Watching The Classic

March 1st, 2010

A few good friends got together on Feb. 21, 2010 to watch the Bassmaster Classic. My fishing partner Bill invited us down to his house for food and to see the 2nd day of the Classic.

Jim Rempel and Beth was there, Bill and his wife Kathy, Gary (a guy who fishes with Bill, and myself. Of course, we talked about bass fishing a lot.

Bill had made some barbecued rabbit that I just new I wouldn’t like, hell, I love it….it was absolutely delicious, he also made some chili that was really good. Beth made macaroni salad that was the best I ever ate.

Bills dogs were watching with us, I determined they are all lap dogs within the first 5 minutes I was there. Not spoiled either lol

I had a really great time visiting with my friends and teasing Bill and getting teased about our fishing. There was a mention or two about someone fishing in the trees for squirrels but I’m not mentioning any names about who they were talking about or when.

We all had an excellent time.

Thanks Bill and Kathy for inviting us.

How do you fish your lizards?

February 16th, 2010

Lizards are one of my favorite lures to fish, especially the Zoom Lizard. I used to fish them about all the same way, throw the lure out, let it sink and then move it by lifting my rod tip 6 inches to a foot at a time. I did pretty well with this technique. Then….

I moved to Florida and fished with a guy that caught twice as many bass on a lizard as I did. I didn’t think to much about it and thought it was his lucky day. We went fishing again, using the same lizard and line and guess what? He caught twice as many bass as me again. Now..

He has my attention and I started watching him. Finally, I just ask him what he is doing different. He says the tails and legs on a lizard are made to work and catch fish, so he uses that to his advantage. He reels his lizards in just fast enough to make the legs and tail move and keeps it on a steady retrieve. I tried his technique and caught more bass.

I came back to Ohio and tried his technique and sometimes didn’t do nearly as well as just moving the lure slowly along the bottom by lifting my rod tip 6-12″ at a time. So, what is the difference?

Well, the difference is the activity of the bass. If they are feeding and you have a lot of activity then swim it like he did making the legs and tail move on a steady slow retrieve. If the feeding activity isn’t quite as good then try moving the lizard slower by raising your rod tip 6-12 inches at a time and let it drag along the bottom.

I have also found this works with many plastics, like worms. If the bass are active then make the tail work, if not slow it down and use your rod tip.

Try it!

Congratulations To The Ohio State Buckeyes

January 2nd, 2010

Way to go Bucks, Good game Ducks! Congratulations to both teams for a good game played!

Happy New Year!

The Lure That Has One More Tournaments Than All Others Combined!

December 29th, 2009

As most of you know, a plastic worm has won more B.A.S.S. tournaments than all the other lures combined. There’s a reason for that…ready? They catch bass!

I wrote this article a while back and thought this was worth posting again. I have had a couple of people ask for it and hope it helps you catch more fish.

The Lowdown on Worms

We all know that plastic worms are one of the most productive lures there are, but did you know certain worms have special uses? I have a whole tackle box with nothing but plastic worms in it, hundreds of them!

Here is what I use a certain worm for:

Floating Worm…I use this worm in shallow water and mainly in the spring. I use no weight whatsoever and like to use it when the fish just start thinking about spawning.

Stick Worm…..I use this worm in 60-70 degree water. If you use it wacky style it will vibrate on both ends.

Paddle Tail…..This is one of my favorite shallow water lures. When I fish vegetation I use long casts and just reel it back in slowly.

Gator Tail…This is also a shallow water worm that I use in the summer. It’s also great on streams and rivers.

Curly Tail….I use this worm in the summer around stumps, docks, timber, lily pads and it’s one of my favorite when I fish deep water to 20 feet.

Straight Tail…This is one of my favorites for docks, timber and brush. I have found it doesn’t wrap around brush like most worms do.

French Fry….I always Carolina rig a French fry and use it in clearer water. The action of this is amazing when you move your line and the weight comes up the line.

Ribbon Tail…I read about 30 years ago of people fishing with a 10 inch ribbon tail at night. I’m here to tell you this works, I have caught some nice bass on a big ribbon tail. I use a regular ribbon tail when fishing 10-15 feet of water too.

If you like to worm fish now, try some of the types of worms above for specific conditions. I think you’ll like the results.

Merry Christmas

December 25th, 2009

I just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I hope you have a great fishing year in 2010.

Thanks for visiting my site and reading the posts.

Merry Christmas!

Insane Die-Hard Bass Fishermen Break The Ice

December 14th, 2009

This is from Rick’s board but I just had to post about it.

Larry, John, Roger and others decided to fish Dow Lake in Ohio! Now that’s not unusual, what is unusual is they had to break the ice on the lake to even get their boats in to fish.

Here is a picture of the path they took to fish…notice all the ice:
ice on Down Lake

Larry caught a very nice over 4 pound bass! You can see the bass picture and read more about it here:
http://fishtalkfishingreports.yuku.com/topic/6508

Good job Larry, nice fish! Now it’s time for your meds, my friend.
Talking about die-hard fishermen!

Ice Fishing Safety Tips From Rick and The DNR

December 11th, 2009

My friend Rick found these Ice Fishing Safety Tips and I thought they were worth posting. They could save your life!

http://fishtalkfishingreports.yuku.com/topic/6492/t/Ice-Safety-tips.html

A Sharp Hook Could Mean Success In Bass Fishing!

December 5th, 2009

It amazes me how little time most anglers spend keeping the hooks on their lures in shape and sharp. We take time to change our lines, put on new lures, clean our rods and reels but hardly any time sharpening our hooks.

There is a philosophy that says a sharp hook is a smart hook. How many fish have we missed because of a dull hook point? The answer would probably amaze you.

You should carry a hook sharpener with you at all times. Of course, deeper penetration is the most obvious reason but there are some others as well. Have you ever had a surprise strike where it caught you totally off-guard? How about a strike when you weren’t even in position? These strike not only surprise you but can scare the hell out of you but a sharp hook can give you that extra second you need to set the hook and catch the fish.

If you fish treble hooks a lot like topwater, crankbaits and jerkbaits then a sharp hook is critical. If your lure is just sitting still and you get a strike with a dull hook many times the fish will just ricochet off and you won’t catch the fish but with a sharp hook the fish will hook themselves.

Just catching bass by itself with dull your hook but then you add the extra dullness when your lure has hit rocks and wood and you’re in for a disaster.

There are a variety of hook sharpeners on the market and one that I like is knife and hook sharpener that has a special groove on the side made especially to sharpen hooks. It costs about $5.00-$6.00.

Don’t try to put an edge on the hook, you’re not sharpening a knife just worry about the top part of the hook where the point is. Keep the hook so it will puncture easily and you’ll catch more bass and more big bass.

Visit Our Photo Gallery

December 5th, 2009

Like to look at pictures of fish, especially nice bass? Then visit our photo gallery at http://bassfishingohio.com/gallery/index.php?cat=3

Ohio Lake Maps

December 5th, 2009

If you’re looking for a map of a lake in Ohio, you can get it here for free:
http://www.bassfishingohio.com/bassblog/bass_fishing_lake_maps_in_ohio/lakes.html