A-Jay

They have been a very big producer for me this summer as well. Both TX rigger and a jig trailer. Green Pumpkin has been good and the Blue color has worked well on sunny days. And my wife out fishes me with her "one Claw left" bait every time. I wish they sold bags of 100 or more so we could save some $$$$$. A-Jay

;D ;D ~ I think they chose those names on purpose. A-Jay

Snot Rocket ~ Yea OK - I learn something new Every Day ! Incidentally, a 30 inch plus pike loose in my canoe is not fun ~ something usually gets busted. > A-Jay

Nice - Necessity Is the Mother of Invention. A-Jay

Like this thread - enjoying every one's perspective ~ ~ mine are surely shared by others . . . . ~ Safety First . . . . . . This is taken for granted so often. Leave a float plan. Tell someone where you're going and when you plan to return. If that changes let them know. A cell phone is great but doesn't always have coverage. Wear a PFD when your vessel is in motion or fishing at night. Have the proper tools and a plan to remove an impaled hook. ~ If you're fishing the shoreline most of the fish are behind you - It's a rare occurrence that I land a fish from the bank that DOESN'T have a hook hole in it's face somewhere, especially as the season wears on. However, fish landed from off shore structure go mostly unmolested. ~ Don't be afraid to fish where others do not . . . . I LOVE to hear from a local that a lake is "fished out" I really do. Many of these have produced state citation fish. I'll admit that I like a good challenge and sometimes they do turn out to be a bust. But occasionally some of these places are close and have very easy access and are loaded with fish, but you just have to do something different. Bombarding the shoreline with spinnerbaits will not produce. Often times I'm fishing at night or late fall but it is well worth it. ~ Fish the moment - forget yesterday . . . . . I'm still working on this one. This is BY Far my biggest challenge. Especially since I've been keeping a log book each season for a few years now and I'm always looking back to see what history indicates "should work". But each season is so different and there are too many variable to list. I've tried to use this as a starting point but most time even that is ineffective. I might Can the whole Log book thing all together. Yea - I know that was over the ten word limit, sorry. I just had a coffee. A-Jay

"We sometimes do something very similar to this, but don't let the tube ever hit bottom. Pop it before it hits." Thanks J - That sounds interesting, I'm going to give that a shot. And I'l tell ya Dwight ~ I feel like I've paid waaaay more than my share of dues this summer. A-Jay

Thanks - I don't know the "official term" for the technique but we call it - snap tubing. Using a fairly heavy jig head (1/2 - 3/4) and spinning gear to match, the tube is casted out, allowed to settle to the bottom and then snapped up quickly. We're looking for a reaction bite. Allowing the tube to settle back to the bottom on a slack line usually works better and when most of the strikes occur but there are occasions when a semi-slack line or even a tight line swing back to the bottom produce better. I was marking some fish that were suspended out away from the drops between 25-30 feet. This "trout" lake has crystal clear water even the bait is down at 20 feet. On high sky days with little wind it's really tough going. I had been on the water at sunrise and started fishing shallower and worked deeper as the morning progressed. I was positioned off a main lake point out off the break and allowing the tube to fall on a slack line down the break to the bottom. The strike came on the third of forth cast very close to or right on the bottom. After this fish I worked the area pretty good and a couple like it without any takers but by then the sun was beaming and it was pretty steamy. I am so looking forward to cooler temps - won't be long. A-Jay

I took this football shaped brown bass today at high noon. It was way hot and I was fishing a very steep drop in 40 feet. This fish represents 2 milestones for me. This is the first bass (lmb or smb) I've take from that depth and the first smb I've ever taken with the air temps over 90. She ate a 4 inch tube I was snapping off the bottom. Although I did catch some rays this was the only fish I took all morning. 8-) A-Jay

Slime Darts - I Like It ! A-Jay

And ~ a Black Buzzbait, a Black Jitterstick, 10 inch Black Power worm tx rigged, and recently a 1/2 oz swimjig with a Lunker City "Shaker" (swim bait style shad) as a trailer. Slow rolling this jig at night has been good ~ jig and trailer also ~ Black. A-Jay

Way to go ! Nice fish ~ with a blue bird sky no less. A-Jay

It was just too nice not to be out on a lake somewhere, so around noon, I packed the gear into the ride, hooked up the vessel and headed out . The initial plan was to drop shot deep and hope the local smb population would cooperate. After trying a few spots and a couple of different baits I had a little something going with a bait I hadn't used before. Mostly keeper fish (none really photo worthy) but with the bite being so tough recently I was pleased at the success. The bait was the Berkley Powerbait Beast in the 3" size pumpkin seed color. It makes a pretty sweet little drop shot bait. The size is right, it glides nicely, it doesn't spin and twist your line and best of all, the bass took it readily (at least on this day and you know how that goes). I had been soaking my bait on the deep side of drops associated with main lake points. By late afternoon I was getting ready to call it a day. Before I left I decided to sneak inside a bit and drift one of these baits on the inside of the deep weed-line hoping a few fish had moved up inside as the day was ending. Well it didn't take very long and I had my answer. A good "thump", a reeling hookset and the fight was on. I was very lucky that the lmb (pictured below) headed straight out into deeper water. Along with a few Hail Mary's, there was a quite a bit of giving and taking and taking and giving of my 6 lb yozuri hybrid. And that size 1 Owner was looking mighty puny, but managed to stay pinned to her upper lip and finally lead her like a puppy dog on a leash into my waiting (and shaking a little) net. That was fun. I would like to do that again, Please. A-Jay

There are pike in EVERY lake I fish up here. I rarely fish for them purposely but catch as many bass as I do pike. Like Marty, I've had them take everything from top water frogs to, crankbaits, swimbaits, swim jigs, flippin' and football jigs as well as every type of plastics I've thrown (including drop shots). It's fun and the strikes and ensuing fights are often memorable. Unfortunately, rarely do my bass baits survive these bait shedding encounters. I've resorted to using a short section of American Fishing Wire (Surflon Micro Supreme) knottable leader in front of most bass baits (including plastics) just to reduce bite offs. Spinnerbaits, swim jigs and soft plastic swimbaits are probably the best producers. btw - the biggest and healthiest pike (OK I'll say it - FAT ) are found in the "trout" lakes. A-Jay

If you like it Raw ~ check out William Elliott Whitmore performing - Hell Or High Water A-Jay

It's Hot ~ The fishing's been Slow ~ So I'm going with "Summertime Blues" I like the song but this video is a little Kooky . . . . . A-Jay

Prime Forage ~ A-Jay

I am also a Quantum rod and reel fan. A-Jay

Wow, that's a good find. Yes it is - check your PM's. A-Jay

10 Packs of Berkley® PowerBait® Hollow Belly Swim Baits @ $2.99 each ! A-Jay

Best of Luck to you on the move. Have a safe trip. btw ~ once in Alaska, will you remain HuntFishSpokane ? A-Jay

Northern MI ~ This summer has been Great - If you like Northern Pike . . . . . . . Bass numbers have been decent but the average size has been smaller. Let's just say I'm looking forward a bit to the fall. A-Jay

WTG ~ Nice clean looking fish. The Blue Chrome Rattle trap has accounted for may trophies. I bet when it hit you were thinking " If this is a bass.... It's a Beast !" I'd say the fish made it OK, especially if it was not totally played out before you landed it. A-Jay

A-Jay

Northern MI - Love the Fall. The weeds die off, the bait is exposed and I'll be waiting there for the bass to come in and feast. The bait is bigger and so are my baits. Swimbaits, big spinnerbaits and plus size crank baits will be in my arsenal as the days get shorter and the nights get cooler. And night ops in the fall can be very rewarding . . . . . . A-Jay

Rhino - So sorry you had to say farewell to a great friend ~ she will be in your heart forever so you never have to say good bye. Our thoughts are with the both of you and Indy. Run free Ava. Lynn & A-Jay