BASStard Tips
Bass Fishing Tips.
Identifying The Pike (Esox) Family
We’ve all been there. You’re with your buddies on the water bass fishing, pitching plastics and spinnerbaits when a pickerel breaks through the weeds and grabs your line, or worse, breaks it off. Or was it a pike?
How about that time the guy on the shoreline was yipping and hollering about the “pike” he just caught when he has a 12” chain pickerel flopping on the bank. Well, here is a thorough and concise article on how to profile the Pike Family.
The Pike family is identifiable by its long, slender body type, its billed snout full of razor sharp teeth and its insatiable appetite. But how can you tell them all apart?...(Read Full Article)
Build Your Own Hook Keeper
Firstly, I want to thank "International" for posting this tip on originally the BASStard Forum, to discuss this tip and many more, hop over to the BASStard Public Forum and join up!
How many times have you been out on the water and decided to call it a day while Texas rigged? This requires you to take the hook out of the worm to hook it on the holder at which point your plastic bait is damaged and nearly worthless for Texas rigging a second time. Here is the solution, if your rod does not come with this style of hook keep standard...(Read Full Article)
Best Time Of Day To Fish For Bass
In the realm of searching for and landing bass anglers often discuss seasonal patterns and tactics. How to approach winter fishing, what the best New England Fall Bass Fishing Tips are etc. Others discuss River Bass Fishing Tips, or Bass Lure Presentations. There is no doubt that these are all valid factors to consider when approaching any fishing situation, however one still remains, time of day. I consider any given day of fishing as passing through its own set of phases much like the seasons of a year. Understanding these phases and how to conquer them will transform you into a more successful and confident angler...(Read Full Article)
Best Way To Fillet A Fish
If you’ve read my other articles, you should be just coming off a boat full to the gunwales with fish. Now while I am a strong supporter of catch-and-release, and indeed 99% of my fishing is, I do tend to keep a few to cook up each year. Here is the best way to prepare most fish:
Here is my preferred method because it is simple, limits waste, and maximizes the size of the fillet...(Read Full Article)
Basic Bass Fishing Gear
Are you a fisherman that needs a general use rod to tackle all species that swim by? Are you an aspiring BASStard that needs your first bass rod? Don’t go into a tackle shop blind-sighted to sate your thirst for fishing. Here is some basic bass fishing gear that will keep your money in your pocket and your fish in the livewell.
For starters, ask yourself what type of fishing you want to do. Are you a die-hard angler that wants everything that swims? Or are you more of a relaxed weekend BASStard?...(Read Full Article)
How To Select Fishing Line
There are three basic types of fishing line out in the market and all fishermen should familiarize themselves with some of the key differences to optimize their performance on the water.Monofilament
Monofilament line has existed in the fishing industry since the manufacturing of Stren in 1958. It is a single-component material: nylon. The nylon line is translucent, strong and flexible. What is more, the line is inexpensive. Monofilament line tends to have a relatively high memory and can coil on a sitting reel, or crimp when hung up on structure, etc. Mono also weakens under excessive exposure to Ultraviolet radiation as well as to caustic elements such as saltwater. Monofilament line is a fairly forgiving line, however and if you find yourself hung up on structure and need to break your line, aim the tip of your rod towards where you are caught and pull straight back. You will be pleasantly surprised with how much line you are able to retrieve. Monofilament line should be changed regularly to ensure a spool of durable line...(Read Full Article)
How To Select A Rod
Select Species
The easiest step to begin with when choosing a rod is deciding if you want to fish freshwater or saltwater. I can’t help you much here…but I do think everyone should do both at some point.
Now, having decided the water source, you should break down what type of use you will get out of the rod; are you fishing specifically for bass? Are you fishing with a specific method? Or do you simply want a general use rod? Select your species, as this will govern the characteristics of the rod...(Read Full Article)
How To Select A Reel
Spinning Reels
Spinning reels are perhaps the most widely accepted style reel for fishing. Period. The reason for this is largely due to the versatility of the design as well as its ease of use. A spinning reel hangs below the rod and comfortably sits between your fingers.Baitcasting Reels
Baitcasting reels are especially common for bass fishing due to the reel’s success in delivering certain bass presentations. The baitcaster is quite different from its distant cousin, the spinning reel. One distinct difference is that a baitcasting reel sits on top of the rod, with a “trigger” on the rod that supplements your cast and grip...(Read Full Article)
Catching Bass When They Won't Bite
For all of you out there who think "Catching Bass When They Won't Bite" means throwing on a stringer of bare hooks shank hooking the fish in the side, I am not being literal. The purpose of this article is to provide insight on lures and tactics you can use to MAKE the fish bite when it seems that they won't bite. Largemouth and Smallmouth bass alike are opportunistic feeders, meaning that if you drop the right thing in their face at the right time, they will eat it. So, our objective is to figure out what that is, and put it in front of their face.
We have all experienced it, a horrible day on the water, or a good day gone bad. For whatever reason it may be, fish just turn off in some situations making it nearly impossible to get them to bite using our usual tactics. This is when we need to think outside the tackle box and alter our approach and lure selection. In this situation a few approaches have been known to improve your catch on even the slowest days of bass fishing...(Read Full Article)
Lake Fishing vs. Pond Fishing
Lake and pond fishing carry their own advantages as well as disadvantages. Depending on your region, or how much fishing goes on in your area one may be better than the other. Lakes are known to carry bigger fish, but ponds, are known to be less fished, therefore more strikes...(Read Full Article)
Night Fishing For Bass
For some anglers on some bodies of water night fishing is a necessity. Lakes and ponds which see heavy boat pressure from fisherman and water recreation often contain more skiddish bass that are less likely to feed during the daylight hours. This is especially true in crystal clear water conditions. These types of water are your best bets when night fishing for bass. In these situations bass tend to hang in deeper water during the day and come into the shallows to feed after the sun goes down when there aren't people all over the lake water skiing and such. Learning to catch bass at night will give you, the angler a better shot at dominating even the toughest fisheries you may visit...(Read Full Article)
River Bass Fishing Tips
Locating and landing bass in current can test the skills of even the most experienced angler. Of course wherever you happen to pull up your boat and drop a line in, there will be some level of current, providing there is wind present. The current I am referring to, however, is heavy river or stream current. Thus, this article is entitled "River Bass Fishing Tips." Coming from the perspective of an experienced angler, fishing ponds and lakes almost exclusively for the beginning years of my angling life; landing bass, or any fish for that matter in current is a whole new realm of fishing. River bass are of a different breed than those that are found in lakes and ponds, they are often thinner from battling current, which also lends to them putting up a more intense fight. Well, we wouldn't want to get bored would we? Now, let us dive into the realm of bass fishing in current...(Read Full Article)
Largemouth Bass Fishing Basics
To become more successful at anything, we must first understand what we are up against, and how to overcome it. In the game of bass fishing, in order to grow and become a stronger angler, we must know as much as possible about our opposition, the bass. Knowing and understanding where the bass will be is the first obstacle we must face. After this, addressing what they would like to eat is the natural approach. Knowing this will give us the upper hand in approaching the bass and knowing what to put in front of his face that has the best probability of ending up in his mouth. First let us take a look at the largemouth bass as a species of predatory fish, and then dive into understanding what makes them tick...(Read Full Article)
Bass Fishing For Sport
Many people dismiss bass fishing, or any type of sport fishing for that matter as just a weekend hobby and do not take into account the level of skill and knowledge it takes to beat an animal at its own game in its own environment. What many people do not acknowledge about this sport is that an angler has to constantly adjust to ever changing conditions. Imagine a professional sport that is well known to the general public, and make all the known factors involved in that sport change for every game...(Read Full Article)
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