Sam

John, From the looks of those fish we need YOU to tell us what to do! ;D Welcome to the best fishing forum on the web. We look forward to more pics; how you caught them; and your queries.

No Eddie, you did wrong. You should have hit him on the head with your rod to beat some sense into his brain. ;D Actually, you did great. And all you can do is offer a bait or a rod and reel setup to someone. If they don't take it then it is their problem. I wonder if he thought that this was "his lake" and he should know what to do? But as we all know, fishing from the shore is different than fishing from a boat on the same body of water. Also, with him being a novice he has no idea of how color and type of plastic mixes with the formula. Maybe you can suggest he go out with you to shore fish and you all can get better acquainted and he will then have a 50-50 chance of hooking up with a few bass. Otherwise, stay out of his Sunday School class! ;D ;D ;D

Donnie, One more suggestion. Take one or two extra baitcasters ready to go so you can switch the baitcaster with the backlash with a new one to flip and pitch the dock. Now, lets talk about boat placement when fishing docks and piers....... Opps. For another time.

Welcome to Backlash City. A great picture from Donnie Rakes. Starring Skipping Under the Docks with a Baitcaster. Featuring Time to Get Backlash Out of Reel. Produced and Directed by Donnie Rakes. OK, so you want to skip a lure under a dock using a baitcaster. First, set up your baitcaster by placing Scotch Tape over the line on the spool so the backlash will stop at the Scotch Tape. Go out and skip the lure at a pond or on the water you fish and pull off another two to three arm lenghts of line from the reel and then put the tape over the line on the spool. Use 10 to 12 pound flouro test line or a heavy line or a braid of your choice as you will encounter a lot of items that can cut and nick your line and you will need the stronger line to pull the fish out. Be sure to always check your line for nicks and cuts as you fish. The reel can be a 5:1 ratio for the winching power to get the fish out from under the docks, etc. Or, just use whatever reel you have and see how it works. Practice casting so the lure skips on the water and you control the spool with your thumb. This is imperative to stop backlashes and to stop the lure as it heads for the side of the boat houses and docks and piers and ramps and furniture on the dock. Set the drag so that the fish can not run as far when hooked. You want to snag the fish and then bring him out ASAP. No playing him under the dock, or if you do, play him for as short a time frame as possible as he will wrap you around the pilings, etc. very fast. After this, practice, practice, practice. Then practice some more. You will get the rhythm in your hand, arm and wrist to cast sideways and flick your wrist as you cast. A 6'6" rod is a great choice although some guys use a 6' rod. Remember, you are not casting for distance but for accuracy so you will need the shorter length rod to control your bait's placement. After this, practice docking your boat to a boat house or pier and getting out and retrieving lure from ropes, decking, cables, roofs, chairs, etc. that you will hit when skipping baits under docks with a baitcaster until you get the accuracy you are seeking. I throw Wacky rigged Senkos, Texas rigged finesse worms and crankbaits under docks but anything goes. Crankbaits are a pain as they get hooked in a rope you usually have to cut out a part of the rope to retrieve them. And if they get caught under the dock you probably will have to kiss them goodbye. Ater trying the baitcaster for a few times go back to spinning rigs. ;D

People get very emotional about topics that they are passionate about. Without any other source to channel their anger, they do dumb stuff which can get them into a lot of legal trouble. Otherwise, they are nice people. And then you have the mentally ill that cause problems, too. When you are powerless it is best to make threats, even if the threats are empty threats, as the only means to make yourself heard and appreciated. Of course, it makes you look like you have a mental condition but they really do not care. It is for the attention.

As Art Linkletter once said, "Kids Say the Darnest Things."

When I joined the forum I actually thought that it was Burley's photo in his avatar. Sinc then, I have learned different and always look to see what he has posted. I have a client in his local area and am trying to have a meeting so I can fish one of the past board member's private pond. If I do, and stay the night, I will certainily call on Burley. I tried to see him one other time but my schedule did not allow me the pleasure. So Burley, keep on trucking with your humor, information and guidance and the great pictures.

I, like Evan Sharp, catch them on white spinnerbaits in the James River. Also have got them on Senkos and a crankbait. If they are hungry they will strike just about anything. They are fun to catch but their mouths are too soft and tear easily which gets me upset since I let them go.

PtomacBass, My client is Congressional Country Club and I fish their ponds before meetings. I usually arrive around 6 or 6:30 AM and head straight to the ponds, dressed in my nice business attaire and a tie! I look funny but it is great fishing those ponds. The problem we have is that during the AT&T last year some of the "helpers" fished the ponds, without permission, and took many of the three pounders home to eat. Bummer. But I do very well and it is a lot of fun. I caught about 8 or 9 on Senkos and finesse worms on Thursday and I lost a number, too. I fished from arond 6:30 to 8:30 as I had a 9:00 meeting. They were just picking up the bait and walking with it. No hard hits or fast runs. In fact, one time I casted out and the line just sat on top of the water, not sinking. So, being an astute fisherman, I reeled in the slack and set the hook. I caught him. He had taken the bait on the way down and was just sitting there with it in his mouth. Two other guys were fishing with me (they paid their $100,000 and are members) and one kept deep hooking his bass as he was letting them just walk away with it for way too long. No dead fish, but one bass had to take some time to recover. I only fish as I have special permission from the Club's Manager and I have to be off the ponds when the golfers come by, which can be as late as 9:30. So I do get in a solid two to two and a half hours and it is fun. There are some very big Bluegills in those ponds and I will have to fish for them one day. Right now it is too much fun fishing for bass.

The Pamunkey and Mattaponi should be getting better in late September then October and into November as the water cools and the bass start to move around and get ready for winter. I fish around Hicks Landing on the Pamunkey and the Walkerton area, both up and down river, on the Mattaponi. I am sure that you will do well where ever you fish.

Never heard of it nor have I seen it. Tell us more about it after you use it.

Boudereaux was on his farm one day, minding his own business when this big, official Louisiana state SUV pulls up and five guys get out and approach Boudereaux. "We are here from the Louisiana Department of Highways and we are here to look at your farm as we are planning to put a new highway through your farm." "How do I know you guys are really from the state and can do this?" Boudereaux asked. "Because here is my card and it allows me to do as I please," the state guy replied. "OK," Boudereaux said, "if you got da card then you got the right to make us do anything you want. Just don't go in the field behind the barn." "We will go anywhere we want," was the curt reply, "and we will start with the field behind the barn." About five minutes later Boudereaux hears a lot of yelling and screaming and he looks and sees the five guys running for their lives as Boudereaux's big, bad bull is chasing them back towards the barn. "Help us," yelled the leader. "The bull is going to kill us." "No problem," Boudereaux replied, "just show him your card."

Fishinfriend, You have too much time on your hands. You need to be out fishing! ;D

Way too many because I am old. But I like... James Bond movies although they are getting a little too much. Sound of Music - A classic forever. Godfather - The Original. Jaws - The best horror movies ever produced. Star Wars - Fantastic special effects. All of the Indiana Jones movies, even the last one which was dumb. Remember the Spartans as my good ole college buddy and best friend is in it as an extra and you can see him really good in the toga scene. Animal House - Always a classic. Slapshot with Paul Newman - I always get a kick out of it. Best Little House in Texas - Dolly steals the show. The Bird Cage - Lang upstages Robin Williams which is usually never done in any Robin Williams movies and it is one of the best comedies ever produced. Bull Durham - Great baseball movie. The old Abbot and Costello movies, with Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein the best. Any Mel Brooks movies with Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein heading the Mel Brooks list. Mary Poppins - Super movie for all ages of kids and adults. And really good special effects, too. Any murder mysteries. I could go on but you guys get the feeling that I like adventure and comedies the best. I will not nor have I seen any war movies since I returned from Viet Nam in 1968. It is difficult to list any top five as there are so many. Just give me a good laugh or entice me with a good story and away we go!

What I have found is that the smaller bass and bluegills will drive you nuts if you are using a long plastic and the big bass are not around. But if you want to catch the big ones then use the longer plastics and just put up with the smaller bass and bluegill strikes.

P.S. Eddie, be sure to use mono on treble hooks and use a sweeping sideways motion to set the treble hooks. And as you know, keep the line TIGHT when fighting the fish.

If you have removed the screws please unscrew them and put some Crazy Glue or Gorilla Glue or some very STRONG glue in the hole and replace the screw. What Dave said is correct. You can loosen the screw and it can pull out easier when fighting a fish if you have tampered with it. Now some guys will say this is baloney. But a word to the wise is sufficient.

Kool.

Nitro is right. First, when they sensed the changin barometric pressure they fed which means that they are not hungry. They are probably staging off points and dropoffs or by humps and holes or other underwater structure. They can also hold under docks, piers, anchored boats and any wood you see that is proturding into the water from the shore. So what do they want? Probably Senkos or finesse worms or baby brush hogs. They may even do a reaction strike to a crankbait or Chatterbait. They will let you know. I hate to fish after a cold front passes as being Type A I like to have some action all day long. ;D

If you do please do it on a Sunday when the offices are empty other than for a few people working. This is the rule I learned in the Army: If you are told not to do something and you do, you are in trouble. If you do something that no one told you not to do you can talk your way out of it. So put the kayak in and see what happens. ;D

Way down in Louisiana, Boudreaux's old lady had been pregnant for some time and now the time had come. So he brought her to the doctor and the doctor began to deliver the baby. She had a little boy and the doctor looked over at Boudreaux and said, 'Hey, Boudreaux! You just had you-self a son! Ain't dat grand!' Boudreaux got excited by this, but just then the doctor spoke up and said, 'Hold on! We ain't finished yet!' The doctor then delivered a little girl. He said, 'Hey, Boudreaux! You got you-self a daughter! She a pretty lil ting, too.' Boudreaux got kind of puzzled by this and then the doctor said, 'Hold on, we still ain't got done yet!' The doctor then delivered another boy and said, 'Boudreaux, you just had you-self another boy!' When Boudreaux and his wife went home with their 3 children, he sat down with his wife and said, 'Mama, you remember dat night what we run out of Vaseline and we had to use dat dere three-in-one Oil?' His wife said, 'Yeah, I do!' Boudreaux said, 'Man, it's a dang good ting we didn't use no WD-40.

Super! I went to Hope Springs on Thursday to see what was going on as I returned from a business meeting in Bethesda and there were few boats on the creek so you probably had the entire river system to yourselves. Did you all try any Senkos or baby brush hogs? What about spinnerbaits? Just wondering. Great pics. Thanks for sharing.

Anything Shimano. Revo a distant second.

I understand your frustration so may I offer the following? When spooling your baitcasters run the line through Kevin VanDam's Lure and Line Conditioner and then spray the line on the spool every so often as you spool your reel. This helps make any line easier to use. Take a washcloth and spray a "wet spot" on the washcloth and run the line through the wet spot as you spool the line onto your reel. Did you leave about an eighth of an inch from the top of the spool? Baitcasters are designed to cast best when the spool is full up to about one-eight inch from the top. What are the line paramaters of your rod and do they match your line test? Remember, the rod gives you the best set-ups for that specific rod regarding line test and bait weight. Check it out. Did you balance your bait with your reel? Did you point the rod tip to 11 o'clock and let the bait drop to the floor, slowly, without any backlashes? And after than, set your drag and then do it all over again? You always need to balance your lure and spool to balance it. Did you turn off any magnets? Check the magnets and make sure all are off. And how long is your rod? Six foot-six inches? Six-ten? Seven feet? Rod length makes a world of difference when casting. If you balance the line test and lure weight then the rod should cast your line properly. I have no problems with my Curado 100s, 200s and 7:1 ratio baitcasters using either flouro or mono lines. I do not go over 17 pounds as a personal rule for baitcasters and will use braid when appropriate on the 200s. I usually use 12-pound test as that is all you need to land any bass of the size that you usually catch. If you check your rod's specifications; balance your lure to your baitcaster setup; and treat your line with KVD conditioner (or a pure silicone spray) when spooling you should not have any problems with any line you throw. Do you use your thumb to feather down the spool as the bait approaches the water? When throwing buzzbaits, do you actuall start reeling before the lure hits the water? Slowing the lure before it hits the water is something that you need to practice to avoid backlashes. If you continue to have problems, even when you use your thumb to slow down the lure as it approaches the water's surface, then consider going outside and cast the lure as far as possible. After you cast the lure as far as possible, pull two or three arm-lenghts of line off the reel and place Scotch Tape over the remaining line. This will stop all backlashes from going any deepter than the Scotch Tape. If all this fails, stick with spinning reels. ;D ;D ;D

Yes Wayne, but that is for third-party liability insurance, not comp or collision on a trailer and watercraft. You need to have the boat, motor and trailer covered for physical damage losses on it's own marine insurance policy. Please check with your agent if you think your boat, motor and trailer are covered for physical damage if they are involved in an accident while being towed by a licensed motorized vehicle on public or private roads. If the agent says they are covered, get it in writing and put the letter in a safety deposit box for future reference.