HesterIsGod

fish them all year. too much circumstances and ways to fish them to say so in one post so look them up on this site and others and do some research

creek channels is the path of the original river on a reservoir. These are important, especially in the spring as bass use this as an expressway to get to spawning grounds. Roadbeds are old roads that were flooded during the making of new reservoirs. for roadbeds http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/bassmaster/fishingtips/news/story?page=b_story_roadbeds_part1_martens

Check the everything else section

Good question. In a pond you want to place cover in many depths all over the lake, but dont add too much cover. Sinking a brushpile or two deep in the middle of the pond gives baby bass protection from bigger fish in the winter when all fish are driven deep, so doing this ensures that this years spawn wont end up in the belllies of the bigger fish come next winter and shallow cover gives you something to fish in the spring and fall.

Yeah they prefer vegetation like cattails but this pond doesnt have very much if any so they choose small fish as a substitution to survive. I agree fish isn't their usual food and others should not be concerned about them in their ponds, I was merely using them as an example of how to handle the otter situation

;D We have a huge dog at our house too, only its a big golden retriever that barks whenever anything with a beating heart steps on any part of our property. It gets annoying when she barks at stray cats but she does the job, weve never been robbed.

From the Chesapeake bay programs' field guide study of muskrats, "Muskrats feed mostly on the rhizomes of marsh plants, but will also eat fish, frogs, insects and shellfish." From nature works, "The muskrat eats aquatic vegetation like cattails, sedges, rushes, water lilies and pond weeds. In some areas it also eats clams, mussels, snails, crayfish, small fish and frogs." I forget, are bluegill small fish? :

It is the second most important factor to help me understand where and why the fish are where they are. The first being , what I have learned here If you doubt it's effectiveness ask Zel what happened when we went out with his color c lector and what i was fsihing before he took readings. That was not because i am a genius it is because I logged what I do and what my results were BVass are creatures of habit and instinct and they will react the same way a lot ( not all) of the times under similar conditions. Without understanding the past you may be faced with a lot of fishless presents. Yes, this may work a lot of the time but other times it can fool you too. Say it is prespawn and last year you caught bass on a certain point using a spinnerbait. Last year there was a slight breeze, but this year it is slick and calm. The fish probably wont be positioned on the same spot on the point or hit a spinnerbait. So after half an hour you havent caught a thing and your back to square one. Little subtle nuances that were there last year that you fail to record (and i know you dont record EVERYTHING) can make a big difference. Also, things change. Say one season you caught bass on a deep brushpile. Your log says the exact same conditions so you go back next year and it has rotted heavily and no longer holds bass. Then you have a nice little fishless present thanks to your log. Things change. So basically, I think that there are a lot of ways the log will help you but also many ways it can hurt you, so I'm not going to spend time on it. If you and other people want to and it helps you go ahead by all means.

I also usually get 2 years out of each spool of spiderwire.

Spiderwire stealth

Kalins grubs

Polamer

Change your line. Use fluorocarbon or mono, more stretch and less visibility. Give the fish a chance to swallow the bait by using a stretchy line.

Thats crazy! I wonder what really happened. Why he really left. That is just way to unfortunate.

had he not been using the 4 pound line the fish probably would of never bit.

Finally. I was waiting for someone to say Trilene Fourocarbon. That line is awesome! Also, braid is very good but sometimes you need to use fluoro or mono simply because it is far less visible, better for finicky fish, and sometimes you need stretch, like when using cranks.

Great job! must be nice living in California. Next time post this in fishing outing section though.

I fish a local public pond that had 3 muskrats doing similiar things to your pond. They only eat small fish, however, like bluegill. Started noticing less bluegill. Also, They kept putting sticks at the outflow of a creek that left the pond. One local guy actually shot two with a bow one day. Not too sure if it was legal but it worked and the bluegill population bounced back quickly. If the ottors are hurting your ponds fish population that in return hurts all the fisherman who fish it and in turn the community. Take the situation into your own hands, dont just let it happen. Trap them if you can at first since that is legal, and if that method doesnt work just shoot them one night. I wont talk if you dont

Welcome Brittlab I'm going to go against the grain here and say no. I do not and never will for three reasons 1. I dont like to fish the past, I focus on current conditions and change tactics when conditions change. 2. I already know my strengths and I do not need an annoying little piece of paper to remind me of what they are. 3. I think keeping a journal is way too time consuming and can sometimes take some focus away from other things I should be focusing on that day or the next day, and I am young and my mind is sharp enough to remember when and how this lure/technique worked.

I do not like In-fisherman because it has stuff on other species and I could care less about species other than bass. I prefer bassmaster but Bassin is good.

Got a problem, dont have any good "avid pics on camera, and the lakes here are very frozen and will be until after the start of the competition on March 1. Is the entry fee due by then, and can i use a picture that i can take now without a fish.

They could be bluegill too. Bluegill spawn many, many times a year. I imagine they might spawn once in a blue moon in winter in the warm waters of california.

The bass spawn is not completely dependant on water temperature, that is a big misconception. As long as the water is between the mid, even low fifties and the mid seventies, the bass will spawn. The bass spawn is pretty much always dependant on the moon phase. Look for a FULL MOON when the water temp is between those temps. Thats when the majority of the fish spawn.

Since the majority of my flipping is done in heavy cover, I use heavy spiderwire braid, usually 50 pounds. I want as heavy as possible line because the bass cant see it anyway.

Welcome to BR, Kevin