Who knew that posting some goat pics would release such funny stories? Thanks, Bob!

 

Now I kinda wanna see someone post some hippo, lion, or yak photos. I bet those stories are great too. 

 

@Bluebasser86 I can see why you win tournaments. You are a heckuva fisherman. If you fished with me in Maine, The Land of Hungry, Hungry Bass, I bet you'd catch 70 fish in a morning. 

3 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

Who knew that posting some goat pics would release such funny stories? Thanks, Bob!

 

Now I kinda wanna see someone post some hippo, lion, or yak photos. I bet those stories are great too. 

 

@Bluebasser86 I can see why you win tournaments. You are a heckuva fisherman. If you fished with me in Maine, The Land of Hungry, Hungry Bass, I bet you'd catch 70 fish in a morning. 

He has gills 

11 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

Who knew that posting some goat pics would release such funny stories? Thanks, Bob!

 

Now I kinda wanna see someone post some hippo, lion, or yak photos. I bet those stories are great too. 

 

@Bluebasser86 I can see why you win tournaments. You are a heckuva fisherman. If you fished with me in Maine, The Land of Hungry, Hungry Bass, I bet you'd catch 70 fish in a morning. 

Yes he's a true hammer, and I've had direct success because of something I watched in a video he posted.      

 

Helping those boys get into tourney Bass fishing let's you know the kind of man he is.   

44 minutes ago, Blue Raider Bob said:

We've got 'um! Don't want to head butt our Buck though. He's north of 250 and does not move when pushed. The big girl in the first picture is also north of 250 but she's gentle (thanks goodness)!

 Been there done that with the headbutt. It was long, long, ago when we were young and I used to chug too many brews. Well I bent my head towards a goat that just jumped up on a picnic table and that goat saw a play opportunity. It missed my forehead but hit me under an eye. I laid on the ground and bled like a stuck pig, but I had the prettiest shiner ever for weeks. No sympathy from the little woman though. That's what I got for acting a fool!

I love it all Bob, you live in harmony with this world.....I admire your life mentality the most, you seem to have a lot figured out which is hard to do.  

Last week was very good. Today was D-E-A-D. Only two bass boated in 5 hours. Ugh. 
 

I had three strikes early on the X-Zone Adrenaline Craw, but all three did not hook up. Everything I tried was like poison to be avoided lol. Finally I decided to tie on a jig. Which is a rarity, as I pretty much have to clean gobs of muck and algae off after every cast. But I figured nothing else was working so why not? At least cleaning off the jig would give me something else to do. 
 

Only one hit, but it hooked up. A dink for sure, but a jig dink! I’ll take it!

Only other bass of the day was this 1.5 lb’er off a Fat IKA. 
I love that bait. Gotta get some in different colors. It was a soft bite but detecting it was not an issue with that new Kistler Helium. What a  nice rod! 

First spinnerbait bass of the year. Today was a dink fest but starting out that 2023 spinnerbait grind on an okay foot at least.

 

First spinnerbait fish of the year, however, goes to my nemesis, the tilapia.

1 hour ago, Aaron_H said:

 

 

 

First spinnerbait fish of the year, however, goes to my nemesis, the tilapia.

 

They sure do like to visit you for being a nemesis! 

26 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

They sure do like to visit you for being a nemesis! 

 

I can't escape them. I won't even throw a chatterbait in this pond anymore (even though I have caught some big bass in here on it) because the tilapia are murder on the Zako tails. They already nipped some of the skirt off that brand new spinnerbait.

 

I hate them.

I'm still trying to direct link to photos, this may or may not work. 

 

Went out this past Friday 2/24/23, caught maybe 12-15 small bass.  Biggest one was around 2.5 pounds, despite the small fish the weather was very nice so it was a good day to be on the water.  

 

Spinnerbait experimentation resulted in several bass, I caught a big pickerel on a 6th sense crankbait, and I caught one bass on a jerkbait. 

 

Later in the day they started hitting topwater, I caught one on a Z man Hellraizer, and then I caught 6 or 7 on a new One Knocker Spook.  I love that spook, the one knocker sounds much lower pitched and walks differently than a regular spook.  They were crushing it hard.  I can't wait to try it out this summer in the saltwater for redfish.  

 

 

[img]https://i.postimg.cc/HLBkJm0B/IMG-5432.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/4dyNV0BZ/IMG-5437.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/MTLZDYFB/IMG-5441.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/MHj6rjCF/IMG-5442.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/3Jmpkyk1/IMG-5444.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/tR1FHvyL/IMG-5446.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/CdThyxYL/IMG-5448.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/dQzrQRVD/IMG-5451.jpg[/img]

Trying again with the photos

 

https://i.postimg.cc/9XvFwJT5/IMG-5429.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/HLBkJm0B/IMG-5432.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/4dyNV0BZ/IMG-5437.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/MTLZDYFB/IMG-5441.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/MHj6rjCF/IMG-5442.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/3Jmpkyk1/IMG-5444.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/tR1FHvyL/IMG-5446.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/CdThyxYL/IMG-5448.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/dQzrQRVD/IMG-5451.jpg

[img]https://i.postimg.cc/9XvFwJT5/IMG-5429.jpg[/img]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                   

On 2/22/2023 at 8:51 AM, ol'crickety said:

I can't stand watching you guys catch bass after bass. Like an old Eskimo woman, I'm going to go out to the ice to die.*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*Okay, I'll give it two more months.

Don't worry, not all of us southerners can catch something right now lol I'm losing my mind down here watching people catch fish 30 yards from where I'm standing, I haven't had a bite in over a month ????? I might as well start wearing clown shoes to the lake

@thediscochef It's been especially cold in Maine the last four days, so I think my ice floe is now big enough for two if you want to come along. Or you could simply stowaway in @Carolina Pines' boat. He's catching plenty!

Caught about 15....mix of Spots and LGMs....still not a fish over 2.5lbs, and at this point I'm convinced the Spawn is happening.   Another angler I was chatting with spotted a bed and a buck Bass.     Just sucks, I can't sniff a bigger fish.    Trying to figure out if I should just keep fishing, or take a few weeks off.   I think my next best shot at the white whale is at night this summer.   

 

I feel happy that I was able to get a fish close to my goal, but very frustrated that my opportunity at least using the "cheat code" has passed me by.   

 

A huge mistake I made was being enamored to much with offshore fish targeting offshore swaths of bait, like a kid I learned a new trick and held on to it too long.    I should have been focusing more for isolated true trophy worthy fish moving up in 5-10ft of water on cover on points leading to and from the main bodies.    This takes a level of discipline I simply didn't have this early on my journey back into Bassin.    

 

For you guys fishing in low 50 degree water right now, fish it hard it's fleeting ?

This is what the end of big Bass season for me looks like, another reason to hate pollen 

Alex, I think those are two, fine, handsome, healthy, fat fish. And they're two of fifteen!

 

Reframe your expectations and enjoy where your local bass are right now. Even then, you might still catch a DD, but if you don't, there's still a lot to enjoy.

 

For example, it's not 100 degrees and your water isn't hard like mine. Plus, your big bass total for 2023 already surpasses what more than 90% of bass fishers will catch in all of 2023.  

 

P. S. - Please reread my first two sentences. 

Thank you Katie for such thoughtful, and wise words!   You're correct as always too. 

 

I've always said fishing is 100% relative in just about every way imaginable, and in this regard it's relative to the last big fish or breakthrough I had.    It's honestly like Capt. Ahab, I know it's madness, I know it's grown into something beyond "Bass fishing".....but she invades seemingly all my thoughts, the bigger fish I catch towards her, the more obsession takes the wheel.        

 

At 30,000ft, I'm so appreciative of just being on the water, but on the actual lake, I'm like a junkie searching for that high no amount of money can buy.   

 

I talked to the angler whom I thought had the recent lake record at 10.6 today, and he's positive another guy got a 12lb+ a year or two ago, seen the pics just didn't know the weight for sure.   These are just the fish I know about, sure a few other DDs have been caught.    

 

Fishing is crazy, and you never what you might catch tomorrow, so that's why I'll be going tomorrow ?

21 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

Fishing is crazy, and you never what you might catch tomorrow, so that's why I'll be going tomorrow ?

 

I wish @thediscochef and I were going with you. We need to catch some fish in 2023! 

1 hour ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

I've always said fishing is 100% relative in just about every way imaginable, and in this regard it's relative to the last big fish or breakthrough I had.    It's honestly like Capt. Ahab, I know it's madness, I know it's grown into something beyond "Bass fishing"..

That's OK. Don't sweat it. Nothing at all to worry about, unless god is a LM Bass. Ya might be in tad of trouble then.?

10 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

 

I wish @thediscochef and I were going with you. We need to catch some fish in 2023! 

Me too!   I'd take you guys and then I'd finally figure out how to start fishing for Spring Bass ?

10 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

 

I wish @thediscochef and I were going with you. We need to catch some fish in 2023! 

Me too!   I'd take you guys and then I'd finally figure out how to start fishing for Spring Bass ?

11 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

Alex, I think those are two, fine, handsome, healthy, fat fish. And they're two of fifteen!

 

Reframe your expectations and enjoy where your local bass are right now. Even then, you might still catch a DD, but if you don't, there's still a lot to enjoy.

 

For example, it's not 100 degrees and your water isn't hard like mine. Plus, your big bass total for 2023 already surpasses what more than 90% of bass fishers will catch in all of 2023.  

 

P. S. - Please reread my first two sentences. 

I'm part of the 90!

     Alex there is about as much chance as you "Taking a few weeks off" as there is of me going to Maine and sitting on the ice with Katy!  Although I would love her company, especially the taters and sausage, (no Katy I have not forgotten). I'm staying away from the hard water and bone chilling wind gusts. Besides I get to see bass daily even If I don't catch many.

     You will figure out the current pattern whenever you fish and continue to supply us with daily envy with videos and pictures! Actually I have gone to a local cattle pond and caught two big enough to bring home to my place in the past couple days. They are long and skinny with big mouths so I feel I am doing them a favor giving them a chance at a meal for a change.

     And since if you factor in Katy's formula, they could be considered DD's, due to the fact that I have to climb two barbed wire fences, (I'm no spring chicken), and avoid a very mean Black Angus bull, carry a water bucket, and cross a ankle deep marsh.

1 minute ago, Blue Raider Bob said:

I'm part of the 90!

     Alex there is about as much chance as you "Taking a few weeks off" as there is of me going to Maine and sitting on the ice with Katy!  Although I would love her company, especially the taters and sausage, (no Katy I have not forgotten). I'm staying away from the hard water and bone chilling wind gusts. Besides I get to see bass daily even If I don't catch many.

     You will figure out the current pattern whenever you fish and continue to supply us with daily envy with videos and pictures! Actually I have gone to a local cattle pond and caught two big enough to bring home to my place in the past couple days. They are long and skinny with big mouths so I feel I am doing them a favor giving them a chance at a meal for a change.

     And since if you factor in Katy's formula, they could be considered DD's, due to the fact that I have to climb two barbed wire fences, (I'm no spring chicken), and avoid a very mean Black Angus bull, carry a water bucket, and cross a ankle deep marsh.

That's fantastic Bob, love that awesome pond of yours.   

 

I would have loved to seen video of operation Feed a Bass ?

 

This is the quiet before the storm of Katie being back on the water ?

9 hours ago, PhishLI said:

Nothing at all to worry about, unless god is a LM Bass. Ya might be in tad of trouble then.?

 

I sure hope God is a LMB, cause if he is a striped bass, black sea bass, blackfish, bluefish, fluke, tuna or shark, I'm in so much trouble...

14 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

Caught about 15....mix of Spots and LGMs....still not a fish over 2.5lbs, and at this point I'm convinced the Spawn is happening.   Another angler I was chatting with spotted a bed and a buck Bass.     Just sucks, I can't sniff a bigger fish.    Trying to figure out if I should just keep fishing, or take a few weeks off.   I think my next best shot at the white whale is at night this summer.   

 

I feel happy that I was able to get a fish close to my goal, but very frustrated that my opportunity at least using the "cheat code" has passed me by.   

 

A huge mistake I made was being enamored to much with offshore fish targeting offshore swaths of bait, like a kid I learned a new trick and held on to it too long.    I should have been focusing more for isolated true trophy worthy fish moving up in 5-10ft of water on cover on points leading to and from the main bodies.    This takes a level of discipline I simply didn't have this early on my journey back into Bassin.    

 

For you guys fishing in low 50 degree water right now, fish it hard it's fleeting ?

This is what the end of big Bass season for me looks like, another reason to hate pollen 

I know a spot that has 52-56 degree water year round……

1 hour ago, TnRiver46 said:

I know a spot that has 52-56 degree water year round……

I got one not too far away, but it's mainly only got stocked trout ?

8 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

I got one not too far away, but it's mainly only got stocked trout ?

Stocker trout= Big bass snacks