J._Bricker

Hope some of you guys can help me out or provide some ideas. I just had the carpet replaced on the boat, which as some of you know is a pretty expensive in regards to time and money. As you can imagine, I would like to keep the new carpet in good condition for as long as possible. The old carpet on the deck where I would strap the rods down would soak up all the scent (smelly jelly, pro cure) from my plastics. Over time not only did this create a black oily mess on the carpet, but it rotted out the glue underneath the carpet. I'd like to use a piece of left over carpet as a mat in this area to save the carpet underneath. I was thinking of gluing Velcro to the bottom of the mat and hope it would hold and not get blown overboard when under power. Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. JB

A 6" lunker punker tied to 65lb power pro on a Powell 734 and green Corado... Top water striper fishing!

Menus looking real good for the upcoming Carolina victory, but no Super Bowl grub fest is complete without guacamole and chips!

Freelencer27, the Redwood Empire Bass Club is up in the North bay. Might be worth a look. And Caliyak is right, Delta Bass Club is a good club...

Exactly, very easy to get in and out of compared to the "belly boat" style and a little more comfortable in my opinion. Haven't fished out of a pontoon style, but I know the guys who have 'em like 'em a lot. A couple of places I'd go fish out of my tube was Italian Slough or Victoria Canal, but any place you can drive to an be able to access the water is easy enough. I haven't been on the water for a few months but I'm definitely looking forward to the spring....

The good news Cboogie, is by your own admission you have plenty of time to make an informed decision and I believe this forum can help. If you don't have friends with boats that you can ask questions, joining a bass club might be a good option. It would allow you ride in different boats, let you experience different layouts and options, ask questions of the boats owners, and hopefully learn how to operate a boat safely. Hope this helps a little bit, just remember the "best" boat is the one you can afford....

Dreamchaser, don't worry too much about the learning the tides, tidal apps on your smartphone can help with general areas. I first started to fish for bass in the delta, I used a U shaped tube and the tidal flow to my advantage. Chabot has some big, trout fed fish..

lmbfisherman, Lake Merced in So.San Francisco was planted with northern strain largemouth decades ago and had a self sustaining population after that. Not sure the condition of the lake now, but it is spring fed, has tules along some of the banks, has crawdads and planted trout. You might want to take a look...

Hello fellow Bay Area bass anglers! Hope everyone is looking forward to the spring of 2016, where any cast could be a 10lber! I primarily fish the delta, and the waters mentioned hold good bass. I'd add Lake Chabot and the back ponds of Shadow Cliffs....

If both small mouth and spotted bass are in a body of water their hybid offspring are "mean mouth" bass....

I used to take the family up to Shasta for a weeks vacation. We'd stay at the Tsasdi Resort on the Sacramento River arm of the lake. Great fishing for numbers of spots and smallies, and I even booked Gary Miralles of Shasta Tackle for a trout / salmon trip. Those 3lb trout we caught BBQ'd up nicely! Very nice cabins with everything you'd need and a 30 minute drive into Redding to go to a restaurant or a movie...... I do think the Umpqua River for numbers of smallies sounds pretty good as well. Sounds like you and the family are in for a great vacation where ever you decide to go! JB

The Redwood Empire Bass Club or the Bass Reapers would probably be your best bets. The Reapers just had their annual tournament up at Berry last week.....

Welcome to Northern Cali and the East Bay. I'm guessing you've been fishing Lake Chabot or San Pablo? The back ponds of Shadow Cliffs or Del Valle aren't too bad and are either. Hope to hear you are getting some big bites as the big girls start to come up shallow.....

Do you know if you're plan on being in Northern California?

Lake Chabot in Castro Valley would be the closest, and is a big fish lake. Castro Valley boarders the city of Hayward and unincorporated Hayward would be a good place to start. And as stated by NorcalBassin, the Delta is about a 45 minute drive. On the way to the Delta on I580, is Shadow Cliffs in Pleasanton, Del Valle and Los Vasqueros in Livermore to name a few...... Welcome to Cali

When is your planned trip to the states?

Bassinhopeful, might I suggest you look into joining a bass club. By joining a bass club you won't have to be shore bound, you will be exposed to different techniques and a variety of water. In answer to your question of close by lakes, Lataman hit on two great fisheries within 45 minutes of Oaktown by suggesting Lake Chabot and San Pablo Reservior. JB

Hello everyone, I enjoyed reading this tread and how passonate we (bass fishermen) all are about our little green friends no matter where we call home. I was also impressed with how beautiful Cyprus's resevoirs are when at full pool. Hopefully, the bass will be taking full advantage during the spawn and fishing will be great in years to come! As for a comment made in one of Vyron's earlier posts, "Ask our cali friends what they ve been feeding their bass and they get huge : trouts!!!!!!!!" While it is true planted rainbow trout are a contributing factor, but the most important factor contributing to the size of those fish is their genetic make-up. The majority of those huge bass all have the Florida strain DNA, as I would imagine the giant caught in Lake Biwa Japan did as well. I know the introduction of Florida strain fingeriings and habitat improvements in the lakes here in California has helped increase the size of fish caught in subsequent years. Just my humble opinion and continued good fishing to all, JB

Nothing wrong with driving down a bank and picking a spot that looks "bassy" and going to work. Sounds like you have some good launch points to do that and you won't be limited by finding good water. Another way to learn the delta is to join a bass club and gain some experience in time for the spring. Merry Christmas and good fishing in 2013. JB

Welcome aboard gentlemen. The friends of the green fish meet here, and we all understand the universal language, that is.......fishing. 8-)

Daiwa . The point is you buy the BEST you can afford, and in the past year I've done just that, (1) Alphas Ito, (3) Zillions, (1) Curado D. FYI, I still use my old Curado 200s, but not as much as before........

FishTank- I would have to agree with the way Raul broke it down. Both the Zillion and the new Curado 7.1's are dynamite reels. The Zillion is also smaller and more compact than the new Curado. But you can get the new Curado on EBay for about $80 less than the Zillion. And if you're wondering..... Thanks to the Bait Monkey I do own them both, more of one reel than the other. Which ever one you choose, you can't go wrong. My .02, JB

The question, in my opinion, is how much are your eyes and vision worth? And good eye protection doesn't come cheap as pointed out by bluecraw. Right now, I'm wearing Oakley's 8-)

Tackle Warehouse, Acproshop.com

RR- Look forward to it. As for the delay on your boat, something about absence and the heart . JB