Bluebasser86

Dad and I fished Wabaunsee today. Water was very low and it started really slow after the cold weather and all the rain. I caught a decent smallmouth on a jerkbait early on that was 2 1/2lbs. Caught fish fairly well along the dam but just little ones. Got to the deeper bank by the dam on the west side and got a good one on a homemade brush jig. First keeper was 3.90 pounds. Hit a very long dry spell with just a couple fish here and there and a lost one in the 4-5 pound range. After fishing all the deeper banks, I was really surprised when we started getting bit better when we got to the shallow, flat banks with docks. I was dragging the same homemade brush jig when it felt like it just disappeared. Crank like crazy and stuck a heavy fish. Wasn't sure it was a bass for quite awhile until I saw it. 21" long, super thick, and 5.33 pounds. All down the east arm with the deeper banks it was steady but nothing big, did miss a couple really hard hits though. Very back of that arm the water temp was 63.4 and I thought there had to be a good fish back there. Picked up a spinning rod with a Strike King Ocho and found her, 4.73lbs. Fished around the concrete swim beach wall and back into the pocket by the ramp and got one last good one on the same homemade brush jig, 3.88lbs.

1/16th ounce shakyhead with a 5" stickworm is a killer for me. 1/8oz is one of my go to sizes.

I bought 1 spool of Yo-Zuri for my shakyhead rod. Line felt rough, was very thick for the lb test I bought, and the memory was terrible. I tried to use it but couldn't stand it anymore after 30 minutes. Took it off and threw it away when I got home and went back to what I was using. I'm sure I just got a bad spool but I wouldn't buy another after that experience.

I just have a cheapo Cabela's fly combo (7 wt) and it has served me well for the little flyfishing I do for bass. It's a blast and every time I do it I swear I'll start doing it more but I never do.

Only 2 piece rods I own anymore are my surfcasting rods I use for catfishing on the river. Nothing wrong with a 2 piece rod, just no need for one.

Gold has been great to me on sunny days in dirty water or cloudy days in clear water.

100% worth it, even more so if you start getting into their jerkbaits. I need to just save this next part so I don't have to go through it every time, but here we go. I'm assuming you probably fish soft plastics occasionally, correct? So lets say the plastics you're using are $5 for 10, pretty average price. If you fish very much at all it's very easy to go through 4 bags of those baits a year, or $20. Now you have to buy 4 more next year and when the bait monkey climbs on your back those 4 bags turn into 10, which turns into 20, then 50. Meanwhile, that handful of Lucky Crafts you bought that ran you 15-20 dollars each will continue to be effective and catch fish, year after year (provided you don't lose or break them). I have Pointers that have almost no paint left on them and have endured multiple hook changes and caught hundreds and probably thousands of fish, all on the same bait. If you broke it down to a cost per fish ratio, those fish are costing me pennies versus $.50 apiece since a lot of plastics are done after 1 or 2 fish anymore. Not saying there aren't cheaper options that work because there are and I use lots of them. They are very effective baits that have proven themselves to me and many others to be good quality baits and great fish catchers and for that reason I feel they're very much worth the price.

The 3 or 4 inch bluegill versions are killers in ponds. A slow, steady retrieve is how I normally use them but stroking them works well also.

Zoom Ol' Monster and Netbait C Macs are where it's at!

Any of those fish from Hazel? They look super healthy like the bass from there do and the picture with all the stickups makes me think even more that they might be from there. Great fish no matter where they came from though!

10-20mph? how do you survive? We get winds that low around here then it's a good day. One of the best days I've ever had in the spring it was blowing straight 30-35 and gusting 40+. We pounding them with spinnerbaits, traps, and jigs and my best 5 were over 20 pounds.

Whenever that stuff gets bad I know it's time to break out the floating worms and wacky rigged stickbaits It isn't as bad as cottonwood seed though, at least it doesn't clog up your guides and stick to your line so you have to pick it off every cast.

I'll go to something similar and keep catching. I change it up on those days they're eating real well because I always feel like they could be biting better on something else.

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I'm fishing my shakyheads on a 6' 10" LTB "shakyhead" spinning rod with a 2500 Stradic C14. I've always used 8-10lb fluoro for shakyheads and I fish shakyheads a lot, but I keep hearing guys talking about how much they love braid for shakyheads so I thought I'd give it a try. I love how solid the hooksets are but even when I'm keeping the line pretty tight I can't feel anything unless I'm using a heavy head, the bait is starting to snag, or there's a fish on my bait. I believe I may just need to drop down in size and go with a higher end braid to give it a true test. I think one of the biggest challenges is going to be the wind. It's always blowing in the midwest and it can cause serious problems with the line bowing.

I've noticed that braid seems to be popular for shakyheads anymore. I bought some cheaper Spiderwire and tried it and hated everything about it except how solid the hooksets were. I think my issues with sensitivity might just be the line I chose. I can't feel anything until I'm starting to hang on a rock or a fish already has my bait right now. So what braids are working for those of you using it for shakyheads? That is what I'll be doing with it 100% of the time as it's going on my dedicated shakyhead rod.

They're one of my favorite jerkbaits. French Pearl is a smallmouth killer around here.

The hooks on the original chatterbaits aren't very good, I'd hit the hook with a sharpener and see if that helps.

I honestly don't think color matters much with the slammers, it's all about the action with them. Personally, I have the most confidence in the hitch and black beauty but I have a 9" golden shiner on the way that should be here Tuesday so we'll see how that goes! I know guys that have baby bass, bluegill, and trout and all of the them catch fish. I'd really like to have a white one but they're always sold out

I normally use 20lb Fluoro when I pitching heavy wood cover and if it's really bad I'll go to 25lb fluoro or 65lb braid.

Nice fish! I wouldn't be shy at all about tossing an 8" Hudd with fish like that around! My first fish on an 8" was about half that size

Brush jig or a T-rigged plastic bait, just make sure you bring the right line and rod to haul them out once you get a bite.

I get a lot of grumbling from guys when they see me turn a keeper crappie, walleye, or catfish loose sometimes. I'll fish for anything that bites, although I mainly target bass. I grew up catfishing and still love doing that today except I mainly target big blues and flatheads instead of channel cats. Winter time is white bass and wiper time on the power plant lakes. Crappie and bluegills are fun when they're big and biting well. I catch drum everywhere I go and have even been known to sight fish them when the bites slow. Sight fishing for big longnose gar is a good time. I used to fish for carp a few times a year also, not many fish can match them for speed and power in freshwater.

Stay safe, hurry home, and thank you for your service man! If it wasn't for folks like you, we couldn't enjoy this sport we all love so much.

1/2oz brush jig in Texas Craw. If they'd eat that bait well every day I was on the water I wouldn't fish much else.

Of all the places I can think of to go to for breaking a dry spell, La Cygne is certainly not on that list