DogBone_384

Welcome to the forum. The parking/launch is off Randolph street right next to Temple David. It’s a rough, dirt parking area you’d drive right by if you aren’t looking for it. You’ll need a cart to get to the water. There’s a fire gate at the end of the parking area. You might find me there tomorrow. I haven’t decided if I’m hunting SMB or LMB. I drive an orange Tundra with a BassResource sticker and paddle a blue camo Lure 11.5.

Welcome back. There are bass in South Africa?

Yep ... It includes four little Presidents for ice fishing. The monkey and I are on a first name basis. Lastly, don’t ask about casting reels. I’ll have to take my socks off to count that high ... ?

I own a dozen spinning reels. All but one are Pfluegers. Presidents (many) all the way up to a Patriarch XT.

Glenn took care of that.

I’m in the same kayak as you out here in Massachusetts. I’ve been paddling open water since January but Mother Nature’s tossing one last week of winter at us. Last time I was out water temps were 36.x - 38.x where I managed a nice 3-2 LMB and a couple pickerels. I saw skim ice on a couple ponds while driving route 24 south. I doubt I’ll be getting out this week/weekend. I figure another week and we’ll be free and clear.

I back off the drags on all of my reels when I'm not using them. Nobody told me to do it, just made sense.

Bill Dance. It was the only fishing show on up here in the north that I knew of.

Don’t see it .. my daughter’s looking at a $40+K per year college. Might look for something used when my truck is paid for.

Even if I had a boat, my Tundra is Inferno Orange .... just don’t see a bass boat dressed in it... Myself, I don’t have to have matching truck/boat. Heck, my kayaks are blue camo and desert camo.

Some reading material since fishing’s delayed a little bit: http://www.onthewater.com/forecasts/2018/03/massachusetts-fishing-report-march-15-2018/

I have more than a dozen Abu Rods, six of which are Veritas (first through current). I had a 2.0 break just before the second to top eye like other reviewers reported. Bass Pro replaced it no questions. I wouldn't worry about it at all. I also own a few Kistlers - love them but I use my 7' M/F casting and spinning Veritas the most.

If you're fishing waters that are partially frozen still I'd guess the water temps are still in the high 30s which means the bass are moving slow and not very far. I've done very well so far this year when I've fished waters in the low/mid 40s with blade baits, square bills, and suspending jerk baits in the 4-6' range. I've struck out at one pond I generally do very well the three times I've fished it this year where the water temp's been 36.x-38.x. Keep at it and don't be afraid to try new baits. Read through this forum and I'm sure you'll find lots of cold water information from the membership.... Best of luck. ADD: One thing I've learned fishing in cold water is that the 'feeding window' is very short.

I can't speak for the rest of the membership, but YES, I usually carry too much tackle. I have a bad habit of thinking up a game plan the night before I go fishing and by the time I'm out the door I've 'what if'd' myself into taking much more tackle than I end up using....

Some of us on this thread had a meet & greet lunch at the Red Wing Diner on Route 1 in Walpole last year. We're doing it again on April 15th at 1:00 PM. Let me know if you're coming. If we get a good number of folks I'll make a reservation.

I stay within an hour or so of home except the three or four trips a season I take to the Quabbin Reservoir that’s about 2 hours away. I’ve got one good pond 20 minutes from home, but the best fishing near me is SE Mass and Cape Cod.

Congrats. Virginia water temps in the 40’s? Never would have thought that.....

I’m off to a great start this year, so a foot of snow is fine by me. It’ll melt in a week an I’ll be back at it. Though any snow down south shuts down the entire town. I experienced such in Nashville years ago.

With this latest snow storm I’m just gonna have to use my kayak as a sled to get to the water!

X2 on the Veritas, especially their newest generation. I own several in different configurations and like them vaery much.

It’s not so bad.... I’ve caught smallies in open water all year in southeastern MA. I even bagged a nice 3-2 Larry yesterday at Ponkapog Pond in Canton, MA. All the waters I fished/scouted so far this year are high, which is good if we have a dry Spring or Summer. It’ll break soon enough up here, and until then, grab your boots, shovels, and snow throwers....

My 11.5 came with scupper plugs. I never use them. I have Scotty rod holders on FeelFree accessory mounts. I wired a Lowrance Hook5 to my kayak using a scupper hole for the transducer and one of FeelFree's mounts & RAM mount for the control head. I might suggest one of their accessory mounts with a RAM mount X-Grip holder. I have an X-Grip on my motorcycle and it's kept my phone in place at high speed. I'll try to dig up some photos of it rigged up and post them. They might be around this forum somewhere if you search "FeelFree" or "transducer mount"

I bought a FeelFree Lure 11.5 in 2015 and use it much more than my Ascend 128T. Like other members it's been through some drops and scrapes and is holding up great. What I like most about it (in no particular order): Stable, stable, stable. The couple times I've dealt with their customer service it's been great.Very comfortable seat. All day comfortable seat. Wheel in the keel. Light enough that I can lift it on my Tundra's ladder rack at the end of a full day fishing. Good rail placement - it's easy to rig the way you want. Whether it's the BEST SOT kayak, you'll have to figure that out for yourself. Of my fleet, it's my favorite. I paddled a Lure 10 when shopping. I found it too small for me @ 6'1" 190 lbs. It felt skitterish. My advice is paddle as many different brands as you can, or at least see them in person. Make a list of what you want on your yak. Best of luck! ADD: I recently added a rudder to my 11.5. It tracks much better now and stays where I point it when drifting with current. If it's in your budget, add it.

With the wife and daughter working this weekend I had some time to fish. Drove down to Hedges Pond in Plymouth yesterday. Caught 4 SMB, lost one, and had a really nice looking one follow a JDM lipless I'd never used before back to the kayak. Surprisingly the gold Binsky bait didn't catch anything but the yellow perch Rapala DT6 was popular. The four that made it to my kayak weighed in right at two pounds +-. Water temps were down a little from my last visit, sitting in at 42.x - 43.x. My local (IAFF 792) spent some time helping folks clean out their yards from last week's storm today and luckily finished early enough to fish Ponkapog in Canton for a couple hours. Water temps were down eight degrees since my last trip here, coming in at 38.x - 39.x. I tossed the same Yozuri 3DB prism shad square bill and came up with a nice 3-2 LMB and a couple pickerels. The bigger pickerel was nice enough to unhook itself right at the kayak, thank you. My kayak is packed up and tools and snow shovels are in the back of my truck. So far it's been a very good 2018.

Born & raised in a small city just south of “Bah-sten”. It was more suburban in the 70’s & ‘80s with a few ponds to fish & skate. I’m a firefighter in said city, but it’s grown so much it’s a real city. I have 14 years left and plan on retiring somewhere in the woods.