N Florida Mike

Yep, it’s that time again.? Who ya got? Give a shout out for your team!! GO GATORS!!!

I went camping/fishing with my middle son one time and got up at the crack of dawn. He was still asleep so I decided to go down the lake for a little while. I pulled into a small cove and slowly cruised along until I saw a nice fish blow up on something. I killed the motor excitedly grabbed my rod, but my sons reel handle was between my line and rod. So it flipped overboard. I quickly went to anchor but the anchor was gone! So I tried to stay where I was but the wind was blowing. I was about 150 feet off the bank in about 6 feet of water. I said a prayer and jumped in . Walked around for about 10 minutes hanging on to the boat and stepped on it !!!

I don’t listen to music much when I fish...but when I do I listen to bluegrass!! ?

We were fishing Sante Fe lake one time and I had to pee. So my friends let me out on a cypress tree so I could get a good angle. So they took off and drove around for awhile laughing before finally picking me back up. We fished a night tournament in the same lake. An ALL night tournament. You know it’s bad when it’s 230 in the morning and you find yourself trolling a crankbait. So I hook something big -My partner who had been asleep -finally woke up after I yelled enough. If you’ve ever fished much at night , you know how it is- normal things become distorted, it’s hard to tell what’s really happening, at least until you find the light. So I would reel, gain line, and it would pull all of it back out, all this time the boat is moving around with the wave action etc. AFter much effort, I finally get it up to where I could see it. I just knew I had won the tournament and it was a .... trot line. A dad-gum trot line. It didn’t even have a catfish on it. I did not win the tournament. Another time my dad and me were fishing on a pier and right as he cast out a seagull flew by and He hooked it. But he didn’t realize it at first. He said something like “ What in the world “ The seagull was flying away and my dad had to reel it in. That thing was NOT happy!

My dad started taking me when I was 4 . He liked pier or surf fishing , and that got me started. Oftentimes my whole family would go, which included Me and my brother, 2 aunts, an uncle, and mom and dad. Basically, these were to put food on the table. My dads philosophy of catch and release was catch it and release into the ice chest. We also bank fished a creek near the house for catfish. I started fresh water fishing in earnest when I was 14 at the lake down the road, catching bream and catfish. One day I saw a more streamlined fish swim by and realized it was a bass. Love at first sight!! Something drew me to bass then , and still does now. It wasn’t long after that I caught a 4 pound bass on a ...( wait for it ) DOUGHBALL , while fishing for cats. It got tangled up in a brush pile out from the bank. I immediately jumped in and grabbed it. Wish I could find the pic. The first bass I remember catching on a lure was on a red and white spoon. I think I caught one other fish on one. Then I discovered plastic worms ? Ever since then, bass fishing has been my favorite. I have done everything from offshore fishing to running a trot line for cats in remote lakes and everything in between and love bass fishing the best!!!

I keep some 12-16 inch LM bass every now and then .. I like bass filets, although there are other fish I’d rather eat. I have never seen one worm in any bass Ive cleaned. We fry ours and they are good. I don’t like bass quite as good on the bone. It has a stronger taste, I think from the skin. Still pretty good though.

I don’t get too specific on my home lake. Maybe I’m a little selfish, but if I don’t know the person asking me, I don’t tell them specific baits that work , just general terms like “soft plastics “:If I knew they would conserve the fishery like I try to, then I would trust them more. I just don’t want someone keeping all the fish and ruining it. If I know the person and trust them I tell them more. I gave a zoom fluke recently to a friend on the lake and the next time I went by his house he said he caught a 4 pounder on it. When I’m not on the home lake , I am usually on as remote a lake as possible . I don’t enjoy fishing crowded waters near as much, So discussions are few and far between out there.

I listen primarily to bluegrass/old time and Gospel music.Between those 3 , it’s probably 80% of what I listen to now. I know I’m in a minority with bluegrass, which I just don’t understand. It is so pure and pleasant to my ears, especially. Instrumentals.Favorite older artists include the Stanley brothers, Tommy Jarrell .Flatt and Scruggs. Favorite newer group is Blue highway . As far as Gospel/ Christian music There are too many I like to even try to list . I also like old time Cajun music ( like the Balfa brothers ) I occasionally like to hear some hill country blues( Rl Burnside ) I will occasionally get on a wild hair and listen to some Skynyrd, which was by far my favorite southern rock group . I also like some select country songs ,mostly from the 70s to around 10 years ago.

^^^ Thats hard to follow^^^ I have done one state : FLORIDA. But for other reasons than above ? Thats not likely to change any time soon.

My favorite rod is a 2 piece that is stuck together. That particular rod is less sensitive, but it is a med. -heavy action. I don’t have any problem detecting a strike though, and it’s got the backbone to pull a fish out of the weeds. I think one piece rods are somewhat more sensitive but for the kind of fishing I do , it doesn’t matter at all. I agree that buying rods is very hard for me. Esp. If it’s not a matching combo. I probably have more one piece rods, but that’s for no particular reason.

I use the 3/0 ewg Gammies too. My best day for numbers this year ( 32) was using these hooks and the speed worms. I didn’t miss very many that bit. I haven’t used the round shank hooks in years because it seem d like my hookup % was lower... but it was mostly using Culprit worms then.

Quality insights! This reinforces some of the things I’ve learned and am learning about bank fishing.

Mine used to but she doesn’t anymore. She lost a huge bass a few years ago and it kind of defeated her. She was good at bream fishing when we were much younger and we would have friendly competition with size and numbers. She was also unafraid of wade fishing in the river with Gators around. Hopefully I can get her back into it someday. She doesn’t mind if I go, and is willing to at least hear my stories and see the pics.

Got one decent fish on a watermelon red trick worm the last hour of daylight...caught it at the first deep hole down the lake..

I haven’t got the elusive 10 pounder, even living in Florida. Have had one on a few times though at least! Whew! Got that off my chest! I feel like Im sitting in a support group saying” Hi, my name is Mike. My problem is .... I have not caught a smallmouth , in fact, I don’t remember catching a bass out of the state of Florida. I did catch one on the st Mary’s river, which is the border of Fl and Georgia. I have not caught a bass on a jig. This basically amounts to my short bucket list.

You must live in Florida. Things like what you describe happen to me a lot. In my younger years I wouldn’t put up with it. It’s truly a miracle that Im still here. I’m not what I want to be today, but am thankful I’m not what I used to be. People are really crazy, I know this because I IS ONE !!! I had a customer today ( from another country) try to manipulate me into a lower price .( I do sales) Normally it doesn’t bother me but after explaining all of it to her and her brother at least SEVEN times and being very patient up to that point, they began raising their voice and trying to entrap and manipulate me. Instead of letting it escalate , I got up and walked out, no sale - no problem.

Dern right on the football, but college not pro for me. Looking forward to seeing What Dan Mullen and the home-team? can do this year.

Amen brother. Just thinking about that myself. Right before I read this I was checking the predicted temps here to see if I’d see a little drop soon. Ha ha Im 6 weeks off on that at least.

I did struggle to remember between the two.

He’s also one of the main culprits that caused so many people to come ( and come, and come ) to Florida.

I tend to do best with watermelon colors , June bug, grape , red shad. Green pumpkins good but not best where I fish. Y'all try the Alabama craw color .It’s half June bug and ( I think ) half pumpkin. I don’t know if it comes in other brands besides Yum dingers but that’s my hot bait right now. The fish absolutely clobber it on top, reeling thru or on top of grass.

I ALMOST lost my right eye so I learned to shoot left handed. By the way I LOVE ANIMALS.... They are delicious!?