Pond Hopper

Well my current girlfriend knows that is one of the few ways she will get an opportunity to see me is to go fishing with me on weekends(out of town). That and she actually enjoys it, doesnt complain, drinks beer with us guys, and isnt afraid to touch a fish or get muddy. Now if she could just make more money I would be set.

Tell her only when she takes her clothes off. Thatll give you some peace and quiet.

Also a mortgage specialist/loan officer. Its different every day and today just turns out to be one of those days where nothing goes the way its suppose to.

Hugo boss, Aqua Di Gio by Armani, or Burberry. I rotate depending on the time of year and what I have.

Someone ought to wear a St. Louis Cardinals hat down there. I hear that they really love the Cards down around Houston.

Oh, how could I forget my most important lesson, never put your best friend and girlfriend in your 10 foot basshunter on a very windy day. They end up losing oars, getting stuck in the shallows and in the end oyu get muddy trying to pull them out. Next time I continue to fish and say the hell with them after I take a few pictures. Corey

This was the year I learned baitcasters better and actually took the time to fish slow. This included t-rigged plastics and also a jig. I havent gotten the jig down but if I fish with Darrin long enough I will. Although I prefer power fishing its not always the best bet for catching fish.

Wow what a fish especially for October in New England. Might have to put off the hunting until I can squeeze in one more fishing trip. Beatiful coloration to the fish too. Corey

Russ this is a little off topic but oh well, A couple weeks ago I had went to the CAST site and put in that I would like to volunteer with my contact info and all of that nonsense, and I have yet to hear from someone. I just thought it would be something fun to do and also keep some of my free time occupied. Do you know anyone that I could contact personally in regards to volunteering or is my best bet just going thru the website again. Thanks in advance. Corey

Nope, Still trying to find that go to partner. Half of my friends cant decide if they want to go fishing for a weekend (3 hours away) or stay at home and go to the bars. Its an easy choice for me and Im still trying to find someone dependable to go fishing with that I can trust now that I have a small boat for the ponds. Until then itll be whoever I can talk into going fishing until I find that person who has the same drive I do. Corey

Here is my PB, came from a 2 or 3 acre Iowa farm pond in the middle of July. This is the best picture I could find even though it isnt me in it. She went 23.5 inches and 7 lb 14 oz.

The mass makes me think 3.5 years old but everything else says older. It looks like he has a palmation on the left beam and it looks like a nice palm. The length and what appears to be good width make me think that is a 4.5 or so year old. And if you saw him last year and he was big then too then Id say you are close. I have never seen kickers with that much length, droptines yes but never kickers. Either way hopefully you get him because that is a real unique rack. Corey

Also have a bass hunter and it is a pretty stable boat. I havent even come close to tipping it or falling out. I think one like that with the decks would be nice because it appears to have a spot to put the trolling motor but there is no storage on the sides for rods, etc. Nice little boats to haul around for small bodies of water.

Couldnt agree more with RW. I fish 99.9% ponds, and I use to fish 4 inch twister tails and mepps exclusively. Then I started "fishing" with things such as 10 inch worms, 1/2 oz spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, husky jerks, etc. Granted I caught some big fish on small baits but my numbers of big fish 4lbs + have gone up exponentially. I also never fish at night so I dont know how it produces but most of my Hawgz have come in the middle of the day. AS far as fishing the ponds just fish it thoroughly and try some different techniques, the fish are there somewhere just look for something different that could attract the fish or differentiates itself from other areas of the pond. Corey

That is a fast growth rate but I somewhat disagree with the other one. I also fish in Iowa mostly and it seems 3 yr old fish normal are about 13-15 inches. The only reason I believe this is because this is the size I catch. I know many of the ponds I fish are stocked by others throwing in big fish, but its easy to tell a year class when you catch a bunch of them. Take care of that pond too because they are a blast to fish. Corey

I think its a matter of they dont want ot be challenged by me. Haha yeah right. Im trying it out for the first time this month and hoping to learn a new way of fishing. Corey

I caught some line once that had a bobber, hook, and fish on it. I also caught a trailer tire once that fought like a turtle, I e ven had my buddy run to the truck to get a hatchet. No head to cut off though on a tire. Also had a catfish once pull a rod in on a private lake, the rod popped up in the middle of the lake, had to take a tube and swim out there then pull the guy in on the tube as he fought the fish. One of the funniest things Ive seen. Corey

Mine is a 10 footer and fits in my truck fine, I think the width is around 46 inches or something and it fits SNUG in my 00 Ranger with the stepside bed, so my bed is narrower than a normal bed. I think it would fit otherwise strap it on top. Corey Here are the pics from when I bought it before I accessorized. http://hawgz.com/e107_plugins/forum/forum_viewtopic.php?8592

Ive got the 2 man boat version, and I love them. They are stable enough to stand up and take a leak out of, carefully. I have a trolling motor on mine and it allows me to cruise around ponds without paddling and making much noise. I do not normally stand in them but they are stable as far as fighting a fish, much more so than a canoe. I also have space in mine and have set it up with things like rod holders, an anchor, and other miscellaeous items. I will try to take pics tonight and post them to give you an idea. Corey

To bad its not on its way to Iowa, I know a couple guys that could load it up with Mojo this weekend. Corey

I am kind of intrigued by this solar panel idea. Can you give me a little more info on how much room it takes up as I just bought a little 10 foot plastic bass buggy and normally fish all day. Anything I can do at a reasonable price to have juice longer is in the budget. Thanks in advance. Corey

Do not think a pond is too small to hold big bass. One of the dozens of farm ponds I fish is maybe 1/4 acre, and Id guess 12 feet deep (Hawghunter can attest to it). 2 of my bigger bass this year, right around 5 lbs, have come out of there. Granted there are limited numbers in this pond but I pull a couple fish out a year, and I know they spawn because Ive witnessed it. This is in Iowa too so you may be in a better growing area for bass. Just switch up your techniques and you should be able to catch fish. Corey

HawgHunter is the only one from this forum. Other than that a high school buddy of mine, and my girlfriends sister got to go bass fishing with me and caught her PB of 4 lb 2 oz. Always looking to hook up with people in southern Iowa or here around the Quad Cities area. Corey

I have done all of my boat fishing out a little 10 foot bass hunter boat. First I used my buddies then I just bought one a week ago. I am mainly a power/speed fisherman with spinnerbaits, jerkbaits, or buzzbaits being my confidence baits. I have gotten into soft T- Rigged plastics but I always control the boat as my girlfriend gets to do nothing but catch fish. The biggest thing is to make sure you are positioned well enough well you make the cast because you will drift and move but I try to make it where the boat will be in an acceptable position when I get my lure to the boat. My girlfriend doesnt have to worry about anything but when Im fishing plastics the longer retrieval gives the boat more time to get "out of position". I also agree with KU that going into or with the wind is the best way to position yourself before casting. When fishing soft plastics I often adjust the trolling motor mid-retrieval. Here is the setup I deal with and its great for small bodies of water(less than 10 acres) which is predominantly the size of water I fish. http://hawgz.com/e107_plugins/forum/forum_viewtopic.php?8592 Corey

Here is an alternative to frying: oil the bottom of a baking dish, slice potatoes to cover the bottom of the dish. Then half cook bacon in a frying pan, remove bacon. Then fry pepper, onion, and garlic til it is nearly done in the frying pan. Then take half the veggies, put them on the potatoes. Then place a layer of filets(bass, crappie, bluegill). Then place the bacon pieces over the filets, and cover with the remaining vegetables. Then cook at 350 for about 35 minutes. It is a delicious flavorful dish that is a healthier alternative to frying, which I still love to do.