TnRiver46

DO NOT spray Berkley gulp if your girlfriend is downwind in the back of the boat. Although I just felt like I got revenge for all the spray sunscreen and OFF I have ingested over the years

My buddy threw one of mine in that way in the middle of the night in lake fork.... Didn't bother swimming for that one, gone - er. Jumped in an rescued them most other times. Vertical rod holders are a nightmare for me. My buddies put their rods in their first thing when they jump in my boat against my advice. Then they hook them on back cast or saw them in half with side arm cast. They don't fly out of the holder but it's always something

If you got a 7 this year I say keep doing what you're doing

Done it a few times before and several times with a cast net

Ah fly fishing........ started off as fun for me, and still is. I usually like to stick to fly fishing for fish that are actively eating bugs, mainly tailwater and smoky mountain trout. I have caught bass and other larger fish casting bigger stuff but it’s not a method I enjoy as much as a baitcaster or spinning rod. Also I like fishing 15-25 feet deep which is laborious with fly gear. I started working as a fly fishing guide in ‘08 and still do it on weekends. The last decade has burned me out on fly fishing somewhat but not completely. Also my girlfriend loves all things fly fishing and trout so that helps me enjoy it and keep the skills sharp. @Scott F, I also paddled some of your fellow Illinois smallmouth alliance fly guys down the French broad river in a complete deluge on a guided trip a few years ago (not Jeff). I can’t remember their names but the guy in the back of the boat had me laughing the whole way down, I think his name might have been Mickey? Very short older guy. The two guys in my boat knew way more about fly fishing for smallmouth than I did, they had done it all over the country, whereas I reach for a round bait caster and a pop R when chasing smallies. They just had a big group and needed an extra drift boat captain, and I learned a lot from them. I don’t think I was their ideal fishing guide that day but I had a boat and got them down the river anyhow haha.

Sounds like a tricky situation, maybe try hopping around to different spots and talking to fellow anglers at access points and see what they are catching

It's better than not making it to the championship game for 12 years straight! Haha

Go Vols! I'll be at the first two games

11 lbs on a jug line.

Sorry to hear about all that, glad you have been out there catchin em! Looks like some healthy big bass, keep after it

Cotton Cordell Redfin, any big walking and/or popping bait, big buck tails, and big flukes. Live and cut bait are excellent

Didn’t you say you were moving to Douglas lake? I feel like I should warn you of constant wake boat traffic with crazy loud music. Sometimes on a weeknight well after dark! But it does all stop for the most part when they drop the lake starting in September

I usually listen to music while fishing, unless I forget my Bluetooth speaker. One time late in the evening a boat kept drifting closer and closer to me so I turned down the volume and asked the guy if he was having any luck fishing. He said "no, I was just trying to listen to that solid country gold you had playing!" I will turn down any music except for Willie Nelson. Them's fightin' words!!!!!!

Yes! Right in the teeth!!! But in all seriousness I fish around gators yearly in south Alabama and never had any trouble. Just keep minding your own business and you should be fine. As long as you don’t have a small dog with you, things seem to work out OK

Go bungles!!! Yes I’m a glutton for punishment. I like the titans as well but they weren’t around when I was young so the Bengals were my first love

I never catch crap on a full moon, probably because I fish in the day. Although it looked close to full last night and I did ok.

https://www.bassresource.com/fish_biology/fish_parasites.html turns out bass resource has a good article on the worms sometimes found in bass. In my area the fish with the most parasites come from remote clear cool water fisheries and are mostly in smallmouth. Therefore I don’t feel like the temperature of the particular body of water is a contributing factor. More likely that , as with most parasites and larvae, they are just more prevelant in summer than winter. The parasite’s life cycle is extremely complex and involves certain species of snails and fish eating birds.

Found the white bass schooling good on surface, kept 8 and released several. Got some bonus fish, one small blue cat (on ice) and 3-4 short largemouth. Mosquitos got intense after dark so the catfishing grinded to a halt (not that it was working all that well anyhow)

We eat the bass we catch in a muddy swamp in south Alabama from 90 degree water, flaky firm delicious white meat. A lot of misinformation on this thread. Then again if you asked 30 people if bananas taste good you would get varied responses

Check out tva.gov , select a lake and click operating guide. It will tell you exsct yearly elevation and flow for each one . I believe most would consider Douglas better for fishing than tellico. The crowds will back me up on that, there can be several hundred bass boats on Douglas at any time and the amount of crappie fisherman there is a sight to behold

@BassNJake...... whoa! Is that up the Powell?

I don’t keep a boat there ever except kayaks laying up on dry land. The boat traffic will beat a boat to death if you don’t have a lift, which I don’t. My boat slip dries up in winter but there is still water close to end of the dock. I might could keep a boat tied up on a long rope in winter but The water can fluctuate several inches each day so I don’t risk dry docking it. Tellico is more of a pleasure boat lake with some fishermen. Tellico village is the most popular (and massive) retirement community on the lake

Awesome!