Fishes in trees

There are all kinds of aftermarket replacement skirts that are easy to take on and off numerous times. I like the War Eagle ones, but Terminator makes some good ones and so does Strike King. If you go on-line *** lots of unique skirt colors, they aren't all available all the time. There are lots of skirt alternatives out there.

you live in the KC neighborhood. Don't go to Cabelas or BPS. Go to Rogers. Tell them what you need and they will hook you up. They are almost always cheaper - model for model than the box stores. They will deal on reels. They always have very competitive rod prices I've accumulated some BPS and Cabelas points over the years, but given a choice I will always give a local independent merchant first shot at my dollars.

You spend 45 minutes trying to get a Lucky Craft back? That's a long time, even for a Lucky Craft - or even a $30 Mega Bass for that matter. You need a lure retriever. I prefer the extendable poles over the other types. One word of caution - get a heavy duty one. A light one will break sooner and sooner or later you're going to break your lure retriever. I prefer the extendable poles because they work on overhead obstacles as well as under water ones.

Many cranks need tuning from time to time. I'll grant that tuning them immediately after getting them wet for the first time is a pain. I find a crankbait tuning tool (page 346, BPS 2011 Master catalog) easier to use than needle nose pliers. They are cheap - $3.79 at BPS. Try that tool and see if it makes tuning cranks any easier.

notice what? That if you're into fishing and have any kind of an income over time you're going to accumulate some fishing tackle? Almost everyone collects something - that's part of what makes us human. Tools or toys or minature figurines - everyone collects something. I prefer to recognize my addiction for what it is - an addiction. I'm addicted to collecting fishing tackle and I am down with that. It is secondary to, but connected to my addiction to fishing. I understand that it is a fairly benign addiction. I tell myself that should I have a cocaine addiction, all I'd have to show for it at the end of the day would be a runny nose. I don't try to think about it any more than that.

Last spring, me and a buddy spent 3 days fishing Stockton Lake. We stayed at Orleans Trail resort, mostly because we didn't know any better and there was an internet special. I'd recommend any place other than that place. The kitchenette we rented was liberally sprinkled with mouse turds, on top of just being not very clean. There were even mouse turds inside the fridge. You had to run extension cords a long ways and some units the outside outlets didn't work. (ours was one of those) The guy who appeared to be the manager was kind of a jerk. He told me several different times over the phone that the outlets worked and then he got miffed when I asked him to come up and show me. The bar and restaurant closed really early - almost before dark. I wouldn't stay there again on a bet. Next time I go to Stockton, I'll just pick a different one and hope for the best. On the positive side we found a wonderful place to eat in Stockton - the Bongo Bistro. They let us in and cooked for us at 8 o'clock on a Tuesday. They have an adjoining liquor store with a good wine selection and a very good selection of craft beers. Stockton is a pretty lake, I just didn't have a good experience at the Orleans Trail Resort.

You're lucky, living on the Mo/Ark border you've got a number of great lakes to fish. From east to west you've got Norfolk, Bull Shoals, Taneycomo, Table Rock and Beaver. There are a number of good tackle stores in the area that can help you get started. There are a couple of good ones in Bull Shoals, Ark. There are a couple of good ones in the West Branson area near Table Rock. Don't forget the original Bass Pro Shop in Springfield, MO. This store has a strong book section. I'd recommend the Charlie Brewer book on Slider Fishing as the place to start for Ozark Highland reservoirs. A previous posters suggestion to hire a guide was a good one. There is another website - Ozarkanglers.com - where lots of locals post and comment about Ozark lake conditions. You could probably find someone who lives relatively close to you on that site. Good Luck - you've moved to a beautiful part of the country. I'd live there if I could find a job doing what I do.

For the most part, I like something shiny, chrome colored. A Berkley Frenzy Rattle bait in a chrome gizzard shad color is what I use most of the time.

Should you need a decent cheap spinning rod, just go to WalMart.. That's what they specialize in. Just pick one that feels right. Should you fish with it a few times and find it wanting, just go get a different one. They're cheap.

Rod Savers makes a vehicle rod keeper system. It costs in the neighborhood of $20, but I don't know for sure. I've had mine in my Explorer since 2001. It is make to carry 8 or so rods. With adjustments, you can carry more. I routinely carry 20 or so. I can't remember where I got it, it was either at BPS or Rogers in Liberty. When I was fishing tournaments as a co-angler I saw lots of different rod storage systems, and the rod saver was about the easiest.

Check out the Falcon K-Wacky hooks. They come in two different sizes, 3/0 & 6/0. You can get them weighted or not.

Jewel Baits, which markets the Eakins jig also markets a crawdad trailer for that jg. It's more subtle, much less action than the paca chunks.

Beavers are good. Otters are bad. Otters can ruin a pond or smaller lake. They don't practice catch and release. It's probably against the law to shoot the otters. Do it anyway, don't tell anyone and don't get caught. p.s. - pellet guns or air rifles are much quieter than 22's. That's what I'd recommend

x3 on buying the most power you can afford. While you're at it buy an extra battery and wire it in parallel. That will extend your range which can get important should you be out on a larger electric only lake. When you're getting the trolling motor, be sure and get a decent battery charger while you're at it. Finally, be certain to get a couple of extra shear pins, in the right size for your trolling motor. Several times, I've went over a year without shearing a pin in the trolling motor. I've also broken three in one day. Let you conscience be your guide on that one. For the record, you never shear a trolling motor pin in an easy, convenient place. Lastly, don't forget the oars or a paddle. An alternate mode of propulsion will come in handy at some point. Perhaps at that point when you've snapped 3 shear pins in an afternoon. Sorry for the rant, but I've been there. Fishing trips instantly become no fun when your stuff breaks . The size of the lake really doesn't matter. Daily conditions are what matters. Your 14' jon boat will handle some wind, but it won't handle a lot of wind. It is possible to swamp a 14' boat in medium winds and above. How much flotation material is in the boat, under the seats? That will make a difference as to if you swamp it or sink it. I don't know the exact carrying capacity of your boat, but I'd wager with 2 people, trolling motor, battery (or 2) gear, cooler, etc., you are getting close to it.

If I lived where you lived, I'd get into snake head fishing. They hit mostly the same lures that bass do. Nobody cares how many you catch and kill. They are a great tasting fish. Hey - you live in south Florida - that's the land of retired geezers. I'd bet if you ask around someone is going fishing every day and wouldn't mind the company. Just a thought.

I've got a bunch of different bags and when I was fishing as a co-angler, 2 medium or medium small bags seemed to work out better than one big bag. A - it was easier to get to specific stuff and B - the smaller bags seemed to stuff into available compartments better. One bag would primarily have stuff that I was pretty certain that I was going to need. The other bag would carry back up stuff and stuff that I might need. I carried several heavy duty velcro straps and strap my primary bag to the seat post on the back deck. That way I was the only guy who was going to trip over it. Rods - that's another story. I would always tell myself that I would take 3-5 and I ended up never taking less than 8.

You're asking about seasonal patterns. There is a ton of good information out there about seasonal patterns. There is quite a bit about seasonal patterns in the articles section of this site. Go to the In-fisherman magazine site and research seasonal patterns. The original owners of In-fisherman magazine - Al Lindner and his brothers, created a whole fishing system primarily based on regional and seasonal patterns. Fish + Location + Presentation = Success. That's enough reading to get you started, enough for a year or so. Google Bass Fishing Institute - Indiana University and see if you can find one of their old textbooks.

It seems to me that I saw this bait in Walmart - late 80's or early 90's. I didn't buy it and I don't know anyone who did.

Rod Saver makes a commercial version of what you've rigged. If you are judicious about how you stack them you can carry 20-22 rods safely. I know because I generally carry that many. I have reinforced the anchor points a little bit I got mine from Rogers lures in Liberty, but I've seen them at BPS and for sure they are available from Rod Saver.

I've been reading through this thread and I realize that I've done alot of the things that have happened to other guys. Several times I could have been severely injured, but wasn't. Probably the dumbest thing I've done on the water was to mouth off at a Water Patrol agent. He thought I was drunk ( I wasn't, I was stoned - minor difference) He boarded the boat and proceeded to go through the compartments and live well, looking for who knows what. On a positive note, it didn't occur to him to look in my pocket. After an exhaustive search and inventory of all required safety equipment he told me to beat it. I'm still not sure what he did, i.e. boarding my boat with out an invitation was legal but I don't fish that lake very often any more - and that incident was over 10 years ago. These days when I am required to have a conversation with a Water Patrol or consevation agent (mind you, I don't seek out these conversations) I am totally polite. Yes sir, no sir, short to the point answers to quesitons and I never volunteer anything.

The wind is your friend. It helps reduce the size of the area you're fishing and pinpoints areas where you need to concentrate your efforts. Keep telling yourself this until you believe it. Wear your life jacket.

I fish mostly half ounce spinnerbaits. That's the size I have the most confidence in and the size I have the most accuracy throwing.

Chompers (Table Rock Tackle) markets some painted blade spinnerbaits. Every few years or so this is a hot bait on Truman Lake. It is a good heavy stained/muddy water bait. You can get them painted on both sides or half - half , brass on the outside of the blade and painted on the inside cup of the blade. It occurs to me that War Eagle markets some painted blade spinnebaits also.

Whatever brand of rain gear you get, especially in the higher end stuff, be sure to try it on first, and try to have on roughly the same layers you'll wear when you are using it. Everyone is different. When I tried on the BPS 100 mph suit, it just didn't fit right. The Cabelas Guide Wear, in the same size, fit me real well. Some guys like the bibs with a parka. I find the bibs with the shorter jacket easier to fish in. I like the frog toggs in moderate temperature, and I've never had any performance issues with them.

Several years ago, In-fisherman magazine published a lengthy article about jerk bait presentation. They made a very strong case for using braid and/or a braid/fluorocarbon leader combination. I forget what year it was, but I remember it was in the spring. That article was what convinced me to switch from mono to braid and since I've switched, I can honestly say I've known about more strikes and caught more fish. JMO