Blue Raider Bob

Real sorry to hear this. My dad would have yanked my ear off if he heard of me being rude to anyone. You have a lot more self-control than I have. Goodonyamate! Baron, reading Disco Chefs story made me think the same thing! Also I see lots of rocks on the bank and I have a durn good arm! Daddy's Bass Cat would need a new Gel-coat! Are you kidding me? You went fishing on the way to the grocery store? That's serious hard-core there. I'm not even in your league. Glad you didn't stop on the way home from the grocery. Everything would have been thawed except momma's temper!

I have pumped out over three feet of water and have removed the dirt from under and over damaged liner. The burrows were so extensive that the ground would sink when walked on. I have a tractor mount backhoe to facilitate work. Plans are to pressure wash liner at the new seam line and tape and staple and tape again to secure new liner to old. After I'm satisfied with that part, I will try to load dirt under liner to regain pond height, then cover top of liner. All this is in theory at the moment. Won't know until I start. After finishing grade, then the replacing of bank posts to re-attach the dock bridge. There are several other voids around pond but hopefully, I can just patch without pulling off the bank. With lots of luck and adequate winter rains, I can begin pumping water back in from the adjacent wet weather creek. As far as the muskrats, three now live in muskrat heaven, and any others seem to have left for safer waters. I loath killing anything, but the more I dug, the less I loathed! Mike, I can back up your observation. When I first stocked my pond over five years ago, I entered 20 fingerling Channel Cats. After a couple years, they were a couple pounds and aggressively using the fish feed pellets. When I started seeing otters, I also started seeing less catfish until they were totally absent from the feeding station. I have placed a couple of 5 lb. Channels that I caught bass fishing along with a couple Yellow cats. They were removed as well.

One of the many things about Nature that amazes me is the ability of predators to catch prey. We know how fast a Bluegill can move, and we know that for a Bass to catch a Bluegill, it really has to strike at blinding speed. This makes me wonder how an Otter can catch Bluegill and Bass. Sure I've seen them move extremely quickly, but nowhere as fast as I've seen Bass move. How do they catch their prey? Do they mimic a benign creature until the distance is closed, (like the wooden warships flying a neutral flag). Do they hypnotize like the Cobra myth and my wife does? Or do they just have another gear?

Thanks Mike! The otters cleaned me out as well. My heart broke when I found the bass skull of a 5-3 that I put in last year. I have nothing larger than 2 lbs. now. They also got my 7 lb. yellow cat and all my Channel Cats. Fortunately, when I realized that they were living under the deck boards of my dock, I was able to retaliate. They would enter between the joists where the joists would sit on the floatation panels. I had to pull up the dock boards and block the joists just like you would fire-block joists in a house. There were piles of scales, and skulls under the floor. They no longer have access and don't stay long any longer, and they only show up in the winter. Hopefully they are discouraged enough to stay away. My big problem now is muskrats. More on that later when I take pictures.

Wish you guys would quit mentioning otters, I'm having cold sweats again!😁

How'd ya do with Crappie? I'm thinking of changing targets, I can't catch a decent Bass to save my behind. Caught seventeen yesterday with big fish 13".

Outstanding!!! I've had three 5 lb plus in my entire life!

That is an amazing story. I think you've got some doubters here but I'm with you on this one.

Come get my muskrats, pays better than skunks!

Thanks Katie! After the several years long battle with my wife's cancers, this is just a stubbed toe! Life is good! 10-4! The traps take some getting used to. My thumb and little finger are black and blue this morning! They snap shut with an attitude! Thought my finger was broken yesterday but I can move it today.😁 as you know, you cannot open the trap unless you first compress the spring. Well, after getting my thumb snapped, I couldn't compress the d**n spring so I just had to wrench my thumb out and curse muskrats! But I'm going to win this!

Muskrat update! They are winning but I am fighting back. TnRiver46, I tried the colony trap for two weeks and tried a gravity door trap as well. Could not get the rats to enter. However, I did buy the 110 as you suggested and it works! Hate to use lethal force but the following pictures will explain why this was necessary. One down and Lord knows how many to go. I have dropped my pond level 2' and falling to expose all entrances and to allow me to access bank soil that was removed during rodent infestation. Decided against Tannerite 🤣. Now, somehow I need to expose liner, prop up, and reapply all the bank soil under the liner to re-create my banks. After that, I must somehow repair liner to again be waterproof before I can start pumping water back into pond. As you can see, I have had to disconnect bridge from shore to access ripped liner. There are a dozen holes bored in liner around the pond. The huge number of half barrel planters are supported by two and three stacks of 8" concrete blocks. Normal pool, these planters are submerged. Also we are expecting the rains to start Sunday and I have to remove all rats! Not the end of the world but sure was a kick in the pants!

Love that Maine scenery. I guess that would mean my "pond" would be considered a "Puddle"!

How wide is the buffer? This is interesting because if I was a private landowner making my living by row-crops, I would not want a large area of income denied me on my own land by the federal government. A 10' buffer is one thing but a 100' buffer would be government overreach. I am certainly not against the environmental protections that the waterways require, but private land used to earn a living should not be over-regulated. The buffer width is probably set by state governments and is different state to state. I have a wetlands area bordering a wet-weather creek. The government paid me to fence off the area to prevent grazing and erosion of the wetlands. It was a one time payment for labor and materials and a five year scouts honor contract. I am still maintaining the area for wildlife twenty years later. I wonder if the landowners are being compensated for loss of income, or if the borders are minimal.

Thanks! Just ordered one. If this solves my problem, I owe you one! What should I use for muskrat bait?

I am trying to remove them humanely, but if I can't, I will have to resort to more permanent means. Baited a trap with strawberries and bananas. and placed on the bank right above burrows. No takers. I'll set the trap on a floating pallet tonight and try again.

It would be pleasant to sit on the dock and enjoy nature, but sometimes nature just can't be enjoyed! First my waterlily's and Lotus started disappearing, then the Cattails were getting stomped down and ripped out. Sitting on the dock scratching my head, I notice movement. Swimming toward me is a little Muskrat. A Muskrat!!!!! of all things now I am invaded by little water rats! I watched the little bugger swim to the bank and enter a burrow. They have burrowed into my liner at waters edge! I went over to the spot and the little rat scrambles out into the pond, so I stick my arm inside the burrow as far as I dared, (didn't touch the end), and another one runs out! Scared the *@)&*% out of me, but then it got worse. There were at least three more burrows down the bank. Now I have multiple holes in my bank, and pond liner, with the water level dropping. Why did I think this was going to be easy? Now I have to drop my water level, get out the backhoe, and remove the pond bank to fix the burrows.....that and find a way to eliminate the water rats! Where is TnRiver46 when you need him? I know, he's in east Tennessee fishing with Lynyrd Skynyrd!

I sent you a horse update to your email. Hope ya got. I can't imagine the effort it took to build this trestle, and can you imagine what it would be like to cross, with a big wind blowing! All just a small part of the engineering wonder of the Transcontinental Railroad.

If anyone is looking for Katie, she's tied to the Dale Creek Trestle. Where do you get these? That's hilarious.....but true! And you'll stay tied till I get some taters and sausage with fat Maine bass! Just read a book by Stephen Ambrose of the building of the Transcontinental Railroad. See, I do have a life off the water!

Very true! 🤣 But it was Alex that said all your friends look like ZZ Top and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Won't be long until this generation of music is forgotten.....I got CD's in my truck now with both of them! Where do you get these? That's hilarious.....but true! And you'll stay tied till I get some taters and sausage with fat Maine bass! Just read a book by Stephen Ambrose of the building of the Transcontinental Railroad. See, I do have a life off the water!

I get mad at mine sometimes too!

This is the old swing bridge at Bridgeport that was replaced by the draw bridge. The swing bridge masonry piling is 97' up river from the current draw bridge but I could not find it Sunday with my livescope. I cannot begin to imagine, or comprehend the engineering effort it took to build this, and then, take it down! Surely something of a rubble pile is left? I will search again next trip. Water is 17' deep at this location.

I get to the river at least once a month if not more. Be glad to take you or meet you and show you all my spots. Here's the Sauger and other bridge piling that didn't load. The fishing should pick up if we could get some rain to allow more current. Right now the fish are scattered and only the newborns are hanging around the pilings. Hat's off the the Alabama Game and Fish! Got license checked for the very 1st time ever on the Tennessee River. I proudly drew my hard copy Alabama License from my wallet to hand to the officers, when one said, "Sir, This license is expired." I have become so used to my phone brain and my laptop brain running my life for me, that I let my license expire. Alabama licenses expire in August so without an email reminder, I totally flunked. They took one look at me and my rig and didn't even ask to look in my livewell. I could have took that for an insult, but I didn't. The officers said I could fish the rest of the day and wrote me a warning with the promise I would get a license as soon as I got home! I was embarrassed but grateful to the officers for letting me go.....glad I didn't have my Orange T hat on!

Thank you! I am going to get a 50 gal barrel as AlabamaSpotHunter suggested, and I will follow your lead as well! Thanks

Here's my 15" Sauger. Wanted to include because you can see the other bridge pillar in the background. Also, there are tons of debris on the river bottom between the pilings that afford the fish cover. Main channel is about 17' and about 12' to 15' around pilings making perfect targets. Two non-bass photos and no violations yet? Must be living right! Thanks! I was just about to invite you East Tennessee boys on a road trip and drift from Nickajack Dam to the Alabama State Line. I'll take you up on that offer at some point!

The water was so clear that I saw my biggest Smallie take the bait. Also several times the little Spots would hit the TicklrZ, miss it and come back and hit it again while I'm watching. Lots of fun but still pursuing the elusive 5lb. that I can't seem to find. Still stuck in the four pound club.