Fish Chris

I didn't even think I was going to reply to this, figuring enough had been said already..... but then I started seeing posts I couldn't pass up ! First off, Rolo said a mouthful when he said > Losing a fish is one thing, but line-breakage is quite another thing. < !!! Amen to that brother ! I certainly lose a few fish here and there, but basically NEVER break them off. T-Rig, YES ! Braid ! Absolutely ! I have caught a 14 lb bass in a field of water plants. It was an amazing sight to see the fish, on a dead run, then make a hard left, and the line cutting all of those weeds off, like an industrial mower :-) Left a 40 foot triangle mowed off flat like a crew cut ! Hello wismallie. Welcome to the forum. And please don't mind me too much.... but there are a few things which I am really opinionated about. And one of them is BACKREELING !!! AHHHHH !!! Just hearing that word makes me want to Laugh ! Cry ! Scream ! Or just generally freak out ! I have just never seen any logic in this ! Nobody.... and I mean NOBODY can exactly predict what a fish is going to do next ! The best "back reeler" on the planet, cannot possibly react as fast as a properly set, smooth functioning drag system, which reacts "litterally" in the same instant ! And speaking of smooth drags (and subjects with which I am rediculously opinionated about ;-)) one thing which is rarely talked about, when discussing braided line, is that braid will make any drag system, even a lame one, work WAY better than the same reel loaded with monofilament. Why ? Because mono will stretch, and stretch, and stretch.... then finally, the drag will "break loose" and release all of that pressure. Then the line will stretch, and stretch, until the drag lets loose again, and on and on. This is known as drag surge, and it is almost completely eliminated with the use of virtually zero-stretch braided line. BTW, I use my swimbait rods for both "little ol' 15 lb bass", and rediculously strong 100 lb Bat Rays...... yet, I set my drag close to the same, and fight the fish close to the same also. The only difference is, I land the Largemouth in 1 to 3 minutes, while I have to fight the Bat Rays for 45 to 90 minutes. So anyway, 1) A smooth functioning, properly set drag. 2) Non-stretch braided line, to prevent drag surge (among many other positive assets). 3) Experience, in playing fish, or more specifically, not trying to reel when they are ripping drag, but not waiting even 1/10th of a second, to rip on them when they let up, or turn towards you. Of course fishing is fishing.... and anybody can have one simply come unbuttoned. Those are excusable though :-) Peace, Fish

the reason I say this, is that I usually get skunked..... or, on a great day, I stick one 10 to 15 lb'er :-) But Monday, I'm pulling up to one of my favorite areas on the lake (planning to beach the boat, and fish from the shore as I always do on this spot). As I look over the side of the boat, I see 3 nice bass from about 6 to 9 lbs each, sitting on what looks like a bed. {in reality, it was a bed..... 2 months ago. These fish have long since spawned out, but under the right conditions, they will come back up and go through the motions... especially at this lake, all the way through August !} I beach the boat about 25 feet from the spot. Stand up, and flip a Huddlebug on an Owner jig head onto "their spot". Whack, I stick a nice little 6 lb'er. Second cast, my line ticks.... Whack ! I stick one of the prettiest 8.2 lb'ers I have ever seen ! {I know.... I should have taken a photo.... but why stress the fish for a photo that won't even make it to the album ?} So then they kind of spook out. Two hours later though, I come back and see they are back, but very skittish. So I fly-line a tail hooked crawler to them.... Whack ! I stick a nice, healthy 7 lb'er :-) Then, later after having a couple nice 10 to 11 lb followers on the Hud, I stick a couple more 3's on crawlers. Five bass in one trip ! Almost unheard of on one of my trophy bass trips. I'd quickly trade those 27 lbs though, for one 10 plus fish :-) Maybe today.... Gotta' go. Fish

Speaking of Goldfish, check this out; About 15 years ago I was catching quite a few wild strain Goldfish on nightcrawlers, while trying for Stripers. Most went about 5 or 6 lbs, but one was a monster which went 10-4 ! So, a few years later I was living in North Louisiana, and working in South Arkansas at a fish farm. We raised a bunch of different species, but among them, lots of Goldfish. Some of the big brood stock, especially the single tailed varieties (the less variance from the wild form, the bigger they got) were as big as 5 or 6 lbs. One day I mentioned that I had caught a 10-4 lb Goldfish in Cali. They all acted like I had been smoking something ! Anyway, they are not much of a sportfish... really sluggish on a line... But I wish I had got a photo of that 10-4..... Koi can be much stronger. Peace, Fish

Okay, now I can see it's a Koi. In the avatar, with the fish spun a bit, (not showing its widest side to the camera) it looked longer and thinner than most Koi. BTW, Koi are just domesticated Carp which have been selectively bred for bright color (and nowadays, sometimes long finnage). Goldfish (wild strain) are often mistaken for Carp, but are actually shorter, with smaller heads, no barbels at the corners of their mouths, and more latterally compressed (flatter). Goldfish and Carp can interbreed, but the offspring are sterile mules. These are often used in ponds where over breeding might be a problem. Just some Goldfish / Koi trivia for you guys, Peace, Fish

What kind of fish is that in your avatar ? I didn't think there was a North American freshwater fish that I could not identify. Is that like one of those Asian or European imports ? It is a very small photo, but I'm not sure if a larger photo would help me. (although I would like to see a larger photo of it, if you don't mind posting it) What's the scoop on that fish ? Did you catch it on rod and reel ? Bait ? Good fight ? Just curious, Fish

I absolutely love my 14 ft aluminum. I wouldn't own a big high-per bass boat "even if I could afford to buy and operate one". They just are not me. I fish both big (25k and 40k acre) lakes, and small 60 acre electric only ponds (like today) from my boat. My boat has a 25hp motor which pushes me about 25mph. That will get me anywhere I need to go, plenty fast enough. It only has a 6 gallon portable tank, but rarely do I use more than 3 gallons on a trip. Sometimes only 1 gallon.... and today, none :-) I run it up onto gravel shorelines frequently, to fish from shore (often the stealthiest way to aproach big fish) and I NEVER have to wash it. It's camo'd, so it looks great anyway. Honestly, if I hit the lotto today, I'd still bass fish from my little 14ft aluminum. It really is my dreamboat. Peace, Fish This isn't a big > bass-boat..... It's a big-bass > boat ;-)

Hey Raul, I'd like to think I have a least a slim chance of catching the new, all-tackle IGFA WR Largemouth bass ! When your fishing lakes that has already kicked out 18's, all it takes then, is a "special fish" with the just the right genes ! (Like Jed's fish) Then let me play with it enough, and eventually, I will put that sucker in the boat ;-) I did actually hold an IGFA line class world record way back in 85'..... it was the 4 lb test Striped bass record, which went 16-12. That was fun. Kind of the highlight of my fishing back then. Nowadays though, line class records are out for me, as I won't even consider using monofilament for anything. Then, to try to use say 10 lb braid, directly in place of 10 lb mono, would not be a fair trade. Braid is great "because" you can use 30lb in place of 10 lb, or 50 in place of 15 or 20. Putting 10 lb braid on a rod designed for 10 lb mono..... then treating it like 10 lb mono, you will snap it right off. But it's cool..... I had my name in the IGFA book once. The only place I really want it now, is in the spot for "all-tackle" IGFA WRL ! :-) Peace, Fish

Cute kid :-) You need to put her on some Sunfish, and get her hooked on fishing ! But whatever you do, make sure you get pictures of her very first fish ! I can't believe my parents didn't get photos of mine..... but then how were they to know I'd grow up to a complete fishing maniac ! :-) LOL Peace, Fish

Hey Johnny, the one in the small avatar picture, is my 15.8 from 5 years ago. It was a REALLY fat one. It was actually caught in the same general area of the lake that my 15.60 from Monday, was caught (good area :-)) Hey, since you mention it (and I don't ususally show these photos, as they look a bit rough on the fish.... but the towell was wet.... and she went back in the livewell between shots) Peace, Fish PS, I'm just waiting to get a 31 incher shaped like this :-)

Wednesday I pulled up to the area where I had stuck my 15.60 from two days before. From only 100 yards out, I scan down the shoreline and no fishermen :-) Cool. I angle the boat over to the left, and beach it about 200 feet from the actual spot. I jump out, taking nothing but my swimbait rod. So, as I come around a slight curve in the shoreline, this guy is just walking down to my spot ! Must have come straight down from the hill, and trees above. Litterally only seconds ahead of me :-( I see he has a 4" worm on one pole, and a little swimbait on another. So, I just walk around behind him. He sees me and asks how I'm doing ? "Nothing today". He then sees my swimbait, and says, "Hey man, this place has some HUGE bass in it ! I was fishing right here last week and this bass followed my lure up to the shore line..... and I swear it was 20 lbs" !!! Immediately I thought to myself, "I wonder if that bass he saw, was in actually 15.60 lbs" ? :-) Of course there are other giant bass in that pond, and maybe even a 19 to 20 lb'er..... But the odds say, he saw my 15.60. The big ones are just so territorial. I remember 5 years ago, I saw that 15.8 in my avatar, just about every other trip for 3 months straight ! ....until one day I timed it just right :-) Anyway, I had a photo of my 15.60 right there in my pocket..... But I didn't have the heart to show it to him.... Plus I thought, unless I lied to him about where I caught it (and I'm the kind of guy that would rather just not say anything at all, that say somethging which isn't true) I'd NEVER get him away from this spot :-) So, even though he started trout fishing after he casted for bass, he was still only there a couple hours. I just waited him out, and then fished the heck out my spot. And got skunked again :-) Oh well. I'm going to keep messing around until I get a BIG one, one of these days ! Peace, Fish

In-Fisherman has done studies (I know.... I always point to IF studies, but hey, they know more than I do :-)) that show that sounds above water, like talking, are very hard for fish to hear underwater. But bumps and bangs against the bottom of the boat are actually amplified, and very easy for fish to hear from long distances. So, talking, laughing, music (as long as you don't have big bass... no.. not the fish 'bass'... but, deep musical notes of 'bass') thumping the floor of the boat, the fish will probably not be very affected. But it's always best to move very cautiously, and avoid bumping and banging the floor of the boat....... Then, if one of your fishing buddies bumps or bangs the boat, it's probably okay to yell at them :-) LOL All this said, it makes no difference to me that talking doesn't bother the bass, as it bothers the heck out of me ! I'll chat for hours online, on the phone, or at the dock, but once I get on the water with a pole in my hand, please leave me by myself, so I can get into my tunnel vision mode :-) Peace, Fish

Thank you for all of your replies. John J, I'm envious, as I'm an inconsistent caster, at best, and a straight up lousy caster at worst. It's that ol' hand eye thing I always talk about. Hey AlanM85, I wouldn't worry about the colors your using too much. Never been a strong believer in color. Curious though, what type of line do you use ? Because you said > I am very timid when setting hooks with soft plastics, no idea why. < and honestly, you could keep setting the hook just the same as you do, but switch to braid (if you have been using mono) and increase the heck out of the pressure at your hook point, because of the lack of stretch in braid. For you guys who said > patience < yes ! An excellent thing to have ! I'm not paitient by nature, but I'm pretty good at forcing myself to do whatever it takes.... even if it takes 5 trips in a row, without a bite ! One thing I wanted to add to my thing about playing fish well..... A big part of it, is that I have trained myself to not get overly excited until "after" I have the fish in the boat ! I remember watching two kids in a boat, falling all over each other, screaming and yelling, after one had hooked an 11 lb'er (I know it was 11-4, because I had caught and released that same fish near a bed a few days earlier) and anyway, the fish broke him off. With a little patience, calm nerves, and a properly set drag, that catch would have been a done deal..... But live and learn, right :-) Thanks again for the replies, Fish

(not neccessarily speaking about lures) But as an example, I'll start this here.... I feel like I am really good at playing a fish, once I hook it. I think a lot of this comes from all of my micro-light fishing experience, for Carp, Stripers, Sturgeon, etc, back in my younger days. For me, the whole thing about using the drag, as a clutch, and keeping the pressure constant, no matter what the fish does, feels totally second nature. (pretty amazing too, for a guy who has completely whacked out hand-eye cooridination with most anything else.... In other words, if I have to think about it first, I've already lost :-) ....That, and I have very good eye sight (makes up for my defness.... Loud car stereos as a kid) Your input please, Fish

Hey Avid, I know... I know.... a 19 lb'er is a HUGE bass ! But it just seems tons away from the 20 to 22 lb'ers (not to mention that 25.1lb genetic freak of a bass that the whole world got to see) that So Cal has put out. Anyway, the odds say that the next WRL will come from So Cal.... about 500 to 600 South of my waters. But I'd like to think that our waters could have a bass with genes like those from the 25.1, that grows to 22-6 :-) BTW, I figured the percentage of my big Smallie from earlier this year, to our state record.... 93% :-) Something to be proud of for sure...... However, when the young guy caught her 10 days earlier, at 8.94 lbs, she was a whopping 98% of the state record ! There is no doubt in my mind, that if that fish is caught next year, she will be a new state record by close a full pound ! I can hardly imagine a 10 lb Smallie ! Peace, Fish

Hey Redtorpedo, I've used small Sunfish a few times when I lived in Louisiana. I think I've caught 1 or 2 small bass on them, and several Gar and Bowfins. They are not legal here in Cali, so I don't use them.... But I always here from guys who think "they must be great, just because they are illegal" LOL What ev. I'm sure there are places in the US, where for lack of a better choice, they make up the primary food source for bass, but in reality, a Bluegill is a hard meal to swallow.... flat and spiny ! Yikes ! In-Fisherman did a study which proved that given the choice, a bass prefers a more cylyndrical, less spiney type of baitfish, such as a Shiner, Hitch, Sucker, etc. Anyway, sure, go on and try them.... but if that doesn't work very well, and since your thinking live bait anyway, you might try crawlers or crawdads (fished correctly, of course). I've written a full article on both of these live baits). Peace, Fish

No offense taken badhabit. Sounds like you have done really well yourself. I've really only heard of two guys to have caught over 400 double digit "true Florida bass", and that would be yourself, and Doug Hannon. You might know of more Florida anglers who have done this. Actually, now that I think about it, I have an e-quaintence from Florida, who has sent me several photos of true Florida bass up to 14 and change, and I think he said he caught more than 200, himself. So anyway, I'm not doubting you, but photos always help. Up here in Nor Cal, I've never really seen. nor heard of solid proof, of anyone ever catching 100 bass over 10 lbs. I'm sitting at 78, but hope to hit the 100 mark within the next few years. BTW, I find it interesting that even with our artificially fed bass, the top trophy bass anglers in Nor Cal are getting close to 100 double digit bass (I have some trophy bass buddies who are total STICKS, better than me, IMPO, but who don't get to fish as much as I do), while in Florida (no hatchery trout) the top anglers are catching 400 or more double digit bass ? This would seem to indicate double digit bass are 4 X's as easy to catch in Florida....... although we certainly have the maximum top end size. Hmmmm. Florida and Cali are certainly like night and day. But yes, I would love to fish in Florida sometime. Heck, I will cast a line anywhere fish swim :-) Hey Rolo, only 17-4 ? What about Fritz Friebels fish ? Not certified ? Peace, Fish

Just out of curiosity, the Florida state record is 20 lbs, correct ? How big is your PB / what percentage of your state record ? Got a picture ? Peace, Fish

You got me LBH :-) Hey Daniel, I think this is a fun thread, which helps to put everybody on level grounds. I'm pretty happy with 85%, but you have to remember that Cali is "the tallest" state in the continental US. {I think it's taller than Texas, ain't it ?} Up here in Nor Cal, we have never had a bass over 19 lbs. All the 20 plus fish you here of are from So Cal (but I'm working hard on this ;-) I'd feel even more satisfied if we could split Cali into North and South. From that standpoint, the biggest bass ever caught up here was an 18.7 lb'er (out of the same lake I got the 15.60 from yesterday, BTW) and that would give me 98.3 % :-) But what I really want, is 109% of our biggest Nor Cal Bass (a 20 plus lb'er :-) Wishing you all 100 plus % of your state records :-) Fish

hey BadHabit, I totally respect your opinion. Here's mine; I've always felt exactly the same way about hatchery trout, which spend their whole lives in a concrete swimming pool, only to finally be dumped in a pond one day, and pulled out the next. However, the difference between hatchery trout, and Cali trophy bass, is that our giant green girls have no help "other than" a great food source. They still raise themselves from an egg, and only 1 out of 10's of thousands, ever gets this big. Another personal opinion of mine, is that regardless of species, a "fat one" always looks better to me, than a long, skinny, big headed one. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to go catch a 32", 15 lb'er from Florida, but I'd much rather stick a 28", 18 lb'er right here in Cali....... not only because its 3 lbs heavier, but because, again, IMPO, it looks cooler. To me, in this case, I feel like the grass is greenest, right here in my own yard :-) .....and I thank the Lord for it every day :-) Great fishing to all, Fish

and once again, I just have to say, anybody here, throwing a big swimbait at that time and place, would have caught that same fish ! I just feel incredibly blessed with the opportunities I have had. And yea, about my "messed up" thread..... Do you see what I'm saying now ? It's really hard for me to go to Clear Lk. and stick a 4 or 5 lb'er (even a whole bunch of them) .... heck, even 7 or 8 lb'ers, and get really whacked out excited, especially if I catch one like this, even every once in a great while. Anyway, I'm going Shad fishing this evening. Never done this before. And I thought I was going to go to a different trophy bass pond tomorrow (a place everybody has kind of forgot about) and try to flip the script on them ;-) .......but it would be hard "NOT" to go right back to the place I caught this pig ! I'm sure you guys can understand that :-) Peace, Fish

.......like this one, to make it an awesome trip :-) Actually, I caught two fish today. The first was a nice little 7 lb'er that was actually relating to a bed ! Probably dumped its eggs 6 or 8 weeks ago, but it was up, and going through the motions. After I stuck that one, it had two more from 8 to 10 lbs chasing it around as I fought it in. So, about an hour after that, I was just blind casting the Hud..... when WHACK ! I get drilled ! I set the hook and this pig comes straight out of the water shaking its head ! It then hits the water and makes one good, hard, 30 ft run. Apparently it was big enough to be able to close its mouth all the way around my swimbait, and poor on the gas :-) Then another jump. A few seconds later, I lip her...... "and then, I come unglued" :-) LOL I'm sure they heard me Whooo Hooo'ing at the other end of the lake :-) I then put her in the livewell, and ran over to the concession area.... and who do I run into ? Our very own "SuperMatt" :-) Perfect ! Not only do I get to show her off to a guy who can really appreciate a big bass, but also, I had a good camera man :-) Oh..... plus I had a witness to the weighing on my certified scale....... She went 15.60 lbs :-) Anyway, this is my biggest bass since my 18.4 PB that I caught on 4/10/03, and my biggest on the Hud "ever" ! Interestingly, I caught this one about 25 feet from where I caught that 14.40, and I was really thinking it might be the same fish, that had just had some time to fatten back up after the spawn. However, upon comparing photos, this was not the same fish.... which is also kind of cool, as now I know there are at least "two big pigs" that frequent that area of the lake. The release.... Still very energetic after her photo session :-) Typical afternoon fog rolling in over the hills. The Pacific ocean is only about 10 miles beyond those hills. The water temp at most of our Nor Cal lakes is pushing 80 degreees right now. While here, it's only 70 degrees ! Then, in the Winter when other lakes hit the low 40's, this lake rarely goes below 50 ! IMPO, this is a large part of the equasion for why this place grows giants ! Peace, Fish PS, Thanks Matt ! The photos came out great :-)

Hey Fishing Doug, you have a PM. Hey LBH, you said (for yourself) it would be like > lots of disappointment with sporadic surges of exuberance < ......and actually, for the "fish-catching" part of it, it's very much like that for me too. But on the other hand, I try to focus on the fact that I'm outside, with the blue sky over my head, and the water under my boat (as a kid, outside was good.... in my bedroom on restriction was bad ;-)) An over achiever you asked ? ...... Uhhhh..... well I'm always pleased with a big catch.... but never satisfied... least wise, for more than a day or two :-) I'm always thinking about a "bigger one" ! Hey Valascus, you said > I have kinda found that after I have had a few "bad" trips (by bad I mean skunked or 1 fish in like eight hours and just not being able to figure 'em out at all) in a row, I start feeling kinda burned out < Interestingly, I would start to feel burnt out of I had more than two or three trips, like the one I described.... Or in other words, like I was spinning my wheels catching a bunch of small fish, but not getting the big one I was after. On the other hand, say I was throwing a swimbait on one of the trophy ponds, and in the first 10 hour trip, I had a 12 lb'er smack me once, but I went home skunked. The next three 10 hour days, I had big 10 to 13 lb followers each trip, but not so much as a touch. On the 5th 10 hour trip, I hook a 12 lb'er, but it comes unbuttoned..... Now I have been out 5 times, for 50 hours, and haven't caught a single fish ! However, I can feel it coming, as even without catching a single fish, I have seen what I needed to see ! I would wake up on that 6th day thinking, "I'm going to stick one of those monsters today", and I would actually have more drive without any fish for 5 trips, than 150 'small fish' in five trips. Hey RW, to be quite honest with you, I have been to the trophy Smallmouth pond a couple times in the last couple weeks..... But no smallies. Instead just a couple nice 5 to 7 lb Northern Strain Largemouths on each trip. I did have one 4'ish looking Smallie come up underneath a 9" wake bait..... but a 6 lb Largy ran up and took it away from it :-) Oh well. Those Smallies really become a deep water thing, this time of year.... which I'm lousy at it. Not to mention all the other great Summertime draws like Catfish, giant Largemouths (at other lakes) Halibut, Batrays, Leopard Sharks, etc. Love to stay and chat.... But I need to get on the water ;-) Peace, Fish

Thanks guys. Well LBH, sure.... I guess.... but to be quite honest, if I had a crystal ball that could tell me that I was going to catch 45 bass, but no big ones, I'd surely go someplace else, where I was less likely to get numbers, and more likely to get a big one. But anyway, regardless of what water I'm on, or what I'm catching, it sure beats the heck out of "work" ! {I'm sorry for using foul, 4 letter words like that ;-) Peace, Fish

I went to Clear Lk. Ca. last Weds, and brought 70 (I counted :-)) perfect, healthy, little live dads. I casted two of them off, but I swear I got bit 68 times ! Ended up landing 45 bass.... mostly 1 1/2 to 3's, but about 7 or 8 legit 4's. I weighed the biggest one, a long, big headed, spawned out fish which went 5.7 lbs. Also caught 4 White cats of 2 to 3 lbs, and 5 Channel cats, 3 of which went 3 to 4 lbs, but I also got a 12.0 and a 15.7 lb'er. Those two fought GREAT on the micro-light, and were definately the most fun catches of the trip. But the thing is, without catching anything big enough to photograph, it really felt like a ho-hum trip. I'd trade 3 trips like this, for 2 skunks, and one 12 lb bass on the 3rd ! I know some people might ask, if catching this many decent fish "doesn't do it for you, then why do still fish" ? Good question. First off, because I know that it only takes one cast to stick the biggest fish of your life ! And second (and it seems like the older I get, the more this comes into play) I just really enjoy being out there on the water, whether I catch small fish, big fish, or no fish. Anyway, hey, I think I answered my own question :-) Peace, Fish PS, I have some ideas for catching a trophy this week though ! .....but it might have whiskers :-) 10 lb Bass, 20 lb Channel cat, 2 lb Bluegill..... I don't even care, I just want a new photo for the album :-)

Nope. I just want to catch BIGGER fish :-) Peace, Fish