You_Only_Live_Once_Fishing

This weekend I will be fishing in a big bass/pickerel tournament. Largest fish wins. The lake is 66 acres. There are usually 20-30 people in the tournament. I attached a lake map. The water level is down 1 foot, and I am not sure how accurate the map is. Water clarity is also down to less than 2 feet. lots of weeds this year. I think they they treated the lake, because of the low water level, clarity, and sudden lack of weeds. There is just enough weeds that jigs and bottom baits won't work. Lots of the anglers fish live bait, but I usually stick to my lures. I am willing to use live bait however. I am a finesse guy, I am good with paddle tail swimbaits and neko rigs. That is mostly my plan. I will also have a swim jig and flip bait tied on. Tourney is 7am-11am. I will see if i can find an early morning tw bite the day before, with out hooks. Then ill move offshore with the paddle tail and go finesse as the sun comes up, i have limited time to find the fish. ANY HELP IS AWESOME TAHNKS! BCW lake map.pdf

Yeah and people from westfield are good at fishing, my cousin went to school there and he is good at fishing!

ugly stik gx2 7' m for 50$

7' medium fast/xf

Same, the Daiwa made cabelas reels are great.

get a duckett ghost at dicks for 100 or 80 if you have a coupon

depends on the model. Get a medium action rod with a lot of tip, to avoid ripping ou the hooks, use mono too.

if you keep them out of the dirt and sand you should be fine, consider sending it to DVT. I dry my reels after each use in the rain, by taking off the spool, and using QTips.

just wait. My theory is that you need a decent enough rod to present a bait and feel bites. That is the bare minimum. then you add weight, and look. 80-120$ My friend has a no *** and it is good. I also have had experiences with many rods at this price point. (message me if you have ?'s) then i add a 180 dollar reel or nicer. I would be willing to get less nice reels, but i spend lots of time looking for deals, so i can get the for 100$.

task is great but costs 40, i really like invisx...

I love my Cabela's Tournament ZX Casting rod 7' Medium Mod, it casts far and is good with trebles. optimal for walking baits.

You can also start without a leader and add one, use mono or copolymer, fluorocarbon is dense and will sink

Almost every time i tie a dropshot, the hook is pointing down. I tried reversing it and it didnt work. It faces the right way sometimes. I tie the knot by threading 18 in through the hook eye. Next i thread 15 in back, then i tie an overhand knot with the hook on the bottom. i cinch it down by pulling the tag end and the main line. i then move the knot so that it is centered on the hook eye. i am stumped...

My family is fortunate to have two homes, one of which is on a small lake. We (my family) has always been outdoorsy. My dad and I would always spend weekends fishing for perch. My grandfather would always want to to go fishing with me, and he still does today. My uncle is a commercial fisherman, and i always have things to learn from him. Last summer I went on a road trip to the Smokey mountains of Tennessee. My dad and i packed two Ugly Stiks. We stopped at a campground that had a small lake with many small bass. We were near a Bass Pro, when we went to the store, we picked the brain of a worker. He gave us a rig for using live bait. Without a net, I managed to catch bait with my bare hands (my former strong suit). That day I caught 3 small bass. The rest of the trip was spent fishing. Once I found the internet...GAME OVER. I would spend 4 hours a day (and still do) reading articles, watching tutorials, or memorizing the specs of every product made for fishing, literally. Bassreasource also helped a lot. I now fish 6 days a week along with doing 3 other sports competitively.

That is what happened to me, except i did not have the net. i had the bass in my hands. it was much longer and fatter than the 5.5 pound bass that my friend caught. you make a good point that eyes aren't as accurate s a scale. I know it was at least 7.5 pounds. fish that big have been caught in the lake though...

UPDATE: My friend and i went back out to the same dock today. We did not catch the big girl, but he caught a five and a half, and i caught a 3.5 an a 2.5. later on i caught there threes and a pike. overall it was a great day...

No saguaro invest 8 pound test, i know it was that big, because it broke the leader i got the day before in the middle, it had no frays. and I'm headed there now, thanks for the advice!

ok i get it now use 800 pound straight braid

got it... tbh idk why?

thanks i would have waited a month, now I'm going back tomorrow at 6 am

I saw her break me off at the dock. she broke a brand new leader in half that was rated for 8 pounds. no frays. most big bass are females and you're probably jealous.

i was fishing an isolated dock, i broke off on and 8.5 pound bass. the neko rig is still in her mouth id assume. when can i go fish for her. also the lake is very crowded and pressured.

i lost an 8.5 pounder today, while fishing a neko rig on 20 pound braid to an 8 pound leader. I gave the rod to my friend while i lipped her, before he could back reel, the leader broke in half. I had loosely grabbed the line. i did not lip the bass fast enough i think, or very swiftly. we also forgot the net.

So my friend and I went fishing today. We wanted to learn how to fish docks (we're both 15). This is why we chose his 127 acre lake. We fished out of a 12 foot V-hull, modded to a bass boat. We had so much stuff that we easily surpassed the 450 pound weight limit. I had just spent an hour or two researching docks and stuff. I stuck with the neko rig. We reached a good looking pair of docks. I jokingly jumped on to the dock, Alex Peric style, after getting bit. Was unable to get that fish. Next cast to the other dock, I hooked the the propeller of a docked boat. I thought i was going to break off. And then... it started MOVING! My friend and i were shocked. once I got the bass close to the shore (using an 8 pound Seaguar leader and 20 pound braid), we saw just how big it was. We were shocked to see a 24" bass at the end of my line. By this time my good friend came onto the dock too. I screamed NET. But, he had left it at the boat ramp. so i handed him the reel and told him to back reel while i landed it. Before he could flip the switch, the fish jumped and broke the leader in HALF. i reached under the dock and ALMOST got her. Lesson learned and we'll get her next time...

yeah i broke off on n 8.5 pounder today...:(