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Posted

Lake George, at Fred Rose Park there is a spot by the parking area a small trail at the west most point of the property.  It's kind of steep there but there is a tree under the water straight out there. I have done pretty well at that spot.  To the very left (west), there are some maple trees overhanging the water which the bluegill like, and some bass.  Once you have finished that area take a walk all the way east and go down by the water, you should be looking at the back of the middle school.  That area has a lot of lilly pads.  Work that area.

 

Across the lake at Jerry Pavese Park is hit a miss.  Try the very east of the water then make your way down to the west side of the boat launch, there are a lot of lilly pads there.  Then try down by the scout cabin. 

 

Festival Park, downtown try the rocky area leading up to the dam.  There is also the docks by the community center which get you out in the water a bit and by some lilly pads.  Under the pavilion that sticks out in the water can produce.

 

Don't spend a whole lot of time in one spot.  If it's not working, it's not working and move on. 

 

Lake George has been a little inconsistent this year.  Bass have been hit and miss, the biggest I caught this year has been 18".  I have caught bigger bass this year, but fewer in numbers.  For me the bluegill and crappie are way off, and I've not caught anything of size this season.

 

 

  • 1 month later...
Posted
On 8/16/2020 at 7:01 PM, Jabbaman said:

 

 

On 8/16/2020 at 7:01 PM, Jabbaman said:

 

 

On 8/16/2020 at 7:01 PM, Jabbaman said:

So, to put it simply. Sometime a few years ago, I got tired of catching bluegill and catfish and when I'm fishing with friends it can get a little crowded if we're all going for the gills. I bought some gear ( Some senkos. Crankbait.  Buzzbait. Recently some ned rig stuff. Frogs. Etc etc.) I fish with a fairly average 6'6 baitcasting rod or a 6ft spinning rod.  My baitcaster is loaded with 50lb braid and sometimes a leader. Spinning rod is 8lb mono

 

I've been fishing multiple times a week during the warm weather. Specifically for bass, for 3 years. I haven't caught one. I've been taking in all the advice I can soak up from youtube and elsewhere, none of it has helped. Even talking with local anglers out on the lakes, none of them say they've ever had luck with bass. A few older guys have told me they only get bass when they go out on vacation. 

 

At the same time. I know they're in the lakes, and I know people online say they get them.

 

Is there anyone from the region ( Northwest Indiana) who has any advice? Or would like to go fishing and help a new guy out?  I'm from northern merrillville. Typically I'm at Lake George, Lake Rosser. Lake Robinson. Grand Blvd Lake. I only fish from shore, as I lack a boat.

Did you get lucky yet?!

Posted

When all else fails, Ned rig on light line. If that doesn't work for you, then start junk fishing. throw every lure possible at every square foot you can reach. With your finesse applications, fish as slow as you can stand. Let the lure sit on the bottom for 10+ seconds. Some people may think that's a bit ridiculous, but it's gotten me bites before.

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Posted
On 10/10/2020 at 9:34 PM, Jabbaman said:

No bass. I went to a few different spots and tried all the techniques mentioned here. I've even tried streamers and poppers on my fly rod. After another 2 months since this thread of fishing three times a week most weeks four or so hours each trip. It's not worth my time to pursue these fish. Back to panfish like everyone else.  I'm convinced the bass here is non existent. My talks with tons of local fishermen validates this.

 

I've pretty much given up unless a local who has good luck is willing to go and teach.

Head over to a local bait and tackle shop and talk to the owner and patrons and see what there catching and with what.. See if you can find any local guides for the lakes that you want to fish.

On 10/10/2020 at 9:34 PM, Jabbaman said:

No bass. I went to a few different spots and tried all the techniques mentioned here. I've even tried streamers and poppers on my fly rod. After another 2 months since this thread of fishing three times a week most weeks four or so hours each trip. It's not worth my time to pursue these fish. Back to panfish like everyone else.  I'm convinced the bass here is non existent. My talks with tons of local fishermen validates this.

 

I've pretty much given up unless a local who has good luck is willing to go and teach.

Head over to a local bait and tackle shop and talk to the owner and patrons and see what there catching and with what.. See if you can find any local guides for the lakes that you want to fish.

Posted

Looks like regular bass tournaments out of Hobart which is right next to you. I would go attend one of their weigh ins, share your story, and pick their brains.

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Posted
10 hours ago, Slipknot_Fan666 said:

When all else fails, Ned rig on light line. If that doesn't work for you, then start junk fishing. throw every lure possible at every square foot you can reach. With your finesse applications, fish as slow as you can stand. Let the lure sit on the bottom for 10+ seconds. Some people may think that's a bit ridiculous, but it's gotten me bites before.

OP This is great advise. This works on lakes/river where you know the bass exist and have lock jaw. 

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  • 2 months later...
Posted
On 10/10/2020 at 8:34 PM, Jabbaman said:

No bass. I went to a few different spots and tried all the techniques mentioned here. I've even tried streamers and poppers on my fly rod. After another 2 months since this thread of fishing three times a week most weeks four or so hours each trip. It's not worth my time to pursue these fish. Back to panfish like everyone else.  I'm convinced the bass here is non existent. My talks with tons of local fishermen validates this.

 

I've pretty much given up unless a local who has good luck is willing to go and teach.

DO NOT GIVE UP UNTIL YOU READ THIS.

 

I too was like you, only I have been fishing on and off my whole life until one one early June morning in 2019. I had recently bought some fishing tackle and lures from a garage sale and was trying some of these items on the particular morning. I was ready to give up as 11am approached and there was one bag with one worm in it that was a berkley 4.5" tequila sunrise curly tail, and put it on a medium six eagle claw worm type hook. Ended up catching 5-6 bass about a pound or less. I went home and ordered 2 bags from amazon. By the end of the season I went through 7-8 more bags catching nearly a 100 bass ranging from 1/2lb up to 1.75lb 75% came from that worm and the confidence of catching fish helped me to find other plastics and lures that worked. These are my go too when nothing else works. I fish reservoirs mostly. Do not bother buying other colors, buy the exact worm, size and color and try my technique below.

 

i use 10-12 lb braid lo-vis line. I weightless Texas rig the above mentioned worm on a size 4/0 red gamaketsu offset hook for cast side to side in spring early summer and at a weighted gamaketsu size 4/0 for later summer and far casting. When I cast I usually let it sink and wait 15-60sec, twitch wait and if one doe not hit after that I do an ultra slow retrieve and occasional stop twitch. Somtime if nothing hits by the time it is halfway reeled in, I will lift rod up high and the the bait sink back down like fishing a senko, it really works.

 

I meant size 3/0 hook not 4/0

Posted

@Jabbaman, you have to be aware of who you're talking to. Years ago I would have thought that any ol' fisherman I encountered would be someone worth asking advice from. I've learned that's not the case. I will admit that these days there's a 95% chance I'm not talking to anyone while I'm fishing, but if I do find myself in a position where I would like some advice and there's someone nearby, I look for clues that they could be knowledgeable:

 

Are they sitting on a bucket? Are they using cut bait? Are they using live bait, such as worms or minnows? Are they using corn or hotdogs? Are they using a small rod with a spincast reel? Is the rod propped up along the bank all by itself while they sit 1-3 feet away from it?

 

If the person exhibits any of the above, I won't even bother asking because they're doing something completely different than I am, and I've learned the chances of them being helpful for what I'm doing are slim to none. Back in the day it was always the same answer: "Ain't no bass here." ... As they sit there fishing for anything that swims and wouldn't have a clue how to target bass (I didn't know it then). Many spots that I would have thought were poor bass spots was actually just bad advice and bad information.

 

Only one time was there an exception, and it was the older fella who taught me how to fish a Texas Rig when I was 16 years old. I walked up with my enormous catfish spincast setup I got from Walmart with some bass lures, hooks, and weights (I didn't have a clue). He was sitting in a lawn chair with a bucket next to him. He had a spinning rod in hand and was rigged up with a worm and a bobber. He saw me struggling to rig up and called me over. He taught me how to tie an Improved Clinch Knot, assemble the Texas Rig, and how to hook the plastic worm. Then he taught me how to "work" the bait.

 

Never again have I encountered the stereotype that I presented above who was helpful as far as bass fishing. Case in point last summer. I walked up to a new pond (which is now one of my favorites) and saw a guy out there fishing a plastic lizard. It was the first thing I noticed. I asked if he'd hooked into any yet and he told me no and that it was rare to catch a bass here, there's almost no bass. Then I noticed the rig. Spincast gear. Tiny rod. Tiny line. Weightless lizard. Casting out to the middle swimming it. That's a guy who just doesn't know what to do and wasn't helpful. I slaughtered 20 something bass that afternoon down the bank from him on lipless crankbaits and flukes.

 

So the point I'm making is, you have all these people telling you there's no bass, the bass fishing sucks, at all these different places, but pay attention to who is telling you this. It's hard to find a body of water in this country that doesn't hold bass. That doesn't mean it's good fishing, but there's likely bass. You have to find the fish and make sure you're fishing your techniques properly.

  • Like 2
Posted
3 hours ago, ironbjorn said:

@Jabbaman, you have to be aware of who you're talking to. Years ago I would have thought that any ol' fisherman I encountered would be someone worth asking advice from. I've learned that's not the case. I will admit that these days there's a 95% chance I'm not talking to anyone while I'm fishing, but if I do find myself in a position where I would like some advice and there's someone nearby, I look for clues that they could be knowledgeable:

 

Are they sitting on a bucket? Are they using cut bait? Are they using live bait, such as worms or minnows? Are they using corn or hotdogs? Are they using a small rod with a spincast reel? Is the rod propped up along the bank all by itself while they sit 1-3 feet away from it?

 

If the person exhibits any of the above, I won't even bother asking because they're doing something completely different than I am, and I've learned the chances of them being helpful for what I'm doing are slim to none. Back in the day it was always the same answer: "Ain't no bass here." ... As they sit there fishing for anything that swims and wouldn't have a clue how to target bass (I didn't know it then). Many spots that I would have thought were poor bass spots was actually just bad advice and bad information.

 

Only one time was there an exception, and it was the older fella who taught me how to fish a Texas Rig when I was 16 years old. I walked up with my enormous catfish spincast setup I got from Walmart with some bass lures, hooks, and weights (I didn't have a clue). He was sitting in a lawn chair with a bucket next to him. He had a spinning rod in hand and was rigged up with a worm and a bobber. He saw me struggling to rig up and called me over. He taught me how to tie an Improved Clinch Knot, assemble the Texas Rig, and how to hook the plastic worm. Then he taught me how to "work" the bait.

 

Never again have I encountered the stereotype that I presented above who was helpful as far as bass fishing. Case in point last summer. I walked up to a new pond (which is now one of my favorites) and saw a guy out there fishing a plastic lizard. It was the first thing I noticed. I asked if he'd hooked into any yet and he told me no and that it was rare to catch a bass here, there's almost no bass. Then I noticed the rig. Spincast gear. Tiny rod. Tiny line. Weightless lizard. Casting out to the middle swimming it. That's a guy who just doesn't know what to do and wasn't helpful. I slaughtered 20 something bass that afternoon down the bank from him on lipless crankbaits and flukes.

 

So the point I'm making is, you have all these people telling you there's no bass, the bass fishing sucks, at all these different places, but pay attention to who is telling you this. It's hard to find a body of water in this country that doesn't hold bass. That doesn't mean it's good fishing, but there's likely bass. You have to find the fish and make sure you're fishing your techniques properly.

Good advise. This might have been helpful. Too bad the OP has not been back since October. Back to pan fishing because there are no bass where he lives. That's just crazy.

Posted

Central or eastern Massachusetts is tough fishing!  in pressured, high population suburbs,  those fish are getting plastic and crankbaits tossed in there faced non stop, especially with covid...    I basically never try power fishing on a baitcaster other than a frog ? early dawn or dusk...   Its all about finesse!! Spinning rod with no more than 12 lb test...   for my I like plastics of course , especially wacky rigged!!  Slow and a little slack,  I set my hook like Gary Yamamoto, finesse, let him eat it a little first.     And for offshore in my kayake deeper Waters, it's all plastic swim baits.  3 inch Berkeley pre rigged swim baits are great. Berkeley powerbait pogy swim shad, I use a 7ft med light with 3000 spinning rod

20200721_212626.jpg

Posted

This lake is kind of far, and I am not a local, but when I visit my Great Aunt, I always like to fish Lake Maxincuckee by Culver, Indiana. I've caught some big bass there, one over 3 pounds! I've seen someone there catch a 5-6 pounder on Lake Maxincuckee from shore, so if you can make it, I would give it a shot. Some of the lake is private property though, so I would watch out. image.png.f00b5de081a64016717e33d3e71f8795.png

1 minute ago, TheBasslayer said:

This lake is kind of far, and I am not a local, but when I visit my Great Aunt, I always like to fish Lake Maxincuckee by Culver, Indiana. I've caught some big bass there, one over 3 pounds! I've seen someone there catch a 5-6 pounder on Lake Maxincuckee from shore, so if you can make it, I would give it a shot. Some of the lake is private property though, so I would watch out. image.png.f00b5de081a64016717e33d3e71f8795.png

It is in Marshall county, so Idk if it is close to you

Posted

Can't imagine not catching bass in NW Indiana...I've caught plenty of 3-4 pounders and a few 5s and 6s just in retention ponds. My bud caught a 7.5 pounder in the retention pond in his subdivision. There's a pond at a park near me that a guy pulled a 9 pounder out of. It was in the local paper a few years back.

Don't give up...there's plenty of good largemouth fishing to be had.  

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