RenzokukenFisher

In the same boat currently but with a torn hamstring. Haven't had the Yak out since June and may not be able to get out until May or June of next year! Hamstring injuries are super finicky, think they are just about healed and next thing you know your down and out for a few months. On the bright side I caught a PB this year and that catch in itself taught me alot about how big fish work. Overall, I learned how important is is to listen to that gut instict that kicks in when you're out on the water. If you just get a gut feeling to hit a laydown or something on your way switching between spots, do it. Going to heal strong and stay positive so I can go enjoy this beautiful sport. This time off has taught me to be grateful for the limited time most of us have out on the water.

Maybe a Cormorant? Those things sound pretty spooky when they do their deep calls. Would never expect a noise like that to come from a bird.

Personally the second I stopped taking time feeling the fish and just set the hook imediately is when my hook up percentage jumped. Waiting and reeling down to the fish and whatnot just didnt work for my style of fishing I guess. The second there is a thump, a tug, a tension go straight back and hook em. I think bass commitment just comes from the conditions of the day. If the bass can feel advantageous in their feeding they will hit more consistently. If the conditions dont suit their feeding they may be a bit more cautious.

Biggest fish of the year and a PB for me caught back in February. Came in at an even 8lbs. Knocked a foot of slack in the line between my reel and the first guide when it hit. Second biggest of the year caught in April coming in at 5lbs 5oz. Unfortunately I threw out my back once and strained my hamstring twice this year which pretty much ended my fishing season early May. Going to heal strong so I can hit next year hard!

I reeled in a 18.22 on my kayak out on the CA delta, made about 3 strong runs before I could net her! ... then my alarm clock went off

Anyone have accidental dead-sticking stories? I'm sure this is familiar for some, Today I was out bank fishing at my favorite local pond on a slick calm day and blue bird skies. After messing around trying to force the fish into eating a burned lipless I decided to fit the conditions a bit more and began chucking around a Texas rigged Senko. Despite my best efforts, hopping, dragging, and dropping into pockets of cover wasn't getting me anywhere. Eventually I launched out the Senko to reach a distant weed line and got a backlash instead. Took my time picking out the backlash, checked my phone right afterwards since I was getting a bit bored after 3hrs of no bites, even shuffled around on the bank a little to get a better position for the next cast. Once I came back to attention I lifted my rod tip up and felt the signature weight of a fish munching on my Senko. Was a bit out of my groove though and was playing feels with the fish too long so I got to feel the signature headshake of my Senko flying out of the mouth of a big bass, Dang it! Tried making a pattern out dead-sticking the rest of the day with no luck. I'll get on em next time.

Looks like a betta bass crossover ???

Strong and heavy gear is the way to go. I've fished many bank spots with massive weed mats and occasionally its a gamble whether or not you'll get the fish out. To put the odds in your favor opt for a MH and up rod with a good backbone paired with a sturdy reel. When I've been in those situations I hit the fish hard on the hookset and get them coming up and towards me with no stopping. It may be a little less sportsman like but you have to do what you have to do. I've winched in some 4-6 pounders this way, they usually eat near the edge of the weed mat, you hit them hard and get their head coming towards the surface, then its about just holding the rod tip high and pumping them up and over the mats. No need to break the fishes jaw but keep them coming and don't give them the chance to dig.

Nice meeting you! NorCal really is a beautiful place. Expansive forests and both natural lakes and reservoirs. Fishing is pretty darn good!

So recently I learned higher gear ratio reels such as the ones in the 8:1+ range can take up line very quickly but they begin to lose cranking power the higher the ratio. This made me wonder if a 7:1 gear ratio would work better than an 8:1 for punching and getting fish out of tangled salad. On the other hand maybe its the rods job to get thw fish out and not the reel, Im new to this technique.

That would be pretty great. I'm sure it would be possible to get a group together to meet at Clearlake or something one of these days.

Good to be here. Man I've gone on the delta twice so far with my Yak and all I can say is that fishery is a whole nother animal! Miles of rivers and sloughs with powerful tides and the gnarliest cover possible. Can't wait to get out there again and hopefully stick a big.

I've been a member of this site for a few months now and only now realized I never introduced myself. Hi! My name is Elias, 21, and I've only been fishing for about 2 years outside of the occasional trout or bass fishing trip with my Grandpa when I was younger. I was always an athlete growing up but I sustained a nasty hamstring injury which cut my time on the field short. Fortunately, this injury led me to pick up fishing and now it has become a huge element in my life and I learn new life lessons each time I'm out on the water. Largemouth are the main species I target but hooking into panfish has recently been taking up a good amount of fishing time. When not at school, work, or with family and friends, I'm on the bank or in my Yak. After being on the site for a few months I've found so much progress in my fishing with both quantity and size increasing. It's been a joy seeing all the good people and interesting conversations on this site. Looking forward to hearing more from you all in the Future! - Elias Kruse

Day in and day out it has to be a jig! Catches bigger-than-average fish and it can be fished in almost limitless ways. Bottom hop it, swim it, stroke it, flip it, pitch it, punch it, finnesee it, etc. A jig also seems to be a lure you can really catch fish on at anytime since you can adjust its size, trailer, and color to the conditions present. Not only that but with a sharp hook and a good hookset, seldom a fish will come off. Honorable mentions: weightless fluke, spinnerbait, chatterbait, t-rig plastic.

Okay that makes sense. I'll go ahead and give a shot with the expride then. Thanks! I'll throw a long mono leader on there so hopefully that would help some but I agree it seems a bit stiff for treble baits. For now I'll just send it! Thank you.

I wanted to get into some swimbait fishing so I bought 2 R2S S-waver 168s to get started. I dont want to commit to a whole swimbait setup yet so I was wondering which of my current baitcast rods would best suit the 168? 1. Shimano Expride 7'3 XH fast action. 2. St. Croix premier 7'0 MH fast action. 3. Irod Genisis 7'2 MH moderate fast. All rods will be used with braid. Thank you for the help.

Without out a doubt a guided trip on lake Baccarac! Once I finish college and get settled into my career the opportunity will hopefully open up and I'll head on out there.

Gotta take it apart and clean it. Find out the drag system used on that model of reel and check out the components as you clean and take it apart. It will be very helpful to find the blueprint to that reel as you take it apart to keep track of the process and find where things are going wrong. There could be something broken or maybe it is just missing a spacer. If all else fails send it to a reel technician and they can help out. Luckily its summer so there probably won't be as many reels in the shop as in winter so it probably won't take too long to get fixed. Goodluck!

Darn I will keep it in mind to never swim those baits through cover

What are some soft plastics you guys reccomend swimming or using like a jerkbait other than ones designed for that purpose? I'm sure some of that info is classified so I dont want to be asking too much hahha. Just trying to break the mold a bit in my fishing and try new things. Ex: using a brush hog weightless and using it like a fluke, if that even works.

How is the pflueger president? I've been looking to get a nice ultralight setup for panfishing and was looking at the president. Would it be a solid reel you think?

I've been lucky enough (and just haven't fished long enough yet) to not have any equipment failures with pricey gear like rods, reels, watercraft etc., but for some time I had the curse of not setting drag on the first hookset. In the excitement of getting on the water I forgot to set my drag multiple times and it would usually result in a painful sounding "szzzzz" on the hookset followed by 2 or 3 handshakes from the fish and "poof", they're gone. Nowadays I set my drag at the launch pretty much religiously lol

Hahaha heck yea they really put up a fight on UL! Gillzillas, I'm gonna need to start using that one ?

I was feeling a bit under the weather yesterday so I figured I'd set aside the flipping stick and go have some fun with panfish on ultralight. Got my $25 Daiwa combo set up with a small slip bobber, a split shot, size 8 bait hook, and some mini nightcrawlers to top it off. Found a huge bedding area and was able to fish that single spot for about 5 hours with almost every fish being 8+ inches. Ended up catching my PB Shellcracker at 9 3/4 inches, forgot to take a picture, and my PB bluegill at 9 inches, the one facing "up". I guess fishing really is medicine because when I got home my cold was gone!

Location all day long! Fish congregate to certain areas based on structure, cover, season, lighting, etc. Taking these into account helps us anglers locate fish attracting locations. Some places plain dont have the necessary features to support life so fish won't be there. Meaning the "right" lure won't work with fish that aren't present. I firmly believe, within reason, you can throw just about anything as long as it matches the conditions presented and ensuring the lure is worked properly. It's all about the presentation itself. One angler will catch them on a spinnerbait in submerged wood, one on a crankbait, and one on a jig. Lure selection is less important than location I believe, confidence and presentation of that lure is where its important.