Kirtley Howe

When I was younger and less concerned about my personal safety I had a technique that I used in that type of situation. I would use an 8 foot extra heavy duty rod, and a large lure with multiple treble hooks, and would side-arm cast. That usually cleared the area around me pretty quickly. These days when people get shot for looking at someone the "wrong way" I just move on to a different area. At 74 years old, discretion is the better part of valor....and I want to live to see 75 or more years of age.

Roland Martin did that for years. He would wade and have his boat tied to a rope around his waist. He stated that he quit doing it when it got difficult for him to get back in the boat. Getting old makes a lot of things difficult.

Still works for both Smallmouth and Largemouth where I fish on the Susquehanna River. Sometimes a Choppo is more effective, sometimes the WP. If neither work, a popper or frog usually does. And sometimes the only thing that will trigger a topwater strike is a walking bait.

As I mentioned in another thread, I sometimes fish tubes on an EWG hook, with the size depending on the size of the tube. If I want to weight the tube, I will put an egg weight inside the tube. I use lead weights if I am using a larger tube, tungsten weights if using a smaller tube, as they fit inside the tube better. I have used worm weights in a pinch but prefer the egg weights.

I think of it like this....Fish that live in current (a river) are always "working out", so they are stronger pound for pound than fish that live in a calmer environment like a pond or a lake with less current than a river. Plus, when you catch a fish in a river that has current, the current can make the fish feel much stronger.

Where are BPS outlet stores located? I just chatted online with BPS, and the agent told me they do not have any "outlet stores", and none of their locations sell refurbished/rebuilt reels of any kind. Also, do the BPS outlet stores have any online presence? I can't find one....

What is this word "Money" you speak of? Is that some ancient language? It is totally unfamiliar to me.

I think I may be the odd duck here. I buy PUGS Amber colored polarized sunglasses for less than $10.00. They seem to be pretty scratch resistant, are lightweight, and wrap around to the side of my eyes for good glare/eye protection. I don't notice any particular distortion with them. They are pretty shatter resistant...I have gotten hit right on the lens by a small rock when riding my motorcycle, and although the lens was damaged, it did not break. They offer 100% UVA and UVB protection. With them on, I see things in the water at least as well or better than my fishing buddy who has a pair of Costas. And if I lose them or damage them, I am not out much money to replace them. They are light enough in color to allow low light use, but work great in direct sunlight too. The do not work at night. For that, I have a pair of clear safety glasses. I have not tried Okley sunglasses, but I have tried my buddies Costas and I really didn't see much difference in my ability to see things in the water. I will admit the Costas were a bit more comfortable to wear, but not enough more for me to justify the expense. Just my opinion of course...your results may be different.

Define best.....Chance to catch the most smallies per hour? Largest average size fish? Chance for really large fish? Best chance for world record? Lake fishable and productive year round? Good quality and quantity? Lake/river with best access? Productive lake/river with least traffic? Best from shore? Best from Kayak? Best from boat? "Best" all depends on what you want to experience. Suffice it to say, there are many great smallmouth fishing lakes/rivers right now. Some say we are living in the golden age for smallmouth fishing, and I don't disagree with that statement.

On occasion. I see a wild Karen...but they have become more common lately.

Scary indeed. I am sure we have all had those moments. I know I have. So far, the worst I had was a hook imbedded in my palm. I was working a Zara Spook and a pike grabbed it. I set the hook and just as maximum tension was reached the hook popped free and the lure came flying back toward me. I just had time to put my hand up to keep it from smacking me in the face. Would not have been bad, except the hook managed to get around a ligament that controls the little finger. No way that was coming out without a trip to the ER. At least it was not to the face.

If you want to waste your hormones growing hair, go ahead.

Check the regulations on the bodies of water you plan to fish. Some (so far only a few, but it seems to be a growing trend) are now banning 2 stroke motors due to environmental reasons.

My father was mostly bald.....just a fringe around the sides. He asked his barber for a discount since he had less hair to cut. The barber told him he was going to charge more than usual as it took him longer to find the hair to cut.

Does this motor have a thermostat? Sound to me like the thermostat (assuming it has one) is not opening up soon enough and is not staying open when the motor is warmed up. If it does have a thermostat, it should be cheap and easy to replace. Good luck.

Are we related?

Well, as long as she gave THEM back.......

My guess is that he doesn't any more.......

True...but I have never seen Glenn push a product that isn't good, or that he does not believe in.

Red Jacket Yacht Club Maina. Southern portion of the lake, on the East side. Also Hibiscus Harbor Marina, west shore above mid lake.

unfortunately the law does not seem to be as clear cut in New York.

I have been trying to get a straight answer about this for a while now. I have talked to several DEC officers, and they cannot quote me any law that specifically address the matter, and two of them admitted they did not know the answer.... If a privet marina is located directly on Cayuga Lake...as in, its' entrance, exit and waters contained within the marina are part of the lake proper, is it legal to fish within the marina? I know that if a marina is constructed by creating a channel on/thru private land that allows access to the lake, the marina owner has the right to deny access to fishing within the (private) marina as it classifies as Non-Navigable water . I also know that any state or federally owned marina can..and usually does.... deny fishing within the marina, because the state/federal government "owns" the land under the marina and the water within the marina. However...a privet marina as I described above, by NYS law, only owns the shoreline, and the docks/structures within the marina...they do not own the lake bottom, nor the water within the marina (which are both technically owned by New York State). So how can they ban fishing in the water which they do not own? I have googled this and used BING search without getting a relevant answer, and I have sent repeated emails and have left multiple phone messages with the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation to no avail.I have also read the NYS fishing regulation, but either I am missing it, or the answer to the question is not there. I am hoping that someone....maybe one of our resident tournament anglers...can give me a clue, and maybe even a link to the appropriate law? Please understand that I respect others property, and as a rule would not fish within a marina if the owner asked me not to or had posted signs saying no fishing, but I am very curious about this, more as a matter of principle than anything else.

I am not a Kayak fisherman and know nothing about their use or care. But I have a question....is it possible to apply a keel guard to the bottom of a kayak so dragging it would not damage the hull? Just curious if it has been tried and what the results were. Would/did it cause any problems? Would/did it work to protect the hull when the kayak was dragged?

And perhaps the Marshalls should be better trained. Some of the blame has to go to marshalls that did not enforce the rules about being shown the fish and where it was hooked. The marshall(s) who didn't immediately disqualify a catch that they did not see where the hook was placed in the fish are sort of guilty of aiding and abetting the angle(s) who did not show it to them.

Sorry, but I have respectively disagree with the last part of that statement. Any decent pro....and in fact most any reasonably capable armature...can catch quite large smallmouth bass on Cayuga Lake at almost any time of year. Maybe not quite in the quantity or size that they do during the spawning season, but a 25 lbs 5 fish limit is well within reach almost any time of year. I do agree that it would have been better optics if they held the tournament a little later in the year.