CJ WATER TEMPS AND FISHING THREAD!

[INTIMIDATOR]

Hey Jesse...Fritz is right!
Here's my testimonial.

After moving back from South Carolina in 95, I didn't fish again until 2005 when I took my 4 year old son out for the first time for a "Introduce Kids To Fishing" day in Springfield. That kid sat there for 4 straight hours and caught bluegill after bluegill on his SpongeBob pole...He was hooked and so was I!
I had quit fishing because of the pressure of trying to fish with "The Big Boys" and the fish in the South were just so much larger...I became a Striper fisherman because of the POWER, a Mahi Mahi fisherman because of their acrobatics, a Big Bass fisherman because that's where the money was, and a Slab fisherman for the taste!
It was disappointing to come home and catch dink Crappie, etc....until I saw the joy on my son's face!

I was like most fisherman, except I have always been ANAL in my approach to fishing...I had an entire downstairs bedroom that was full of Tackle and lures...you could barely walk because of all the stuff.
The cost from all the High dollar lures was staggering!
I knew I had to find a better way to be able to fish with my son....I had to be more efficient and cost effective! No more Cranks at certain times, spinnerbaits at others, Buzzbaits, Chatterbaits, various rigs, different poles, lines, reels, and then the whole thing over again for Crappie and Walleye also.
I NEEDED BAITS THAT I COULD USE FOR ALL THE SPECIES THAT I WAS TARGETING. No Micro lures for Crappie, harnesses for Walley, or hardbaits for Bass...a bait that ALL would strike.
So Light Bulbs started going off...what do fish eat?? Mainly other fish, craws, worms/leeches...so I needed to find something that imitates the prey that will get fish to bite or react!
I knew hard baits weren't going to be the ticket since they only have one action...so it had to be a plastic!
To tell you the truth, I hated plastics...they were stiff, smelled, and I never really caught fish on them but I was determined!
I bought all the new swimbaits and tried to make them fit my style that I wanted...I hated them...the lack of action was depressing. I contacted 4 manufacturers and tested New product for them...they just didn't fit what I needed, and no one wanted to listen.
After continuing to research plastics and techniques, I heard there was a plastic swimbait revolution in Japan...the Japanese view fishing as a religion...they spare no cost to engineer and make a bait that works. They do this because their home waters are some of the most heavily pressured in the world. Most Japanese products were made for Bass fishing...so I wondered...don't Crappie prefer a big meal also....heck, I soon started cutting open fish bellies to see what they were eating.
Big Crappie had 4-5 inch shad in their bellies, Gators had even larger shad or perch.
AND TRUST ME, BIG FISH WILL JUST SMASH A BIG SWIMMER...when they are feeding, they are serious!
So I found a guy on EBay that was over in Japan and he cut me breaks on shipping for all the plastics I ordered...I soon gave away all of the Other Junk I had trialed and accumulated!
The Japanese Plastics smelled like bait, they moved like bait, and they caught fish...It came to a time, that I soon found a favorite Manufacturer...they had 3 lines of swimmers that covered everything that I wanted to Imitate...each body mimics a different style and each has a different paddle and swimming action...they were also infused with powered scent which lasts the life of the bait, they had 2 kinds of silicon plastic with different densities to keep the baits swimming perfectly in the water and for the amazing movement. They also had ribs or profiles for added displacement or vibration and many fantastic colors!
Then I found the distributor for the whole United States...we talked, and I bought directly from him....I also ended up testing product and giving feedback, we became friends...the rest is history!
I could make these things work like any forage, and the more I learned about the species and the lake, the better I became, and then the size of the fish improved.
At this time was when I also started trialing Rods I wanted to use, along with reels, and line!
I developed a system that worked for me.
Now all my tackle and lures will fit on a small table...I have 3 two piece rods, 3 reels, and braid....IMHO, I have the 3 best types of swimmers for Crappie, Walleye, and Bass...Also For Bass, I have the best tube, stick, and big swimming tail also! A New Super craw is now out, and a topwater is scheduled for next year....then everything needed will be possible with 1 manufacturer.
Now I normally carry a small plastic pocket pack with all the lures I need, and I have a few extras in a plastic case in my car.
You can use these plastics under a bobber, with almost ANY rig known to man, and almost every technique...for any species...that's how versatile they are!

How easy is it to fish a swimbait?? Dale picked up swimbait fishing at age 6, at age 10 he was out fishing his Father, his PB so far, are a 10.5 inch Bluegill, 16 inch WB, 15 inch Crappie, 19 inch Gator, 18 inch Smallie, 20 inch Largemouth, 26 inch Channel, and he went BIG Cat fishing with Larry...now at 13, football, lifting, and girls are more important...he caught his first 2 legal Gators this year and quit fishing....But I'll always Thank him for bringing the joy back to me for fishing...hopefully his life slows down again later on and we can share some more fishing memories!

Thanks Fritz for warming me up!lol
Good Fishing To All!

[INTIMIDATOR]

Hey Jesse...Fritz is right!
Here's my testimonial.

After moving back from South Carolina in 95, I didn't fish again until 2005 when I took my 4 year old son out for the first time for a "Introduce Kids To Fishing" day in Springfield. That kid sat there for 4 straight hours and caught bluegill after bluegill on his SpongeBob pole...He was hooked and so was I!
I had quit fishing because of the pressure of trying to fish with "The Big Boys" and the fish in the South were just so much larger...I became a Striper fisherman because of the POWER, a Mahi Mahi fisherman because of their acrobatics, a Big Bass fisherman because that's where the money was, and a Slab fisherman for the taste!
It was disappointing to come home and catch dink Crappie, etc....until I saw the joy on my son's face!

I was like most fisherman, except I have always been ANAL in my approach to fishing...I had an entire downstairs bedroom that was full of Tackle and lures...you could barely walk because of all the stuff.
The cost from all the High dollar lures was staggering!
I knew I had to find a better way to be able to fish with my son....I had to be more efficient and cost effective! No more Cranks at certain times, spinnerbaits at others, Buzzbaits, Chatterbaits, various rigs, different poles, lines, reels, and then the whole thing over again for Crappie and Walleye also.
I NEEDED BAITS THAT I COULD USE FOR ALL THE SPECIES THAT I WAS TARGETING. No Micro lures for Crappie, harnesses for Walley, or hardbaits for Bass...a bait that ALL would strike.
So Light Bulbs started going off...what do fish eat?? Mainly other fish, craws, worms/leeches...so I needed to find something that imitates the prey that will get fish to bite or react!
I knew hard baits weren't going to be the ticket since they only have one action...so it had to be a plastic!
To tell you the truth, I hated plastics...they were stiff, smelled, and I never really caught fish on them but I was determined!
I bought all the new swimbaits and tried to make them fit my style that I wanted...I hated them...the lack of action was depressing. I contacted 4 manufacturers and tested New product for them...they just didn't fit what I needed, and no one wanted to listen.
After continuing to research plastics and techniques, I heard there was a plastic swimbait revolution in Japan...the Japanese view fishing as a religion...they spare no cost to engineer and make a bait that works. They do this because their home waters are some of the most heavily pressured in the world. Most Japanese products were made for Bass fishing...so I wondered...don't Crappie prefer a big meal also....heck, I soon started cutting open fish bellies to see what they were eating.
Big Crappie had 4-5 inch shad in their bellies, Gators had even larger shad or perch.
AND TRUST ME, BIG FISH WILL JUST SMASH A BIG SWIMMER...when they are feeding, they are serious!
So I found a guy on EBay that was over in Japan and he cut me breaks on shipping for all the plastics I ordered...I soon gave away all of the Other Junk I had trialed and accumulated!
The Japanese Plastics smelled like bait, they moved like bait, and they caught fish...It came to a time, that I soon found a favorite Manufacturer...they had 3 lines of swimmers that covered everything that I wanted to Imitate...each body mimics a different style and each has a different paddle and swimming action...they were also infused with powered scent which lasts the life of the bait, they had 2 kinds of silicon plastic with different densities to keep the baits swimming perfectly in the water and for the amazing movement. They also had ribs or profiles for added displacement or vibration and many fantastic colors!
Then I found the distributor for the whole United States...we talked, and I bought directly from him....I also ended up testing product and giving feedback, we became friends...the rest is history!
I could make these things work like any forage, and the more I learned about the species and the lake, the better I became, and then the size of the fish improved.
At this time was when I also started trialing Rods I wanted to use, along with reels, and line!
I developed a system that worked for me.
Now all my tackle and lures will fit on a small table...I have 3 two piece rods, 3 reels, and braid....IMHO, I have the 3 best types of swimmers for Crappie, Walleye, and Bass...Also For Bass, I have the best tube, stick, and big swimming tail also! A New Super craw is now out, and a topwater is scheduled for next year....then everything needed will be possible with 1 manufacturer.
Now I normally carry a small plastic pocket pack with all the lures I need, and I have a few extras in a plastic case in my car.
You can use these plastics under a bobber, with almost ANY rig known to man, and almost every technique...for any species...that's how versatile they are!

How easy is it to fish a swimbait?? Dale picked up swimbait fishing at age 6, at age 10 he was out fishing his Father, his PB so far, are a 10.5 inch Bluegill, 16 inch WB, 15 inch Crappie, 19 inch Gator, 18 inch Smallie, 20 inch Largemouth, 26 inch Channel, and he went BIG Cat fishing with Larry...now at 13, football, lifting, and girls are more important...he caught his first 2 legal Gators this year and quit fishing....But I'll always Thank him for bringing the joy back to me for fishing...hopefully his life slows down again later on and we can share some more fishing memories!

Thanks Fritz for warming me up!lol
Good Fishing To All!

Another one of the things that I looked for, in the beginning of my new Journey into fishing again, was the fun factor....to me fishing with live bait was cheating, you are just trying to get a fish to do it's natural instinct without having anything to do with the actual result...fishing to me is tricking a fish into striking a artificial bait...fishing with micro baits, small lures, jigging, spider rigging, trolling, etc, were boring to me....I wanted to be able to present a Big Bait for Big Hits, and to keep busy...I am not a person who wants to sit down and watch a line and wait until a fish bites...I want to be part of the reason that fish slams a hunk of plastic! I also wanted to cast...I needed to be able to Catch other species if they were in the area....I wanted the BEST OF ALL WORLDS. Normally I can figure out what size and color the fish are feeding on or basic colors they will hit....normally Walleye, LM, Smallies, and Crappie, will hit the same natural colors when this is the pattern....with gummy colors, the 4 also see the same basic colors....so normally you can catch all 4 Species on one swimmer...and it has happened many, MANY, times! Channels and Flatheads also SMASH swimmers....let me tell you that a 18 to 20 inch flathead is a handful on light tackle!
People talk about Crappie being NON-FIGHTERS....Crappie have 2 feeding patterns....small bait/forage feeding and large bait feeding...a Crappie looking for a large meal will not stop to taste a lure, check out a lure, or soft hit a lure....they smash it!
Just like everything else in the animal kingdom, fish would prefer a large meal...it is more efficient to hunt once a day or every couple days, instead of all day long trying to get full on small stuff...they need those bellies full, so they can continue to grow, be healthy, spawn, put on fat etc!

How big of swimmers will Crappie hit??
Over the past several years, I have experimented while out with the guys...when the bite is good, I will put on a 4.8 inch swimbait....Crappie of all sizes, down to 8 inches will smash that thing...it is unbelievable. I've had 12-15 inch crappie hit the 5.8 inch swimmers....That is Exciting!

So what happens during times of small forage like after the spawns, when small EASY food is plentiful??
Now they have a 2 inch line of swimbaits, I used them and they work perfect...also Z-Man has a new line out (Slim SwimZ, and Small Culy TailZ))that are VERY good also!

So how many less fish will you catch using swimmers??
I fill 2 freezers each spring, then Catch and release the rest of the year...MY catch rates of all species has increased!

Is it hard to fish swimmers??
Once you get the basic "Feel" for them, you are on your way...when you catch that first fish, you are hooked.
I have taught 9 of Dale's friends and several of the members, no one has had any problems....and we are all here for tutorials!

[cjpolecat]

I am currently trying to figure out how to waterboard myself without drowning for the bigger CAN OF WORMS ,.. I gave him an opening and he jumped on it. One of these days I'll learn. Gatta get back to my Holoween costoom, gonna dress like a Walleye so nobody can catch me. LOL Good fishing all...
CJP

[INTIMIDATOR]

I am currently trying to figure out how to waterboard myself without drowning for the bigger CAN OF WORMS ,.. I gave him an opening and he jumped on it. One of these days I'll learn. Gatta get back to my Holoween costoom, gonna dress like a Walleye so nobody can catch me. LOL Good fishing all...
CJP

Dang it Fritz....Lowell was right...quit posting during breakfast, lunch, or dinner, or when I have a drink in my hand....I just shot water out my nose from reading that!

[jab]

Looks like this afternoon might be the last time out this season, anyone heading out?

[INTIMIDATOR]

Looks like this afternoon might be the last time out this season, anyone heading out?

Jab
ALL the fish at CJ will continue to hit a moving lure until the water temp hits the 30's....then, when it hits 39 and if the lake is open, you must find a way to use a bobber or vertical fish the MAIN LAKE!
Walleye will continue to take a swimbait throughout the Winter if the water is not frozen!
There are also WARM pockets of water at CJ, if you find them, you'll have fun!
I fished ALOT through the Winter 2 years ago...some days were cold but sunny and you could stay warm...I was able to catch enough fish to make it worth my while and fight the Winter "Fishing Fever"!
Last year was Bad...I couldn't get out to fish at all...CJ, at one point had 17 inches of ice on her in certain areas....VERY DEPRESSING FOR ME!