WIGuide

If you're worried about the smell just throw some Kick'n Bass on there before you use it.

I haven't fished quite that far over before, but it looks like there's enough lakes that way that you should be able to find something. Welcome to the forums as well! Good to see another WI guy on here.

Happy birthday! Frogs are awesome. You're going to want to fish that on a stiff rod preferably with little bit of a tip and braid. Throw it in the thickest stuff you can find. It doesn't have to be grass either. Don't worry about getting hung up. You can get it to walk by keeping your rod tip low and twitching it towards you and the back at the bait creating slack. You'll want to fish it fairly slow, and don't be afraid to let it sit. The toughest part is the hook set, you have to wait until you feel the fish. You're going to have to fight your natural reaction to set it when you see the fish blow up on it. It an awesome way to fish when you get the hang of it.

Did you try varying your retrieve? Were you fishing around future spawning grounds? Did you try other colors? Did you try other blade combinations? I think there's times we think too hard about trying to throw the perfect bait for a set of conditions and tend to forget that we need to listen to what the fish are telling us. We have guidelines as far as where to start, but if the fish isn't going to hit it, there's really no sense throwing it.

I've fished both north and south and no matter where you go, a bass is a bass. They might relate to cover differently and their natural forage may be different, but the techniques used to catch them aren't any different.

1) Become a better angler 2) Gain confidence in fishing a jig 3) Place in the money in at least half the events I fish 4) Qualify for Regionals for Bass Nation (so close last year!) 5) Introduce someone new to the sport of fishing

Yes everyone does do things differently. That's the beauty of fishing, you can fish how you want and you aren't wrong. Someone might catch more doing something else but that doesn't mean what you do won't work. The ultimate goal is to become as versatile as possible and learn what works for you in different situations. Talking to other people can be a good starting point to find out what works for them, but everyone has different strengths and weaknesses.

I always start thinking I'm going to stick to a budget and for my orders I tend to stay pretty close, but I'll pick up something here and something there. All those really tend to add up quick.

You should check with your local DNR office. I would think they have them posted online. In WI they've got that and the applications online as well.

It'll really help you throw those lighter baits if you do. I'd say go with something in the 6'6" to 6'10" Medium power Fast action rod.

I've used all three. I think I rate the Pad Crasher on top because it's super soft, very easy to walk, and is the best value. The Spro's are a bit harder to walk but by no means hard. They come in a lot of different colors and hold up quite well. The Bronzeye Shad I don't think is as versatile of a bait because of it's longer glides. I think it's better suited for open water, sparse grass, or around thick edges. The Live Target frogs are good too. I haven't used them as much as the other two, but they walk easily and again have a nice soft body. All in all you can't go wrong with any of those three. Personally though, my go to is the Pad Crasher!

The Walmarts up by me don't have a great selection, but between the 3 you can usually pick up some good deals.

What ones are you having this issue with? I've fished Terminators since they came out on the market and have yet to have a tarnish problem with them. They also use gold and nickel plated blades. I could be mistaken, but if I'm remember correctly you can use lemon juice to remove the tarnish off of brass as well.

I don't fish from the bank much, but when I do I've got the bag they give you for signing up for B.A.S.S. That works pretty well.

Rain or not, if there's fish to catch I'm going to do it! ....or at least try. Haha

I used to wear the $12 Berkley ones and those were pretty hard to beat for the price.

I would go with fluoro

I'd recommend getting something in the 6"6" to 6'8" MH for spinnerbaits. It'll help out your accuracy and make you a better spinnerbait fisherman.

WI is brutal, they can confiscate anything you used to harvest illegally. Boat, truck, trailer, gear, wheeler, you name it, if helped you along the way it's fair game.

Target the heavies cover there is. I've seemed to catch better quality fish on a frog and a jig is also known for quality fish. If I were you, I'd go out and target the big girls in the first hour or so throwing your bigger baits, and then downsize to fill your limit with the 2's if you need to. Once you have your limit, upsize again and go on the hunt for the big girls again. Regardless of size, if you don't bring in 5 your chances of winning drop significantly.

You'll probably want to get used to the feel of a spinning reel or the feel of forking out the price of 6 to 10 of those black maxes, and then close to as much for a rod to go with it.

x2

I would say anywhere from 5 to 10 years. Probably more, but that's where I'd still feel comfortable using it in a tournament.

I've got a friend who's got a few of the smallmouth rods and he raves about them. I'm assuming you'll be getting a spinning rod for this correct? If so their reel seats are very similar if not the same as the St. Croix LTB and those are very comfortable.

Have you tried making a really long cast past them?