Luke Barnes

Yeah I talk to people about fishing but quickly lose them when I start spouting off lures, brands, techniques. I like teaching people new things but sometimes I just want to chew the fat and talk fishing without teaching a new rig. Wait, now I know how you all feel about me!! Haha

Cool. I was born and raised upstate in a small town called Hancock. 45 minutes east of Binghamton on the PA border.

Where in upstate do you live now?

I still remember the old floppy discs that were actually floppy and took four discs to play a basic game. Is this like a cumolonimbus cloud?

Put what in the cloud??

Ive yet to catch a bass over a half pound on the fly so I cant much say, but I do need to get some poppers and try. Ive only used a clouser minnow once and I'm not good at casting so it was all over the place.

That's amazing! If me and the wife need a getaway I know where to go!

I would say paddletails. I bought some new underspins and have been chucking them a bunch but the bass just aren't super active yet where I'm at. Ive done best on stick baits this year, which this year is the first year ive dedicated to throwing wacky/Neko

Thats a gorgeous view! It sounds like you dont necessarily have to work but you still do and what a place to work at!

If I could buy minnows locally I would use them a ton. But the closest bait shop to me is at any of the lakes within an hour drive and then I'm just going to fish the lake and not ponds close to my house. I've never trapped minnows or craws. I tried a cheapy minnow trap from wish.com and it was junk and fell apart.

Berkley X9 for smoothness and strength. I run the X5 on my ned setup and love it but the X9 is even better.

I could not buy a single item and hhave enough where I could fish for two years without having to restock something. I may use different brands and colors of the same style stuff but I've got it all covered. I dont "need" anymore rods and reels but I sure want them. Lures and terminal, I justify $10 purchases about 30 times a year.

That is really cool! I would love to hear stories you had to tell about all this. On mine, I served 7 years in the US Army 2003-2010. 2 tours Iraq. Had various jobs since I got out. Spent 7 years in the motorcycle, specifically Harley Davidson, business then got out of it to work for a big oil drilling company. Oil took a big dive and I got laid off so here I am at the medical wraps and devices company.

Whatever was available! I have experience in shipping/receiving-logistics so probably something along those lines.

Were you at Ft Lee, VA? I was in logistics in the Army from 2003-2010.

Just curious seeing all the different career choices people have made. I work for a medical equipment supplier. We make and distribute devices to prevent DVT (Deep vein thrombosis).

There is a flea market section on here. If you dont feel comfortable shipping rods there is always facebook marketplace and craigslist for local transactions.

I swear by my Oakley Mainlink with Deep Water Polarized lenses.

Picked up some Berkley Grass Pigs in HD Gizzard Shad for clear water situations. Went for a ribbed paddletail in a natural color and left with these. I wont complain. I've tried to get a job at Falcon twice but they are always not hiring!!!!

I'm super inexperienced with stripers and all I really knew is they like shad. So anything resembling a shad and this does, but so doesnt alot of other things.

Two words. Yamamoto Zako. Best. Chatterbait. Trailer. Ever.

I read somewhere stripers like it so I have one with no skirt and a pretty realistic shad colored paddle tail on it. Looks pretty good but only ever used it once and struck out.

I have a bag of Berkley Powerbait General stick baits in Ikes Grimace color. Dark purple and lighter purple laminate. I totally forgot I had them or I would have used them wacky rigged yesterday instead of dumb ol green pumpkin!

Something I learned watching worlds worst fishing is that soft plastics can have micro bubbles and thus perform differently. Slower sink rate, tear up easier, whatever it is, but you would have no way of knowing if a certain pack of plastics has micro bubbles you just use them and if they don't do what you are used to, try another bag.

What about 20 mph winds like I'll be fishing in tomorrow?