BuzzHudson19c

Went out today and caught my best smallie of year. Took a little time to find the fish. Water temp at 59. I was throwing a perch colored RatlTrap and just about the time I was starting to doubt my lure selection I landed the hawg. I actually had a different fish cough up a small perch. After that I never changed lures. Don't give up man. They are out there. The water is still pretty dang warm for this time of year.

This^^. Never enough ammo.

My spinning reels get a lot less attention than my baitcasters. But at the beginning of the season I just spin the bail off, wipe out any gunk with a q-tip, use compressed air to blow away debris, and then oil them.

Fall is change time for the bass. Doing the same thing in the same places as the summer is a recipe for failure. You said you're fishing ponds, so finding them isn't the hard part. They are there. A big change in the fall that guys tend to overlook, especially on ponds, is when fish feed. Dusk and dawn may be great in the summer and dead times in the fall.

Agreed. So far it fits a small niche for me between a buzzbait and a spook. Basically if I need to make some commotion on top, but want to be able to stop the bait and it's too difficult or windy to walk a spook.

Yeah buddy. It's going to take a few cold fronts to knock this water temp down. Depending on what happens we could have 3 weeks of pretty active fishing. I don't think I've ever caught a topwater bass in November, but this could be the year.

Meh. I have been throwing one now for about a month and am less than impressed. It's not a bad bait and has it's place, but it's not the magic unstoppable hog producing machine the cult would have you believe it is.

Fished a lake from my kayak the other day for a few hours until the wind picked up to the point where I could no longer fish. Packed up and headed to a nearby pond. Scaleface is right. I didn't catch anything on the side of the pond protected from the wind, but on the windy side, crushed it. I was throwing a white Ratltrap, just fan casting and covering water.

Frog. Some type of "senko-style" plastic.

I'm convinced fish can see braid, mono, and flouro. It just depends how much they care about what's on the end of it. I recall fishing with flouro in the river after a good rain watching bluegill bite at the line and thinking "what the hell?"

The guys covered what "rip it" means pretty well. Also keep in mind what type of vegetation you are working when selecting a lure. For grass I prefer ratltraps as their profile makes it much easier to work through. If the vegetation is matted or you're on a pond with a lot of slime trebles become almost useless.

I have one of each as well. They were my fathers and I inherited them when he died. He was always so proud of the 300. "Your grandfather bought this reel for me in 1973 at J.M Field." It's tough for me to fish with. I like to bring it out and reminisce, but am always so worried I am going to lose/break it (and the ancient rod it's on) if I put any real use on it. For now it has a front and center place on my rod holder along with his quantum ex 500 on a early 90's berkley lightning rod.

Ocho's are awesome. I love the KVD magic and Ghost minnow colors.

Yep. Water temps are just now getting to peak fall fishing around me but you know how quickly things can change up here. I feel like we have 2 or 3 more weeks of good fishing left. After that its slow rolling jerkbaits and dragging small jigs before the ice comes. (Agreed, ice fishing doesn't cut it.)

This is how I approach it at a very basic level. Topwater - Clear water=White, Anything else=Black (Obviously there is wiggle room, but this is keepin it simple.) Cranks - Clear water=Natural patterns, Anything else=Black contrasted with another color. Jerkbaits - Others will disagree but I don't break them out unless the sun is shining and the water is clear. Plastics - Kind of the same as cranks. Watermelon and pumpkin in clear, black and chart in anything else. Smallmouth are a whole different ballgame. They have a thing for destroying bright, ridiculously colored lures. I don't care how clear the water is, Chart/Black is my go to crankbait color. I always get the feeling that color is less important with smallies than with lmb. Again, others may disagree, but that is my method.

Anyone ever bring a shotgun with them while fishing and shoot some waterfowl? There are times when I am really close to ducks and geese and the whole time I'm thinking "I should bring shotgun next time."

This. Try to contact the owner and set something up where you can't talk it out. Be polite, explain how you would fish, and how you would not leave a mess etc. A disabled guy used to hunt my family's land when others weren't allowed. Most people want to help. Don't get the government involved, it just makes things worse.

That's not bad. I was half expecting you to say something ridiculously light like 6lb trilene on a 6' med/light rod or something. I'd start with what the other guys said change out your hooks and try to keep the fish down. Mono has some stretch so don't be afraid to set the hook hard either.

If it stays full I'm willing to bet there are fish. What kind? Well, only one way to find out.

What are you running for rod/reel/line?

I can only speak for my own habits. Everything I have mono on gets a fresh spool at the beginning of the season and then replaced if I have problems or lose too much line. Braid lasts. One of my bait casters has had 30lb power pro on it for 2 seasons. I use mono leaders on it. If you aren't using them a lot I would suggest braid.

Well I'll be a monkey's uncle. That's crazy... Wait, how about the Savage Gear "Howlin Monkey?"

Don't over think it. Pond bass don't migrate. If there are frogs, I would start there, casting parallel with the bank. If you are unsure of the bait fish in there, grab some crappie jigs and try to catch some. Then you know what's on the menu.

Possum. I can see the ad now... "One time I was out fishin at night and I heard some scratchin in the brush. I turn my headlamp and there was a baby possum. It couldn't see well and crawled right into the lake. Within seconds a monster largemouth devoured the possum! That got me to thinking about the how I could create my own possum style bait. The new Savage Gear "Rabid Possum" is the culmination of a year of research and development. We brought together top possum experts from around the globe to get the action just right. It wiggles and crawls the same way a baby possum does in distress and the fish go absolutely crazy for it. It's just too good a meal for them to pass up! The Savage Gear "Rabid Possum" coming February 2020, ($23.99).

Great advice! Circle hooks are a must for cats. Bait is usually an afterthought for me but I only cat fish a few times a year. I grab whatever freezer burned meat is in the fridge, put it in a ziplock and cover it with garlic powder. Raw chicken breast works great. There is a youtuber "Catfish and Carp" that is very informative. Check him out https://www.youtube.com/user/catfishandcarp