Spankey

I am a Rapala junkie up and down and inside out. I love fishing DT’s and Shad Raps. And others with that same amount of confidence. But if my fishing conditions are putting fish 20-25 feet down (conditions have been this way for many many week) with baitfish like bluegill and crappies at that depth also and I believe larger bass are deeper than 20 feet of water, for me to throw DT 06 and SR 07 and 09 is not gonna get deep enough and get the job done. I don’t have extra extra deep Rapala DT’s to get down there. I don’t believe my crankbait setups will let me get that deep. So I can’t say crankbaits are in an off year. I could have went out and bought a bunch of new stuff to reach these depths. May or may not have been the answer to my problem. I just went with fishing soft plastics at those depths. Yesterday morning I had only a handful of perceived bass hits and one bite that got me a 16” greenie. Open hook split shot rig on a PowerWorm in 18 feet of water. Thursday morning I’ll be back in that same area. But I’ve had seasons where a Rebel Craw would not get hit or a SubWart was the real killer on fire. Times where a roadkill color tube is all I needed or a christmas tree color grub. Zoom was better than Berkley. Strike King out fished a RoboWorm. Lake fishing this season the bass were forced to deeper water. Why I don’t know. Temps? Drought conditions? The baitfish have retracted to these depths. I’d like to know why but I have no idea. I had a very serious case of pneumonia back during one of the heat waves. They (Dr. and my family) did not want me to be out in that. I honored their wishes. BUT I think loosing this fish time I got knocked back a few steps when these fish started that transition. It is what it is and all I can do is keep at it, never give up.

Crankbait fishing is my favorite way to go about this bass fishing. I use stuff that I swear by and would bet the house and kids over. Not this year. I am at a loss as to my sudden fall off the earth type of fishing. But I moved away from it. It has been a soft plastics season. I found the whole season to be one that had quirks. Some things that didn’t make sense but got a few nice fish. At the lake I can come to grips with it a bit better because if the bass are remaining at a deeper depth and my crankbait game is not that deep as they are, well I can only do so much. My bigger confusion as to the bite lack on the river. I believe my head is a mess over it. And I let it carry over. I’ve resigned myself to just get on board with it next season. It’s not me, it’s not my baits or bait choices. I’ll just write it off. If I don’t I’ll need to check in to therapy.

Black and green pumpkin are an overall favorite but I’m throwing smelt, brown back and sexy shad alot right now. Just trying to throw what I have that is shiner like. Can only stick with what I’m getting the most hits and bites on. I’m throwing a few variations of worms. Drop shot, split shot, T-rig and on a jig head. My season is winding down here in the north. There are other approaches I like to play with. Approaches I’d much rather fish but I feel I’m doing the right thing to pull off bites.

Been following this post, it’s a great post. I’ve been fishing in these conditions for the last several weeks where the bass have been in 18-25 feet of water and suspect larger bass are deeper than that. Bluegill and crappie are at those depths also. I’m not finding bass or baitfish to be moving in shallow. At least not in my time slot fishing. This response by Chop is making sense to me and falls in line with some of the bass I’ve been catching. Admittedly fishing deeper water is not easy for me. I feel I lack that skill and maybe my electronics/tools are subpar. But I’m trying to fish where I believe they are. Been drop shot, split shot and T-rigging at these depths. I’m not really set up to crank that deep. Anyway, at these depths I can differentiate the hits between the bass and bluegill. On a handful of occasions over the last few weeks, I’m getting hits by these bluegill and with a quick rise of my soft plastics, pulling up 3 or 4 feet sharply, I’m getting my bass bites. The bite has been in the upward movement and when the bait was at a dead stop. I’m no expert, I just never give up or just try like heck to make something happen. But your comment on whether the bass are feeding up or feeding down has caught my attention.

When water conditions get alot clearer than the norm (presently) I’ll make longer casts. It seems to be the right thing to do. Keeping that distance. What’s too far? I would think getting to a spot you want to probe out and you make a cast and hang up on a low overhang, have to go in and get it, and forces you to move on to another spot. Just go back to that spot later.

I just had the same thing happen with a Bass X. Did an up grade also. Thought I made out well. Their policy has changed over the years. 10 years ago I had an Avid 6’3” MLXF break on me. Same spot, circumstances the same, while fishing. Basically my fault of high sticking and boat flip of a fish combination. Real quick and inexpensive at that time. The process today took quite a bit longer but I’m happy with the results.

I don’t think I’m super-analytical but like you I think of them as a tool. I throw crankbaits with my crankbait rods. Both casting and spinning rods. Softer more moderate actions. Better bait performance and better hookup. I find it impossible to fish crankbaits with an x-fast action. My set ups for soft plastics I don’t believe I take a super scientific approach to them. For smaller baits like craws, tubes, grubs, light T-rigs, split shot and drop shot I do with ML. Some approaches like Senko’s, floating worms, shakey heads, lizards, worms 6-7” stuff, fluke types I fish Medium fast and x-fast setups. Longer rod lengths have always been around but in recent years they have come to the forefront as the norm. I like a longer rod for lake fishing and the deeper water. To me it makes a difference. But on the river I find using shorter rod lengths is best for me. I’m sure this is not the case for others. It’s probably my style of fishing the river. My overhangs and structure is different vs. the lake. I have a lot of old school in me still. I still fish the river like I did in the 70’s 80’s and 90’s.

I would have thought my source may have been decent. Local shop who is a St. Croix dealer. They have not talked well of them lately and not keeping up with being a full line dealer. Might be bad blood there. Oh well, not for me to know that story. But in my case as far as product availability there is another shop who is fairly local also that is full line dealer and does keep a great supply of St. Croix rods and will get you what you in short time. You are most likely correct. Hope so. Don’t want to ask much about their grievances. The shop use to be a Loomis dealer also. Not a Loomis rod in the place anymore. I don’t know. Thanks for posting your findings.

Glad that worked out for you. Can’t ever get a good heads up what companies do these days. Most of them are only the name. The companies are not run by the folks that ran them when we were younger. Culprit is a good company with a good product. I use to fish a lot of their old 4.25” worm. Than they dried up and are not available these days but was able to get around that a couple of different ways. I'm a St. Croix fan boy, just the way I fell into wanting to fish with better rods years ago. We don’t know one another, just a long time repeat customer but got a few freebies over the years from them that don’t amount to crap but as a company I’m satisfied with what I use. I’m always the last one to know new news but I just heard yesterday that they were bought out and not a family business anymore. I don’t know if that is good or bad. I liked that they were USA built rods now throw Mexico made in there. But this buyout may have taken place a long time ago and most likely I’m just late to the party in finding out.

Sure wish I had a bag of the black ribbon tail worms.

I think we could fish well together. I’m pretty likable and easy going. But I am pretty serious about getting bass when I’m out there.

That’s not all I throw. I’m a crankbait guy at heart and throw a few jig types but soft plastics are my bites as of lately. I can’t crank 20-25 feet of water. Not setup for that and I wouldn’t know how.

I’ll be out at first light tomorrow. I have rods set up for drop shot, split shot, shakey head, T-rig and jig head. No soft plastics on them. I have a good idea what I want to throw but will let the morning tell me. I generally will always have a DT and a Shad Rap rigged up ready to throw in a gizzard Shad or herring pattern. But never soft plastics.

I’ve been fishing the Berkley Maxscent FlatWorm and FlatNose minnow the same. Drop Shot, Split Shot, light T-rigs. Shaking and twitching of both. Eventually I’ll try both with a jig head and I’m pretty confident it will work.

I’m a river rat at heart. There is just something about those Smallies I love. Sure I wish every time out they were all respectable fish but dink and runt days are common. The river is just like home to me. I find an inter peace when I’m on it. I don’t generally fish in the stretches close to or in the city but I have. The Smallies are there along with some nice largemouths and throw in some stripers also. Stripers caught were not big but I guess the potential for one is good. That tidal water is a real trip to fish and don’t overlook any type of structure you come across. Especially man made stuff. When I was younger I didn’t mind the hassle of putting in down around the city. Don’t have the patience for the traffic these days. Fished a spot a few weeks ago that is just outside of city limits, a stretch that I didn’t fish for about 3 years and done well. Slow current and a lot of different cover along it. I fish the lake quite a bit during the season also. My grandsons love the lake. They both have nice PB’s from there and like fishing for new PB’s.

Windy and breezy are two different things. A breeze will put a ripple on the surface. Windy on a river can/will have the feel of reverse flow or an excelerated drift. Can be hard to deal with. But as some had said if this is your day to be out you have to deal with it. The couch is no fun. You can surprise yourself getting a nice bite in heavier winds. I hate it, I don’t like it. No friend of mine.

I guess everyone’s world is different. River Smallie fishing I’m doing from bright sun to a drenching down pour. But like you I prefer dark nasty days. Throw in a rain that starts after you have been out or just getting started. I’ll take that. That said I am out when it is a beautiful day and not getting skunked.

I’m fishing in something heavier than your canoe and the wind is not my friend. Pulled of 3 back to back mornings this week but the wind on Thursday forced me off earlier than anticipated. Yesterday was downright cold at 38 deg. @ 6:00am. My first bass caught was the nicest of the week at just over 15”. Was catching mostly 12-14” over the 3 days. No shallow fish. 13-18 feet of water. Not finding bait fish or feeding activity shallow. Bluegill and crappie are at these depths also. Not fishing the weekend, have stuff at home to do. Gonna be a decent weekend for temps. Winds are suppose to pick up again at the beginning of the week but die off at mid week. Good fishing.

Very interesting about the color blindness in bass. Never knew that or was never listening in the past about that. But I believe it. Gizzard Shad patterns and chartreuse black back, chartreuse black scale are very productive colors for me for both lake and river bass. This might be just an odd case which effects just me but I can’t seem to get River Smallies to bite a chartreuse w/ light blue back. But this pattern is more effective on lake largemouths.

I try to take that approach most times but our lack of rain for months has both the river and lake very clear. Clearer than usual. I agree with your approach. I’m in the soft plastics state of mind. Have been for quite awhile now. Lake fishing I have not caught a bass in real shallow water for weeks. The bite has been from 13-18 feet of water. Lake is much deeper than that but I’m not sure if I can lure fish in water that deep. Good fishing.

Been trying to pull off some back to back mornings myself. Yesterday was calm and much like glass. This mornings winds kicked in by 9:30. Short morning, had no intentions of fighting it. I’ll hit it in the am again. Less wind in tomorrow forecast. I know it was gonna be windy today but didn’t expect it to start so early. Was gonna take some pics yesterday of grass and pads dying off but didn't. I’m not really fishing in it. When the wind/breeze is just right and it pushes all that surface scum into the ramp I think that is worse. That must have been a heck of a sight you pulling 60 lbs. of cattail down the highway. Good fishing.

Do you let them air dry or do you put them in the oven at a lower temp? Or put them in the oven after your French fries/wings are done and the oven is cooling down. Just curious how well getting max life out of the smaller ones has been. I reload my own target shotshells and rifle cartridges and have the larger industrial size bags in my storage cabinet. A bit bigger than a corn hole bean bag. And every once and awhile I’ll pull them and let them set in the kitchen oven while it is cooling down. Than put them back in the cabinet. I have never really noticed and moisture concerns. I have given thought to your size but have never tried them.

Have a sinking thermometer coming that should be in my possession tomorrow. Will do a bit of comparing surface temps to various depths. Waiting for frontal winds to kick out of here today and tomorrow. Gonna pull off back to back mornings Wed. & Thursday. These are gonna be our coldest mornings since spring. 40 degree anticipated. Had a floater/sinker type in my live well for a long time but got to the point you could hardly read it. Stepped the quality up this time.

I only have two BC setups with braid on them. Heavier slop use (not used very hard) and the Power Pro on them has been on there a couple of seasons. Admittedly I am anal as heck on line replacements on casting and spinning setups I am constantly using. Replaced at about 3 or 4 times out with them. My pound test and replacement date is on my rods with a sticker. I purchase my line is shop size spools. It is cheaper but far more convenient. During a season with trout fishing included I’m using quite a bit of SunLine, Trilene XL, McCoy and Big Game. The Wally World spool packs create too much waste, in my opinion.

I would say it probably will be close. I’ve fished and caught fish with quite a hand full of the newer Storm Wiggle warts. I believe there is something about the older originals but it might be a mental thing. My old ones I put up and stopped fishing. You’ll find it. Some of my best producing Bombers are not available any more.