billmac

Sometimes finding the exact combination of type, length, power, action, #pieces and price is harder than finding Jimmy Hoffa.

I like the Carbon Fire rods a lot. Dicks has them on sale now for $49.

I'm not really looking for favorite channels so much as those guys or girls that are out there just for the sheer love of fishing. I agree about NDYakangler. He's probably not on anyone's radar, but if you like to watch someone who just loves to fish, check out the Fighting Fisherman channel on Youtube. He's in England (I think) and mainly fishes for rough fish.

This may be a bit of a weird question. Of all the fishing shows you watch (Youtube or whatever), which of them do you get the sense that they just really love to fish? It sounds crazy since they are all making their living fishing, but I really think for some it's more of a job than others. I say this even for fisherman I respect for their skill. Which of these people would still be out on the water if there were no cameras rolling, no sponsors to please, no money on the line? For me, the clear winner is Al Lindner.

In a world where Livescope is allowed and A-rigs are banned, this is almost believable.

That makes sense, with the added bonus that the non-boater is less likely to embarrass the boater by bringing in more weight.

What's the logic there?

Related question: How common is it for a non-boater to actually "win" the tournament? By that I mean the non-boater actually out-fishing the field of boaters. I know they probably can't "win" because they are separate categories, but I'm pretty sure I've seen it at least once on a BassResource report.

I've never caught a catfish (if you don't count bullhead). I live near Massena, NY. I know we have catfish, but I've never heard of a place you can reliably target and catch catfish. Any ideas?

I'd be reluctant to leave NY off any list, because of the St. Lawrence river and the Great Lakes. But I doubt anyone would be willing to move here just for the fishing (including me, if I didn't already live here). Pretty high taxes. And winter. Lots of winter.

I've tried for years to convince people that I coined the phrase "glare ice" but no one believes me.

I practiced for at least a week before I was comfortable with mine, and even after that I had some epic backlashes. More than once I had to cut all the line out and respool. But I was amazed at the control of the baitcaster.

Me too. I also still have it, although I don't think it still works. Correction: I think I had the 4H. It was blue though.

Maybe. Did doughballs eventually become a hugely popular bass bait?

This is probably for some of the older guys, but I'm wondering if you were one of the first in your area to adopt a certain lure, technique, etc? I started going bass crazy as a teenager in the mid-70s in northern NY. Started getting bass lures as part of BASS membership that you didn't see anywhere up in Yankee-land. Plastic worms, spinnerbaits, all new stuff as far as I could tell. I saved forever and dropped $58 on a Daiwa Millionaire. No one was using baitcasters (except perhaps the really old style with the braided line). I went to an outdoor expo and spoke to the head of a local bass club, and he was still using spincast equipment. Any trailblazers?

Yes, basically a beetle spin with a curly tail. I've always been a sucker for curly tail plastics. This thread is like a trip down memory lane. I think this was probably my first spinnerbait.

Also one of my first plastics and also got in a BASS member kit. Loved the bubbles. In NY in the 70s, you couldn't get much in the way of bass tackle locally.

My first plastic worms came in my annual BASS membership kit 40ish years ago. They were Mister Twister creature baits. (Centipede, but that spelling isn't right). It was the first time I can remember that I rigged and fished something following right out of a magazine, and everything happened just as advertised. Texas rig, cast out, tap tap tap, set the hook, reel in the bass.

I have caught so many fish on a Mister Twister Meeney Spin over my life that I have to force myself to use something else. Smallmouth, Largemouth, Pike, Muskie, panfish. Yellow colored preferred. I almost always have one tied on.

I don't like killing anything unless I'm going to eat it, or it is destroying property. I've heard hunters talking about killing coyotes because they kill "their" deer. There are lots of catch and cook bowfin videos out there.

Got any recommendations?

I watch a lot of fishing videos, and they all seem to know what all the weeds are that they are fishing. I'm a little embarrassed to say that other than lily pads, I only know that weeds are weeds. How important do you think it is to be able to identify the types of weeds in whatever body of water you are fishing? Additionally, since no doubt not all weeds grow in all regions, are there any resources that help identify the types of weeds in a certain area? I live in northern NY. Thanks

Agreed: We might just call it "catching". I just saw an ad for Humminbird MegaImaging that will tell you the species and direction of fish out to 200 feet. "No more guesswork" was one of the phrases. I'm not saying I'm absolutely against this stuff, but I'm uneasy about the direction it's going. How long before someone discovers a frequency that throws fish into a feeding frenzy?

It is interesting that something like Livescope is OK but the A-rig is banned in tournament fishing. Don't want to give anyone an unfair advantage!

I watched a video that suggested that a lot of fishermen with Livescope were losing the ability to locate fish, other than simply driving around until they saw them on the livescope. Frankly I don't know what to think. It is unlikely that I'll ever be able to afford livescope (although I wouldn't mind side imaging). But I'm just wondering if we will ever get to the point where locating fish is so easy (yes, I know you still have to catch them) that tournaments will finally say enough is enough. I doubt it.