Fishes in trees

I have a similar rod that I use for casting Rattle Trap type baits.

A spinner bait generates a reaction strike, you pull it past a fish and they are either going to strike it or not. That being said, maybe a solid chartreuse bait might be a little gaudy for your situation. If it were me and I had to see if there was a spinnerbait bite in 4' of clear water, I'd probably go with something more finesse oriented, both size wise - maybe around a quarter ounce or so and color-wise, something like a "blue glimmer" or War Eagles "mouse or spot remover" colors. Another question, have you ever seen a bass in this 4' deep, clear water? That would make a difference in so far as how much time I'd devote to this endeavor.

When you get back, check out the Fishing for Freedom event that happens every year, the weekend prior to Columbus day at Long Shoal Marina on Truman Lake.

I've been that guy you're talking about - here's my perspective. I'm going down the shore line, pitching at shoreline cover. Trolling motor is down, depth finder is on, I'm looking at that and also looking for stumps and stuff immediately in front of me so I don't smack into them. For the most part, I'm just looking at shore line cover, where am I going to pitch at next, other than that I'm chilling, not really looking at anything. Then, all of a sudden, darn, there's somebody fishing from the bank. Didn't see them - sorry, pitch was already in motion before I noticed you. Sorry - unfortunate side effect of being focused on your fishing. I'm not going out of my way to be a jerk, but I'm not looking all around to check everything out prior to every case either. I don't know what I'd say to the shore bound angler other than - oops, sorry. If the shore angler really wanted to be noticed, he'd have on hip boots and be out from the bank a couple of feet or so, make an effort to be easier to see and get better casting angles as well. No need to throw a rock or anything over a simple lapse in concentration. Don't be a hater just because I got a boat and you don't. If you are fishing public waters, sooner or later lines are going to get crossed - just chill. Maybe go the extra mile and find more private waters where you can bank fish and not run into jerks like me, I don't know. I do know that when I launch my boat on public waters, I don't own the water, I'm just using it. I know that the same thing applies for a bank fisherman. Just because there are mobility issues doesn't mean that he "owns" the particular spaces he's fishing. I really hope that somewhere there is a happy medium here, Bank fishermen don't need to be bouncing lures off of boats or boaters when they get too close. Basically that is assault and that ain't good. Why don't you just chill and we will all try to get along. My point here is that what you might think is inconsiderate, might just be a case of a guy spacing out a little bit while he's fishing.

I fastened a 5' piece of 2" plastic pipe to the tongue of my trailer, to give myself something to grab on to an steady myself as I enter/exit the boat. It also functions as an aiming point as I drive the boat on to the trailer. I considered getting the pair of guide poles, but with the orientation of the ramp on the lake I most often fish as, I am often loading in a crosswind. If I miss the trailer and I have it positioned a little too deep, I'd be likely to drift over and snap off the guide pole. Mounting the one pole on the trailer tongue served two purposes for me.

If you stick with reels that say SHIMANO on the side of them, you will be a better person and your self-esteem will improve. . ..

Pitching is easier standing up, but you can learn to pitch from any position, just takes practice. The principle of pitching is assort cast that stays relatively low to the water and enters the water relatively silently. A good bait casting reel, where the spool starts spinning easily helps a lot. I like Curado's, Chronarch's and Calcutta 200 TEGT's. You can also learn to pitch with spinning gear. Sitting down all the time, might be the easier choice. You might try a shorter rod, you might be giving up a little hook setting leverage. That might be negligible, I don't know. Don't be surprised if you get a backlash or two while you are learning how to pitch sitting down. Don't be surprised if you get wrist or elbow pain while learning how to pitch. As you are learning, trying for more distance, you tend to "snap" your wrist and elbow more. Over time that hurts. You might want to learn that Jimmy Houston side arm roll cast, a different motion from pitching that gets the same results. I can't explain how to do it, just make yourself watch him on TV and try to emulate it.

I'm planning on fishing frogs more this year. I just got one of those "Flip the Bird" lures, so that is the bait I'm going to start with this year.

Not that I fish TX rigs very often, but when I do I tend to drag them. An exception is when the fish are suspended in trees. Then it is strictly a drop presentation. In that situation, I very seldom get hit once the worm hits the bottom. A fair question is what are you going to to do once you get stuck? (and you are going to get stuck) Are you on the bank or in a boat? When I am in a boat and I get braid stuck, the only thing to do is to wrap it around a boat cleat several times and back off with the trolling motor. I am not a fan of line cuts on my hands, don't ask why I know this. Braid is strong enough that it is possible to warp or bend a reel spool if you get seriously stuck and you start pulling on a straight line with your reel.

No snaps of clips for me. I've got the stubby finger syndrome and I find the snaps and especially the Norman speed clips a pain to use. I make sure I've got decent split rings on the cranks and tie direct to them. Once upon a time, I thought the speed clips were THE answer, but I didn't account for how stubby my fingers were. Now all the speed clips are being repurposed into jika rigs.

In my experience, selling a boat to a friend is a bad idea. If I had it to do over again, I'd keep the boat. If storage isn't an issue, keep the boat. Or let your buddy "borrow" it on a temporary/permanent basis.

It is just one more thing to pay attention to. Lots of guys prefer a hand control trolling motor over a foot control. One thing, if you get your foot control trolling motor severely caught up in weeds, you got to pull it up and clean it off. With a hand control, you can learn to switch to reverse for a few seconds and often you can make it shed the weeds. Next, the wind is your friend. You'll learn how to fish while you are drifting, using your trolling motor in short bursts to correct your drift. This requires practice. I know this sounds simple. but learn to steer with either hand. Back when I had my little boat, it was almost like I could make fish bite by taking my hand off the reel and reaching down to mess with the trolling motor. I assume the trolling motor will hang off the transom and not the bow. That is a challenge to learn how to fish that way, but once you learn you'll be ok. The advantage to a bow mount trolling motor is that it is easier to pull a chain than push it.

Yeah, the dog will probably scratch the gel coat a little. So what, gel coats can be buffed out. I wouldn't worry about it much. That boat is made to fish out of, not to worry about every little scratch you put on it.

I'm not much help, Ilive on the edge of the KC Metro area. Years ago, I lived in Columbia, There was a conservation area, the next exit east of HWY 54, called the Grindstone Nature Area, I think. In the mid 80's, there were multiple large ponds on the property and 1 90 acre or so lake with a decent ramp. Back then, I didn't go there very often because I had better places to go closer to home. That was 20+ years ago. I've no idea what shape it is in now. I'd recommend getting the Atlas from the MO Conservation Department, which lists each piece of ground the department owns county by county. You'd be surprised how many medium sized lakes the conservation department owns/manages. Nearly every county as 3 or 4, often they have more. That's where I'd start looking for different fishing spots.

Make a wooden version of the old "possum belly" tackle boxes, with dove tail joints, fold out trays, the whole works. Make it out of oak, or hickory, walnut, teak, or some other hardwood. Use brass fittings for the hinges, corners, etc. Get an A

I've got the 6'10" Bucoo MH. I think it is a great wacky senko rod. I can pitch a senko with a 1/16 oz weighted wacky hook a reasonable distance, maybe max 50 or so feet, 40 feet with reliable accuracy. I used to use Calcutta 200 TEGT and 15 lb fluorocarbon line. This year I got a Chronarch 50, primarily for weight reduction. I always pitch with it, don't think I've ever done an overhead or side arm cast with it. So , I think it is a good rod, can't say how versatile it is. Any rod you use for different purposes is by definition versatile, so go with the one you like best.

Filleting fish is a skill that improves with practice. I've used Rapala fillet knives for years without issues. You might have gotten a bad one. I've found that Rapala fillet knives hold their edge pretty well. Just practice. I had one of those ceramic rod sharpeners that worked ok for me. While you are learning, take your time and don't hurry. Some crappie fishermen swear by the electric fillet knives. I've got one, but I've only used it for carving pork roasts & beef briskets. It works great for that.

On the Bass Raiders, the best place to mount the transducer is on the trolling motor. The advantages of having the transducer pointing straight down off the trolling motor on the front of the boat outweigh the disadvantages. If you want to remove the transducer from the trolling motor each time, use zip ties and it is a fairly simple procedure to snip them off each time.

For me, that bait is a bubba drop shot bait. I start with the bluegill color and then go to work with my spike-it markers, Chartruese edging along the fins, a little orange on the throat, a little red around where the gills are supposed to be. I will nose hook it flat using a gammy wicked wacky hook, usually a 2/0, maybe a 3/0. I fish this bait on 20 lb fluorocarbon, a fairly short dropper line, probably less than a foot. Any piece of structure or cover in 3 to 10 feet of water, I will drop this bait next to it, into it, whatever. I supply the action, for the most part with the tip of my pitching stick, but just hanging there, pinned to the bottom with a half ounce drop shot weight there is always a little bit of a flutter. Just trying to imitate a dead - dying little fish.I don't let it sit long 5 - 10 - 20 seconds max. Just depends. It is supposed to have the BPS scent cooked into it, but I generally spray it with the BANG shad flavored spray, or whatever I've got handy. I saw the slot in the bait and thought maybe you could rig it with some sort of jig head or maybe a smaller Owner Beast swim bait hook, but I haven't bothered to try that yet.

I'm not seeing any pictures.

Bass Pro used to have the best crank bait storage boxes. They were just a little bit wider than a regular 3700, double sided, with V shaped slots on either side. If enough of us ***** enough, maybe they will bring them back. I have 8 or 9 or them. I should have bought more when they were still available, but WHO KNEW that BPS would stop carrying a well thought out, well engineered product. I have several of the different sizes of plano crank bait boxes as well. I like to keep my cranks organized in different "kits" according to function, i.e. clear water square bills, dingy/muddy water cranks, deep timber tigers, shallow timber tigers, deep divers, med. diving cranks, Rattle baits, shad raps, etc.

I have a 5'3" Fenwick HMG Spinning rod that I use for my Ned rig. I have a couple of 5'6" pistol grip bait casting rods that I don't use often because I don't like the grip. I like a shorter rod for top water fishing, poppers & sammies. Years ago I found a straight handled 5'9" Mitchell Fulcrum rod at Walmart. It is on the medium side of MH and it works great for top water stuff. Top water frogs are different. I've got a 7'9" Fenwick AETOS heavy action rod for that. It doubles as my A-rig rod.

There are dozens of good brands of spinnerbaits out there, even before you get into custom manufacturers. I tend to use Terminators and War Eagles. However, every time I walk into any fishing tackle store, I look to see if they have any custom spinnerbaits. If they do, I always buy some, just for my collection if for nothing else. I'd hate to count all the spinnerbaits in my collection - several hundred easily. The vast majority of them will never see water, but they are a valued part of my collection.

Don't limit yourself with just one more rig. Keep getting rigs until you're tripping over them in your boat, then cut back a couple so that you don't trip as much. You're gonna need a shaky head rig, and a bubba shaky head rig, and a drop shot rod and a bubba drop shot rod, and a pitching rod, and a ned rig, and a weightless senko rig, and a cranking rod and a square bill rod and a spinnerbait rod. That's just for starters. Buy them all. Fishing rigs cost money. Fishing time is priceless. Don't be scared of debt. You can always make more money. My current favorite these days, among my newer rigs is a 7' MH spinning rod (it is on the medium side of MH) I'm throwing deep diving cranks using 14 lb Fire line. I like it because I can make side arm casts into the wind, much easier and with much more distance than my bait casting deep cranking rig. With fewer line problems, I am almost immune to wind. Being serious for a moment, (which is a challenge), figure out which kind of fishing you like best, and buy the best rig you can afford, tailored to that technique. You already use your other rod for other techniques anyway.

There isn't any substitute for practice. A vacant mall parking lot is a good place to start. Backing down a ramp though, the angles change some and that is a different kind of practice. I don't know about where you live, but most of the ramps at lakes in my neighborhood aren't busy during the week, mid morning to early afternoon. When you are first starting out, MAKE YOURSELF A CHECKLIST OF ALL THE DIFFERENT STEPS YOU NEED TO GO THROUGH FROM BEING ON THE ROAD TO BEING ON THE WATER. Include essential gear that has to move from your truck to your boat and back. It seems that different places I've seen different check lists, so you might not need to re-ivnent the wheel, but I don't remember where I saw them, so you might. Look around and you might find one. Don't forget your at home homework - i.e. bearings greased? Got the boat plug? Lights work? Got enough gas? Stuff like that. I have check lists posted in my fishing shed, reminding me of when I did what. Most importantly, don't take it too seriously. I've been that guy who held everyone else up at the ramp because I didn't really know what I was doing. Most of us, at one time or another, have been that guy. I've also been that guy who offered to help. I've also been that guy who, when his help was politely declined, knew that the only thing to do was to pop a top and watch the show. Really, declining help isn't rude. Boat loading is something you need to learn how to do by yourself and you need do go through the learning curve. An exception to this rule would be putting in or taking out on a river with a strong current, like the Missouri River, with limited or no docking facilities. Don't even try to do that by yourself, you're asking for it. Don't ask how I know this. As mentioned earlier, an empty mall parking lot is a good place to start. It is good to know how tight you can turn, how tight you can back up, etc. Just takes practice. Another thing that I found out is that just because you get competent backing up one trailer doesn't mean that you are automatically expert in backing all trailers. There are lots of variables.