Jon in VA

Hello again, fellas. So, here in southern VA, the water temp in my home lake right now ranges from 70-75 degrees. Last week was scorching hot, with highs in the 90s and lows in the 70s. Well, a cold front came through yesterday and put an end to that. Today, the high was 66. The low tonight is forecasted to be in the mid-30s. Tomorrow's high is forecasted to be 67-70. I want to go out at daybreak tomorrow (6:30) and fish til about 11:00am. How should I approach this trip? By the air temp or the water temp? When the air temperature is so far away from the water temperature, does it make the bass behave differently? Or are their behaviors strictly influenced by WATER temperature? (and of course other factors-air pressure, etc.) Just need to know how to approach tomorrow. Thanks in advance, guys!

I did. I always search before posting a new topic. I'm a message board veteran. I searched "original fishing snake", "fishing snake", "doug hannon snake", etc. Didn't pull up anything. Sorry you feel that way.

Has anyone ever tried these lures by "The Bass Professor" Doug Hannon? They look amazing, I love the action. Of course there's testimonials out the wazoo on his website and a plethora of Youtube videos, but do they REALLY work? Just wondering if anyone's ever had any experience with them. I may look into buyng a few, as there are lots of REAL snakes in my home lake.

Yeah, I hope so. Wet soil and 30-60mph winds aren't exactly a good mix lol. Hopefully we won't have much wind to contend with tomorrow, although I think it's still supposed to blow anywhere from 7-15mph. Oh well, gotta live with it. How're things up on the New River?

Tomorrow will be my first FULL day on the water, and I AM PUMPED! We're going fishing at Fairystone Lake (which is ranked #4 in the southside VA region out of 25 lakes/reseviors and ranked 19th out of all 108 fisheries in the entire state for Largemouth fishing) so we KNOW the fish are there lol. Question is, how should I approach these fish? The ice just melted just in the last 5-7 days, and the water temperature best guess right now is 34-39 degrees. Will ANYTHING catch these cold bass? I know my presentation will have to be slow. What do you think? Jigs? Spoons? Deep Cranks? Any advice on what to use and how to present it is greatly appreciated. I wanna outfish my buddy tomorrow, because he's not a member of these forums.

But those are the times for my Dr. Pepper and Moonpie Bob Dr. Pepper? Shoot, what happened to the RC Cola? Those are best with moonpies. It's a southern thing! haha. Anyway, to be back on topic, I've found that early in the year, the bite definitely starts later than usual, so post-noon sounds about right.

Wow, thanks for all the responses guys. I hadn't logged on in a few days to thank y'all. I'm hopefully going to invest in this "REAL" bass boat before I head up to SML. I've taken safety courses, so I think I'd be more comfortable on a bigger boat. Thanks again for your responses!

Hey fellas, my boats been kept in a garage since October and hasn't been touched. What do I need to do to be ready to get back on the water?

So, my first boat. I have 15' 1973 Lowe Stinger v-hull boat with a 35hp Mercury outboard and a Minn Kota trolling motor with 50lbs of thrust. The boat is carpeted and in great condition to be so old. I bought it from a family friend. He kept it in good shape. ANYWAY, onto the topic at hand. I fish on this boat in Philpott Lake. Philpott Reservoir is a 2,880-acre impoundment located near Martinsville Virginia. I WANT to fish it in Smith Mountain Lake, which is a 20,600-acre impoundment. It's one of the premier fisheries in the VA/NC area. I've heard lots of people tell me it'd be unsafe to take my small boat out on such a big lake. (Smith Mountain) Is this true? Because I'm looking at a 1988 Ranger bass boat with a 150hp re-built Johnson outboard. A guy is selling it on CraigsList for $3,900. Is it safe to take the boat I have now on such a big lake to fish with the big boys? Or do I need to invest in this Ranger? Thanks in advance for any input!

Don't really have one. My job is treating me good enough and I have some fishing stash. Right now, I have a Abu Garcia Revo SX with a 6'6" Conolan medium action rod. I definitely want to expand.

Thanks for the responses, guys. This really helps.

I'm going to list the things I want to buy, and in your own opinion, if you could only pick ONE of each item, tell me what you'd pick up. I'm a rookie, and I want to get serious this year. Thanks in advance, guys! This is a list of what I want to pick up for this season, tackle-wise (when I say I want multiple items, you don't have to list all of them, just give me your favorite(s): 5 crankbaits (at least 2 or 3 Lucky Crafts) 5 types of soft plastics 5 Topwater lures 5 Jig combinations 5 Spinnerbaits 5 Jerkbaits Thanks, fellas!

I'm going to list the things I want to buy, and in your own opinion, if you could only pick ONE of each item, tell me what you'd pick up. I'm a rookie, and I want to get serious this year. Thanks in advance, guys! This is a list of what I want to pick up for this season, equipment-wise: 2010 Baitcasting reel + 2-3 rods 2010 Spinning reel + 2 rods

Good luck with the STX! I bought an SX last year, because I prefer the smaller reel. It's amazing. Very easy to maintain and adjust the gears. It feels so good reeling bass in on it, too. I will be looking to get a new one for 2010...may choose to go with the STX so I can chase those hawgs. 8-)

An HOUR drive? Shoot, I drive down to Charlotte, NC (3 and a half hour drive) from home to go to Bass Pro Shops/Outdoor World at LEAST once a month. Can't help myself.

I've only used my waders to trout fish in. Never even thought of wearing them to bank fish. It'd definitely help ya get out in an open area to cast in and closer to the cover you're fishing. I'll have to give that a try next time the boat goes on the fritz...

I went out a bit earlier. 33 degrees with light snow and sleet. Dreadful. Guess I'll just wait til spring.

It was my first trip on my new boat. 2nd week of August '09. Right as the sun was climbing up over the treetops. I threw a Rapala Skitterpop in frog color under a tree hanging over the bank, and let it sit for a few seconds. I popped it two times and 'SPUH-LOOSH!' a hoss nailed it. The largemouth jumped outta the water 3 times as I got him towards the boat. As soon I was about to lift him into mouth-grabbing range to land him, he gave one final bone-jarring head snap and the hook ripped right through his lip, and all I got was a piece of his lip. Not as suspenseful as some of the other stories, but considering that my personal best fish was a 3lb 8oz largemouth when I was 13-years-old, and this fish was probably DOUBLE that (that thing was FAT!), it was a pretty big deal to me. Plus, I love catching fish off of topwater. Doesn't really "haunt" me per se...but yeah, I would have liked to have weighed that bad boy, just to get a DECENT personal best...

So far here in SoVA, we have exceeded our annual snowfall by 150% so far, with more wintry precip forecasted for Tuesday AND Saturday... How low have you sunk on your time off the water? Do you spend an unusual amount of time with your significant other? (Ya know, the time that's usually reserved for the bass.) Have you taken up a new hobby? I for one have been watching Bill Dance every day for the last week. (Thank you, myoutdoortv.com) I'm going crazy watching Bill pull those hogs outta the water. I've been playing 'Bass Pro Shops: The Strike' with my fishing controller for the Xbox 360 and practicing throwing my baitcaster under my back porch (much like flipping under a dock) and pulling out tons of backlashes. All I need is ONE day on the water to hold me for a couple weeks!

In cold, muddy water, go to the Lucky Craft Fat CB BDS3 in 'Mad Craw' and work it very slow around any shallow cover you can find. The bass are NOT gonna work for food at this point, so you gotta put it right in their kitchen and leave it there for as long as possible.

Thanks for the welcome, guys. I really like these forums so far. Looks like lots of knowledge around here!

I love a Rapala Skitter Pop around trees against the bank in the morning/evening. Daytime, usually a senko or other type of worms around submerged timber. I also like fishing spinnerbaits/crankbaits under docks.

I live near Martinsville near the NC border, and it's UNBELIEVABLE the snow we've had here this winter. Our average snowfall is around 12". and so far this year, this is what we've gotten: December 17-18: 14" January 29-30th: 12" February 5th-6th: 8" of snow, 1"of sleet/ice And another chance for a winter storm NEXT Friday! 2 Fridays in a row, and a Friday back in December...that's crazy. But hey, at least they're getting smaller! I'm ready to go fish!

Wow, what an amazing experience that would be. I've always dreamed of going fishing in the Everglades early in the year to catch those pretty dark green bass. Don't know how much I care for the gators though!

These looks pretty nifty. I may have to look into a couple of these, as they look pretty ideal for hard swimbaits. Thanks for the link. 8-)