7.5 pound bass out of our pond

Little top water today and caught this hog in my pond behind my house - good fun!

Looks just like that talking bass I used to have on my wall.

Nice fish.

Nice fish!!

I bet that was a hoot to haul in. Congrats, sir. Great fish!

topwater on 20 lb test - took me awhile to land her -

Good looking fish. Is that your pond record?

so far yes that is our best - goal is a ten pounder - lots of work, $$, and feed - kinda like a deer lease!

Really nice to have that kind of a fishing hole behind the house. Nice one for sure.

That is a nice one!!
I've heard crawfish will fatten them up pretty good.

Very Nice!

Nice catch

That's the funnest way to snag one!! Great job.

I’ve fished my entire life and can say that I’ve only hooked one bass that I would have bet went 10 lbs…hooked it in a small 10 acre east Texas lake on a giant grasshopper trying to catch a monster shell cracker. Barely hit it and I lightly set the hook and this giant fish came up out of the water and threw the hook.

Fished Falcon, Choke, Amistad…all the good lakes. Fished for 18 years at our private lake that produced bass up to 14 lbs. Never hooked a bass over 8 lbs.

Good luck on your quest

Very cool!

Nice bass, tlk. Looks like you have a very nice place there.

Nice fish!!!



What kind of program are your running to grow big fish?

Awesome!!!!

That's a real nice Bass and I bet it was a blast!

Heck of a fish. You might have a 10 in there.

That's a nice fish! We started catching 7+ pounders from our pond last year. We're keeping and eating anything 3-1/2# or smaller. Cut down on the competition. Like you, hoping to get a 10 #er one day.

Top water is my favorite way to fish a pond.

It does take a few years of careful management to get fish up above the 6-7 lb range.

I keep our fish pond stocked with fathead minnows and Coppernose Bluegill for the bass.

We feed Optimum feed for the bluegill. I have stocked bluegill several times. No catfish - just BG and bass and I add fathead minnows on occasion.
Have put Christmas trees in the pond and sunk them for cover. We cull some bass each year that are in the slot (6-14 inches long). I have well water available to keep the pond full if it starts getting low.

Congrats. Nice fish

Nice, Very nice bass - congrats!
I love it when the bass are hitting topwaters. My favorite lure is the old time "jitterbug". You blurb it along the top & then stop dead for a second. That's when the bass explode on it!

Another option is stocking tilapia. They bred every 30 days and take some of the stress off the BG. Bass love them.

Did you use flour or cornbread meal when you Kidding nice bass.

Love topwater bass fishing this time of the year. Fished Koon Kreek Klub south of Athens several times many moons ago. Loved throwing a Scum Frog or a Musky Jitter bug over the Lilly Pads or between the reeds and watching the water explode when a Bass attacks it

I would not stock tilapia in any pond or lake. They are a very invasive fish and will compete for the same habitat and food as the bass.
Squaw Creek Reservoir has not been the same fishery ever since tilapia were introduced.

I will add that the website www.pondboss.com/forum is an excellent resource. Folks on there know their stuff and provide great advice on managing a pond

Great catch!!

Squaw Creek is unique in that the power plant keeps the water warm year around. In normal North Texas ponds and lakes Tilapia die off in late fall/early winter when the water temperature drops below 55 degrees. They would not be appropriate for South Texas.

Tilapia do not compete with bass for forage. Their primary diet is algae and some other pond vegetation. They will spawn in the same depths.

I want one!

...!

Awesome fish

Yep, they can not resist a Jitterbug. Been throwing Jitterbugs for over 50 yrs. One of my favorites.




Thinking I might just pack up my gear and go hit the fish pond today.

110% stock tilapia. Great forage fish.

Amistad and Falcon are full of tilapia and I’m convinced that’s a large part of why the fishery is so healthy there.


Plus….tilapia are not bad eating themselves