Sam

You will not catch any more fish until the University of Tennessee wins a football game. With Southern Miss, Florida, Arkansis State, Georgia, State, Bama and South Carolina on tap it may be a long, long time before you catch anything. Just kidding. Could not help myself. ;D Fishing is also tough in Virginia. The drought has pushed the bass into the cooler, more oxygenated water and the higher water temperatures have made them lethargic. After we had some rain last week the bass were moving around and very active and hitting Senkos, finesse worms and crankbaits. I have been catching a lot of dinks with a 1 or 2 pounder thrown in every now and then. Even the bream bite has slowed down. So just wait for cooler weather and some rain and you will be back nailing them on each cast. Now, as for the Vols........ Geaux Tigers!

Be sure to let us know what happens when you use the bait. I would think saltwater fish would be more agressive and open to various types of bait, such as the pepper for redfish. But a bass may decide to "taste" the bait just to either see if it something to eat or to kill it. Hey, any animal that thinks a buzzbait is a snack will probably hit anything, even Snickers bars.

Hey John J, may I make a suggestion? Take the courses you hate at Germanna. That's right. If you are strong in English and poor in math, take all the math classs you can to transfer to VCU. If you are strong in math and weak in English, do the same for your English courses. Get them out of the way as they are not as challenging as VCU and other schools. Don't forget LSU. Tuition is about the same or less than instate for Virginia schools and you can major in Marine Biology or Marketing and be with some of the nicest people in the world who love to eat and have a good time. A degree from LSU is also different than for Virginia schools as we have found out that recruiters want to talk about Louisiana, Mardi Gras, the food, fishing, football and the French Quarter on interviews with LSU grads. But VCU is a good school, too, so do your best and transfer for next September to a universityand GET THAT DEGREE. In the meantime, keep us abreast of your fishing successes on Lake Orange and Lake Anna, etc.

Welcome and please ask your questions. Check out the subjects and read all you can. Great place to visit and you will improve your understanding of the bass and your skills as well.

I use real trailer hooks that you can purchase at your local tackle shop. They are easy to use and will help improve your catch ratio. Their eye is larger than a regular hook so they can move around easily on the bait's hook's shaft. I use them on buzzbaits, spinnerbaits, Chatterbaits and a topwater frog when I get frustrated with short strikes. Be sure the trailer hook is one size smaller than the bait's hook and that it sticks out straight with the rubber tube not interfering with the bait's barb. And be careful when removing the bait's hook and the trailer hook. I have already had to push the trailer hook through my thumb and cut off the barb to remove it when the bass jumped as I was removing the buzzbait and the trailer hook dove into my thumb, just missing the bone. And don't worry about throwing the spinnerbait or buzzbait into structure. The trailer hook will not get caught in the structure...maybe.

This little story should explain what we mean Frogtog: A Texas Tech graduate, a University of Texas grad and a Texas Aggie were sitting in a bar in San Antonio. The view of the river was fantastic, the beer was ice cold and the food exceptional. "But," said the guy from Tech, "I still prefer the beer joints back in Lubbock. There's one place where the owner goes out of his way for the locals. When you buy 4 beers, he will buy the 5th." The Longhorn said "Well, at my local bar in Austin, the owner will buy your 3rd drink after you've bought 2." "Hell, that's nothin'," the Aggie responded. "Back in College Station there's this bar where the moment you set foot in the place they'll buy you a drink and keep them coming all night. Then when you've had enough to drink, they take you upstairs and see that you get laid. And it's all on the house." The Red Raider and the Longhorn immediately doubted the Aggie's claims. "And this actually happened to you?" asked the Tech grad. No, not myself personally," admitted the Aggie. "But it did happen to my sister."

Will be pulling for the Saints to win, as always. I am not a "Manning" fan. I saw father Archie play for Ole Miss and the Saints. He is a nice guy and a great family man. Not a great football quarterback. I understand why Peyton did not attend LSU with Archie's Ole Miss background. But why Tennessee? Why not Tulane? And LSU did not need Eli for a QB when he came along so he went to Ole Miss and has the record that in the biggest play in the history of Ole Miss football he fell on his ***! LSU 17 Ole Miss 14 and then onto the Sugar Bowl to defeat Oklahoma for the Fighting Tigers' second National Championship. And the oldest son got injured playing for Ole Miss so you do not hear about him. So although I am a Johnny Unitas fan of the BALTIMORE COLTS I just cannot be for the Indy 500 Colts or any of the Mannings. I think the Mannings are over rated and the only championship won by any of the four guys was 1) Tennessee's SEC title and 2) the last Super Bowl for Peyton. Otherwise, the guys are not winners. Saints may not win but with their running game it should be an interesting game. Run up the score, Saints!

Kistler. You will not be disappointed.

I read about these rods from the 2007 ICAST show but never thought more about them, especially when you look at the price. However, now that LBH has tried them and has blessed them with pond water I just have to have one. Maybe for Christmas. Which one do you guys suggest??????

It looks so good I think I will eat it. Now for the big test. Will it catch anything on One Fish Anna?

Super story. And if the fish is over 4 pounds I have been told it is probably a lady. I think your blood pressure took a good hit when fighting her which makes the struggle even more exciting. I have actually been out of breath and have had to sit down to calm down when I caught my first 6 pounder. I can still feel my heart beating in my chest from that experience. Congrats on your new PB. Now go out there and improve on it!

May I suggest Dr. Keith Jones' book, Knowing Bass, The Scientific Approach to Catching More Fish? Although parts of the book are contriversable among bass biologists, it is full of fantastic information on largemouth bass that you can put to good use. The book is published by Lyons Press of Guilford, Connecticut. It is a great read during the upcoming winter months. Just get your yellow highlighters ready to roll and have some paper to make notes. You will learn a lot about the animal and how to hunt it. You may also enjoy Bigmouth and Bigmouth Forever videos or DVDs by Glen Lau. His third production, The Feeding Habits of Bass, is extremely informative, too. You can order the videos by calling 800.661.4286. Winter is the time to catch up on your reading if you can't fish and to try to understand this gamefish.

Or...maybe you are not taking in the weather conditions; the water color; the bottom; the size of the bass; and if there are any bass in the pond. However, to answer you questions in my humble opinion: 1. I would cast the first bait, in a fan pattern, all over the area. Starting with a buzzbait and followed with a top water such as a Spook or a Pop-R bait. Then, I would try a crankbait and then a spinnerbait followed by a wacky rigged Senko and lastly the Texas rigged finesse worm. And don't forget your shaky head rig, too. It is not a specific number of casts, but the number of casts to cover the entire territority a number of times. Keep changing baits until you can find what they are seeking. 2. I would leave the spot if I had not gotten a bite or caught small dinks and look for another area to fish. 3. See number 1 above. You have to try your different baits. You may have to "scale down" to a smaller size bait, too. Or different color. Or different technique. The fish will tell you what they want sooner or later. Remember, pond fishing can be fun but it is also challenging as we do not have maps of the ponds nor of their bottom. We do not know how healthy and wise the bass population is or what their favorite food is during the morning, day and evening. On the pond I fished this past weekend the retired security guard told me to throw a Mepps Number 2 with a red tail. It seems they love these baits. The guy who fishes the pond all the time told me to use a plastic minnow fished like a crankbait. He caught one dink and one 1-pounder while I was there. At my local pond I know they like Senkos fished wacky plus Rat-L-Traps and crankbaits. For some reason, they do not like spinnerbaits or pointers. Go figure? I also know that the pond's bottom is full of dead leaves and shaky head rigs do not work in the muck. At a client's pond in Maryland they kill Senkos and Zoom finesse worms plus crankbaits. I caught one on a spinnerbait this spring and that's it for spinnerbaits. But it has taken me over a year to figure all this out on the ponds I fish on a regular basis. They like a silver with black back Pop-R but will only strike at a buzzbait and not take it. So you have to try different lures and places to fish since we do not know the bottom composition or structures on the bottom that can hold bass. This is the challenge of bass fishing, be it a pond, lake or river. Once you unlock the secret pleaes PM me so I can use it, too.

SSAB is correct above. You have to sharpen the hooks right out of the box. I learned the hard way and I still can see that beauty jumping out of the water and throwing the Chatterbait on the Pamunkey River. I also have been known to add a trailer hook. Good luck.

So what is the final count? And what is going on with the final production?

I think Bass Insider is more of an advertising gimmick than actual fishing help. I get Bassmaster Magazine so I get the articles. This site and Bassin Magazine are so much better than Bass Insider that I will not renew my Bass Insider subscription when it comes due.

My fishing buddy's mother put chemicals in their wonderful pond that was being overgrown with hydrilla and she killed all of the grass and fish. At least most of the fish. This was a fantastic pond to fish. We would use thier jon boat and paddle all over the pond and land bass from the dinks up to 4 pounds on almost every cast. The bream population was large and healthy, too. At Lake Chesdin the locals put chemicals in their creek to remove the grass. It worked. Killed the creek for fishing, too. So if you are going to use any chemicals in your pond may I suggest getting with your game and inland fisheries people for their guidance and help? Your good intentions could lead to a disaster.

Good luck on Anna. Let us know what you find out and how you fish the lake. You can PM me if possible. Have you consider fishing off the North Anna River in Christopher Creek? If possible, try to go under the bridge and fish the area near the end of the creek. I would think you can still bang the bank and boat houses along the shoreline anywhere in the lake. Are you putting in at Anna Point Marina? IF so, have you ever gone up pgeon Run all the way back to the dam? Who knows were the bass will be but I am like you and would rather fish the banks than go out and try to find the humps and brushpiles and other sturcture. Of course, Teddy's book is excellent so give it a try, too.

How about a buzzbait with a black skirt. The "clacker" style is excellent but any buzzbait will do. Then, if no strikes try your Pop-R fished at different speeds and techniques. A silver with a black back is a good choice. A Spook (silver with silver glitter) or the Sammy as Cajun suggested or a Chugbug or your spinnerbait. Have a Texas-rigged Senko ready to throw if the bass miss the topwater. Throw the Senko at the location of the miss, immediately. Do this with the buzzbait, too. Some guys like the wacky rigged Senko so you can try that. Be sure your buzzbait has a trailer hook. If still no strikes, and there are weeds, pads or grass, try your Horny Toad or a weightless pink 10 inch trick worm moved like a snake right under the water and/or over the pads. Or a swimming Senko weighted to get it down to the fish, like with a 1/8 or 1/4 ounce bullet weight. Be sure to throw your buzzbait all over the place, like to and from the bank; parallel to the shore; down submerged trees and logs; around docks; and especially by small sticks sticking out of the water. Bump the buzzbait into structure; retrieve it slow, fast, with a short pause, or any other way you think will provoke a strike. If no hits with a black skirt, change out to a white or a white/charturuse skirt. You can also throw the smaller size buzzbaits as they can produce a lot of strikes when the larger buzzbaits will not. Same is true with the sizes of the other baits, too. Let us know how you do.

Born and raised in New Orleans. The uptown section by Audubon Park and Tulane. I know where Abbeville is located. In Lafayette Parish near New Iberia and Lafayette. In the heart of Cajun country. Good food and music. Especially the food!

According to Dr. Jones in his book, most scents are oil based and the bass cannot smell them. Bass can smell water based scents. With that said, I put scent on plastics and Mega Strike on everything, including hard baits. Why? For confidence and I beleive it tasts good to the fish and they will hold onto the lure longer. There is a secret scent that is supposed to work for bass but I don't share it. Sorry. Dr. Jones' tests showed that scents can help catch bass. Get his book, Knowing Bass, The Scientific Approach to Catching More Bass, and read what he has to say.

Try a small white Rooster Tail or a Mepps #2 with a red tail or a small white 1 to 1.5 inch grub on a 1/64 or 1/8 ounce jig head and see if you have any success. When I hear the words "fish slow" it reminds me of one of my fishing buddies who can sit in the boat and just sit and wait for five minutes before moving the worm. This drives me crazy. Totally crazy for if I don't get a strike withing 10 seconds I am moving the bait. So is he successful? Yes. Very. Being Type A makes just sitting there wtih that Mocassin Blue finesse worm sitting on the bottom impossible. That's why I love the Senkos which I have to keep moving along the bottom, especially when fishing Wacky style. So "slow" means just what it implies. Slow down your presentations. Just make sure you have good health insurance with strong mental health benefits as fishing really slow can drive you crazy.

Bass Pro Shops and pick out a Woo Daves rod for about $50 and a BPS spinning reel for one set up and a Woo Daves rod for about $50 and a Shimano Curado 100 for your baitcaster. Then, as you progress with your fishing and have more experience you can go for the higher priced rods and reels. If you break or lose your BPS setup you will be out only $100 to $150 and you can easily replace the rod and reel. Your goal is to have all G. Loomis rods and all Shimano high end reels. Get them before you get married! ;D

Congrats on a good show. That grass can drive you crazy on the Aquia Creek and no telling how many bites you missed thinking it was a grass hook-up. We were successful throwing finess worms on the Aquia Creek. We fished them Texas-rigged with a 3/16 ounce bullet weight. Too much grass for any treble hooks and they were into interested in any spinnerbaits or topwaters we threw. You are not going to One Fish Anna? And you think the Potomac is hard to fish? I hope you do well on Lake Anna. I have never done well on Lake Anna and am glad we don't have any tournaments on that Lake this year in our club. I fish the creeks on Anna and some of the guys beat the bank with spinnerbaits, crankbaits and pointers. They catch some bass and stripers. In the creeks I usually hook one or two keepers, but that's all and it is hard fishing to do that all day long. Good luck and let us know how you do on One Fish Anna.

Senile1, I heard that Charlie Weiss would not name a starting quarterback until right before the Tech game started. Now I beleive he did not know their names!!!!! ;D And look who is next on the Irish's schedule...Penn State. Followed by Michigan, Michigan State and Purdue. Do I see a 0-4 Notre Dame team?