Got a few hours to kill 2025
Yeajray231 reply :
So I went to one of my neighbors ponds back in the woods. It was surprisingly warm, and there were leaves falling all around me. It was kind of hotter than I like in October.. but , it was nice nonetheless.
I decided to pack light. I only brought some terminal tackle and some soft plastics. I brought (GY) senkos In a purple with a lighter purple flake and some double tail hula grubs in a smoke color with black and holographic flake. I also brought a pack of rage craws in green pumpkin/red flake.
I got six bass. The biggest being right around 3lbs.
3 - dt hula grub (weightless)
2-senko (biggest fish came of this one) one wacky, one weightless t rigged.
1- t rigged rage craw with an 1/8oz unpegged. I fished this one the most and I also missed one on a short strike.
Not bad for just over 2 hours. Got my fix.
davecon reply :
Don't you just love it when something like that works out ?
Can spend days/weeks prepping for a trip, go for the weekend, travel hundreds of miles, spend a ton of money, get all worked up beforehand, then catch squat. Or you can go close on a lark and do GREAT !
Go figure.
Yeajray231 reply :
On 10/7/2016 at 12:32 PM, davecon said:Don't you just love it when something like that works out ?
Can spend days/weeks prepping for a trip, go for the weekend, travel hundreds of miles, spend a ton of money, get all worked up beforehand, then catch squat. Or you can go close on a lark and do GREAT !
Go figure.
Well pond fishing is much easier than lake fishing. It's a decent size pond. About 3 or 4 acres. So it's not like fish in a barrel. But I know they are there. so just figuring out what to use is the ticket. The three baits i brought I do well with no matter if I'm lake or pond fishing.
I haven't got to go on many trips. 2 years ago my old man took me fishing for black tip in Florida. And about 5 years ago my mother booked us a charter for salmon in lake Michigan.. we did well on both trips.
I only have a 14ft Jon boat. With no electronics but a trolling motor. So I don't get on the huge windy lakes packed with pleasure boaters. I do like the feel of being on a lake alot more than fishing a pond tho.. its hard for me to find time.. to schedule a whole day out on the lake. So I do alot of pond hopping . I'm blessed with access to several private farm ponds. Ranging from 1-5 acres.
Sometimes I do take an inflatable boat or kayak to one of the larger ponds.Thats usually fun
Yeajray231 reply :
Went out today on a different pond around 430pm. This pond is my favorite of all the private ones I go to. Its a beautifuly manicured oval, and It's very close to me and contains some healthy mature bass. It's about 3 acres. With an island in the corner.
It was cold and windy. I started with a 5" senko. Walked all the way around and caught nothing. I changed to a t-rigged rage craw. I hooked up with a decent fish as I seen its whole side roll on the craw, but I didn't get a good set. I continued for another half hour.. Same thing, nothing.
I then changed to a hot mustard DT4. Nothing. I was getting frustrated . This pond was hot every time I visited this spring and summer. I tried a shad rap. Nothing. Original floater, worked various retrieves.. Nada.
I went to my bag and was going to tie a spinner. But ended up using a fluke. Seemed to be routine because again . I got nothing.
I decided to use a smaller. 4" white/black laminate senko. That was my ticket. Maybe it was just the timing. Because I fished for 3 hours before I started getting bites. I caught 5 In a half hour on the same senko. All under 2lbs. Wasn't too happy, knowing the size this pond contains. But felt real good when I was catching fish.
N Florida Mike reply :
Good point about the timing.Sometimes the same thing happens to me.Nothings biting anything,then they turn on.We immediately think it's because of our current bait but I think it's more often that they just started feeding.We use our go-to baits more,so chances are we will be using one of them when they start biting.Which makes us think,its the bait not the bite.
Yeajray231 reply :
Went again to a third pond. It's located on an old pine tree farm and could go for about 1 1/2 acres . This pond had a stunting problem. Me (and my brother) harvested about 9 bass ranging from 10-12 inches all skinny. We used live bait , minnows and shiners. To try and find the size. One was released over 14" .
I went today and caught 8 bass on artificial. None were big (long). In fact I think the biggest one was hardly 2lbs. (15-16"). . And two of them were tied for dink of the year award. I used the Usual stuff for my pond fishing. 5"senko , 4" dinger and a double tail hula grub.
I caught the most on the dinger. But did catch on the senko. And I caught the nicest one of the day on the hula grub .
I took a picture of this bass.. because it happened at a funny time. When I was fishing with the hula grub, I thought to myself. What is my favorite retrieve for this grub ? I mainly do two. A series of slow pulls. Like a 1..2..drop. 1..2..3..etc. and another one that I just tap tap tap all the way back to me while I slowly reel it in. And as I was retrieving it using the constant twitch method the bass took the grub. Probably not all that cool for you but I enjoyed it.
Yeajray231 reply :
Whenever I go pond fishing. Big or small ponds, the most successful setup I bring is a spinning rod with 10lb braid. And a weightless 3/0 wide gap worm hook. I can fish so many types of plastics weightless. The senko t rigged, or wacky . Same for the 4"dinger . The hula grub. A fluke. Numerous rage tail baits. Soft plastic frogs. This is the set up I'd use if I could only bring one.
The other rod I bring is a bit heavier spinning set up. It also has braid and I use it for anything else from topwaters to jerk baits. Cranking is actually my favorite way to fish. I have more hard baits than i do packs of soft plastic. But I'd say I use the plastics more as of late.
Yeajray231 reply :
These were the ticket for the night. They all caught fish. Weightless. On the same hook.
"hamma" reply :
The DT hula grub in that exact color, in the pic? Has got to be the most effective lure nationwide. At least in my opinion it is. They work over here, your using them in Ohio, they worked for me in Alabama, a buddy of mine uses them in Southern Texas, and another uses them in Cali. Amazing!
Small pond fishing can be a blast, and all the prep work of boating is removed from the equation. I have a telescoping ultralight zebco combo with the triggerspin reel, I keep in my truck, as well as one of the smaller planos that fits in a pair of denim jeans back pocket, with a few select lures in it, and a tiny multi tool, that has pliers, scissors, and a file. I use this at ponds I find, and have a few minutes to kill. So much fun in a moments notice, no matter what I hook into. I think my favorite lure to use with that combo is a ultralight hula popper.
Yeajray231 reply :
Yea it really works for me whether im lake or pond fishing. Ive honestly never owned a pack of those grubs or senkos that didn't catch fish. every single color. from chartreuse w/black flake, to bubblegum, to a clear with black/blue flake . The one pictured is my favorite tho. I fish it weightless 75% of the time. Alabama is awesome. And I agree ! Pond fishing is fun ! And i rarely have a whole day (or even a half day) to get my lil Jon boat in the water. I'm pretty spoiled to have so many private ponds so close to me. They all yield fish every time I go. There is one that has three fish confirmed 20+" . And one is 24".
I have an ultra light popper I enjoy as well. My go to if I'm getting no bites at all Is an in-line spinner. Like a mepps. I've caught bass, crappie, bluegill, pike, and a big channel cat once all on an in line spinner.
Yeajray231 reply :
Came up on some more time today..my lady left with our daughter and since it's a record high temp for ohio, I figured I should go make a few casts in a big pond down the road. Glad I did.
I caught more than ten. None of real size but I caught one of decent length. 75% of the ones I caught were noticeably fat. 12-14" and one that was probably 16".
I bought a new x-rap and was excited about using it, but I never touched it. I started with a senko and ended up using different senkos the whole time. And a jig. I found probably 7 bass in the back cove after I got a short strike and switched to a 4" senko in an awesome red color. The pond was surprisingly clear and i was watching that worm get hit from 30+ feet away.
I continued to walk around and catch bass in other areas. Using 2 different size/color senkos and caught the longest bass on a jig.
Yeajray231 reply :
This one had been eating well ,For it's size
its a gorgeous pond and it's about 85% accessible
Yeajray231 reply :
Another view.. this pond is the one I started this thread with. I caught 6 last time I was here. Smoked em today.
There are supposedly big cats in here too. I can't stop the bass fishing though.
Yeajray231 reply :
A real nice one ! Had my blood pumpin. Shallow shad rap in perch
"hamma" reply :
Nice bass!, is that a sunken tree I see in that "cat" pond? id fish that hard with that jig if I were you. You do seem blessed with such nice private waters. Keep fishing different baits so there's no "conditioning" of the fish there. Kudos to ya
Yeajray231 reply :
@"hamma" yea it is a sunken tree ! The picture of the last bass is from a different area.. but the one shown has a lot of life too it! It'll wear ya out walking around the whole thing... I've found some productive areas but can basically catch all the way around it. Thanks !
Yeajray231 reply :
Went out today. To the second pond I described . I only had about a 2 hour window but I sleighed them . Nothing of real size but a couple decent ones. They were all 10-15 " . I started with a SK swim jig paired with a rage tail menace. I walked around and caught 5. I then tried a keitech swing impact.. I caught one on the first cast.. and then didn't have another take for the 45 minutes I threw it.. I then tried the GY fat ika.. I caught at least ten rigging them skirt up. I fished this til I had to leave because it was hot the whole time.. sometimes I feel like all I need is a spinning rod , and a few packs of GY products and I'm in the fish (when pond fishing). It's my favorite company by far.. never tried a pack of GY anything that didn't absolutely catch fish. They price them that high because they work. All of them, and they know it.
The baits I had success with.
Yeajray231 reply :
Went out last night. To an unfamiliar water.. a large area I've never fished before. I wanted to take my jon boat out.. but for some reason I need to replace the wiring because the brakes aren't lighting up. So, reluctantly I traveled down the road and hiked through the woods to a branch off a 3200 acre reservoir.
I think I just couldn't find the fish. I managed to catch 3 but nothing was even close to big. Except for a big gill that decided it was big enough to hit my crank bait.
Which brings me to my next point (assuming I was around fish,im not really positive I was) the soft plastics bite was nearly dead. Jig, fat ika, senko(of various sizes) hula grub, robo worm on shaky head, swing impact, tx rig craw and space monkey... nearly everything I tried didnt work. Until I pulled out this chartreuse blush bomber 4A. Managed to catch 3
They were all 10-13 inches. But man it felt good when I actually managed to hook into one after a couple hours without even a nibble.
Love this crank.
Yeajray231 reply :
Nice one on a live target lipless.
"hamma" reply :
That is a nice one. looks like its just starting to put on the fall feedbag for winter, by the slight belly expansion. As long as its working (shorefishing) keep it up. I kinda miss doing that, its easy to just grab one rod and a small backpack and be off fishing, as apposed to preping a boat and trailer and such. I do have a shore "backpack" set up, but injury prohibits navigating shorelines at the moment. Hopefully I will get to shorefish next year, as a few minutes a day can actually produce some awesome fishing.
Yeajray231 reply :
@"hamma" thanks !! Yea bank fishing is frowned upon by some on this site.. but that's ok. I have a 14ft Jon boat with swivel seats. I would much rather lake fish! Something about being on a big body of water just wondering whats lurking below. But I have a daughter who is almost one. And rarely do I get more than a few hours to kill, because the lady and I have conflicting schedules. It's frustrating at times but seeing that smiling face when I come home fills me with more joy than I have ever felt doing anything.
But Like you said I pack light. 2 rods. And a bag with 3 planos and some loose soft plastics. I usually do pretty well. The 3 main private waters I have access to i have been fishing them for almost a decade. So I know them pretty well. Problem is at my favorite pond I caught the biggest one out of it.. Then it's like.. now what? Ha-ha. I know it's the biggest one because I seen her in the spawn. And she was the only one that could be the 24" that she was when I caught her. I'm going Saturday to do a little late harvest on that pond because it needs it bad. Hopefully I can manage some of the skinny ones in the small window of time I'll have.
Lately I've been fishing the pond pictured above.. with that sunken tree you've pointed out. I know there's a beast in there (not confirmed but the signs are there) but I haven't been able to find her. Nicest one I caught out of that was about 19" . But all of the fish are fat. Definitely no starving problem in that water. It's good fun.. Its relaxing to me.. and gives me a good feeling when I'm able to catch fish time after time.
Yeajray231 reply :
Got to go harvest some out of my favorite pond today. It is the second one I mentioned. About 3.5 acres. We've already harvested about 13 this year. Select harvest. Only taking the skinny ones.
It was a nice day . It reached 78 degrees.. I was fishing in a cut off t shirt. I planned on keeping six.. I caught around 15 and culled the ones I was keeping in the fish basket until I had some good ones that needed to go. If it had a nice belly, I put em back.
I caught 5 of them on a regular swing impact . I rigged it weightless, but I clipped pieces of 16ga. Finish nails and slid 2 in the nose. Since I work construction this method is alot cheaper than paying for "nail weights" made for fishing. So I decided to use my own "nails" (;
I then caught a few nice ones on a jig with a rage chunk (this same jig is pictured somewhere above)
I tried the senko.. caught some dinks that I threw back.. I tried a xrap in clown.. caught one.
There's an island right next to a drop off and there is a sunken tree right in this hole. It's about 12-15 ft deep here and I was nailing them with a fat ika rigged skirt up. Man is that bait fun to fish. I have to pick some more up for sure. Hopefully my lady will hook me up in the stocking this year . Ha-ha. A guy can hope right. She will probably get me some bubblegum ones . And I'll still catch with them. Just like some bubblegum flukes she bought me. Anyway. Here's the fish I decided needed to go.
As you can see. Some of them were really skinny. I rotated the fish out and only kept the six skinniest ones because we have already harvested this year. I caught some with fat bellies. Hopefully the rest do some feeding and look real nice next year. Time will tell. It was a good day.
Btw . I don't like eating fish. But my grandma has a cracker based breading that makes bass taste pretty good. My family loves to eat fish.. so it's a win win. I get to harvest and help the pond, and the fish don't go to waste. Amen.
"hamma" reply :
There ya go! A win win is always good
Yeajray231 reply :
On 10/30/2016 at 6:36 PM, "hamma" said:There ya go! A win win is always good
I'd rather eat salmon or perch.. but honestly the way they make the bass (and crappie when we have it ) makes it not so bad.. you have a favorite ?
snake95 reply :
On 10/30/2016 at 8:04 AM, Yeajray231 said:I caught 5 of them on a regular swing impact . I rigged it weightless, but I clipped pieces of 16ga. Finish nails and slid 2 in the nose. Since I work construction this method is alot cheaper than paying for "nail weights" made for fishing. So I decided to use my own "nails" (;
@Yeajray231 I just picked up some of fat impacts in 3.8" length which is smaller than I usually throw (I buy them 4.8" usually). I fish a lot of the same kind of small waters you do, but in GA and some are probably muddier than yours (maybe not).
Anyway, would you mind describing your two-nail rig in a little more detail? Are you talking T-rigged on an EWG with two nails pushed into the front? Are you throwing the 3.8's? Also, how do you fish it? I typically fish fast and try to get a reaction, but have had some of my best Kietech hits when I stop fishing to do something else and wind up deadsticking it.
Thanks, bud. I appreciate your posts since I can relate.
Yeajray231 reply :
@snake95 cool of you to bring this thread up. Haven't caught a bass in almost 3 weeks now. Im "jonesing" a little bit...
As far as the rig goes with the keitech . Yes you're exactly right. Texas rigged weightless then 2 of these (carpentry nails from a pneumatic nailer ) and just clip em so they are completely hidden in the bait. And I put em about 3/4" from the head , and inserted vertically. It just gives me a little more weight for casting distance and rate of fall.. varied retrieve. But usually a slow steady is the ticket for me. Sometimes a lift and drop.
I also like to fish them on a swimjig or a round ball head jig. Thiis coming season I got a nice underspin to try them on, and plan on trying the "live impact " and "crazy flapper" as well.
Yeajray231 reply :
I got about 1 hour today to.rip down to a local pond and try a new baitcaster I purchased. It's a Lew's Mach 2. I caught 2 bass about 1lb. Both on a cabelas brand 1/4oz blade bait. Although they weren't picture worthy out of the water... It was my first bass of the year , on the newest baitcaster, and the first bass in about a month. So it felt great to feel that tug.
I also caught dink of the year. Skewered on the front right treble of this husky jerk
Looking back I think I see why the blade bait was successful..
related Fishing Reports topic
previous topic
© 2025 - fishing.qciss.net. All Rights Reserved.