piscicidal

UPDATE: After some consideration I decided to go with the Dobyns 745DX. It arrived yesterday and so far I love it. Got to use it a little bit today. Cant wait to stick a hawg on it. Thanks for all the comments everybody.

Miscellaneous gear I carry in my travel bag: - needle nose pliers - extra pair of sunglasses - sungear (buffs/sunscreen) - small scissors (braid) - clippers - boga grp/scale - rag

That's cool...I understand your point. I have several graphite reels in the rotation and they've served me well. I've got never used the Caenan so I can't comment on it. I saw some Caenans at BPS yesterday, so they should still be in stock.

I agree with all the advice given here.... I take five rods, a life jacket, my lunch/drinks and a carry bag with three 3700 boxes full of the stuff I'm going to use. I also throw in two spare BC reels...one with braid and one with flouro. I don't mess with backlashes....take the reel off and fix it later (i.e. when running to the next spot). Which rods to carry depends on what kind of fishing you and your partner are doing. A typical tournament load for me is: flipping stick/jig rod/paddletail rod/frog rod/worm rod. I can throw big swimbaits on the flippin stick, spinner baits on the paddletail rod and crankbaits/topwaters on the worm rod, so most bases are covered. If I need a finesse rod, I will ask my partner if a sixth rod is OK, but in tournament situation we rarely finesse fish. I recently bought some rod sleeves also....useful for putting rods in/out of holders and keeping your partners boat relatively clutter free. Always show courtesy toward your partners equipment and throw in money for gas.

If you want the Shimano trifecta, you might want to go up rather than down from your Curado/Citica reels... I just got a Chronarch 50E at the Davie BPS store for (net) $129. If you participate in the reel trade in, you get a better trade in towards the Chronarch ($30) than towards the Caenan. I'm not sure if the Caenan qualifies toward the $30 Shimano trade in, either. You might want to run the numbers...you might find that there is not that much difference between the Chronarch and the Caenan at the reel trade in.

I just came back from Ft Lauderdale BPS...traded in an old spinning reel for a new Chronarch 50E. $129 after 30$ reel trade in, $30 Shimano rebate and $10 BPS bonus bucks. I'm pretty happy with the purchase. Can't wait for the rod trade in.

No bananas on the boat...they're bad luck! One Publix sub (FL guys know what I'm talking about) or two tuna fish sandwiches and a thermos full of water.

These arguments against the A-rig seem very similiar to when Calloway Golf came out with the ERCII (non-conforming) driver back in the mid 2000s. People were frantic...it was going to obsolete courses, less skilled golfers were going to be beating more skilled golfers, etc... Now 10 years later we realize that most of it was nonsense.. The hackers who bought the ERCII ten years ago are still hackers today. Today, there are literally dozen of "non-conforming" drivers available to the public. Yet, somehow, the collective handicap of the golfing public hasn't changed much. Golf courses haven't been rendered obsolete. The pro tours adapted a policy restricting COR values of drivers, rendering those clubs not eligible for use on tour. Overall, not much has changed despite the frantic railings at the time. I kind of look at the A-rig the same way as that ERCII driver. If it enhances your enjoyment and you don't get paid to use it, then go for it. My personal inclination is not to use the A-rig, but I must admit I am waffling a little bit. If I am fishing a tournament on Okeechobee and competitors are using it then I may have to get with the program.

Yeah, the bass we saw spawning were around the walking bridges stretched over the fingers on the east side of the lake (see picture). Tons of sunfish and some huge carp in there also.

I just returned from a three day trip to Orlando (Disney). The relatively stable weather last week must have precipitated some spawning activity. Big females were on the beds all over on Friday. At the lake there @ Epcot (over on the east side, near Mexico exhibit) there were several pairs of bass bedding. One big ol girl looked to be about 8lbs, accompanied by a about a 3lb buck. Super clear water...dozens of people at a time peering over the bridge right on top of them.

The only ads I see regarding wifes and fishing rods, has the wife shoving the rods down garbage disposals and trash compactors!

I think most of us who have fished Okeechobee have been in that situation countless times, clearing weeds off the prop on the outside weed edge, preparing to run onplane. Your post has caused me to think more about this. A bad situation can happen so fast out there. I have a flats boat and will make a point of it to always have the scuppers removed when fishing the Big O, from now on.

It shocked me...in the micro seconds between hearing the noise and seeing the manatee, my mind was trying to process what form of doom I was turning around to face. It was coming up blank. As mentioned, at that point I didn't even know manatee existed in Okeechobee.

I was fishing on Okeechobee one morning in the fog. All of a sudden a loud WHOOOOSHHHH noise came right behind me from the water! When I say right behind me...I mean like right next to the boat...5-10 feet away! It was the sound of air/water being expelled into the air. I wheel around straining to see through the fog, half expecting to see the Loch Ness Monster bearing down on me. Turned out to be a school of manatee coming up at once to exhale. I didn't even know manatee existed in Okeechobee until that moment.

Nothing like a big ol gal to keep you warm on Valentines day...

Nice. So did I inspire you to buy a handle??

I got my first 50E a couple months ago and I had the same impression....It's just fun to fish with. I crush the bass in my backyard throwing flukes on that little 50E/M power Avid/20lb braid. Most of em dinks but I have a blast doing it.

Check out JDs custom frogs, also. They make a big, tough (durable) frog that is well suited for snakeheads (and bass). All the top finishers in the snakehead roundup were throwing JDs frogs.

Well, Tharpe ran away with the thing. He really deserved it...Okeechobee showed her teeth the last two days and Tharpe still broke the 100lb mark. 23lb bag yesterday is amazing. Hats off to Randall Tharpe...he left no doubt who the "king of the lake" is.

My parents have a cabin on a lake ~1hour north of Brainerd, MN that has many of the characteristics you are describing. I have fished this lake well over 1000 hours total (95% of the time for Walleye), and have caught exactly two smallmouth out of it. Both were over five, though. I know several people who have targeted smallmouth in this lake and have sm over 7lbs to show for it. Here's a picture of one... My brother (a much more accomplished SM fisherman than me) claims the next state record (and perhaps world record) is coming from another lake nearby, very soon.

Oh...that's just terrible. I know you've had the boat a long time and I'm sure there's some sentimental value towards her. I'm glad everybody is OK, though. You'll make out fine with the insurance, no doubt.

A couple votes for Fort Lauderdale, I see. Guess I can't disagree too much, since I catch most of my fish from my house using the golf cart. If you live here and are situated on a private lake/canal, you're in good shape. If you have water access (there a ton of it here...Fort Lauderdale is called the "Venice of Florida") and have a boat, and you enjoy a little saltwater fishing then it's about as good as it gets (10 min from Atlantic Ocean, 30min from Lox/Holiday Park/Alligator Alley, 1.5 hours from Okeechobee/Florida Keys, 2 hours from Stick Marsh/Istokpoga, 2.5 hours from Kissimmee/Toho/Flamingo, etc)

When it comes to Okeechobee, I'm a tremendous slouch (Ty Webb). Every now and then I can catch a decent bag, but the guys who are good out there stay on the fish consistantly. My experience there doesn't even compare to guys like Bruce (bocabasser), Dave (salmicoptrus), Robert (South Fla), Rob (Gar Tracker), Kenny (never enough), etc... And guys like Brandon are in other league entirely. Like you, I've got a lot of catching up to do. But it's gonna be fun trying...I love fishing the lake.

Tharpes first fish Saturday was 9-8. He told the guy in the film boat he had one "way over" ten. That first fish always seems bigger to me when Im fishing also...you have nothing to calibrate to. Great fish though...still the big fish of the tourney. It would be great to see Brandon win it, also. The guy definately has the skills to pull it out...he knows the lake like no other. The last tourney I fished there with Brandon in the field (Ghosts and Goblins) it felt like an accomplishment to be within 5lbs of him (me/jack =19lbs, mcmillians =24lbs)

I was surprised to see McMillian with the short bag, I thought today would be right up his alley. He's fishing the same area as Tharpe, so again I was surprised at the weight differental. I know exactly where those two guys are fishing... Scott and Roland Martin still in the hunt. How cool would it be to listen to that dinner conversation tonight. I'm really pulling for those guys...I've met them both and just awesome people.