Snakehead Whisperer

Here's what I'm currently working on. These are all intended to be fished in the coming weeks. 2 of them are actually jerkbaits, same difference. They're all basswood except for the orange jerkbait which is balsa.

MotorGuide here. It's hard to go wrong between the two as they both offer comparable features in whatever price class you're looking at, and both manufacturers build a quality product. FWIW, rumor has it that the BPS Prowler motors are made by MotorGuide (can't substantiate this, but I've heard it from numerous people including BPS employees.) Those things are built like a tank. I have an old tiller steer one for the canoe that's gone overboard a handful of times while plugged in, crashed into countless rocks, and seen plenty of saltwater use (freshwater motor) and it still works like it did on day one. One of the best buys I've ever made.

I apply the logic to the climate where I am currently fishing and adjust accordingly. For instance here in my area 50-60 degree surface temps usually signify the season where I am throwing fast moving baits and topwaters. Fish in my area are very aggressive at those temps. On the other side of the coin I typically don't start fishing jerkbaits around here until the water temps are well into the 40's, and even then it's with a faster cadence (short pauses, hard jerks.) When surface temps are at 40 or lower, the long pauses and gentler action with a suspending jerkbait excel. There are exceptions to the jerkbait rule however, like I will fish them in the summer if there is a cold front or other weather anomaly that shuts the bite down temporarily. This all boils down to experimentation though. I've also found that burning a jerkbait or shallow running crank is killer when we have a warming trend in winter, despite the fact that water temps are still in the 30's. Just find an area where the water is slightly warmer. The window of opportunity for catching active fish is much smaller in the cold months, but it still opens here and there. Being on the water when it's open is the key.

These

x2. Try throwing a buzzbait cross-current, or drifting a popper over the fish. One of my favorite stretches of the Potomac during the warmer months is similar to what you describe. In this stretch of river the go-to baits are topwaters, Slider heads with a T-rigged 3" grub or senko, and if there is higher than average water I will occasionally try to drag a spinnerbait through any chutes/areas where current is strongest; or simply clip the top of the grass with it. At times when the sun is high the fish will often hit the lure and let go within a fraction of a second, which is when I Texpose the hook on the Slider/Grub rig or throw a hair jig if I can get away with it. Don't be afraid to throw the topwater during daylight hours (especially something slow moving like a popper.) I have caught many fish on both slow and fast moving topwaters at high noon, especially if they're in heavier current. Not sure where you live, but the stretch of river that I'm referring to doesn't hold many fish (or grass for that matter) during the colder months. I also probably won't be throwing a topwater at them much this time of year, although smallies will strike topwaters when the water is cold. If there is a sun warmed flat/warmwater discharge nearby a deeper pool, topwaters can be deadly on warmer winter days.

I have the 7'6" M. The rod feels and fishes like a MH. Great rods though.

Apparently there's a good article on making simple crankbaits right here on BR. http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/crankbait_making.html

Check out Tackle Underground. It's a forum much like BR, but completely dedicated to tackle making. As for making hard baits, you can start with as little as a knife and some imagination. When I first started making baits I used an x-acto knife, a hand coping saw, a rasp, a hand drill and some rust-o-leum. I caught plenty of fish on those baits. As time progressed and I realized that my hobby was growing into an obsession, I started investing in some more serious tools. With the following, there is little that you can't do. -Band saw or scroll saw. -Drill press -Belt/disc sander -Awl -Hand rasp -Sandpaper -Good carving knife/knives -Level (crucial to ensure all of your tools are set up straight and square.) -Good waterproof 2 part epoxy like Devcon 2-Ton (which can be used to secure hardware like screw eyes, and also to topcoat baits after painting.) -Lathe and tools (mostly useful for poppers and topwaters, but you can shape them by hand as well.) -Accurate scale that measures in tenths of a gram or better resolution (useful for ballast weighting and lots of other things.) -Router table and bits (not necessary unless you plan on producing larger quantities of baits. Also useful for cutting custom crankbait bills.) If you're going to be painting your baits you'll also want a good .3-.5mm airbrush and some acrylic paints. I use Createx paint, but there are many options. As for topcoats, this is one of the most controversial topics in the world of tacklemaking. The easiest to start with would be to brush on Devcon 2-Ton epoxy, which can be thinned with denatured alcohol if need be. Tackle making is a great outlet for me. There is nothing like the feeling of catching fish on a lure that you made yourself. Hope it goes well.

Never heard of this, but I just looked it up. I made a similar mount for my canoe with a few pieces of scrap 1x2, galvanized deck screws and a cabinet hinge. Even if I would have bought the material the build cost would have been around $10. I'm sure the Sully mount works fine, fwiw. Another option is to do a shoot-thru-hull mount, which is pretty much permanent but on the inside of the hull. I've never done this on an aluminum hulled boat, but from what I've heard it works fine on hulls as thick as .250"; most jon boats are .05-.125". You also sacrifice surface temperature readings with this option. Probably the cheapest and easiest method would be to attach it with a suction cup. The trolling motor mount is also good.

Apple chunks are killer for suckers on the river out here. The way we'd catch carp as kids is as follows: -Mix wonder bread with italian dressing and mash it up into a thick goo. -Poke holes in a can of corn and chum with it (tie a string to the can so you can remove it when you leave.) -Coat a size 2 or 4 hook with the bread/dressing goo and cast it out. -Sit and wait. On a side note, I am totally fascinated by British carp hunters. It's something I'll never understand. To each their own, but I just don't understand why folks are so enthralled with the carp over there when they have pike in their rivers/lakes. Sometimes I even watch youtube videos of carp fishing (but I always have to fast forward to the part where they catch a fish, because it's painful to just watch a guy sit there.) There's an entire industry built around it with chum sling shots, and carp mats to lay the fish on, etc. There was a famous trophy carp named Two-Tone who was memorialized after it was found dead (a grave and a plaque at the lake iirc,) and there are also obituaries written for this fish. Very intriguing. Here is a photo from the Two-Tone's funeral. I'm seriously not making this up.... Google it. I truly admire the passion of the carp hunters out there, but it leaves me scratching my head. Just more proof that fishing is a lifestyle and not just a pastime/hobby.

Caught a PB smallie twice this year (7.5 and then 7lb. 12oz.) Was really trying to catch a snakehead in the 17lb. class, but unfortunately this never materialized. I also have recently taken a liking to chain pickerel fishing in the colder weather, which has proven to be some of the best light tackle fishing I've ever experienced (also caught a PB chain pickerel right at 5lbs.) Surviving my boating accident was probably my lowest and highest point of the year. This has given me the most useful perspective of all of my fishing experiences this year.

It seems like grubs come and go with the tides, but they're usually not popular from what I've seen. Even the river smallie guys have found replacements for them (but not for tubes.) I use them for almost all species of fish I target, but I usually can't even give them away to my friends when I'm catching and they're not Something that's fallen out of favor for me as of late is Rat-L-Traps... can't barely remember the last time I've thrown one; but that's a lie because I caught some decent stripers last time I fished one. Lost the award winning lure on that trip in the middle of a frenzy, so maybe I'm just sore about it or something. Haven't thrown one since, nor have I looked back. One of the finest river trolling lures of all time. I've never understood why more people don't use these either. They cast pretty well too.

Can't really top that one.

I fish a lot in DC, so there's all kinds of interesting structure out here. A few things that stand out are shopping carts (although these are usually crappie magnets, but occasionally you can nab a bass off of them,) and tires. I have caught a good number of fish that were hiding in tires. There's one spot here on the Potomac where there's a ten-speed bike that's usually 3-6' deep depending on tides... I can almost always find a bass on it during the warmer months. Was writing my post when you posted this. I don't know what it is, but the bike always holds a good fish. Seems like a negligible piece of cover, but it's always been good to me

x2. Get a ML-F rod in 6'9" or so, it'll also make a great dropshot rod.

I've seen smallmouth take ducklings on the upper Potomac (also seen musky take bigger ducks ) Once I caught a bass once with a baby muskrat in it's gullet. In Mongolia one of the most popular lures for taimen fishing is a topwater rat in large size.

Nice man. I always think about this type of scenario when I see people bait fishing off of bridges.

Maybe we can look to the sloth for inspiration on this.

Unfortunately this isn't the case for us warm blooded mammals.

All cold blooded animals will typically grow slower and live longer in colder regions because their metabolism is slower; thus everything (including aging) is slowed, sometimes dramatically.

This reminds me of a video that a friend of mine made... fishing raps.

That one's a classic. One of my all time favorites.

Oh man... not sure if that was the best fishing commercial I've ever seen, or the worst. Best part is "then you pop it like this."