DogBone_384

Maybe my next boat.

I have a '17 RT178. I bought it this past June in 'as new' condition. So far so good. It's perfect for solo or 2-up fishing. I like the whole aluminum build because the deck won't rot. It has a Yamaha F70A on it that's smooth as silk and quiet. It's layout is very good for a 17'8" boat. Building new 178's on Ranger's website runs mid $20K's, depending on how you outfit it. I have only one minor gripe about it. I've seen Trackers' with a lip on the bottom of the transom where you can mount a transducer dead in the middle. I spoke to one owner that said he gets side and down imaging at much higher speeds than my Ranger does. It's really not a big deal, but something I'll look for if I ever upgrade boats. Best of luck picking your boat.

This ^^^^^^ Mike does great work and is reasonably priced. He's also a site sponsor.

I second! I bought my first Kistler in 2016. I now have a dozen, mixed casting & spinning, in different sizes and actions. My collection ranges from Magnesiums to Heliums. My favorites are the KLX's. They're made here in USA and won't disappoint. Right now Kistler's running a sale offering 35% off $600 in your cart or 25% for $300.

Anyone know what these might be? I found them in a small pond in Braintree just off a steep drop off. The best I could pull off of them was a LMB that MIGHT have been 1/2 a pound....? Gonna have to figure out a way to get a side imaging transducer rigged up on my yak!

I'm in the same boat as many. I goose-egged 7 out of 16 trips fishing S/E Mass and Cape Cod during September and October with my biggest fish being a 2.02 pound SMB. I fished shallow/deep, throwing the kitchen sink and then some. I even got skunked at a 20 acre bowl known for good SMB that I know like the back of my hand. I managed a swimbait sized read: (S-M-ALL) LMB today, in the rain, with water temps at 56.x. I feel for the membership that's experiencing poor fishing like I am and hope it turns around before my waters turn solid.

I try to fish year round, depending on how much work I have and family obligations. Luckily I'm just outside Boston and am lucky that southeastern MA and Cape Cod are warmer throughout the winter and haven't frozen the last few years. I'm on track to catch fish in open water every month of the year 3 of the last 4 years. Like other members have said, this year's fall bite was awful for me. I ate the goose-egg 7 of 16 trips in September/October and had a best SMB of 2.02 pounds. And everything freezes enough, I have ice fishing gear.

Waquequat Lake, Cape Cod.

Did the cat attack?

That’s my point. I’ve not caught 50 bass this year. I got skunked six of the last 13 trips on the boat, all showing similar to the above photo. I have a LV500 tied on at all times. Some folks have ‘a touch’. I don’t. I’m sticking to my abilities. Thanks, and best of luck out there. This is true, but it’s waiting and not fishing in my book. ?

2017

I closed out Cape Cod trip #3 this morning at Santuit. The water looked like pea soup and was 66.x degrees. Not a bite, didn’t mark much of anything, had some equipment problems and is spiraled down from there. I’m canceling trips 4 & 5 and hang it up for a while. Best of luck to you guys this fall and winter.

Thanks for your encouragement, but after seeing stuff like this (see below) for the last three weeks and coming up with almost nothing, I’m out of my league and willing to go back to what I’m good at. I bought the boat thinking it would be fun. For me, it hasn’t been the case.

Yes, I too am in a slump. I bought a beautiful Ranger RT178 in June. Since then I’ve not caught more than a few bass over 2 pounds. My last 5 trips to Long Pond in Harwich, MA Have netted me three small mouth bass, all a pound or less while a coworker caught a 6, 5, and 4 pound large mouth bass from his kayak in two days in a small, local pond. I’m dumping the Ranger and going back to small waters with my kayak. I’m running out of different baits to throw, an Tackle Warehouse is my friend... almost ready to go back to live bait, but that’s waiting, not fishing.

Spent just over three hours on Long Pond, Harwich this afternoon, with the story being the same over this fall. Marking beaucoup targets and bait balls suspended in 25’. I threw jerk baits, deep and mid cranks, LV500 (that I know WORKS), swim jig, and a Rage Bug Ned and couldn’t buy so much as a strike. I finished the evening shallow, throwing the Rage Ned and a Rapala Skitter Walk, again, without so much as a whiff. I’ll try to shrink and post what my Lowrance showed. It’s mind blowing that I couldn’t conjure up even a strike. I didn’t mark anything shallow. Water temps were 70.x, the wind was light and decreasing as the afternoon went on. Air pressure was 30.1. This is five trips to Long Pond and only three small SMB to show for the effort. Over all, this year’s “fall transition” has been a word I can’t post here. I’m waiting until November and grabbing SMB at Hedges Pond with a blade bait. I’m still on track to catch a fish in open water every month this year. It’s time to dump the boat and go back to small waters with my kayak.

You still got out, right. I’ve had a tough fall here in eastern Massachusetts/Cape Cod, but so have others around me. I’m marking many bait balls and think that there’s so much bait for the bass to eat, they’re just not interested in what I’m throwing. It also might be I’m not throwing something that triggers them away from their dinner. Use it as an opportunity to try different lures and work new areas in your waters. Best of luck out there.

Someone forgot to send Cape Cod’s SMB the fall feed memo... (could be THEY got the memo and they just don’t want what I’m throwing ?). Wifey and I fished Mashpee/Wakbey yesterday afternoon. The weather was beautiful, with just a light wind and mostly sunny skies. Boss-lady came up with a nice white perch and I came up with a SMB I could have rehooked and used as a swim bait. Targets were as they’ve been the last two weeks: suspended in 25’. I don’t mark anything shallow. Water temps were 71.x when arrived and 68.x when we left. I’’ll be out this afternoon and tomorrow morning, hopefully with better results. Yes, surprising, isn’t it. Ponkie was only 4’ deep this trip. My Lowrance read 70.8 until it started to get dark out.

I keep telling myself to use them, and bring them along, but just never do. Maybe Sunday. I hit Ponkapog for the first time in months on Thursday afternoon. I started with my new Kistler 7'3" H/F with a t-rigged creature, a Yozuri square bill, and t-rigged swim Senko. I took the weight off the creature, switched to a Damiki DC-100 square bill and kept the swim Senko. That did the trick. I grabbed two bass, a few pickerel, and a good sized yellow perch. The big bass was a hair over two pounds. My heavy rod cast the weightless Rage Tale Structure Bug very well. It was mostly sunny with a 10 mph wind from the SW. Water temps were high 70.x and the air pressure was 29.9. Ponkie's water level is down almost 50% from what it normally is in the Spring. The deepest section was less than 4'. Most of the weeds I fished, which is ALL of Ponkapog, were still green and healthy.

Cape Cod trip # 2 is done. Wifey and I hit Long Pond Monday afternoon. The sky opened up just after we launched. We made the best of it until almost 6:00 PM. Needless to say we didn’t catch anything and the Lowrance showed the same as the last three trips: bait balls and fish suspended in about 25’. Water temps were in the high 60’s. We fished Wequaquet yesterday. I managed 1 SMB, 1 LMB, 1 yellow perch, 1 white perch, and a bunch of pickerel. The SMB was 1.3 and the white perch .84 pounds. Wifey caught a bunch of pickerel and a yellow perch barely bigger than the LV500 she was throwing. We both lost a few picks and a couple of bass. Water temps were in the high 60’s when We launched and low 70’s when we left. I planned on fishing today, but the winds are almost 30 mph from the South and much rain is expected later today as I type this. We’ll be back down the Cape on Sunday for round 3.

Lucky Craft LV500 in MS Ghost Chartreuse Shad...

Sounds just like my recent trip to Cape Cod. I found LMB shallow, but SMB were deep and pretty unwilling to commit. Thankfully a Ned rig and 5" black/blue wacky rigged Senko, near steep drop offs, kept the smallies from shutting me out. I threw lipless, mid, and deep diving crankbaits without success. I'll try deep diving jerk baits, blade baits, and tail spins this week to see if I can coax a few SMB to the boat. Best of luck this fall.

Happy birthday!

You youngsters that can still see well at night ...? I'll be back there Monday - Wednesday with the Ranger & kayaks. I'll try to remember my blade baits this time!

Keep at it. The more you fish, the more experience you gain. This forum & YouTube are great resources. Good luck.

I've had some of my best trips when the water temps get to 50 & below, using blade baits and lipless crankbaits.