Memorial Day Fishing

This past Memorial Day I did quite a bit of fishing. Before I get to how my day went, I would just like to say, Thank You, to all of those who gave their life for our country.

I started the day off at my favorite creek. The weather was all over the place. It was cloudy, drizzling, sunny, down pouring, sunny, cloudy, drizzling, etc.... I didn't mind the weather too much. I was prepared with my rain coat. The fishing was excellent. I caught 2 smallies, and 1 shad. I was tossing a damsel like fly in an olive color. The fish seemed to like it. After spotting 2 really nice sized smallies, I went home to make myself an early lunch.

Once lunch was done, I hung out with these 2. Per the usual, we ran around the house and played tug of war, and that lead to a nap, to wait out the down pouring rain.

Once the skies cleared up, I took the pups on a walk, and then I grabbed my spinning rod, so, I could fish the backyard lake. Hooked up with the bass pictured below on a wacky rigged Senko in the purple color. I hooked into a bigger bass soon after, but it proved to be no match for my skills, because, she snapped my line. I guesstimated it to be 4-4.5lbs. I think I tried to over power the bass...whoops.

As the evening progressed, I decided to take a short drive with, Bo, to check out my honey hole. There was a ton of top water activity across the lakes surface. I decided to toss a black popper, and the crappie just could not resist. The swan was not impressed....STOP LOOKING AT ME SWAN!

Thank you, again, to all of those who gave their lives for our great country.

Almost a 10 lb bass...almost.

While the GF was getting ready before we went out, I stepped out back with my fly rod. I had the same olive woolly bugger tied on, and didn't bother changing it. Just checked my knot, and began casting. The crappie were still having a love fest with that bugger, and I caught a ton of them. I also caught some more small bass. These small bass are unlike other small bass I've caught before. Check out how thick they are! I wonder what their fattening up on.

This bass was almost 10 lbs....almost. I had to photoshop it smaller, so, it would fit in the picture.

Mixed Bag

Over the weekend I did a little fishing in the backyard lake. Had a few things to do around the house, so, I had to stay close. There was also quite a bit of rain in the forecast, so, I didn't want to press my chances on my free time.

The backyard lake was on FIRE! I tossed around a size 6 olive woolly bugger, and I never had to change it. The fish were all over it. Bass, crappie, bluegill, and green sunfish/warmouths. I think the ratio of crappie to bass was 8:1.

So, I've had a few talks about this fish. In the past I have always referred to these as warmouths, but others say that their greenies (green sunfish). I've looked them up on the Google, and everything points to them being a greenie. Forever, I have called these warmouths....what are they!?!?!?!?!

New Grill

My GF and I picked up our new grill right from the Weber Grill plant in Palatine, IL. When we were checking out grills, we both fell in love with the Gourmet Spirit series of Weber Grills. You will see why later in the pictures. My GF had a family hook up on Weber Grills, so, after a quick phone call we were able to save a few bucks, and pick up our grill the following week.

We got the grill back to the house, and staged on the deck. I had planned to put it together right away, but the lake was just calling my name. So, I set up my 5 wt and stepped out of the backyard, and fished for a short while. The crappie bite was hot, and I was also able to hook up with a few decent small bass. The small bass that I caught all had some size. They were eating very well.

Right when I finished my short outing, I was all set to set up the grill. Nope! Received a phone call from my GF, and she needed to be picked up, because, she locked her keys in her trunk at Home Depot. After picking her up, bringing her to get her spare key at her parents, we were back at the house, and I was finally ready to get building.

After a late night setting up the grill, it's finally finished. I brought the grill outside and it looked picture perfect with the lake in the background. Now that it was all finished, and I had the day off, I grabbed my fly rod and went fishing.

The grill has 3 burners, and a cast iron grate. I'm a big fan of cast iron pans, and I fell in love with the cast iron grates. I've always grilled on the regular steel grates, but I figured this would be a nice change.

The center grate is removable.

...and it comes with a cast iron griddle. They also sell other accessories that fit the center separately, like a wok, pizza stone, and a searing grate.

I look forward to sharing my grilling adventures!

Lunch Time Bass

With the new job, I am able to step away from the office and down the street to a local forest preserve lake, Busse Woods. I kayak and fish this lake often. Tons of people come here to fish, kayak, jog, and bike.

Once I get there on my lunch break, what do you think I do?
A. Kayak
B. Fish
C. Jog
D. Nap
E. Skateboard

If you guessed "B" you answered correctly. If I were to nap in my car, I'd just stay in the parking lot at work and maximize my napping time. All of the other things I listed, I just don't have time for on my lunch, but you can bet I'll be doing one of those on the weekends.

Not a bad way to end the work week. Friday lunch time bass!

Caught this little guy on a KVD rattle trap. I really need to start leaving my fly rods set up, lined, and ready to go in my car. 

Lake X

I met up my buddy FishDank at 9 am this past Sunday. It was cloudy, windy, warm out (to me anyway), and so damn windy. Did I mention that it was windy? Good thing I had an anchor. It's not a very good anchor, but it does the job, sort of.

I brought out 3 rods. My 10 wt fly rod (I haven't sent in my 9 wt to get fixed, yet.), my baitcaster, and my spinning rod. Eventually, I just gave up on my fly rod, because, it was just too damn windy.

My buddy FishDanK was the first to hook up, on a jig and craw trailer...and what he hooked up with was a freakin' Sherman tank! HOLY SMOKES!!!!

He caught 2 more later in the day. Around 11 am a few more guys from the fishing forum that we post on showed up. DanK knew them from some of the tournaments he's fished, but it was my first time meeting them, and they're a bunch of cool dudes. Always nice putting a face to the screen name. One of the guys Kevin was nice enough to bring a grill and some sausage and hot dogs for a quick shore lunch. How awesome is that!!! Thanks, again, if you read this!!!

I caught 2 bass on the day. Both of them came on a KVD rattle trap. The lake was about 6-8 feet deep with some nice weed beds that I ran the lure right over the top of. The 2nd bass I caught was a nice healthy one, and put my landing skills to the test. I really thought I was going to lose it boat side.

Action Shot!!

Hello and Goodbye.

The fishing is starting to heat up, and I'm getting excited!!!!

Fiberglass Fun

I am finally joining in on all of the fiberglass fun. With my recent win of an Abel Reel in an F3T photo contest, I needed a rod to go with the satin blue colored reel. I am one for things to look good, and a blue reel wasn't the easiest reel to pair with.

At first, I thought about all the beautifully colored fiberglass rods from Swift Fly Fishing, and Blue Halo...and then I started looking at the price. I just couldn't do it. Then it hit me, duh, how about those yellow Eagle Claw Featherweight fiberglass rods. It's a match!

Now I'm just waiting for the blue line I ordered from Shadow Fly Fishing, and then I can take it out on an outing. Looking forward to it!

How to fish like the Pro's

With the Bass Master Classic going on down in South Carolina right now, I figured there was no better time than to help out all of you hopeful Bass Pro fisherman out. I hope you have a crayon and construction paper ready for some notes, because, you're going to want to write all of this down, that is of course, if you don't have access to a printer.

Bass Pro - Mike Iaconelli

Justin Carfagnini's: How to fish like the Pro's

The basics:

1. Rod - It just doesn't matter.

2. Reel - It just doesn't matter.

3. Line - It just doesn't matter.

The secret combo to becoming a Bass Pro:

1. Red and white bobber - It's a classic, and classics catch fish.

2. Steel leader - Because, you never know when you're going to run into those toothy predators. It also, has a snap at the end, so, you can change out whatever lure you didn't know how to use out, for other lures you do not know how to use.

3. Red/white Daredevle spoon - It flat out catches fish.

Take a moment and gather yourself. I know your mind has just been blown away. 

To give you a visual of what this type of set up looks like, and it's capabilities, please see below. I discovered the secret back in 2005, and have enough will power and knowledge of self to know, that I just cannot handle it's fish catching powers. So, in the year 2005, it stayed.

...and here is a closer look at the set up. It was extremely effective in catching crayfish/crawfish, too. You might ask yourself, but why would you want to catch those when you're out bass fishing a big tournament. Simple answer - to see what color they are, so, you can better match the forage of body of water you're trying to win big bucks on, duh!

Yankee's hat...I definitely don't remember that. What in the hell? haha

Hope this helps all of you out there!!!!!

Fly Tying video...failed.

So, I attempted to make a fly tying video, and this screen shot from the footage was the only thing worth sharing. Maybe next time....

Here's a cool video from Fly Fishing the Ozarks. These Iron Fly events hosted by Pig Farm Ink look pretty cool, and fun. A great way to get people who haven't tied involved. It's a completely different way to promote the sport, but I believe it's perfect for the times today. I hope to partake in one of these events this year, where, I don't know, so, we shall see!

Stankx Bait Company

Here are the baits I used from Stankx Bait Company this year.

These tubes were irresistible to the smallies in the rivers up in the North Woods of Wisconsin. Hands down the best tubes you can get. Not one of the tubes in the package had an uncut skirt. Kudos for that! I will definitely be ordering more of these bad boys!

The "Mud Bugz" - I to use this as a trailer on my skirted jigs. I caught some tank largemouth bass utilizing this trailer. The color pattern is one of their custom colors - Gobi Wan. Being a star wars fan, I just had to go with it. (Sad to not see product not on their website anymore.)

POICHES

MIDNIGHT CHROME

RAD GILL

The NXT LVL Swimz - these were new to me this year, and they were a fish favorite. I would rig these up with either a weightless offset hook, or a weighted one to get deeper and farther. This became one of my go to search baits when I was out with my traditional gear. The bass loved these! I even caught a few pike on them, as well. The colors on these really pop, and grab your attention.

.40 Caliber Stix in Aurora

I didn't get to use these, because, of all of the success I had with all of the other baits, and my fly gear. However, I did give a few to my friends, and they were thoroughly impressed with how slow this bait fell when rigged wacky. I'm looking forward to giving these a shot next year. I was never really good with the wacky rig technique, but that's one of my goals next summer.

All in all, I must say, that Stankx Bait Company creates some high quality plastics. There is a definitive difference, and once you get your hands on one of their products, you will immediately feel it. While I do favor and prefer fishing with my fly rod, I do still use my baitcaster and spinning rod from time to time, but I don't have as much tackle as I used to 7 or 8 years ago. I gave all of my other plastics and some lures away, because, I didn't need them, and they were just taking up space. Once I run out of my current supply of plastics, I'll definitely be ordering from Stankx Bait Company.

**Note - I have no ties or have received anything free for writing this review. I am just simply letting you know my opinion. I'm all for supporting the smaller companies who make a high quality product.

***All photos were taken from the Stankx Bait Company website.***

Strange Catch

Going through some old photos, I came across this "white" bass. Not a white bass, but a largemouth bass that was white. I remember catching this bass at a local lake with my fly rod. I remember thinking to myself, that is one weird fish. It wasn't albino, because, it would have had different colored eyes, but it didn't.

Anyone else catch anything strange?

Busy Busy Busy

I've been very busy as of late. My Girlfriend just closed on a townhouse, and I've been helping her move in. I've also, started to SLOWLY move my things over there, as well.

This is a photo of me, and the last fish that I caught, all while rockin' my new awesome Dead Weight Fly trucker hat. I went out for trout, but couldn't find any willing takers.

Small Fish

I don't always catch big fish. Here are some honorable mentions. You gotta give the little guys some love, so, they can grow up to be big.

Catch and Release.

Frogger

In a recent post, I mentioned that I have never caught a bass using a frog lure with my bait caster. I have tried countless times only to come up empty. I am the only person to blame for missing over a billion hook ups with a frog. I just get so damn excited seeing that explosion underneath the frog, I tend to set the hook way too early, and pull it away from the fish.

I finally thought that it was time to put line on my old bait caster once I started seeing the spool show after a long cast. It's been paired up with the same 30 lb test braid that I put on when I bought it...say 8.5 years ago. Not bad, huh!

So, 2 days after I had it relined my reel, I ventured out to my honey hole, because, I really wanted to work on my frog techniques, and I knew that the bass there would cooperate, and help me out. I ended the day going 2 for 12. I can honestly say that 8 of those missed bass were due in part to my drag getting changed in the relining process at Dicks Sporting Goods. I had some monster hook sets, because, the frog was so far out, but failed to hook up, because, my spool just let out line, in turn, letting the bass spit the frog, and get away.

I should also give a shout out to my homie DANK for inspiring me to use a frog lure, again, and give another shout out to my other homie Fat Gordo who told me some key advice when fishing the frog. He said, "When you see the bass hit, just keep telling yourself - "don't f#@king do it! don't f#@king do it!" and just wait until you feel some weight on the other end before setting that hook."

Pre-workout bass fishing - Got this one at 5 AM at sunrise. Missed at first, but came back.

Froggin'

Took one of my good friends DANK, and another buddy GEO to the honey hole I found last year for the first time. I've been trying to get him to come out, but just never happened until now. He doesn't fly fish, so, he was wondering what would work...I told him to bring his frogging rod, and his finesse set up for a weedless rubber worm. DANK is a Jedi Master with a frog, and I knew that he wouldn't even need his finesse set up on this lake, because, the weeds have started to take over. I have never caught a bass using a frog with my regular rods, and I am truly envious of his skills.

Foggin' force is strong with DANK

DANK with a tank!

GEO hooked up with his first top water fish of the year with this fine specimen. 

GEO and a beautiful bass

A lot of bass were caught. The aerial display put on by the bass was quite impressive. On 2 occasions I had 2 bass come straight out of the water to take my frog fly offering. It reminded me of Discovery Channels Shark Week and how the great white sharks attack and fly out of the water at Seal Island.

Air and water show participant

I love top water!

Visiting the Grandparents at Fish Lake

Took a short day trip to visit my Grandparents at Fish Lake. One of my cousins was up there and wanted to fish. After dinner my cousin grabbed one of my grandpa's fishing rods and his tackle box. We quickly sifted through it, and he asked my advice on what to use. It was a mix of old and new lures. I was intrigued by a few of the older ones.

Here's an old popper I found in the tackle box. It has a light wire in the front that serves as a weed guard. This was my favorite find in the tackle box. He used to toss this with an ultra light spinning rod. Very cool!!

Unfortunately, this lake apparently had an extremely bad fish kill this past winter. Lots of reports and locals indicated that a frightening number of bass, crappie, and other fish were casualties.

Golden roach. There were schools of these guys around the fishing piers. There were some with more size.

I ended the evening catching a few golden roaches, and one small bass tossing a black and red gotcha fly with my 3 wt. My cousin tossed every small lure he brought, with no luck. I'll get him hooked up next time!

My cousin Giacomo looking for his first fish of the year....It didn't come this night.