OhioFisherman

LOL Glen, but I kissed them and made them feel better!

Too many clothes, that can`t be GCD! LOL nice start Glen!

Never been to that lodge but visited the Lunge Lodge I think in the same area, my buddies still go there every year. Healthy population of L/M and S/M in the main area, they have a camp bass tournie every year and it takes a 4 pound plus fish for big bass, possible with either.

Young man I was once in your shoes!

I have got them at nite near shore, easy pitching distance on a jig and pig shallow water sort of 4 to 6 feet with deeper water close by. Sand and gravel bottom with scattered weeds. Casting a lure like a rattle trap from shore at nite can work too. Daytime from shore the rattle trap or a diving crankbait might be a good plan, just try to tap weeds or bottom once in a while. They can get pretty shallow after dark, lake I fished in New York I never headed out till like 10 pm. They seemed to like the edges first drop from shore, especially with the right bottom mix. A light on a dock or waterfront cabin can attract baitfish at nite, also the walleye. At times they aren`t as finicky feeder as people think, I have gotten them on most bass tackle with the exception of surface lures. Not to say they wouldn`t take one though.

I am kind of partial to Zoom soft plastics, at least the 6 inch ss u-tail worms and lizards. I like junebug a purple green glittler color, watermelon seed, watermelon blue glittler in the lizard, basic black or purple. Sometimes colors matter, they can be fished weedless, on a jighead, weedless one a jighead, texas rigged, carolina rigged unweighted and weedless swum over the weeds or lilies. Topwater lure, everyone has there favorites, but a lure like a buzzbait, jitterbug, hula popper, zara spook, tiny torpedo, pop r, something to work the surface. Spinnerbaits, they can`t be worked fast or slow rolled over and thru weeds, along docks and wood or even just dragging the bottom. Crankbaits, rattletraps, shallow medium and deep diving to strain the water. Jig and pig or soft plastic more of a bottom lure but they can be swum. Start off simple tackle collecting can be addicting.

Inside day for me here, I am melting! With the MS I don`t handle the heat well.

Bass are where you find them, they usually don`t come looking for you. Learn to strain different water depths, they can be in places you wouldn`t expect. Both species, L/M and S/M love crawfish, but it usually isn`t their primary food source, usually that is baitfish, which is anything smaller than them, perch, bluegill, shad, chubs, shiners, they will even eat their young. L/M tend to be ambush feeders more than smallies, smallies will roam open water more, but it`s not carved in stone, both will wander, both will ambush feed, both will herd baitfish to shore and trap them. Both will school, both can be solitary. Both have comfort zones which can vary, you need to adapt to be consistent. You don`t need a large amount of lures, just ones that allow you to fish different depths and types of structure. Points, boat docks, weedbeds, wood in the water, trees overhanging the water, rip-rap along bridges or shores, reefs, baitfish schooling in the water. You need to be able to present a lure that reaches them and looks and acts like food. On any particular day it could be just about anything, but some have a tendency to work more often than others. Time of day? The thought usually goes to early morning, or later in the day like evening, I have caught a ton from 10 to 2 pm, a lot anytime of the day or night. The bite can turn on in a heartbeat, or shut down just as quick. Different bodies of water can have completely different methods that work better, completely different times of day when the bite tends to be best. It is hard to compensate for time on the water, on a particular body of water, but some tactics and methods will work on most. Learn the lake, what is on top, and what is on the bottom, they tend to go back to the same spots, food supply and comfort zones. Usually the fish are biting, your just not on the right spot, or not offering what they want in a manner they want it. Make your casts count, whatever cover you are fishing usually has spots on it that will hold fish or a tendency to hold fish better than others, a poorly placed cast may spook them.

Nice fish! I can`t do that when I am trying!

The lake is only 43 feet deep? Does it freeze solid in the winter?

I really wonder about people, including so called sportsmen or poachers masquerading as sportsmen. Long time neighbor and former partner in tournaments, a freaking poacher, with the typical poacher`s logic. Saw my former friend`s truck hood open and stopped to see if he needed a hand, no just adding a little oil. Started talking about other things, dude I got pheasant in my yard, ya me too! Shot one and ate it yesterday, say what? with a rifle? out of season? it`s my yard! if I didn`t shoot it dogs and cats would have killed it or someone else would have shot it! Never saw that coming from that sportsman, lost all respect. Just another poacher!

Great pictures and report Rick, congrats on the win!

Glad your home safe.

Great pictures and report! Nice to hear everyone had a good time!

Great pictures Gerritt, that is what it`s all about, fun with the family!

LOL everyone is hoping for a report? incriminating pictures?

Nice Brian!

Ya I agree with Brian, docks, see if you can skip a lure as far back under them as you can, they might not move to chase a bait. Important any day but make the bites count, number of bites might be way down. I have used crappie tubes for bass a lot on cold front days, small and slow presentation.

First lure for me for largemouth is usually a 4 inch ring worm rigged weedless or not depending on the cover. Hard to beat top water but I want to catch and see what is hitting. If the lake has a mix of bass, L/M and S/M the 4 inch worm will take both with out the misses on smallies you get from a bigger worm.

First lure for me for largemouth is usually a 4 inch ring worm rigged weedless or not depending on the cover. Hard to beat top water but I w

Bo Derek! In her day?

Young_ one, how big is your boat? That is a good anchor for a sand or sand and mud bottom, I had a similar one on the bow of my 25 foot Searay. The chain gets connected to the anchor with a shackle, I used the ring on the anchor shaft, rope gets connected to the other end of the chain with the other shackle. My Searay weighed about 5500 pounds, and I used 1/2 nylon rope 150 feet long as the main anchor line. I carried a few lines on the boat and a 20 pound navy type anchor to throw off the rear to keep the boat from swinging around if I was at the beach or had a reason for not wanting swing. The navy type wouldn`t hold the boat as the main anchor if it was rough. That is not an anchor I would use on a rocky bottom, more often than not it will get snagged on the rocks and stuck bad. A fluted mushroom anchor(river anchor) is ok on a mud or rocky bottom, even cheaper is a gallon sized can filled with cement, you don`t worry about losing them. OK for smaller boats. I carry a 16 pound river type anchor and a 12 pound navy type on my 17 foot aluminum. Never had to use all my anchor lines, recommended is like 6 feet for every foot of depth you might anchor in.

12c is like 50f? snowsuit weather for the deep south crowd!

LOL, longest a Gar pike, end to end I guessed about 45-46 inches, pike and carp heavier. 22 inch golden rule in the boat, LOL I would like to feel the need to measure bigger bass!

Great pictures! Yep bass fishing, some lakes have size, some numbers, hard to find both. I can give you a tip on a couple of New York lakes that do, half the drive from T-town.