Wayne P.

I know from over 19 years fishing there using dozens of worm colors including several colors on a particular day that it makes no difference to the fish. Just use whatever color you like and it will work. I prefer to insert a nail into the worm head if weight is needed.

I use my jon boat for electric only lakes and also limited HP gas motor lakes. When I am on electric only lakes, I use a transom mount trolling motor and a bow mount foot control motor. Since I only use the transom motor set on its highest speed, I wanted to be able to turn it off and on from the front of the boat. I had been using a heavy wire from the battery to the front with a Big Foot switch for that purpose. When planning on a new boat setup, I came up with an easier way to operate the transom motor without having to buy the heavy guage wire to lessen voltage loss. I bought a 12V starter solenoid which only requires a small size wire for the energizing circuit and that allowed for the trolling motor wiring to connect to the battery with a very short cable along with the motor power wiring-no voltage loss from a long wiring run. Now I just make the positive connection to the trolling motor at one side of the solenoid and the other to the negative battery post which is the negative of the solenoid activation switch (the grounding frame). The Big Foot switch is wired to make and break the positive side of the solenoid activation circuit where I used a quick disconnect plug so removal is easy when I want to use the gas motor. Pictured is the setup-the top left two wires are to the trolling motor.

Thanks for asking that question. It reminded me to try and find where I put mine after using this past winter. I use the Seirus Hyperlite waterproof breathable gloves. They are full fingered, black in color and are thin. When moving to other areas to fish, I put on a pair of the same brand over those that are insulated, thicker, and have a pocket on the back for a chemical hand warmer. I've tried the neoprene gloves in full finger, fingerless, and index/forefinger tip exposed styles and all of those make my hands sweat which makes them feel even colder.

Catt, I can tell you why I'd rather reply with via e-mail with my presentation. I go into a lot of detail including pictures at appropriate junctions and this forum is not suited for that amount of space.

Raul, taking "forever" is the whole point of suggesting weightless. If the fish are not on the bottom, the longer the bait is at the level the fish are, the more likely they will notice it and may try to eat it. The hook and line are enough weight to get a S-L-O-W fall. I use that presentation most of the time and the fish seem to like it. Baits with salt content sink faster than those without, hince the bait suggestions.

Bassyak, join the usergroup for SI units on the Yahoo web site. Some Humminbird reps along with lots owners discuss the set up and use of that technology. You may not want the technology if you cannot use it within its optimum operating parameters.

IMPY03, I usually get on plane just out from the boat dock and stay on plane until I get near the large shallow clearing at the upper end where Briery Creek and Little Briery Creek enter the lake. Of course I know where the creek channel is amongst the trees and which stumps lean in towards the channel middle. The creek channel is about in the center of the lake in the middle of the trees. It makes a few turns in some places though. It takes a few times going slow using a sonar to find the path or you can watch someone blasting thru like I do and get an idea if you are in the area. Ocassionally someone will put some barely visible markers on trees that are close but they don't last long.

This is what the lake looks like as you look across the lake from the 701 ramp at normal water levels. The first few years after the lake was opened to fishing, the 701 ramp was not there and you couldn't see across the lake because of the thick timber and bushes.

This is what the upper end looks like when the water level is about 1' lower than it is now.

Check this VDGIF site for lake info including a map. http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/fishing/waterbodies/display.asp?id=21&section=maps

Rt. 701 is about 3 miles South of the entrance to the dam area. There is a brown Game Commission sign just before the turn off on Rt. 15. It is a right turn heading South from Farmville. Just follow the road to the end and when you hear a splash, you are there. LOL. The number of trees is not much difference but there are open shallower areas without any trees. There are some boat lanes thru the trees that are not obvious unless you are familiar with the lake. When you were there a month ago, the water level was such that normally submerged broken off trees were visible. When the level gets back to normal like in the Spring, those short stumps you saw will be just under the surface. Now is a good time to get familiar with the mid lake and upper end areas so you will know what is hidden later. There are some broken off trees right at the surface now but are around some that are visible so it helps.

You may find a used or reconditioned one at one of the trolling motor repair companies. Foster's is one--http://www.trollnmotors.com

Maybe you should also try a weightless soft plastic bait and have the patience to let it fall all the way to the bottom. It may not make it that far. A Senko, Super Fluke, or Zoom Trick or Finesse worm would be my choices.

allst8rnnr, don't be afraid of navigating Briery Creek. Bumping into the submerged stumps won't damage your boat at trolling motor speeds. Getting hung up on top of one is a challenge sometimes though. What I do is when I feel the boat hitting one, I keep up my monentum and I usually just slide over it. Shifting your weight to opposite the hang up helps too. I run my jon boat with a 9.9 outboard on plane just about everywhere on the lake that I choose to fish but take it slow to a fast idle in some areas. I hang up on stumps on purpose lots of times to hold the boat in position while fishing so I don't have to keep using the trolling motor especially when its windy. I have been fishing there since it opened in Jan 1989 so I know it quite well. The next time you go, use the Rt. 701 (mid lake) ramp as some the best catching areas are within sight of the ramp.

IMPY03, my guess is after the water temp stabilizes some that schooling will be going on all over the lake. I went to several areas of the lake North and South of the ramp looking for concentrations of bass and shad, but didn't find any. The last 3/4 to 1/2 mile of the South end is where I found the fish.

I got your solution right here: e-mail me at purdum@aol.com for details if interested.

Thanks ColdwaterBassin, I got my frog ID messed up. It definately is the Snag Proof brand. Larger hook with a more upright hook position for better hookups.

INCOMING-----

Good questions, yes I let both sink to the bottom when the fish are on or close to the bottom. With the Super Fluke and weighted hook, I am using it in about 15' depths and working it through the timber laying on the bottom. I use the wacky rigged woms in the same areas. If you will notice my presentation description I use the term "weedless wacky" and if you are not familiar with how I rig it, send me an e-mail to purdum43@aol.com and I'll forward instructions. For your presentation of a Fluke or wacky rig, I prefer to use a suspending hard jerkbait. Another note, I haven't gotten my last three fishing reports posted on the other site since some parts of the site are experiencing some problems.

My floating frog choice is the Scum Frog Bobby's Perfect Frog. For longer casts and heavier presence on mats, I remove the legs and glue lead weight in the leg holes. Small Mojo weights is my choice most of the time.

No coves were involved in my catch yesterday. At no point was I fishing anywere within 100 yards of shore. I don't fish the shorelines unless it is prespawn and spawn. I caught all but four of the fish on a weedless wacky rigged Zoom Trick or Finesse worm. Two came on a Super Fluke with a weighted swimbait hook and the other two were on a Chatterbait. The cove you mention where I marked is not referring to the shore, its the creek channel just offshore in that area. I don't use topwater lures early when the air temp is very much lower than the water temp. edited: this time of year when the air temp is within 10 degrees of freezing.

I checked my fishing logs for the cold months. Jan 7, 2008 it was 65 degrees and on the 8th it was 70 degrees. Feburary 5, 2008 it was 70 degrees and on the 15th it was 63 degrees. Each of those days I fished the downwind part of lakes and found active/feeding bass. I caught a total of 87 bass for those 4 days. Mid afternoon was the most productive time as the warmer surface water was stacked against the shoreline. The water temp ranged from 41 to 52 depending on the amount of surface water contributing to the downwind stacking.

I fished Briery today. The water in mid lake area was brown tinted, I assume from turnover since the last few nights have been close to freezing and the surface temp was 59-60. I didn't see the thermocline with my electronics. I fished the upper end where the water was clear. Didn't catch any big ones, just 28 bass under 3# and 5 pickerel. The 10-30 mph winds made finesse presentations difficult. I didn't see any bass chasing shad or any shad schools on my sonar units.

Either one will be the best one if you have a problem with the other. From my travels, I see more Motor Guides in use than Minn Kotas.

Even Roland is embarrassed about that one when asked about it.