Foghorn

Believe it was-I even have regular crew members in these dreams. I originally thought they were talking about rail anchors instead of the rail itself.

And Chief is correct as I was going on memory which isn't very good after being retired for almost 3 years. Did see on the internet where they had some 155# rail years ago but that didn't work out. Most of my dreams about the railroad involve derailing cars or trains-they might be nightmares.

Ham, you are correct as a 1' section of main track 158# rails would be over 50 #. Even the old 90# rail would be 30# for a one foot section!

When it gets real hot in the summer and the rail gets "sun kinks" they will cut the rail in pieces that would often be an appropriate size for a anchor. They leave that piece laying as it is of no further use to the railroad. From my view of the weather today it could be a while before they need to do that.You can usually find small pieces of rail along the right of way if you live close enough to the tracks.

Several years ago there was the plan to stock 100 browns a month in zone 1 but it evidently didn't last very long. Those fish that might have possibly survived that idea would have been a lot of fun to fish for.

Wife and I walk in one of the local state parks that had the old M&I yards thru the area. Several places have sections of 30' rail abandoned along the hiking trail. Doubt they would sell it though plus you'd have to cut it to get it back to a vehicle.

Depending on where you got the rail would determine the weight. A lot of the old branch lines used 90# rail. That meant a 3' section weighed 90#. Main line and plants that have heavy traffic like coal plants may use in the neighborhood of 158# rail. Have been retired conductor for close to three years now and and they might be using even heavier stuff now.

Laker and I like catching big browns don't we Laker!

Are you talking tie plates or railroad anchors? Not sure what the boat anchors are made of but the difference in terminology might be throwing the salvage people off. Would take several railroad anchors to make a very heavy boat anchor while a tie plate is a flat piece of iron with 4 holes to set spikes into the ties to secure the rail. Then again the railroads were at one time keeping an eye on the salvage yards trying to deter them buying stolen rail equipment. Guess you would have to weld the rail anchors to get the necessary boat anchor effect. J.D. is correct as you might check the section men when they are working on the track as to where you might find or buy what you need.

Haven't figured out how to post pictures yet but will try to get my 10 year old granddaughter to show me how. Caught a big brown at Bennett Springs in 2003 that depending on which scale you believed weighed either 17#2 oz., 16#15 oz. or 17# even. Caught what was then the park record out of the high bank hole and decided to keep it rather than do the C&R like we usually did then. Weighed it on a set of digital scales and got the first weight and then put it in the basket at the park store and the fish flopped out of the basket onto the sidewalk before I could see the weight. The park store manager had called our favorite agent who arrived to verify the weight in case it was the new record. Same thing happened as it flopped again out of the fish basket. The 2nd reading came from her holding the basket up to stabilize it and keep the fish inside. I was tired of seeing the fish fall 3 feet to the concrete so figured the 16#15 was good. Took it to Larry's and Kelly put it on a piece of paper towel and weighed it at 17. Our favorite park concessionaire came up out of the clear blue with a 17#9 oz. fish as the park record when it was John Teeple 15#-9 rainbow that had been the record. Jack Buchascher has the record now at something like 18#8 oz. Caught the fish on 2# tippet,7' Powell fly rod and a fox squirrel nymph.

I heard they had to raise some of the prices to keep up with the cost of those fantastic catalog covers some smallmouth specialist /artist has been creating for years!

Before I retired from the railroad, I could buy the jig heads in a wide range of sizes at a place called "the Crappie Shack" in Dexter. Think that was the name as they closed down before I quit working South. They sold 100 packs for $9-10 and then I just had to paint them. Liked the style and hook they used so it worked out fine. Was about as easy paying that as buying the hooks for $5-6 a hundred and sitting a couple hours pouring hot lead.

Have been melting jigs in the neighborhood of 35 years with molds from 1/100 to 1/16. Bought a Lee production pot and shared with a brother-in-law till his sister divorced me so I gave him the Lee and bought a new one. Used it for 30 years and gave it to one of the younger guys in our fishing group because he melted more lead than me. Bought a new production pot last year and ran about 300 jigs thru it and it shot craps. One element shorted out and at first I thought I had dropped something on it and saw it flare up. About 10" later the 2nd element blew and tripped a circuit breaker. Had ordered it from TW and they sent a new one. Used it last week and worked well. Got a piece of lead from one of the lead smelters around here years ago that weighed about 100#. Have some old Ament molds out out of Independence,Mo. that have great patterns but aren't as precise as the Do-It molds you can buy now.Normally keep an old sauce pan, spoon, screwdriver and gate cutter handy to aid in getting the final product. The lead I use seems to work well as I have used it the hole time I have been melting jigs. Do keep an overhead fan going in the room and give myself plenty of room to lessen the chance of getting burned. Powder painted a bunch the other day and tied a few jigs for the times I use a spinning rod and the rest I end up giving to family.

Looks like the fishing was "great" and the catching was even better!

Bill, hope you have good luck with the Redington waders. I bought a pair of the Sonic waist high waders and didn't fare well. The first pair leaked in the waterproof pockets the first time out. Didn't hold much water but it had my car keys in them so I was concerned. Sent them back for a second pair and they arrived in time for the winter C& R season. This was a couple years ago and was meeting Laker 67 at Montauk to fish. Didn't take long to realize the right foot was cold and it wasn't just from the outside temps. The right foot leaked where the neoprene foot was supposedly attached to the leg. Sent those back for some Simms freestone wading pants and pad the difference. No problems as long as I stay out of the blackberry vines.

Hey Rick, read somewhere maybe even the Simms website that it is an easy way to find leaks in Gore-Tex waders. It said to use isopropyl alcohol and Susie thought I said 'ice cold" alcohol. Told her I would put the spray bottle in the fridge if she thought it would help. Don't know it's application on the other various materials used in the breathe-able waders but it works on the Simms. Just wasn't expecting that many holes and still not sure if the Aqua-Seal worked or not.

I used to wear some old hip waders berry picking-just couldn't go into the taller areas. One of our fishing gang could have held the previous record for the most holes. Old friend the kids nicknamed Mr. Fuji got into a barbed wire fence on the bank along the upper current in some neoprene waders years ago. He had them pretty well chewed up and threw them away in the trash bins leaving Montauk.

Folks on the Forum have often read the many glowing reports of my wife, Susie, and her many abilities. Whether fishing, mushroom hunting cooking,etc. she does a wonderful job. Before the water on most of our streams and lakes went crazy and the weather was still warm, we went trout fishing. We geared up and began what would become a 6 hour day with lots of fish caught and a few kept to give to some friends who like fresh fish. Susie put on her Simms Headstream waders that are about 2 years old and waded into the cold,clear spring water and soon began catching fish. We stopped for a quick snack and some water about 4 hours into the day and everything seemed to be going fine. Later as we quit and began to put up our gear she decided that she felt wet on her right leg in several places. I asked her" did you get into any thing that might have poked a hole in your waders?" She replied" think I might have got into some berry vines-thought it was fishing line-so I kept on walking". I turned the waders inside out and sprayed the area in question with rubbing alcohol and the small pin hole sized dark spots started appearing everywhere. The final count-20 holes in the right leg . Figure she will wear her back up pair before trying out the repair job I did with the cold weather.

Picked up my first fish of the year on the first day of the year. Went to see the grandkids in Farmington and drove by Giessing Lake to see how the high water had affected the trout in the winter C&R lake. One man fishing and the wind was up and cold. He hadn't caught anything so I walked down below the spillway to see if the high water had washed any fish out. About 30 yards downstream in the runoff was a 14" rainbow apparently as healthy as could be. The runoff area was on the average 6" deep and 2' wide and I reached down and picked up the fish and eased it back into the lake.

Hoping and praying for the best for Bill and his family.

You are correct sir! Hope you and the Mrs. are having a great Holiday Season.

Tied a similar jig for the last 40 years and caught a lot of trout. Didn't have the powder paint then so the paint jobs weren't always the best. Now that we fish mainly fly rods,I don't use as many of those jigs. Still will use it on opening day and in higher water and the yellow head was always good for sight fishing. has the look of feathers but not sure which bird.

Atta boy Brian, bet ole Yogi wishes he was with you after seeing those fish.

Enjoyed the show thanks!