Swamp Girl

I hate how I'll hook them in actual water and they immediately plunge into a brushy shoreline. Like this: Their instincts for freeing themselves are top tier, which is the product of 3,000,000 years of fine-tuning. What do lmbs do that drive you cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs?

This is not my problem. I get a lot of hits. I just don't land a lot of reed bass. Thanks for all the info. I'm working it like cud.

I look forward to the day I meet my first BR member. I have phone chatted with a couple and emailed a couple others.

That's it exactly. Their power shocks me, again and again and again. I think @Mike L is right, that some of them have merely grabbed the bait, but not reached the hook. When I hook my soft plastics on underspins, I have the hook tip tight to the paddle tail, so it's barely exposed. I couldn't cast where I cast if it were exposed. Mike, the reed field above is young. I'm sure it's filled in already to the point where I wouldn't dare cast in it because I'd hook a bass and immediately lose that bass. Yeah, I think my canoe really limits me. It's my strength, allowing me to launch and fish in places no bass boat could reach, but it's my weakness too. I've managed to do this a few times. I did it with the fish below, but she NEARLY reached heavy cover. You can see how close she was to far thicker reeds. When I plunged the net into the water, I had to force it through the reeds that were there and reeds are stiff.

Even in Maine, it's going to reach 90 degrees one day and 92 degrees the next. So true. If I haven't slept alone in the wilderness for a while, my first night in the bush isn't easy because I'm not acclimated to the racket. Night is when most critters awaken and live their lives. I was once on an island in the wilderness and I heard something big swimming out to me. "What now?" I wondered. Then I heard the clomp, clomp of its hooves on the rocky island and the water dripping off it. So, I unzipped and shined a light on the bull moose. Luckily, it swam off. I have had bears quite close to me too.

I wonder if you guys who land 90-95% of your bass ever have this situation: A bass hits. It surges away like a locomotive...for about a second...and then it's free. There isn't even time for me to make a mistake. It's on/then off. This happens to me pretty much every time I go fishing and many trips, several times. It's the One Second Hookup. And if anyone has an idea of how to extract bass from a reed field, I'm all ears. I'll hook a bass in a reed field and the bass hooks my lure on a reed and shakes free. I can catch an occasional bass in reeds like the one below, but I lose the great majority of them, which is a pity, because thick bass are thick in reeds. I occasionally have success bringing their heads up so they can't dig into the water, but if it's a deeper hit and they've got reeds everywhere, they win. Remember that I'm fishing from a tippy canoe that nests in the water. I can't stand. I love the bass that hang in reeds, but more and more, I won't cast to them. 99% of the bass in the reeds are lmbs and and longer and thicker than the brown bass below, which is probably why I managed to land this reed field bass.

@IcatchDinks: The Blue Angels, hummingbirds, and Cirque du Soleil can only dream of doing what smallmouth do when airborne. Dang drunks. Why isn't floating down a river enough for them? Why do they have to turn the river into a noisy bar full of too loud people telling stories not worth telling...again and again? That's a chunky bass for a river.

That's crazy, Woody!

Dang it, Mike. I hooked my Moby this spring and I keep trying to catch her again, but she hasn't sniffed any of my lures. I'm amazed that you keep hooking your Moby!

I'm about 60/40, i.e. I lose about 40% of my bass. There are days when I'm 50/50. If I'm fishing reeds, I land even fewer. I also have days when I'm 95/5. Those days are open water days with bass committing to the hit. What's your landing ratio?

Fishing tomorrow. So, I get a "Yee-haw!" too.

Yee-haw, @FishTank! it looks like you caught your beauty on a beautiful day, at a beautiful pond too.

@throttleplate: I'm jealous. I'd love to catch bluegills like that!

@IcatchDinks: Heck, yeah, your bass are trending bigger. Keep it up and you'll have to change your user name to IUsedToCatchDinks. @A-Jay: A surface smallie is one of life's great joys. And jolts! Happy for you, buddy,

Great thread. Thanks to all who offered suggestions and urge caution.

I did not know this. Thanks for the tip!

I suspect that A-Jay could tell you where it is, even put you on the bow of his boat, but you'll catch a two-pounder.

Agreed...to a point. Michigan, by dint of its guhzillion lakes and FOUR Great Lakes, is a special fishery.

That's a bigga bass! As far as the weight, I am 100% sure it's between two and twenty pounds. Seriously, listen to @WRB. He's caught seven-pounders beyond counting. They have to be in the teens before Tom counts 'em. Also, listen to @papajoe222 and stick around. About once every two months, an angler like you creates an account to post a single fish, the one-and-doners. This is a great place. Become one of the gang.

Like Gimruis, I am a member of the Great Rain Brigade. I return to fishing next week and am hoping for at least one rainy morning. Sadly, it looks like only sunny skies at this point. #Sunisdumb P. S. - Congrats on your 2024 PB, Alex!

Great trip report. I like how you fish outside your box. I spend way too much time in my box. You're a good role model for me.

Hey, guys, remember that I found this boat in my swamp.There is as much water in her hull as under her hull. As realtors like to say, she's an easy fix.

7 miles? Dude, that's enduro-fishing.

As a writer, it makes me soooooooo mad! Wait, since I was once a funny girl, I like it. Oh, bother, I'm muddled.

@Fried Lemons: You catch BIG lmbs and now you're catching FINE brown bass, including a CRAZY 3-lb.-15-incher. Are LONG tarpon next? @thediscochef is now fishing like a Mainiac too, sometimes known as a Mainer. It's great to have you posting in this thread, @RenzokukenFisher!