fishinwrench

Ya know, if this is someone that you see fairly regularly you can approach them minus the holier than thou attitude. Chat it up, share a beer. You might find them interesting and halfway decent people. Be friendly and then it's highly likely that your views will rub off on them. I'm proud to say that I have "converted" a few Hoosiers in my day Not many people will turn down the chance to upgrade the quality and integrity of their associates. Just something to consider.

Oh make no mistake, I am in your corner. If they'd grant some of us some immunity I'd be glad to spend some cold dark nights on the river. I know exactly where to bust some of them too, but it's on private property so I'll need immunity from trespass and temporary authority to hold them at bay until a badge shows up. Not sure how I'd call a badge though because cell service in that holler is non-existent. The reality is that it'll never happen. The owner of the place is reasonably connected and in effect he pretty much owns the river. Truth be known... My interest is slowly fading away from issues on bigger rivers that the law only patrols when it benefits them exclusively. My concern has shifted more towards aquiring legal access to many of the smaller rivers and streams. Because I honestly don't give 1/2 a $#!t about Smallmouth that live in places where I have to risk getting hassled or arrested for fishing them. More and more anglers are fishing....and more and more water is being placed Off Limits. To me THAT has become the greater fight to win. Easier too, since nobody has to loose sleep or miss their favorite TV show. The stroke of a pen can fix it.

So what y'all are saying is that a person can just stand there and pretend to not understand a word the lawman is saying.....and the lawman will just walk away? I'd have to see that to believe it. What keeps the lawman from placing them under arrest?

Sounds like a posse is assembling. I'll cover the otters !

With the Whites, if they suck in a clouser and stick the hook point straight in, at a 90°angle from my rod tip, and then I either do one of my instinctual hook sets, or the fish turns and does a powerful 180° away from me that hook bend has alot of pressure on it. Once it starts flexing it's gonna keep flexing/bending until the angle of pull between the point and eye is more favorable. I think the bending/breaking happens when a fish hooks itself and THEN (with the hook point at 90° To the direction of line pull) you "set the hook".

Seriously?!!! With "gear", Slider heads fished on 8# line, and hula grub jig hooks fished on 10-12# bend on me (in the fishes mouth) all the time. And it doesn't have to be a big fish. It's REAL common for me to bend a 3/0 Gama or Owner offset worm hook on average sized LM during the spring lizard bite while wrestling one over a dock cable. With fly tackle, 14+" whites will bend a standard wire Mustad 3366 hook on the strike, and can break a #4 Gama B10S fresh out of the package.

So if you fail to show ID and don't provide a SSN they'll just write a ticket with no name on it and hand it to you? That's hilarious

That reminds me of a helpful traveling tip. If you ever break down in a strange town and need to find a good, but reasonable mechanic, just find someone driving a mini-van.....They either ARE one or have ones number handy, and know what kinda beer they like.

Reality √

It's getting hard for me to find a light wire hook that doesn't bend too easy, or break too easy. I think alot of it depends on your hook setting technique. I hammer them pretty good so I can't get away with hooks that flex much. If you have to "bend it back to shape" then it'll bend even easier the next time.... so you might as well loose it to a snag. The Gama B10S that all the streamer guys love.....I break right and left, so I have settled on Mustad 34007

Sounds like a local Hoosier hit. I'd bet that the van sleeps within 10 miles of the access. Not saying that it shouldn't be reported, but don't expect it to initiate any response. The hoosiers obviously haven't seen a game warden in a long time so they feel pretty safe.

It's like groundhog day.

In an attempt to think happy thoughts....Maybe the Asians will eat themselves out of house/home (to a degree), and a healthy balance will someday result. Maybe our waters are too plankton rich at the present time. Is that s possibility?

A nice balance would be ideal. Enough people that love the rivers so they are protected, but not so many that they are loved to death. In all reality we're probably about as close to that balance as we'll ever get.

Interesting concept. How long before the imaginary colleges start handing out imaginary degrees, so they can get imaginary jobs to pay their imaginary bills? Whaddaya know ? If you just row-row-row your boat then life TRULY Is "but a dream".

The Osage river below Bagnell is in jeopardy for sure. You'd think that depletion of the MDC's beloved spoonbill would have them on a full-out crusade to control asian carp, but it seems that hands have been thrown in the air and the river surrendered to them.

OMG When you remove the "anode/trim tab, or whatever"...there is either a bolt or a stud under there. No? Edit: Ahh, but you're right there's no stud up on the NOSE by the shift shaft on those ! It's just a locator pin. Whew! So SIX things to remove. Sorry. LOL

If yours doesn't have a bolt under the trim tab then it should. Little known fact: the bolt under the trim tab is the most important one....it acts as a vibration dampener, and without it the rest of the studs will vibrate loose. So since you have to go down the hole and remove the trim tab to get to it...that makes 7 But again, who's counting?

I'd say you nailed it!

The truth will come out the first time he hops in my lap with a spider in his mouth. LMAO!

I just knew that someday I'd get the chance to snipe monkeys! Heck yeah!

True enough. There usually won't be many fiish hanging behind a dock that is jumping up and down, banging and squeaking, but I did catch a hawg once that was holding under a walkway support of a dock where a crew was installing a hoist. You'd think that all that noisy activity on the dock would have scared the fish off, but in that case I guess it was like deer and chainsaws.

Seven actually, but who's counting

Hunters and Fishermen....... They're just so Cliquey I think Gierach said it best, "there's only two types of fishermen: Us, and the Assholes"

If you installed a 1" prop nut instead of a 15/16" you'd thwart the theives that are only equipped with a prop wrench