Kayak Koz

I was thinking “Groundhog Day”.

All state parks and waterways are now closed in SC. The Governor just shut down all non essential businesses (I hope my son likes the haircut I’m going to give him). We’re away from home now taking care of my parents. They live in a private community with hundreds of lagoons and for now we can still fish those, but it would not surprise me if they shut that down soon.

Parry Sound, Ontario! Fun fact: Did you know that his MA license plate is simply the number 4? At least that’s what it used to be. I used to see him in Palmetto Dunes on Hilton Head Island way back when. As for games, I miss baseball. I gave up coaching a few years ago, but still enjoy working out with my son. But now all of the local fields are closed. The local baseball academy where my son works out had been open, but we stopped going there once the virus warnings went out. Today the Governor of S.C. ordered non essential businesses closed so that won’t be an option any more. All state parks are closed as well.

Great way to spend the day! When my son was 12 he couldn’t get in enough fishing. But now at 14 when I tell him we’re going fishing you would think I grounded him for a week.

I am at my dad’s in Sun City Hilton Head now. There have been 2 gator attacks on humans here in the past two years. I had one come out of the water and chase me and the fish on my line a few years ago. We’ve had some other eventful encounters over the years as well including being stalked. I don’t know how it is where you live, but it’s tough to get a gator declared a nuisance and removed. Being aggressive isn’t enough. That being said, first rule of thumb is to keep scanning the water while fishing. Somewhere in these forums I previously posted a guide on bank fishing with gators.

My son and I are back in Bluffton SC this weekend to spend time with family. Looks like we might have to stay a while because Dad is back in the hospital (not the virus) and my stepmother needs help. Anyway, the fishing was slow the first few days and I caught some one pounders and a catfish. I saw male bass guarding beds in a few lagoons and no females around. That was a bummer. But tonight the weather was warm with bluebird skies but I needed to get out. I hit a few lagoons that I rarely fish and decided this was a top water night. I landed a decent mama with eggs that weighed in just under 5 pounds and she put up a good fight. That got the attention of a mid sized gator so I moved to some other lagoons. In a few hours I landed another three between 2 and 3 pounds on a Pop-R and buzz baits. I think the bass were out of practice because I had a ton of short strikes. Anyway, a few days ago I was fishing a favorite spot and a couple of old timers showed up to fish there as well. All of a sudden one of the guys stumbles backwards up the bank and falls on his but, gets up and scrambled up the hill. He said there was a gator hiding parallel to the bank. That does happen especially when the bank is raised. I could not see the gator and went back to fishing a chatterbait. As I’m reeling in the gator surfaces and crosses the path of my 30 pound braided line. It was a big gator, about 11 feet long and fairly stout. As he crosses my line I seem to snag on him. I yanked the line and the gator spun towards me about 30 feet out. Uh oh. I give it another pull and that ticks him off and I could feel how powerful he was and immediately pushed the button on my baitcaster to open the spool in case he decides to take off. But instead he turns towards me and closes in by another 5 feet. With the spook open I back up the bank to grab my knife (dummy me - it’s usually in my pocket). But before I cut it I try reeling in again and luckily retrieve my bait. I guess he just got tangled and not hooked. The dumb gator just sat there staring at me. I figured I had ticked him off enough and packed up and fished somewhere else. It’s gator mating season so the males are super aggressive. He chased me off again yesterday but today he was nowhere to be found. I have learned to fish with them around, but it’s not worth trying to fish near them durimating season. Anyway, it was a decent day on the banks today. Still hoping for a PB this time of year.

Cool. I’ve still never done that. On a side note, those are really skinny fish.

My son and I came down to Bluffton this weekend to see family and while here my dad now has to back in the hospital (not Coronavirus). My stepmother is not doing well so it looks like we’re going to have to stay here a while. I do get to fish some, though. But I’ve seen male bass guarding beds and the fishing has been poor. At least I can get out. I also have a new, really good gator story that I will get to later this weekend.

1) The eco system of ponds varies greatly so your best bet is to fish everywhere starting with end of winter baits like jerk baits and beetle spins. 2) If you’re looking for toilet paper be at Wal Mart when they open the doors. in the morning.

It was a nice day outside today and I was tired of self quarantining at home so my son and I decided to try fishing at Lake Thicketty in Gaffney, SC. As soon as we got there we noticed dozens and dozens of dead fish out in the water and along the banks. From what we saw, all of them were catfish. The lake is managed by SC DNR and I tweeted them some photos but as of yet have not received a response. We only fished there for about 45 minutes because the banks were overcrowded. I could not believe how crowded it was for a Wednesday afternoon, but I guess with the virus going around everyone else had the same idea. Not a single bite for us. We did see one guy catch a small bream that he tossed in a bucket to take home. I would not have kept one that small, but I got the feeling he and his wife fish often to put food on their table. I think that Thicketty would be OK if you had a kayak, but there aren't any decent looking bass spots from the bank. But I will be back at my old stomping grounds in teh SC Lowcountry this weekend and it's about this time of year the bass start gorging before the spawn. I can;t wait.

South Carolina ordered all State Parks closed on Wednesdays and Thursdays but I expect we'll see that expand in the next few weeks. I'm headed to the SC Lowcountry this weekend to take care of my parents for a few days and hopefully I can get in some bank fishing in the residential lagoons while I'm there. It's about this time of year that the pre-spawn fishing gets really, really good there.

South Carolina DNR posted this on Twitter today:

Well, SC just closed all State Parks on Wednesdays and Thursdays. It probably won't be long before they are shut down completely. Our town also just shut down all local parks. My fishing and hiking just took a hit.

I'm not. I'm out of a job and have a son with a lot of medical issues and medical bills. Unfortunately, due to his issues he cannot be left unattended and without school in session that complicates matters. I'm in between a rock and a hard place until this thing blows over. Fishing used to be my outlet, but it hasn't been as fun lately. Baseball is a no go with fields closed, plus I'm getting a bit long in the tooth. My son throws 80 mph now and I just can't catch him anymore. I'm looking for a new diversion to get through the week.

This is starting to get old real fast. We've sheltered in place for about eight days now ever since SC shut down schools. I had to make a choice between work and family, and as a full time single dad there was no other option for me than to take care of my son. The other day we went to some local baseball fields but they are all locked up because of the virus. We've hit a few state parks and done some hiking and fishing but so far the fishing here has been absolutely lousy. I've caught just one bass up here and it's not just me. Nobody is catching anything. To make matters worse it's cool and rainy here for the next few days. It is supposed to warm up later this week and we're going to try fishing some new, smaller lakes that have good bank access. The water is still too cold for my tastes to kayak and I'd bet most of the kayak rentals are shut down anyway. We're stocked with food for a few weeks which is a good thing. We went on a quest for toilet paper the other day (we didn't find any) and none of the stores had beef, chicken, rice, frozen vegetables, or even frozen pizza. It was ridiculous how empty all of the stores were. To make matters worse I've developed a cough and slight chest congestion but thankfully no fever. Thankfully, my son has no symptoms of anything. The doctor said to stay isolated. We've been doing that but all it takes is one trip to the store and you can pick something up. FWIW, I don't think I have the COVID-19 virus. It could just be the tree pollen that's starting to aggravate me. But I'll keep an eye on it. I'm also sick and tired of the politics of this entire situation. Politicians need to just shut up and do teh right thing and stop jockeying for position for the upcoming elections. Anyway, this is no fun but at least I can get outdoors to some state parks when the weather is good. I have no idea how city dwellers are going to cope after 4 or 5 weeks of being cooped up. How is everyone else here handling self isolation?

A few years ago I had a male bass come off the bed and grab my Whopper Plopper 130 sideways (between the trebles), carry it off a few feet and then let go of it. Fascinating to watch and amazing he didn't get stuck in the side by a treble hook.

Did you every try Grand Prix Legends by Papyrus? That was a whole other level of simulated racing physics. A big introduction to throttle steering for the uninitiated.

Probably the same type of person that is hoarding all of the toilet paper now. Maybe for a quick, cheap fix try that Flex Tape or Flex Seal stuff they show on TV. You might even put a thin fiberglass or aluminum piece over the holes and then seal them on both sides with Flex Seal. The stuff may in fact be junk, but for under $20 it might be worth a shot.

I would never use a table saw with a damaged blade. If you're not careful those are death machines. I grew up using hand tools and power tools and I tinker and build furniture pieces now and then. But the one tool that really keeps me on my toes is my table saw. I don't get cute or take any shortcuts with it and it can still scare the crap out of me on occasion.

That's one heck of a rig. We didn't have stuff like that in the NROS days. The ECCI was about as high end as you could get. Multiple monitors? Forget it. We were running on VGA displays with 486 boxes.

With NASCAR shut down FOX Sports is set to broadcast a virtual iRacing event this weekend featuring NASCAR drivers and team personnel. https://www.foxnews.com/auto/fox-sports-broadcast-virtual-nascar-homestead-miami This brought back some memories. A LONG time ago (1994 to be exact) a small software publishing company called Papyrus came out with a PC game called NASCAR Racing. Actually, it was more of a game - it was a racing simulation. Considering the computer and graphics horsepower back then the game was a marvel in how it handled race car setups, the physics of the car on a race track, and how cars handled in close quarters on the track. But what made this game unique is that you could dial in to (yes, dial) into a group of servers and race against other real, live humans! I know, this doesn't seem like a big deal now. But back then we used dial up connections with 2400 baud modems and didn't have fancy high speed, internet technology. What's more, dialing in to these racing servers was a long distance phone call and back in those days you paid extra for long distance. I raced in weekly online leagues and did some pick up races so it was not uncommon for me to have a $300 phone bill each month! Ah, to be young and single with disposable income again! Along with the long distance bills some of us invested in equipment. I invested in an ECCI wheel and pedal unit for my PC that cost about $1,000. You can see some of their latest products and prices here: http://ecci6000.com/6000_combo_01.htm Within a few years actual NASCAR drivers also started racing with us. I remember holding off Dale Earnhardt Jr. one night at Myrtle Beach Speedway as he slammed into the back of my car on every turn trying to wreck me for the win. Back then his sponsor was Budweiser, and I can only imagine he was sampling his sponsor's product during that evening of racing. Eventually NASCAR itself got involved and for two seasons we had an officially sanctioned NASCAR Racing Online Series. Again, this was well before the e-sports revolution. Thousands of drivers participated and one season I ended up in the top 10 in points. I haven't done virtual racing in decades, but the iRacing platform looks great. In fact, it was founded by Dave Kaemmer, the guy who developed the original NASCAR game with Papyrus. Anyway, this brought back some memories of some good times racing online. I got hooked on racing back then and eventually went on to try some real racing in Legends and Sportsman cars for a few seasons, but my job took me away to a destination without any local tracks. Maybe someday when I retire I'll give iRacing a try.

Ah, lefties! That reminds me of a time I was coaching 13U competitive travel baseball and the parent of a left kid could not understand why his son was not playing a middle infield position or third base. I had to explain that even though his kid was a decent player, if he wanted a future in baseball it was on the mound, at first base, or in the outfield. Having him play middle infield was fine for rec ball, but not for a competitive program whose goal is to develop players for the next level.

If it was a Z-Man Jackhammer I would have to think about it ?. But it was just a Chatterbait Elite and I had a backup of that same bait in my bag.

Yes, it's no fun when that happens but it's the circle of life. A gator, bird, or turtle will be happy for the meal.

As mentioned above, the Beetle Spin is a good choice during the transition from winter to spring. As far as bass activity, with their slower metabolism their feeding windows are shorter but when it's time to eat they will still chase a bait. I've also done well with white spinnerbaits with white paddletails during that transition period. From the bank I have also found that I'm still catching fish near shore. Without the use of electronics it's not always easy to tell where the dropoffs or channels are that the base use as their highways to get to feeding areas so I tend to cover a lot of ground. That may entail moving back and forth around the basin or hopping from lagoon to lagoon. Lastly, I'm looking for anywhere I see even small minnows gathering. That's usually around even the smallest bits of vegetation along the shore and you can be sure that eventually a bass will come cruising there looking for a snack.