Jar11591

When I’m in my boat alone, I’ll usually have 7 or 8 casting rigs and 1-3 spinning rigs on me. If someone is fishing in the boat with me or I’m in someone else’s boat, I may limit that to 5 casting and 1 spinning rig. Maybe. If I’m on the bank, I usually have 3 casting rigs. If I’m wading a creek or river, I’ll have one spinning set up.

I fish Collins a lot because it’s only 10 minutes from me but man it can be stingy! Has some great fish in it though. The average size is impressive. Actually haven’t been out on it yet this year though. I primarily fish Adirondack lakes. Love Sacandaga Reservoir but haven’t been out on it in years. Lots of big small smallies there. I’ll need to get back on it soon. We’re lucky to have a ton of great bass water in the area.

Fellow Northeastern NYer here. In most of the lakes I fish, the primary forage is either yellow perch (#1 forage IMO), golden shiners, or crawfish. Bluegills and other sunfishes are obviously very abundant here, but they are a deep-bodied prey, so a perch or a golden shiner of a similar size would be preferred, all else being equal. Bass definitely prey on sunfish, but most every body of water here contains yellow perch, and they are slim-bodied, so I would consider them to be the primary forage of NE NY.

Don’t be afraid to throw a spinnerbait in clear water. They're one of my top lure choices for grass patches. Let it sink into the grass, start your retrieve, and when you feel it starting to get hung up, RIP it out. This is what triggers a lot of strikes for me.

Getting my tackle rigged the night before a outing is definitely part of the fun for me. Any, and I mean ANY excuse to fiddle with my tackle. Boat will be loaded up the night before as well. It’s really enjoyable for me, and makes those 3:30am drives to the lake that much easier.

Congrats on the PB and big northern bass!

I was expecting statistics showing that smallmouth bury more treble hooks in angler flesh than any other fish species out there or something along those lines.

Sounds like a great trip with some bonus wildlife. Nothing like catching tail-walking smallmouth when the loons are calling.

This is where the gear ratio of your reel comes into play. A low ratio (5:1) will help slow down the bait but keep the blades moving. I use a 5:1 reel for all spinnerbaits and chatterbaits. Really helps with slow-rolling them.

For a topwater rod (both poppers and walkers) I prefer a 6’6” medium power rod with a fast tip. The fast action allows me to have much more feel to work the bait. The shorter length prevents me from slapping the water or bottom of the boat, as I tend to jerk my rod down to work both poppers and walkers. The medium power allows me to really bomb casts even when using small topwaters. Check out the Fenwick HMG in 6’6” M/F. It makes an excellent topwater rod for spooks and poppers. https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/catpage-FENWIK.html?from=basres

This year I did everything from seed. Tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, lots of basil, cilantro, oregano, and I even planted a watermelon seed that has grown like crazy. Have a couple small watermelons forming that I really hope to harvest. The growing season isn’t very long in upstate NY.

I struggle to leave Field & Stream without grabbing a PopMax or Pop-X.

Number one benefit of braid is the smaller diameter relative to its break strength. Next would be it’s lack of stretch. Using a leader won’t negate either of these things. I typically use a 4’-6’ 20lb fluorocarbon leader tied to 40lb braid for applications such as jigs and Texas rigs. I still get the benefits of the braid, which are a thin diameter and lack of stretch, while also getting the benefits of the fluorocarbon leader, which are primarily its abrasion resistance and invisibility. I fish clear mountain lakes with a lot of rocks and logs and esox that can saw taught braid off like butter. Fluorocarbon leaders let me fish more confidently in these situations.

For monofilament, I’ve found no better than Berkley Trilene XL as far as cast-ability, smoothness, low-memory and overall usability. For a spinning reel, I’d suggest 6lb test. Should be very user-friendly.

If it’s an Arbogast, Storm, or Rebel, change out those hooks.

The sheer amount of information from people who are extremely knowledgeable and passionate about the sport. I have learned so much from BassResource over the years. No matter your skill level, there is so much to learn here. They say 10% of the fishermen catch 90% of the fish. Due in part to BassResource, I’m confident I’m in that 10% class.

Thanks A-Jay. This particular outside weedline is probably my most consistent producing spots on any of the lakes I fish. And the best part is, I’ve never seen another angler spend any more than a couple casts at it. Everyone motors right on past it to go beat the bank.

Fish were all deep today. Every bite came from deep outside weed lines. A popper at day break produced a few, along with frogs in the lilies later on. Big fish was 4lb 12oz and slugged a spinnerbait in 12’ of water late morning.

When I’m fishing for smallmouth primarily.

Nice adirondack bass! The Adirondacks have some great fish.

Rapala Skitterwalk

For me, 6am, the main reason being that at 6am I generally have the lake all to myself. 6pm will be a zoo on the water. And I have considerably more luck throwing topwater in the morning hours than I do the early evening. Late evening and night is a different story, but at 6pm, not as much.

Look for sharp, rocky drop-offs, islands, points, sand bars, rock piles, riprap, and boulders. 4” wacky senkos, small poppers and hula grubs on a finesse jig head are effective smallmouth baits.

Have only fished the St. Lawrence a couple times, so the only advice I can give you is prepare to fish some ultra-clear water. Bottom visible at more that 40’ in depth.

Depends on application, I’ll use anything from 6lb hybrid to 50lb braid for soft plastics. Jigs usually get thrown on 40lb braid for me, and treble-hook topwater always gets thrown on 8lb monofilament.