RipzLipz

I used to keep a log on a small lake. Each entry was numbered & for each bass over X lbs, a number was placed on a satellite image of the lake copied from Google Maps. After so long, I began to see where the larger fish were being caught, as clusters of numbers began to show up. I felt the odds were more favorable fishing those areas during certain times of the year. Those same places still produce today. I am currently fishing a larger lake more than the one mentioned above. I plan on doing something similar. DNR fisheries biologists or equivalent for public lakes can also be willing to provide survey results should a lake be unknown to you in regards to species present (think prey species for bass). They often lack data from fishermen & both can benefit in some ways by sharing. Some survey results may be available online already.

Slimeball of the highest order.

Unfortunately it wasn’t set at any boat ramps. Had my fill of zombie stories to last 2 lifetimes. AMC needs to just move onto something else - milk Breaking Bad for more stories.

I know some humans who probably should have done such with their offspring.

@TnRiver46 I don’t doubt it & I used to fish more of a finesse style. Did that up until my late 30s. It’s just not as enjoyable for me & I’m sure confidence/mental stuff is also involved due to every LM over 5.5lbs I’ve caught where I fish has come on jigs, spinnerbaits & topwaters on casting gear. My issue right now is I’m flat out being stubborn, more than likely. Part of it is also due to the ungodly sprawling laydowns one lake has vs. the smaller strip pits having more open water & much less potential for breakoffs/snags. I realize your rivers are probably full of hazards - just all in what hazards you’re accustomed to fishing. Like I said, I will give it a shot with both spinning gear & downsizing & see if it makes a difference. I can take a skunking - it can be part of it, particularly if targeting larger fish, as I usually am trying to do.

@Fishingmickey PM sent. Feel free to respond to it if you have more questions.

@TnRiver46 You cure me of the power fishing addiction & I’ll cure you of the spinnerbait curse. 🤣 @DinkDonkey30 You’re probably more than 1 hour north of me - we were ice free over 2 weeks ago for the most part with 1 snow covering this year which lasted a week. You may get a bit more chilly than us if you’re more than 1-2 hours from Indy. Regardless, water temps are still in high 30s & 40s in most places, closer to 50s the further south you go (more than likely). Unless we get extreme highs or lows, things will even out I’d expect. We’re just anxious. Not that they can’t be caught, just not quite time for the power stuff here yet, and especially not shallower than 10’. @ol'crickety Our winter has been very mild, with very little snow. As I said to DinkDonkey, only 1 snow that covered the ground & required the shovels for a quick push to clear the driveway. Got below 20° for 2-4 weeks, warmed up above 30° & rained/drizzled for ~10 straight days. Got into 60s for a day or two then Friday night temps dropped 10-15° with 30s & 40s as far out as I can see, some nights down into high 20s possibly. Close to magic time but wind will be my main adversary more than anything.

@roadwarrior 5 here, mainly to try & get an idea if color will matter that much & which ones. The Sweet Fish color matches closest what I tend to see the most in the small waters I fish or matches colors with which I’ve had success most often (darker green/brownish back, lighter bellies) with some colors that are also more flash, closer to maybe a threadfin.

Well, I caved & paid more than I should have but wasn’t going to wait around for weeks or months for resupply to happen (or not). I figure if they don’t work as hoped for LMB, the SMB might very well tear them up when I head north. In addition to being willing to overpay a bit, knowing Japanese tendencies for certain mispronunciations aided greatly in finding some hard to find colors.

@ol'crickety It’s obviously yet a bit early in some areas for the bass to be much closer to active - still winter "pattern" to their behavior, at least here, IMO. I don’t recall too many years where so many ponds (<2-3 acres is a pond here) & lakes were ice free this early. At best, I’m fishing last week of February, if not early March on a typical year. We may still yet have some "skim" icing left as temps may dip low enough at night for some slack waters to slightly ice back over. We need water temps to climb here & just haven’t quite had enough warm days or warm rains for that to happen. I’ve not had the experience for winter open water fishing. My stubborn insistence on power fishing probably doesn’t help me much either. I just know it was chilly in the wind Saturday & the bass in Lake Shantbenamed weren’t wanting anything I was throwing. Will see what happens in a slight change in my approach. A few baitcasters will be replaced with a spinning rod or two next time out or in near future. See Tackle Purchase thread for details if interested.

Well, I didn’t quote it accurately. Romo specifically said "tush push". I’d have called the play you mentioned more of a designed run rather than a sneak but 6 of 1, 1/2 dozen of another.

@A-Jay I didn’t realize sea horses & cats got along. Caught this bandit out back last night. Good old Peter Pan Extra Crunchy Peanut butter for the win. Thanks to @TnRiver46 for his expert advice. Wanted to get this relocated before potential little ones became an additional issue. After catching it, I’d moved the trap up near the deck onto some pavers in hopes of avoiding a mess from it reaching out into the yard & pulling grass & mud into the cage. The little turd wasn’t having it & as you can see, pulled the cage over close enough to the yard to make a nice mess inside the trap. Was relocated to a nearby grain elevator about 10 miles south. I hope that’s the end of my coon issues but more will inevitably appear at some point. Have trapped close to a dozen if not more in the past 3 years.

Mahomes figured out quickly in his career that if he was going to last in the NFL, he would have to become primarily a passing QB versus a running QB. Now he only runs as a last resort. I am of the opinion that is what sets him apart from some others who get lots of ooohs, aaaahs & big contracts but end up watching the Super Bowl on TV rather than participating in it. Romo even mentioned how KC no longer does QB sneaks "tush pushes" on short yardage plays since Mahomes was injured doing such at some point. I figured the game would probably be a low scoring affair. Both had good defenses. Glad the game wasn’t mired with penalties or potential controversy with the officiating. SF just didn’t or couldn’t score enough TDs. KC defense was just good enough. Not sure what SF needs to do to get over that hump. Barring injuries & player movement/contract disputes, I would expect both to be right in the mix again next year. *Edited for accuracy.

@Dwight Hottle Out of curiosity, I recall the Lindner’s mentioning pink colors can sometimes be a hot color for SMB. Has that been your experience as well?

First outing of 2024 was less than stellar. Will save any potential readers from any boring details. Also observed first idiots near boat ramps in 4 females with vehicle parked directly in front of ramp, which has signs posted in either side saying "DO NOT BLOCK RAMP". Luckily, they observed us inbound & left without any nasty exchanges. Tire valve stem core remover will be in my truck for remainer of year.

Without knowing your rod ratings, etc., I’d consider fluorocarbon on the high speed reel for the soft plastics, particularly t-rigs & jigs, should you use those in the future. I’m not a braid user except frogging & punching but I have more than 3 rods. With that said, if I were in your shoes I would also consider braid with fluorocarbon leader on the high speed reel so to be able to clip off the fluoro leader & frog or punch if necessary. Should you go the braid route with leader, study up on connection knots. The other 2, again, if it were me, would be 1 fluoro & 1 mono, with the mono being for lighter weight topwater (non-frogging) or any lure where some stretch is desired. The fluoro would be for everything else. Can also go all one or the other & use fly line dressing from lure to 3-4’ up the line to float the line (fluoro will sink & cause issues with topwater). I feel you get what you pay for with line/braid so I wouldn’t go cheap if possible. Seaguar, Sunline & a few other brands are well liked for fluoro. I stick with Seaguar for braid (Smackdown) but Power Pro & some others are well liked. Me, I’m fine with original Stren clear/blue fluorescent but others will also have their personal preferences, as with most tackle. Get some good line cutters & if you end up with braid, make sure the cutters state they’ll cut braid. I like the Boomerangs (cheaper model) as they’re small & have a clip on them & can be kept anywhere to stay out of the way - also no points to worry over if in a pocket. As stated above, you’ve been introduced to the bait monkey. Just wait until you go shopping for lures. Tackle Warehouse is having a 25% off spring sale until the 21st on select items if that helps you get stocked up. Bait monkey will be observing & "financially advising" as usual. Welcome back to bass fishing! Catch a big one!

Something seems off with position of wheels relative to rear of trailer - too close to the rear. Nice lighting on the trailer as well. Maybe an entrant for the Rockford Boat Races? 😉

EDITED I was using an iPhone & was taking landscape oriented photos with the bottom of the phone to my left. Making sure the bottom of the phone was facing to my right fixed the issue. The camera lens should never be on the bottom when taking a photo, regardless of orientation (portrait/landscape).

Yep, there are a few baits that are capable of catching them year round, especially bigger bass. Jigs being another, just off the top of my head.

@Pat Brown I usually fish with heavier spinnerbaits, typically 1/2oz but on occasion if the bite is tough I might drop down to 3/8oz. Night time, I throw 3/4oz up to 1.5oz depending on the time of year. I find the larger size keeps large bluegill from attacking the trailer. Just depends on the time of year.

Granted, the topic is winter fishing but I catch plenty in clear water with spinnerbaits & mostly at night during the summer. On occasion, early & late in the year, a nice one has bitten a spinnerbait during the day when the usual lures are slow to produce. Zoom Split Tails & SK Rage Menace Grubs also make decent trailers. I’d imagine anything one could pair with a chatterbait would work well on a spinnerbait as well. I plan on trying some Zoom Speed & UV Speed Worms as trailers at some point. Used to use Uncle Josh Split Tail Eels as a trailer back when they still made them.

Too early for brush was in reference to the gif you posted.

That won’t change until you put down the tri….tri….tri…..3 sided thing where the round handle goes on the spinning rod & stick to it. You’re in TN - your handles are supposed to be full round cork with rings or electrical tape for God’s sake!

@LrgmouthShad Too early to be pitching into the brush just yet! When you get a chance check out those night time spinner bugs I posted last week in the purchase thread with the quarter on the blade & see what you think.😈

You’ve been hiding! 😂 @NorthernBasser It appears the tail edges of the Shimmer Shad are flanged a bit to aid in side to side movement, similar to the Zako if I’m not mistaken.