos's 24lber. had he weighed on on a real scale he might be the record holder. At the very least he would be in the top 5 There is no doubt after looking at his pics that his fish was over 20 and I personaly believ it WAS 24lbs

Lane I am not knocking Texas or the SAL program. I think Texas is doing the right thing I also believe it produces more fish over 10 then Cali or Florida. I think the SAL is a great idea and has worked and does work BUT...........I think it is detrimental to the very top end fish. I think it is one of the biggest reasons you dont see 18+ lbers come from texas Cart the reason you see the big fish kicked out in bunches is because of the cycles our lakes go through. Castaic used to produce a ton of giants but now there are stipers and it is done as far as 20lbers go. There are a lot of factors that cause lakes to peak and decline. A lot of know which lakes are ripe and we focuss on them. I wish the list was current because a lot of monsters have been caught in the last two years out here including Macs 25.1

Catt You are correct. Northern strain dont get tha big. Florida or southern strain were introduced I believ in the late 60's into 1 lake. from there they were stocked into a lot of Ca. lakes throughout the early 70's. They havent stocked them since. Many of our lakes will go through cycles and peak and kick out some monsters but Stippers and Spotted bass will destroy a lakes chances at huge fish in a matter of a few years. another huge reason for all these giant fish that is often over looked is they are just about all released. those 16-25lbers were probably all caught when they were 13+ but released to get bigger. I honestly believe this is why Texas has so few very top end fish. I think if the SAL program stopped or at least just gave credit and a replica when a fish was documented and quickly released you would see a higher top end coming from Texas.

Read the whole article and you will see what it takes to make that list. It was written in 2004. That would explain a lot of fish that would be on there. Like I said it would even be more Mike Long lopsided if it were current. Someone asked if were on steriods? thats funny because a couple years ago he was thicker than he is now and I swear he could easyly be mistaken for Mark Mcguire. Even now that he has lost some wieght he looks like him. I will try and contact Terry and see if I can get an update.

No list that I have seen is current and complete this is just the best on that I know of. It was written by Terri Battisti a well know outdoor writer who has been tracking huge bass catches. There have been other 20 lbers caught. Mac's 25 and Mikes 21'5 were not on the list becuase they were caught just last year and the list is not current. Mike Long would have at least 5 more fish on that list with 2 being in the top ten if it were up to date. Fish Chris Has an 18+ and Iam not sure why he is not on there, maybe he caught just after this list was published. Supermat , Matt Allen has caught the same fish as Fish chris and it wieghed 17+ so yes there are a few fish that made the list more than once. Macs 25.1 lber is also Mike Longs 20.75 and Jed's 21. California has produced several fdish over 17lbs in the last 2 years that are not on here either. I would love to see the current list. It would even be More Mike long dominated with 3 fish in the top 15. Also something else is starting to happen out here. A lot of guys are keeping quiet when they get a monster. They dont want the pressure at their lake so only the "in croud" hears about it. If you guys would like to read the whole article here it is No list that I have seen is current and complete this is just the best on that I know of. It was written by Terri Battisti a well know outdoor writer who has been tracking huge bass catches. There have been other 20 lbers caught. Mac's 25 and Mikes 21'5 were not on the list becuase they were caught just last year and the list is not current. Mike Long would have at least 5 more fish on that list with 2 being in the top ten if it were up to date. Fish Chris Has an 18+ and Iam not sure why he is not on there, maybe he caught just after this list was published. Supermat , Matt Allen has caught the same fish as Fish chris and it wieghed 17+ so yes there are a few fish that made the list more than once. Macs 25.1 lber is also Mike Longs 20.75 and Jed's 21. California has produced several fdish over 17lbs in the last 2 years that are not on here either. I would love to see the current list. It would even be More Mike long dominated with 3 fish in the top 15. Also something else is starting to happen out here. A lot of guys are keeping quiet when they get a monster. They dont want the pressure at their lake so only the "in croud" hears about it. If you guys would like to read the whole article here it is http://www.westernbass.com/dotcom/library/view.html?id=2544

List of the biggest documented bass ever caught. Note this list is about 2 years old but is much more accurate than any other list I have ever seen posted. Do you guys notice one guy that stands out? Count how many times you read the name Mike Long. Also since this list he has caugh a 19.11 out of Mission Viejo a 21.5 lber and at leat two more 17lbers that I have seen the pics of and that have been weighed in at the docks. There have been others caught by Mike and diferent guys that were not documented That are not on this list BTW this is not my list I just though I wouuld share. Table 1: All-Time Largest Documented Bass Rank Pounds Location State Angler Date 1 22.25 Montgomery Lake Georgia George Perry 6/2/32 2 22.01 Lake Castaic California Bob Crupi 3/12/91 3 21.75 Lake Castaic California Mike Arujo 3/5/91 4 21.70 Dixon Reservoir California Jed Dickerson 5/31/03 5 21.19 Lake Casitas California Ray Easley 3/4/80 6 21.01 Lake Castaic California Bob Crupi 3/9/90 7 20.94 Lake Miramar California David Zimerlee 6/23/73 8 20.86 Lake Castaic California Leo Torres 2/4/90 9 20.75 Dixon Reservoir California Mike Long 4/27/01 10 20.25 Lake Hodges California Gene Dupras 5/30/85 10 20.25 Lake Miramar California Johnny Garduno 3/25/90 12 20.13 Big Fish Lake Florida Fritz Friebel May 1923 13 19.88 Dixon Reservoir California Mike Long 2004 14 19.63 Lake Baccarac Mexico Bruce Knutsen 1/17/93 15 19.50 Lake Miramar California Keith Gunsauls 3/7/88 15 19.50 Lake Casitas California Randy Crabtree 4/9/02 15 19.50 Dixon Reservoir California Mac Weakley 5/20/03 18 19.40 Ikehara Dam Japan Kazuya Shimada 4/22/03 19 19.25 Lake Miramar California Chris Brandt 3/22/98 20 19.19 Lake Wohlford California Steve Beasley 2/3/86 20 19.19 Lake Morena California Ardon Hanline 2/17/87 22 19.06 Lake Miramar California Sandy DeFresco 3/14/88 23 19.04 Lake Castaic California Danny Kadota 1/8/89 24 19.03 Success Lake California Larry Kerns 1/27/01 25 19.00 Lake Tarpon Florida Riley Witt 6/21/61 26 18.94 Lake Isabella California Keith Harper April 1984 27 18.86 Lake Castaic California Danny Kadota 2/12/88 28 18.81 St. Johns River Florida Buddy Wright 4/12/87 28 18.81 Lake Isabella California Joe Weaver Feb. 1984 30 18.75 Lower Otay Lake California Bob Eberly 3/9/80 30 18.75 San Vicente Lake California James Steurgeon 2/26/81 30 18.75 Lake Castaic California Manny Arujo 1/25/91 30 18.75 Lake Kaweah California Nai Seathan 3/15/01 34 18.70 San Pablo California Victor Barfield 3/22/01 35 18.69 Lake Casitas California Bill Beckum 1/15/80 36 18.63 San Vicente California Doug Crandall 1979 37 18.62 Delta California Galen Jensen 2/10/02 38 18.56 San Vicente California Bobby Sandberg 1976 38 18.56 Lake Castaic California Bob Crupi 1/27/92 38 18.56 Don Pedro California Rod Martin 4/9/03 41 18.55 Lake Murray California Mike Long Dec. 2001 42 18.25 Dixon Reservoir California Mike Long 2004 42 18.25 Lower Otay California Unknown March 1980 44 18.18 Lake Fork Texas Barry St. Clair 1/24/92 45 18.15 Natchez State Park Mississippi Unknown 12/31/92 46 18.13 Dixon Reservoir California Mike Long 2003 46 18.13 Lake Poway California Mike Long 2002 48 18.10 Lake Poway California Mike Long 1998 48 18.10 Lake Murray California Mike Long Feb. 1999 50 18.00 Lake Perris California Will Steel 12/29/02 50 18.00 San Pablo California Rob Belloni 5/3/03 50 18.00 Lake Murray California Mike Long 2000 50 18.00 Mission Viejo California Mike Long 2002 54 17.95 Lake Murray California Mike Long March 1999 55 17.75 San Vicente California Unknown March, 1982 56 17.69 Lake Hodges California Unknown March, 1985 57 17.67 Lake Fork Texas Mark Stevenson 11/26/86 58 17.64 Lake Fork Texas Stan Moss 4/1/89 59 17.63 Lake Fork Texas Jerry New 8/28/90 60 17.50 Lake Poway California Mike Long 2000 60 17.50 Lake Poway California Mike Long 2001 60 17.50 San Vicente California Unknown March, 1979 63 17.25 Dixon Reservoir California Mike Long 2003 63 17.25 Lake Hodges California Unknown March, 1985 63 17.25 Lake Poway California Mike Long 1999 66 17.19 Lower Otay California Unknown Jan. 1985 67 17.13 Lake Poway California Mike Long 1998 67 17.13 Lake Poway California Mike Long 1999 69 17.11 Lake Murray California Mike Long March 1999 70 17.08 Lake Fork Texas Troy Coates 2/26/91 71 17.06 Lake Miramar California Mike Long 2000 71 17.06 San Vicente California Unknown Feb. 1979 73 17.05 Lake Murray California Mike Long March 2000 74 16.89 Lake Fork Texas Bryan Turner 2/8/93 75 16.88 Lower Otay California Unknown Feb. 1981 76 16.75 Lake Fork Texas Steve Trepkus 3/8/90 77 16.63 Lake Fork Texas Flo O'Brien 2/28/99 77 16.63 Lake Poway California Mike Long 2000 77 16.63 Lake Poway California Mike Long 1999 80 16.56 San Vicente California Unknown Jan. 1980 81 16.54 Lake Fork Texas Bill Reed 2/27/91 82 16.50 San Vicente California Unknown May, 1981 83 16.45 Lake Murray California Mike Long March, 2001 84 16.44 Lake Fork Texas Chris Adams 3/10/96 84 16.44 Lake Miramar California Unknown April 1973 86 16.41 Lake Murray California Mike Long March 2000 87 16.38 Lake Poway California Mike Long 1999 88 16.25 Lower Otay California Unknown Feb. 1982 88 16.25 San Vicente California Unknown Nov. 1979 88 16.25 San Vicente California Unknown March 1982 88 16.25 Sutherland California Mike Long April 2001 92 16.19 San Vicente California Unknown Jan. 1979 92 16.19 San Vicente California Unknown March 1981 94 16.13 Gibbons Creek Texas Troy Johnson 1/15/88 94 16.13 Sutherland California Unknown April 1989 94 16.13 Lake Poway California Mike Long 2000 97 16.12 Lake Fork Texas Jim Harrell 3/22/02 98 16.06 Lake Fork Texas Tom Hallum 3/9/88 98 16.06 Lake Hodges California Unknown April 1985 100 16.04 Lake Fork Texas Gasper Cardinale 2/29/92 101 16.02 Possum Kingdom Texas Scott Tongate 10/13/89 102 16.01 Caddo Texas John Merck 4/13/92 102 16.00 Cuyamaca California Mike Long 2002 102 16.00 Lake Poway California Mike Long 2002 102 16.00 Lake Poway California Mike Long 1999 102 16.00 Mission Viejo California Mike Long 2001