Fishes in trees

When I am riding in some one else's boat and I can only carry 5 or 6 rods, my 6'3" Diawa Light & Tough Finesse rod makes the cut. It can handle any kind of line I want to put on it, from 4 lb test and 1/8 oz Slider heads to 10 lb fluorocarbon to any reasonable weight of braid. It has a sensitive enough tip and enough of a stiff butt section that I can confidently set the hook on a slider rig 50 to 60 feet away.

Over the past several years I have owned a couple of different scales. I don't trust any of them. They all lie. Oh, they will weigh dead weights, like 5 lb barbells easy enough. You put a live fish on one and they always weigh a pound or maybe 3 lbs lighter than they should. It is very frustrating. I've taken to leaving the scale at home

I think that we can all agree that some hooks are lighter than others. Me, I like the Gamakatsu Wicked wacky hooks in a 1/0, 2/0 or 3/0 size, depending on baits. I'm not a big fan of those drop shot hooks that are mounted on swivels.

I just picked up some hand pour jerk baits that will get used some this spring. Hard to explain the design and I don't know how to post pictures, but is a combination of design features of a fluke and a slug go. If you remember the old Mann's Shaddow - it is similar to that with better colors and slightly softer plastic. They are meant to be nose hooked - either with an open hook (vendor furnished a 3/0 octopus hook) or some hook with a wire weed guard. This guy didn't have a snappy name for his bait, he just called it a "shad bait" & in conversation he called it a "dying shad bait"

I attended the first evening of the Kansas City Sports Show, yesterday evening. I was disappointed. There were only 2 tackle dealers, plus a rod dealer. The rest of the booths were lodges and others fishing areas, trying to get you to go to their spot. I had skipped the past couple of years, for some reason I thought this year might be better. Not so much.\ Anyway, I did get a couple of thousand yard spools of Abrazx for slightly less than Tackle Warehouse lists them for. The other soft plastic vendor had some pretty neat hand pours - a variation combining aspects of a fluke - senko & slug go. So I guess the goal of getting me to part with some of my money was achieved. Anyway, I am probably going to send the organizers another disappointing E-Mail - again. Next year, maybe I will go and maybe I won't - I was really bored when I made the decision to go to this one.

I can't speak to Abu products. I've only been musky fishing a couple of times. I acquired a decent musky rod, for a reel I decided to go with a Calcutta 250, which I acquired in the late 90's. Anyway, I had some concerns about whether that reel would hold up, was primarily throwing ounce to ounce and a half buck tails. I called Shimano and basically they said , "I dare you to tear up that reel on a musky." The service representative I talked to on the phone had no doubt that the Calcutta would stand up to any musky I'd run into. I think that goes for most bass reels. I think that if you think that the gears will stand up to repeated casting of heavier baits, go for it.

Mind you, I generally fish by myself, so I am not concerned about someone else stepping on gear that I've got spread around the boat. If I step on gear I've got spread around the boat - shame on me. Here is what I carry - generally - extremely subject to change: A finesse spinning rod A couple of spinner bait rods A frogging rod - doubles as a A-rig rod A finesse drop shot rod A couple of bubba drop shot rods A rod rigged with a rattle bait A rod rigged with a square bill A rod rigged with some top water bait - generally a popper, but maybe a spook or a buzz bait A medium duty jig rod, rigged with 15 lb fluorocarbon A heavier duty jig rod - rigged with 17 lb fluorocarbon A finesse jig rod - rigged with 10 lb abrazx A jerkbait rod ( generally spinning gear) A tx rig senko rod (spinning gear with braid & fluorocarbon leader) A wacky senko rod. A swim bait rod. I carry a rod for Timber Tigers the DC 13 & DC 16 models. Currently I am using a MH spinning rod with a kind of limber tip for this. Braid and a fluorocarbon leader set up. I've used bait casters for this in the past, but last year I tried the spinning gear - to deal with the wind and get better distance mostly and it has worked out ok so far. I'm sure I am forgetting some. If I bring someone else along in my boat I cut down the number of rigs some - to decrease clutter. What I cut depends on seasonal patterns. When I co-angle in some one else's boat, it is 5 or 6, maybe 7 rods tops. Depends on what & where I'm fishing. When I was fishing BFL's as a co-angler, I'd bring a dozen or more rods and the evening before the tournament, cull down to half a dozen, based on the plan for the next day.

Finances don't allow it right now, but I want one of those Hummingbird 360 depth finders. If I fished bigger lakes more, I would have the largest screen GPS available. Driving down the lake, a big screen is easier to follow than a smaller screen is.

I think that we can all agree that the definitive answer is - maybe.

For where I live - mid-summer conditions, my guiding principle is - Low & Slow. By this I mean I'm sticking close to the bottom and relatively slowly moving them along. For the most part, I don't deadstick. If you have lots of lily pads, there are probably some fish underneath some of those pads somewhere. Step A for me would be to float a wacky senko down the outside edge of the pads, vegetation, whatever was there. Step B would probably be throwing frogs. Punch baits might be an option, but I would imagine that throwing punch baits from a kayak could get problematic. Fishing from a kayak, is trolling allowed? What is the difference between trolling and fishing a deep bait and getting blown around by the wind? The more I think about it, where I fish anyway, summer tournaments are won 1 of 2 ways. Either an early morning top water bite pop-R or buzz bait, or low & slow throughout the day, fishing deeper points and cover. I don't really know how pads fit into that equation. I might spend a little time on the pads and grassy flats, especially because some time during the day on most lakes there is feeding action that takes place on grassy flats. For the most part though, I would probably spend time on deeper points, looking for cover on those deeper points. Over the past few years, for me anyway, jika rigs have been more effective than texas rigs or jigs on deeper points with cover.

I have a large assortment of Lucky Crafts, Rogues, X-Raps, Husky Jerks & regular Rapala baits. I generally start with Lucky Craft. Everyone has their own ideas about how to make jerk baits work. I do also. I prefer spinning gear for stick baits because generally when the stick bait bite is on, it is somewhat windy. I have had too many bad experiences with throwing jerk baits in the wind with bait casting gear that I just refuse to mess with it anymore. I use a short 6'3" Medium action spinning rod with an extra fast tip. This length works for me so that when I'm doing a downward jerking action with the rod, I'm not smacking into the side of the boat or into the water. I realize I could extend my casting distance if I went to a 7 1/2' rod but the extra length is an extra hassle in this case. Early in the spring, guys want to get their baits to suspend as deep as possible, and some companies tell lies about how deep their baits will suspend. I think 3 or 4 feet is plenty in most situations, fish will come up to get a suspended jerk bait if they want it. I throw mine on 14 lb Fireline Crystal and a 3 foot or so fluorocarbon leader, generally 15 lb test. As far as colors go, you've just got to experiment and find the color that works for you that day. Me, I generally start with a Pointer 100 SP in a Table Rock Shad color. I tend to stick with that color because I get bit on that color a lot. As far as which came first - me liking the color or getting bit on the color - I dunno. Clown is a good color though, if I'm on Grand Lake, I am starting with a clown color. The tournament success of that color on that lake is difficult to ignore. I've rambled on here a little bit, and I didn't mean to because I'm not that good of a jerk bait fisherman. The gear I described in the previous paragraph is the result of my jerk bait experiences over the past decade. Your experiences may vary. My other bit of advice for jerk baits is to buy a pack of suspend dots and suspend strips (sticky lead tape) and be prepared to experiment with how you weight your baits. Suspending jerk baits are temperature sensitive and a bait that suspends correctly at 45 degree water doesn't necessarily suspend correctly at 50 degree water and visa/versa. There are lots of jerk baits out there. Day in and day out, I think that the "walk the dog" action you can get with a lucky craft 5' down is hard to duplicate with other brands of baits, and when you stop the bait, it has a unique "shiver" that other jerk baits don't have. Lots of guys down at LOZ throw rogues. There is even a Rogue only tournament on LOZ .

Who cares about pimping Mustad hooks? In my opinion, I think that we can all agree that a quality craft beer, a lager, a pilsner, maybe a session IPA, totally enhances the entire fishing experience. In fact, I think that we all can agree that first thing in the morning, after a few casts, we should stop what we are doing and pound a cold one, in doing so we are paying homage to the beer gods, who, after all, are in cahoots with the fishing gods. If you think about your next few fishing tackle purchases while you are pounding a cold one first thing in the morning, so much the better. (but that is optional, if you are distracted by scenery and fail to think about tackle purchases, that is excusable.) It is good that we can all agree on stuff.

If you want anything better than a generic answer, knowing the neighborhood you fish in would be nice. Knowing what kind of fishing you do now, and what kind of fishing you aspire to would also get a more detailed response. That being said, in my opinion, a 1/4 oz Brewer Slider head and a 4" straight tail worm or a 5" paddle tail worm works nearly anywhere.

Back in the day, I remember when 5 something to one gear ration was considered a high speed reel. Most of my reels are 5 to 1. I feel like I can fish whatever technique I want to with them. Over the past few years I've switched over to a few Curado 50 E's on a few of my soft plastic rigs. These have a 6.4 to 1 ratio. I haven't found that it has, much effect on my fishing, except that I really like the lighter weight of the Curado 50. I imagine that should I feel the need for a higher ration reel I will buy one, but right now I'm not feeling the need right now.

The correct answer is "all of the above" Keep soft plastics in their original packaging, unless that packaging is broke, then, for the most part quart sized zip lock freezer bags work. Keep similar styles of soft plastics grouped together in gallon size zip lock bags. You may have to go to sub categories here. For instance, in the category of "finesse worms" there is a separate gallon zip lock for Trick worms, another for 5" paddle tail worms, another for Brewer Slider worms, another for off-brand 4" to 6" straight tail finesse worms. Zoom finesse worms rate their own bag and so forth. Spare and overflow soft plastics are kept in plastic shoe boxes ( available at Walmart for around a buck each ) Now, however many different categories of soft plastics you think you need, these go into a canvas bag or a duffle bag. My boat has a minimal amount of storage, so I just throw the bag on the boat floor and try not to trip over it. Please be mindful that there isn't any perfect soft plastic storage method, and for me at least, everything is subject to change and re-organization.

Step A - send in your entry fee and get a confirmed entry. Sometimes co-anglers get put on waiting lists. Step B - once you get confirmed, then start looking around for a pre-fishing ride. You can generally find one if you look hard enough. I don't have any clue what kind of fishery Chesapeake Bay is, but I'm pretty sure someone on this board does. By the way, when is the tournament, what is your time frame?

When they first came out, the All Star rods were first rate, cutting edge technology. They are still decent rods, I have a few that still get used from time to time. Did you get a spinning or a bait casting model?

I want my rattle bait to be shiny and reflect some light.

Maybe some swim bait that was of the appropriate size. I believe that the Sebile soft magic swimmers are sized for a 5/0 hook

If you have a flat with vegetation on it, down to 7' or so, there is potential for a rattle bait bite. Deeper than 7' and I think that other options are better. My first choice is a Berkley Frenzy (long since discontinued) in a shiny, shad like color. I have 4 of them left. Second choice would be a Cordell Spot. I have some of the old Rappala Rattlin Rap baits, in an assortment of colors and sizes, but they haven't gotten wet in a couple of years. Same for the assortment of Red Eye shads, Diamond Shads, Original Rattle Traps. I do have a Yo-Zuri Hardcore Drum in a shiny baitfish color that I will pull out in water that has recently become stained. No particular reason other than it has worked in that situation in the past. I throw these baits on 17 or 20 lb mono. The rod I currently use is a Falcon Bucco "trap caster" and I am pretty happy with the sensitivity and the distance I get out of this rod. If I was limited on rods, I'd use this rods for square bills, spinnerbaits, buzz baits, anything relatively shallow where I wanted a moving bait, but I'm not so I don't. I use different rods for each of those baits.

Never tried that specific jerk bait you've mentioned Duo Realis. However, I down a variety of jerk baits in a multitude of sizes that the times when the smaller ones ( like a 78 DD Pointer) out fish the regular size ones are few - IMO. I generally start with a 100 size pointer, altered with one suspend dot between the lip and the front hook hanger. If that don't work within a half an hour, there are a number of Rogues, Husky Jerks,, X-Raps, Long- A's, and Redfins that are all shouting at me, yelling "Put me in, coach."

I've got a couple of blue rods (Kistler, Fenwick AETOS) and I like them. I've got a few green rods (BPS, Kistler, All Star) and they are good rods, IMO. The older All Star rods were a burgundy/brownish color and I liked them a lot. That being said, I would never buy an orange rod or a yellow rod - color would be the deal breaker - just don't like the looks of them. I'm not sold on the white rods, either. Thankfully, assuming I don't break any, I think I am set for a few years as far as rods go, so I don't have any agonizing rod purchase color decisions to make.

Just a question, but for the money you're going to spend in shipping, would it be possible to get a custom rod made, somewhere close to where you live? I'm just a Missouri boy, and I got no clue about what is and what ain't available in Durban, South Africa, but I still think that it is a fair question.

Berkley recently re-released Iron Silk and I think that is a good cranking line. 10 lb for cranking deep, 14lb for throwing square bills, 17 or 20 for throwing Rattle traps, it was also a decent spinner bait line. The old Iron Silk did have some memory issues, which could be addressed by using the KVD line treatment or Line Magic. The other thing that worked for me was getting the line warmed up, i.e. taking it easy the first few casts, letting the line get wet and stretched out a little bit before I put a bunch of muscle into it and went for maximum distance. What I liked most about this line was the abrasion resistance and knot strength.

Apparently, you've got 4 basic choices. You can hop it, drag it, swim it or dead stick it. Combining different techniques within the same cast gives you a nearly infinite number of choices (or more than I feel like counting, anyway). Timing is variable with all these choices. That is where you start. Let the experiments begin. Me, I don't texas rig very often. Over the past couple of years, a jika rig has proved more effective that a texas rig for me, and I fish it in the same kind of places.