Jigs and Bigs

Every bite tells you something. So does every follow, short strike, miss, and fish that refuses to commit. The question is whether you're actually listening.This week on Jigs & Bigs, Bobby and Joe break down how to turn those interactions into useful information instead of immediately reaching for another bait. The process is simple: OBSERVE → INTERPRET → TEST. Figure out what actually happened, develop a theory about why it happened, then deliberately try to reproduce it.We talk about reading subtle clues, changing one variable at a time, recognizing when the fish are proving your original plan wrong, and how a simple adjustment turned Mike's frustrating underspin bites into fish in the boat.Plus, Bobby recaps a productive trip to the upper Connecticut River that included his first walleye, Joe explains why fall anglers should pay attention to the birds, and Broke on the Boat tackles the expensive habit of trying to buy solutions to fishing problems.And when the show is over... don't leave quite yet. There's a little something extra waiting after the closing song. Consider it a glimpse of the Jighead experience that usually doesn't make the final cut.Sometimes the most important thing the fish tells you is that you were wrong. That's not failure. That's a clue.🎣 JOIN THE JIGHEADSGet exclusive live recordings, bonus content, behind-the-scenes access and more by supporting Jigs & Bigs on Patreon.🎧 FOLLOW JIGS & BIGS ON SPOTIFYListen & Follow on Spotify🔥 SUPPORT THE PARTNERS THAT SUPPORT JIGS & BIGSFrost BuddyShop Frost BuddyDark Horse TackleUse code JNB5Shop Dark Horse TackleARK RodsUse code JIGSANDBIGSShop ARK RodsOmnia FishingUse code JIGS&BIGSFIRSTShop Omnia FishingBassdashUse code JIGANDBIGSShop BassdashBluBlockerShop BluBlockerChill Steel PipesShop Chill Steel Pipes📞 CALL OR TEXT THE J&B HOTLINE: (413) 324-8519Give us your fishing tips, ask a question, drop a hot take, or tell us what happened on the water. You might end up on an upcoming episode.🌐 JigsAndBigs.com

Was uncertainty ever a problem in fishing that really needed to be solved?That question sits at the center of Episode 343.After Cole McCausland’s comments about forward-facing sonar lit up the bass fishing world, Bobby takes the conversation to the Producer’s Desk to look at the argument from a different angle.There’s no question that forward-facing sonar takes skill. The anglers who have mastered it didn’t simply bolt electronics onto their boats and magically start winning. They invested the time, learned a new tool, adapted and got damn good at using it.But fishing has always involved incomplete information.You don’t know exactly where every fish is. You don’t know which one is going to bite. You don’t know whether the pattern you found at 8 a.m. will still exist at noon. Sometimes skill puts you in the right place. Sometimes luck plays a part.So if technology removes some of that uncertainty, is that simply the evolution of fishing... or are we changing one of the fundamental skills fishing has always tested?And because this is Jigs & Bigs, that’s nowhere near the entire show.Joe is back and officially selling the Ikon as he prepares for retirement and life on the road. Bobby somehow crammed an absurd amount of work into one week, gives an update on First Cast Month, talks about what’s coming for Jigs & Bigs, and actually managed to sneak in some fishing.On Just the Tip, we dig into something every angler can use: after you get bit, can you identify exactly what happened well enough to do it again?Then we hit the Producer’s Desk for the forward-facing sonar discussion, get appropriately irresponsible with Broke on the Boat, dive into the Live Well, and generally behave like people who probably shouldn’t be trusted with microphones for this many consecutive hours.The question this week is simple:🎣 JIGS & BIGS SUPPORTERS & PARTNERSListen on Spotify:Jigs & Bigs on SpotifyFrostbuddy Universal CanShop FrostbuddyDark Horse Tackle — Save $5 on orders of $30+ with code JNB5Shop Dark Horse TackleArk Rods — Save 10% with code JIGSANDBIGSShop Ark RodsOmnia Fishing — Save 15% on your first order with code JIGS&BIGSFIRSTShop Omnia FishingBassdash — Save 15% with code JIGANDBIGSShop BassdashBluBlocker Sunglasses — Free shipping on orders over $50 while supporting the showShop BluBlockerChill Steel Pipes — Save $20 with code JIGSANDBIGSShop Chill Steel Pipes📞 Jigs & Bigs Hotline: (413) 324-8519Have a question, hot take, fishing story, or an opinion on forward-facing sonar? Call or text us. You might end up on the show.

This week’s episode is a full-on marathon — and it’s worth every minute.We kick things off in classic Jigs & Bigs fashion before diving headfirst into a long-form conversation with Ken Duke that goes way beyond the usual fishing talk. We get into the phrase everybody throws around — “grow the sport” — and ask whether that’s really the right goal in the first place.From there, the conversation opens up into the health of the fishing industry, the role of media, what makes content actually valuable, and how anglers, creators, and brands all fit into the future of this thing we love.This one is thoughtful, honest, and loaded with substance.If you care about where fishing is headed — and not just what bait to throw next weekend — this episode is for you.🎧 Listen, enjoy, and let us know what you think:Should we really be trying to “grow the sport”?🎧 Listen to the podcast on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/5SUDfILeZLzptlxBmTwlVw?si=iEEHLO_cRxKSO24R22kszQFrostbuddy Universal Can 🧊🥶:https://frostbuddy.com/?sca_ref=3436768.DwvUUmWjW2💰 $5 off $30 or more at Dark Horse Tackle with code JNB5 at checkout!https://darkhorsetackle.com/?sca_ref=4963595.Ulm8078KDd💰 10% off your order at Ark Rods! Use code JIGSANDBIGS at checkout!https://arkrods.com/?dt_id=2466796💰 15% off your first order at Omnia Fishing using code JIGS&BIGSFIRST at checkout!https://www.omniafishing.com💰 Jigs & Bigs listeners get 15% off an order at Bassdash with code JIGANDBIGS!https://www.bassdash.com💰 Protect your eyes with Blu Blocker Sunglasses! Free shipping on orders over $50!https://www.blublocker.com/?sca_ref=11001626.MPCibvl7cfqYqc🥶🎣😗 Upgrade your fish whistle game with $20 off your order at Chill Steel Pipes! Use code jigsandbigs at checkout!https://chill.store/jigsandbigs

Every fall, bass anglers hear the same advice: FIND THE SHAD. FOLLOW THE BAIT.Great advice...What if your lake doesn't have shad?That's exactly where we're going in Episode 341.Kai Ludden, aka Kai the Fish Guy, returns to Jigs & Bigs as our guest co-host, and this time we're digging into fall bass fishing in northern lakes, ponds and rivers where shad aren't the primary forage...or aren't there at all.Instead of blindly applying the standard fall playbook, we're looking at what bass are actually feeding on: yellow perch, bluegill and other sunfish, minnows, young-of-year forage, crayfish and whatever else your particular ecosystem provides.And Kai brings something especially valuable to this conversation. With his background studying freshwater fish and fish behavior, we get beyond “throw this bait in October” and start asking why these fish and their forage are behaving the way they are.We get into how different forage species respond to changing water temperatures, daylight, vegetation and habitat; what those movements can mean for bass location; and why you shouldn't assume every baitfish in the lake got the same September memo.Because here's the problem:You can't follow a migration your lake doesn't have.On Just the Tip, we build a practical fall-fishing approach around identifying the forage that's actually in YOUR water and following the clues those species provide.Then on Broke on the Boat, we're asking what you really need to change in your tackle when the forage isn't shad. Can you adapt the baits you already own through size, color, profile and presentation? And if you're actually going to spend money to better match the hatch, where does that money make sense?Plus, Kai catches us up on his Massachusetts freshwater pin quest, including the grind that produced his 31½-inch lake trout, we talk tournament fishing, fall fishing, listener questions, and naturally wander into some of the usual Jigs & Bigs bullshit along the way. 341 captions 341 captionsListen on Spotify:Jigs & Bigs on SpotifyFrostbuddy Universal CanSupport the show while grabbing your Frostbuddy:Shop FrostbuddyDark Horse TackleSave $5 on orders of $30+ with code JNB5Shop Dark Horse TackleArk RodsSave 10% with code JIGSANDBIGSShop Ark RodsOmnia FishingSave 15% on your first order with code JIGS&BIGSFIRSTShop Omnia FishingBassdashSave 15% with code JIGANDBIGSShop BassdashBluBlocker SunglassesFree shipping on orders over $50 while supporting Jigs & Bigs:Shop BluBlockerChill Steel PipesSave $20 with code jigsandbigsShop Chill Steel Pipes📞 JIGS & BIGS HOTLINE: (413) 324-8519Call or text us with your fishing questions, stories, hot takes, or questionable life decisions. You might end up on the show.Fish the forage that's actually there. Not the forage the internet told you should be there.🎧 SUPPORT JIGS & BIGS

How much of the way you fish comes from what YOU have actually learned… and how much came from somebody telling you what should work?Fishing reports. YouTube. Tournament results. Facebook groups. Dock talk. Your buddies. Pros. Influencers. We consume an insane amount of fishing information, and none of that is necessarily a bad thing.The problem starts when somebody else's experience becomes more important than the evidence you've gathered yourself.This week on Jigs & Bigs, Bobby, Joe and Mike dig into something we're calling borrowed confidence.Somebody crushes them on a bait, so you buy it. Somebody says they're deep, so you run deep. A tournament gets won offshore, and suddenly everybody's offshore.But none of that information knows exactly what's happening where you're standing, on your water, at that moment.Information should influence your decisions. It shouldn't make them for you.🎣 JUST THE TIP: We break down what real fishing confidence actually looks like, why confidence and stubbornness aren't the same thing, and why becoming a better angler means learning to trust your own observations while still being willing to let the fish prove you wrong.💸 BROKE ON THE BOAT: Can you actually buy confidence? Sometimes a bad day sends us straight to the tackle shop looking for the bait, rod, reel, electronics or latest piece of gear that's finally going to “fix” our fishing.And man… that dopamine hit feels fantastic.But did you actually solve anything?Plus, we get into our weeks on the water, listener interaction in the Livewell, some laughs, some bullshit, and the usual detours that make Jigs & Bigs what it is.Learn from everybody.Listen to good information.Pay attention to the evidence.Then make your own fucking decision.Don't borrow confidence. Build it.Listen on Spotify:Jigs & Bigs on SpotifyFrostbuddy Universal CanShop FrostbuddyDark Horse Tackle — Save $5 on $30+ with code JNB5Shop Dark Horse TackleARK Rods — Save 10% with code JIGSANDBIGSShop ARK RodsOmnia Fishing — Save 15% on your first order with code JIGS&BIGSFIRSTShop Omnia FishingBassdash — Save 15% with code JIGANDBIGSShop BassdashBluBlocker Sunglasses — Free shipping on orders over $50 + your purchase supports J&BShop BluBlockerChill Steel Pipes — Save $20 with code jigsandbigsShop Chill Steel PipesTHE BIG IDEA:🎣 SUPPORT JIGS & BIGS