Bluebasser86

My first smallie was about half that size, and I was still really proud to have caught him.

I've had lots of very good days fishing but a couple of them really stand out. First was a day several years ago that I caught a 5 fish limit in Kansas that weighed 30lbs 2ozs. My smallest fish was a 5lb 1oz fish, biggest was a 7lb 2oz bass. All of them were on a day in February that never got above 40 degrees and all of them were on a swimbait. Along with those bass were probably 50 or more wipers up to 8lbs 2ozs. I can't really remember being tired from catching so many fish like that. Unfortunately it happened before I carried a camera all the time so I have no pictures of the fish, just a picture of a very well worn Strike King King Shad, all the marks are from that one day as it was brand new when I got to the lake that morning. Second was a day fishing with my dad that we caught well over 100 fish. A combination of all 3 bass, wipers, white bass, catfish, crappie, and walleye. We were walleye fishing with jerkbaits and it was some of the nicest weather I can remember fishing in and it just seemed like everything wanted to eat our baits. It was just that much more special that I got to share it with my dad. We also managed to catch our 10 keeper walleye over 18", something I'll probably never manage to do again in Kansas since our walleye populations aren't that great.

I pour outside, best ventilation I've found Be ready to answer some questions if you have any neighbors nearby

I like to C-rig Zman baits so they float off the bottom. Of course if I'm fishing a C-rig then everything else has failed so I'm far from a C-rig expert.

Got one, going to get a couple more before I can get back to fishing again. Nice to be able to get a bait with a regular bill down further and the bigger size really appeals to big fish.

That will work also. A sapphire blue jig and trailer is a good color in stained water that doesn't get fished very often also. Sapphire blue with a purple trailer is another good one.

My mom has a picture of me sitting on a sandbar holding a fishing pole in my diaper a week before my first birthday, so he'll be starting early for sure!

I have the new version of the super magnum. It's a really nice bag with lots of pockets and room for gear. My boat doesn't have much storage space and this bag holds most of my hard baits and jigs and some of my soft plastics very well. It's really heavy when it's loaded up but I don't carry it anywhere so it's not an issue for me.

Brush jig without question. 1/4-1/2 ounce in some craw colors, green pumpkin, and black or black and blue.

Shad colors are good in clear water and chartreuse is good in stained to dirty water. I've also had good success with red early in the year and in dirty water. Rapala has a color in the Ike series of the DT's that looks a lot like a green pumpkin/dark watermelon colored craw.

Pretty much any lure building supplier will carry rattles. You can get them at a lot of tackle companies too

I fish a black jig with a sapphire blue trailer a lot. I would consider it a black and blue jig but most situations that a black and blue jig work in you just need a dark colored jig so having blue in the skirt or not probably won't matter.

I go fishing! Power plant lakes are a lifesaver during the winter. I spend a lot of time building lures and changing out hooks that need changed and cleaning reels.

A 7.76 pounder was my biggest largemouth of the year, it ate a Spro Fat John My biggest smallmouth was a 4 pounder that slammed a 5" Bull Shad.

None of those KS lakes should be on the list. My 2 favorite KS lakes aren't on the list, but they shouldn't be on there either.

Tiger salamanders are about the only one we have around here that eat bass eggs. Terrestrial lizards don't do well in the water but if one happens to fall in I'm sure a bass would be more than willing to eat it, but they aren't going to dive down to eat bass eggs.

La Cygne will beat you more times than it will produce for you in the winter, just the way it is. I still have days like that after fishing it a lot for several years. It's still a pretty good lake in the spring but it gets really hot in the summer time. You can still catch fish but the water temps get into the high 90's on the main lake at times so fish aren't real interested in eating a lot of the time.

Our Christmas Eve picture with the little guy, he's doing great now URL=http://s1136.photobucket.com/user/bluebasser86/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps7715b2b2.jpg.html]

t will be packed so be prepared for that. Shad colored jerkbaits, traps, squarebills, and swimbaits around the rocky banks towards the north end of the lake and around the outlet. If all else fails I like a shakyhead with a dark colored trick worm or stick worm in the same areas. A hula grub can be good too. I look for areas with larger shad. Launch at the main ramp in the marina, it's $2 a day to launch.

I got some really nice aluminum P-line pliers with titanium cutters, a rod slick, a Buck folding knife, a couple gift cards to BPS and Academy, and some new fishing shirts. Of course none of it beats getting to bring our son home on Christmas Eve!

I drag big worms most of the time while I hop smaller worms.

Maybe a dark perch color might be good. Black is always a solid choice in dark water.

BPS 100mph suit, White River fingerless fleece gloves (a few pairs so I can change them if they get wet), Redhead wool socks, BPS heavy weight thermals, Redhead baklava, and Muck Ranger boots. I wear this gear in single digit weather, snow, cold rain, and wind and it's done great keeping me warm.

People eat them around here, they cook them just like common carp. Not sure if they're supposed to taste good or not.

We finally got to bring him home! We didn't know until about 10am and we were out of the hospital by 3.