Fishing

[Rash]

While he wasn't catching the biggest snappers I've seen, I'll still give that fella a 9 out of 10 on the bad assery meter.

I had a snapper go after a tire on my car once. They aren't to be trifled with. 

Sounds like the chainsaw got the best of him.

[Melvin]

Sounds like the chainsaw got the best of him.

Well there you go, he even eats chainsaws.

9.5 out of 10 now.

[TheBug]

Got my new fishing toy today. 

And it looks like we should be having a nice stretch of warm weather to open up the water.  Can't wait to give it a try.

[fbWldcat]

There is literally so much water, the roads around the lake are COVERED in about 3 ft of the stuff. We couldn't put in at Green River Lake, so we went to Willisburg and (I) caught 6 crappie... The only fish we (I) caught.... All less than the size of my hand...

[RedTop]

Fished all week last week and the weekend...caught fish everday and probably was a total of 50 or so.

[Vudak]

I finally got my first bass of the year the same day the ice melted (Friday).  I was using a smaller marabou jig.  Since then, a "cold front" has moved in, although I'm not sure it means much considering how early in the season it is!

[RedTop]

I finally got my first bass of the year the same day the ice melted (Friday).  I was using a smaller marabou jig.  Since then, a "cold front" has moved in, although I'm not sure it means much considering how early in the season it is!

Finally...wtg Vudak

[Flench]

Fish have not turned it on here yet . Been out all week and had one keeper . Going to give the water a few day's and go back .

[TheBug]

WTG Vudak! 

Was hoping to get out this upcoming weekend but 1-3 inches of snow tomorrow and low 30's for the rest of the week has put a damper on those thoughts.   

[Vudak]

Well, since it should be at least a few weeks (in parts of the country) for the fishing to really take off, why not post what you’re planning on/hoping for this year?  I think it would be interesting to see what people from different parts of the country/world do in a fishing year.

I’ve sourced a canoe this year and am looking forward to not being stuck on shore in Connecticut.  It opens up a world of baits that just aren’t practical when you can’t reach the snags. 

I figure I’ll concentrate on smaller baits like marabou jigs and maybe a 2” or 3” grub for the next few weeks until the water warms up and they start prespawning.  Then move on to poppers & devil's horse in early may, and Spinnerbaits after they figure out that trick.

My first trip to Lake Champlain is set for April 9th, but I don’t know if the lake will be open by then.  At any rate, I don’t plan on venturing too far from the house and will probably concentrate on a small channel nearby looking for staging bass.

In early May, I plan on switching over to targeting pickerel and pike to try and give the bass a chance to guard their nests successfully.  I’m not a tournament fisherman, so I don’t really care what I catch so long as something is biting and fighting.

I’m bringing my young cousin-in-laws (ages 14 and 10ish) up to Champlain for Memorial Day and am not sure what to do.  On the one hand, I know I could put them on some chunky bowfin and catfish by throwing dead shiners out and letting them sink & stink.  On the other, this kind of fishing can be pretty boring.  I suppose they could play badminton while they wait, or throw spinnerbaits and topwaters at the sunken tree.

In June, I’ve scheduled my first two charters of the year with Captain Mickey Maynard (www.lakechamplainangler.com).  My father, wife, and I will be spending a weekend going after pike in the vast northern reaches of the lake (our house is in the narrow south, near Ticonderoga). 

We’ll probably just go with the flow for the rest of the summer, fishing slower as the water warms, and faster as it cools.  The next “happy time” will be in September, when I’ll be back on Champlain going for the biggest pike of the year.

So what is your typical year like where you’re from?

[gpwurzel]

In the UK (I'm now in Cali) my fishing year went something like this.

January - beach fishing for cod/anything that came along

February - beach fishing targeting flounder

March/April - beach fishing looking for early plaice/large rays

May - beach fishing looking for early bass (saltwater), plaice, rays, huss and somewhat peversely, dogfish (fantastic on a barbecue oddly)

June/July - beach fishing at night targeting anything I can get a hook into!! Plus the start of my coarse fishing year - generally looking for Tench, Carp etc - also the time of year I start match fishing a bit more

August/September - beach fishing looking for bigger fish - the ability to cast over the 150yd mark very important during this time of year - not the distance thats important, its the ability to cover a much larger area than your opponent (speaking match fishing here) Big target during these months are tope and other shark like species from the shore.

October/November - looking at winding down match fishing (beach wise) and cleaning/sorting gear for the winter (travelling a lot looking for bigger fish)

December - back to night fishing from the beach looking for cod/anything else I can catch.

The last year I had in the UK, I was fishing 2/3 times a week, either in a match, preparing for a match or fishing with the wife - working shifts helped a lot with that.

Wurzel (made this very generic to avoid typing a wall of text!!)

[Vudak]

I've never surf fished (or ocean fished at all, for that matter) before.  It must be interesting seeing what bites.  What's the most interesting/out of place thing that you've caught? 

[gpwurzel]

In the UK, biggest I've caught from the beach was a 5 pound 4 ounce plaice (which doesn't sound a lot, but was a silver specimen for the area). From being in the navy, I've fished all over the world. Caught a salt water catfish in Dubai harbour that ran over 35 pound (gave it to a local who was watching me) Same night caught a double figure blonde ray too (that went back in the water)

The major difference between fresh and salt water is the heavier equipment - you need the extra weight to get your bait out there, and bring it back in. Standard set up for me is...

13ft beach caster (I use paired zziplex's 3500's)
Multiplier reels seated low down (approx 1 hands width from the bottom of the butt)
15 pound line
70 pound shock leader (4 winds on the reel when in casting position - used to avoid firing a 6oz weight up the beach at high velocity - not a good thing)
Terminal tackle connects with a quick release system - allows me to chop and change tactics on the fly
Hook sizes - for the area I was in, mostly size 1's, occasionally a 2 - unless the smoothhounds were in, in which case a 1/0 or a 2/0 were prefered. Fine wire hooks preferred also (smooth beaches where I was fishing)
Weights - generally either 6oz with no wires, or if the tide is running 6oz with wires (depended on type of tide, springs need a heavier weight).

With no wires, your baits move around a bit more, upside is increased scent trail for the fish, downside is likelihood of finding a snag, or tying your trace up in knots.
With wires, less of a mobile scent trail, but no knots - if tide is running, you can be broken out of where your gear is lying, by seaweed etc.

Wurzel

[gpwurzel]

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[gpwurzel]

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