king fisher

Four bass caught on a Zoom Magnum Trick Worm Junebug. T Rigged 1/4 oz lead bullet sinker.

Watch what you say on the internet. Next thing you know the H20 squarebills will no longer go on sale for $3.99.

This is what I always thought a rock bass was. Tackle eating nightmares.

I don't fish swim jigs. For me a swim jig is nothing more than a broken spinnerbait. I do have success with a paddle tail swimbait on a jig head, but not the typical skirted swim jig.

I have been fortunate to have lived and fished in Alaska and Mexico. My dream trip would be to fish the lakes and streams I fished where I grew up South of Spokane WA. Big bonus would be fishing them with a couple of friends I grew up with. We keep talking about making it happen, but life always gets in the way.

I have measurement marks on my kayak. When I catch a big bass, I quickly measure the length. If a bass is over 24 inches I will put it on the scale. If it weights over 7 pounds I consider it a big bass. 25 inches and over the camera is coming out, and the bass usually will weigh over 10 pounds. 26 inches and over the fish gets weighed on two scales, and lots of pictures.

With soft plastics I start with Junebug, if that doesn't work I switch to green pumpkin. I have other colors, but if one of those two don't get bit I try some other lure. If I'm getting bit on one of of these colors, I may try some other color to see if I get more or bigger bites.

Can anyone explain to me the difference between the Mangetsu, and the new Tatula 150, other than different color, cork handles and $100? Also, are there any practical differences between the new Tat 150 and the older model Tatula 150? All I can see is the new 150 doesn't have the spider on the real, and costs $40 more. I might be willing to fork over the extra $40 to not have the spider, but it would be nice to know if there is any other benefits. The Mangetsu costs the same as a Zillion TW HD from Digitika, is there any reason to get the Mangetsu over the Zillion from Japan?

When I bought my Hobie Outback, I wanted to find out how it would handle wind and waves. I took it out on the ocean where I live when the afternoon winds were blowing around 20 kts. The Kite surfers were out, and the surf was big. I peddled out from the marina and once a couple hundred yards from shore experimented to see how see worthy it was. Turned sideways to the waves and with zero effort on my part it did not flip. I raised the seat and was still riding every wave with no input from me, and zero danger. I peddled in all directions, and even tried standing up. I wasn't able to keep my balance standing up, but the kayak did not capsize. I am confident that by actively working the waves, the kayak and I could handle much rougher conditions. After peddling around for awhile I decided to flip the kayak over and see how easy it would be to get it back upright and climb in. It took some effort, but once it reached a certain position, it quickly flipped over. It is not a gradual breaking point, once the line is crossed it quickly and without warning flips. It takes a lot to reach it, but once reached, there is not point of return, it is going over. Righting it and getting back in was easy, which gave me confidence I could handle most any situation. Then I tried surfing it in to the beach, and the first try worked perfectly. I launched from the beach with some difficulty, but was able to get past the surf. The next try coming in to the beach I got beat up, and realized it was way more difficult to deal with than a stand up paddle board in the surf. A few more tries going in and out of the surf, and I quickly realized I would not be launching in even mild surf with expensive gear in the kayak. The test gave me lots of confidence and a good idea of what the kayak was capable of. A few weeks later I had it out bass fishing on Lake Chapala. The wind was only blowing 10 kts. but the lake is large and the waves were large for a lake. I had zero fear because I had had it out on the ocean in much stronger winds, and larger waves. I was fishing a couple hundred yards from shore, in about 6 feet of water. The wind was at my side providing me with a good drift. There are many barbed wire fences running from shore out in to the lake, and they can be great places to catch bass. I snagged my crankbait on one of the fence posts and peddled over to see if I could get my lure back. I wasn't paying attention and while leaning over to grab my line, a wave placed me on top of a fence posts that was just under the surface of the muddy water. In an instant the kayak flipped. I managed to grab all of my rods, and any tackle boxes that floated, but lost a box of jigs, spinnerbaits, and all of my terminal tackle. After that experience I put leashes on all of my gear, and even though I am confident that my Outback and I can handle almost anything the lake or sea can send my way, there is always a chance of going swimming when I least expect it. I do believe if you fish in a kayak long enough the question is not if you will capsize but when. Be careful, there is always a Titanic iceberg out there somewhere.

The fishing is good right now. It is as safe as anywhere. Drug gangs don't care about bass fisherman. They hang out at strip clubs in big cities. Do the local gangs in any large city in the US shoot each other at the launch ramp on your home lake? A bass fisherman has zero value to a drug cartel. Even A-J's tackle box is of no interest to a gang member. The local people working at the fishing lodge have families with kids, that go about their daily lives in peace. If you drive through a small town in Mexico, you will see people going about their daily lives no different than anywhere else. Little old lady's and children walking to the local market after dark, without a care in the world. People buying tacos from venders on the streets, and no sounds of gun fire. It takes me 4 hours to drive to my favorite lake. I go through a half dozen towns, and miles of country side. I leave at 3:00 AM and have never had any trouble. I camp at the lake, on the weekends Ranchers and local people from the town gather at the lake to barbecue and swim. The children swim and play with very little supervision, while the adults eat and drink. They always ask me to have food and drinks with them, and even though I speak very little Spanish they treat me like an honored guest. I'm sure they all can tell stories of Cartel violence, many probably either have some connection to the cartels, do some business with them, or have family members involved with them, but they do not look like they are worried in the least. I'm sure some of the farmers, and ranchers are raising more than sugarcane and cattle, but they do not bother me. Some times I have to drive 15 min. away to get cell service and contact my wife. I leave my kayak and all of my gear pulled up on the shore, and when I get back every thing is as I left it. Some times young people from the local town pull in to where I camp in the middle of the night drinking and playing their music at full volume, but is just kids out on a Saturday night. One of the only places they have to gather and flirt, is the local lake, and besides leaving garbage they do no harm. If you look for trouble it is easy to find, and if some one tells you to avoid and area, or leave a certain person alone, you would be wise to take their advice. I'm sure I walk by a cartel member every day In Puerto Vallarta, an do not realize who they are. I mind my own business I am friendly and respectful to every one and have nothing but admiration for the people I have met. If for some unknown reason it would be dangerous for a client to go to a lodge, the lodge would advise you not to come. The last thing they want is to have a client have any kind of trouble while fishing there. If you are worried about accidently getting in the middle of a turf war battle, I repeat, the gangs don't shoot each other at bass fishing lakes. Their battles are fought at locations far from the exceptional bass fishing. If you want to catch a giant bass in Mexico, have the time and money to go to a lodge, than do it now. Fishing for DD bass is very good at both Baccarac, and El Salto. Just don't ask me the name of the lake I fish.

#3 inline spinner, Rapala original floating minnow, 1/4 oz black hair jig. Is all I need for fishing small streams. some small streams, the #3 inline is all I bring.

The bass on my lake eat everything except my lure.

Where I fish it's go big or go home.

I was going to fish for three days, but I had to cut it short, do to a minor emergency at home. I had been up since 2:30 AM fishing hard all day in 20 to 20 MPH winds. I was to tired to make the 4 hour drive home, so I camped for the night and left for home in the morning. I had to pick up my marker buoys I had left out, so of course I couldn't help but make a few casts and caught a long skinny 6.6 pound bass before heading for home. Yesterday was very good fishing, and I am disappointed I couldn't stay for another two days, but there will be another time. Yesterday I landed 24 bass. Best 5 were 9.9 pounds 25 inches, 9 pounds 25 inches, 8.6 pounds 24 inches, 8.4 pounds 25 inches, and 3.5 pounds, fore a total 39.4 pounds. I was really hoping the 9.9 pound bass would be over 10 pounds it looked over, but both scales read 9.9 pounds. All the bass were thin, and light for their length. All were released in good condition. I landed bass on a wide variety of lures, but the biggest ones were on T Rigged Junebug Zoom Ole Monster, Zoom Magnum trick worm, and one was on a T Rigged Magnum Rage Bug. Fishing the T Rigs in the strong wind was less than easy, but I had to give the bass what they wanted. The two over 9 pounds were caught in the morning before the wind started blowing hard. 6.5 pound bass landed today. 9.9 pounds 25 inch. 9 pound 25 inch 8.6 pounds 24 inches. 8.4 pound 24 3/4 inch

I fish from dawn to dusk. I don't get a chance to go bass fishing very often, so when I do I try and keep my line in the water as long as possible. Tomorrow I will leave my house at 3:00 AM. Arrive at the lake by 6:00 and be on the water by 6:30. I will fish until 8:00PM eat something, set up my tent, and be sleeping by 10:00. I get up before day light, take the tent down eat something and make my first cast by 6:00 AM. The last day will be a repeat of the first two, but I will leave for home around 4:00 PM. The return trip takes 4 hours, and by the time I am home I am exhausted. I anchor at mid day to eat lunch, and that is the only time I ever fish a soft plastic slow. I cast out take a few bites, move the bait and take another bite or two. I am surprised at how many bass I catch while trying to eat my lunch. I only get a chance for a three day trip two or three times a year. Most of the time I can only get away for 1 or 1.5 days. This is the prime season, and I'm even I'm thinking about making a few casts at night. If I can't be on the water for 12 hours, I usually wont go. The drive is to long to fish for anything less than all day. Even though I am fishing for 12 hours, when the bite is slow, I always think I could catch them if I just had more time.

I stored some used Water Melon Candy Mag Trick Worms in the same Ziplock bag as some Junebug Mag Trick Worms. Yesterday I took all of the worms out of the bag, and repaired them with Mend - It. The Watermelon candy worms turned in to what I have always imagined the perfect color of purple would be. I haven't tried them yet, so I can't say the bass like the color, but they will get their chance next time I go fishing. Besides, If I like the color, the bass don't have a choice. Has anyone else ever accidentally discovered a color they like? They look far better than I can get a picture to show. New color on the left, Zoom Junebug on the right.

I give up. This thread has had the Monkey jumping up and down screaming for over a week now. I have limited my worm selection to Zoom Magnum Trick worms, Zoom Ole Monsters, and Senkos for a long time. If a person searched, they could probably quote me in a post, where I claimed if a bass didn't hit one of these worms they didn't want worms. I am tired of fighting a loosing battle. I am going to have to give the Zoom UV Speed worm a try. When it comes to the Monkey, I have to pick my battles. Buying couple packs of speed worms is better than buying some expensive swimbaits he is always crying about.

I use all types of line for different reasons in different situations. Mono is my default all purpose line, there has to be a specific reason for me to use another type of line. The Bait Monkey hates mono. He thinks I'm being cheap when I buy it. No matter how many times I tell him the price isn't the issue, he doesn't believe me, and just sits there and pouts.

The Monkey can derail more trains, than Jessie James, and Butch Cassidy combined. I know, I have been on more than one. He starts off slow and safe, then runs it right off a bridge. When I was young the Monkey would have a beer with me while I glanced through the Bass Pro catalogue, Now he pounds shots of tequila, while burning the midnight oil surfing the internet for custom lure makers. He always starts with sound logical advice, then ends up with complete chaos. Be careful, he is a train wrecker that never gives up.

Maybe, but I would bet his goal is custom glide baits.

Watch out, it's a set up, don't be fooled, if you are not careful, you will walk right in to the Monkey's oldest traps.

I use an electric drill. I put enough duct tape around a drill bit to make a plastic soda bottle fit tight over the tape. Then simply attach the line to the bottle and remove the line as fast as the drill will spin. When I'm taking a few hundred yards off of a big game reel, I drill a hole in the other end of the bottle, and put a pencil in the other end, so I can hold the drill in one hand and the pencil in the other, making the bottle more stable, and allowing me to spread the line evenly on the bottle. For smaller reels this is not necessary. Being as I'm an incurable hoarder, I save the bottles with the line wrapped on them for later use. Later will never come, but I will be ready if it does.

I needed some hooks, made an order with Tackle Warehouse and ended up with way more than enough for free shipping. Clicked on Sieberts Website and the Monkey got me again. The sad part is I didn't even need hooks. I hope the spinnerbait catches bass as easy as it caught me. The color got me.

You also have a valid point and I would not turn down on opportunity to fish there. ( especially for salt water fish) I'm sure the local people living on the Mississippi Gulf appreciate the bass fishery they have and take advantage of the opportunity to catch those bass every time they can. I grew up in an area where a 5 pound bass was a fish of a lifetime, and enjoyed bass fishing as much or more than any one who lives on the shores of Lake Fork. However no matter how much I liked my local bass fishing, I would never recommended having an Elite tournament there. The fishing was excellent by my standards, but compared to other fisheries around the nation, or even in my home state, not so good. I expect the best fisherman in the world to compete at the best fisheries world or realistically the best in the US. I realize that Mexico lakes would have giant bags of bass, but is not an option for an elite event. There are many people with expensive snow mobiles, that ice fish for bass in Minnesota, but I wouldn't expect BASS to hold an elite event there in February. Having local tournaments on less world class lakes is what bass fishing is all about. They held a local tournament at my local lake when I was a kid and I thought it was the greatest thing that ever happened in my area. I also thought it was fantastic when our small town basketball team won the state tournament, but I didn't expect anyone to charge $100 for a ticket, or for the game to be televised. The pros play on a pro level, at professional venues. I simply believe that the Elites can go anywhere for an event, so why not go to the best fisheries, at the best times or at the very least, above average fisheries, at close to peak times. This tournament is neither of those.

You have very valid points, and obviously BASS as well as the majority of fans agree with you. But as far as I'm concerned it is ridicules. There has to be a place with great fans, enthusiastic local businesses, and decent size bass. I realize there are many considerations when deciding on a tournament venue, but I feel that quality bass has to be given more priority than the other factors that went in to the decision to hold this event on this river at this time of year. I am have never fished a tournament, have zero knowledge of how to organize one, and am basically not qualified in any way to make any decisions on how a tournament is ran, but as a life time fan, I don't like to see the best bass fisherman in the world compete on a body of water that obviously is not even close to an elite bass fishery. Every year the biggest money bill fishing tournament in the world is the Bisbee's Black and Blue in Cabo San Lucas. Some years have been a total bust, with very few marlin caught, and one year only one marlin was weighted in, but those years are not the norm. The tournament is held at this location on the same weekend every year because it is has the possibility of being the best marlin fishing in the world at the time the tournament is held. I understand any fishery can have a bad year or two, but this is a normal year at the Sabine. It is an Elite event, I believe they should have the tournament on an elite fishery period.