Bring da Spring

[Hard2handle]

Anyone getting jacked up for some late winter/spring bass fishing, this ones from last year, hope I didn't already post it but i might have late last summer. 

[bassquatch]

NO JOKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Started seeing a few in the 5-3' range but they wasted no time splitting for deeper water the second they saw my boat! Not too committed yet. Sunday's full moon and the steadily warming weather will start the inevitable soon 

I can't wait! Put the boat in the shop today for a tune up and systems check and should be ready to go hard next weekend, already planning the first Potholes Reservoir trip for next month to...can't wait to lip my first greenie of the 2014 season!!!!!!!!!

Tight lines  Here's my best from last season....

[duckmen1]

 I'm ready. Last seasons best was 5 pounds 11 ounces.

[duckmen1]

And a pre spawn 5 pounder. Pics are cropped for spot secrecy. Sorry folks. It's hard enough for me to catch them as it is without extra pressure. But I do get around to a lot of different areas so don't know why I worry so much. Guess I take bass fishing just as serious as hunting.

[bassquatch]

Nah.. I think every bass fisherman starts out that way... The key is replication, I could take you to the exact spot I caught my 8.4 last year, hand you the exact rod with the exact bait and you could make 100 casts and not catch squat?? Sometimes it's something tiny you did that triggered the strike, the key to bass fishing is remembering that tiny thing along with all the other ingredients: time of year, water temp, weather conditions, line weight, lure color, retrieve speed, retrieve cadence etc...

I've had my best friend in the back of my boat fishing the same way with the same bait and I was putting fish in the boat 2-1...it's gone exactly the other way many times as well! It can be maddening! I used to "hide" my spots early on until it started to dawn on me just how difficult it was to repeat the exact process that caught a nice bass! Heck, ever tried to explain how you caught that bass to a newbie or someone that doesn't bass fish? They either glaze over or just shake their heads. Bass fishing can be extremely technical at times of the year and at other times anybody with a topwater lure and some spare time can boat a 5+lb largemouth!

Pre-spawn (now through the end of April) is one of the easiest times of year to bag a giant as is fishing in the fall. The 2 things that keep people from enjoying it are the weather this time of year, people (even other bass fishermen) refuse to believe that bass are active before May! In the fall all the salmon runs and hunting keep them away.

I guess all I'm trying to say is that while it's perfectly normal to keep the secrets, it's equally as important as you build your personal body of bass fishing knowledge to share the wealth and keep the sport alive! Maybe not to everyone on the internet but never refuse a newbie or one of your friends a ride in your boat for a learning experience! 

Here's a pic that will illustrate the "lure of choice" for that day....now what I was doing with said lure is a different story 

[duckmen1]

Oh trust me I believe in keeping the sport alive and do bring a lot of family and friends to spots. I do share techniques with people throughout the year, but some of my smaller locations get I good amount of pressure from people as it is and fishing a fish off a bed during the spawn that has been caught from 5-10 other bass boats before me that day is not my thing. I like going for fresh fish that haven't been caught repeatedly.
All my fish are released as soon as a pic is taken. I've been fishing for bass for probably 13 years, have been extremely successful. Share lots of info but always keep a handful of tricks up my sleeve. And am well known to out fish everyone.

[bassquatch]

Oh trust me I believe in keeping the sport alive and do bring a lot of family and friends to spots. I do share techniques with people throughout the year, but some of my smaller locations get I good amount of pressure from people as it is and fishing a fish off a bed during the spawn that has been caught from 5-10 other bass boats before me that day is not my thing. I like going for fresh fish that haven't been caught repeatedly.
All my fish are released as soon as a pic is taken. I've been fishing for bass for probably 13 years, have been extremely successful. Share lots of info but always keep a handful of tricks up my sleeve. And am well known to out fish everyone.

That's awesome! I caught the bug when I was 13 and it hasn't let up...I'm 44 now  It's a great sport full of great people and there are just so many places in this Country to enjoy it! I doubt I will ever stop.

I hate bed fishing and anyone who thinks they are actually accomplishing anything by doing it are fooling themselves! It's exactly like hunting at the zoo, it's pointless!  I had a co-angler that loved it until I made him sit in a spawning cove one Saturday and made him watch as boat after boat cruised the beds catching the same fish over and over again, meanwhile we sat out in 15 feet of water and caught fish that hadn't committed to beds yet and some that already spawned...THEN just prove my point I took a fat rubber band off of one of my bags of Power Worms, broke it so it would be straight, Texas-rigged it and pulled up and caught one of the bedded bass....I looked at him and said "real technical huh?". He stopped bed fishing after that...it ruined it for him LOL.

Now, if you're a tournament angler (Pro) and that's what puts food in your families mouths, then do what you gotta do, but other than that it's sad. 

Sounds like you have it figured out and that's awesome!  Good luck this season and post em up on here, not enough guys do it! We definitely take a back seat to the salmon, trout and steelhead crowd in this State but the bass fishing is AWESOME on both sides of the Cascades!

Tights lines 

[duckmen1]

I will dedicate posting some pics this year. Last year didn't get a ton of pics because I didn't have a camera most the time. That changed for this season. It will be relatively easy for me to get out this season after work and days off so looking forward to catching largies and smallies. I think we should dedicate a post your bass pic thread for 2014 in the fishing section for this year.

[duckmen1]

All this talk I think I will just head out today and check out some new waters and play a bit. You got me all jacked up and ready to fish.

[bassquatch]

That's the spirit! 

Wood and jigs = peanut butter and jelly 

Go get em 

[Hard2handle]

Well put Bassquatch!!! I caught the bug at about 11-12 years old, I even named my Daughter Marina and my Sons name is Anthony Banks,  At 42 years old, I still get all jacked up and cant sleep the night before I roll out. Im heading for Potholes and Moses the first weekend in April......Cant wait, good luck guys.

[bassquatch]

I'm hoping to be over there April 21st-24th but may have to wait until May? Good luck! Be sure to report your experiences over there 

[Hard2handle]

Will do, I'm gonna track the weather and if it's not looking good I might hang on to my kitchen pass until later in April , definitely let ya know either way gonna hit Washington this Saturday , hope to have a good report to post...

[Badhabit]

Potholes Open is April 19-20 so the water should warm up enough to see some good bags of green coming in. But bags of big bronzebacks just might make a good showing. They are already getting bronze off the face of the dam no big numbers yet but nice fish.

[duckmen1]

Well fished the evening. Little breezy and a bit of mist. Nothin but trout hitting the crank baits. We caught rainbows, a brown, and a cutthroat. No bass. Tried fishing slow with plastics up to probably 12 to 15 feet at the deepest and as shallow as 3 feet. Nothin to show there. Fun day though.