J-Doc

Very good tips Joe.

While I don't care if one or two is fried battered or grilled, there are many who are prepping for a lynching. Just warning ya. Lol!!! GET YOUR PITCH FORKS,TORCHES,AND COTTON CANDY!: http://youtu.be/yCii4Q_-bLA

Nice work man. Keeping that big smallmouth is going to get you injured on this forum!! Lol!!!!!

Ask Fins. He will eat them. He's like Mikey. He will eat anything.

Some days you think they want a super fast I'm running for my life retrieve but only in certain circumstances. Probably when water is in the low 70's when they want to chase prey.

The old saying goes "let the fish tell you how they want it". It's true. Not my favorite answer. I actually hate that answer because my ADHD kicks in way too fast to waste time playing with different retrieves, line, colors, etc. I did some research on this a while back. Seems like short jerks and rhythmic cadences like jerk jerk pause and jerk jerk jerk rip pause we're good solutions. Keeping it strike zone as long as possible is key. I think.

Stupid question and I feel like I should know the answer but why does fall rate make such a dramatic impact? Is it because the forage they are keyed in on has a certain fall rate and thats what triggers the bite? I could see that being the reason due to biting what appears to be food as they have seen it many times before. A repeated pattern.

That's pretty accurate from what I've seen. When I troll for fish, if there is a white within 50yrds of a Flicker Shad they come and get it. The other night, I found a big school. Dropped a Flicker and got a nibble. Too the bait and never hooked up. I was shocked. It’s almost as good as dynamite on whites. When their bellies are full and they are just snacking lightly…….they just don’t want a big meal.

Dynamite. Sure fire method. Lol I've wondered the same thing. Matching the hatch but make it different. I've been told burning a Kastmaster spoon through them works. I tried it. Didn't work for me.

Incredible success in this heat. I couldn't even get whites to bite the other evening and they were feeding. Slow and steady gets the bite right now seems like.

Pretty sure I saw this yesterday. Some bald dude driving a Scarab.

I assume you will be shallow most of the time using a kayak. So dual beam really won't make a difference for you. Dual beam is best for deeper water applications

Yep. Small baits get the bites for the Kentucky bass. Jigs get the big ones but few bites and those that can deep crank and use spinnerbaits deep above the fish will get the big sacks. I ain't one of those few! Lol

It's odd. It's either on fire in a few isolated areas or it's dead everywhere. Key is finding them when they are feeding. Once you find a group or a pattern, you can limit out fairly quickly I think. There are always some guys that bring in a big sack but out of 80-100 boats, I bet only 10-15 boats bring in a limit of fish and the top 5 bags will be decent weights. Thus why I don't do tournaments. I'd just assume take a wad of money and throw it out the boat and watch it disappear vs. sticking it in another fellas pocket. LOL!

Oh huh....sure they are. :-) I'll say this. Don't fish it like you normally do. Fish it as if you had never been on it before and go up river. For some reason, recent activity has been up river and this time of year, it's more productive. Must be the current and the fact that river fish behave differently than main lake fish. It's what I would do if I were in a tournament. Look for lots of fish on graph, mark spots, then try to establish a pattern on locations. Then figure out what it takes to get a bite.

Best report I've read all summer. "Not many pleasure boats" Lol!!!!

Lots of wakers keep their boats at private docs down there. The fees only hurt the anglers more than the rif-raft on Lake Hamilton.

Ah. Man those are some steep fees.

Ouch!!! Where is this Phil?

Well said and I agree. My son caught a keeper Kentucky on a cricket and bobber last week. Surprised me. Sometimes finesse is truely finesse. I agree, Martens does need to stop whining. Lol!! Must be the O/C coming out in him.

Lol! I've always thought it mattered. This year, I'm becoming one of those Arron Martens detail guys. I'm learning more and starting to see differences. Can I put it altogether and make it work? Heck no. That will take years. But I'm on the right path I think.

In second that. (Pline CX) in low via green. Good stuff.

Seems like you are comparing reaction strikes to finesse fishing which is completely different. A -rigs are the far end of the spectrum using 50-60lb braid only so they are retrievable when they snag. And they do snag often. I know anglers that use flouro on clear water due to pressure on a-rigs. I won't. I have found water that has 3-5ft visibility is where the a-rig shines. More than that istouch and go. Line does matter as I have seen it multiple times. Crankbaits, flouro allows deeper depth because it sinks. Mono, best for topwater because it floats Flouro, terrible for topwater because it sinks Drop shot, nothing more than 6lb flouro or you're wasting time. I've drop shot side by side with 6lb and 8lb with same hook, weight, and both at same time. The 6lb outcatches 3:1. Jigging spoons, same thing. 6lb vs 8lb (flouro) is about 10:1 Crappie jigs, 4-6lb flouro gets bites A local crappie guide used yellow Viscious and said the color did not bother the fish. The size of the line did. I think it's a vibration thing more so than visibility and color. Fish feed off of vibration. Just this past Saturday, I had the exact same setup on two rods with live bait for stripers. All fish caught on one rod. Both had same hook, same bait, same knot, same line, rod/reel, etc. The only difference I have found is the rod that didn't catch fish had a kink in the line. Vibration. It's how they feed, sense surroundings, etc. Line does matter.

Does no one here use Seaguar? I have personally witnessed a butt-kicking where I was the receiver of such a whoopin' because I was using 8lb flouro and partner used 6lb flouro. In water visibility only 4ft clarity and fishing 15-20ft deep. Must have been the size of the line more than visibility but the smaller line was getting the bites. Could be diameter of line was giving off vibration? And....... For crappie fishing I have straightened many crappie jig hooks on 6lb Seaguar Invisx. When I hung up a jig on a tree stump or rock, I had to tighten the drag down all the way (thinking the line would break) and the hook came back straightened. Talk about tough! It's way stronger then 6lb test but it's the size of 6lb test and super limp, low line memory, and I'm catching more fish by switching to Invisx. Really strong line.

Yeah. That. Lol I'm still in. I get to wear my Ranger jersey. Lol!