GLADES

I saw a couple of bears dead along the side of roads in central florida, probably in the 400lb range. Nothing that big. I agree that the bear should not have been killed.

Great to hear that he is still with us and still performing. He is one of the all time great players. I saw Blackfoot in 1983 at the West Palm Beach dirt track infield. A little sample..

So many musicians past and present and different genres. Very difficult to answer. Right now here are a few of my favorites. I think they are all deceased. Guitar - Hargrett from Blackfoot Drums - Mick Tucker from Sweet Bass - John Entwistle from The Who.

Myself with a pair of chop sticks..lol

It will be interesting to see how Brady plays with a fully inflated football. The Patriots lack of fumbles and interceptions over the last 10 years or so can, IMHO, also be attributed to the underinflated ball. If Brady has a horrible game, it lend more plausability to the theory and the lack of fumbles' stats that are off the charts. If Brady plays well, the opposite can be said. The Patriots are a pretty good team, but so is Seattle. Seattle's defense is fierce and Brady will not have a clean uniform after the game Sunday. To me, the keys of the game will be which team rushes the ball effectively to sustain drives, and turnovers.

I hope Seattle wins. They are a great team. Patriots. I associate them with cheating.

I am in northwest Nevada, new to the area, and some friends have told me that the striper fishing can be really good when they are migrating inland in the Sacramento area. I have been told the Sacramento river holds stripers as well. Anyone care to share a location I can fish from shore (no boat yet), best time of the year, and the gear, lures or live bait needed? I am starting from scratch out here. Any info or help would be appreciated. Thanks Kevin (aka Glades)

I saw the movie last weekend with my wife. At the end of the movie, there wasn't a sound coming from the packed theater. Everyone quietly left. Very powerful and sureal. For those who have never experienced combat, this seemed like a real depiction. Kyle is a hero in my book. He risked his life repeatedly, and his wife (as well as all the miltary wives) was a hero too. Regarding Ventura. I wasn't a fan of his and I think even less of him now. Suing Kyle's wife(estate) is a low blow. I want to read the book now..

You can free line them if it isn't to weedy. You can also fish them with a bobber. Depending on the water depth, set the bobber about 5-6 feet from the hook. While you are waiting for the shiner to do it's thing, with another rod cast Big EZ rubber crank baits, large worms, or frogs into and along the weeds.

Going to be tough to get any useful information about the flats. Tx are won or lost in those areas. Shallow draft boats are the ticket. I am out of south Fl now but generally speaking this was my game plan. It all looks the same, but there are slight variances in depth, temp, clarity, oxygen level and vegetation. Bass like to be comfortable. I used to try to get into little ponds off the trails when I could see them (without getting stuck). They usually hold fish and they get little pressure. Fish in and around the heavy slop when the sun is up, and the clear water early and late. Spots with deeper water or a little in or out current sometimes has bass waiting for ambush. Mark your trail or have a GPS. It is easy to get disoriented out there. Hope some of this helps.

Since you are close to the Peace river, find a nice spot somewhere with a bucket of 6" wild shiners. Other than that, your best bet would be to hire a guide on Lake Okeechobee, or Lake Kissimee. Landing DD's are not easy, even in central/south Florida. I lived in south Florida most of my 53 years, and I only landed 1 over 10 lbs(11.8) over a oyster bed in lake Hatch in the Kissimee chain in the 70's. The bass of 5-8 lbs are relatively plentiful though. Good luck!

The lake is huge. I agree with hiring a guide. They can show you around, explain the layout, and show you the spots and technique.

Usually the smaller bass will bite small trick worms and big EZ's reaction strikes I have had sucesss on terrible windy wet days in Jan and Feb as fronts were moving through. I think the cloud cover brings them out, barometric pressure change, or the chop reduce visability. Blue bird skies in winter usually are tough outings IMHO. Just my .02

IMHO, Stewart did nothing criminal. This behavior is very common in racing. Wards actions and Stewarts actions combined to kill Ward. I think their was some malice in the heat of the moment (he wanted to roost him with mud), but I truly believe that Stewart never intended to hit him, or kill him. Only Stewart knows exactly what he wa thinking. It was a miscalculation on both sides. He is facing a huge lawsuit and it looks like his career is probably over. The fortune he accumulated over his career will be going to his lawyers and the family of Ward. What a tradgegy for all involved. The dirt car series also has some culpability in this accident as well. When a driver is out of his car for whatever reason, red lights should come on to stop the race IMHO.

I went to the Stick Mash 1 time. When you enter the Marsh, I can tell you that the areas to the right(west side) re full of stumps. The ones I was bumping into looked like chopped off full grown palm trees. I don't think running at above idle speed is advisable until you have fully explored the place. There was a crude map with coordinates available for running at plane to get to the farm side, but even with that knowledge, I would not do it until I ran through there slowly. From what I have learned about the place, when the SE farm side spillway is open letting water in, that is the place to be. Boca is right. The stick marsh is good, but not the same since the hurricanes destroyed the vegetation. Before the hurricane it was amazing. We fished the Stck march side until noon, and left the marsh then took a ride to Blue Cyprus lake, about 45 minutes away. A beautiful lake indeed. Caught a few 3-5# bass in about 4 hours, explored the lake. The lake is full of fishy looking areas. All in all, it was a fun day, checking out some new areas on a road trip.

Once in the summer pattern the bite is basically first light or late dusk. By 9-10 am, I am done.

I resemble the title to this thread. At least the guy took owership for his handy work! LMAO! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQTFavX0eRA

Go for it. It is already out in the middle of nowhere. I do not think it is particulary unsafe since you know the stump hazards. If a medical emergency occurs, you will need to be airlifted to the hospital anyways. You will get eaten alive by the mosquitoes though. If you end up trying it, let us know how you do.

@Mattbasscrusher. Ride out west on Alligator alley and fish the Miami Canal. It runs north and south. Good wind break for windy afternoons as well. If the water is stable (no or little current) it is usually pretty good. If the water is ripping through there, move on. Just my .02

Lake Ida has some spots off shore that can be productive when fished deep with white spinners and crankbaits. Where the west canal intersects with the lake is a good spot. If you have a depth gauge, look for the deeper holes next to shallow spots. Those drp off's sometimes hold fish. Of course the bass and peas can be along the weeds and pads along the shore as well. 4-6" Gold and black crankbaits cranked fast will catch anything in there. As Sir Snook mentioned, the jet skiers think they own the place. They block the ramp and ride your stern while underway looking for a wave to jump on. Generally the typical jet ski behavior. Weekends are worse then weekdays. Just my .02

IMHO, If I were you with that small boat and limited range, I would launch at Moorehaven which is about 15 minutes west of Clewiston and fish the rim canal. The 9 mile ditch leading to the monkey box is not a good place to fish, very narrow, shallow, and boats are usually running fast through there. I would stay out of there for safety. Better yet, drive a bit further and find a spot to lauch near Fish eating creek or the Harney pond area. You will be close to the monkey box and fisheating creek bay. Fish early to avoid the winds. If the winds are coming out of the west or southwest, you have little problems with the wind or chop. Hope some of this helps. Fish eating creek is very nice as well. It is west of the lake. http://www.jimporter.org/lakes/okeechobee/map.shtml

It has been over a year since I have been out there because I have moved so things might have changed some. I used to live in Coral Springs so i have been out there a lot over the past 45 years. Many ways to fish Lox. I am sure other guys will give you different advice. I will try to keep it simple to get you started. definately check out google to understand the canal system and the trail leading into the flats. Go west from the ramps. After a couple of miles the canal will open up into a larger flats area. Stay on plane and vear north across that open area. The bottom is silt and muck. I have never hit a rock so no worries. That area can be 2' - 5 ft deep depending on the time of year. Dodge the thicker hydrilla grassy areas and head towards the sawgrass. As you get closer, it gets a little bit deeper and the water should become less weedy. Come off plane and look for a trail that heads back into the sawgrass or you can fish along the edges of the outer grass. If there is a current going in or out of the trails, spend some time fishing the areas where there is moving water at the mouths of these trails. I have had some sucess in those conditions at times, but it isn't normal, usually the water is barely moving or still. Head back into the flats, the trail will interesect other trails and canals. Lots of juicy spots back there. Another way to fish the area is to set down in an open spot in the hydrilla. Drift with the wind or trolling motor across the flats and top water, walk the dog, swim baits or drop some worms or creatures into the holes in the weeds. I preferred the top water cause depending on the wind, you can cover more area. Once you find bass, stay in the area and approach again and again. The canal that runs west to that flats area I just described continues further west. When you approach the bend and open flats just keep going west but keep to the left of the flats. The canal will start again. Get back into the canal. Keep going until you reach the end. You will see a spillway at the end. At the spilway, the canal turns north. Fish the sawgrass edges with frogs, large worms, and big Ez's. You can drop creatures and craws behind or into holes into the weeds. Use heavy braid cause you will be hauling out bass and slop. Lox can be really great or really frustrating. There is a learning curve out there. George Welcome of stick marsh fame regaled a story about a 17# hog coming out of Lox during the early 70's. There are a lot of 5-10# out there for sure. FYI, do not try to circle the whole refuge. There may be temporary canal barriers and you probably do not have enough gas to go all the way around. I know 3 guys that ran out of gas trying. Let someone know where you are going when you are out there. Cell phone signal is pretty good out there. Good luck and I hope something I mentioned helps.

I would be interested in the tourney. I am new to Nevada and I am interested in meeting some old farts with the same old stories to fish with..lol

I would recommend the Rock Island ramp for larger boats. The ramp by the high school has a very shallow slope. I had an easier time launching my Ranger at Rock Island. Watch out for the no wake/minimum signs as well. Margate marine police do patrol the areas east of Rock Island road.