gobig

Strikes on a big top water in Dec? You must live in California.

Rooster tail.

I couldn't agree more. The another thing is depth. Just because its cold out does not mean you can't find shallow fish or fish up in the water column. There may not be as many but sometimes they are more active than the deeper fish. I try not to dismiss anything until I rule it out.

I couldn't agree more. The another thing is depth. Just because its cold out does not mean you can't find shallow fish or fish up in the water column. There may not be as many but sometimes they are more active than the deeper fish. I try not to dismiss anything until I rule it out.

I couldn't agree more. The another thing is depth. Just because its cold out does not mean you can't find shallow fish or fish up in the water column. There may not be as many but sometimes they are more active than the deeper fish. I try not to dismiss anything until I rule it out.

I tend to flip & pitch with a jig more than anything now days. The size & style of jig I use vary on the location & conditions but I would say my favorite is a 3/4 oz Dirty Jig with a beaver or fighting frog. When I can get away with it I like a bait with a big profile. Punching I use the Bub Tosh set up. Usually a beaver or a fighting frog. I use a jig on the outer deep edges if you consider that punching also.

You want to learn about ice jigs? Google "Bill Siemantle ice jigs"

I don't think it qualifies as a Christmas gift either. For Christmas I would get her an nice dish washer to go with the washer and dryer.

With all the commotion over the invasiveness of the naked body scanners used by the United States Transportation Security Administration (TSA), one question that has been ignored is who is profiting from TSA's use of the body scanners? Mark Hemingway and Tim Carney at The Examiner discovered the shameful answer: George Soros, Michael Chertoff, and a number of lobbyists. Both Soros and Chertoff are profiting from the naked body scanners by way of the company Rapiscan, whose contract is worth $173 million. Lobbyists for this company include Susan Carr, a former senior legislative aide to Rep. David Price (D-N.C.) who is coincidentally chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee. Former Homeland Security secretary Michael Chertoff was flacking for Rapiscan, writes Tim Carney of The Examiner: After the undie-bomber attempt on Christmas 2009, Chertoff went on a media tour promoting the use of these scanners, without disclosing that he was getting paid by Rapiscan, one of the two companies currently contracted by TSA to take a nude picture of you at the airport.

I am pretty sure it is good. Anything with that much bacon can't be bad.

"Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Ben Franklin

Yes. Why not? If you get the weight right I don't see why you can't stroke that bait off the bottom and get the tail to kick on the free fall. Maybe like a dying bait fish. The dart head should give it an erratic fall.

I like throwing a straight tail roboworm on a 1/8 oz darthead. Most any plastic will work. They also work well for boot tail swimbaits in open water.

The problem is when I post video links to other sites they get deleted. I have no affiliation with the sites. I was just trying to pass on good info.

Don't forget a good bait knocker either.

If your looking to keep it on the cheap side here are a few good rods. I use the Okuma 7'11'' heavy for throwing huds paired with a calcutta 400 and 30lb CXX. Bill Seimantle just designed a new lamiglass rod (XL 735C) specific for 6in baits also. I have not used it but I hear good things. http://www.***.com/Okuma_Guide_Series_Big_Bait_Casting_Rods/descpage-OGSBBR.html http://www.***.com/Lamiglas_Excel_Bass_Series_Casting_Rods/descpage-LEBSRC.html

I agree with David about the baits. An 8in hud and the baitsmith mag are my go to trout soft baits. I use the same line he does. If you start trying to throw 8in hud's on a flipping stick you will be miserable. As far as hard baits I would check out tylures and bbz for the under $40 price point.

I thought trophy deer hung out by the houses. ;D

Another P-Line guy here.

http://www.***.com/Dobyns_Randy_McAbee_Cranking_Rod/descpage-DCRM.html

Its a fairly common occurrence on deeper lakes. Its not unusual to catch fish in 50ft of water and I have caught them as deep as 70ft. If the fish is released right away there does not seem to be a problem. Its when they go in the live well.

when ever the fish floats on its side.

Until about two years ago I would have never thought of throwing a top water bait in cold weather. Now there is not a trip I go on with out giving it a try. I realize that I live in California and we do not see some of the temps other regions of the country experience. Generally our water temps do not get much lower than 40 deg in the winter. Here is what I have experienced. The top water bite in colder weather is generally larger fish. Do not expect to catch a ton of fish. Its not like the summer bite. If you get 5 blow ups in a day, that's a great day. This is about quality fish. Size does matter. The general consensus is to down size in the winter. I have found that going larger has worked better for me especially over deep water. In most cases 6in baits are on the small side of what I use. These larger baits have a huge drawing power and can call fish up in the coldest water. I have had some success with smaller baits when I find shallow fish. I generally turn to a frog or a popper in this instance. Fish slow... In many cases painfully slow. A dead stick presentation can be the answer. A good swimbait will have a subtle action imparted by the waves, wind or current. Maybe adding a few twitches now and then. Or a very slow roll. Just enough to make the tail kick. Punkers and super spooks are also good choices. Walk them slow with long pauses. I have not caught any fish moving baits fast this time of year. That is not saying it cannot happen. I am still new to these techniques in my opinion. However they have opened up another world.

I am a Goretex fan. IMO there is not a product on the market that has proven better. I have some of the Columbia products and there is a difference between Omni-tech and Omni-shield. The Omni-tech products are water proof. Omni-shield is water resistant and good for mild rain. I learned this because a friend was bragging about his new Columbia jacket that was totally water proof. So I picked up a jacket for boarding and soon realized the difference. In my experience Omni-tech does not last as long as Goretex.

Music in general has gone to hell. There are very few bands worth listening to. No one writes their own music any more. They are all riding of someone else's shirt tails. The main stay is one hit wonders and a bunch of crap that sounds the same. Good bands in any genre are few and far between any more.