Feathers and Fins

Depending on species, All freshwater and most Saltwater a catch is when I have the fish in possession. Exception is Billfish and Sharks at that point the catch is when I put a tag in it. Fully disagree with IGFA on leader touch as some leaders are as much as 20ft and a lot of bad things can happen in 20ft. The Tag stick is the same length generally as a gaff maxing at 8 to 10ft so I would call a catch either in possession ( held or boated ) or Tagged.

6am to 7;15 top water after the bright ball is up they go deep and take the siesta.

Cooler is coming I know this because I won an argument with my wife today. Or is it the end of times ?

ATM 44 Bama 34

Hey Nick, I can tell you where more than one decent deer is if you are interested and if you don't care about sex I know where a ton of doe's are. Shoot me a PM if interested but its all archery stuff only

Flys, I honestly don't expect him to stay in the pro's more than a few years, he is a College Coach and only went to the Pro's to see if the Offense would work maybe to learn a few more tricks. I kept watching him last night and never seen a coach smile so much and laugh and his players having fun. If the continues even if they loose a few it will be interesting. Now if he wins a super bowl and then says been there done that and goes back to college WELLL More power to him Chip is fun to watch and loves the GAME itself and that to me is something special to see.

OTF the last line you said is why it works so great in College. The coaches know they are young and dont have them long, so will the Pro's trend to youth and short career to have winning teams? I was thinking about that last night. I personally do not care about Pro's They get paid more money then any of us will ever see in our lives for playing a game. They have the college education for after the career in the Pro sports world, so to me I say lets have the short career and exciting game and use them and when they are done they can go to work in their degreed field.

And as with the last roamer Elk they will be killed by MDC for jail breaking. Great dream and should be the goal but it isnt see other thread on the MDC killing the elk.

Pro-football sucks as a rule just a bunch of millionairs trying not to get hurt and way to slow a game. Last night reminded me of when i was a kid and spectacular plays and teams were still around and people played the game hard and fast. Maybe just Maybe this could be the start of making it fun to watch again. I sure know that first half was fun to watch. Any questions why College ball has gotten more fans and more following in recent years was answered last night. Its the high power fun offense.

Hey im sharing ( with my brother ) andI told you where I found Jurasic Parks Crappisuarusrex, not my fault you cant get deep enough for them

If they can stay healthy will the Oregon ducks, I mean Eagles run wild in the NFL? Last night was FUN to watch why they didnt stick to that high power high tempo offense the whole game is beyound me but if they do it what is will happen.

looks like OSU is going to have some very serious problems, could even spill out to LSU

You have to have talent all around not just the coach and players but in the assistant coaches as well. Then you have to have everyone buy in to the plan. No matter what in life it is Business, Home or Sports if you have the mentality and fortitude to see through something even when the odds are against you it is amazing what can be accomplished. The great teams have that, Saban, Miles, Kelley and so many other coaches get the players to believe and that is what makes champions. Great Business has that and Strong families have it. I was less than optimistic for the Razorbacks this year but looks like Coach B has brought it to AR and the players are believing in it. They might not be the most talented of most experienced but the mental game and believing can overcome more than its given credit for. I still see them as a 7/5 8/4 at best this year but with the right attitude and some more experience next year or the following they could be a 9/3 10/2 team or better.

That is an interesting bait hmmmmm

Nice morning no matter what... But to answer the question. NOT VERY! We get up early to sit in the marsh in the heat of summer with every biting critter out to get us sweating our privates off and then if that aint bad enough we are trying to shoot one of the hardest game birds to hit. Yup we loose our mind and sanity and I blame it all on withdrawls from the season before!

NP, The role models many of us had were are Grandfathers, Fathers Uncles and Their friends. All were Hard Working and respectful to others and appreciated greatly when people allowed access to their land. I actually grew up being able to go hunt land without even asking permission. Seeing a property posted was almost unheard of and when it was a knock on the door typically gave the answer and directions to a new field. Land Owners were not so worried about Liability risk back then nor were they confronted with trash and parties. The biggest worry back then for many was a gate accidently not latched properly or a few hulls not accounted for. It wasn't really until the mid 90's I started seeing issues and Four things happened or was happening about that time. 1st was the passing on of many of the elder generation ( grandfathers ) which lead to the demise of leaders for many youths who taught them respect for others properties. 2nd was the cost of living increasing that took many ( fathers ) out of the equation as they had to work harder longer hours to make ends meet. 3rd was the internet which had many forums where people inadvertently or intentionally gave areas the game was at and the younger hunters without the above two leadership rolls started invading property and trashing it up 4th that same internet started seeing more ( Personal videos and combined with Cable TV ) started giving ever Tom Dick and Harry the thoughts to video the hunts and add a rockstar mentality to everything. Where making money off the resource became more important than the resource. I am going on my 39th year of hunting and have hunted in 5 decades now, I have seen many changes ( Heck I remember lead shot and 1/2 hour after sunset ) some changes have been for the betterment but sadly many have not. I hear every year from someone how we need to go back to a 3/30 hunting season. When asked its because they want to get a limit or they know it will reduce hunter involvement. I just shake my head at these excuses as they are pure greed. We need more hunters not less as our numbers insure the survival of our hobby. But we need more mentors that will show the younger generations how to hunt and that means respect for others and especially land owners. We need people who will teach the younger hunters a limit is just a number and is not the measure of a hunt " some of the older hunters need that lesson refreshed " and finally we need to mend fences with the land owners who use to be our friends and that is a big hurdle.

Well I suppose to stop cattle and people from peeing in the water we could introduce a few Candirú

Plenty of crappie around all open water stuff size is great on them no need for the golden rule to be used on them. We need the lake to cool down at least 8 to 12 degrees for them to come shallow and also for it to clear up. I had 2 to 4ft of visibility from surface down to 25fow in many areas. I am not sure where all the murk is coming from to be honest. I'll pray for teal this weekend but hopes are not high the front coming doesn't look to be strong nor does the Jetstream drop enough to really push birds in. Geese have been hard to come by this year, I know where they are but most the farmers I talked to are not receptive to allowing people on their land this season several told me after all the trespassing and even those with permission trashing the place they just do not want to let anyone on it anymore. I know them and have hunted those lands before and they told me its " kids whooppping and hollering and acting stupid " I hate to hear that and am lucky I have a good report with them but I have a good idea where these people are getting their idea what waterfowling is suppose to be. I cant wait to see these people try hunting the big water this season or pull those stunts in the Delta.

No clue but the question I kept hearing yesterday from many fans is " A good College could beat most the NFL Teams " Use to be I would laugh at that statement but I have to admit with all the "Safety rules" in the NFL and seeing so many 3rd and long plays see a pass to a covered receiver for maybe 3 yard gains I am starting to believe those statements might very well be right now. In college third and long means going for the gusto or trying. NFL its starting to look more like " Im a Millionaire and don't want to get bruised" Getting to the point they might as well put flags on their sides and play flag football. Come on its a violent sport and anyone who plays it knows they could be hurt. it is their choice to play the game and they need to accept the risk. Lets get back to Big Boy Football or put flags on their butts.

9-7 sucked for birds but great for walleye, crappie, catfish and white bass. Teal moved out between thursdayish and Friday and we saw only 40 birds total with afterburners on heading south. Geese made a brief appearance but interrupted a good white bite, sucked for them:) Whites are good size and in Rocky Branch area hitting spoons in 15 to 25fow. Sunday saw a few birds but nothing to write home about did manage a couple teal and the stupidest goose in history it really was a removal of the gene pool deal. When you are standing on shore with a gun in your hand and a dog next to you and it comes and lands and starts walking toward you it just needs killing. Just proves People are not the only things that are Stupid! But I fixed stupid in this case.

10 degree drop between today and Saturday is a good thing but morning lows are not that different. Even the Dakotas are not dropping that much but should be enough to push the Blue Wings down. Ive been talking to a few friends hunting Canada and they are complaining about shooting ducks that still have yellow fuzz on them. Several are thinking it was a very late or second hatch on the BIG Ducks if that is true then our regular season could be better than predicted as far as duck numbers. Still don't mean we will see them if we do not get a harsh winter up north. Im curious to what Ducky is seeing in bird size and age range. We did get tons of water a few weeks back and if we get more it could scatter the birds all over and will make mobility a must this season.

Dam Marty talk about old school archery gear. I take it you are hand wrapping those arrows. What wood you using and what are you dyeing the feathers with. I haven't seen anyone shooting that gear in years.

a couple met the oven but the numbers from the previous week were not there. Looks like the first wave came and went and hoping for a fresh push before this weekend but im not holding my breath. I wish they would have opened it up on the 15th. Early teal are always a crapshoot if they will be here during the short season.

I have to disagree with you on ATM, The move for them was perfect. They came to a Higher end Conference and with much more exposure for the school, they got lucky with JM and a exciting team their first two years now. It was a great if not perfect time for them as they will garner more money and more exposure to the school. In the long term though they will have to maintain and attract high quality players to keep reaping the benefits. ATM is a football school no doubt and it was a good move.

Born and Breed on the Salt and that means "LIVE BAIT"! Its good for chum its good for catching it can be flown on a kite or skipped on the top and at the end of the day if all else fails you still have dinner swimming in the live well. Catching it is as much an art as catching the fish. Knowing the difference between a bite or just the bait getting lively or knowing when its time to change it are all part of the fun. Anyone can put a minnow on a hook but it takes a true masterbaiter to know how to handle it.