DocBar

Do kayaks offer some potential fishing benefit that I'm not aware of? Why would you choose to go from yaks to kayaks just over a fishing forum? I think you're trying to mislead me and keep me from catching fish!!!! ?D

We're definitely riding the yak, but line type might become an issue. I'm just trying to cover my bases. Do they sell yaks with polarized vision that can help me locate bass that normal people that fish on weekends with Walmart bait (or a bazillion dollars worth of bassproshop of bait) can't find? Do yaks buck much? Do you or can you wear spurs with them?

Do you use a floating, suspending or sinking saddle? Does that choice depend on age, hair mass or choice of line? Do the horns supply adequate steering or should I choose a particular thrust model yak? What's the sink rate between yak and braid? Can you braid yak? If you can braid yak, what's the preferred knot?

A doe is a 7 point to me. 2 ears, 4 teats and a tail. I've always been about the meat. I've killed lots of 10-12 point deer that are B&C qualified, but I've never been able to cook a horn down to where it's edible. I let a definite record breaker 16 pt atypical walk away just because I wanted him to keep on breeding good deer. Good stewardship of the land should be paramount If I'm ever blessed enough to catch a 26 lb LMB, I'll take some photos and measurements, turn that big old hawg loose and let what happens happen. She needs to keep putting that DNA back into the gene pool and I won;t be the one to pee in it. It probably helps that I don't particularly care for the taste of bass. I'd much rather have a speck or a red w/ scales down on the grill. I'm also probably one of the fer southerners that doesn't care for fried fish.

Really? Eye insurance? Wear some Z 87's and be done with it if you're terrified of a jig putting your eye out. Or maybe use some common sense and say "hey that could put my eye out" and not do that. Kinda like using a knife. Don't pull towards yourself. Much cheaper than a special set of "fishing glasses". Going cheaper also allows you to buy more lures. You might get lucky and buy that special lure that beats all the others. Again, wear some Z87 rated glasses if this is a worry. I can't even begin to count the people I've outfished wearing no glasses in regard to those wearing "polarized". Those same people are mad cuz I did it in my 17 foot basstracker with a 40 hp motor and Hummingbird monochrome fishfinder. They also went out and spent $700 on a new driver and putter to out drive and out putt me on the golf course. If you can fish, you'll catch fish. If you can golf, you'll make par or better Or at least shoot in the 80's. Sound fishing techniques seperate the catchers from the fishers more than extranious equipment like glasses, especially in amateurs. Leave the minutae to the pros and fixate more on the technique. There hasn't been the 1st bass that said "hell, he's wearing XXX brand of glasses, might as well quit resisting that bottle cap he's throwing at me". What ever happened to just having fun while fishing?

I started fishing because I grew up with uncles and cousins that fished. I fell in love with it at an early age. The same uncles and cousins hunted and I fell in love with hunting, too. I did both avidly as a child but stuck with fishing because I travel for a living and it's much easier and cheaper to get a fishing license and fish than a hunting license and hunt. Plus, I C&R 99% of the time, so take isn't an issue. It's damned hard to C&R something after you shoot it. Maybe I'm weird, but I fish for both the relaxation of the sport and the rush I get from catching a fish. When I fish, I'm able to block out everything else and concentrate on fishing. I don't get bent out of shape if I'm not catching because the mere act of casting a bait with the hope and expectation of a bite thrills me. I try my best to catch fish, but I don't obsess over every little detail like what line I'm using or putting different hooks on a bait for a different presentation or anything else, really. If fish aren't biting, there's no telling what I might throw, regardless of weather, water clarity, time of year or anything else. Fishing connects me to my family and nature. I can't count the spectacular moments I've spent on the water (or on shore) with family and friends, just enjoying the comraderie and nature. Very little in life beats seeing a hawg hit a topwater lure or feeling the lightest tug on a bait. The time spent with loved ones while looking for those bites definitely does. I fish to nurture my connections to nature and family. And I love to outfish anybody I've ever met.

I usually only take 2 rods with me when bank fishing: a medium heavy extra fast and a medium fast. I usually use 10 or 12 lb test mono and I'll fish every single lure I own with either set up. I grew up fishing BC's and definitely prefer them but I've been using a spinning rod the last 6 months or so and I'm getting the hang of it. Distance seems much easier with any weight on a spinner but my accuracy has suffered. Good casting with lighter lures makes up for that and I've caught some fish that I wouldn't have with a BC, IMO. My advise would be to buy the best BC set up you can afford and see how you like it. Before you ever try and cast it, watch some videos on how to set up your BC and keep rats nests out of it. Then be patient and really learn how to tune the reel to the bait you're fishing. The magnetic brake systems on different BC's take a little getting used to as well as the spool tensioner(that's what I call it, anyways). Since I've started using a spinning set up, I'll probably take 2 or 3 rods with me. One will definitely be a spinner. The versatility of having both is awesome. I've got a little grasshopper crankbait that just kills fish in certain situations and I get much better distance with a spinner than BC. That distance is the difference between getting the lure in the strike zone, ready to fish, and getting it in the strike zone and peeling off line to clear a rats nest.

LMAO!!! You're really trying to sell me on this. I'll consider rigging ONE reel with it and see how it does. I'll be sending you a bill when I lose my 1st lure and/or fish due to the knot coming undone.

I just think it's awesome that you own a yak that swims and lets you fish off its back. I didn't even know they could swim all that well. They certainly don't "look" the part. Are there any grooming tips you can share in case I decide that yak fishing is the way to go for me?

If your day of fishing comes down to what glasses you wearing and you're not a professional, you might have other problems. I caught a thousand bass before I even knew what polarized glasses were. I've noticed better clarity with polarized, but not anymore depth. The only amateurs I've ever met that blame a bad day of fishing on their choice of glasses were also the guys that blamed their bad golf game on their drivers and putters. They promptly spent hundreds of $$$ on new drivers and putters just to get the same results. Golf and fishing have some things in common. Pro's and amateurs don't need to use the same equipment and trying to do so can ruin an amateur's ability to enjoy the sport. Just my newbie 2 cents worth.....

FWIW, I only use a clinch knot or palomar and haven't had a problem with either. That includes saltwater fishing and catching fish over 50 lbs. Never had a knot fail. One of the pleasures of mono? LOL

Is this with the benefit of fishing the area from a boat or due to your experience in telling what's what's by experience and/or feel? I ask because I just can't tell much what depth something is and what it's made of unless I get some of it on my hook. I do not pretend to be good at fishing though, either.

I'm not afraid of anything with braid, just not sure I want the hassle of figuring out what rod has what line for what bait. I'm not even a cousin to a tournament fishermen, so that level of sophistication hasn't even registered with me. I may have missed a million fish on mono, but only a couple have ever broken my line. I just don't know that it;s worth it to get all that involved in line selection when it distracts from my enjoyment. I fish for a lot more than just bass. If I'm going inshore saltwater fishing, I'd rather fight a fish on mono. It's what I know and I'm comfortable with, I usually up size to 17-20lb. test for saltwater. Backlashes don;t bother me in the least. I graduated from a Zebco 303/404 to an Ambassaduer 6500 over night and really learned how to get a rat's nest undone/cast a baitcaster. Since then, I've gone to mostly low profile BC set ups. I tend to run a BC on the ragged edge of a backlash. By my reckoning, I've probably caught 30% of all of my fish because I was forced to spool off a backlash before reeling in. It sometimes forces me to be patient. I also like the extra casting distance.

Wouldn't a better title be "Behavioral Differences in Species Between Regions"? I grew up fishing in SE Texas, where there weren't a lot of SM, but any bass would nail a crawfish anything. I'm now in El Centro, Ca. and these bass don;t know what a crawfish is. 6 months fishing, not a single bite on a craw anything. Lot's of fish on a Rapala CD 7 or 9 in brown trout (they stock brown trout in this pond every spring) that a fish from SE Texas would look at funny. There just aren't any brown trout there. It looks funny/odd to them. Paying attention to local forage is much more productive than behavior of a certain species of bass. They will all eat basically the same thing. I've never seen one spit out a shad to go eat a crawfish or vice versa. I have seen them ignore something that doesn't appear to be their natural prey for the location.

I think I'm going to buy a Sea Eagle inflatable. I can add a small gas/trolling motor and a fish finder. The best part is I can haul it in my 5th wheel ( my home) and not drag it behind me. If I work in a part of the country with good fishing lakes, I'll use a resource like.....bassresource.com to find fellow fishermen to fish with. I love catching fish, but I'd fish a ditch if it menat getting a hook wet. Besides, I caught a 34 lb. alligator snapper in a ditch, so it can be productive. Especially around Sheldon Resivioir outside of Houston, Tx. Might even get a small gator.