Sam

Congrats! Show us the pond!

Dry Prong!!! I can't believe you live in Dry Prong. All my life I have used Dry Prong in my articles and when talking to people about my home state. Now we have a real live person from Dry Prong. And yes boys and girls, Dry Prong does exist. If memory serves me the town is southeast of Natchitoches. And Dry Prong is one of the last standing towns that has not sent anyone to play football for LSU. Welcome aboard and I am sure you will keep us up to date on your bass fishing exploits. Just ask your questions and we are here to help you. Geaux Tigers!

Nottoway River out of Franklin. Put in at the ramp on the NC side. Go up river.

Those Academy frogs are outstanding!

As Hank Parker has always said, "it doesn't cost anything to set the hook." Get to know how the presentation feels without any action. Once the "feel" is different then you set the hook.

I fish banks, wood, brush, trees, pilings, docks, piers, boathouses and shallow water without my electronics on. I believe the fish can feel the pinging from the side and down scan unit. So I throw the drop shot without any electronics and have not encountered any problems nor lost confidence in this method.

Stealing a dog in Virginia is a felony. You did right in returning the dog. You did wrong in not reporting them for drinking and animal abuse.

Oh, a west end guy. With the new Cabela's, Dick's, Wegmann's, Green Top, Short Pump Fashion Park, REI, heavy traffic, lots of traffic signals, crazy drivers, construction going on everywhere there is a blade of grass, and some fine eating establishments you never have to visit the Capitol of the Confederacy and look for parking spaces!!!! Welcome aboard. Wonderful having you with us. First, let me suggest you do the following: 1. Go to Bass Pro Shops (or Cabela's/Dick's) and pick up a free copy of Freshwater Fishing in Virginia from the DG&IF. Get a few copies and look it over, especially the places you can fish without a boat throughout the state. Look for Henrico County as there are a number of places in the West End that you and the family can fish from the bank. Put a copy in your car, at work, at home and give one each to your kids. Great reading. 2. BPS has a stronger fishing department than Cabela's so please shop there for your tackle. Ask for one of the Mike's, Patrick or Conner as they bass fish tournaments and know bass fishing. Mike Gunn is a great guy and he has forgotten more about bass fishing than the regular bass fisherman knows. Big Mike Johnson is a riot and an excellent bass fisherman, too. Ask the "Mike's", Patrick and Conner about rods, reels, line, baits, tackle and places to fish. 3. Lake Rooty in Innsbrook was cleaned out when they killed the grass but you and the family can try your luck at that lake or the concrete pond on Cox Road. No guarantee you will catch anything. 4. Look up Ed. Allen's campground on the Chickahominy Lake and rent a boat or fish off their pier. 5. Places to fish along the Historic James River by Byrd Park are available but I don't like them as it is a challenge to get to the water and then sharing the location with the snakes. But Wdycrankbait on this site fishes the Historic James from the bank and maybe he can help you. I will ask him to add a post. 6. Echo Lake is OK but hard to fish. You will catch a number of smaller bass and if you are lucky, maybe one over two pounds. Once again, Wdycrankbait can help you with Echo Lake. Welcome to the Forum. Always great t have another guy from Virginia join us.

No. The deeper you go the less light you have penetrating into the depths.

In addition to the above let me add that water and weather conditions play a major role in boat operation. A one foot wave hitting your boat as you make a turn can cause havoc. A two foot wave can bring water into the boat. A three foot wave, and higher, can flip the boat as you make a turn or throw the trolling motor back at you and your passengers as it tears apart from the bow. Please take a boating safety course. After all, you can't pull onto the shoulder and step out of the boat if you have a problem. And if you want to see what a person's head looks like bobbing in the water, take a volleyball and throw it into the water and see if you can pick it out from 100 feet. Better to be safe than sorry. Good luck.

I would think you are hooking them with the main hook and not a trailer hook.\ I would surmise that the bass made an aggressive attack at the Chatterbait, missed, and when it turned you hooked it in the head. You ran into a school of the same size bass and each took a turn to destroy the Chatterbait. I have hooked bass in the head and side when they strike and miss the bait. Nothing special about this situation other than it happened to you for the first time. What is special is the number of bass you hooked in this manner. But it does not matter. Each one counts. Please continue to throw that Chatterbait and have some fun.

I selected a crawfish as it is one of the main courses for bass and I wanted everyone to know what a bass sees as he is eating. Picture turned out better than I imagined.

8-pound fluorocarbon on a spinning rig. Perfect set up for Senkos.

Who in the world did you order the rod from? I have ordered rods and all have arrived in their correct length tubes in excellent shape. Travis, it is time for a strong letter to the retailer, telling them what happened and what you want done, such as returning that rod and having another sent; or returning that rod and getting a credit on your credit card. Or give the retailer a phone call, if possible, and make copious notes with names of the individuals you speak with. Be clear on telling them what you want. Remember, retailers do not want bad publicity. One dumb employee can create havoc for a retailer and the retailer does not want this. You rod was probably packaged by someone who has no idea of how to handle a fishing rod and once the retailer understands that "you mean business" you will surprised at what they will do for you. Let us know what happens after you contact the retailer.

Jonathan, line twist on a spinning rig cannot be avoided. It can be reduced, but never eliminated. Try spooling some fluorocarbon onto your spinning reel first; then tie 8-pound braid to the fluorocarbon line to complete the spooling process. The fluorocarbon will stop the braid from slipping on the spinning reel. You then tie a fluorocarbon leader of the same diameter as shown on the braid's box, if you wish. Many guys and gals just throw the braid without any leader and they do very well. But you also have to check the braid for line twist as you fish as a small knot in the line can appear in the braid at any time. Give it a try and let us know how your experiment turns out.

Apples, talk about a slump. Last time out was on July 17 where I caught 6 nice ones at a local lake. Had toe surgery on July 20th and can't do anything to at least August 201th, if not after Labor Day. Now that's a slump. Keep your confidence up. Don't lose any confidence in your fishing talent. The bass may have gone deep and you can't find them. Not your fault. You are doing everything correctly. It is the bass' problem, not yours. So read all of the replies and give 'em a good ole California try. You have thrown down the gauntlet to the bass and now it is up to you to follow through and show those nasty green monsters who is boss. Now go out there and make us all proud.

LShep, please get your free copy of the VDG&IF Freshwater Fishing in Virginia booklet and look up Region 1, Eastern Virginia, and the Southeastern Virginia list for places to fish. The Hampton BPS plus tackle shops and Peckers has them along with Wal-Mart. You can try Mount Trashmore but it is not user friendly. Good luck.

Hey Kevin! Hope you are having a fun summer and getting ready to hit the books once again in August. Now to your query: Does BPS in Memphis, Tennessee have a discount rod rack? I have no idea. So what do you do? You can call BPS in Memphis and ask their fishing department guys and gals if they have such a rack; you can call the BPS in Ashland and ask them how you can find out if the Memphis BPS has a rod discount rack; you can send an email to BPS in Springfield, Missouri and ask them if their Memphis store has a rack; you can visit the store and ask them, personally; or you can go to the Tennessee section of this Forum and ask the guys and gals reading that topic if they know if BPS in Memphis has a discount rod rack. Always remember one thing about making a phone call: if the call goes bad you can always hang up and hide under your bed.

Look just like those images in South America where we can't figure out how they got there. Agree with Tom on size and location pertaining to bass and bluegill beds. They look like what caused the Monster from the Black Lagoon to form and terrorize everyone. Then again, if it holds fish go out and enjoy it as long as you can.

Join the club. From eagles to ospreys to blue birds; otters; snakes; beavers; jumping carp; feeding frenzies; you just can't get photos of everything you see while on the water. I just relax and enjoy seeing Mother Nature at work. Isn't she beautiful?

Outstanding! Welcome to the Forum.

Gone deep with a green pumpkin with black flake four-inch Senko rigged wacky style using a 1/0 weedless hook on 8-pound fluorocarbon line. Thrown it as far as I could on a spinning rig; let it sink and sit there for about 30 seconds; and then moved it very slowly back to me, allowing it to sit for 10 seconds or more between moves and making sure I lifted it enough so it floated like a butterfly back to the bottom. You may have had small bass, crappie or bream hit the Senko and stole it. Happened to me today and I finally landed a nice fat dink, about a pound, as he was driving me crazy just tapping at the Senko but not inhaling it and running like the police were after him. If this fails try a trick worm fished shaky head or a drop shot. If that fails, go home.

Yes, it is always great to hook up and land a bass when others are in the area and they notice your success. If I was in the same position, I would have trolled over to the guy and offered some suggestions and even shared a plastic worm or two. I even stopped on the road to my house one day when I saw two teenagers walking from the local pond and I gave them some Zoom trick worms and some jig heads. They were really surprised that I had stopped and offered them the necessary tackle to go back to the pond and catch something. As for guys who are fishing in a tournament or are dressed in their special bass fishing tournament shirt, I don't give them the time of day. I just smile and move along.

Glenn, you opened the door. Yes, I saw it a while back and was impressed. With summer here I don't usually watch many fishing TV shows and FIOS just dropped the World Fishing Network so my opportunities to see bass fishing shows has crashed and burned.