the reel ess

A lot of weekend anglers don't like the tourney guys because they can really get in your way and pressure the fish on the only day of the week you have to go fishing. And I don't like to go compete with them on Saturdays because I've had my run-ins with some of them as well. But I've learned a ton of info from what I've seen of them on TV and YouTube. Now I mostly just fish private waters but I put their lessons into use everywhere I go.

Every month when I pay the Dish Network bill I'm astounded at what I pay for TV and can't find a thing to watch. But what I'd miss most if I cut it all out is the fishing shows. You just don't get many of them on cable. It's how I pass the time in early winter.

Cold in SC, by SC standards anyway. One of the things on my bucket list is to go ice fishing in MN.

We have no smallmouth within one hour drive of here. I don't have that good of luck regarding topwaters. It could be the water usually being off-color here. There are days the topwater doesn't get me anything even if I start at dark. I usually try it anyway.

Yeah, that! I use a 6'6" M BC combo now. But when I started, I was using a 5'6" with a pistol grip. And you don't have to maintain the cadence all the way to the boat. You can start with two twitches, three twitches, four twitches... See what the fish like. They'll hit the thing sitting still if it angers them enough. Floating line, like heavier mono, say, maybe 15# or 17#, will help the action as well.

Try a walker that also splashes like a Chug'n Spook or C'NS, Jr. It's less important to get the twitches timed correctly. Fish will see it as a struggling prey on the surface. Walking a bait isn't that difficult. Just keep the tip down and practice. It'll come. It's easier with BC equipment. Watch YouTube videos on the subject.

I'm not arguing with you, but there are probably crawfish everywhere there are bass. I fished a local lake for decades and was convinced it didn't have crawfish because I never saw one. Then one day i caught a bass with a claw hanging out its posterior-I helped the poor fellow out by removing it. I asked a DNR guy at a sporting show and he told me they're everywhere there are fish.

Look for signs of bluegill and minnows. If they're there, their are probably bass. If you don't see them, try a t-rigged worm or craw in the deepest part of the pond. If it's cold where you're fishing (I assume Erie is cold now) even the minnows may be inactive. If I'm wrong and it's warm, minnows and small bluegill will be swimming around the edge. I fished a farm pond last Saturday for about 45 min without seeing as much as a ripple. I cut my lost time and left for another pond I knew had bass in it. Good luck!

Something I like about the buzzbait is that most curve and you can aim it at a tree, stick, rock, pier piling, etc. to entice a strike.

My buddy has a pond loaded with large bluegill and stunted bass. I'll take a light spinning combo and use an 1/8 oz Beetle Spin to slay both species with the occasional 1 lb plus bass. I'll tie a crappie jig in a loop about a foot ahead of the Beetle Spin. You can occasionally catch two.

I see what you mean now.

Right now, T-rigged black.blue flake Berkley Powerbait Chigger Craw.

I saw some very big custom short arm spinnerbaits at outdoors shows a few years back but they never caught on with the masses. I assumed they didn't offer much of an advantage over the normal SB's. I'd forgotten them till now.

One other thing I just thought of. Walking baits are better in clear or calm water as they can be seen from further away. I think that's why the Chug'n Spook Jr works for me. It's never CLEAR water around here. Maybe I should use the Pop'N Booyah Pad Crasher for more bites. Whereas poppers make more commotion, so they're more easily located in dirty or slightly choppy water. If it's a real chop, go to a spinnerbait.

I've seen kayak guides zip tie a short section of pool noodle or buoyant material to the rod above the fore grip so it floats. A good idea for any kayak fisherman, although I haven't done it.

I've used a guide twice. What I disliked most was that one of them, a striper/hybrid guide, wanted to set the hook and hand me a rod to reel in. I started grabbing the rod and doing it myself. I know he's used to novices, but I didn't pay $300 to let him do my fishing. The second guide was in saltwater. I hired him for trout and flounder inshore fishing. After catching one ribbon fish in two hours, he tells us the season is really not good for that and asks if we want to go to a near shore reef for sharks. That's better than nothing, but not what we signed on for. Worse, he wanted more money to go to the reef-fuel. I paid the extra because I had three bored guys along for the ride. We did manage some sharks on the reef, but to me that's like catfishing. All-in-all it was unsatisfying. I guess what I'm saying is ask them what THEY want to do and be honest with them about their best bet. It sucks to be out $300 and be disappointed at the end of a day.

BTW, if you really want to be alone, check out Fishing Creek Reservoir and Stumpy Pond on the map. They're smaller bodies of water on the same river chain with almost NO fishing pressure. And they're a little closer than Wateree. It's not uncommon to be the only person on Stumpy Pond. I kayak there sometimes and have never gotten skunked there. But the name is appropriate. Get a map and keep to the middle (old river bed) while running your motor. In prespawn, you can trim your target area to probably 1/3 of the lake. But it's small enough to fish the whole thing. FC, Stumpy and Wateree require an SC license. I'm not sure how it works on Wylie. since it's a border lake between SC and NC.

NM

My inlaws live up past Clemson. They don't have room for us at their house. Whenever we stay up there we stay at the Hampton Inn right in Clemson. I've noticed a few bass boats in the lot. It's nicer, but you won't get robbed there, LOL. And the breakfast is good, hot and included as early as you'll get up to fish. You can literally walk from the hotel to the lake. If scenic is your thing, look up the Clemson outdoor lab. They have cabins and a private ramp. We stayed there for a wedding once. I was really wishing I was fishing. There are plenty of Roach Motels around if you're looking to go cheap.

Wateree is maybe an hour south. Prespawn would be a better bet for good action. Postspawn can be slow. Then after a couple weeks the fish will turn on again, still hanging around shallow cover in coves and creeks. Of course the morning bite is best that time of year. Topwaters are fun. Spooks, Pop R's and buzzbaits early. Maybe all day if overcast or raining. I know people who fish Wylie a lot. They love spinnerbaits, cranks and Culprit 6 or 8"worms in the red shad purple. Dropshot is good there too. It can be kinda clear for this region.

Probably twists line when reeled too fast? That's the only reason I never use in-line spinnerbaits. They flat work. You can see from the packaging on my SB that some come with willow blades. I really like gold, hammered blades. If this one works well, I might buy the other blade styles for it. This is not an item you see for sale at the local places away from the coast.

Hope I didn't give too much info.

Mid-to-late April should probably be full-swing spawning period. That time the air temp is usually approaching or in the 80's. And there's no sin in catching bass off the bed down here. Plenty of bass to reproduce. March can be great, but it can also be like Feb, with cold fronts and cold rains ruining your plans. It can be really hit and miss for spawn. If it stays cold too long, bass will move up and spawn out fast before the last full moon before May. I just looked in my journal from 2015. I made a note on 5/8/15 that all spawning activity was over. So I'm going to say most of it is done in Apr. Might I suggest you go just a little further south and try L. Wateree? It's a lot less crowded, the water is a little more off-color as well. There are plenty of coves with no houses where you can be the only person fishing there. I grew up on it. I'll even send you some spots if you like since I don't fish it much anymore. Honesty March thru late June is great on that lake. Post-spawn (May to early June), big females will be hanging around still shallow and will hit a frog in the water lilies that are taking over the lake. Or you can beat the bank and visible cover for shallow bass. Winter drawdown usually discourages them bit the lake has been flooded this winter.

I got this in a bunch of tackle that was a Christmas gift. Anyone ever use it or one like it for bass? There are gold shiners one of the places I fish a lot. But it kinda looks small for bass. I'm gonna give it a shot when it warms a little. It's probably a little faster than I want from a SB at this water temp.

Right. The BEST way to get better is to practice. My secret: I try harder than most, but not all, are willing to. I've learned the most on days when it wasn't working and I had to adjust or experiment to get a bite. And often it was at the very end of a 4-and-a-half hour trip that it became successful because I finally threw the kitchen sink at them.