Jerkbate

A 17' 2000 model Skeeter w/115 Yamaha. I bought the boat in 2006 for $9000.00. It belonged to my mom. She won it new in 2000, and I am the only person that has ever used it. She finally decided to sell it to me last year.

I agree.

In August of 2006 I injured my back while moving deer stands. I thought I had just pulled a muscle, and that is what the docters I saw both thought. Well I dealt with the pain until I could not walk, I couldn't lay flat, & I couldn't sit up. For two months I lived on Loritabs, and I would literally cry everytime I had to move very much. I got in to see another doctor the end of September, and he was ready to send me to a back specialist for surgery. Come to find out, I had a herniated disc. Because I had let it go for so long my L3 & L4 had starting fusing together with the nerve crushed going down my right leg. I had my reservation about the surgery even though I was in immense pain. A fellow I work with suggested that I see a chiroprator. I was skeptical but went. I started chiropractic treatment the first of October. After taking treatment through the month I was almost pain free. I was even able to go on a hunting trip in Southern Illinois the second week of Nov. 2006. I hunted from a stand and had no problem climbing the hills. After returning from my trip, I continued with treatments through the end of November. I have recovered and am able to do everything I could before without ever having surgery. I am a college instructor so I'm on my feet all day. I haven't had any problems at all. I suggest that before you take the risk of surgery find a reliable chiropractor. You won't regret it. It's a lot less expensive too.

I fish from the bank a lot early in the year. Fish down the bank in front of you. I usually cast directly down the bank and then fan cast in a clockwise motion until I'm casting down the bank behind me. I then move up about 20 feet and repeat. I usually fish fairly fast with a small spinnerbait. After I have been around the lake or pond once. I start back around, but this time I switch to a lizard or worm and fish slow. If there are two of you, the first person fishes along with the fast moving spinnerbait and the second person follows with the soft plastic.

I live about 5 minutes from Grenada Lake and about 20 minutes from Enid Lake. We consider anything over 2 lbs. a nice fish, over 3 lbs. a really good fish, and over 4 lbs a trophy. I don't crappie fish much, but I'll try to get pictures of two my cousin caught last year. One is 4 pounds 11 oz. The other 4 pounds 5 oz. If I can get the pictures I'll post them.

Fish it anyway. Last spring I was fishing from the bank with a spinnerbait & caught one a little over 8 lbs. My pastor was walking the bank behind me fishing with a lizard. When he got to that same spot he pulled one out that weighed 10.02 lbs! Like I say fish it anyway.

The otters may be cute to watch, but they will clean out a pond or small lake. If there are otters present there are obviously fish present. I have done some control trapping for landowners. The otters may look cute and friendly, but they are vicious predators that will travel from pond to pond destroying the fish population. The otter is the only animal we have in my area that even the coyotes won't bother.

You shouldn't feel bad about what you told the guy. You didn't lie to him. You gave him a general response to his general question. If he had asked a more specific question like "Have you caught any bass over 5 pounds?", etc. then you should have given him a more specific answer. I don't blame you for wanting to limit the amount of pressure on these small ponds. I fish a public lake during Feb. & Mar. that produces big fish. I've caught several 8+ pounders with 2 over 10 pounds in the last two years. No one else that I am aware of fishes this lake until sometime after April. Most other sportsmen are recovering from deer season, crappie fishing Grenada Lake, or getting ready for turkey season that time of year. I've only told my pastor and my dad about this early spring honey hole. If you can't trust those two guys then who can you trust? If anyone ask where I'm fishing I don't lie to them, I just let them know that I am not going to tell them.

If you are going to try it, be sure to have some cover for the fish to relate too. Be sure to have a good supply/supplier of food. Also, be sure that your tank/pool is aerated and large enough.

I actually have eaten lunch with him a couple of times. It was he and I along with two or three other people. He is a super nice guy. I used to volunteer at a celebrity golf tournament for charity, and he was always there. The first day of the tournament is closed to the public and the celebrities & volunteers can interact on a personal level. Anyway, I don't remember exactly, but the first time I met him I told him something like I enjoy his shows, and that he'd done a lot for the sport of fishing. He doesn't play golf but when he's there he fishes one of the lakes on the course. Both times that I have eaten lunch with him, we talked about how he had fished the lake, the charity event, and just general conversation. I did have him sign a couple of Bill Lewis Rattle-traps (not one of his sponsors) and golf balls. He joked that he wished I would have brought him some real baits to sign. BTW: he is pretty clumsy.

I'm not sure of the exact weight, but it would be over 35 pounds. I was fishing a small public lake near my home. That day I caught a 13.4 lber. & a 11.7 lber. within a few minutes of each other. I also caught several more fish. I don't remember the exact weights, but 5 of the other fish were between 4 & 7 pounds. That was over ten years ago. Now, due to over harvest of big fish, you are lucky to catch a 2 lber. on that lake.

I've caught several 6+ pounders in 8 different lakes, but only Grenada Lake & Enid Lake would be known by many people outside of Mississippi.

Congrats Nick!

I know exactly what you mean. I'm like some of the others and don't let a lot bother me when I'm on the water. However, I cannot stand the jetskiers and waterskiers that have no respect for fishermen. A couple of weeks ago I was fishing a ditch that runs through a flat out into the main lake. My boat is sitting over the ditch in about 6 feet of water, but there was only about a two feet of water over the flat. Well a ski boat swings into the cove and the skier comes within 20 feet of my boat. This guys in the two feet of water, flying past me with the entire lake available to him. Part of me just hoped he'd fall. I did get some satisfaction later when, after making several passes close to me, the ski boat swung to close to the bank and ran a ground. The boats momentum carried it up into about 6 inches of water. They were still there trying to get the boat unhung when I left at dark. I probably should have help, but I simply smiled and waved as I past by. It also peeves me to go to the lake during the summer and have to deal with all the people there with boats that don't know how to run them. Most of these people are teenagers who have mom & dad's boat for the first time and haven't been shown how to properly operate it. However, I know some older people who are just as bad. I have a friend who is like this. He doesn't fish, but he's had a pontoon boat for about 3 years. He's never owned a boat before and had been on the water on a few times with other people before buying his own boat. He doesn't have a clue how to properly operate it. He gets smartmouthed and has an attitude if anyone tries to tell him what he's doing wrong. There is nothing wrong if you don't know how to operate the boat, but don't pretend that you do. If you don't know how ask somebody to show you.

Your exactly right. Glenn has done an excellent job. I commend you for taking the time and effort to take the kids fishing. I know it can wear thin on the nerves occasionally. My wife and I teach the youth at our church. We don't have kids of our own, but I take the older youth, ages 13 to 18, fishing a good bit. It's amazing to see the joy that catching a fish can bring them. It's funny that no matter how good we seem to become at something, our dads can usually still out do us at it. My dad can still out fish me 90% of the time. I'm lucky that he is still around. When I was a teenager we fought a lot. Now that I'm older we get along great, and we hunt and fish together again like we did when I was a child. I cherish every minute that we spend together. I was fortunate enough to fish with my grandfather a couple of times. He was a man of few words but when he did speak it was wise to listen. "some of the best memories i have are of fishing with my family, Jerkbate, thanks for such a great post....... Alfred" Your welcome! I have some very fond memories of being on the water with family. One that comes to mind. I caught my first catfish hand grabbing when I was about 8 years old. My mom, dad, aunt, and brother were there. I reached in the box and grabbed about a 2 pound channel cat, or maybe it grabbed me. Either way I got him in the boat. I'll never forget that.

The topic about remembering your first bass got me to thinking. My family on my dad's side have always been fishermen; especially bass fishermen. The love of the sport has been past down to me from my dad and to him from his dad and so on. I found these pictures and thought it would be interesting to see some pics of everyone's family fishing history. This is me about 4 years ago. This is my dad & me. This is my grandfather (Dad's dad).

I wish I could, but I starting going out on the lake with my dad before I could walk. I don't remember the first fish I caught of any species.

While I don't deny the affects that barometric pressure and moon phase have on game activity; I try not to pay any attention to the them. I don't pay attention to them because I want to arrive at the lake confident that I am going to catch fish. For Instance: If the conditions say the fish aren't supposed to be biting that day I might have low expectations. Also the conditions can say that the fish should be biting but I may not be catching any. Either situation can lower my confidence. Some conditions that I look at instead of bar. pressure and moon phase are water clarity, temperature, seasonal pattern, & light penetration (sunny or cloudy).

The blue catfish has probably the worst teeth. The flathead has barbs on its gills so don't stick your finger in them. J-Bass gave the best advice for hanlding small catfish. You can also pinch them right behind the head, and they will not move.

I've had the pleasure of eating lunch with him a couple of times at a charity event held each year at Old Waverly golf course in West Point, MS. He is a very nice guy. Even with all of the fame and notoriety he is still very down to earth and personable fellow. He's a little clumsy, but it makes us laugh. He is also a very accomplished fisherman. I don't care where he fishes. I've fished stocked ponds before and while the fish are easier to catch the big ones just don't jump in the boat with you. I can imagine that making a fishing show is a tough job. I was fishing a small local lake a few years back when a gentleman showed with a camera crew to film a show. The lake had just opened and was producing a lot of 5-10 pound bass. The pressure to perform with all of us watching must have been immense. My dad talked to a well know TV fishing show host at Sardis lake one day. I won't say who because the guy asked my dad not to tell that he told him this. My dad was curious as to why they had three boats. He was told that one held the camera crew, one was for the host to fish from, and the other had fish in the live well in case they didn't catch any. I'm not trying to saying that every show host does this. The point is it is all about money. They cannot afford to take trips and not get footage. They do what they have to do to reduce their cost. I don't like the fact of someone on another boat hooking on fish for a guy, but if it means fishing stocked ponds then I'm fine with that. I enjoy Bill Dance Outdoors, and I've learned a lot from watching it.

I've stated before that I wouldn't completely trust the calculators. I caught a fish earlier in the year that was 25" in length and 22" in girth. The calculator said that it weighed 11.45 pounds. However, someone posted a link to a fish that was registered with the share a lunker program in Texas that had a 25.5 in length and a 22 in girth that weighed over 15 pounds. I know that the extra .5 inches in length will make a difference but a 4 pound difference is hard to believe.

I also have one of these units on my boat that I use to fish small lakes. In my opinion it is a very good unit for the price. I would recommend it for someone on a budget looking to buy a basic unit.

The oil and oil drain you are talking about are for changing, checking, and adding oil in the lower unit also called the foot. You will want to check it. I'm not sure what you are calling the bottom plug. Are you refering to the drain plug for the boat? If so, it is normally located at the back of the boat toward the bottom of the hull. However, I have seen a couple of older boats that had the plug in the bottom. If you can, take the boat to a local outboard repair shop or small boat dealer. If you explain to them that this is your first boat, most should be more than willing to answer any questions that you have. Even if they charge you a small amount it will be money well spent.

First if the bass were hitting the top, I'd definitely have to try a torpedo or popper. I'd look for any depth variation. If there isn't a creek channel and the lake is pretty much a flat bottom, I'd look for small rises or holes in the bottom. These variations may be less than a foot or so. With the depth at only 3.5 feet you should be able to find these areas with polarized glasses. Look for: places where the pads or grass make a point that sticks out from the mass, any opening in the pads, any places where there is an indention or change in the straight edge of the pads. In very heavy pads and grass, I've caught fish in beaver runs that come through them. These runs act like trails through the pads that the fish will follow and hold on the edge of. I'd fish these area with a lizard, trick worm, or fluke type bait. I prefer to fish them weightless. I fish one lake that sound similiar to yours, and one of my most productive baits this time of year is a bubble gum Zoom Trick worm fished weightless. During the day I fish it slow allowing it to flutter down before shaking it a couple of times. Don't pump the rod like you would with a weighted bait. Simply shake it a couple of times and let it sit a couple of seconds and repeat. Keep tension on the line so you can detect the bite. Once it gets late in the day I fish it a little faster with short twitches and not so much pausing.