Sexy Asian Succubus!

Some baits are just plain sexy for just simply being themselves. This applies to this bait, the Megabass Z Crank Blue Label crankbait from Japan. A plain but beautifully finished paint job setting off it's mysterious and seductive emerald eyes, the hint of the pure high quality balsa wood grain showing through the tinted clearcoat on the belly like silky, creamy smooth skin hinting at that much more through slinky filmy lingerie, a high tech and functional micarta circuitboard lip for that naughty cyberpunkette edge and attitude, and sexy slithery smooth lines that will sensously draw the fish into it's hooks deadly caress.

Live Lure Porn!

One thing that I really like in fishing lures is innovation. Lucky Craft is a lure company from Japan, that makes higher quality lures. They make your normal hardbaits like crankbaits, jerkbaits and topwaters. They also have a series of baits called the 'live' series, where theyre multi-jointed and have really cool actions as a result.
This first picture is of thier Live Pointer 95 series of jerkbait. I like them alot, and if I find them on sale, I make sure I get some.
This is a lipless crankbait in the 'Live' series. I think the 'Live' series of baits from Lucky Craft are freakin' cool, and I don't care if they never catch any fish, I'll still enjoy them!

Smallie Killer!

It's finally in my hands! Heres what I had made:

a medium-medheavy mod/fast action deadly 6'9" spinning rod for senkos with woven graphite handles, smallie pattern inlay, matching wraps and guides.

Heres some sexy pics:
The handle with my sexy Daiwa Certate 2500R Custom mounted and ready to fish.

A closeup of the smallie pattern inlay.
Another closeup of the inlay.
Check out the sexy guide!
Heres a view of the action of the rod.
It's an awesome rod, and I'm sure it will be catching many fish soon!

Lure Pornography!

I got this idea from my buddy Bart, who let me borrow his digital camera to document my fishing tackle for insurance purposes. I took a few pics of my favorite pieces of tackle, rods, reels, lures, etc, so now I'm going to show you my favorites in the next little while.

This first one is a Norman crankbait, in a crazy weird crawfish crappie trainwreck mixture of colors with purple sparkles and an interference clearcoat overtop. It's so ugly and sexy! the color pattern is fittingly called 'Apocalypse'

Free Stuff

Well, people who know me know I've been stuck at home for 3 weeks due to having foot surgery. 3 weeks off of work might sound like somethng great, but when you are forced to stay at home due to being unable to drive, and can only hobble/hop from one room to the next, it gets old really fast.
Anyways, I'm one of the staff at the great fishing site/forum called Fishin Fanatics, and the site ownwer picked a great time to ask me to come up with a contest to help inspire some more activity on the board, and to generate some new members, and so, with my long layoff at hand, I did. I have to say I came up with an ingenious way to inspire more posting, and make it very fair in picking a winner. To qualify, all you have to do is start one fishing related thread a week, and make 5 posts. Too easy. The prizes are drawn each week, and I have to say the sponsors that I've approached have all come through in mega fashion with some amazingly cool prize packs. So, if you're just happening on to this blog for the first time, or have checked it out before, I suggest checking out Fishin Fanatics, and joining the contest, as not only can you win cool stuff, but the general membership of Fishin Fanatics is ultra cool as well, and a good group of people to learn, and share fishing related stuff. The link to Fishin Fanatics is on the right in the links section, and heres the direct link to the contest so you can see what I mean by ultra cool, ultra easy, and fun:
http://fishinfanatics.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=3266&st=0

Bass Candy! (Bugs and Stuff)

Anyone who know me knows I have a predeliction for soft plastics. I have my favorites, like Filthy Fishermen Baits, Gary Yamamoto and others, but I'm always looking for cool new baits in different shapes, colors and sizes. And, since I've been off work due to foot surgery for 2 weeks now, I've had plenty of time to surf the net to find interesting new ones. Here's a couple I've found that are very interesting, and that you might not have seen before.

Imakatsu has some amazingly cool baits, not only soft plastics, but hard baits too. But, as we're focussing on soft plastics right now, here's a couple of their coolest. The first one is the Hairy Hawg. It is the most intricate soft plastic I've ever seen. I've looked to buy a few, but only found them on ebay for 12$ each. I think I'll try to find them a bit cheaper, as I haven't found a review for them yet stating how durable they are.

Another Imakatsu bait that is amazing is the Javallon. It's a jointed soft plastic jerkbait that has an amazing action. They're hard to find also. Amazingly, a few years back I ordered a clearance grab bag from Mr.Twister and got a few lures that look exactly like this. Now of course they're not listed as a product, and they must be discontinued. Supposedly Lake Fork Tackle here in the US makes them too. Heres a link to a video of the Javallon in action. http://www.imakatsu.co.jp/movie/050621_1152193839.asx Sexy slinky moves!!!!!
Stop motion shots of the Javallon in action below. Did I say Sexy?!! Another cool bait is the Bait Breath Dekamix. In the same vein as the Hairy Hawg, it screams both 'buy me!' to the fisherman (me) and 'bite me!' to the fish.
So far, all the baits have been Japanese luremaker creations, but heres a couple of stateside soft plastics that arent slouches either. Case Plastics has been around for a while, and makes some really sexy baits, like the Jack's Worm that I use for catching smallmouth bass with great success. But he has some really cool and really lifelike bugs too. The top one is a Hellgramite, which in nature is a highly sought after entree for the discerning smallie, and the second is a Magic Cricket, which is also very tasty to smallies.

And finally, one more American luremaker's ultra cool creation, Lunker City's Ozmo. How cool is this bait? Buggy, froggy, flappy, creepy and crawly wrapped up into one awesome package. I'm definitely picking up a few!

American Handcrafted Lure Art

Well, those Japanese lures were something to behold, but do not fear, patriotic American fisherman. You CAN get amazing handcrafted pieces of lure art right here in your back yard. The company is Carolina Chips Custom Lures, out of Auburn Hills, Michigan. These lures are of a wholy different style than the Japanese lures, but show no less quality. Comparing them is like comparing Szechuan rice with Jambalaya. Both are made with rice, and spicy as all hell, but are two wholy different entities. I first encountered Carolina Chip's Lures when I won one in that now legendary contest, the Crazyfish Rods/FishinFanatics Multispecies Contest. I was given the opportunity to have the lure of my choice made from Carolina Chip's wide selection. Trying to pick one was impossible, as they were all so enticingly beautiful. So instead of picking one, I left it up to the luremaker himself to give me a "Joel St. Germaine Special", one that is that bass fishing professional's goto smallmouth bass crankbait when the chips are down and the money is on the table. I had no idea what I was going to receive, but I knew it would be cool. And, it was. I received a 3/4 oz medium fat diver in this killer color he called Copperback Shad. Let me say that I have ALOT of crankbaits. at last count, the total was over 125. All shapes, sizes, brands. This lure was above and beyond all of them in terms of quality.
Anyways, let me stop talking, and start showing you what an artist this luremaker is.

This is the lure I won in my contest. notice the signature on the lure, the artist signing off on this unique piece of art.

This next lure is his Deep Bass Raptor in his Tilapia pattern. Notice the diving lip, it's made out of micarta circuit board. It's extremely hard to come by, and to work with from what I've heard, but a perfect material to make the diving lips out of due to its light weight, and stiffness.
This is his Kuba crankbait, painted an amazing bluegill pattern, again using micarta for the lip. Most of his baits are made from ultra high grade balsa wood.
He also does custom lure refinishing. Here, he has refinished a 25 year old Bagley B lure for bass professional Ish Monroe. Looks better than new! Being a small company not only allows for excellent customer service, of which I am a happy recipient, but also to think outside the box without any corporate interference and explore creative avenues or exercise personal design ideas. I've never seen a lure in this specific shape, and I'm positive the fish haven't either. Killer looking.

And finally to my favorite lure creation by Carolina Chip, simply named Unlucky Larry.
As you can see, Carolina Chip does some amazing work, and just goes to show that luremaking creativity and artistry isnt restricted to Japanese design houses, or large faceless corporate comglomerates. And it definitely shows that that if you look off the well trodden path of Walmarts and BassProShops, you can definitely find lures of pure art and genuine handcrafted genious. You can find a link to his site in my links section.

Japanese Lure Art

Theres alot of amazing fishing lures and items out there that you dont see in the stores. One lure company that has impressed me is Vagabond Lures from Japan. Unbelievable craftmanship and attention to detail are what set these lures apart. These lures are sold mainly in Japan, so finding them here is quite difficult. There are some online shops from Japan like PLAT (http://www.plat.co.jp/english/english_top.htm) that sell them, but unfortunately, most of the time theyre sold out, as these are justifiably lures that a collector would want. And, I'd have to say, would catch fish! Heres a few pictures of their lures that i've gathered for your viewing pleasure. Dont forget to cover your keyboard, as you'll drool all over it.

The first lures here are Jointed Arrowanas. They are a topwater slider style lure.
Just amazing detail in the paintwork and finish!

This next lure is a Diamond Tail. This is another topwater style lure mixed with a swimbait, but it also dives a bit due to the protruding lip. I can't tell you for sure, as I don't have one, but it sure looks like it would catch fish. I love this color scheme, Vagabond calls it Chimidoro. look at that blood trail!

This next lure is called a Dovelman. it again is a topwater lure, I would consider this a wakebait as it has a lip, and a propeller on the tail, so it would cause quite a commotion just underneath the surface.

Again, the Chimidoro color pattern with the blood!

This is next one is called a Baby Namazu Crawler. Never used it, so i can only guess that it makes quite a different sound and action than your typical topwater lure. Looks at those antennae!
This one is called a Donco. It looks like a typical popper, except that it has a bowed back, so I'd think it would have a bit of walk the dog action too.

These are killer looking baits called Simson J's. no clue as to how they come up with these names, but these are some beautiful lures.
This looks exactly like a redbreast sunfish that we have around here. I mean exactly. Again, these lures are amazingly beautiful. Next post will be of some amazing lures made closer to home.

The Karma Kitten!

Well, it's been pretty much a year since I picked up my new boat, up til now known as the 'Fishing Unit of Considerable Karma', or 'the F.U.C.K.' for short. She's been really good to me, and after proving herself a boat filled with major fish catching karma and charm, I've decided that she's earned a name more in line with her sexy profile and lucky nature. In this first year, I've had some really great times on her, like when I caught that big esox niger on her maiden voyage, when I caught all those monster micropterus dolomieui, when I caught that big cyprinus carpio on the fat ika, when I caught my personal best micropterus salmoides, and when I had good friend out on her and was able to share good times with them. There's nothing like being the first one out on the lake when the sun is just ready to come up over the horizon, the water is as still and calm as glass, and the day is so full of promise, and fulfilling that promise with a successful day of fishing. I shared many days like that with her, and so she has earned her wings/fins, and a more fitting name.

I now introduce you to the Karma Kitten!

Bass Assassins!

I've just recieved two more lures as the spoils of my CrazyFish/FishinFanatics Multispecies Challenge Contest. These were handmade by Joe of Bodega Bay Lures out of California. I wanted a topwater lure and a shallow running jerkbait in color patterns that mimic natural forage.

The first lure pictured is of the shallow running jerkbait in a smallmouth bass pattern.

The second lure is a topwater skater in a black crappie pattern. As it would have a crippled or disoriented fish motion, I asked that Joe rotate the color pattern and eye placement of the lure 45 degrees, so that it would float almost on it's side. If you look close, you can see the hooks coming almost of the side of the lure pattern, it was done to perfection.

I cannot wait for spring to try them out and start catching fish! Bass beware!

Guaranteed Fish Catching Karma

One of the major benefits of winning the CrazyFish rods contest was that I got the chance to get some custom lures made up. One of the companies, SmallJaws Spinnerbaits, offered up the prize of 5 custom spinnerbaits. I had a lot of fun researching what exactly I'd like in a spinnerbait, and I think I came through with 5 lures that will work wonders around here, especially at the Nock, Galena, and the Delaware. On most, I tried to 'match the hatch' so to speak, and imitate the natural baitfish that are prey to the Micropterus dolomieui, the fish I target most often. So, to give you a little peek into the sexy world of custom lures, and into my mind's eye here are the 5 spinnerbaits that I created, and that were executed beautifully by SmallJaws.


size: 1/2 oz. weight, chartreuse with purple top jig head, strike spots, and red eyes.
blades: #4 silver willow followed by #6 silver indiana.
skirt: Purple on top of chartreuse to mimic a shad.
intended use: To be used in clear water. also the blades were chosen because when I researched it: "the front Indiana creates a water flow that seems to prevent the Willow from rotating normally. Instead, the Willow exhibits a lazier, faltering and errant type of spin in the wake of the Indiana blade. This creates a more lifelike blade action than the typical mechanical spin of a Willow blade. Bass rarely see this blade pair".

size: 1/2 oz. weight, chartreuse with purple top jig head, strike spots and red eyes.
blades: #4 and #5 silver indianas.
skirt: Purple on top of chartreuse to mimic a shad.
intended use: To be used in clearer water. dDouble indianas for a moderate speed retrieve. as an aside, "a double Indiana blade spinnerbait won back-to-back-to-back Bassmaster Classic world championship tournaments in 1974, 1975 and 1976", and I've not seen that combination in a store, so i figured id give it a shot.

size: 1/2 oz. weight, black with gold fleck jig head, and red eyes.
blades: #4 gold willow followed by a #6 gold indiana.
skirt: the skirt was to follow a pattern of crankbait that i like, black back, chartreuse sides, and orange belly. I found a matching skirt pattern on the net for smalljaw to follow.
intended use: For stained and murky water, the gold blades for flash and the black and chartreuse skirt for bulk and silhouette, and contrast.

size: 1/2 oz. weight, white with red throat jig head and red eyes.
blades: 1 #5 silver colorado.
skirt: pearl white and chartreuse/black stripe skirt to imitate an alewife or herring.
intended use: For cold water and ultra slow retrieves, also called a slow rolling retrieve.

size: 1/2 oz. weight with white jig head, splash of red on throat.
blades: #4 gold chopper followed by #5 silver chopper.
skirt: pearl white and chartreuse/black stripe skirt to imitate an alewife or herring.
intended use: The chopper blades are for very subtle action and vibration, for fishing clear, calm, and highly pressured water.

These pictures don't do these lures justice, as they are amazingly vibrant, or subtle as each was designed. I would definitely get more from SmallJaws, as they are incredibly inexpensive. about 3$ each, which, if you compare the same quality of spinnerbait in the store, you'd pay about 6$ to 7$. The lures were obviously made with as much care and attention as the thought I put into how I wanted each to perform in each of their specific niche. The link to SmallJaws Spinnerbaits can be found in the links section to the right.

The Year So Far Gone:

Well, I'll say it's been a hell of a long time since I did anything on here, and a helluva lot of stuff has happened since the last bit of wordplay was blogged. I guess the highlight event was my victorious campaign in the CrazyFish Rods Fishing Contest hosted by my favorite online hangout, the Fishin Fanatics Forums (link on the sidebar: visit or die!), where the goal was to capture as many different species as possible, both fresh and saltwater, within the allotted time frame, which was 2 months, September 1st to October 31st. I overpowered the nationwide competition, catching 13 species. The variety of freshwater species I took into custody, identified and released were as follows: Salvelinus fontinalis, Lepomis macrochirus, Pomoxis nigromaculatus,Perca flavescens , Ameiurus nebulosus , Esox Niger, Micropterus dolomieui, and Micropterus salmoides. The saltwater species that I conquered were as follows: Paralichthys dentatus, Micropogonias undulatus, Mustelus canis, Mugil cephalus , and Pomatomus saltatrix.
What I received in recompense for my two months of ignoring wife, home and family in pursuit of this once in a lifetime contest was custom spinnerbaits by SmallJaws Lures and Boudreaux Baits, custom crankbaits by Carolina Chips Lures and Bodega Bay Lures, topwater poppers from TClark Lures, custom handpoured plastics from MyMomIsBecky Baits, tungsten weights and clips from Parasite Weights, tubes and jigs from Vertical Lures, a tackle organizer from Cooks Goto Tackle, lure/rod protectors from LureTamers, and the piece de resistance, a full handmade custom rod by CrazyFish Rods. In the associated picture, you can see me with some of the spoils I hve received up to this point. In the following days, I will go more indepth into the past 6 months, as alot of fishing was done, and as a bonus, a lot of catching too.































(above portrait of the victorious Supreme Overlord Himself hoisting the vanquished prey, a 70lb Carcharhinus obscurus horsed into submission with a skimpy but scrappy little Abu Garcia 6500C levelwind reel with NO power handle spooled with 30lb Sufix Siege Mono attached to an Ugly Stik Tiger rod.)

Dialed In!

Well, it's been a while since the Hardcore Fshin blog has been updated, but fear not, piscine voyeur, I have been busy catching more big bad micropterus dolomieui from 3 lbs up to 4.13 lbs, micropterus salmoides up to 4 lbs, and even the odd esox niger. I've fished the Nock, Lake Galena, Lake Marquette and Memorial Lake in Lebanon county. My Luck has been pretty good, of course it's a wide gap between time spent fishing and time spent actually catching, which is why it's called fishing and not catching. I haven't gotten skunked in a while, and the fish I've caught around here are nicely sized. When I was in Harrisburg for work training for two weeks, I took the F.U.C.K.ing boat, and pretty much fished every evening after training until dark. Most of the fish I caught up there were 1-2 lbs, small in comparison to up here, but then again, the lakes are quite different structurally, especially Memorial Lake, which was shallow and very weedy. The best fish I caught up there wasnt even a bass, it was a hammerhandle esox niger, who just completely exploded on a top water lure. I tell you top water fishing is a blast when theyre biting, they usually hit the lure hard, with a big splash and commotion. I can't wait to get a sizeable micropterus dolomieui on a top water lure, it will most likely be freakin awesome.

Always Look on the Bright Side/Reversal of Fortune

I had planned to go out to the Nock on Friday due to the fact we were working extremely close to it lately. Woke up on Friday with a sinus headache that only got worse throughout the day. Exacerbated by the fact that we worked through lunch, by the time I was off work I wasnt feeling too hot. Instead of going straight to the Nock, I decided to take my time at lunch, get some cool air into my system and mellow out first. Well, I think it did a world of good. I decided to go off the cuff, and fished an area completely opposite to what I had been fishing lately. Lo and Behold, my personal record 5.9lb micropterus dolomieui came almost right on cue. Then a 4.9lb. Then a 4.8 lb. Then a 3.11 lb. Then for a lite afterthought, a 2 lb micropterus salmoides. It was quite a great end to a day that had started very poorly, to say the least. I had cast fruitlessly for a while with a spinnerbait, and decided to change to my confidence bait, a senko worm. Basically first cast, I wasnt really paying attention as I had drifted in a touch too close to the shore, and my line started moving with a mind of its own. That got my attention immediately, and I set the hook, and Kabaaam, my drag starts screaming out, and then this huge bronze brute jumps about 2 feet out of the water, and the fight was on. When I finally got it to the boat after a few minutes, I was adrenalized and amazed at the size and beauty of the fish. When I held it up into the light, it was surrounded by a golden sheen that almost glowed. It will truly glow in my memory for a long time to come. I got some pictures of the fish I caught that day, and they were developed THE NEXT day.
They turned out great. Anyways, I went out today again with a friend of mine. And again proceeded to start off with a white spinnerbait. I had a few hits right off the bat, but nothing that stuck, until a 3.13lb micropterus salmoides hit it, and I was on the board again. A couple of casts later, I had a small reel backlash that snapped my line and sent that lure flying up, up, up high into orbit, then down, down, down, into the deep blue abyss, never to be heard from again. As I didnt have another white spinnerbait, I went to my confidence bait, the lowly do nothing senko,
and proceeded to catch another 4 micropterus dolomieui, ranging from 4.12 lbs to 3.9lbs, and missing another three or four hits. It's days like these that are awesome, and makeup for the skunk days, But even the skunk days are better than doing anything else.
(Above image of the Overlord's personal best 5.9 lb micropterus dolomieui)

Fish in a Barrel

I went out on my yearly FatherInLaw/SonInLaw trout fishing expedition on the Tohickon on Wednesday. They had stocked it on Tuesday, and I wanted to make sure that it had been stocked, as the last year, we went prior to it's stocking by mistake, thinking that all trout streams are stocked prior to opening day, which proved to be untrue. So, on Tuesday after work, I went and proceeded to catch and release about 25 trout, mostly salmo trutta but there were a few oncorhynchus mykiss mixed in. I was using red mealworms for the most part, and they seemed to work very well. I didn't have any issues with my respooled reel either.I worked all my usual riffles and eddies that I have figured out over the years would hold trout, and had a nice old time. Things were looking good for Wednesday morning. Wednesay morning rolls around, I pick up some coffee for the Old man (he's 72) and I and proceeded to meet him at his "spot". His legs are going, so he can't walk too far, so his "spot" is within easy access of the road, but in a less than ideal location of the stream, in comparison to the areas I have success with. It is slower, and there isn't really much structure for the fish to hold on. I got to the spot first, and began fishing, with little success. I use a trout float, with about 1.5 feet of leader to the hook, and a splitshot or two for eight, and try to keep the bait just above the bottom, looking as natural as possible with the flow of the creek. My FatherInLaw, on the other hand, likes to bottom fish, using just splitshot and a leader,which in most cases would be successful, but this year it just caused him grief, as the bottom was all weedy and snaggy due to the creek being low. after 3 hours of hard fishing, I had caught 5 trout, 3 small ones, and two decent sized (11 inch) salmo trutta. I also caught a bunch of lepomis macrochirus which are a sideproduct of using mealworms, as they wont usually hit a spinner, but love mealies. Anyways, my FatherInLaw gavce up without even catching a lepomis macrochirus, whihc is quite unfortunate, but a refelction of his choice of location and fishing styles, and his set in his ways refusal to change to a more effective tactic. After he left, I switched to a spinner, I only have three trout ones, a silver kastmaster, a gold phoebe, and a black and gold mepps, and proceeded to catch 5 more salmo trutta after another 2 hours of hard fishing, mostly on the gold phoebe. I don't really see what the real big deal with the stocked trout fishing. They will die off in about 8 weeks if not taken to creel, and though there are many stocked, i would personally like to see less stocked if it would mean larger size. Even more preferable, I would like to see more emphasis put on other fisheries, but I guess the PA Boat and Fish Commission makes most of their licence dues from the very casual trout fisherman, who only goes out on opening day and a few others.
Ah well. I'm about half done my roll of film of fish pictures, I'll have quite a few to post when I finish the roll. I'm actually hoping to get the wife shopping this weekend for a digital camera. Wish me luck!

Exorcism of the Gremlins

Well, it's been a week or two or more since the Supreme Avenging Overlord has updated the blog, completely due to the fact that I havent taken the F.U.C.K.ing boat out due to inclement conditions, and other factors, such as the duties around the home front. I took the F.U.C.K.ing command vessel out to Lake Galena two weeks ago, the water had been drawn out to fix the dam last fall, and since the winter has been less than overly precipitous, it hasnt come ven close to it's normal level yet, I'd say it's about 15 feet below normal. Let's just say, it takes a real hardcore fisherman to struggle to put the boat in at launch ramps that are obviously made for higher water levels. And struggle even more to get it loaded onto the trailer after fighting some heavy winds with only a trolling motor. Another note on the trolling motor is to next time get one with a little more balls. The one I have now is the one rated for the boat, but in a headwind, or on the river, it'll be a headache and a slow and scenic ride if you know what I mean. I did capture a small micropterus salmoides, a 17 inch stizostedion vitreum, and a pomoxis nigromaculatus though, and read many large fish on the fishfinder that I'm assuming were morone saxatilis encamped at 32 feet.
Yesterday and today, (04/15 and 04/16) I also ventured out, this time to the Nock, where it was windy yet again. I have to say I don't care much for fishing in the wind, as it is a pain the ass to detect strikes, but my boat handling is improving slowly but surely. Yesterday, I captured 3 micropterus salmoides one of them being a 3.5 lber. It was a really nice morning, foggy to start, few other boats around. After I got home, I decided to head out to catch some of the trout the state has stocked in the Nesh. Going out on opening day is always an adventure, but I avoided the real hordes that show up early in the day. I caught 5 trout, 4 being salmo trutta and one an oncorhynchus mykiss in about an hour and a half, and missed alot more strikes as I was fighting major line twist on my spool, and I was getting extremely annoyed when I couldnt cast where I needed to because of it. Needless to say, that line has come off, and I've respooled with Sufix Elite. Hopefully it works better.
I also went to the Nock today, but all I caught was a bad case of windburn as it was blustery as hell. I just anchored on a protected area off a point, and experimented. Obviously the fish were at Easter dinner somewhere else, as I had one light bite the whole 6 hours I was on the water. I also tested the livewell for the first time, it leaks abit, it will need a bit of caulking, just another one of those pesky gremlins that I'm finding out about as my experience with the boat gets better. I'd also like to lower the bunks abit, for better shallow water launching, and I need to find a solution to the rod storage problem. When I have a fishing partner on the boat, space will be at a premium.

Initial Thoughts Upon the F.U.C.K.ing New Boat

I've been out about 3 times so far, twice to the Nock and once to Towhee. The catch rate hasnt been to phenomenal as of yet, but it's still early in the season, the water temps are cold, but warming slowly but surely, and the fish will be starting to become more active as they do. As for the F.U.C.K.ing boat itself, everything runs as it should, I think in the somewhat distant but near future, I will switch to a trolling motor with autopilot, as it woold give me more of my attention to fishing, than to maneouvering the boat to keep it in a straight line, especially in the wind. The console is a great option, but it's drawback is that there is less deckspace, and when I have all my stuff on board, it seems to get a little tight on space, with the pfd's, the net, the boat hook, the anchor, spare clothes, lunch kit with my water and snacks (prevents dehydration and keeps me in my obvious tip top physical state), whatever tackle boxes I have on deck etc etc. And having 5 or 6 rods close at hand doesnt make the space situation any easier to deal with. Why 5 or 6 rods you ask? You can only use them one at a time you say? Well, each rod has its own particular purpose. A crankbait rod, a spinnerbait/topwater rod, a senko/worm rod, a dropshot rod, a jig rod, an ultralight rod for crappie and perch, and when I'm on the Nock, and a striper rod, on the chance that I see them feeding actively. All are rigged with my choice of lures for the day. So when I need it, I can just pick i tup, instead of re rigging or re tying. I'm sure over time, I'll figure out a good system for everything, but until then, it's just trial and error until they find their spots. I also have to really make an effort to remember my pee cup, it would make that part of on the water time much easier, much easierthan leaning overboard, trying to keep your balance so as to avoid taking a premature soaking in both human AND fish wee wee.

No Such Thing As A Bad Day's Fishing

A spur of the moment decision on Monday morning (sunshine sickness) resulted in my calling off work to go fishing at the Nock. As my friend and co worker El Barto so insightfully brought up later, it was bad for my karma to do so.
I got the boat to the ramp area, and was doing my usual (if you can can the second time ever 'usual') thing to prepare it for the water, ie: putting the seats in, mounting the fishfinders, putting my rods in etc. While I was doing this, two guys came over who were fishing off the docks when I first arrived and we started talking, somewhat distracting me from my task. They left, and I drove the down to the ramp, and backed it into the water to launch it. I got out of the truck and started towards the boat, and I heard a little burble, bubble, burble coming from the back of the boat. Needless to say, I had forgotten to put in the drain plug. I pulled out the boat, and emptied the smll amount of water that had gotten in, and made a mental note to put the drain plugs somewhere more noticeable next time.
Anyways, on the water it didnt get much better, hence the bad karma. The only piscine contact I had all day was right at the start. I cast my trusty crappie crankbait into a brushpile, and as I was wearing my polarized oakleys, I could see a decent fish go for the bait. well, I was eager beaver and set the hook too early, and ended up hooking a nice twigfish. Then the wind picked up. I'm still not too proficient at boat control using the trolling motor, and so half my attention was on that, and half on my casting. My first mishap I cast the crappie crankbait into some brush in about 1 foot of water. So, of course having forgotten my boat hook at home (more bad karma) having used it to reach for the bungee cords under my boat to tie down the sexy new boat cover, I had to use my net to pole over to the sticker bush and extract the lure from the middle of it. A few prickles later and some swearing, I was back to fishing. I move to another area, I cast, my lure again goes into some trees. I pull on it to get it back/out. I comes back at 80 mph, misses my head by about 4 feet, and the ensuing trail of sufix braided fishing line proceeds to get wound around me, another rod I had sitting on the deck, the console, and the reel on the rod I was using. I take a minute to look up from the untangling, and the wind had pushed the boat so that the trolling motor was pulling me straight to shore, and the shore was fast approaching. I drop the rod and line, and hit the foot control of the motor to turn, so the boat started doing circles in the middle of this cove. Also, the lure was still in the water, and I had to practically dive to pull it out before it and the line got wound around the trolling motor. Needless to say, I was frustrated and pissed, and the wind wasnt helping matters. A couple of more episodes like that followed, and after 6 hours of fruitless fishing, I gave it up, and headed in. As bad as it all sounds, I still wouldn't trade a day like that on the water for a good day at work anyday. (no offence to Team Kennedy and co-workers.)
(Above image of a Ictalurus punctatus captured in 2005 at Lake Galena by the Supreme Overlord)