Spankey

Coke and Pepsi bottles frozen with water work real well.

Was back out yesterday morning fishing the same stretch. It was calm and water was like glass. No shenanigans took place on the water. I was glad of that. My 3 better fish were only 12”-14” taken an a couple of DT-10’s. Had some followers but couldn’t get them to take it. But was glad to see the fish interested. Switched to t-rigging some soft plastics a managed a few runts. If I had it to do all over again I would have fished the soft plastics in 13ft. - 17 ft. range. Who knows it’s all second guessing myself. Tomorrow morning I have an interesting outing. My sister in law asked me to take her two twin grandsons out. They are down for the week from Massachusetts. I think they are around 9 yo, I don’t know them real well and I don’t think they fish that often but by what I do know of them they are well behaved intelligent kids. Gonna keep it real simple by getting them to catch so varieties of panfish with livebait and grubs. Then try to teach them to fish with rubber worms for some greenies. My outing is starting at 8:00 AM, that’s late for me but I think everything will go ok. I’m hopeful they will do ok with soft plastics. I’d like to think I’m pretty good with kids and can teach them something. I’m not gonna fish. Be a guide service. Maybe fish some soft plastics with them. Gonna set them up UL and L for the panfish and ML for soft plastics.

That sucks and sorry to see that happen to you. I get squirrely with my phone on the boat. Alway trying to keep it safe. Only have it incase of an emergency. It hurts to be out like that, in time it will be a memory. Go catch a big one and take your mind off of it.

For where I live my PB Smallie and Greenies is no slouch. But I’m hunting for a 7 lb. Largemouth at the lake. I like to think that every cast is for that fish. I don’t know how to fish deep water real real well so this is a handicap for me. But I know she is not in deep water all the time. I don’t fish real large baits, I don’t think this is a handicap but it very well could be. River Smallies is where my heart is. That’s where it all began for me. Mother Nature has kicked the rivers ass big time over the last handful of years. Admittedly I guess I’m just flat out fishing for numbers but I’m in areas my larger fish were from. But these days I’m having fun fishing some new stretches. I’m certainly no expert and hope to never come off as one. I’m still learning at 64 years old. I come away with something new big or small (not fish) from river or lake every time out I guess. Good fishing, my next cast will be approximately 5:45 Saturday morning.

I’m rigged up a few different ways. I don’t have a big plan either. I’ll have a Shad Rap, Slider Worm setup, split shot worm rig and a grub or tube ready to go. I have confidence in these. But I like to fish light jigs, spider jigs and small spinnerbaits.

The wife had a field day with it. Was told it never would have happened if I had my skivvies on.

Glad a whole bunch of drama didn’t go along with it. I’m too old for that. It’s crazy I bet the center line dimension between those hooks isn’t more 2” on a DT-10. I think I’m glad the seat did catch half of the hooks.

I’m glad also. Those hooks have a nice size barb. I got lucky I’m glad it happened real early and didn’t ruin my fishing. We all have been stabbed by a hook. Freak situations most of the time. And didn’t hurt the lure at all.

Don’t know if you know what those Shure-Set hooks are. They are a treble hook with one of the hooks extended in length. Sort of like an offset. Rapala did use them as factory hooks on their DT’s. They don’t anymore but I like them. I don’t think they’ll cost you any fish. I believe they help on short biting fish. I tried to find spares of that hook but I think they were discontinued and only some red ones were around. I never thought I’d be on the receiving end of a hook I like so much.

My bass fishing season has not be a disaster even though torrential rains seem to be common every 3 days. I can’t catch a break on the good river conditions for a long stretch of time. So when not on the river I lake fish, I’m liking the higher (not extremely higher) water levels and the heavy stained conditions on the lake. If I were to wait around for perfect conditions I might not get out this season. Can’t let Mother Nature bring me down. I had a good day at the lake yesterday. Boated 10 Greenies and catching my largest of the season. 18.25” and 3.1 lbs. not a PB from that lake but I was doing the happy dance with that fish. Managed a few respectable 14”-15” fish also. Believe me I wish I had days of catching 14”-15” all day long. Along with some aggressive runts. The bad of the day was the wind. Wind was there at sun up. I hate the wind, it could have been a lot worse but I couldn’t fish the way I wanted to. Changing weather fronts and one day to the next nothing is stable. I used the wind to drift fish the bank and threw crankbaits and spinnerbaits. The Ugly, the ugly came first thing in the AM. Not first thing but early. The Rapala DT is one of my favorite baits. I’m throwing a DT-10 and some how I botched up my cast and the lure came around and get my in the butt and pedestal seat. Not bounced off, but both butt and pedestal are stuck together. Taking that Shure Set hook to the butt was like getting stung my 3 hornets at once. Hook came out of the butt real easy, but stuck in my athletic style shorts and the seat back. I could not just step out of my shorts my legs are too short. And to boot I have no skivvies on. So I unscrew the pedestal seat post to eliminate the height problem. Not a problem getting athletic shorts off now. As I stand there now on the deck naked from the waist down. Hopefully praying I don’t get seen. And at that point would it really matter? Got everything freed up. Shorts back on and lure out of pedestal. Finally got back to fishing. That was the good. Why no skivvies? At some ramps I don’t know how wet I might get. I found these Under Armor athletic shorts that the fabric dries super fast. If I have cotton skivvies on underneath they stay wet a heck of a lot longer. Not a great feeling sensation. So I ditch the skivvies for my lake fishing.

This is also my preferred way to fish finesse size worms. Along with splitshotting and with light bullet weights depending on location I’m at. I like to fish a variety of finesse size worms for river Smallies, PowerWorm is probably my favorite but RoboWorms, Yammy KutTails and Sliders are right there also. The Yammy KutTails are hard to find (not sold out, not stocked). But the BPS KutTails work very well for me. They might get slammed as soon as they hit the water. Bottom bounce them, slide them, shake them, there is no wrong way to fish them.

Maybe even try a Fat Albert Grub, lightly weighted as said above. Slide it around on top and when you hit a pocket do the giggly giggly thing while letting it sink. Rig it weedless. Don’t underestimate a tube or grub anywhere.

Weather patterns here in my parts of PA have been terrible. We went through the tornado watch and warnings again last night between the 6:00-11:00 PM slot. Got torrential rain but didn’t get tornado or the 70-80 mph straight winds in my town. Got windy yes but not big damaging. Have been lucky here more than once the last couple of months.

Happy Birthday. Enjoy your day.

Nothing wrong with that. But I take it that you’ve been at this game awhile, and not having to do the one lure outings. When I was a young guy I remember and did the one lure thing, only to force myself to use it. I had to break the live bait thing also. If you brought it along it was like a crutch. I just don’t fish with it for bass. Soft plastics were a big hump to get over.

Real nice chunk.

Been my whole season has sort of been like that so far. Looking for a couple of sizable smallies. I’m setting on a 16” as tops so far. Going tomorrow AM before a storm moves in. Gonna be a soft plastics day. Will force me to fish slower.

I don’t know those guys you are talking about. I’m a bit old school with my crankbaits. But have ventured into some 6th Sense and SPRO over the last handful of years. I like fishing the Curve 55 and have gotten some nice fish on them. Have always been into my Rapalas, Bombers and Bandits. I have to agree with you 100% on the DT’s. I’d be torn between that or a Shad Rap. I throw the 6 & 10’s the most. And have bought my best producers on the 08. The Gizzard Shad’s, Blue back herring and original Bluegill are my go to’s.

I think everyone has had a bait or two like that. When you get a day that is not going so well and fish are not cooperating, revisit it.

Over the years I’ve picked off some nice Greenies in the 15”-18” range on the river. You are correct in slower sections. But slower sections are a norm. These slower sections are home for some nice Smallies also. I’ve fished laydowns that I’ve caught both in the same piece of structure. Not a lot of Lilly pads on the river sections I fish but many big grass mats. I’ve found a few nice ones in there. I’m going out on a limb but I believe there is some in there 21” long.

Did a drive around before I cut out. Went north upstream and hit a current. Not a huge flow. Not sure if I can get through it. Have to figure it out. Might fish that on Monday. Some people are living along there also seen a few docks. Seen docks that maybe belong to a ski club. Bridge pilings. A lot of down wood. Did not see much feeder flow coming into that area. I’ll have to check better. I think this river section gets a lot of guys fishing for catfish and carp. When I got there yesterday a guy had just trailered up at 5:00, he had leave and go to work. Was saying catties is all he fish for. His rig looked it. I think weekday mornings, mid week mornings is when I’ll hit this place. Willing to bet evenings and weekends has a lot of waterskiing and possible jet ski activity. On 5:30-6:00 am and off around 10:00 will work fine for me.

Fished a new section of the river system I regularly fish yesterday. Was a mini road trip a few counties up river. The only reason I have not fished the section before was conditions in and around the ramp area. Thought I wouldn’t have been able to put in due to heavy silting at the ramp. Mother Nature has beat my river up over the last decade due the huge floods. Parking is great, huge paved lot. The ramp itself is fantastic, deep enough to float off the trailer without issue. But there is a huge silt hump flat there as you enter the river, making it shallow as heck. Well I didn’t have too much trouble entering the river or getting back to the ramp. I’ll make a new push pole to make that easier. Was dark when I got there but anxious to get on the water and do somewhat of a drive around to see where I wanted to start. Did a super slow drive around spotlighting the bank. Settled on fishing a few points and a stretch of bank with a heavier build up of rock. First point I fished with a Pop R. Could not get a bite on it but had a few slashes and looks at it. Felt the need to move on to the next point. Continued fishing the topwater but switched a Bullet Pop, Berkley version of a Pop R. Got two Smallies to bite there. Nice healthy 12” fish. Moved on to the rock bank. I really thought I was going to set the world on fire there. Fished my go to’s. DT’s, Shad Raps, Traps, Bombers and Bandits. Setting the world on fire didn’t happen. Managed a few runts on the Shad Rap and Trap. Time to move onto the third point. Third point has rock and wood on it. Tossed around a DT-6 and nailed a 15” Greenie. Was lean but put up a good fight. Awhile after baitfish were being pushed around in the wood laydowns. Threw into it. On about the third cast I had what I believe to be the quickest explosion I’ve ever had by a fish. All I seen was a green blob jump some limbs with my DT-6 and line shears off. Gone. Favorite DT gone. (have plenty spares of the original bluegill) I want to believe it was a bass??????? Was not a pulled knot, clear shear. Musky????? It all happened so quick. I thought the DT would surface but never did. Went back to the rock bank and fished some 4”-5” worms on a splitshot rig. Managed to get a handful of dinks and runts to bite. Did have what I perceive to be bigger heavy hits that I couldn’t get a hookset. Hope they were bigger Smallies. Gonna get back in there on Monday AM. Have a concrete project I’m finishing at home. They are saying a tropical type storm is moving in late day on Monday. Hope to pull off a few AM hours.

I would never tell anyone what to buy but the Heddon Torpedo is a great bait that is not expensive. Effective prop bait. I only fish the tiny and the baby size. I’m not one for big baits on the river. I’m not sure how much color has to do with topwaters. Buy the pattern you like. I would think for the most part they all appear as a darker silhouette as to what a fish sees. The orange and red cup faces on the Rebels Pop R’s make it a bit easier for me to see when they are rest.

Real nice you probably have me beat. My collection of Bombers, Bandits and Rapalas are sizable. Vintage patterns that are long discontinued but I still fish them. They are not displayed. I’m pretty sure I’ve caught a smallie on every CB I bought for the river. CB fishing is a big part of my fishing. I’ll try to post some pics. Try to get spares not just because if you’ll loose them but availability on stuff dries up and you’ll never find them. On a lot of my favorites I’ll have spares, many with a hot tail (side, belly or back) I painted on if I need to draw their attention better on some days. Again nice bunch of CB’s.

I would not say it’s a dead type bait but on the river I don’t use it there. Heck Pop-R’s are a go to for me. I’m lumping Rebel, Storm, Rapalas of those type together. Spook puppy is great along with the Rapala Skitter Prop. Small buzzbaits will do it.