DogBone_384

I have two Veritas, three Vendetta, and one Villain and like them all. My 6'6" M 2-PC and 6'9" MH 2-PC Veritas load up great and are very sensitive. MY 7'1" MF Villain is my favorite overall.

Took the kayak to Wampatuck Monday for about 5 hours in the morning. The reservoir was as low as I've ever seen it and the water was very stained; my Lowrance told me the water was down 5 - 8 feet from June . Tossed bass & perch 'flavored' Rapalas, chartreuse and shad colored spinner baits, a chartreuse chatter bait, and a T-rigged Zoom worm I know works and got not so much as a strike. I've talked to other folks who fish there and they say there are some big bass & pickerel there, but I sure as heck can't find them. Good part of the day though was the low water revealed where LOTS of structure is.

I admit it, I yard fish. When I'm re-spooling or cleaning reels I'll throw a test weight on and let our cats chase them. The only catfish I've ever caught.

Working two jobs makes it tough to get out. Spent 6 hours at Wampatuck State Park in Hingham, MA the other day but struck out completely - not so much as a strike. The water temperature was 60 degrees and the water was down at least 6' from the last time I was here, and very stained to add. I threw T-rigged worm I know works, chartreuse and shad colored spinner baits, a bass and yellow perch Rapalas. I'm hoping to get out once or twice before the end of the season. I'm not going to Wampatuck, but going to a pond in Plymouth I've had better luck at.

Congratulations. I'm finishing my 1st kayak season and you'll love it. With the ability to fish places where pedestrians & boats can't go is A+++, kayak fishing opens a whole new world. One word of caution: outfitting your kayak is addicting!

I grew up using spinning reels and only a few years ago got into bait casters (I'm 48). I'm by far an expert with either, but I can say I almost exclusively use B/C now because I cast further and more accurately than using spinning gear. Bait casters also seem more sensitive too. I'll use spinning gear when it's really windy out or when using very light baits.

Yes, but that was more than a month ago -

Sorry for the lengthy delay - here's the trolley on my Lure 11.5:

This one's a layup....... ANY one with a PB on the end of it!

I'd recommend a Medium or Meadium-Heavy, fast action rod that feels good in your hands. I own Abu Garcia, BPS, St. Croix, Fenwick, and *** rods. I like them all for different reasons, so I'd have to say, IMO, a rod's feel is very subjective. I'll add that BPS rods offer a lot of bang for the buck.

I've been straight out with both jobs. Saturday morning is free, should be able to get a picture up for you. Sorry for such a delay.I like the idea another member had about putting a trolley on each side of the 'yak.

Now that you say that, yes, there are certain brands and price points they don't discount. Shimano & Abu Garcia come to mind, but I bought $150+ reels. Perhaps there's not much margin at those price points. I can't complain if there are exclusions. It's nice that they offer the discount. They did, however, apply the discount when I bought my Ascend 128T kayak. A++

I drive a 4-dr Tundra. My rods ride with me in the cab.

To add to the fun, if you're military, veteran, and public safety, show your ID & Bass Pro gives a 10% discount. My local BPS does.

Got over to BHR a couple more times in between jobs and can say someone put the big fish back when I wasn't looking. I've had pretty poor luck there from August '13 to August '14. But that's changed the last couple of weeks, especially the other morning, after work, I nabbed what might have been a PB with a chartreuse & white chatter bait. As luck would have it, however, I lost just enough grip while I was reaching for my phone to snap a picture, and dropped it (fish, not phone). The poor thing bounced off the rock shore once and into the water. If anyone catches a 4 +/- pound LM there that's wearing a circular growth/scar behind each gill, that's it. I finished tomorrow's job today, so I'm heading to Wampatuck State Park tomorrow with a goal of bagging at least a couple of good fish.

I'm going to chime in and sound like the other parents..... save some more money and then get your combo. My first bait cast combo came in around $100. Within six months I'd upgraded to a BPS Johhny Morris bait caster & 7' MF BPS JM rod (I'll just blame THIS forum), which came in just over $200, and for that extra dough, I feel like I got 3X the combo. Best of luck with your combo!

I very rarely get out for more than a couple of hours at a time, so one or two fish is a good day for me.

I have Abu Revo SX spinning and baitcast reels, as well as Vengence, Veritas, and Veracity rods. My baitcast reel is light, very smooth and casts great, all the rods load up great (Veritas are favorite). I also own Shimano, Diawa, Lews, ans BPS baitcasters. My Shimano & Lews are my favorite reels. The Revo spinning reel, IMO, is good, but not as good as my Pflueger Presidents, and Supreme XT, which are phenomenal reels. I don't have any experience with new Quantum equipment. My last Quantum setup was a spinning setup I bought in the early '80s

Went straight to work from work so the picture's gonna be delayed until I get home Thursday morning.

I have a 11.5 and installed an anchor trolley on it I bought @ BPS. I'll snap a photo of it & post it tomorrow. It's easy as pie.

Welcome. You will learn as much as you want on this forum. It's a wealth of experience, opinion, and advice.

Congratulations on your PB! You do know PB's are almost always temporary, so good luck beating this one.

Got home from apple picking late Sunday afternoon and the bosses (wife/daughter) were beat so I got out to Blue Hills Reservoir (BHR) for an hour or so. I decided to try a chatter-bait on the advice from another fisherman at Wampatuck Reservoir, and sure enough, just as it was getting dark I landed the biggest LMB I've caught to date at BHR. I'd just switched to a black/blue chatter-bait from a white/chartreuse one. It was north of 3 pounds for sure, and had much scar tissue and tears around its mouth, telling that he'd been caught many times before. Now I have a new addiction, I got up before dawn and went back to BHR to try again. Bagged a good one, probably 2 pounds or so, on the white/chartreuse chatterbait I'd struck out on earlier in the week. Hopefully Fall fishing will be good - I've got the feeling it will be. Good luck to the rest of you!

No can do - I live on a peninsula, in the city. House lots are small, but the ocean is 300 yards down the street.... I guess I can practice there.

I got bitten BADLY by the tackle monkey last year and now own Shimano, Diawa, Lews, Abu-Garcia, and BPS bait casters as well as Abu-Garcia, BPS, St. Croix, ***, and Fenwick rods. After playing with each of them in different combinations I'd have to say the combos I use most, or meat & potatoes setups, are my Shimano Core reels matched with Abu-Garcia Veritas (6'6" M/F & 6'9" MH/F) and *** *** (7'3" M/M) rods with a Lews Pro Series BB1 on top. My next most used setup is a BPS Johnny Morris B/C matched with a Johnny Morris 7' M/F rod. I don't consider myself overly experienced, so I use these different combos to throw nearly everything I own, I guess to see what works best. I'm still figuring it out. I'm by far an expert, but these setups just feel right to me, cast great, and are all light and super sensitive; at least according to my subjective experience. I got my Shimano reels on sale, so overall I didn't break the bank to get these super bait casting rigs. Best of luck with your choices.