Snakehead Whisperer

I fish the Potomac every week. Number 31 on the list.

I'm sure that like people, bass can have different tissue densities. There are some people who look much lighter than they actually are (muscle weighs more than fat.) Just a thought.

Awesome spider. Do you think the bass back there eat them?

Agreed.

Ha, I read your original post and I can't help but imagine a bass fisherman saying that your 1lb. spider goes 12oz. tops

There's no way for me to be objective without seeing the photo, and honestly I know exactly what you're talking about. I've seen fish photos and just been blown away by the claims people make. It's not just in fishing either. People exaggerate pretty much everything to sound cool (e.g. my car's fast, I've got lots of money, etc.) For tournament anglers a miscalculation like that can mean winning or losing. For most anglers though it just sounds better when bragging to say 8 instead of 4. I could care less except that Edwin and I had a tournament of sorts between us that morning, and needless to say I got slayed. I did have a legit 5lber and it didn't look 3 lbs. smaller than his fish, but it was. He then proceeded to boat a limit of fish over 4lbs in less than 90 minutes.

First off, I'm not an alarmist. Second, this thread should probably be moved to the "Everything Else" section. With that said I'm calling BS on this. Do you have any source whatsoever for this information? It is true that the East African Rift area will feel the affects of climate change more drastically than the rest of the world, but to say that it is the cause is just ridiculous. BoatlessBrian, I think it's imperative to do everything we can to preserve the environment for the next generation. We can't take for granted what is around us.

The fish went 8lb.4oz. Spring scales are absolutely the most accurate way to measure the weight of a fish. Not only are they more accurate than digital, but they can easily be calibrated. I'm not talking about the cheap ones for fishing. This scale was a Chatillon, and they do not make junk. The scale was calibrated weeks before catching the fish, and once again a few days after the catch. It was spot on. Like I said, few people believe the weight of the fish (we snapped a pic, measured/weighed and let 'er go.) Him and I know the real weight, and that's good enough. I believe you 100% about the 5lber that suddenly lost 3lbs. on the stringer. I've seen that lots of times. My only point is that it's nearly impossible to discern the weight of a fish from a photo.

Be happy that the guy didn't really have a 5lber on the stringer As for the photo, is it possible that foreshortening may have been the culprit. Nobody believes the true weight of my friend Edwin's Potomac bass. Care to take a guess at the weight? I'll post the actual weight if at least 1 person takes a guess (hint: it's the largest fish I've ever heard of being caught on this body of water.) We weighed this fish on a Chatillon spring scale and had it checked immediately afterward (because we were in disbelief.) It was spot on.

#3 size have proven killer for big smallies on the Potomac (I especially like the vibrax spinners by blue fox.) My best advice is to fish with the current and vary your retrieve until you find what the fish want. Spinners aren't always effective for smallies, but when they are it's a blast.

Well done. I really like the red ear.

I usually use circuit board. It's not completely transparent like Lexan, however. What thickness are you using?

George Perry's world record fish was 32.5". I've never heard of another caught at that length. Most other fish in the 20+lb. weight class are 28-30". I'm not sure, but I don'teven think Dottie was 30".

Can't say for sure that this was the smallest fish bass I've ever caught, but it's up there.

My top 5 would be.. 1. snakehead 2. walleye 3. rainbow trout 4. crappie 5. smallmouth bass I don't really harvest fish often (other than the first 3,) but I will keep crappie, smb and lmb if they are injured and unlikely to survive.

Those things are monstrous. Nice pics, thanks for sharing.

x2. I have thrown crankbaits from shore with great success. I also use them pretty frequently while wade fishing for smallmouth. On the other hand, losing a crankbait while bank fishing is real buzzkill. :'( @CC268 Once the water starts to warm up above 60 or so, try throwing a wakebait (Mann's 1-Minus, BPS The Egg, etc.) or a squarebill crankbait. These are crankbaits designed to stay high in the water column (dive maybe 3-12", well above the weeds.) When effective, these baits provide some of the best bass fishing action there is imho. @Fishes in trees I can see how you would feel that way, as crankbaits are expensive to lose and pretty much useless when they have half a pound of salad swimming behind them. To be fair I should say that throwing crankbaits from shore has historically been an early-mid spring ritual for me, and in these parts there is rarely any vegetation to snag that early in the season.

Not sure what the temps are in your neck of the woods right now, but my advice would be to try the above techniques but focus on a really slow retrieve. When fish are active enough to chase a fast moving crankbait you will know it by just looking at the water. Keep throwing the cranks and eventually you'll hook up. Once you get that first fish you'll start to develop your sixth sense for crankbaits and the rest will come naturally, then you will be able to focus more clearly on the nuance of technique. It sounds to me like you're off to a good start.

But seriously, purple on pink is a killer color scheme on crankbaits.

I've actually caught fish slow rolling a buzzbait, but it was more like 3' of water

I've been catching them on smoke/black grubs and other dark baits rigged on slider heads here on the tidal Potomac (similar conditions to what you described.) I'd bring the shakey heads if it were me.

Usually I don't get into this with people I meet on the water unless we exchange some sort of pleasantries first (hey, how's it going... blah, blah.) If they seem cool then I am usually more than happy to disclose what I've been catching fish on. If I'm having a hard day I'm not ashamed to ask them what's working. I can think of lots of times when I have got a bad feeling from people and just kept the conversation cordial without talking shop, however. The thing that I've noticed more often than not is that when people ask me what I'm catching fish on, it's usually because it's a slow bite that day. This usually means I'm throwing a finesse bait of some sort (boring.) When I tell them I'm throwing a slow moving bait, they usually look at me like "Yawn, no thanks. I'll keep fishing my spinnerbait." Even if somebody tells you exactly what the fish are biting and where they are, it takes some patience/dedication for an angler to catch them. This usually weeds out people who aren't serious about it. On the flip side, if I see people doing stuff on the water that's not OK I let them know (poaching, littering, etc.) Be careful engaging people like this. Some folks aren't that friendly when you point it out.

I'm trying to imagine how much weight it would take to keep a hula popper down... I imagine at least a solid ounce if not 2oz. I'm with the others here. I think he's messing with you. Although I'm sure this rig could possibly catch fish under the right conditions if you worked out the technical problems with it's rigging.