Whopper Stopper

Your kids are so lucky to have someone to take them fishing. When I was a kid I didn't have anyone to take me. I would get on my bike and fish off of a bridge over a creek. I would invest in a minnow trap, or cast net. Then put some circle hooks under a bobber, and sit the kids away from trees. This is a very cheap and effective way to catch bass. They just cast it out and let it sit, and wait for their bobber to go under. With circle hooks they don't have to worry about setting the hook.

I foul hooked a 3-pounder yesterday with a spinnerbait. I felt the bass slam into it, set the hook, and when I got him out of the water the trailer hook was stuck outside of his mouth near his eye. I know I didn't snag him because I felt him slam into my spinner. I think this happens to everyone at one time or another, but unfortunately for Weakley, it happened at the wrong time.

Maybe I'm dumb, but what does PB mean? I know it has something to do with big bass so here goes. I started out this year wanting a 4LB. This weekend on saturday I caught and released one that weighed 4 3/4 LB. Then on sunday I caught a 5LB and four others that were 2 1/2 and up.

I hate to see guys that keep a big bass out of the lake that I fish. I just want to run up and knock the fish back into the water. But If a guy wants to eat what he catches, that's his business, not mine. I love the taste of bass; but I can't hardly bring myself to clean them anymore. I wouldn't really knock somebody's fish back in the water; unless it's a 10 LB bass. I think keeping one that big would be a sin.

I have caught all of my bass this year on a 3" crawdad. I have tried other baits and haven't had any luck. Just cast it out and slowly inch it on the bottom.

I wondered about using a topwater, but I thought it was too early. The bass have just started eating about a week ago and the water is still cold. Am I on the right track here or am I missing out by not using topwater or fast moving presentations. Yesterday I was fishing with a guy who was using spinnerbaits and rattle traps and I was using soft plastics. I caught three bass and had six hits, and he only caught one bass. I just can't see a bass chasing a spinnerbait, rattle trap, or topwater this time of year. If I'm wrong please correct me. I also have another question. We just had about six hours of hard rain I'm going to a small pond that I fished a few days ago after a rain turned the water into chocolate milk. The other day I assumed that they wouldn't see soft plastics, so I figured I would go with something noisy. I fished a colorado blade spinner bait and a small rattle trap. After four hours I hadn't caught anything. I've always thought that bass hit soft plastics because they see them, but then, I heard about using them while night fishing. Can I still catch them on soft plastics in muddy water? I think muddy water fishing would be simular to night fishing. By the way, all of the bass that I've caught this week have been on 3" crawdads. After I ran out of them I couldn't get a hit off of any other baits.

I went fishing today and caught three on a 3" crawdad while sight fishing. Here's my question. I saw a ton of bass suspending about 2 or 3 feet under the surface. I couldn't get them to hit for nothing. I thought If I used a suspending rapala that I would get them, but it didn't work. They didn't seem interested at all with anything I threw at them. So how do I get them to bite?

No I haven't. I was doing fine with what I was using. I didn't fish for very long so I didn't have to change baits too much. I'll try it tomorrow and see how it goes. Is there any way to make that rig weedless?

I went out there today at 4:15 and fished until about dark-thirty. It had just finished raining really hard and the water was stained. It was so cloudy that it was almost dark. Started fishing an ultra-lite with Matzuo prism grub and hooked into a 2 pounder on my 10th cast but I lost him. I then succeeded in losing All the grubs in the pack that I had just bought. Those things are stick magnets; I lost two of them in three casts. Around dark I started fishing a 3" crawfish and hooked two, but lost one. The weather forecast for tomorrow is going to be the same as today. So I'm going to be there with more prism grubs and a stiffer rod showing those bass who's running home with there tail between there legs!

You got that right. A small bass will hit anything. Last year, I caught a 6-inch bass on a 5-inch rogue. He was hooked once in the side of his mouth, once in the belly, and once in his tail. I wish I had a camera. I'm still trying to figure out how that bass thought he was going to swallow something that big. :-?

I mainly use a palomar know. I also use one where you tie a loop in your line with a double or triple know. Then, pass the loop through the eye of the hook, pass the lure through the loop and pull tight around the eye. I like this knot because you don't have to cut your line. When you want to switch baits, just pass the lure back through the loop and pull the loop through the eye.

I was a member for four years. I don't know why I'm not one now though. They sent me some decent stuff to test. I can't remember exactly what, but I know one of the things was a spool station or something. They also send you nice hardcover books that you either buy, or just read and send back. They even pay the shipping. I currently belong to the North American hunting club. I think they're run out of the same place, because they have the same address. They just sent me a knife to test which from what I understand isn't considered a field test, so I should be getting something else sometime soon. I have also received two hardcover books from them that were worth buying.

It looks like you guys took all of the good ones, but I've got one that is still important. Wear sunglasses when fishing topwater. I once set the hook too soon on a bass after he hit my popper, The force of my hookset sent the lure back at me and hit the lens of my new $50 pair of sunglasses. It left a big ugly scratch right in front of my eye; but ruining a lens is better than trying to fish with only one eye.

Man, that's all I do is sight fish. I even where polarized sunglasses when it's cloudy. I feel lost with out them. It drives me crazy when I forget to wear them because I can't see into the water.

I have already tried most of these methods mentioned. We started fishing it last year after the spawn, and just before the heat set in. Around here heat can have a lot to do with it. The only thing that I haven't tried is fishing soft plastics wacky style. I have fished that lake at night a few times until midnight, as well as early morning. I haven't tried fishing this lake when it is windy. I think that could definitely help solve the problem of being spotted by the fish. As I said in my first post, I have had big bass follow my lure to the bank. The only lures that they've done this for have been a deep crankbait and a spinnerbait. They look like they're going to hit it, and will follow it right up until I pull it out of the water, but if I stop or slow down the lure, they lose interest. It's almost like if I had a couple of extra feet before I hit bank that they would take it. When I say this lake is clear, I mean it is crystal clear. It is like looking into a goldfish tank. It is also at least fifty feet deep and almost straight down from the sides. One side is covered with riprap. On the rest of the lake, the bottom is just littered with fallen trees. The brush is so thick every where else that we had to cut places to fish. This lake is located between two gun ranges; one is shotgun and the other is rifle. The shotgun is about 30yds from the bank that is covered in riprap. I think this may have to do with why the fish are so weary, but these are private gun clubs that are usually empty when we go there. There are also old 50 gal oil drums on the bottom on the same side of the shotgun range. I have spent a lot of time dangling a jig in front of them with no luck. This year we are starting to fish it early. We may do some good when the bass start to bed. I also think that a wacky worm could be the thing to use, I can't believe I haven't thought of that. Thanks for the replies.

Fishing wacky style is one thing I haven't tried. Also, I always try to stay low and as far from the bank as I can. Sometimes, I even wear camo. If it's clear enough for me to see the bass then they can see me. Also, there are huge bluegill in there. We catch them with a small rapala, which is also how we caught the smaller bass.

Me and a buddy of mine started fishing this lake last year in June. It is crystal clear, and deeep. It's almost straight down from the sides. It's big enough to fish out of a boat, but still small enough to effectively fish from the bank. It has fallen trees in it everywhere. It looks like the perfect bass lake. We always see huge bass cruising the bank. There is just one problem, we don't catch anything. It has very little fishing pressure; so that isn't the problem. We have tried everything short of dynamite. This is unlike any lake I have ever fished. I understand that clear water can be difficult, but this is ridiculous. Every time we go there we think we've got them bass figured out; but then we just wind up going home with our tail tucked between our legs! We have probably caught six bass between us. All of them were a pound or under. We always see a ton of bass, and frequently see 2 and 3 pounders crusing the bank; sometimes bigger. What's worse is that sometimes a big bass will chase the bait to the bank, but won't hit it. If you stop or slow the lure down they lose interest. They follow it without hitting until you pull the lure out of the water. Then they head for deeper water. In my opinion, this is the most frustrating thing that can happen. We have tried everything. We've fished early in the morning, evening, Once, we even fished until midnight. You would think that throwing a soft plastic worm into one of those sunken trees and just slowly inching it along would do the trick, but it doesn't. I always make sure that I use light line when doing this so that they won't see it. So is there anything that we might be missing out on? I know these bass are eating something. I have even tried live minnows and crawfish. How would you guys fish this lake? Any advice is appreciated.

What I mean by that is when you teach a kid to fish, you will constantly have to tie/bait hooks; or unsnag lines out of a tree which gets really annoying when you're trying to fish too. I figured this out a few years back when teaching my younger brother how to fish. I was outfishing him 10 to 1; and I wasn't even trying to. It made him feel bad. He made me switch spots with him and I started catching just as many in his spot as I was in mine. Even though we were fishing for bluegill w/ worms there was still technique involved. So I put my rod down and sat behind him; first I told him where to cast. Then I showed him how to twitch his rod tip to make the bait move to grab the fish's attention etc. It took a while for him to understand that he had to keep slack out of his line to get a good hookset. It seemed like he was having more fun with me coaching him instead of fishing. When a kid isn't catching as many as you, it makes them feel as if they've failed.

I use Christmas trees. Just tie a cinder block to them to hold them in place. Christmas is a good time to do this because when there is ice you can slide the tree to where you want it and wait for the ice to melt. If you know some one who has a live tree offer to haul it off for them, then tie it to your tree to make it bigger.

I hate gift certificates. It confines you to one store. It is torture. Especially when the stuff you want is at the store down the street.

I have tried to get younger kids started fishing. Believe me it takes alot of patience. I can sit for hours casting hundreds of times on a big bedded bass, but thirty minutes with an eight year old and I go crazy. But it's the right thing to do; when I was that age I didn't have any one to take me fishin. I used to get on my bike and ride down the gravel road to fish off of a bridge. It was a small creek with small bass, but I never got tired of it. It would have made me so happy if I had someone to take me out in a boat or to a place different than that creek. I think the best way to start some one off is to leave your rod at home. (Or at least in the truck in case they get bored.) Sit there and coach them; and point out what works and what don't. Start them out with live bait and a bobber. A good fish to start with is bluegill, because they almost never quit biting. If they have problems with timing/setting the hook, tie on a cirlcle hook. Don't get angry when they get their line stuck in a tree. When I was younger I once got a fish stuck in a tree, long story.... ;D They aren't ready for a marathon day of fishing, so 30 minutes to an hour should be enough; unless they're having enough fun that they want to stay longer.

Well I went to the lake sunday to give it a try. The only thing I caught was a sore throat and fever. So now I'm back to reading about fishing until I get better. Oh well, I guess thats how it goes.

Thanks for the info guys. My buddy thought I was crazy when I called to see if he wanted to go fishing. I think I'm going to go tomorrow, so I'll let you know if it works out.

My favorites are: Popper rattletrap Colorado blade spinnerbait. I just love the way a big bass hits a fast rattletrap.

I've been itching to go fishing all week. The only problem is that it's cold. It hasn't been over 40 in a week and a half and most of the lake is iced over. What lures should I use? I thought maybe if I fished a worm or jig real slow that I might do some good. Are there any other baits I could use that would be productive. I know I should be hunting this time of the year but I can't stop thinking about fishing. :-?