To be honest, I got away from fishing the last few years from buying a house and workling on it. I am just getting back into to it tthe end of last year. Plus, I spend five days a week there working, I generally head away from there on my time off. 95% of my time is spent on a lawnmower or checking water levels instead of fishing. I probably haven't caught more than a dozen bass all together on the big res. So I know what you mean about the ninjas. The little res, I've caught quite a few, and my brother (Jamess) caught one that was one of the biggest fish I've seen. The only fish I could make a fist and it fit in it's mouth.

Alot of my knowledge comes from driving around talking to anglers during the course of the year. They usually don't know what we are doing (filling or lowering) and so their experience is without prejudice.

Another thing that is a quick indicator is activity on the rocks. If you see little bluegills darting around, crayfish moving about, and schools of baitfish; the signs are good that the game fish should be active. When I go up and see nothing, I usually don't stay long cause the fishing will end up pretty bad.