Boomstick

One that I fish a lot is Emerald Lake in E. Dorset. It's a small, motorless lake but they do rent canoes and kayaks, and not the most abundant or largest smallie population, but it's a really beautiful spot. There are some lilypads and tons of grass throughout the lake and only one deep area. I did catch a 20"+ smallie from under a fallen tree last summer there however. They also have Northern Pike and Perch and I'm not sure what else. It's generally a fairly cloudy lake, but might work with topwater due to it's depth. I'm sure I will try a few more state parks throughout Vermont this summer. I live just south of Vermont and camp there every summer. I would also check out Great Sacandaga Lake in NY. There's a few towns around the lake, but not too large of population and it's a great spot. Northville, on the north side of the lake is a nice small town as well.

Great advice! I threw some 17lb Sufix Siege (mono) on one of my reels late last year for fishing moving baits in shallower areas where I didn't care about depth, and it's almost impossible to birds nest it. Also not a bad line for the types of baits mentioned here either. Once you get the hang of that, back off to 14lb unless you fish in a lot of weeds, or 12lb if you almost always fish in clearer water.

I usually use Daiwa J-Braid because I get the 8 strand and it's not too terribly expensive. It freys notably less than Spiderwire, and is still cheaper. Power Pro is also reliable. Don't even bother with Spiderwire EZ braid.

Well there's always Minnesota...

If you are trying to get the max casting distance, then get a Tatula CT and save the extra money from the SV. The SV spool improves the breaking, but reduces the casting distance slightly. I can justify the sacrifice in casting distance with the knowledge that over the course of a day, with a fewer backlashes, I will end up casting for more yards over time instead of pulling out a backlash.

I am personally a huge fan of spinnerbaits, swim jigs and crankbaits. Hollow body frogs are also a blast to fish, as well and the blowups are also a lot of fun.

I tend to try to pick a new spot every year, but I'm going to have to do that again. It was so quiet and peaceful up there. There was a pier by where we stayed where we fished and watched the sunsets. Also the sun would rise around 5am and start to set around 10pm and be pitch black by 10:15pm -- much more sunlight than I get in western Massachusetts for sure!

Seconded. Plus you will take the paint off of them as well.

Welcome! Nice fish too.

Welcome to the forums! On a side note, I stayed up in Lavigne Ontario for a week over the summer and it was a great place. Very quiet and peaceful. I hope to get back someday.

Welcome to the forums! I hear Michigan has quite a few nice lakes to fish -- I may possibly check a few of them out over the summer.

Welcome to the forums, and welcome to the world of bass fishing. I think you will find that bass are one of if not most of the most fun fish to target. At this time of year, you should look at slower presentations like finesse jigs and ned rigs, drop shots, spoons and the like. Soft plastics can be effective as well, but you will want to fish them slower. Also such presentations often require a boat of some kind -- a canoe or kayak will do nicely. When the bass get a little more active it gets really fun. Then you can try spinnerbaits, crankbaits, swim jigs, frogs and other topwater baits.

Try slower finesse tactics, like a drop shot, ned rig or spoons. It's a slower time of year, and the bass aren't as active as well.

I took a prescription but then I saw another doctor who told me that being so young, it would kill my liver by the time I'm in my 60s. I now control it through diet -- I have not eaten any meat at all since October, and just re-introduced fish, mostly lower purine fish like salmon and catfish into my diet but in limited quantities. I was eating a lot of meat before so I bet this will save my fall fishing season for next year. Plus if I do re-introduce meat, it's going to be in limited quantities and I'll avoid sausages which have about twice the purine content of any other meat I would ever eat. I've found many meatless options around work now, so I don't really miss meat to be honest. Fish on the other hand...

That is the spinnerbait rod I recommended. I have no doubts that you are going to be very happy with that rod.

In that case, give her the American Hero combo and keep the Carbon Blue for yourself. Assuming you're fishing together, you can always trade when you both want to try something different anyway.

Yeah I hear you there. I'd also be scared to take a canoe out in most rivers by myself, especially a longer one. Fortunately, I have a few lakes in the area, but likewise without a boat of some kind, it's tough to find a spot where finesse fishing is viable.

We're pretty much in the same boat, but since I fish with my kids I'm looking for a longer canoe and I was going to put more focus on the drop shot but also plan to use the NED rig a bit as well. Of course, this is assuming that I can get a trailer hitch on my car, otherwise I'll be renting canoes and row boats all summer.

First, I would buy a third reel, even if it's a Black Max or a cheaper Kast King. Having three rods that are ready to can be really nice. I would throw 10lb or 12lb copoly on the 7' Medium vengeance rod and use it for soft plastics, and anything with treble hooks. You can also fish spinnerbaits and bladed jigs up to 3/8oz and smaller on this rod. I would then load the American Hero rod and reel with 14 - 17 lb mono or fluoro whichever you prefer and use it for 3/8oz and larger spinnerbaits and chatterbaits, jigs in open water etc. Then step up to 40 or 50lb braid for better casting on the Carbon Blue. I find casting 40lb to be much easier, but 50lb braid to be the ideal diameter. You can use this for frogs, jigs in heavier cover etc. and you can also tie on a 10lb or 12lb leader to fish a t-rigged senko.

I picked up a War Eagle Extreme Trokar Colorado/Willow in Sexy Shad last year before I was immobile with gout in both feet and caught a 20" smallie with it in the first cast. I've also had great luck with similar colored spinnerbaits and white and chartreuse in both cloudy and clear waters, to the point I don't even always carry a white one anymore. And for nighttime fishing, try the black/blue colored single colorado blade from War Eagle.

That helps! In that case, I would start with the plastics rod. The St. Croix spinnerbait rod is a great rod for most moving baits but you would lose out the fast tip for soft plastics however, but if you wanted to add that later on, then I would consider the Jigs / Baits rod which will be worse for treble hooked baits now but give you the extra strength for jigs.

Scratches add character and stories you can tell. As long as the reel still works, I wouldn't worry about it. Tell your friends the 10lb smallie hanging on your wall put up such a fight that you dropped your rod onto a rock and have this scratch in your reel as a result.

A GX2 works decently for Catfish, but I'd suggest a Cabela's King Kat combo if you are looking for a catfish rod on the cheap ($45 I think but they go on sale time to time). I would suggest the a medium heavy, probably 7' or 8' so you can throw the proper catfish weights as well. If you have a little more money, try a Rippin' Lips Super Cat with a Daiwa Regal Bri 4000, which is a double drag reel with tons of drag, great for catfish! The plastics rod might be the best rod for both soft plastics, smaller spinnerbaits and the like and may be passable with crankbaits with some 10 or 12lb mono. The Jig / Bait rod would be just as good of an all around bass rod which is MH/F, but that would be worse with crankbaits but would have the backbone for things like jigs and frogs in lighter cover. The spinnerbait rod is great for moving baits and should work well with cranks too, but you'd be missing out the responsive tip for soft plastics. It all depends what you want to fish really.

I got my hands on a few of the St. Croix Mojo Bass glass rod, and the tip is definitely moderate. I would not use it those with a spinnerbait or chatterbait, and they're more suited towards squarebills than deep divers as well. I was in a similar predicament and ended up getting a Daiwa Tatula glass cranking rod, the 7'2" MH/R. The tip is a bit faster and it has quite a bit more backbone, so it's a rather ideal rod for deep divers and spinnerbaits and chatterbaits. I gather the Dobyns 735CB is similar, but was out of my price range at the time. I got my son a St. Croix Mojo Bass spinnerbait rod for Christmas (MH/MF). The tip and action feel overall very close to the Tatula glass cranking rod but it's graphite. Either rod especially with 14 or 17lb mono for a little added stretch would be a great choice for these types of baits, although I'm fairly sure I do prefer the glass Tatula. As far as the feel of the rod, it's much more deadened compared to a graphite rod. I can still feel when I snag a weed with a moving bait just fine, or when the blade of my chatterbait stops spinning etc. However it feels a bit different and will take some time to get used to if you are used to fishing with a graphite rod. What I cannot do is feel when I snag a weed on the bottom when fishing a soft plastic, but that's not what I bought it for.

I use a Daiwa Tatula 7'2" MH/R glass cranking rod with a Tatula SV 6.3:1 reel. I was also interested in the Dobyns 735CB glass rod which I gather is similar in action, but it was a little out of my price range at the time. But as you don't use deep divers I would probably go for something with a slower tip. I was specifically looking for a rod where I could use for all moving baits since I have a limited number of rods I can fit in my car. I got my hands on a 7'4" St. Croix Mojo Bass cranking rod and that would do, or since you don't mind spending the extra money perhaps one of the Legand Glass rods from St. Croix, or if you don't prefer glass there's some Legend Tournament Bass rods.