Bass Fishing Forum - Westernbass.com

I tried to catch a smallie like that last year at Pardee and all I could get (on my 3rd trip) was a 9lb 6oz largemouth - DARN!!!! Congrats - that is still my goal - a giant smallie!

Brown/orange worked well on Friday! Black/purple/blue got a few also.

Hi - you are right! I wasn't to put full weight on my right leg for a few days, but that's all. The only rules are what you stated - not to cross my right let over my left and not to raise it above 90 degrees. I am just now starting to put on my own shoes and socks. At 6 weeks, in spite of how well ...

As some of you know, I had a "new generation" non-invasive total hip replacement on Dec 20 in Red Bluff done by one of the few pioneers in this field - Dr. Umber. We figured I would be able to get in a boat by mid-Feb and start guiding in March. I saw the doc on Wednesday and he was not on...

I think Cooch's advise is right on (could I really be saying this, har!). I pretty much do what he does. The toughest condition to take good photos is high noon or thereabouts in the summer when the sun is straight up. There will be shadows no matter what the subject and his fish do. You need to get...

Swimbait is right! I have a Canon PowerShot A95 (5.1). I pull out the viewfinder all the way to the left and then flip it over. When I stand in front of the camera, I see myself and the fish just perfect. I can get the perfect pose and then set the auto timer for 10 seconds. I can shoot three or fou...

Wow!!! I see my surgeon on Wed and may be cleared to go fishing again after my very successful hip replacement! I wonder how convincing I can be to him as to how good I feel! Congrats on a fish of a lifetime!

Maybe April will bring you good fishing - in April!! Congrats!!!!

I have fished there several times as a guest. It is not fished too seriously by too many folks and it does have 10 lb+ northern strain bass. My biggest is just under 7 lbs. It does have some nice structure, but the lake is not real big. I don't really know how it has been the past few years.

Some of you know that I had some major surgery on Dec 20 - a total right hip replacement. I appreciate the support and prayers from many of you who knew. I have been blessed with good health and lots of endurance my whole adult life. The total reason I had to have the surgery is my hip was worn out ...

Wow, one could write a book just to answer those questions -which are good ones! You might be interested in looking up the archives of Gary Yamamoto's INSIDE LINE magazine. I have written several complete articles on night fishing since I used to have to do a lot of that while I was teaching school....

Believe it or not, the second day of a cold front is worse than the first. Most bass will suspend during that period and that makes the fishing tough. Generally downsize your lures and do a lot of "deadsticking" - move the jig - for example - an inch or two, then stop it. Many times you wi...

The water is still clear, so the translucent colors - morning dawn, purple ghost, light blue, and cinnamon will work well - especially in sunlight. During dark rainy days, black grape should be a good color. I have been catching some on green pumpkin. Brown/orange or brown/purple jigs will start to ...

Congrats Howard on your great victory! It is so great to see a really nice guy - and good fisherman - finish first! Must be a great feeling! Your smile might just be a bit bigger now!!

Rain or shine - I use that color combo. Sometimes I use combinations with purple (black, blue, etc). My recent 9 1/4 pounder at Clear Lake (October) was caught on brown/orange Weapon jig with #180 (same) color Yamamoto grub. Water color doesn't seem to matter. Clear Lake water was dingy of course. T...

I took a friend to Collins Lake for a few hours of fishing in tough conditions - clear water and bluebird skies. When you least expect it, a good one bites - at 2:30 in the afternoon no less. Who catches a good bass at that hour with no shadows?!! Well, I did. Don't ask me how but my brown/orange Ro...

If one is going to fish big open bodies of water ( Berryessa, Folsom, Clear Lake), conditions can be tough for 17 to 19 foot boats. If fishing big bodies of water, a 20 footer or more gives one peace of mind and a few less bruises. In the near four years I owned my first Ranger 520, I only took a li...

Rich -I am very sorry to hear about the passing of your dad. I imagine you had many great fishing experiences together. My dad got me hooked on fishing at a very early age. Only problem - wrong fish - trout!!! I finally got him to do some bass fishing at Berryessa when I discovered the "right&q...

You can always catch bass in the fall, as long as the water stays clear, by spooning, drop-shotting, and split-shotting. You have to always "follow your meter"! You may find few bass on two points and on the third - bingo - bait and bass - possibly from 35 to 55 feet! The bass in Oroville-...

Just an idea! Try fishing behind everyone else (deeper water), especially in the south end. Most quality fish are forced to take up temp. hoursing far away from the Sept-Oct tournament pressure. Large bass will not just sit(?) around and be harassed by hoards of fishermen day after day.

I was guiding again today (Wed) at Clear Lake and the weather was perfect! Can you imagine Clear Lake with a SLIGHT breeze all day?!! The wind did come up some about 3 pm. The weekend is going to be cooler which could bring some wind to the lake. I don't think it will be too bad however. We are gett...

I provide Fish Hedz for my clients. Lots of happy faces pop out when clients remove them from their heads for the first time!! I am very glad to be part of their team! I had to order my new Ranger to match my Fish Hedz!!!

Hi Rich! I hope it is over too! Just to clarify, I don't even know what post you were refering to I obviously didn't read it. It was late at night and I just happened to see JT's post. I don't know JT either and have nothing against him. Keep up the good work and save me some at Berryessa. I just mi...

Hi! I just recently posted a report for Oroville that may be of some help to you. This hot weather has sent the fish deep. Your best fishing will be from 5:30 am to 11 am. Fish in any shadows you can find and fish next to deep water. If you go up the middle fork past the first big right turn, the ri...

JT - I am not going to comment after this post, because this stuff tends to get out-of-hand after awhile. The last sentence of your reply post made my point! You said the post was about Rich and no one else. If it was, you wouldn't have heard from me. If you re-read the first paragraph of your origi...

I would be very careful about claiming any certain guide is only "this way" or "that way". My post has nothing to do with Rich. Though I don't know him real well, I think he is an "honest guide" and freely shares info. I agree with you. But your statements infer that al...

I like light to heavy split-shot rigs. There is only one knot!! Re-tying a true Carolina rig is too time consuming - too many knots! I just use something heavier than a split shot. I will have an article about that in the next Bass West issue. It is a deadly technique - year round!!

After breaking off so many big bass on flourescent mono line, I have found the answer in Berkley "flame green" fireline. 20 lb test will work fine, but why not use 30 - which I do! I have been broken off once in rocks in the past 4 years - and that was last week. I have so much confidence ...

Drop-shotting will work at night, and the water clarity really doesn't matter that much. I suggest that you use thick worms, like a 5 or 6 inch zipper worm, or 6 inch Yamamoto grub in a dark color. Adding Smelly Jelly doesn't hurt either! It's the vibration that draws the strike. Good luck!

My first post with the new format - hope it works! You can launch a bass boat at one of two Yuba City ramps. Check in at Johnson's Bait and Tackle on Garden Hwy and they can direct you. Be careful - there are lots of obstacles and sand bars in the river and they change yearly. The high water should ...