Rockhopper

I got some water in my yeti

Post up a pic!

I have a nice 17' North River drift boat, and that is one of the most versatile boats you could imagine. But that thing gets blown around like crazy by the wind too. Not exactly designed as a lake/flat water boat though with the flat bottom. My kayak is just a cheap emotion kayak that I bought at SW for fishing a few of the small lakes in the area that are not boat accessible. For $250 it is 9 foot with a 350lb rating. Does exactly what I need it to do for cheap, and it's light enough I don't mind packing it a half mile if needed to access water. Our Gorge is insane regarding the wind. It's a freeway for high and low pressures. I live roughly 10 miles inland from the river as the crow flies, and hardly ever have wind at my house. Drive over to the big river at the same time and it can be blowing like crazy.

Not bad for a short period!

What wind apps do you recommend?

@pdxfisher I am going to have to get out there and try this. I hit Big Ashes Lake two weekends ago and didn't catch anything over a pound and a half. I will probably take the drift boat though. I just have a cheap throw and go yak. Not sure I would trust it too much in the river. It looks as though you are traveling a fair bit of distance upstream. I would just be with a paddle. Is this going to be too difficult? I know it is hit and miss, but do you find early am to be less windy than later in the day?

Didn't say we shoot those ones. I don't even hunt in Oregon.

That is a very good point. I actually live right next to the Lamiglas, Loomis, and Edge factories. I have several rods already for salmon/steelhead. I did check already and my one 8' Loomis is a mag medium extra fast which is not going to work too well. I have a couple 9' Lamiglas sticks that would probably get the job done as they are heavier but very parabolic. BUT they are indeed 9' rods. Not sure that is the best for crankin'. I will have to run up and talk to Gary and see what he makes that might work well.

My in laws live in Oregon have 24 acres and a heard of about 80 come through all the time. You can feed them apples out of your hand like horses.

I typically do well. I am blessed to live in an area that is a mecca for Roosevelts. But I will definitely report back!

So have I 😆

Howdy!

Probably to the same old spots I always do

Anyone else? It is probably the only thing I love to do more than bass fish. 9 days until opening morning and I will be gone in the woods for a week and a half without reception.

Spinnerbaits are an amazing tool. Can be fished slow to fast, shallow to very deep, open water or heavy cover, steady retrieve to a chopped up retrieve. Extremely versatile and they just flat out catch fish. Great tool for those of us who don't use electronics and have to search for fish the old fashioned way.

Also, baits with double willow blades will sink faster than with colorado blades because science. Looks like from your photos I have seen you are not fishing a lot of depth. Colorados also give off more thump and vibration. But don't be afraid to fish a heavier weight with a faster retrieve. They will smash a spinnerbait being burned across the top of grass. I will typically throw a 1/2 or 3/4oz bait with a really fast retrieve across the top of grass 6" below the water surface opposed to a lighter lure with a slower retrieve at the same depth. Very much reaction bites. I have had them hit the bait more times than not almost immediately when the bait hits the water when fishing shallow.

That is no joke. Living garbage disposals. Stained water I would try both nickel blades shimmer shad color and also heavy chartreuse with gold blades. I prefer double willows for flash. My waters tend to be more clear. Stained waters you might want to try willow/colorado combo blades for thump and vibration.

In my waters I use the 1/2oz nickel/nickel double willow Shimmer Shad probably 90% of the time. Followed with shad/clear/chart nickel/nickel double willow, then again by Chart/shad double willow nickel/gold. They obviously catch donkeys. Below is the 3/8oz size.

I first found out about them from watching a YouTube video years ago of one of the lakes down in Mexico where they are constantly catching double digit bass. I couldn't tell you now who was in the video, but I remember the guide saying specifically that is all he uses in the winter down there for catching donkeys. After seeing the video I ordered a couple from TW to try out. Haven't looked back since. I have pretty much given away all my other brands at this point. Mostly to my 14 yo son who seems to loose one every trip out. 😆

Obviously I am a sample of one, but as I have stated in other threads, I use spinnerbaits more than any other lure. It is my favorite way to fish, and I own and have used more spinnerbaits than any one person should. I am at the point that all I buy anymore is Dobyn's Beast. I own probably 40+ of just that style in various colors and blade configurations. But what is funny is I end up using the exact same bait pretty much the entire year, or until I do something silly like lose it in a tree. The paint will chip over time with use from banging on docks and trees, etc. It is high quality paint but there is no avoiding that with any brand. They are very heavy wire and a very stout hook, but are normal in size and shape. Don't let the name Beast fool you into thinking they are giant size spinnerbaits. I have had a couple really big girls bend them out slightly reeling back into the boat, but we are talking like 6+ pound fish. With any spinnerbait though, you can't just tighten drag and horse the fish into the boat. That will bend even the heaviest wire baits you can get. Let me know what you think after you get them. I do not see them talked about much.

Dobyns Beast will solve that problem. I have spinnerbaits that have caught a couple hundred fish each. Literally. Outside of repainting the heads over time and a touch up every year or so on the hook sharpness, have never had one break.

Anything say 15+ that pulls hard is what I would consider deep cranking. 8XD+? I will check out that NFC blank. Thanks for the tip. Reading more last night, the Megabass Launcher came up in some reviews. Anyone with experience?

Can confirm the rods I have are not going to work for deep cranks unless I'm just expecting too much.

How about the IMX Pro 906c cbr?