DogBone_384

So far the membership’s spot on (as usual), and the only thing I’ll add is I’ve had great luck this Summer with 3.8” Keitech Fat Swing Impacts and 3.5” Swing Impacts in all types of configurations.

HA! It was a brown van in my neighborhood back in the ‘70’s & ‘80’s!

Dambit! That’s what I get for not proof reading! ? July 18th, however, is my anniversary...

Today, June 18th, is National Fishing Day! Go get 'em!

Today is National Fishing Day! Go get 'em!

I fished Ponkapog yesterday from 5:00 PM until dusk. It was perfect beach weather: 70's, just a breeze, bright sunshine. I threw a T-rigged 3.8" Keitech, 5" wacky Yum Dinger, and three different topwaters. I got some slap-strikes on the Rapala Skitter Walk, but nothing in the kayak. Not much happened with my soft bait offerings until late in the evening, when I caught a dink pickerel and LMB with the Keitech. There were two other folks fishing while I was there and I didn't see them catching much either. Water temps were 76.x when I started and fell to 75.x when the sun went down. Air pressure was 30.4.

I’ve been bald for about 20 years. Do you know how much extra fishing gear I’ve bought not having to buy shampoo or get hair cuts for so long !?!?!?!?

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ This

I cook, mostly at my Firehouse. Of the 8 guys in my group, three are exceptional (not me), and like Mobasser cites regarding trail cooks, are held in high regard. In my station’s case, they cook, so they don’t have to do daily housework/maintenance.

My coworker couldn't get his permission slip signed (?) was solo this past Tuesday. I started at a private pond in Plymouth at 0500, staying until 1130. It was a picture perfect topwater day! Glass calm and overcast. All was quiet for the first hour or so when a good sized SMB bit my chrome Rapala pencil, but it did what SMB do so well: came out of the water, flipped upside down, and spat my bait. The show was good enough. I had a few more topwater hits but couldn't get any commitment, so I headed to the SW cove where LMB are known to hang out. Sure enough, a nice 2.6 pound LMB jumped on my Whopper Plopper, and a few casts later, 1.4 LMB did the same. By 1000 hours the topwater bite long died off, so I switched to a drop shot with a 3" Keitech Easy Shiner in green pumpkin, which turned out to be pretty popular. I landed a small LMB, a white perch, two picks (one 2.7 pounds), and a yellow perch within a half hour. Additionally, a really big pickerel tried to eat the poor little yellow perch as I reeled it back to the boat. Almost my first 'swimbait' fish, I guess. Plymouth water temps were 70.x and air pressure was 29.9. I had some family duties to tend to, but after that I went to my 'home' pond, Ponkapog, in Canton, just before supper time. Ponkie is shallow and very weedy, so I kept it simple with a Whopper Plopper and T-rigged creature baits. The WP didn't pan out, but I hooked onto a couple good LMB with the Vile Craw, but have to practice my hook set... they got off OTW to the kayak. I landed four good pickerel and lost a couple baits because of sharp teeth. Water temps at Ponkie were a balmy 76.x. The wind picked up significantly by the time I left. All in all, a good, long day of fishing. Good luck to the rest of the membership. It's good out there now, get at it before the dog days of Summer creep in!

$400 - $500, plus or minus.

Didn't get out this weekend, those belong to the family. While planning my assault for Tuesday I peeked at the state's website, checking the Quabbin's status. Good news: it's open - ONLY if you bring your boat with a MA seal. Bad news: no rentals this year, and if you're not a MA resident, stay home. https://www.mass.gov/info-details/quabbin-reservoir-fishing-guide

Didn't get out this weekend, those belong to the family. While planning my assault for Tuesday I peeked at the state's website, checking the Quabbin's status. Good news: it's open - ONLY if you bring your boat with a MA seal. Bad news: no rentals this year, and if you're not a MA resident, stay home. https://www.mass.gov/info-details/quabbin-reservoir-fishing-guide

I made it to 50 before everything started to ache ....

1. Keitech Fat Impact. 2. LV500 lipless. 3. Yozuri pencil topwater.

I met a coworker who's newly addicted to kayak fishing at a private pond in Plymouth this afternoon. Dana's still not caught a SMB, so the odds were pretty good today (or so I thought). Unfortunately he had to get back home around 6:00 pm, and I stayed. Neither of us had any luck shallow so I headed for two points and deeper water on the southern bank. On the way, my Lowrance showed a couple nice blips suspended at 20' in 35' of water. I tossed a 3.8" Keitech on a MattAllen swim jig head, counted down to twenty, and started reeling. Very shortly after, there was a 'tick', and when I leaned back, a good fight was on. Expecting a good SMB, a better LMB, came up fighting. After getting it in the kayak, the lightbulb went on that my scale was still in my truck... ? ... It was good and fat at 20" long and roughly 12" around, putting it at high four to low five pounds, one of the biggest LMB I've caught. I nabbed a decent white perch with the same bait, in the same area. That was it for the night. Water temps were 67.x, it was mostly cloudy with winds at 6 mph from different directions. Air pressure was 30.1. ADD: Nice trim of the beard Jake! See you in October!

What if you're bank fishing?

Over the years I closed my tailgate on one Veritas, and my power windows that go up when I arm my alarm on another. That's it.

I called Plymouth town hall yesterday and was told Hedges was open but TOWN STICKER only. In previous years non-Plymites could pay a parking fee and do their thing and this wasn't enforced before Memorial Day and after Labor day. It's not the case anymore. I drove down there yesterday afternoon because the town manager said there was no staff there. There are new signs plainly stating town stickers only and windows are to be rolled down a maximum of 1/3.... We'll see what happens in September, but for now, one of the best SMB ponds in eastern MA is off limits for non-Plymouth residents. Enough of that. I went further south, found white-caps on Great Herring, so over the bridge to Snake Pond went I in search of SMB. I launched around 4:30 PM and left at dusk. I managed 3 SMB, one bigger than the last, topping out at 1.85 pounds, with the first on a purple/brown tube and the other two on a 3.8" Keitech on a MattAllen swim jig head (too much Tactical Bassin...). I also caught a 3.57 pound, 23" pickerel on the Keitech. I threw a Whopper Plopper late in the day when it calmed down, with a couple hits but nothing to the kayak. The wind was 10 - 12 mph from the S/SW, air pressure was 30.2, with mostly cloudy skies. A little further than I wanted to drive, but I'll take it.

With wind dying down and water temps in the low 60's, I couldn't pass up a trip to Great South yesterday evening. I fished from about 5:00 to dusk, tossing a 1/4 oz black/blue jig, 1/2 oz brown/purple jig, weightless 5" Texas rigged Senko, and a couple topwaters, lipless, and crankbaits. I covered shallow and deep areas along the east to south and spent some time working the north side of Little South on the way back to the launch but came up empty. I noticed more beds than last week. Even the Ned failed me yesterday.

Got down to Great South in Plymouth for some SMB. I launched around 6:30 and stayed until 12:30-ish. It was nearly dead calm when I started and was not too bad when I left. I ended up with 2 SMB, 2.92 and 1.35, respectively, and a 2.77 LMB. I saw a bunch of beds, and a cloud of fry at the canal between Great and Little South. SMB #1 took a 3.8" Keitech on a swim jig head, #2 ate a weightless T-rigged Senko, and the LMB took a perch Whopper Plopper I dropped in very shallow water between some flooded bushes. Water temps were 58.x in the morning and 60.x when I left. Wind was light from the north and air pressure was 30.4.

Bummer ... https://www.mass.gov/locations/quabbin-reservoir

Bummer ... https://www.mass.gov/locations/quabbin-reservoir On the plus side ... Mr. Aquarium strikes again!

Congratulations!