Its my birthday

It's my birthday. 44, for those of you who are curious. My wife Vicky (I call her Peggy) brought me lunch today as she often does. After work we went out for some pizza and then a little shopping. The kids stopped by this evening and gave me a food saver for my birthday. Although I am well aware of why they gave it to me (bagging and freezing bait), my first thought was I don't save food I eat it too quick. Hey, nobody ever had to tell me to eat my dinner! Now I need a run of shad so I can catch a bunch, vac pac them and fill the freezer. The bad news is that the shad won't be running for another four or five months. Thats OK though because I have projects to keep me busy. Next weekend I will finish the second trap that I have started and then I'm on to the shad tank.

it's over

As Thanksgiving approached I looked forward to having the extra time off from work but now looking back on the long holiday weekend it seems to have gone by so fast. Back to work tomorrow! I spent most of the day organizing the utility boxes that I use for tackle boxes and have them condensed down to two small boxes that will fit in the glove box of my boat. I have two other small utility boxes, one that is used when I am out to catch bait and a pocket sized box that I carry when I fish from the bank. It always seems that just when I think I have my boat and gear set up the way I want it I get another "great" idea to make it a little better. I don't know if I am actually making things better or not but one thing is for sure, all of my "great" ideas help me pass a lot of time in the winter. I took a drive down by the river this afternoon and to my surprise there were three trucks and trailers at the Water Works boat ramp. I would have liked to have been there when they got back to the ramp but didn't feel like waiting. The new 2011 fishing regs are out. The biggest change as far as I am concerned is that there is no snagging from the dam at Oakland Mills down to the Faulkners boat ramp. Boy there are going to be some ticked off people. Waa! If you haven't seen the new regs, be prepared. DNR put a mexican man and his little mexican boy on the cover. The good thing about this is that they actually have a rod and reel instead of a soda bottle with line wrapped around it.

To those who have to go back to work tomorrow, I feel your pain! To those who don't, well...

It has been nice to have these days off and the good news is I have one more day. I opened up that roll of hardware cloth and in the process took a chunk out of one of my fingers. It was rolled up so tight that when I removed the wire that was wrapped around the roll it unwound like a spring and got me. I soldiered on. I managed to finish one trap completely and have the second started. I have a white 55 gallon barrel in my driveway that will become a shad tank when I finish the second trap. See? Although I am a self confessed fair weather fisherman I really do think about cat'n all the time. Because I only have a 16 foot boat I am constantly looking for ways to condense the gear I have on board just to save space. I picked up another smaller utility box because I want to condense the the tackle I carry into smaller boxes which will fit in the glove box I have in my boat. Another project for another day!

Black Friday road trip

The warden had a meeting with a shop owner in Anamosa so I went along for the ride. When we made it back to Coralville I checked out the the new Theisens. I had heard they had a little fishing gear and a little was right. One thing I did notice was a shelf of blood bait of a particular brand. Thats odd because I hadn't seen any of it in several other stores. Anyway, they do have one short aisle of fishing gear but I didn't bother to look closely enough to see what it was exactly. I did pick up a ten foot roll of hardware clothe that I'm going to use to make a couple bait traps. I started last season with six traps but the heavy rains took three of them and one was damaged beyond repair so I need to make some more over the winter. I still have a couple days left before I have to go back to work so I'm hoping to get started on my winter projects.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! Hoping everybody is having a good day with family and friends!

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's Thanksgiving eve. A little cold. A little rainy. A little windy. I have decided to build another bait trap or two since I have the next four days off. Although I'll probably spend most of the next four days in the garage I'll probably wear a trail in the floor from the garage to the fridge. The left overs are every bit as good as the dinner its self. Back to the traps. If I would have thought about it early enough I would have went to the hardware store tonight to get the hardware clothe for the traps but since I didn't I will have to wait until Friday to start them. I think I found a source for the white barrel so I can make the shad tank but I have to wait for that to happen. Another project I have to wait to get started on. It's a good thing I'm a patient man!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tinkering

I spent the day in the garage tinkerin' around with fishing tackle and equipment just to have something to do. During the fishing season things have a tendency to get a little scrambled so I always have cleaning up that mess to look forward to. Loose hooks, swivels, bits of line and maybe a dehydrated chub or sunfish or two in the bottom of the boat under the floor. At one point I decided to take a drive out to the bait store just to see what was going on and found it to be as exciting as my place.
I'm planning on bulding a shad tank sometime this winter. In the past I have been able to keep just a couple shad alive in a regular cooler for a short period of time so I'm hoping this tank will enable me to keep a dozen or so shad for an extended period. I think it is as simple as getting a round tank and putting a couple aerators in it. One external air pump and one aerator type submerged pump that will circulate and oxygenate the water. The key to keeping shad alive is to keep the water moving and keep plenty of oxygen in the water. I already have the aerators so I'm looking for a tank or barrel.

What to do?

Hopefully you heeded my winter survival advice and are still with me. With thoughts of catching a catfish swirling around in the back of my head I pulled the mower deck off my mower and put the snow blade on. Believe me I am in no hurry for even the slightest amount of snow but if we are going to get it I will be ready. I say lets face it head on and get it done so we can go fishing.

I usually check the local stores for any fishing gear that might be marked down after the fishing is done. Last week I found a favorite rod of mine was marked down almost 50%. I found it in a farm and home type store that also carries a good amount of hunting and fishing gear. It is a heavier rod 20 to 50 pound test rating. It should work great if I can ever get hooked up with a big flathead. I bought a rod just like it a couple years ago and have used it for channel cats even though it was a little overkill, especially with a 7000 on it. Hopefully, if the weather and river cooperate next spring I can put the pair of big rods on some big cats

Winter survival advice

Now that fishing season is over and we will be spending more time in the house than we care to I feel it is important to pass on some winter survival advice that just might keep you out of trouble with the warden.

Since you will be spending more time in the house and eating for no other reason than you are bored it might be a good idea to clean up the evidence which runs from the kitchen to your favorite recliner. It is almost impossible to convince your wife that you didn't eat her chocolate covered Oreos when the trail of Oreo crumbs leading to your chair are an identical match to those on your shirt. The lesson here is to eat all the Oreos if you want but clean up after yourself and get rid of the evidence. The warden will be thankful for the help in the house and you can blame the missing Oreos on a daytime intruder.

Catching hell, not catfish

My fishing season has come to an end and its times like these that I have a difficult time coming up with anything worth posting on this blog. In addition to suffering through the pain of the next four months I have to catch hell from one or two knuckleheads because I don't spend enough time on the computer and the blog. Here I am!

My first thought tonight personal hygiene. We all know catfishing can be a little messy but some of us forget to wash our hands on a regular basis. Keeping your hands free of shad gut or blood bait is really important because you never know when a talent scout might happen through your area looking for the next super hand model. Keep those nails clean. HAHA Terry!

Our next issue is boats with carpeted floors. I don't really care one way or the other but my personal preference is to leave the carpet in the house because I don't believe there is a carpet cleaner out there that will get blood bait out of a carpet. One fishing buddy of mine has a boat with carpet in it and he said I would have to take my shoes off if I went in his boat. I think he carries a bottle of stain remover on board just in case. I'm glad its November and I have four months to figure out if I want to fish bare footed. HAHA Chub!

Seriously though. I'm just joking with a few guys I know. Fishing wouldn't be the same if I couldn't laugh at them once in a while. I think they have laughed at me a time or two even though I didn't like it.

I think the fact that my fishing season is over is starting to sink in. I don't really care for the idea but hey, what can I do? I am a self confessed candy-ass. Now I'll spend the winter months getting ready for spring and thinking about the good times and the fish we caught last year. There are a few people, including my wife, who have tried to convince me that the season doesn't have to be over yet. I'm starting to think she just wants me out of the house while some of the others may actually want to continue fishing. I may go here and there with somebody else but it won't be anything serious. Chub might try some icefishing this winter and I have already told him I would like to tag along just to watch, even if I have to watch from the truck because its cold outside. I know, I just showed my candy-ass again.

My next project, putting new plugs in the Mercury, will probably take up all of about ten minutes of my winter, then what? I've been into boating and fishing for about five years now and I am still trying to figure out why the spark plug for a boat cost over $5 while a plug for a lawn mower cost a $1.50. Any ideas? Help me out here.

See what you are going to have to put up with now that "my" fishing season is over?

The end

Its a sad day my friends. I think I am going to call an end to my fishing season. The last two times I went out I got skunked and to be honest, I don't like it! Oh, did I mention the frost bite I got on all areas I had exposed to the elements. Seriously though I think thats it for the year. I have already stripped by boat down as far as I can and taken it to the car wash. I didn't plan on doing it today but I even pulled the caps and repacked the bearings on my trailer. I probably shouldn't rush things since I have all winter to get my gear ready for next year but hey, thats the way I am.

The days are cold and numbered

Chub and I Put in at Water Works Park and headed up river. We worked our way to Rome and he only caught one little one. Me? I got skunked! I should have tied the boat up and headed up the river bank to Deano's. It would have been the most exciting part of my afternoon. The water has dropped to 48 degrees. The wind was blowing and cold, no danger of breaking a sweat today. We used stink bait and did get a lot of bites but they were just quick taps. Typical for a bunch of fiddlers in cold water. I never have had much luck in the afternoon during the fall. Thinking about going out Saturday morning and that might be it if things don't pick up a little.