FrogFreak

I would rather present a crappy lure in a good location/depth/time than a great lure in a bad location/depth/time. They're bass, when they're hungry and you're around them they will eat the darndest things.

Nice write up A-Jay! I fish northern MN, I had a great summer! 1. Stanley Top Toad in black usually, it probably works cuz I can't put it down. 2. A Boss Gary Klein jig hand painted and custom skirts from fishingskirts.com cuz what else is there to do in the winter up here? And a homemade craw trailer (from a purchased mold). Usually GP or black and blue. 3. Double buzz bait in black or GP. These last two were new to me this year: 4. Ned Rig with the TRD in GP or Black and Blue 5. A small Storm 360 1/8 oz I believe was killer this year as well, GP or white. I tend to keep my colors pretty simple, GP or black and blue.

Yes it was. I'm pretty stoked to add a boat to the fleet. I happened upon it by accident.

I typically carry 6 rods. I should carry fewer but I just can't help myself. M Spinning for senko/ned MH bc for frogging Heavy bc for jigs MH bc for buzz/spinner/chatter M bc for topwater, small cranks All purpose MH bc for t rigs, b/u frog rod etc.

I'm late to the thread but I'd consider kayak rental places. I picked up a used Topwater 106 for $650.

I would consider looking at Kayak rental shops as well. I just picked up a slightly used Old Town Topwater 106 for $650. I know it's more that you want to spend but it's a great little kayak.

Same thing just happened to me. I compared a new BassX 7'4" H to a similar Mojo rod and found the BassX lighter so I bought the BassX. I later found out the Mojo was last years model. I think I'll get a similar 2017 Mojo and use it for jigging and keep the BassX for frogging. Don't get me wrong, the BassX is an awesome rod for jigging but since I'm in the market for another rod, I'll opt for a new Mojo. Thanks for the advice guys and great topic here.

Any of the Linders-freaking legends that have proven they are great teachers! LakeForkGuy-feel like I know him! KVD-The greatest tourney fisherman and my kind of guy, humble and positive! Sorry but I think I'd rather not go fishing than fish with Ike. He drives me crazy.

Mine is simply because I love throwing a frog.... sometimes I should really put it down but I think one bass caught on a frog is worth 5 bass caught any other way. I have a problem and there isn't a 12 step process to fix it!

My son and I take turns running the boat. It's harder for me to be in the back after being in the front for so long. We have our occasional arguments but nothing to bad (mostly me still treating my 25 year old like he's still 12). I have to admit he has taught me some things about finding bass in different ways than I'm used to doing. The other day we got into a great rhythm when I was throwing a frog and he would follow up with a Senko. It can be a positive experience with the right boat partner for sure!

Ice is out all over here in ND and Northern MN except maybe the largest of the lakes. Since MN opener isn't until 13 May, I've been practicing my fly fishing on some local reservoirs and creeks. Nothing yet but the water is very cold!

This is of my son fishing off a friends dock in MN. Morning on a remote MN lake.

Hmm, I've been looking at different shallow water anchoring options and I tend to agree with Catt and Tom on this one. If I had "extra" money, I'm not sure I'd buy either of the high end options. I may buy a stick it pole and bracket and see how much I use it ($150 total). I do fish shallow weedy areas up north but it's not like the wind has blown me around so bad I'm that frustrated. However, the OP did ask which is the best for the money. I'd say a manual system to start and see if you use it often enough to warrant the investment.

Stop and smell the roses more often Get better at detecting jig bites - new rod will help I hope Relax a bit more - don't try and fish for 12 hours every day out Catch fish mostly on plastics I pour and lures I make

I've been chewing on this ice fishing thing myself. My son took me out last week and it was OK but freaking cold. I think I'll stick with an off season and since I started pouring plastics a couple months ago, I have plenty to keep me busy! Yes, November was a pleasant surprise!

Went out last weekend and caught 6 on a jig/craw in 4-6 feet of water on wood mostly. In my yak since my boat is winterized so no idea what the water temp was. Biggest was 4.02 on the scale. I fish up around the Park Rapids area. I'm planning on going this Sunday again. My experience lately has been that they are quite inactive in the afternoon and I have to be very patient. Much better bite in the morning. I have been sticking with a jig/craw combo but now that I hear about you guys throwing swim baits with success, I may try some of that this weekend. Thank you for all the reports! It's quite helpful.

My son, my cousin and I were out fishing on 7/2 and we looked over and noticed something on the water. We couldn't figure out what it was at first. When my son, who was running the tm, got closer we realized it was a dog swimming. My son immediately wanted to rescue the dog but I was cautious. I've seen unfriendly dogs before and had bad experiences. Well, as we got even closer, we realized it was attempting to swim over to a pontoon full of party-goers. We yelled at the folks on the pontoon and asked if this was their dog. They said it was but made no move to come over and rescue the dog. I have to explain that this dog was very far away from shore and still about 300 yards from the pontoon. As we pulled up closer, I realized the dog was just a puppy. Maybe a year old. The poor dog was whimpering and bobbing in the water and trying to get into our boat. I scooped him up and brought him into my boat. Next, we motored over and met the pontoon. The people on that pontoon didn't seem the least bit worried about the dog at all. They told my son to just "throw the dog over" when we were about 6-8 feet away from their pontoon. My son refused and he maneuvered us until we were about 2 feet away. He then handed the dog over. They were complaining about the dog and how it always tries to follow them etc. They were doing some bobber fishing but mostly drinking. I was so ticked that I couldn't even fish the rest of the evening. In hindsight, I should have just kept the cute little dog and told them to screw off. What would you have done?

A couple weeks ago my son and I were fishing from my boat at a local smaller lake where we've had success. That morning the fish weren't hitting on the weed break like they normally do so we started fishing shallow. One of the locals yelled at us from his yard that we were fishing too shallow and we needed to fish deep. We then proceeded to catch about 20 fish in a 200 yard stretch of shallow water. I did look back at him at one point and I couldn't help smiling.

Valid point! I really wanted to like the Live Target Hollow Bluegill but BluegillFreak just doesn't have the same ring to it.

I've been using it for a month or so and here are my thoughts: I like the bigger size for working more open water situations. It walks like a dream, the bigger size walks easier. It tends to catch on weeds and pads more often than a frog so working it in pads can be frustrating. It tends to fill up with water and then it catches on even more weeds! It does catch fish but won't replace a frog for fishing in the slop for me.

The way I've been fishing lately, companies may start paying me to NOT use their products.

I completely agree. Russell does a great job on BamaBass! I also love Uncut Angling. If you haven't seen the 39 hours contest they did, you are missing out!

Hey BigSky, PM me and I can give you some options. I spend my summers around the Park Rapids area and have probably fished most of the smaller lakes between there and Leech. There are some hidden gems for smallies and largies with very little pressure and beautiful shorelines. I do agree with other posts though, it's hard to beat Leech.

Up in MN I've found that on larger lakes the spawn was in full force last weekend. On a smaller lake it was wrapping up. Fry were everywhere and the fry guarders were defending more than eating. I did find some females willing to bite at the mouth of the spawning coves. But others are right, it depends on the lake. I fished four different lakes last weekend and each was in a different phase of the spawn.

geo g, if I could dislike a post, I would dislike yours.