herbu

There are a number of sinking frogs now. Sort of like a Rage Craw, but a frog. I fish 'em on a belly weighted hook and sort of hop/swim them on the bottom like a craw. Have caught some, but don't seem to be as effective for me as the craw. And like any other bait, later in the day seems better.

http://global.rakuten.com/en/store/hikoboshi-fishing/item/hf-spt-is-f-00004/ Looks like you can get bibibi chu bugs here... after they restock.

How do you feel about golf?

I was fishing a large cove, around the edge, and heard a flock of ducks on the water hidden by some weeds. Another flock flew in to join them, but kept flaring and circling instead of landing. Looking around, I saw the reason why. There was a bald eagle sitting high in a pine tree overlooking the cove. After a while, the second flock landed, joining the first. They drifted out past the weeds where I could see them, and it was a pretty big flock, probably 100 or so. I quit fishing and just sat there watching. Eventually something spooked them and they all took off, running across the water to get up speed. As soon as they flushed, the eagle came out of the tree. The eagle beaded in on the last duck, a straggler that seemed to be having a little trouble getting airborne. The eagle dove on him and just as the duck lifted off the water, the eagle slammed him. Sounded like a baseball hitting the catcher's mitt. He didn't grab the duck, and went back to his pine tree. The duck lay in the water, appearing dead. But he was just knocked out. After about a minute, the duck came to. He started running across the water to fly, and the eagle left the tree again. And again, just as the duck became airborne, the eagle slammed him. This time the eagle sunk his talons in, had a firm hold of the duck, and flew back to the tree with his lunch. Very cool. The assault happened not more than 20 yards from me.

I have a regular fishing partner. It's my boat and usually I'm in front. Sometimes I offer to swap places, but he rarely accepts as he's not experienced w/ the trolling motor. We're both retired and fish just for fun. No tournaments or competition. Often I become aware that while I'm in a good position, he is too close or too far from the bank. So I try to get the boat in a better position for him. It's especially difficult in the wind, as it's a light weight aluminum boat. Sometimes I'm fishing a swimbait and he's fishing a worm, so I find myself going too fast for him. A lot of times if I'm catching and he's not, I'll back the boat into coves and good spots to give him first shot. Those of you who fish with a guy in the back, how much effort and attention to you give to controlling his position?

Simple solution... fried frog legs.

And if you had a lot of poisonous snakes around, I wouldn't worry too much about them either.

So no big black cats. Sorry to disappoint you, but you're wrong. Uncle Si swears he saw one, and all of his stories are 90% true... Jack.

Are you saying there are no big black cats in Southeast US? I suspect your disagreement is semantics. The OP said he doesn't know Puma from Panther... just that is was a big black cat. Exactly what is it you say doesn't exist?

I get that "block" quite often. Changes in season, temp, wind, water level, clouds, all can bring on the "block". We're currently experiencing the Post Spawn block. I've only had a boat, been retired and fishing regularly now for about a year. For 50 years prior to that, fishing time and opportunity were quite sporadic. Now, just about when we figure out what/where/how to handle the current conditions, something changes. What was working doesn't work any more, thus the block. So we try to figure out what changed and what is the new what/where/how. Sometimes we get lucky... sometimes it takes a while... sometimes I think we never figure it out before it changes again. It is only when we get lucky that we can begin refining our offerings and techniques. Other times we're trying new spots and different baits, looking for something that works. But we always enjoy our time on the water. Hopefully over the years we'll accumulate some understanding of the changes and remember how to address them. But either way, we're certainly enjoying the journey. I think that's the key. If you're not enjoying the journey, perhaps fishing is not for you.

Hey guys. Enjoyed reading your suggestions for a while, but haven't posted much. When I was a kid, I'd rather fish than eat. Slowly got away from it as work and wife took precedence. I threw the wife back in, retired, bought a boat and dove head first back into fishing. Life is good. I'm near Raleigh, NC, and most of my fishing is in Shearon Harris or Jordan lake. Generally stick to weekdays because weekends are really crowded w/ both fisherman and recreational boaters. My fishing buddy is ~10 years older than I, and likes to remind me that I'm, "barely out of whippersnapperdom". My back and shoulders disagree. But a prudent acknowledgment of both our morning constitutional proclivities dictates we meet at the ramp around noon and fish 'till dark. No sunrise fishing for us. Have quickly accumulated a bunch of gear. A lot of it from ideas & videos here. Can't say it has all been productive, but I'm still learning. Enjoy the mental exercise trying to understand and predict what the fish will do on a given day. Have had some spectacularly successful days, but not convinced they weren't mostly the blind squirrel syndrome. Have had many more slow days. Those are most likely due to my knowledge and skill. But I'm enjoying the journey. Thanks guys.

Plan my next fishing trip. It's a great time to try new spots and techniques. I generally dance with the one that brung me. I mean, if I'm slaying 'em, I don't change spots or tactics. But when the bite dies, especially for several days, it's time to try some of the suggestions and knowledge found here, or in magazines, or on fishing shows. If they don't work, I figure I didn't do any worse than I would have repeating the same old skunk strategy.

Funny. A couple days ago we were skunked for about 5 hours. But we did feel some little nips on the tails of our worms and swimbaits. Figured they were bream/crappie/perch. Just for a break, I pulled out my ultralite w/ 4lb line and tied on a tiny panfish jig. I brought it because we were curious what kept nipping at our baits. Caught several bream/crappie/perch. Threw it next to a grass line and WHACK! Rod bent double and drag started singing. After a couple tours around the boat, finally landed a nice 4# largemouth. I doubt the girl would have expended much energy chasing the tiny bait. But proved if everything is right, they'll suck in anything that looks good to them. May just leave the ultralite on the boat. Of course, just for some... umm... ultra specialized bass fishing.

I usually have a game plan, and it's often based on something I read or saw on TV. Some advice, bait or technique I've never tried. I'll prepare w/ new equipment if necessary. (Boy, that's fun... and it's one way I accumulate a lot of stuff!) Then I'll hit my regular lake and give it a try. My current plan is from another thread here. Look for spots where the creek channels meet the main river channel. (I fish a reservoir lake.) I've fished the river channel, and fished the creek channels, but never focused on where they meet. That'll be tomorrow. Big worm, heavy swimbait, maybe a Rage Craw. Some fish are still on the beds, but I think a lot have already finished. Also I'm gonna clear all my old waypoints on that lake. I can remember the spots. And I'm going to start marking where I see schools of baitfish. See if I can begin to establish their highways. If the river/creek intersections don't pan out, I'll likely hit a couple old faithful spots and techniques before I leave.