Bass Fishing Tip of the Week Official Post.

[Nick Kuhn]

I wonder if the size of that tank will limit his growing capacity. I would like to have a fresh water aquarium someday

More like paying to feed them. When having to use minnows over the winter it's cheaper to feed an 80lb dog than it is to feed an 8" bass (or at least it seems like it). Good news is it's almost crawler season when the food is free.

[ikeslayer]

Here is my tip or tips

All athletes will tell you the importance of being mentally tough. I think fishing is no exception. The only thing I think I excel at is keeping a positive mental attitude. Being a pastor to youth I often tell them that bad circumstances will happen but when they do you have 2 choices. You can be happy and have bad circumstances or you can throw a fit and be a baby or go IKE as some might say and still have bad circumstances. You cannot control some things. But control the things you can and your attitude is ALWAYS within your control. No one or any particular circumstance can MAKE you feel a certain way – you choose how you feel.

Secondly is listening to your gut. All I have gleaned about listening to your gut has come from the man KVD himself. He says that when your gut talks listen. By that meaning when you get a hunch to go to a place to fish or try something listen. And he uses the rule of 15 minutes. You can all spare 15 minutes when it comes to listening to your hunches. He calls this growing, training, or honing your instincts. It is like developing a sixth sense. The first time I did this was walking the banks of the Mississippi and I said to a buddy – that spot looks too good to walk by – went out and immediately caught one. I did this five other times that day and it feels good when your hunches payoff.

Lastly is goals. Each day should have a goal. One day when I was talking to Chuck (‘fluker’ here on the boards) he was saying how some days he goes out fishing to learn a new technique and that usually doesn’t yield many fish. Each day has a different goal and it is not always to catch fish. Some days goals are to catch fish with a certain technique, or in a certain manner, other days like when I fish lake Zumbro Tuesday nighters I know if I can catch 10lbs I WILL be in the money. So each day have a goal otherwise it has been said that, “Failing to plan is planning to fail”

Sorry I didn’t give any magic techniques or anything – I just feel like many times in Minnesota since our season is short we can’t fish aimlessly.

ike

[TonkaBass]

Very good tip! I really liked it. I esspecially liked the part about attitude and staying positive. I think that staying positive and being polite and in a good mood to others is very important both on and off the water!

[Cecil]

Attitude can control a lot of things. If you remain positive you will make better decisions, period. If you are negative, small things will make you get off your game and make choices that you would not otherwise make.

Well said Ike.

[TonkaBass]

I agree cecil, it seems like bad moods and lack of confidence go hand in hand. For a lot of people there is a chain reaction that takes place and nothing seems to go right. When this happens to me(it happens to everyone), I ussually take a minute to gather my thoughts and totally restart from the beginning. Often I will go back to my roots and what I know works. There is nothing worst in fishing than beating yourself up! I don't know anyone who nails them every single time they fish, but I know plenty of people who let a bad day get them down and hurt their confidence. Sorry, now I'm rambling...

[goblueM]

excellent advice. I know when i become discouraged I tend to aimlessly cast and not really care how i work the bait. It's a horrible negative feedback cycle.

I know RK talks about just setting the musky rod down for a bit when you get frustrated and just cruising the shallows looking at fish - be it bluegills or bass or whatever - just to re-set and refresh your mind. I don't see why bass fishing should be any different!

[MurkyWaters]

When I get frustrated I just remember that, for true fisherman, fishing isn't only about catching fish. We are out there to relax too.

[JConrad]

I completely agree... A day on the water is better than any day at work.

Having a positive attitude while on the water and changing plans/techniques when you are not having success is all a big part of the game. Experience and using you head to figure out patterns is really cool. It really is a challengs and it's what keeps me going.

Sure looking forward to open water in central MN.

[moviking]

went out walleye fishing from the bank Wed. night on one of our local lakes. It was a beautiful night, calm winds and warm air (60), managed to get a couple. Had them for supper the next night

[Paul_Kramer]

Okay, I think it's my weekend.

Finding bass in the heat.

Alot of times, on hot summer days, I check dense shallow weeds and docks instead of going deep. For docks, I usually skip stickbaits or jigworms under them and slowly work them in. One of my favorite weed areas to check is lilly pad clumps. I've found that pads with other kinds of vegitation or wood under them holds many more bass than pads alone. Frogs, Jawbreaker spoons, and Top Props all work well for me. If they're turned off by an aggresive retrive, I'll often hold the rod up and slowly crawl the bait over the pads. Or, I'll use a worm/grub of some sort and let it sink right at the edge of the pads. Be sure to use a setup that lets you haul a fish out of the pads, depending on how thick they are.

Not only have pads gotten me into some decent fish, but I think it's the most fun way too. Good luck!

[Deitz Dittrich]

Awesome tips KP, thanks for sharing!!! Love fishing the really thick stuff in the heat of the day!

[TonkaBass]

Nice job! It's tough to beat the blow up of a big bass in heavy cover! This is something I am going to try and do more of this year...

[moviking]

I too like to fish the thick junk in the heat of the summer. I like to find stands of thick groups of weeds and fish them. Throw in a brush hog or jig and hang on, let the brush hog sit a while, they seem to hit it then, drives them nuts I think.

[Craigums]

One of the common complaints about baitcasters is the dreaded backlash. Well with this little tip that I found on the internet, You should be able to reduce the severity of backlashes and help you spend more time fishing than fighting with your reel.

When the reel is backlashed, pull out your line as you normally would until your line stops. (is tangled and wont come free) put your thumb on the spool, press down hard and reel in two revolutions of the handle. Press the spool release button (the one you use to cast with) and resume pulling out your back lash, it is amazing how well this actually works.

Here is a video I found showing the process. Enjoy!

http://www.bassfishin.com/videos/how-to.php?v=13

~Craig

[Craigums]

Well I thought it was a good tip when I first heard about it, must have been the only one who didn't know that trick.

[Deitz Dittrich]

its a very good tip Craigums.. Be sure when you do it, to press with your thumb hard and tighten your drag all the way down for it to work best.

[Jakesbuds]

Well I thought it was a good tip when I first heard about it, must have been the only one who didn't know that trick.

I wish I would've read this last weekend. I had to scrap a whole brand new spool of Fireline on a baitcaster cause after I cleaned it last year I forgot to tighten the dial and you can only imagine the backlash that ensued. I am usually about 99.9% at getting them out but this was not gonna happen this time. Thanks for the TIP!

[Aaron Carrell]

Hah, well after watching the video I have to admit I'd never heard of that. Could come in handy I'd bet. I've been exceptionally lucky to not get very bad backlashes when I get them. Just seems like the pull right out no big deal, but next time I've got it bad I'll try this out for sure. Could save some time.

[JConrad]

It's a new one for me.. I will give it a try the next time I have a backlash. Thanks for the tip.

[Ray Esboldt]

Dig it! I've never heard that one before.

[Branta Bros.]

Wow? I will have to try that next time, not like I ever backlash or anything....

[carpmanjake]

One of the common complaints about baitcasters is the dreaded backlash. Well with this little tip that I found on the internet, You should be able to reduce the severity of backlashes and help you spend more time fishing than fighting with your reel.

When the reel is backlashed, pull out your line as you normally would until your line stops. (is tangled and wont come free) put your thumb on the spool, press down hard and reel in two revolutions of the handle. Press the spool release button (the one you use to cast with) and resume pulling out your back lash, it is amazing how well this actually works.

Here is a video I found showing the process. Enjoy!

http://www.bassfishin.com/videos/how-to.php?v=13

~Craig

holy ****! this really works! i had a nest in my abu garcia revo, i have 100% flouro on it. and i didnt want to cut it all off. i have had the nest in there for a month! and i have been slowly working it out with no sucess. but i tried this and it worked like a dream!

Thanks!

[TonkaBass]

I have never heard of it either... Maybe I can try it on some of Branta Bros. backlashes! lol Jk Wolfy

[TonkaBass]

So who's up next? Should we start it up again???

[Deitz Dittrich]

We can.. anybody want this to continue?