A-Jay

Me Too ! A-Jay

Jigs and Swimjigs are a couple of my Go To baits when I'm actually targeting Pike. These baits fish effectively through the very waters the pike routinely inhabit. Some type of wire leader does come in handy. A-Jay

Selecting the Lake ~ I am very fortunate in that I am literally surrounded by lakes. Most have a pretty decent population of bass. But in order to truly get the most out of these techniques, and to follow the guidelines in the book, I’ve chosen to fish one body of water all season. It’s the lake that I caught my MI pb in. It’s actually 3 lakes connected by a 2 short creeks. These waters are designated and stocked with rainbow trout so there’s plenty of quality bass food available. They’re all deep (over 80 ft) and very clear and clean. There is also some real submarine size pike that I’m routinely abused by. I see no reason why that should change. Most fish caught are healthy and very fat. The place gets minimal trout fishing pressure and even less anglers seeking bass, just the way I like it. I’ve been fishing here for 5 years including quite a bit of night ops. I know the mid to shallow depths well, however I will have to spend some time right off the bat looking for the types of deep water spots described in the book. Should be fun and I’m really looking forward to it. A-Jay

Thanks for the good thoughts and positive vibes. Clearly this (like most any worth while venture) will take some time to get right. Although I'll welcome any and all success that comes my way, I'm going to try to be realistic and remember that there could be a fairly lengthy learning curve here. With the target fish representing the smallest percentage of bass in the lake, my measure of success (and expectations) must change. Initially, I'm going to try to "Simply learn the spots". This means time in the boat and a line in the water. By getting to know the areas of the lake that the largest bass use intimately, I'm hoping the rest will take care of itself, eventually. A-Jay

Getting Started ~ The season opened here in Michigan was on 27 April, but I was duly occupied by the very fat Bronzebacks on Lake Erie (Thanks Dwight). So I’ve gotten off to a bit of a late start. Since I woke up on Mother’s Day to snow on the ground and air temps in the 30’s, I don’t feel like I’m missing the big bite just yet. Even still, I’m rapidly moving in a positive direction. I spent this weekend rigging my square back canoe with the 2 anchor system described in the book (bow & stern). I’ve always used one anchor, so it was just a matter of mounting a stern cleat and rigging up a second anchor and line. The double line thing will be a new experience and should make fighting a spirited bass very interesting. My next task was to designate and rig several rods & reels to use for stitching a worm and perhaps a crawfish or two. (Yes, there might be some live bait presentations utilized, I’ll apologize to the purists now). Catching the little buggers for bait might prove to be a whole new challenge. I’ve sifted through my rather abundant worm collection and selected baits that I hope will get bit; mostly straight tail models and some stick baits from 5” – 12”. I tried to keep the color choices down to a few of the proven colors for this area in assorted sizes. There’s still some more to do. I should be ready to get on the water by mid-week. A-Jay

Thanks Dwight. Having the support of the CEO, VP, SECRETARY AND CHARTER MEMBER OF THE "SCROUNGA" CLUB can only help. A-Jay

Ladies and Gentlemen ~by Saliva I do like the song - the video, however, is a little much. A-Jay http://vimeo.com/6514194

Congrats ~ ! Nothing like a Big Brown Bass. A-Jay

Very Cool ~ ! A-Jay

I spent much of this winter / off-season reading In Pursuit of Giant Bass. Over the winter, there were a couple of threads discussing the book and the author’s unusual techniques. I do not recall anyone saying that they actually fished like that or would even consider making the commitment to do so. This really got me thinking . . . This season (at least) I'm planning on dedicating my efforts on my home waters to utilizing the tactics and techniques that the author Bill Murphy described. In other words, this will be the only way I bass fish all season. By learning the techniques he employed and adopting the mindset required to use those methods effectively, I'm hoping to see a whole "New" side to the waters that I have been fishing over the past few years. And maybe while I'm at it, I'll sore-lip a few worth posting. Regardless of how it goes, I'm planning on posting up the results here, in blog like form. Each post will chronicle my thoughts, efforts and of course fishing trips and results - if there are any that is. I would certainly appreciate any and all input and remarks from the vast pool of experience and knowledge here on BR. My impression going into this is that it will definitely try my patience and test my resolve. I’m hoping that by starting and committing to documenting my season long efforts here, it will assist me to remain focused as well as perhaps inspire a few other BR members to join in this venture. Also, living this far north, “Giant Bass” is a relative term. My PB for this state is just over 7lbs, which is a stout fish for this latitude, but I’m betting that there are more and perhaps even bigger fish to be had. We’ll see. One thing I’ll say right up front, if you’ve not read the book, some of what gets posted here will undoubtedly sound a bit contradictory to current / common bass fishing practices. More to follow . . . . . . A-Jay

Congrats on the PB Bow - It's a bit of a SLOB ! A-Jay

First off ~ Welcome to BR ! Congrats on the Nice Bass. I'd say it's at least a "Five Pounder" using the old fisherman's thumb scale. Something less than that after weighing. Fish tend to lose all kinds of weight somewhere between one's thumb and an accurate scale. Don't really know why either. A-Jay

They work in Mexico too - just ask Jeff. You should try it . . . A-Jay

I've been matching the split ring to the size of the hook needed to fit the bait. Admittedly as the hooks go down in size, the split rings get pretty small but I am using the rig with lighter line and mostly as a type of finesse presentation on spinnging gear. It's worked out so far. A-Jay

Nice Bass ~ Sometimes that Mag Fluke is just Magic . . . . . Congrats. A-Jay

That was quite a memorable trip to Lake Erie, especially when a new PB is recorded. While waiting (and hoping) for friendly conditions, I stayed a bit longer than we had initially planned. Thanks for putting up with me for an extra week . . . . . . . . . . As Dwight mentioned, the conditions really challenged us to get on anything consistent. But Dwight is a gamer and he fishes hard. It was all I could do to keep up. The man is a Jerkbaitin' Machine. In the end we did all we could do and were rewarded with some Fat Bronze. A-Jay

This post is Gold - very nice Paul. To the OP - Applying Mr Roberts concepts should get you bit. I will add that the conditions you've described sound tailor made for a stick bait (Senko) fished Painfully SLOW. A-Jay

Remember to work the bait with a bit of slack in the line and since you're sitting, a shorter rod might help. A-Jay

Congratulations ~ ! That's one Gorgeous Smallmouth and one heck of an achievement right there. A-Jay

Yes. A-Jay

Here's my first entry - 6lb 6 oz smb, Tuesday, April 23, Lake Erie - in PA waters. 6 lbs 6 ounces for a total of 102 ounces. PA state record SMB: 8lb 8oz or 136 oz. 102 / 136 = .75 x 100 = 75.00 for 75% And a PB ~ Even though I don't look like it in this photo ~ I'm Pretty Happy ! ! ! I'm gonna say I was just really focused . . . . . .

I have and use the older and the newer versions of both rods. I completely disagree with the Quantum nae-sayers. Both rods are excellent for what they are designed to do. I do prefer the older version (not the red). Spent a week throwing spinnerbaits in Mexico this past March - that particular rod handled this fish just fine. A-Jay

Heading to PA in the morning. Will be spending a week bouncing around Lake Erie chasing the Pre-spawn Bronze Bass with the man, the myth, the legend - Dwight Hottle. Did the same trip last spring (and this past fall). It was pretty wild. Several Big Fish & 2 PBs. Those trips went so well we hooked up with BR 00 mod (Jeff) and the three of us spent a week on Lake Baccarac in Mexico this past March. That was Epic with about 5 PBs. We're already planning the next one. A-Jay

Nice Boat - that's a decent trade off - If I was to let it got - that would be the direction I'd go. But I'd need a more Big Water friendly version. A-Jay