davecon

Cuban sandwich

Not to hijack the thread but 0119 it's good to see you are still around. Used to enjoy your posts on the now defunct River forum. I see you still offer good advice. Good to hear from you and carry on ! Dave

If you really want an eye opener (or two) get the videos Big Mouth and Big Mouth Forever by Glen Lau. Google him. I have had those videos for years and still watch them frequently.

Hawgenvy, It has bee my experience that for the most part, once you get the boat a casts length off the bank the mosquitos are not a problem, except right before sunrise. I used to fish at least 2 nights a week. We would take cigars with us, even the guys that didn't smoke, and light them just before daylight. Was the only thing that kept them from bleeding us dry ! This was way back when I was in college during summer break and working part time on the midnight shift. Worked 3 or 4 nights per week. The other nights we went fishing. One summer we caught at least one 5 pounder or better every trip except for one. Used that black Musky Jitterbug almost exclusively. On three occasions my buddies had the hooks pulled out of the plug. I was lucky as I had an older wooden one. Still have it to this day, some 45 years later. I now fish for snook at night from time to time. Unbelievable how many of them you can catch after dark !

You are a lucky man. Sounds like my wife. How she puts up with me and all this nonsense has puzzled me for the last 43 plus years.

Welcome. I live up the road a little in the Tampa area and don't get down that way very often. I know there is Shell Creek which can be good and several river's down that way, but honestly if I were you I would concentrate on Snook. I fish for them up here using bass tackle and mostly bass lures. The fishing is extremely similar until you hook a good one. That could change your religion. I will never bad mouth bass fishing, as that's what I do almost exclusively during the spawn and have done so for over 50 years, but once the spawn is over it's snook, snook, snook. There is no comparison. I've caught dozens of bass over ten, the largest being 14.1 and they don't hold a candle to a good sized snook. You can expect a fight to last an honest 10 to 12 minutes with multiple runs of literally over 120 feet. If your heart is in good shape you should seriously consider it. The by catch of tarpon isn't bad either ! Once you start to figure them out, seasonal movements, tides, lures, etc., they are actually more predictable than bass. It just takes a short time to figure it out and if you are an experienced bass fisherman you should have minimal problems adjusting.

Been using Power Pro with medium or medium light rods for years. Only time I use mono is for panfish, then it's 4 lb throwing beetle spins.

Long story short - black musky jitterbug, black 12 inch plastic worm fished so slow a retrieve should take at least a full 2 minutes. If you try the above with confidence you will understand. If you don't you might as well sleep in and fish during the day. Works all year round.

Ultralight tackle, 4 inch worm, 1/32 oz slip sinker. Color - watermelon or black

The real question is, are any of those friends and family members great fishermen ? If they aren't, just smile and nod, then go fishing. What do they really know anyway. If any of them are great fishermen (and I highly doubt that or they would not have participated in such an assault on your noble and valiant quest) then just assume they are merely jealous. Do not let them sway you from your honorable cause of making the waters safe for women and children to swim. Those bass must be tamed and taught proper manners. It's a dirty job but somebody's gotta do it ! Stay strong and carry on.

When the river is high, go to the lake ! In all seriousness, I have been afflicted by this bass fishing addiction for almost 50 years. At least here in west central Florida a high/flooded river is not worth messing with. I have NEVER been able to figure it out so I just quit beating my head against the wall and learned to try lakes and possibly brackish water instead. I think that at least here it has something to do with the tannin acid. Good luck !

Several years ago I got sick and tired of fighting the crowds on the larger lakes here in Florida. I overed the tournament thing after many years of that too. Sold the traditional bass boat, 18 footer with 150 and bought a small boat called a Gheenoe. Now the boat Is rigged as nice as any and very comfortable to fish from, it's just small and lets me get in smaller bodies of water with virtually no other fishermen. This necessitated a reduction in tackle carried with me, just not as much room as the old boat. Went thru every lure I own and actually tried to remember when I used the lure last, how many fish did it catch, etc. If it wasn't a good producer I put it in storage in the garage. I got it down to 2 Plano 1258's,one for plastics, one for lures, and 2 3600's (one for hooks and sinkers and one for panfish lures Keep in mind I fish for bass, snook, reds, tarpon, seatrout, (and bluegills with the wife and grandkids). Over the years I have learned, for the most part, what works and what is really good merchandizing. I don't run and out and buy the "hot" lures that come out all the time that usually just take up space. Sort of stick with the tried and true. If anything, the reduction in tackle has improved my fishing not hindered it. I now concentrate on where the fish are, speed of retrieve, etc. not always wondering should I try the latest and greatest lure ever invented. I know that what I'm using will work as it has in the past. There used to be a fellow here in Florida, "One Lure Charlie", I think his name was Charlie Orme (he died a few years ago). He used one lure and one lure only, a Devils Horse, and won literally hundreds of tournaments, and believe me, there are some pretty good sticks here in Florida. Point is, you really don't need all that tackle. Use only what WORKS for you. My two cents worth. Dave

I know this sounds crazy, I have trouble believing it and I used to do it, but here goes - cast a rattle trap out, color makes no difference, let it sink to the bottom then rip it up using the rod only. If one doesn't hit it wind up the slack and rip it again. Now this was in an area with hard sand bottom and no vegetation but I used to be able to fill a 48 quart cooler with fish that averaged 5 pounds in a little over an hour. If the wife wanted to have a family fish fry it was almost as good as going to the fish market. It was that reliable. Won't hurt to try.

Soflbasser, I know what you mean about the live crawfish. I live in Riverview where 85 percent of the tropical fish sold in the US are raised. They raise most of the tropicals in small shallow "ponds" they dig. They are about the size of a two car garage and they have a LOT of them. The farmers hate the crawfish as they eat the tropicals. A friend that raises them used to give me all the crawfish I wanted, I mean hundreds of em. For catching numbers of bass I have never seen anything like them. They don't necessarily attract the large fish but if there is a bass around they will hit the things. Catfish are nuts for them too. I used them often when my kids were little and they had a ball. Haven't used them in years. I might give old Jeff a call when the Snook slow down.

Live bait is one thing, but watching a bass run down an 8 or 10 inch wild shiner you are using for bait can be quite a rush ! You know it's a pretty good sized bass before you even set the hook. And fishing those shiners is not as easy as you may think. I did it off and on for years but the boat I have now doesn't have a sufficient live well. When I used to use live bait I only targeted the big bass. It can be fun and rewarding and quit a challenge, so don't knock it if you haven't tried it with the really big shiners.

I just go fishing in the winter, but then again, I'm in Florida. Actually had to wear socks with my Crocs day before yesterday when I went. Still in shirt sleeves though.

Thanks for the report. Sounds like a great few days. You indeed have much to be gratefull for ! Happpy Thansgiving to you and yours.

Albright

Snook are a funny thing. I don't fish for them in the traditional manner, I prefer less popular out of the way places and for me it's the same as bass fishing almost. That's why I like it so much. I use the same rods and reels, for the most part the same lures and approach it very similar to bass fishing just pay attention to tides and currents more. Both summer and winter can be great. More of em around in the spring and summer but boy is it hot out there. Often I resort to fishing at night. Winter time is pretty good too as it concentrates the big ones in warmer water. Deep holes, springs (I mean very very small springs), sun warmed shallow rocks, etc. It just takes a lot of time and luck to find em. Some of my better trips have been when the temperature is down in the 20's. Ice in the rod guides, level winds freezing up, etc. If you can find the right area it can be amazing. By the way, the chamber of commerce and tourist officials will never admit to what I just wrote. The cold can be a double edged sword however. 5 years ago we had a February that was so cold it broke all records A full month it never got over 50. A huge percentage of the Snook actually died. Fishing was terrible. I actually quit fishing for them for well over a year. So to answer your question it can be great all year you just adjust for the season.

"Small price to pay" depends on where you are. Some locations/ramps the price can be higher than others, but I guess it's worth it. Just watch the national weather and read some of the posts here regarding "personal bests". Dumbfounds me sometimes but if these guys get worked up catching that size fish more power to em. Then again if we were talking deer hunting it would be the other way around considering how small most Florida deer are. Different strokes for different folks.

Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you feel about it, we have very few exotics here in central Florida. Water gets a little too cold some years. We do have tilapia and armoured catfish but no "game" species. We are fortunate with the year round fishing and incredible opportunities in both fresh and saltwater. The biggest drawback is the flood of winter visitors. I understand why they come, I'd do the same if I were in their shoes, but the obnoxious and incredibly rude behavior by a small percentage of them both at the ramp and on the water will surely test ones patience. I guess that is our penance.

I have bass fished for 58 years, all here in central Florida. My first love and still bass fish often. Almost exclusively during the spawn. But if the Snook are up the river in any number and there are favorable tides that's where I'll be. The bycatch of reds and tarpon isn't bad either. To tell you the truth I really enjoy it all. My wife is off work next week and wants to go for panfish with cane poles and worms. I'm really looking forward to that as well.

Sorry but no pictures. I was by myself and only had the camera on my old flip phone. Snook that big are a handfull plus I didn't want to keep them out of the water any longer than necessary. Went back to the same area this morning. Hooked and lost one really nice one. Did manage to catch a total of 20 snooklets, the largest only about 22 inches. Did manage one keeper red that will be supper tonight. The dolphins were a problem off and on today and that may have been the difference. Who knows ? If you have never caught a big Snook before, DON'T ! They will change your religion and bass fishing will never be the same.

Don't mean to rub it in but the fishing is just now about to turn on here in central Florida. I fish for Snook during the summer/early fall then bass in the winter/early spring. Went snook fishing this morning. Water temp was 73 at dawn, 75 at noon. High temp today was 87. Our summers are long and brutal but the winters are great except for the cold fronts. See my recent post in the "Other Fish Species" section. We are supposed to get a cold front late this week but it will only get down in the 60's. The humidity will drop and the fishing may slow a little. It's really later in the winter that the cold fronts have the most impact. I *** the cool days you guys have, must be nice to not sweat every time you go outside, but I don't want any part of your winters. Good fishin !

You guys from central Florida and further south may appreciate this. Went to a local brackish river I know well and have been fishing for years. Casting small Rapalas, the bait of choice recently. Caught about 25 snook, mostly under 18 inches which is about par for the course. About 10 a.m. I try a cove with water a little over knee deep. Get one that is 37 inches and 12.8 pounds. Retie my leader and 5 minutes later about 30 feet down the mangroves I get one 36.5 inches that weighs 10.8. Retie the leader, replace the lure as it is now destroyed, and 3 casts later and 20 feet down the way I hook another one in the upper 30's that jumps and throws the lure. Kept working the area but the tide is going out fast. Gets so shallow I'm having trouble hitting bottom and I fish out of a Gheenoe. Finally had to leave the cove. Caught several more snooklets but that's all. It's been several years since I've caught several SNOOK in one trip but it sure is shaping up to be a good winter! Will have trouble sleeping tonight. Work tomorrow but am off Thursday and know where I'll be. Makes me almost feel sorry for thoses guys up north. Almost. Dave