fishblitzer

Couldn't help but post this picture.

I think that the transfer of fish is illegal in just about every state. Even such things as taking bait fish across state lines is illegal, at least where I live. The moving of fish from one body of water to another does a lot more damage than you may think. Snakeheads being a prime example of the damage that can be a result of the transfer. The spread of golden shiners being another. The laws are there to prevent such things from happening. They're not made because Farmer Joe transferred a couple bass from his pond to Farmer bob's pond, although that does fall under the law. If you take into account the bigger picture, the law makes complete sense.

“Come, follow me, and I will send you out to fish for people.” - Matthew 4:19

Luckily it was winter time so it was very lethargic. Once I realized what it was it took about 30 seconds of serious rod shaking to get it unsnagged. Bad thing was, I was in a tournament AND it was the only type of crankbait I knew worked that I had with me. I was not fixing to cut my line, if it didn't come off with shaking I was gonna have to resort to paddle slapping it. Thankfully for me and the snake it didn't come to that.

I wouldn't say I found it as I quite literally stumbled upon it. Was out on the river one day and we were swimming with some friends. I went to sit on a log that was coming off the bank and into the water. Got a big ol' treble stook in my foot. It was a 6xd in about 2 feet of water. Someone took the phrase "grind the bottom" to a whole new level.

I was cranking some brush once and snagged a 5 foot long water mocassin. That was not fun. Thought I foul hooked a bass and it was a snake.

Was fishing a big tournament once and had 4 fish in the livewell. Weigh in was about an hour away and I had to grind it out all day for the 4 fish I had. Pulled up to some nice structure in 8-10 feet of water. A fellow club member saw us fishing this area during practice and he saw us stop there for our first stop after launch. He comes flying into this area and only throttles down once he is within 30 yards of us. He jumps up to the trolling motor, puts it down, and starts cranking the same structure. I didn't say anything, I was focused on making a limit. On the second cast he catches a 2 pounder and immediately leaves to go weigh in. It was his only fish that day. I stay and don't catch anything, weigh in 4 fish, and miss the cut by 8 ounces. I will never forget that. He weighed in that 1 fish, which didn't do anything for him. And I missed out on making the cut.

Yes it's a private lake and thank you for the link, I'll look into it!

It makes fishing difficult in general for me, although it has forced me to learn new techniques and made me a better angler. I'm a jig and crankbait kind of guy and neither work in that stuff. A swim jig does okay on the edges but can't use football heads which are my favorite. What kind of water clarity do you have in the water you fish like this? This lake is really clear for Alabama, water clarity on a perfect day is between 3-4 foot. I would assume the clarity is also a result of the grass.

It's a 12 acre lake, from the bank to about 10-12 feet out it is topped out. The pockets around the lake are choked off from it. And it seems to be in the bottom of the lake also, when fishing bottom hoppers I normally pull some up with it. We have many carp, some are larger than I have seen in person. I would say in the 4 foot range. When you spook them and they are near the surface they create a wake like a boat would. I had one eat a senko a couple months ago. I was looking for beds and thought I was on a 10+ pound bass and I flipped a senko in it's face and it ate it. All it did was strip drag, I was only able to catch up and set the hook after about 10 seconds of drag being stripped. My 12 pound line broke right after the hook set. I know it was a carp because I went back a few hours later to find a huge carp in the same place, only this time the sun was shining so that I could see the distinct large scales they have. It's at 12 acre lake, and from the bank to about 10-12 feet out it is topped out. The pockets around the lake are choked off from it and it seems to be in the bottom of the lake also in the deeper sections.

Does anyone know what type of grass this is? It comes back every year and it grows until it tops out and then has a thick layer of moss on the surface. It seems to be growing even in the deepest areas, and is topped out from the bank to about 8 feet deep at the moment. It isn't green grass but more yellow. Last year we attempted to kill the grass but it had little effect and was back within a month.

Someone should invent a plastic that only degrades inside a fish's stomach. Instant millionaire if you figure out how to do so.

I would be on the water at sunrise for a topwater bite and I would bring your lunch and plenty of fluids and fish until 4. The more time fishing, the more chances of winning. A good morning bite could do wonders for your overall weight come weigh-in.

Here is a picture of how thick the trees are above the water. This is in the middle of the lake. Sorry again for it being sideways, but here is a picture of the grass/moss on top. If you look a couple feet from where it tops out you can see it under the surface as well. Caught a nice 6.5 yesterday on a scrounger head rigged with a fluke. I tossed it up against the grass and this big boy waked out from under the grass and hammered it as I started to reel. Lost one bigger than this at the boat though.

Sorry that the picture is sideways, I am not sure why it is that way. I also am not sure why I cannot post more pictures. It is telling me I have reached the max size of files.

No we did not dam up the creeks, we more or less created a small road with the dozer that was deeper than the other sections. Some of the side walls fell in once water started to fill the lake but for the most part the creek channels remained. I am hoping to go out later this afternoon and will take more pictures for those interested.

I saw the largest bass I've seen in the lake spawning in that pocket this year. I didn't fish for her though as I want her to pass her genes on. I've fished it in the winter but right now the only thing I could do is punch the grass because it is so thick. Right around the time the spawn gets over the grass starts to really take it over. I'll have to post pictures of the lake and the grass next time I go out.

The bottom most circle and the top two circles. Actually my 2 largest came from the bottom most circle, in that same small pocket and within a week of each other, and both on a wacky rig. Do fish transition even in small, 12 acre lakes? I'm not doubting you I am just curious. I have actually never fished it in the morning or sunrise. Most of my outings start at 11 and last the afternoon. I'd be curious to see what the morning bite would be like now that you mentioned them moving up early. One more question someone may be able to answer. Is it possible to have a 10 pound or larger bass in 6 years if they were stocked as yearlings?

You actually had it pretty well from what I've done in the past. 3 of the 6 places you have circled are where I got my 5-7 pound fish.

Well we only rented the equipment needed and did the work ourselves. My step-father used to build and manage lakes so he was the mastermind behind it all. If I remember correctly it was between 5-7k and a lot of hours digging in the excavator, cutting trees and hauling them off, or making piles out of them in the creek channels with our tractor.

This is my private 12 acre lake that I built 6 years ago. It is stocked with Florida and Northern Largemouth as well as bluegill, fathead minnows, crayfish, and carp. It is fished by me on average once every two weeks and I am the only one who fishes it. In 2014 I caught a fat 5 1/2 pounder, this year I have caught 3 in the 6-7 pound range. I know there are bigger ones in the lake, however, because I have seen them during the spawn. The water is extremely clear for a lake in Alabama. I would say the water clarity is 6 to 7 feet. Matted grass is from the bank out to the 6 foot range, and there is grass on the bottom of the entire lake. The grass came from nowhere last summer, before then there was not any. The deepest part of the lake is between 17 and 20 feet deep and is two creek channels that run along standing timber in the middle of the lake. The standing timber is very thick and there is much more under the surface from trees that have fallen since we filled the lake. This makes fishing the timber difficult due to it being so deep and with so much limbs under the surface it is near impossible to fish effectively, without hanging up and losing a fish. I've mostly stuck to fishing the outside of the timber and the banks. My question is, given these pictures, how would you fish this lake and where do you think the big bass are? The grass line is marked with green and creek channels are marked with red.

The hooks are Trokar and they do not play around! It is easy to walk, and hookup ratio is up there with some of the best! I've fished mine hard for 4 weeks now and it still looks like It is new after hooking around 20-30 fish on it. It will go through anything, I would be shocked for someone to show me it getting hung up. Here is what I know on working the bait, this may be common knowledge. If you twitch it fast and hard, it will dart and dip across the surface. It will jump out of the water a few inches and then plunge back down into the water a couple inches. If you do a normal walk the dog retrieve it will do a nice wtd action! But, my favorite is to do a walk the dog retrieve but with short twitches. That livetarget bluegill will walk back and forth in almost the same spot, like it is sitting still but turning left and right! Hope you enjoy yours as much as I have enjoyed mine!

+1 Unless you have lots of grass, then it's gonna take time to dissect the grass and find some key features that may help you pinpoint where to fish specifically.

I was using a single EWG trokar hook, it pained to cut it off but it was a better chance of the bass surviving. I tried with pliers but the only way I could have gotten the hook was to tear the crusher pretty bad so I cut it. I'll have to remember about mashing the barb down in case it happens again, thanks a-jay!

I hooked a good sized bass in my personal lake today. Unfurtunarely it had got hooked through the crushers in the back of its mouth. I'm not sure if that is the proper name but I am talking about the 2 pads that are right above its gullet. I normally don't have a problem unhooking fish but this joker was stuck good. He wasn't bleeding and I couldn't get to the hook through the gills. I've always heard if you can't get a hook out to cut the line and the hook will rust out so that is what I ended up doing. For the future I thought I would ask, is there a way to unhook one that has gotten hooked in a crusher? Will the hook really rust out?