Matt Fly

+1 I think they all work and have they're place. Just different tools of the tacklebox.

Texas isn't into a winter pattern yet, so I stay on the bait to find active fish. Rolo wrote a good article about what water does at different stages based on temps and layers. One thing to take from that article that applies to mud in the winter. Cold water is at its dense state, which simply means, it don't allow for particles to mix easily. Mud warms, it asorbs heat better than clear water. Bass don't like mud or it is assumed they don't like mud, but when temps are brutal, I like to find skinny muddy water cause a few hours of sunlight can warm an area up a few degrees, a few degrees can mean more active fish. The only time I fish muddy soft bottoms is winter time, I have confidence in two things, a good black and blue jig with good rattles, scent, and the average fish is a solid fish, not normally dinks.

The 5-0 Giants are coming in to take on the 4-0 Saints 1pm Sunday. Giants have been solid road team the last two years. On paper, its a coin flip. Giants giving up a few less points, but Saints out score the Giants by a few points. About 4 yards difference in total offense, both rushing games average over 160 yards a game seperated by 5 yards. I take the Saints at home. This game very well may decide home field advantage later in the season for one of these two teams. 30-27 This game should be a Monday Night or Sunday Night game. Let me think about that for awhile, it depends on whos calling the games now days.

Hookem Horns!!!!!!! TEXAS FIGHT TEXAS FIGHT TEXAS FIGHT TEXAS FIGHT TEXAS FIGHT TEXAS FIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

8-)

On saturday I will be launching at walter humphrey/public off of 255. Down the road from the stump resteraunt,needmore tackle, and twin dykes. THe Regional is coming out of Humphreys this weekend as well. Just a heads up for using that ramp.

Was it muddy?

You can bet with the BASS Weekend Series Regional, your info will be read a few times. Good info Jack. With all this rain today and as of late. Is Sam catching any water and is she starting to stain any. And No, I'm not fishing any tournaments down that way either.

I'll take the girl on the bottom of the page over the drive thru girl. ;D

Catt, I read Rick's post report and game plan. He got an extra week of practice in. Just needed to catch fish for 2 days to maintain a top 40 standing in points to qualify for Conroe Classic. Rick punched grass with 1 oz weight and brushhog for 2 days, then. Once he did that, he said swing for the fences on some deep water he found in practice with a 3/4 oz jig. He said he knew at 10 oclock, that he was gonna shake the leader board. Fish must really be on the move, lots of locals who I'd put money on.

When winter conditions set in, I start looking for the warmest water. Baitfish will seek the warmest water possible. As you noticed, with baitfish present, you had good bite, find the warmest water, that could be in another creek, sheltered from massive runoffs that kept that creek warmer than others. Or Creeks or banks that are protected from northernly winds normally are warmer. Also, bait fish will go deep if thats where the warmest water is. With cold water, slow down, and when you think the paint has dried, then watch rust form on the hook, slow down.

Kelley, how is it going? Glad you have some backstrap for the winter, nothing like some good chili and stew as well. Was having some issues myself with this site being slower than any others, only thing I did is go back to the old browser I was using, which was updated prior to the noticing the problem. Seemed to solve the problem. Hookem Matt

I have one on the front of my Cat. I like sitting at the console and using my big graph when I'm in search mode. This allows me to do that. I have hand held and a wireless footcontroll. I use the hand held controller more now than in the begining. Found the best place to keep it was clipped to the front jean pocket, and didn't take long to master. I can run to the back of the boat to land fish, and still maintain positive controll of the boat from any where on the boat.

Good teams find ways to win. I said this on the last Bronco's thread, Orton broke alot of Brees records at Purdue. He's never had a receiving core that he has now. That win over Cincy is looking better all the time with the Cincy win over Baltimore. Broncos appear to have leg up in the AFC West like they did last year early on.

Wild hogs are taking over in lots of states. It don't take many to ruin a cash crop, some ones garden, ruin some feeders, fences, or tear someone vehicle up from running across the roads and getting hit. The only thing the older boars would be worth is making sausage, the rest would be to rank to eat. I got family on the red river, they can normally trap about 10 hogs a week, they'll keep the young females and feed out for a month and butcher.

One of my first vertical lessons was on Amistad early 70's vertically jigging and deadsticking Pico perchs in deep water. Dont fish a trap enough anymore, no brainer bait. Kinda like a senko, hard to fish it wrong, just throw it. 8-)

They are still out there, Cordell Hotspots, what you posted looks to have been spray painted. I think they sound different than a Bill Lewis Ratltrap due to the size of bb's inside that make the noise. Hotspots seem to have fatter bb's. I think its good option to have different sounding lipless baits.

I like the x tool scale, but the markers will come off a fish pretty easy. I replaced my clips with metal stringer types, they don't come off. I always forget the newest on the block, the Ardent system. Seems like the best and easiest out there. Lord knows, I spent enough on scales over the years and xtools weren't cheap. Was the price on the Ardent?

Nice to have you back, and safe of course. Same still applies, when you can't drop a line and get it wet, you can always drop one here and get a bite. Same ole crew, just a few more added to the mix. Hookem 8-)

How much did our first real cold front effecting the fishing. Been North wind the past few days and we dipped into the low 50's. lol Low 50's.

LOL, illegal in all states, nope, goldfish are sold in Texas at baitshops, very common trotline bait.

I was reading a thread, Catching your own bait. Someone mentioned paying 24.00 bucks for a dozen in Maryland I believe. When I was stationed in So Cal in the mid 80's, a dozen of crappie minnows was 6.99 and Bass shinners were 12.99 for large and 8.99 for mediums. I have noticed for the most part, that minnows, shinners are now sold by the pound for the most part. Just curious, what do ya'll pay for a dozen of crappie, and bass minnows? Lg, med, smalls? In San Diego, instead of buying the crappie minnows, which a Navy guy couldn't afford most likely at any time in his career, cause a dozen isnt gonna catch many, and cost of daily use permits, its too expensive, so I started using feeder goldfish from the pet stores at a Nickle a piece. Goldfish worked great as a substitute, caught as many as minners would. Lets here your bait prices and alternatives if legal in your state. I say legal, cause in some bodies of water, goldfish may be illegal to use.

I have hanging tree with baleing wire hanging about every foot an half. I make hole in bottom lip with knife to pass the wire through, or can puncture a hole using wire. Knife is easier. I wire my fish hanging. I like the Kitty about chest level, makes easy to reach and work with. Simply cut the tail off, the fish will bleed out in few minutes. By hanging, you don't need two hands, one to holding the fish, and other to skin the kitty with pliers. I make cuts around the head and dorsal fin. I can use my body weight and two hands on the pliers and pull the skin off in less than a minute. Also, if you made the cut 360 degrees around the Kitty's head, when you pull the belly skin down, its gonna pull some of the guts out for ya. But once you sever the head , the rest of the guts will pull out and go with the head. You skinned and gutted the fish in one process without having to get your hands in there to rip guts out. Best thing of all, fish that are bled taste better anyway in my opinion. Afterall, don't we bleed most things. I need a video to show this process. Most will say filleting a cat with electric fillet knife alive is just as easy. For me, most of the time, I only need a cat or two for a meal, so hanging works fast for me.

I don't think Brees or Brady would look so good in Oakland either.

I guess you guys missed the 3 ladies who blind folded the host and cameraman so they could take them out to their honey holes? Seems theres good money noodling tournaments in Oklahoma and they give no secrets away. Kinda like bass fishermen! These ladies did well by themselves. I think 60 something was their biggest. All agreed, its the big blues who do the most damage to the wrists and fingernails. They were salty needless to say. Think it was discovery channel.