Posted by Sean Heitman on 2002 PM:
Terrible fishing area or
just a challenge?
I was recently at a
couple of club tournement weigh ins for different clubs and heard a few of the
comments,
" This place sucks!!! very few fish and all small!! Ill never fish here again."
Is it a lousy place to fish??? Or is it a different place that requiers a
different approach than "your normal" presentations.
I believe that a true bassman/woman would take this type of day a challenge.
How many of us have been to your local spot that you would normally hammer a
good limit on an almost regular basis. Then on a day when it counts....tourny...fishing
with your out of state brother in law....new girl friend....you couldt catch
water iin your face during a monsoon!!??? Happened to me twice this year.
Are some places better fishing than others???? Sure.
Are there some areas that requier more time and practice??? Of course.
If everyone could do well everywhere everytime, it wouldnt be any fun. This
sport is about man vs. nature.
If anyone thinks different, just refer to the articles in BAssmaster "Day
on a Lake With a Pro". How many have been skunked or just one fish.
I say..never write a place off because you go there once and have a bad day
fishing. It will increase you r knowledge of the area and improve your fishability.
__________________
Shut up and FISH!
www.theportlyanglerlodge.com
Posted by Gregg on 2002 PM:
quote:
I say..never write a place off because you go there once and have a bad day fishing. It will increase you r knowledge of the area and improve your fishability.
I think you can say the same thing in reverse.
One good day on a lake dosn't mean you'll always kill them on that lake.
Weather changes, season change, the needs of the fish change and you must
change with it or find yourself in a feast or famine cycle.
That's why I believe there are no hot spot lake or seasonal lake! any lake can
give you a good day or bad. It more depends on your experience fishing and your
experience on that lake and how you apply it that will determine if you do well
consistently
Isn't that what it really about to be able to consistently catch fish no matter
what lake, or what season, or whatever?
When I see a post that says "I'll be fishing lake so and so tomorrow tell
me where to fish and what to use?"
want me to catch them for you too
Shouldn't that post read tell me about this lake so I can figure out where and
what to fish! besides when I was there last week it was sunny tomorrow it's
going to rain!
__________________
Gregg
Posted by JOHN G on 2002 PM:
Exactly men....good points all....I am more interested in the topography of a new water than in what worked for so and so last time out.....If I have more info on the shape, weeds, depths etc, I am confident that I will fish the higher percentage areas using the time of season and weather and obvious water conditions as a guide.....having a map in advance tells you more about any water than any advice here......First time out on Whaley, we caught 80 fish.....now , I know that place has a rep for high numbers, but come on!! However, once on the water, I depended greatly on the topography of the shorelines and kind of doped out the general layout pretty quick....it helped that it was only 250 acres , for sure, but if it was , say, one arm of a 2500 acre water, I would have fished that "arm" the same way.....again, knowing the time of the season and prevailing weather is so important...... I think sometimes when people who are not usually on this board come on and ask for advice about certain new lakes, they might not have even been fishing lately...for those of us who are out on a regular basis from ice out, we are more attuned to what is going on relative to the bass life cycle and the connection to seasonal patterns. JOHN G
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Posted by earthworm77 on 2002 AM:
Sean fish talk is over-rated. You know that. I have heard guys tell me that they fished for hours and caught nothing. They told me I was wasting my time. Then I take back to back fish in front of them. It is all up to the guy out on the water. Sure some fisheries experience decline. I'll tell you that every water I fish has been labeled as dead water at one time or another. Versatility boys!!!!! That is how you catch fish that other people can't.
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Posted by paridiseblue on 2002 PM:
great thread guys everyone is right, earthworm is right versitility will save you when nothing else will. i went fishing with someone who came up from south carolina. i talked up the lake we were going too and to my shock when we got there the water was down 6 feet and the lake was going through the fall bottom turning.the fishing was not exeptional in fact it was hard. we caught 4 fish the whole day and considered it a raging sucess under the conditions. at the end of that day we had piles of tackle out of the boxes and bags. we eventually found them on chartruse suspending rouges of all things. it would have been easy to call it quits and chalk it up to a shitty day at the lake, but what fun is that.
__________________
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Posted by puddlejumper on 2002 AM:
Martin Dunham Res.
Up where I live there is this great looking body of water in the capitol district called the Martin Dunham Res. They even stock this place and I swear it sucks every time I go there. I think it gets ice fishing pressure or something. I usually do well everywhere I go, but this place I've never had any real luck at. I only take my german shorthair pointer for a swim there now and again. puddle.
Posted by Bigredfishing on 2002 AM:
puddlejumper. I have ice
fished the dunham resevoir, and it sucks really bad in the winter too. It
actually gets less ice fishing pressure than alot of the other area lakes, like
glass, and crooked. I have ice fished there 3 times, and have only ever seen
one other guy. However, it is because the fishing can be very very difficult.
The fish will only hit very small offerings, and the fish are almost always
suspended.
Summertime, i have fished it twice, and both times caught two smallies, but
they were not very big.
Lance
Posted by Travis on 2002 AM:
Good points one and
all....there is one thing that you can't buy or come across easily and that is
actual on the water time that comes with years of fishing different kinds of
lakes in varying locales.....suprising how much easier bass get. I don't think
I can remember a time saying that this lake or that res. sucks, they may differ
from time to time, season to season and I want them to....only way to get
better. I like to go to different kinds of water because they teach me
techniques that I may not be as comfortable with.....I never picked up a
jig-n-pig until I was 3 years into bass fishing as a kid until I went to a
stump filled entangled mess of a lake and wanted to get better at it so I began
bringing that one presentation only with me, I got better....I had to. All part
of the game.
good thread, T
Posted by postcard on 2002 PM:
Waters can definitely
turn off. We had a tournament today and the bite was so slow, I turned up my
on-board radio just to stay awake. The water temp is 86 degrees and opaque
brownish green. The only decent fish caught were caught before 9 am, over a midlake hump. The hump was crowded just after
launch, so that area was out. Only dinks were caught off 12' deep, points and
the pads and docks had been pounded the day before by guys who don't know how
to practice fish.
A newcomer to the lake would think the lake sucked unless he knew before hand
the the most recent fishing pressure and the usual seasonal techniques for that
water. Also, very early or very late in the day, does make a difference on most
waters. Some waters require a deep worming or jigging approach because they
lack good, shallow shore-structure. Small, man-made city reservoirs are
typically 50' deep bowls with only points and possibly, humps. I've seen over
100 lbs. of bass at a weigh in, in such a lake, yet many shallow water anglers
choke. The same for very weedy lakes - if you can fish weeds, you'll catch
fish. (Greenwood L. is a prime example).
Versatility doesn't mean just knowing how to fish a variety of lures on a
often-fished body of water, but finding what works on strange waters. That's
what's incredible about the pros - they interpret their maps, find a pattern
that works, and come in with 3 days of limits. Most have never even fished that
impoundment, yet they would never presume that the lake is dead, because their
paychecks depend on their fish finding and fish catching confidence. We should
all be so fortunate.
Posted by earthworm77 on 2002 PM:
Great point Postcard....environmental factors weigh heavily in success or failure. Our tournament today was a prime example. The hotter it got the less fish were caught. I guess it makes sense.
__________________
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Posted by puddlejumper on 2002 PM:
Practice makes perfect.
Some places are easier to figure out than others. I fish for fun. There is no paycheck. I would rather go to a place where I know I can do well than go to a place I've tried a dozen times or so and bombed out at. The place I refered to is beautiful to see. No houses or camps, surrounded by mountains. Electric motors only. The Martin Dunham Res. is quite a pretty place. Except I ( and alot of other people ) can't get a bite. puddlejumper.
Posted by Bigredfishing on 2002 PM:
speaking of beautiful
ponds, shaver pond, in grafton state park, is a nice pond, that also happens to
be absolutely loaded with trout. However, last time i was there, a year and a
half ago, i also saw a bunch of sizeable largemouths along the shore, spawning.
I later found out that those fish were recently introduced, as shaver was
previously a trout-only fishery. I havent been back to fish them, but i am
wondering how they are doing.
Lance
Posted by puddlejumper on 2002 PM:
Shaver
Always thought it was a trout pond. puddle.
Posted by Bigredfishing on 2002 PM:
ok here is the exact
story on shaver. It was exclusively a artificial only brook trout fishery. A
few years ago, bass got illegally introduced, and the lake was killed off, and
restocked with brookies. Well, a few years after that, a number of people
started to complain about people fishing with live bait. Then, bass showed up
again, illegally introduced. The state basicly gave up on the brook trout
fishery, and now loads the pond with browns and rainbows, and lets the bass be.
I think i am going up there tommorrow morning to scope out the situation. I am
thinking that those bass should have grown quite a bit. If all else fails, i'll
just use my UL and catch trout, and enjoy the hell out of it.
Lance
Posted by theole34 on 2002 PM:
bring along some rainbow trout baits. rubber fish style RBTs. $enkos have RBT color too.
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We're talking about "Spring" fishing...... right?
Posted by Bigredfishing on 2002 PM:
thanks for the tips, ill
have to make a stop at wally world on my way out there - hopefully they have
the trout pattern in stock
Thanks theole
Lance
Posted by theole34 on 2002 PM:
just about every bait
comes in RBT colors. rapla makes some good ones. the senko in RBT was limited. don't
know if you'll find any. good luck and post some results. if there are alot of
trout in there they might have giants.. bring a camera
robbie
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We're talking about "Spring" fishing...... right?
Posted by Bigredfishing on 2002 PM:
oh you better bet ive got
my camera with fresh batteries!, and i already stashed the few RBT raps i have
in my creel. Ill tell ya though, i got burned by my camera earlier today. I had
landed a nice bass from a small pond near me, 5.3 lbs! This fish is way bigger
than my previous biggest in that pond. 2.0 lbs even. Anyway, i went to take the
pic of the fish lipped in my hand, and the batteries were DEAD!!!!! 
oh well. I also
carry a digital berkely scale, that i have tested and it is dead on.
Lance