Mobasser

This is true. When deer and small game are abundant, coyotes will thrive, and hang out in these areas. There are a couple of guys in my area that advertise killing them. Some farmers with livestock hire these guys to rid the farm of coyotes. Still, if they have livestock, it's almost impossible to get rid of them.

I live in a rural area. My property is surrounded by farms. I've lived here for forty years. In that time, Ive never had a dog killed or hurt by coyotes. I've heard them howl in the distance, especially on winter nights. When they make a kill, they start to yelp and howl in a fast, excited way. Ive been told they do this when they take down a small deer or some other critter. My son in law raises hogs on his farm not far from my house. He hates coyotes because they'll sneak in and kill young pigs. The coyotes mating season is between January and March. Ive read that they are most aggressive at this time. In the winter months, I never let my dogs out after dark, and Ive never had any trouble with them. Have any members had trouble with coyotes trying to kill your pets?

When I first started bass fishing, the Man's Little George was a popular lure. Most folks considered them a cold water bait. Make a long cast, let them sink to the desired depth, then, lift the rod quickly, and let them fall. Most all the strikes come on the fall. I caught fish on them, but not a lot. Being compact and heavy, they cast very well, even in wind. They snag easily, and I lost quite a few to snags. One problem I had was that fish became unhooked easily. I plan to fish them again, weather permitting, to finish out the season. Something else about the Manns Little George. It was named after the controversial governor of Alabama in the 1960s, George Wallace. Does anyone fish many tail spinners in cold water? If not the old Little George, which ones are you using?

I've had good luck with purple shades for many years. My lake has small bluegill as the main forage, so, that's why I think purple has worked well. But, we're seeing these colors through our eyes. We can't interpret how bass see these colors. Sometimes, an off the wall color you've never used can work well too. It can pay to keep a couple of oddball colors on hand.

At my home lake, purple rules. I also like black, Junebug, and purple glitter, or variations of these, sometimes with a chartreuse or pink tail. But, at the end of the day, purple is still #1. I'll also add watermelon, and watermelon/ red flake.

Catt, hope you both get feeling better soon. Take care, and get to feeling better.

A-Jay, this week is the first week so far that our morning temps will get below freezing. Tomorrow morning predicted 29 degrees. No snow yet, but finally got caught up on rain. Daytime temps in the upper 40s, or lower 50s. I'm prepared with a new snow shovel and some bags of salt, and, still trying to squeeze in a few afternoon fishing trips before it all freezes up.

1/2 and 1/4 oz Rattle Trap in chrome has been good over the years.

Here's your answer. I've been on a weight loss plan now for months. As A- Jay says here, there's no luck in this. You have to be aware of what your doing every day, and stick to it. I haven't done anything special. Regular exercise, and watching what I eat, and portion sizes. I've gone from 235 down to around 205. My goal is 190. I'll get there. Be determined and don't give up. Anyone can lose weight if you keep a positive attitude about this, and realize the health benefits.

Shimano, DC, Diawa. I don't even care. If it feels good I'm going fishin. .

Fishing tournaments is not for everyone. I fished a few many years ago. I was never very good at it. I wasn't good at fishing under pressure. I like bass fishing because I like to figure things out. Figure out what they're biting on, patterns, seasonal etc. And, there's always the thrill and excitement of possibly hooking a big one. It's a puzzle. I've been trying to solve the puzzle for a long time.

There are a lot of guys who love to catch fish, but never eat any species. I like the challenge of catching bass on artificial lures. I catch crappie to.eat.

One thing I like about glass rods is the smooth old school casting action. You can feel.a good glass rods load up on the cast. I like graphite also, but it's a totally different feel.

In 1938, a Frenchman, Andre Meulnart invented the Mepps spinner. World war two ended in 1945, and there were still many American G.I.s stationed in France. One of these soldiers was Frank Velek, who brought some Mepps spinners home to Antigo Wisconsin when he returned after the war. He gave some Mepps spinners to Todd Shedon, who owned a tackle shop in Antigo. At first, Todd Shedon dismissed these lures as no good. He had them for two years, before he finally tied one on while having a bad day on the Wolf river in Wisconsin. He caught several fish that day, all on Mepps. He wanted more, and initially the only way he could get them was sending nylon stockings to a French woman, who Mr. Velek had met while stationed in France in exchange for Mepps spinners. He eventually struck a deal to import Mepps from the French manufacturer. In 1956, he sold his tackle shop and formed Sheldon's Inc, focusing on selling Mepps. Sales grew fast, and by the mid 1960s sales were in the millions. Todd Sheldon passed away in 1995, and his son Mike Sheldon took over. They now own Mepps S.A.( France), and Mr. Twister, a great soft plastic manufacturer. They're still located in Antigo Wisconsin. And, if your a squirrel hunter, you can send them some squirrel tails, which they exchange for Mepps spinners. The Sheldon family got the ball rolling with Mepps. They distributed them, and helped to popularize them. But, had it not been for Frank Velek, an avid fisherman, and an unknown American G.I, who saw the potential of these spinners, American anglers may have never known about them. Sales of Mepps spinners are still in the millions.

I believe my peak was ten years ago. I'm older now, and have aches and pains from years of construction work. But, I'm still hanging in there. Bound and determined to keep fishing, and keep learning things.

I've always heard that clouds are a form of cover for bass. I like cloudy days for lipless, spinnerbaits and other moving baits. A little chop on the surface can be good also.

I still have my Zebco 33 I received for Christmas in 1966.It still works, but I retired it a long time ago. I like using my newer stuff now.

My brother and I stayed at our grandparents farm several summers to help out with chores. We fished two farm ponds almost every evening. My older brother was my teacher, and taught me all the basics of bass fishing. Sometimes a kid from a nearby farm went with us. We almost always used surface baits from our dad's and Grandpa's tackle boxes. My brother was a patient teacher, and I have great memories of those times.

Tonight, my wife and I will be going with our grandkids to trick or treat. It's always a good time. In the small town we live in, it's still popular with the kids. As a kid in the 1960s, we used a pillow case for our candy sack, and made our costumes. I was a ghost, a pirate and a cowboy. Lots of folks made treats like candy apples, cookies, or cupcakes. We usually just munched these down along the way. My dad never seemed to worry about us trick or treating, and would say ok boys, have fun. The goal was to get as much candy as possible, and I remember the pillow cases being heavy with candy when we were finished. If your going out with kids or grandkids tonight for trick or treat, have a good and safe Halloween. Do we have any BR members who will be taking the youngsters out for trick or treat tonight?

Doug Hannon wrote about the plastic worm years ago. He claimed that the plastic worm was the one lure that bass could not remember or become used to. I think this is true 100 percent. Through most of the season the plastic worm works. It's always fun to mix it up and try new or different things, but the worm still rules much of the time.

I think some folks get hung up on certain baits. If the fish don't hit them, they think they don't work anymore. The bait may not work that particular day. Next week you could be making a killing with it.

A plastic worm has been a consistent bass catcher for 50 years. It still works, and will continue to work in the future.

I think it all takes time. But, you'll end up a better fisherman by finding patterns yourself, and fishing your way, with your style.

A- Jay, those are awesome! Those are the type of pike that made the covers of Field and Stream and Outdoor Life when I was a kid. I daydreamed about those big pike quite a bit. Thank you sir

Being from Missouri, I've never caught any pike. As a kid, we called them northern pike, and I always saw pictures of them jumping out of the water on the covers of outdoor magazines. I know we've got many members here who fish for bass in waters that have pike also. What's it like? Do you catch a lot of pike on bass lures? Do pike break lines easily? Are they a nuisance, or fun to catch on bass gear?