Mottfia

I wouldn't mind seeing you holding one that size in two weeks. Mottfia

Look at you now. That fish has great color. I love em when they are dark. Mottfia

I take down the Lake's name and date. Then I list them as so Season: prespawn...fall..whatever the season Weight: how many pounds was it worth Location: I like to say which part of creek or main lake but I might be specific with the location if its just one or that good. Depth: Primary Cover: Structure: Water Clarity: by feet. I don't care to label it stained or muddy cause everyone interprets it different Water Temperature: ex...72(dropping) or 85(stable) Water Level: ex. Raising ( .51 feet high) Weather: I get a weekly forcast from Weather.com it has everything weather wise I'm concerned about. Wind: I throw in speed and direction Technique: I put everything else here. Its mostly about what lures and retrieves I did but if there is some side note that I find important then I record it here too. Well thats what I've been using for the past year. It really helps put the day into perspective. I hope this helps some. Mottfia

I bring Multiple gloves for the day. Whenever one gets too wet and I feel like my fingers are going to fall off I change gloves. Gloves, Wet or not, are much better than nothing when conditions are real bad. Mottfia

Whoa. You loaded up on stuff. Next time the Monkey gets you send some of the goods my way Mottfia

One of my teachers throw the same jig and craw combo as Catt Mottfia

That was a good article. I had never heard of him until just now but apparently the man had outstanding skills, and must have been a great teacher and person. mottfia

KVD will slow down but its typically only when he has fish located. He often uses his power fishing to get a fish to react to the lure. If the might isn't strong then he will switch to a lower presentation but thats only when he has figured out where the fish are. When I say traditionally I mean what you normally do. We all have our favorite styles of fishing. If I can catch fish doing my style then I will be tough to beat, same goes for anyone else. If your process works for ya then go get em man. Mottfia

Depth and cover are the two most important things to worry about whenever picking a bait. I don't know how those northern bass work, but if you know how deep they are, chose a crankbait that dives slightly deeper. If you are fishign grass, lipless would be my choice. If you have fishing wood, a square bill crank is good. A rounded bill is allow ways a good between bait. Color and size may play a roll but speed is more important to me. Pick a basic shad or white color. The movement of the bait will blur the imagine in clear water and help keep the fish from see it too well. If the baitfish in the lake is small then you should pick a small crank and vice versa. Ah Speed again. Experiment alot with it. Fish whats comfortable first and then trying speed up, slowing down, or stop and go. Personally I like Deep little Ns and Fat free Shad Fingerlings but some other guys might know something that those northern fish may like better. Good luck, Mottfia

No offense Five Bass Limit but why would you start off finese fishing. Like WRB said, sometimes the front affects us more than it does fish. Why not start off fishing fast and then adjust accordingly? If you can catch them traditionally then wouldn't you do better in a days time. Slowing down to finese status should only be done after you have learned that the fish won't hit a faster bait. Mottfia

Now thats a debate on philosophy. Alot of guys take either side of this arguement and there are pros to each side. I've always been taught to work on the more aggressive side of things. and since we are talking more specifically about Cold fronts I can illustrate myself better. Cold fronts actually offer a much better chance to catch fish then most think. Sure they are less aggressive and not willing to chance baits. But they set up on cover better and allows the accurate caster a chance to catch more fish because the average guy doesn't hit targets as well. Using reaction techniques allows an angler to take advantage of the fish's natural feeding behavior. I believe that fish on that stump is willing to feed when the oppurtunity appears even if he isn't active. Well my spinnerbait or jig falling on his face or crashing around above him is a great oppurtunity and since he doesn't have time to think about it he has to make a split second decision. The negatives of this is that the fish aren't willing to chase and can be set on guard easily. In order to catch that fish your first cast has to be dead on. if you don't hit the target on the first cast you have set yourself back but thats the trade off. Honestly Power fishing is a full effort. I am fully devoted to it no matter the weather. Mottfia

Well captain Planet, when you are not saving the planet from deforestation and pollution, studying your water systems is a great way to protect the earth and learn. gah I loved that show back when I was 4. lol But for real, I would study the lake to see what types of forage is in them. The three prime forages are sunfish, shad, and crawfish. If there are sunfish and crawfish, then focus on using lures that imulate those prey. Also focus on areas that the prey uses regularly. A good example is crawfish in rocks. Everyone knows it and it is a steady place to find fish. Find the forage you'll find the bass. Mottfia

Haha I remember those worms. when I was first starting to get addicted to fishing. My brother and I stole a bag of red translucent worms from my dads tackle box and went to the pond. I can't remember catching anything but those worms stayed as my brothers favorites since then. Mottfia

Welcome on board. its alittle cold up there isn't it? Mottfia

We do too ;D Glad you found us Mottfia

Haha I can't help the short of swimming part cause I will jump in during the summer to get one back at my pond. My buddy snuck a video of me climbing a tree when i went squirrel fish last year. The tree broke and it sent me and the limb in to the lake. lol It made for a great video when I got back home but I got that lure back. Mottfia

I bet he gets clowned on all the time in school. Mottfia

Where is that lake in relation to Pickwick? I don't think it is. I think RW got a little excited when he saw a fish that big in his state. Mottfia

now thats a hot Smallie. How'd you catch him? Mottfia

Nice fish. Looks like they were on pretty strong during the rain. I'm glad you got out there after em. Also nice pic of the horizon. Alot of people don't understand the visual beauty that comes with this passion. and thats a prime example of it. Mottfia

One of my jig teachers used only black and blue, while my other teacher used mostly black and red. Why because it matches the crawfish extremely well here. when fishing behind them i fish a brown jig with yellow claws. Why because it matches bluegill enough. You'd almost think that we are trying to match the forage. Mottfia

Stop it now RW! Pickwick! Count me in for slamming a few smallies. Mottfia

haha were you really drunk blogging? lol Thats dedication or hard stuff. Someone in that state stop him before he hurts himself Mottfia

Where is the roadtrip going to be at this year? Mottfia

Can you show me the before and after of your cranks? I've tried something similar to spinnerbait blades but not as good as that. I'd like to give it a try soon. Mottfia