blckshirt98

Two off the top of my head would be: - Mark Zona - because it's Mark Zona. - WRB - because he seems to be an encyclopedia of bass knowledge and I would learn the most.

I get that feeling when I see the local water districts mess around with reservoir management. The most productive lake for me in the spring/early summer this year was drained "for drinking water" by a good 20 feet and all the productive cover is now 30 yards from the waterline. The place is now just mud and rocks, and I had horrible outings last couple of times I went. I know the water districts don't manage the reservoirs around the needs of recreational users, but it's just kills my enthusiasm to go back out.

First time I fished a frog was on some moss beds at a tiny local pond that was full of frogs. First cast as I was bringing back a huge toad decided to follow my frog as I hopped it along the surface. Didn't let him catch it and eat it because I didn't want to hold/unhook it but it was definitely stalking the bait.

I'd dropshot a Strike King Magnum Dream Shot!

I'm a shore guy and use a dropshot probably 75% of the time. You can use it anywhere, all you're doing is imitating a baitfish or other food-looking-creature aimlessly wandering a few inches off the bottom. Depth only matters in that you're casting it at the depth where the fish are at. For a retrieve I recommend first dropping the plastic in front of you and looking at how the plastic responds to light rod twitches. You should only need to barely tap the rod to make the bait move (I nose hook really thin baits that also move well with just current). Sudden or heavy jerks make it look unnatural and I think can spook the fish. I leave a plastic out after a cast for a good 3-4 minutes, twitching or tapping the rod lightly, then pausing, tap, pause, tap tap, pause, etc. You're going to be doing more holding the rod still in your hand than actual rod movement so I can see how people can't stand it, but it works!

FYI this is the whistle I got. It's small, cheap(the orange color option), light, floats, has no whistle pea, and is *LOUD* - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00O29UM5I/ref=s9_acsd_hps_bw_c_x_3

I believe Cousins Rods makes all their blanks in the USA unless something has changed.

I'm a bank guy so don't carry much - I keep a small first aid kit in my fishing license pouch but it's pretty bare bones. I carry one of those small disposable antibiotic ointment pouches (totally stolen from the company first aid kit), some insect bite cream, and a few bandages. I figure that should cover any scrapes or cuts. I recently added a high-decibel whistle in case of any major injury where a first aid kit won't do and I can't walk out. The lakes I fish have no cell reception and no boating/no boating most of the year, and a broken ankle or torn up knee would be bad news getting back to the car.

I've never heard of the term "slop bay"! What is it, is it like a slough?

If you have PowerPro and like it, I'd just stick with Power Pro. 80% of my reels that use braid have PowerPro, the others have 832, with a couple of oddball lines mixed in as I was trying different brands. 4 strands vs 8 strands - I'm not dialed in enough to my casts to know if one or the other is getting me a few extra feet/yards on a cast and I haven't done a side by side comparison test. The 8 strands of the 832 does feel a bit smoother when it's freshly spooled as well so I'm assuming there might be a little benefit there with guide friction.

If I had an unlimited budget I'd go with Sufix 832 for braid, FC Sniper for fluoro, and Trilene XT for mono. There might be better but those are on the list of what I've tried so far and haven't found a reason to try anything new.

Being a shore guy I come across a few things that the boaters lose on shoreline roughage. Off the top of my head I've found a couple of lipless cranks and a KVD 2.5 squarebill, and a LuckyCraft FlashPointer that had their bodies in perfect condition and just needed the hooks replaced. There was a large Zara Spook which was amazingly not rusted at all which is a good thing considering the Zara Spook hooks are mounted on those hardmount points on the bottom. There was a Yamamoto Shibuki popper that looked just out of the package and had to have been lost the previous day. I found a Jackall Aragon buried 3/4 deep in mud but when I pulled it out and cleaned it off it was in mint shape, even the hooks were sharp and not rusted. Best thing I've found though was a Leatherman Wave multitool...

I usually use a 5" GYCB senko because it lets me dual purpose that bait and have two presentation possibilities with one bag of plastics.

Go to braid 100% on your SPINNING reels, with a FC leader optional depending on the application. Reaction/power no leader needed, finesse (at least I) always use a leader. For a knot use what works for you but don't be afraid to use a power swivel if you get breakage issues. I used to use a double-uni to attach my braid to fluoro but had breakage issues at the knot more times than I want to deal with, so went to a swivel and have had no issues since (the hook will bend or break before the knot fails). Don't switch to all braid on your baitcasters.

832 for me. I tried the Power Pro SS8 and *hate* it - very prone to wind knots for me and once you get a wind knot on that line you pretty much have to cut it off.

Glass for squarebills for sure! Let us know how you like it!

Overfilling and spooling the line incorrectly with fluoro and mono would definitely cause the issues you described, but the fact that it happened with Nanofil is surprising (granted I don't like Nanofil myself). For the mono, if you just open the bail indoors with no lure to keep the line taught on the spool, does it shoot out like a slinky?

"About 90% of the fishing things I've ever bought."

They're just polyester so I wouldn't call them warm, but they do take some of the wind chill away and when you pull them up over your ears they prevent your ears from getting numb. Polyester is the perfect material for these things - they do enough to keep the chill out, but when it gets hot will wick moisture away and dry quickly so they will actually make you feel cool. I have polyester shirts for the gym and fishing and they do a great job of wicking away sweat and not making you feel "hot" even if it's 90+ degrees outside. Some buffs can be uncomfortable because of size/fitting, they're just an elastic tube so if you have a large head or large neck they can feel tight and constricting. Check out the Original Buff XL size buffs for a looser fitting buff.

Three things that I think set the top guys apart: 1) Locating the fish - in these lakes with thousands of fishable acres the pro boats always clump in the same areas. Not just on their home lake but any lake in the country at any time of the year. They know where to find the fish. Okay maybe tidal waters get an asterisk here. 2) Techniques - they can fish any technique to cover any depth and any speed. They might excel in some but are proficient at all. 3) Efficiency - They can make more casts per hour, and, they can switch presentations faster when they know something isn't working. They don't throw a senko for a half-hour or "a few more casts" before changing it up. Basically they are able to make more casts of effective baits.

I own three and never ever fish without them. Don't mess with UV rays! They also keep the bugs and mosquitos away. Original Buff did recently introduce an XL size buff if the original ones feel too constricting.

Gimmicky and once you toss it in the water you can't move it or get it back. Just dip some alka seltzer in smelly jelly and throw it overboard if you wanna see if it works.

I got a pair of prescription Ray Ban sunglasses...vision plan benefits will apply because they're prescription. You can always also look into normal glasses with clip on, or if transition lenses are still a thing there's that option.

Custom painted crankbaits! Some that I've bought from through FB with really nice paint jobs are Richard Prager and Bubonic. Brandon's Handmade makes hand carved wooden lures, and he also sells stuff for AR Lures. Would recommend all of them.

You're just worrying because people are relying on you to have a good time! Fishing licenses? Insect repellent? Sunscreen? Bear/moose spray? NO PRESSURE