thediscochef

Went pondhopping yesterday with a buddy and then to the Elm Fork of the Trinity below Ray Roberts. Two 1.5lb ish bass early on the banks of a lesser fished city pond, my biggest two at that pond of the 6 or 7 times I've fished it. Pictures below are those two. After that there was a dink, then nothing till the river. Got a bluegill, a small drum, and a decent longnose gar all on the chatterbait micro. Not a day to write home about but any day catching is a good day. Got skunked tonight at the state park but sometimes that happens. I at least got to go.

It's been really slow lately - I spent 9 hours at Possum Kingdom yesterday and got skunked. Today I tied my best bass of the year with a 5.8 at Ray Roberts. I also caught maybe the smallest fish of the year. I would have stayed later but I like to end on a high note.

probably thinks he needs a raise LOL

Nice longnose! They're a ton of fun when they actually stay hooked, which is tough given how frickin boney and leathery the snout can be. They put on a show, too

It's been a really tough week, one of my oldest and closest friends passed away suddenly on Wednesday. So I fish, like I always do. Managed a 5.2, 3.5, a couple 1-2, and a couple tiny 6-8" fish including a smallmouth. Hands are all bit and cut up from hooks and bass lips. That 3.5 was maybe the angriest bass I can remember catching in a while. The 5.2 was extremely well behaved by contrast.

Night bassin is the thing right now, which is fine with me considering it's been over 100 degrees for a few days. Not a whole lot biting, but I have had a few quality fish in the last week. 4.1lbs tonight. Yee haw.

I night fish at a state park boat ramp, it's well lit but not enough to ruin my night vision. Just enough to where I can re-tie and see what I'm doing after about 30 minutes. My two best bass at that lake have been after 10PM, but it's not always guaranteed. I fish there enough that I know where the problem areas are, and can effectively avoid them at night. So to answer your question, it's best if you find a place where you can get comfortable and not be concerned about not seeing anything.

H2OXpress Ultimate Jerk Shad Strike King Red Eye Shad Chatterbait Minimax 1/4oz Zoom The Fluke Zoom Baby Brush Hog Zman finesse shadz Moon Eyes; 1/32oz, 1/8oz T-Rig/C-Rig tackle 1/4-1/2oz Culprit 7" Fat Max BPS tender tube system, 1/16oz I can catch something most of the time with one of those ten nice thread

I much prefer the clear lakes, my catch rates have generally been higher there though my bigger fish have been at 4-6'. My favorite lakes here are on the Brazos, and tend to be 10+ feet in most places. I find that more things can be effective since they're more visible. Makes it harder to fine tune what works sometimes, but when you do it's tremendous.

Jealous of you clear water guys. I'm happy to get 6 feet from the bank at Ray roberts

Ranger Toyota or Ford Garmin I need boat + truck + livescope more than I'd ever need rod/reel/bait stuff, that's all cheap. but since that was the prompt, H2OXpress rods Lew's reels Strike king baits I use more H2Oxpress baits than anything, but I spend the most on Red Eye Shads cause I'm losing them regularly. Plus strike king has so many different things going on; hard plastics, soft plastics, line, jigheads, pick a thing really.

I'm still barely a year and some change into this, but I think 'normal' is kind of a moving target. I'd say that I have four or so bait styles that I have the utmost confidence in (lipless, 110 JB, CB skirted and unskirted), but I throw each of them in many different colors depending on the time of day, time of year, location, and water clarity. @Trox knows, he's seen the jerkbait box lol

Went night fishing with a red eye shad. Got a 5.5 and a 3.1. By weight this suddenly becomes one of my best days all year and my second biggest bass of 2022. I got pooped on by a tiny spotted bass, and I'd almost lost the clippers that belonged to my dad, searched through the rock pile to find em. Then a guy came and casted me down after I caught the 3.1. Not even 5 minutes after he left, 5.5 crushes the RES literally right where he was standing. I like to leave on a high note. What a night. I'm very happy.

First fish over 3lbs in weeks. She had a short tail that was bleeding pretty good, have to wonder what happened there. Inhaled my chatterbait hard, no chance she was coming loose. For being injured she sure was fat. Only one I got today in about 5 hours of throwing all over the lake. It's a heat index of 104 right now and I'm in my car cooling off, the rockpile was getting to be a bit much. Been a rough few weeks, this always brings a smile to my face.

I've hit a pretty strong drought here and life is getting me pretty good. Hence my absence. This is the most notable fish I've hooked in weeks, simply for the ridiculousness of this image. I've had a handful of little 10-14" bass, but I've been either unable to find anything bigger or I'm just not moving things the right way. Having a tough time figuring it out. There's also been at least two tournaments on ray roberts in the last week, which is probably not helping. I'd go somewhere else - but I haven't worked in a while and gas is ridiculous. Looking forward to better days

Definitely the most profitable day of fishing I've ever had ??

The most money I've ever made while fishing! Found this dollar on the bank and caught the bass on the next cast. I'll make sure to not spend it all on one lure ? Just haven't caught much of anything to write home about lately (not that it's stopped me before LOL). I did catch a pretty sizeable Redbreast Sunfish on a 4" jerkbait which was neat. Hooked into a couple good stripers but they got away. Hopefully I find something decent soon

Haven't had a lot of time lately to go fishing, the bass action has been like watching paint dry. Caught this fat little pound and a quarter crappie. We had a massive temp fluctuation last week and it had the bite patterns all messed up. Any time I'm catching this many white bass and smallmouth from usual spot/lmb shore, it usually means conditions are a little off in the lake. Been in the studio all weekend, memorial day has the lakes full anyway. Mid-week to possum kingdom or Whitney for some faster clear-water action.

Didn't realize I had 20 more minutes to spare so here's a scrawny but healthy looking 3lb fish

Had a couple little 6-8" guys hit the 110-sized bait I had tied on today before I got this fatty. Nothing huge, probably 2-2.25lbs, but look at that belly

That draw of the unknown is a very powerful thing

A learned one appears! That sounds like it could be used in some interesting ways. I've always wanted to get a carp and act like I'm fighting it out of a mud puddle downtown while people are walking by...

Depending on the stage of decomposition, it could be bacterial byproducts of that process. May also be an air bladder that remains full because the muscles froze during death. Do bass get rigor mortis? I don't know. Someone more learned probably does ?‍♂️

They can be sharp as a knife when they're alive or freshly dead which can be dangerous for swimmers and fishing line etc, though they do calcify over time and lose their edge. The main problem is clogged pipes and reduced plankton/algae that other filter feeding fish rely on. Which can affect bass forage. Doesn't seem to be affecting forage at Ivie LOL. Or at Ray Roberts. But maybe in some years. They also can produce a million larvae per mussel per year, there's only been one known eradication in Texas. They found it within days of invasion, I think

Lews Speed Spool Tournament Pro LFS Daiwa Fuego 2500D-XH All the others I have are inferior