Got 4 runs on a little bream. One was a turtle , missed two, and finally got this one on the 4th… 20 + inch.

45-47 degree swift water. Tried deep jerkbait and marabou to no avail. Picked up zoom tiny fluke and caught fish immediately. Had fun playing around with new seaguar basix fluorocarbon, that’s some “finessey” fishing line! Sealed with smallmouth stamp of approval. I used straight fluoro on spinning and didn’t tangle once, first time I’ve attempted that in a while 

 

 

                                                           

12 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

45-47 degree swift water. Tried deep jerkbait and marabou to no avail. Picked up zoom tiny fluke and caught fish immediately. Had fun playing around with new seaguar basix fluorocarbon, that’s some “finessey” fishing line! Sealed with smallmouth stamp of approval. I used straight fluoro on spinning and didn’t tangle once, first time I’ve attempted that in a while 

Watched Richard Gene slaying with the same rig and conditions recently.

34 minutes ago, The Bassman said:

Watched Richard Gene slaying with the same rig and conditions recently.

“They…………”

Was able to find some open water and finally put up numbers for Feb. Really wasn't sure it was going to happen this month. Fished hard for just two but ended a seven week drought. Sorry for the washed out pics. It was really bright today.

Just a couple days removed from a major snowstorm, and fighting winds howling 20-30 mph and gusting above 30, pretty happy with the results today. Caught over 10 bass, 3 white bass, and a 15lb flathead. The bass all ate a Ned minus 1 on a T-rig, the whites were on cranks, and the flatheads continue to nibble on jigging spoons.

This flathead nibbled so hard you can barely see the jigging spoon anymore ?

4 hours ago, The Bassman said:

Was able to find some open water and finally put up numbers for Feb. Really wasn't sure it was going to happen this month. Fished hard for just two but ended a seven week drought. Sorry for the washed out pics. It was really bright today.

Pink was the “hot” color for me right before ice up, too. Drove by half a dozen ponds today and only found 1 mostly open. Will probably try for my Feb fish tomorrow there. Fingers crossed - not my best water, but got to take what’s available.

24 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Just a couple days removed from a major snowstorm, and fighting winds howling 20-30 mph and gusting above 30, pretty happy with the results today. Caught over 10 bass, 3 white bass, and a 15lb flathead. The bass all ate a Ned minus 1 on a T-rig, the whites were on cranks, and the flatheads continue to nibble on jigging spoons.

This flathead nibbled so hard you can barely see the jigging spoon anymore ?

I am truly jealous my friend. Pond started to open up today...would have been ice free in 2 or 3 more days...except we have a big arctic blast moving in overnight last 4 or 5 days. Lows below 0. Gonna lock us back up.

14 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Caught over 10 bass, 3 white bass, and a 15lb flathead. The bass all ate a Ned minus 1 on a T-rig, the whites were on cranks, and the flatheads continue to nibble on jigging spoons.

Looks like steep banks behind you .

44 minutes ago, scaleface said:

Looks like steep banks behind you .

Banks are steep, but it only drops a few feet into the water. My boat isn't sitting in more than 10' in any of the pictures. 

Nothing much, but it is a Feb. bass in Indiana, so there's that - lol. Only open pond I could find within walking distance. First 60 degree day of the year. Will only last one more day though, then freezing cold for about 10 days. The pink blade bait comes through in the clutch...

 

Had about 30 minutes between regular shift and OT today, but it was almost 70 degrees out so I had to try. Sucked having to take all the gear off and put street clothes on, carry it all to the truck just to make a few cast, but I caught a couple dinks and found 4 baits so I guess it's a victory. Bad thing is I have to go back with a lure retriever because I found a 75 plopper in a tree just a little too far out to reach ?‍♂️

5 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Had about 30 minutes between regular shift and OT today, but it was almost 70 degrees out so I had to try. Sucked having to take all the gear off and put street clothes on, carry it all to the truck just to make a few cast, but I caught a couple dinks and found 4 baits so I guess it's a victory. Bad thing is I have to go back with a lure retriever because I found a 75 plopper in a tree just a little too far out to reach ?‍♂️

That's a cool looking jerkbait

14 hours ago, DitchPanda said:

That's a cool looking jerkbait

2.75" size, luminescent aurora chartreuse.

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Yo-Zuri_3DS_Series_Minnow/descpage-YZDSM.html

14 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

2.75" size, luminescent aurora chartreuse.

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Yo-Zuri_3DS_Series_Minnow/descpage-YZDSM.html

I've never used any Yo zuri stuff

2 hours ago, DitchPanda said:

I've never used any Yo zuri stuff

Their super braid is good stuff.

 

My weird struggles at Ray Roberts continue, but I think it has more to do with timing and conditions. 

 

Lake Whitney, on the other hand, continues to be good to me. Each time I've been I caught a bass. Nice to remember that feeling of a strike. For the 20 minutes I was able to fish uninterrupted in 15-20mph winds, not bad. Whitney is a seriously underrated fishing lake, and on any given weekday it's basically empty. One calm day in mid January was the most active big topwater I've seen in years. A bowling ball a minute, ripples as far as you can see. Woe is me for not having a whopper plopper.

 

i digress. Cool private lake fishing in the morning; Canyon Lake, Inks Lake, Buchanan, Travis, and Choke Canyon are all potential stops on this trip. Travis for sure tomorrow weather permitting.

9 hours ago, thediscochef said:

Their super braid is good stuff.

 

My weird struggles at Ray Roberts continue, but I think it has more to do with timing and conditions. 

 

Lake Whitney, on the other hand, continues to be good to me. Each time I've been I caught a bass. Nice to remember that feeling of a strike. For the 20 minutes I was able to fish uninterrupted in 15-20mph winds, not bad. Whitney is a seriously underrated fishing lake, and on any given weekday it's basically empty. One calm day in mid January was the most active big topwater I've seen in years. A bowling ball a minute, ripples as far as you can see. Woe is me for not having a whopper plopper.

 

i digress. Cool private lake fishing in the morning; Canyon Lake, Inks Lake, Buchanan, Travis, and Choke Canyon are all potential stops on this trip. Travis for sure tomorrow weather permitting.

Nice one! Trust me you can reel a plopper right though those bowling balls and still not get bit 

Well, only one and right at dark, but it beat the skunk and stopped a streak of nada the past few outings. I missed one earlier on a light bite; this time I gave it a couple seconds to commit. 4” #956 Senko on a 3/0 EWG. 
 

First ever tube bass! 12ft+ water visibility; bluegill and tiny minnows all over the place. BPS tender tube, 3.5" green pumpkin/chart tail, 1/16oz BPS head. Hit on the fall of a long cast as I was about to start retrieving. Thanks for the advice in the tackle forum, much appreciated!

11 hours ago, BrianMDTX said:

Well, only one and right at dark, but it beat the skunk and stopped a streak of nada the past few outings. I missed one earlier on a light bite; this time I gave it a couple seconds to commit. 4” #956 Senko on a 3/0 EWG. 
 

Good to see ya holding one again! 

11 hours ago, thediscochef said:

First ever tube bass! 12ft+ water visibility; bluegill and tiny minnows all over the place. BPS tender tube, 3.5" green pumpkin/chart tail, 1/16oz BPS head. Hit on the fall of a long cast as I was about to start retrieving. Thanks for the advice in the tackle forum, much appreciated!

First of many ! 

6.5 pound frog eater

1 minute ago, NoShoes said:

6.5 pound frog eater

Whoa, nice fish! And you have shoes on……….

Somehow the weather gods dropped a few warm-ish days on us which was enough to break up the shore ice at my local spot. Water temp is 38, but air temp was 53, and wind was blowing 20 mph from the south at 11:30 pm. My buddy was packing for an ice fishing trip to NH and leaving first thing in the morning, but I told him I had a feeling, so he couldn't resist. January and February have been rough and frozen here, so it was nice to be able to finally slip a wade in and take a few swings.

 

Pickerel were on the move and biting, and a really nice one gobbled my Beast Coast Miyagi right away. I swung him up on the shore and he did the crazy shake and somehow got off the 6/0 beast hook. He was nicely battered in leaves, dirt, and snot, so I kindly tipped him back in the water. It was just too early in the sesh to get my gloves all slimed up. I missed a bunch of short strikes on swimmers, so I tied on a Baby Bull Shad. A well fed chunker just shy of 3 pounds ate it good and fought far better than I would've thought with how cold the water is. Just glad to get a decent fighter right before we plummet back into the freezer. 20s and teens on the way during the next 5 overnights. First bass of '22. I'll take it.