TOXIC

@Swamp Girl don’t conflate survival skill with evolutionary skill. Give a bass wings and I’m sure they’ll hit every tree in the forest. 😝

It’s a pretty rare instance when a repower makes sense financially but in your case having refurbed the rest of your boat and must be planning on keeping it for a long while. I don’t know if Mercury still produces the efi or if you would have to buy used. It would be an option if you can buy new but not if you are replacing an older motor with a used motor. If it were me I would either keep my current motor or repower with a 4 stroke new. You want reliability which would push me to the new 4 stroke.

I can say I’ve only half way panicked one time. For a long time I wade fished the Shenandoah river and I knew every rock ledge and backwater eddy in about a 3 mile stretch of river. There was a section that was deeper (a little over chest deep) and it could only be fished when the river was running at normal or a little lower than normal flows. As any wade fisherman knows, being “swept” is no fun and can be downright dangerous, especially in cold water months. Anyway, I was chest deep in water with 100 yards behind me to the shore and 25 feet in front of me to the bank. I am bouncing on my tippy toes in the current when I look at the bank and there is a tree with at least 30 snakes all coiled and some moving. It was mating time and remembered reading an article about how copperheads only get aggressive during mating season and they are agile swimmers. About the time that thought cleared my brain, I saw 3 or 4 of those snakes arch up like cobras and look straight at me. They then one by on slid off the branch overhanging the water into the river. I didn’t know if they were copperheads or just plain water snakes but I did know they were in the water with me. I’ll admit, I did lose it somewhat because I could not move very fast in that deep water. There was no swimming with all my gear and felt tip boots. I may have filled my waders from the inside out. 😉😱

Well, we have been driving from Virginia to St Clair every year for the last 23 years and my personal goal for a replica smallmouth is 7lbs. In all that time there’s only been 1 that size caught and it wasn’t by me. 😆

Well, you’ve touched on the main stress factor being a guide. You can’t go searching every day with clients. You better be somewhat keyed in on where the fish will be. I’ve always said fish locating is like a 1500 piece puzzle that you have to put together on the ramp before every trip. Some pieces are easy, others are harder. Easy is like “they were at X spot yesterday” harder is like “how have conditions changed today”. Always remember fish have a brain the size of a pea, we sometimes give them waaaay too much credit. They are reaction based creatures. They react to seasons, weather, current conditions and somewhat to pressure. I found that being a successful guide hinged on my being able to read the conditions and translate it into locations. Went to our wintertime lake yesterday fun fishing and the week before found them on grass edges. One week later they were gone for the most part. A little stop and reflect moment of thought told me that they probably pulled out deep. It’s that time of year and current conditions including water temp pointed me in that direction. Went out to 35 feet and dropped some blade baits, and there they were.

Quick AI search: Balance beads are an alternative to traditional weights that can continuously self-adjust to maintain tire balance, which is a pro.However, they can be less effective in small passenger vehicles, may clump in cold or wet weather, and can cause issues with TPMS sensors or get stuck in valve stems, making them a con. They are often considered a better option for large tires and off-road vehicles where weights can be knocked off.

Black blade on a buzz bait is my favorite color.

Grat day on the hot side last weekend. Heading back out tomorrow to see if the pattern holds. Found them on weed edges and caught them with nose weighted stick bait. Water temp still in the mid 60’s.

Totally depends on location. Here in Virginia we have access to the 3,000 acres of cooling lake for a nuclear power plant and the water never falls below the high 50’s. There’s something about throwing a buzz bait in a snowstorm and catching bass. We do however have to get to the lake and then store our boats. For those of us who store outside, there’s always the risk of freezing lines and pumps even if you don’t run them. I have put a light bulb in my bilge to keep it somewhat freeze free. I wasted an entire thermos of coffee pouring it in the bilge to melt the ice out of the plug so I could screw it in. I never pull my batteries and have never had one freeze.

Smallmouth season used to be restricted on St Clair until a few science based studies were done to prove it had no effect to open it up to C&R. Heck, I’m so old, I remember when it was illegal to use a dropshot on St Clair due to the hook being above the weight.

I prefer my fish fully filleted and grilled. I can tell the taste between gills, crappie, ring perch, white perch, catfish, smallmouth, largemouth, walleye, carp, pike, spoonbill and snakehead. I’ve had them all. My favorite are walleye. They have a very distinctive flavor that I personally like. Not a fish on that list I wouldn’t eat again though.

So what’s the deal with the chip in the game balls that allow ball placement calls for first downs, td’s, etc., to be done by computer?

I just got off my roof, I’ve been trying to let all the nuts fall before risking life and limb. I blew 100lbs of beech nuts, Hickory nuts and acorns out of my gutters. The rear part of my roof is 78 feet off the ground. That’s all the yard work I wanna do. 😝

My balancing routine has always been to have them balanced with sticky weights. Traditional lead weight clips will rust and and at highway speeds throw the weight into the trailer fender and damage it. In my circle, most don’t like the beads.

Here is an example of someone who is 5’5” with 2, 12 inch or 16 inch screens (I can’t remember) and his line of sight in a 20’ Ranger. No issue. If you want to make an argument for “line of sight” obstruction, all those boats both tin and glass that leave the front sit down seat in when running have huge obstructions.

Few options I have found. First a box designed specifically for terminal tackle would help. I’m cheap and found that if I use a smaller box size it seems to keep terminal tackle better in their designed spaces. I carry less but like it so much I have gorilla taped one side because it cracked with all the weight. It still holds everything I need, hooks in #1, 3.0,4.0,5.0, ball head jigs, dropshot weights, worm weights, shakeyheads and probably more that I am forgetting. That little box is very heavy but has the latches 2 in front and 1 on each side. I have heard of some gluing the dividers down if they are slipping underneath due to lid flex but if they are jumping the top, I’m at a loss. The problem is the bigger boxes are thinner plastic. Flex allows small weights and hooks to slide under and over. My small box has thicker plastic and doesn’t flex.

Let me just say that the option of rolling back the clock to 225 or even 150hp motors and 18 foot boats wouldn’t have made a difference in this accident. Being hit at 60-50-40mph would have been just as deadly. Sad but true. 😞

Lots of good products out there. I am a longtime 303 user and I am happy with the results. I only use it on the seats (not on the fiberglass) and vinyl/plastic. Seats are original 2005 year. I give the tires a good coating a couple times a year. I use it on my truck tires as well for the UV protection.

I have been dropshotting for quite a few years. My go-to baits were always 5” Yamamoto Pro Senko, Kut Tail, or California Roll (now discontinued). All Texas rigged on a #1 Gamakatsu EWG hook. When the Shad Shape Worm was introduced, I resisted. Too small, too plain, no action I thought. Then I tried it. My originals are now backups, still effective but not my first choice. Second revelation came with the Ned rig, right along with a million other fishermen. 😝

Don’t know how I missed this. Prayers for the best and quick healing.

I always put a bag of chips in my lunch. I enjoy the variety boxes by Lays Chips. I never end up eating them with my lunch and end up eating them in my truck on the way home. 😆🤣

Update, we got a light rain the other night and the cover didn’t pool and kept it bone dry. That’s a big plus. I was thinking of putting the old cover over the new one to extend the life but since it has a lifetime guaranty so if it leaks, I’ll just order a new one.

I consider myself a slow adapter meaning, I don’t need the “latest and greatest “. For me to upgrade, there has to be a clear measurable advantage. I felt that when Power Poles came out, that was a must have. I added them to my boat (gen 1). When spot lock came out, since I fish a lot of tidal moving water, I upgraded my trolling motor to a Ghost. As for electronics, I am running early models but I have down scan and side scan along with 2d and mapping. I’m not at the point where I feel I need FFS.

Here’s a kicker for ya. We have been fishing the Rappahonock river and its tidal. The twin hurricanes and the full moon have made the tide swings crazy and has really made the river turbid. We had a tough day last week. Going tomorrow and we are planning on pitching wood all day.

The Pearl got a new cover for the days she is not in the barn. It's made by Sealskin who I bought my truck cover from. Not a perfect fit but I won't ever trailer with it on. The Ghost trolling motor sits really high so there is a gap there. I can probably get it to fit better if I mess with it. It has a side cinch all the way around like the factory covers but i sm not using it. It's a good deal for $250. Lifetime warranty. Good alternative to the expensive OEM. Attachment straps are super long but I assume it’s to fit all models. I also replaced the rubber step pads on both trailer fenders. I forgot I had them. The old ones were gone. I took some Nevr-Dull to the rims and got rid of that white chalky corrosion that they get. Finished it off with a cleaner wax. We ran 1/2 of port tank out on river, I haven’t filled starboard tank since we cleaned them both out. Each tank holds 26 gallons.