These days the whole bass fishing seen has become one big confusing, complicated mess! It seems most of us in our quest for big bass have overlooked the basics and now spend more time playing off the hype we see on TV and read in their favorite bass fishing magazines. So ill ask you to try a different approach, quit paying attention to what your favorite pro is doing on TV, quit believing all the hype and get back to the basics! You want to catch more and bigger largemouth bass? Learn the largemouth bass and their habitats.

The key to catching more and bigger largemouth bass is not in buying that new flashy crankbait that your favorite pro is getting paid to promote. though having all the latest fishing gear is nice, its not the secret or the key to catching largemouth bass!

Like mentioned above, in this day and age many of us are jaded by all the hype that surrounds bass fishing, to many of us have lost sight of the big picture and are lost in a world of promotions and misinformation. We are being programed to believe that buying this or that will catch us more and bigger bass. Now don't get me wrong, theres some good information out there, but for the most part the world of bass fishing has turned into a circus.

So by now you've probably figured out that the secret to catching huge bass is not some grand closely guarded secret, its actually quite simple and comes down to this, KISS “Keep It Simple Stupid!” Try to shy away from the hype and instead focus on the basics. Learn the Largemouth bass and learn him well. Spend more time educating yourself about the largemouth bass and less time educating yourself on what your favorite pro is fishing with and you will start catching bigger and better bass. You will also begin to realize that you don't need all the latest fishing gear to catch them big bass. Id be willing to go up against any pro on my lake or river with nothing more than a bucket full of shiners and a few sharp hooks, let him throw all his fancy lures around and Im sure id come out ahead.

Catching more and bigger bass is not difficult nor is it something that needs to be complicated, for the vast majority of us we are out there to have fun and catch fish, thats hard to do when your paying more attention to that huge box of fishing lures, than actually hunting down and catching bass. Don't get me wrong here, having a good selection of fishing gear is important, but all that gear is useless to you unless you know and are familiar with the basics. Unless you are familiar with the largemouth bass and how they act and react, how they live and feed, how they move and breed, without this knowledge you will find yourself in the same boat as so many other anglers, wondering why your not catching the big ones, wondering why your bass fishing efforts result to being average. Most of us get stuck in a rut like this because we are overlooking the basics, the fundamentals of bass fishing.

So thats it in a nutshell, you want to catch more and bigger bass? Get back to the basics of bass fishing, quit complicating things and most importantly don't believe all the hype! Just because Joe Basser is using the new gypsy diver and catching fish on TV with it, doesn't mean its worth your time or money.

I am sincere about this;

Id be willing to go up against any pro on my lake or river with nothing more than a bucket full of shiners and a few sharp hooks, let him throw all his fancy lures around and I'm sure id come out ahead.

So by all means, if any professional bass fisherman would like to take me up on the challenge, I'm game, lets go fishing!

By: Jeremy H
webmaster and Angler; Go Bass Fishing.

Fishing information courtesy of Resources For Attorneys, a legal resource and lifestyle information directory for attorneys, lawyers and the internet public.

Are you looking for a few laughs? Check out our fishing jokes section.

The following guidance assumes you are fairly new to big game saltwater fishing and are out fishing on a charter boat. This type of information is given to all guests aboard our game boats if they are not experienced anglers. Occasionally we have to remind experienced anglers as well !

Lets assume you are out doing some general trolling for wahoo, mahi mahi or tuna on 30lb class IGFA tackle. The deckie has set a pattern of 4 lures behind the boat and one of the reels starts to scream….

1. Pick up the rod.

Sounds simple but sometimes the rod seems to be jammed in the rod holder. Don’t try to yank or force it out. It’s wedged because of the pressure the fish is exerting on the rod tip. Grasp the rod fore-grip in front of the reel and pull it slightly backwards (away from the fish). You will find that the rod then easily comes out of the rod holder.

2. Assume the position.

Unless you are fighting a fish from a game chair, hold the rod with the reel uppermost, your left hand well up the fore-grip and the butt of the rod resting low down on your hip. This leaves your right hand free to wind the reel handle. Hold the rod at about 45 degrees. The higher up the rod your left hand is, the more leverage you can apply. It’s important that you feel comfortable. Some fights can last hours though 10-20 minutes is the norm so you had better be comfy. It is usual at this point for the deckie to put a butt pad on you. No, its not a comfy cushion for you to sit on - its a plastic cushioned pad that hangs from your waist, rests on your thighs and has a slot where you rest the butt of the rod. This will stop the rod butt digging into you and causing bruising and spread the load over your thighs during a prolonged fight. With the end of the rod sitting in the butt pad and your left hand holding the fore-grip you should feel stable and comfortable. You are on a boat, its moving around so step up to the side of the boat or better still the corner, bend your knees slightly and wedge your knees slightly under the cockpit combing - the padded edge. This is a good stable position even on a pitching and rolling boat.

3. Keep The Rod Tip Bent.

Its that simple. The greatest cause of fish being lost is the line not being tight between the rod tip and the fish. If the line is not tight, the hook is not being held in place and the fish will likely spit the lure out. If the rod tip is bent at all times, then pressure is being applied to the fish at all times. This also means that the fish doesn’t get a free rest and you will wear him out more quickly and get him to the boat sooner. If the fish swims towards you, wind wind wind to keep that line tight and the rod tip bent.

The rod also acts as a shock absorber. Any jerks from sudden movements by the fish are absorbed by the rod tip. If you point the rod straight at the fish, it’s not doing anything and sudden jerks are transmitted straight to you and the reel. (Trust me – it will end in tears)

4. Slow Down – Its Not A Race !

Most (wait – scrub that) ALL novice anglers when confronted with a screaming reel panic and franticly wind like crazy. You are wasting your time and energy. If the reel is screaming it means that it is paying out line and will continue to do so whether you try to wind or not. Wait for the fish to end its run for cover. Then you can think about winding.

5. Lift Up and Wind Down

Good quality game fishing reels have a sophisticated drag system. A reasonable analogy would be the clutch in a manual car. Adjusting the lever drag on a game reel is like depressing the car’s clutch pedal. All the way out and the engine is engaged, (reel drag engaged), all the way in and the engine is free wheeling (Reel is in Free-spool).

This means that an angler can set the lever drag somewhere in the middle. The reel will then pay out line (clutch will slip) when the line is pulled with sufficient force. To put it simply, you can set the drag to pay out line if the fish pulls harder than a set amount.

It is normal for the drag to be set at between one quarter and one third the breaking strain of the line. In theory it is therefore impossible for the fish to snap the line. If the fish pulls really hard, instead of the line snapping, the reel just lets line out.

When the fish ends its run, the reel will go quiet and the pressure on the rod tip will ease up a little. Now is the time to win some of that line back.

Raise the rod tip, start to wind the reel and whilst winding, slowly lower the rod tip. Don’t raise the rod tip so high that it’s over your head and don’t lower it so low that the rod is pointing at the fish.

Lift up and wind down. Try to keep your movements as smooth as possible and keep that rod tip bent at all times.

6. Tag & Release or Boating a fish

Different fish react in different ways when near the boat. Yellowfin tuna for example go into a circular pattern underneath the hull. The most important thing here is to not let the line touch any part of the boat. If it does, it will probably break. The skipper will manoeuvre the vessel as best he can to keep the line and fish away from the props and rudders but it’s also your job not to let the line touch the side of the boat. Feel free to move about the cockpit. Change sides if the fish swims in the other direction. Don’t plant yourself in one spot and stay there. Listen up for instructions from the crew and move to anywhere where it’s just you and the fish with no boat in between.

Usually the boat will be slowly moving forwards. You are trying to work the fish up alongside the boat so that the fish can then be tagged or gaffed. Moving the boat forwards maintains a flow of water over the fish and its gills. This keeps the fish much happier than if you stopped and the fish is therefore less stressed and less likely to do something unexpected. It is always a good idea to do this if you intend on tagging and releasing the fish.

7. And Lastly…

Everybody looses fish, even the real pro’s. Don’t knock yourself down. Learn from mistakes and it won’t happen again. Every trip out there I learn something new. Don’t be shy in asking questions.

Gamefishing is a sport and like all sports, you need to practice...

Just make sure you have fun practicing….

By: Adrian Watt
IGFA Captain
info@matava.com
http://www.matava.com
Adrian was born on the island of Cyprus and graduated to his first rod & reel at the age of five. Having fished around the world from the Arabian Gulf to the North sea and English Channel, he finally settled for the tropical waters of the South Pacific around the island of Kadavu, Fiji Islands. Director of Matava Resort Gamefishing, he skippers 'Bite Me', the resort's 31ft DeepVee Gamefishing vessel and thoroughly enjoys exploring the light and heavy tackle fishing around the island and Great Astrolabe Barrier Reef. An IGFA Certified Captain, he advocates tag & release and is a keen supporter of the IGFA and the Billfish Foundation.

Fishing information courtesy of Resources For Attorneys, a legal resource and lifestyle information directory for attorneys, lawyers and the internet public.

Are you looking for a few laughs? Check out our fishing joke section.

Although most of the Gamefishing my clients enjoy aboard Bite Me is light to medium tackle, I occasionally get the opportunity to break out the bent butt 80s and go after marlin. Every encounter with these monsters is a learning experience. We have learnt a few things along the way and for what its worth, I will be posting a few examples, here is #2. You can learn from them, or laugh at them. I recommend both.

12.00 Noon on the Kadavu Seamount

Trolling a 7kg Yellowfin tuna skipbait rigged with a 16/0 Duratin Cirle hook. The hook was rigged to sit 4 inches ahead of the tuna’s nose and connected with waxed rigging thread. 9 feet of 400lb Ande leader, 19ft of wind on leader to a Melton bent butt & Penn International 80 STW.

A small blue marlin of about 100kg comes up behind the bait and quietly tries to eat it. The angler backs the drag off even more (it was set light already) and allows the bait to drop back controlling the spool with slight drag pressure to avoid over-spooling (bird’s nesting the line). The blue gobbles the bait and turns. Skipper calls for the angler to slowly bring up the drag. Some line pressure then the bait pops back up on the surface. No hook-up. Marlin comes back for attempt # 2. Same procedure but this time we give the marlin a good 10 seconds to swallow the bait. No hook-up.

Marlin comes back for attempt #3. This time the angler pumps the rod after raising the drag and the skipper gooses the throttles. No hook up. By now the bait is a good 100 yards behind the boat and the skipper can’t see what is going on below the surface.

Marlin comes back for attempt # 4. (This guy has to be very hungry or very stubborn). This time we drop back, all go inside, have breakfast, take a nap, wake up, make coffee, come back out and push up the drag. Marlin spits bait and finally gives up.

So do we.

What went right ?

We went to the right place.

We used the right technique to raise a blue.

We theoretically used the right technique to hook him up on a circle hook

Pumping the rod and goosing the throttles really wasn’t going to help when using a circle hook but hey, conventional wisdom wasn’t working. Try something.

What went wrong

After 2 drop backs we should have wound the bait back much closer so we could better see what was going on.

The bait was too big for the size of marlin we raised. We should have had a second rig ready to go with smaller bait, perhaps a stand-up 50lb outfit with a garfish pitch bait. We should have teased the little blue up and switched him onto the lighter tackle.

“In my humble opinion”

Just because you rig for a monster and go after a monster, it doesn’t mean the first fish you raise will be a monster. We missed a nice little blue because we were ‘thinking big’. Shame.

Be prepared for something other than what you hope for or expect.

By: Adrian Watt
IGFA Captain
info@matava.com
http://www.matava.com
Adrian was born on the island of Cyprus and graduated to his first rod & reel at the age of five. Having fished around the world from the Arabian Gulf to the North sea and English Channel, he finally settled for the tropical waters of the South Pacific around the island of Kadavu, Fiji Islands. Director of Matava Resort Gamefishing, he skippers 'Bite Me', the resort's 31ft DeepVee Gamefishing vessel and thoroughly enjoys exploring the light and heavy tackle fishing around the island and Great Astrolabe Barrier Reef. An IGFA Certified Captain, he advocates tag & release and is a keen supporter of the IGFA and the Billfish Foundation.

Fishing information courtesy of Resources For Attorneys, a legal information and lifestyle resources directory for attorneys, lawyers and the internet public.

Are you looking for a few laughs? Check out our fishing joke section.

Fishing with spinners and spoons offers as many lure choices as a fly fisherman has fly patterns to choose from. Basically, spinning lures can be divided into four groups: spinners, spoons, plugs, and jigs. Every fisherman has his favorites based on experience afield.

Spinners can be fished at varying speeds, although a slow retrieve speed, allowing the blade to merely flutter, always accounts for a fair share of fish. As in all angling, you must know where the fish "lie" and make your cast to these areas. Using a spinner to "prospect" unknown waters can also reveal the haunts of whatever species you're pursuing.

There are many times when spinners won't take fish, and wobbling spoons appear to be the answer. The spoon's overall surface and thickness will determine how fast it will sink. Choose heavier spoons during the early season when river waters are raging or when you are lake fishing and want to sink them quickly. During the later season, lighter weight spoons produce better, since they slowly flutter and settle under the water. A great moving water technique is to cast a spoon into the head of a deep water run and retrieve it slowly into a pool.

Seldom utilized, but extremely deadly, is the jig. Representing fresh water shrimp, the jig should be allowed to bounce bottom, tumbling naturally downstream of its own accord. Jigs can also be cast or jigged vertically in lakes and ponds with very effective results if you keep it near the bottom. If you have a wary fish that only 'flashes' at your spinner or spoon and won't take; try a jig. Invariably, you will take this fish where other presentations fail. As a last resort, try tipping the jig with a salmon egg, piece of worm or other natural bait. This provides the added benefit of smell to your jig fishing arsenal.

Miniature minnow-shaped plugs like the Rapala Floating Minnow, resemble various forage fish and are used with excellent results primarily in the big lakes and ponds and in the vast expanses of some of our larger streams and rivers. For big fish in big waters, don't underrate the minnow imitation plug. They're available in both floating and sinking models and come in a wide variety of color patterns. As a rule of thumb, stick with silver and gold for clear water and use the florescent colors for off-colored or dingy water.

By: Denis Gardner
Denis Gardner has been an avid fisherman for 30 years. He is self taught and traveled extensively throughout Alaska and Canada. His expertise covers all freshwater fishing species. You can check out his newly formed website at http://thefishinglodge.com. If you have any questions don’t hesitate to email him at webmaster@thefishinglodge.com.

Fishing information courtesy of Resources For Attorneys, a legal information and lifestyle resources directory for attorneys, lawyers and the internet public.

Are you looking for a few laughs? Check out our fishing joke section.

As spring quickly approaches, now is the time to go through your fishing vest and clean it out and restock it. There's no reason to wait until the last minute to perform this fairly tedious (but necessary) task. If you're anything like me, during the course of a fishing season your fishing vest gets completely trashed. Mine is always full of granola bar wrappers, gum wrappers, hell wrappers of all kinds, and various other trash that simply needs to be removed. Below is what I do in order to get my fishing vest ready for the fishing season.

First I empty the vest completely. I take everything out, and once the vest is empty, I wash it in the washing machine. While it's washing and drying, I have a couple of hours to go through my vest and perform an inventory, if you will. This is when I figure out what I need to stock up on before the season gets into full swing. Do I need more gang hooks? What about my extra spool of line? Is it full or do I need a backup? What about split shot sinkers and swivels? Now's when I find out if I need to restock.

At this point, I restock my equipment. I go to the store and buy what I need or order it off of the internet. It obviously makes no difference where it comes from, as long as your fishing vest gets stocked up. You don't want to be out on the river and suddenly realize that you are tying on your last swivel. Once the equipment is restocked and the vest clean simply reverse the process.

Now you are truly ready for fishing season. I know from experience e that this is the way to go. Take an afternoon and get your vest in order before the fishing season begins. I know from experience that standing in the middle of a flowing river is not the place to find out that you don't have any 1/8 ounce black rooster tails left. Especially when the only thing the fish seem to want on that day is exactly that lure. I've had this happen and now carry backups of all my favorite lures, and know that the time to get ready for situations like the one described here is before the season. Remember, now's the time to go through your fishing vest.

By: Trevor Kugler
Start Catching More Fish!
Trevor Kugler is co-founder of JRWfishing.com and an avid angler. He has more than 20 years experience fishing for all types of fish, and 15 years of business and internet experience. He currently raises his three year old daughter in the heart of trout fishing country…..Montana!

Fishing information courtesy of Resources For Attorneys, a legal information and lifestyle resources directory for attorneys, lawyers and the internet public.

Are you looking for a few laughs? Check out our fishing joke section.

The easy answer is because it's fun. The real answer is more complicated than that. BUT, taking a kid fishing should not be and is not complicated. Think about it for a minute. Whether you're into fresh water or salt water fishing, you already have the fishing equipment you need. Rods, reels, baits, a net, tackle boxes and the rest of the gear you've accumulated over the years. So you see you are half way there. You might even have a fishing boat, which is great, but if not, shore fishing is the way a lot of us got started. Many of us can remember going camping or to "Grandpa's cabin" and using his gear, or perhaps fishing with an uncle with his tackle at his favorite "hot spot." Maybe it was hiking to fish that pond or creek just a mile or so away with neighbor or friend, with a rod and reel combo you saved to buy or received as a gift. So you could look at it as payback. But there is more to it than that.

When I was selling fishing equipment on eBay I ended each listing, whether it was for a rod, a reel, or a rod and reel combo, with something like; "Oh yeah, take a kid fishing and make a friend for life" or "Take a kid fishing and watch him out fish you, 'cause you taught him" or "Take a kid fishing, teach him how to fish and then sit back and watch the fun begin." Well you get the idea. Why did I end my listings like that? For one, it is good for my outdoor equipment business long term. You see, the more fisherpersons out there fishing, the more rods and reels get sold and I'll get some of it. I also thought it would be an interesting way to keep buyers or lookers coming back to my equipment listings to see how I was ending those listings. It worked, because people e-mailed me and told me they did just that. But I truly wanted to "plant the seed" and get fisherpersons to actually take a kid fishing.

However as I said, it's more than that. If you're like me you get a number of out door magazines. It doesn't matter if they're fishing magazines or hunting, hiking, camping, marine, general outdoor, national, regional or state magazines. They have all had articles on the general decline of fishing (and hunting for that matter) participation through out the country. (True, some areas are holding their own or slightly increasing, but slightly increasing is not good enough.) So teaching a kid to fish and getting them involved in the out-of-doors is one way to help stop that decline.

As most states use the funds collected from the sale of fishing and hunting licenses for improving habitats, stocking programs and the like, the fewer licenses sold the less money your state has for those programs. And as most fisherpersons know, the federal government collects a tax on fishing equipment and returns a percentage to the states. As less fishing tackle gets sold there's less money from the federal tax on fishing gear for the U.S. government to return to the states. (And yes, the less gear I'll sell.) So there are fewer programs your state can offer to get kids and adults involved in the out-of-doors. It's a never ending downward spiral unless we all get involved. And that means it just makes good sense to get kids involved in fishing, and for that matter, hunting, hiking and camping.

Earlier in this article I gave some reasons why I take kids fishing. But those reasons are minor compared to the real reason. I love to take kids fishing. Buddies' kids, neighborhood kids, nieces and nephews, and I will continue to do so. So now for the most important reason: You can't believe the incredible joy I get (and you will too) watching a kid catch a 6 ounce "gill" or a 25 pound "Chin." Unreal! I won't give that up. So how do you get started? It's real easy. Just ask a kid to go fishing - he or she will love you for it.

Other places to get a kid to go fishing: Your church, schools, YMCA & YWCA, scouting programs, local park and recreation programs. Big Brothers, Big Sisters. bbbsa.org Click on "Get Involved."

By: George Hampel
George Hampel was a charter captain for a good number of years in Up-State New York and has fished all of his life. He currently writes articles for outdoor publications and gives seminars on all kinds of fishing. He also owns a web store at www.gobblywabblerdistributors.com that sells outdoor equipment for most every kind of outdoor activity and specializes in fishing. He currently fishes the Great Lakes, mostly Lake Michigan and inland waters in the Midwest.

Fishing information courtesy of Resources For Attorneys, a legal information and lifestyle resources directory for attorneys, lawyers and the internet public.

Are you looking for a few laughs? Check out our fishing joke section.