DogBone_384

Come to think about it Tom, I've never brought banannas when we fish. I'll remember to leave them at home.... Did the lakers make it home to the frying pan?

Took a friend's son, Evan, to Hinkley's today. I'd say the surface temps were higher than the amient temp, 57.x versus high 40's low 50's at best. Regardless, Evan and his mom drove down, we're fishing! I had a Swamp Hawg like day today. Caught my first LMB on a bluegill jig and three SMB on Fishing Rhino's secret weapon. Everyone was north of three pounds. The biggest SMB might have been a PB. My digital scale crapped out on me. Poor Evan threw everything he brought with him, as well as Fishing Rhino's secret weapon, but came up empty. The amusing part was the number of clams we caught. We each caught three or four, whether they closed on a trebel hook, line, or snap swivel, it was a trip. I don't remember ever catching a clam before.

Jab, the first Smallie's tail was raw & red. It was on the bed.

Nice job Mike! I got to Hinkley's this afternoon to check the place out before Evan comes down tomorrow. It was so windy the pond had white caps, but I drove all the way here, I'm fishing. I paddled to the far end and found a little shelter from the tree line. A bluegill jig and green pumpkin/red flake ned proved useless. A yellow perch flavored shad rap shallow netted a pound-ish yellow perch. Got called back to the condo, but got back around 5:00. The wind calmed down so much I broke out a Whopper Plopper and tossed it along a shallow point. I made the right choice. 5 smallies, all between a pound and a pound and a half. No scale breakers, but I'll take it. Water temps were high 57.x - low 58.x. Let's see what tomorrow brings.... Forgot to add the highlight of the day: the bald eagle that flew over me and perched itself in a pine tree 100' away. You definitely don't see that every day.

Thanks for the info. I'm heading down there tomorrow morning. Will check it out. How's parking? If you haven't already had one, get the breakfast burrito from that General Store. It was awesome, with bacon, of course!

Even if you don't. I own plenty and will bring a couple extra setups if you want.

I see a Quabbin road trip coming up.... I drove to the Cape yesterday to recon some spots. Fished Sheep Pond for a couple hours with nada more than seeing clouds of Yellow Perch and one bass. Water temps were 49.x I moved over to scout Hinckley Pond but didn't launch. It took me a while to find the launch. The state website's directions are vague, which might be a good thing. I'm going to be down the Cape for a few days next week. I'm going fish Hinkley's with a friend's son Tuesday.

I'm a Firefighter.

I threw a Whopper Plopper yesterday without so much as a look from any SMB. Will try again.

The radar map looked better in Plymouth so off to Hedges went I after work. Four smallies made it to the kayak, 1-6, 1-8, 1-10, and 1-15 respectively. Water temps were 56.x at 3:30 when I launched and 54.x at 7:45 when I left. Yamaoto's Heart Tail was the big winner. I T-rigged it with a 1/8 oz VMC swimbait hook. I got a bunch more strikes on it than anything else, and lost most of them with poor hooksets. It looks a lot like a smallie, I guess. I also brought one home with a Rage Tail Menace on a 1/8 oz. Keitech jig head. I drifed over some beds on my way back to the beach and got to see piles of smallies guarding their eggs. That and the two swans that flew right over me were really cool. Looks like fishing season is finally here.

Water temps should stay cooler in deeper waters. Fishing Rhino said waters around The south coast were in the low 50's.

Ponkie is shaped like a dinner plate with rock & silt bottom. It heats up quickly.

Launched at Ponkie for the first time this season around 4:00 this afternoon. Managed a nice 2-4 Larry on a yellow perch Shadow Rap shallow. Though I'm gonna have to give jigs a serious look this season.... this one or two fish per outing has to stop ...? Water temps ranged from 55.x to 57.x. Max depth I saw was 7.5 - 8', the deepest I've ever seen the place. If I wake up extra early I might hit it again for an hour or two before work in the AM.

Had steak for lunch and sausage/peppers/onions for dinner. My Firehouse is what you see on TV & in the movies.... except it's +- 117 years old. We have photos of horse teams in front of the pump/hose wagon & ladder cart.

I fished the Quabbin a few times last year with Fishing Rhino and JG233. We rented/launched from fishing area #3. Boat & parking was $46 if you're younger than dirt. If you're older than dirt, I believe it's $23. Like Swamp Hawgs says, get there early on weekends.

I'm heading to Dennisport for a few days next week, bringing my kayak, of course. A family friend is also coming with his kayak. Anyone know of some kayak friendly waters around Dennisport? Evan is one year out from chemotherapy so easy launching is key. I'm going to do some recon this week if I can, and any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

I keep a digital copy on my phone in case I forget my print copy. I've never come across a green cop here but have friends who have. There doesn't seem to be any tolerance for not obeying the law here in MA, accidental, or otherwise.

I have Abu Garcia, BPS, Fenwick, Powell, and Gander Mtn. ML spinning rods. My two favorites are Abu's Veracity and Fenwick's Elite Tech. The former is super light, sensitive, and fishes a little heavier than a ML. The latter is also light and loads up nicely with light baits. They're $149 rods and worth every penny, to me, anyway. Regardless of what rod you choose, handle as many different models as possible. The one that feels best to you is the right one for you. Afterall, you're fishing it.

Picked up an overnight detail so fishing this weekend is a maybe. One thing I noticed while staring at my phone, looking for 'magic', was Google Map's picture of the Quabbin. It looks like it's at its low point last year which should help mapping out underwater topography. Remember, opening day is only a week, or so, away.

If I don't work tomorrow I might just see what Ponkapog has to offer. It's shallow, 6-7' max, so it should warm up quickly. As of now I'm off Tues-Fri so I'm gonna marathon fish as long as I can. 'Course my motorcycle misses me badly too. Maybe some bank fishing somewhere. I can get my waders in the saddle bags.... Hmmmm.

Ponkapog and Houghtons are nice and high. Blue Hills Reservoir was a little down prior to the 'snow' we were supposed to get a couple weeks ago. I beleive the state regulates its level.

Never been in a drunk bathtub before so I wouldn't know. I like the way my Lure handles and how rock stable it is while standing. I also have a '14 Ascend 128T. I love the storage space and the swivel seat. I call it my aircraft carrier.

Got out of work this morning, packed up, did my chores & errands, and launched at Hedges around 10:45 - 11:00. Straight away I saw at least a dozen beds along the northern bank. There were many more along the south bank. I started along in about 8' of water where I could reach the shallows and still cast to 10' depths too. I started with a watermelon/black/red Hula Grub on a drop shot, green pumpkin Ned, and a GP Pro 2 Vision 110. After two hours without so much as a whiff I switched the Hula Grub to a white ice Super Fluke Jr, the green pumpkin Ned to green pumpkin/orange, and the Vision 110 to a gold Rapala suspending jerk bait (X-Rap?). I struck out with soft baits but the gold Rapala saved the shut out with two smallies (1-8, 1-9) and a chubby 12 ounce yellow perch. The first smallie came from the western corner and the other two near the hump/steep drop off on the south bank. All three were in shallow water, about 3-4' I figure. Both smallies didn't hit really hard but had some decent fight to them. I thought I'd snagged something with #2 until it swam to the side. Water temps ranged from 44.x to 45.x when I left at 2:30. Barometeric pressure was 30.2. I'm off until Friday AM, so if Mother Nature cooperates and I don't dig up any extra work, I'm gonna give Ponkie or Sunset a try so to see if any LMB are active.

I've got the perfect one for you: my 6' 10' ML/F Abu Villain with Pflueger Supreme XT hanging off it... it's at the bottom of Ponkapog pond in Canton, MA. It's super light, sensitive, and right at your $350 budget. An awesome set up.

It happens to the best of them (and hacks like me too!). If you don't cut out at least one nest a season you're not fishing enough.