senile1

What fun! Those are some nice looking smallies.

Yep, $3099.99 for the 50 inch and $3199.99 for the 57 inch. https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/garmin-force-7819.html

I have had a similar problem. I pulled the trigger on retirement last year. I already had a list of things to work on that I had not been able to stay abreast of while I was working. Other than our vacation in the Canadian Rockies and two or three fishing vacations, I had been working quite steadily on that list. Then I had a couple of major injuries that hindered my ability to fish and do the things I enjoyed for approximately 7 months. I just got back on the water about 10 days ago. The list is not urgent. Enjoying my life is. I hope you can breakaway from this because it still sounds like you are programmed to run on the treadmill constantly. I know I was.

Nice fat fish! Congratulations on the new PB!

The problem is your thermocline has setup at an unlucky depth. Wait until it changes and then go fishing again. ? In the meantime, keep thinking it out. You see the thermocline on your depth finder. What about fish? In addition to what scaleface said, look for depth changes, small subtle ditches, channel swings, docks, brushpiles, etc. Also, depending on the forage, the fish could be positioned at less than 13 feet but out over deeper water than that chasing food. Keep trying different lures as well.

Sunrise at Smithville Lake on July 1st. I have missed this during my rehab. It is so good to be back on the water!

The phrase, "Roughly throw this list together," nails it. There is some truth to the idea that the list contains some of the best lakes but putting them in a particular order seems to be a fool's errand. I think the list is more a discussion piece than anything. I always check it out though.

I always hear that Floridanus is more difficult to catch but your post begs the question, "What is the scientific evidence?" The link below provides some information but I would like to read the documents from the original studies to see how they eliminated other variables that could affect the outcome. http://sfrc.ufl.edu/allenlab/Popular Articles/18_DrMikeAllen_Nov_11.pdf

That is a beautiful dog.

This was taken at the iconic Valley of the Ten Peaks at Moraine Lake in Canada's Banff National Park. There isn't much of a hike to get to this and my wife and I like challenging hikes. However, the road and parking lot leading back to Moraine Lake is typically full and closed by 6:00 am in the busy hiking season of summer. We left our lodging at 3:30 am to get there early enough to get in and then we waited until the sun came up. It was the only way to get the pics of this magnificent area and we weren't going to miss it.

Thanks, Blue! Very sad to hear when one of us dies out on the water. After being unable to fish for the past few months due to injury and surgery, I have just returned to the water over the past week. I have fished three times and each time I have forgotten to wear my life jacket. Before my injuries I was getting in the habit of wearing it any time the boat was moving. Your post has reminded me that I need to wear it.

I just scanned through this quickly on my phone and didn't see any mention of the new trolling motors. Maybe I missed it, or they don't want to spoil the surprise.

Congratulations! Love the pic from brown bass heaven.

Congratulations on your new PB!

Congratulations!

That's what it's all about. Glad you two had a good time.

I hit the water yesterday but only lasted 3 hours. I didn't switch the handle from left to right on one of my spinning setups and then forgot and set the hook holding the rod with my right hand. That hurt like hell and caused me to cut my time short. I caught two bass and will be hitting the water again tomorrow. Thanks for all the good wishes!

Because you posted this I had to go research it. Very funny and interesting.

This is a pic from our trip to Banff National Park in Canada last August. This was the view of Peyto Lake and surrounding mountains about two-thirds of the way up the Peyto Lake/Bow Pass trail.

Celebrity worship is naivete in action. Some would call me a cynic though I would say I am a realist. I hear and see people speaking highly of the character, goodness, and skills of celebrities, including quite a few on this forum who think some professional anglers' poo doesn't stink. You don't know what you don't know and the true story of Mike Long is now appearing to be revealed. Every group of people, no matter how skilled or kind they appear to be, has some bad apples. There are no exceptions. Who's next? ?

^ This. Do your dinks, not to mention the 20 incher, have a healthy girth for their length or do they tend to the lean side? If it is the latter, then you may be fishing a pond with not enough food for large fish. I've seen a lot of small ponds with no pressure that have too many bass for the amount of forage available, resulting in skinny fish fighting for every last morsel.

I started a squeeze ball before the doctor gave me the green light. I also have therapy putty that the occupational therapist provided. The yellow putty was too easy so they moved me up to red. It is quite a bit stiffer and I have exercises I have to do with it. Thanks, Blue. Yeah, the winter and spring around here haven't been conducive to getting out as much so there is that.

Oh, I agree about not doing anything foolish. I am not doing anything that the doctor didn't say was ok. He advised that I could do weightlifting exercises as long as I felt like the weight or bar won't slip from my weak hand. The whole key is to get the right wrist strong enough to grip the heavier weights needed to stimulate the larger muscles like my pecs, shoulders, lats, etc. That has to happen first. As for fishing, I hope to get out next week and see how long I can last but I won't be pushing it beyond my limits. I missed you guys too!

? Getting old does present some challenges but I expect to get back in the swing of things soon. I've been chomping at the bit waiting for the ok from the doctor so I am glad to have that out of the way. I have already gained some strength in the hand and forearm in just one week. I have always worked out through the years so additional rehabbing and strengthening on my own is helping and comes naturally. On another note, it is good to see another video on your channel. I am going to watch it later today.

Here's some pics. The first is of my calf in late December when some of the swelling started to go down. The second is my right wrist 19 days after surgery. The third is the x-rays after the surgery was completed.