hawgenvy

I don't fish much in the small pond behind our condo, but I know there is at least one fat fish there, almost a pet by now, and I catch her anew once every few months. Each time she is bigger. Went out tonight after dinner and got her again. Now she's 6 pounds! First photo is me gesturing to my wife to go to the garage to get my scale. My neighbor Craig took the (slightly out of focus) photo holding up my little girl. That Runcl scale BTW is great, and waterproof.

Lucky hour today beating the bank around sunset with a Gambler black 13 inch ribbon tail worm. Caught 3 prespawn females: two were each exactly 4.32 lbs, and the other was 5.54. My avian friend nailed a nice fish, too.

I live and fish in Florida and see alligators all the time. They tend to be peaceful and seem to ignore me and my boat. Unless I have a fish on the line. Then it's a race to get the fish in the boat or on shore before they get it. I have had two gators at once converge rapidly on bass I was fighting. Now if the gator got to a bass (including the hook) before I did, and I was in a canoe or kayak, and if I was fishing #40 or #60 braid, I'd be worried and would have to think pretty fast to loosen the drag and snip the line, or else I'd be going for an unpredictable little ride. It's okay to fish in a kayak. Just mentally prepare ahead of time how to deal with that eventuality, and maybe don't fish near those reptiles if you see them around.

Looking to recommend a casting rod and reel for my friend, together under $300. It's for light lure fishing: senkos, flukes, wacky rig, shaky head so prob medium power/fast action, 6'6" to 7". He likes his Lew's tournament pro reel on his beefier set up but may go with a less costly reel if it's light. Prob will spool #10 fluoro line. Advice anyone?

I was thinking Sheila

My wife and I live in a small condo community with a tiny central pond that has a bass. Yes, one bass that I know of. I try to catch him every January. He seems around one pound bigger every year, finally this year he's around 4 pounds. (Can hardly wait to catch him in 6 years!) That's a Gambler 10" worm, blue to match my glasses and shirt.

Gambler 13" ribbon tail worm, black. Moves like a snake in the water, kind of smells like one, too.

Can't give you just one bait. This is the best I can do: Summer/Fall: Zoom Super Fluke in Bluegill Flash, 4/0 EWG Winter/Spring: Eco Pro Trokar Flip Jig Green Pumpkin Black 3/8 with SK Rage Craw trailer in Blue Craw. Toss up: Gambler 10" ribbon tail worm in June Bug with 3/16 bullet and 4/0 EWG

Thanks, man! Appreciate it.

I haven't posted on this site in ages, but can't resist boasting about last evening's phenomenal bank fishing adventure. I wasn't expecting much at all after the recent cold front and didn't even bring my scale, but I must have landed 50 pounds of bass in just 2 hours, all while being harassed by 2 hungry gators. Every time I hooked a bass the dragons would rush for it, and I had to manhandle and then flip 5 and 6 pounders on to the bank to avoid disaster. Fortunately, my Dobyns 734 and 17 lb Seaguar fluoro didn't let me down. All the bass were enticed with the Gambler 10 inch ribbon worm in some sort of dark purple. Pictured are a few of last night's glory pigs:

Last night this big bad boy torpedoed my weightless senko that I wiggled along just a foot from the grass bank... ...and I nearly stepped on this badass hanging out on the grass just a foot from the water:

Tabasco is perfect if you want heat with the acid touch that the vinegar provides, so its perfect in stews, beans, meats, bloody Marys, where Tabasco adds brightness without adding excessive complexity. Some other sauces like siracha and Cholula have garlic and onion and other flavors that are not welcome in all circumstances (but are great in others). Some, like Catt's pickled pepper choice, have even more vinegar to heat ratio than Tabasco.

Only someone with Louisiana roots would have a silver Tabasco sauce holder. It's my wife's; she's from New Orleans. There is always Tabasco on our kitchen counter, right there with the salt and pepper.

Haven't been fishing in a while. But tonight I walked to a nearby golf course, vacant and partially flooded after Tropical Storm Eta's wet, violent rampage through southern Florida. I've always caught plenty of aggressive bass after a cyclone passes for some unknown reason, and today was no different, in spite of the high and turbid water. After landing several bass, my little Booyah squrebill got bit by something big. I thought it was a large bass at first, but after it started pulling drag a second and third time I realized it must be a big snakehead.

Sambal oelek, moderately hot, pure, naturally sweet and flavorful. So delicious, I can almost eat it plain. From Indonesia.

Nailed another nice bullseye snakehead tonight from the bank. This guy was seen going into a recess deep under the grass bank. I dangled a horny toad at the entrance to his or her lair, where he (or she) was perhaps guarding a clutch of eggs or fry. The fish poked its head out a bit and snapped repeatedly at the bait to chase it away or maim it, and eventually, and probably accidentally, caught itself on the hook and was foisted aloft, wiggling furiously. The beast eventually settled down and was released after a couple of photos. It is always a learning experience for me to catch these creatures, as they are new for me. They spook easily, and I've noticed that when they flee they stir up silt from the bottom to create an impressive cloud of dust, probably a defensive measure to confuse any pursuer.

Had a pet bass many years ago in a fish tank. I would dangle various baits outside the glass to see which one he liked. Red drove him crazy. He would dash at the glass to try to get at a red worm, or even jump out of the water to attack one held above. Other colors did not have that effect.

I am relatively new to bullseye snakehead fishing, and am still trying to figure out the basics. These fish are not always in the mood to eat, and spook easily. I managed to nail this feisty 5.35 on a GameChanger Eeliminator, with a belly weighted 4-0 swimbait hook. This is a lure I don't use often, but thought it would be a good snakehead attractant, being weedless and with good action on a slow retrieve. Tonight the Eeliminator came through, once, anyway. SH are always surprisingly powerful. After hoisting him to the grass, I couldn't get the mouth open to weigh the guy (there may be a trick to that), so I just weighed him from the hook shank. Photos by my son, Michael.

Although my primary freshwater fishing target in South Florida has been the largemouth bass, for several weeks now I have had a real blast catching the enigmatic bullseye snakehead. I am just beginning to learn its habits and have only recently started to see large numbers of them in southern Palm Beach County. Although one can access in books and online a million techniques for catching largemouth bass, learning the life cycles, habits, and angling techniques for snakeheads has been a challenge. But it is an interesting challenge because I am mostly learning on my own. Furthermore, due to social distancing requirements for the coronavirus epidemic, my fishing is currently entirely on foot, done by prowling the banks of local canals and man-made ponds and lakes with polaroid lenses, hoping to spot, and then target the powerful toothy snakehead. I tell ya', when you've hooked one of these guys, you are in for an adrenaline-filled wild ride of strong pulling, and wild thrashing and splashing. Unfortunately, they are not always easy to catch. So far, I have learned the following, gleaned over just a few weeks (so I may have some stuff wrong). Anyway: Snakehead mostly live on shallow bank shoulders, facing the bank, as if waiting for a frog to pop in for a snack. I see their snouts typically only a foot or two from the water's edge. The fish exist singly or as mating pairs, and except for the mating pairs, they are solitary hunters. They appear to have a specific territory, spanning perhaps 30-40 meters along the bank. So if you see, miss, or catch one, go down thirty meters or so for the next cast. Snakehead spook easily, much easier than bass, perhaps more like carp. They sense footsteps on grass up to 20 feet away. It is nevertheless helpful to try to visually spot them. The bullseye snakehead has a long broad head, usually dark or reddish, and has characteristic pectoral fins that are 2-4 inches long and stand out perpendicular to the body, just as in the photo below -- that's how they position those fins in the water as well when hovering in place. Cast parallel to the bank and as close to it as possible. Try for 12-18 inches from the water's edge. In many cases a weedless bait setup will be needed. Use a heavy rod. These fish may commonly weigh more than 6 pounds and fight stronger than bass. They don't jump like a bass but will splash the surface of the water violently and will constantly dive and shake to and fro. They will seek cover to get away, so keep them out of pads and trees and rocks after they are hooked, if you can. You don't have to use braided line and it's probably best not to except in thick cover or with surface baits like frogs where you need the most powerful hookset. But keep braided line mostly out of the water because, as I said, they spook easily. If you use mono or FC use at least 12 pound test. The fish have teeth and a lot of power. As far as bait, I have caught them on hollow body frogs, punching rigs with a creature bait, horny toads, Zoom flukes, and even with a jerkbait. Sometimes you have to reel the bait fast, and they'll attack it with gusto; but other times they just inch over over to the bait and suck it in when it's nearly motionless, so sometimes a very subtle presentation is required. Once they have the bait, snakeheads swim to deeper water away from the bank, and they don't let go right away. I let let them carry the bait a few feet and let the line start to tighten before I set. Then I set hard and hold on tight. For some reason a lot of times I have messed up the hookset, or the hook pulls free, so I probably have only a 60% hooking success using frogs and toads Once caught, you must not lip them with your thumb; they have nasty teeth. You can safely grab them behind the gills. You can hold their bodies, but they are slippery. I always throw them back alive. I don't kill them because I don't really know that they are ecologically harmful and they are such fun to catch. If you transport them alive it can be a big fine so don't do that. They will peacefully die on ice. If the water is relatively pollutant free you should eat them. I have, and they are incredibly delicious. The meat is white and delicate. Cook filets or grill whole. In Asia they may insert a big stick down the middle to use as a handle for grilling the fish whole. I would like to hear about others' experiences with snakehead fishing, and want to learn more about them, especially seasonal habits and fishing strategies.

Trying to get into something a bit different by targeting bullseye snakehead, which are now quite common in Palm Beach County, FL. They are tough and toothy critters and attack like monsters when they commit, and then it's quite a wild and powerful fight if they are big guys -- just a lot of fun. And great eating, too -- though I am reluctant to eat anything from our local residential and golf course ponds. BTW, prowling the banks for bass and snakehead has been a godsend during these coronavirus epidemic days. Gets me out of the house to do something I enjoy without violating human distancing requirements. It's a sanity promoter.

Well, of course if it makes a difference in stretchability, it would be more important to know how a line behaves wet (although some of the line might be dry during fishing). I really don't know, which is my point. There is a difference, in broad terms, between a claim and conclusive knowledge. Just because a claim is made and repeated over and over again, including by people whose knowledge we respect, does not mean the claim has any validity. People say over and over that fluorocarbon has less stretch than nylon, and we believe it, yet here is Berkely saying it has more. We need a little science to point us to the truth. Unfortunately, most the science is done in labs where products are developed and manufactured; and those labs, whatever the findings, are not going to publish anything. The manufacturers or distributors, or subsidiaries, or retailers, or whoever, are going to claim whatever they want. And we will buy it, and maybe spend a lot more than we should. And if we believe we are catching more fish because of it we will always spend more. I am no different because I have no more knowledge than anyone else.

Smaller hooks are swallowed more readily. It takes more time, or is otherwise less likely, for a bass to swallow a larger hook.

Really? This is from the Berkeley website: "Many anglers believe that fluorocarbon is a low-stretch line, and credit its sensitivity to this factor. But it actually stretches more than nylon mono. The difference is, it takes a greater force to get fluoro stretching in the first place."

That fluorocarbon has less stretch than nylon monofilament. (Please, readers, if you disagree with this one, show me the data!)

I think they do, and for many of them Saturday is a day of fasting.