king fisher

All I know is I can get skunked on any lake any size.

I try an eat healthy while I fish. I don't like to waste any time, and don't have much space in my kayak. I have found that Pop tarts, candy bars, chips, and Diet Coke fit these requirements.

I store mine in my car, where they will melt that way I have an excuse to buy more.

I would suspect you would hook far fewer fish, but land more of the ones you hook. I have tried single J hooks on crankbaits in the past, but have had issues with some crankbaits running correctly with them. I swap to single hooks on all my inline spinners, spoons, and blade baits. I find I hook just as many bass, and loose far fewer bass that I hook. I use circle hooks for live bait, but have never tried them on lures. Good luck as others have said please keep posting your results.

I don't know the weight, didn't have a scale that day. I caught it on a spinnerbait I made. I only tied the skirt, and put the blades on, the body was bought from Lure Parts Online. Skirt was made from Lumaflex, and flashabu.

But why do they like ribbon tail purple worms one year, and will only hit straight tail worms the next. It must be because I stocked up on ribbon tails after last years succuss and didn't order any more straight tail worms wrongly thinking I had more than enough. If that is the case how did the bass find out what kind of worms I had more of? Never mind, they found out the same way they found out I had an endless supply of one crankbait, but only one left of another. Next time I go fishing I'm going to put trick worms in an Ole monster bag, or maybe even mix the two in the same bag. I will count them to know which one I have more of, of the big question is will the bass know. I will try anything to stay one step ahead of the bass. If this works, I'm gong to label a box Jack Hammers, and fill it full of cheap chatterbaits.

My two are not really superstitions because I do believe them to be universal facts. 1. The more expensive a lure is the quicker it will be lost. 2. Toilet paper will only be needed if it is not on the boat.

If bass fisherman were meant to only use one brand of soft plastics, there would only be one brand of soft plastics. Talk like that could spread to crankbaits. Then what type of crazy world would we live in?

I was finally able to fish my favorite lake for the first time this year. A local lodge does not fish there anymore, and I was the only one on the water both days this weekend. It was very nice to have the place to myself again. Saturday I got off to a fast start with a 5.5 pound bass landed in the first 15 minuets of the day. It was a short chunky bass, I wish I would have taken time to turn my kayak around and get a picture with the sun at a different angle. I finished the day with 25 bass, the largest that first 5.5 pounder. The afternoon west winds started at 11:00 Am and didn't stop until way late at night. 20 mile an hour winds in a kayak can be frustrating, but I stuck with it, and had a good day. Sunday started off with 15 MPH. winds out of the East. I had to change my plans of fishing off shore and drift down the bank. I landed a 7 pound bass along with some small bass on a chaterbait. The east winds started dying down at noon, I new I only had at most an hour before the west winds started howling. I went to the off shore spots I had luck at yesterday before the wind started, and landed one 9.4 a 5.8 a 5.5 pound, and a 3.5 pound bass along with many smaller bass offshore. I might have caught another big one or two, but nature called, and I had no choice but to answer. I lost valuable time with light winds, going to shore to take care of business. As expected the wind shifted to the west at 25 MPH. within an hour. I was tired and only drifted one shore line before calling it a day. My best five for Sunday added up to 31.2. pounds with a total of 18 bass. No double digits, but still a great way to start the year. I landed one large bass on a bladed jig, drifting the shoreline, and all the other big bass were taken on T rigged Zoom Magnum Trick worms in Junebug. Having to fish slow with a T rig, made fishing offshore difficult to impossible in the strong wind. My anchor wouldn't hold, and keeping the kayak facing my target was challenging. I tried every lure in the box but besides loosing a hog on a spinnerbait, worms were the deal. Last year at this lake the only worms I could get them to bite were ribbon tail worms. This past weekend no matter how hard I tried, I could only get them to bite the mag trick worms. Bass sure are unpredictable. I also got a large tilapia on a large square bill. Pictures are in order, 5.5 pound bass caught on Saturday, 7, and 9 pound bass caught on Sunday, and of course the Tilapia, also caught today.

I have an Outback and love it. I can sit or stand all day and fish comfortably. I have had my Outback far offshore on the pacific ocean in moderate seas, and had no difficulties. I can launch from beaches and surf waves back in to shore without difficulty. I bass fish on a lake with small waves, but winds over 20 MPH and never have to quit because of safety, or not being able to maneuver to cast. I have never tried a Pro Angler, but they appear to be to heavy for what I want to do, and I do not feel I lack stability, or comfort with my Outback. Picture is of my outback loaded with fishing and camp gear on a remote Mexican bass lake.

I recommend you hire a guide for a few trips or take a friend that knows the lake you fish well. You could also do what I do, which is buy more tackle. Buying more tackle doesn't seem to work, but I keep doing it anyway. I don't know why I keep doing the same thing over and over expecting different results. I am starting to question my sanity, but my friend the Bait Monkey say's my approach is not only correct but normal. I'm sure a few hundred dollars spent on a fishing guide will help more than a few thousand spent on the latest tackle. Advice here is free, and there are some very good anglers willing to help. The best advice I can give is stay away from the Bait Monkey. Not catching bass can be disappointing, but not catching bass while going broke, can lead to depression.

The sound of the whole lake waking up as the sun starts to appear in the horizon. The high pitch squeal of an old well broke in buzzbait. Blurp, blurp blurp of a Jitterbug. My wife telling me I need to take the weekend off and go fishing.

It takes me a half hour to decide if I want to use a Junebug colored worm, or a Greenpumkin worm.

I don't want to have nightmares tonight. I'm going to go buy my wife some flowers.

I once had a favorite crankbait. I did everything I could to keep it safe. I didn't show it to anyone, I only took it out of it's special box when I absolutely had to. I only used it on lakes with no wood, and very few other snags. Then one day a giant bass ran off with my crankbait as if it was some cheap Walmart knock off. I called the police and they didn't even come to investigate. I called my life insurance company and they said someone had to die in order to file a claim. My favorite crankbait just got eaten by a bass and they some how thought it would survive? I called workmen's comp. and they said having a mental breakdown over a lost fishing lure was not grounds to file a claim. My health insurance would only cover my hospital visit, but wouldn't pay the thousands of dollars the crankbait was worth. I would have called my home owners insurance agent, but I didn't own a home, because I spent all of my money on tackle. The worst part was my wife showed zero sympathy. She simply said to fish with some of my other junk, and wipe my feet before I enter the house. If anyone sees this thieving bass please contact me. The bass will be easy to identify, because it is a largemouth the is between 25 and 30 pounds, and jumps 3 or more times the instant it is hooked. Keep the bass but please return my crankbait.

When I was guide in Alaska, I would get clients that would tell me I had the perfect life. Living on the River fishing, without a any stress of the outside world. I would then ask them if their car starts every day, they would respond yes, I would reply mine doesn't maybe it is because I only paid $500 for it. They would be wearing brand new waders and mine would be patched more with more patches than most tire shops have in stock. All my clothes were bought at a flee market, or given to my by clients as a tip. I would ask them if they had a wife or girlfriend. Of course they always did, and were surprised that I didn't. After all I was young and in great shape with plenty of free time in the winter months, to find a significant other. I had to inform them that most women like a man who has a car that doesn't need to be push started, with a heater that works, especially in Alaska. None of them had eaten Ramen noodles every day for a month. They didn't even know they would go on sale 6 packs for a dollar from time to time. Living in a cabin without electricity and running water was something they had never experienced, let alone a trip to the outhouse when the temperature was hovering around -40 degrees. Long and short of it is, after they heard about the other side of a guides life, they weren't so jealous of my life style. That is why most guides would work two or three summers then move on to something else. Some guides would always complain about low pay, and not enough tips. I would tell them they get paid what the industry can afford, and as far as the tips go, they simply need to earn them. Most would say they were through working for nothing even if it they were making their living fishing. I wished them luck, and many of them are very successful working their new careers. My long winded point is it isn't easy to make your living fishing. Making you living tournament fishing is even tougher than surviving as a guide. But in the end it isn't about making the money, it is about the fishing and I wouldn't trade a single day I had on the water for all the money in the world. Now that is just me, and I'm sure there are others that feel the same, but fishing for a living isn't for everybody, not even close, but for the few that love the life, nothing could be better.

So you backlashed every cast the rest of the day to get hits? I like to catch bass, but you take getting bit to a whole new level.

I usually follow up a lure that gets bit with one that doesn't. If I am already fishing a lure that doesn't get bit, I follow that lure up with a more expensive one that doesn't get bit.

These are very important words of wisdom. A jay defined how to fight fish in four words. A whole book would not do a better job. I try to view fighting a fish ,especially on light tackle or small hooks ,as a dance not a boxing match. Smooth and slow wins the day. And when all else fails a little luck doesn’t hurt.

Where can I find this lure? Do you need to change out the hooks?

Rattle Trap. Not the first lipless with a rattle, but the first one I bought was revolutionary for me. Just ask my friend that still wont talk about the day I tried my first Rattletrap. I caught bass almost every cast while he didn't get a bite.

Even as primitive as this kids fishing gear is, I would wager a months pay that he has his favorite bottles, sticks, line, hooks and would argue for hours over what is the best knot to use. He may even measure the length of his sticks, and I'm sure he acts like nothing is going on if he gets a bite, and anther angler is walking by.

Banjo Minnow, flying lure, and helicopter lure

I'm going to have to one up you. I can tell you where the fish are not located, what they are not hitting, what depth they are not at, stop the pre spawn, spawn, and post spawn bite, and change a good moon in to a bad moon.