Boomstick

Arky head jigs, often labeled pitching jigs are the closest to a do-it-all jig we have. These are good to pop or drag (my usual presentation) and you can still pitch or flip them into cover and drag them. Flipping jigs are similar but different in the sense that they usually have a larger hook and a different line tie and are designed for heavy cover and primarily for use with braid. Then swim jigs have a more horizontal line tie so they can be straight retrieved, and football head jigs are designed to be dragged on hard bottoms and don't come through weeds as well but the wide heads help prevent them from getting caught on rocks. I usually carry the following: 2 3/8oz pitching jigs, one green pumpkin and one brown 2 1/2oz pitching jigs, one green pumpkin or brown and one black 1/2oz flipping jig in green pumpkin 5/8oz flipping jig in brown 3/4oz flipping jig in black 3/8oz football head jig in green pumpkin 2 1/2oz football head jigs, one brown and one black 1/4oz swim jig in white 5/16oz swim jig in green pumpkin 3/8oz swim jig in brown Then I keep a handful of spare pitching, flipping and football head jigs at home in case I lose any. I rarely lose swim jigs as they spend less time on the bottom. If I only had one jig in my tackle box (and no surprise it's the jig I use most) it would be a 3/8oz arky head/pitching jig in green pumpkin as most of the water up here is clear. I like the Dirty Jigs version myself, but many other brands work. Where there are more weeds and often dirtier water, a 1/2oz may be preferred and maybe a brown or even black color for dirtier water..

Close enough

My general rule of thumb is 20% - 30% of the line I am using and for braid but never exceed 25% of the maximum line rating of the rod, this way it protects my rod pretty well. For braid, I use 25% of the maximum line rating for the rod. When I measure it at a 45 degree angle to the point it starts to slip, which is important to my next point - although half the time I do it by feel, in which case I usually end up on the lighter side and that has its advantages once the hook is set. The idea is that if am using 17lb fluorocarbon to fish jigs on an arcky head style jig (something I do a lot in my area) then 30% of the line strength would be 5.1lbs but because my MH rods have a max line rating of 20lbs, I will go no higher than 4.5lbs. The max breaking strength of most MH rods is around 6lbs, and at 4.5lbs at a 45 degree angle, that is somewhere around 5.5lbs pulling straight down, so it never hits 6lbs. And on the flipside, on the M/MF rod I use for crankbaits, I may set it closer to 20% as I really don't need a lot of drag to set the hook. If I hook a giant, I may crank that up or thumb the spool and point the rod directly towards the fish, but most of the time I can make do with less drag.

If I have time, I like to rig up my rods the day before I go fishing at least when I take the kayaks out. So if I'm going out on Saturday, I like to rig up the night before and throw the rigged rods in rod socks and into the kayak so I can get on the water quicker on Saturday. This way all I have to is throw on soft plastics/trailers when I get there and the rods are good to go on Saturday. Likewise, when I go for a lengthy camping trip, on the first day when I get there I usually rig up all the rods I plan on using that trip the first day. This way I only have to retie when I land a big one.

I generally use Daiwa Tatula rods and they're fine but if weight is important I would say look at St. Croix rods - even the Mojo Bass which runs in the $130-150 range will blow away the Lews TP-1 (IMO) and it is super light. You can step up to the Avid or Avid X but they do have the same blank as the Mojo Bass which is maybe 90% of the rod of the Avid/Avid X but at around 65% the price. I do believe the Avid does ave better guides than the Avid X, but if you prefer microguides and a split grip, the Avid X is fine. I would probably go with the Mojo Bass or spend a few more for the Legend Tournament Bass which is a completely upgraded rod but retails for $290. I also seem them used for around $180-200 periodically. I would think the 7'1" Med. Heavy Fast rod should suit you well.

Being that I do most my fishing on kayaks or the shore, I like rods around 7' most of the time. I have a 7'4" frog rod, and a 7'6" frog rod, and then I have a 6'8" M/XF rod for jerkbaits and poppers, and a 6'9" ML/XF rod for finesse and my other rods are 7' - 7'2" and that's comfortable casting while sitting on my kayak.

NED Rig, Dropshot and Mepps Agila spinners.

Well they say one is a fluke, but two is a pattern. If you caught one fish and didn't even get a bite for a while, I would probably move on. As a kayaker, if I get a fish, I'm going to target that spot for a while maybe 15-30 minutes and move on. If it's a small lake and not crowded, I'm more inclined to move to similar spots because I can always move back in less time. If it's a large lake or crowded, I'll be more inclined to target the same spot for longer.

To be honest, I don't mind getting skunked given it still beats the hell out of what else I would be doing. I just got back from a 6 night camping trip, the water was no cooler than 78 (we had to return by 8pm every day to make dinner and a campfire) and generally 80-83 degrees. I had no trouble finding large numbers of suspended fish on the drop off near the deepest part (no surprise there) but I could not get them to bite for the life of me (I generally targeted them with a drop shot). I know if I got up early or stayed out later I'd certainly have better luck - or even picked a lake with better cover spots for that matter. I did get a few along the shoreline past that drop off on a jig, my youngest son got a nice one but perhaps the biggest bummer was my oldest almost landed what was easily at least 4 pounds but his knot broke as he got it halfway onto his kayak. But on the upside, it was his first time fishing a jig other than a swim jig or chatterbait (Strike King Bitsy Bug that I bought on the way), and now he has some confidence in the jig. I bought him two more of those SK Bitsy Bug jigs and a finesse jig on the way home. At the end of the day though it was still the most fun I've had in a long time. Don't forget to look at the little things.

I keep this really simple - if you are throwing on 15lb or 17lb line, use a regular one. If you are using 10lb line, use a finesse and 12lb can go either way.

I do agree that once I learned to use the baitcaster confidentially, throwing the same lures on a spinning reel just didn't cut it anymore, but throwing light finesse baits on a spinning reel works just as well.

The primary differences is the handle and the guides. The Avid X has micro guides, and the Avid has regular Fuji Alconite guites. The Mojo Bass has the same wonderful blank and is definitely the best bang for the buck. I have the Mojo Bass 6'8" M/XF "Topwater" rod and I love it for throwing poppers and jerkbaits, the action is perfect. Then I own a Avid X 6'9" ML/XF rod I use for finesse. I'm generally good with the split grip handle for more vertical presentations. I'm generally not a huge proponent of microguides; I have some other rods with microguides that run fatter line and it does mean I can't tie on a leader, but with thinner line, that's not an issue so it works for me.

I use one of these Bass Mafia Terminal Coffins and that works great for me. The Plano Edge also looks pretty solid. https://mafiaoutdoors.com/products/terminal-coffin

Well a MH/F rod is generally considered the most versatile by most people, although I could argue a M/F is just as versatile. I would probably go with a MH/F because it can throw t-rigs, jigs, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, paddle tail swimbaits and even frogs if you run it with 40lb braid. I would however start off with mono, as it's cheap and if you get some nasty birds nests, it's pretty cheap to replace. As far as which rod and reel? I have a Daiwa Tatula 7'1" MH/XF that I run with a Daiwa Tatula SV reel and that's a pretty good combo and should be under $300 if you buy at the right time on ebay. I would probably go with a 7.3:1 gear ratio or thereabouts to help pick up line quickly which can be nice with Texas rigs and jigs. I use the 7.x:1 gear ratio for just about everything these days except crankbaits which I run a 6.3:1 and sometimes other moving lures in the early and late season. If you're after a Dobyns Sierra, I got my oldest son a Dobyns Sierra 704C and 703C and that's a pretty good two rod pairing. The 704C has a solidly fast tip and is actually nearly identical to the 7'1" Tatula MH/XF in power and action, but the 703C is a little more on the moderate side. You can still fish a texas rig just with a lighter weight, but it can also manage treble hooked baits decently.

Either a 3/8oz archy head jig or a T-rigged 7" power worm

I watched the catfishandcarp youtube channel pull in 25lb channel cats with the spinning version, it'll hold up!

If you're a beginner, I would recommend starting with mono. But I typically use 10-17lb mono/fluorocarbon on baitcasters and I personally would not use any less than 30lb braid - I only braid for throwing frogs, jigs and punching and that's at least 50lb. 15lb mono is a pretty good all around choice for a medium heavy rod and 12lb for a medium.

I'm just using a 10 pack I bought on Amazon for $25 or so. I actually am at the point where I should buy another 10 pack, but the shipping times are horrendous at the moment so I will have to wait until after my upcoming camping trips. They work and so far they've held up fine. The only spinning rods I normally carry with me are medium and medium lights, and while my St Croix Avid X has microguides, they are small enough where they fit. Anything much larger and they wouldn't.

Zebco Dock Demon!

I got my girlfriend a Ballistic off of ebay last year for her birthday (since she is casting reel challenged). It was brand new and cheaper than what I could find a Tatula LT for, even used. So if you are so lucky, maybe you can find a deal on the Ballistic and in that case, I think the Ballistic is a win-win. It's a smooth reel and very lightweight!

Most local stores have been cleaned. One of our Walmarts which is usually the best stocked one had literally 4 or 5 spools of line and that was it for line. Most of the lure section was empty, and the rest of it was pretty barren. I haven't even tried Dick's since I heard they were cleaned out too, but I purchased a ton of KVD Ocho plastics, Berkley Power Worms and Netbait Paca Chunks, the only other thing I am low on at the moment is Keitechs and my Z-Man TRDs from last year melted so they are all funny shaped, but in the ponds I'll be fishing at the next few weeks when camping I probably won't get to do too much finesse fishing due to weeds anyway. Tackle Warehouse has been very good at getting stuff back in, but even they're more sold out than usual.

^7. Seems to be the 2020 theme song between coronavirus and 7 days straight of thunderstorms.

Megadeth has came out with some pretty solid stuff over the years. If you dig the thrash metal, Testament is my favorite of the thrash bands and have put out several quality albums over the years, same with Nevermore and Exodus. Heathen's The Evolution of Chaos, Death Angel's The Dream Calls For Blood and Annihilator's Alice in Hell and King of the Kill are also must own thrash albums imo

I would say progressive, thrash and NWOBHM would be my favorites, more or less in that order followed by Doom, Death and Power metal. Never really been a fan of the numetal or rap metal thing personally.

Thanks! I actually just received my Garmin, the YakAttack mounts (I'm not sure if they're still sold out everywhere, but for a solid week before I ordered I couldn't buy the RAM mounts anyhwere), and Amped Outdoors 18ah battery. I rigged it up in my dry pod, everything came out well except I got the Mighty Mount slightly crooked. You can hardly tell until you put the YakAttack mount and the unit on, then it's definitely noticeable. Oh well. I also bought a cheap 12ah SLA battery to use as a spare when camping for when I can't charge the lithium. I already learned how to do most things with the Garmin, set waypoints, adjust sensitivity and brightness/contrast etc. Can't wait to get out with it - missed this weekend between all the thunderstorms and getting haircuts.