38 minutes ago, casts_by_fly said:

Had to go home to Pittsburgh because my mother in law is in the hopspital but took the chance to go with my dad for a morning.  He’s been killing them at a lake local to my in-laws (almost 200 bass the past 6 weeks fishing once a week, most fish 15-20”) so we went there.

 

he was launched and ready to go when I pulled in so we started about a half hour before daylight. He was ‘guiding’ me for the first hour or so and just running the trolling motor while I threw a buzz bait.  I managed 5 or 6 to start and he started fishing. We swapped to chatterbaits on a flat/ledge setup and made a few passes. After a couple passes there I swapped to a Texas rigged rage claw while he stayed with the chatter bait. We ended up with 23 for the morning and we’re off the water about noon. No 5 lb fish, but lots of 15-19” fish and a 19” fish was nearly 4lb here on the scale (super chunky fish, about a half pound heavier for the length than my heavy Nj fish).  Only one under 12”.  It was a pretty good day..

 

 

Love that #1 you got to fish with your dad!   And #2 He guided you while you got to fish! Believe me, he had more fun than you did. Forever memories right there! I can remember my dad holding on to Willow tree branches and telling me just where to drop my cricket. Sure, I was giggling, but his smile stretch from ear to ear!

2 minutes ago, Blue Raider Bob said:

I can remember my dad holding on to Willow tree branches and telling me just where to drop my cricket.

 

Bob, you're on fire today. ^Another^ great post. Thanks for letting us sit in that boat with you and your dad.

Topwater Tuesday!

4 hours ago, casts_by_fly said:

Had to go home to Pittsburgh because my mother in law is in the hospital

 

 

Nicely Thumb, I mean Done.

Hope your Mother in Law is OK.

A-Jay

2 hours ago, Blue Raider Bob said:

Love that #1 you got to fish with your dad!   And #2 He guided you while you got to fish! Believe me, he had more fun than you did. Forever memories right there! I can remember my dad holding on to Willow tree branches and telling me just where to drop my cricket. Sure, I was giggling, but his smile stretch from ear to ear!

that was in fact the idea. We lived in the Uk for 12 years so that was a long time of us not hunting or fishing together after doing it most every weekend for the preceding 15 years. They are a 6 hour drive from us, but I try to get back and fish his waters at least once a year and he the same to me. We both have the ‘guide’ gene and like putting others on fish so being able to call someone else’s shot is a lot of fun for both of us. Never know how much longer we have (he’ll be 70 next year) so make the most of it. 

 

 

38 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Nicely Thumb, I mean Done.

Home your Mother in Law is OK.

A-Jay

thanks.  It was a good day for fishing and being out. Like I said above to bob, you never know how much time you have left and certainly there is more behind you than ahead of you. Case in point my MIL, who probably won’t ever come home from the hospital. She’s been not well for a long time but unfortunately we’re nearer the end than the beginning. 

18 hours ago, Pat Brown said:

My uncle fishes on Lake St Clair and uses Mepps spinners exclusively and catches Pike, Musky, Drum, Smallies, Largies, Walleye, Perch, Gar and Carp!

 

Absolutely incredible baits!

 

18 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

I love the Mepps spinners. 

 

4 hours ago, Blue Raider Bob said:

     Yep!  Works for me when all else fails. Sometimes it seems to me we tend to get away from the lures that once worked for us in favor of the latest trend, (which I'm not knocking because I'm guilty as well), but the lures we used as kids, and the lures our dad's used were used for a reason.....they worked!  In an earlier thread I described how I tried to convince my high school fishing buddy, who was visiting, to use my modern, up to date, fishing lures and techniques while he was content to use the Mister Twister curly tails we used when we were kids. I was much too "sophisticated" to use something so dated in the 21st century, so I nursed my Neds along while he unhooked Bass after Bass! Just a reminder to myself to not take our passion so seriously and remember why we do what we do. For me it's the sheer joy of being on the water.

 

 

Mepps spinners and Mister Twister curly tail grubs were the first artificial lures I learned how to use as a kid, and we caught everything with them. I still use them sometimes for river smallies.

Got a slight break on the weather today; just 87 at the moment and dewpoint at 70 as we sit at the edge of a dry wedge of air. A NE breeze at 6-8 when it rose, otherwise sunny and calm, and the lakes are starting to clear. So not ideal conditions. Still, heat advisories the next two days with heat indexes over 100, so make a quick run today.

 

Gave myself a limit; 1 hr or 10 bass, whichever came first. Turns out I caught #10 at about the 59 minute mark, so it didn’t really matter. Everything on a couple Ned options. Nothing of size, but the string got stretched, so it’s all good in my book…and it might have helped stop a tortoise from swallowing the world up today, too, so there’s that  ?

 

 

 

I told y'all Team9nine wouldn't get skunked.  

1 hour ago, Team9nine said:

just 87 at the moment and dewpoint at 70

"Just" 87 with a dew point of 70.  So its tropical there too you say.

 

It was 98 here with a dew point of 80.  EIGHTY degree dew point lol.  This is down right intolerable.  I worked up a sweat just wheeling the trash can to the road.

24 minutes ago, gimruis said:

"Just" 87 with a dew point of 70.  So its tropical there too you say.

 

It was 98 here with a dew point of 80.  EIGHTY degree dew point lol.  This is down right intolerable.  I worked up a sweat just wheeling the trash can to the road.

Our next two days are 92 and 99 with 75 deg. dewpoints, so fishing is probably out of the question…probably ?

1 minute ago, Team9nine said:

Our next two days are 92 and 99 with 75 deg. dewpoints, so fishing is probably out of the question…probably ?

Could you fish any of those ponds at night time?

Took yesterday off to give my back a break, but was feeling better today. Just grabbed my spinning rod and went to the pond with a shaky head and a Ned rig. I didn't have to fish for long as I got this guy on the first cast. However, that was it for 30mins or so. I said I would post a pic of all the gear listed in my pics, well, here are my rods, all used during this whole thing. I always keep my Texas and Carolina rig tied up, but I switch out out the others using a VMC crankbait snap. Range from medium (spinning) to Heavy (Lew's custom speed stick). I do switch the reels between rods depending on what I am doing. Right now that Lew's rod is my glade bait setup. My victory on the right end is now my flippin/pitching setup. Reels range from Lew's Tournament MP (3), a Tournament XP, Custom XP, Super duty LFS. Spinning are Custom pro speed spin and a Mach 2. Rods are Dobyns 703C, 703SF, 705CB, 733C, 734C...the St Croix's are a Triumph 6'6 Medium/fast spin (My 2 piece, stuff in the trunk setup) Victory 7'4 Max Marshal and 7'6 Power flippin. The Only lew's rod is the Custom speed stick Supergrip. Its 7'10 heavy fast, named the Ledge Raider. I have a mach 2 casting rod thats not pictured, but was my first Carolina rig rod and another Lew's custom super grip for REALLY heavy baits, 7'10 Xtra Heavy rated for 3oz -10oz, named the Jungle Rod.

 

Streak lasted 76 days, not every fish was a bass, but there were only 2-3 days where that happened. Other species caught were Peacock bass, Bullseye snakeheads, Mayan Cichlids. 

 

Top 3 largest bass was 5lbs, 4lbs 12oz, and 3lbs 14oz. Fish mainly range from about .5lbs to 2.5lbs. Biggest fish was caught on Carolina rig with junebug/chartreuse tail, next was on a Googan Blazin worm and the 3 was a Zoom speed worm. 

 

I am working on the baits in a pic, but I have TONS to put out and I have to do while my girl is not around, she gets mad at all the fishing stuff haha.

 

Giving a listed break down.

Hooks are all Gamakatsu 3-4-5/0 sizes and weights are tungsten, Mixture of brands. 1/8 - 5/16th

Cluprit 6" ribbon tail black/blue

Googan Blazing worm Junebug

Bass pro Stik-o 4.5" and 5.5" black/blue and Watermelon candy.

Zoom Speed worm 6" Junebug, Junebug red, Red bug, Watermelon Red. 

Zoom Speed worm mag size. Same colors above. 

Zoom Trick worm 6" Junebug red and Green Pumpkin

Zoom Lizard 6" and 7" Junebug red with and without chartreuse tail. Green Pumpkin

Z-man Ned TRD Finesse large size, black/blue. 

The whole range of Rat-L-Traps, from the mini to the 3/4oz. Mostly chrome colors, but have 1 white.

Strike King Banshee spinner bait black/blue

Strike King Banshee Buzzbait black/blue

Strike king swim jig Black/blue.

Z-Man Chatterbait Black/blue and white. 

Z-man Jackhammers, black/blue, Okee craw, White, White/yellow

Kietech swimbaits 4-5" White, electric blue, black/blue, gold flash, shad, shad blue.

Googan Saucy swimmer 4" white

VMC 3/16 and 1/4 Under spins with Kietech swim bait.  

Rapala Rap and Rap shadow, chrome and baby bass color.

KVD 1.5 crank bait, sunfish color

Booyah one knocker 1/2oz and 3/4oz size, golden shiner

Whopper Plopper blue gill and chrome

Mach Patroller (whopper plopper) white/black

Mach Machshad in Ghost gill

Rebel Magnum Pop-R  Baby bass

Storm 4" chug bug baby bass 

5" mega popper, can't remember the brand, old school lure. White/Shad color.  

 

Ill probably add to this, but that's the bulk of all that was used. 

 

 

1 hour ago, gimruis said:

Could you fish any of those ponds at night time?

Technically, yes, but not sure how comfortable people would be with someone walking around out in the dark near their homes…then there are the mosquitos, but I have fished them right after the sun gets pretty low, up until a bit after dark. What wind we’ve had has died each day b4 sunset, so things have felt worse then, not better. Good breeze for Thu in the forecast, so maybe then.

2 hours ago, gimruis said:

"Just" 87 with a dew point of 70.  So its tropical there too you say.

 

It was 98 here with a dew point of 80.  EIGHTY degree dew point lol.  This is down right intolerable.  I worked up a sweat just wheeling the trash can to the road.

I feel sorry for you guys in Kansas and the midwest...absolutely BONKERS heat indices of 130+ in some areas. It was 102 here today with a max dew point of 70 so index never got above 108. Chilly by comparison to the true center of the heat dome. Stay safe y'all 

5 minutes ago, thediscochef said:

I feel sorry for you guys in Kansas and the midwest...absolutely BONKERS heat indices of 130+ in some areas. It was 102 here today with a max dew point of 70 so index never got above 108. Chilly by comparison to the true center of the heat dome. Stay safe y'all 

Thankfully it doesn't last for 3 months up here.  Usually 1-2 days max

@Dominat0r: That's a lotta fishing outfits and lures! It's cool that you know how to work all those lures.

 

@thediscochef: When I was a kid, the two Twilight episodes that scared me the most were the one with Billy Mumy as the all-powerful child and the one where the world grew hotter and hotter and the young woman in her apartment just wanted to survive a few more days. 

Slow bite turned into a wonderful evening, I was trying out the new st croix mojo bass and caught a LM, then a 21” SM! I had just found an old rusty jig head and wire brushed it and stuffed it inside a tube. The SM bent the hook but didn’t come off! Water temp 69 degrees, that helped cool the 92 degree air 

 

 

 

 

40 minutes ago, gimruis said:

Thankfully it doesn't last for 3 months up here.  Usually 1-2 days max

We've had an above-average number of 105+ days this year, though 2011 and 1980 had longer streaks above 100. I'm hoping we peaked for the year last week with the 112 degree day ??

Lawrence, KS recorded heat index readings to of 133 Sunday, 134 yesterday, 123 today. 

5 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Slow bite turned into a wonderful evening, I was trying out the new st croix mojo bass and caught a LM, then a 21” SM! I had just found an old rusty jig head and wire brushed it and stuffed it inside a tube. The SM bent the hook but didn’t come off! 

 

That's beautiful ?

1 hour ago, ol'crickety said:

@Dominat0r: That's a lotta fishing outfits and lures! It's cool that you know how to work all those lures.

 

That's another thing I wanted to achieve with my goal, try new things out of my comfort zone. I learned a lot, but still have a lot more that I want to know. I want to get into the finesse presentations more, get a med-light spinning setup. I want to go the exact opposite as well and go to big glide baits. So much more to learn, can't wait to see what those big glide/swimbaits brings me at Headwaters this weekend. Heading out there Saturday morning and hoping to beat Roland to the Spillway haha. I do have a good friend that fishes tournaments that I fish with. So he teaches me a lot of new things. Same person I have been going with this summer, which is why I come home from that trip with a plan for a new setup haha. 

Some highlights from a fun afternoon trip yesterday.  It was blazing hot but a steady breeze positioned a school right off of a main lake point and when we realized the arches on my Garmin were interested in playing with jigs, we got rich in a hurry.  Last cast big fish is always fun too!

 

 

Jake also caught a nice one on the big bites B2 worm which has been one of the best worms for us this summer!

 

Also caught my second spinnerbait bass in two trips out, so they seem to be easing into their fall patterns.... jigs, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits dominating.

12 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

a 21” SM

 

Whoa! I also love the water photos and that release. The way she turned so suddenly was wicked cool.

 

@Pat Brown: You're one of the BR fishermen that I'd love to sit beside for a few hours to just watch you fish. I know I'd leave your boat a better fisher.

We're under a "Heat Dome", right now, have been since late last week and it's supposed to continue until the end of this week. I went out early Sunday for a few hours to try to avoid the worst of it. It was already in the low 80's when I got to the water with crazy humidity, by the end of the day, the heat index hit 136*, that is not a typo. The weatherman said there's only 2 places in the world where conditions are right for it to get like this, here and in the Middle East. 

 

The bite was a little slow, but the ones I was getting were pretty decent quality. Got to test run one of the new Mojo spinning rods also, felt really nice. The big one of the morning absolutely smashed a Berkley Cane Walker. 

 

That shallow flipping bite after the cane walker fish is the stuff I live for @Bluebasser86!  Nice video!

25 minutes ago, Pat Brown said:

That shallow flipping bite after the cane walker fish is the stuff I live for @Bluebasser86!  Nice video!

I love flipping grass but we don't have very much of it here.

11 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I love flipping grass but we don't have very much of it here.

 

 

Yeah we don't either.  Submerged thorn bushes and brush piles and trees are sort of the flipping medium here primarily but I do occasionally find some emergent pad/grass and catch a couple and that always feels really good!