gr8outdoorz

In my experience at GS in fall/winter, has been all about fishing creek channels and steep ledges around the main lake points and fishing around the dam. The rip-rap there tends to hold bass pretty regularly when the water starts getting cold. You just have to find which hump(s) they are relating to. If you will be going soon, I would start in the coves and search for baitfish. The water has not gotten what I consider cold yet so there is a good probability a lot of bass will still be roaming shallower areas following bait. If you don't find them shallow, locate the nearest creek channel leading to deeper water, follow it and you should find a few. My best techniques there in late fall/winter have been jigs and Hudd 68's. As druben said, I never catch numbers there in late fall / winter but the ones I do catch are nice. IMO it is the hardest time to fish there. Carlton

Isn't she purddy!

Mine would be a DVT custom cranking rod: Rodgeeks C273MM White Fuji SS Alconite guides (spiral wrapped) Fuji TCSM reel seat Cork split grip THANKS MIKE!!!

For me it depends on what swimbaits you are throwing. For glide baits and hard swimbaits, I like a 6:1. ratio. For hudds I prefer 5:1 ratio. The reason being I want the Hudds to crawl slowly on the bottom so the slower ratio does that for me. I tend to reel a 6:1 too fast for Hudds. For A rigs I like the 5:1 also because of the torque when reeling them in.

I use straight fluoro. No leaders for me. However, I agree with Rip, if you want braid use 50% mono backing then fill the rest with braid and add a leader as needed.

You should not have trouble casting a 3/8oz lure on a MH. You just might need a little more practice with it. If you are just wanting to add another rod to your arsenal then a M power would be a good one to add. As for the techniques you described, I throw almost all of those on MH with a soft tip.

I am only partial to action. Don't really care what name is on the bag. The colder the water, the slower the action I want. The warmer the water, the faster the action I want. Just about all soft plastics catch fish when used in the right situations.

I hear ya on that RW! This is a screenshot of the temps in Atoka yesterday afternoon...Heat index of 131!!!!!

Nice one AJ!

With the heat thats going on now, trout fishing is going to be tough. I am assuming the streams you fished were freestone mountain streams (not tailwaters fed by a dam). Check the water temp next time you go. If is above 70° the fishing gets dangerous for the trout as they are just trying to survive. Try and find a place with good drop offs/rapids. These will have the highest oxygenation and coolest water temps. Trout will congregate below them to feed and will hold near them in pockets of calmer water. Good luck!

I hear where you are coming from on this and fully agree about working out keeping you healthy, however it is not the case with these injuries most of the time. I have been exercising & working out for a long time. These injuries are from overuse. We suspect it was caused from years of rock/mountain climbing & slinging fly rods.

Bad thing around here is most of the ones I come across are poisonous. Big water moccasins give me those bad chills!!

I have had it happen a number of times. Snakes as well...i don't like snakes.

If it is bothering you now go get it looked at! Left untreated it can cause serious problems. I am currently recovering from elbow surgery. Mine started as an inflamed tendon & I basically ignored it. During a fly fishing trip last October, the pain became serious. Went to the doc when we got back home & found out why. The tendon started to tear. After 7 months of cortisone shots, rehab, & procedure after procedure to no avail, I had to have surgery. After the operation, my surgeon informed me that he had to remove the bottom half of the tendon because it was shredded. I hope you get over this quickly!

While I agree that I don't see bass schooling & stacking up as I do in lakes, I will have to respectfully disagree with the statement of shad imitators not working well in ponds. I do very well on shad imitations in ponds. Bass are opportunistic feeders. Shad do not have to be present in a body of water for an imitation to produce well. If that were the case, you would never be able to catch many bass on trout imitations in lakes that have no trout and trout swimbaits & jerkbaits catch many bass for me & others that fish in lakes with no trout. As for the highlighted statement, that has more to do with the ecosystem on the particular ponds you fish. There are a couple of ponds I fish that are like that, but in most of them, the bass are shaped like footballs. Even the small ones have full bellies. It all depends on the population of bass vs forage. Lots of ponds contain plenty of forage to sustain healthy bass. The food source may be more limited in a pond vs lake, however the number of bass is limited as well. As long as you have a healthy balance of bass vs forage, you will have a healthy ecosystem. Good discussion!

For me: Squarebill - 20 lb fluoro 1' to 10' - 15 lb fluoro 10' & deeper - 10 lb fluoro

Man I hear ya on doing too much! Like you, I have a hard time sitting idle. Being my dominant arm is the one operated on, it's been hard to not use it. The wife has been putting her foot down about that lately...and I've been listening

Happy birthday J!!!

We are praying for your mother and your family Darren!!

I throw the same lures in ponds as I do in lakes. Bass are bass...no mater the body of water

Glad your surgery went well! Being one armed sucks! I had a successful elbow surgery last Tuesday myself. They had to remove the bottom half of one of the tendons since it was shredded. I sure hope you have a speedy recovery!!

So sorry to hear about your brother! We are praying for your brother & family! Hope he has a speedy recovery!

Dan, I will give you a couple tips about fishing Glenn Springs. Throughout the summer, when the grass mats on top, it is time for 2 presentations: Hollow body frogs/mice & punching. Troll from mat to mat listening for the bluegill feeding (crackle & pop sound). When you come on one of those, toss your frog next to any timber you see in the mat and also look for irregular lines in the mat (where 2 different grasses meet). I get many strikes in these areas. I will also punch these mats. Again, looking for timber in the mat, irregular grass lines, & holes in the mat. I promise you will increase you numbers by doing this alone. Once I am done with the frogs & punching, I head to the creek channels & drop-offs. Everyone I see out there beats the bank. You can catch some by doing this, but you will be MUCH more consistent if you use your sonar to find the drop-offs & creek channels. If you are standing on the pier looking across the lake, there is a big main lake point directly across from you. That cove is a spawning cove & has a creek running from the back of it to the main lake. Depending on what stage the bass are in ( pre, spawn, or post) depends where on that creek they are. The hotter the weather, the closer to the main lake they will be. Where the creek meets the main lake, there is a huge pile of submerged timber. There are almost always bass stacked in & around that timber (it sits on the edge of a drop-off to deep water). Work the cove well & you will find fish. Looking from the pier again, There is one other main lake point to the left of the one I just discussed. That point runs about 30-40 yards underwater. It runs to about 15-20 fow (depending on the lake level). at the 10-12 ft mark, there is a stump field. I catch many bass on jerkbaits & crankbaits in that stump field. Crash you cranks into the stumps & you will get bit. That stump field sits right on the edge of...you guessed it...a drop-off. In between those 2 points, there is a small bluff wall that drops from 5-8 fow to 15-18 fow. There is a grass bed on top of the wall. There are many bass that feed on top of the wall early & late day then drop to the bottom of it midday. Jerkbaits & jigs have been the bet for me in this section. See the point I am getting at? Find the drop-offs...find the bass. Along with these areas, there are a few humps just south of the dam that hold fish in the summer. They sit in 20-25 fow & rise to 10-15 ft. Use you sonar to find the drop-offs Then work them good & I bet you will start catching more bass. I always hear people say they never catch anything out there, but I always catch good fish out there & I'm definitely no pro! I live 10 min from there & fished it often until I jacked my arm up. I should be able to fish again by mid June. If you like, we can meet out there then & fish together once I heal from my surgery. I hope this helps you some! Good luck! Carlton

A-Jay I will DEFINITELY be smart with rehab! I want it to heal not hurt it again. As for the other...now that's what I have such a pretty wife for Carlton

Thanks for the well wishes guys! I'm not too worried bout the surgery, just ready to have my arm back!! Hahahaha!