Mitch f

Great story Al, Even a guy with ADHD can enjoy that story. Couple of things, I would have done the exact same thing you did by pulling over and waiting a bit for a fish like that, up to 30 minutes if I had time. This wasn't your first rodeo, or the fishes either, for that matter! Second, I might have followed up with a tube or worm (maybe that's what you did). Gosh, I wish you would've caught that hawg, I would've loved to have seen that picture!! BTW, what size gunfish were you using? Also, you mentioned something that's very noteworthy....you got the big girl to hit after the forth of fifth twitch of the rod tip. Seems like all my bigger topwater fish hit within the first 5 ft or so. That's proving how good the element of surprise can be with a good WTD bait. Which is why getting the cadence started quickly on those baits is so important. This is why I like that new KVD sexy dog. I've never seen a bait get the cadence started so quickly. It also rides a little lower in the water, which is good. But I would like to try the gunfish.

The leaf drop is an annoyance to the jet intake and for the topwater bite, but like you said....my favorite time is opening weekend of deer season (yes, I've worn blaze orange while fishing) to thanksgiving. Then it's the full winter bite depending on the weather

Good to hear from you again Jeremy

Yes, Much to Al's chagrin, I'll say it once more, that I always catch my biggest fish in the fall and expect to catch another big one this fall/winter. Maybe its the difference in the rivers we fish in the summer. Topwater and jig are my fav's but cranks and jerks too under the right clarity and water temps. Just hope it muddys up right before gigging season and stays muddy for a couple of months.

Looks like your daughter's outfishing daddy

Agree with Gavin There were too many witnesses who saw him acting like a wild man. The dude was waiting like a black widow spider to run someone off his land....with a gun I might add.

Yep, this is a major issue. I've also think 100% fluorocarbon line magnifies the problem. I've completely stopped using 100% fluoro anymore and use a good hybrid. The older fluoros have good abrasion resistance but suck on knot strength.

The only experience I have fishing for Walleyes, other than a few in Missouri, is in Canada. We used 6-8 pound test and fished about 20-35 ft deep with 3/8-1/2 oz. jig heads. I don't remember the teeth causing any break offs.

Agree with both of you , however..... Having a local guide giving you real time information is much better than "dock Talk" or chasing leads. You can't tell me that GPS coordinates of brush piles wouldn't be valuable info to have in your back pocket when the chips are down.

I now see why I shouldn't have written the last sentence in my second post. Oh Well

The fact that a guy can cheat now by starting up a computer website or chat room that's open to the public, talk about fishing spots and locations and tactics, and then close it down without giving others access to the same information, clearly violating the first paragraph of the rules. Their defense is that because it was once on the internet, it was public information. "During the off limit periods, other than using publicly available information (e.g. newspaper and internet reports) pro competitors cannot solicit, receive, or gather any information via phone, electronic devices, or any other means about locating or catching fish on tournament waters." I listened to a local pro complaining about how hard it is to compete with the top pros who constantly skirt the rules.

In the old days (some pretty recent) guys would tie up a fish, or jam a lead weight down the fishes throat to cheat. They would get caught, humiliate themselves and their family, pay a fine, and possibly go to jail. Nowadays the cheating has become much more sophisticated, I attached a set of rules that are pretty common. I've heard some pretty high end anglers(you know them) that post a fishing forum that is supposedly open to the viewing public. They get local information from guides or others and mysteriously the website is taken down so no one else can see it. Legal? yes, but ethical, No. It reminds me of professional ball players with PED's, a huge percentage cheat, it's just proving that they've done it.

Well, you've chosen a good spot. It's hard to say whether the vehicles would be safe because I never leave one overnight. I know you could stay at Boiling Springs the first night....that might be the ticket

Wow, Great story! I wish I could have been there with you!

The strongest fish I ever hooked was a striper down on Lake Ouachita. I was trolling a hair jig with the trolling motor and we saw the graph light up, within 10 seconds my rod was bent straight down, taking the shape of the side of the boat. The drag didn't even slow it down as it took me straight down in 100 ft deep water and hung me up in the trees which were 20 ft off the bottom. The whole thing lasted about 20 seconds.

Is that the one he caught with the Sammy? Let's have a race to see who finds it first. I found the guys name but the link to the picture is dried up...BTW, here is the link, look down near the bottom for a guy named Jason Ketterman http://www.724outdoors.com/Staff/phish_fotos.htm

What's really, really, really sad is everyone knew it before you and didn't say anything!

some of the pics.

Agreed, a 4" worm is hard to beat when it's tough.

My brother Kevin, who is also my business partner, took his family on a mission trip to Honduras, which was sponsored by our church. We were busy at work and really didn't want him to take the time off because there are only 3 of us in the company. After we talked about it, we decided that we could rearrange our schedules and make it happen. The trip was for 10 days, the mission was two fold....One, to help build homes for the homeless, and two, to feed the starving people in the town. He told me on the side that the trip would also be good for his two children. He has a son who is a junior in High School and a daughter who is a freshman. He thought it might open their eyes and perhaps make them see how lucky they are. Upon arriving, they starting building the homes and buildings the next day. They had an alliance with several churches in a coordinated effort for this project. This was his favorite part of the trip. They were basically out in the countryside and the only problem seemed to be that the local children would come up to investigate and talk with them..... but they showed no fear of the construction process. In other words, They would walk right up to a guy with a chain saw and stand right behind them. The teenagers from the church helped remedy this issue, playing with the children and keeping them out of the way. Unfortunately the second half of the trip was when reality set in. They were to go to the city and help feed the homeless. He said the poverty was overwhelming, even beyond what he had imagined. But the worst part were the teenagers in town. They all walked around with small glass baby food jars. My brother inquired why they all were carrying small glass jars. Turns out the jars were filled with glue the kids were sniffing. It seems the glue is industrial strength shoe glue to be exact. It helps them sleep by shocking the nervous system, making the hunger, cold, and pain go away. The glue also causes irreversible brain, lung and kidney damage. He said the entire population of teenage kids he saw were addicted to the glue. I've been thinking about this since he told me the story and can't believe how sad this is. Like the title states, we don't know how lucky we have it.

Thanks for chiming in fellas, unique perspectives from all. Understand where wrench is coming from and it's nice to see an artisan in any trade. One of the best conventional bass fisherman that I know, Dan McKee, started out as a fly fisherman only. I think he and others who do both have a more well rounded ability to put fish in the boat.

Arkansas Shiner is my favorite fluke color

They look great! Did you ever think about titanium wire? The problem with regular wire is once a big fish bends it, it will never spin right again.

Go to Ft. Zumwalt park just west of hiway K on Veterens Memorial Parkway. But Busch Wildlife is the best bang for the short drive.

I've been tying my own hair for over 10 years, so I completely understand that aspect. I guess I'll need to go on a trip and leave the other stuff at home and be forced to fly fish.