Bluebasser86

Just got back from Texas this morning. The Bassmaster Kayak Classic was an adventure but the week leading up to it was pure awesomeness. I caught several bass over 5, 3 over 6, 2 over 7, 2 over 8, and one nearly 10 pounds, my second largest bass ever. Of course, I never lost a big fish all week, until tournament day, then I lost 2, but that's fishing. I'm proud with my efforts and how I did on a notoriously tough lake with no previous experience. I finished above some of the biggest names in the sport, so I did okay in my book. I'll get to writing up a recap and posting pictures and videos as I have time, but here's a little sample for now.

Thanks everyone for the kind words and encouragement. I didn’t have the day I hoped for but considering the reputation Fork has for being difficult, and the fact that I’d never even seen the lake before, I’m not disappointed with it. Last I saw when Steve posted the standings at 6pm, I was in 50th out of 145 anglers. I caught that 7 pounder with just 1.5 hours left after a few hours of no bites. I lost one big one in the grass mid day when it buried up and just came off. Then with 45 minutes left, I hooked what may have been my biggest of the day on a weightless Senko and 8lb test. I had just caught a small out of a tree and I made a rookie mistake and didn’t check my line. When she dove under the kayak, my line broke. It was a huge high thinking I was about to catch another 20+ inch fish and cull 7+ inches, to watching that chance flapping in the wind and questioning why I didn’t check my line after that little fish had me in the tree, even it was only momentarily. I had the bites to be in the mid 90’s, but just didn’t capitalize. I wouldn’t have even been in the money with that total though, it took over 110” for first place, 100” didn’t even make top ten. Fix a couple mistakes and get 1 more big bite, and the guy from Kansas is right there in the mix and I’m pretty proud of that. It’s going to be a great video and the day before when I caught 108.25” and over 35lbs for my biggest 5 and nearly broke my PB is going to really be an amazing video 😎

I'm hoping I'm saving up to catch a DD at Fork next week.

I don't have any, but they look like a compact style spinnerbait from the ones I've seen. I built a couple similar and did alright. I usually stick to Nichols, War Eagle, and Booyah.

Went out Sunday hoping to find some big prespawners with the warming trend. If I'd put every bass I caught together, I could have made a good 5 fish limit, problem was, I caught 52 of them. 52 bass, and the biggest was 13", smallest was 9.25". I don't know how I caught that many fish and not a single one was any bigger, but I sure did. I did manage to Ned rig a limit of trout, including a nice 20.5" fish, and this really fat 18" rainbow. This was my last trip locally. I'll be headed to Texas Friday.

Thieves don't care if it's your equipment to make a living, if it's your family heirloom, rent money, anything but themselves.

I really liked the jig box for my bladed jigs. The only other ones I still use are a couple of the deep boxes that are for plastic storage in the original packages. The latches on the deep boxes don't want to stay latched well though. Durability has been great and I haven't had any issues with rust. My biggest complaints are the weight and the reduced storage space in similar sized boxes. I also had an issue with the one box that I had my jerkbaits in. The clear lids almost seemed to work as an oven and I lost over a dozen jerkbaits, Megabass, Lucky Craft, and Duo Realis mostly. I stopped using that box and haven't had any other issues.

My PB was on an 8" Zoom Lizard, but I really don't believe that a lizard profile vs a brush hog or baby brush hog is so significant that they're worth carrying. The only time I really still use a lizard is on a C-rig because the flat bottom of the bait glides a little better than a creature bait. Maybe in really clear water it might make a difference, but we don't have any of that here.

I've never seen one here, but people claim to see them all the time. I did see a large cat track in the loose soil next to a tree line that a buddy and I had just walked for quail once, they weren't there when we walked it the first time. I laid a 3" shotgun shell next to the track and it was wider than the shell, so I assume it wasn't a bobcat. My friends uncle owned the land and said he'd seen a lion a few times. We have lots of bobcats, use to get them on my trail camera occasionally at our old house.

Went a little further south on Sunday to a small, cold water lake, another one of my usual winter lakes. It's very shallow with fairly clear water and lots of grass, which seems to be key for a good winter bite. I caught a couple off the dam on a crankbait, but it was obvious that the grass was obvious starting to grow. I was hoping that was going to be a good thing, but it was not. The bite was very sporadic, with long lulls in between bites and then a few spots that were loaded up with fish. I was hoping the flatsided crank and bladed jig would be working good, but they accounted for a total of 4 fish combined. So basically, Ned ruled the day. The fish were mostly small, but a couple were better sized fish. I decided to give the Seaguar Pounce leader a real test, so I didn't retie all day. I caught 2 fish on a flatside, 2 on a bladed jig, 2 on a Money Badger, 1 on a Texas Rig, and 34 on my Ned rig with 8lb Pounce leader, without retying or breaking off once. I do swim my Ned a lot on this lake with the abundance of grass, but still the abrasion of the bass' teeth will wear through a leader that size after a while also. My biggest bass of the day was also in the end of a tree and rubbed on the limbs, and it still held up. Then right as I was paddling up to the bank to end the day, I found a $20 bill floating right next to the shoreline.

Giving you listed your located in Florida, I’d say a wacky or Texas Rigged stick worm would be a good place to start. A weighted Texas rig with some kind of plastic is a little more difficult but it’s worth learning given how much vegetation you’ll likely be dealing with. A bladed jig is another good option that is easy to use and should work well in your area.

I missed the state record here by less than a pound and fish the lake the fish swims in often. The chances are slim, but it could happen.

I’m a huge believer in this after fishing through many Midwest winters. I catch fish on flat sides in 40-42 degree water all the time when I use to believe I had to fish something super slow. The fish may not move much in cold water, but if they decide to eat something they’re more than capable of catching something moving at a fairly quick pace.

Amazon chasing big peacock bass and giant piraiba and redtail catfish. I hope to do it some day but don't know if I'll ever make it there. Second would be chasing a giant shark for shore. A huge hammerhead, tiger, or bull shark, something so big that I couldn't tell who had who for a good portion of the fight. That would be a rush like no other.

I have an OldTown120 PDL and before I bought that I had a paddle yak. I was ready to quit kayak fishing when I had my paddle yak, it’s so difficult to control a paddle kayak and fish at the same time. Now I have the peddles and a motor on the bow and I’ve been fishing kayak tournaments for 5 years and going to the Kayak Classic for the second year in a row. It’s night and day difference when your hands are free.

I don’t use a lot of other baits except for the 10,000 Fish Sukoshi Bug and the Biospawn ExoNed.

In my experience there isn’t a big difference between the two and the Zman isn’t always a real durable option. I’ve had some of the heads split like an overcooked hotdog and make them useless.

Only while I'm on the way to my next spot.

I haven't fished with all of them, but just looking at them, the J hook is a wider gap than the all purpose hook. The 4x is going to be a thicker wire, so if you're fishing straight braid, it's going to be a better option and less likely to bend than the standard Jungle hook.

I really have liked those things also. I don't know if it's the profile being a little different or what, but the fish really eat them well here despite seeing a ton of Ned rigs. A Ned would have to have been my bait of '24 also. Both of the bigger tournaments I won, on a Ned. A lot of my bigger fish, including my biggest of the year, on a Ned. A lot of my tournament fish that resulted in another AOY, caught on a Ned. Wasn't quite '24 but now my biggest fish I've ever caught of any kind, on a Ned.

Ned Suspending Jerkbait Lipless Flatside Crank Pick your poison-spinnerbait, bladed jig, or A-rig depending on the situation. Spinnerbait for shallow, dirty water with wood. Bladed jig for shallow water with grass or rocks. A-rig for deeper water with fair to good clarity.

I’ll keep them in mind. The Hot Hands things are pretty worthless. I get them all the time for gifts and they don’t really work. I’m hoping we’re past the worst of it though. Our coldest day the next 10 days is 58*. I’m going to try to catch a fish on a frog next weekend 😅

I'm not sure the ages of the fish, but I know they grow exceptionally fast, but they don't seem to get very long, or maybe they don't live very long because of the fast growth. Kansas does electrofishing samples and post it online. I always enjoy looking through it to see how the lakes are looking. It's not a perfect sampling of the lakes, since they can only sample so much of a body of water, but this lake is without fail, the best big fish option in the state. They have a "Lunker", portion of sample, the number of fish over 20" sampled per 30 minutes or hour. This lake was 1.8, the next closest reservoir in the state was .89, with the biggest fish it produced being a 7.91lb giant, next closest was over a pound smaller. I do get cold at times, but I've got a lot of money tied into my gear to keep me warm. My hands, specifically my fingers, are mainly what get cold. The new gloves I just got from Bassmooch really seem to do a good job keeping them warm with a hybrid full/half finger design. On the really cold days, I just fish through the pain until the burning stops, then I'm good.

Rage Menace Pitboss Chatterspike 3.8 or 4.8 fat impact 2/3 of a 5" stick worm

Sapphire blue Plum or Plum Apple I use a variety of non-traditional colors on my Ned rigs. Some of my favorites are Hot Snakes, Hot Craw, and White Lightning.