papajoe222

K.I.S.S. One box for plastics and terminal equipment and the other for your frogs, topwater, lipless cranks, etc. Don't concern yourself with color too much. With the soft plastics, you can bring along a jar or two of JJ's to change color if necessary. With the hard baits, go dark or bright. I find that too many choices have me switching out baits way too often and not working the water column with my confidence baits until I get bit.

Is anyone familiar with this lake that's SE of Bloomington? I'm looking for a lake down that way to take a friend fishing. We've been to Evergreen and I've fished Clinton before. Just want to try out someplace different. I believe it's located in a state recreation area just south of Ellsworth.

Looks like it's around 18in. What lake? Somewhere on the chain I'm guessing. What's the minimum? 18in.or 20in.?

My response is in the form of a question: If you’re fishing open water, why are you using a frog? Seriously, you get a much better hook up ratio using a Spook or a Sammy, they’re easier to walk and are better, IMO, at calling up fish than a frog. This time of year I have them both tied on. i choose my baits to fit the situation and don’t try to make a bait work in a situation where a different bait is better suited.

For that kind of money, I’d want a rod that serves a particular nitch in my cranking needs. What I look for in said rod may be completely different than what you’re looking for. So,What is it that you want the rod to do that your others don’t?

Will include him in mine for sure.

If you have another reel that will hold that much line, you could use it to take the braid off and then feed it back on under the tension of its drag. The downside would be line twist. There should be a way to avoid it, but other than taking the used spool the line came with, adding a spindle of some kind (a dowel rod perhaps), chucking it in a drill and spinning it off in the opposite direction is the only thought I have. Move the topic over to rods, reels and line forum and maybe you’ll get some ideas from there.

Cranks are great 'search' baits for areas you're unfamiliar with. They can tell you everything from bottom composition to where the depth changes, not to mention what types of cover and how high the vegetation grows off the bottom. The hardest part of not getting hung up or snagged is learning when your crank is approaching cover or vegetation. With wood and rocks or boulders you'll feel the line dragging over it before the bait actually comes in contact with them and you can work the crank over them with a slow,steady lift of your rod tip and a short pause when it bumps the cover (hang on because that's when you'll likely get bit). Vegetation is a little different, especially if you encounter it before your crank reaches maximum diving depth. Learn to slow down your retrieve speed once the bait reaches running depth. (It's much easier to concentrate on what's happening at the end of your line when you're not burning the reel's handle) If you feel it start to load up, stop reeling and allow the bait to rise a little before continuing. Once you establish how far down the weeds are you can switch to a crank that runs shallower or adjust the running depth by raising your rod tip.

If the fish are using the area, it's very likely they only occupy it when feeding. Try a number of different times throughout the day and night. If there's forage there and deeper water near by, there should be some feeding activity sometime. You just need to figure out when.

Sounds to me like 40lb. is more your comfort zone, especially as you mentioned filpping and frogging. The difference in line diameter is minimal. I personally use 30lb. on all but my froggin'/punchin' rod and have been for years.

I fish a small body of water (strip pit) and find that yes, catching is a little easier during mid week and at night. I've also found that the majority of big fish have, what I call, an internal feeding clock and stick to it throughout the summer. Once I figure that puzzle out, I plan my outings based on that time. Not that I don't pay attention to weather, the moon phase, etc. I just don't let it dictate when I go. That feeding period has more influence on my decision. That doesn't mean those are the only times I can catch them, only that they are most active then. Prime time for me on that body of water would be Wed. and Thurs. evenings from 7:00-10:00PM. I also like to stay out until just before sun-up under a new moon. Not a bunch of big bites then, but some great numbers.

This occurs a lot more often than you think. I fish water that you can see bottom in 20ft. and I regularly see fish take my bait only to have another attempt to steal it. Heck, I've even seen one fish spit out a crank, only to have another inhale it. There is a bounty of forage in that strip pit, so I don't believe it's from a shortage of food. I attribute it to the aggressive nature of the fish. When you read or hear of firing up a school of bass, more than likely this is the type of response that starts it off.

Put it on whatever rod can handle the bait \. The only thing you need to concern yourself with using that reel is your retrieve speed, but I like to work a swimbait slow,and that reel is ideal for that.

Some will with, slowly rising water, but that is more of a quick rising, murky water occurrence. The instability of the weather is going to affect fish positioning more so than the slowly rising water. Cover with deeper water nearby and deep water with some type structure is going go hold the majority of fish. Once the conditions stabilize, newly submerged cover in the vicinity of a known spot could see an influx of fish.

That first one answers a bunch of questions, not the least of which is; How active are they right now? If my bait got hammered, is deep in the fish's mouth, or the fish had to chase it down, that tells me a lot and I adjust accordingly. It also answers the depth question. From there on, where and how I catch another is how I develop a pattern. My problem is I rarely am focused enough to remember exactly what I was doing when I catch the first one (old age, you know) ? and have to catch a second to begin putting the puzzle together.

So I went out again today knowing that conditions had changed drastically. I only expected three or possibly four quality bites and I figured correctly. I was late pulling the trigger on two subtle pick ups on my C-rig, so I switched to a heavy Red Eye Shad and was rewarded with a solid 3lb.er that jumped and threw it. One for three. Switched to a swimbait on a 1/2 oz jig head and began popping it off the deep weeds I'd been targeting. BINGO A fat 19in. beauty hammered it and saved my day. Only hit .250 today, but I'll take a tater and three strike outs any day.

Change your tactics. You know those baits work there, but I'm guessing you fish them the same way the majority of the time. When that isn't working, I have Two suggestions; First, fish the entire water column. Top, Middle, Bottom before moving down the bank to a new spot. Second, when you get down to the bottom, let your bait sit on the bottom after you cast for at least a count of 30. Then give it a double pop off the bottom. If you don't get bit, reel in 20ft. or so, let it fall to the bottom and repeat. If the fish are active, you'll be catching them with a faster retrieve in the upper water column. If they aren't, and you're fishing the bottom, but too quickly, you won't get bit there either. Speed or lack of it and a change in direction, either by deflection or imparted by you, are the two biggest triggering factors you control. Experiment with them before you change baits, or move.

This is the part of fishing season I look forward to the most. I normally play the numbers game early in the season to get the winter hiatus out of my system. When June rolls around, I start concentrating on the big girls and so far, this June hasn't disappointed. For me, anything over 18in. I consider big. That puts 'em in the 4lb. range and around here, that's considered a quality fish. Prior to last night, I was at 14 fish at, or over that mark. I added six more last night including one 20in. that I weighed (5.6) as well as measured. That's SIX, IN ONE NIGHT! Needless to say, I didn't sleep well last night. Going out again in the morning with high expectations.

I recall a thread earlier this year about what presentation we planed on giving a try, or revisiting, this season. My response was something to the effect of swim baits and Flukes. Well, I'm halfway there as I've gotten hooked on soft plastic swim baits and totally ignored Flukes. Heck, I haven't put the Fluke box in the boat let alone tied one on. So, how has your 'plan' worked out for you, or like me did your ADD get the best of you?

I have three Sols and love them for the light stuff. In fact, one sits atop my shallow cranking rod. I also have a ProLite that I use regularly for smaller topwaters and occasional shallow crank. If you can find one, it'll serve you well. This could also serve your needs and possibly your budget too.....https://www.cabelas.com/product/fishing/fishing-reels/casting-reels/pc/104793480/c/104760180/sc/104259780/lews-laser-pro-speed-spool-casting-reel/2435981.uts?slotId=0

Frame and gearing are way down the list when it comes to choosing a frogging combo. Rod and line are your biggest concerns. Use whichever reel you have the confidence in. I've been using a 6.3:1 geared reel for decades. an extra 6in. of line per handle turn isn't going to get me bit more or less and if I can't get them out of cover with that gearing, I doubt I would with the other.

The biggest reason to up size is because you're missing fish. They strike your crank and you don't hook 'em. Adding a bigger treble will expose the hook points farther out from the bait and increase the chances of one connecting. There are two inherent downsides, IMO, to doing this. The first has already been mentioned, the second is the increased risk of snagging cover, especially wood. Some cranks will roll on their side when pulled over a limb and that bonus of hooking up applies here too. If fish are swiping at your crank, often times a change in size or color will get them to commit. If I catch more than one fish on the tail treble, the first thing I do is change baits because I may have missed fish I didn't even know showed interest.

What you've been encountering is typical of bass fishing. Conditions change and those changes affect the what and where when it comes to the fish. Another thing to keep in mind is that these changes can occur in the same day and often times do. Many anglers have difficulty adjusting to them. They've been catching on Bait XYZ from the north bank and the wind changes direction, or the clouds clear, or some other influencing factor, but they continue to fish the north bank with the same lures. When you're catching 'em, take note of the conditions around you and the next time they present themselves you will likely be able to reproduce your success. When you aren't catching, what's different? Will the difference drastically change their location, or just position them tighter to cover where they were. You'll either need to change locations, or present something within that smaller strike window that will get you bit. It's a generalization, but one that applies the majority of the time. There are situations where a change in color or lure can get you back to catching, but it sounds like you're talking one outing vs. another, not all in the same day.

A hair jig. Sometimes I'll even suspend them under a float and if it's a really tough bite, I'll add a minnow.

Two good pieces of advice, especially using tackle up to the task. Hooking and having a fish of that caliber break off does both you and the fish an injustice. You, because you were up to the challenge of getting it to bite only to loose it. the fish, because you’ve put it in danger of not surviving the ordeal. Any line still attached to the lure could become entangled in the cover trapping the fish from escape, resulting in its death. Be prepared and good luck. BTW, bring a camera. We’ll want to see some pics.