Pond Hopper

I wish she was 7+, she was a little light in the back. But she was 23.5 inches, my dad said 24 but I only saw 23.5 although I was shaking pretty bad. And these fish were very healthy, and still pre-spawn so they have big bellies to boot.

Got away with my dad this weekend and caught alot of fish, with the 5 biggest going 6lb 10 oz, then 3-12, 3-10, 3-9, and 3-8. The biggest fish was caught on a swampbaits swampbug which worked awesome. The fish were picking it up and running with it 90% of the time. Either way it was a great weekend and the fish are definetely full of eggs. 3 of my five best fish came o n swampbugs on a stand up jig and the other 2 on spinnerbaits. Corey

All I know is in 09 there is a good chance I will be making a trip to Varner to hire Randal. Great fish man and big congrats on all of your tourney wins and personal accomplishments. Corey

Muddy, Glad to see you finally got what you wanted. I am in the same boat as I recently got 2 Revos and love them to death. I think I may have to try out a Pflueger to see what they are like. COngrats man. And like RW said, wheres dad fishies? Corey

My fleet is composed of Revos( a S and a SX) and BPS Pro Qualifiers. If I had alot of money I would have alot of Revos.

Probably a great combo, I would of opted for a Revo SX with a St.Croix Avid, or the Revo S or SC with the Kistler MG. But thats only because I have 2 Revos and love them both...they have a monster drag.

What a great episode last night, and the drama was limited but the action . The whole Audrey thing was a little far fetched but who cares, its exciting. Although now I have to buy my girlfriend dinner because I thought Jack would end up with his sister in law and become his nephews step-father. Whew, made me think of Arkansas just saying that...jk.

Very versatile bait, I fish them on the top of weeds, t-rigged, and sometimes almost like a jerkbait. I have never used them as a trailer on a jig though.

Reelmech, I know you have put up that info before but I cant find it in a search, do you mind telling us what you use to seal the corks. Thanks again. Corey

AS for which bait to use I bought some of swampbaits hand poured worms and they look great. I havent got to use them much yet but the worms float so they stand up great on a shakey head. He has some 6 and 10 inch worms and the 10 inch look like an easy slow meal on a stnad up jig.

In my college days that would lead to me walking across the street to the bar. ;D

Good lord those are some great fish. You guys just keep pulling them out.

Waited too long, too bad its only 4, 6, and 25 lb test.

Thank you and God bless. If your ever in Iowa you are welcome to go fishing with me.

Its been a little less than stellar but it still gets the girlfriend excited so thats one less task for me. The drama is over bearing especially within the White house.

Great fish and I always have to gawk a little at your tackle, its amazing. Corey

Less than stellar gear is an understatement, if I would of had the Revo and St. Croix Premiere 6'6" MH I would of been in much better shape but I have never had a fish make those kind of runs. The hardest thing was catching it in a canoe. Thanks for the kind words. Corey

I dont know how long it was for sure when he moved the fish and I was shaking so bad I didnt even see him measure, but it was a hell of a fight and she wasnt small. King of the jungle is right, the only one(I think) that has its pickings off a huge panfish population.

Wow, sounds great and I am going to figure out a dish to cook for '08 no excuses. Russ it was my fault this year that Darrin didnt come bcause he mentioned it and just getting established in a job I couldnt take off. Next year I am game. Regardless I am glad all had a good time and cant wait to meet some people in '08, especially Muddy and RW.

Im not a musky fisher and never have been, that was the only fish in the pond. The stringer was the only way we got it on the dock because we were not equipped to catch the musky. She revived fine and swam off well after a couple minutes.

Well I went with a buddy tonight to a local 5-6 acre pond that is full, and full of big fish. I told myself I was gonna fish a jig hard and the whole time(not like me at all). So I get there and my buddy has caught 3 nice keeper size fish and we fish the shallows, and I get one fish to bite 3 times, and never catch it. Then we fish out that finger towards the deep water and bigger structure and I get 2 more bites that I miss. Frustration is setting in, but I tell myself no switching I need to learn this jig. Mind you I am fishing 1/4 oz jig with a big daddy pork trailer, on an old shimano bantam mag with an abu garcia 6'8" Light rod that must of had a broken tip shortened to about 6 foot with maybe a medium light action. I left my rods and reels at home as I didnt want them sitting in the back of the truck all day ruining my new Revos. Anyways... we are getting towards this huge white oak that fell over years ago and produces lots of nice fish, and I throw the jig to the bank, land it within a foot of the bank and small trees are all around. I give the jig one good shaking, and let it sit, give it another good shaking, and as it falls, the lines moves, my muscles tighten, and I feel the tugs!!! I reel down and set the hook like Bill Dance (light rod I have to give it a good tug). When I set the hook I saw a good flash and felt the weight, I knew it was a good fish. I then told my buddy to paddle the canoe away from the structure to the middle of the lake so I didnt get wrapped up. I had the drag cranked down and was trying to loosen it for runs, but on that old baitcaster it was tough. Between using my thumb and playing with the drag I got comfortable in the battle. After a couple minutes I got the fish near the canoe and saw its tail, forked and all. Me and my buddy both start talking about the cat I hooked(nice big 10-20 lb cats in here). I get down for a minute then figure its a hell of a fight and better than what I had caught. So I relax and am bringing it in when my buddy sees the fish....MUSKY!!!! My heart races, knowing its big and there is only one musky in this pond that he put in 3 years ago when it was 44 inches out of a local lake. Longer story made shorter we couldnt get it in the canoe in open water. We paddled to the nearest dock where I dragged it towards him and with his hands and trout net, he got her in the canoe with as much caution as possible with the given gear. After I calmed down, cracked open a 24 oz cold one, and got her measured she went 41.5 inches, 2.5 inches shorter than 3 years ago but still a great fish. I accomplished one of my goals for '07. But I was worried she wouldnt make it, but after 10 minutes of her on the stringer and running her through the water she took off back into the depths. Best fight I have ever had. I feel like I have said too much but it was just too much detail to leave out. Pictures were taken with my phone/PDa so they arent the best but you get the point. I now know what musky hunters say when they say have the right equipment for the betterment of the fish, but in this situation I would of never dreamed of hooking my first SKI!!!! Corey- Non Musky Virgin

Hawg_Hunter, KU, Dirk, Avid, etc etc etc........you dig? No love even after I mentioned riding with Hawg!!!! We should just cruise down thru Kansas and pick up KU with Darrins boat then have him share a boat with someone. Sounds like a bulletproof plan. Corey

The day prior to a trip my productivity is crap and I cant sleep. I go through the process of deciding what lures to throw where and where to fish depending on conditions, wind, etc. Its terrible until I get to the pond/lake and all of a sudden I am not tired and just starting chunking.

Looked like a hell of a good time and after seeing all of that footage I dont think it is going to be hard for Darrin (Hawghunter) to convince me to head down with him next year. Congrats to Glenn, Kelly, Riskkid, and anyone else who caught their PB on the trip. Corey

I have been fighting the temptation all day, I just recently ordered a new Revo S and Revo SX and dont know that I need another. Although its gonna be tough to resist that deal.