The smaller ones are the best to eat. I've eaten a fair number of them. The older ones definitely get a weird odor or flavor going on and I do know you have to remove the glands on any of them. These things are a serious pest for most people, myself included. Any big adult woodchucks get buried about 18 inches to 2 feet down in my garden in rotating areas during the time of year they are active.
I made the MISTAKE of lipping a Bass with a lure in it's mouth, ONE TIME. It shook violently and those little rapala hooks went in my finger joint, and DESTROYED the use or that finger forever. Don't be stupid,get a BOGO grip or something other than lipping it. Believe me,you only THINK you can control a Bass. I regret it to this day.
You also shouldn't hold a bass (especially bigger ones) by the mouth vertically. You always need your other hand underneath it supporting it. Otherwise you dislocate its jaw and its mouth will never fully close, making it much harder for it to eat.
Very good comment and advice. I creek fish a lot and most of what you catch are 1 lbs 1-1/2lbs. My GF goes with on occasion, and I had caught a decent rockbass. They fight good and shake a lot also. I was going to lip it and it was still shaking hard and I jerked my hand back. She said “what’s wrong?” and I said getting that 3 prong roaster tail hook buried in my hand is what’s wrong. It’s happened a few times but not as bad as you described losing finger function
Don't get me wrong I was happy to catch the fish but I've fished this pond my entire life (and I've probably hooked that girl a few times haha) the pond is about 110 years old at this point, I probably have more hours on this body of water than anyone else in it's entire 110 year long history. That being said it's not much of anything to go and land a 20+ incher there. Doesn't matter if it's through the ice, hot, cold, storming, or anything if you put the right stuff out there you'll nail one. I don't start flipping out about these bass in this pond until they get over 23. The biggest one I've ever seen come out of there was one I caught through the ice when I was a little kid it was 24.5.
@@Kayceesoutdoorliving Well that explains the non excitement of that catch when normally on YT when grown men are yell in’ like a school boy…..’oh it’s a big one! It’s a hog!’ And as they’re reeling it in….’ It’s over 5 lbs! Well at least it’s a 3 lb..er, uh well it fought like a big un……uh …ehhh. Well at least it’s a Bass.’ Then they toss it back in as if it didn’t matter. Thanks for the back ground behind it all. Man, too funny.
STOP PUTTING YOUR DRY HANDS ON A FISH MAN I SWEAR TO CHRIST I WISHED SOMEONE WOULD TEACH PEOPLE WHO WANT TO FISH AT LEAST THE MINIMUM OF KNOWLEDGE LIKE N. O. T. PUTTING THEIR G D DRY HANDS ON A FISH SCIENCE HAS KNOWN ABOUT DRY HANDS ON A FISH FOR OVER A HUNDRED YEARS AND IGNORANCE IS STILL MARCHING ON
It's literally my families pond so I'll handle the fish. I've probably caught that fish several times in its life. If i'd caught her through the ice there's a good chance I would have cooked and ate that fish btw. Also there's nothing stopping you from starting a RU-vid channel about proper fish handling. By all means fight the ignorance.
It was about an inch and a half short of my PB which also came from this pond. Unfortunately the GoPro wasn't cooperating at that moment and the fight was surprisingly short.
