BigAngus752

It's spectacular on a lake I fish about an hour away. The little store on that lake sells minnows and a drop shot with a minnow on it catches crappie all day. My wife fishes with worms at our local lakes because we can buy worms at Walmart but not minnows. LOL

Mostly channel cats although the last one I caught was a flathead. I also forgot to mention that I taught my wife how to fish a dropshot and she will put an earthworm on a dropshot with a 2 foot drop and she catches panfish and 6-10 inch channel cats.

Agreed. There is one particular lake I fish that this happens regularly. Anything I'm dragging on the bottom, even in 2ft of water, is a catfish magnet. My wife was fishing with me once and I set the hook on a hard hit. Within a second I yelled, "d**n catfish!". She asked how I knew right away. I explained that it was clearly huge and it gave me two giant head shakes. Completely different feel from a bass. I hate those whisker pigs. My wife thinks they are "cute" when they grunt.

I've considered trying a sanding pad attachment or using the handle of a paint roller to make a "duck foot" but I haven't gotten around to it and yet my push pole has worked beautifully. I'm starting to think I don't need anything on the end of it. I fish entirely man-made lakes and I'm either pushing out of rip rap or muck. Still haven't had a problem with it sinking too far.

I use this. Granted I have a Ranger RT188 and, being aluminum, it's light and easy to push around, but this works beautifully. Not sure it will stand up to a pontoon boat but it's cheap enough for you to try it. https://www.menards.com/main/paint/paint-sprayers-applicators/extension-poles/mr-longarm-reg-twist-lok-reg-aluminum-extension-pole/9224/paint/paint-sprayers-applicators/extension-poles/mr-longarm-reg-twist-lok-reg-aluminum-extension-pole/9272/p-1444441210190.htm

I went out this morning just as the sun came up. I was stymied at my usual topwater spots and started to fret about the day. Then I discovered that the bluegill are spawning. I quickly found that the bass were stalking the bluegill from nearby grass beds. And then a bunch of bass discovered I was stalking them by swimming a jig through the grass. It was a good day today.

I have a super-popular rig that I named after myself. It's a bare section of stretched, curly fishing line at the end of your rod after you have snagged and broken off for the 87th time in one fishing trip. It's called the "Stupid %#&*!".

Dry it out as @MN Fisher said! Very important! Then use this: https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-us/all-3m-products/~/3M-Marine-Adhesive-Sealant-5200/?N=5002385+3293241623&rt=rud This stuff is incredible. And most importantly, flexible.

I've been blessed to see a lot of wild animals while fishing. Just last Friday I was on my boat working a shoreline when a young weasel walked down to the shore right in front of me. He wasn't full grown, I'd say a "teenager" in weasel years. I've seen a couple weasels while fishing but they usually disappear quickly. This guy or gal stuck with me for a good ten minutes searching the shoreline in the same direction that I was fishing. He stayed a couple feet ahead of my casts and I figured I was fishing old water since he was probably a better fisherman that me. I'd say the two coolest things I've ever seen on the water weren't while I was fishing, but while my wife and I were feeding fish. We were feeding small fish off a dock at night in Jamaica during stingray mating season. The big males were chasing the smaller males completely out of the water. They would leap out of the water and skip across the surface trying to get away. The best, however, was two years later in the same spot in Jamaica. My wife and I were on the same dock again which is just about 20 yards from the beginning of the roped-off swimming area. All of the sudden there was a huge commotion in the swimming area in about four feet of water. A 7 to 8ft hammerhead had cruised in and found a big stingray buried on the ocean floor. He gobbled it and slowly cruised back toward deeper water. I wanted to see it closer and I instinctively took off at a full sprint down the dock trying to intercept him while my wife screamed, "Don't you dare jump in! Don't you jump in that water!". The fear in her voice is the only thing that stopped me. I wasn't the least bit scared and I wanted to see that shark, but I wanted to stay married more. By the way, if we're voting @jbmaine is definitely winning so far. His is absolutely epic.

Sorry but no new parks have opened yet. The rest (which should include Newton) open on May 29. Sam Parr has been open all along. You can check parks here: https://www2.illinois.gov/dnr/closures/Pages/ParksOpenDuringCoVID19.aspx

If you guys ever have the chance to try the hefeweizen made by a small brewery called Riggs Beer Company, do NOT pass it up. I've had more hefeweizens than I could possibly count and this little brewery in Urbana, IL makes one that is in at least the top three I've ever had. The guys that started the brewery grew up in a nearby small town where their parents own an ice cream shop. The boys had a love of beer and went to live in Germany for awhile to learn to do it right. As soon as I can stop drinking their hefeweizen I'm going to try their doppelbock...

I have several. I buy them at my local Walmart for a few bucks. Something I don't mind losing.

When the water gets heavy pressure you have to pull out the stuff they don't see. I like the classics:

This is totally seasonal for me. If the tree starts at the bank and falls all the way to 9ft of water the location of the fish changes with the season and the sun.

Yes, this garage is literally bigger than the house we lived in for 15 years. Very, very blessed. You are correct about the space. This is not the largest shop(s) I’ve had. I could have 10 building this size and I would eventually fill them with junk. LOL

We bought a new house in January. I spent February/March remodeling the house and we are finally moved in. Now I'm remodeling my 1600sq ft. detached garage. It has a bathroom, hot water, two floor drains, 11.5 ft ceilings, and a 93% efficiency furnace. I spent this weekend masking and spraying. We were stressed about getting our old house sold during the pandemic but we just accepted an offer on it last Tuesday. Tremendous blessing! Looking forward to getting my shop finished, set up, and all my tools and vehicles/projects moved in.

Once again I win nothing.

That’s just insane.

Fresh air and exercise are critical to health. Our legal system is based on the “spirit” or “intent” of the mandate. The order is to stay away from other people and from places/objects that other people may have contaminated. There is nothing preventing you from standing on the shore of a lake and fishing as long as you can get there and back without having contact with people. Of course, if you are in a major metropolitan area then you have no choice but to stay in your home just because of population density. This is why I will never live in such an area. Social distancing has been a lifestyle choice for me since the 80s.

I’ll make this easy. Consensus is that it’s carp (I agree) but could me a multitude of other things. It doesn’t matter. Are you in a hurry? If so, keep going. Not in a hurry? Take an in-line spinner or small swimbait, cast past the disturbance, and reel back through it. Do that until you think you’re wasting your time (between 2 and 150 casts LOL).

Ok I’ve been thinking about this since he posted it. I think it’s a typo. I think he meant “spring”. As in, fishing is best and most popular in the spring. That’s my theory and I’m going with it. Answer: No. Not for me. I fish all year (open water only) and I catch more (and bigger) fish in the summer. I also much prefer summer techniques. If I got to choose where to find fish I would pick buried under brush and docks so I can skip wacky worms and pitch t-rigs. Aaaaaand...if that wasn’t a typo I just went on a useless tangent. You’re welcome.

Definitely what @papajoe222 said. And don’t be afraid to throw moving baits. In the past eight days I have fished a heavily pressured small lake from shore three times. I started with slow stuff and had no luck. Then I switched to a lipless with rattle and I have been the only guy there with multiple fish every day. Water temps were 46 and 47 according to the guys on the boats trolling over to ask me how I was catching.

The governor of Illinois has closed all the state parks and rec areas but there are plenty of county and local places to go. I bank fished last Wednesday and today. Three bass last week and four this week. I hope this trend (and only this trend) continues.

Depending on which lake I caught it in, I strongly suspect I would do the same with a 7.

I know a couple guys in Illinois that have mounted 6.5 pound LMs. I can tell you that a good friend of mine has Illinois/Indiana tournaments since he was a young child (backboating with his dad) and he just caught his PB last summer at 6.5 pounds. But I also know guys who have caught 8-9 pound bass in nearby lakes. That has left me wondering when I will order a replica. I have it in my head at about 7.5 pounds. We shall see.