A-Jay

@12poundbass "How is it possible that after spending a year talking to you, after a year of reading, studying, buying, and chasing these brown bass only to come up empty and to put it blunt getting my @$$ handed to me by them I can not stop thinking about smallmouth bass? Maybe they’re taunting me? Maybe I’ve gone crazy? Maybe they’re going to haunt me until ice out? How can I obsessively think about a fish I’ve yet to catch. Sure I’ve caught river smallmouth , but never a lake smallie. How can one obsessively think about a fish for crying out loud? It’s only a fish! Maybe it’s the unknown that’s triggered this obsession? Maybe if only one was like Nemo and got too curious, too close, and ‘touched’ the lure I’d be healed. The temps. Will be up this weekend and the ice gone. Maybe it’s a sign, launch the G3 and go catch ‘em! But maybe that’s what they want me to do, so the whole school of them can look at me from 20 foot of water and laugh, while I pull what little bit of hair I have left out of my head! I feel I’ve lost my mind! The sad part is, it’s not even meteorological winter yet. Thank you for your time Dr. Andy. Bill my insurance, pencil me in once a week until April, and keep the phone close in case I really go off the deep end, if I haven’t already. Please tell me it doesn’t get worse." ? @A-Jay "Nicely Done ! I really enjoyed that. But I have some alarming & some what disturbing news for you . . . . . . You are only scratching the surface of this insane addiction to brown bass. For once you find success (and you will) - IT GET'S EVEN WORSE ! But let's talk about it a little. (or a lot - we've got that kind of time) When it comes to catching smallies, we need to find them first. Thank you Captain Obvious . . . And even before that, we need to find the right water. But what the heck is it ? Interestingly, that changes, seasonally, monthly, weekly, and yes, even daily. And the real bugger about the whole deal, is that even when we find something that looks 'right', our timing might be off. After location, timing is just about everything. Here's an example I'm sure you can relate to. We'll use a single spawning bed as an example - In a calendar year, how many days is a big female bass actually going to be ON The Bed - two, maybe 3, maybe less. Perhaps only a few hours one day of the year. So if we were to fish that bed all season, we'd be getting a ton of casting practice, but not getting bit a whole lot. Timing for locating feeding bass is very similar although that example is somewhat exaggerated for effect, but I think you get my point. I have spots that I feel are 'right', and that I have fished 25 times a season and never got bit, but I believe in them. Because so many times, I've visited and revisited spots during different seasons, during different times of the day, during different weather & wind conditions, and when I hit it right, it's like magic. Big Brown bass in the frabil. And if I can locate similar areas or deals, even better. And that's all well & good but what's more important ~ I LEARN ! Admittedly - I understand that this approach requires time on the water, much of it, at times, can involve more fishing than catching. But it is what it is. Pro's pre-fish - I do all season. Many spots or places 'look' the same to us, depth, bottom contour type & composition, presence of bait perhaps, water clarity & temperature, but there's something different, because one may produce quite a bit & more often than another. Maybe it's further from deep water, Maybe a bigger predator is using it to feed on the Bass (On NO Mr Bill !) Whatever it is, if we can figure it out, it helps us eliminate water - which is Huge and something you learned quite a bit about this past season unfortunately. Supplemental info - This season one of the lakes I'm relatively familiar with, stopped producing for me. Now I'd fished this place hard for 12 years, it's not real big but not a puddle either. And in that time, I had been able to 'find' enough of the right water and the right deals to where, if the conditions were somewhat reasonable, I could usually get on a few decent brown bass most every trip. Well something changed. Big Time. I have NO Idea what. I fished the heck out of this place, tried all the 'productive' methods spots and times - No Bass. NONE. Looking back, what I should have done is the same thing I did in the beginning to find the fish in the first place. Start the process all over again, except look & fish somewhere and something else. But I was so stubborn, I didn't do that. I just kept beating my head against the wall - it was a little brutal and I'm a knuckle head. What all that boils down to is this (and why I brought that up), catching bass is the fun part, no doubt - it's why we go. But we have to Go Fishing first, and we have to have fun doing it. Without the right mind set & approach, that's often easier said than done. The forums are loaded with threads & post that prove it and I'm certainly guilty of it myself. You know the ones "What am I doing wrong ?" and "I've tried everything". You see my friend, going fishing is not the same as going catching - and although we all want to go catching - that's not how it works. While many would like us to believe it does; but that's non sense. So we both learned quite a bit this season, we learned what not to do to catch bass. Next time around, I expect we can both modify our approach to include new areas, at different times and with a variety of presentations. Sooner or later, it'll happen. It always does. btw - this approach has helped me catch most every species of fish I've ever attempted to, in both fresh & saltwater. So there's that. " @12poundbass "Great read right there, thank you! Looking back at this year I know a few things I did wrong or things I’m ‘weak’ at so to speak. 1: Boat control. The cable steal TM is new to me this year, along with the one legged TM dance as you’ve referred to it as, and off shore fishing. Before I was always hitting the banks so boat control wasn’t a huge issue. 2: Lack of patience! We’d blank on the brown bass and quick run to hitting the banks and pitching docks and wood. Pitching is new to me this year and I’ve found to be quite fun. 3: Time on the water. Looking back I was over ambitious last winter saying I’m going out every weekend, on the weeknights I’ll fish my lake. A lot of new things last year and I got super excited, which is good and rightfully so. I always had 6poundbass with me and several times had his friend with us and no 9 year old wants to sit offshore casting to something they can’t see. Oh well we had fun and we all made memories which is what’s important. 4: And this is (I feel) the biggest and most important. Scouting with my electronics! I didn’t do it 1/10 of what I should have. We’d go out idle around find a could ‘good’ spots mark them, fish them, blank and run to the banks to salvage the day. I need to take your advice and go out the night before and do this to save time in the morning. I also just need to leave the rods at home and just use the graphs. I did that for a couple hours on my lake one day and found the original creek bed (our lake is a little impoundment). More on that and some ideas in a bit. All in all I think I said this before, while I was disappointed I blanked on the brown bass out of a lake, I still learned quite a bit. The season left a lot to be desired which is good, but was still a successful one, just in a different way." @A-Jay "Well said. I kind of take boat control for granted - been doing it a while. It's important no doubt. I bet if you went to a lake that had a verified healthy brown bass population and fished it with some serious intention, you're score a few. Especially, pre-spawn. Hit it right and they're kind of suicidal. I like that. btw - never leave the rods home - EVER ! "

If or where a rig 'balances', may be difference for each of us. To my knowledge - there is no accurate or even remotely reliable 'formula' available to help determine it. Just have to figure it out. Lastly, your rig, the one that weighs 12.4 OUNCES, could never feel heavy to me - ever. A-Jay

Hello Paul and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ A-Jay

Everyone caught bass - No better or worse than most anyone going there with at least average bass fishing skills. Each angler posted Pics of their catches on their FB & Instagram pages. Some were re-posted on the Lake Baccarac Lodge FB page. A-Jay

Mom's are The Best ! Glad to hear this. Hope you & your family can enjoy the holidays A-Jay

I am a little north of you and do quite a bit outside in the cold, and very cold. Columbia omni heat is very good. Thin, warm, comfortable, breathable and wicks moisture off my skin. https://www.columbia.com/technology-omniheatreflective/ A-Jay

A-Jay

Nicely Done ~ I think we need a special member's based limerick thread . . It is snowing here after all. A-Jay

Oh, I so want to fishing that one. So much potential. A-Jay

If you'd care to share, I'd be interested to learn what your particular failure was or was attributed to ? My experience has been different. I'm actually running four of these batteries which may be due for replacement in a few years. Perhaps I may go a different way. But since 2016, I have been running two helix 10's, two 12 ft Talons, 360 imaging, Live well pumps & aerator, interior & navigation lights, (basically everything Except The 112 Fortrex) AND starting a 200 hp V8 Pro XS all with ONE Optima Blue Top 31M. The other three power the Minn Kota. Maybe I've just been lucky but I've encountered Zero problems. This battery is connected to my on board charging system and gets top off after every trip, regardless of what it gets from the Outboard's 85-amp (1071 Watt) Alternator. Thanks in advance A-Jay

Yea - Like bass fishing, it's all about location. Surrounded by big water on 3 sides and then being sort of in 'the middle' - seems to be where the snow & cold drop. Keeps us a little cooler in the summer but keep watching and you'll see what happens in the winter. btw - we are WAY behind on snow fall . . . . . . . . so far. A-Jay

Hello and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ Perhaps consider Optima Blue tops - Dual purpose batteries. I run 31M's and they handle everything I need - Deep cycles & cranking needs. Also, I highly recommend including your cranking battery in your on board charger set up. https://www.optimabatteries.com/en-us/bluetop-dual-purpose-deep-cycle-and-starting https://www.deepcyclemarinebattery.com/reviews/optima-d34m-d27m-d31m-bluetop-dual-purpose-marine-batteries.html A-Jay

Might need to wear socks with the Crocs today. A-Jay

Exactly ! A-Jay

Getting a little closer to working off all that turkey & stuffing. A-Jay

Sorry to hear this. Hope you can be on the mend soon rather than later. No doubt the bass will be waiting when you do. A-Jay

Just get one on these. Then time is always on your side. ? A-Jay

Something that is not mentioned in this case or any of the few I've seen, is in regards to how (or even IF) the equipment was maintained. Few products will perform properly if not checked routinely and kept in serviceable working order. For all we know - both may have been previously expended. I also believe that adding the make & model of the faulty Life Jackets would have been an important nugget of information for an interested reader. However that is mysteriously or conveniently omitted. And while I can respect the skills & experience of any & all 'professional' anglers'. I have a bit of experience running boats myself, I find it interesting that the man's boat just mysteriously flipped over, out of nowhere, and with out excessive speed ? I'd put this one in the 'we may not have the whole story here' category. Otherwise - Ranger boats could have a rather significant hull design flaw that no one else knows about or has ever experienced. All of which might not add much validity to this 4 year old story. Risk is a tricky deal ~ A-Jay

Well Said & I agree. Especially that last part right there, but as for the travelers, I'm pretty sure northern Michigan is closed to bass anglers; it's full. We have to wait for one to leave before we can let one in. ? A-Jay

Sorry you lost a solid one - but THIS is why I change out ALL my stock trebles on most every bait that has them. While it certainly can not guarantee hook-ups of Personal Bests, I have not yet had any of the after market trebles I up grade to bend out on a strike. I use these . . . . Gamakatsu Magic eye EWG Mustad 1x strong 2x short EWG Gamakatsu Aaron Martens TGW Nano Finesse Treble Hook And I'll be trying the Gamakatsu Aaron Martens TGW Finesse Treble Hook MH this season. Size depends on the bait but #4 is used often. A-Jay

Sweet Rig ~ Congrats & Best of Luck with her. A-Jay

Interesting theory. At what point do you push the furniture against the walls, tear up all the carpet and begin the spawning ritual ? A-Jay

That's an important concern and one that needs to be considered. I can admit many times I've realized that after 30 minutes on the drive home in the truck, I was still wearing my inflatable . . . A-Jay

I wear & trust my life to these ~ A-Jay