Chris

I fish it year round. This time of the year I fish it because it holds heat and the water around it is warmer. (jig)In the rest of the year I fish it because there is always something living in and around it be it crawfish or bluegills or shad.Morning topwater like a buzzbait or spook later in the morning crankbaits or spinnerbaits work afternoon jig. If you can find any drop that is next to the rip rap that would be prime or a feeding flat.

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A map is a good starting point but to find something extra you need to fish. If I am just fun fishing I look around for the kinds of cover or structure I like to fish. If that don't pan out then I switch around to find other patterns or spot while checking on the bottom for anything different. The first thing is to fish what you know then mess around with other things until you figure something out. The whole time your weeding out patterns and covering water. I then seek out new stuff that is different that the stuff that didn't pan out. This could be deeper or shallower or different kinds of cover. I try to probe deeper in the cover or on the edge or work out to a drop or point. Pre fishing for a tournament I try to get a map or photo or even a topo map of the area. If you can see the contour lines on the shore around the lake then you can guess what it looks like in it to a degree. Then take a marker to draw the lines and act like the lines are the same if they where to continue in the lake. This will point out features that should be in the lake. Like if there is a high spot on the bank then there might be a point in the lake or a roadbed that is visible on shore will enter the lake. Sometimes you can look at the trees to figure out what's under the lake too and the weeds also. Pine lives in sand and if you have two different trees right next to each other that is different it might mean a high spot or a edge of a old creek. If you can't get a map there is still ways to figure out what's in it to a degree. A crankbait makes a good depth finder when your in a when you don't have one.

How to clean a fish http://www.getlostmagazine.com/features/1999/9909fishclean/grover/grover.ht...

A two blade prop has more area than a 3 blade and has more thrust because of the larger surface area. A 3 blade has less surface area and spins faster and is better for chopping up weeds. Because of the lack of surface area it lacks in thrust.

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There is some stuff in here http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1129970015 And some stuff here http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1129579395 And even more stuff here http://bassresource.com/fishing/seasonal.html#winter WELCOME TO THE FORUM

Welcome to the forum

PRO'S Soft Bait Glue

Fee is usually half day or full day. Cost depends on the guide my cost I think was $200 half and $300 for full and (x) amount for large parties. RW (Roadwarrior)would be a good one to answer.

It is a great book also Larry Nixon has a good one and Doug Hannon, KVD otay, Most of these guys have websites that might still have copies to buy.

I am glad this is back up looks great Glenn. 8-)

The only thing I can add is that you need to also pay attention to the size of the stumps sometimes the larger ones will hold better fish and LOCATION CAN BE EVERYTHING

Spike-it

Just do it and join the more you post the more you learn ;D

I still go gaga sorry ;D

Most people think that fishing a small pond is way different than a large lake which is false. A bass is a bass and much of the stuff I learned about bass fishing was learned in small water. Small water is just a scaled down version of big water. You still have flats, points, drops, trees, weeds, but the difference is that your dealing with less water volume and because everything is scaled down it makes it easier to figure them out. Instead of miles of weeds you might have a defined weed line or just a couple trees or a drop that is only a few feet. The tactics and movements are the same the fish move because of food and comfort. Ponds that do not have the shad still have bluegills and other small fish from last years hatch. As a juvenile they still school up and the bass school up to eat them. Bass still stage and feed in the same areas.

I don't fish small water any different than big water. I might scale down some and I don't throw the big baits as much but a bass is a bass no matter where it lives large or small water. What you need to understand is that when the weeds die off because of the cooling water and the days getting shorter the bass move out of the weeds when they start to die. They leave because weeds when they die consume oxygen and the ph changes so the bass seek out better water. They may not move far and might just move out to the edge but they do move. Some bass never move either while the weeds are in the process of dying and after. (this is the exception to the rule) Any place that has a hard bottom or hard cover tends to hold more fish than the weeds during this time or anything still green and growing. Weed less soft plastics like a fluke, worm, jig, tube, and spinnerbaits tend to work well in weeds. After the weeds have finished dying the bass move back into the same areas because the oxygen and ph have changed to more favorable conditions. because of wind and cooling water temps. The colder the water the more oxygen it can hold. Usually the largest bass leave first and are the first to move back. When they move out they move to any drop closest to the weed flat.

Fish the edge of the weeds where the growth thins out because of depth. Fish points or any main lake feature like a main drop or bluff. Concentrate on any hard cover that will retain heat or any overhead cover. Overhead cover could be a dock or where they weeds top out or a tree. Clear water that has any wood in it would be prime to include stumps. Try to locate the wood that is either in or next to deep water. Your points you want to back way off of and fish it. Any hard bottom should hold better fish. This time of the year you have two patterns shad or crawfish. If shad pattern and movements isn't working then switch to areas that would hold crawfish. If you are fishing in a lake that the weeds never die then look for areas that have a change in weed growth like dollar pads and cat tails or hydrilla. Locate transition areas of weeds from one kind to another. Backs of creeks means the deep side of the creek. Think about it like it was a drop off first fish parallel to the drop then fish it at a 90 degree with a worm, spinnerbait, crank, jig, tube. Try different presentations like swim or work the bait so it dumps off into the drop or just visualize where the drop is then use a drop bait and let it fall right up against the drop.

No matter if you are swimming or flipping or casting you need to read the cover if possible. With any lay down you look at which direction the limbs are facing. You want to go with the limbs if you can. Sometimes with stumps you can get hung up in the roots or with underwater trees there is no way to determine which direction the tree is facing without a depth finder and even then it takes some skill to figure out which way it is facing. The denser the cover the more you need to present the bait vertically. This will prevent most hang ups. Check your weed guard to make sure it is stiff enough so that when it goes over a branch that is doesn't compress and stick it. Sometimes I don't trim the guard if the cover is to heavy but I do make sure that the bristles are not stuck together and I might fan it out some to make it more weed less. Also make sure that the guard is not flopped over to one side. It needs to be inline with the hook and cover the hook. Sometimes even if you do everything right you still loose jigs. A lighter jig will help some with preventing snagging but always remember that sometimes with a light jig that it may not fall all the way through the cover to the bottom. Most of the bass will be hanging in the heart of the cover or right under the thickest part. Sometimes you get lucky and find them on the edge so make sure you check it also. The important thing about a jig when flipping is to make sure the jig reaches the bottom. With swimming it is more about the depth zone they are hanging at. Heavy line is a must because you need to horse the fish out of the cover and with light line you will break more fish off than catch.

One way it to suspend something in their face for a long time like dead sticking it. Another way it to pitch or cast a bait over and over again until they get mad and hit it. Another way is to use something in a bass bed that is known to eat bass eggs. Crawfish, shiners, bluegill, mud puppies, bull minnow, or anything that looks or acts like them. You make a bass bite by forcing a bass to react to your bait. You can do this by making the time frame the bass has to determine if it is hungry or if it is food shorter. You make the bass make a split decision to eat. Usually by doing this your preying on the bass's instinct which is a bad fault they have. You are making the bass eat when they don't want to. Speed and putting the bait right into its strike zone force the bass to react. They either fight or flight. I do this a lot with jigs, spinnerbaits, and crankbaits but you can do it with any bait. The idea is to put the bait right in their face and make them bite. With drop baits you make the bait fall fast with cranks and stuff you cast the bait at a 90 degree with the boat in there strike zone and reel. Usually the first three to five feet they hit it.

Unless the pond freezes I would say no. I classify water clarity like this Clear is tap water Stained is like tea and dirty is like cocoa. ( I am like way simplifying this) But from clear to stained water fish are feeding mainly by sight and some by sound. Are there certain colors better than others Yes green, blue, red, purple, white, black, yellow. red, purple, yellow, green, blue, white, black- clear yellow, green, blue, white, black- stained green, blue, white, black- muddy When the water temp reaches 55 degrees they start to think about spawning watch the weather for days and nights to be around that temp for an extended period of time that should effect the water temp(if you don't have a water temp gage)

What you look at is "How where the fish reacting to my bait?" Did they even notice it being there? Did they move out of the way? Did the follow it for a short distance or rush to check it out then swim off? Was there bait in the area? These are the things I look for in determining if the fish are worth sticking it out to make them bite. Bass most of the day are inactive. As the water gets colder they use up less energy and feed less often. Remember that tube article I wrote up? This bait is perfect for this situation. You stick the bait in the bass's face and just lightly shake it. It is kinda like ice fishing. The other part is to treat the fish like they where heavily pressured or a cold front and scale down. Like I said the first thing is to figure out how the bass are reacting to your bait then figure out what you need to do from there. I always try to find active fish but some days because of crap weather you kinda get stuck fishing inactive fish. You just need to find them if you can and find the window that they are active.

This time of year I use a light jig for flipping and pitching to slow down how I fish the bait and to slow the fall. Like the post for Fall/winter keep in mind everything is moving slow. The colder the water gets the less often the bass will feed. A slow moving slow falling bait means a easy target and have a hard time passing up a easy target. 5/16 oz or 1/4 oz jigs are what I use the most this time of year. I leave the jig in one place for a longer amount of time. Pork is more flexible in cold water so if you need more action winter or any cold water is when I use pork trailers the most. Don't overlook swimming spider grubs and other swimming jigs.

hog pellets too, or bread