RoLo

Yeah, but my computer is having trouble displaying the contour lines. There isn't much I can add to what Fishin Daddy and Big Mike have already posted. Unlike West Toho, the water in East Toho is rather sterile with a lower biomass of bass, and since the water is gin clear, a brisk retrieve is sometimes best. Weather-permitting, I believe your timing is right on the money for pre-spawners. The topwater-bite peaks during April and May, so you might get into some surface action. Good Luck. Roger

I've got one of these in my tackle box. Bought it because I thought it would be something a little different. Never got around to using it though. I'm going to have to give it a try. Any secrets to it? The key is a "Do-Nothing" retrieve, and if you do ANYTHING to the lure, you broke code. It was originally designed for catching suspended smallmouth bass in Pickwick Lake, AL. Roger

Curly-Tail Grubs (Though orphaned by anglers, grubs have been spring Killers since Mister Twister) Johnson Spoon (Incepted in 1920 but still Killer! Always add a trailer for lift, spoon stability & to beef-up profile) Gambler Big Stick (A high floating shaky worm that never stops moving - Half Worm / Half Tube) Sizmic Pop'n Toad (May be popped, swam or twitched, and never leaks as do ALL hollow frogs) Soft Swimbaits (We've caught more bass on soft swimbaits than expensive hard swimbaits) Owner Sled Head (T-Rig Jig using screw-coil retainer - They're Owner sharp & super weedless) Owner Type-Z Head (T-Rig Jig using Z-bend offset shank - They're Owner sharp & super weedless) Roger

The capitol of Texas is "Timbuktu", but I don't believe California has a capitol. ;D Roger

Exactly. This comes up about twice every year. The sight of a man, causes most wild animals to lose their appetite Roger

You bone-head! Everyone knows it's Bermuda. Hey, I'm no whiz kid in geeografee, but even I know that Bermuda is the Capitol City of the Bahamas. Roger

Throughout the years, I've used 8-lb Berkley Trilene XL more than any other line (w/ spinning gear). If you're happy with nylon monofilament, I would stay put. I'm not aware of any mono line that's limper, more castable or will offer any noticeable advantage. On the other hand, if you're looking for a major shakeup in your spinning experience, you might want to move up to "braided polyethylene" line, such as Fireline Braid, Sufix Braid or PowerPro. With braided line you'll experience no line-twist (zero memory), and virtually zero-stretch which provides wicked hooksets and the sensitivity of a higher modulus rod blank. Personally, I'm done with mono. Roger

Roger

In my experience, she will not eat anything ('him' we don't care about). When I get lucky, she will pick up the lure, swim outside her imprinted territory, then expel the lure. Needless to say, it's the angler's job to set the hook en route. Roger

It's not so much about which lure is used (she's not eating), the key is finding the hotspot on the bed that triggers her territorialism, then keeping the lure at that spot as long as possible. Roger

Markwe1, you make an excellent point about operating the trolling motor while retrieving your lure. That's a very strong argument, and one that I should have mentioned. In my case, I don't have that option because I relinquished the bow seat to my wife On the upside, I can operate the electric motor from anywhere in the boat, and since the treadle is stored away, deck space isn't reduced by its footprint. Best of luck in your choice. Roger

My goal is 'always' to catch a trophy-class bass, but the path to that target is rarely the same. We've all heard the well-worn tune: Let the bass tell you what they want, but if you're not catching any bass, that advice is of little value. To keep the line of communication open between bass and angler, I spend most of my day casting lures of average size. If I were tossing an 8 swimbait all day with little or no action, I'd feel as though I were closing myself off from valuable feedback. Once I believe the time is right, I will then upsize my lure. Oddly enough, the best bass of the day will generally fall for a lure of average size : Roger

As noted by the south Florida boys, the spawn is getting close to kick off time. When Roland Martin guided from his own fish camp on Lake Okeechobee, his favorite month was December when the cow bass were most vulnerable. It should be noted that the best fishing during the spawning season is not the spawn per se, but the "pre-spawn" period prior to actual bedding. Cow bass are aggressive during the pre-spawn period, but bass fishing during the actual spawn generally involves sight-fishing for cows that aren't really interested in feeding. Because of the generous overlap in the pre-spawn, spawn & post-spawn periods, many bass that are reportedly taken during the spawn were actually bass in the pre-spawn phase. When you hookup with a trophy bass without making repeated casts to a visible bass on a bed, the odds are high that she was probably in the "pre-spawn" mode. Due to Florida's moderate water climate, the duration of the entire spawning cycle can last up to five months or more. On balance though, the "pre-spawn" period in central Florida gets rolling around New Years Day and continues to around April Fools Day (January - February - March). Due to the generous overlap in these three periods, the transition is undefined and very obscure. Roger

Frankly, the transition for me was painless, but I'm sure that experiences will vary. Again, there is NO treadle involved, just a little remote control that fits in the palm of your hand (2-1/4" long x 1-5/8"). Stop - Go - Left rotate - Right rotate - Speed up - Speed down are all operated via five pushbutton keys. I've been using wireless remotes for two years now, and though they're slow to catch on, I'd never go back to a foot treadle. It goes without saying, no form of remote control could be as responsive as a handheld lever, but don't forget, I can operate my electric motor from anywhere in my boat. Since my wife occupies the bow seat, I operate the bow-mount electric from the helm or anywhere I happen to be. If an old man pushing 70 can maneuver through heavy cover, I'm sure anyone can. Roger

Ghoti, between the Owner type-Z bullet head (Offset shank) and the Owner Sled Head (coil retainer) I've virtually abandoned standalone hooks, bullet sinkers and of course, pegging bullet sinkers. Hey, don't be envious of us Floridians, it's actually HOT here today, and we desperately need a break from the heat > Roger

Personally, I avoid old timers like the plaque. They tend to think slow, talk slow and repeat the same old stories. You'll also notice, that if you get too close an old angler, they smell a little like fish. Roger

In the early years of bassboats I ran a 17' Silverline (now defunct) with a Motor Guide electric motor (treadle & pull cord). Today I'm running a Minn Kota Power Drive - V2/55/AP and it's the cat's meow! The treadle is stored in the bow pocket and is never used. Both my wife and I have our own remote wireless copilot, so she can position the boat while I'm busy writing. Though expensive, the remote controls are very small and highly reliable. I frequently use the wireless copilot in conjunction with my compass and GPS, which admittedly takes a little getting used to. Roger

Both valid points. The circumferential arc of the longer rod offers greater movement for the same movement at the hand. This translates to greater travel and greater speed, but at the cost of reduced power. However, the greater movement of line is only important when using monofilament line, which technically includes nylon, fluorocarbon and copolymer. When using polyethylene braid, which is virtually non-stretch, power is arguably more important during the hookset than linear travel. To be sure, the longer rod may allow you to lift the line over that last spatterdock pad, but if you ultimately get snarled (which describes me), the shorter rod provides more yank-out power. Not to worry, I seem to remember boating a few heavyweight sharks and tuna on a 6-ft stroker rod Roger

I hear the message, and I agree. If you place the boat on fish, position the right lure at the correct depth and move it at the right speed, bass will usually forgive you for using the wrong color line Roger

About 3 years back, Brad_Covert used a Yamamoto Flappin Hog for his avatar, but he didn't label the lure. Rarely does a lure grab my attention, but for some reason this plastic bait pulled me in. I told Brad that the plastic trailer in his avatar was mighty provocative-looking, and asked him what it was. Brad said it was a Yamamoto Flappin Hog, and added that the lure had been discontinued. He said that according to rumor though, the Flappin Hog would be reintroduced, and low-&-behold it was. So I guess you're dealing with that age-old marketing syndrome "whatever the traffic will bear" Roger

Strike King's Elaztech plastics (3x) are ill suited to screw-coil retainers, but stay well put on T-rig jigs that use a Z-bend retainer. As Ghoti pointed out, the Tru-Tungsten Weed Wacker works very well. Unfortunately, the weed wacker hook is too rubbery for Florida-strain bass and in heavy cover. Another excellent jig for cyberflexxx plastic is the "Slider Spider Classic Head - SPCH8B-U It uses a medium wire Mustad UltraPoint hook with a round-bend, which I personally prefer. In any case, when fishing in heavy cover and/or double-wide bass, my favorite Z-bend jig for Elaztech plastics is the Owner Type-Z Bullet Head, > Strong 3/0 hook of 'Owner' fame > 0-Degree Eyelet (jigs are most weedless when the line-eye is on the nose of jighead) > Hold-Fast Keeper (Z-Lock shank-bend) > Round-Bend Hook Roger

I fish many different plastic worms and use many different presentations. In all honesty, my favorite plastic worm can change four times in one day. My favorite worm is the 'worm type' & 'delivery technique' that I believe is best for the moment. If the question were: "Which worm has put the most bass in your boat?", I'd have to say the Gambler Big Stick (shadow blue glitter) on an Owner Type-Z Head (3/16oz x 3/0 hook). Bottom Crawl using a "double-twitch/3-sec pause" retrieve, until the lure is out of the strike zone Roger

If I were a bass, I'd sooner whack a Lunker City Fin-S-Fish than a Zoom Super Fluke. But that only proves one thing...I'm definitely not a bass Our best producer remains the Zoom Super Fluke, followed closely by the Lunker City Slug-Go. By the way, am I the only one who's tried the 6" Magnum Fluke? Although I much prefer the overall bulk of the magnum fluke, I was disappointed by the action. The action of the 6" Magnum wasn't even close to the lively zigzag darting of the 5" Super Fluke. I tried many different hookups, and finally gave up on the magnum fluke. Roger

Tank studies and tournaments results have both shown that the "worm" is the only profile where bass seem unable to develop a negative response. After repeated exposure, crankbaits and buzzbaits were the first lures to generate a conditioned refusal. Even the first worm manufactured by Nick Crème, was made of plastic (Scoundrel 1949). Nick and his wife melted crude plastic in their home, but the material was so tough and rubbery that anglers dubbed it a rubber worm (myself included). I don't believe there ever was a true rubber worm, because latex is significantly more expensive than most plastics. Roger

Actually, it reminds me of my friend Vinny who used to play a guitar (or wish he could). He brought his guitar to my house one day for a little jam session (I played the drums). Vinny's fingers got hopelessly lost in the frets, and he kept repeating the same two chords over-and-over. Long story short, I never really got the chance to play the drums, and he was putting me to sleep (that was our first and last jam session). It's almost Christmas, so I rated the song "3". Roger