RoLo

I know just how you feel, and have been in similar situations. Nonetheless, I'd perish the thought of firearms, and embrace the bow & arrow which is far more predictable, and quiet to boot. Roger

That's a good little article, but you'll notice that it goes Full Circle (i.e. Inconclusive). Not sure where the notion started that a fine braid filament scares fish, but it's as tenacious as the witches of Salem Roger

That's a good thing when the fish sees your line, than you know for sure he's seen your lure I use braided polyethylene for 'everything' (spinning, casting, freshwater, saltwater ~) Leaders are bad because they break the continuity, I want the fish to follow my line all the way to the lure

If you think the weather and cost-of-living sucks, you've never lived in Georgia or New Jersey

No I did not Dwight ("Them Ole Brown Fish")

Billy Westmoreland lived in Celina, TN, and was the only angler in history to certify two smallmouth bass weighing 10 pounds or more. During the 60s and 70s, I was actually growing weary of reading bronzeback articles written by Billy Westmoreland. They were published in Fishing Facts magazine, and later by In-Fisherman magazine which started up in 1975. Billy was not a journalist by any stretch, but his feats with bronzebacks were unequaled. Although Billy also used heavy gear like Pedigo Spinrites (discontinued) and Silver Buddies (discontinued), his claim to fame was his ultralight finesse approach to smallie fishing in crystal-clear Dale Hollow Reservoir. Westmoreland fashioned his own hair jig that he dubbed the 'Hoss Fly'. Unlike your average hair jig, the Hoss Fly was made of polar bear hair, which is hollow hair like deer tail hair. He dressed the polar bear hair jig with an Uncle Josh U2 split-eel pork rind (discontinued), which was responsible for two of his record-class bass. >> 6th Largest ever 10-1 3/17/1972 >> 7th Largest ever 10-0 3/29/1970 >> 19th Largest ever 9-5 ? Roger

Right you are! One day we fished along the shore of the canal, and every bass we landed brought a band of alligators closer & closer to shore. Gators really don't bother me, but if I didn't keep my lunch bag next to me, I'd have lost it to the gators Roger

Great Little Website! SO, those cinnamon craws with blue-gray highlights are Cambarus baronii bartonii

Several years back, (just north of the ValueJet Monument) L-67A was touted as having the highest catch-rate in Florida. The best month is April, and during one year with low water, levee 67 (L-67A) was producing about 5 Bass / Hr Roger

Do you actually believe that the 'Pre-Spawn' season is the best time for trophy bass? Cuzz if you do, You're Spot On In central Florida, the hottest depth zone for pre-spawn and post-spawn bass is 3 to 6 ft, where deep lures have no place. With regard to slob bass over the past 5 years, some of our best producers are listed below: >> Gamber Big EZ Swimbait >> Berkley 6" Hollow Belly Swimbait (6" is no longer available) >> Deps 7" Deathadder Grub (6 & 7" Deps Grubs are both discontinued) >> Johnson 1/2oz Spoon & Kalin 5" Lunker Grub >> 3/8oz Swim Jig & Deps 4.5" Twin-Tail Grub (Deps Twin-Tail Grub is discontinued) With respect to 'spawning' bass, I'll have to renege During the spawning season, cow bass are not interested in feeding, not aggressive and not worth our time. In Florida, there's a generous overlap in the pre-spawn and post-spawn periods, sparing us the woes of bed-fishing Roger

Thank you Nitro. My answer would be an unqualified, No. I seriously doubt that atmospheric pressure has any bearing at all on oxygen dissolution. Surface turbulence certainly does, but that's a different phenomenon. Based on textbook data, oxygen is dissolved in water via 3 processes: § Diffusion § Aeration § Vegetative Output I think that number can be reduced to two. Oxygen diffusion & Vegetative output. To mind mind, 'aeration' as simply a violent form of diffusion that occurs for instance at aerator stations, water fountains and in whitewater rapids. In any case, I don't imagine that atmospheric pressure has any influence on O2 diffusion (i.e. air-balloon vs. rock analogy). It's true that oxygen diffusion is only possible when air contains more oxygen than water, but in the angler's world, that is always the case. Our troposphere is comprised of 21% oxygen a ratio that isn't altered by wind velocity, relative humidity, air temperature or barometric pressure. On the other hand, a waterbody that contains 10 ppm dissolved oxygen would be considered oxygen-rich, though it's only 1/1000 of one percent, a mere pittance compared to 21% oxygen in air As an aside, rainwater contains no oxygen but it would be a mistake to think that rainwater doesn't oxygenate a lake. The surface turbulence produced by rainfall does aerate the water. Roger

There are now well over 300 recognized species of crayfish, so it's not surprising that crawdaddies are seen in nearly every imaginable color. When I was a kid, we enjoyed turning over rocks and snatching those tiny freshwater lobsters. The craws we gathered in Jersey were predominately cinnamon in color with blue-gray highlights. In Georgia though, most of the craws were greenish brown (i.e. green pumpkin). During the molt however, softshell crayfish appear in various shades of blue, from dusky blue to bright sapphire blue. This may help to explain the inordinate popularity of 'Blue' for bottom-oriented lures. Roger

Reminds me of the old 'Heddon Injured Minnow', but I doubt it is. The wavy black belly-line smacks of a homemade paint job. Roger

When the mercury dips below 65 deg F, we just huddle around the fireplace hoping for 75 degs tomorrow Roger

Facts Require Confirmation....Beliefs Thrive Without Confirmation Barometric pressure is not without merit but its relationship to fish behavior is widely misconceived. The association between atmospheric pressure and fish disposition is coincidental, it is not causal. Additionally, barometric pressure is a lagging indicator, like driving your car while looking in the rear-view mirror. Water Pressure versus Air Pressure Air is a highly 'compressible' medium, whereas water is virtually 'incompressible'. Changes in barometric pressure are barely perceptible to fish. As an example of Air versus Water, imagine pressing an air-filled balloon against a rock and expecting a reaction from the rock. To further display the power of water pressure, allow me relate a graphic but real-world example. In saltwater, we often fished for ling (red hake) and whiting (silver hake) at the Ambrose Lightship where water depths exceed 100 feet. Fish that were hauled topside were subjected to a lethal plunge in water pressure. Due to a dramatic reduction in water pressure their eyes were bulging out of their sockets and their gullet was in their mouth and turned inside-out. Needless to say, catch-and-release was not an option. A Little Science Goes A Long Way All matter has weight, even gaseous matter such as the earth's atmosphere. Air is extremely light but the earth's atmosphere is several hundred miles high, so at sea level our atmosphere exerts 14.7 pounds of pressure per square inch. Barometric pressure (atmospheric pressure) is usually quantified by the height that a column of mercury rises in a standardized tube. At sea level, normal barometric pressure will force mercury 29.92 inches up the tube, which is expressed as 29.92 inHg or 'one atmosphere'. Okay, now we have a Barometric Baseline, so let's add some meteorological events. During an average cold-front (high-pressure clockwise cell) the barometric pressure will climb to around 30.32 InHg, a mean rise of 1-1/3% on balance. During an average warm-front (low-pressure counterclockwise cell) the barometric pressure usually falls to around 29.52 inHg, a drop averaging 1-1/3% below normal. In contrast to air, water has a far greater specific gravity. At a depth of 34 feet, water exerts the same pressure per square inch (lb PSI) as several hundred miles of atmosphere. So at 34 ft deep, the sum of air pressure and water pressure is 29.4 lb PSI or 'two atmospheres'. Due to water's high specific weight, when a fish swims just 5.4 inches downward in the water column, the rise in pressure is identical to an average high-pressure system (cold front). Inversely, when the same fish swims 5.4 inches higher in the water column, the drop in pressure is equivalent to an average low-pressure cell (warm front). For anyone interested in calculating their own formulas & results, I've included two useful constants: => 1-foot column of water = 0.433 lb / sq. in. => 1-foot cube of water = 62.35 lb COINCIDENTAL FACTORS In and of itself, barometric pressure exerts no influence on fish behavior, however it frequently accompanies meteorological conditions that do. In any case, there's no advantage to monitoring a proxy like atmospheric pressure, when the direct causes are more obvious and more timely. Atmospheric pressure is not only a symptomatic indicator but often a laggard indicator. Listed below are easily recognized weather conditions that directly affect the behavior and disposition of fish, regardless of barometric pressure: APPROACHING COLD FRONT > Falling Barometer Until the cold front is actually upon you, the barometer will likely continue to creep lower > Building Cloud Cover Reduced light level is positive for fishing, with or without a falling barometer > Increasing Winds Wind creates surface refraction that reduces luminosity and also aggregates plankton which are both positive conditions, with or without a falling barometer > Steady Air Temperatures Stable weather over the long-term is very positive to fishing. but over the short-term, steady air temperatures have no appreciable effect PASSING COLD FRONT > Rising Barometer By this time, increased winds & falling air temperatures have spilled the beans > Clearing Cloud Cover Increased light levels are negative for fishing, with or without a rising barometer > Gusty Winds Early on, gusty winds are not negative, but persistent cold northwest air mixed into the epilimnion eventually becomes negative. Barometric pressure offers no input as to the pivot point in timing. > Falling Air Temperatures Falling air temperatures is one of the most negative events in bass fishing, especially for Florida-strain bass. Once again, barometric pressure offers no useful input ============================================================================================================== APPROACHING WARM FRONT The four conditions noted above under 'Approaching Cold Front' also apply to an 'Approaching Warm Front'. In other words, the barometer cannot differentiate between an approaching warm front and an approaching cold front (ouch). On the other hand, 'wind direction' quickly and accurately distinguishes an approaching warm-front from an approaching cold-front. Roger

Great Point! Signs of life are always a positive indication. Wildlife instinctively knows its place in the chain of command. A coot is a vegetarian that fits in the mouth of a double-digit bass, which is a carnivore, so it isn't the bass that needs to be afraid. On other hand, all fish have a natural fear of large avian shadows such as ospreys and eagles. While baby alligators are occasionally seized by bass, adult alligators dine heavily on largemouth bass. Roger

To my mind, line visibility is a non-issue with braid, and unless there's a good reason, I'm not going to run a junction knot through my line guides. Abrasion-resistance is a good reason for using a leader (rocks, quagga mussels, zebra mussels ~ ~). When we're on vacation where abrasion-resistance is important, I'll use a leader with a heavier diameter than the braided main line, because 'line diameter' is a major contributor to abrasion-resistance. I prefer a copolymer leader over fluorocarbon, such as P-line CXX or Maxima, but never as a main line. Fluoro is very stiff, in fact some brands are about as wiry as the titanium leaders I use for northern pike. In addition, fluorocarbon streeeeetches just like nylon, even high-grade fluorocarbon. I tried Seaguar Tatsu as a main line and had to take 2 backwards before setting the hook (if you know what I mean). I'm not saying that I hate fluorocarbon.....................................Yes I am. Roger

Hey those guys are GOOD! I can only launch my boat, but they launch 'boat & trailer' in one fell swoop Roger

Allow me to select the jig and the location, and you may select the color Roger

We don't know what bass see and probably never will. In spite of having rod & cone vision, wouldn't it be funny if biologists ultimately learned that bass are colorblind? An old, worn-out fishing adage is: "Let the fish tell you what they want". Far from brilliant, that statement assumes that you're catching bass or at least getting strikes. Okay, let's assume an angler lands two bass. How foolish he would be if he allowed 'lure color" or 'lure pattern' to dominate his thought process and override all the important elements of angling. Catch patterns deal with micro-environment and lure properties, meaningful criteria such as bottom contour, resident cover, water depth, weed species, weed density, cover mergers, water current, lure style, lure size, retrieve cadence, cast placement ~ ~ 'Color' is a girly thing…Oh wait a minute, maybe that's why my wife outfishes me. Roger

In central Florida, sharp rocks and mussel beds are not a problem, so we tie 30-lb braided line directly to the lure 100-percent of the time. With regard to line visibility, braided line is very fine and hard to see as most line-watchers will tell you. Bass are not intimidated by snap-swivels, unsightly rattleboxes, long goofy fiberguards and lures with 3 big treble hooks dangling down, so why would an ultra-fine filament frighten them away? Roger

I like that swim jig, it reminds me of the Outkast swim jig. It has a nose-eyelet, nice low-slung fiberguard (very weedless) and a stout round-bend hook. As for the strand-count, I believe a sparse skirt provides more action than an overpopulated skirt. Bulk is easily added with the plastic trailer. Roger.

Weather-permitting, we would be out every weekend plus about 3 weeks on vacation. However, on days with a high T-storm percentage or winds over 20 knots, we tend to stay home. So realistically we probably fish about 100 days a year (noon to sunset). Roger

The bass in central Florida share the same water with large rafts of splish-splashy coots and hordes of wading birds like herons, egrets and ibises. The presence of ducks or geese doesn't intimidate bass, in fact it might be the other way around. Muskellunge are allegedly known to swallow ducks, while largemouth bass are known to take an occasional duckling. Roger

ABSOLUTELY