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Not much. But fair bass fishing is a quick drive away. Most local ponds and lakes are posted. Even DOT retention ponds are getting posted now. Saltwater is the game here but there is access through county parks to a few freshwater canal systems. The 2 local rivers turn shallow as they get sweeter. Kayak, Gheenoe and jon boat territory. Webb/Babcock Wildlife Management Area has a managed lake system.

Remove the oil as best possible. Oil contaminates your drag. Get Cal's Drag Grease or shimano Drag Grease and dabble a light coat on the non metallic washers. Don't use regular grease, it needs to be drag specific.

Your going to be very limited. North of the 761 bridge there are bass but not below it normally, unless the flow is significant. Its not. as a matter of fact this winter with typical winter tides its very hard to not get grounded north of the bridge. The first 100 yards above the bridge especially. There are 3 fingers sort of like oxbows(you can see them on Google Earth) that are deeper and hold bass. Shoreline typically. Tons of sunken wood after Charlie. Use caution north of there and time your ride with high tide and you can get to Horse Creek. Its very tight but can be o.k. bass fishing. Past that go into Iron Lake, I think its called Hancock Lake on some maps. Good fishing along the shoreline Cypress. Lots of heavy boat traffic, mostly from airboats. That along with being right under Alliegent Airlines flight path into Punta Gorda can make for a loud day of fishing. South of the campground boat traffic is heavier yet. There might...MIGHT be a random snook left up river but you have to watch out for wakes and the water quality is very poor from the slag outflow from Mosaic's dumping pond next to the Peace River Water Supply plant. Good luck, I was there a month ago and was skunked the first time in years. Normally gold colored lures have been productive.

All the Phelugers have a advertised positive click bail. Most folks find it a positive. I'm sure your reel will smooth out with some use. I don't open a new reel up at the very first. Just give it a drop of oil in the line roller, the opening of the rotor where the shaft moves through and at the handles joints. My Revo Inshore spinner was sort of tight at first for lack of a better term, by the end of the first fishing trip it was the smooth.

In Venice: The end of Border Rd. Near Venice: Oscar Scherer State Park, Deer Prarie Creek Park on 41 just S. of River Rd., 3 Turtles on River Rd., Cocoplum a.k.a. 9 mile, Canal in North Port access on North Port Blvd., Myakka River State Park Venice is a saltwater fishing mecca. Go to Cook's Sportland and speak to the brothers who own it, they will give local advise. You'll have to get use to the gators and snakes. Frankly I find people much more dangerous. Over 50 years here Ive only come across a dangerous snake twice and had one near miss with a gator big enough to scare me. 99% of the gators that you'll encounter are small babies and teens interested in your topwater lure.

Ive watched a Florida Panther cross a saltwater creek off Charlotte Harbor about 15 years ago. Best most unusual animal was while I was in my kayak fishing a old box cut canal. I heard someone laughing and I looked around but did see anyone. The laughing started again and I figured it was somebody finding me at 350lbs. sitting in a yak, funny. Finally I saw an otter on my bow with his hands holding the bow handle peeking his head up. He took off as I was fumbling with my camera.

Your not talking Super Fluke right? Your talking about the nearly weightless Fluke? I think you'll need a Med. Lt. just to cast it weightless.

Take your time and be a smart shopper. Its your money. Don't take the word of 'internet experts' or fall for "it's only a hundred bucks" crap either. While your at BPS look at the new Quantum Accurist and Catalyst and the Abu Revo S. Remember real smooth in the display stand doesn't neccessarily mean it will stay smooth a year down the road. You've done research and heard peoples experience with manufacturers customer service. Now you are an educated buyer and guard your money well.

Its a thicker viscosity than typical. Good for shafts, spinning reels, cog wheels, levelwinds. I allow it a bit of soaking time with a couple drops of oil before i install it. It has worked for the 20 years of inshore fishing and yak fishing.

Its a thicker viscosity than typical. Good for shafts, spinning reels, cog wheels, levelwinds. I allow it a bit of soaking time with a couple drops of oil before i install it. It has worked for the 20 years of inshore fishing and yak fishing.

Yeah you need a packer to do that. I don't bother and if your bearings feel rough when dry you should replace them. Since the bearings in a spinner have everything to do with smoothness and nothing to do with casting, use a heavy oil. I soak them for a bit in Rocket Fuel's Liquid Grease of Phil's Tenacious Oil.

Not to be snide or even addressing this towards you, but you've had 2 shimano's? Ive had: 8 Curado's 5 Calcutta's 1 Calais 2 Symetre's 4 Stradic's 2 Stradic CI's 1 Cardiff 2 Chronarch's I think I've really earned a 'right' for lack of a better word, to bad mouth shimano ( I wont even capitalize their name ). I've never had a decent customer service experience with their office's either. Every tech has been arrogant and disinterested in even taking a parts order.

True, salt guys around here avoid shimano and complain about the maintenance port disappearing during a days fishing. Quantum is the big player around here. At an IFA or Flatsmaster tournament you might see one guy with shimano and it'll always be a Sahara, 4 or 5 with Daiwa and the rest have Quantum or Penn. The SOL board is full of the 'sand magnets' comments.

For bass fishing and since your down here...snook and reds, look for 4500 or 4600's. Using the wider 5500's will just turn you off to them after a long hot day of casting. Besides the narrower spool will be easier to control when the wind hits you head on while fishing the flats or Tampa Bay. On ebay now with the new series out, you can find last years version fairly cheap. If you want to educate yourself on which models are what check out realsreels.com for some history. hookless.com is a fellow Florida guy who can give you great advise too and you'll like the pictures on his site too. If you find one of the red ones at walmart it'll be a 5000 with no ball bearings but often in the back of their crowded reel cases, getting pushed out of the way or covered by paintball stuff, you will find a 4600C3 or better a 4600C4Mag, or 5600CL Rocket(exclusive to walmart). They often dont have the boxes and paperwork anymore because of employee incompetence. So ask the store Mgr. to knock off some $ since you wont have the warranty card, Ive gotten them for $50 new that way.

My 4500 size Ambassadeurs are narrower than most low profiles and as easy to palm. My 2500/1500's are easier to palm than modern reels. Parts are still available, something that cannot be said for many low profiles that are only a few years old. There is nothing to maintaining them and I never need to send them to an 'expert'. Tons of customizing and super tuning parts are available and it offers me just another aspect of the sport to enjoy. The exteriors are much more durable and they look like new decades after being bought.

Wow, that does make an awesome day.

Dalton Special Nip-a-de-dee Zo zuri Tobimaru Jr., so so old but long discontinued Double spins, the precurser to the modern spinnerbait Foxee jig

He's talking s.w. fl. folks! We havent even had a winter here this year. Its freakin' 85 degrees out with 90+% humidity. I get bass on topwater everyday of the year even at high noon. Heck most of the water isnt even 4ft. deep especially a retention pond like he's asking about.

Where are you here in s.w. fl.? I use top waters everyday. Most of the water is shallow enough that topwater is viable throughout the year and anytime of day. Retention ponds here are either box cut or bowl shaped. Throw to or parallel to the shore. Rarely will you find bass oriented in the featureless middle. Target any cover even a lowly single branch or a surveyors pipe/stick. Culvert pipes that bring the water into the pond are target number one for me. Many waters/ponds here can be fished only with topwaters as the filamentous algae is so thick to make working even a weedless bait sub surface enough to drive you mad. Put on a 20# leader as your just as likely to get a baby tarpon as you are a bass.

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Whats a bonus? Our CEO just got a $35,000 bonus. I havent got a raise in 4 years. As a matter of fact when I got the job the first thing they told me was never ask for a raise, you wont get one! My wife hasnt seen a raise in 7 years and actually has gotten 2 pay cuts for parities sake! Still buy tackle like a mad man....God help me

He's a fine example for the youth, better than they'll find in other sports! Congrats to a classy winner

I use 2 5'6" pistol grip rods almost every day. But I walk the dog for at least 95% of my fishing. Hate using any other kind of rod. Im getting ready for a trip to Lake O this week and am having a hard time putting together long rod outfits, I hate them so much!

Thanks I'll give it a go

Ive had to do that to often, it lost its effectiveness...