eric1978

Yikes. That's ugly.

An den?...

No need to get sarcastic. I'd say it depends on the river. On the bigger rivers that see jetboat traffic, you may be right that getting out and fishing one spot slowly with finesse baits may be a better bet. But I don't fish the bigger, jetboatable water all that often. On skinny streams, there's only so much potential in one pool, and after five minutes of working it over, you've either caught the biggest fish in there, or you're probably not gonna catch them. Time to move on.

Odd, I feel exactly the opposite. I think the spots that you can only hit while in a canoe are far less likely to be pressured than the spots you can wade and fish...which everyone does. Those riffles that go around a bend and drop off into the quintessential bouldery pool with the classic outside bend bluff and the perfect inside bend gravel bar...they look good to everybody, and they get beat to death. You'll catch fish there, but I tend to catch most of my better fish in far more unsuspecting places, some you wouldn't even think a fish would be. And approaching a good spot in a canoe, if approached correctly, is much stealthier than wading up to a hole, water sloshing and gravel crunching underfoot. And it requires far less effort.

That's a good point...I'm much more inclined to take on a longer float if I know the stretch of river. Biting off 10-15 miles in one day in unknown territory freaks me out a little.

I'd rather catch 20 fish if most of them were closer to 16". If they were mostly 12"-14" and only one or two at 16" I'd rather just have the one big fish. But either of those scenarios sounds like a good enough day to me. 5-6 miles is about right for me. Maybe 7, depending on the river. I like to stop and dick around some, but I don't care to work one spot to death. Fish it, move on. Anything over 8 miles is too much water to fish effectively in one day, IMO, unless you're on a river that really moves. 10 miles on skinny water is a lot of work. I do generally like to fish fast, though. Pick off the easy ones and hit the next good looking spot.

"The most versatile of our Casting Rod Series, the 722 is capable of fishing a variety of lures and techniques, including topwaters, spinnerbaits, grubs and small worms, especially when fishing clear water with 8-10 pound test line. In contrast, it will handle larger worms and up to 3/8 ounce jigs. If you fish Red Fins, Long A’s or Rapalas, you like this rod a lot. It has enough power to move fish away from cover, but is much better as an open-water rod. GLX provides unbelievable lightweight and sensitivity."

Well technically the guy was a poacher as soon as he threw the fish on ice (actually as soon he made a cast without a license), but the fact that he had a license less than a year ago leads me to believe he's not an habitual offender...probably just scatterbrained. I couldn't care less about records, partly because they make no distinction between fish caught on live bait and fish caught on artificials, and partly because...well, I just don't care. I say put the beast in the stupid book with an asterisk, like Cricket said. Then add asterisks to all the live bait catches while they're at it.

What fun is political debate without a little hyperbole?

That's right...should. But apparently we don't. You're obviously a reasonable guy, Hank...I'm sure you can plainly see that the leaders and constituents of one of our major parties puts capitalism and convenience above all else, at the peril of all else, including, and especially, conservation. That's just reality, and I hope that more reasonable C's like you would exert intense pressure on your party's leaders and persuade them to put the conservation of our planet above their buddies' business interests, or else you'll look elsewhere for leadership. That's my hope. But I'm not holding my breath. And this thread didn't devolve into politics...it is political by nature, and to pretend otherwise is ignoring critically important aspects of the lessons we've learned about the government itself and its relationship with the private sector...which we need to stay mindful of to help us make better decisions in the future.

Yeah at 18 that bugger becomes a griffith's gnat with a tail.

Awesome fish and disgusting finger. You're the Andrew Dice Clay of safety trainers.

You're the Terry Bradshaw of curmudgeons.

Good read here...until Skeeter dragged the L word into it. Luckily the L words were there to protect that river from you C words so my kids and I can still enjoy it. Thanks for adding your side of the story anyway. But it doesn't matter now...the right thing was done and we still have a beautiful, ageless flowing river instead of some boring, stagnant blob. And imagine what a cesspool it would be by now. Yuck...you thing Lake O is bad. Your flesh would melt off in the toxic waste it surely would be.

I've made the analogy before...rods and reels are tools. You can rip a sheet of plywood with a drywall saw, and you can drive a nail with a wrench, but those aren't the right tools for those jobs. They can be done much more efficiently and easily with the right tools. Throwing a spinnerbait or big crankbait with a spinning reel, or trying to skip a fluke under some overhanging branches with a BC CAN be done, but it's not the most efficient way to do it. There's no rod and reel setup that can do it all...it's always a matter of application and choosing the best tool for the job.

My guess would be on TRL the smallmouth would think about spawning first, but I have no experience on that lake, and little experience on any lake, so it's just a guess. But all three - largemouth, smallmouth, and Kentuckies - they're all black bass.

Do you guys think it even matters on nymphs? If drifted freely they'll just kinda roll and tumble on the bottom anyway, yeah? I mean imagine when a real nymph gets dislodged and swept up in the current...I'm sure it doesn't drift in an upright, fixed position. That would look about as natural as this:

Maybe try a lower profile reel, Greasy. The new Curados are really comfortable. I used to feel kind of the way you do with the big, clunky reels, but the newer models are far more ergonomic. Pair it up with a high-dollar lightweight rod, and I suspect you'll enjoy the BC experience much more.

LMAO You're the John Malkovich of forum posters, PD. And it's Eric the Impudent...get it straight. I'm the Wade Boggs of disrespecters and call it like it isers.

Humpday bump. No one wants this bad mofo? I'll take $225, final offer.

I used to do a lot of backpacking, so I have the right gear to make an overnight possible and comfortable in a yak. But I really like having my bigass cooler and 30 pack of brewskies and tasty fatboy food and my bigass Sealines stuffed full with pillows and blankets and other pusillanimous creature comforts with me...and still have room for my rods to safely ride tucked below the gunwales. Besides, I got no more space to hang a third boat in my garage. Maybe I'll sell my solo one day. I've been drooling over the Coosas since they came out...but dayum, they are expensive. Just can't justify it.

No hating here...the Coosa is a sweet boat. Not ideal for overnights but a killer day tripper for sure. I'd buy one if they went on clearance, half price.

Can you post up those numbers? I'd like to see 'em.

Even mentioned two gigged bass...that's good stuff. We need more articles like that floating around.

Yeah but some are better or worse than others. It's pretty universally accepted that robster craw dericious.