Spy

There is one other secret way to get into Lake Whitehurst that is not generally known and gives access to the lower portions that I'm not sure are reachable via the city launch. Azalea Acres Neighborhood Park 5860 Townley Ave The Army Corp of Engineers uses this as there launch point and back in the day before the original closure guys backed right through the park with trailers according to the fellow I talked to who lives next to it. I'd not do that just to keep it on the down low and not disturb the local residents but carting a kayak should be no big issue. I've yet to try due to the Corp actually doing work there when I checked it out but plan to soon as the fishing has got to be more productive than Little Creek if for no other reason than lack of pressure.

No, there's a roadway between them.

One thing to note, the Little Creek Reservoir is the only body of water which has no posted hours and no gate. That's a plus when you're all the way at the opposite end of the lake at dusk and the bite is on, no need to cut and run to prevent having your vehicle locked in the lot till dawn. Another plus is that the ramp is dirt, gravel and stone which keeps the timid away, it washed out bad mid summer and then the tournament guys put a hurt on the under water portion unloading/loading so it gets super shallow about 15 foot out. It's rough as a cobb but I back down it more days than not without issue.

Another vote for the IMX Pro 844c, it's one which does everything you asked for and everything you didn't as well. Multiple rods are great if you have the deck space but when you add up the cost of putting reels on them all it gets to be a bit much. Better to buy it right the first time and get a quality reel to match so you can still be happily fishing without having to worry about upgrading.

And free shipping to boot! Looks like I have to decide on the HG or the XG now, and don't say "one of each" as I'm already wrestling with that option.

Love those MBR tapers, they keep fish pinned regardless of what lure is tied on without ever feeling under powered.

I'm running 40 lb Power Pro braid on my Chronarchs (an MGL and a CI4) both married to a pair of IMX 783c MBRs. My reasoning is that these are all purpose combos that might have any lure in the box tied on at any given time and the braid covers every application and situation that I might encounter. Is it the best choice for a crank bait? No, but if I had mono spooled and changed to a jig for a nasty laydown that mono would be a much poorer option. Floro perhaps? Great until I need some top water action, then it is once again the wrong string. Nope, the 'Swiss Army Knife' approach is what I'm most comfortable with after trying all three options and honestly the best for this particular setup in my opinion.

One just sold for about that on eBay this past week.

Oddly enough I caught a Channel Cat on a square bill last week, the only thing I've hooked on a CB this year though to be honest conditions have been brutal.

I just did a head to head comparison using Rage Blades in 3/8 and 1/2 on identical rods and reels. The depth of my prime lake is shallow and would favor the 3/8 but my combos were much better with the 1/2 for accuracy, distance and ease of cast. I added various trailers to see if the 3/8 would be equal once it had large hunks of plastic attached but no joy, the 1/2 was still better. The test equipment consisted of a matched pair of 6'6" G Loomis IMX MBRs in Medium Heavy with Shimano Chronarchs sporting 40 lb Power Pro braid. Same targets from the same distance off a Bonafide SOT Kayak. This was a revelation for me as I really thought the 3/8 would win hands down but the 1/2 was simply better. On my medium the 3/8 is still king but that's a 5'5 pistol grip and this weight is optimal for it and the presentations I make with it.

The Fogy Bubble Blade has accounted for 80% of my fish this year, it's been the only thing I can depend on to get a bite! I fish in very stained and shallow conditions and the depth factor has kept water temps hovering around 90 all summer but the Fogy in 'Disco Shad' gets bites when nothing else will.

I've pulled more fish with an old Diawa pistol grip this year than all the rest of my rods combined and only because an eye seat snapped on a GLX leaving me a loose Chronarch one day. I bought this rod on clearance in '90 because it matched my Diawa Samurai spinning rod and have been carting it about through cross country moves since though I never put a reel on it for the first time mid summer. It's awesome out of the yak, a close combat weapon that makes it a breeze putting lures they have no right being. I will say the rod has the same ChatterBait tied on at all times and that is the real hero this summer (Thanks to our sponsor Siebert Outdoors) but that aside I am actively looking for pistol grips in the Loomis quality range just because they work so efficiently out of the yak platform, not a replacement by any means, rather a compliment to the 6'6" MBRs that fit other applications so superbly.

I caught fish last week on the same bait with and without a trailer (different style and color trailers as well) over a four day span but the largest was with a small split tail trailer.

I don't know the OP's location but that same lure in an assortment of colors is listed on eBay from a seller out of Michigan! As for my own crazy lure, I bought a 'Power Pak' 30 years ago, the one with the pull string wind up mechanism that self wound at he end of the cast and flapped the tail. Still have it to though now I believe it's a collectable.

I feel you on the shore casting length, ponds with open banks are one thing but a little cover or even brush growing at the waterline really limits casting angles. On the up side a kayak is a natural progression from the bank and the same length works perfectly from them so I would consider this as a sound long term investment. That being said it comes down to getting the most bang for your buck with the action as both shore and yak effectively limit the amount of gear you can have at your disposal. Technic specific rods are great but sometimes limit versatility. If I could only pick one action it would be an MBR action simply because it works for everything, every time and everywhere. Plastics and jigs, cranks, spinners, topwater, all without feeling any real compromise in terms of effectiveness. Granted, there's a jump between different models in terms sensitivity but that's true across all manufacturers lineups but that action remains consistent and for me that's everything. If it were me I'd hold out for a sale or wait for Black Friday and jump up to and IMX Pro, a rod considered to be as sensitive as the previous generation of GLX and nobody can argue the touch on those. At 25% off on sale it's in your range and then you have two rods that offer the same feel which really is a comfort and lends a lot of confidence in presentations, an intangible that keeps lines tighter than any new lure can do.

Which series do you currently have, GL2 or 3, E6, IMX, GLX or NRX?

I pulled up the info on my capacities so I know how much mono backing to put on each in order to fill three different reels at 100 yds each from one 300 yd spool.

Took advantage of the sale items and free shipping from Siebert Outdoors and bought things I wanted to buy anyways so I think that's putting one over on the monkey, Then again he got his revenge by watching me try to choose among the many tasty skirt combos so we'll call it a wash and move on.

That's sound reasoning, remember when diesel was so high and companies added a fuel charge for delivery?

I just bought a Mach Crush for my frog stick and they've removed the numbers altogether, just a Min-Max designation. I think it's an overall issue with the paint they use as my Tournament Pro has the granite grey paint worn off the top where my thumbs rubs and rests, no such issue on any of my Shimanos. My guess is they are not using a clear coat for protection. On another note I was upset when the orange color on the Crush turned out to be paint rather than anodizing as evidenced by the noticeable overspray around the spool. That being said I hated the color before I bought it but the 22lbs of drag was perfect for my intended application and the price was right.

Opps. too quick on the click! What I meant to say was that it looks like the sale ended before the post so it's a day late and a dollar short.

I went Saturday after checking stock online, low stock to full stock in my ratings of choice listed as available which equated to empty racks with six spools total in poundages that were of no use to anyone! This happens every time I go there but this was the last time for me.

At this point it sounds like you should sell the rod and then have a custom built on a GLX blank or a North Fork Composites (Gary Loomis design so it will be spot on) and spec the handle and seat of your choice. You'll end up breaking even cost wise but with the blank/seat/handle that suits your hand structure.

I fish a IMX 783c out of a kayak and find it the perfect length for just about everything. I will say I've contemplated a shorter handle but I would go pistol grip in that case and pick up another stick rather than modify, and as they've lost popularity in recent years they're pretty reasonable on the secondary market.

True crazy would have been modifying first and asking second...but it's not far off! I'd talk to a custom rod builder and see if it can be done or what options might be available such as total removal and another grip material added such as Wynn grip. Resale value will be shot either way.