Do the fisherman chip in for it each year?? If we do count me in and how much?? BigBill

I am glad to see that after 8 pages of back and forth, someone finally made the suggestion of putting up, or shutting up.

I am probably one of the newer fisherman around having not picked up the sport till just last summer. I fished my first lake this year, caught my biggest fish this year, and caught my first large mouth bass this year...I am 32 years old.

I say this because I consider myself to be an outsider. I do not know that much about fishing, so I can't offer statistics or speak of past experiences. In many ways I am much like a child who makes judgments based upon their own observances. And we all know how honest a child can be...

I beleive that fishing is 50% luck and 50% skill. That is if you are maxed out at the skill portion of that. Someone likeme, it is 10% skill, 90% luck... But at best, I think it is 50/50. I don't know how anyone could argue that. You can use that 50% skill to get you into a good spot, pick the perfect bait and present that bait perfectly...but you cannot control the weather that changes a fish's eating habits, you can't pick the size of the fish that takes your bait, and until they develope the "perfect" fishfinder, you can't tell where the hawg is hiding. Experience will tell you that bass like docks and other structure, but under that dock could be a 12 inch keeper, or a 5 pound hawg...

If fishing were 90% skill... even 6 or 7 pound bass would not be as celebrated as they are. I won't even fathom about a 12 pound bass.

If someone can tell me where within a 100 acre lake ( small ), and with what bait, at what depth, on what day, that they will catch a 10 - 12 pound bass...then that will suggest to me that fishing is 90% skill. Until then...just as the sports name implies...noone knows for sure...we are all just fishing...and will need a good amount of good luck to get into a 'double digit' bass.

The last comment I want to make is that I do beleive that there could be 10 to 12 pound bass in CT. In all the many lakes, with all the docks, flats and drop offs, with all the rocks, underwater humps and stumps, with all the deep holes and places where folks have probably never fished, with all the lilly beds and weed beds...and all the many ..MANY baits, and lures and combinations and styles of fishing, I really think that it would be hard to say that our CT lakes do not hold bass that big... but I will say this in closing....

The guy that does catch one...or 12..double digit bass will have to be one lucky son of a gun. ( more than 10% lucky )

The vast majority of true trophy largemouth bass over 10 pounds are Florida strain largemouth. Florida strain largemouth cannot handle our cold winters, there are no Florida strain largemouth in CT. Of the largest 25 bass ever caught, nearly all came from Florida, California or Texas. The notable exception is the 1932 world record largemouth, which came from southern Georgia in 1932.

The largest northern strain Largemouth ever caught came from Massachusetts and weighed 15-8. There is a replica mount in the Goose Hummock tackle shop in Orleans, Massachusetts. The replica mount is very impressive.

I'm sure there are 10's and 11's in CT, but they are very uncommon. I think someone who really wanted to catch trophy largemouth in Connecticut could catch a handful of 8, 9, and 10 plus pound bass over the course of a full season in Connecticut IF that angler used large live bait exclusively and fished the right waters constantly. Just my opinion. I'd still love to see some photos of bass over 8 pounds caught in Connecticut.

Huskybass

I can't help but love BigBill's optimism and enthusiasm. I do believe there are some double digit bass in CT. Probably more than people would guess. However, I would think that the majority are in illegal waters. Hopefully when one is caught, it will be by an environmentally conscious angler with a camera and a ruler. I too would love to get a look at one of the fish I am so sought after. Who knows, maybe one of us could catch the state record, I could guarantee one thing.... I'll be trying!