Sam

My wife is from Indiana County. Grew up on a milk farm in Penn Run. Then moved to Airport Road. She and her grandmother and mother went to Stewart's Hardware when it was in business back in the day. We never stopped to visit Yellow Creek lake off 422 on the way to and from Indiana. Do you know any McCrackens in Indiana County? Welcome to the Forum.

You want a "steady" temperature for three to four days so the bass will behavior as they are supposed to based on water clarity and water temperature. The barometric pressure also has an impact on what the bass do. Then, add in the sun warming the water or structure in the water and you have your menu to use to determine where the bass will be (or supposed to be); and the water temperature. Then add in the water column's clarity; time of the year; the time of day; the wind; the forage; clouds; the sun; water clarity; and other factors that impact the bass' behavior. Here is the take on your air temperatures as you published: Friday 41|31 Saturday 52|28 Sunday 52|35 Monday 68|46 You have a "warming trend" which means the bass will becoming more active and start their spawning efforts when the water warms up into the low 60's. Now, with all of the above penned, do you know the water temperature? After all, you are fishing in the water where the fish live and that is the only temperature that matters. Once you use your pool thermometer to obtain the water temperature you are ready to decide what the bass are doing and what you should throw and at in what water columns. See how easy it is.

You da man! Great catches in the concrete ponds in Maymount. Keep it up, but watch the weather this weekend. Keep those cards and photos coming!!!! Congrats.

That's Southlake. There are two lakes in Southlake and you can find them down the road from Super Radiator Coils. Check out a map and you can find them. The big one and the second smaller one that is east towards the DMV that hardly is ever fished. There are some nice bass in the Southlake pond but fishing is slow. Give it a shot, anyway. I don't know if there is a pond behind the Super Radiator Coils shop. Let me know. Salisbury people will run you off their lake or call the Chesterfield police. So be careful and have your license with you. The ponds behind the Sheraton have small bass, and lots of them. Ignore the "No Fishing" signs. Have you tried the ponds in the Boulders? Look them up on Google.

Blue, can you add the Chick River and Lake to your avatar so we will know where you are and where you fish? As for the Chick, it is just about the same from 20-years ago. Some blow downs are gone but the grass and pads will reappear as the water temperature gets warmer. 56* is cold for the Chick and the bass are just holding, looking at you as you pass above. The tides rule the Chick so you will not do that great on a slack or incoming tide, although me and my friends have caught them on both conditions. An East wind will also kill the bite and if the Historic James River gets back-upped due to a hurricane or storm in the Atlantic the river is not worth even trying your luck. When the water warms up into the 60's you will do much better and get a lot more bites as the bass get ready to spawn. Up river by the dam is much better when the pads and grass emerge. Otherwise you will probably do better in the creeks like Gordon, Morris, Diascund, Shipyard and Yarmouth. Have fun!!!!

Gone, Scott has given you the scientific explanation of a cold front. Here is what happens when a cold front moves through your area: 1. The wind blows out away from the storm in gusts 2. As the storm approaches, the wind stops blowing 3. When the storm is about to hit, the wind blows inward toward the storm's center and changes directions 180* 4. The barometric pressure drops as the storm approaches and then reaches your area 5. This barometric pressure drop has a direct impact on bass 6. As the barometric pressure begins to drop, the bass feed, and feed hard 7. When the storm is over your location, the bass still feed although the wind and rain keep you inside 8. As the storm passes, the bass rest since they have a belly full of their favorite forage 9. The storm clears out the clouds for the next day and you have "bluebird skies" 10. The bass get lockjaw the next day under "bluebird skies" which makes fishing difficult after a storm passes 11. Depending on how much the bass eat before and during the storm; the strength of the barometric pressure caused by the storm; when the barometric pressure begins to rise to its normal level after the storm passes; water clarity; water temperature; and how the bass feel about feeding again means you may not get any bites for one or two days after the storm passes The best fishing you can do is right before the storm hits and during the storm with a sharp eye out for lightning and a good ear out for thunder. If you hear thunder, get off the water. If you see lightning, no matter how close or far away, get off the water. If the wind is kicking up whitecaps, get off the water or seek shelter in a cove or creek. If you can't get off the water then seek shelter under a boat house. The above gives you a base for fishing before, during, and after a storm has come and gone. Always play it safe. Have fun! P.S. One of the guys in my bass club many years ago was caught in a storm on Buggs Island during a club tournament and he pulled his boat into a cove to get out of the wind and rain. He decided to fish the cove during the storm as he had nothing else to do and he caught his five bass limit in about 15 minutes and won the tournament. He had not had a bite all day until he hit that cove during the storm. And he was on his way back to the ramp to give up but had to go into the cove as it was too rough to make it back to the ramp.

Sad story. I would think the stress finally got to him, magnified by watching his wife's condition deteriorate. T&P to the family.

DOGWOODS HAVE BLOOMED! DOGWOODS HAVE BLOOMED! THE BASS ARE ON THEIR BEDS. THE SPAWN HAS BEGUN IN VIRGINIA. BOOLA BOOLA!

An "Oldies But Goodies" tournament sounds like a fantastic idea. Send a note to BASS asking about it.

Set up a five mile radius from your ramp and fish that area as the lake is way to large to fish it all. Get a GMCO map of the lake and study it to find the places you would like to try your luck. You can also use the map to find specific places, like the one of the motel's dock and the cove to the left.

X2

Thanks. Don't remember seeing his name in the Bass Times tournament reports. Hope he wins one, soon.

First, I don't believe Roland is fishing any tournaments. At least I have not heard of him fishing any tournaments. Second, with age comes experience on the water and insight learned over the years. Yes, we have all the new gadgets and rods, reels, lines, hooks, sinkers, blades, boats, electronics, fish callers, cameras, and special baits and colors for specific presentations and situations. However, with all of the above and much more equipment and tackle, if the bass are not there you will not catch them. Enter us old goats! We can look at the water for water clarity; note what is above the water to determine what is under the water; use years and years of fishing specific bodies of water over and over again; understand what happens at different times of the day; know what happens at different times of the year; know how the bass behavior in the different seasons; know the impact of cold fronts and blue bird skies; know how the wind impacts the bass; know where the structure is located and what cover is there; know the secret brush piles; know the double secret holes; know the impact of the water temperature on the bass; know what the bass are feeding on; and we cast and retrieve just like everyone else. The difference is hours on the water and the "gut feelings" we get about what to throw and where. Our reflexes may not be up to the speed of our young friends, and we may go slow. But we can set the hook just as good, or better, than the younger guys and gals. I guess we all start to slow down when the old adage, "you know you are getting old when the things you used to enjoy become a chore" kicks in. It is just a part of life we all have, will, or are going through now.

This, what the guys suggested above is great. I am going to suggest you check the water temperature and clarity. Remember, bass' behavior is based on water temperature and their strike attacks are based on water clarity. So check out the water temperature to find what the bass are doing.

Right. Check the kill switch first.

NY, you are sooooo correct. If you miss your contract deadline they continue it for one more year and you have to pay a penalty to get out of it. My best friend in New Orleans got tired of paying for the SEC channel and he dropped it. Now that the Fighting Tigers baseball team is doing well and he is tired of calling me to find out what is happening in the games, he called Verizon and got a new deal where the picked up the SEC and one other channel and saved $20 a month. Go figure. And when your monthly bill comes out the first thing Verizon does is to send you texts on your cell phone that the bill is due when in actuality you have at least two more weeks to go before it is due. But it is what it is and that is the way it is. My cell phone has gone quiet since I got the Robocall app. At least that seems to be working.

The first Alabama rig video.

For me, the toughest time to catch largemouth bass is when the air temperature drops below 70*, starting in November and going through March and I don't fish. Why? Because I am from south Louisiana and any air temperature of less than 70* means it is cold and I hate cold weather. I will bundle up and fish a late season club tournament, like last year when my buddy and I came in third on the Historic James River in December, but that's about it. It is better to stay inside and watch sports on TV then to try your luck in cold weather.

Gundog, I looked it up and it is $30 for the year starting after one free week.

Gundog, no, only the $30 one time payment for the year. Now, I may be wrong but I do believe it is only $30 one time. If it is different I will let all know.

All, all the best for a fun time putting your arsenal together. The Bait Monkey loves you. We will give you any help with your selections as best we can. Have fun learning bass fishing and post some pics for us to see what you catch. Welcome to the Forum.

My cell phone was receiving so many robocalls that I could not take it anymore. So I broke down and spent $30 to add robocall blocker to my iPhone. It has really worked since last night when I added it to my apps. I was receiving at least two or three robocalls an hour, which made working difficult and driving very dangerous. As of today, one day later, I have not received any robocalls and life is good. Our land line is over 25 years old and may not qualify for the Verizon robocall blocking program so I have to call them and find out. If you are being driven crazy by robocalls on your iPhone I suggest you consider adding the robocall block app.

Thanks, Reb. All is OK. Sincerely appreciate the feedback.

And the strippers scene at the end is priceless. Yep. Just like basketball kids today. Never heard of Pistol Pete Maravich.