burneddude1

I would say in clear water no splash is better. Bass are hunting at longer distances and feeding mostly on sight. In muddy water some splash is better. Bass are hunting and feeding on vibration and the extra splash will help them locate the bait better.

Hey Sam, Tell that to Bill Dance. the best way to catch those bass is to pitch your favorite soft plastic right into the middle of the bed and just leave it there. He will eventually pick it up to move it and SET THE HOOK. Hope this helps. Write back and let us know.

Rule of thumb; Bass tend to be shallower and more aggressive in the morning. In the heat of summer and on high pressure lakes.

Use the force Phishin, Regect the dark side!

The closest one is in Myrtle Beach, its about a 25 min. drive off-season or 1hr. 25 min. during tourist season. but it seems to be stocked more for salt water fishing. Got a Wal-mart about a 5 min. drive from the house off season or 35 min. during tourist season. I'd love to have a good old tackle shop to go to. but here on the coast its all catered to salt water.

Welcome Aboard.

I've been a boat owner for years and love it. Best investment I ever made. BUT, my two or three bragging size fish have all come from walkin the bank.

My advice is to cast a soft plastic onto the shore to and work it back from there. I'm a firm believer in a natural presentation. I would use a frog, lizard, or a worm. SLOOOOW

I got a bluegill on its bed to hit the same bait about 10 times, I got bored after that

IT DOESN'T MATTER! Anywhere from a golf course pond to a major reservior. On my boat or walking the bank. Rain or shine. Even if the bite is slow. IT DOESN'T MATTER!

I'm with Calibasser, start shallow and work deeper.

I am not sure, but I would think that bottom depth would have something to do with weed growth. On most of the lakes I fish the wedds tend to end on the edge of a steep drop-off. Hope this helps.

Your best bet from shore is to use the replacement rings for your treble hooks. I believe they are available from Basspro shops. You swap them out with the factory rings and when you get snagged you can pull on the bait and the ring will spread. All you loose is the treble hook.

Glad to have ya'

Does anyone know where I can find an article or something that breaks down bass activity by water temperature? Thanks

Welcome aboard!

Hey jb_spwi, excellent article. I think that should be read by everyone. I've never seen that technique before but I will certainly be trying it in the future. Now all I have to do is hook one! lol

I like a spinnerbait at night. It works well on top, mid-range, and deep.

I start with natural colors. I use things that resemble crawdads, frogs, or shad type colors. Then I adjust the pattern from there.

I've just started to learn that one myself. The first thing I learned was you can't do it with a baitcaster. You have to use a spinning combo. The second thing was to remember that you have to use heavy enough gear to get the fish out from under the dock yet light enough to have some finesse in your casts. I'm still fine tuning that one. Third, and probably most important, TIME ON THE WATER. Hope that helps.

Today is my first day! ;D

I agree 100% with "User". Any fish, under any situation will hit live bait. As far as the fish finder goes, probably the last thing I use my fish finder for is finding fish. I use it mainly to read the bottom, find tempature changes, that sort of thing. Besides, even when it does mark a fish, it doesn't tell you what kind fish it is. Its not much help casting to a school of walleyes during a bass tournament.

As soon the season opens and you can wet your line. Just remember ***SLOW*** fish as slow as you can then slow down somemore.