soflabasser

A tarpon in a highly pressured public body of water is much harder to catch than a largemouth bass in the same place. I know a couple places that are loaded with tarpon and most people bass fish there not knowing the tarpon that live there. Have had days I have caught over 100 bass but never caught more than 20 tarpon in 1 day. Tarpon are masters at shaking the hook off. Have you fished for tarpon? They will eat cutbait just like black bass do.

Smallmouth bass will eat anything that will fit in their mouth if they want to and they even hit lures almost as big as they are. Lots of muskie fishermen catch smallmouth bass on muskie lures. That must of been awesome to see. Black bass are not the high class fish some people think they are. Bass will eat anything they think is food. That is a good thing since it makes catching them a lot easier compared to other species of fish that are much more picky.

A bass will eat almost anything that can fit in its mouth. I have caught bass on bread, hotdogs, cutbait, and on a bare hook. Compared to this a bass eating a crayfish or any other animal is normal.

Tropical storm Sally is the earliest 18th storm named on record and there is a good chance it might become a hurricane before making landfall. It has been an extremely active year for hurricanes and hurricane season does not end until November 30th. The year 2005 had the most hurricanes if I remember and this year might have more hurricanes.

The list is very long but it is important to understand that many herbs have side effects just like prescription medications. Another thing to know is that it is common for herbal remedies to cause drug interactions with medications you are taking for other conditions. That is why you should always tell your Health Care Provider what herbs and other natural treatments you are taking. I have read about Calendula essential oil and other similar products, they seem to work for some people. I do not like DEET either but there are few chemicals that are as good or stronger at deterring mosquitos from biting you. There are places I fish in Florida where the mosquitos will still bite you even if you cover yourself with DEET.

I have a collection of Ugly Sticks that are over 20 years old each and these rods still fish like the day I got them. They are the best bang for your buck rod you can buy if you need a rod that takes lots of abuse and can last for decades. Other rods might be lighter but they are much easier to break so you have to be more careful with them compared to an Ugly Stik.

Black is a good lure color for nighttime fishing but it will also work during the day. How you work the lure is more important than what color it is.

Mankind has used various herbs to treat aliments for thousands of years. A lot of the medicines made today where made after studying the compounds in some of these herbs. For example digoxin was first isolated from the foxglove plant in 1930 and now this medicine is used to treat many types of heart conditions. With that said modern day medications and vaccines are superior to essential oils and herbal remedies.

I have Penn reels that are over 25 years old and I still use them for saltwater fishing. I have caught sharks, groupers, snappers, tuna, and other powerful fish. These reels where made in the USA and I hope more reel companies start making reels here again.

You can have the most expensive bass boat with the best electronics and it will not mean much if you do not learn how to read the water. Experience and knowledge is far more valuable than what boat or tackle you own.

I have lost count of the amount of days I have gone camping by myself, many of those trips where several days long. Have slept in my car, on the floor of a boat, and the bare ground looking at the stars. It was a nice experience but I much rather be comfortable in my long distance fishing trips and that means getting a hotel so I can sleep in a comfortable bed the night before a big fishing trip. To me it is odd how bass fishermen spend thousands of dollars on bass fishing equipment yet do not want to invest $80-120 for a hotel so they can get a good night's sleep. There are motels where you can sleep for $40-60 a night in some places and campgrounds often charge less than $40 a night. Another option is to look for free campgrounds in the area you are fishing in.

Try fishing with a buzzbait or a Rebel Pop-R.

I rather sleep in a hotel or in a campground than sleep in a truck. For me it is worth the investment to sleep somewhere comfortable when I am fishing far away from my house. Besides most wives and girlfriends would not like sleeping in the bed of the truck and rather sleep in a decent hotel.

I have caught several species of reptiles, amphibians, mammals, and birds as bycatch while fishing. Florida also has panthers, bears, crocodiles, coyotes, venomous snakes and fish, pythons, sharks, and poisonous plants. It is worth it when you live in a fisherman's paradise. Besides rod and reel fishing is easy compared to spearfishing in shark infested waters.

The best bass fishermen I have met are able to consistently catch bass since they learned how to read the water without the help of modern day fish finders. They can look at a place and tell you where the bass will most likely be while others have to use electronics and get fishing reports to find where the fish are.

There are things you can learn about bass fishing history that can make you a better fisherman. For example there are lures that have been used for decades and they still work great today and will continue catching fish in the future.

In Florida 4-7 pound bass are very common so they are not an impressive catch. A legit 8 pound or better bass is big enough for the FWC TrophyCatch program so that is what most Floridians would consider a truly big bass. I have lost count of the 8 pound or bigger bass I have caught and I still enjoy catching small bass, especially days I can catch a lot of them. I enjoy micro fishing and other forms of fishing besides bass fishing. It is nice to live in a place where I can choose to fish for dozens of species of fish whenever I want.

Welcome to the forum

Another good lure for beginners is the Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Worm.

I have an open mind when it comes to fishing so I will fish for almost anything. There are times I fish for smaller bass on purpose such as when I am fishing for redeye bass and other species of bass that are small. Another time is when my goal is to catch as many bass as possible in 1 day of fishing. Have had days that I caught over 100 bass all on lures and those days are some of my most memorable bass fishing trips I have had.

Shimano makes great reels but it is easier to get reel parts for a Penn so when it comes to longevity I would choose a Penn over a Shimano. I got Penn reels that are over 25 years old and still work great.

The big ones will often pull back and let you know what they got when you set the hook. Other times you will barely feel a bite if at all. When in doubt set the hook.

There are times that a reaction style lure will outfish live bait. For example I once fished a Central Florida lake with shiners and did not catch a single bass on the shiners but did catch them on lures. This is a lake that is hit hard by people using live bait so the bass have learned to be wary of live bait. I spent hours fishing with live bait without getting a single bite until I switched to a reaction style lure and quickly caught a limit in less than 30 minutes.

I use my reels for both freshwater and saltwater fishing so I prefer using Shimano and Penn reels. I learned long ago that it is better to invest in higher quality reels for the type of fishing I do. Higher quality reels tend to be more corrosion resistant and have better gears that can last longer. I do have moderately priced reels which I use for freshwater fishing since bass do not fight much and the freshwater is much more forgiving on the reel compared to saltwater.

Soft plastic stick baits are one of easiest lures for beginners.