tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29150731068213207652024-03-13T03:49:35.572-07:00Jason's Adventures in Kayak FishingThis blog is about my many kayak fishing adventures as well as tips and tricks I have learned along the way.Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-52953403965600357682015-05-09T01:27:00.000-07:002015-05-09T02:01:00.003-07:00Switching it Up During the Post Spawn Funk Everyone has had those days when the bass are in the post spawn stage and fish can go into short period of rest and cruising around. Occasionally feeding, but mainly recovering from the rigors of the spawn. I recently floated a section of river that a few male bass still guarding nest, with some females spotted hanging around wood a little deeper. The males that were off the bed were feeding some while the big females were just seen cruising out off the banks. Sometimes you have to switch it up through out the day when faced with these conditions. <br />
I started the afternoon with a small largemouth bass on a KVD 1.5 square bill, that hit on my first cast down some rip rap rock. The rocks on most of this float were covered in grass so I switched up to a 1/2oz, white spinner bait. This seemed to be a ticket to several buck bass through out the day. The fish, like often happens after the spawn, were tight to wood in shallow water. I began catching fish as I ran the spinner bait beside, over or into the wood. It had to be tight to the wood though. I saw several of my strikes and caught many of them on the trailer hook because of the finicky bite. I managed four or five fish on that bait, with a few missed strikes. I was determined to find a big fish that I could maybe get a reaction strike out of. <br />
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The evening wore on and the spinner bait bite began to slow down. May can be one of the best months for topwater so I tied on a black and red buzz bait with two blades stacked one on top of the other. As we neared the end of the day and the sun set low, I began hooking up on fish with my buzz bait. Two of my last fish, including my biggest of the day, came in the shoals and no where near wood. When the light gets low, the fish move into the shoals and feed. I caught a nice spotted bass on the current seam below the shoal. I then did what is only natural in my excitement after catching a fish, and back lashed my reel pretty bad. I picked out the mess and reeled up the slack to feel, what I thought was my buzz bait hung up on a rock until it began pulling back. Of course, I really meant to do that so I would catch that fish. I mean, who hasn't fished a buzz bait on the bottom like a jig? </div>
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As you can see, I caught fish on a few different lures this day, and was willing to try something new when the technique I was using stopped producing. You have to be a versatile angler to catch fish, especially in the post spawn. So don't be afraid to change it up when the bite slows down. It just might boat you a few more fish. </div>
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-73599350381337396782015-03-25T20:17:00.000-07:002015-03-25T20:17:36.477-07:00First Kayak Trip on the River of 2015 Thank God, I have finally procured a Yakima JayLow kayak roof rack! It's been just over two years, since my truck was totaled. Needless to say, I have had a tough time getting my kayak on the water. Well the day finally came, with the help of my brother, we installed the rack and I was able to give it a test run today. The Yakima rack, so far, is very impressive. My Jackson Cuda 14 fits in the cradle like a glove and the rack can hold two kayaks, if needed. The instillation instructions could have been a little clearer but it wasn't rocket science.<br />
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So I had it loaded up this morning, rods ready, and geared up to go. I ventured down to one of my favorite spots to fish for Shoal Bass, and other species such as Spotted Bass and Striped Bass. I called ahead and knew the dam above my spot would stop generating about the time I would get there. Seeing as the dam is a good bit away from the shoals I was fishing, it took the water a couple hours to drop down to fishable levels. So I paddled up as far as I could, and beached myself on the point of an island facing upriver. I began tossing a 3/8 oz football jig with PB&J skirt and pumpkin seed zoom trailer. I was just killing time until my shoals were reachable, when I had that mushy feeling on my line, directly below the bow of my kayak. I did one of those, half set the hook, half lift the rod in confusion, when the fish took off. It shot out the water and the two and a half pound spotted bass came unbuttoned. This would be my only bite on the jig for the day. I eventually paddled up a little further, where I could cast my 5" Bull Shad into a really fast chute, that had some decent depth behind it. As I was slowly bringing it up for another cast, my biggest striped bass of the day, slammed it so hard that I almost fell out of my kayak. I had to bank my kayak so I wasn't two hundred yards downriver after fighting this fish. It used the current to it's advantage and it took a good, two minutes, to get it onto the bank. I didn't have scales but the 7-8lb fish chocked the Bull Shad so deep it was barely visible outside it's small mouth. This was a hungry striper. <br />
I stepped out onto the bank and in the next twenty minutes, I landed 3 similar sized stripers and lost two or three more that pulled off because I couldn't follow them downriver. This was a nice distraction to the long wait for the water levels to come down. <br />
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After the striped bass extravaganza, I made my way to the gradually, dropping shoals. I tried the Bull Shad and the Pig and Jig for a good hour and a half without so much as a bite. I was standing in front of one of the best pools in this shoal complex, so no fish was not a good sign. I decided to make a switch, something that would maybe trigger a reaction strike instead of trying to finesse them into eating a jig or tossing the big bait at them. I tied on a crawfish colored, square bill, crank bait. First cast into the same, heavily fished pool, and wham. A nice little shoal bass loaded up on the crank bait as it bounced through the rocks. Smiling, I released the fish and began fan casting. As I was about to reel up to make another cast, this massive shoal bass, easily over 5lbs, maybe 6, grabbed the crank bait. It turned sideways giving me the full view of her glory with only 4 or 5 feet of line out. I pulled up to start the fight and the crank bait popped out the side of her mouth. It broke my heart to loose the first big shoal bass of the year but she won't be the last. I continued on with one more fish that was either a spot or red eye, also on the crank bait. Seems like the crank bait bouncing off the rocks was key in triggering the strikes today. Overall, I had a blast and needed to do this SOOO BAD!! </div>
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-63320610862706335322014-08-11T04:49:00.000-07:002014-08-11T07:10:30.643-07:00Summer Swim Jigging for Shoal Bass Every summer I find myself in a period of fishing when the big bait, bite, is only on for a few hours during those dog days. So when those big shoal bass hunker down under the shelves of rocks, I find myself going to one lure consistently. The swim jig with a zoom speed craw on the back end to add bulk and action. The water I fish is usually gin clear, so I go with more natural colors and the bream imitating colors tend to be my favorite ones. A 3/8oz swim jig is the perfect size when the water is low and slow, and those big shoal bass are hunkered down. This tactic will catch big fish, but it will also catch numbers of decent fish as well. My jig of choice is a homemade swim jig made by my friend Michael Smith. This little bass wasn't a monster but it chocked the homemade swim jig like it was eating it's last meal.<br />
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I found the best presentation is the obvious one, the natural one. To throw the jig upriver and work it back down the shoals or pools towards myself. This allows for the jig to swim up and over the rocks like a bream or crayfish washing downriver towards the waiting fish's mouth, like any natural prey would. Shoal bass stay fairly active throughout the summertime so you don't have to crawl the jig back, you can work it back fairly fast. I don't burn it back like a spinner bait but I also don't crawl it like a normal jig or texas rig. If you match the weight of the jig correctly with the speed of the current, then it will just glide it's way back to you. I do let it fall into the cracks and crevices in the shoals, because that is where the big bass will be waiting for it's next meal, but I only let it hit the bottom for a few seconds, at most. This is usually when the fish will take ahold of the jig, just as it begins to fall between rocks or as you go to lift it over that rock. A lot of your bites will just feel mushy or all of the sudden get heavy. This is because of the slack in your line while working a jig this way.</div>
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You have to make sure to use the proper gear for this type of fishing. You need a strong, abrasive resistant line, that also has low visibility since the summer river water is usually very clear. So I go with 20lb P Line Flouroclear. I like this because it's strong, sensitive and has very little stretch so hook sets are easier, especially since the lure is working downriver towards me and moving with the current. A bass can grab it and take it right back under one of the rocks it was hiding under. So you need something strong when you set the hook, to get the bass out from under the rocks and keep it from snapping the line on the sharp edges. You will also need a stout rod, I use a Dobyns 766 Flip for this paired with a Shimano Curado. This gives me plenty of backbone to slam the hook in a big bass' lip and the reel has the ability to throw the jig a long distance. Distance is important since your working upriver, which means you'll be throwing your lure uphill. The micro guides on this rod also help add extra distance on your casts. Any extra distance is a good thing. Give this technique a try next time you find yourself out fishing some moving water on the dog days of summer. It can produce some excellent catches.</div>
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-18264061542721320192014-03-08T14:28:00.002-08:002014-03-08T14:28:15.812-08:00Dealing With Early Sprig Cold Fronts and Tough Fishing We all know that when the warm weather comes, the big female bass have been fattened, are full of eggs and ready to move up and drop their spawn at any steady sign of warm weather. Of course if you have bass fished, you know inevitably that these ideal stretches of warm weather seem to break out for us early only to be squashed by several nights of weather in the 20's-30's. So here are my thoughts on what happened and what to do when these early spring cold fronts move in on you and how to still make those big females bite. <br />
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Everyone who has bass fever has experienced this, or just about everyone. You have a springtime bass trip planned for Lake Seminole in FL or Lake Guntersville in AL for the magic month in the spring when those giant females, swollen with eggs, are moving up behind the buck bass, staging on secondary points and drop offs, feeding up and getting ready for the spawn. Then you wake up the next morning to crisp, cold air temps in the 30's when it had stayed in the 50's and higher for the week or two before. We all know what this means, as most fisherman would say, "These fish have lockjaw today." Well those bass can be caught and until the water temperatures have time to adjust and cool off, you can catch them in those early spring patterns such as throwing crankbaits or lipless crankbaits in 8-12ft near spawning bays or working a crawfish pattern jigs around wood in those same depths near shallow spawning grounds. But after that first day, when the barometric pressure rises, and the blue bird sky's show up. That's when you have to work harder to put these fish in the boat. <br />
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Early spring time lunker caught in a brush pile in 12Ft on a Senko</div>
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Initially, after the cold front, the bass will be found in the backs of the creeks and bays near channel drops and wood piles where they can remain until the weather stabilizes. You can catch those on the above mentioned crankbaits and jigs worked slowly through those brush piles and channel drops. As the cold front hovers or moves over the bass can be found further towards the main lake and hunkering down tight to the wood or rock cover. If you just take the time to use your sonar, find some places outside your favorite spawning areas, you can find those creek channels, bends and drop offs that will hold these big lunker females that break your heart on an early cold spring day. Catching these fish will be tougher than the ones gorging themselves right before they move up because they were in that stage and now have had to adjust to the cold. They will bite but it usually takes some kind of reaction bite to make bass eat in this situation. A crankbait is perfect for this because it can be worked over rock and through wood, banging into the limbs and cause those big females to react to it by getting mad and slapping the lure. Sometimes it may take fifteen to twenty casts to the same brush pile to catch one, but often when one bites it can fire up the remaining school and make those fish eat also. So be quick to get your lure in the water and mark your waypoint, if possible, when you catch a big bass. <br />
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It's tough, but we can all put some big bass in the kayak or boat if we just put a little time into researching what and where you will be fishing so these springtime cold fronts won't shut you down. This big early spring spot was caught on a suspending super rogue by Smithwick, inside a slow eddy where the cold weather had forced the bass out of it's usual warm water spot. It is a testimony to what you can catch if you get out and still try when that cold weather rolls over you warm spring week.<br />
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-28866966750861834282013-05-12T12:52:00.001-07:002013-05-12T12:52:08.674-07:00Sally the Spotzilla, Caught Twice Two Years ApartSo two years ago, my wife, Rachael Stutts, was fortunate enough to hook and land her personal best spotted bass at the time that was extremely full of eggs and weighed in at four pounds three ounces. The bass was a beast of a spotted bass and especially for the small river it was caught from. Well it was caught in one of the pools formed in a shoal complex just before the river dumps into a lake. She was throwing a rapala J11 on a 6ft spinning rod and a fairly small spinning reel. Rachael played the big girl like a pro as she rolled and turned on the top of the water. I finally was able to lip it and after pics and weight, she was released into the same pool she was caught from, an area about the size of an olympic swimming pool. <br />
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Well fast forward to this year and late April conditions, high muddy water with an approaching storm front. I knew it would be a good day for fishing so I tied on my 5" slow sink Bull Shad and headed to the same river. Which has given up a 4lb+ spotted bass last spring and two so far this spring. This river is so small I hop rocks to get to the other side and you can cast across it in almost every spot on the shoal complex and river. So I had caught a few decent bass on the bull shad as the skies darkened but nothing huge. I then had one about 3-4lbs come up and just slap at my swim bait but didn't eat it. That gave me the drive to fish this hole a little longer before moving on. I crossed the rocks to get to the one area in this pool I hadn't cast to, and slung my bull shad next to a tree with fast current going by. I let it sit for a second to sink, then gave my rod tip a good pop which turns the lure side to side like a spook but underwater, when WHAM, there she was again and hungry. Sally the Spotzilla, as we now named her, began to run and pull then came to the surface and with her big old head I knew it was a good fish. Had no clue it was Sally. The fish was downriver from me, in heavy current, with shallow rocks between me and her. The worst case scenario. So I just leaned on her, and slowly pulled her over and around the rocks until I got her in an eddy below my feet. The fish had the lure perfectly horizontal in her mouth, the tail off of one side and the head on the other, treble hooks all in her face.<br />
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So I grabbed the bass behind the head and let out a victory yell. The fish had spawned out already, or else she would have gone five pounds. At the time the thought did cross my mind that it may be Rachael's fish I caught but wasn't sure and released her. On a side note, I hooked her ten feet to the left of where Rachael caught her fish two years ago this spring. In the pictures you can plainly see a black birth mark on the left side of her head on the gill plate. The fish had some sort of infection where it lays it's eggs so hopefully it'll survive that so we can catch her again next year. Catch and Release really works people!!<br />
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<br />Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-63990051777835170612013-05-11T23:23:00.000-07:002013-05-13T00:01:36.433-07:00Early Summer Pond FishingSometimes when the spawn is over, the best place to be is on a small body of water such as a pond to catch numbers and if the ponds properly managed, some quality sized bass as well. I have recently been without a way to get our kayaks to the river, so we've done our share of wade and pond fishing. I tell you nothing beats a good farm pond bite and when they get to feeding, sometimes you can catch fish on any lure you want to throw. My personal favorites for early summer pond fishing are topwaters such as pop r's, spooks, and prop baits in low light conditions and if the sun is up I go to a soft plastic or spinnerbait fished just below the surface. A zoom trick worm is ideal for catching big pond bass in the summer time. Even some crickets and a bobber can yield some great results.<br />
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Just recently here in May, I was able to fish a small body of water loaded with 1-3lb bass and a lot of small to okay sized bream. The bream were all over the banks and the occasional ball of bass fry was left roaming the pond. Just before dark I took to the pond with a pop r on the end of my line and within minutes was battling a nice largemouth that just absolutely inhaled the lure. All the fish inhaled the pop r with great ease so setting the hook and landing these bass wasn't difficult at all. I moved on and after fishing around the pond I ended up with four nice bass in twenty minutes. The next morning I awoke and stepped out with the pop r again, caught one right behind my Dad as he was bream fishing off the dock. He was so mad he wouldn't turn around and even look. LOL. So if your stuck with no float partner or rivers are way to high, give pond fishing a try, it can pleasantly surprise you.<br />
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-43986097393418677032012-11-24T12:04:00.000-08:002012-11-24T12:04:15.237-08:00When Your Stuck to the Bank About the middle of October, our lives changed drastically when I was hit head on by a small compact car and it totaled out my Nissan Xterra which we had used for carrying our Kayaks to fish for the past four years. As most of you know, it's not only a lifestyle for us, it's in our blood now; we are addicted. So without a truck, what is a fella to do? Hit up some smaller rivers and travel the banks, rocks, and even wade the shallow waters for some surprisingly large bass in such small waters. <br />
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We fish a small unnamed river that flows into a lake, that at places, is barely as wide as a two lane road. It's about waist deep on average and there are a few holes and pockets inside the shoals we wade that are a little deeper. But we find most of the year, the big spots, shoal bass, and occasional largemouth are in the shallowest, fastest water we can find inside those shoals. </div>
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The gear I recommend for small flows like this would be one versatile rod, that had a medium action with some give to the tip and at least a length of 6.5-7ft. That sounds long for wade fishing, but when a 4lb spotted bass grabs your swim bait on the end of a 50 yard cast, you need a long rod to drive the hook home. I use a Dobyns 765 CB GLASS for this type of fishing. It lets me throw anything from jerk baits, which are my all time favorite shallow water lure, small swim baits, spinnerbaits, top waters and more. </div>
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Now as for lures, the one's mentioned above are my main aressenal and I almost never slow down to plastics because in small flows, there are just less baitfish for the bass and usually less pressure so that makes for some extra aggressive, big spotted bass and shoal bass. I caught a shoal bass from the one lane wide, creek/river you see above that weighed 4lbs 1oz and was only 18.5" long. She was fat and pregnant, and wanted my Suspending Rogue like it was crack for an addict. </div>
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4lb 1oz Shoal Bass</div>
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I usually use those oh so stylish, "fanny packs" that have double water bottles on them. You can get them at Walmart for really cheap and it comes with the two 24oz water bottles that fit on your sides like two six shooters. This works great for a drink in one and an extra spool of line in the other. Then you can fit your assortment of jerk baits, spinnerbaits and occasional soft plastics (just in case ;) etc. I find the suspending jerk bait to be the deadliest of all the tactics I have tried for these small water bass but have caught some pigs using my 5" Bullshad also. Sometimes they just swipe at it though, because it's a little large to represent the forage in this river but at least that shows me where they are and I can come back and get them to eat that jerk bait when it suspends in their face. </div>
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So try some small water wading when you find yourself stuck without a vehicle, you might just be surprised at the size of bass that can live in 2-3ft of water annually. These fish are trapped in this area and live here year round. So they are accustomed to the fast water and feeding even in cooler temperatures. Don't be afraid to give that small flow a shot that's down the road from your house. You may just catch a few of these weirdo's, like this spot and shoal bass hybrid.</div>
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-19764738696401602612012-10-12T22:04:00.000-07:002012-10-12T22:04:19.517-07:00By the Grace of God, My Seat Belt, and Air Bags, I am Alive!<br />
I was on my way home Wednesday evening around 5:00, heading south on Hwy 42 towards Jackson when a lady decided to pull out in front of my truck right as I was passing. As you guys know, the laws of physics don't allow for two objects to occupy the same space at the same time, well to say the least we collided with such force that all I remember is seeing her black car, then the air bag exploded and I slammed on brakes. I ended up going straight off to the left side of the highway and I guess she spun around and ended up in the middle of the road. It happened so fast I never even had a chance to hit my brakes before hitting her so I was full on going 55-60mph when I hit her. The speed limit is 55 on that stretch. I couldn't get the driver door opened, so I rolled out the passenger side and got away from the truck in case of fire or anything like that. All I knew was my face hurt, I was dizzy as heck, and the cabin of my truck was full of the smoke from the air bag going off. I thank God, I came out of the wreck with only sore muscles and a sore neck. One little tiny nick on my right knee and a little split on my nose, That was it. I swear all my vehicles will be a Nissan from this day forward! <br />
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Well, the lady admitted to the cops that it was all her fault. She was okay also, except she had a banged up wrist. Red nose like me but she was more worried I was going to sue her than anything I think. But it was her fault, So hopefully there won't be any problems from here on out getting a new vehicle. I am just glad I can see another sun rise and that both parties involved were okay. We both walked away from what could have easily killed both of us. Thank GOD. That's for sure!<br />
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-76067693453690962392012-06-25T15:37:00.000-07:002012-06-25T15:37:27.554-07:00My First True Kayak Sleigh RideMy buddy Johnithan, my wife Rachael and I all went down to a spot on a river where there are several sets of shoals on your way upriver to a spillway. I was in my new Jackson Cuda and Rachael was in her Coosa. Well, we hadn't checked with the dam operater of the lake above where we were and just so happened that right when we get to the spillway, about a mile padle up, there are no exposed rocks below it. This confused me only for a split second because it was supposed to have exposed rocks with pools to fish for our beloved shoal bass but there was only one limb sticking out of the water below this spillway. I said to Johnithan and Rachael, "Guys, I think they just released on us!!!!" Not knowing it at the time, but found out afterwards they rose the river 8ft while we were out there. <br />
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So I see a couple of tunnel hull boats pull up that somehow made it up those initial shoals with a ton of water coming over them. Then something clicked in my head........STRIPED BASS go nuts when water is released and these guys were there just for this particular event. So I paddle up to the fastest, biggest shute on the spillway that had maybe 4-7ft swells at the bass of the first major shoal after the spillway. I had a prototype 8" bullshad that I am testing and it is a faster sinking bait than the normal slow sink, don't ask to buy them from Bull Shad.com though, he isn't offering lures in heavy sink right now. Well, to shorten this story some I will get back to it. I heaved the 8" bait up into the fastest water out there and all I could do was reel just barely fast enough to keep up with the lure, I wasn't actually swimming it back. First cast and WHAM!!!! My rod almost is ripped out of my hands and then what looked to be a 30lb striper came to the top and instantly came off. Meanwhile the fellas in the boats hadn't hooked anything yet, and who says you can't catch big striper on artificial baits?<br />
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So next cast to the exact same spot and this time when I set the hook I know it's into something special. The fish immediately tore off down river turning my yak and peeling line. Funny side not, my wife actually asked did I need the net and it's one of those smallest you can get bass nets...so I just crack up and say, "You won't fit any part of this fish in that net, try and hook you one!!" Then I had to get serious because I was fighting a fish so big that it just easily peeled 25lb Trik Fish Camo mono off a Shimano Corsair even when I tightened down on the drag. At one point, maybe five minutes into the fight, the fish was at least 125yrds away from my kayak. At this point I still haven't even seen the fish and I have floated down out of the crazy super fast water down to just crazy fast water. There was one major tree laying out in the middle of the river that even with the high water you could still see one limb. The bass made a run for that and this is when I finally just pinned the spool with my thumb and began to turn the fish. It worked as I had made the fish come to the surface and turn directions, so it began running back the other way across the river. I felt a little better at this point because I could fight the fish in an open deeper area. <br />
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After, what I would say was a solid 5-10 minutes, the fish begins to tire and makes two more short 20-30 yard runs. I then get it right beside my kayak and notice that only one prong of the back treble hook is barely still stuck in the outside of the gill plate. One small head shake, one more run, or maybe a slight breeze and this fish would have been gone. Big dilemma at point since my Bogo Grips where still back home on my Coosa and I had to somehow lip this fish without pulling that last prong out. I couldn't get it's head close enough with my left hand using the pole while I reached out with my right hand so I finally grabbed the line, pulled the fish a little closer and shoved my thumb into this River Monster's mouth. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! YEEEEEAAAHHH BBBBOOOYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" ----came out of my mouth as I stood up trying to figure out what to do with this beast since I still had no fish grips or even a stringer at this point. Luckily though Rachael was able to pull up just in time for me to hook the fish to her grips so we could get it to land and take a few pics and try to get a length....lol 30" board didn't help with this fish, needed a bigger one. The fish would have easily gone 15-17" past the end of the 30" board. The adrenaline rush from that sleigh ride was the hardest I think my adrenaline has ever flowed and was a high like no other. <br />
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This is when I first lipped the beast and was trying to figure out what I was going to do.<br />
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I never got a true weight on the fish but my guess was between 35-40lbs as I could barely hold it with one hand, heck I could barely hold it with two. Was quite and experience and the ride back down those initial shoals was pretty whicked....fun that is!<br />
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<br />Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-75545916970642054452012-05-05T10:20:00.000-07:002012-05-05T10:20:27.015-07:00Post Spawn Top Water Tactics for Big SpotsThere is a time after the bass lay their eggs in early May when the fishing can be very funny and confusing. Fish won't be active enough to hit a swim bait yet but will crush a properly worked top water bait. So the question is what type of top water to use. I believe the fish aren't quite ready for pop r type baits or buzz baits, but something like lucky craft Sammy or a Zara spook can be deadly.
I got onto this pattern when I was fishing and I saw a bass after a small 2 ft snake. The bass must have tried six times before it finally engulfed the snake and took it under. Well a spook or Sammy looks just like a snake when walked across the water. So I tied on a lucky craft Sammy And began working it, even though the sun was bright. There was a slight chop on the water and I believe this always makes a top water bite better. It was the first week of May, the fish are all off their beds but just not into that summer feeding pattern yet. I began walking that sammy out around wood in some slacker water when it was crushed by a huge spotted bass. The fish was fat, right at four pounds even and the tail was tore up. She had layed her eggs, but just recently.
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I have found the best retrieve is to walk the lure back and forth a few times after it lands then pause it. The strike usually comes on the pause. This is how I will work the bait back until it's almost to the kayak and I have had strikes within feet of the boat. Sometimes it takes giving the bait more action to work the fish into hitting the bait. The cloud cover you have can always help a top water. This pattern also works on bright blue bird days as long as there is a slight breeze or chop on the water. Current also helps the bite but isn't neccesary. So next time your out on a funny post spawn bite and you can't get the fish to feed, try tossing a top water bait at them and you might be surprised.Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-74212621220940280152011-10-25T00:27:00.000-07:002011-10-25T00:27:49.533-07:00A 2011 Summer in Review<span style="font-size: x-small;">So this summer fishing swimbaits has been unbelievable and I would easily consider it the best three months of catching big bass in my life where I easily caught more big fish in the 4-8.5lb class range in those three months than I have in the past five years combined. Here are just some of those memorable fish I caught this year, enjoy.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;">My Personal Best Shoal Bass at 7lb 8oz caught on 5" Tru Tungsten</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8L9_x6RXLnmbPMoOg0XQftjYWKVBmd9qXXVo-YxbfLen0fhppaA9EH2gls0SgSXs9QITYjeandi5VGBNOmQNUaI-enUoTyUoSbDzxyRaH7AUsySgwhEzrfLicVtjVln6YnefZ8BTxTuta/s1600/100_0018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8L9_x6RXLnmbPMoOg0XQftjYWKVBmd9qXXVo-YxbfLen0fhppaA9EH2gls0SgSXs9QITYjeandi5VGBNOmQNUaI-enUoTyUoSbDzxyRaH7AUsySgwhEzrfLicVtjVln6YnefZ8BTxTuta/s320/100_0018.JPG" width="320" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;">My First Bass on the Bullshad, 5" slow sink model, a 4lb largemouth bass</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMNxjZzlfdrfbmFHcUM0XPqaxEbY5lGp0paMIN00fiGfHP1D4WSSm655PIpoweg_hdxcMaqQ8uyOMH5xte9YT11LLvLDTFuaaxNyOI5iNG4SKATKPc-3HdRc-6zZVlxU4WIFsLFG1ofK3S/s1600/100_0034.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMNxjZzlfdrfbmFHcUM0XPqaxEbY5lGp0paMIN00fiGfHP1D4WSSm655PIpoweg_hdxcMaqQ8uyOMH5xte9YT11LLvLDTFuaaxNyOI5iNG4SKATKPc-3HdRc-6zZVlxU4WIFsLFG1ofK3S/s320/100_0034.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span></b> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;">5lb Shoal Bass caught on the 5" Slow Sink Bullshad</span></b> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTwYl7jgPrlas_TfiiEJzIccJscO_JgyDFw2lMjN4OZQzrc3z2kU3seGQMiQUhbvtVjeqRtx-ciYw1aUz49nbxGmlrikNCuQMOLXC2Z-51NRmPHnXH2uQDqRnHZ_bdZZVW2kUJLg5xES5u/s1600/IMG_20110709_101040.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTwYl7jgPrlas_TfiiEJzIccJscO_JgyDFw2lMjN4OZQzrc3z2kU3seGQMiQUhbvtVjeqRtx-ciYw1aUz49nbxGmlrikNCuQMOLXC2Z-51NRmPHnXH2uQDqRnHZ_bdZZVW2kUJLg5xES5u/s320/IMG_20110709_101040.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;">8.5lb Largemouth caught on the 5" Slow Sink Bullshad</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4it6lM8vinyGLvypqXAR30OMfowwql9DdoSzN005nr5rBqmxrR0pX9t0BdUjrsB_XooWGjAwVQLB3nrpJkY0HSsWDTRMEsvFHKoEsK_AGLskLAXB9xKMu8LXk2zZZM6HpJYr7tjit9deg/s1600/101_3426.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4it6lM8vinyGLvypqXAR30OMfowwql9DdoSzN005nr5rBqmxrR0pX9t0BdUjrsB_XooWGjAwVQLB3nrpJkY0HSsWDTRMEsvFHKoEsK_AGLskLAXB9xKMu8LXk2zZZM6HpJYr7tjit9deg/s320/101_3426.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>6lb 2oz Shoal Bass caught on the 5" Slow Sink Bullshad</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSokqox1pWrnjgzV4tgttutGmJGDFwlHVmi-60jrQmoZaNM5WFev68HsuoJiIIujfoQ1Nuw1Ejtg4TagaGMiwPW5fQLLdG1SLFuiEGyw0uDfaxy6NcL-eS7hP1b1es4eFOE9_2BmRbHpKc/s1600/IMG_20110830_131415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSokqox1pWrnjgzV4tgttutGmJGDFwlHVmi-60jrQmoZaNM5WFev68HsuoJiIIujfoQ1Nuw1Ejtg4TagaGMiwPW5fQLLdG1SLFuiEGyw0uDfaxy6NcL-eS7hP1b1es4eFOE9_2BmRbHpKc/s320/IMG_20110830_131415.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>3lb 15oz Spotted Bass caught on the 5" slow sink Bullshad(fish 1 of 4 caught same day)</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdb3WsDbb4JY9wKHvSC26VegEmG37cR79i32ZLdTah02d88S48_H7M4gJCJb2GIMrC2Y8o3tvjlZK1enTNcS1RwDFDe-y23Ud-QA8i9AP3p5Zvjl0NKAae3RU5OCYehMYr1YFmaFwvJcF/s1600/IMG_20110810_085533.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdb3WsDbb4JY9wKHvSC26VegEmG37cR79i32ZLdTah02d88S48_H7M4gJCJb2GIMrC2Y8o3tvjlZK1enTNcS1RwDFDe-y23Ud-QA8i9AP3p5Zvjl0NKAae3RU5OCYehMYr1YFmaFwvJcF/s320/IMG_20110810_085533.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b> </b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>6lb 4oz shoal bass caught on the 5" Slow Sink Bullshad</b><b>(fish 2 of 4 caught same day)</b></span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDqAXMBJbPAh_bJsSvGdUJySBoYuvXJaQ8lxUo306oASDTgV8h_-1z_nPl6yT8cBCipIFWIUst3GlUxwTMvIhoZ0NSXNA08lHfy9x20V2X1QuC5wRj4L3tt9iRyIZISgd_z9l5jx2iDn_S/s1600/IMG_20110810_115102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDqAXMBJbPAh_bJsSvGdUJySBoYuvXJaQ8lxUo306oASDTgV8h_-1z_nPl6yT8cBCipIFWIUst3GlUxwTMvIhoZ0NSXNA08lHfy9x20V2X1QuC5wRj4L3tt9iRyIZISgd_z9l5jx2iDn_S/s320/IMG_20110810_115102.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>5lb 4oz shoal bass on the 5" slow sink Bullshad(fish 3 of 4caught same day)</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrAlqIlVTaDGGiA2vVenT-4oVjeb7BdFDOUIUxZEKphyphenhyphenNUAC_j6ACS4fltaXRZ6OgDRHruduQpCgfWaPOb1KFlpufpb_CESGB6Jvm6xjrmJWzqQQS1zBykYi53i_yNE8GyRv3tONZoAHq/s1600/IMG_20110810_101037.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrAlqIlVTaDGGiA2vVenT-4oVjeb7BdFDOUIUxZEKphyphenhyphenNUAC_j6ACS4fltaXRZ6OgDRHruduQpCgfWaPOb1KFlpufpb_CESGB6Jvm6xjrmJWzqQQS1zBykYi53i_yNE8GyRv3tONZoAHq/s320/IMG_20110810_101037.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;">4lb 11oz shoal bass caught on the 5" slow sink Bullshad(fish 4 of 4 caught same day)</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd00hkVxmTyUsAX0ZYCkDXoJx_Hb_ABCW0KR9LOugSh4cEb0aUm0TxyKObKG9xjWmtvtOSth_uBYxNSUYhQ7u_n8dBT67eWT8-RzIb5Bg492Kw5QXf72jiDJxWCe1WbHDhuKtcGesZbvNv/s1600/IMG_20110810_111757.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd00hkVxmTyUsAX0ZYCkDXoJx_Hb_ABCW0KR9LOugSh4cEb0aUm0TxyKObKG9xjWmtvtOSth_uBYxNSUYhQ7u_n8dBT67eWT8-RzIb5Bg492Kw5QXf72jiDJxWCe1WbHDhuKtcGesZbvNv/s320/IMG_20110810_111757.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 9oz Shoal Bass caught on the 5" slow sink Bullshad</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMhmFIchafPzVwlqjqCHVj-PTOH0fER9T0WTsbf-IzqraepmKkTOMH5XQ3KfxvfUQUdSPm6WitYPT2w5ci0DnS3Zj4LeXadS4QiDyeneKj8BdC7tn9vz-lztk0wfsRPvGk_Liqba5iwcHr/s1600/101_3457.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMhmFIchafPzVwlqjqCHVj-PTOH0fER9T0WTsbf-IzqraepmKkTOMH5XQ3KfxvfUQUdSPm6WitYPT2w5ci0DnS3Zj4LeXadS4QiDyeneKj8BdC7tn9vz-lztk0wfsRPvGk_Liqba5iwcHr/s320/101_3457.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 6oz Shoal Bass on the 5" Slow Sink Bullshad</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi96boQPK54ZOTtHLxuonMPQCS3REZmVgNC_kbEZqekKSOE43hE31gcpD9TMU2KWpXUq-NAM4tkXpoiYekctKphz6OrhpjS0if8CwXDwyCV8zJvCL3UYcHdpVjjiEh1rqjU7djTHDHImYE4/s1600/101_3560.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi96boQPK54ZOTtHLxuonMPQCS3REZmVgNC_kbEZqekKSOE43hE31gcpD9TMU2KWpXUq-NAM4tkXpoiYekctKphz6OrhpjS0if8CwXDwyCV8zJvCL3UYcHdpVjjiEh1rqjU7djTHDHImYE4/s320/101_3560.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 10oz shoal bass caught on the 6" slow sink Bullshad</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBF_JvvZkO-iHsSWs_U591wR9Ltp7kIFbZh1yxvjOu1xt5lUPvMbzuWHO_lQK3PgfD3bN3wQ1FNhc4Rsn84r_2GcN1sOn1qr30-uDw5t1FLUFn3OxCF4KfwphyC_2m1UMOMlvhIhyAFCrf/s1600/101_3519.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBF_JvvZkO-iHsSWs_U591wR9Ltp7kIFbZh1yxvjOu1xt5lUPvMbzuWHO_lQK3PgfD3bN3wQ1FNhc4Rsn84r_2GcN1sOn1qr30-uDw5t1FLUFn3OxCF4KfwphyC_2m1UMOMlvhIhyAFCrf/s320/101_3519.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 8oz Largemouth on the 6" Bullshad</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp2hxjduDrU5hBsZpGtMW9DJ_VDQfSUmOzwZ0mczBGlshDBMLgDlO0pue4CxUg74TQEUScqyV-UzAM7TB1AkubCBsiPMBlo2kY3VN36dCWpBH1f8MEIEl_Xk_9NPc68n30spBVZiqQPv14/s1600/101_3587.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp2hxjduDrU5hBsZpGtMW9DJ_VDQfSUmOzwZ0mczBGlshDBMLgDlO0pue4CxUg74TQEUScqyV-UzAM7TB1AkubCBsiPMBlo2kY3VN36dCWpBH1f8MEIEl_Xk_9NPc68n30spBVZiqQPv14/s320/101_3587.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 15oz Shoal Bass on the 6" Bullshad</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9IZI6lPu7olicRUWoj1aej_gcPbL4C2hJ4antj151vGt8SoSlOC07ID9ZZ2FAhnr9BvVi57KbCQXYWrxwp5IA-CtfiiO2CzLYoqAzCTq4cMbpLIGCFDm83IPHme3Lioddezqzvn0UcIIo/s1600/IMG_20110926_143406.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9IZI6lPu7olicRUWoj1aej_gcPbL4C2hJ4antj151vGt8SoSlOC07ID9ZZ2FAhnr9BvVi57KbCQXYWrxwp5IA-CtfiiO2CzLYoqAzCTq4cMbpLIGCFDm83IPHme3Lioddezqzvn0UcIIo/s320/IMG_20110926_143406.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 8oz Shoal Bass on the 6" Bullshad</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqxXwTsi0u1pvxtzlno1BQ8ewCZ8YXq2OjE-Hsv7uwSTvSsjt6GF5qJoSgJ9iYtSE5msAAaA22o0B6VZKOh_m3aKO7iKJBRXanCZjwAfB964j5yPsV1bqhjurh655vfwN1UCCptE7-u0ra/s1600/IMG_20110926_130202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqxXwTsi0u1pvxtzlno1BQ8ewCZ8YXq2OjE-Hsv7uwSTvSsjt6GF5qJoSgJ9iYtSE5msAAaA22o0B6VZKOh_m3aKO7iKJBRXanCZjwAfB964j5yPsV1bqhjurh655vfwN1UCCptE7-u0ra/s320/IMG_20110926_130202.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 2oz Shoal Bass caught on 6" Bullshad(fish 3of 3 on same day)</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb2O-vnADen-jNxMupsfh3WU-D1iBhcd8-RerMfE1AoI3pEvLN7LXCrWlABhIQaYiuatFYknHjmEmsVcPgZTXr6qRys-fuTp7T8pztRjShu7s1TQPVG4EmC6a_MRzXG_i1NjZx15mgs8gS/s1600/IMG_20110926_134851.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb2O-vnADen-jNxMupsfh3WU-D1iBhcd8-RerMfE1AoI3pEvLN7LXCrWlABhIQaYiuatFYknHjmEmsVcPgZTXr6qRys-fuTp7T8pztRjShu7s1TQPVG4EmC6a_MRzXG_i1NjZx15mgs8gS/s320/IMG_20110926_134851.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 12 oz Shoal Bass caught on the 5" Floating Bullshad</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIoOxQ3E1hFmHk0yrtfzpsqiKdZOkXZisfuQMiE3FOOpimg7JAs-ldPX2ZZ2BTwIyUuJfDe17SJzezBWj5Ap3LF5zNJtWSt-LbfPoEAoaU62k8csFrdEJFdUT802jLD66vzSiBO6u13tGd/s1600/101_3610.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIoOxQ3E1hFmHk0yrtfzpsqiKdZOkXZisfuQMiE3FOOpimg7JAs-ldPX2ZZ2BTwIyUuJfDe17SJzezBWj5Ap3LF5zNJtWSt-LbfPoEAoaU62k8csFrdEJFdUT802jLD66vzSiBO6u13tGd/s320/101_3610.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 2oz Spotted Bass caught on the 8" Slow Sink Bullshad Generation 2 Prototype</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiay-_QHYWE8gXQXW_tgEA5l6qR79GMRZvKtqzTK4aNeVCJbez1X14iFnjTb2uyC8PK-ZWMTedArtzAZkdX_YMfQVVhCVH1y3Bho54bFYe6KsGXGXhu_x_Ye1Jh4hEPcH3zlc277hzr6z-r/s1600/101_3628.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiay-_QHYWE8gXQXW_tgEA5l6qR79GMRZvKtqzTK4aNeVCJbez1X14iFnjTb2uyC8PK-ZWMTedArtzAZkdX_YMfQVVhCVH1y3Bho54bFYe6KsGXGXhu_x_Ye1Jh4hEPcH3zlc277hzr6z-r/s320/101_3628.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b> </b><b> </b></span></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>4lb 10oz Shoal Bass caught on the 8" Slow Sink Bullshad Generation 2 Prototype</b></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmPC1CKQ9uEMPgO7kwvS9asIdWUqcKWoQ0v8jF1IWKUz41alYwQl9cH5ofgR3OlmI28j0JIm_BUhAcjB-kN92bSrhOFYRymcIkqCbZF7w83hwyqpugy2MFWgl5_qYHOyJ-4G7AQeKDreRO/s1600/101_3655.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmPC1CKQ9uEMPgO7kwvS9asIdWUqcKWoQ0v8jF1IWKUz41alYwQl9cH5ofgR3OlmI28j0JIm_BUhAcjB-kN92bSrhOFYRymcIkqCbZF7w83hwyqpugy2MFWgl5_qYHOyJ-4G7AQeKDreRO/s320/101_3655.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Even the little guys like the 8" Bullshad</b></span><br />
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</div>Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-26938432506058137912011-10-24T23:28:00.000-07:002011-11-08T14:25:37.157-08:00Swimbait and Big Bait Fishing<span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"> An excessive preoccupation of the thoughts or feelings; the persistent haunting or domination of the mind by a particular desire, idea, or image. This is one definition of a word that best describes my new found relationship with swim-baits, obsession. Big baits and swim-bait fishing in particular, has preoccupied my thoughts for just over 3 months now. Since getting into fishing baits that are five or six inches in length and bigger, my ratio of big bass to fish caught has gone way up. <span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In fact, </span></span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">I have caught 25 bass between 4 and 8.5lbs and I have broke my old personal best shoal bass 5 times due to fishing swim-baits all in the past 3 months</span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="color: black;">. All this on a river I have been fishing for several years now. The scary part is that's not even counting how many big fish I have lost.</span> </span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="color: black;"> I actually only caught 10 shoal bass over 4lbs all of last year fishing conventional baits like the Rapala J11 and even the bigger J13, and that was out of just over 1,000 bass we caught total all year. That's only ten out of one thousand bass over four pounds. This year we haven't even topped 500 bass yet and we already have 27 bass over 4lbs and those all came between the months of August through <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="color: black;">October. </span></span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;">The following is some of the things I have learned about using big baits for big bass, some of the trials and tribulations I went through, and finally the equipment issues that go along with swim-bait fishing.</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><b> A 4lb 2oz Spotted bass, my personal best river spotted bass on the 8" Bullshad</b></span></span></div><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"> So first off, why use a larger than normal sized lure for big bass? There are a couple of answers to this question; one is simply because they catch big fish and the other is really the reason why big fish hit a bait that can barely fit in their mouth, they want a meal that will fill them up. A bass will naturally trend towards eating one big meal compared to several small ones because of the fact that they will use far less energy going after one big meal. They will get a greater benefit from a big meal than several smaller ones. If you were going out to eat, would you prefer a juicy steak diner or a soy burger from a vegan restaurant? Personally I want the steak and I think Mr. Bass does too. Big baits and swim-baits in particular are imitating many different types of forage that bass feed on. Large shad like gizzard shad, crappie, bream and even baby bass are just a few examples of what these large lures can imitate. Then there are also big baits that imitate rats, baby birds, and even snakes. A big bass can and will eat just about anything it can fit in it’s mouth. A lot of people think that big fish don’t feed as much because they don’t catch them as often as small fish. This is not true at all. You just have to throw something that will spark the interest of that old, smart bass that not many others are throwing. This is not to say that big fish can’t be caught on smaller conventional baits because there is always a time and place for those time proven classics like the texas-rigged worm and spinner bait.<br />
My first time trying a swim bait, which at the time I thought was giant, was a five inch long Tru-Tungsten swim-bait. I was fishing a kayak tournament and had my three fish limit but I knew I needed a kicker fish if I was going to place in the top. I tied on the five inch Tru-Tungsten and proceeded to lose a shoal bass that was easily five pounds and then I hooked and landed a shoal bass that was seven and a half pounds which is eleven ounces off the Georgia state record. Needless to say I won the tournament. I was hooked. Not long after this I discovered what is now my absolute go to bait for big bass, the Bullshad. The Bullshad is a three-jointed, hard bodied swim-bait that comes in five, six inch sizes with bigger sizes coming out in the near future. This lure is a little more expensive than a cheap swim-bait like the Tru-Tungsten but that extra money is well spent. The Bullshad is made from stronger components and a higher quality resin material. The hooks also swivel 360 degrees due to the hook hangers being actual stainless steel swivels. This helps prevent the fish from gaining leverage to throw the bait as easily. </span></span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><b>5, 6, and 8 Inch Bullshads</b> </span></span></div><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"> Now throwing a bait that can weigh as much as 5 ounces or more can really wear on your equipment if your not using the proper rods, reels, and line. I learned this the hard way by completely killing three of my cheaper two hundred series reels in two months. Your rod also needs to be vastly upgraded from the normal sized rods used with conventional baits. The hooks on an eight inch swim bait are huge and are 2x 1/0 hooks and the rod needs to have the power to drive the hook home even on a long cast. I now use a Shimano Curado reel and Dobyns 795SBMT swim-bait rod that measures seven foot nine inches long and is rated to throw one to five ounce lures. Getting into swim-bait fishing can be very expensive with all the new rods, reels, and terminal tackle. The worst part can be the baits themselves. Once your bitten by the bug you may want every new swim-bait you see because they catch fish like this.</span></span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><b>8.5lb Largemouth caught on the 5" Bullshad</b> </span></span></div><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> My advice to someone just starting out would be to start small and work your way up. I started with a five inch bait and now throw the eight inch regularly. The five inch bait feels tiny now. Also start with baits that are proven fish catchers like the Bullshad, MS Slammers, and for those lakes with trout, the Huddleston Deluxe. Make sure you use the appropriate tackle and equipment. The line used needs to be twenty pound test or higher. I recommend using a high quality mono-filament line like P-Line CXX. The little bit of stretch you get with mono-filament helps to keep the fish from pulling the hooks out of it’s mouth. If you can’t bring yourself to spend the money it takes to buy high quality swim-baits, you can always start with cheaper ones like I did. The Tru-Tungsten isn’t being made anymore but can be found on the internet for fairly cheap. Just be prepared to lose one or two to being broken on a rock. If you do decide to get into swim-bait fishing, be forewarned, it can become an OBSESSION.</span><br />
</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #ff6666;"></span></span></span>Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-82248195784408079832011-08-29T09:08:00.000-07:002011-08-29T09:08:22.118-07:00New Personal Best River Largemouth This trip started out like any other evening trip to the river. Smiley and I loaded up the gear and headed down to a deeper section of the river where we usually do good on largemouth and spotted bass. We arrived at the river in the late afternoon/early evening hour and launched our boats. The sun was shinning but the wind was blowing pretty hard and this put a chop on the water so I started out trying faster stuff in the moving water to try and catch a feeding fish or two. <br />
I began fishing up to a shoal and was working my bullshad back to me with a pretty fast stop and go retrieve. The wind was blowing hard enough to push me upriver towards the shoal I was fishing. I could see a rock that was about 3ft underwater that had a ledge that dropped off into deeper water and this was right up in the middle of the mostly shallow shoal. So I worked my swimbait over that rock and killed the lure to let it sink over the ledge. Right when I began reeling it in fast to make another cast, a giant bass comes up out of that deep hole and tries to take the rod from my hands. I only had about 5 feet of line out when the fish hit and it was a big fish so I gave it some line so it had a little room to fight. I was standing up all the while fighting this fish and getting blown into the shoal. The fish tried to jump but could only get it's massive head out of the water, giving me the impression that this fish was 10lbs or bigger. It made one more attempt at jumping and I pulled it beside the yak and shoved my hand in it's mouth. I hoisted the fish up and was amazed at how skinny this bass was. His head showed hints at a better day when the fish probably weighed 10lbs+ but in it's present condition the fish measured 24" long and weighed 8.5lbs. <br />
Wasn't my first 10lb river bass but it was my personal best river largemouth. I have been lucky enough to catch a 10lb largemouth bass but not from a river. My previous personal best river largemouth was 7lb 15oz. The fish didn't cooperate after that bass and we decided to pack it up and head home. We were going on a camping and fishing trip the next day and I didn't want to use up all my luck, which may have been the case anyways seeing as I scored my new best river largemouth! Happy fishing everyone.<br />
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-40990059212820558592011-08-17T16:18:00.000-07:002011-08-17T16:18:41.389-07:00Gotta Love Them Spotted Bass I went down to the river this afternoon around 1:00 to go try my 6" bullshad swimbait out. I told myself I would throw it once I caught a few on the smaller 5" bait. I found out today that I definitely need a new rod for the bigger swimbaits. I was using my 7' MH cranking rod with 25lb mono and I just couldn't get a hook in the fish when they hit. There was just too much stretch with the mono and undersized rod. I ended up missing all three fish that hit the swimbait. Two came off almost instantly and the bigger one fought for a few seconds then just came off. It really felt like fishing with a rubber band since I am so used to braid. I am sticking with the mono when I get my Dobyns 795 SBMT rod that's designed for swimbaits and magnum topwaters. That will have enough backbone to throw that big lure and also get the hook into those thick lipped lunkers. <br />
I took the daytripper again today instead of the Coosa because I was by myself and I have a Nissan Xterra. Just too hard to get the Coosa up there by myself. I was fishing my way downriver and came to an area that I usually catch a fish or two from. It has some deep water with fast current that sweeps up close to the bank and into some blowdowns. By deep I mean 6-8ft. I tossed by the bullshad up into the shallow water above the blowdowns and deep water. Let it sink and was swimming it parallel with the tree and it got hammered. I set the hook and felt some strong head shakes. Tried to lead the fish out of the trees and it just came off. Felt like I never really hooked the fish. I put down the swimbait and threw my shakyhead with a green pumpkin trick worm up where it could tumble into that deep hole and it was picked up almost instantly. Put the hook into a feisty shoal bass about 2lbs. He put up a good fight and had some awesome colors.<br />
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I rigged my worm up and threw back into that hole. Again, the shakyhead was hit almost instantly and this time there was a little more weight when I set the hook. The fish jumped and I could see it was a nice bass then it dove into those blowdowns. Luckily they don't have a lot of limbs on them from being in the water a long time and I was able to hold steady pressure on the fish until in swam out of the trees. Then it bolted straight under my yak and began peeling line. It was a big spotted bass and they pull like freight trains. I backed off my drag and the fish took some line a few times. After playing it out I eased it up to my hand and lipped the bass. I noticed it had a huge scar on it's jaw. You could tell it had been caught when it was younger, ripped it's jaw, and then it healed. The fish measured just over 19" long and weighed a tad over 3lbs. I love them big, summer time, spotted bass!<br />
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Two nice fish out of that hole was a pleasant surprise. I fished on with a few followers on the 6" Bullshad and then I caught my smallest shoal bass this year on a 4" tru tungsten. The fish was barely bigger than the lure. I do admire it's tenacity though. I worked my way all the way back up to the area I put in and decided to continue upriver and try the slacker water. I had some shade on the bank so I began tossing a pop r. About 5 minutes into throwing the pop r I had a nice fish blow up on it 5ft from my yak. It startled me so much that I didn't set the hook quick enough and when I did the pop r just came up from 4 or 5ft deep without the fish. I saw the fish strike and it was a nice largemouth, at least 3lbs. That was the only fish I could get to show any interest in the pop r so I decided to paddle back and pack it in. I didn't sleigh them today but I was happy to feel a good tug on the end of my line. <br />
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-30964030894870415032011-08-15T12:06:00.000-07:002011-08-15T19:21:28.770-07:00Unbelieveable Bassin' As we unloaded our kayaks, the morning of June 11th, I had no idea this would be a day I'd never forget. I was fishing the RiverBassin.com Tournament stop in Columbus, Georgia. We had a small group of 6 guys and gals, who were determined to do good in this tournament. Joining us on the river was Scott Starnes, Terry Wolka, Scott's friends Jeremy and Mark, and my wife Rachael. We had a small stretch of river picked out to fish that had one good section of shoals that were maybe 200yds x 300yds square. Scott, Mark, and Jeremy stayed out in the deeper, slack water, fishing worms or other lures used for fish down deep. Terry, Rachael and I all headed upriver straight to the shoal sections.<br />
I started out the day throwing a topwater devil's horse and quickly had my 3 fish limit but the length wasn't enough to put me near the top. My biggest fish was an 18" shoal bass I had caught on the devil's horse and I knew I would need something bigger. At this point it was after 12pm and it was getting hot. The bite had slowed way down and it was taking a slow approach like a shakyhead to catch fish. I have always been able to find a few shoal bass, up in the shallow fast water, even in the hottest parts of the summer. So I tied on a 5" hard swimbait and went searching for the big fish to fill my stringer. <br />
I started fishing up in the swiftest water I could find and quickly hooked into something big. It stayed down deep and just didn't feel right. As I got the fish closer, I realized it was a 5lb striper. Not the black bass species I was looking for and quite a disappointment when your tournament fishing. I kept on fishing and that's when I had a fish grab the swimbait. I was kind of startled and didn't set the hook very hard which was my downfall because that 4-5lb shoal bass just launched itself out of the water and threw the swimbait back in my face. UGH!!! This was a bummer but in the end it was a let down I was willing to deal with since the river definitely paid me back. That fish gave me the confidence I needed to continue on with the swimbait. <br />
Sweat was dripping from my face and into my eyes it was so HOT. It was getting close to time to pack up and head back to the weigh in, less than an hour left, when a fish swipes at my lure but doesn't hook up. I hollered to my partner, Rachael, and told her I had just missed a fish. I continued to make casts to the same location I had on the previous cast. On my 6th or 7th cast back in there, the fish came back and just gently sucked in my swimbait. I slammed back the rod and it barely moved the fish. It was shallow, maybe 3ft deep, and I could see the big shoal bass turn sideways underwater and instantly knew I had a 5lb plus shoal bass on. I jumped out of my yak, tangling my feet in another rod I had on the boat. My yak went downriver while I tried not to break my rod and lose this fish all at the same time. I finally snapped to and realized that the rod was fine and I needed to pay attention to this fish. It would take line like it was easy, would just swim off and I would have to let it take line or lose it. I still didn't know exactly how big this fish was until I pulled it to the surface for Rachael to net it. That's when I began screaming, "GET IT! GET IT!" She scooped the fish into the net, almost breaking the cheap handle and I began celebrating like no one's business. She was scared the fish would get out of the net and was trying to make me take the net from her. I was in such a state of shock that it took me 30 seconds or more to catch on to what she was asking.<br />
I took the net and couldn't believe my eyes. I knew this fish was over 7lbs and the world record is just under 9lbs. I have been trying to break the 5lb mark since the begining of 2010 and at this point my previous personal best was 4lb 12oz. After a few minutes of ridiculous celebration, dancing, and screaming, I took the fish over to Scott and borrowed his scales. The fish measured in at 23.25" long and weighed 7lb 8oz's. The feeling from holding this beast was unreal and I am so thankful I had a chance to put my hands on her. It was magical to say the least. Watching that big shoal bass swim off unharmed was almost as fun as holding her. <br />
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-1017604178351042102011-08-13T11:54:00.000-07:002011-08-13T17:05:30.663-07:00Big Baits Catch Big Bass I am sure by now, you have heard the old adage, "Big baits catch big bass." Well I never really knew how true that was until I started my recent love affair with swimbaits. I don't mean those soft, paddle tailed, minnow lures. I am talking, big, bad, mean, swimbaits such as the 5, 6, 7 and 8 inch hard swimbaits made by Bullshad Swimbaits. These lures have a segmented body that is made up of four sections held together with heavy duty pins. These baits are made with heavy duty owner hooks that can swivel 360 degrees to help keep the fish from gaining leverage and throwing the lure. The tail is made up of a hard section with coarse hair used for the tail and it gives the bait a very realistic look.<br />
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I started out using the Tru Tungsten swimbaits, which are made similarly to the Bullshad but they are made much more cheaply. I switched over to the Bullshad because the paint on the Tru Tungsten swimbaits will chip off very easily and the lure itself breaks if you hit anything hard. Since switching to the Bullshad swimbaits I have been very happy with their performance. In the first twenty minutes fishing this lure I caught a 4.5lb largemouth. <br />
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There are floating and slow sink versions of the bait. The floater is a perfect topwater lure while the slow sink can be allowed to sink down deep and catch those big girls that don't want to rise to the surface. I am usually throwing the slow sink version because it's slow rate of fall is just irresistible to big bass. I don't fish the lure on a straight retrieve. You want to stop the lure and let it fall or if you give the rod a jerk and then give it slack, you can turn the lure around 180 degrees and make it face the bass chasing it. This is an invaluable tool fishing this lure because if you think about it, a fish's only defense is to bite something so if you make that lure turn around and face the bass, it's like a challenge and the fish has to defend itself so it strikes the lure. Probably 40-50% of the fish I catch on this lure miss the bait on the first strike and return to strike again when you kill the lure and let it sink.<br />
Many anglers are scared to throw big 5" and 6" baits, having the mindset that they're scaring most of the fish off with the large lure. In most cases this is not true. I have had bass, under a pound, hammer the large swimbaits. I look at it like this, a big bass doesn't want to expend more energy catching diner than it will get from the meal. So a big meal will be more attractive to big bass because they will get more out of it. Would you rather chase nasty, greasy fries or a t-bone steak? Well, these big swimbaits are a t-bone steak to bass. You may not get as many bites along the way but the ones you get will make it all worth it if you just stick to it. Don't put the big lure down until you've caught something that makes it worth your while and trust me, this will happen if you just keep throwing it.<br />
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-70827906962609939092011-08-12T11:13:00.000-07:002011-08-12T11:13:59.392-07:00Joined Team DobynsI am happy to announce that I just recently joined the pro staff at Dobyns Rods. They seem like a great company with good people behind the name. They welcomed me with open arms after a friend, Mike Bucca, who also is a member of the pro staff, introduced me. I have placed an order now for the Dobyns 795 SMBT Swimbait rod and am very excited to try it out. I will let you guys know, very soon, how it performs. I am very excited to be working with Dobyns Rods and can't wait to start using their rods.Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915073106821320765.post-74348320277637606192011-08-12T10:54:00.000-07:002011-08-12T10:54:54.115-07:00One Crazy Day of Big Bass<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Smiley and I finally had a chance today to do a whole float on our local flow. I was excited to get a chance to sling our new 5" bullshad swimbaits all day long. All I can say is, "What a day!" We started off in style with a nice solid spot over 2lbs on a pop r. It was in the first pool we came to. Not long after I caught a small largemouth on the swimbait. Then we came to some shallow rocks with swift water moving over them and I stepped out of my yak to wade. Tossed upriver, across current and WHAM! Fish on. A 3.5lb spotted bass and it was in very fast water. After a sweet battle I finally belly landed the beast who went 19.75" long and was a shy over 3.5lbs. A good start to the morning. We moved on and I caught a couple spots on the swimbait that were only about a pound and a half or so. We came to a real shaded bank so I tossed my pop r and the second it landed a nice largemouth erupted on the bait. I honestly thought it was 4 or 5 pounds from the strike but he was only about 2lbs. <br />
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We came up to a shoal and Smiley hollers that she has one then I just as quickly see her lose it. She's telling me she just lost one and then I see her slam the hook back, the fish came back and got her swimbait. It was a chunky shoal bass just under 3lbs. Her first ever swimbait fish and she was very excited. I tossed my swimbait over to a ledge that the water was rushing over and a fish grabbed it but didn't hook up. I floated over the area and made a couple more casts and on the last I let the swimbait sink and float over that ledge. It got about 5 or 6ft deep and I see a huge shoal bass just come up from down deep and suck it in. I set the hook and the fight was on. I was standing and the water was crystal clear so it was crazy watching it all go down. It was almost slow motion. I was standing up fighting this monster and it was stripping drag. I had to grab the paddle and use one arm to keep me out of some blow downs and all the while this fish is going crazy. Then I looked down and there was another shoalie bigger than the one I had on trying to get the lure. I finally get where I can sit back in my yak and comfortably fight this fish. I can see it's hooked great, one advantage to these swimbaits is the awesome owner hooks that swivel 360 degrees. They hook the fish and don't let go, it's awesome. I get my hands on the fish and sling it aboard. This giant went 21.25" and was just a tad over 5lbs and 5-4. I couldn't believe my eyes. My third shoal bass over 5lbs in the last two months. Insane.<br />
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I battled with a small gar for a second, which scared me because it could have cut my line and taken that swimbait. Not good. Luckily he didn't cut the line and we continued on. Rachael scored next on her swimbait in some real fast current. It was another solid shoal bass about 2.5lbs. We fished on and we came to a spot where some fast water funnels into an oxbow of sorts and I had a fish swipe at the swimbait but it missed so I paused it, let the current carry it for a second and then twitched it and the fish picked it back up. I set the hook into this fish and when it turned I could see it was over 4lbs. I was just grinning from ear to ear while fighting the fish standing up and came to a rock where I could get out. Exited the yak and landed the fish. It was just over 20" and weighed 4-11. This is starting to feel like a dream but I assure you guys, it was real. We fished on and after fishing the gar covered oxbow we came to some pushwater of the shoal exiting this oxbow. I slung my bullshad into it, let it sink a few feet and began slowly reeling back to me. Not fifteen feet back my rod doubled over and it felt like I was hung. Then a massive head comes out of the water and all I can think is this might be a 6 or 7lb bass!!!! It was such a fat shoal bass that she didn't give me as big of a fight as I thought she would. She jumped a couple times but couldn't get all the way out of the water. Then I jumped out of my yak on a big rock and pulled her up and threw my thumb in her mouth. Then I let out a scream. We snapped photo's, measured her at 21.75" and she weighed 6lb 1oz!!!! I just couldn't believe this was going on, these big shoal bass were just killing this big swimbait. I stuck one more over 3lbs and a few more small fish and Rachael missed one really good fish that just didn't get her swimbait. She estimated it to be around 4lbs. That was a bummer but overall it was the best day of shoal bass fishing we have experienced. <br />
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Jason Stuttshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16573907117279215207noreply@blogger.com2