riverbasser

I wont lie if I came to this lake and saw this massive "grass flat?" I would be overwhelmed of where to start. There looks to be hundreds of pockets or indents so that's not really a help. Although the grass can be called structure and its a flat ,there still has to be structure underneath. No way it is perfectly flat. So in an area like this a 6 or 12 inch drop could make all the difference. I would also be really focusing in on any bait since there would have to be areas with groups of bait not just scattered evenly.

That's cheating Wayne

I would spend a good amount of time exploring around spot 35. Also for this time of year the mouths of Shawnee bay and sugar neck creek might be good. Idk if its just the map but this lake doesn't seem to have a very defined channel. You marked some good places as well. Enough to keep you busy.

My lake is much bigger than yours and there are many areas I have not explored. With no internet at home I hook up my depthfinder with lakemaster charts and study the lake on the couch. I mark potential areas I want to fish with a different icon than the icons I use to mark known spots. Then on the water if it turns out to be a fish holding area I change the icon. This helps me know what is what. Also the marks I do at home are for "areas" not just specific spots. I might mark the tip of a channel swing but once on the water I will explore the entire area up and down the swing and both sides of channel for example and move the waypoint accordingly. I would take WRB up on his offer to post the lake on here and use some of these senior guys experience to help you find potential areas. That's info that may be priceless @A-Jay im jealous of your mapping strategy. Do those programs require an internet connection?

1 7' veritas for jigs 3- 6'6 Berkeley lightning rods. One for worms/carolina rigs One for cranks One for spinner/chatterbaits That's all my MH setups

I was just about to answer Paul's question as well. I'm looking on my phone so maybe I don't see as well as some but it looks to be a huge grass flat with pockets everywhere. Looks very similar to a lake the bassmasters visited last year( can't remembered name) but the fish were all in this stuff. When I say fish I mean all kinds of fish not just bass.

I just picked up a veritas 2.0 for the same purpose. And although I haven't fished it yet. It feels pretty good in the yard. Seems to meet all your criteria except its only 7'. Don't know if they make it in longer models or not

Pad crasher and spro popper. Been wanting to try the scum tho

I went with the MH veritas. It felt the best to me in the store. I might have a little trouble with 1/4 oz jigs not loading the rod but pitching the 3/8 and 1/2 work well in the yard. I never can tell for sure about a rid until I fish it for a day. Thanks for everyones help

If I was a bass I'd hit that. .

The north side?

Unless I have just replaced line I normally respool most of my rods as by now they probably need it. I also clean my reels in winter

That makes a lot of sense.

Very cool. Wish I could have seen it.

Would the medium be a good bottom contact rod? Sensitive enough to feel what my jig is bumping into?

Your facial expressions are hilarious. Nice bass

I agree with all of what you said and I too like to think of it like hunting. but IMO I don't think any of this could be learned in a general way other than how you just listed it. The only way to be specific at all is to be taught on the water with someone who knew which structure held bait or what cover was on the structure at the given time of year. Basically what I'm realizing is that no one can teach what must be learned on my particular body of water unless they fish it regularly. All one can do is compare their water to yours or give a general answer based on what's known of bass behavior. I want to add that this info might be priceless in the learning process but only a grounding or beginning to unlocking the secrets of your/my home water.

I have only owned one Abu rod and I agree it felt stiffer than listed. But in your opinion would a medium veritas make a better jig rod for 1\4 to 1\2 oz weights than the MH? Thanks

Bet you were wishing it was a bass! That things huge

Still something I have trouble visualizing. Wish I could go diving in my local lake to get a real picture in my head of what I see on maps and imaging.

Looking for a jig rod and must buy from academy(Christmas gift). Which of these 2 would you get? Both will be MH and are the same price. Plan to throw 1\4 to 1\2 oz jigs exclusively Or would you get an H20 express ethos and save $40.

I also didn't break the 5lb mark last year. This one was 4 something on a GP t-mac finesse worm on 1/4 ounce shaky head. About 15ft of water

Well for Christmas I asked my wife to pick me up an H20 express bone daddy rod. 7ft MH. I saw it in academy and really liked the feel. It has winn grips, micro guides and felt very sensitive. I wanted to use it as my jig rod. Although it is a well made rod after putting line on it I realized that it has no backbone. It has a very moderate action and may work well for a different application but not at all for my plan. Only other thing i can think of is the time I bought an Abu Garcia rod on sale at Walmart and didn't realize the top guide was missing its insert. I found out when my line snapped after setting hook into a good size bass. So always inspect before you buy

I have a random question that goes along with this thread. While doing map study I see a lot of "female points" my term. Basically a flat away from the shore with an inward point or what would of been considered a cove before it was flooded. Why are these pieces of structure not talked about? I have caught fish on them and it meets alot of the qualities you would look for like: a drop off, shallow with deep water nearby,and an irregularity within the flat. Any thoughts on this?

You should post that last picture on craigslist and list it as "just needs a little TLC". Lol Good pictures though. Hopefully it helps some on here not get burned when buying used.