Scott F

Get a whistle. No wiring, works if your battery is dead, can't short out.

You know you're old when things you bought when they were new, are now antiques.

Being a major smart a__ myself, I should have realized that.

I wasn't talking about rivers, I said "most lakes".

If anybody knows where the bass are now, on most lakes, they've been fishing out of season

I just read through the entire Wisconsin Fishing regulations book and saw nothing about a barbless hook requirement. There is a catch and release season for the Northern zone. Please, show me where to find the regulation about barbless hooks. Northern Zone Smallmouth bass season: May 2 to June 19—Catch and release only. June 20 to March 6—Smallmouth bass must be at least 14". Daily bag limits: During the harvest season for largemouth and smallmouth bass, you are allowed a daily bag limit of five bass in total.

I don't know how much my reports are going to help you. The weather in Eau Claire is typically warmer than it is where I'll be in the North Central part of the state. Lake Superior has an influence on Northern WI and the lakes are probably a week or more behind the Eau Claire area.

I won $10 on a scratch off lottery ticket once. Epic.

All braid, all the time, never used a leader. I fish a lot of clear, rocky rivers. I've never had any issues with abrasion. Just never had a time when I said "I should have used a leader".

I HATE when that happens.

1/8, 3/16, or 1/4 oz ball head jigs with 3 or 4 inch twisters tails. Very inexpensive and they catch fish. You don't even have to have them painted. The smallies don't care. I used to buy bags of 100, Pumpkin color Mister Twister 4 inch grubs. Toss them out, let them sink, and hop them back.

I have the Plano box and I think it works just fine. The wires don't stay bent and I've never had any pop out. They make one specifically for buzz baits now too.

I can't remember what I had for lunch yesterday, there is no way I could remember my first bass which was 50 years ago. I do know it was a smallmouth but back then the only measuring we did was when it was close to the legal size of 12 inches. Anything bigger than 12 was put on the stringer.

You have a few different inline spinners. The ones with the "wavy" blades are Abu Reflex spinners, you have some Mepps and the rooster tails that are more like a spinner bait are Super Rooster Tails. The silver spoon with the diagonal green stripe and the red bead is. Red Eye flutter spoon.

You may have seen Drew before in a famous video that went viral. I think it was on Funniest Home Videos too.

Don't lock down your drag, and don't pull on snags by using the spool.

If you fish from a boat and only fish alone, do what you like to do. On days when they aren't biting plastics, it would be a good idea to know how to fish hard baits. When you aren't fishing alone, especially if you aren't the one operating the trolling motor, you'd better be able to match what the guy controlling the boat is doing. Pretty hard to fish jigs or senkos when the boat is moving along while the guy up front is trying to cover water quickly with a crank bait or spinner bait. Do what you like to do. If you're catching fish and having fun, you're not missing anything. If you'd like to be more than a one-note-charlie fisherman, expanding your skills will help.

You can get a 24volt, 70 pound thrust Motor Guide X3 or Minn Kota Edge, bow mount, foot control for about $600.

Have you tried using a rubber core sinker? Remove the rubber core and pinch the weight on the hook.

I can't tell how big the fish is from your pictures, did you measure it (length)?

I use only braid. It works for me. I hate the stretch of other lines. Maybe it's not the perfect line for every situation but I don't need perfection.

In urban areas, the communities demand for lush, green lawns means a lot of fertilizer is used and the runoff pours these nutrients into our lakes and rivers causing explosions of weed and algae growth. Hard to convince the homeowners that a deep green lawn is not good for the environment.

I use them. A 4 inch white grub is what I use for a trailer. Comes through cabbage weed beds great. Pike are also crazy for them.

I just got a Terrova and think it's great. As you already know, you can link the Minn Kota with some Humminbird models. The Terrova's remote has a display to show you your speed selection, how fast you're going and which spot lock you've chosen. The Motor Guide remote has no display. The Motor Guide's foot pedal is wireless while the Minn Kota is wired. No batteries to replace in the Minn Kota foot pedal. I doubt you could go wrong with either one. They are even priced the same. Few outfits even discount them. I think Minn Kota still has a rebate going on.

Back in September of 1997, I was on a fishing trip and we stopped at Rainy Lake outside of International Falls, MN. The guy I was with wanted to do some walleye fishing and because I know next to nothing about walleyes, we hired a guide to take us out for the day. We got back to the dock at Rainy Lake Houseboats where we met the guide and there was some talk that Al Lindner was around filming a show. My friend Frank and I paid our guide and were getting ready to go for a beer when a boat with Al Lindner was coming to the dock. We walked over and was waiting for them to tie up when a voice in Al's boat says "Hi ya Scott!" I could not imagine who in Al Lindner's boat knew who I was. Turns out, it was Billy Dougherty the owner of Rainy Lake Houseboats. I knew Billy because I'd rented houseboats there. So Al gets off the boat and we start chatting about what the walleyes were doing. I'd gottten an education from just getting off the water with a guide so I could carry on a conversation without looking completely clueless. Al was very friendly and genuinely interested in hearing about our day. After he posed for a picture we let him get back to his business. My friend Frank and I were walking near the boat ramp a few minutes later when a truck was pulling a boat up the ramp. We stopped to let him by, and he stopped, rolled down the window to speak with us. It was Al asking US more about walleye fishing! I was shocked and amused that one of the best fishermen on the planet was asking ME, about walleyes. I was very impressed by his down to earth and friendly attitude. I ran into Al again at an outdoor show and he stopped by the booth I was working for the Illinois Smallmouth Alliance and he again posed for pictures. I told him the story about meeting him before and how surprised I was he was asking me about walleye fishing. He said you can never tell when someone is going to give you a tip on a pattern. That was my brush with greatness. Me and Al at the outdoor show