Ratherbfishing

You really have asked the "million dollar question" because in fishing, as in real estate, location is the single most important factor. And finding them becomes, generally, more challenging as size of the body of water increases. Bass are motivated by pretty primal needs: Food, reproduction, safety, and "comfort" and their location will largely be driven by these things. Knowing when, where, and how they meet those needs will determine where to begin looking. As a single example, in the spring bass will generally be found in or near shallow(er) because they need shallow water where they can "nest", deposit and fertilize their eggs, and allow the warmth of the sun to incubate the "zygotes." Bass are fairly adaptable BUT they prefer sandy (or small gravel) bottoms for this purpose so extremely hard bottoms (rock) can be avoided. Entire books (and libraries) have been dedicated to this subject and, hence, I have barely scratched the surface but if you study your quarry and learn why they do what they do, finding them will be easier.

Ugh. I've yet to see a spincast worth a hooey.

Update: Took him out yesterday evening. The dawg caught two bass on the same bait (same cast)! I've been fishing 40 years and haven't done that! So he's already besting me. Happy to see it! Your wife sounds like quite a catch. It's good you didn't throw her back!

switch feet?

This is almost exactly what I do. 6 and 14 (except I amp it up to #8 for my second spinning reel because I want to fish soft plastics with it too).

Penicillin should clear it right up.

I wouldn't have guessed it! Mine hasn't passed (or that I could ever tell-it just stopped hurting). I'd swear it was/is shaped like a cockle burr, though. What's worse is that I don't even have something to put under my pillow for the kidney stone fairy.

Anyone who has had a kidney stone feels your pain. I know I do. My neighbors now all think I'm a drunk because I was puking in my yard at 5 in the morning while waiting for my ride to come to bring me to the hospital.

Welcome aboard and welcome to the U.S. (when you arrive). It doesn't appear like you will be but if you happen to be driving through Central Illinois, I can probably find some fish for you. Nothing huge, perhaps, like the southern states have but they are (sometimes) obliging. Be aware that EVERY state will have it's own fishing license and fees. You'll probably have to buy an out-of-state license. Some states may have short 3 or 5 day licenses while others may require you pay for an entire year. There should not be any hassles regarding buying the licenses though you may take a bit of a "hit" as you leapfrog from state to state. As mentioned already, the southern states will be scorchers in the summertime. You can still (perhaps) catch fish (no guarantees) but you may die of heat stroke while doing so. Fortunately, the fish tend to bite best in the early mornings, late evenings, and at night when it's not so unbearably hot. I'd like to hear how you do. Good luck!

One of these days the little bugger will catch a bass bigger than my personal best and I'll never hear the end of it. : )

Am just happy to take a kid out AND get some use out of some gear/lures that might otherwise gather dust. I woke up one day and discovered the bait monkey had wrought (wreaked?) havoc on my impulsive side. (It drives me nuts to have a lot of stuff laying around unused). But I never had children of my own (helps if I'd gotten married) so this arrangement is the best of both worlds. The boy is probably doing more for me than I am doing for him.

I can see no reason why you can't-unless you are punching super thick moss/slop.

Obviously not physically impossible if it happened but when line feeds off a spool, unless it backlashes, it feeds off in a more or less linear fashion (toward the first rod guide). The only guess I can make is that you had a vicious backlash (professional overrun) and line managed to find its way there. But still, it's somewhat hard to envision.

I'm having a difficult time envisioning this. The line did what?

For my money, the torpedo is a better bait. It ALWAYS does what it's designed to do. Wish I'd bought 3 or 4 more of them instead of being seduced by "the plopper." Anyone wants to trade, I'll be happy to!

Don't know about the quality of the reel itself but the name of the Brand could use a little tweaking. It could be worse, though. It could be called "Pispoor."

That's a big old honkin' fish! I like the patch but too bad the image can't match the fish species caught.

Just don't lick yourself.

In Soviet Russia, search bait chooses you.

I have an extra rod/reel he can have now. It's the line I'm worried about. Lol. How much line one goes through is directly correlated with how many kids you have with you. He's a good stick, though. Last time we went out the fishing was rough but we caught 3 bass apiece. Apart from helping him tie on, he did all the work.

My dad died of cancer when I was 11 so when I heard of this boy through my friend (who works at his school), I felt it almost mandatory. Well, not mandatory, exactly... or even necessary. Perhaps "irresistable" is the right word. I just know how much I would have enjoyed having an adult take me fishing. And I enjoy it anyway. I call him "Bubba" and, sometimes, "Crappie King" (because he caught more crappie than I did last time we were out). We sing "Crappie King" to the tune of the Spiderman theme.

Lately I have taken under my wing an 11 year old boy who loves to fish. His dad died of cancer about 2 years back and his grandpappy can't fish much anymore (heart condition). He's an enthusiastic little bugger and is always wanting to try new/different baits, etc. I've been hesitant to lend him my baitcaster as I can envision many backlashes in our future but he's used my spinning gear to good effect. Some of the baits he's wanted to use haven't been particularly suitable for where we were but I've endulged him as I think it's more important to satisfy his curiousity rather than catch fish (which he's done anyway). As I am getting older I've been wondering WHAT I was going to do with some of my surplus baits but I think I now have the answer/solution. I've already made up a small box for him and will probably add to that as time passes. Everyone should adopt a little kid.

I once had a backlash so bad it grabbed me and took me in with it. I had to have someone ELSE get a knife and cut me loose!

Wouldn't it be funny if your little brother wrote-saying what his big brother did TO HIM after he hooked you.

When I'm trying to go light (amount of gear), I almost always go with spinning. In my (larger) boat, it's about 50/50.