Been fishing under frontal conditions all weekend. Brilliant blue skies, and today, no wind. Like fishing in an aquarium. Still managed around 4 dozen over the three days fishing just an hour or two in the evenings. Had somewhat of an "aha moment" earlier this week that has completely changed my fishing outlook...more to come later in that regard.

 

17 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

 Had somewhat of an "aha moment" earlier this week that has completely changed my fishing outlook...more to come later in that regard.

 

 

I love those !

Congrats

A-Jay

Caught this one today in a local park pond.  3lbs on the nose.  There were several bigger ones you could see cruising and guarding beds too but they didn't want anything you put in front of them.

 

Haven't been able to do as much fishing as I would like, been working alot. However I have been fishing more than I've been catching...lol. 2nd and 4th pics are of a bowfin I caught at Cross Lake last Sunday on a black and blue 1/2oz chatterbait with a green pumpkin Rage Craw trailer. When it hit and I felt the weight I just knew I had a new PB. Unfortunately it wasn't, but the bowfin weighed 6lbs 11oz. The weekend before that I caught this 1lb 4oz bass 1st and 3rd pics. That's really the extent of my catching lately. Guess this weather has kept them in a funk. Weather is starting to get a little better so hopefully that new PB won't be long.

Had a good day fishing Fort Phantom yesterday in my new Bass Raider with a buddy. Water temp was 62°-63°. Caught about 20 bass between the 2 of us and several crappie as well, including a 1.5 lb slab. It was a blast because we was catching them shallow up in brush and they were good quality fish that fought hard. We were pitching T-rigged plastics into the nastiest cover we could find including brush and laydowns. Also caught a couple off of rocky shoreline.

 

They would take off like a rocket for the brush when we set the hook and we would have to horse them out which was awesome. We both lost several, and he lost a good one in the brush and I had one that I couldn't hardly get turned from the brush and was peeling drag so I thumbed the spool to stop her twice. She got tangled up but managed to get her loose but came unbuttoned about 5' from the boat, she was a dandy. My best one went 3.8 lbs and his was 2.75 with several a piece over 2 lbs. 

[April 29, 2018]

 

 

Jeremy's "Fish of the Day" 4 lb 02 oz Largemouth Bass

 

 

My Baits That Were Successful Today

 

01. Grub - Bass #1 & #2

 

02. Spinnerbait - Bass #3, Pike #1

 

03. Squarebill - Bass #4 & #5

 

WolfyBrandon

 

 

Got out Friday for a quick session and longer ones both Sat & Sunday.

 

Friday evening was very slow BUT managed a beast of a smallie right before I ready to pack it in. It was easily over 4lbs, huge belly, and had that amazing tiger coloration and it was fired up. Easily the most beautiful fish I had ever caught. I was so pumped and trying to get my phone out to take a pic. The fish was on the fish gripper and I lowered it into the water to not keep it out of the water too long before taking a pic..and it just took off lol oh well

 

Saturday was a warm sunny day. Caught 5 or 6 fish including this one at just over 4lbs

 

 

Sunday landed 2 LMBs, 4 smallies, and a pickerel. Hooked a big smallie and he triumphantly jumped, shook, and tossed my jerkbait like he'd done that countless times before. I was laughing bc it was just d**n impressive

 

Had to really work for the fish from the bank and move around, but when I found them, they were biting. All fish on jerk baits. 

Walking the banks again earlier today.

 

The bass weren't co-operating too well. But the trouts were. Kept my limit, and C and R-ed as least as many more.

 

Vision 110 Type R got a workout today @A-Jay

 

 

 

Pair of 17"-ers on a Siebert spinnerbait today:

 

3 hours ago, deep said:

Walking the banks again earlier today.

 

The bass weren't co-operating too well. But the trouts were. Kept my limit, and C and R-ed as least as many more.

 

Vision 110 Type R got a workout today @A-Jay

 

 

 

 

 

Sweet !

Congrats 

A-Jay

 

9 hours ago, deep said:

Walking the banks again earlier today.

 

The bass weren't co-operating too well. But the trouts were. Kept my limit, and C and R-ed as least as many more.

 

Vision 110 Type R got a workout today @A-Jay

 

 

 

Nice harvest! Glad to see something happening up there! I know that place comes alive for about a week or two in spring then the bass all but disappear. Gonna have to make my way out there again soon. 

14 hours ago, deep said:

Walking the banks again earlier today.

 

The bass weren't co-operating too well. But the trouts were. Kept my limit, and C and R-ed as least as many more.

 

 

 

Nice looking string there deep. Why oh why they don't stock trout in Canyon Lake.?

My buddy came down to visit from NY this weekend so I took him out to Fountainhead Park here in Northern VA.  The boat rentals are cheap and there are some nice bass lurking in the reservoir. The water was blown out chocolate milk with tons of floating trash but we still managed 8 bites.  I boated 6 and my buddy missed 2.  The two biggest went 4 and 4.6. 

Buddy took me out, and put me on this, plus a couple other fish today.

 

Caught a few good fish this past weekend. Most came on the @Siebert Outdoors fogy. Great chatters if you don't own 1 already. Mikes a heck of a guy too. Big fish was 4lb 12oz. 

Caught my first bed fish today. Really wild experience. She was guarding her freshly hatched eggs, and I could see her following them around. Worked her for 30 minutes with a creature bait and watched her get progressively more aggressive. She broke water with my bait in her mouth. What a cool way to catch a fish! She went for 2.4#.

we caught 34 spots this morning and put it on the trailer a little after noon as the heat builds in the western foothills of NC. my cousin caught this one on a Zoom lizard in 20 fow.

 

@Graham that's a male... 9 people liked your post and didn't point out to you that the female don't guard the fry..  the male fans (or makes) the nest. The female just lays the eggs... Usually in more than one nest. The male then fertilizes the eggs and gaurds the fry until they are able to swim and hide for themselves. In which he will probably then decided to eat a few of them lol. It's a fascinating process. Many threads on it. 

 

Nice catch tho 

Ah, looked like a spawned out female to me. Thanks for the info tho! Their behavioral habits are really cool, especially this time of year. I know you determined it was a male by how I described it guarding the fry, but are there any physical characteristics that help in identifying male vs female?

Some WV multitasking this morning

 

Looks like your buddy's passed out man. Was the Fishing slow or what?

6 hours ago, Yeajray231 said:

@Graham that's a male... 9 people liked your post and didn't point out to you that the female don't guard the fry..  the male fans (or makes) the nest. The female just lays the eggs... Usually in more than one nest. The male then fertilizes the eggs and gaurds the fry until they are able to swim and hide for themselves. In which he will probably then decided to eat a few of them lol. It's a fascinating process. Many threads on it. 

 

Nice catch tho 

Females will guard fry, that's why you put the male in the livewell after you catch him so she'll have to take over the nest/fry guarding duties and become easier to catch. She'll usually patrol the edges of the nest and run off intruders at times also, although not as aggressively as the male.

 

 Now looking at that fish I would tend to agree that it looks like a male.

8 hours ago, everythingthatswims said:

Some WV multitasking this morning

 

Nice bird! First thing I thought of when I saw the Turkey in your yak was this.....

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://m.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3D-4GgMLiRP_Q&ved=0ahUKEwiAvcyt9evaAhVj0oMKHcyWC5wQuAIIKjAB&usg=AOvVaw2Dbqs_nTtum9hHcdp8yCdb

My first trip and first fish of the year, and first fish caught on my homemade jig (if you call designing your own skirts and puting them on prepainted bought jigs homemade). Caught these guys off beds. Just pitching to bed looking spots a few feet back from the shoreline... Kind of fishing blind, but reading the shoreline. Not bad for a 1 and a half hours of fishing.

Dink city gave up a major non-dink this morning. Super shallow wood.

 

Only had an hour to fish, so fished from the banks. Going to take out the yak there this evening and see if I can coax out another decent bite from one of the dozens of laydowns lining the shoreline.