davecon

Didn't see this personaly but a reliable friend told me he saw a couple of guys using cane poles catching crappie on small strips of banana peels.

Shoestrings , that's right, shoestrings on a jighead for redfish.

Haven't fished Kissimmee in years, that being said, if we have a lot of cold weather, thats our cold, not yours, and then it warms up in January they might move up to spawn. Recommend you fish the greenest hydrilla you can find, use a lot of soft plastics, and fish SLOOOOW. Cold fronts can really shut them down for several days. Other than that the standard fare is dark colored or watermelon plastics, plastic swimbaits, lipless cranks,spinnerbaits, and don't overlook the good old Devils Horse. Just stay in or near thick vegetation, especially on any type of point. Have fun and good luck.

I'm gonna have to research this some more, that's all there is to it ! Next time my wife says " Are you going fishing ? " I'll just tell her no, I'm doing research. That's the ticket.

For me the bigger the fish the bigger the fight. Don't know about smallmouth though. However, once a snook gets over about 5 pounds there is no comparison. A large snook will just have her waywith you for quite some time and it usually takes a long time and some luck to get them in. From what I have seen on video kinda like fighting a big Musky in close quarters. Lotsa excitement and fun.

Used to catch a lot of bass when I was a kid slow trolling dead shiners. Deadsticking is a common practice in these parts. Throw a plastic worm out and let it sit for as long as five minutes. An honest five minutes, I mean cast it out, smoke a cigarette, then see if ones there. It works.

Here in Florida it is common to use 12 inch shiners for bait. You don't catch many bass but they are pretty big. Some snook fishermen use live mullet for bait that are 12 or 14 inches long. They use tackle suitable for tarpon and they catch some monsters. Do a google search on The Mad Snooker and you can see some videos. Unbelieveable !

With bass about 8 times. Once caught a snook and a ladyfish at the same time. With schooloing fish it is not uncommon.

The guy that caught it is the fellow who owns the company that made the boat I fish out of, a Gheenoe. The company is Custom Gheenoe. I've met him several times and talked to him on the phone many times. While I really don't know him personally he has always seemed like a stand up guy and I have never heard anybody say a bad word about him. Based on that I really doubt Photoshop was involved.

Let us know where you plan to go. Florida is a pretty big place. It's further from Pensacola to Key West than it is from Pensacola to St Louis.

I'm in west central Florida and fish fresh and brackish water. Bass mostly during the spawn, snook the rest of the year. What I have found over several decades with this affliction is that higher prices doesn't necessarily translate into higher performance. I use mostly the following two outfits: St. Croix Premier 7' ml. Costs about $ 110. I have many rods that are a lot more expensive but prefer the way this one handles. Castaway low end (can't remember the model) 7' m. Remember that different manufacturers models ratings are NOT the same. I use Shimano Symmetre reels, $99. 10/15 Power Pro braid. 20 lb fluoro leader. What I have found is that "freshwater" lures far outperform "saltwater" lures. They don't last under the pressure and you must replace hooks and split rings often but to me it's worth it. Last fished one week ago today and using a small Rapala with the outfits described above in 4 hours I caught about 20 snook, mostly small but 2 over 30 inches, a 29 inch red, and fought a small tarpon of about 40 pounds (fortunately he got off as I really don't like bringing them all the way to the boat). Only cost metwo of the Rapalas as they were completely destroyed. This was in a brackish river and I would not have been at all surprised to have caught a nice bass or two. In summary, light tackle is just fine. More money doesn't necessarily mean better performance, and make sure you try your favorite bass lures in the salt. Good luck and have fun out there.

Check out the St Croix Premier. I have a 7' model. It's around $110 - 120. I have many that are a lot more expensive but this one is my favorite.

Keep it simple. Don't fall prey all the latest fads and hot new lures. I take it you're in the northern latitudes (I'm in central Florida so Georgia seems pretty far north to me) and I don't have a clue about smallies so take my suggestions with a grain of salt. Assuming you use ultralight for panfish, using the same setup, try the following _ 4 inch worm with the lightest slip sinker you can find. Weightless senko, 3 or 4 inch. Original Rapala minnow - 3 or 4 inch. Rapala Shad Rap no. 5. Don't get caught up in colors!!! For the plastics - black in lowlight, watermelon in brightlight. For the hard baits stick with silver or gold depending on water color. For a newbie the options can be overwhelming. Just keep in mind that the manufacturers are fishing too, it's just for you. I've been doing this for a long time and have come full circle, back to the basics and I'm catching more fish than ever before. One more thing - don't take this sport too seriously, just have fun trying to fool those dumb little fish !

Bass - about 9.5 (didn't weigh her). Tarpon - about 60 lbs Snook - 3 at 37 inches, one at 39 inches (lost one that dwarfed those). All caught on 7 ft ml spinning rod, 3000 series reel, 10 lb braid. Fishing is slow right now with the heat but should pick up in about 4 or 5 weeks. Some of the best fishing of the year is right around the corner !

Don't know who Jason Lucas is but I've been smoking a pipe for about twentyfive years. Maybe I'm old school or as my kids and grandkids say, I'm just old.

BPS opened about a month ago in Brandon, Fl. That's only about 7 miles from my house and it's great. Finally have a decent selection close to home.

I'm in Florida so I have a distinct advantage so the size is not a valid comparison. That being said, the first nice bass I caught was the very first bass I caught. Weighed six pounds. I was only six years old and that was 58 years ago but I remember it like it was yesterday. Can't remember what I ate for supper last night but I remember every detail of that fish. Guess catching a nice one at such an early age gave me what you call " bass fever " and it is still an affliction. I fish mostly for snook nowadays but still have to get my bass "fix" quite often. Guess I'm a bass fisherman at heart. Keep up the good work but be careful, it can become a lifelong habit. Keep in mind that there is fishing in life and the rest is just incidental details. Go get um!

If you don't think fishing shows should be filmed on private waters then make sure that you never go to private waters when filming for your syndicated fishing show! What's that ? You don't have your own show ! Well nevermind then. Thats what I thought !

Sooner or later you young guys will figure out it's not so much the fish you catch but the overall experience. Sure you need to catch a few to keep your attention but think about it, it's the process. Getting the boat ready, preparing your tackle,selecting what lures to use, what body of water, where do you begin, what is your backup plan, checking the solunars, even the web reading ridiculous posts like this. You guys that harump harump the private waters obviously don't have produtive private waters available. If given the option of fishing really good private waters or "challenging" public waters just go with lighter tackle and quit fooling yourself. "Personal Best" is just that, personal. Face it, it's mostly where you live. I live in Florida and have caught dozens over 9. Does that mean I am a better fisherman than the guy in North Dakota ? Of course not ! If we were talking deer hunting the shoe is on the other foot. In Florida a 175 pound buck is HUGE. Not so much in ND. Some of the most "Successful" fishermen I have ever known really didn't catch many fish but they laughed and joked the whole time they were on the water, were a blast to fish with, and had more fun than the guys that caught a lot more fish. That is what I call a great day on the water and keeps me going back. Rant over.

Many years ago I fished the phosphate pits in the same area where BD films. Believe me, the fishing was as good as it looks on his shows. I read an interview with him and before he found those pits it would take 3 to 5 days to film an episode. It now takes him a day. Sometimes the fishing in thoses pits can be so good that it's hard to find a lure/color they won't hit. I have tried. One of the odd things about the pits in that area is that the fish bite best between 10:00 am and 3:00 pm, even during the heat of Florida summers. Great for filming. If you were in his shoes what would you do ? By the way, I understand his pits are off of county road 555 south of Bartow, Fl.

I'm so technically unsavy that I don't know how to post it but I saw a video the other day of a Snook attacking a 5 lb. Largemouth. You could see where the Snook had grabbed the bass and was stalking the poor thing. If you google "snook eats 5 lb bass" you should find the video. That's why I mostly fish for Snook.

Excluding big fish, best day by myself was last summer. Caught 4 bluegills all over a pound each, 4 tarpon between 20 and 40, 4 bass between 4 and 5, two reds over 30 inches each, and about 25 snook, mostly 20 to 25 inches each. All caught on the same lure within 150 yards of each other. Had the boat on the trailer at 11:30 am. Couldn't sleep for 2 nights. The best day with someone else was many years ago when my son was about 12. Hit an offfshore ledge just right. He caught 17 bass on 17 casts while I caught 24 on 24 casts, missed one then caught another 15 in a row. I think we caught about 75 total that day. Most were about 2 to 3 with a few over 5. Great day with a young kid.

Not to be a smart a@$, but forget about the bass and go snook fishing. You are in the heart of some of the best snook fishing in Florida.

Haven't needed a break so far, but then again I've only been doing this once or twice a week for 48 years ( with the exception of a few weeks here and there for major illnesses ). I'll let you know!

SirSnookalot, I know exactly what you are talking about. Never have enjoyed winching fish out of heavy cover with a flipping stick. I normally use a medium light spinning rod with a 2500/3000 size spinning reel. Don't care for jacks but I often catch juvi tarpon up to about 40 pounds with the occassional 120 plus. On light tackle they are great. I fish out of the way places and rarely see many other boats which is why I don't normally target the poons but still manage to catch quite a few as "bycatch". Not a bad deal.