Junk Fisherman

I use a net similar to what Junger has listed here. I love it because it folds up and I can keep it under my gunwale at all times and it is never in the way. I can also grab it while fighting a fish and it opens very easily one-handed. It doesn't have a solid metal piece going across the top so I have fish more or less swim into the net rather than scoop them up. I have had coanglers complain about the net but I have used it so much that I know how to use it. For me, it's small size is it's best feature. A more traditional net like what Ajay recommends works better but it takes up more space.

I dated a girl for a summer about 15 years ago that lived in Lincoln Park. I had an absolute blast hanging out with her and spending time in the city. We NEVER spent time at my boring home in the suburbs. I definitely would not want to live there now at my current stage of life but if I was fresh out of college I would love to live in that area. Note- I am not really sure what the crime status is in that area nowadays, I hear things but people greatly exaggerate, but it was safe when I used to spend time there.

I helped unroll a debris collector a number of years ago on this small inland lake in Michigan. It was tight net material that cottage-owners would put on their lakefront beach about 10' or so out into the water so they could retrieve it at the start of the summer and they wouldn't have leaves all over their nice sandy beach. I was absolutely amazed at how many crawfish was in the roll. They were everywhere. This was a relatively shallow, weedy lake and I had never seen a crawfish in the lake before. Interesting note- all the small bass and bluegill that were in the roll were dead but the couple catfish were still alive and we could release them. So to answer you question, I would be very surprised if there are no crawfish in your lake. I would bet there are a lot more than you realize.

Hit up Newton again on Friday and had a much better day than on Monday. It was cold to start but by around 1 PM it got sunny and was quite pleasant. Water wasn't as muddy as I expect with all the midweek rain. Figured it would be slow again with the big cold front that hit on Thursday. Water temps were in the low 50s and fish were deep on points and breaklines. I caught a few and marked a lot with my electronics, at least I figure they were bass. I had nothing going on in the shallows. Moved to a steep dropoff where I caught a 6 lber on Monday and caught 3 fish in the 18"-19" ranged. I had to use finesse since fast-moving baits and bigger jigs and plastics got no action. Overall, it was a good day. If I didn't have to leave I feel I could have caught more fish eventually. Definitely, a big fish area.

We also need to remember that it's HARD to get big fish in the boat on a Ned rig. We're using light line and light rods and have to play the fish correctly. Your knots have to hold and you run the risk of the fish running around the boat and getting in your prop or trolling motor or Livescope downrod (happened to me this week). I spent this past week fishing and caught multiple 4+ lb bass on a Ned rig and those fish were running all over the place. I'm running around the boat, giving the fish line, reeling up slack, getting my net, plunging my rod in the water when it runs, trying to get it not to jump- it's a lot of activity. I feel great when I get them in the boat. Conversely, you catch a 4 lber on a jig with 15 lb line and a 7' MH rod and you can control that fish much easier. I'm flipping 3 lbers in the boat on baitcasting gear yet it takes me a minute to work that 18" fish on a Ned rig. I love it though. All of it.

Perfectly stated. You don't NEED to spend $100+ on a rod to catch fish but it will definitely help and for some presentations it will help A LOT. I throw a Ned Rig a lot and I can definitely feel the bottom better and detect subtle bites better with my high-end rods. I noticed a major difference going from the $350 Champion Rod to a $550 Steez rod. Sure, you can catch them on a $75 rod. Many hits are very obvious and we could catch them on a broom stick but it is the soft, subtle pickup or the times when the fish inhales your lure and moves off where you only have a second or two to set the hook, those are the times when the high-end rods shine. Is it worth the money? No. But I am a tackle junkie and fishing is my passion so I splurge on things I love.

Hit up Newton on Monday and it was slow. The cold front seemed to really turn off the fish. Around 35 at daylight and it only got up to 45 by the end of the day. Tried shallow and deep and a variety of baits with not much luck. I did have one little flurry at the end of the day. Hit a shoreline I had done well on in the past and caught a few fish with one being 17 inches. Decided to make one last pass before leaving and am very glad I did. My bait was hung up in some rocks and when I unsnagged my lure, a big fish hit instantly. I was using light line and the fish wrapped me around my Livescope down rod. I knew it was big and I figured I'd lose it when I unwrapped my line. I had to raise the pole and unwrap my line and the fish was still surprisingly hooked. Landing this fish makes up for several fish I have lost this spring including a big bass in a tournament that was a couple feet from the net. The fish weighed 6.18 lbs. This fish definitely saved the day for me. (Sorry I had to block out the background. I usually turn away from obvious background sites but I wanted to get this fish back in the water. And anyone who fishes Newton would know where I was and I don't want to give this spot more attention.)

Here's my story- Once, I broke off and didn't up all reel up all the line. I picked up another rod and when I turned on the trolling motor it instantly flipped my combo that I had just used into the lake. Some of the line I didn't reel up got wrapped around the prop and when I turned on the motor it pulled my rod in by the line. As the combo sank, I was able to plunge my rod I had in my hand into the water and I was just able to pull up the rod tip. I was able to drop to stomach and grab the top of the rod and get it back in the boat. It was a GLX and a Chronarch Superfree (remember those gold ones?). So it was a $500+ combo nearly 20 years ago. I lost a nice combo fishing a reef on Green Bay. I laid my rod down during a retrieve to net my partner's fish and when I came back for my rod, it was gone. The boat was on spot-lock so it wasn't moving. Something had to of taken my lure and pulled it in the lake. Thankfully, it was my least valuable combo and would have been replaced soon.

My hookup rate going through the Elaztech did suffer with weedless hooks so I went back to an exposed hook.

The rusting on the hook must be due to the Z-Man jig. I make my own jigs with Owner hooks and have never had any rusting. Like you, I glue my baits to the head and always have a half dozen or so of different baits in the boat and some have been in my boat a long time. Like others have mentioned, don't go too heavy or use too big of a hook. A 1/16 #2 hook is the setup I use most often followed by a 3/32. Good luck.

About 10 o'clock for bottom baits or sinking baits. Lower for fast-moving baits. For crankbaits I sometimes have the rod in the water for more depth. For jerkbaits my rod is all over place depending where I am in the retrieve and how my boat is sitting and where I am casting.

Skunked Again- Do you have a boat? If so, you might be like me and not enjoy kayak fishing as much as others. I wish I had bought a used kayak. If I had, I would have already sold mine and gotten it out of my garage. Don't get me wrong, kayak fishing is definitely better than shore fishing or wading but it doesn't compare to fishing out of my boat. When I bought my kayak I thought I would be taking all these short little trips to nearby lakes but I haven't. And whenever I have the option of taking my boat or kayak, the kayak is never even considered. But if I were buying new, I would definitely get a pedal-drive kayak and one that has forward and reverse. Boat control has always been my biggest issue with kayak fishing. But pedal-drive and an anchor and trolley system definitely makes it easier. Good luck.

You're right. I was looking on the St Croix website and all I could find was the Avid inshore. Was the original Avid discontinued? I haven't paid much attention to St Croix over the last couple years. How about the Legend Tournament Bass LBTC711HMF? 0.5 to 2.5 oz lure rating, heavy, moderately fast, and 14-80 lb line. Is moderately fast action ideal for punching? How about for A-rigs?

This is awesome. I was thinking the same thing and you summed it up perfectly. But overall I pretty much just remember but I do keep a spreadsheet that I try to update. I don't replace braid unless I lose so much that it is running low on the spool. I spool fluoro in March and again midsummer so it is never much older than a couple months max. Mono- is so cheap I'll replace it when in doubt.

I have the opportunity to purchase a St Croix rod at a good price. I plan on doing more punching and A-rig fishing this year and I do not have anything heavier than a 7'3 5 power Dobyns rod (Champion 735C to be exact). This rod has a lure weight of 1/4 to 1.5 oz. This has been primarily a frog and football jig rod for me. So what am I looking for in a rod to punch with a 1-1.5 oz sinker? Croix offers a medium heavy and heavy Avid at 8' with lure weights at 1/2 to 2 oz (MH) and 3/4 to 3 oz (H). Both are fast action. Would this rod also be able to double for A-Rigs? Think Flash Mob Jr with 5 4" Keitechs. Any advice is appreciated.

My last boat, a 17.5' tin bassboat, only had storage to 6' for rods. I just kept everything on the deck when I traveled with rod socks and reel covers. Never had a problem. Even with my boat now with up to 8' rod storage, I trailer to the lake with 3-4 combos on the deck. And even if you have a rod locker, the standard latch locks are easy for a thief to pop open. It's not a place I would want to store my rods long term unless it was in my garage. Good luck with your purchase. This is a great suggestion. My dad had a 16.5 tiller with an open floor plan and a little casting platform upfront. That was a great multispecies boat and with a good trolling motor it was a very functional bass boat. On the other hand, a 16.5 boat with a console is much more cramped.

While I'm sure you know this Paul, maybe some others don't. Chicago was given the nickname the "Windy City" by a newspaper columnist in the late 1800s because of all the "hot air" spewed by Chicago politicians as they tried to get the World Fair. Many cities are windier than Chicago. Anyways.... I have often heard about fishing with an east wind being difficult. Same thing with blue bird sky days and cold fronts. Negative conditions used to keep me home. Not anymore. If I have the time and the weather does not look too miserable, I'll go. Blue bird sky days? I'll use a Ned rig, dropshot, or finesse swimbait all day. Maybe I only catch a bunch of small bass but that's still fun in my book. I have had multiple north wind, cold front days where the fish were still active. Now the second day of the cold front can be a different story. East winds? You can definitely still catch 'em on those days. I don't even think negatively about east winds anymore. I had a tournament this past Saturday and it was the second day of a cold front, with strong north winds, spitting rain, and my club still had a half dozen limits caught. I culled a couple times and would of had close to 15 lbs if I hadn't lost a big bass by the boat. So I guess my long-winded answer is that while the fish might not hit fast-moving baits on cold front, east wind, or high pressure front days, you can change tactics and still catch 'em.

The sweet spot for a second home is a place around 2 hours away. My FIL had a place on the water and 2 hours is about as far as you want to drive if you are staying for just a day. Numerous times I would wake up around 3 AM, get there by daylight, fish the morning bite, spend time with the family throughout the day, fish the dusk bite and then be home around 11 PM and off to work the next day. It was also a perfect distance for spending the weekend. Get there Friday night and leave after dinner on Sunday and be home in time to relax before getting ready for the upcoming workweek. In terms of fishing, he fished less since he was always doing maintenance and upkeep around his property. I used to think I would never want to own a 2nd home since when I get there I don't want to cut grass and do all the other homeowner tasks but rather I just want to fish. My wife and I have thought hard about buying a home in northern Michigan where we take a couple week-long vacations every summer. But that is 5 hours away and way too far to go up for a weekend. I've decided to wait till I get near retirement (10 years from now) before I consider buying. But I fully expect to fish a tremendous amount then since there are multiple excellent fisheries within a 50 mile radius. As long as I am physically able, I will always trailer. There are just too many places I want to fish.

Good stuff. I too use a 7'6 rod and feel that the extra length helps control the fish. You're right- it's that first jump when I lose them if it happens.

Indica for the night before to get me a great night sleep.

It didn't in my tournament yesterday. Lost big bass and would have moved me from 4th to 2nd. It was 3' from the net. Oh well. I find that I lose big fish on a Ned when I rush to land them. With smallmouth especially since I am usually in deep water, I just let the fish tire itself out. It often takes a minute or two to land the fish since I keep giving it line. When it gets close to the boat and you know it isn't ready that is when I get ready to give it more line. I have more trouble landing bigger largemouth than smallmouth since I am usually shallower with largemouth so I don't have the depth to work with. We're using such small hooks, you can't rush 'em. Your setup is fine. Good luck.

Baby wipes serve multiple purposes in my boat.

I didn't have sunscreen last weekend but thankfully it was only partly sunny. 2 tubes are in the boat now. I also keep a 20 oz bottle of water in my boat since once I forgot water on a hot day and I got very dehydrated. I keep 3 pairs of sunglasses in my boat- 2 Costas and cheap backups. Fluoro leader line and braid scissors, are things I have to have. I went in my kayak last summer and forgot leader line. After going through my leader line, I didn't catch another fish. Since I fish so much finesse and stand higher than most of you guys in bass boats, I wouldn't want to fish without a net. I have a folding BPS net that fits nicely in mu gunwale. Because my phone is old I need to bring my Anker battery. Listening to podcasts will drain my battery by about half day.

Daiwa-- Used to be a Shimano guy using the old green Curados and gold Chronarch Superfrees. For a long time, I thought the Daiwa TDX reels were sexy-looking but had heard they were not reliable A buddy used all Daiwas and then I found a TDS for $50 at Dick's and I loved the reel. Slowly sold all the Shimanos on Ebay and replaced them with TDXs and as time has gone on I just stuck with Daiwa. Still have two TDXs that I still use. They were not unreliable reels. Dobyns-- Used be a St Croix and Loomis guy. I bought a 702 Champion and it blew away the Croix Avid which was my main finesse rod. I slowly sold most of my Croixs and Loomis rods and now have 10 Dobyn rods. Still use a 843 and 844 GLX and a Croix Tournament Bass Sweeper rod for Chatterbaits and swimbaits. Now I did get a Steez rod a couple years ago and it is an unbelievable rod but at $550+, I have not bought any more.

The challenge, trying to improve, being outdoors, boating, camping, being a tackle junkie, and catching fish is fun. I used to judge the day by how many fish I caught and would often stay home if the conditions were negative. Nowadays, I look at the day as an adventure, an escape- it's therapeutic,. I just like being in my boat chilling, relaxing, listening to podcasts; it's easily my favorite way to spend a day.