Functional

I've followed her for a long time on YT. It's pretty clear she had to learn the hard way to keep a tight lip going back a few years. Unfortunate experience with her friendly nature but its part of the game. Good Luck Koz, following along for the ride!

Thats awesome. Really happy for both of you, huge step if it's been 2 years. Looks like a beautiful place to take her as well. I'm sure the whole trip was healing in its own way. PS. for being off the water for 2 years that first hookset was impressive 😄

Consistency @Mobasser! Keep it up. Loosing weight is one thing but making the lifestyle changes like you have and sticking to it is what's really going to lead to your long term success. Having gone through something similar recently it isn't easy and I give you a lot of credit. It's amazing how just eating better food makes you feel isnt it? Then loosing pretty much the equivalency of a weight training vest must feel phenomenal. Really man, good for you and congrats.

@TnRiver46 I'm convinced its part of a big consumer conspiracy to create that problem so we spend more money and buy these nozzle kits. I wouldn't even blame and intern for designing that thing.

I Office Spaced my safety top that looks like below. I'd be better off blind folded with no nozzle than with this thing. I've spilt so much gas I think the EPA is going to require remediation when I sell my house. Worst invention ever...even when you manage to hit the safety and push the nozel for gas it spills out of the joint. This nozzle is great. I use it for my yard equipment like leaf blowers and weed eaters. Makes filling small quantities in tight/awkward spaces easy and clean. Everything else now gets the old school kit like above. First thing I do when I get a new gas can.

He was really trying to give you the business there.

For a little encouragement...my BIL and I fish a 12 acre pond which houses some 8+lb fish but if you are not fishing the 1 or 2 very small spots they live all you get are 1-3lb fish. No lie, one paddle stroke and you could blow by the area they live. For an example, BIL, his father and myself fished this pond, each in our own kayaks. All throwing the exact same bait. I fished it first, 5-10 minutes later my BIL fished it, 5-10 after him his father fished it. He hit one specific target in the reeds that neither of us hit and pulled a 6lb and 7lb fish out of it back to back. Time, place, retrieval, maybe we warmed them up. Who knows but they were within 2-3 ft of targets 2 other angles hit before he came through. I think for your space, as you mentioned, you just need to explore it more. If you have random topography in your pond I do think a cheap sonar with a $30 SLA battery off amazon (to keep weight light and it still lasts all day) would help find some of the honey holes if they are relating to areas off shore. You can discover most of it the old fashioned way but it will take years and there are likely still areas you will never find. Also, with how productive your pond seems to be I'd start using it as grounds to gain confidence in lures you don't typically use or ones you want to learn. Also don't be afraid to throw things that seem massive. I've been shocked at some of the smaller fish that hit lures as big as them....like how were you planning on eating this? You may stumble on to a particular bait you don't normally throw that the big fish in your pond respond to more. 2 birds one stone kind of deal. They are there, I believe you'll get on them. Then your decision will come down to " Do I fish numbers today or do I fish for heifers".

Yes. 2 memorable ones. 1) hit a spinner bait slow rolling on a weedy drop off. Luckily i let off pressure when I saw what monster I pulled in (thought it was going to be a state record) and it released from its mouth. 2) night fishing with a jitterbug. I was slow rolling a 5/8oz jitterbug and saw a HUGE wake circle behind and start coming up being the lure. Big splash and nothing but drag for a while. Got him in and he was NOT happy. I was in a row boat and tried to immobilize him enough to get pliers to the lure but he bit the oar and left a good dent in the solid wood. After he snapped at the oar he flailed enough that the line broke and never found the lure. It at least wasnt in his mouth and on his leg but hopefully it fell out. Still have the oar at my parents, I'll take a pic if I can remember next time.

I hook it "inline" by their directions and put a small nail weight in the belly to give it a very slow sink. Twitch/swim it back. Love the action but havent caught a thing on it yet.

that worked when I lived in NY. I could see the land, see the shoreline and cover and pick spots that would produce. Once I moved those same tactics didnt work. I need electronics in the South or I'm just burning time and myself in the heat. I do miss northern fishing but its a bit more satisfying figuring out the puzzle down here. Not saying fishing in the north is easier, just thats what I grew up on and know it better.

Strike king have been good to me. I always manage to get mine hung up so I tend to stay cheap. The academy brand isnt too bad either but I cant recall the price off the top of my head. If you loose them often might want to try a heavy mono leader or try making up some light gauge wire leaders.

I'm not sure but if those Nutria come back after all the work he just did he might really have to change his name to "Green Raider Bob" @Blue Raider Bob for that concrete you can get a couple of lift bags if you dont want to drag it. Attached a few and inject some air enough to get it just hovering and push it on over.

I'm with @VTFan . The easiest way for me to learn things is pull everything off the boat except what I want to learn. You either fish it or you go home and I'll be damned if I'm going home.

it really does. I had owned and tried a few M&P 1.0 shields and full size pistols from them but never felt like I got along well with the M&Ps. Whatever they did with the shield plus and M&P 2.0 made a huge difference. I'll be picking up a 2.0 compact shortly to try some competitions. I really like how aggressive the grip texture is too, no other pistol gave me that texture and I feel its really important for controlling smaller guns like the shield. You can always get your grip stippled but thats another expense the shield already has covered.

One rod length regardless of what I'm fishing if I'm using a leader. I want 3-4" hanging out of the rod tip and the joining knot to be just ahead of my level wind. Longest possible without entering the reel, just makes things more reliable for me.

#1 is INCONSIDERATE boaters/jetskiers/kayakers. There are a lot of good people on the water but there are also plenty of clueless people. I enjoy cruising around the lake and having fun when I'm not fishing as much as them, but there is a way to do it without ruining other peoples time. Thats what irritates me. #2 NO wind on a July/August/Sept day in the south with no cloud cover. Its near unbearable to fish in that stale heat and honestly dangerous if you aren't pumped up on water/electrolytes. #3 Tournaments nearly every other weekend it seems like. My home lake has 2-3 every week. Best fishing is typically Thursday/Friday since tournaments are Sunday/Tuesday and once in a while one thrown in on Saturday. Hardly ever fish another lake without a tournament on a weekend or run into a bunch of guys pre fishing.

I dont fish Gin clear water BUT on my spinning rods with braid used for Neds I use high viz braid (i use bright blue) and have a floro leader on. Never had an issue even in 5ft visibility water. for reference I watch the line like a hawk when fishing bottom along with a finger on the line the whole time. line viz is very important to me.

Ahh thats fair enough and understandable. With that said. My daughter has a bunch of these for her pencils and stuff. Not the zipper you wanted but they are cheap, durable and water proof. https://www.amazon.com/Sooez-Envelopes-Cosmetics-Stationery-Zippered/dp/B0CHFF2T13/ref=sr_1_41?crid=2CE8ZSFWDUTF2&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.QxJRYSac5DEqdj5xmaxKv8Dy3c4nfjrAUHVdlUE-ljDtc7TMHTdC4irdswih5w2VUnlG9sNaXG8trWTQotY3zR_exOM2zw_wiqV4BGPkQ3VKETgOT_zg34ZYciZ4xvBrSPRlBhdzSo0Ke7iQ9T7qo1zPJzu9mxsPfMW9xTrm91f0WwmQFv_v4kklOWq9IturHMTSjTJ_ibQclHSh80O4lI5ffr3cMoELbUCwgg8HNSFxM-WLAd9iqMm5ZjS4Jz9fHV7KVp3wV36wkp56S-iMB-Ww771rkrm6AWnhEe7xkzs.IiAr7Y0-VuHJyg-F378_0gXIIco02wNtRAbDBvLznK8&dib_tag=se&keywords=plastic%2Bcrayon%2Bbags&qid=1715362832&sprefix=plastic%2Bcrayon%2Bbag%2Caps%2C840&sr=8-41&th=1

Ever consider just a 1 gallon ziploc bag? Air tight, cheap, folds over easy for more compact storage.

@ol'crickety nope definitely not me if I can help it. We lived on a mountain in the woods when I grew up in NY. My dad used to take me hiking all the time and it was just us for as far as you could imagine. Also used to take me back fishing and we would walk all day to the farthest parts to be no where near anyone. Now when I can find them, like you I'm dragging a small kayak through the woods on a leash. Craziest one was when my brother in law and I had to use a tree as a pulley to lower our kayak and pull it up a really steep embankment to get to a pond. I hooked into what was probably a DD there 3 times in a row and she broke me off every time. She was a beast. I'll be back in NY in a few weeks 🤣. Only about 4 or 5 hours away then haha.

Have to admit, I'm a bit jealous of your fishing spots. Secluded, no people, beautiful, quiet. I'd read a thread of nothing but pictures from the places you fish.

Same here for the Berkeley, Rapala, BPS holders. Been using my set for 3 years and wont go back to the floor type like you currently have.

@gimruis when I lived in middle NY that was the deal. Used it in the summer with normal gas and towards the end of the season switched to ethanol free in prep for the winter. Currently live in NC and the above is my new practice. Just leave the least amount of air gap for condensation to build up and an additive in NC winter if you arent going out regularly.

Going to show my rear here but I never used ethanol free gas in my 2013 with merc 60 and no additives during the summer months. When winter hits I'll fill it up to the absolute max and put in additives and if I use it I keep it topped off but thats it. Still running like the day I bought it. Only thing that gets ethanol free gas is weed eaters, lawn mower and leaf blower because they sit after the fall.