RoLo

Exactly Any bass that's threatened by a thin filament in the water is exhibiting poor survival skills. We had a little pond in Georgia that I stocked with wild bass we caught. Occasionally I'd buy a bag of minnows just to have some fun. I'd set the minnow bag on the edge of the pond, and those bass would crash the bag before I got a chance to open it. One bass actually drew blood from my hand (bass are not scaredy cats) Roger

Keep them in their original packaging and they'll still be there when you're pushing daisies. Roger

Yeah you have, and you've heard of LBH too More seriously, we really enjoyed your smallmouth bass episode Roger

I always tie braided line directly to my lure, even in gin clear water (crazy ole fool) If you suspect that micro-thin braid is destroying your bass-catching experience, leave the braid alone, but remove the weedguard, rattlebox and all the hooks....that should get you back in the game Roger

When the Power Pole was first introduced, I knew that eventually I had to get one. But I dragged my feet because I wasn't happy with the price nor the cricket-leg appearance. Then Minn Kota launched the Talon, a vertical pile-driver, and I promptly jumped on the bandwagon. In water up to 8 ft deep I deploy the Minn Kota Talon, and in water greater than 8 ft deep I deploy the Minn Kota Spot Lock, which is a GPS feature on their electric motor. I was thinking about getting two Talons to fix the location of the boat, but I really don't want more stern clutter. Instead, I position the boat by putting the transducer on my spot with the bow pointed downwind, so in effect the Talon serves as a flagstaff. Roger

I agree with Scott, and would add one other thing. After using braided line for some time, I spooled a reel completely with Tatsu fluorocarbon. I was already spoiled by braid and accustomed to short solid hook-sets. But fishing with 20 yards of tatsu fluoro on the water felt like fishing with a bungee cord. During a hook-set, I actually found myself taking a step backward to eat up some line-stretch and shorten the backstroke. With braided line I do just the opposite (braided polyethylene not braided nylon, braided dacron or braided kevlar), With braid, I'll intentionally leave a little slop in the line to provide a little explosion point, like cracking a whip. To use the standard analogy: it's easier to drive a nail by backing the hammer off the nail, rather than pushing the hammer against the nail In any case, we don't have this luxury with monofilament line, because if we don't lower the rod to the water and crank out every millimeter of slack line, the backstroke will probably end-up well behind the head. Roger

In 2004, Lake Wales, Florida was the epicenter of Hurricane Charley, Hurricane Frances & Hurricane Jeanne (Oddly, we hadn't had one hurricane since). The Hurricane Trio of 2004 literally denuded central Florida of all hydrilla beds. Hydrilla beds were rolled up in huge balls and torn out by their root systems. This was a godsend for the Florida Wildlife Commission, because it put them well ahead of the curve on weed control. Sadly, they've continued to exploit their unearned gift to this day, and 10 years later, the hydrilla in Lake Walk-in-Water has never returned. One day I found some new hydrilla sprigs, and took my buddy Larry to my secret honey-hole. When I got on my numbers though, the hydrilla was gone, it was already eradicated by the FWC. What Larry said that day still echoes in my mind: "Hey Rog, ya got anymore good spots like this?". More often than not, the Best management is No management. Roger

Danny was a young boy living in the hills of West Virginia. Dan's father built an outhouse on a backyard ledge so the sewage would drain into a big ravine. Feeling bored and mischievous one day, Danny started to rock the rickety outhouse, but got carried away and the outhouse tumbled into the gully below. The following day Danny was confronted by one angry father: "Son, did you push the outhouse into the ravine?", Danny answered, "Yes father, I did". With that, Danny received the most violent whooping of his life. Still sobbing, Danny said to his father: "George Washington chopped down the family cherry tree, but because George was honest and admitted his guilt, his father didn't punish him" Danny's father replied: "Yes.. but was George's father IN-THE-TREE, when his son chopped it down?" Roger

What's a "Guide"? It's YOUR knowledge...Use it when YOU need it. The next time you & your buddy head to the Big-G, lose the guide but remember the Knob Creek Roger

Bluebasser nailed it I used Frog Toggs for a few seasons and found them lightweight, tough, waterproof and cheap. I might still be using them today, but I removed the jacket one day after a rain, and it blew out of the boat somewhere. Anyone need a pair of Frog Togg pants Cabelas Guidewear is another excellent rainsuit, but will set you back considerably more Roger

Where treble hooks are involved, you can get the necessary cushion from your line, your rod or your reel drag (any one will do). We throw cranks with med hvy rods and braided line, but the reel drag is not locked down. If she's a lunker, I'm not averse to backing-off on the drag as she nears the boat. Regardless of the line material, big bass are most often lost on a short line during a boatside lunge. Roger

Even though braid has inordinately high tensile strength, it's extremely thin line. The line-belly in fishing line underwater (between water surface & lure) is mainly the result of line diameter, not the result of line buoyancy. Braid slices nicely through water, but fluorocarbon at twice the diameter generates about twice the water resistance, in turn causes a great deal of 'line-ballooning'. As an example, Ambrose Light in NY Harbor sits in 100 ft of water. Drifting with 20-lb tackle in a moderate breeze will take about a 4 oz sinker. If you put out 30-lb tackle, you'll have to switch to a 6oz or 8oz sinker to hold bottom. Trolling with a fat mono line (nylon & fluoro are both mono) generates more water resistance and more line bow, causing the lure to ride up in the water column. When trolling, braided line will get you down about 5 ft deeper. Roger

Very well written, I agree with every sentence. Roger

Me too There's always room in my boat for another skunk

I devoted about a year & half evaluating the solar and lunar effects on fishing success (not just our success, but that of others). At first I thought I was really onto something, but over time I realized that I was biased, that I was seeing what I wanted to see (we're all good at that) Like yourself Jacob, I haven't proven or disproven anything, but do totally ignore the Solunar Tables. Roger

Zoom 5" Finesse Worms Zoom 6.5" Trick Worms Roger

There is only ONE way to avoid the skunk: Stop Fishing Roger

In crystal-clear water, faster and smaller is good but noise is unnecessary, I'd lose the chatterbaits but the other 3 would be great. Roger

Rapala HJ-12 Husky Jerk (silver - 4-3/4" x 7/16oz - 4-8 ft deep) Roger

Strike King Rage Lobster (black/blue flake) <> All-Terrain 1/2 oz Grassmaster Jig (extremely weedless) My wife usually outfishes me using the now discontinued 'Deps Twin-Tail Grub' (Large heavy chunk of plastic with big vibes) Roger

In central Florida, we rarely fish in water colder than 60 degrees. NOW..if I'm in a boat that's another story Roger

Very nice bass

I agree, all the little spinners are under-touted today. They were pure poison on Jersey's little northern-strain bass. My favorite was Wordens Rooster Tail (head spinner) followed by the Beetle Spin (over spinner), followed by the Roadrunner (belly spinner). Roger

I'm probably splitting hairs, but I like an O-ring better than Shrink Wrap because an O-ring is so slender that there's virtually no dead-spot. Roger

That's incredible! I remember Al Lindner touting Leech Lake in the 70s, but it sounds like it's better today than ever. Roger