Berk

Wow - At least I don't feel like the Lone Ranger anymore. Same thing happened to me, decades long State Farm on house, cars, boat. 1 claim on the boat and they dropped it. I'll be calling World Wide Marine this month.

April 9, 2013. Caught a 7lb.4oz large mouth followed up 2 casts later with a 6lb.7oz. LMB. I was lucky enough to be fishing with my son at the time, but I still haven't topped his personal best. 9.12 I believe - caught on Taneycomo 20 years ago. Gives me something to shoot for.

Depends on where I'm throwing it. Pea gravel, 8lb fluoro. Cobble or shelf rock, 15-17lb fluoro. Chunk rock, lay downs, timber 20-60lb braid. If the jig bite is on, I've got 3 rods with various line to cover the above scenarios. If I was limited to only one jig rig, I would probably go with 17lb fluoro.

Read, read, read. It's all here brother.

Thanks Mr. Babler - I seem to say "thanks" a lot when I'm talking to you. I'm hoping to spend a weekend at your lodge with my bride before Willie and I make the annual trip next April. I'll email you about the particulars when we figure out when and remind you of why there will be no "comps". If you don't recall, jump to Thanks Champ for chiming in, I always look forward to reading your posts and you're right about the guides. Worth every dime and then some. Bill, I can't think of a better home for the old "Sea Horse" and can't wait to see her. Berk Sr.

Good question, but the answer might be in the details. What was the weather like - overcast, clear, rain, windy? Water temps? Were the fish relating to specific structure - gravel, chunk, timber, lay downs, docks? Were the coves you picked just outside a channel swing bluff? Early morning, mid day or night time? Were you dragging a jig or bouncing a wart off the bottom, jerk bait 5' deep, top water, or A-rig? If you caught these toads at noon with clear skies and no wind in 8' of water on a Little Cleo, you might be on to something even bigger than the "rig". More info please.

For those of us with Android phones or tablets, the option to open the wav file with google's "music" app pops up when you click on the link. Works just fine. If you're on a windows computer use Explorer as they said before.

I'm not saying anything that you regulars don't already know, but listen to what the man is saying. The guides on this lake are the best and the only ones that know more about this lake are the bass themselves. When Bill says slow - go slower. Bill took my brother in law and myself out last month and Bill pointed out that my partner was making 4 casts for every 1 of mine. Listen and learn. Look for similar locations all over the lake, because they're there, not just Aunt's. Stay focused on his baits and locations and you will catch fish. The investment in hiring Bill or one of the guides is priceless, I promise. Support these fine gentlemen and you will learn more than you'll ever get from reading. I've fished with Bill the last few years and I will do the same for several years to come. Same goes for all the guides, top notch and they are always giving free advice on the forum. Hire one of them, it's the smartest investment you'll make this year.

Great report - I hope it stays that way next week. Good luck at LOZ this weekend and we'll see you Monday.

Prior to our spring trip to TR (Great time thanks to Babs) I headed out to the Kankakee River near my place up here in Illinois with the wife and my old Lab mix mut to try out the new gear. While I'm beating the water to no avail the wife and Abby are policing the area (I thought they were just going for a walk). I carry several garbage bags in the box and the wife informed me that her dad insisted this be done any time they (9 kids) were outdoors. We were at a county conservation area and in just a few minutes they had filled a garbage bag. I carry those bags because my dad pounded that into his kids too. 40 years ago we were in northern Manitoba where I thought I might have been the first human to walk that ground when I came upon a mountain of garbage. Pops did a little CSI on the pile before setting it on fire and spent the rest of the trip cursing the pigs from a specific location in the states that left their garbage in such a pristine location. My dad used to "GI" his non filter Camels so he didn't leave butts laying around. Long story short, pick up after your self and then spend some time picking up after those that don't. We can never fix this, but we can help. Kudos to anyone that cleans up someone else's mess! Keep it up and spread the word.

Just a thought from someone on the outside because I'm not down there everyday like all of you, but how about some yellow electrical tape or construction ribbon (both a quick cheap fix) on the trolling motor until you get a custom made motor sticker? If you charge a few bucks and make them buy from one source you can control who gets the stickers. If I knew how to donate to this particular forum for all I've learned over the last few months, I'd do it tonight. This forum is absolutely the best by a long shot. Looking forward to seeing you on the lake soon.

Gabe, Great reading your post about Bill - it's endorsements like that and this forum in general that influenced my decision to book him for an afternoon 2 weeks from now. Looking forward to the trip and thanks to all of you here at OA. The most complete and updated information on the web. Berk