Bought Some New Tackle

New Lures for El Salto

I ordered some new tackle for my trip to Mazatlan and it arrived today.  I’ll be fishing El Salto so I ordered some of the top producing baits for that lake.  Everything came from BassPro.com.  I ordered some P-Line and PowerPro in all the sizes I’ll need.  Some 5″ and 4.5″ Spooks.  Some Berkley swim baits.  Several DD22 Norman Lures crankbaits and a few Bomber 3″ Fat Free Shads.  And and assortment of various plastic worms and lizards in shades of watermelon and pumpkin seed. 

 Next I’m going to look at getting some reels, I think I need a new Curado or two.

Vacation to Mazatlan!

I’m going to Mazatlan to fish El Salto for two days then two days of ocean fishing.  El Salto is one of the places I’ve really been looking forward to fishing.  The trip is in January and I’m going with a Western Outdoors News sponsored group.  We are going to Cardon Resort near Mazatlan.  I think we’ll have a blast and hopefully I’ll manage to catch some trophy bass.

I’m going to need a few things before I go on this trip.  A new passport, travel tube for my rods and I’m sure I’ll think of a reason why I need to buy a new reel or two.

Upcoming Trout Plants

I found this handy link I think is worth sharing.  With trout season getting started I’m sure many people would like to know when and where the fish plants will be happening.  Here is a link to the to DFG’s website with all the info:

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/fish/Hatcheries/FishPlanting/

Enjoy!

Places I’d Like to Fish

Today I started thinking about taking a fishing vacation and all the different places I could go. I quickly realized I wanted to visit them all. So now I’m making a list. These are places I’d like to fish at least once in my life:

Mexico: I’ve already done some saltwater fishing in Mexico but I want to fish El Salto. I think this is where I will try to go next year. All the problems with drug wars and corrupt police are cause for concern but I’m not too worried about it.  I’d probably go with a group and hopefully there would be safety in numbers.

Alaska: I’d love to go there and do some ocean fishing for salmon and halibut. There are plenty of great fishing resorts to choose from and since it’s in the states I’d feel very comfortable about going there.

Canada: Trout fishing in the remote Canadian wilderness has been a longtime dream of mine. I want to go to one of those places only accessible by a small plane that can land on the water. The scenery is almost as big of a draw to me as the fish are. Even though this is technically another country I have no fear of visiting Canada.  (the bears are more scary than the Canadians)

South America: I think it would be a great adventure to fish in the Amazon river or one of its tributaries.  I’ve never been in a true tropical jungle environment and I think that would make the experience unforgettable.  I’d like to catch some Peacock Bass as well as any other game fish the area has to offer.  Some of the countries in South America can be very dangerous to travel too and I would be nervous about going on vacation to any of them.  However, I think if I do enough research and planning I can pinpoint the exact country and location I could safely visit and have a great fishing trip.

Russia: I picture the Eastern Russian wilderness to be very similar to Canadian wilderness.  I’d want to visit remote mountain rivers and lakes and take in the scenery.  My grandparents would never even think of visiting Russia but I would not be worried about it.  I’d just go with a group to a known fishing resort and hope for the best.

Florida Keys:  There are lots of different species of game fish around the keys and I’d like to fish for them all.  To do everything I’d want too would probably require multiple trips and that’s fine with me, I’m sure when I get back from my first trip and I’ll already have my next trip booked. 

New Zealand:  I’m not too sure why I want to go here but I do.  I’ve seen a few pictures and it looked great, I’ve heard the fishing is excellent too.  I guess it’s just the thought of being on the other side of the world and the possibility of having a great adventure that has captured my imagination.

Well that is my list.  I’m sure I’ll add more to it in the future and hopefully I’ll be able to visit some of these places and scratch them off my list.  If you have any other suggestions I’d love to hear them.

Finished My New Rod

I finished up a new spinning rod this morning.  I decided to make myself a new light 6′ fast action trout rod for the upcoming season.  It’s nothing fancy, I usually make my own rods very simple.  I used a dark green wrap with thick tan accent wrap.  It has a cork handle and Fuji real seat and guides.  When I build them for others is when I get a little more flashy.  I put a Shimano Sahara 500FD on it.  That will hold 100 yards of 4lb test line and will handle trout nicely.  I’ll probably also use it for the couple of times a year I decide to have fun crappie fishing.  Neither the rod or the reel were very expensive but I think they make a great combo and should fish very well.  The reel was $80 and I spent maybe the same amount on the rod components.

Reel Seat and Handle

Guide Wrap

MLPA Impact

If you haven’t been following the saga of the Marine Life Protection Act and the proposed ocean closures now is a good time to start.  There was a meeting held yesterday with up to 1,000 people attending and voicing their opinions.  Commercial and sport fishermen are worried closures would hurt their trade/sport.  Environmentalists are making themselves heard.  And others are only worried how we are going to pay for enforcement.  Here are a few articles to read so you can catch up on all the drama.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/oct/20/ocean-closures-meeting-draws-huge-crowd/

http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/sdcounty/9d98c284-fcf4-59d2-b9b2-979fe9222ff1.html

My Favorite Lure

Rapala Shad Rap SR-7 Deep Runner

I was putting away some tackle today when I saw my favorite lure and thought you all might like to see it.  The picture doesn’t do it justice.  The thing is completely tore up.  The gloss finish is almost completely gone, the clear plastic lip is so scratched up you can barely see light through it, deep gashes show like battle scars on the body and the hooks have been straitened out and bent back into shape so many times I’m not sure how much longer they will last.  None of that bothers me though.  She still runs straight and still fools the bass.

The lure is a Rapala Shad Rap SR-7 Deep Runner in Shad color. I use it with a 6′ 6″ medium action graphite rod and a Calcutta 150 reel with 10 or 12 pound Floroclear P-Line.  It hasn’t caught my biggest fish or the most fish but I take it with me every time I go fishing.   I have lost them in the past and I always replace them as soon as possible.  In fact, I now have a small stockpile of them in my garage from a sale I came across.  This particular one has lasted this whole year.  I’ve broke it off in rocks and weeds but I always managed to retrieve it, even if it meant getting a little wet.  One day at Lake Wohlford I lost it when my knot broke while fighting a fish.  About an hour later I returned to that same spot and saw my lure floating in some debris on the surface.  I guess the fish thrashed around enough to get himself un-hooked and I was lucky enough to find it again.  I’ve had some great luck with this lure.  I’m sure I’ll eventually snag it on a deep rock or break it off on another fish.  When I do it will be a sad day for me but I’ll get some battle scars on a new one in no time.

I’ll toss this lure any time of year and I always have confidence in it.  I’ll toss it in two inches of water when fish are shallow, out in open water when fish are suspended or through brush, rocks, stumps and weeds when they are deep in cover.  My favorite way is to drag it through rock piles.  I tend to get some bigger fish when I’m able to make some noise bouncing it off rocks and gravel.  Even if I’m catching fish on a completely different pattern I’ll almost always make a few casts with my Shad Rap before I leave a spot.  I’ll also use it as a fish finder.  I can cover water quickly with it and get reaction strikes from the aggressive fish.  Once I’ve found a fish or two in an area I’ll switch to something else to better meet the conditions or location.  Basically, I’m always looking for an excuse to get this Rapala wet.

Back From Vacation

Frog Lakes

I’m back from my hiking trip.  Went on a few really awesome trails in the eastern Sierras and did a little fishing along the way.  We stayed a few nights in the Virginia Creek area and walked from the trailhead there to the the trailhead in Green Creek.  Then we went up to Twin Lakes and walked the Robinson Creek trail.  Did most of my fishing in the Virginia Lakes area and caught plenty of Rainbow and Brook trout.  I also made it up to Moat lake and landed a really nice Golden Trout.  I don’t have any pics of it on my camera but my buddie took some with his.  When he sends them to me I’ll post them.  Other than that fish there was nothing notable.  Just plenty of 6-10 inch rainbows that made for good dinner.

I’m really missing the bass fishing right now, maybe I’ll feel like waking up early and head over to Hodges or Wohlford for a bit of bassin’.

Vacation!

I’m off for a two week hike in the mountains.  I’ll be going to the easern Sierras and doing a lot of hiking and fishing, wish me luck.  I’ll post pics as soon as I get back.

Package in the Mail!

 

St. Croix Triumph Travel Rod

Brown delivered my new rod yesterday!  I had to replace my travel rod I broke on my last hiking trip.  The rod that broke was a 3-piece 6’9″ Lamiglas XTS 693 that I really liked, it felt and fished very well.  Since I have not been able to find that model I decided to try something different.  I ordered a ST. Croix Triumph travel rod.  It is a 4-piece 6’6″ medium-light fast action rod.  I went with 4-piece so it would fit inside my pack.  (the Lamiglas broke because it caught a branch while strapped to the outside of my pack)

My first impression is that it is a little thicker and heavier looking than my old rod.  The flexibility seems about right though.  I have never used a 4-piece rod before and I’m a little nervous to see how it performs.  All those joints and one being 20 inches from the tip has to effect performance to a certain degree.  I’ll get to test it out soon though.  Tomorrow I leave on a 12 day hike in the eastern Sierras and I expect to use this rod heavily.