Ratherbfishing

Not to be a "hater" but your statements seem to contradict each other. It is "fashionable" to hate Chinese stuff BUT there is a lot of crap coming out of China so it isn't without cause.

I think a distinction needs to be made between what is "hype" and what is generally "good practice." Sure, you can fish fast* in the winter and sometimes get onto some fish. You can also fish topwater in open water on a scalding bright day in July and sometimes catch fish. But what is the most likely scenerio? I always (or nearly always) go with what I believe will work (and has worked) first and then, if that fails me, move outside the box. Except, perhaps, in extremely pressured waters, it makes little sense to start at the top (small end) of the pyramid and move down. *There are always exceptions and perhaps the most notable one I can think of is lipless crankbaits in cold water. When I first began fishing, I was at a small pond in the early spring. NOTHING seemed to work. Well, almost nothing. I'd always heard to fish slow in cold water but since that didn't work and since i had a rat-l-trap in my box which I mostly used for white bass, I'd try that. My reasoning was if nothing slow would work, try the exact opposite. I hadn't read anything about this phenomenon before but as many other people have learned, that was the ticket. One way you can discern "hype" is if someone is trying to make money off something. If some "pro" on your television set (who could easily be confused with a NASCAR driver) lifts a lure up to the camera lens, and tells you that you absolutely HAVE to have this lure to catch fish (or big fish), it is hype. Or if some newbie tells you someting will work because he (or she) saw it on tv or read it in a magazine, it is hype. Fisherman are always looking for that magic bullet.

I recently acquired a spincast reel out of some misguided sense of nostalgia. It is, perhaps, not the very best reel on the market but certainly one of the higher end ones. In any event, you can put a bow and lipstick on a pig and it's still a pig. It did not take me long to remember why I moved away from them when I could afford to do so. Sure, they will function as a reel. They will take in line (slowly), they will cast really far and they do have drags, but in most respects they do the job only about half as well as any spinning or baitcasting reel. I've never seen myself as a snob but I do get snooty when my equipment isn't up to the task.

Confucius also say, he who walks sideways through airport turnstyle is likely going to Bangkok.

In stained water I don't think it makes much difference at all but in very clear water (such as what we had in Canada) where the fish are shy, red, shiny treble hooks can trigger bites. Not always, perhaps, but often enough to make them worth considering.

Confucius say: He who reveals his good fishing spots too soon will soon find he has none.

I don't see that as quirky. I see it as a way of not accidentally handing a cashier the wrong denomination. It sure beats having it all wadded up in your pocket.

There are several but the one that comes to mind is when my nieces were preteenagers, I drove them out to the river on an August day. On the way there, we sang along to a song on the radio. Listening to 2 girls sing "See the young man sitting in the old man's bar, waiting for his turn to die..." is a hoot. Anyway, we traipsed down to the river where, naturally, the fish weren't biting so I gave that up, climbed into the river with them and piled mud on an overhanging tree limb in the river. It was a silly game but we had fun. and I'm so glad I put down my fishing pole. I need to ask my nieces if they remember that.

I've never been to Walnut Point but I have, unfortunately, experienced fishing like you described. Summer and, especially, late summer can be hard! Hmmm...I'm trying to think of other lakes I've fished in the local area. Weldon Springs-early spring trip-couldn't catch a cold, A pond in Sibley (not to be confused with Sidney)-Not a very scenic pond but caught a few decent bass, Heritage lake on the old Chanute AFB grounds-pretty good in spring, not so good in summer. I've never been to Lake Vermillion (in or near Danville) so I won't provide comment. Some lakes that are worth a drive if you have the time and/or gas money: Sanchris, Mill Creek, Kankakee River-has walleye, smallmouth, etc. Evergreen Lake (near Bloomington) (has sauger, bass, muskie, white bass, crappie)-but also requires a boat fee if you are out-of-district (which champaign is). There is another lake I'd share but I'd want to know what kind of fisherman you are first. Newton Lake is famous for big bass. Personally, somewhat ashamedly, in the three times I've been there, i didn't do that great. Dawson Lake has walleye which is a bit of an exotic species for around here. (Well, Clinton has walleye too but you know how I feel about that lake-(bwell has heard me rage about that lake on many occassions). Dawson is not great for bass though, apparently, there are a few small tourney's on it each year. Given it's size, I am surprised it is fished as hard as it is. Perhaps it's because, while it has a no-wake restriction, boats are not limited to certain horsewpower motors and anyone can put on there.

Central Illinois, while not exactly a bass fishing desert, does have its limitations. I've fished many ponds at Kickapoo with limited success. The ponds are deep and clear and not very fertile so their carrying capacity is limited. You can catch a fair number of dinks, though, if that is worth your while. Lake Mingo has some decent bass though it, too, is hit or miss. If you like to wade, the middle fork river has smallmouth and rock bass. I've never tried the south fork but it, too, has fish. I will fish Dawson lake (near Le Roy) sometimes but the last time I was there it was so crowded I couldn't believe it. There are some pretty good lakes but many are over an hour away. I've heard other people swear by Clinton but clearly they must be better fishermen than me because I hate that lake. I have a couple of neighborhood retention ponds I fish but one they seem to be doing their best to ruin it with chemicals.

I will say hi but I don't ask how someone has done or is doing. Particularly if my day has been rotten. : (

Amen to that!

I'm tired of Minn kota's. Was wondering if any other brand trolling motor has their version of the maximizer?

Earlier this summer I sorted out a soft tackle box so I could fit all my Canada baits in it. This required relocating a huge gob of soft plastics of various shapes and colors that I rarely use. (I mean to use them, I just never do). This is not including the other soft tackle box I have stuffed to the proverbial gills with more recent purchases. Now, more recently, I have almost gotten sucked into buying musky and big pike baits, too. God help me! It's probably been good that the weather has been too hot to fish much or my spending would probably go through the roof. Actually, compared to what I'm reading on this thread, my purchases have been relatively modest. Just wish I had more opportunities and locations to use what I already have. I tell myself-when I retire.

I wouldn't worry excessively about what you are doing wrong. Summertime can be as difficult as winter to get the fish to bite (when YOU want them to, anyway). And it's about the time that I start feeling smug with myself (that I really know what I'm doing) that the fish stop biting and/or I stop catching. Don't beat yourself up and just keep at it. If you find it's not fun, stop for a bit, and then pick it up again when you feel like it.

Really? REALLY?!!!!

Depends more on the location than the fish. In faster moving streams and rivers, I like medium action spinning rods with a strong mono like Yozuri. In deeper, clear lakes, I like baitcasting gear.

Just returned from Canada (Lake of the Woods) less than a week ago. While it may not always be the norm (seems to be the norm at LOTW), only one of the smallmouth we caught attacked a "normal" sized crankbait. The rest were caught on 1.5 ounce (as big as they come) Rattletraps or 7" and 9" Rapala Magnums. Even the smaller bass insisted on something really large. Depending upon where you are, therefore, I would not hesitate to go to a BIG bait. For the bigger baits, the only thing I'd change, if it doesn't affect the action, is to change out the hooks to a smaller size.

I caught a mean case of something but penicillin cleared it right up!

There's always some (expletive inserted here) who won't let you in but by-in-large people are usually pretty good (around here anyway). We lose our sense of neighborliness, however, when someone blows by a long row of cars. I haven't anything against minivans (even those from Alaska). Subaru's on the other hand..... Joking!!!!

I generally carry a hard box for my crankbaits and spinnerbaits and a small soft box for my soft plastics (each in their respective store package). I still spend way too much time searching for the soft plastic I want to use but I'm not huffing and puffing by the time I get to my car.

No but I once shot a zebra wearing pajama's. : )

Some people use "Bluegill", like "bream" to denote any (or most) of the similarly shaped or colored sunfish. So, when used in this context, there are different kinds of bluegill. But more accurately (as has already been explained), bluegill are one kind of sunfish.

on Interstate 74 the other day, I thank you! Because of road construction ahead, traffic was backed up and moving at a snails pace. All the responsible and courteous drivers had moved into the left lane where traffic was forced to eventually merge. Suddenly, a car roars past in the right lane. Not long after that, you, the Tundra driver, having witnessed enough of this, move out of the left lane and into the right lane. You then proceeded forward at the same pace as the car next to you. Along comes mister mini van driver with Alaskan plates who, like the previous car, thinks he's too special to wait like the rest of us poor schmucks. However, because your Tundra is has effectively blocked his progress, mr. mini is forced to drive at the same pace. Now it may actually be illegal what you did (I never checked the lawbooks) but I doubt any of us other drivers who witnessed this were complaining. Personally, I would've bought you dinner and slapped you on the back!

Don't know if it's 'cause I'm getting older (probably) but I'm finding it harder and harder to lug everything around with me-either on the boat or on shore. Therefore, obviously, I leave a lot more at home-which of courses makes it harder and harder to justify buying more stuff. The bait monkey has had a hold of my private parts for far too long so I don't much mind disappointing him but my pack mule now lacks any purpose in his life.