N Florida Mike

Caught a couple fish on one of my dads old rods last saturday. I fish one of his reels often too. 80s vintage. Made me think that I was usually with him on the trips when he used them. I have his tacklebox too , and its got some old cool stuff in it.

That reminded me of the guy who came in his front door with a wad of rod and reels , tackle boxes etc and asked his wife " How was your summer,? How are the kids ? " lol

Did some wieghtlifting in my 20's but got in good shape on the farm , and after that doing a strenous physical job for 20 + years and doing a lot of sports. Now? not so much. For me,its more like stomach building. Just cannot get rid of it. But congrats to you.It takes a lot of self discipline to do that.

Look on the U.F site. They'll have some good stuff.

There are tons of ponds in the jax. area. And the River and its tributaries. There are some good natural lakes starting within a one hour drive. I have fished soft plastics primarily here and done pretty good . P.M me when you get here and I'll be glad to help with specifics. And Amen to the salt water fishing thats available.

Yeah ,I love Orange but havent fished it in years. I used to fish all the lakes around there. Favorite was probably Sante- fe. Also did well in Lakes Rowell and Sampson near Starke. Fished Newnans but didnt care for it, with that murky green water. And I love the Ocala forest ponds/ lakes . Got me some good spots out there. As far as surf fishing,It should get real good when the water clears up.Oct / nov. are my 2 favorite months to go. I went near st aug. this morning and had a catfish fest. Water was Too dirty.

Catt, You having gator tonite??

My small lake is full of bass but there are times you would think it isnt. This year the fishing wasnt as good overall for numbers .I began to think that I was fishing it too much ,and using the same baits too much. So I didnt go quite as often ,and I began trying new baits they hadnt seen. Most of all I quit using my top 2 confidence baits. I began catching a good number of fish with a spinner bait ,and went back to my 70s and 80s style, which was worms,worms and more worms. Fishing my lake is feeling fresh again,and I am learning new ways to catch em. If I was you,I would slow down the frequency I fished that pond. I have a theory that is a lot like hunting. If you go to the same area too much , the game becomes suspicious. I have seen what I think is the same thing with fish. If it was me ,I would limit the trips to the pond ,fish with new baits, or ones not used much , and I would find out the main forage in there and use live ones for bait or at least something that matches the hatch.

Got out twice in the last 2 weeks, including last monday pm..Total of 20 fish caught,18 on some variety of plastic worm.Caught the most on a 4 inch lucky strike tequila worm ,including the pictured fish. Theyre biting better than the summer, but not as good as true fall. They seem to be hungry for nothing but worms. I did get a couple today on the small zoom fluke . Had one fish break off when I had a backlash and was trying to pick it out. Tried to hand line the fish in but he broke it.

Got plenty of bears in Fla. The Fwc opened limited hunting back up last year. First time they were hunted since 1994. A semi ran over one about 20 miles from us that was over 600 pounds. We always have a few come into the Jax. area every summer. Its usually males looking for mates. The suburbanites freak out. I think Id rather meet a bear in the woods than a wild hog,although a bear can usually kill a hog.

Catt, The Gators around Gainesville are the most dangerous ,esp . on saturdays?

Thanks, everyone. I tried it for awhile this evening but no takers.

So do you fish it all day or just low light conditions? I havent fished topwater much and almost all the fish Ive caught with them is at dawn for an hour or so , an hour or so at dusk ,or at night.

Had a customer give me a whopper plopper last week. It was not in the package so I dont know what size it is. Its 3-4 inches long. This one is dark brown on top with stripes and a white bottom. So I went out back last evening to try it for the first time. We had a big rain all weekend so it produced some flow in the lake towards the little spillway which is right at my property. So made a long cast and hadnt reeled it 4 feet and BOOM !!! A big blow up. Reeled it in- a nice pound and a half fish. I thought , wow Im onto something!. That was the only blow up, although I tried for a half hour or so. So my questions. • What are the best ways to fish this ? I caught the fish just reeling it in enough to get the prop going. I had let it sit after the cast until the ripples were gone. • The bait didnt run straight. It didnt spin all the way over but came close. Is their a way to reduce this or is it normal. I tied the bait straight to the line with no swivel. Thanks.

In Florida, you can use a live bluegill but only if you catch it on hook and line ( no castnetting ). I used to use a 3/0 baitholder or wide gap hook and certainly caught a lot but the big hook greatly reduces the live action of the bream.I started using a much smaller bait holder hook. You get a lot more interest from the bass,but the hook up % goes down some. Personally, I like the increased action with the smaller hook ( I think its a # 4 ). I always use bronze,and I count to 10 before setting the hook . I have caught a 4 pound bass on a tiny hook that I was catching bait with more than once. I may or may not use a cork depending on where Im fishing. I get more interest from bass if I dont use a cork. People say they have to use a cork to know when a fish hits. Trust me, when a bass takes a bream , even without a cork ,youll know it!!

Welcome!

Ha. I took 2nd once with a 1.12. The guy that won got a 3 pounder. Only time I ever fished that lake!

Got my biggest this summer on the jr. booyah ( 7.3 ) Only caught 3-4 fish on it though. Just didnt seem to want it much this summer.

Had a big day yesterday and fair day today right as the pay period ended.Maybe this is just another patience building exercise from above...

I was planning to go this week end but theres a nor' easter coming in so it will shut down the fishing. There arent many bait stores open any more in our area and the ones that are mostly cater to inshore and offshore fishermen. There is a good surf fishing forum Im on. Look up Florida surf casters. I usually fish the S.Ponte vedra or Vilano beach area. But I occasionally go up to Amelia Island or down as far as Matanzas inlet.Stay in touch, maybe we can go sometime. As far as spots, they are numerous and I dont mind sharing them. Anywhere you can cast a line in the surf has potential.Some spots where Ive done esp. well are porpoise pt On the N. side of St aug. inlet , Matanzas inlet , and rhe " Gate station " , which is now an Exxon station near Guana preserve at S ponte vedra. Guana preserve can be great at times, its a dam over Guana river ( inshore of the beach ) It can offer incredible action during Nor eastrers, but the crowds there can be a nuisance .Where do you live ,Gainsville ?

Almost exclusively ribbon tail worms- all sizes. Went back to fishing like I did in the 80s and it paid off.

Sounds like your real close to that hawg. Ive had hook setting slumps before. I had one recently and realized I had bought some cheap hooks. They were twice as heavy and just wouldnt penerate their mouth and hold. Went and got me some lighter Gamakatsus and its back on again.

Nice fish. One of my potential customers gave me a W.P the other day. Its kind of a brown color with stripes. I think its the smaller version. Looking forward to trying it for the first time.

Would love to fish or hunt with him. Great clip. Makes you feel like youre there.