roadwarrior

That's a nice bass. I don't know why the tail would be red, but largemouth bass only spawn once a year.

If you guys will buy a rubber net you wont't need to take the bass out of the water except for a quick weigh and/or picture. Fish and lures do not get caught up in the net. You can remove hooks, measure the fish if you like and release it without touching any more than the lips. A rubber net is the most fish friendly piece of equipment you can buy.

Welcome aboard! It is very difficult to estimate weight from a picture, sometimes they look smaller, sometimes bigger than they really are. That said, I'm pretty much in agreement with most of the respondants, either side of 3 lbs.

Falling water levels on what is effectively a "river" always shuts off the bite. Rising water, especially with current, stirs the bottom, activates the plankton which stimulates the baitfish and alerts the predatores that it's dinner time. So, that's when you're gonna catch 'em!

Be careful eating those armadillo. Over the past several decades armadillio have been moving further north and are now quite common in the Mid South. This was of some concern to a lot of people, including my wife. I seems this animal is a carrier of leprosy. Although this is technically true, the only way humans contract the disease from this animal in by undercooking the meat. So, next time you scrape and armadillo off the highway, be sure to grill in thoroughly and serve it up "medium" or "medium rare", but stay away from "rare". p.s. An orange sauce, wild rice and a dry Merlot really make the meal.

Welcome aboard!

I stand 90% of the time. I don't really like to sit when I'm fishing, but gotta have a break once in awhile. When I'm trout fishing on the White River there is no option but to sit, so we spend a few minutes every hour just getting out to stretch.

"crawfish" you eat "crawdads" are what you fish with

Welcome aboard!

A friend of mine in Houston told me they had three seasons : July, August and summer.

Well, big bass are special and come along with bragging rights that just aren't attached to even monster striper. But, you're already there! I think stripers are more fun to catch and if you can get into some size, hold on. If they jumped I would consider a striper the perfect fish, especially on freshwater equipment. I still rate them a solid 9.

the_muddy_man, I'm with you, but I ALWAYS want them to jump!

You can catch smallmouth anytime of day or night. In the South, fishing is much better at night during the summer, that's when most of the smallies are caught on the big name reserviors, Dale Hollow for example. Low light is probably better for topwater and jerkbaits, much like largemouth fishing.

I want the bass, especially really big bass, to jump. That's the most exciting part of the fight for me. If you want to catch big smallmouth, line diameter and visibility matter. If you fish the way Fish Chris does with his big largemouth, you probably won't get the bite from smallies and your chances of landing the bass are slim. I have never caught a smallmouth that hasn't take another run at the boat. If you horse these fish there is a high probability that you will rip the hook out of their mouth. To land trophy smallmouth you maintain a tight line and reel when you can. Patience is a virtue. Smallmouth don't give up. You need a net, a rubber net.

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard!

I can go either way, I like them both: "Good ole bigun's or big ole goodun's"

It's about how you fish soft plastics. That's not how I do it at all. I want my soft plastic to look like a crawdad crawling over a rock. This involves a HORIZONTAL 6"-12" sweep, not a vertical hop.

I agree with Valascus, Color is not that important, but I like "dark". NEVER set the hook twice.

Well George, I'm glad you didn't make this your first post on the other thread because we wouldn't have been able to have an extended discussion! (Which for the most part I found very interesting and informative). This list is great. Thank you.

Matt Fly, Agreed. I didn't mean to imply that I never change my presentation or lure for that matter. I mostly fish soft plastics, especially this time of year, but the bass sometimes prefer one profile over another. I basically fish Senkos, Fat Ika and tubes with identical presentations: slow, 6-12" sweeps. With a tube I sometimes try an elongated hop. In deeper water, I always fish a weighted bait which for me usually means a worm or tube. There is nothing "unconventional" about this approach. What I was thinking, and maybe the point of your post, was that I don't switch to topwater in the middle of the day or fish a pink lizard! Now, I'm not saying those won't ever work for other fishermen, just that this isn't the way I fish.

"The Experiment" was suppose to run through September, but I think today will be the end. I will have a detailed report this weekend.

Well, that's a horse of a different color. We have rules, too: "When you go brown, you go down." (Brown means ALL hard liquor, not just whiskey) Like John Daley says,"Beer don't count." On topic: Some days don't work. We pay our guides for full days, but when we have had enough, we're out of there! That's another good reason to keep some whiskey at the house.

Never. Nope, I'm not kidding, never. If I'm not catching fish, the fish aren't biting. That happens occasionally, but not often. The chances of catching fish, even when it's slow, is much better if you maintain focus and fish the way the you know consistantly works. As an example, last weekend I fished a local pond that is very productive for me, but fishing was slow. I fished a Micro Munch Tackle jig with a GYCB Fat Baby Craw for ten hours, on and off, both days. I only got three bites, but I caught three very nice bass. That's what I'm talkin' 'bout!

"On my boat alcoholic beverages are not allowed." Wassup with that? Just kidding, George. I think that might be my rule too if I were guiding. I'm not guiding. I think this thread has opened up a lot of thinking as to what guides actually "do", how they approach their business, what you should be looking for and expect from a guide, and some questions YOU need to address. I fish, for the most part, with guides that me and/or my friends have been fishing with for literally decades. If you can find the right guide, he will make every day memorable, regardless of the fish you catch. Good luck! BTW, If you fish the White River, Mississippi River, Tennessee River or the associated reserviors in this region, I will be glad to refer you to my guides. (Alcoholic beverages and tobacco products allowed.)