Colin312

I try to use an appropriate search bait that I can cover alot of water with quickly. For colors, Match the Hatch (look at the baitfish before you start casting and scare them away). Certain conditions will let you know almost exactly what to start with, as Hawg posted above. If conditions are, as example; overcast and alot of topwater activity/blowups, a spinner/buzzbait in black or a Zara spook. If you want to cover alot of water and also consider where the fish are stacking vertically in the water column, my go to search baits are Rattle Traps and Rappala Xrap slashbaits. But the first thing I am almost always going to throw to get started is a weightless wacky rigged Yamamoto Senko worm. Fished correctly, and conditions almost do not matter. You will not spook off any skittish targets.

Swimjig with silver spinner blade and a pork trailer (jig strips) caught a couple smalls last week. It has definitely slowed down already, in the span of about 2 weeks here in IL.

Hi, First post. I've been reading here for quite some time and just never got around to registering for the forum. I currently live near Chicago. Today was overcast, kinda chilly, and alot windy; but still was looking foward to some fishing tonight after work, until it started up seriously raining. I had bass on the brain! Signing up here seemed like the next best thing ? Between fishing saltwater offshore, inshore and onshore up and down the east coat from Montauk to Hilton Head, and living in Louisiana (aka Fishing Heaven) for some years, I've bèen hooked for 30+ years. Fly fishing is the only rod/reel variety I never really have gotten into (yet). Tight lines, _c