Almost ready for spring??? can't wait for this damn ice to melt. What will you guys be using? I'm gonna be opening up with a lot of crankbaits(been building up my collection over the winter)! ANd some spinnerbaits to. My secret weapon though will be the 10" black powerworms.
Gonna be a while longer with ice. If I was smart, I'd head to Florida for free room & board at my parents winter hideout. They keep bustin my stones with how its cold at night, but gets ONLY near mid 80s during the day. They make it sound as though they are torchured with extreme cold at night. Would love to ship some gear down and just go for it. Too bad work spoils that idea. Just bought depth/fish finder for my kayak. Planning on dragging bottom with salamander or jig. See if any slowpoke pigs are lounging around and not quite awake
im with ya on waiting for the ice to melt.. its driving me nuts..i hate winter..ive heard from a few sources that pike are hittin in Haddam on the CT river. but i dont have 40$ for a new license just yet.. what a pain that price hike is... my usual first lures of spring are shiny flashy things..spinners and cranks mostly but i dabble in big casting spoons for pike and stripers when io get the chance to hit the river.ive been itching to go..reorganizing my tackle.. looking online at tackle making supplies. i make 90% of my own spinners, and have had amazing success on many of them. once i start making them in earnest, i may be looking to sell them, if anyone is interested.
Bass are slammin on shallow ponds right now. Had 5 in about 40 minutes, mostly on a small Storm Swim Shad, one a a spinner bait. All under 2 lbs. Guy that beat me to my spot had a pair of 4-5 pounders. He was fishing a pumpkin jig with a grub attached and working structure. Saw a fair number of minnow schools and a finger sized catfish that was definately out of place where I was fishing (Hanover Pond Meriden). Either some have worked their way in, or somebody has started their own stocking project.
Cleaned a few reels this morning and went to North Farms Reservoir this afternoon to try em out.
Looks like long winter and possibly low oxygen caused some kill. Lots of small 3 - 4" sunfish dead along the shore. A few good sized LM and calico bass and 1 large carp also floating. Only walked a short section of shore. Stunk like hell. Only made a few casts and never had a bite. Reels in good working order. Gonna load the yak and hit Beaver Pond in Meriden next weekend if weather holds. We had great late ice action there a few weeks ago. Multiple 5 lb bass caught.
Looks like long winter and possibly low oxygen caused some kill. Lots of small 3 - 4" sunfish dead along the shore. A few good sized LM and calico bass and 1 large carp also floating. Only walked a short section of shore. Stunk like hell. Only made a few casts and never had a bite. Reels in good working order. Gonna load the yak and hit Beaver Pond in Meriden next weekend if weather holds. We had great late ice action there a few weeks ago. Multiple 5 lb bass caught.