bigbassin'

As others have said, it looks great but I’ve never gotten a bite with it.

You can close the thread on this one.

Probably ate quite a bit less than many members, but I feel game meat largely comes down to the individual animal. I’ve had venison that was better than any steak I’ve ever had, and I’ve also ate some where there was no doubt that the meat came from a game animal. I imagine the diets, stress level, shot placement, etc. result in a lot more flavor variables than cattle or chicken all raised on the same feed and harvested in the same manner.

My thought as well. You’ll never catch a smallmouth in Florida, a decent size largemouth that may not be photo worthy in Florida is a lot of folks PB’s up north. Add in saltwater available along the coast or trout in the mountains and you could be justifying a couple homes if money is no factor.

Looks like the fuel may have been the issue. Pretty much ran out the last tank and filled back up with new non-ethanol gas, so far so good this morning.

I’ll be sure to try these out next time I have a chance and will post the results. Current tank of gas came from a can about 9 months old, would that be old enough to do? Most of this tank has been used for duck scouting so it’s definitely ran to into some mud.

As the title states my 2 stroke 15 hp Johnson starts right up and runs great. Once I shut it off and try to get it going again, it really struggles. It may take up to 10 minutes before it will fire again. My initial thought was over heating, but it pees strong and the cowling doesn’t feel unreasonably warm. Next thing I considered was the engine was flooding, I don’t smell fuel though. Currently I’m thinking the engine isn’t getting enough fuel, but only if it’s warmed up. The first time I prime the fuel line the ball will firm up, however after it’s been used no amount of squeezing will cause the ball to build pressure. There’s also almost a sucking type sound coming from the engine when I squeeze the ball. Fuel line and injector are both about 2 months old. Any ideas what may be causing this? I’m not sure why I can build pressure in the fuel line when the engine is cold but not after it’s been warmed up.

I t-rig directly to the fluke, occasionally a 1/8 oz bullet head weight if you want it deeper. 4/0 EWG is my go-to, but jigheads work as well if you're trying to get it down in the water column. As far as how to fish it: 1. Giving it soft but quick twitches as soon as it hit hits the water. This will keep it on the top of the water and present a more subtle walk the dog. 2. Allowing it to sink to the desired depth and working it like a jerk bait, just with softer twitches. You can pause as long as you want between twitches, this is probably where most of my strikes occur. 3. Dead sticking the fluke for 10-20 seconds at a time, hop it, then repeat the process. 4. Target casting. Just get the fluke right on top of your desired target and allow it to sink all the way to the bottom. Give it a few twitches then work it back to you. 4. Carolina rigged with long pauses. 5. Dead sticking on a wacky rig. 6. Rigged backwards on an ewg it will fall away from you, if you're bad at skipping or the overhang is too close to the water to skip this'll let you get a foot or two under the cover. 7. Chatterbait trailer. 8. Never done it, but I've seen a lot of videos with folks fishing them on underspins in cold water, particularly for spots. We don't have that scenario down in Florida but it might be something to consider if you do. As far as location, flukes basically work everywhere, but I feel like they really excel in grass where other subsurface lures may not be able to get to, and when targeting schooling bass. They're also one of the easiest lures to skip, so I give them the nod pretty often for dock fishing/getting under branches. Flukes are also pretty good as a follow up lure if you miss a top water strike. Watermelon red is by far my favorite color for these, and for whatever reason flukes and trick worms are the only lures I ignore the conventional method of black/blue or junebug in dirty water, watermelon in clear water. As long as there's at least 6" of visibility I'll be throwing watermelon red, anything less and I probably wouldn't throw a fluke. Pearl and Arkansas Shiner are both solid colors as well I just don't feel the need to carry all three colors.

I’m not even sure of the names honestly. Just find a park next to a creek or one running by a parking lot and you should be in business.

I’ve just been looking on the map for creeks within 30 minutes of town and had some luck. Nothing huge, but I have been catching bass and panfish.

First time I saw an elk it was a cow. Sat there amazed for a few minutes looking at what was surely the world record whitetail doe by a hundred pounds at least. All of the sudden the whole wood line began to move and a whole herd of elk walked out into a field, realized I wasn’t looking at a doe anymore ?. Incredible animals.

Did some fishing in Minnesota earlier this year and was amazed at the number of crawfish we saw. We asked the locals if it’s popular to trap them to eat…based on the looks and responses we got from multiple people I’m going to guess that’s just a Southern thing.

Never fished the NC coast so no comments there, but most of what you know from bass fishing will carry over to most types of inshore fishing I’ve done. Looking for cover/structure that holds a good food source is the primary concern no matter what you are fishing for. Rock (or oyster bars if they have them), grass flats, creek channels, dropoffs in a flat, weed edges, lay downs, over hanging trees, etc. all carry over to both styles of fishing. As far as gear, bass rods and tackle will cover all trout/flounder and most redfish situations. MH bait caster with 16 lb mono for artificials and a M/MH spinning rod with 20 lb braid for bait are standard tackle for the salt I’m assuming you already own. Swimbaits, flukes, jerk baits, and top waters all work great coastal fishing. Gulp and bait under a popping cork are the only techniques I fish in the salt that I don’t use for bass. I don’t typically throw worms/jigs but my pb red came off a worm and a lot of guys consider a C-rig ribbon tail a staple for cold water trout. Typical setups for me is a MH bait caster with a paddle tail, MH bait caster with a spook, and either another MH bait caster with a Gulp or a M spinning with a popping cork and live shrimp.

When I was young I did, eventually grew out of it. Goodnight of sleep, a cup of coffee, and staying hydrated throughout the day goes a long way. Avoid eating garbage the morning of. Not really sure if I got seasick when I was younger or if my body was ticked I was eating chicken biscuits and drinking Dr. Pepper at 3:30 AM. The single biggest cure is being on the fish! I’ve never seen someone get sick if we were doubled up and the action was non-stop. It was always during a several hour lull folks would start feeling bad. This right here might be the best advice on the thread. Biggest mistake I see people make (and have been guilty of in the past) is going into the cabin to get out of the sun and rest. It about guarantees you will feel worse and are going to be throwing up within a few minutes.

Fishing creeks or small rivers, the mepps can’t be beat. But as mentioned above, they don’t seem to be nearly as effective in lakes/ponds. I’d target wood near grass or drop offs. On a conventional rod, a Mr. Crappie 2” paddle tail on a 1/8 oz head is the first thing I’m throwing. I like white with chartreuse, but honestly if you’re on them I doubt color matters at all. They are very aggressive. As mentioned by others, if you can fly fish bream may be the one fish where a fly will consistently outfish traditional artificials. A size 8 popper with a nymph dropper or a size 8 wollybugger would be my go to for store bought flies. The best thing I’ve ever thrown is just a size 8 clouser with the top tied using white marabou, lots of flash on the midsection, chartreuse bucktail belly. You’ll know pretty quick if there’s any panfish (or bass) in the area.

I was always taught fall rate matters more than action when pitching. The beaver may have less action, but that’s also going to give it a faster fall using the same weight. It’s a bit of a catch-22.

Swing by the dam the other day just to check it out. I’m assuming they were generating but I definitely won’t be wading there, some serious flow coming out. Did fish a small creek yesterday and got 7 little smallmouth.

Daytime fishing for bass, I’ve never noticed a difference with moon phase outside of the spawn. I have found bass on beds a month later than typical of a cool front occurs a day or two before a full moon. Obviously everyone is aware of the correlation between a full moon and bluegill bedding. Bass do belong to the same family which I believe may attribute to seeing them on beds late if the moon and weather line up. Nigh fishing I have found full moons to produce better numbers of smaller fish, most of my bigger night catches have come on a new moon. Saltwater fishing is a totally different ball game, particularly with bottom fishing in deep water. It’s just about been a waste of time to try for grouper the day after a new moon. Never paid attention to the moon inshore saltwater, but the tide plays such a big factor in location and fish activity I would think there has to be some connection.

I saw several reports saying Orange was cranking out good fish this past winter/spring. Sounded like most folks never put the punch rod down all day. Haven’t heard much about it in the recent summer months. Knew guys that did a lot of spec fishing on Lochloosa, no word on the bass fishing.

Someone watched Talladega Nights one too many times… Had a very sketchy black bear experience that moved bears to the top of my list. Sitting with time to think if the bear were to attack I’d have no real chance of fighting it off other than it deciding I wasn’t worth the effort isn’t a great feeling. Not sure if it’s legitimately different, but I feel a fear of ladders should be categorized differently than a fear of heights. I’ve climbed up rock outcroppings hanging over 2000+ dropoffs with no issue, but 4’ up an A-frame ladder and I’m nervous if I don’t have 3 points of contact. But I can climb up a lean-to ladder all day. Guess this thread just made me realize what my most irrational fear is. A-frame ladders.

Didn’t go from a kayak to a full size bass boat, but did go from a kayak to a Jon with a 15 hp on the back. Biggest takeaway by far is the ability to get to your spot. An hour of paddling is a 5 minute trip with a motor. Helpful both in getting started and moving throughout the day. Also eleminated wind concerns to an extent. In the kayak I’ve had a time or two where the wind picked up while I was on the main lake and debated going with the wind to a different ramp than where I parked and then calling in Uber because I truly wasn’t sure if I would make it back. Having a trolling motor allows me to actually stand and cover water while fishing vs in the yak I had to pick between staying seated to pedal while fishing or standup but lose the ability to move around. You can take more rods, tackle, bigger cooler, a buddy etc. in the boat that you just can’t put in a kayak. More space allows you to actually takes a few steps here and there which I feel is easier on the body. With that being said I’m in pretty decent shape and have spent 16 hour days in the kayak so for me this wouldn’t be a deciding factor but depending on age and physical ability it may play a role. Water depth is a non-factor to me. I can run the main motor down to a foot and trolling motor to 8”, about the same depth my pedals could get to. I don’t hear this often but I actually believe trailering the boat is easier than loading/unloading the kayak. I can put the rods and tackle in the boat at the house, be in and out at the ramp in about 5, and get fishing. The kayak typically took me about 20 minutes to setup/breakdown at the ramp. The flip side to trailering is you have two more tires that could give out, hubs to grease, trailer lights to monitor, brakes to keep an eye on depending on the trailer, and you may or may not be comfortable towing. I do it so often for work it’s a non-factor (plus my boat is pretty light with a small trailer) but if you’ve never trailered before it can be nerve wracking trying to merge in traffic or getting yourself “stuck” in a gas station parking lot. You also have to have a vehicle capable of towing whatever it is you’re trying to pull. The boat also requires gas ($$$), mines a 2-stroke so it needs oil ($$$), trolling motor batteries and a charger ($$$) registration for boat and trailer ($$$), a storage spot ($$$), and parts that will occasionally need to be replaced ($$$). I’m of the opinion you should have all required safety gear regardless of if you’re in a boat or kayak but it’s actually required by law in the boat so you’ll need to buy flares, an air horn, signaling device (technically a cell phone covers this in most states I believe but there may be exceptions), and depending on the state and size of the boat you may need a throwable life preserver if you don’t already own them ($$$). I’m not sure if this is the case in freshwater, but in the salt if you don’t run your motor at least once or twice a month, then flush it with freshwater, be ready to take it to the shop. You can hang a kayak up for a year then put it back on the water with no issues at all. Cleaning the boat takes quite a bit longer than cleaning the kayak, particularly if you use in salt. The other main advantage of a kayak is if you river fish. I’ve definitely done some shoal hoping in a kayak I would never attempt in a boat. This is really the only area where I feel a kayak can go somewhere a boat can’t, I’ve yet to find another situation where this is the case. To me, the boat is far and away more enjoyable. I feel it’s like comparing a bike to a car. The kayak (bike) is cheaper, maintenance free, and can go some places a boat (car) can’t. You’ll never be able to cover the distance or carry the same amount of gear in the kayak as you can with the boat. Edit: I grew up in boats so I’ve already got a decent knowledge of safety, maintenance, and know how to operate one possibly better than I can drive a car. Also already had a boater’s license. If that’s not your case, there’s a decent amount of homework you would need to do to be sure your legal and can limp back to the ramp if you have a small mechanical issue.

Good to know, haven’t found anything about wading below the dam doing some googling so I figured as much. Always hear the best fishing in TVA lakes is directly above and below the dam.

Looks like I’ll be staying in Chattanooga from about the 1st week of August through October/November for work. Looking forward to getting in some fishing up there. How’s the accessibility directly below Chickamuaga? Wading below the dam is the first thing that obviously pops out on the map, is it safe to do so or do they typically keep water flowing at a good rate? Probably scan the topos for any good structure coming near a park to do some casting on the main lake. Of course I’ll need to check out the creeks throughout town, I assume they’d predominantly hold largemouth. Any chance at a smallie, spot, or redeye in the creeks? Add in being a relatively short drive from the mountains and being in Tennessee for bow season, I’m looking forward to it. Any main City restaurants or locations anyone recommend I take a look at?

A good number of fish I get on a Big EZ are hooked in the bottom lip. I’ve always figured it’s just because the lure has more roll than most.

I always try to fish them during the summer time, with my thought process being that they are providing shade. I’ll need to keep that in mind this winter.