airborne_angler

Ive recently started using Ultralight rigs again. Ive been throwing regular and larger size plastics and havent really had much luck,and its really gotten me down on fishing,kinda discouraging. When I started Dropshotting again on my ultralight combo and sticking fish(regardless of the size or species) the fun was back in the game for me. Its really neat to catch some dinks and then have a significantly larger fish come in and take your offering. Catching a bunch of 12 inch fish and then suddenly hook into a 2-4 lb fish and not be expecting it. Thats where the fun is for me.

Its not just Birds and stuff that are affected by the discarded fishing line,its other aquatic life too. One day I was fishing near a bank full of large rocks. On top of one of the rocks,in the water,was a HUGE crawdad,the size you dont want pinching your fingers. I approached it,it didnt spook and take off. It couldnt. It was wrapped all up in fishing line and the line was wedged between some rocks below. I gingerly picked it up and cut it free from the line that was holding it down. I then cut away the line that was wrapped around it. Normally I woulddve stuck it on a hook,but I figured it had been sitting where it was for an undetermineable amount of time and deserved to live after its suffering. I set it in the water and it spread its claws and drifted down(parachute style) into the depths. Felt pretty good rescuing it.

I like to use artificials as well,but when I fish with my kids or with my wife,they havent gotten confidence in Artificials. I did, however, introduce my wife to the dropshot rig with some small dropshot baits yesterday. My wife did really well,had a good time,but she says she still prefers live worms. Besides fisherman,arent worms sought after when gardening? If I opened up a small worm business I can target 2 types of customers.

Found out yesterday that the vendor that supplies the Local Walmart with Nightcrawlers and mealworms had a falling out with the management and pulled his product. Talked to sporting goods associate and he said Walmart has no interest in looking for another vendor. Theres only 1 place in town(50,000 population) that carries live bait they get wiped out and only reorder every 2 weeks.. What to do? Could this be an opportunity to open my own bait business?

Just went through some photos I had and heres one my Stepson caught a few years back. This one was really big!!

Went out yesterday with the wife and she had a blast. She LOVES fishing. We both caught a mixed bag of Bass,Bluegill,Trout and Green Sunfish on 3 inch Berkley Dropshot worms wacky rigged on Ultralight combos. Nothing really of size,however my wife did hook into a decent Green Sunfish. She didnt want to pose with it so she gave me the opportunity. I will not take credit for it though. Doesnt look like much but for a Green Sunfish this fish was a monster. Im telling you these fish are HIGHLY aggressive, When they strike at an offering,They hit it and run. They dont peck at it or toy with it. Sometimes they hit so fast you dont have time to react.They also fight very well and are probably some of the most beautifully colored fish that can be caught. If youve never caught a Green Sunfish,get some Ultralight rigs going and have some fun. Shellcrackers(Redear) are another that grow VERY large and fight very well.

Hey WAY2SLOW, Its a small world. I also live in Sierra Vista. Its a pretty small town(50,000 OR SO POPULATION),who knows maybe I know your brother,Ive been here since 1980 and have met all sorts of people. Ill get a hold of your brother,as of right now I cant say im ready to pull the trigger on anything. I can at least contact him to see if he can be on the look out for me. I appreciate the info ....ALOT!!!

OH ill tell you,I know all about working the TM. my little 10' gets bullied(pushed around) by the wind ALOT!! As for the water ill be fishing, Right now I go to a lake with an 8hp limit on it,suppose ill keep my 10' boat for that. The other water I can fish near by is a 250 surface acre lake thats divided into an area where theres no wake and an area where the big boys(outboards) can go. No jet ski's or other PWC or Jet Boats are allowed on this lake. Waterskiers and tubers are fine though. Guess Id want a boat that could handle just about any body of water I choose to put it on. I may tow it along it on Vacation and decide to launch at a lake unknown to me in another state. I suppose for that kind of versatility,an aluminum would be best..No?

My limit would probably be $7500,Figured in that price range I will probably have a good variety to choose from.-Although I could probably get financed for more by my bank,Im not wanting to go with a "skys the limit" attitude. Just something larger with some of the basic features mentioned above. If I could find something in the $2500-$3500 range is be a happy fisherman. The Tracker Crappie series seems like a good investment for what im looking for.

I would like some info about whatever IU need to know about a bigger boat that the 10" Jon Boat I currently own. Im looking for something entry level such as: http://images02.olx.com/ui/1/27/48/12591948_1.jpg or even: http://media.trackermarinegroup.com/tracker/images/TPC175T0509_BMT_09_700.jpg Just something basic,simple and something that has storage,a livewell,and some sort of deck to stand up and fish if so desired.Id also like to get a larger boat to explore all those parts of the lake im scared to go into with my 10' due to the wake the larger boats put off. A larger boat for me is in order because my 10' only holds 2 people. When I go camping with family and friends,id like to take more than one person at a time out on the boat Ive heard that on most "real" boats,for every hour you use it,it requires 5 hours of maintenance. Is this true? Im also debating aluminum vs. Fiberglass. Which is better and why? My thoughts are that Aluminum is more durable and doesnt require as much care in the looks department. Are there other things that vary greatly? Im wanting to make this purchase next year,but id like to gain as much knowledge as possible prior to the purchase. Im not looking for anything brand new, older is fine. Another question is: Im leaning towards an aluminum(unless someone convinces me that fiberglass is better) Lets say I find an aluminum like the ones pictured above for $XXXX which is within my budget,but I also find a big name fiberglass boat about 10 years older for lets say $1500-$2000 less,how do I weigh out which one is better? Is it a matter of preference?

I was using a 3 inch dropshot the other(very windy) day and tore the fish up. Now, they were very small fish(except the Bluegill,they were a nice size) but I got strikes like crazy. The bait was 12-18 inches off the bottom and every species in the lake was hitting the bait!! Suppose if I had used a larger bait I might not have caught as many fish,but im sure they wouldve been larger.

I know alot of comapnies make B&W fishfinders,Ive found one made by Garmin which is color. I can pick it up for about $160. Just how much defference is a Color vs Black and white fish finder. Are color ones easier to read?

A guy I helped tow in a few weeks ago gave me a baitcaster setup he fished up from the bottom of the lake that day. The rod was an old Pistol grip style,and the guides were shot,so it went into the trash. The reel was an Abu Garcia Ambassadeur Max Lite. I took it apart,cleaned it up and it works well. Sounds a bit noisy on the cast,so I think it might need some new lube.

Now thats just cool . A trophy Bass fisherman that actually likes Trophy Panfish too,I can tell your a Trophy "Anything" kind of guy. The Bluegill are about to Spawn here and man they get ferocious,big and fight REALLY well. Cant wait,Im working with an ultralight outfit and I really dont think it could get anymore fun.Easy to catch and really strong pullers.

I have all sorts of heavier tackle. At first I was catching the fish on a medium spinning rod and reel and decided since the fish were biting so much,I would down size to make it more of a challenge if I did catch a little larger fish. Also made th smaller fish feel a little bigger.

I need some opinions. I broke the transducer off of the bottom of my old TM. I have priced a replacement and they run about $60-$65. I originally paid $80 for the entire fishfinder(Eagle Cuda 128) Would you all buy a new transducer,as the head unit works fine,or would you all just buy another,better fishfinder. Seems replacement parts for this particular fishfinder arent readily available and some searching is required. They just dont show up on Ebay a whole lot either. Bass Pro and Cabelas doesnt even list this model anymore. What does the consensus say? Do I spend $65 on a new transducer which would make this fish finder almost a $150 investment,or do I just spend $150 and get a better fishfinder with more features?

The comments I read are on the Basspro.com reviews of certain lures. I dont know the people whote write certain reviews but many of them swear they break off a 10-12 lb or larger fish. I sometimes wonder how the scenario played out. Did the person actually see the fish,or was the fish maybe a 2-3 lb fish and wrapped up on a stump,to where the line would give a little and you could still feel the fish struggle prior to the line breaking?

The wind was really rough yesterday and I was afraid of a repeat performance of the other day,so I waited till sundown,when the wind died down. I went over to where I lost the rod/reel and dragged my magnet. Pulled up alot of weeds and in the weeds was a Blue baitcaster. I thought SCORE!! I thought I had found someone elses rod and reel,Nope it was my baitcaster combo I hadnt realized I lost in the incident. It was getting dark and then I spotted the butt of the reel. I dropped my magnet right where it was and parked my boat. I followed the line to the magnet and probed around. Water was only Chest deep ,and I couldve reached down and grabbed the rod but I stirred up silt and it was getting dark,was getting hard to see. I pulled off my sandals and tried to feel with my toes. I felt something that couldve been my rod and pulled it up,it was a darn stick. I continued,Felt something else,got all excited and pulled up with my foot,It was the magnet. DARN!! At this time it was getting really dark and I was about to call it quits. I felt something else and pulled it up with my foot. It was another large stick,but laying over it was my rod and reel,so when I lifted the stick the rod and reel came up too. SCORE!!! I was sooo Happy. Water was cold,but for some reason on the way to the boat ramp I felt nice and warm. I think I pee'd myself!!! LOL ;D Now the 2 rods and reels spent 5 days under water,how much maintenance do they need,is a total teardown in order?

Alot of the Bass I caught were no larger than 6 inches. I dont care,its the best when you catch 10 or so and then a 1 or 2 pound fish comes and takes your offering on a ultralight rig. Getting into a mixed bag of fish is even more fun,you really have no idea of what your gonna catch at times. This is where I caught the majority of the fish. This is the Largest of the fish caught yesterday. Id say its pushing ohh say 2 lbs?? I cant help that this lake has dinks stacked thick. Wish I could get into more quality fish,but....Ill take the dinks on an ultralight anyday.

I made a successful retrieval of the Conbo,I also discovered I lost a Baitcasting combo when the boat dumped me out,got it back too.. Ill keep the stringer idea in mind for next time something like this happens. Thanks for the suggestions

I went out today and just like always,everything starts out promising and calm,then when your on the water all H*ll breaks loose. Wind,Wind and More non stop wind,not a breeze either.I toughed it out and slammed fish like crazy with a Berkley 3 inch dropshot worm. I was in all sorts of fish.Bass,Trout,Big Bluegill and Green Sunfish tore up my offerings. Most of the bass Were tiny,wouldnt even qualify as Dinks,these were Micro dinks. This lake is loaded with them. The funnest part about catching em is,they were all caught on an ultralight spinning combo with 4lb line. I did manage 1 decent fish out of all of them,even though the fish would struggle to say it weighed 2 pounds,it felt really good on the Ultralight setup. Later,prior to me leaving the lake, I decided to try retrieving the Ultralight combo I had go in the water when my boat took on water and tipped me out. I ended up with a successful salvage. Not only did I get my Ultralight setup back,but I also discovered I had lost my Diawa Millionaire and Medium heavy rod when the boat tipped, got it back too..Alls well that ends well. Im a happy camper once again

I thought of that but its been years since I swam,Last time I tried going deeper than I believe 5 feet my ears were killing me. I cant remember how deep the water may be where I dumped the rod when my boat started taking on the water and threw me out. I broke the transducer for my Fishfinder in the incident too.

Ive got 2 different style magnets. A yellow one one I bought from a boating store and also one thats about 3 feet in length,I might try both at the same time while dragging the bottom,hanging one off each corner of the boat. Who knows what else I may find!!

Not sure where to post this so if im wrong then please move it. Anyway Last Thursday I had a mishap on my boat and ended up losing an ultralight rod/reel combo. I have an idea where it might be,I was only 6-7 feet off the bank. If I probe the area with a strong enough magnet,what are the chances of retrieving it? Im wondering because the way most rod/reels are made these days are with Aluminum and non metalic, non magnetic materials. Is it worth attempting or are the chances slim for retrieval due to what the rod/reel are made out of.

Well I now realize the mistake I made. I anchored on the rear of the boat. I was anchored,the wind was at my back and the waves were able to crash over the rear of the boat. I couldve fished with the anchor on the front, and just swiveled my seat around(which is what I shouldve done and will do from now on). Its a pain to fish from the rear and to have to crawl to the front and raise and lower the anchor when fishing by myself,but if that what its gonna take then so be it. I have a friend that says if im operating this little 10 ft flat bottom of mine and im heading INTO the wind,a good strong gust and a big wave can catch the front and flip me over backwards,any truth to this thought process,Anyone ever seen it happen? Im kinda spooked at the thought,and thoughts or suggestions?