Bass Stalking?

[il coyote]

I read in a magazine recently how guys without boats(or just choose not to use them) will strap on a pair of hipboots/chestwaders, wade real slow and quiet-like, and fish key structures while standing in waist-deep water. Obviously you are at a huge disadvantage to pack up and move somewhere else, but is this really a viable option when not having a boat? The lake I'd be fishing is timbered ALMOST the entire perimeter(see goherds most recent pic in the scoresheet thread) and you have toclimb your way through empty chicken liver containers and beer cans to get toa lotof theaccesible areas.

It maysound stupid to some, sure, but I've risked that before to find a big payoff.

AT THIS TIME, it's just not worth it to me to buy a boat, as I don't get many chances to fish.

Any thoughts?

[Chuck7]

I did that once..I waded around cattails and caught many bass...I pitched a worm on them...I stopped doing this when I nearly stepped on a gator.THIS is when I bought a boat.
Another thing that gave me the willys was all the snakes I was seeing ....but you can certainly clean house by wading and casting ahead ...
I did that for a bout 2 yeas before I bought a boat. One day as I was wading I noticed about qa 12 foot gator submerged in the mud. I thanked God right there for sparing my life through my ignorance..no more wading in Florida lakes.

[goherd1111]

I used to do alot of wading back home in WV on the New and Greenbrier rivers for small mouth and trout. However, I can honestly say that I have never waded in a lake. Most of the rivers I'm referring too were not very deep and you could actually wade all the way across in some areas. They were also very rocky and in alot of places you could just jump or wade from rock to rock all the way up and down the river. I guess you could wade in a lake like lake Jacksonville but IMHO it would be tough with all the drop offs, depth changes, and shoreline obstacles. By the way ILCoyote, anytime you areup this way look me up we will hit the lake. I'm on the lake 3-4 times a week. 9 times out of 10 i'm by myself and wishing I had a partner to shoot the bull with.

[childers]

i dont like wading lakes its extremely dangerous you can get stuck so easily and sink in and then all the crap in it and its not much of an advantage i have the same situation without a boat and i fish everyday

[Austin/WI]

I will do this on occasion. Like others have pointed out, it can be a bit dangerous depending on where you live. Up here in WI there aren't a whole lot of things that may bite (besides Turtles), so generally don't have a problem wading in a little bit. It's deffinitely nice on a real hot day to get into the water and stay a little cooler. Another thing that is nice, is that you can find out the actual depths of some spots you walk through, this is helpful for me when I got ice fishing or on the rare occasion I get to use a boat/canoe/etc.

[mauser06]

ive heard of it, and seen it...never done it. i dont like wading soft bottoms...

if you do definently carry a wading stick or something to probe around and make sure you wont hit a hole or drop off. you fill waders with water theres a decint chance you wont get them off...exspecially if you hit a big ledge or something...talk about concrete feet....just be careful and use your head...

is the shore completely inaccessable?? even nasty uncared for ponds ive fished had pretty decint shore access. i usually need to wear pants, boots and a long sleeved shirt because of brush and grass etc..but usually fishable most of the way around...timber you be easy id think...usually if its timber there wont be much of a nasty brushy edge...

good luck

[Matt in IL]

I would go naked before I used waders. A few years back, my friend had a pair on while we were fishing. He took a wrong step and water started coming in from his chest. The waders filled up fast and he fell over. If I wasn't there to help him....

Anyways, I wouldn't mind trying a belly boat sometime for stalking. I know a guy who kills the fish with his.

[il coyote]

...And here I already had a long reply typed up when somehow I lost it.[:@]

I would go naked before I used waders. A few years back, my friend had a pair on while we were fishing. He took a wrong step and water started coming in from his chest. The waders filled up fast and he fell over. If I wasn't there to help him....

The more I think about it, having some type of emergency inflatable is a good idea. Lots of mud there. Count me out on the nekkid part though, I've caught some meana$$ snappersfrom those watersand there isn't a fish on earth that's worth losing the dangler.

is the shore completely inaccessable?? even nasty uncared for ponds ive fished had pretty decint shore access. i usually need to wear pants, boots and a long sleeved shirt because of brush and grass etc..but usually fishable most of the way around...timber you be easy id think...usually if its timber there wont be much of a nasty brushy edge...

Not completely inaccessable, but purty durn near. If it's easy to get all the way around I wouldn't have asked.A friend of mines father lives in a subdivision with some water access and we've fished it a bunch, and I know of a few people that camp at the lake, but mostclear spots are under private ownership, or campgrounds with picky residents.

wishing I had a partner to shoot the bull with.

Definately done that before...I gotta tell ya though, my lake J bass expirience is a little slim. I'd really be stepping up to the majors after my AAA careerslamming bass on farm ponds. I could probably tell more drunken Lake stories of years past than big bass stories. But I'm not, or ever been some type of goofball.I'm going to be pretty busy down here for the summer and with limited computer access to boot, but I'll see what I can get done.


Ithink I'll be pretty safe from the Gators, ChuckBut what you talked about doing is pretty much what I was thinking. Find a few coves close together, cast ahead and walk them around. Pack up and go somewhere else. Ive been in boats before and caught bass in areas like these that a lot of guys seem to ignore. Shallow enough to walk in too. I never reallyplanned onheading to the bigger part of the lake to get rundown by some teenager in his parents ski boat.

[lethalconnection]

I wade rivers streams all the time and i find it works awesome but as for lakes i have waded a few but if u really want to be stealthy without the danger of sinkin into the soft bottom what u should do is buy a belly boat, now most guys do use waders with them so they dont get wet so if u do go that way buy breathables cause neoprene waders in the summer=waders weighin u down cause their full of sweat[&:]. But belly boats are just as stealthy if not more stealthy then wadin in the water, they almost have all the advantages of fishing from a regular boat and the advantages of wadin all in one plus they dont cost that much either.

[Austin/WI]

ORIGINAL: lethalconnection

I wade rivers streams all the time and i find it works awesome but as for lakes i have waded a few but if u really want to be stealthy without the danger of sinkin into the soft bottom what u should do is buy a belly boat, now most guys do use waders with them so they dont get wet so if u do go that way buy breathables cause neoprene waders in the summer=waders weighin u down cause their full of sweat[&:]. But belly boats are just as stealthy if not more stealthy then wadin in the water, they almost have all the advantages of fishing from a regular boat and the advantages of wadin all in one plus they dont cost that much either.

I was actually lookin at a little one not too long ago. It may be a wise little purchase...