RoLo

Over the course of a year, exposure to sun and wind are a wash between inside & outside bends. On the other hand, there are significant underwater differences between inside bends and outside bends. At a given bend in a stream, the outside turn has a greater diameter than the inside turn. Due to its greater diameter, the outside bend will have a higher flow rate than the inside bend. The water at the outside diameter not only flows faster, but strikes the outside bank at a stronger attack angle. Due to erosion over time, outside bends usually offer a steeper bottom slope and sometimes undercut banks. Inversely, the water at an inside bend not only flows slower, but it flows 'away' from the bank which sharply reduces erosion. As a result, inside turns are normally associated with slow tapering bottoms. The neutral current on the downstream side of an inside bend forms a back eddy where sediment is deposited as a delta (AKA point or bar). On balance, bass are more inclined to use slow-tapering inside bends during the 'warm months', and tend to use the steep sloping outside bends during the 'cold months'. Roger

Loosely speaking, 'any' defined ridge, hump or sunken island may be called a 'reef'. Just as there are natural and artificial lakes, there are also 'natural' and 'artificial' reefs. Natural reefs generally consist of shellbeds, coral, coquina or rock. The reason being, hard materials are slow to erode and hold a defined crest indefinitely. 'Manmade' reefs run the gamut of materials, which might include broken concrete from bridges & roads, railroad cars, scuttled boats, discarded tires, PVC piping, brush piles, Christmas trees, ad nauseam. Roger

I doubt that you missed anything, Nick. Based on pro and local tourneys, and reports from marina operators (e.g. Detweiler), spring activity has been sketchy so far. I'm sure the cows are on the verge, and will keep us company the next couple of months Roger

My freshwater vote would go to Lake Seminole on the Florida/Georgia border. On a low note though, Seminole is a looong drive, and I'm not sure about its bank fishing opportunity. Far more convenient would be 318-acre Hurricane Lake, about 35 fly miles north of Eglin Air Force Base. Earthen fingers provide bank fishing, while gas motors are forbidden which is an asset for shore anglers. Roger

That's a Hippo! Roger

Sounds plausible, but I'd be more inclined to do that with a 12-ft Minn Kota Talon (vertical piledriver vs cricket leg). Of course, dual Talons would nail her down. Roger

Butterfly calendar spread? Of course, there are many other 'options' Roger

A little late on the draw, but kudos to a fine day. Before moving to Lake Wales, we lived on Goldenrod Rd, Orlando. Oddly enough, we found Underhill to be among the best waters within easy striking distance. It was better than any of the Fab-5, and right up there with the Conway Chain. At that time at least, 'hydrilla' seemed to be key. Roger

INCREDIBLE! Now at least, I know what that loud 'Woofing' was in my backyard. Roger

Tom, you might try chucking a hollow frog or buzzbait during the 'Post-Spawn' period, it generally offers the best topwater bite of the year Roger

The choice between a popper and a buzzbait hinges mainly on the current disposition of bass. If I believe the bass are active, then I'd opt for the area coverage of a buzzbait. If I want the lure to linger in the strike zone, then a popper gets the nod. In short, the bass make that decision. Roger

I'm always happy when a bass sees my line, then I know for sure it sees my lure. Roger

'Play' is the correct descriptor. Yes, they are highly visible, but No, they are not highly catchable. Roger

Those who didn't cover their shorts, are wearing shorts that need to be covered

When we lived in Rico, Georgia (border of Fulton & Cowetta counties) I mainly targeted Lake Lanier (to the north) & West Point Lake (to the south). From a kayak or from the bank, I would probe Georgia's myriad of farm ponds. Georgia has many pay-ponds that are slap-full of bass, and for a very small fee you'll have legal access to great bank fishing. Roger

A severe drawdown provides 2 great opportunities: 1) By reducing the volume of water, it artificially bolsters 'population density' (temporary situation) 2) More importantly, it gives you the rare opportunity to scrutinize the lake's bottom contour & cover (good forever). Water is the obstacle that separates the fish from the fisherman, so when the water is taken away, jump on the opportunity to blow away down-scanning and side-imaging. Take your Handheld GPS device and physically walk off the lake floor to scrutinize the bottom terrain. Create an on-site waypoint at the sharpest breaks, steepest crests, deepest ruts, largest boulders or any outstanding holding feature. It's a unique opportunity to obtain precision, dynamite waypoints that'll last a lifetime. Roger

Smart Man + Smart Woman = ROMANCE Smart Man + Dumb Woman = AFFAIR Dumb Man + Dumb Woman = PREGNANCY Dumb Man + Smart Woman = MARRIAGE --------------------------------------------------------------- > A woman worries about the future, until she has a husband > A man never worries about the future, until he has a wife > A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend > A successful woman is one who finds that man ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ > A man will pay $20 for a $10 item he needs > A woman will pay $10 for a $20 item she doesn't need -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Roger

A remote control that disables airboats at 500 yards. Roger

Nice contribution Mike! I've seen this website before, but unless I'm missing something though I don't think it provides Lat/Lon coordinates. I realize that's asking too much from a free website, but it prevents you from creating predefined waypoints. Though it takes more effort, there's more than one way to skin a cat. Key trial sites can alternatively be fixed using ranges & triangulation off chart features in combination with a bearing compass (What I've done for years). If you go with commercial cartography, I'd take a close look at the Navionics+ SD card. It allows the user to select any USA quadrangulars of his choosing up to 2 gigabytes, and includes free bathymetric updates for one-year (nautical, sonar & community edits). Roger

The process of elimination begins at home by studying a contour map There's no reason to be intimidated by size; the bigger the lake, the more area to be quickly eliminated. As for alligators, they only target sissies Roger

How about 'monel'?

Bass prefer DO levels of 5 ppm or more, that's always been the accepted benchmark (mg/L = parts per million). The old timers will recall when we went through an era during the 1970s, when every devout angler would tote an oxygen meter to the lake. That in fact was overkill, and the oxygen meter craze eventually fizzled out. Below 3 ppm dissolved oxygen, bass do become stressed and will relocate if possible. Dissolved oxygen levels below 2 mg/L are deemed lethal, and generally result in a fishkill Roger

The 'original' Fireline is a fused line, this is a direct quote from In-Fisherman> "FireLine was introduced in 1996. It’s not a braid (weave), rather a linear bundle of polyethylene micro Dyneema fibers that are thermally fused—thus the first fused “superline.” <unquote> A couple years later, Berkley introduced true braided line that they unwittingly named "Fireline Braid". That proved to be a big mistake, because anglers to this day confuse Fireline Braid with Original Fused Fireline. Then about a year ago, Berkley upgraded their braid to 8-strand braid. They took that opportunity to end the confusion by dropping the name "Fireline" from their braided lines, and replacing it with "Trilene". Today, Berkley Fireline is only available as a fused line, the way it started out in 1996. In turn, all Berkley braided line is now in the "Trilene" family of lines. Roger

It seems that gas in Lake Wales, Florida is still in a downtrend. I topped her off today, and the price matched the thread's name: $1.99 Roger

Like any lure, the hollow frog can be chucked all year long, but they're at their best in 'warm water'. I normally begin frogging in the post-spawn (that's the best period) thru the summer into mid-fall. Seasons aside, whenever you hear bass breaking water, it's time to pitch a frog Roger