Woody B

This spotted bass smelled like a crawdad.

Well..... I didn't get skunked. The water wasn't exactly chocolate milk, it was more like coffee with cream and a bunch of stuff floating in it. Water temp was 49. I was surprised it wasn't warmer. I managed to catch one bass. The people I talked to at the landing weren't catching many either.

Howdy from Grover NC.

I'm not an expert on pre spawn, or any other time of year. However it's my belief that most of the time the bass don't know what stage they're in. Doing research, and having a plan is good , but keep an open mind. If what you're doing isn't working try something else. Mike Tyson said "Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth" Don't be afraid to change your plan.

Can I pick tomorrow? Today was my last day at work for several days. (mini vacation) Regarding kidney stones. Get it a tub of HOT water, as hot as you can stand. The hot water will (temporarily) relieve the pain. When the water gets cold, or you get out of the tub the pain will come back but it's good to have relief for a while.

I was faced with the same decision a few month ago. I went with Active Target for a couple of reasons. I already had Lowrance stuff. (not compatible with active target, but was already familiar with Lowrance interface). I fish the same waters a BUNCH, so I know where most of the structure is. I believe 360 would be good for finding structure, and active target/live sonar for finding fish.

The water color looks better in the 2nd pic. Is part of the lake clearer or is that just how the picture looks? I figure I'll be going up the creeks a ways tomorrow to find decent looking water. We've had a BUNCH of rain.

Glasses since I was 39. Bi focals since 42. I tried progressives but hated them. I use lined bi focals. I also have some clip on flip down magnifying glasses the same power as my "add" (bifocals) I use when working under cars, and under dashes. I buy cheap glasses online. My job is hard on glasses so I get a new pair every 6 months or so.

12 pound Trilene XL. SLX MGL 70. (but that's on all my reels except 1)

When I was a kid we were camping (in a tent) on Lake James. We had a campfire near the water and were fishing for catfish. We kept catching little bullheads. After several my Grandfather threw an empty hook back out so he could relax. (I've heard of people doing this while they were drinking. My Grandfather didn't drink, he just wanted to relax)

I think it's not quite that simple, at least for me. IE I don't know how to define a "front". I suppose if cornered ,and was forced to offer a definition for "front" (without google) I'd say "changing skys" There's warm fronts, cold fronts, and I suppose pressure changes could be considered fronts too. I studied and tracked the weather when I was racing. Weather conditions affect power output, and tuning required for an engine. I know more (but not a bunch) about water grains, dew points, vapor pressure ect than the stuff that probably affects bass. Barometer also effects horsepower output. I believe bass "feel" barometric pressure but I haven't gotten a handle on how they react to those changes.

Yes, but I suspect not as many people used Baitcasting reels back then. My first baitcaster didn't have brakes, or even a thumb bar. It had a lever/switch to disengage the anti reverse. When you cast it the spool, handles and everything would spin. It took a BUNCH of thumb to use it. I don't know how old it was. I was 10 or so, and fished it out of a river. It was on a rod that was maybe 4 feet long. I was intrigued by it. I don't remember how far I could cast with it. Probably not very far. I worked and saved money a couple years later to buy an Ambassador 5500 and a 5 1/2 foot long ugly stick. (1976) I wore out my yard practicing with it. It had a tension knob, and 3 sets of weights for a centrifugal brakes. You removed the side cover and slid the weights onto a shaft. I still use that reel for deep cranks. It requires more thumb than moderns reels, but it's a BUNCH nicer than the old reel I drag out of the river. I'm sure there was many generations of bait casting reels between the reel I drag out of the river and the 5500.

I'm an automotive technician, so by nature I tinker with stuff. This thread has gotten me to thinking. If I were going to try ceramic bearings in one of my reels which one should I put them in? Shimano SLX 150 DC, Shimano SLX MGL 70, Daiwa Zillion SV TW, Daiwa Alphas SV TW, or Lews LFS. I've got a couple other Daiwa's but I hate the location of the brake adjuster so I wouldn't consider an "upgrade" for them.

For me, as long as conditions are safe there's never a bad time to go fishing. I might not catch any, but a bad day fishing is still a pretty good day. My best day of the year, numbers wise came the day after Hurricane Ian passed over. I'm inland, it wasn't a Hurricane here but we got quite a bit of wind and rain. The power company pulled water from the lakes to prepare for the storm. The lake weren't flooded but only a foot or so above normal. There was some debris in the lake. Not terrible, but enough I stayed under 10 mph.

I believe one of the problems in cold water, with the bass we see on sonar under the balls of shad is shad die off. It's my belief that the cold water affects the shad more than it does the bass. When water temps get near, or below 50 the bass can basically eat lethargic shad until they're so full they throw up. That's why jigging spoons "sometimes" works for the fish under the ball of baitfish.

Jerk baits in general have a habit of making me look like a jerk. I've got a friend who throws a stunna more than any other lure.

I take Mrs B's cousins husband fishing a couple times a year. He's always taking junk about my baitcasters. I won't say I never backlash, but I rarely backlash. OTOH he's constantly getting wind knots. Finally, the last time he was fishing with me I told him how to stop the wind knots. Stuff like the OP's line hitting the grass would wreak havoc on any equipment. Don't be hard on yourself. I caught my trolling motor twice yesterday.

Some of that is due to inflation. What did a nice Ranger or other brand nice bass boat cost in 1992? (I've got a reason for that year) I suspect someone here knows what one cost, or any other nice brand. I bought a brand new diesel dually in 1992 for $22000. A comparable truck is close to 4 times that much now. FWIW my income is only 2 1/2 times what it was in 1992. In 1976, when I was 12 I just had to have an Ugly stick rod, and an Ambassador 5500c reel. I worked in the family business for 2 weeks to pay for it. ($80 iirc) Was the 5500c and ugly stick top of the line back then? I had read about them in a magazine. I don't remember the cost of the reel, vs the cost of the rod. A top of the line combo is easily 10 times that much now. My Grandfather used to give us a dollar for Christmas. I give my Grandkids a grand apiece.

I was going to say go ahead and do it. The "upgrade" won't ruin the reel and isn't that expensive. You'll never know until you try. FWIW I've never had anything other than factory bearings.

It rained all day Saturday, and was cloudy today. Water temp was 46 to 47 most places. Clay banks, rock banks and sandy banks were 2 or 3 degrees warmer than the water. Rocks and wood not on the bank, but sticking out of the water was 5 to 6 degrees warmer than the water. The sun never came out today.

3 minutes 36 seconds from putting the truck in reverse to pulling away in the boat. I WAS in a hurry. Probably normally take a couple minutes more.

I managed to get 4 in the boat. All between 14 and 16 inches long. 1st bass of 2023 was 16 inches long, 1.84 pounds. (I decided to weigh in fractions instead of ounces this year) Water was 47 degrees. The coldest I've ever seen this lake. I also got a picture of a confused Blue Herron. The nest he's standing in is clearly marked "Osprey nest". Can that bird not read??

First 2023 bass. Jan 1 2023 at ~9:15 EST.

I'm not much of a bragger. I caught a 53 pound flathead. It wasn't a display of catfish skill, I was bass fishing. However I managed to land the biggest fish of my life on 12 pound test. A co worker said my knots must be pretty good too. My best Largemouth of 2022 was 7 pounds 13 ounces. Not my PB but I think that's really good for 2022 in the waters I fish. I haven't heard of any over 8 in any of the Catawba river lakes this year. Caught my PB Spotted bass. 4 pounds 15 ounces. (I should have used my mechanical scale, it would have been 5 LOL) While not huge the state record is only 6 lbs 5 ozs. I saw a man fall out of his boat into 46 degree water. He managed to grab the side of his boat but couldn't get back in. The lady that was with him was panicking. I went over to his boat, pulled him back in and wrapped him up in a blanket. He couldn't even talk, I suspect he was in shock. His wife/girlfriend said she could drive the boat but didn't know the way back to the landing. I had her follow me to the landing. We put him in his truck and turned the heater on. I loaded his boat for them. I've seen him several times since then. He said he thinks he would have died had I not been there. He tried to give me a BIG gift certificate for a local tackle/boat shop but I wouldn't take it. A few weeks later it arrived in the mail. I don't know how he got my address. I thanked him the next time I saw him. He paid for a big chunk of my Terrova. I'm an Eagle Scout, and a man of action. As stated earlier I'm not much for bragging. I'm glad I was there that day, and proud my actions helped someone. I hope no one needs help this year, but if they do I'm hope I'm able to help.

Does he want a baitcaster? I wanted one when I was 12, but he might be happier fishing with a spinning reel and no backlashes. I hate spinning reels. Hats off to the kid if he wants a baitcaster. If he get's frustrated with backlashes get him something easier to learn with.