I wasn’t able to get out this weekend because it was Thanksgiving here in Canada, but I’m working on a trip to Mystery Lake in late October and I cannot wait to give these frogs a go, even if it might be a bit too cold for topwater.

More photos of both the Original Species Frog and Original Pulse Frog after the break.

I’ve been using the Realis Vibration62 quite a bit this fall and the smallmouth bass have been nailing it regularly, often inhaling the entire lure. While the Vibration62 may be small in size, its castability is incredible thanks to its aerodynamic design and balance. I use this lure with a high speed burner reel, and no matter have quickly I retrieved it, it always ran true. This lure can be heard clearly even when its 10 feet away under the water. The tight wobble has proven to be irresistible for east coast bass and I have no doubt it will catch bass anywhere.

The Realis Vibration62 come in 12 gorgeous patterns!

Casting performance
By aerodynamically designing the stomach area, it has stabilized its flight posture resulting in an improved casting ability. With this one will be able to efficiently search a large area.

Action response
This vibration successfully creates a tight pulsating effect. It doesn’t lose balance at super high speed retrieval and has a stable response. It also triggers a “reaction bite” when an angler tries to jerks the lure off a snag. The reeling stress has also been greatly minimized.

The rattle sound
It creates a violent rattle sound unimaginable from the thin body. We have increased this characteristic by utilizing our original blend of hard resin for those lures which are not clear bodied.

Check out the Realis Vibration62 in action!

I opened the end of the its PVC tomb and pulled out a shiny new 2011 Magnesium Stick Worm – Swimming Bait Special 7’0″ Med-Heavy casting rod! With any Kistler rod the first thing most people would notice is its incredibly light weight. For me it wasn’t the weight that caught my attention, it was the colour. Green. It wasn’t a terribly pretty green by any stretch, but once I got it outside and the sunlight hit it it had a whole new glow to it. After a day of using this rod it didn’t matter. I would still use this rod even if it was bright pink, it is really that good. It’s so good in fact, that I haven’t even touched any of the six bass rods I have since I got it.

The rod is specially designed for stick-worms, light Texas and Carolina rigs, spinnerbaits, swimming-jigs and swim-baits. If you know my fishing style, I don’t have to tell you I used it mostly with spinnerbaits. The rod felt incredible paired with my Quantum Tour Edition PT reel. The microguides not only look great but perform extraordinarily. Even the baitholder hook impressed me!

The Specs:

Fuji ECS singler groove, blank exposed reel seat
Fuji stainless steel, hardloy guides and tip
Action: Fast
Length: 7′ 0″
Power: Medium-Heavy
Lure weight: 1/8 – 3/4 oz.
Line weight: 12 – 17 lb.
Handle length: 10″
Line guides: 8 plus the tip

The rod was priced around $200 USD when I got it, and is available right now for only $99! I really don’t think you can find another new rod on this planet that is priced better. The hype is real, even this mid range Kistler rod blows away any of the rods I currently own. I cant wait to get my hands on one of their high end rods!

Still not a believer? Stay tuned for the full review!

This lure was responsible for Kota Kiriyama’s 12th place finish at the Bassmaster Elite series tournament at Lake Amistad. The Swimming Ninja casts like a bullet, has an absolutely awesome falling action and sits face down, ass up on the bottom. While this lure was made with bass in mind, it looks like a killer pike lure to me! This lure is available in five patterns but I went with the trout pattern which has been productive for small mouth here in Nova Scotia the past. My only complaint so far is that the Swimming Ninja can’t be retrieved very quickly, so leave your burner reel at home.

“Jackall’s Swimming Ninja has a realistic swimming action and paint design. Shad Tail design moves more water and has a wobbling and rolling action. Designed to swim like a real bait fish trying to escape from it’s predators. Swimming Ninja is 6 inches in length which is the perfect size for medium and large bass. It weights 1-1/4 oz. and is a slow sinking so you can control the depth. It also comes with two treble hooks, the back treble hook is a free floating trailer hook so the fish can not get any leverage.”

Check out what Kota Kiriyama has to say about the Swimming Ninja below.

I just got this awesome new Seira Minnow 80s from Jackall today and I’ll be testing it out tomorrow. Its a great looking lure and should be ideal for smallmouth bass in the area. As you can see by the photos, this isn’t your ordinary jerkbait.

“Seira Minnow is Japan’s latest technique. “i-motion” technique was developed exclusively by Jackall pro staff. Kept secret for years, Jackall is now releasing it to the market. When bait fish are not threatened, they swim straight. Jackall engineers have designed a bait to swim with no action needed. Just like real bait fish. Bass think it is an easy meal.”

“Water actually passes through the mouth and exits through the gills like real bait fish which fish actually can sense.”

With its big eyes, detailed body and feather tail hook, the Seira Minnow looks and feels great. I’m excited to see how it performs so stay tuned for an in depth review.

Check out this video from Jackall to see the lure in action!

Man do I miss those massive hooksets. Though, as you probably already know I’ve been spending many of my weekends in Algonquin Park, catching trout- a species I’ve never targeted in the past. I’ve even successfully taught myself and friends how to troll for trout in a canoe.

Check out the Facts of Fishing youtube channel for more!

Complosion: To be compressed to the point of explosion.

I had never really thought of booking a guide, especially on waters I have been fishing my entire life, but it had to be one of the best experiences of my life. Not only was it my first guided trip, it was my first time on a kayak too. Juan, my guide from Kayak Fish PA, had me paddling like a pro in about an hour. After that, we were all over the smallmouth. I think we caught about 10 that trip, but none of the fish were under 16 inches, most being around 18 inches.

Guides are worth the money, so don’t let the high prices scare you away. You’ll learn a lot – even if you think you know it all…

- Nathan Follmer

Thank you for your entry in our 2010 Contributor Contest, it looks like you had a blast! We’ll be sending you a copy of Fins + Skins magazine for your efforts!

View all 86 images of “Mystery Lake 2004″…

PS- I will be posting a 2010 contributor contest entry tomorrow morning!

“We are so excited to bring Dave Mercer on board,” said Jerry McKinnis, an owner of B.A.S.S. “He has a tremendous following through his Facts of Fishing television show, and has a charisma I believe fishing fans are going to love.”

“This is a dream come true for me,” said Mercer. “At one time I used to dream about fishing the Bassmaster Classic. Then, after I fished with some of the Elite Series pros and realized how good they are, I altered my dream to emceeing the Classic! I never imagined it would become a reality.”

Dave’s first appearance will be at the Bassmaster Classic in New Orleans and can be seen on ESPN2, so mark your calendars!

via ESPN with more from Facts of Fishing