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Haven't had any birds come after flies yet. So far it's just been that owl, and a few years ago had a heron try to snatch up a top water as well.

This guy was almost an 'other catch'. Pulling a topwater in, saw some movement out of the corner of my eye. Looked to see this owl swooping down, aiming right at my lure. I started reeling in as fast as I could.. he gave up about 10 feet away from the kayak and perched on this branch, looking pretty angry at me.

The perfect cast, to the perfect spot, that for sure holds your PB bass just looking for something to munch on.. and the lure lands on the one tiny weed floating in the water that you didn't see, and it totally kills the action of the lure and spooks the bass.

I've mainly used 832 in the past. Picked up a spool of X-5 and 2 spools of X-9 over the winter for some new setups. So far I'd say X-9 is tied with 832, with the X-5 being a bit behind but still good. I did get the X-5 to see if it was any better in the weeds and it's not weed season yet, so we'll see if that improves my opinion of it any.

Check out the Strike King Hybrid Hunter. Has a big rattle in there, and runs 2-5 feet down. Great for river fishing, I've caught some nice smallies on them. The junior size is great as well.

Was out this past Saturday in the kayak, 15-20mph sustained winds and close to 30mph gusts. Pedal kayak and a power pole helps with the position holding, but I even mentioned to my fishin' buddy that day that it was impossible to use plastics. Fish were plenty aggressive hitting jerkbaits though, so it was alright. One of the best things I did for my fishing was to stop being such a fair weather fisherman and start braving some rougher conditions, wind and rain. Obviously I'll get off the water if thunderstorms are rolling in, but some of the best fishing I had last year was right before the storms hit.

Dang, good to hear you're ok. With the values of those older Tacomas, I'd be surprised if it was totaled. And even if it is, I'd buy it back and fix it.

I think either one works well, but I do prefer the action the Choppo has over the WP. I don't have any ploppers in my tackle to compare to. Luckily, where I fish up here in MN they still love the prop baits and will smash them to the point of launching out of the water.

105 or 120 sized Choppos for me. I've had 12" and smaller fish hit the 120. Go big or go home! I don't really fish anything smaller than a 90.

I pulled the trigger on a Yakima rod box, nice not having to worry about having the rods in the cab. This is my road trip setup when I need the bed space. I just throw the kayak in the bed for day trips.

I normally use Sufix 832, but with the pure fishing codes going around this winter I picked up a few spools of X5 and X9. No complaints about either one.

I'm running Berkley X5 on mine and it's been good.

All my rods are braid to flouro leader, using the Alberto knot. The only time I have issues with it is when I get sloppy and try to tie one fast. Make sure the braid enters and exits the flouro loop on the same side. When tightening, I pull main and tag lines first to get everything cinched down, then pull hard on the main line while making sure the braid is fully seated.

Topwater for sure. Had one launch clear out of the water to hit a Choppo this past weekend, so awesome to see. I've been using my Mojo Bass glass M/M for topwater, crank baits and chatter baits. Really like it, even more so after putting on a Zillion SV TW.

The Rip-Stop in the chartreuse / silver / red color combo worked great this weekend. Buddy had one in the size 9, and I had just picked up a size 12. Both worked great, smallies were crushing them. The Rip-Stop in the chartreuse / silver / red color combo worked great this weekend. Buddy had one in the size 9, and I had just picked up a size 12. Both worked great, smallies were crushing them.