Kayak Koz

I can't catch a break this week.

Sounds like a recipe for some good polarized glasses and site fishing. That and throwing a topwater like a frog or buzzbait and see what comes crashing out of the weeds.

Classic! **Just realized this thread was resurrected from the dead.

There's a lot of luck involved in catching your PB. Above all, you've got to be at the right place at the right time. And then if you're at the right place at the right time you have to make the right presentation to get that big bass to bite. You can decrease the amount of luck needed by knowing the right place to fish based upon seasonality, time of day, and weather conditions and knowing how to break down the lake keeping those factors in mind. That's a lot to take in plus you've set a goal of catching your PB on a specific day. With that in mind my suggestion is to go to your local bait shop and boat dock, tell your story and ask where they are biting lately. I'd also buy 3 bags of Senkos and go fish those areas using both Texas rigged and wacky rigged Senkos. I caught my PB on a Senko, and even if you don't catch yours that day they Senko is bound to land you enough fish to make your venture worthwhile. You may not catch your PB, but you might catch the most fish you've ever caught in a single outing.

I've done that as well, but it kind of defeats the purpose of protecting your nose from the sun. Maybe applying some rubbing alcohol or Rain-X to the glasses will help with fogging.

I bank fish in a lot of open area so I don't mess around waving a graphite rod when storms are near. I also keep my phone on me so I get immediate weather app alerts when a storm is approaching or there are lightning strikes in teh area. No need to be a hero. Live to fish another day.

It's that time of year again... Every day at work I look forward to finishing up and heading out to fish for an hour or so. In the spring everything goes as planned. But this time of year on just about every single day the thunderstorms roll in between 4:30 and 5:30 pm. Today was no different. At 4:15 my phone alerted me to a line of storms moving in. At 4:30 I started getting lightning alerts. Now closing in on 4:45 I hear the constant rumble of thunder. The same thing happened yesterday and thunderstorms are forecast pretty much every day for the next 10 days. I may as well stay at work. ?

Compared to a Senko where it's not unusual for the ratio to be one fish for one bait. I love Senkos, but there are many times when the bass tear them off the hook and I reel in the fish and the bait is gone. Or the bass breaches the water and I see the Senko go flying. I wonder if putting a ring of Mend-It around the top near the insertion point on the hook would help strengthen the bait.

I started about 49 years ago when I was 6 and fished regularly until I was 15 or so. We had local ponds near us with sunfish, yellow perch, and bass. During the summers we went camping at Bantam Lake (CT), Lake George (NY), and Lake Bomoseen (VT). We also took trips to Lake Nipigon (north of Lake Superior) in Canada for some pike fishing. Once I hit college I didn't fish much for the next few decades but picked it up again about 7 years ago when my son was old enough to fish without poking his (or my) eye out. Now I fish 4 or 5 times a week, even if it's only for 30 minutes or so.

Thanks. I have zero intention or inclination to go back. When I grocery shop I'm not even tempted by poor food choices. Heck, last night I put on some shorts that I hadn't worn in a long time and that had me excited and even proud. There's absolutely no way I could turn back now. I'm a little more than halfway to my goal in about 6 weeks. My initial goal was to meet my desired weight in 6 months. It will get harder as I get closer, but I'm motivated.

Beetle Spins and cheap $1.00 Wal Mart spinnerbaits.

It's been about 6 weeks now since I ditched almost all carbs as well as cutting out sugar and processed foods. I still get some carbs from vegetable like broccoli but I've stayed away from bread, pasta, and potatoes. The result? I've lost 4 inches off of my waist and I'm fitting into clothes I haven't worn in a long time. I did cheat twice and have a few slices of pizza, but I earned that. The other night I had a piece of chocolate cake but the sugar made me feel physically awful. I still have barely touched the weights although I know I need to add that if I want to continue dropping pounds to get back to my college playing weight. But I do walk for 2-3 hours every night and more on weekends. But the walking isn't bad at all - I'm walking the banks of lagoons and fishing all of that time! Best of all, I feel proud that I've made the changes, stuck with it, and have seen results. I spent too many years putting that off. I am kicking myself for that!

Teckel Sprinker Frog

With bank fishing here in my part of the south what works in one part of the season rarely carries through the rest of the year. Late winter (Jan-Feb): Jerkbaits and Beetle Spin Early Spring: White or chartreuse/white spinnerbaits with Keitech Swing Impact trailer. Mid-Spring: Bluegill colored chatterbait with Havoc Pit Boss trailer in Perfection color or white chatterbait with white paddletail trailer But right now my Strike King Banshee Buzzbait in Sexy Shad is just killing it almost every day. I can't even count how many fish I've landed with it lately. But it's completely beat up, bent everywhere, and most of the paint is missing but still landed four in about 45 minutes tonight. I might have to retire this one in the next week and buy an identical replacement. Here's hoping it has the same squeak as my current one! If the buzzbait isn't working then this time of year either a weighted or unweighted T-rigged Senko is next on my list. If that fails I'll just wacky rig it and give that a try.

Very good. I have 3 or 4 Lew's baitcasters and the primary reel I use is the Mach II Speed Spool and it's been great. I really like the Winn grips. I needed Lew's customer service once for a rod issue and they went above and beyond to make sure I was satisfied. That being said, my next reel may be a Tatula just to see what all of the fuss is about.

When I see myself in a wide brimmed hat all I can think about is that I look like some sort of weird mushroom. Every wide brim hat I have tried is either too big or too small and none just right. I was in Dick's today to pick up some Senkos and tried a few hats on but I looked ridiculous. So for now I'll just use my Huk fishing cap and a gaiter for protection. Someday I'll find the right wide brim hat...

I was skeptical as well. I don't know about throwing on just any long sleeve shirt, but the Columbia PFG shirt that I have wicks away the moisture and it really does work. The only time I get any kind of sweat in the shirt is on my back when I'm wearing my backpack, and even then it's not completely drenched. Right now you can get the Columbia PFG shirts at Cabela's, Dick's, and BPS for around $30. They are normally $40-$45.

We don't wade in the water down here. But in a few weeks I'll be moving 3 hours NW and I won't have to worry about that anymore.

The other day I purchased one of those moisture wicking, UPF50 sun protection, long sleeve Columbia shirts and I've got to say it does make a difference out there in the heat. It does a good job with the moisture wicking, and despite the humidity and the 95 degree temperature at 5pm I didn't feel overheated. I was pleasantly surprised. I'm trying to get better about protecting myself in the sun, and although I still wore shorts I covered up with that shirt, gloves, hat, sunglasses, and a gaiter for my face and neck. I'll need to go and buy a few more of those shirts so I don't have to do laundry every day. Oh yeah - I also found the joy of Senko fishing once again. Lately I've done well on chatterbaits, poppers, spinnerbaits, and buzzbaits but last night after fishing them for an hour with no luck I tied on a t-rigged Senko and the action was ridiculous. I landed 5 all between 2 and 3.5 pounds in half an hour before it was time to head home. A little earlier in the evening I fished a smaller lagoon and to my surprise there were some gar meandering around in there. I couldn't get them to commit but they seemed to get pretty angry at my Teckel Sprinker Frog. I've never caught one before so I'll need to head back with some lighter tackle and see if I can land one. I have no idea what bait to use, but I'd guess grubs or small spinnerbaits might work.

I always find it amazing that people will just toss their trash anywhere. I'm no eco-warrior, but doing something like that doesn't even cross my mind.

At least with the hurricanes we have there is enough warning and we have time to get out. I was in the vicinity of a tornado once, in Crystal City (Arlington), VA of all places. IN the middle of the day the sky went pitch black. Not dark and gray mind you, but pitch black. Sensor driven parking lot and street lights came on. As it turns out, being in a city seemed to have helped as the tornado passed overhead instead of touching down. Still scary, though.

There are lots of stormwater ponds throughout those areas. Wherever you're at down there, break out Google Earth and see what's in your area. If the ponds are over 8-10 years old they'll be holding bass and probably some big ones at that.

Fishing the banks I use both short and long casts. When I'm fishing parallel to the shoreline it's always shorter casts because I don't want to hook up far away and then scare away every single bass hugging the shoreline cover as I reel in my catch. When casting away from the shore I'll just about always bomb a cast out there so I can cover a lot of water. There are exceptions when I'm casting to a target i.e. structure or baitfish boiling on the surface.