Blue Raider Bob

Yeah, how bout the time I tied a rope on my new anchor on the Tennessee river, threw it out and watched the untied end of the rope slip over the side of the boat. Real genius that day for sure!

You made a couple of fantastic trips. You mean to tell me you paddled the river from Itasca to Baton Rouge?!!!!!!!!! You do know the river and " Big Muddy" is no joke! I learned to swim in that river and It does not give second chances! More than once I thought my time on earth was finished! What an incredible journey! My hats off to you.........wait......my hats off for the rest of the day for you!!!!!! I'm humbled to be speaking with a legend! That was an accomplishment I can only dream about.

Got two more for ya Katie! Google Earth Walnut Bend Lake Mississippi. It's confusing because the lake is in Arkansas. It is an old river channel of the Mississippi River two hundred years ago and the land from east of the lake to the Mississippi river is still considered Mississippi. Same applies to oxbows on the Mississippi side. The land west of the Mississippi lakes are still Arkansas. Anyway Old Walnut bend is a typical "river run" that was left stranded went the River changed its course. If you follow the southern end of the lake to the end you will see "Whiskey Chute". This is the run in from the river. When the river floods, the lake floods. Terrific lake that I spent so much of my childhood and teenage years on. Not far is another out of the way place. Search Raft Bayou Arkansas. This is a slough off the St. Francis river. Only way in is either an eight mile trip from the nearest ramp, or cross country and drag your jonboat up and down the hill. No fishing pressure and slab Crappies and Bluegill. Also full of everything else. Great memories of a time long past! This is the lake that the coons were fighting in a tree branch right over my head one dark night I was running trot lines. Scared Jesus out of me and right back in again! I wrote about that adventure in a earlier post.

We call that "Critter Huntin'"! Spent my whole life walking in creeks, and swamps. Never knew we were "poor". My kids used to go with me with nets and such to catch "critters". There're all grow up now and have families of their own. I still crawl around in the muck catching things and come home filthy. My wife tells me that grown ups aren't supposed to play in the water. Well when I get "grown up" I'll quit! I'll let todays generation stare at televisions and smart phones. I'll play in the swamp!

May your blessings be many, your health and happiness extreme, and your lines be tight! Here's to PB's for everyone in 2023! Had to finish phase two of the new fence because my daughter had new boxes of lights, bows, and garland burning a hole in her britches! Had to form the first seven posts because of rock. 80 lb bags of Sakrete weigh lots more than they used too!

Thanks for the video! Felt like I was in the boat fishing with you but you caught all the fish! That's OK though because I get just as much pleasure from watching others catch as I do catching my own!

Totally awesome idea! Used to spend lots of time with my Takamine until the kids started to come. Still grab her occasionally but durn them strings hurt tender fingers!

My home pond. The solar array seen in pictures run a well pump in all but the wettest and coldest times of the year. The pond would loose 1/4" a day without it due to evaporation. The little rock pond was made with the pond liner remnants and is fed by a wet weather creek that brings in small fish and fry from up stream farm ponds. All the bank lining rocks came from the woods on my place. It's a terrific place to observe pond life.

I ordered one of each of the following........MG Vision 110 Jr. KVD Jerk Bait Deep Rapala Rip Stop Y0-Zuri 3DB Deep. BPS does not carry Shimano World Minnow. I also got some braided line so I did get well into my VISA! HA! Life is good!

Me too! Winter time is mostly farm chores such as hauling round bales to horses and goats and fixing things. It's dark by the time I get home from work so after supper its 30 min. in the home gym. Saturdays its farm work all day and Sundays I spend on the river with the Lord if the weather is willing. If the weather is not willing, then it's more farm work....which is not really work at all....I love it! Then it's waiting for spring and the White Bass run at Nickajack dam and the explosion of little goat kids all over the place at once!

That is the worst luck ever! Had a buddy park his brand new F-250 on a sand bar on the Elk River in southern middle Tennessee to go grabbing catfish. Several miles down river he notices leaves and branches drifting by. It hit him then that the water was rising because an upstream dam was releasing. By the time he got back to his truck the water was over the wheels. He tried to drive it out but it got stuck. Soon after the truck was heading downriver as it slowly sunk. Truck still had temporary tags!

Thanks everyone! I knew you would be a great help in this and thanks for all the options! I think i'll buy one of each......just kidding. I will get a couple and thanks again! I'll not only blow through this BPS gift card but I'm gonna blow through some VISA as well!

OMG I just priced the Vision 110! Won't take long to spend this card! I'm old school from way back in the day when crank baits cost a couple bucks before there was a BPS! I'm going to get me one though and hope my knots hold! Thanks! Water is up on the Tennessee and I know some eddy's that may work!

Thanks so much! I'm going to blow through this gift card before lunch! And Merry Christmas to you and yours as well!

Any particular colors that work for you?

Lot's of talk on this forum about suspending jerk baits but it is a technique I have never tried. One of my daughters gifted me a 50.00 BPS gift card (She hit that one out of the park)! I would like to delve into this technique but not without the expertise of you guys and girls. Any suggestions of brands, colors, and sizes? I mainly fish large rivers such as the Cumberland and the Tennessee where there is constant current and Smallies and Spots. Would a jerkbait work in this environment or are they mainly for deeper water lakes? Is winter the best/only time of year to apply?

Woody that's about the nicest present I could possible receive! Thanks!

Hate you got skunked! Maybe that means you will crush them next trip! That itch sometimes overwhelms better judgement. It's getting really cold here (for me that is), and the itch is beginning to cloud my reasoning. We will have highs in the low 20's by Friday so if I am going. it better be soon.

Ever have your boat rope unhook when parking the truck? Well I have. Launched boat at a lake in middle Tennessee. There was nothing to tie boat to so I pulled up on shore as far as I could (not far), and figured I could park my truck and get back with no problem........ran back to the water and there was my boat drifting away! Durn, I though while I started to strip down to get wet when providence shined and another truck with boat pulled up to the ramp. Immediately he spotted the problem and graciously offer to retrieve my boat! No telling what he was thinking! What a moron, I'm sure!

Shellcrackers have a pretty good pull to them as well! It's bittersweet to hook a big Spot on a crankbait just for the reason you stated. They fight all the way through release. Those crankbait hooks are deadly when that Spot is going psycho while you are trying to unhook. When I leave the Tennessee River after a day of cranking, my hands and fingers are in sorry shape!

Hopefully you will get some of this weeks rain. It has been heavy and widespread down here in Tennessee.

EPIC! Love it when my thumb looks like that!

They do like rock and hard cover but on the Tennessee River they are just as abundant on laydowns. I fish rock because of less hangups but when I'm tossing a buzzbait or cranks, the wood produces same as rock. I think they use all the river the same. Don't have as much experience in lakes though.

Just found out that the Blue Angels are returning to Smyrna TN AFB in Spring of 2023. Last time they were here the show was cancelled due to the loss of Captain Jeff Kuss USMC who tragically died during a practice session when he came up short on a loop and hit the ground. God Bless Jeff and all you other vets that were willing to sacrifice all for me and mine. That is an gift I can never repay! Can't wait to get my tickets! This is the Captain Jeff Kuss Memorial in Smyrna Tennessee.

Durn that's sad to me! I was watching an eagle gliding over the Tennessee River thing "What a beautiful sight" when all of a sudden the Eagle breaks into a dive and attacks a hen and a group of ducklings trying to cross the river. The ducklings submerged in time and then continued to evade repeated attempts until the eagle finally retire empty. I was breathing a sigh of relief along with momma duck as she and her brood made it to the other side. The ducks have to guard against what's above and below the water. Seems like a tough way to make a living.