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Trophy King
I have fished for as long as I can remember and I remember when I was really young fishing at a local lake and catching tons of gills but looked down on them as they weren't the trout we were after. I moved to Salmon and Steelhead when I got older and did alright with them but spent way more time fishing than catching! I took a few years off from fishing when I moved across the country to PA and then I moved to CO and started fishing again a few months before moving from there back to WA.
Now that I am back into it I don't know why I quit fishing for those 4 or 5 years especially after finding out all the great panfishing opportunities I missed out on in those states! Now that I am in WA its hard to find people that are into going after gills or crappie as this state's fishermen seem to favor the Salmon, Steelhead, or trout which is fine I like to fish for them as well I just prefer to fish for panfish. Fly fishing is a huge deal in my area and I am slowly getting more gear for it but I am not as interested in fishing for trout with the fly gear but I am wanting to target panfish on a fly rod. You talk about targeting gills or crappie with fly rods in the local fly shops and they look at you like you just shot their mother. They sure are interested in my micro jigs I tie though that are light enough for their trout fly rods.
Anyways, back to the point the past week I have been going back to the basics as well just a slip bobber and a worm or tight line setup with worms and have been having a great time on the perch and the occasional trout but targeting the perch. Saturday had a blast with my girlfriend's dad (my fishing partner when he has the free time) landed 100+ perch and a few trout between the two of us and never once HAD to change our gear all day (I put one of my jigs on when I cut the line on a deep hooked fish). It was a blast and it was simple as could be. When I find myself trying to think of a way to catch the fish in order to catch just one fish it takes the fun out of especially if you don't figure out what they want. Sometimes the fun is in the challenge of figuring out what they want but I would rather go out and catch and release 100% of my catch than spend the whole day trying to figure out what they want and running out of light once you do figure it out or going home skunked and grumpy cause I couldn't figure it out.
To me hitting the water for some panfish and keeping everything simple is what keeps me fishing when I can't get excited when an unexpected big fish comes along then I will quit fishing till then I will fish till can't anymore and try to keep it as simple as I can!
Slabmaster II
wow, i am experiencing the same metamorphisis. though my boat is gone, i still have tons of cranks and trolling gear. they will sit. my light action rods, a vest or bag of lures and a pair of waders bring so much peace these days. this coming year i hope to again start putting panfish in the freezer.
Crappie Wall Hanger II
I would love to spend about 5 days in a rental cabins on a good lake fishing, eating and tellin tales with a bunch of fisherman with the "attitude" that is talked about in this thread. I have sure it would be the trip of a lifetime.
Crappie Wall Hanger II
what do u do with 900 fishOriginally Posted by mrbasser
AMEN
I really burned out on fishing altogether too. I fished several Central U.S. bass tournament trails for 9 years as a sole means of income as this was my dream. It became a real grind and I grew tired of it to the point of missing several prepaid tournaments. Lost most sponsors then took an offer to direct for 1 of the trails I frequented. This helped us stay in the game for a couple more years but eventually quit this too.
Until I started leaving my bassin' rigs @ home I could not enjoy a fishing trip as it was all in preperation/learning for the $$$ side of bass fishing. Business to me. I took my father from time to time but he hindered my style as he solely fishes for bluegills with live bait. After realizing I was leaving him @ home and hiding my fishing from him I decided to try his style next time we fished together and swore to myself I would leave the bassin' rods @ home. I did and have rejuvenated my passion for fishing.
We kept and filleted over 900 sunfish and 'gills this year. (He keeps tally on a calendar and has specific #'s by species too:rolleyesWe fished 4-5 days some weeks and always @ least 2 times weekly until it got too cold for Dad. I burned up a new electric fillet knife this summer!
Bought 2 when I replaced it so I have an extra to leave in my truck.
I do not want to know how much $$ is sitting unused in my garage as I haven't fished for bass in 2 years. Starting to want to fish some tournies again but think I will give myself another summer of 'gills to make dang sure.
Keeper
Package them into bags of 25 fillets each and the Mrs. and I have them for supper @ least once a week with either fried potatoes, home fries or baked beans. My dogs flip every time they see the fryer come out as they are big fans of fried 'gill fillets too!
Dad takes about 1/3 of what we fillet and packs them 10 fillets to a bag and eats them for lunch with cottage cheese.
We always run out of fish by January. That ain't happening this winter!:D
Andy
Keeper
Oh ya! Sometimes we do a lil' nighttime black ops maneuver too!Tonight it will be 'gills, frogs and home fries! And plenty of bottles of High Life to wash it down with! :D Don't y'all wish you was in Southwest Missouri 'round 5p.m. tonight?:p
Andy
Crappie.com Legend - Moderator Jig Tying Forum
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Different Styles
I have done a lot of different styles of fishing over the years, and recently learned that I'm not a TX fisherman either:o. All this light tackle is a thrill for many years now, and I recently bought a 4wt, 7' fly rod ($35) and found some reels at BPS Charlotte that were used in their casting classes. So I bought a 4 and a 7 weight($40 each with backing and line) and I will begin my lessons on fly fishing for Crappie and 'Gill - Tennessee style. There is little in life that's more fun than a BIG panfish on a light fly rod. The 3 lb surprise when a bass grabs it is not for the faint of heartBLASPHEMY! I admit to bassin' but I could never pick up a fly rod! LOL
Seriously, fly rods give me nightmares. Lil' whispy, thin, light actioned $800 piece of somethin' I will break in 10 minutes!
Creativity is just intelligence fooling around
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Crappie Wall Hanger II
i spose i've absolutely never left the basics.i've always loved catchin panfish.the baits i throw are all small panfish sized things.i do carry a few bass sized things as well,but there are more panfish sized things always lol.as long as i am catching something,be it a golden shiner thats 12" long,im a happy camper.my dad and i go out in our plastic pontoon boat in the warm months.i sometimes bring the flyrod with us in the boat to throw poppers with sometimes,but most the time its UL spinning setups.at least 3 rods each.i think i will always be into the "basics" :D
Slabmaster II
Mrbasser them gills and frog legs are hard to beat
fine eats for sure that site done flung a cravin on my
houehold for sure back to the topic i think simpler is better
go catch some fish and have fun we bass fish some but our
favorite thing is big bluegill and catfish crappie and stocked
trout
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