Choporoz

@RRocket,there is a great deal of fantastic information in this thread specific to fishing points

I have said things I have sped up and fished right up into them I have slowed and just fished behind them I have quickly gone around and taken the lead I have stood with my arms raised and a wth look on my face I have quit the bank and done something else None resulted in truly satisfying outcomes except maybe just fishing behind them. There really aren't many people I come across that I mind fishing behind. The times I got angry never resulted in me fishing better, nor thinking the other guy will be more courteous next time. As @Darth-Baitermentioned, there's few things more enjoyable than catching a nice fish while batting cleanup

Until this thread, I haven't thought too much about it. It shakes out pretty fast...a few seconds. After 60, there's so much stuff that doesn't always work the way it once did...that I hadn't dwelled on it yet. If it gets to be more than a minute of recovery each time, I may think about considering seeing a doctor....maybe

I have broken at least nine over last few years....2 Abu, 4 Fenwick, 1 Dobyns, 1 Powell, 1 St Croix....pretty sure I'm missing one or two... fish harder...not smarter. ?

Recently went to Red Lobster for first time in years. Fish and chips was great. Chicken Bryan at Carrabas is always incredible. Was pleasantly surprised by how good the KFC spicy sandwich is. Captain Ds in Fredericksburg is always a solid choice for helpful, friendly staff and dependably decent food. Bojangles has never been disappointing. A couple regional Mexican chains are fantastic. I'll try to keep any restaurant complaints over on FB, where they will feel right at home

I need to rest my hands every dozen or so casts when chucking and winding....tingling and numbness comes on pretty quick nowadays

I have a Donkey Leash as a backup always attached to my seat. But I lost a fish the second time I used it, so only use FishGrips in tournaments.

I have never had any water related issues with the unit head. I used to have temporary issues if the female cable ends, got soaked and were still wet when I hooked up. Dielectric grease took care of that, though.

I have two Mustang HIT's. They are fine in the boat locker for weeks or in a monsoon. I have an Onyx with the pill and it will go off if I leave it in boat compartment for more than a day.

I read them.

It's a good thing English speaking folks don't litter the banks.

Received a Braun rechargeable LED spotlight as a gift last year and I love it. Its bright enough to tick off the annoying 'neighbors' across the lake. Plugging it in every few weeks is less cumbersome than looking for batteries in the dark.

(If legal) Try it and let us know. I've wondered aloud how a bottom bounce would work for bass, but never tried it. I actually like the idea of a single drop shot rig at multiple depths. The trailing aspect could be huge in some current or drift situations. @Team9nineis right, though...if the only issue is line for single ds hook, just terminate your main line at the hook and tie a leader for your weight

I suppose it depends on how you fish it. I have caught LMB over 20' deep on jackhammer. But by fishing them more like a jig than a spinnerbait...snapping them off the bottom. Should work for you, as long as you can watch with FFS and keep your pops in the neighborhood.

I'm a bit stunned reading this thread. I never considered that having a spool flopping and rolling around the floor was somehow unsatisfactory.

Seems like one of our members was hired by BBB years ago....a graphic designer, maybe?

Mine are relegated to buzzbaits. I can't hook a bass on a toad. I have hooked up more bowfin and snakeheads on toads than bass.

I see Carolina Kayak Anglers have a tourney there in a couple weeks. Might be nice to go down and meet some of them, if you haven't already. I fished with them a couple times and it is a great club. To answer your question about cranking under bait....absolutely. No sense raking the bottom when the bass are 10 foot off. I caught one over 6# doing exactly that about this time last year. The following day, I caught 5 on 5 consecutive casts, just cranking open water under massive bait balls.

Thanks for the report. I put my kayak in there Sat and Sun. I went out at Little Falls Sat and pulled exactly one bass out of that hot chocolate. It was over 18", so it sort of made up for lack of bites. I went to Hopyard yesterday hoping for a little cleaner water. Viz was slightly better, but bite was similar. I did get two catfish on jigs, flipping laydowns. Hit like bass on the fall. I was pretty upset when they rolled....right before the slime became visible. No dragons, but I did get one of those freight train hits....can't believe it didn't hook itself BTW, ever been in that marshy area up from Hopyard maybe 1/2 mile on the right? Maybe I missed the channel...I only found about 20 inches of water leading in close to high tide. I didn't want to get trapped, so I turned around and didn't go in far. Wondering whether there's a gold mine back in there

Kistler Helium 3 LMH is far and away my favorite rod. I use it for t-rigs with 1/16-1/4 oz weights. Never once thought about the grips, so I guess that means they are perfect for me. For the 3/8-1/2 that you mention, I'd consider Helium MHF, especially if that weight is before adding plastic.

You've been around here a minute. You likely fully understand that each has its benefits and drawbacks. And that line choice for jigs and t-rigs is a personal choice that each of us makes after trying each and adapting to our situation, biases and experience. Do you worry bass are line shy? Maybe don't use straight braid. Got zebra mussels? How's that 20# braid working out for you? Punching hydrilla? Maybe not with 12#FC....unless you are really just itching to place a new order of jigs. Dragging a flat bottom? Do you want confidence in setting the hook with braid? Or the increased sensitivity of flouro? Are you snagging a lot and tired of cutting your line and leaving yards of braid? I use braid with jigs. I use flouro with jigs. I use braid to leader with jigs.

Not just mental....suspended fish can be extremely difficult. You will find that bass suspended beneath baitballs this week aren't always the inactive suspenders you might see in say, December. Once you determine the bait depth, and that there are fish beneath, you can crank through them, drop spoons to them, and even call up the really active ones with top water baits. I am a jig and trig guy, too. But it was a tough sell the last few weeks. Pull something moving through the roaming hunters was a better deal.

Find the bait. I am not far from you, and last weekend, aside from a couple off wood, there is little correlation to structure, bottom depth, grass lines...nothing. The bass are on shad still....a couple more weeks and you can dissect those points and drops. But for now, find the bait....the depth first and then check surrounding structure, cover, grass, etc. If you aren't fishing around a ton of bait, you are in for a slow day

Yes.

I will likely never know. If they are not biting GP, I can't see myself saying, "They must be holding out for GP with red flake". My adjustment is going to be a lot less subtle.