Owasco

Thanks for all the replies. This is something I'm going to slowly look into.

I'm interested in trying a few hard body swim-baits. It is a lure that I have never been introduced to so I really have no idea what to look for or how to fish them. They just look absolutely delicious. So what advice can you give me? Brand? Style? Retrieve? I'm sure some are better than others and I've seen ridiculous prices on some up to $115.00. Does money really talk? Can you grab some for a reasonable price or should I just spend a couple hundred on 3 or 4? Do they perform as well as other bass baits like soft plastics or spinners? Thanks for the help, Marc

As a general rule I will not keep bass. I have no problem with someone that does provided that they stay withing the legal limits. And I hate to see someone keep a real monster bass. My brother in law honestly believes that by taking the big bass out he is helping the smaller ones grow up to be big. He still keeps almost anything he catches. He drives me crazy. He just hears something that justifies what he likes and runs with it. Don't get me wrong, I do love the taste of a fresh fish but I will mostly stick to a nice sized yellow perch or legal Walleye. There is just no need to keep a LM when he'll be bigger next time he bites my hook. I want a record d**n it!

Thanks for all the responses. There are some GREAT stories out there.

That makes two of us. That would have been funny if I landed him without being hooked, just simply hanging on.

The thing that I thought was the most surprising was the sheer size of the bass he was eating. I've heard of bass eating things that are up to 1/2 of its size but this was incredible. The LM on my hook was a good 12 inches and a healthy 1-1.5 lbs. Thats not exactly small like bait. Thats a possible tournament keeper.

Silly cannibals they are.

So I was doing some shore fishing yesterday at a local county owned lake. The day before I picked up a new spinner-bait Black bleeder with a single large gold Colorado blade. When I fish this small lake I like to stand on a stump about 4 feet above the water (allows me to cast various degrees covering alot of water as well as see subsurface). Anyway, on my first cast I got a hit. Set the hook and fought for a bit. I could see the fish as he just about broke the surface. He was a monster. Definitely the biggest bass I have ever seen, let alone hooked up to. Easily 2 feet as crazy as that might sound. My heart was racing. I climbed down from my perch on the stump to land him easier. As I was fighting with him all of a sudden the line got immensely lighter. I thought, "d**n, I lost him". :'( Then I realized that I still had a fish. The fish started skiing right toward me(I had to tighten up my drag as I was fighting a lunker). When I landed him, he was a solid 12 inches, maybe weighed a little over 1 pound. At first I was disappointed but when I looked a little closer at the fish I noticed he was all scratched and scarred up from just behind his gills all the way down his tail on both sides. I think what happened was I hooked into a LM that was being eaten by a lunker LM, and I won the fight. I have never experienced anything like that in all my life. I wish someone was there with me to have seen it. Now I know there are monsters in the lake willing to eat big bait. I'm going to get the canoe out there next time as the lake is only about 20 acres. Anyone ever experience anything like this before?

Understanding that Walleye will bite some crank baits and slow spinner-crawling rigs (for lack of better word), are there any bass-specific lures that Walleye go nuts for? Carolina rigged soft plastics for example? I was also wondering about a shakey head worm presentation. I would think they would be attracted to that, but I just don't know. Any of you guys that fish walleye ever have any luck with your Bass tackle? Marc

Do you ever fish the canals down there? I've heard the fishing there is phenomenal. I have been thinking about buying a place in Lehigh Acres mainly because of the home prices and the surplus of homes for sale. How do you like the area? Has the BP Oil Crisis affected the area much? Marc

Thank you for your response. It suits my area to some extent. There are not many major highways to speak of near the water that I will be fishing tomorrow, but I will hold onto the idea for future reference. I will most certainly target areas where creeks are rapidly pushing new forage into the lake. Thanks Again, Marc

I am planning on fishing tomorrow afternoon and evening and unfortunately (or fortunately?) we in upstate NY are preparing for heavy rain with possible flood conditions. I am sure there are ways to fish these conditions with success, I just don't know what they are (Thank God for BassResource). I love fishing in wet conditions. A light drizzle does wonders for my success, but do any of you look forward to fishing in the very heavy stuff? I'll be mostly fishing small water so I don't have to worry too much about the wind. Any ideas are appreciated. Marc

By Rockfish, are you referring to Striped Bass? I would love to catch them with regularity.

Use a Palomar with a long tag end then run the tag end back down through the eye of the hook. Pull it tight and the hook should stick straight out horizontally. Tie a drop shot sinker on the end at the desired length and cut the tag. The palomar works perfectly to keep the hook sticking out from the line rather than just hanging from it.

Hmm. I might have to pick this up. I currently use a non-digital scale. I think it is very accurate, but a digital would be nice.

ever ice fish there? you will slam the perch, there is just so many in there Not yet. But I plan on it this year. My bro-in-law has a camper on the lake about 2 minutes away so I'll get to this year. I've heard of people actually catching their limit (50/day) up there. Where in the lake do you go to catch the perch? Near the island or just anywhere?

1) Smokin Rooster 2) Space Monkey Just felt like performing CPR on a thread. ;D

You can try behind Crowley on Conklin Avenue in Binghamton for Walleye. Anywhere between Harpursville and Kirkwood (some PA fishing in there) is usually good for smallies, muskies, walleye and a few others. Just have to find the deeper holes and slow moving pools. Try hitting behind breaks in the current. Also try anywhere there is a dam. There are a few in Binghamton and Johnson City.

I have always fished for fun. It has been a way for me to get away and enjoy my time on the water or in nature. For me it is peaceful and a way for me to step outside of the rigors of everyday life. My job can be extremely stressful at times (Financial Markets). Anyway, as I have become a better fisherman I have been thinking about how I might fare in a bass tournament. I have no idea as to where to go to get started or who I should speak to either. I live in Upstate NY and would imagine there would be some tourneys on one of the finger lakes or Oneida lake or possibly Sandy Pond, even on Lake Ontario. I would prefer not to have to travel too far for my first trip. I would love to get in one this fall. Can any of you give me any advice as to who I should speak to about this or what the typical entry fee is? Thank you for all your input. Marc

Wow that is terrible. I am wondering how that fish got all the way up on that rock. Almost looks like the water was at a higher level before. Either that or the fish jumped out of the water. Crazy!

My Brother-in-law (AKA: Fishing buddy #2) was using a hot pink POP-R over the weekend and was just killing Large-mouths in both a a small local pond and then again on Sandy Pond on the east coast of Lake Ontario. He was hesitant to use it at first because it was his wife's and she bought it because it was a "pretty" color. He eventually lost the lure because he refuses to use more than 8# test and casted it into a tree limb Now he is adamantly trying to find another hot pink POP-R. I tried to explain that color usually doesn't matter when it comes to top water but he insists. I guess that is where his confidence is right now, so I guess for him hot pink POP-R's are the best.

Thanks for all the advice. I picked up a booyah chatterbsit tonight at my local dick's sportinggoods for 3.99. It is whit with a few strands of chartreuse. Came with a couple of split tail trailers. I'll give it a try this weekend. I'm assuming I would just slows roll them back toward the boat or burn them back. Anyway, I do appreciate the advice and I look forward to tomorrow hitting the water. We'll be targeting bass mainly but at night we may try jigging for a few walleye. Need a nice shore lunch and walleye fit that bill.

Fair Enough. Can you recommend another?

I've never used a chatter-bait before and I would like to pick a versatile one. Any recommendations as to what I should pick up? Tomorrow morning I leave on a fishing trip to Black Lake in upstate NY near the Canadian border. Is there a particular color or brand that I should use. I'm thinking maybe a black or a white. Any guidance is greatly appreciated. Marc

I use the BPS XPS Stalker Bag. I do alot of shore fishing and it is perfect since it is designed to be carried on your back as well. Holds almost anything too.