Kana

megabass makes a 13 inch Monster Worm , 3 to a pack for 10$, ive only seen, light green, brown and black but im sure theres more.

Pa Basser, welcome, many things to learn and share. enjoy!

LBH, when i was in oregon, it was the only thing to do, cant live in the NW and not have a fly rod and take advantage of all the mtn rivers, lakes and streams. then when it gets a bit too warm for trout, you can bust some bluegill, and bass. i also like the simplicity of fly fishing. but i started bass fishing way too young to give it up!!!!!!!!!!!

avid, good advise since i am just learning! i think i can go without a hook through a finger (s) or hand!

clear: shad, chrome or bluegill patterns stained: browns, mostly craw paterns, reds (one in which the plastic is actually red, and not painted) muddy: dark with light belly colors (black with orange belly, or black with red fire tiger belly pattern, or straight dark colors. I have many of the same pattens with and without rattles, but like everyone says, muddy water sees more action from a crank with rattles.

good article, learned quite a few things. glenn, good post as well. thanks for the contributions

so is the spider jig just a name for the hula grub on a jig head, im a little lost?

thanks for the much needed feedback. rebasser, i was thinking about a 7'4" heavy rod, and i think id like to pursue that option, will i need to adjust my technique as there will be less flex in the top portion of the rod when i pitch?

also how much would barided line affect the distance of pitching. I have no experience with braided line but seem to think this may be an application that screams braid. when pitching with braid should i usea flouro leader, or is that one more thng to complicate the set up?

finally i have taken a few days off from the water to hone skills that probably shouldnt be practiced on the water in the first place. pitching is the technique that i needed most work on, and have been neglecting to practice. so, i read all the articles i could find then spent hours practicing over the past week. my question is, what seems to be the average distance needed to reach a target? granted boat position will play a main role. i have tweeked my set up (daiwa cv-x 205 millionaire spooled with 12# yozuri, set on a 6'6" med action rod) for optimum performance and on average seem to hit the 30 foot mark with ease on a 1 oz. jig. then about 25 feet average with a 1/2 oz jig. most (but not all) casts seem to skim above the surface (about 2-3 inches) before hitting thier mark. is this acceptable for creating a quiet entry into the water? any responses would be appreciated as pitching is realitvly new to me. thanks.

again provided there is some cover like weeds or structure, you should take the time to hunt these out. away to find out whats on the bottom is a c-rig, lizards, or worms work. i whole heartedly agree with the crank bait, i would have given that first dibs at the water. if there are weeds dont over look, weightless senkos, or t-rigs. since you know there are 15 in bass in there you could start with a 5 inch senko. spinnerbaits will allow you to cover alot of water quickly to see where the fish may be. if the is an inlet to the pond, be it drainage pipes, this may be a place to look for bass looking for a meal to come to them. shaded areas might possibly hold fish, a good place for a small to medium size jig or t- rig craw. you can also try a yamamoto shad shape worm, for a surface wounded minnow action. if there is submerged trees/bushes that may be a good place to look for fish, usually a few will hang out there. spinnerbaits will hang up less here. but find structre and cover and youll usually find fish. like nw said try to match your lure coices to whats found in the pond. good luck.

yes advertising has looped me into some not so well thought out purchases. the only thing they caught was my attention and money. but i have gained a better understaning of what has caught fish for me. and look along those lines when purchasing new lures now. fishing partners and friends play the biggest role in my lure decisions. as freinds they are straigh up about the pros and cons, of lures as well as what it take to make them work.

ive been a member of this forum for a little over 7 months... i think. anyway ive seen a lot of new members join, and veteran members stay, and the well of knowledge has soared, everyone has something to contribute. i am greatful that people on this forum are open and are willing to share thier honest views and tactics to help the less experienced or those in a slump. thank you, for everyones contributions, i have become a better and more educated angler because of you. Props to Glenn!

is the pond pressured by alot of other anglers? i agree with the senko, but try a fat ika too t-rigged weightless. I tried this sugesstion of RW's , and it worked very well, i was using a black with blue skirt, let it sink, if you dont get bit on the fall lift your rod tip and try again while in the area you think fish may be. for a smaller pond, you could even try a drop shot witha 3 inch grub (hight above sinker depends on weeds) with a 1/4 oz sinker at the bottom. you could even try a fluke in place of the grub. this rig is worked best slow while twitcheing the rod tip to activate teh plastic. it will be good for you midday tiem frame as it will be deep, where the fish may be staying cool. hope this gives you a few more options to try. let us know how you did and what worked for you.

palomar i is the only knot i use. i have used it with stren, vanish, yozuri hybrid, and japanese nylon line, not failed me yet. however i did have a similar problem as you are describing using cheap line. i abondoned my thriftyness and used stren till i found yozuri and japanese lines. cant go wrong with better line and the proper tying of a 100% knot. good luck.

in the time that ive spent re-learning how to fish, i have found that attention to your surroundings dictate what the strategy for the day or time period may be. I agree that surrounding yourself with better anglers is also a benefit. it may not be only on the water but at forums too. Personally i like to exchange info, im not a competitve (tourney) angler, i get out to have fun and fish. i may have ideas that may help others, and vise versa, sharing views is a good way to "compare notes" . when i cant fish i review my log and see what i could have done different and circumstances permitting re-try the apporoach again next time out. finally if at all possible minimize the amount of time that im not fishing!

gc, nice pick on the rod, i have a few Days and they are nice, im getting a slicer for a back up, good action, and good price! I like majorcraft a lot, god quality. im not aware of too many places that have smb, sorry. ive seen　a few places on the hit, or fishing v but i dont recal thier names off hand　and im sure theyre north of us (kawaguchiko near mt. fuji would have smb) . Biwako might have smb but im not sure, i think it stays cool enough. but that s cool to have smb in a pond in mie! i caught a few when i lived in oregon, and they fight like mosters! my biggest was 36 cm, not too large but felt like a BIG fish. has the most recent typhoon thrown off the fishing at all. the bite is not so good right now. i guess if you go to fishing "areas" then it may not be too bad lugging a net. i have a small net wen i fly fish because the leader is thin, and i guess if youre fishng an ultra light rig a net might help, but if you can get close enough to the fish the net might not be too beneficial.

LBH way to get the nest fired up! anyway, i was timid about joining any forums, but this is worth it 100%. in the grand scheme of things i know very little but most everyone on this site that has posted their questons or answered mine, i thank you. but... RAUL damnit you gave the baitmonkey a firm foothold in japan! thank god hes in the 6 month quarentine yet again, but word on the street is that hes looking for my house when he gets out!!!!!!!!! RUN!!!!

ive had my best results with the drop shot during the spawn on beds if you choose to fish at that time. recently ive used it near laydowns, otrock humps in my local river. its awesome at heavily pressured areas, where fish may be timid. i usually fish smaller plastics like the yamamoto shad shape worm, or 4 inch senko/worms or even flukes. i usually move the rod tip about 4-5 inches per hop, 3 hops ata time, the fish will dictate what the presentation should be, but ive found that the drop shot rig is best fished slow. i hope this will help a bit. let us know how you do.

I fish for fun, dont compete. after living in japan for a year, i think i havent done too bad. the fish in my pic is my personal second best, caught near kyoto. then i get plenty of small fish at my local river spot. spent a lot of time figuring out patterns and variation between fishing in hte US and japan, what lures work what dosent. ive started to work on my finesse tactics for heavily pressured water, which i havent had to concentrate so carefully on in the US (having alot of secret placesto fish). all in all, not doing to bad, but now that i have some experience under the belt im looking forward to next year.

gc, im fishing like you, on the bank, with enough gear as it is. no net, and i would look pretty stupid with a net, 2 poles and all my gear on the chikatetsu! i havent really found the need for a net, the fish i catch are small enough ( under 5 lbs) that i can usually lip them. but have to be careful with raigyo (snakehead), could not pay me enough to handle one of those bad boys!

ok, here it is, was fishing with a friend in oregon, on the clakamas river for chinook or steelhead. after about 3 hours of nothing he got a bite. as he was reeling in the fish, a seal, yes a 200 pound seal came up and took the salmon, little wretched. my friend reeled back a head of what looked like a nice 15 pound native salmon. i gave up salmon fishing after that. i caught a friend in the leg with a blue fox, thats what you get for moving in on my spot! he was ticked and i felt so guilty, it was an accident. caught my cousin in the arm ona back cast, myself in the leg fishing tight cover... i think that covers it on body parts. when i was 10, my street flooded after a rainstorm about 3 feet of water, and my uncle and i caught a small bass by the mouth of a storm drain on a grub! great stories everyone thanks for sharing.

Its a japanese plastic by ecogear called bug/ants in the 3inch craw. the scent is extreme, and very durable, but almost 10 bucks for a pack of 6. i dont recall seeing them stateside. Kana

some places here in japan you have to pay to fish, especially if its stocked. sometimes you pay to launch, sometimes just to fish. for example last week i went to MT. fuji to fish a lake there and the daily fee for an adult was almost 15. but you can buy a year long pass that was 50 bucks. kinda sucks. some streaches of rivers and streams are private and you must pay too. ocean access is almost always free. but on the flip side we dont need fishing licenses to fish. there are a ton of free spots if you know where to go. and sometimes if you just ask you can fish on peoples private property, right beside pay sites, if you clean up behind yourself. in oregon the license fee was enough to seek out free places to fish. 56 bucks a year is high IMO.

Umpqua out of oregon has killer fly patters, and tons of them. i really like the crawfish pattern, bass pro carries them. they have some really nice popper and bug patterns. thry a re pretty durable( as much as flies can be). good luck.