senile1

I change to Carbontex drag washers, though I don't always do it immediately. At the longest, I will go until my next big reel cleaning in Winter before I replace the washers but they always get replaced within the first year. I pretty much don't worry about anything else.

Tom, I extend my deepest sympathy to you and I am so sorry it ended this way. You are in my family's thoughts more than you know.

This perfectly encapsulates my thoughts as well. @A-Jay Funny but this was my top producer this year. You just need to give it a little time. ?

Seems like most of the common Missouri people have been mentioned. Here's one who is famous on the forums: Mike Siebert, jig creator from Missouri. ? I guess Johnny Morris would count as famous. If he has been mentioned, I missed it.

Sounds to me like you did a decent job of figuring out something that worked. It takes a lot of time to try everything. A tube and jerkbait, as mentioned above, are options. In extremely clear water, I think long casts are essential except in very deep water vertical fishing. If they were coming out from the overhang and grabbing the bait, a reaction type strike sounds plausible. You would have to make sure they don't get a good look at the bait using such a presentation with that type of water clarity. I think a Ned rig would be a small natural presentation that would work as well.

Good for you! It looks quite nice. Can't beat a boat on your birthday.

? C - Megastrike's Cavitron buzzbait

J: Jackall DD Squirrel 79 SP jerkbait

Congratulations! Nice fish!

Perfect timing, Mike. This is always my time to replenish my inventory from you. I will be ordering in the next day or two.

The G-Force Trolling Motor Handle and Cable have been good for me. I haven't had to replace a cable for a few years since I bought mine.

That's a nice number of fish for a cold winter day.

Nice looking fish, Paul. I have a small 55 acre lake that is a good clear water winter fishery as well. Not only are the fish stunning, but this lake produces mostly deep water catches in the winter and I can watch them fighting down deep as I bring them in. Unfortunately, I haven't bought an action camera like the GoPro to film them as I bring them up.

Wow! That's a huge fish. Congratulations!

I like this idea and crankbaits have been good to me on occasion in upper 40s to 50 degree water. When not frozen, the water here gets down into the 30s with 39 degree water in the deepest areas based on the physical properties of water. I don't think much, if any, of the water the Texas and California guys are fishing gets this cold so I will have to try this for myself in waters at these temperatures. Maybe I just haven't spent enough time on it to get it to work in water just above freezing temperatures in the past. I have to see it myself before I believe it is a consistent approach at these water temperatures. It would definitely be part of the arsenal in southern Missouri where water temperatures stay in the mid to upper forties and even the 50s in winter on the larger lakes.

I love it! Reminds me of my daughters at that age, and my youngest granddaughter now. Nice fish too!

Sounds like you are having some great times on the water! Keep giving us your stories. Wishing for the best during this tough time.

I second A-Jay's post. I purchased blade baits for a specific purpose: Vertical fishing for cold bass in water temperatures ranging from the 30s to the low to mid 40s. While they can be fished horizontally, I typically use other tools for that purpose.

If your water temperature is mid to high 50s you have plenty of options available to you - fast moving and slow moving lures - depending on recent weather trends and what the bass are wanting that day. Lure selection can become a little more limited when water reaches the 30s to 40s, though on any given day the bass can surprise you.

Tom, I am sorry to hear your son has not seen any improvement. The hardest thing on earth is watching children or grandchildren going through something like this. Keeping your family in our thoughts.

I agree, but would reverse these two with catching the angler as number 1.

You should go until you know for sure your water is solid. Your temperatures are similar to what we are seeing in northwest Missouri. We had some single digits to teens for a couple of nights with highs in the 20s and 30s on those days. Following the cold spell, today the low was in the 20s and the high was in the 50s. I went to a 70 acre lake an hour north of me and the surface water temperature varied between 40 and 41 degrees. Some ice had formed in some coves and in some very shaded areas, but the majority of the lake was still warm enough to fish.

Nice work, Dwight. What a bunch of porkers! Excellent write-up as well.

Super nice fish and congratulations, not only on the PB, but on your perseverance!

I think @Bird may mean this is the end of bass season for him, and the start of deer hunting. Assuming his location information is correct, the Virginia DGIF website states that there is a continuous year-round season for freshwater fish, other than a few exceptions. Bass are not mentioned as one of those exceptions. https://www.dgif.virginia.gov/fishing/regulations/game/ Whatever the case may be, enjoy your winter activities!