Dwight Hottle

When the falling ash from the fires stars hitting the lake waters it does affect the fishing negatively.

Too pretty not to share.

Lake Baccarac Sinaloa Mexico.

@Gnarwhal I have paired the MBR 725-1C with a Shimano metanium mgl. The rod by itself is light as a feather and with the reel it's still extremely light in hand. It balances right in front of the locking nut of the reel seat. I have used it with flukes fishing for largemouth & also with hard jerk baits up to an ounce in weight. The 1st fish I caught using it was 6lb largemouth using a weedless rigged fluke. It has plenty of backbone for hook setting weedless rigged plastic baits. The tip has just enough flex to keep treble hooked smallies pinned. I am extremely happy with it's performance so far. My only criticism is when using a back to back uni knot connecting light braid to mono leader the knot wants to hang up at the tip top necessitating a shorter leader than I had originally planned.

@Puggz I was up to Erie out of PA waters May 1st-5th. There were some fish already post spawn. Most spawning occurs in between May 15-June 15 traditionally. Once the water temps hit 55-60 they start. I'm sharing this info based on living in Erie PA for 12 years & chasing smallies during that period. Once spawning is over the females start transitioning to deeper water. So look for them in 15-25 fow & if not there try 25-35 fow. You will find mostly aggressive fish by your time period of June 24th. Good luck with your trip.

Absolutely it’s worth a try. Also consider a Kokanee colored jerk bait like lc pointer 127 or 128.

The state controls all the water levels through a system of hydraulic control structures or gates. Most of the gates flow into canals for drainage. From what I understand almost all bodies of water are interconnected through this drainage system.

The state of Florida draws down almost all lakes for the summer rainy season & hurricane season.

I figured you would say you caught a few extra fish each outing by trolling between spots. I also assumed you would be as proud of a new PB caught trolling as caught casting. As for the awkward rod position when using a canoe I understand. Maybe you could rig up a rod holder device or secure a PVC rod holder to the canoe. I get your paddling hard to increase tension after a hit. We used to troll for lake trout after they went deep & had a guide who would goose the throttle when we got a hit to help set the hook & keep tension on the line until the angler was fully engaged. It did work well.

If you can't see the oil level inside the tank use a yardstick to measure the depth. I always checked my tank every two weeks & topped it off to eliminate running low on oil. Never let it get below half full.

And how many extra fish do you catch Katie? If you caught a new PB trolling would it be any less of an accomplishment than if you were casting?

I learned to troll as a kid rowing a rowboat while trailing a Helins flatfish behind. I caught my first largemouth over 5lbs while trolling a june bug spinner trying to catch a musky as a teenager. Trolling just flat out works. It's is probably the most effective way to locate & catch fish especially on big water systems. Trolling is so effective that bass tournaments have banned it because the trollers had an advantage over the casters. It is inherently more productive. When trolling the bait is always in the water and in the fish zone. Casters waste time casting & retrieving; pulling the bait out of the water to recast. You have zero chance to catch a fish while the bait is out of the water. Trollers achieve better depth control than a caster because they can fish their baits further away from the boat allowing the bait to reach maximum depth & to stay at that depth indefinitely. And where legal trollers can fish multiple baits at the same time with two or three rods deployed. It is an extremely efficient way to fish. I personally enjoy all styles of fishing including trolling & live bait shiner fishing. Historically some of the best fisherman have been trollers. If you are really efficient as a troller it is not boring in the least. Having mutiple fish hooked up simultaneously is as exciting as fishing gets.

Also note the position of the hook points. Rear hook faces up to the rear & the front hook faces forward. This is the correct positioning.

100 degrees in July and upper 80's to middle 90's in October.

@Soulfisher get a hold of Mike Bucca he is sponsoring a trip this fall in late Oct. You can find him on Swimbait Universe or his bait business. I went with his group the last two years & they are a good group of guys.

Yes I have done it with success. These work well. https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Owner_Single_Replacement_Hook_X_Strong/descpage-OSRH.html

You guys probably need some gobies down there to fatten up your smallies.

Plain old Crocs for me unless it's cold & wet and then I wear a pair of Timberland Gore-Tex shoes.

I have experienced a big pike that T-boned a good size pike over double digits & then proceeded to pull drag like crazy. Never got to see it before dropping the bait but really wished I did. These experiences certainly keeps our interest.

You two have a done an outstanding job with him. Congrats on your perseverance with a trying situation. Most owners would have simply returned him to the shelter.

Reminds me of this pic, short & sweet.

I haven't purchased a rod in over ten years that had plastic on the handle.

I'm impressed you kept your wits about you & continued to fish while wet. you deserved a good outing after that. That's their way of discouraging people from leaving a boat cache so they don't have to carry it in each trip.

Everyone has made the same observation that gold works well in dirty or tannic water. Also don't forget golden shiners are gold in color.

@ol'crickety Sweet looking bass for Maine. I love spring fishing because it's prespawn smallie bite on Lake Erie.