Team9nine

There went 16 minutes of my day...YMMV ?

His manhood is gone, but his hernia is repaired, so it's a wash when all is said and done

Celebrating today in Indiana - that was 2 long weeks of living with the "cone of shame"...but he was officially given his freedom back by the vet this morning. ?

I'm going with yes and no Yes, because there is ample evidence from several studies documenting nesting site fidelity in both largemouth and smallmouth. Some studies show within the same cove, while others literally have it down to the same nest site. No, because I've seen nothing to suggest that bass return to the exact same area they were born. They aren't migratory in the same sense of, say, salmon. Now, in waterbodies with very limited areas of suitable spawning sites, by default, they may end up back there. Similarly, in the case of smaller bodies of water, I'd again guess the likelihood increases. But in larger bodies of water where fish have room to move about, and ample areas for nesting throughout, I'd say the jury is still out. There is some evidence that juvenile largemouth in their first year tend to stay within the cove or embayment where born, but as they get older, diet changes to piscivory (fish) may require them to move considerably to find sufficient forage, especially in pelagic fisheries containing shad (threadfin and gizzard) and alewife. Whether those fish ultimately return to where they were born, or instead simply nest somewhere near where they are when they finally mature some years later, I don't think we know for certain. Personally, I wouldn't count on there being some ancient magic spawning ground that has been lost to the masses over all these years. Maybe @Paul Roberts can add some insight.

^^ THIS for me too ^^

Not the wide open bite of spring, but plenty of fish with a decent fish or three usually in the mix. Been catching between 10-25 bass per trip, usually 2-3 trips per week, and most around 2 hours or less. Crappie bite has been stellar on larger waters with never under 100 fish per trip all summer long (those are usually 4-6 hr trips). Bite should only get better as we start to see some cooler days ahead this month. Other than not getting the boat out near as much this year, I can't complain.

I've simplified it about as much as possible this year. A package of Zoom finesse worms (junebug) and a package of Zman Finesse WormZ (about 3-4 worms of 3 different colors, all tossed in the same package). All I've needed all year. I do have one pack of Zoom jig trailers I always keep in the boat with me, too. That's been it for 2018, and I've fished plastics more this year than any other year I can remember.

Today is day 11...just 3 more to go. Not sure who will be happier - me or him He's been a trooper.

A little old school Charlie Brewer Slider Fishin' today...a couple of the 23 landed in a 2 hour trip in 90+ degree heat.

A little 'pond life' from yesterday...

From Tim Tucker's old Bassmaster piece on Rick Clunn's seasonal pattern approach, believe this was back in the late 90s

Did a little finesse fishing today from the bank in a clear water weedy lake just to test a few things out. Turned out rather successful overall. This one, along with the others, came on 3# yellow braid fished with a 5# fluoro leader (~4 feet). Managed 10 total - never retied - Palomar knot, not wetted. I'm sure I broke some other "rules" I'm forgetting -

Spent the afternoon chasing crappie yesterday...caught 'em pretty good.

Driven off the lake yesterday by storms, but not before we got in 5 hours of dry time...

Nope, haven't noticed...tested them all - no difference in catch rate or size.

It all comes down to whether you're a specialist or a generalist, regardless of the bait in question. Every little change you make to a jig affects something with the presentation or efficiency of that bait. Either you sweat the details or you don't. Neither style is right or wrong...it's however you want to play this game.

Says who, you or Wikipedia just giving ya' a hard time... No, some are dumber than others... Yes and no. No, because any fish you catch the day before is one you likely won't catch the next day. Some exceptions like bedders, etc. Yes, because I don't believe the exact same fish stay in the exact same spot and have the exact same disposition from day to day. The fish you catch the day before likely wouldn't be sitting right there and catchable the next day. So, if that actually occurs, it doesn't matter whether you stick them or not.

Yes - waiting on him to sign as I understand it

That's the difference between pure science and applied science. Initially, you have to be able to control the variables.

Co-owned by the anglers and the cable company. Klein and Duckett are the angler's "front men." Started with over half of the 24 anglers forming an entity called the Pro Bass Tour (PBT). Others were invited in later. Other owner is the Outdoor Channel. Pros invested their own money, basically shareholders in the company, like a revenue sharing entity. They get paid out of the profits generated by the business.

Yep, which is why this whole thing is so interesting, and why this potential third major trail likely won't directly try and step on the toes of the other two organizations...it doesn't make good business sense. Johnny's Marine Group just signed a major sponsor extension with FLW, and both BPS and Nitro boats are sponsors of MLF along with BassCat and Phoenix.

...and Jimmy Carter in another photo or two. Both Bush's (I and II) are/were big anglers, and were members of B.A.S.S., and would often fish with Ray Scott (and others).

Boyd has a lot, but Johnny's got WAY more ? He's the key player in the deal. https://www.news-leader.com/story/news/local/ozarks/now/2018/03/06/where-does-bass-pros-johnny-morris-rank-among-worlds-billionaires/399905002/

Yeah, I held off buying a Chatterbait for years because I thought the bass would easily get conditioned to them within a year or two - that turned out to be a bad decision

A year isn't that long in the big scheme of things. Hell, I waited 2-1/2 years just to be able to post to this thread