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Today my 25-year-old granddaughter, who is drop-dead gorgeous, and weighs all of 110 lbs, passed the Florida State Firefighters test. The physical part of the test consisted of her having to unload a 25' extension ladder from the truck, extend it to the second floor, and then climb into a smoke-filled room with her fire suit and 50 lbs of gear. She then had to descend down a smoke-filled staircase, locate a 180 lb mannikin and drag him 50 yards to safety, all within a specified time frame, and she did it! I'm so proud of her I could Pop!

Had an awesome day today. Caught my PB , and the first top water frog fish of the year. Caught them at the same lake I've been catching consistently at the past few weeks. There was some sparse pads grown in so I decided to throw the frog, but only caught the one. My PB is whole other story. I was fishing a little Island on the lake which consists of a beaver abode a couple of rock formations and some brush. To get to it you have to cross a ghetto beaver bridge which consists of a several loosely laying together knarwed down scrawny trees, across a shallow 4ft wide "moat". Flipped my jig in some laydown timbers feel a bite set the hook and snag said timber. Had to free spool and walk back off the Island to the other bank so I could free the jig from the snag. I get unsnagged, and see this girl with a male about six feet in front of me. I let the jig fall from the snag and start fishing it with a hop hop pause, Then see the broad go to it and inhale it, not pick it up to move it, but inhale it. I couldn't believe she ate it because i thought I spooked her. She was about 4 feet in front of me in about a foot of water when she took it. To weigh her I had to go all the way back on that Island to get my scale cause I had left it there. I had a death grip on this fish lip as i was crossing that ghetto beaver bridge . This year has been the best prespawn and spawn fishing for me so far. Last year this time I only caught a Rock Bass by accident, and a 7 inch LMB... Caught her on a Siebert 1/4oz B2B Arky with a Havoc 3" Pit Boss trailer in Watermelon Orange Fleck. Now to shoot for 4lbs plus *UPDATE* It came to my attention that my digital scale literacy is lacking. So the weight of my PB is actually 3.19lbs so almost 3 and a 1/4 Lbs Meh... ...But had a little beer belly... The Frog Fish... Aaaand Weighing in at 3.19 lbs... MYYYYYY PEEEERSONAAAAL BEEEEEEEST! And her long ways

This past winter I bought a Garmin Virb Elite, finally joining everyone that films their trips on the water. I'm not very tech savvy so there's been a lot of trial and error (mostly error), trying to figure out how to properly film everything and editing the videos. My first few attempts were from the bottom of the boat where not much could be seen. I recently bought a suction cup mount and moved the camera to my boat's windshield and it helped a lot with being able to see what was going on and even seeing some of the strikes. I probably need to get a microphone for it next. Some of the on the water commentary and shenanigans that go on in my boat are probably more entertaining than the actual fishing There's a couple pretty good examples of that in this video.

The only bad days of fishing are when you can't go

Yesterday I caught my new personal best smallie. She's a 21 inch 4lb 1oz monster of a susquehanna river smallmouth. Caught her on a texas rigged bass pro stick-o in green pumpkin/black fleck. After the hookset i knew i had something good then it ran up to the top of the water and i seen that it was a giant.

This comment made me think of this picture, that pretty well describes my dogs way of thinking as well.

A Havoc Pit Boss does this very well also. I like the Papa Pit Boss because it's easier to cast weightless and has a bigger profile.

Thanks guys! I appreciate the kind words. I always peg my weights when using them. Always. I want to have direct contact with the bait at all times, and thus, detect the bite. Usually I fish with weights when I'm pitching into cover, or have thick vegetation. But more important than that, is when/if the fish want a faster fall. Sometimes a reaction bite is the only way to get them to bite, so a fast fall is in order. Other times they want a slow, lethargic fall, and that's when I go weightless.

Whenever I see a female on a bed, she's spawning, about to spawn, or just finished. I leave those fish alone. Males on a nest, I'll tease them, or search for cruisers.

It's my alter ego.

She's been gone MANY years but she went wherever I went - including in the boat. She'd get all excited when I had a fish on...but as soon as I landed the fish she'd take one sniff, turn up her nose, then go back and lay down. She was a great dog....

Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that. George Carlin...

I'd be looking at an off shelf Avid before trying to spec a custom for $200. IMO, you're not getting much rod in a custom for that kind of money.

How 'bout a smallmouth and a largemouth?

I am pretty partial to this new pair...... Jeff

First brown pair of 2015.

After 3 pretty hot days (80 is hot for where I'm from), I headed down to a local reservoir that is very highly pressured. Started the out with a jerk bait but as the sun started to set I decided to test out my new rod and throw a jawbone popper that I had just picked up from work. In a span of about 30 minutes I hooked up with 10 or 11 fish, all between 1.5-2 pounds. Not huge in size, but top water is fun no alter what size your hooking into. On a side not, the dicks brand "jawbone" makes some pretty nice poppers. Considering I get them for about two bucks they're unbeatable in my eyes. I plan on making a video about them soon. Fished a 1/4 bone colored popper. The only catch with these are that you need to replace the hooks. I went with size 6 vmc in red.

Add me to the drop shot doesn't work camp.

I would throw as light as I saw fit on spinning. 30 # would be heavy on spinning for some. I have 65 # on one of my casting outfits right now. I use it for jigs, heavy cover, and smaller swimbaits. I always tie a fluoro leader except for with the spro rat and smaller glide baits.

I would suggest picking one bait for your first outing. For me it would be a texas rigged worm since it is so versatile and effective. Learn how to rig it, learn the fundamental technique to present it - YouTube is your friend. Then go out and fish it. Then add another bait and learn the proper way to present it as you go, maybe even wait until the third or fourth outing before worrying about trying another bait. If you bring 5 different baits the first time you try freshwater fishing and are not comfortable with any of them, you're setting yourself up for disappointment. Good luck, and I hope you enjoy it!

Love the anaconda. Have had luck moving it fast subsurface. I will have to lighten it up and try it on the top.

Be mindful that the lighter the braid, the more it digs on casting gear. I wouldn't go lighter than 30#, I tend to use 50# the most with a fluoro leader.

definitely. Last week they were killing the frog over the mats. I figured during this part of the year, on Sunday days in the high 70's I figured they would be sticking under the moss to get away from the sunlight, and they came right through those mats. First time I had ever fished a frog in April. And tonight it seemed like they only wanted a popper.

Longer rods 7'+.... Pros- longer casts, better hook sets, better for deep diving crankbaits, swimbaits, big jigs, flipping and pitching, and winching fish out of cover. Cons- not as light or balanced, accuracy is not as good, can be a pain for fishing in close quarters (creek fishing in canoes, bank fishing in spots where space is limited), generally cost more. Shorter rods <7'..... Pros and cons - take all the pros and cons of the longer rods and reverse them.

Here is some interesting analysis done on the fumble rate before and after the rule change, championed by Brady went into place..... http://www.sharpfootballanalysis.com/blog/2015/the-new-england-patriots-mysteriously-became-fumble-proof-in-2007

Females that you can see near beds are tricky to catch. If they are with a male by a bed, it is very very difficult. I know its not as sporting to some, but I also fish an area heavily pressured and I do catch the bigger ones on beds that others can't get to bite. Some don't like me for it, but hey I toss them back so what does it matter what I caught it on? Anyhow, a whole LIVELY nightcrawler with a #6 hook buried in the head and 4# fluoro line (if open water, otherwise usually 8#). Let it fall in the bed or a place she is consistently swimming past, and don't move it. Just let it sit there and wiggle around on the bottom. Sometimes it takes as much as 5-10 minutes of watching for the fish to finally pick it up. When she does, get ready! That worm will go in a little, then get sucked in all the way. You have about a second to set the hook before that worm shoots back out... if she does that, then you have to do it all over again. I've tried the same technique with every plastic worm I've ever owned and they won't touch it. Now, fishing for females off the beds when they are just staged up and not looking to do "the business" yet is a totally different situation.. those will absolutely hit traditional baits.

I really couldn't care who won. Playing football is fun. Watching it is not. That said, if somebody won something and cheated in the winning of it (whether or not the cheating had any bearing on the actual winning of the thing), then that person or team should be stripped of all winnings and titles. Josh

I would use the shimano you don't wanna risk loosing a big un'.

I'll let you in on a little trick I learned years ago. Use a Carolina rig with the big weight and a 3 foot mono leader. Get a 2 or 3 thin wire Gama EWG hook. Take a tube bait of your favorite color, and put a little piece of packing Styrofoam inside the tube. Texas rig the tube with the foam inside and skin hook it. When sitting still the tube will float high above the weight, and when you pull the weight it will dive down and then float back up when sitting still. If you just shake the weight and don't pull it, the tube will dance in place. It can be deadly at times. Fish it slow and let the floating tube do its thing. When you feel a bite make a big sweeping hook set to take up all the slack quickly. You will need a big long rod to get the job done. Good luck.

Knobs are replaceable. No bearings though.

Plano 3701 boxes. I have 2 made up exactly the same. I keep 1 on the boat and the other 1 in my tackle bag. I'm covered in land or on the water. I use small pieces of painters tape in the compartments to label hook or weight sizes. I used spray adhesive to glue a section of that padded rubber you put in toolboxes or kitchen drawers in the lid. Nothing gets mixed up.

I have a falcon terminal tackle organizer. Works great.

I think if anyone here (and I know there are a ton of you) who are old enough to remember the birth of low profile baitcasters...then you can appreciate even the cheapest of Wal-Mart baitcasters today. I'm not that old by any means...just barely winking at 40...but I started using baitcasters when i was around 14. I had some old Lew's BB-1's, Browning Speed Spools, old Daiwa's, Quantum energy's, etc... Man, when Daiwa came out with 5-bearings I was totally flippin. Fast-forward to today's vast choices...you really can't go wrong. IMO, the more you're willing to shell out for a rig, the more satisfying said rig will perform. I'm a Lew's fanboi, so any Korean-made Lew's (not chinese) is IMO a joy to use. Upper end Daiwa's, Shimano's, Abu, etc...the same thing. They are all like "hand-candy". So much fun. As far as backlashing goes...yep, it happens. I'll occasionally tap a limb or tall grass with my bait on the cast and run into minor trouble. Might occasionally underestimate the wind or overestimeate my lure weight and have a small over run, but when you spend enough time out there, you'll eventually get it. IMO, a dual cast control reel is virtually impossible to backlash. You can set the centrifugal shoes so heavy and that early over run will never happen, and you can crank the mag down so far that the wind will not be an issue. The trick is setting it up so close to the edge of backlashing that you get your maximum distance on the cast. IMO, 10+ bearing reel with a metal frame and dual cast control is a great place to start. Now if you're going to be doing more technique specific fishing, then I'd use a dual control rig on light / finesse baits, and a centrifugal control reel on heavier baits because the magnetic cast control controls the end of the cast when the bait slows down. Heavier baits with less wind resistence will lose trajectory before velocity and hit the water before the spool needs to significantly slow down.

I was going to hit deep creek today but I'm heading to skippack creek. Starting to see the bass moving up when trout fishing in the past week. should be some good fishing in the next couple weeks both there and at deep creek. Hoping to get the kayak on the water there tomorrow afternoon for some bass! Anytime you want to head out and fish let me know man! We fish the same water.

I have the Falcon version of this box, Plano 45-501 Hook & Sinker Organizer, and highly recommend it. Now I wish Plano would bring back the Falcon rattle trap box. Just realized you didn't like this box, got to learn to read better lol As a second option I do use the double plano 3500 boxes for jigs and such, with come smaller baggies you could keep the smaller items in them. For snaps and split rings, etc I like the Plano Micro Magnum 2 sided boxes. Those have worked well for me. Fly boxes have also worked well for this too, Orvis has some nice ones that are of very good quality.

I always use super glue. I used to use straight shank, but like the EWG better. I'd still use a straight shank flipping hook with a snell for creatures though.

Looks like you need to come just across the boarder to Washington. Its been good this year!

Hi all! I fish deep creek, green lane, and nock (to a lesser extent) pretty regularly. I don't have a boat yet, but am always looking for folks to fish with!

The E is not riveted.

Call it what you want, but courageous probably isn't the best description. I found the hook of a Dep's 175 Slide swimmer with the bottom of a toe last weekend. Thankfully it was so sharp that it just ripped the bottom of my toe open instead of burying. I've always been a fan of being barefoot since I was a kid. I've pulled so many stickers and thorns out of my feet from doing it you'd think I'd learn

This is a Calcutta 100B handle. Removable knobs but you can't add bearings. IIRC, The Citica 200E is the same way. It has been a while since I owned one so you may be right about the knobs being riveted on.

From what I remember, the screw that holds the knob on is actually a slotted nut that acts as a bushing and I think the bottom of the knob shaft is kinda flared out so that it won't take a bearing. The Calcutta 100B is this way to. If the Curado 200E is the same as the Scorpion 1500 series, you can not add a second bearing because the Scorpion 1500 series also has the slotted nut but it did come with 1 useless cannot tell it's even there bearing.

Your a couple a feet off the beach and very short walk to the inlet, both daybreak and sunset is a great time to fish it. We are coming into that time of year where the beach can get hot. Beach shouldn't be too crowded early and late. Look for the blue signs that say guarded area, that's for swimmers, it's ok to fish it before the lifeguards get there. The inlet just before dawn on the outgoing tide, that's snookarama. Peacocks would be good in the afternoon, too many people on the beach. I personally love catching peas but they never take top billing over fishing the surf, peas are fun but there really is no comparison. Tons of restaurants there, I highly recommend the Greek Islands on the corner of A1A and Oakland Park.

From what I remember, you can replace the knobs but you can't add bearings if that is important to you.

True. They are reverse threaded. So if its a RH reel, you turn right to loosen them and opposite for a LH reel.

New, old…not a darn person will know about them if no one posts about it. Seriously guys, what is it that you think these forums are for, keeping secrets because you already know it all? Either help a guy out and contribute, or move on if your above the thread content. Remember, for every person that posts, there are untold numbers that do not.

Rod length effects accuracy distance and leverage. Short rods are more accurate and good in tight spots. Longer rods can get good leverage on a crankbait and wing it a mile. But it's harder to pinpoint your casts. Longer rods are also good for pitching and flipping as you can reach further towards your target making less splash and being more accurate. Short rods are good for techniques where you work slack like jerkbaits and topwater. Short rod won't slap the water surface. Longer spinning rods can be used for dropshot as you can reach them further from boat when video game fishing.

First outing of the season: today I stopped at a little river bayou on my way home from work to toss a few baits from shore for about 20min. Was not really expecting to catch anything, but ended up with this chunky 4lb-er as my first fish of the year. It took a little 4" pumpkinseed power worm on a finesse head.

Most of the time when I see people not having luck with stick baits it is because they are working the bait. 99% of the fish I catch on them hit on the initial fall, very few hit it when "worked". In fact, I have pretty much quit working them back to the boat. If I don't get bit on the initial drop then I'll pop it up about 6" off bottom and let it fall, if that doesn't work then I reel it in and make another cast.

It's on the dryer. Went with metallic lavender for the thread color.