Ham

Could be epic or could be muddy and blown out. No way at all to tell.

i got a 20 inch and 21 1/2 inch on back to back days on the New River in Virginia in March 2005. I've caught some pretty nice ones local, but I usually am in search a hurry to get them back in the water that I don't measure or photograph. I'll try to do better.

Only in my dreams. Infisherman did a recent story about a group of lakes in Mississippi that had giant crappie. Like always though ppl take it for granted and keep too many of the giants. Maximum size may be down a bit, but you still have a real shout at a personal best crappie. They had tips and tactics listed.

I'm still looking for my first carp on a fly. Sad face.

Be Careful. You won't have much company.

I keep hearing about Walleye not fighting, but that's not my experience. The little guys can't do much, but all the legal keepers do OK for themselves. The fish in the 25 inch or larger pull pretty hard with big head shakes.

I'm pretty rough on 7X with a 4 wt.

That should do the trick. Nice digs by the river with fishing outside your door. Nice! Seriously, I wondered if the NFOW had any small trout. I never see them, but they do grow to massive size.

I do think that a lake that has all the key ingredients to grow big fish AND has a relatively smaller population of a given fish species will produce some exceptionally large individual fish. That's why I think BSL has exceptional Stripers and Walleye. I don't believe there is anything wrong with the genetics of the walleye in the northern lakes, but a lot more mouths feeding on a smaller amount of food with a shorter growing season = less giant walleye. I also think that in the north a lot higher percentage of folks prefer to fish for walleye above all else. Most folks here are happy to catch a walleye, but they don't spend all day chasing them.

I think a 20 inch trout IS HUGE. We have gotten so spoiled with the wonderful fishing on the White that we can't appreciate a trout unless it's what > 30 inches now?

I wiish walleye got as big as Zander.

I spool up the reel to within an 1/8 of an inch or so and trail off all the line behind the boat while at idle. I let it trail behind the boat for a little while and then wind it in against the force of the water. JUST THE LINE. NOTHING TIED TO THE LINE. CX Premium lays just fine on my spining reels.

Alberto knot for braid to leader. I checked on the line diameters of P-Line CX Premium 6lb (0.21 mm) and Yo Zuri Hybrid 6 lb (0.26 mm). I didn't look up all the listed strengths, but it does seem that the P Line is thinner.

You've fished P-Line CX Premium and the Yo zuri Hybred and preferred the Yozuri ? Interesting. I'll keep that in mind if I get unhappy with my CX Premium. I'm of the opinion that a fish rarely breaks the fisherman off. I think the fisherman usually breaks the fish off. However, there is a lot more to line selection than just worrying about the strength of the fish being sought. Anyone throwing DD22's on 6 pound? Anybody throwing A rigs on 10 lb? Spro Bronzeye frogs on 8 lb? Pike and chain pickerel will bite right thru mono. I've had them bite thru 20 pound mono without any problem at all.

There used to the a Berkley Sensithin That I liked, but it got dced. I eonder how close the Sensation is to the former Sensithin? I wish some of the Yo-Zuri Hybrid users had compared it to same strength P-line CX premium. I'm curious about it, but not enough to go buy some Yozuri. Tectan is the skinniest line per pound out there, but it had crap for abrasion resistance. I how it so wimpy that I have NO used for it at all. Not for trout or bluegill or anything.

I'm looking for a 30 incher!

P Line is the brand name. The family that owns the company last name begins with P. I use the CX Premium which is a fluro coated co-poly as opposed to a monofilament. It is thin compared to other lines of the same pound test and it's very supple. IT DOES SUFFER FROM HEAT DAMAGE like a full fluro would. Wet knots fully before slowly drawing them down. IF you get a line tangle on the rod tip, don't force it. Gently untangle. I re-tie if the line distorts after a tangle on knot tie.

I was using uni to uni for my braid to leader knot, but CajunAngler showed me the Alberto knot and that's what I use now. PIA to tie, but zero failures so far. I didn't have failures with the uni to uni either, but it was a bigger knot that bumped down through the guides a little harder.

I'm really starting to LOVE Power Pro braid on spinning with mono or fluro leaders. I do still throw just "mono". I use P-Line CX Premium 6, 8, and 10 lb for a full spool.. I'll use a little bit of everything for my leader material. I will admit BPS Excel is pretty good for the price especially when you catch it on sale.

They get pretty this time of year. NIce fish man. I'm jealous.

Squeaky wheel syndrome. Bass Clubs get pretty vocal about spearfishing bass. Hey Jeff, There are MANY really wonderful things about the Ozarks, but gigging isn't one of them AND it ain't going away anytime soon. Maybe in 40-60 years.

It's a very nice hook I'm sure. I've used the magic eye hooks and they are no doubt easier, but I don't really have a problem with the regular hooks. Oval split rings are a pain, but hooks aren't too bad. I just really prefer round bend to EWG style. I just don't have any confidence in the EWG style for a treble hook. In theory, it would be nice to have long shank hooks for open water and short shank hooks for heavy cover. I think I only carry standard round bend trebles with me.

I love to fish the spring run on the Sabine River. One of the preferred methods there is to fish a small live crawfish on a 3 way rig from and anchored boat down current. Water visibility can be VERY limited and the only way those fish are finding the bait is by taste and smell. It ain't the only way to catch em, but it can be the best way to catch em.

A gal I work with and her family love to dive and spearfish. I've spent a lot of time talking to her about it. Their legal limit is 1/2 that of rod and reel anglers. They have to work to get close enough for the shot and deal with visibility limitations and COLD water. They pretty much quit once the water gets too cold and as the thermocline starts to break up the walleye get too difficult to find. They usually get a fish or two, but it does require a significant amount of time and money to do well. It isn't as easy as we might think it would be. I'd love to dive and observe fish to help my rod and reel fishing, but I don't anticipate speargun hunting to replace my rod and reel fishing.

I ordered two of the 7 foot light action spining rods. I have not fished them yet, but at first glance they look pretty good and certainly worth the $$57 dollars each I paid for them (flat rate $13 shipping). I'll give the hat to my Dad since I have way too many of them as is. I'll try to get out and use on of the rods ASAP. Maybe the sale will still be going on when I have a chance to do a field report.