Scott F

If your drag is set to tight and you get a snag, pulling on the line causes it to dig in. Lighter drag allows the line to pull out without digging in. I never use more than 20 pound test on my bass rods. I never have problems with line digging in because my drag is not too tight.

I have fished in lakes that were privately owned and managed for trophy fish. Believe me, it is not as easy as it sounds. It is not open to the public, you have to be a member or the guest of a member to fish there. The lakes are loaded with huge fish, but being small lakes, the fish have no place to hide. There are only a few people allowed to fish on each lake each day, but someone is fishing there all the time. The bass have learned to avoid the (small) boats and are hard to catch especially for someone who hasn't spent much time there and hasn't learned the tricks to get them to bite Maybe the guys who frequent this site are not the prime customers for this type of operation. The place I was at was run like a private golf course country club. Members are well to do business men and companies who bring customers out to do business while fishing instead of golfing. They also offer duck and pheasant hunting as well as trap and skeet shooting. There are a lot of guys with more money than time who would like a short cut to a wall hanger. I don't think many of them post on these forums.

The first lures I ever used back in the middle 60's were in-line spinners we called Abu's. I've only got one left that I had from that time but I found a new one still in the package at a flea market several years ago. I keep that around to remind me of my early fishing days.

I fish around loons quite a bit but i've never had one chase a bait before. It is so eerie having a loon swim right along side the boat especially if you didn't know one was around. Those big, wide, black and white shapes always startle me when i see them under the water.

I was trying to find out what the rules are so if I turned the guy in to the tournament organizers would there be any penalties or would I just be wasting my time.

Here'a a comparison of high end coolers.

I've don't fish tournaments and I don't follow the Pros so I don't know what kind of rules they have. I was wondering if tournaments in general have any rules about how close a competitor can fish near another competitor or any fisherman? Once in a while while lake fishing along a shoreline, I'd have another boat pull up right in front of me and cut me off. Sometimes within a boat length of me. It's rude no matter if it's a tournament or not, but I have them tell me "get outta my way, I'm fishing for money!" I know it is not representative of tournament fishermen as a whole, but it has happened often enough with bass and muskie tournaments. Are there rules against this sort of behavior?

$300 will buy you an excellent depth finder. At $200 you can get a great one with just a smaller screen. I'm amazed at how much better the new units are than ones just a few years old. The ability to lock on to the bottom at shallow depths on my new Lowrance is so much better than any unit I've ever had. All I'm looking for is a unit that will show me the depth and what is on the bottom. The color depth finders are easier to see and read quickly. You can tell the difference between weeds, rock and a soft bottom. Fish are very easy to see. Even the cheap ones have temperature these days. Side imaging by itself is not that great. Even GPS is not always needed. Check out a Lowrance Elite 4x. You can pick them up for $169.

A few times when I've encountered a very rude fisherman, I'd take his picture and post it on local fishing forums showing people what an As**** looks like.

The actual gravitational pull of the moon on a bass is about .0003 Newtons or .00006 lbs. It is an incredibly small force. To put in in perspective your boat has a stronger gravitational pull on a hooked fish than the moon does. Remember also that the force of gravity is not substantially stronger when the moon is up than when it is down. It is true that it is slightly stronger when the moon is up than down, but only about 1.5% stronger; that’s .000061 lbs. of force. The largest changes in gravitational pull occur when the moon aligns with the sun (new moon) but even this change is still exceptionally small. So what is the minimum threshold of gravity a bass can feel? Obviously we can’t answer this question, but we can say that virtually everything in the fish’s environment (waves, air pressure etc...) has a far greater influence on a bass than the exceptionally small gravitational pull of the moon

You also did not say if you will be wading, in a canoe or kayak. In small streams, the water is probably very shallow. If it is rocky, and you're using jigs, you will be snagging and re-tying a lot. If you use jigs, use the lightest heads you have. A 7 foot MH rod is overkill. Go light. In small streams, I like senko type baits. I cast upstream with no weight and let the current carry the bait naturally. Braided line that floats, lets you see the twitch when the bass takes the bait. Top waters are a good choice. Walk the dog baits are one of my favorites but can be tricky to use in current. This time of year fast moving water is essential. The bass need oxygen they will be in the riffles or very near. You may find them in eddies, but not many and those will be small ones.

My choices would depend on the stream. How deep is the water? Are there many weeds? How much current will there be? Will you be fishing up stream or down stream? How big is the stream? Lots of over head cover? I match my gear to the water I'll be fishing. Without a lot more information, there is no way to tell what will work best.

Using a net would have the same impact on the fish as laying it on the carpet or brushing up against the body. They are trying to avoid rubbing off the slime coat. Nets will do that.

I've witnessed just the opposite while fishing for smallmouth. I see a good sized fish approaching my bait, and a little dink jumps in and grabs it. It's happened many times.

If you are getting bites but losing them, maybe your hooks are dull. Have you sharpened your hooks?

If you want some braided line that can cut into guides, try to find some kevlar line. I think Stren used to sell it many years ago. That was the line that gave braid a bad name.

To be clear, a slot length limit prevents anglers from keeping fish within a certain size range. For example, if the slot for bass is 13 to 18 inches, bass between 13 and 18 inches must be returned to the water. A fish under the slot limit is legal to keep. For a slot limit to be effective, fish under the limit should be removed. If the fish is under a minimum size limit, it must be thrown back even if it has died.

Very good eating. The Y bones can be a problem if you don't know how to remove them. Lots of good meat on the larger ones. How big is a "really good sized one"? Did you measure it? A 35 incher usually weighs near 10 pounds

If you can cut it with a knife, a pike can cut it with it's teeth. If you want to be sure to keep from being bit off, you need steel leaders or VERY heavy mono/fluoro. Baits like senkos are inhaled so the risk of being bit off quickly like you experienced is a lot higher. I often bass fish in lakes with pike and was reluctant to use the steel leaders I usually use for pike because they would destroy the action of weightless senko. I did get tired of not landing the pike that were biting so I made some very light leaders out of wire that you can tie in a knot. There is a trade off, but I accepted that in favor of landing more fish. I also use the light wire leaders on suspending crankbaits that are a lot more expensive to lose that a hook and a plastic worm.

It is Disney so you pay a premium for anything you do there. If you were trying to save money, you could stay and eat off the property for less than half of what they charge. I hired a guide to fish Lake Toho which is about 1/2 hour (?) from Disney in KIssimmee. Half day trip, all tackle included was $200. Shiners extra.

Which part of Illinois?

I stay off the lakes and fish rivers. Fish are always pretty shallow when they are seldom over 6 feet deep. I always find lots of active biters.

Before you go to any trouble, have you tried looking at the screen in full daylight?

I've bought nothing but Quantum spinning reels for the last 10 years. Now that they changed a couple of (to me) important features, I won't be buying Quantums anymore.

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