Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Site Construction- Puting together a new Side-Bar Roll called Bass Pro Site-ING which will seek to be a conprehensive as possible listing of the Web Sites of Bass Pro's. You would think that almost every bass Pro from the Major to Minor Leagues would use the web as a venue to promote themselves and their sponsors, but I would say only about 20-30% of the pro's take advantage of the WWW in any way shape or form at all, at least that I can find.

Ohh well back to work.

A Day of Rest

Yesterday, I rested instead of fishing.

Blogrolling
I did do some work on the blog however. If you will notice to the right on the side-bar I have added many a new Blogroll-O-FishNblog. One of the cool things about a blog can be it's blogroll which are links to other blogs. I would really like to keep on top of all the blogs devoted to Fishing and Bass Fishing in particular. Most of the new additions came from the blogrolls of other blogs.

It is a challenge to stay on top of this because it takes a concentrated effort to look for new blogs and than add to your template. Of coarse you also end up reading a little something from the blogs before blogrolling them which adds to the time consumption.

At this point I am disappointed that there are not more dedicated or partially dedicated Bass Fishing Blogs. Maybe they are out there and I just can't find them.

Speaking of Bassin Blogs here are some tips for Cabin Fever from Rich's Bass Tournament Fishing Blog.

For something funny goto Moldy Chum

Sunday, January 29, 2006

This Day

Last night I could not sleep and my mind wandered into thinking about the Bass Pundit Blog Franchise Empire and how I have lost the plot. The model for the main BP blog was supposed to be Instapundit; quick commentary with links farmed out to the various franchise blogs. Instead of that the BP blog is catching almost everything and the franchise blogs are whithering on the vine. For instance, many of my last few posts could have been farmed out to The Fishing Log Blog via link. Getting into the habit of that, in theory, should make the whole Blog Empire run easier.

So now I'm gonna try to get on the right track and breathe some inspiration into the B.P.B.F.E..

Today there was a Slab Slowdown in my fishing.

Avid Update: I actually did a respecable job of repairing the St. Croix Avid Ice Rod that got a wee too close to the propane lantern last night. I made something like a splint from a broken graphite rod blank and super glued it in place. Worked like a charm to fix the thing. BP is happy now.

Notables from the BASS Okeechobee Southern Tour
Bobby Lane's baby brother Chis won.
Terry Scroggins was 2nd
Takahiro Omori was 20th

Currently Reading:
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Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure (Paperback)
by David Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Good Book.

New Franchise Blog Coming Soon!

South Korean Winter Combat Fishing via The Bass Hole

Saturday, January 28, 2006

Hard Luck Slabberday

The Aitkin Jaycees Ice Fishing Contest was a bust for me. I couldn't even bring up a little perch. I had two quality bites on minnows and whiffed on both hooksets, should have let them have it longer. Pout were 3 out of the top 4 places with a walleye in 3rd. I think there was 1 tulibee in the top 10, one other walleye in the top 20 and the rest were perch, including a couple that bested a pound.

Afterward I decided to head to Sullivan and try for some slabbers. I put in at the West Access and by accident ended up working a hump for eye's. In the process of doing that I accidentally had my St. Croix Avid Ice Stick, my best ice fishing pole, get to close to the Coleman Lantern and the blank got weakened but didn't break. I think if I put some kind of splint on it that maybe it can be saved. At that point I was one frustrated dude. I did manage to get off the break and find 6 solid 10" slab crappies and missed several more on bad hookset and probably also not feeling the bite. They were biting really light. What finally tripped the trigger was a big minnow on a Custom Jigs Glow Demon beneath a glow dropper as an attracter. In my other hole I had a small minnow on a Glow Demon. I would jig the big minnow and they would inhale the small minnow and just sit with it.

Now that I've found these dudes, look out.

Friday, January 27, 2006

Silver Dollars

Today I started with an early morning excursion to Sullivan in search of Tulibee's. What a slush and water pit after last nights rain. Usually the Tulibee thing starts sometime in mid to late February but I decided to try my luck anyway. I nabbed one nice crappie, a small eye, a couple of little perch. I did miss one good fish about half way up, but don't know if it was a Tulibee and that was it from about 7-10Am. I came back and took a nap.

I got back out around 3:30 and headed out on Platte to the North of the Big Island. It was a wet ride over with water splashing up to the point that I needed the wipers on. I immediately ran into a school of little sunnies and had fun catching them while watching on the camera. I saw a lots of sunnies and perch, a crappie, pike, and bullhead all swim by but no bass. Talked to a guy who was getting pike, little crappies, 1 bass, who said someone caught a 4lb bass the day before. As it got towards dark I started fishing that guys holes and got into a bunch of small Crappies. Mucho 3 to 5 inch Silver dollars. After dark I did catch them up to 8 inches but no slabs.

I know there are big pannies in Platte, but finding them seems to be a needle in a hay stack proposition.

Tomorrow I will be at the Aitkin Jaycees
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Trying to jig up an eye, Sumo Perch, or Tulibee. I could really use a 4 wheeler.

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Ice Fishing in a Rut

It's a wierd deal when you are driving home at night after ice fishing in a driving rainstorm.

Anyway, in Ice Fishing, and fishing in general, it is best when you get into a groove. Fishing is more fun when you are catching the fish you seek and catching them in a steady and predicatable path even if that path is slow; It build's hope and confidence which makes the whole experience more enjoyable. In regular open water fishing it is generally a whole lot easier to change your luck. In Ice Fishing changing your luck is just plain time consuming hard work; You have to drill lots of holes and move a lot. Because you are confined to that little hole, it's a bad thing to get stuck in an Ice Fishing rut where you just can't scratch up that fishy your after.

I'm in a rut and have pretty much more or less been in it every ice fishing trip I've taken this winter. Sure I've caught fish, but generally not the sized one's that I am really after. Today, I tried Mille Lacs for Jumbo Perch. The system is easy enough; Drive out onto the lake in the middle of nowhere, drill a couple of holes, and see if anything shows up on the electronics. If your lucky you run into sumo sized perch, if you are unlucky you run into either nothing, non-active fish that won't bite, or a variety pack of less than sumo sized perch aka "baitstealers." Today I caught a fair number of medium sized perch and one mini-jumbo. No luck on the Sumo's.

I ended up staying too long which cost me when I made the move to Shakopee, where I tried a different spot and struck out. I decided to leave as that I was marking very little and it was raining.

Tomorrow is supposed to be warm. I think I may try getting up early to chase Tulibee on Sullivan. Maybe that's how I can get my groove back.

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Look what I caught!

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The World's Smallest Fish.

The Dead Sea

Today it was a balmy 42*F here in MN. I hit Shakopee just after noon. I was fishing the same general area as the last time. I was catching small sunnies one after another with no signs of Crappies anywhere, not that I moved around much. By about 2:30 I was itching to try something different. I decided to try Mille Lacs out of the Casino public access and see if I could get to Indian Point. I got most of the way out there in the tracks of other vehicles when I sorta got stuck in this one spot. I decided I better turn around there and spent 45 minutes getting stuck and unstuck while turning around.

Life would have been much easier with a partner today. My Ford Ranger Pick up is lite and 2wd so it gets stuck easily. Freeing it isn't that difficult especially if you have someone to push which makes the truck much better in those tricky spots, plus additional weight means better traction so you are less likely to bog down in the first place. Anyway I did get the truck turned around.

I thought I was in a good spot but as it turned out I was a significant distance to the North of Indian Point. In case you didn't know underwater the Point runs from the the West to the SE thus the point was running away from me. To be on the spot I wanted to try I was a good 400yards from the truck. I stuck it out and struck out only having one sniffer and that was it. I think I should have stayed right next to the truck and fished there. I was only out until 6:30 and then had to pack it up to get to a Bible Study in Garrison.

Tommorrow is supposed to be nice again and I think I will try Mille Lacs again.

Some fun for once.

Check out this spoof over at Fishing Jones (via Moldy Chum)

Blog Neglect and Updates

It may be apparent that over the coarse of the Bass Pundit's existance I have let the blog fall into some disrepair. By the Grace of God I will be slowly working to update and improve the blog.

If you will notice on the right/sidebar I have added some links
Bass Zone
ProBassAnglers.com
BassDozer (Greatest Bass Fishing "How to" Article site on the net)
HellaBass Bassin' Blog (MN)

Updated one:
Ohio Bass Fishing Blog

Deleted a couple:
The Bassholes
Kansas Bass Fishing
Bassin Blog (OH)

Hopefully I will get to the Blogroll-O-FishNblog in the near future as well as start adding to both that and the Blogroll-O-BassNblog. I also will be bringing another franchise blog online one of these days.

Monday, January 23, 2006

Spring Fever

It's only January 23rd here in MN, which means there is a lot of winter left before open water and bass season opens. AGGGGGGGGGGHH. Spring Fever hit me today full force. Up to this point I've just had the winter blah's big time with mild intermittent cases of cabin fever. But today it's official, I'm sick of winter.

Sunday, January 22, 2006

ESPN Will be having Fantasy Bass Fishing in 2006

Registration will open up in early Feb. However they do have features open such as Prizes, and other stuff.

Check it out!

Saturday, January 21, 2006

Camp and Shakopee

Been out fishin the last two nights.

Last night the Slab search went to Camp. A lake I've fished only once before in the winter. The action was slow then but the size was good in that previous trip. This night the fish were not into it, but I managed to force a few to bite. Got a 9" and the rest were small. Arrived about 4PM

Tonight, after much debate I decided to head to Shakopee. Arrived around 2:30. I immediately started smacking small sunnies and perch. I got a hammer handle and kept catching sunnies. Then I popped a 10" crip and thought I might be onto something as the sun went down. Managed to catch quite a few small crappies, along with more small sunnies and perch. Got 1 more keeper Crappie and kept one nice Sunny as well. I may have to try Shakopee during the week when it's warm as that I think if one could get on a school some nice fish are there to be had. The visibility was better than I expected it to be and the fish continued to bite after dark although slowly.

Finally cleaned my fish (7) and ate em for dinner

Thursday, January 19, 2006

Worn out

Today the search for slabs was suspended because I was feeling worn out. Plus it was snowing at a pretty good clip and the thought of getting stuck on the ice just didn't appeal to me. We got around 6 inches which may mean I can't get out in my truck.

Update for the Posse at the Big O.

No Slabs for You

Tried a new area of Platte for Ice Fishing; North of the Big Island where there is always a host of houses. Upon arrival I was invited inside a house to see this guys set up and Aqua View. It looked like the right kind of area weed and depth wise. He has been fishing the area since December and he seemed to pretty much be a pike fisherman. We watched sunnies in the camera and he told me he had seen a bass or two and caught a couple. Said he hadn't seen a crappie.

I went back to drill a few more holes, instantly attracted a fish in and caught it. Crappie. I managed to catch several small crappies and sunnies with one pike to boot. No slabs at all. The bite shut off as it got darker. I'll probably fish the same area tommorrow, which is today.

Meanwhile in Fanatsy Bass Fishing JT Kenney laid an egg, but could come back tomorrow; After all Day 1 don't mean Jack Squat!

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Slab Fever

Well I've caught it. Too bad I haven't caught any.

Today I got a little earlier start and headed across to the winter bass spot from a couple of years ago. The wind was a howlin' making things miserable as I tried to drill and get my bearings with the Aqua View. I did find some promising weed growth and a pike, so I decided to fish the area. I caught a couple of small sunnies and a perch before I got sick of it and headed out to "The Hole" about 3PM.

I arrived on the Northern tip of "The Hole" and it took about 30 minutes for anything to show up besides the snow flurries. I consistantly caught crappies off and on until about 7PM. The size range was small but all over the map, not the chips and just short of keepers like last night. I also got one pike and bullhead. I ended up keeping one 9" and one 9.75" I think I may have dropped another keeper or two; I think I had less quality bites than last night. However I have now shaken off the rust and am a crappie catching machine.

It is a disappointment that the quality of the fish just isn't there. I may try a couple of other spots before I write off Platte lake for slabbers

2006 FLW Fishing Challenge-Now Open

Here is your chance to win an easy 5 Grand. Hurry though, the first tournament deadline is today at midnight.

I can win this! Come on BP Boys!

Gonna miss Zona in the Pundit Picks.

Be sure to check the BP Fantasy Bass Fishing HQ for tips and punditry in 2006

Monday, January 16, 2006

Ice Fishin

Even though my back was bugging me yet again today, I finally made my way out to "The Hole" on Platte to try some Silver prospecting. The crappies were indeed out there but the size left a lot to be desired. I got two 9inchers and missed a few others that size; I probably should have had 6-7 keepers. Mostly they were potatoe chips or 7-8 inchers. The action was steady and with the bigger fish biting at prime time and after dark. I was fishing by about 3:30PM. Ice was 12-14 so it's good enough for driving on Platte.

If I head out tomorrow I will probably try to be a bit more mobile and look for pannies in the weeds. It sure got cold and windy out there. BRRRRRRRRRRRRR.

Sunday, January 15, 2006

At the St.Paul Sportsmen's Show

At least I was this past Fri, Sat, and Sun. I was working the trout pond as a fundraiser for the Fishers of Men Club (Twin Cities). I was just installed on the Club Board again and am the Vice President, which will not be just another do nothing position. For instance, the Club President roped me in for writing next month's newsletters feature article. I'm going to write an article on the need for an Ice fishing outing next month. Ohh Boy.

I plan on starting to Ice Fish this week. The BP is in a mood to get up and do stuff. Tah Dah.

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

Burned out!

I cannot decide if it is on bass fishing or blogging or both. I just do not have the interest in the world of Bass Fishing or fishing in general that I had at this point last year. I think I got burned out on most things bass fishing by the end of the tournament season last year. My blogging track record seems to support this. However, I am waiting to see if FLW or Bass will have fantasy bass fishing. I will not be holding a league or be doing the Bass Pundit Championship thing either way, but I will maintain the Franchise Blog on the subject unless Bass and FLW disconinue having it.

The FLW Tour starts in a couple of weeks and BASS starts in Late Febuary. Naturally anyone interested is already follwing things at BassFan and elsewhere.

Monday, January 09, 2006

On the Family Vacation

So we headed to Florida on December 14th, a day with a winter snow advisory. Naturally we were off to a late start to begin with due too my medical appointment. Then mother misplaced her cell in the car, thought it was back home, thus causing us to waist 2 hours on the road time (1 hour back, 1 hour to get where we were.) There was also the bit about the house key which Mom already had in her bag but had thought we left. She found phone and the key while I was trying to get a key from the neighbors, cause the one we got from our neighbor Jenny was the old key and didn't fit the lock. We also got a bit crossed up in Eau Claire, WI and thus didn't even make it to Rockord IL.

Thus it took another 2 long days to make it to the McLeods. We spent the night and most of the next day at their place and then headed to the Condo at Daytona Beach Shores. The weather was cool and windy almost everyday we were there. I did a little fishing with my brother Steve on a couple of evenings. We got a bunch of bites and I got a small flounder, but that was it. Had fun eating cookies, and hanging out with the family especially niece Haley Jewel and Mom/mother to be Kim. Before I knew it Christmas had come, we (Todd, Kristen, Steve, Kim, Haley, Mom) went to the Christmas Eve service at the Drive in Church. Santa found the Christmas tree we put up in the Condo and we opened presents and then had a feast of Turkey and Ham with all the trimings and cookies we could eat. Christmas Night I went to See the movie: Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

Movie Review: I'll give it an ambivilant OK. Was more for the kids than for adults. I'm hoping an extended DVD will make it a better movie for adults and kids.

We broke camp the on the morning of the 27th and headed back to the Mcleods that evening. Watched a bunch of movies at the Mcleods. On the 29th I went for an airboat ride which seriously racked my back.
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We did see a 10ft Aligator and the ride was pretty cool in general. We headed to my Uncle Bill and Aunt Donna's on the 30th and spent New Years Eve and Day with them. It was nice seeing my cousin's Bryan, Alan, and Denise as well. I was too lazy to get up and go see cousin John and family. Finally we were on the road and headed home on the 2nd.

We arrived back in the cities on my Birthday and had pizza and pie with Todd, Kristen, Isabelle (who of coarse was delightful to be around in Florida) Jeff and Erin and that's it. Now I'm back in the land of snow and cold. HooRay!

Tuesday, January 03, 2006