BuzzHudson19c

Even the best gut hook em sometimes when running soft plastics. If it's a huge concern start using more hard baits with trebles.

Pretty much. I mean mammals and birds do drown so it's not like they will be clawing around long.

Naw, I just swap out lures is all. I have no confidence in them. Something else always seems to be a better fit for any given circumstance. Last year I forced myself to get better at fishing jigs. Would hit the water with only jigs and make them work. I have been meaning to do the same with spinnerbaits.

I know I will get some hate for this but spinnerbaits. I hate them. A couple times a year I tie one on and it comes right off after a handful of casts. Which is funny considering I will throw buzzbaits just about anywhere I can.

Hunt. Seriously, I just hunt in the winter because when you have 6 months of sub freezing weather you have to determine if chasing smallies is worth it or not.

I openly admit to my friends that I am an a-hole when it comes to fishing. It's one of the only things I am passionate about. But I warn would be fishing buddies ahead of time,"This is how it's going to be. We are going fishing at 4:30 am. If you aren't at the launch by then, I'm leaving without you. Bring what you need, don't rely on the kindness of others. We will be out for a long time. Don't complain that it's hot. Don't complain about the wind. Don't complain about the bugs. Don't complain." When it comes to lures and techniques. I will openly share what I'm doing with my buddies. I don't like to critique others but there have been times where, like you said, I have watched another fisherman ripping a bait back in after it being in the water 5 seconds and I just went and said it, "Dude, slow the fudge down!" Be honest with him. You will probably both be better off for it.

Possible? yes Logical? No Let's let retailers do what they do and simply sell merchandise and not turn them further into an arm of the state.

Yeah, it's not something I do often. But with the more expensive coated hooks, they hold up well. Of course this is after making sure things are allowed to dry.

Spooks I dead stick for a bit before starting my retrieve. I would say 1/4 of my strikes on them come from that first twitch after the bait has just been sitting there. One of my favorite way to throw frogs is cast onto the shore and slowly creep them into the water. Once they touch water I let them sit for a 30 sec to a minute sometimes. Again, I get a lot of strikes as soon as I start to move the bait after that long pause.

Me too. I love the look on someones face the first time they fish with me and I throw a frog non stop in open water. Then they realize it works after a few caught and stop questioning my methods.

I left a strike king shim e stick on a gamakatsu in my garage all winter. They are both in the exact same condition as when they went in there.

Smallmouth are the dominant bass species in the rivers around me. I do on occasion catch a largemouth from the rivers but it's usually when I am fishing slower with plastics. Stick baits and jigs mostly.

Savage gear lily ninja is a very good inexpensive frog. Bought a few last year and it quickly became my favorite.

I always bring a pee cup with me in the kayak (usually the empty paper coffee cup I drank on the paddle out.)

I use 12 lb Stren mostly. Sometimes 30lb power pro.

Congrats. Same here. I went to a local pond after work. Got a bunch of bass, a decent pickerel, and a few crappie. You are right about the crankbaits too. I notice the fish were holding pretty shallow and switched from an xrap to a squarebill and crushed them. 85 degrees today got the wheels turning and the reaction bit going. BTW you are way smarter than I wearing your sun gear. I went out in a tank top and got roasted.

Tips for northern smallies (keep in mind these are based on river small mouth from my own experience) 1. They are probably shallower than you think. 2. Use obnoxious colors, lots or chartreuse/black. 3. Run topwater baits faster than you think you should. My top picks for smallie baits 1. Buzzbait 2. squarebill 3. ratltrap

Yup. If you are trying a new lake for the first time study maps prior. Unless you are trying a small lake, then you can just screw around and cover the whole darn lake.

I have both one and two piece rods for spinning reels. Not a ton of difference but I use them for different things. The two piece is a 6'6 I like for plastics and the one piece is a 7' for jerkbaits. All my casting rods are one piece. I could see a 2 part casting rod being a detriment.

I have just recently started seeing Cormorants back in this area. The past few years I have seen their population grow. I started to get worried until last year when I saw one sitting on a dock I was paddling toward. As I got closer the bird got nervous but didn't fly away and instead jumped in the water and attempted to swim away from me. It was then I noticed it's left wing was almost broken off and facing the wrong direction. I scanned the area to see if anything around could be the culprit and sure enough a bald eagle was perched in a pine tree over us waiting to finish the job.

I actually prefer mono for buzzbaits. Sometimes with braid I react too fast and the pull the bait away from the fish or they get the bait and since braid doesn't stretch I tear a big hole in their mouth. That little bit of stretch with mono helps me get more hookups with the buzzers. I agree with everyone else on frogs though. 50lb Power pro.

They can. Canada geese have a lot of "silver skin." I take the breasts of every goose I kill. Some I marinade and grill. The rest I have my buddy turn into sausage or snack sticks. Cut with pork fat they are great. They are really a beef substitute. It's a very red meat. Good in a chili.

Once they've molted they can't fly for a couple weeks. The whole fight or flight thing basically gives them one option when faced with a threat. I hunt them during the season and have to remind myself it's a crime to mess with them after the season closes. It's really hard to not just grab them by the head and wring their stupid necks when they hiss at you. I just say "I'll be seeing you when the migration starts you little jerk."

I like the silent ones. I feel like rattles are redundant on a square bill considering you are bouncing them off everything in the water as it is. But as always, preference.

I have never targeted anything but bass with my fly rod. Trout are lame. I don't do it often but a few times during summer I'll go after smallies with wooly buggers or streamers. I actually caught a decent channel cat on a dry fly last summer (my mind was blown).