1 hour ago, TnRiver46 said:

I figured you’d be numb to it after hooking yourself 3-4 times this summer! ? 

 

I know, huh? I upgrade some hooks on lures. The wonderful thing about the pricey hooks is that they're super sharp and hook bass better the horrible thing about the pricey hooks is that they're super sharp and hook us better. When I hooked myself last week, they slid into me like I was made of warm butter. 

 

34 minutes ago, gimruis said:

don't leave hooks laying around in my boat, ever. 

 

Don't you have lures tied to outfits? I always have six or seven rods and reels ready to cast in my canoe. 

6 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

Don't you have lures tied to outfits? I always have six or seven rods and reels ready to cast in my canoe. 

Sorry, that's not what I meant.  Yes, I have lures tied to my setups, but they are always stored under rod buckles/straps and the lures/hook is attached to the tender.  Or they are in my rod box. 

 

What I meant was no random hooks or lures just laying out on the floor or deck for someone (or the dog) to step on.  I'm generally an organized person by nature so my boat is kept that way all the time too.

6 minutes ago, gimruis said:

I'm generally an organized person by nature so my boat is kept that way all the time too.

 

Smart. My canoe can look chaotic, but everything is always in the same place. That way, I can reach for whatever I need without even looking first. I got stuck last week because I was in a different, smaller canoe so I could take the kid fishing. It was a two-person canoe, but shorter than my solo boat, plus we had his gear, so my system couldn't work. 

 

FWIW, I didn't fish this morning because tomorrow morning bodes to be even better. It's going to be in the mid-sixties all night tonight, which is unseasonably warm, nearly no wind, and raining steadily. I know you like to fish the rain too. 

35 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

I know you like to fish the rain too. 

Oh yes, a light steady rain is ideal.  Not heavy down pours lol

3 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

 

Atta, Pard'!

 

 

I see so many young YouTubers fishing barefoot and I shake my head. So many hooks on a boat. 

I'd just be afraid that the roland martin-shaped group of crows that follow me around the lake would get hungry, or perhaps fancy a game of 'this little piggy'. Those are my good walking toes! I can't have my toes be scratched by crows

My thumb is still recovering from yesterday's nice bass, she was toothy and angry. I caught a dink, lost a heavy heavy bite and then watched my buddy catch a PB of 6lb 8oz (middle pic), using a color, location, and technique that I suggested. Proud friend moment.

I'm not convinced that the heavy I lost was a bass. It ran like a bass, but my hooks were slimed. My best guess is still gar or a blue cat. I made a few technical mistakes in the process, I had the drag just a touch heavy because I was having trouble setting the hook from distance. But this hit was maybe 10 yards from me, I was not distance casting. I knew what was happening, felt the line may break, didn't set the hook hardly at all, and then eased up on the drag. It swam at me which didn't help. It dove into some invasive milfoil and left my red eye shad behind. But it was strong enough that 12# sufix siege felt like it would immediately break if I thumbed the spool at all. The answer to all this is to use the normal rod I use instead of trying to reinvent the wheel

21 minutes ago, thediscochef said:

I'd just be afraid that the roland martin-shaped group of crows that follow me around the lake would get hungry, or perhaps fancy a game of 'this little piggy'. Those are my good walking toes! I can't have my toes be scratched by crows

 

You're the man who jumped in the water and landed a giant bass. You have nothing to fear that walks or swims or flies this world. Remember this video I took of you?

 

5 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

 

You're the man who jumped in the water and landed a giant bass. You have nothing to fear that walks or swims or flies this world. Remember this video I took of you?

 

It more of an ungraceful busting of the behind than a jump but we can go with jump ?

1 minute ago, thediscochef said:

My thumb is still recovering from yesterday's nice bass, she was toothy and angry. I caught a dink, lost a heavy heavy bite and then watched my buddy catch a PB of 6lb 8oz (middle pic), using a color, location, and technique that I suggested. Proud friend moment.

I'm not convinced that the heavy I lost was a bass. It ran like a bass, but my hooks were slimed. . I made a few technical mistakes in the process, I had the drag just a touch heavy because I was having trouble setting the hook from distance. But this hit was maybe 10 yards from me, I was not distance casting. I knew what was happening, felt the line may break, didn't set the hook hardly at all, and then eased up on the drag. It swam at me which didn't help. It dove into some invasive milfoil and left my red eye shad behind. But it was strong enough that 12# sufix siege felt like it would immediately break if I thumbed the spool at all. The answer to all this is to use the normal rod I use instead of trying to reinvent the wheel

 

I am amazed at the size of the bass you catch from shore. FROM SHORE! You'd be landing DDs with a boat.

13 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

 

I am amazed at the size of the bass you catch from shore. FROM SHORE! You'd be landing DDs with a boat.

I just wish I caught them more consistently lol. I do take a small level of pride in the consistency I do have considering the amount of pressure at the main spot I fish.

The buddy I was with today who caught the big bass has been talking about getting an aluminum bass tracker so hopefully we can make that a reality soon ?

I always fish better out of a boat.

I had a cool experience running the red eye shad up an incline of riprap, I could see a ball of larger (4-5") shads all around it before it got too shallow and they scattered. That color and size is magic at that spot I swear. If bass hitting any moving baits at all it's gonna get crushed sooner or later. Problem lately is they're only sometimes hitting moving baits

7 minutes ago, thediscochef said:

The buddy I was with today who caught the big bass has been talking about getting an aluminum bass tracker so hopefully we can make that a reality soon

 

I wish I were Jean-Luc Picard and that I had a number one. If I did, I'd hear ^this^ wish and say to my #1, "Make it so."

 

8 minutes ago, thediscochef said:

I always fish better out of a boat.

 

I think we all do and the bonus of a boat is that you don't have to jump into the water to fetch a beast.

1 hour ago, thediscochef said:

My thumb is still recovering from yesterday's nice bass, she was toothy and angry. I caught a dink, lost a heavy heavy bite and then watched my buddy catch a PB of 6lb 8oz (middle pic), using a color, location, and technique that I suggested. Proud friend moment.

I'm not convinced that the heavy I lost was a bass. It ran like a bass, but my hooks were slimed. My best guess is still gar or a blue cat. I made a few technical mistakes in the process, I had the drag just a touch heavy because I was having trouble setting the hook from distance. But this hit was maybe 10 yards from me, I was not distance casting. I knew what was happening, felt the line may break, didn't set the hook hardly at all, and then eased up on the drag. It swam at me which didn't help. It dove into some invasive milfoil and left my red eye shad behind. But it was strong enough that 12# sufix siege felt like it would immediately break if I thumbed the spool at all. The answer to all this is to use the normal rod I use instead of trying to reinvent the wheel

Looks like you lip grabbed a Walleye! Our LM don't grow teeth like ya'lls in Texas. Sure that was a bass??

I decided to give the couple of lakes I’ve been focusing on a break, and try to change my luck (which has been poor recently).  It worked and we had a fun day.  I hooked and landed 4 decent largemouth and about 8 pike (one about 4#, the rest very small) on a chatterbait.  This was a victory for me, as I’d previously had very poor luck on a chatterbait.  It may have finally sunk in for me that this lure needs to be run through or just ticking the top of sparse weeds.  It’s a very cool bite feeling as the bait feels like it just stalls and then the instinctive rod sweep loads up on a fish. ?  I was fishing a 1/2oz. Z-Man Original on a 7’ MH moderate rod with 12# Suffix Advance.  My hookup ratio was very high and landing percentage 100% so it confirms the softer rod and line stretch in that system is perfect.

 

I also caught one largemouth on a jerkbait, and missed a couple good ones (big blowups, anyway) on a frog.  All in all, a very good day. ?

1 minute ago, The Baron said:

I decided to give the couple of lakes I’ve been focusing on a break, and try to change my luck (which has been poor recently).  It worked and we had a pretty decent day.  I hooked and landed 4 decent largemouth and about 8 pike (one about 4#, the rest very small) on a chatterbait.  This was a victory for me, as I’d previously had very poor luck on a chatterbait.  It may have finally sunk in for me that this lure needs to be run through or just ticking the top of sparse weeds.  It’s a very cool bite feeling as the bait feels like it just stalls and then the instinctive rod sweep loads up on a fish. ?  I was fishing a 1/2oz. Z-Man Original on a 7’ MH moderate rod with 12# Suffix Advance.  My hookup ratio was very high and landing percentage 100% so it confirms the softer rod and line stretch in that system is perfect.

 

I also caught one largemouth on a jerkbait, and missed a couple good ones (big blowups, anyway) on a frog.  All in all, a very good day. ?

chatterbaits are such a fun and responsive way to fish, Nice!

I was inspired to go throw a chatterbait to kill an hour. PB spot×smallie hybrid I believe. Either that or just a nice smallmouth. And then a little LM on the ol monster. Gotta go home now though. 

Looks like meanmouth! Nice one @thediscochef

Sitting in la-la land on a slight ridge of low pressure with 5 fronts circling us today. Light winds, sunny skies, low humidity and temps in the low 80s, combined with the slow bite that's been going on here made be go finesse today - really finesse. Pulled out a ML outfit with 4 lb braid to a 4 lb leader, set up a split shot rig, and decided to see what would happen. Turned out to be a good call, with near perfect execution. Landed 12 bass total, never lost or broke off a fish, and caught them all on a single Roboworm that I still have left for the next trip ?

 

 

 

 

 

 

14 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

Sitting in la-la land on a slight ridge of low pressure with 5 fronts circling us today. Light winds, sunny skies, low humidity and temps in the low 80s, combined with the slow bite that's been going on here made be go finesse today - really finesse. Pulled out a ML outfit with 4 lb braid to a 4 lb leader, set up a split shot rig, and decided to see what would happen. Turned out to be a good call, with near perfect execution. Landed 12 bass total, never lost or broke off a fish, and caught them all on a single Roboworm that I still have left for the next trip ?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Take those footballs to the Colts' training camp!

1 hour ago, TnRiver46 said:

Looks like meanmouth! Nice one @thediscochef

You always know how to identify bass, thank you

Maybe not always but close! I think @Alex from GAhas probably seen them all live and in color 

                                                                     

I'm thanking Pat and thinking of moving to Me...

 

 

Never caught 2 5+#ers in one night, only 7 over 5 in my life

Buzzbait for the win @Kites R4 Skyfishing !!!!

 

I've caught more fish this month on the buzzbait then all other topwaters combined up to this point in my life!  It's the deal and I'm glad I committed to it.

 

Here's a gorgeous fall  second pre spawn bass I caught on the @Siebert Outdoorsswim jig in black and blue with a blue bug rage craw on the back.  I got to see her wake on it in less than a foot of water and the hook set was oh so satisfying!

 

5 lb beast before work today:

 

 

 

Nice bass, Pat and Kites!

 

Since it's a rainy day and perfect for a double feature (For you young folks, that's two movies for the price of one, preceded by shorts/cartoons.), I'm going to do a double feature, i.e. some medium-sized bass followed by the main feature, but with shorts to start the show and two intermissions. I caught 20 bass total and the first of the bigger bass was 19", but the second, bigger bass, while not as long, was chunkier. I swear that the blue heron likes to watch me fish. He followed me from one rock to another. I caught all 20 bass on a bone-colored, River2Sea popper, a white, 130 Whopper Plopper, and a shad-colored Keitech with a weighted-shaft hook. 

 

I rose at 3:50, launched in the rainy dark, paddled more than six miles, and I'm drained. It wasn't that long ago that I could do this every morning and evening and still be as bouncy as a bunny. 

 

I was gonna ask you about today, good stuff crick! All in shallow grass of some sort?

 

Seems like a tough day for big water fishing, great for smaller more predicable water. Days like this seems like a bass could be anywhere in a big lake, comfortable to move around a bit. Bright sunny I'd know where to look, shade and cover.

 

I tell ya what crick, you got me thinking I need to invest in one of those bone ploppers. I do already have that same Flambeau box though haha, but I question my need for it now that in only throw a chatterbait ?

 

@Pat Brown nice fish bro!

 

yeah man, this has been unquestionably my best season yet, I've only thrown the ned a handful of times instead of everytime all year like usual and it paid off big time.

 

This was the first time I've ever caught more than one 5#er in a season, and 2 in one night - the only time I'll have a better season is if I ever up my PB.

 

Also the first time in like 4 years catching a 5# not from the bank, boy that fight was incredible. Peeled drag, dragged me almost into a dock then a boat and then some overhanging trees. Took a lot of awkward, uncomfortable, and today,  painful paddling maneuvers.

 

I pulled it off a dock and I'm thinking of getting out on the water every night this week while I'm on vaca.

 

Second one was in like 1-2 ft of water, it's different fighting and landing'em in a yak and not on shore, been a while for me. I def get a little panicky haha