Turtle135

Rods are usually marked for what pound test line and the weight of the presentation that they are designed to handle. For example my medium-heavy baitcasting rods are rated for line testing 10-20 pounds and for handling lures that range from 1/4 ounce up to 1 ounce. While these rods may not have the optimum characteristics of rods designed for salmon fishing I could certainly catch salmon or stripers or musky with these rods. You can whip a pretty good sized fish with light tackle if you let them work against the drag on your reel.

Here are my two 1. football head (not because it is the most versatile but because it catches so many bass) 2. a bullet swim head (because it is so versatile, crawl it, swim it, pitch it, etc.)

A few times in 25 years of kayak fishing. First time was in 18 inches of water, stepping out of a sit-inside kayak to answer the call of nature, tripped and hit the bottom of the lake so hard I saw stars. Last time, was on the Tidal Potomac River and the wind started to howl making for some serious rollers, thought to myself "hey, I bet I can surf one of those waves back to the ramp", I was wrong.

Yes, me too, doesn't seem to matter if the water is clear or off color either

Nothing says summertime more to me than a big ribbontail plastic worm rigged on a Confidence Baits Draggin Head. The slow crawl or deadstick on a major structural element in June, July or August just waiting to feel that tick come up the line.

Nice looking jig. I am also more of a natural color jig guy as well, Is that a color combination you have had some success with?

I am a big fan of Trilene XT monofilament for fishing for largemouth with baitcasting gear. I tend to go heavy on the pound test to combat the stretch issue.

Congrats! The boat looks great and that sounds like an awesome deal.

$ 336.00 and about another 150 in gear (I am keeping my day job!)

a jig with a craw trailer ...I should qualify by saying I throw a jig 80% of the time year round

heaviest : home made 3/8 ounce football jig and Tiny Paca Craw longest : 3/8 ounce Confidence Baits Draggin Head with a 10" Culprit Original Worm

great looking smallie! well done!

that is awesome! congrats!

What type of water do you fish most of the time? Lakes (how big), rivers, creeks, etc.?

The Ride 115 is 11.5 feet (and the longer Ride "135" is 13.5 feet long)

Thanks! The majority of the time I am sitting. That model seat in the Ride can be set in high position which gives me another 5 inches or so of elevation (enough to pitch jigs from a seated position). If conditions warrant however it is nice to stand and fish crankbaits and spinnerbaits (you can cast farther and manipulate the rod angle for the best presentation).

I fish lakes, rivers and tidal rivers, Here is my Wilderness Systems Ride 115. Stable enough to stand and fish due to the hull design. I think one of my favorite things about fishing from a kayak is that I can leave my office and be paddling on the local reservoir or the Upper Potomac River in under 60 minutes.

23.50" http://www.in-fisherman.com/straws-blog/bass-length-to-weight-conversion-chart/ https://tpwd.texas.gov/fishboat/fish/recreational/catchrelease/bass_length_weight.phtml

Congrats on the nice winter bass! What did you catch her on? On fishing tidal water, since I fish from a kayak chasing the tides up and down the length of the Potomac River is not feasible. What I do during warmer water seasons is follow the bass into the shallows on the high tides. They will push into inches of water looking for food in that newly flooded water. As the tide pulls out I look for little cuts that drop into deeper water. Bass will hang around spots like that waiting for the outgoing current to deliver food right to them. In the winter, in cold water, what I believe the bass are looking for are areas that have adequate depth so that they do not have to relocate as the tide goes up and down (and areas that have current breaks so that they do not have to work to hold position against the current).

That is where I fished for 3 straight trips (and got skunked for largemouth). It really does look like a good winter area for bass and I know there are a lot of crappie in that section but I have not been able to unlock the code there when the water gets under 40 degrees.

Thanks, I appreciate the intel. Yes, the spoils cove gets a warm water influence from Blue Plains up river. I am fishing from a kayak and access to that area out of Jones Point Park has been a problem (last two times I went by they had the gate locked). I will keep banging away down there, one of two things will happen (1) I will finally have some success down there (2) spring will finally arrive!

Whichever jig caught my last really good bass, so right now it is a homemade football jig (3/8th ounce with black round rubber and blue silicone)

I am not currently carrying a scale with me but I think I would probably go with weighing them in a net with a rubber bag (less potential damage to the bass).

Anyone have any luck fishing the Tidal Potomac in the winter for largemouth bass? Excluding a warm water discharge area was looking for any insight on what type of conditions you look for and what type of presentations you favor. I've been skunked down there 3 straight trips this month (dealing with surface temperatures around 38 degrees). Since my local lakes are still frozen over I will be taking another whack at it this weekend. Thanks in advance

I'm curious if they were jumping for distance or height? This might indicate that there is something seriously wrong with me!