GeneinTX

Mendota, Make sure you take more tahn one of a specific bait if that is you approach. I did this years ago and stuck my lure in a tree and ended my trip quickly.

HAHA! It looked like a tarantula to me. I was wondering why everyone was saying how cute it was.

I agree with Raul on this one. Match the hatch is important in schooling fish. In those ponds you should be able to catch fish on shad colored lures. I would use the on the surface myself and and work your way down. Crawdad lures should be the best I would guess and then bluegill. It sounds like you are fishing a nice piece of water for Arizona. How big is it?

I had luck with them during the heat of the summer fishing grass. That was it and only in the pumkinseed color. I'll give them a try again this summer because they did bring in some nice fish. I did have a problem with losing them when I cast, they seemed to snap the line. I will also give a blue/black a try at nihgt.

And one more thing I love you!!! And all that you do for us!

Al, Godspeed to you and your famly. I know your feelings, how can 2 kids or 3 be worse than 30 men. That is the question that we ask, but you already know the answer. Just remember the good staff saves lives, more tahn the good platoon sergeant in the long term. Settle for giving 300, 000%. Your wife will do great. I retired in Oct 05, I know what you are going through. I am very proud of you and your wife. A prayer a day is on the way. Good luck and be careful!

Burley, It was a bad day to be a fish in that pond!!! You just can't beat the look on those kids faces!!!! Awesome! Keep it up, Gene

I wish you had a camera too!! Such an awesome animal. What if we had to acheive such feats just to eat. Then again an Osprey wouldn't kiss a bosses ***!! Fishin' for a livin'.

Awesome fish..... where were you fishing?

Keith... I'll be looking for you. I plan on staying out for a while if it is overcast. We started catching at 11:00 today. Last year I had a lot of luck with junebug colors but not this year. White and silver have been best for me. Tightlines!

Awesome Fish..... now i am jealous! Was that on the main lake?

Keith, The level keeps on coming up. They chased the campers out of Westcliff today. I have a tree on the bank that I watch from the living room and it was way out there tonight. I bet it is 7.5' high in the morning. We are heading out first thing in the morning. What color lizards were you throwing? I will take my flyrod out tomorrow, I need some whites for dinner! Thanks for the tips! Gene

Thanks for the advice. Cliff, we fished Belton Lake, it has risen 3 feet since yesterday and is still rising. We caught everything on white flukes thrown into the vegatation. My son caught his PB 5lb 9oz LM. AVID, we are getting too much now. It just keeps coming! We were able to find good inside edges of weedlines where we got most of our fish.

The water has risen 3 feet so far in 2 days with more expected tonight. Weather is very unstable. alot of rain in central Texas in the past 2 days. Water is up into the shoreline brush. The dam seems to be closed right now. The lake is 12,000 + acres. Mostly structure fishing with some standing timber. We now have submerged vegatation. I can see the lake from the house but I am not sure about water clarity, I expect it will be murky. Any suggestions?

I use less worms using the o ring myself. I ran out last weekend and didn't use them and went thru about 4 worms. I usually only use 1 a day other wise. I fish mine in anything with a gammy 2/0 octopus hook. Just work it slow and snags shouldn't be a problem. Good Luck---------- I have enjoyed wacky roig senko more than anything in a long time... awesome bait!

One of my favorite hydrilla tactics is a 1- 1 1/2 oz carolina rig with a 12-14 inch leader and a zoom wooly bug or brush hog in crawdad colors. I find the densest patch of hydrillla I can and drop it in. This will work in any depth because you have positioned your boat right above or just off of the grass. I work it very slowly twiching it until I am sure it is on the bottom. This is a deadly tactic in the dead of summer. Ain't Texan, it works on Stillhouse very well. You just have to give it time to ensure the bait is all the way down. This amy not be a surefire tournament tactic but it has produced som nice ones for me.

This is a very interesting thread. I have fished all over the country and never had an incident. This is an eye opener. I do not use certain ramps if I am going to come in late at night. They are isolated and not in a park per say. Some good advice may be to not use ramps that are in areas like that. I have heard about alot of break-ins of tow vehicles while parked at the ramp. I fished some rivers and swamps in SE Georgia that were so isolated that anything could have happened. The only times I have ever heard of an incident on my home lake that involved a firearm, was an accidental (negligent) discharge of a pistol that hit a bank fisherman on the other side of a cove.

The answer is 15 years.... you are an adult, make your decision. I took a fifteen year loan on my boat and paid it off in 2. AS I always say.... DO WHAT YOU CAN AFFORD..... in all aspects of your life. I think that even if I had continued to pay for my boat, it is agood investment. I enjoy it and it makes me happy. That said, get the boat that makes you happy. Look at lots of them. I shopped around for mant and chose a Triton. I love it.

A bare hook with a beer tab on it, in aluminum finish. Seriously, I love Cabelas Walking Dawg in the pearl finish.

I love the time I get to spend with my 15 year old son. This is true quality time. Even if he does try to fish the front of the boat with me. He tangles all of my rods and gets in my way constantly. Luckily he isn't as accurate with his casting as I am so I always hit the sweet spots before he does. We get to discuss alot and have a great time. Just this past Saturday morning, as I went to step onto the bow of the boat, he pulled the boat back and out of my path...... luckily the water was about 69.7 degees. I went butt over tea kettle into the water. Luckily for him he was about 50 feet away before he stopped! he has now told everyone in Central Texas this story. I went and changed in the truck and he tried again and got it. We had a good day fishing. Strange but true. I also love nature and surface feeding fish, but I hope that all my life I will get to fish with my son. I hope that he lives near by when he gets older and that we always have the bond that we do.

I always start with 3 pulls, rod down, then pause for "5 one thousands". I decrease the count till I see what works. A popper is one of my favorite lures. i ahve cught tons of fish on them over the yeasr on many different bodies of water. GOOD LUCK!

I once had about an 8" inch centipede in my living room. I freaked out and smashed it to pieces with a hammer. That thing triggered my fight or flight mecanism. i flew out to the garage and then pummeled it. I haven't had any problems since so I think word is out to the other centipedes.

I saw one that floated with jet ski attached at least 150' out before it sank in about 20 feet of water. I felt sorry for him till I realized he was trying to launch a jet ski!

Awesome fish. Looks like a great time. I fished the Mississippi River just south of Brainerd a couple of years ago. It was on the grounds of camp Ripley and we caught so many smallmouths and pike. that is my favorite place to fish in the world (so far)! You are lucky to be able to get to fish there!

I retired from the Army with 21 years in October 05. I was a Sergeant First Class and a M11A2 tanker. I still work with the military as a contractor. I bought my boat as my retirement present. I did enjoy my career but I am glad to be onto something else. I highly recommend a stint in any branch of the sevice.