T-RockJaws

I have a friend who is a taxidermist and actually does a great job on replicas. If you can get all the measurements (including girth), he really does a great job on a very nice replica fish. It still allows the actual fish to swim another day and gives you a nice memento to remember the experience by.

Definitely not one you would want to "lip" to get in the boat!

Dang bats!!! They can sure full you into thinking you get a bite if you are not paying close attention. Happens to me just about every time I am out at night.

In the hot summer months, it can be very beneficial for the fish if you are able to fill your livewells with some good cold well water before you leave for the lake. Make sure that is well water and not city water as the city water will contain chemicals that can be harmfull for the fish.

Apparently, these "clothing optional parties" are becoming much more of a trend on the Rock...

Not real sure how common the recirculate feature is, my boat is an 04 Ranger. I think the most important thing here is to protect the fish. If you cannot keep them alive, don't keep them. It would be nice to see a seminar put on that would focus on educating anglers on how to treat fish in the summer months.

Sam- You made some very good and valid points. Some organizations do at least reduce the number of keepers you can weigh in to 4 during the hot summer months. I know that it is simply not possible to keep every fish alive and a few are going to die regardless of what you do. However, there are some very simple tricks or precautions you can take that greatly increase the odds of survival for the fish. I believe the true underlying issue is the fact that many anglers simply do not care and/or they are not educated. My two best tips that I could give would be to: 1. Get some cold water in your live wells. Either use some well water (do not use "city" water as it has chemicals that could harm the fish) to fill your wells before you head to the lake, or use some ice to cool the lake water you put in. You must also turn your wells to recirculate and not add fresh, hot water in. Keep those aerators running a lot! 2. Learn how to "fizz" your fish. This needs to be done while still in the live well if possible. Check on your fish periodically and fizz them at the first sign of them floating on their side. These two simple steps will greatly increase the chances of your tourney fish to survive!

Since my partner and I did not have any keepers to weigh in at 11:00 when the tourney was over, we continued to fish for a while to avoid some of the congestion at the ramp. We finally came in to load out at about 11:45 with no one else around anywhere. Once we got the boat loaded and pulled out of the water, my partner said "looks like we can practice using those fizzing needles a little bit". There was a floater that had managed to get over on the edge of the ramp and she was still kicking a little. I figured it was probably just a small, barely legal fish when I heard my partner say "this is a nice fish". She had been laying there flopping around for at least 30 to 45 minutes so we did not want to stress her out any more by trying to weigh her, but I would say she had to go close to 6 pounds. My partner grabbed her up, took her over by the courtesy dock where he could wade out a little to work on her. After about 15 minutes of trying to help her get right side up, we decided she was just too week and wasn't going to make it. We then went back to the boat to get it all strapped down and ready to go. Once we were done and ready to head home, my partner decided to give it one more try as the old girl was still trying to find some breath. He took her back out a little and gave it another go. just a few minutes later, she started bubbling and began to come around. Finally got her to stay right side up and snug to the bottom. She still wasn't in any hurry to go anywhere though. Once he got out of the water and we looked back in to see how she was doing, she was gone! Took him a good 20 minutes, but was able to get her revived so someone else might have a chance at her again some day. It is really sad that some people simply do not care... Just chunk them back out in the water and if they make it good if not so be it. At least this one got another chance!

Fishing seems to be getting a little better out there... Fished out of the bridge last night and headed up the white. Although we did not have our first keeper in the boat until a little after 11:00, we were at least able to get a few bites and actually hook up with several of those bites. The past few weeks have produced a lot of bites, but it has been extremely hard to get hook ups. Threw a jig both before and after dark, but really could not get much interest in them. Partner stuck pretty much with a big worm and I was throwing a 4 inch craw (black with blue flake). In about 5 hours we were able to boat about 16 fish with 2 solid keepers. There were several 10 and 11 pound bags weighed in last night. A solid summer pattern may finally be shaping up, good luck!

Probably doesn't make a whole lot of difference on what brand you use for the big worms as there are several good brands. Zoom makes an "Old Monster" 10.5 inch worm that is a good one. However, I am a little partial to Berkley Power Bait on most of my plastics.

Many people have used the toothpick trick for years, long before there was ever any other way to peg your line. You should not have a problem with break offs.

Point taken, I have a pair of Oakleys that I have had for at least 8 years and love them. However, I do not dare take them in the boat as I have had too many pair that have been lost at sea! I would be absolutely sick if a pair of $200 glasses flew off at 74 miles per hour. I think I have seen some of the higher end glasses now that have floating frames, that might be something to check into...

Sorry to say, nothing new to report. Still an extremely tough bite to get a hook set on... Put in at the bridge last night and ran up the Kings River arm to just a little above Viola then worked our way back. Did not really have a problem finding a bite, but the same old story of set the hook to soon and bring back half a worm. My partner had a nice 3 pounder that he got to the edge of the boat just to watch her swim away, come to find out she never got the hook in her mouth just simply was holding on to the tail with a closed mouth! Pretty much stuck with the big worms, never thru the jig. In hind site, I wish I would have at least give the jig a try. In 4 hours, we only had 4 or 5 fish with 2 keepers. Air temp was still 85 when we came out at 11:00...

Bill - not to worry, all "secrets" are still safe! I was interested to find out the size jig they were throwing. I have been throwing a 3/4 ouncer some. Brett - To try to answer your questions... 1. If you are looking for a decent but cheap way to peg your weight, a good old fashioned toothpick will work just fine. BPS also has some rubber pegs that are fairly inexpensive as well. 2. We typically use a 1/2 ounce weight on our big worms, sometimes the fish want it to fall a little slower and we will use a 3/8 ounce weight then. 3. The main advantage for me to pegging your weight is to get your worm to fall down into the brush. Without the peg, your weight will fall thru the brush while you worm stays up around the top of the brush pile.

That is pretty much what I have been reporting for the last month or so... I am sure that I am not in the same category as these two gentlemen, and I do not catch as many fish or get as many bites but my techniques are very much the same. Only difference is that I like to use a 4 inch chigger craw for a trailer on my jigs. I am sure that is simply a difference from the amount of years they have on me... My partner and I have had (and posted pictures of) several fish in the over 5 pound range and many more in the over 4 pound range using the big worms. Not to mention the numbers of fish we have caught in the good solid 2.5 to 3.5 pound range. I can tell you that you will not get near as many bites on a big worm, but the quality of the fish you catch will be much better. I had not given away quite as much detail, but since we are on the subject a 10 to 12 inch ribbon tail plum worm has been working fairly well just before dark also. I do not want to give the exact depth away either, but once you find it you can catch a few fish. Just work in and out a little until you figure it out! Good luck out there!

Very interesting read, thanks for posting it.

Juat another good reason to stay in my boat!!!

I have been having a pretty tuff time as of lately too. But from what I can figure out and others are telling me, if you find a fish or two you need to stay on them. Saturday night in our derby we fished it took 18 pounds to win. The winning boat had 8 keepers (culled 2 of them) in a 50 yard stretch of bank. That has been true for my partner and I as well. When we find 1 keeper, more will follow. The struggle is finding that first keeper!

Pretty sad that you cannot park a vehicle for a day of fun on the water and not have to worry about some idiot that doesn't want to work for the things they desire! Sorry to hear about your bad fortune.

Put in for a small derby at Campbell Point Saturday night. Ran up to just above Big M and started to fish our way back. Extremely slow night for us, partner had the only keeper with the two of us only boating 4 fish in a 5 hour tournament. Through everything at them other than the kitchen sink... Worked a drop shot for a while before dark with only 1 short spot to show for it. Switched to mainly big worms at dark and beyond but did throw some jigs and salt craws as well. For our tourney, it seemed to be pretty much feast or famine. Winning bag was 18 pounds and everyone reported either a real good night or a real bad night, not much in between. The bight was extremely soft. If you tried to set the hook too quick, you simply pulled your worm back in half eaten. If you tried to set on the bite and let the fish really suck it in, the fish would simply be gone when you tried to set the hook. Not much trouble getting bit, just had a hard time getting a hook in them. Most of our bites seemed to come with the boat in about 30 to 34 foot of water while still able to reach the bank with a good cast. Good luck!

Thanks for the report Bill, it is nice to find out that is a little slow even for some of the best!

Great job on a beautiful fish! Glad to know she was released unharmed, always nice to know that someone else will get a chance at her again sometime!

Nice fish, good job!

Cheaters never really win... Do it long enough and you will get caught! I hope he gets the book thrown at him.

Several had pretty rough nights with no fish to weigh in. Places were 5th at 6.14 up to 1st at a little over 12 pounds. We missed the money by less than 1 ounce... From what others were talking about, it was just a tuff night!