BigmouthForever23

I'm going to try and switch from my texasrig set-up with my worm and instead try a small split shot. I think you're right and that this might help reduce the chances of my worm getting berried in that algae/muck bottom. I actually use to troll with this set-up with my dad on a lake I grew up fishing. We had amazing results. We'd go out at noon, bright sun, and be catching 5 pound bass in the middle of the day with a lake full of ski boats and jet skis. All we'd do is troll over drop-offs and we'd be pulling them right out of the weeds that they'd be around to get away from the sun. I will try this for sure next time I'm on the lake (hopefully tomorrow.)

It's crazy I found this thread because I'm in the exact same situation. I made a couple threads about a private lake I started fishing too. I've caught a ton of LMB, all under 1 pound or so. Mainly been using plastic worms/senkos/spook. Lake also has hardly any fishing pressure. Since your buddy caught a lunker I assume your lake has some. Can't say the same about mine. Don't know much about your lake, but try finding any areas on the lake that's shallow yet has deep water close by, any kind of drop off. Try it early morning and late evening. Fish slow. And use bigger baits, I know it sounds cliche but I think it's true. Try rigging a really really big worm, like 12" and see what you come up with.

WRB, pretty much everything you said in your post is spot-on. You are very knowledgeable. There has been talk of dredging the lake due to the harm the copper sulfate has caused but I think it's a money issue that's holding that up. There are two beaches on the lake so yes there are body contact with this water. The fertilzer is a huge problem. The board has sent out newsletters that have urged lakefront homeowners to not use fertilizer that contains phosphorous for the reasons you mentioned. And yes, there is very little fishing pressure on the lake. I was out all day Saturday and Sunday evening and I only saw a few fisherman. And th majority of them being casual guys going for panfish or whatever. I'm going to mention some of this to my neighbor who is on the board but I don't know how much good it will do. Here's a link to the site with a short description of the lake: http://www.lochlomondlaker.com/lochlomond/sub_category_list.asp?category=10&title=History

Greentrout, you make some great points. Not only do I live up North, but we've had an unusually very cool spring so I'm thinking maybe it did mess with the spawning. I'm not too familair with identiying what's happening when. You mentinoed some lures. What about a Zara Spook. It's my favorite top water lure and in the past I've seemed to catch the bigger of the bass on previous lakes I've fished using this lure. I shouldn't make it sound like I"m mad per say or really disapoointed in the size of the bass. I mean, before I bought this house and had access to this lake, I was stuck bank fishing from the local forest preserves. I used to fish another nice lake in the area on my boat with my dad but that all ended after my parents moved to FL. But it's still fun catching the small ones. The other lakes I'd fish, I'd get skunked on so many occasions. It's nice to fish a lake that actually has been stocked and is full of fish. It's making me think maybe I'm a better bass fisherman than I though. And you're so right about a 5 pound bass. Down south you'd be laughed at for saying that's a lunker, but in my area it's a lunker!

Here's a link to where I found that pic and some users talking about the lake and the fish kill. Going off the dates these posts were made, that bass was caught about a year after the fish kill. http://www.lake-link.com/Illinois-Fishing-Reports/report.cfm/88990/Loch-Lomond/ Also, one more thing. My neighbor is lending me her jon boat to use on the lake. She's lived in the neighbord for like 30 years and she's on the board. She along with everyone I've talked to said this is a good lake for fishing, especially bass. And one of her friends she's known for decades moved to Lake Villa but he comes down sometimes to use her boat and fish the lake. I went out with him the other day. He said he's been fishing the lake since he was a teenager. He's probably in his 50's. Anyway, I went out with him and we caught about 20 bass in a few hours, all under 1.5 pounds or so. I asked him about the size of the bass and he said this year he caught one that was 20+ inhces and that you could fit your whole fist in the mouth. Now, the one reason I find this hard to believe is I had caught the biggest bass that night, alhtough it was probably only a pound. When I caught it my friend said, :wow that's the biggest one of the night, 2.5 pounds if you ask me." My jaw almost dropped but I just said yeah it's a nice one. But in my head I was thinking is this guy nuts. So yeah, who knows maybe there are some lunkers in here I don't know.

Thanks for everyone's help. Another question for you guys. See the pic below I found on a forum of a bass that somoene caught on this lake 1 year after the fish kill happened. Hard to tell from a pic, but I'd say that's at least 3.5 pounds, no? So, seeing the size of this bass makes me think there has to be some lunkers still left in the lake. But then again, is the number so low that the chance of landing one is minimal? Also, I was wondering why all the bluegill and crappie in this lake are mutant big compared to all the other lakes I've fished in the area. I was thinking if the panfish are much bigger compared to other lakes in the area, would the same apply to the bass? I thought it might have to do with the size of the lake and how shallow it is.

Yes, I posted that map about the lake. You called it with the copper sulfate. They used that to fight the algae. Only problem was it killed basically all the aquatic vegetation in the lake. I even talked to someone in the neighhborhood who said they stocked the lake a while back with Grass Carp...the people on the board who run the lake have not made the best decisions when it comes to doing what's best for the fish. The lake does not have an aeration system. Also, about 5 years ago, I heard the lake suffered a pretty big fish kill. We had a really bad winter here that saw a lot of snow fall. So much so that it was so thick over the ice it prevented the sun from reaching the water. Now, the board hires a service to remove some snow whenver that happens.

I think I know exactly where you're talking about. I'll will try and focus on that area. And the bank by the d**n contains a lot of rocks. I'm not sure how much is under the water but I know it gets deep quickly from the bank. Thank you so much for all of your posts in both of my threads.

Are you referring to the main point?

Thank you so much for your response. How did you know there's a dam? What do you consider the "major point?" I'll definitely check out the dam for the deeper water. What are these pockets throughout the map? How are those formed?

I found this map of a lake that I'll be fishing on a regular basis. Can anyone give me some tips on getting the most out of this map? I'm trying to pinpoint areas where the largest bass can be found. As you can tell it's a very shallow lake and before discovering this map, I found very minimal structure. After looking at this map, it looks like there are some dropoffs I can focus on. But my question is what are the little "pockets" throughout the map with different depths? Would that be considered structure I can focus on? I just started fishing this lake and it's loaded with bass but almost all that I've caught so far have been under a pound or so. Biggest was probably 2 pounds maybe. I'm trying to figure out where the bigger bass are on the lake.

I just switched to baitcast reels last year and love them. I also have a Lews BB1. It's an amazing reel. But if you're just starting take it slow. Don't worry about casting distance yet. Just practice a lot and the distance will come.

I have access to a private lake in my subdvision (just moved here last year). I was really excided to get on the lake, it was the #1 reason I bought the house. But so far I've been disappointed. FIrst, I heard no motors of any kind are allowed, even trollling motors. Reason given is due to how shallow the lake is they don't want to "stir it up." So, boat control is hard enough withoout a trolling motor but the lake is also very shallow. I have a fish finder and the deepest water I could find so far is 7 feet. A website with some info on the lake says the deepest part is 10 feet but I haven't found it yet. Anyway, it's a man-made lake and it's practically flat everywhere. I can't find any sort of drop-offs at all. And there's also an algae problem I've been told and the bottom is made up of muck pretty much. It has very high phosphorous concentrations and very few aquatic plants. As far as the quantity of bass go, this lake is loaded. However, they're all very small, less than a pound. The biggest one I caught was probably 2 pounds or so and that was on my first day on the lake. I've been told there's decent bass in here but I haven't been able to find them. How does one go about locating where the bigger bass would be located on a lake like this? Not only is there very little structure in the lake, it also lacks cover. Besides some docks and tree brances/logs in the water, there are litterally no weeds that I can find. I think this goes back to the algae problem the lake has. I've never seen a lake like this without any weeds. I think the board that controls the lake killed off weeds in the past in order to fight the algae.

^^Sorry, I should have been more clear. It's not very common, but I learned a technique growing up with my dad where we trolled very slowly for bass with a plastic worm. So I wouldn't need to go very fast at all. Budget wise, I don't know what prices I'm looking at so I'd say anything in the middle range would be good. I don't want the cheapest stuff but I don't need the top of the line either. I'm about 6 foot and 160 pounds.

I don't mean to hijack your thread OP, but I was wondering what kind of kayak you have. Reason being is I just bought a house that has access to a private lake but they don't allow any trolling motors. Instead of opting for a small boat, some on the forums have recommended kayaks. I thought you could help since you have one. I'd like to be able to troll in whatever I happen to be using, if that would even be possible in a kayak.

^^Awesome thanks very much for that! Googled some images and those might be perfect (the ones you can stand up on). Main reason I want one I can stand is I love to fish topwater, mainly throwing Zara Spooks and it's much easier to work those standing up. All in all, I'll make this work. I'd much rather have access to a private lake w/motor restrictions than have a public lake with ski boats and jet skis.

Hmm, what about just a regular boat that you'd normally use just not have any trolling motor with it? I'd still like to be able to stand up to fish and that sort of thing.

I just bought a house in a neighborhood that has access to a private lake. The only problem is they don't allow motors of any kind, gas or electric. This kinda blows as I really wanted to use a trolling motor on my boat. Any ideas on the type of boat that would suit me best? I'll need rows to get around.

Well, this is a first. I caught a catfish on a Zara Spook tonight. At first I though it was a Pike when I first saw the length of it but couldn't believe it when I saw those whiskers!

Hey everyone, I know this is an old thread but the Cabella XML rods are on sale now for$105! I just ordered two more after buying my first two about a month ago and loving them. They are great rods for $150 and for $105 you're getting a steal. http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-XML-Casting-Rods/1158307.uts

I know what you're going through. Where are you located? I live in the northwest burbs of Chicago.

Check out this clip from this film "Bigmouth Forever." It has some pretty cool underwater footage of bass feeding. See the 1:10 mark, that's crazy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Znc0wCeUACc Full movie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybopUwSuiS8 And a clip from the original film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAwaH0vAdtk

I don't remember my first bass I caught, but I do remember the first one I caught on topwater. My dad told me to tie on this Zara Spook and give it a try. I started to get frustrated when I didn't catch anything at first as I was a young kid. He told me to just keep working it like he showed me. Well patience paid off as just about the time I was going to tie another lure on, BAM! a bass absolutely demolished my spook. I don't know if I or my dad was more suprised. Remember, I was pretty young and the spook isn't exactly a novice type lure and requires some patience to master the walk-the-dog technique.I'll never forget that moment. I've been a huge fan of spooks ever since and they're my go-to topwater lure.

^^Thanks for all the advice everyone. I don't think it's the spool as the reels are practically new. I'm not sure what a roll cast is. I'm using a Cabela's XML MH. Do you think switching from fluoro to mono would help? I chose fluoro because I read it's probably the best line use for worm fsihing.

I'm casting from shore so I'm trying to get it out a decent distance to get near the dropoff and past the weeds on the surface at a point I like to fish on a certain lake. I'd say 10 yards would be plenty far. I try to loosen the tension knob but when I do that the line gets tangled so I'm forced to tighten it which limits my casting distance. It's really frustrating. I have the setting for the magnetic/centrifugal brakes set very low too. Btw, the line on my worm rod is fluoro not mono if that makes a difference. I mean, I love to fish topwater especially spooks and I use the BB1 on a medium-heavy rod with 14lb mono and that thing casts a mile!