NHBA Charlie

When you get to be my age, you don't have time to eat on the water. You never know when your last cast will happen. I eat a good breakfast on the way to the water, carry about 18 bottles of gatorade, 1/2 gallon of coffee and go fishin'. Every partner knows that if they spill my coffee, they walk home. Don't have any spilled coffee on my boat. Stop on the way home for dinner. A few missed meals would not hurt me or my figure at all! Wouldn't hurt you either, Capt. Mike!

Age and time on the water produce some strange catches. 1. 5 gallon bucket filled with water skis, goggles, wading shoes, ski rope. Caught on plastic worm, flipping dock on Lake Gaston. 2. Double bottom rig, hooked in the top swivel. Twelve pound carp still attached to the bottom hook. Tidal Potomac. "The Spoils" 3. Partner pulled in a cell phone. The original kind, in a large leather purse-like container with battery clips. 4. Floating dead fisherman on a tidal Chickahominy River creek. Took a floating Rapala. DID NOT disturb or bring in boat. Just notified and directed State Trooper to scene. 5. Many rod/reel combos in tidal Potomac River. 6. Six horsepower outboard in upper Potomac River. 7. Many manufactured and homemade anchors from the upper Potomac River.

Another good book: Charlie Brewer on Slider Fishing

Extreme 1018: Living in Virginia, I can give you information on what works here. Don't see why these methods wouldn't work other places as well. I basically only use two types of baits: Topwater and plastic baits. My topwater baits are selected with vegetation in mind. If the pond has vegetation in it, I will turn to a Zoom Horny Toad. Toss it on a spinning rod, spooled with 30# Power Pro Braid, as far as you can and start a steady slow-moderate retrieve. You just want the legs to create a little water turbulence and sound. Keep the retrieve steady. When a strike occurs, DROP the rod tip, count to five and set the hook, HARD! If there is no vegetation present, I turn to a Zara Spook or Rico. I cast these parallel to the dam, over the deepest water and work it slowly, with long pauses. Then, I work it over the center of the pond. If no action, I turn to soft plastics. I generally go with a 5" Senko, fished weightless on 20# Power Pro braid. I cast this bait all around the tree roots, vegetation, riprap, etc. that cover the dam. This is where the shadows occur and thus, hold the larger bass. The other bait I use is a Carolina rigged plastic lizard for probing the bottom in the deeper sections of the pond. As the water warms a little however, you should not need anything other than topwater. Don't neglect a flyrod with a popper or a wooly bugger.

VaBasser: Actually, there were lots of boats on the lake. It shocked me. I was unable to get to a number of my spots due to boats sitting on them. I understand that there was a tournament on the hot side that morning, but I do know there were plenty of boats. More than I have ever seen at one time on that side of the lake.

You asked for it, Avid! 1. First baitcasting outfit, circa 1975 on Occoquan Reservoir in Northern Virginia. Hooked a fish on a plastic worm in 25 feet of water. Set the hook and the fish set it back. Yanked the rod completely out of my hands and over the side. Dragged the bottom for 3-4 hours. Have not seen it yet. 2. Partner new to fishing. Threw his rod over the side on the cast. I keep a bass buoy on the bow for just this purpose and tossed it over the side. Got out a heavy rod with a 3 ounce snag hook on 45# braided line and dragged around the buoy. Retrieved the outfit. 3. Put my 80 year old partner ashore on the dock at the ramp. He has neuropathy in his legs and cannot feel anything. As he was alighting, I noticed one of my rods go over the side and I reached down and grabbed it as it went under. The following day, I looked in my rod locker for a particular outfit for a client and found that it was not there. Figured that it went over the previous day also. When I went back to the ramp for her "potty break", I took a Rat-L-Trap and jigged alongside the dock and pulled up my outfit. You should have seen the looks on the faces of the bystanders. Told them I do this all the time. 4. Fishing the Chesapeake Bay alone in a 14' aluminum boat, drifting and bottom fishing, while relaxing in the warm sunshine. Had two rods in the rod holders when a 50+ foot motor trawler came within 20 yards of the boat. The wake obviously rocked the boat quite a bit.....actually, enough to pull the rods out of the rod holders and over the side. Got out my snag hook outfit and retrieved both outfits by snagging the line and bringing them in hand over hand. 5. Night pier fishing in Kill Devil Hills, NC when someone called for help down the pier. I placed my 7' spinning rod with large Daiwa S/S series reel on the deck with only one guide over the rail. Went back to assist the other angler when we heard a loud clatter. Turned around just in time to see my rod/reel go over the side. He was very apologetic and asked what he could do. I replied, "nothing. Whatever took it over the side is probably 200-300 yards away and truckin'". Returned to fishing with another outfit. Felt a hit and set the hook. When I reeled up, I noticed a piece of orange line across the hook. I started pulling on the line and after getting in a pile of about 150 yards of line, I got back the rod/reel. I then started pulling on the other end of the line and the fish jumped just outside the circle of light from the pier. As I continued to pull on the line, the pressure caused the line to break. I have been very, very lucky in my 30+ years of fishing.

VaBasser You should have been with me that Sunday. My partner and I were catching bass all day on the hot side of Lake Anna. In addition, we also caught crappie, catfish and sunfish. Good day! Caught most of the fish on the drop shot, but also took fish on Silver Buddy, Bill Norman deep little N, black grub on 1/8th oz. jighead and four inch plastic ringworm in electric blue/fire tail. Fish were located at the base of steep dropping banks in 17-20' of water in the morning and up in 3-5' in the afternoon after the sun warmed things up a little. Worst part of the day was having to clean the road grime off the boat after dragging it 100 miles over snow covered roads.