papajoe222

Thanks. I just checked on Rock Run Rookery and I know the park is open, but not sure about the lake for fishing.

I don't know who's more confused, me, or the fish. Four hours trying to figure them out. Surface temp. went down again this time from 56 to 54. Second time in five days it's gon up only to come back down. Water level went up after the rain on Wed. The only fish I was able to get a hook into was belly down on the bottom and I think I hit it on the head with my jig, or she never would have bit. Normally, when water temps hit the mid 50s, the fish start moving, but that isn't happening. Hopefully this warming trend over the next few days will get them up off their behinds for good.

Am I correct? Are the state operated lakes open as of today, May,1st? Are Braidwood and the lakes of Mazonia considered part of that group? The DNR site doesn"t list either one as open.

I teach kids how to detect bites by watching their line and a high visibility braid is what I have for them to use. I tie on a shorter leader than most guys use, I'm getting back to using it for my own fishing as my eyesight isn't as good as it once was.

If you're a decent jig/worm fisherman, you know how to count down the depth of the water. So, although a depth finder makes finding bottom structure simple, you can get along without one. I did for the first 15years I owned a boat. It'll make you a better jig and soft plastics fisherman, too. Not only will counting down that jig become as automatic as driving a car does, you'll learn the different feel of a soft or hard bottom, brush, weeds etc.

There are only two hard baits that I know will consistently call bass from a distance, only because I've seen it over and over. A jerkbait and a Zara Spook. Personally, I believe it's that ability, more so than the erratic action and flash, that make it such an awesome early season bait. Then again, maybe it's the erratic action and flash that give it the ability. I'll have to contemplate on that and get back to you.

water temp. has everything to do with early spring/spawn fishing up north. Surface temp. was 56 the only outing I had any action. It actually dropped to 53 the next day and, even though I switched up presentations and depth, nothing. A lot of what we see and read is geared to fishing reservoirs and when we see things about using such and such baits NOW for pre-spawn bass, just won't work until the entire water column warms into the 50"s. If you have a pet, winter presentation, stick with it until it stops producing. That's when the fish will have started moving.

I have a rod built on the 843 and love it. You are correct, though, there isn't a whole lot of difference between the two. Whichever you decide on, play around a little with placement of the reel seat. I mounted mine about an inch forward of where I did on an L843 made a world of difference balance wise.

Looking to build the grandson a rod, but having difficulty finding components? Anyone know of a supplier that has blanks or kits available?

I would venture to say that half of the fish I catch on buzzers come after the first cast to a piece of cover, normally the second or third, but there have been times when it was the sixth or seventh. Throw it over and over then wait a minute or so and throw it again. If there's a bass there, she's gonna get pi$$d and clobber that thing. Hart makes a buzzer that's both a fish catcher and a good value. I wish they made an in-line version.

I’m lazy. Lately I’ve been using snaps for many lure attachments. I’ll give the knot and the line above a quick glance when switching out lures, but very rarely retie. No zebra muscles, deadfalls, or rip rap in my home waters.

Now that’s a valid response. I rarely use spinning gear and this didn’t cross my mind.

Most anglers get hooked in one of three ways: Another angler hits them with their lure, a fish head shakes as you attempt to land, or unhook it and in an attempt to free a lure, it slingshots back at the angler. The first can be avoided by issuing a warning to your fishing partner prior to the first cast. 'If you value the family jewels, don't hit me with your lure," works well. Don't hand land bass by reaching into their mouth to lip them. No net, firmly grab the lure and lift. Better yet, for both you and the fish, unhook them while they're still in the water. You're going to let her go anyway, right? Lastly, don't pull on your line, with your rod, or by hand, in an attempt to free a snag. If the lure suddenly frees itself, it'll shoot straight back in the direction you're pulling (at you). Mono and fluorocarbon make this worse as they stretch and act like a rubber band when it happens.

A few seasons ago, I jumped on the 'braid to fluorocarbon leader' band wagon. I really can't say that my strike ratio has increased, but in the super clear water pits I frequent, I'll take any advantage I can. My question is about leader length. The majority of my leaders are around two feet in length and I don't reel the knot into the rod guides as I've seen many do. The main reason I go with short leader is to take advantage of the 'invisibility' of the fluorocarbon and still maintain the added sensitivity of the braid. Also, if I were to go to a 10-12ft. leader as some pros suggest for pitching, what is the point of using braid to begin with? Why not just use straight fluorocarbon? Even when using a fluorocarbon leader because of its abrasion resistance, what is the advantage of a long, to me, leader? Yea, you don't need to retie another leader on after changing baits, or cutting and retying, but how long does it take to tie another knot? Your thoughts and reasons for the leader length you use.

Kalin's, hands down for me. Use them as a trailer for spinnerbaits, jigs and just fish them as a grub on a lead head.

For me, it's finesse fishing in general. Although I do use many of the techniques on occasion, hard baits are my primary weapons and I stick with them way too long, to often, when they aren't producing and I am certain the area holds fish. The other thing is also a change of mindset that centers around targeting big fish. I enjoy catching numbers as much as anyone, but have gone to concentrating on big fish. Although rewarding, it's time consuming and I'm no spring chicken.

I tie two different patterns, shad and craw. For the shad pattern, brown/white or straight white are my favorites. For the craw pattern, I really don’t have a favorite. For pre to post spawn, I like something with orange on the underside. During the summer and fall, just about anything, but I tie a lot of black/brown and black/red, or chartreuse.

I had a day a few years ago when I started out the day tossing a new RES. Over the course of the morning I boated a few using it, but noticed the paint peeling. Not wanting to waste time changing out to a different bait, I kept tossing it and it kept catching fish. I still use that bait and one eye and most of the paint is gone. I have two other RES with paint missing and they have never produced for me.........?

I've found that wrapping the leader line around the braid prevents this,but I don't use that knot any more. Here is a very simple and quick to tie leader knot

Pull pin and twist side plate up (clockwise) then pull outward. Reverse steps to replace it. I was a little late with this response. Glad to hear you figured it out. Now get out there and do something about that wave runner!

They are sitting on or close to the rocks because the rocks hold the heat of the sun longer than wood, or weeds. Most likely on the days you didn’t see them, it was overcast, or early in the day before the rocks warmed sufficiently. That drop to deeper water combined with the rocky shore will be a good summertime spot. Early in the year and during the actual spawn, it isn’t unusual for bass to ignore your presentations. Hang in there. Things will pick up.

I'll echo what's already been said. One type of lure/presentation will rarely be productive all the time. Two days ago, lipless cranks yo-yoed of a hard bottom put fish on. Today, a bulky jig/trailer pitched to shallow cover was the only thing that produced. You have a lot of options when it comes to fishing cranks. The bill style, running depth, flat side or egg shaped, balsa or plastic, there are so many options that one will likely produce if presented how and where the fish are and want it. Glen likes to say: "Don't fish history" Use it as a starting point, but abandon it if it doesn't produce..

First off, Welcome. When fishing deep, as with fishing from the bank, there are many factors that you take into consideration when deciding what lure and presentation to use. The first is depth, you want to use something that will get down to the depth you plan to target. Water clarity is another consideration as that factor can point you in the direction of what color to use. Water temp. will influence what presentation to begin with and last, but not least is what season you'll be fishing as that will point you in the right direction for location and bait size. All these factors and more, will help you to determine what to fish with. What is working for me now, is useless information for you because the chances of all those influences being the same for you are very slim.

The shallow end is going to warm more quickly than that deep clear end Depending on the size of the lake, there could be a significant difference until things even out. If that shallow water is on the north, or east end of the lake, all the better. Areas protected from wind and wave action, ditto. This applies to fishing now. Once the fish start looking for places to spawn, they'll abandon muck bottom areas unless that is the only bottom content available. After the spawn through the summer, those clear rocks could be a prime area, but I have no experience with them.

There is very little, published information about fishing pits and quarries, but there are some similarities to other bodies of water. You can do a search here for strip pits, or quarries. You can also check out info on bluffs and drop-offs (ledges). One characteristic common to both is the machinery access area that will have a slower taper and, or a stair step access to the deeper areas. The strip pits I’ve fished have areas where unusable substrate was dumped within the pit that adds another structural component.