DogBone_384

Went out for a bit this afternoon. My weather APP said 7-9 mph winds .... HAH .... It felt more like 15+ sustained. I managed 1.2 - 1.5 mph paddling into the wind but made it to my spot. I spent as much time marking stuff with side-scan as I did fishing. I worked deep and shallow. After 2 1/2 hours of fighting the wind and not so much as a nibble, I packed up and went home. It was windy, post-frontal, blue-bird clear, and the middle of the day - AND I EXPECTED A BITE !?!??!?!?! Thankfully my one lure challenge is complete and I'm going back to overthinking and overpacking. What I'm taking from my last 12 trips is this: I don't catch any more or less fish using just one type of bait. I focus on putting the puzzle together better. I don't have much more confidence using jigs than I did before I started, but they catch fish. Now let's her from members that took the challenge!

Went out for a bit this afternoon. My weather APP said 7-9 mph winds .... HAH .... It felt more like 15+ sustained. I managed 1.2 - 1.5 mph paddling into the wind but made it to my spot. I spent as much time marking stuff with side-scan as I did fishing. I worked deep and shallow. After 2 1/2 hours of fighting the wind and not so much as a nibble, I packed up and went home. It was windy, post-frontal, blue-bird clear, and the middle of the day - AND I EXPECTED A BITE !?!??!?!?! Water temps were 76.x - 78.x, down a few degrees from the other day. Air pressure was 30.2. Thankfully my one lure challenge is complete and I'm going back to overthinking and overpacking. Boss-lady's going to the ABBA concert tomorrow night with her friends. I think you'll find me just over the bridge .... look for the orange Tundra with the BassResource bumper sticker.

Kistler Helium LMH/F both spinning and casting, depending on my mood.

I get my tungsten goods from @Siebert Outdoors and Tackle Warehouse, when on sale, of course.

Stayed local this afternoon. I packed it in after tossing a different colored jigs for a three hours, covering more than half the pond and coming up empty.

Stayed local this afternoon. I packed it in after tossing a different colored jigs for almost three hours, covering more than half the pond and coming up empty. Water temps were 82.x. Winds were 12-15 mph from the north. It was dry but overcast. Air pressure was 30.

I own both. If you're comfortable with a baitcaster in the wind, go with the MGL.

Welcome to the forum. Hang onto this thread: @Jigfishn10 started it in 2012. It's chock full of info. Read and contribute to it if you'd like.

I've been out twice since my last post here. I nabbed a couple good smallies at the first and skunked yesterday. Just a few more trips and I can go back to overthinking and overpacking! 😆

Yesterday, I fished a Plymouth pond I used to frequent with @Fishing Rhino but avoid now because it's declined significantly over the last five to seven years. I had the same results I usually do. I goose egged. I'm threw a green/black/blue 3/8 oz jig. I'm still on my one lure challenge. The positives were a turtle as big as a car tire swam up to the boat to investigate and a pair of bald eagles cruised overhead for a bit. I used SCOUT mode more and saw my jig live while retrieving it. I marked a lot of panfish and a few decent marks in deep water. This Active Target 'thing' is pretty cool. Water temps were 76.x when I launched and 78.x when I left. It was about as bluebird as could be. Winds were light and the air pressure was 30. My 'house battery' also gave up. I swapped one of my TM batteries to get the motor running and back to the ramp.

RIP Catt. I've only been a member since 2013, perhaps it's time for a Hall of Fame page so new members can see who the original leaders were?

I left for the Cape @ 0430 hours this morning ….

Nope. Just south of Boston. Easy as pie getting through Boston at oh-flippin-early.

Got up before dawn and went back to the Cape. @Saltysmalljaws was supposed to meet me at the ramp but family obligations came first. I nabbed a short and fat smallie with awesome stripes straight away on a shallow rocky shore. I'm still on training wheels with the Active Target and had some trolling motor issues, but a hard reset and recalibration fixed everything and off I went. A bit later I pulled a 3.38#, 19 3/4" smallie out from under a bouy. I'm still on my one-lure challege, so I had my 3/8oz black/green/blue Beast Coast jig. Water temps were in the mid-high 70's. It was near calm when I launched and 10-12 mph by 0800. A decent trip. I don't know if I'm going to fish the Cape anymore this Summer. I might explore New Hampshire. I can get to Manchester in about the same time it takes me to get to mid-Cape.

RIP....

Drove down to Mash-Wake early this morning to play with my new toys. I'm mentioning MW by name only because the left side of the ramp (looking at it from land) is so blown out from folks power loading their boats, my trailer dropped right off the edge. There was no damage, but if anyone heads down there, use the right side. Any-hoo, I spent most of the morning setting up my FS12 and figuring out this FFS thing. My first impression is the SCOUT mode is, so far, my favorite. I located bait-balls, structure, and a few fish moving about (assuming they were the bright dots). Down mode is OK, showing directly under the boat. I saw my jig coming off the bottom. I couldn't really make heads or tails of forward mode. The 12" screen is WORLDS better than my Elite Ti2, and much faster. I nabbed a nice 2# SMB from under a boat and lost two, about the same size, in grass, at the edge of a drop off. Water temps were 74.x when I launched at 0730-ish and 80.x when I left around 1500 hours. Winds were fairly light from the north. It was as bluebird as could be. Air pressure was 30.2. I planned on fishing with @Saltysmalljaws tomorrow, but he couldn't get his permission slip signed. I also have to look at my trucks brakes. Another day. Lastly, the C-Map that's loaded on my FS12 is missing the big hump that's in the NE corner of the Mashpee section. Oh well.

Didn't get out today, but upgraded my Ranger's electronics. The bow now has an Elite FS12 with Active Target 1 attached to it. Going to get out tomorrow and play with it.

THAT'S IT! I'M MOVING TO MAINE! My budget is $800-1M. Will that get me a pond or small lake? 😆

It's getting there, especially after meeting another angler that pulled multiple six pounders out of a local pond I goose-egged at with a bladed jig, but I'm sticking to my guns.

The membership's said it all. All I have to add is: WELCOME TO BASSRESOURCE.

My #1 WATER is about 300 acres, in SE Mass. It's public, but parking is limited and is a PIA to get to. It's 45' deep at its deepest, has little structure except for a small cove that has most of the water's vegetation, two expansive flats with sparse grass, one hump, a few rocky areas, and three distinct bowls that go from 6' to 20'. It houses brown and green bass, as well as BIG pickerel. Large white perch are also abundant. It's crystal clear to 12-15', and the first and only lake I saw a BIG fresh water eel staring up at me in 9-10' of water one afternoon. It's my favorite because it's completely hit or miss. I love to hate the place (sort of like Mash-Wake, right @Mr. Aquarium?). I've caught smallies where I'd expect Larries to be and vise versa. It DOESN'T play by conventional rules. Funny thing is, my SMB & LMB personal bests did not come from this lake. I'm going to give it three stars. It's a great pond with really good fish in it. I never to terribly well there and it's become personal for me to figure it out and grab the big fish I know are in there.

This ^^^^^^ I started this 'challenge' so I would travel light, focus on one type of bait, and not overthink fishing for a dozen trips. Anyone else that takes the challenge can interpret it as they want. I started with a Mepps in-line spinner. Being Summer and water temps in the '80's, I switched it to a green pumpkin/black/blue 3/8oz jig with a junebug Rage Bug trailer. I have backup jigs in the same color and a bag of trailers. I know I'll go through a few trailers but am keeping them the same color. I'm sticking with one style/color jig and am switching up rod/reel combinations to see what works best too. Should I ask my wife to chime in?

ANYONE from the northeast knows Connecticut is that middle ground .... its ONE or the OTHER.

" .... just can't figure out..." That's gotta be anything beyond a Senko, 3.8" paddle tail, and jerkbait for me. I'd say jigs would be the top of my list, to pick one.

Firstly, welcome to BassResource. If you're looking for more of a moderate than mod-fast action, I'd point you towards Douglas Outdoors LRS-S704F or Kistler's KLX line. The Douglas rating is fast, but it's not a fast I've ever used. I use it for topwater and lighter crankbaits. Kistler's KLX rods are a mod-fast action that's very linear. The KLX is a tad lighter than the Douglas, and is made in Texas, where the Douglas is made overseas. Of the two, the Douglas is softer & more parabolic. Those are the two brands I have the most experience with. Best of luck picking out your topwater rod, and like anything, try to handle the rods before you make your decision, if you can. Here are a couple Douglas dealers in New England: Ben’s Tackle Shack 1103 Main St Leicester, MA 01524 Sportman’s Connection15 N. Main St.Kent, CT 06757 And being from CT, are you RED SOX or YANKEES? 😜