Craig P

Wheeler mentioned having done something similar the last time he fished Lake Murray. The announcers also touched on it saying that had Wheeler done better that year, he probably would have won AOY that year. Maybe it's Kryptonite to some? although Wheeler seemed to put it together today.

New parent syndrome I'm thinking. I see it happen in professional sports often. The first year of becoming a parent is a huge adjustment. 2nd year, they're back to normal.

Looks like the fun is about to begin! How long til the boat gets in?

Just depends on the day for me. If it's my first visit in a while, I will spend 30 minutes or so locating and marking bait and fish as areas to focus on when I do start fishing. If I fished it within the last week, I'll watch the screen as I get to the spot(s) that produced the prior outing. There are times I will go exploring. Even though they are "home" lakes, there is always something to learn, and changes happen year to year so seeing where that favorite crappie tree or brush pile shifted to is important as well as new improvements created by the state..... or others.

Columbia, you’re lucky! I’d be fishing the Susky all the time if I were that close. I’m in SE Pa, welcome to the site!

I was just looking at pics from last year. Jan and Feb, catching trout, March, catching Striper and it wasn’t until April 8 that I was catching Bass. Ugh! I can’t wait that long!

Fish mostly just look like dots so you can't get a good idea of their size but if you also look for shadows, you'll see it from a different perspective. Those dots and shadows will also give you an idea of the species you may be seeing with how they are set up. It's not magic or anything but once you start hooking up your brain will recognize the nuances and then you'll be cruising along and say "oh, fish!", cast and hopefully catch.

So worth it. As anglers, we are trying to eliminate water so that we can get to catching quicker. Being able to see out 60-100' at the console when idling tells us quickly we can skip something with confidence or find that solitary structure that doesn't get much attention from other anglers. When at the bow, I stare at sidescan and mapping almost as much as people who use FFS. I can't tell you how many fish I've caught because of it. Sometimes I see the fish, other times, I see that isolated rock or structure that I would not have seen otherwise. Since you are in Pa, you may be familiar with Leaser Lake at 117 acres. It is a small lake with many habitat improvements. Sure, you could aimlessly boat around to find some rock piles but sidescan will get you right on them with little effort and give you a much better understanding of how wide and high a pile is and maybe even see some fish.

HP restrictions are what they are. I went 20hp as Pa has those restrictions on one of my often visited lakes but the 20 does very nice in that boat. It planes and gets to 22-23mph when I am alone, a few less depending on the size of my passenger. We don’t have huge lakes here so even on the unregulated lakes, it is fine at that speed. With that said…. Have you thought about going with an electric outboard? Pricey but you could probably skirt around some regs going electric.

This is exactly how I would rig that rig. MinnKota Ultrex 80 TM Garmin 106v / GT56 at Console Garmin 106sv at Bow Garmin Steadycast Two (2) 60ah Lithium (TM) One (1) 50ah Lithium (Electronics) Noco 5x3 Charger Remote Fuse Box to the front hatch BBT Battery Tray Recessed Foot Pedal Tray I absolutely love this boat. There is nothing it cannot do and the size is perfect for 2 guys. Super manageable hooking up, launching and landing. As you can see, I outfitted it with everything a geeky angler would want. The only thing missing is Livescope......I did have that but I sold it last year after having it for 4 years on 2 different boats. In short, I learned a ton from LS but it ran it's course for me so I moved on. FWIW, the 50ah handled the 2 106sv and GLS10/LVS32 just fine. A full long day could get it down to about 20%. Nothing that ever concerned me. The ONLY change I would have made.....I would not have recessed the finder in the console. The dealer already cut that area out for a 7" finder so I thought why not just make it bigger and recess my 106sv. It worked, it wasn't easy but I did a nice job on it. Hindsight tells me I should have just put a patch piece over the area and used a BBT or similar mount. If I ever change finders, that cut-out now could be an issue if the future finder does not have similar dimensions.

Anyone else looking at these pics and thinking got it, got it, need it, got it, need it……

I am confused. Did you lose your left hand/arm? Cast right, hold right, reel right?

I share the OP's logic but I also understand that handedness varies by task for most people. I use my phone in my left hand even though I am right handed? Curious if others do that? BUT! When I see people switch hands during a cast, even the pros, you're not doing yourself any favors.

Very Nice! I work for myself from my home office. While that office would be a dream for many…..I would trade it for a 6x6 cube with that scenery!

I’m a Shimano fan for the last 30 years, both spinning and bait casting. Through those years, any time I try another brand, it just doesn’t feel right. I’ve tried to talk myself into other brands, high end too but when I’m at the store trying them, they just don’t feel right to me and then I lift the comparable Shimano and it feels like home.

BFS is in my hands 85% of the time now but I don't know that a 6'-8" rod with 6-8# line should really be considered "finesse". It just lets me throw baits down to 1/8 ounce and be efficient when throwing at banks from the boat.

Welcome to the board! Se Pa’er here who also fishes the Jersey salt in-between chasing bass here in Pa.

I was surprised to see one in my mailbox the other day. Not many companies do that anymore. I wish I had kids young enough who could fawn over them and circle things they wanted for Xmas like we use to do with Sears, Best, JCPenney, etc. catalogs when we were kids.

I wish I had a lake near me to warrant a bigger boat. I am a fishing fool who can be easily separated from his wallet! LOL

I visit sites like these too much during the winter. Maybe pick up an old forgotten hobby? I may have mentioned this here before but a few years ago I started playing piano again. Mostly just coordination and hand exercises but I've learned a couple of new things. There was a huge by product to that though. It was like going to rehab, my hands got stronger and any daily arthritic pain I've grown so use to as a CAD professional and angler has disappeared! Food for thought.

So sorry to hear this for you. I can only hope for you that the diagnosis is wrong, the situation not as dire and possibly a cure. Know that others have you in their thoughts. Happiness is healing, don’t give up on what makes you happy!

I will admit, I fished it seldom this past year just because of the Covid years (yes years) shied me away. I fish salt often in a 21’ CC and that boat pales in comparison to some of the boats I watched launch in there. Hoping early spring gives me a warming welcome back.

Have you fished Blue Marsh the last couple of years? Unreal the size of pleasure boats they are dropping in there. I’ve seen them in the upper 20s. Fishing wise, it’s a mix but I’ve seen some serious rigs being dropped in there. Kind of funny TBH, a rig with a 150 or more can cruise the entire wake area end to end in about 2 minutes.

@MediumMouthBass I like your write-up of the nuances that come with bank fishing. While I have a boat, if the work week is too busy to commit to a boating day, I’ll make a quick trip or two during the week to some local bodies of water just to scratch the itch. To be able to get out of the truck, throw on some muck boots and go is nice at times. Good exercise too if you like to keep moving like me.

I see what you are saying in general. I am pretty sure Shimano has their own store on there though. It at least looks like it would be “theirs”. https://www.amazon.com/stores/SHIMANO/page/4BA135A0-D95F-452A-B8CC-FBEDFE841CF6?ref_=ast_bln&store_ref=bl_ast_dp_brandLogo_sto