WDE

I posted this catch FB, and have been encouraged to kill any further bowfin I catch. This was caught in a shallow pond—max depth 5 feet, maybe an acre or 2. No pressure, healthy bass population. Having no previous knowledge of bowfin, I let it go. What do do you guys say? Should I have killed it, or was letting it go the right choice?

It seems they go by many names. I figure it was a fluke catch. Much like the gar I caught on a Senko some months back.

Caught what I believe is a bowfin today at Johnson.

Interesting time today. I went exploring other parts of the pond I’ve been wading in lately, felt like I was walking in quicksand. My knee-high boots were basically pointless, as it rained last night and the pond was up considerably. I managed to stumble on a sunken branch and puncture my boot, but thankfully it didn’t pierce my skin—it bruised immediately. And I also caught what I think might be a bowfin(can anyone confirm?). He was fun to bring in, and I’m super glad I didn’t try to lip him when I got him close. Also happy that I had my grippers nearby, put him on the scale for fun—3.2lbs.

No bites to be had at the first pond I dropped in on. Spent about 1.5hours there. Went to my current hot spot and threw the wading boots on. Landed one on the first cast, then 4 more in about an hour. Largest(bottom right) was probably in 2.5-3lb range. T rigged junebug Yum Dinger...again.

Not bad first hour in the late afternoon. Waded about thigh deep until my boots took on too much cold water and my feet started to freeze. I may not even touch a crank again until Spring. The t-rig is so productive right now for me.

Best part about visiting in laws on Thanksgiving is hitting their private pond after lunch. Here’s 9 of the 11 I caught in a couple hours. All roughly the same size. Can’t count the number of missed hookups. And the two I caught today Once again, working the t-rigged Yumdinger(junebug).

War Eagle!

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving.

I’ll be going to my in-laws today, they have a small stocked pond on their property. This will be the second year in a row that I eat lunch and run out to the pond and fish it for a few hours until it’s time to drive home. My wife’s family rarely engages me in much conversation, as they can be a little too self-centered around their own lives—so I just quietly excuse myself and they never miss me. If if I could, I’d just make a plate and bring it out there with me.

On several occasions I’ve seen a bass crash on the bank on shad. I’ll throw a worm(Senko typically) right in that area and they’ll hit on the first cast. It’s almost like clockwork.

Not particularly worried about that. He shot the rumors down in a recent presser(if it means anything). All the Hog fans I know want Norvell from Memphis. But if he does want to go to Arkansas, I won’t lose much sleep. I just don’t want to go through a coaching search at the same time as all these other SEC schools.

Malzahn is likely safe.

My wife likes to buy organic peanut butter. The one she gets is about $10 a jar, which is still ridiculous. It also tastes like crap.

It’s pretty much my “home pond”. I work about 7 minutes from there, and live about 3 minutes away. So any chance I get, I’m out there. I really need to explore Bartlett and Cordova, as I’m usually at Neshoba on my off days. Any tips for ponds in either of those areas? My work is about 2 minutes from Halle, but I rarely even think of going. Just never seems to be worth the time. I’ve stopped with Grove since the middle school practices cross country out there now, so a hundred pounding feet around the banks can’t be good for the fishing.

Johnson Park—Collierville.

Black/blue! Thank you for identifying it for me.

Pretty surprising off a t rigged Yumdinger at Johnson around 5:30pm.

Fishing by the light of the soccer fields to my back after the sun had fully set. Hit the t-rigged Yumdinger like a champ. Didn’t get weight or length, but probably close to 24 inches, 5 or 6 pounds and my PB cat—I’m assuming it’s a flathead or channel, but correct me if I’m mistaken. Shoes in pic for reference, I wear a size 10.

My best friend and fishing buddy is getting a fishing trip for Christmas this year. Earlier this year we did Gaston’s White River Resort for trout and had an amazing time. This year, we’re thinking of checking out the fishing in Biloxi, MS. Has as anyone had any experience with charters in Biloxi, and how was the fishing? We’re shooting for June in hopes of landing a shark of any size, as well red Snapper and anything else we can pull in. 8 hour tour.

I had a 15 year hiatus from when I put the rods and picked them back up last year. I’ve caught more (bigger)fish in the past year than I ever have...much thanks to this forum. 16 years ago, we didn’t have the resources we do now—so unless you knew someone or just played trial and error you were on your own. The internet is a wonderful thing(at least when it comes to fishing). Anecdotal: funny thing is, is that I spent the past year ripping cranks(and having success), that I almost stopped using soft plastics—which is what I used 16 years ago. I didn’t understand the draw of the Senko, I all but abandoned the Texas rig. However, some of my biggest fish have come off a Senko and I restarted using the t-rig last week and it’s been killing it. A lot of fishing is circumstantial. You need to know what to throw and when. Water temps, air temp, wind, etc. But that’s when you Google and you’ll ultimately be brought back here, commit the advice to memory, and then you’re prepared for the next time the conditions arise. I do believe it’s helpful, but not necessary to keep two rigs(I go with 3, all relatively inexpensive). One for plastics/finesse, one for power fishing(cranks, spinners, etc.). For the mere sake of not having to constantly switch out baits. Keep pliers and scissors in your pocket or at least nearby at all times. Most importantly, fishing is fun and should always be fun—unless you take a treble to the face or something.

It’s dependent on the size of the pond, however typically 30 minutes to an hour if the bite is weak. I have a handful of ponds I hit on my day off all within 20 minutes of my house, so I do a lot of bouncing around. If I’m fishing after my morning shift days, I get off at 3pm and stick to one until dark.

Side view looks like he’s got a nice scar across his back. Assuming that’s why the dorsal is abbreviated.

Recent catches since Sunday. Top-3.8, bottom left-3.6, bottom right-2.9. All on t-rigged worms of different colors, all between 8:30am and 10:30am. Johnson Park ponds.

Caught this morning around 10:45. Hardly any bites rest of the day. 3.6lbs, short and stocky. T-rigged black/blue Yumdinger. Interesting dorsal, or lack thereof.