Captain Phil

I guess it does happen, but not that often to the average bass fisherman. We use a power pole when dealing with wind, current or tide when fishing salt water flats for Redfish, Bonefish and Tarpon. Trolling motors spook fish in extremely shallow water. The average bass fisherman will never use one except to moor the boat. Did you ever try to fish around those things? My best friend has a new 21' Skeeter. It came with two power poles and they have both broken down. I don't want anything on my boat that is not essential.

Over the years there have been numerous boat ramp "tells" bass fisherman have used to identify themselves as elite anglers. In the sixties, when I first started fishing bass tournaments, we wore ridiculous looking jumpsuits with sponsor patches plastered all over. Then we painted our name on the side of the boat or on the outboard motor. The bigger your outboard motor, the better bass fisherman you were. Today, it's wrapped boats, enough electronics to launch a trip to Mars and Yes two power poles at $2,000 each. When I was a guide, I carried a $5 wooden stake out pole and it worked just as well. Have you ever seen a TV bass pro use a power pole for any actual fishing purpose? Most of them are only used at the dock. If you want something because it makes you happy, I'm fine with that. You don't need $60K-$70K or more worth of stuff to catch bass.

Those huge tackle boxes were popular in the fifties and sixties. They were a sign at the ramp that you were a great bass fisherman, similar to having two power poles today. The older man that taught me how to bass fish had one built into his boat. I carried one myself until high performance bass boats came to be. Heaven forbid the weight of your tackle would cut the speed down a few MPH! ?

Landing large open ocean fish on ultralight tackle requires a team effort between the angler and the boat operator. Luck also contributes greatly to success or failure. This fish was caught in Guatemala in the nineties. The entire fight took nearly two hours and it was a strain on the fish as well as the fisherman. The area we were fishing was covered with large manta rays and sharks. We no longer attempt these records as it kills too many great fish.

In my opinion, Big Game is the best all around mono for bass fishing. It's cheap, readily available and tough as nails. I use 25 pound Big Game when flipping and 20 pound for Rattle Trap and Spinnerbait fishing. I use 8 pound Maxima for worm fishing. All my bass fishing lines are green. I have been experimenting with Seaguar fluorocarbon lately. So far, I haven't seen any difference in productivity. If I use braid, it's Power Pro green.

Here is a photo of a 100 pound plus Pacific Sailfish I caught years go on 8 pound Ande mono with an Ambassador 6500C reel. I released this fish even though it was a potential world record. So much for catching big fish on light line... If this sailfish was in pads, there is no way I would have had any chance of landing it. For clear open water bass fishing, I would use 8 pound mono or fluorocarbon. For heavy cover frog or top water fishing, I would use braid. I'm old school, so I hate braid. That said, there are times when it's the only way to go.

There is no way to figure out what lure a bass wants at any particular time other than to try it. I have seen anglers slaughter bass on a particular lure right alongside an angler who can't get a bite. Often it's not the lure, it's something one angler is doing that the other doesn't. A good example of this is Rattle Trap fishing. Some days the fish want a slow steady retrieve and some days they want a jerky retrieve. Worm fishing is similar. Same bait, different result. Instead of switching baits or looking for the perfect color, try changing the way you fish it.

By all means call the guide before you book your trip. Many Florida bass guides only fish with live wild shiners. If that works for you, he will have the right tackle for the fishing he is going to do. If you only want to fish artificials, he needs to know in advance. Shiner fishing is preferred by guides as it requires little skill on the anglers part and you are almost guaranteed to catch fish.

Florida has been hit by a major hurricane every few years since history has been recorded. In 1926 a major hurricane devastated Miami kicking off the great depression two years before the stock market crash. The Okeechobee hurricane in 1928 was one of the deadliest hurricanes Florida has ever seen. Hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, fires and earthquakes have been happening for tens of thousands of years, but no one who witnessed them is alive to tell about it. One day the Yellow Stone Caldera will blow half the country into the atmosphere. I'm fairly sure blame will be assigned shortly thereafter.

My wife and I have lived in Florida all our lives. We have ridden out many hurricanes. Florida has been hit by large hurricanes long before anyone ever heard of Global Warming. Nearly 1000 people a day are moving to Florida, many on the coasts. Sooner or later Florida is going to see a hurricane disaster like no one has ever witnessed. We live in the geographical center of the State over 100 miles from the Atlantic and over 60 miles from the Gulf. Our home is 66 feet above sea level. When the big one hits, we may have ocean front property! ?

We lived in South Florida during hurricane Andrew. My boat was moored in a canal in North Miami 40 miles north of where the hurricane hit. A few days after the storm, we took the boat down to the bay to look at the damage from the water. Eight mile wide by sixty mile long Biscayne Bay was littered with sunken boats. Whole islands of mangroves that had been there for 100 years where wiped clean. Boats covered the streets along the waterway. $500 million in boat losses.

Oh boy... Some years ago I was fishing with a good friend in Canada. It was early September and we were 40 miles down Lac Seul in Northern Ontario. The wind was blowing pretty hard, so we decided to stop and look for arrowheads. We rested the boat on a large rock while we walked around the shoreline. It was about 40 degrees and the water was very cold. I turned around and saw that the boat had become dislodged and was drifting away. I didn't know what to do. All I could think of was how far away we were and how long we might be stuck there. My friend was an experienced woodsman. He was about 5' 10" tall and weighed about 250. To my surprise he immediately tore off all his clothes and dove in the water. He caught up to the boat and brought it back. Picture this. He is standing on this rock totally naked and wet in 40 degree weather. I was astonished and ask him what he was doing. He told me if he had dove in with his clothes on he would have frozen to death as his clothes would never dry out. We got back safe and sound, but I will never forget that experience.

I have friends who hated retirement. They loved their work and when it was over they told me they lost their feeling of self worth. Then there is the problem of married couples being at each other's throats when they are both home full time. Funny as it sounds, some retired couples get divorced after 30 or more years of happy marriage. All I can say is find something that's worthwhile and satisfying to do in retirement. If you sit around and do nothing, you will rust.

Many people find retirement is not what they expected. Their whole life has been devoted to working, so when they retire they no longer have a purpose. It's not a money thing, your work is part of who you are. I went through this twenty years ago when I sold a company I formed in my twenties. My wife got into Real Estate selling lakefront homes. I enjoyed watching her prosper and helped her when the subject got around to fishing. I'll be 75 next month and am comfortable with retirement. I fish when I want. My wife hires a handyman to fix the house and don't mow my own lawn. There comes a time when you need to hang it up. I couldn't do it in my fifties, but I sure can now.

Here in Central Florida, winter cold fronts start with the wind blowing strong out of the southeast, eventually swinging more west. After the front passes, the temperature drops, the sky clears and the wind blows from the north. If the water is warm the day before the front starts, fishing can be good. The craziest fishing I have ever seen was a Friday in the Kissimmee river with the wind blowing 20-30 out of the west. It seemed ever bunch of pads had a 5-8 pound bass parked in it ready to bite my bait. I was prefishing for a tournament and thought I found the mother load. As always happens, the first day of the tournament was cold, blue sky, windy and tough fishing. The first day of a cold front can be good. When the wind calms down, bass seem to disappear. You can always find some bass, the question is how hard do you have to work to catch them?

ZDC610MHA It's extremely light and sensitive. Perfect for soft plastics.

Great review. For years my favorite casting reel was the Shimano Chronarch Bantam 100. I've had a dozen of them, most are still in action. Recently, I decided to buy a new Chronarch MGL. I bought mine from Tackle Warehouse coupled with a Zodias rod. If you are an older guy like me, the first thing you will notice is how small and light this reel is in your hand. It does take a little getting used to. This reel is incredibly smooth and solid. Hard to believe, but it's actually smoother than my old Bantams. Once dialed in, it's almost impossible to backlash. If you are new to casting reels, you may want to go with one of the DC computer driven models. The MGL does not make any weird noises on the cast. My reel is spooled with 14 pound fluorocarbon line. I use it for throwing weightless Zoom flukes and it throws them with ease. This rod and reel combo is perfect for light lures. I will be buying more as I retire my old Bantams.

Of all the modern innovations in bass fishing, hooks have to be the greatest improvement. Most young bass fishermen and gals don't know how truly bad our hooks were back in the day. Hook setting was an athletic endeavor and even then the fish often weren't well hooked. We would stretch out as far as possible and jerk the rod in a wide arch. I actually fell out of the boat twice in the same morning setting a hook in Okeechobee. Later, magazine authors wrote pages of copy about "quick flick of the wrist" hook sets and skin hooking baits. Fish hooks are one thing that's better today than in the so-called olden days. ?

When others are out of control, it's best to stay under control. It sounds like this fellow is under a lot of pressure. Stay calm, sit down and tell him you understand this may be the case. Don't be confrontational. If you can't work this out, it may be time to move on.

The dealer should have informed you of this when you made the purchase. I have bought at least a dozen or more bass boats in my life. In the sixties, all you got was the hull. Today there are so many options I can see how they don't fully rig them at the factory. The salesman that sold this boat to you didn't do his/her job. My bet is they don't fish or they would have known you didn't specify batteries. This salesman was probably selling auto maintenance contracts last month.

Flipping is different than open water fishing. The line is heavier with only a few feet between the lure and the end of the rod. The fish often wraps itself around heavy cover making it often difficult to get a straight pull on the fish. This makes getting a good hook set critical. We have experimented with every kind of hook they make, from jigs to offset worm hooks. From my experience, the best flipping hooks are short shank Aberdeen style hooks. I have used the Denny Brauer flipping hook with great success. My current favorite is the Owner Straight Worm Wide Gap 5103-131 in 3/0 and 4/0. These hooks are so sharp the hook will set from the weight of the fish alone. When you detect or suspect a strike when flipping, don't get into the habit of setting the hook on slack line or while still holding the line in your hand. Reel up the slack and set the hook solidly.

I was a Motor Guide fisherman for 40 years. As they became more complicated, they started to break down. I finally got tired of all the issues and switched to Minn Kota. There is nothing not to like about Minn Kota trolling motors. My Terrova 24 volt worked great and never failed me. I loved the spot lock feature. Minn Kota trolling motors cut through tough hydrilla like butter, something my Motor Guides never did.

The best Tarpon fishing I have seen is on the outside of Government Cut in Miami slow trolling a live mullet after dark. You can catch them in the summer in the 10,000 islands on half a fresh lady fish or mullet fished on the bottom. Tarpon are tough fish. I suggest going to the gym to tone up a bit before you take one on.

52M-11 Mirrolure

For a number of years we bought Russ Bringer's Gambler Craws in X-mas color (black grape with red & green flakes) by the 1,000 bag. It took an hour or more to glue glass rattles in each craw. Those things were big fish killers. We guarded that secret like the combination to Ft. Knox. I think I still have a box full. :>)