riverbasser13

The biffle bug makes a pretty good jig trailer, I like using the Okeechobee craw color and filling the cavity in the bug with some sponge or something with flotation so it falls through the water nice and slow.

Baby bass senko and arkie u head jig; which I had lost the night before in the same spot. It was a nice three pounder living in a laydown. I was glad I my senko back and got that hook out of the basses belly so it could swim on!

Where in the upstate are you? I'm in mountain rest and have found a few nice ponds on wma or forest service land. They are kinda tough to get to but I just pack light and bust out the hike to get it over with. Check with your local DNR office and maybe they can help you out also. Also check out any local rivers with public access

Baby boo jig in watermelon red with a green pumpkin crazy legs craw has got two out of my top three for the summer.

3/16ths baby boo in watermelon red with a biffle bug or Berkley crazy legs craw.

Usually in the evening after work. Its a nice way to relax after a full day of work, plus my old lady works till about 8 so it works perfect. On the weekends though before dawn till lunch is nice.

Nice fish! Love that drag screaming sound, its amazing the size of some those pond bass!

Keep it simple, there are a few lures (worms, jigs, topwaters)that have been around for decades and work great today. Start with those and expand from there. Above all relax and have fun!

I've heard Jocassee can be pretty epic when you can find 'em.

Around ten inches for the bartrams\redeye in the river, and 1.5 pounds for the ponds and lake LM. I tried hard for smallmouth and totaled 5 so that's an easy average of 12ish inches. Super jealous of anybody averaging 3 pounder smallmouth.

Tx rigged zoom ole monster with the an 1/8th ounce bullet wait works for me when I'm bank fishin and trying to fish riprap, laydowns or underwater weeds. Also fairly inexpensive so if I lose one or more it doesn't feel like I'm throwing money in the pond, lake, or river.

The biggest smallie and two of my best LM from this summer have been caught on a 4" baby bass senko or green pumpkin dinger, including a 3.5 piunde that broke my line the night before and still had the senko in its mouth when I hooked it again 24 hours later. I've caught some nice bartrams redeye and spots on it also. Great catch, that's an awesome looking fish!

Way to go! Lookkd like you might be on to something that's workin!

Charlie's worms has some good saltwater products on their website and the prices are pretty reasonable.

Colder water means slower moving bass and bait, right? Once the water starts to really cool off I try use baits that looks as natural as possible and that I can fish slow or reaally slow. I also seem to get most of my bites when my lure is on the fall. Things like tubes, small jigs and trailer, senko type worms and curly tail worms worked with a lift and drop retrieve are where I start in colder water. A clear pop r with a few seconds in between pops is my topwater choice. If you can time it to where you catch the sun warming up the pond or section of lake your fishing that also is worth a try. I'm in upstate SC so it's a lot different but late November thru February that's how I change my game plan for colder water.

The arkie style heads are pretty versatile, matched up with a craw style trailer (they sell rage craws on the website) to look like a small bluegill or shad would be a good start. Some of their just plain jigheads with a 10" worm or craw work great around laydowns, submerged logs etc. Have fun shopping and good luck catchin!

Haha that second photo is hilarious, that's what I love a bass. That sounds like an awesome day on the water!

Has anyone said jigs yet? If there are bluegills in your pond then the larger bass are probably eating them. A jig and trailer matching the small to medium size bluegills has worked great for me. After reading the epic thread on here on jigs and jig fishing I have had great success with what I learned.

Nice!

Nice shots looks like a fun trip and great scenery.

If your schedule allows fir it try a different time of day when the fish are more likely to be feeding, ie early mornin or late afternoon

I'd say a fifty-fifty fir me, the river hasn't produced the size I was hoping for, but I stumbled onto a nice little pond and have caught two good ones and one that could be my PB if I can land her. I have learned a few new techniques and knots though and they have paid off well, plus my first smallies so overalls I'm stoked. And here in GA/SC it's starting to cool down so it should be getting good here soon!

Skipping a weightless green pumpkin yum dinger or senko under overhanging trees and shrubs is pretty much the only way I've figured out to consistently catch small mouth this season. I'm still new to fishin for these guys and it's fun as heck. I like using a 2 or 3/0 hook and 6 pound line. I've caught them in the current with this setup also but reading the current is a little trickier

Wow I just learned a whole lot about the spook,talk about about a classic lure.

This knot has been great for me and after some practice ties pretty quick, but after the wraps I just pass it through the bottom loop, with super light line like #4 trilene I try to cinch it real slow otherwise I get some weirdness right above my knot