Fishlegs

Lipless is one of my favorite lures. I use several different ones depending on the situation. Here is how I usually decide which lipless to use: If I want a slow, fluttering fall...Red Eye Shad. If I want to fish deeper, and need strong, sharp hooks...6th Sense. If I want a unique color/shape...Spro Aruku Shad. If I want a subtle presentation for highly pressured fish...the Yo-Zuri Vibe. It is compact, and looks very realistic in the water. I have thrown this one behind someone else using a more popular lipless and caught fish that they did not. If I'm around grass, or I have one chance to entice a big fish...the Booyah (formerly Xcaliber) is the one I always reach for. I don't catch as many fish with this lure as I do with the others, but it seems to entice more big bites than any other lipless for me. Another category I have is "cheap". My two favorite cheap lipless brands are H2OX, and Ozark Trail. They both catch fish, and I can throw them in riskier places because it does not cost much if I lose them. They are readily available at Academy Sports, and Walmart, and cost very little. The Ozark Trail definitely feels the cheapest, but it only cost around $2, and it catches fish. If I could only choose one brand (bait monkey says, no chance) I might choose the H2OX because it is a good lure at a fair price. It works in most of the situations listed above, just not quite as well as the ones listed. They are limited in colors compared to other brands, but they have the basic colors. Also, H2OX lures are surprisingly well built for a $5 lure that goes on sale fairly regularly.

I had to wait in line to back the boat in at a three wide ramp Monday morning. Still a ton of people fishing here. Seemed like there were 1,000 boats on the river all day.

Because of all the veterans who have served our country over the years, people like me have the freedom to fish. So, thank you to all veterans. You have my sincere gratitude. We started out the day fishing bluff walls. My friend quickly caught the first fish. It was a pretty smallmouth on a lure I wasn't familiar with called a "snagless sally". It's a single hook, inline spinner with a weed guard. The bait monkey has been reminding me all day that I do not have one. I caught the second smallmouth a few minutes later so we thought we were going to be in for a big day, but it turned into a fishless grind for the next few hours. We tried spots other than bluffs, but had no bites so we went back to the bluffs. I got a quick hit, but missed the fish so we made another pass. I caught a smallmouth on the second pass so we decided to try it one more time. This time I hooked a good one. I fought it to the boat. I told my friend to get the net. By this time the wind and current had pushed us right up against the bluff. With nowhere to go the fish swam under the boat to the other side. We could hear it thudding heavily under the boat. Before I could get my line around to the other side the fish broke my line. I checked my drag afterward, but it was fine so I guess it cut the line on the boat. I lost a nice fish, and learned not to let the boat get so close to the wall while fighting a fish. By this time the wind, and the wake from all the other boats was wearing me out. We left to look for calmer waters. We decided that the lock must be closed because barges were parked everywhere so we decided to try the barge canal. The number of shad in the canal was insane. We caught a couple more small largemouth, and then I hooked the best fish (that was landed) of the day. Strike King Rage Menace for the win. We caught 3 smallmouth, and 5 largemouth on the day. It was a grind, but a great day.

Well said. Those of us who feel this are the ones who keep striving toward peak.

I hope @T-Billy keeps posting pictures of the monsters he catches regardless of whether it's caught using live bait, a home made lure, or horse poop. I love seeing them!

Something like a Daiwa Revros or Diawa Legalis reel in the $50-60 range paired with a 2 piece Diawa Aird-X spinning rod in the $50 range should handle pretty much anything he's likely to catch on the TN River. Those can be easily found on Amazon, or local retailers. If he likes it, and wants something bigger/better down the road you can get it. If he doesn't, then you haven't wasted much money, and still have a decent setup you can use yourself. Good luck! I hope y'all catch some nice fish.

How do you fish it? I've caught a few fish with them, but haven't had that type of experience. Maybe I'm not doing it right.

30 fish in 2 1/2 hours is a mighty fine time. Congrats! I hope you get another day just like it next week.

It's a good thing that he's a good dude with a sense of humor because we all give him a hard time about spinnerbaits! 🤣

I’m not buying it either. @TnRiver46 has either been hacked, or there has been a glitch in the matrix. 😂

@TnRiver46 I thought we'd see some effect from the water y'all had, but we really haven't seen very much. At least, not that I've noticed. I guess it has a lot of room to spread out in Chickamauga, and Guntersville before it gets here.

This is true for many of life's special moments. The words may not come, but the feelings never leave. Hold tight through the winter, and I hope to see Y'ALL back on the water in 2025.

On my way home from work yesterday I realized that it would most likely be the last time I could fish after work because the days are getting shorter, and daylight savings time is about to end. When I got to my spot I only had about 30 min of fishing time, but it was time well spent. I caught two fish. The first was a 4 lb 1 oz largemouth. Apparently, it’s spinnerbait time on the TN river. It mangled my lure. I managed to straighten it out, and catch a second fish three casts later. A short, but very chunky largemouth around 2 lbs (no pic). I’ve caught quite a few fish on this spinnerbait, but I don’t think it has much life left in it. I will definitely get a replacement.

Looks like you had a good 2024 season. Hope 2025 will be as good, or better for you.

Thanks for letting us share your trips. Your reports always make for great reading, and your surrounding landscape pictures are stunning.

A bent rod under a double rainbow on a beautiful river? What a picture! I hate that you weren't able to land the big one, but thanks for sharing.

Happens on my end of the river too. Especially in the creeks and coves. I have caught them using a lure that falls through like @TnRiver46 said, and using fast lures like @Pat Brown said. You just have to try everything until something works. Some days every lure you throw will be like a McDonald's burger in an all you can eat seafood buffet...not going to get touched.

Too many pics? Ha! No such thing, my friend! Post ‘em if you got ‘em! Congrats on such a day!

Thanks for sharing @A-Jay. Always enjoy your videos.

56 bass? She's hitting them like Lawrence Taylor!

Beautiful fish!

Good luck, young man! This forum is a great place to learn. Lots of good info, and people who are willing to answer questions. I fell in love with bass fishing around your age, and I'm still loving it.

Got to fish the other day for the first time in a while. We caught 12. All dinks except for this chunky 4 lb 6 oz smallie.

Great news! Hoping her improvement continues.