JCrzy4Bass

Fishin' and Matt, Thanks for all the advice. We have quite a bit of backwater areas I can try out when I'm fishing submerged grass and so forth so I will just have to take my time, wait for that one bite and fish the area thoroughly. There are alot of holes in this grass so I got my work cut out for me, but I guess if I start learning some of the areas I should be able to go back again under similar conditions and catch more. Or I can figure out what was so good about that area and use that technique again in a similar one. Matt, the one downfall to our fish finder is it does not show how warm or cold the water is so we kind of just look for areas where we see activity and fish those more than others. If no activity is going on we rely on the structure and the best looking fish holding areas (visual). I need to invest in one. My dad is getting a new fish finder soon (a new hummingbird) and it will have all that so it should make things better. The bait fish in the river consist mainly of shad, herring and minnows. Bait changes according to seasons, current, weather, etc. We normally follow the channels into the creeks and fish area that look like migration routes, as well as grass lines, flats, etc. We normally fish the first hours before and or after high tide (normally the best on this river from what most of the other anglers say). So will the bait actually follow the channel all the way down to the back of creeks? Even in the colder months? Thanks again for the advice guys. That is definately something for me to work with for now.

I figured I would make the questions easier to find so you didn't have to sift through that whole previous post: A) Overcast/Gray skies (especially in clear water 5-6' visibility) generally put bass further away from cover and scatter them about, making it logical to use search baits. Yay or Nay? Part two: When this doesn't work (shallow/medium/deep cranks and spinners), what's your next approach? With water this clear should I primarily be fishing "deep"? What seperates an "average" looking fishing spot from a "fish holding" spot, by eye, depth finder, etc? C) In tidal river branches/creeks with primarily stained water how would you break apart the different types of structure and consistenly land fish? Consider structure/cover/contour to include fallen trees/timber, LOTS of grass, islands, back bays and secondary points. D) When the bite is finnicky and search baits are not producing how do you "search the water" as quickly as possible with plastics, jigs, and vertical presentations? I know these are suppossed to be tactical and slow approaches and presentations, but is there any way you can use them in "power fishing"?

So far Andy and I are on board for this trip guys. Micro, JeJmoe (Josh), Dan, and 71 are all maybes. Anyone else trying to catch some bronzebacks or what? Anyone in Woodbridge/Fairfax can feel free to meet up at my place and I'll drive us down. Don't normally need much smallie gear aside from a small tackle selection, waders, and your rod and reel so... I can get four in my car comfortably with the gear. Let me know fellas, the ride ain't that bad and it's worth it to fish a trophy small mouth bass fishery!

Hey guys, I have two large bodies by me. One being the Potomac River and another being 9600 acre Lake Anna. Now over the course of about 11-12 trips out to these places I have probably only caught about 11-12 bass. So I'm averaging about one a trip, sometimes I get skunked. Over my first year of fishing I guess I spent most of my time learning baits and trying to play the numbers game and see if I could figure out smaller lakes 20-200 acres, and local ponds of mine. I can catch 1-2lbers here on a regular basis, some fish approaching 3lbs and a couple over. However when I try and apply my techniques to these large bodies of water I do not fare so well. My dad has a 17' Lowe's Fishing Boat with a 25hp Evinrude engine and a Bill Dance Trolling motor. We can cover a heck of a lot of water, just not as fast as the guys with the 150 or 250 horses, but that's aside the point. We use a depth finder (an old hummingbird) that shows depth, contour, and some structure as well as fish. This year over the course of the last few trips we have concentrated on mostly drop offs and staging areas (early spring). Last year we used it more as a "fish finder" just finding a group of fish and casting... Anyway, we haven't hooked up with many fish at all (aside from the Occoquan river, a branch of the Potomac, where we slayed em' on senkos last summer) and I was just curious as to what tactics and approach you guys use on large bodies of water that get slammed by tourneys almost every weekend of the spring. And I mean EVERY weekend. Lake Anna is VERY CLEAR WATER and on most days visibility can be between 4-6' in a lot of areas (goes down as you go further up lake). The temps warm up here quicker than any other lake in Northern Virginia (at least lower and mid lake) and the fish can be caught year round. There are a TON of boat slips and docks (deep and shallow water), there is plenty of rip rap and lots of submerged trees, timber, pilings. There is also a lot of main lake points, creek arms, branches, etc. VERY QUICK and very gradual drop offs, take your pick. I have heard reports all spring that deep diving cranks and rat l traps produce big here but threw em' for seven hours and didn't nab a bite yesterday (weather was not cooperative though), but you would think with overcast/gray skies the fish would be more scattered and not as close to structure right? So shouldn't search baits find SOMETHING??? As far as the Potomac it has ALOT of grass and the creeks and creek mouths tend to be very productive places here (Aquia, Neabsco, Mattawoman, Nanjemory, Quantico, etc). I have had some luck with spinners, jitterbugs, and buzzbaits on the surface and a little on shakey head presentations but I'm not consistent. Here you can fish back of bays, grass beds, fallen trees, docks, and islands (most of the structure available is of this kind). The water is typically pretty stained and beat up especially on a windy day. But 1-2 fish is not what I'm looking for. I'm looking for a limit. What do you guys suggest I do to figure these places out and try and eliminate productive water from non-productive water? Or what seperates an "average" looking fishing spot from a "fish holding" spot, by eye, depth finder, etc. I guess I'm just not in the right spots to produce quantity on these bigger waters. I'd like to hear from some tourney guys who do this on a regular basis if at all possible or guys that think or large bodies of water as one of their strengths. Thanks in advance guys. Sorry for the long winded post it's just after a year of fishing I would have thought I'd be able to be a bit more consistent and it's frustrating. My last question is on these waters when the bite is finnicky and search baits are not producing how do you "search the water" as quickly as possible with plastics, jigs, and vertical presentations? I know these are suppossed to be tactical and slow approaches and presentations, but is there any way you can use them in "power fishing"? I am trying to tailor my fishing to that approach as I am a run and gun type of guy and find I catch most of my fish covering a lot of water as quickly as possible.

Haha, did you have fun though? I ended up catching six at Germantown Lake (next thread down) but all of them were small. No keepers. It's a nice lake, lot's of private property all around it, but it is public and has a launch ramp. Yea the wind was wicked by the dam on this lake too, I had my hoodie pulled tight with only my glasses and nose showing lol. Looked dumb most of the time but was trying to keep warm. Did you guys try both ends of the lake at Royal? Find any productive water?

Place: Lake Anna, Virginia Weather: Off and on rain/drizzle all day, cloudy Water Clarity: 5-6' visibility (depending on area). Needless to say the bite was very tough yesterday, but I got the tug I was looking for after almost 6 and a half grueling hours without a fish. The skinny is below... As my dad and I headed back to the launch we started flipping boat docks back down the shoreline. I ended up rigging up a two tone green laminate senko, texas rigged with a 1/8oz bullet sinker. Tossed it outside of a boat dock by some pilings (probably used for dock lines) and let it sink. 4-5 seconds later I got the signature tap tap tap and reeled in the slack and set the hook. The fight was on... needless to say when the fight was over "One fish Anna" had given me the one fish I was looking for... but it's signature saying would remain the same... went for 3lbs 8ozs. My new pb (after having just had set a new benchmark at 3lbs two weeks ago).

I am semi-dissapointed with the "size" of the fish after the first trip. My dad and I had heard of some big fish being taken out of here, but when we arrived we actually realized the lake is kinda unbalanced as far as the bass population is concerned. They have a sign on the billboard by the launch asking anglers to harvest any and ALL largemouth under 14" from the lake. Not just in one location on the billboard but a couple. Two of my fish went for 3/4 of a lb, the rest were between 9-10". Had my dad and I been in the mood to cook we may have pulled some out, but we like to release and would rather not eat bass. Anyway... all the fish were hitting between the corners and shoreline areas of boat docks and near stumps. I caught two off of one stump and three of the docks. Another was caught on a shoreline flat, my dads was caught in the channel of one of the creek mouths casting from the back of the cove to the front. His was the biggest. We saw some big fish schooling over by the dam but could not get them to bite after throwing jigs, spoons, worms, etc. Two of my fish were caught on a KVD Strike King Red Eye Shad with an erratic retrieve, however 4 of the fish were reactionary strikes. They just slammed it as soon as the bait hit the water. The lake was fun, but the bite didn't turn on til' mid day. The water temps here were cold, visibility was about 2 feet if not a little less and the wind/post front conditions made it a bit difficult, but we got on some. Nice lake to fish for numbers, I'll give it another shot when it wamrs up just to attempt to snag some of the bigger fish during or after spawn but we will see.

Well let me give you some advice. It's harder to fish a difficult lake under less than ideal weather conditions. I haven't been to the lake in a while but wow was the water clear, I'm talking 6-7 feet visibility in some area as I could see my DT's running when I cranked them all the way down (almost). Anyway it was drizzle and about 42-44 degrees all day. Made it difficult to do any running around finding spots so we stuck to Duke's Creek, the islands, points, secondary points, boat docks, drop offs, flats, ledges, etc... we must of hit every "type" of structure we could find. The fish according to reports HAVE BEEN in 5-15 feet of water (at least being caught in). We only saw a little bit of feeding going on, mostly bait fish, but two to three fish jump all day. I lost one fish on a jig bite 3/8oz Booyah craw colored jig with a yum papi trailer by a stick pile between a point and island where the channel ran through. Tossed it by the brush and had it tug two-three times, when I went to set the hook it was gone, probably spit the jig on the third time. Had one other small bite on a senko but it was probably one of those blue gill on steroids (they tend to bite senkos at Anna). As my dad and I headed back to the launch we started flipping boat docks back down the shoreline. I ended up rigging up a two tone green laminate senko, texas rigged with a 1/8oz bullet sinker. Tossed it outside of a boat dock by some pilings (probably used for dock lines) and let it sink. 4-5 seconds later I got the signature tap tap tap and reeled in the slack and set the hook. The fight was on... needless to say when the fight was over "One fish Anna" had been defeated... but it's signature saying would remain the same... went for 3lbs 8ozs. My new pb (after having just had set a new benchmark at 3lbs two weeks ago). Here's the pic: Tough conditions, but the day was worth it for this one. Just wish we would have figured them out earlier in the day. My advice, horizontal presentations aren't working so weel right now down there, cranks (deep, shallow), rat l traps, spinners, etc. I would have thrown a senko, drop shot, or jig all day had I known the bite was going to be so finnicky and the bass weren't gonna give chase. I think as clear as this water is and as tough as the conditions were with the weather (extremely cloudy and gray), the fish had moved out and were suspended and scattered as could be as we never put together anything solid with the depth finder. Maybe it will get back to normal over the next week but I'd give the post front some time before heading back out... I wanna say thanks to my dad for taking me out even though the weather didn't cooperate, and even more so because he gave me one of his old Abu Garcia Cardinal reels after my Shimano Sonora had crapped out on me. This thing ran sweet with the Suffix High Performance Braid I put on (20lb). I set the drag perfect for the applications (after having fought the fish and realizing). The sensitivity, casting smoothness, handling, etc is unbelievable. Thanks a lot dad! Looks like I found the perfect reel for my jig pole.

Will do, thanks for the input guys. Any fish caught on the jerkbait this weekend will be on this thread. No dinks !

Wow dude. Maybe I didn't specify... I do check the knots and line regularly and do not use lures often due to knot strength or quality, what I am saying is that I HAVE HEARD that this happens with these cranks since they are a bit heavier. I am talking more of a weight issue per test weight. So I figure if they are on the snap then there is less pressure directly on the lure instead of just a knot holding it in place. There is actually room for some give and take as far as the pressure put on the lure, no? Like if I'm going to cast the thing a mile and heave with all I got is the pressure on the lure going to cause it to fly right off my knot? Like when you actually HEAR it snap, if anyone has heard this before and seen it happen they know what I'm talking about. I then have the snap, then the knot above it to help the issue. I will still check my knots and line. I'm just saying whether or not a snap might help a little if at all. I don't normally have issues with line twist unless I use a spook on my spinning gear. So do you remove the ring that is on the crankbait before putting the snap on or do you put the snap through that?

So Muddy, the crank can go directly onto the snaps? I like the quick change of lures with them if that is the case, no need to retie knots. Yea I know a lot of guys that catch on these DTs so I'm just looking for a sure fire way to use em'. I don't want to switch to 12lb line just because I found 10lb Suffix is ideal for my reel and I really like the way it handles on it and the strength it has. No need to go heavier, my lures run at perfect depths for the use. I know it would help with the strength issue but I just wanted alternatives aside from switching line. But thanks for the idea. I will pick some of these up tonight if that's the case as I'm hitting the lake in the morning and plan on hitting some deeper water as temps at this lake are only in the high 40's. They probably won't be staging yet, but still on a winter/deep water bite. Thank god for depth finders . If I can't find the snaps I supposse I'll just cast lighter this weekend with them, cast with the wind, and be anal about checking my line and knots.

Paul, Starting April 5, 2008, the park facilities will be open weekends only until Memorial Day weekend (May 25th), weather permitting. Directly from their home page there: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/burkelake/ Couple weekends left, then your girls can do all the fishing they want with live bait. Have fun man. The guys are right though 7-11 probably is your best bet for live nightcrawlers, or if you got a Walmart nearby, I know we got two near me down in Woodbridge/Dumfries. They also carry chicken livers (frozen), preserved shad and other baitfish, artificial flavored catfish bait, etc. Good place for alternative baits (Walmart).

Yup and if you got a bass boat be careful. The water is EXTREMELY shallow at the entrance to this cove. It is a gravel ramp for the most part, but not sure how far down the mud starts. Anyway I normally only see Kayakers and canoes go out here, but I know some guys muskie fish at night and launch their boats so I'd assume you can do it without problems. Anyway... good luck if you night fish. And like the other guys said make sure your fishing and don't bring alcohol. I've personally seen people get busted one time when I was there catfishing with some friends at night. And make sure you have your license handy too, they check quite a bit.

Hey guys... just curious what kind of line you guys use to throw these. I throw all my other cranks and rat l traps on 10lb suffix line (superior) and have no issues. I know these are a bit bigger and heavier so is there any issue with them coming off or breaking off if you throw a hard cast? The only other pole I have is my jig/plastics pole braided with 20lb line (suffix high performance) so I could use that if it's not a good idea to throw them on lighter line. Let me know, cause I picked a couple up and have heard of people losing them and knots breaking and stuff when throwing them. Just curious for ya'lls input. I typically used an improved clinch knot for all of my cranks and am most comfortable with that. Oh yea... would a snap swivel help at all if there is an issue with the line? Cause I could pick up some of those need be.

Wow, dude I am stunned. I'd like to know what published research or precedence there is for them to even consider doing this? For that matter what other state fishery agencies have done this to control native species? Why don't they just stock extra of the native species in the river to help balance out the predation being done by the smallmouth??? Are there any other predatory fish in that river? Or is it just a small stream or creek type deal? Did the smallmouth get in from a damed up area or something?

Yea, that's what I use Chris. Even with spinning though, the last time I threw this bait down there early in February after about 30-45 minutes and not a fish I was like my hands are KILLING ME! But I'm gonna have two rods rigged up. One with the jerkbait another with a spinnerbait or a jig at the time so that way I can take a break need be. I don't know how these tourney guys keep at it. Must be conditioning and what not. But yea, thanks for the advice Chris. I need to learn how to cast my baitcaster before I use more complicated baits with it. I have no clue, starting to practice soon though. Plan on going in my dads backyard one day and just tossing a weight around getting the hang of it. But that's another story.

Thanks for the info guys. Hopefully I'll feel the weight of a big fish on one of the twitches! There have been bass pulled out of here over 8-9lbs and it is a HUGE lake. So lot's of area to cover. Luckily some guys from one of the clubs around here have kinda given us some info on where to start and some ideas on where to check out and stuff so... between that, the maps we have, and the depth finder HOPEFULLY we can get on some fish. I'll post pics here if I get any on the jerkbait Wish me luck!

I don't really pay attention to this unless the water I'm fishing is pretty clear and I can absolutely tell what the bait fish look like. In some lakes, rivers keep in mind that the coloring on certain baitfish can be very different as well as the size of the baitfish. If I "see" them in the water I will try and match to the best of my ability. But honestly the best way to do this is with swim baits. Just ask them cali guys who KILL EM' with those over there. So if you can, give it a try, but like raul said if you put the correct action on your lure you should be able to catch fish regardless. It definately has more to do with presentation. Good point Raul.

Learned how to pick apart the water and seperate good fishing water from not so good water. How to fish after and before fronts, what baits are best under what conditions, etc. I am slowly learning how to analyze the situations I come across on the water day in and day out and I'm catching more fish as a result. Now that spring is around the corner I can really start testing myself again to see how much I learned here in the off season. Articles, and articles, and more articles have been read here and many, many tidbits of info have been shared... only can hope I've taken half of it in and put it to good use this year. Thanks for everything you guys give me input on. You live and learn as a family... and we definately have that here at Bass Resource. Best of luck in 08' to all!

Hmmm... I've never seen such... dedication? Oh.. and willingness to share such exceptional thoughts and wisdom!

Yo Matt, do you get access to Braddock or are you not in that residential area. If you can get permission to fish there I saw some guys on here last year that pulled good fish out of there. Burke is really pressured on the weekends, but with the rain this weekend and cold front passing through on Saturday you might luck out. Just be prepared and dress warm. Winds on Burke Lake suck. Do ALOT of walking. The best spots are opposite side of the lake from the pier and boat launch, not many people make their way around that far. Another good bet would be to head a little further down and hit Lake Huntsman. Fish been being pulled out of there since mid-February. Good size too. Seen some 3+ lbers already there this year and plenty over 2. Cranks and Rattle Traps at the d**n and any points. Now that the water is up here too the fish are starting to head into the cove on the right, just have to fish it correctly and cover the whole area. I'll be on the Potomac on Saturday or at another lake west of PW county pending on the small craft advisroy (potential for), Monday I'll be at Lake Anna. Otherwise I'd join you. Maybe next weekend though. Let me know if you end up going out next Saturday and we can see what's going on.

Hey guys I'm heading down to a very clear lake (5-6' visibility in some areas down lake) on Monday. The water temps fluctuate right now from the low 50's to mid 50's. I threw my jerkbait here back in February when I went but the water temps were high 40's to low 50's at that time (very low 50's). Truth be told I am kinda new to hard jerkbaits. Aside from watching Timmy Horton and a few others on Bass Pros throw em' I don't really have the technique mastered yet. But I kinda get it. Most of the action is done with the rod and not the reel. It's just timing when to reel and jerk to get the action you want. My question is since I have yet to catch a bass on this technique when do the bites typically occur and do they feel the same as let's say a crankbait bite (Rat L Trap or Mann's or Rapala)? I know the best thing to do this year especially in clear lakes in downsize your lure. I was planning on throwing the 4" jerkbaits I have (Rapala X-Raps). I have a 6" model in all white (transparent) which I kind of use to mimick a shad. The 4" model I have is in a transparent blue. I may pick up one or two more down at one of the lakes tackle shops to mimick a minnow or shiner or something (minnow colors). Anyway, last time at the lake jerkbaits were all they hit (soft and hard). I caught two on an Original Rapala slow retrieving and twitching and another nice fish on a purple senko. Point blank, I'd like to really get this technique down so I can add it to my arsenal. Other ideas for a clear, heavy pressured, very open lake? Plenty of docks, rip rap, islands, points, breakwalls, etc... Any other ideas for baits at a clear lake fellas? Right now I'm planning on tossing Rat L-Traps for searchbaits unless we get a little of that fun March wind, then I'll throw a spinner and experiment with retrieves. Also if I see a bit of feeding going on I may throw my Mann's cranks and DT's for a bit to break apart the water column. Any other good search baits? As far as plastics and such go, I'll probably stick to the senko and experiment with colors and weight depending on where they are in the column. I may toss a bisty jig with yum trailer depending on what kind of structure we decide to fish. I'm pretty much a power fisherman. Oh yea, I forgot to mention we will be in a boat, not fishing from shore.

I think you need to get out there and catch some lunkers dude. I was feeling the same, but I think mine was a sense of doubt that maybe I had lost it somewhat due to not catching anything ALL winter from December 3 - March 10. What a drought. I went out so many times throwing jigs and spoons and just couldn't find em' anywhere. Once I started reeling them in this month, even after the first one, that feeling I had last year sprung back quick. I was ready... I think it's just a matter of getting out and catching again. Another good way might be just to go out on the water, pick your most scenic lake and just sit out there. You don't even have to do anything. Put your feet up and relax. Remember that the other part of bass fishing (least for us weekend guys or recreational fishermen) is to just take in the surroundings and enjoy nature. You guys up there with the clear lakes with the beautiful bottom plants, pebbles, rocks, etc don't know how great you have it. Except during ice out lol. Anyway, you'll get back into it man. Another thing you need to do is win that tourney! The feeling of victory is always motivating.

I agree it's really built up now. My great grandparents had a place out there a while back... shame it's not in the family anymore. I was just a kid when I lived in Lowell, Mass (first ten years of my life) and never fished that much, at least enough to remember. Going back up now I'm sure I would see what you guys see in those lakes. Last time I drove up along Mass on the turnpike and in Connecticut on the main highway there I kept crossing over crystal clear lakes and could see the bottom 10-15 feet out from driving in my car. It was unreal. Definately a different type of deal than what we got in Virginia. If I'm ever back in that neck of the woods I'm gonna post here and look a few of you fellas up so you can show me around. If any of you guys have some photos of the lakes around there I'd love to see em'. Especially any of the ones around Chelmsford, Westford, Dracut, Lowell, Grafton, etc (Massachussetts). I know they have the Merrimack up here as I used to live two miles from it as a kid and would watch boat races down there all the time at the park across the bridge from Chelmsford (I lived next to Pawtuckettville Elementary). All my family is up there and I could wiggle in an accuse or two to make a week of it. Any in cities north of these would be great too as I used to frequent New Hampshire all the time (Tyngsboro area), I think that's how you spell it. Anyway.. later guys.

Quick answers: A Fat Ika is a bait designed by Gary Yamamoto and you can find it on the website here - http://media.baits.com/catalog/2008-GYCB-catalog.pdf That links directly to Gary's Catalog. It is a tube type bait used for smallmouth fishing everywhere and a great producer aside from your venom, strike king tubes, etc. Yes smallies are a schooling fish. If you catch one fish the area thoroughly for more. They also tend to school in relation to size (normally). I don't fish on lakes for smallies so I can't help there. I fish the Rappahannock and James River here in VA for them. I normally find them in deep holes, grass, or around large boulders and current breaks. 4. No The difference between smallie and largies to me is the type of experience. I wade typically so I find it more relaxing and peaceful and it's awesome taking in the surroundings on our beautiful non tidal waters like the Rap. Also smallies pull like a brick and give a great fight. Plus every one has a different color pattern and really allows you to marvel their appearance. Every catch is something new. Also I think smallie fishing is easier to learn and get accustomed to just because you can cast up into current and allow your bait to drift back down and catch tons of smallies. Not to say this is the same for every body of water, but rivers it can be a great day if you find a nice hole. My friends like it a lot because of this (ones that are new to fishing). I would always catch smallies over largies if I could but the drive is a bit more and I can't get the days off that I would like most of the time to do it. I *** you over in Tennessee. But when I get the chance I go. Normally 1-2 times a month come late spring all the way up until fall. Good luck in your adventures and share with us whenever you can.