cthewrld

Congratulations on your day. It looks and sounds like you had a riot. Thanks for sharing.

Stoty: My guide was Jack Mitchell. Great guy. I had a blast. Michael

I spent the last 3 days fishing on Lake Toho, just outside of Orlando, Florida. The fish are in the pre-spawn, spawn and post-spawn stages. It was a real mixed bag. I caught 37 fish over the 3 days - 33 largemouth, 2 gar, and 2 chain pickerel (pike - very similar to Northern). The largemouth averaged around 5 pounds, and on the final day I finally managed to reach my goal of landing fish over 10 pounds. To say that it was an amazing experience is a huge understatement! The fishing was done with a combination of live shiners and artificials. Most of the fish were caught on the shiners in water that averaged 6 feet deep. Loads of hydrilla ..... a really typical Florida bass lake. I have only included a few of the pictures from the 3 days. You can see in one of them, that the fish is about to spawn. That will probably happen today on the new moon.

Rick, I have had both a pacemaker, and an internal defibrillator put into my body. One (the pacemaker) keeps my heart from going below a certain number of beats per minute. The other (the defibrillator) is designed to shock my heart back into a normal rhythm if I go into ventricular or atrial fibrillation (abnormally high and erratic heartbeat). The surgery is a breeze. It is usually day surgery. The recovery is around 3 - 4 days. Depending on what he is having done, he may not be able to drive for around a month, or raise his left arm above his shoulder for a month. Other than that, he should be good, and should consider himself lucky to have not had any other problems at this point. I hope the point of view from someone who has been through it helps.

I wish your brother the best. Through my own personal heart issues, I am aware that there are a huge number of options available today that can keep him stable and in good health for many years to come. I'm sure that he is in good hands.

Lake of Bays is a good choice. Are you interested in some company?

Hi hookset. Is there any chance that you moved to the Baysville area? The reason I ask is that I have my cottage up in that area and I am looking at moving up there within the next couple of years. Internet will be very important for me ........ Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Michael

Yes, Angie is Chet's wife. They have been married for seven years now.

I agree with your comments on the lake not being what it once was. The hope is that the drought will ease as the year goes on, and the lake will recover over the winter rainy season and return to the state it once was.

My wife fishes with me ........ not all the time, but whenever she gets a chance. Almost every time, she has the first fish in the boat!

Here is a quick report from last week's day on Lake Okeechobee, Florida. We arrived into Clewiston, Florida at around 6:45 a.m. and met our guide for the day, Angie Douthit. Angie is a professional guide, as well as a pro on the Women's Bassmaster tour. After picking up six dozen shiners we launched the boat onto the lake and by around 8:00 a.m. we were fishing. We stuck mainly to the rim canal due to very high winds that day. We fished until around 1:00 p.m. and only fished with the live bait. Rigging was pretty much a Carolina rig fished on 7 foot rods with 20 pound fluorocarbon. We fished a drop off point that went from around 3 feet near shore to approximately 10 feet in the middle of the canal. The water was relatively clear, and there were a decent number of weeds and lily pads in the area. Over the 5 hours we managed to land 19 largemouth. They ranged in size from the small end of around 1.5 pounds up to approximately 5 pounds. Most were in the 3 - 4 pound range. Not huge, but lot's of fun to fish for and catch. Reports of the lake being too low, and not fishable, are pretty exaggerated. The lake averages around 10 feet deep, and there are millions of places to fish. It is the second largest lake in the U.S., with Lake Michigan being the largest. All in all, a great day ...... fantastic to be out on the lake and have the chance to land some largemouth. If anyone heads down that way, I highly recommend the services of Angie. She was very professional and is incredibly knowledgeable about the sport. Now I can't wait until June ........

I am fishing a 1999 Princecraft 16'9" Pro Series with a 90hp Yamaha 4 stroke. I am fishing for bass, lake trout and pike on the Lake of Bays. I'd be happy to hook up with anyone that might be up that way. I hope to be up there most of the summer. Trout ...... very soon.

Saturday and Sunday are definitely the busiest days for the show. If you can, try to get there when the show opens. That way you should get at least a couple of hours in before the crowds arrive.

Thanks for the article. It just whets the appetite a little more!

Welcome aboard. And yes ..... fishing is the most addictive, and safest, thing that you could ever imagine. Happy fishing!

Welcome aboard. Keep us "posted" of your fishing adventures.

Glad you are OK. Cars are easy to replace. People ..... not so much.

I just got back from the Sportsmen's Show so will provide a review for those who are thinking of going. 1) $16. to get in, and $11. to park. Discount coupons for $2. are available from LeBaron's. 2) Huge emphasis on travel. There are around 5 aisles of vendors promoting their lodges. Everything from local to as far away as the Amazon to fish for Peacock Bass. 3) All of the major fishing manufacturers are there with their product. Everyone seemed happy to provide advice when I asked. 4) A large number of fishing retailers as well. There seemed to be pretty good deals on reels and rods. I didn't really pay close attention to tackle. Almost every vendor had product on sale. Most were not charging any tax either. When I did some comparison shopping, I found that most vendors would happily meet the competitors price. 5) The only good deals I saw on Fishfinders, GPS etc. were at Radio World. Their prices were marked down from their store, and website. They are charging tax though. As an example: Lowrance LMS 522 c - $619. at Radio World. Others had it anywhere from $649 - 719. plus tax. There were no other vendors willing to match the Radio World price. 6) Good selection of boats to see and buy. Most major manufacturers represented. 7) Small hunting section. 8) Limited amount of clothing available. 9) Decent selection of kayaks and canoe's. 10) Small section on fly fishing. 11) WFN had a large set-up and seminars going on throughout the day. 12) Fish TV had a smaller set-up with fewer seminars going on. I think that is about it. I hope this helps those who are planning on attending. Michael

Welcome aboard Anton. I work for your number one competitor in the generic business. Let me know, by PM, if you are ever looking for a fishing partner. I am available just about any time. Michael

Not next week, but possibly the week after if you are still interested.

I like informative and topic specific shows. One that comes to mind is BassEdge, which I currently get on Wild TV. I agree with others that the show should not be all about the advertising and the sponsors ...... although that is what makes any show possible. I would say that there are far more shows that are not fun to watch. Some that were very good in the past, have now become 30 minute advertisements for the sponsors. I do enjoy Extreme Angler TV, and Dave Mercer's Facts of Fishing as well. Who can't help but smile every time Dave lands a fish, and let's out his laugh. At least he show's us what fishing is really meant to be .... fun.

Earth hour is Saturday, March 29 at 8 p.m.

Congratulations on making 25 years! I made 25 at my company as well. Unfortunately, on my 25th anniversary I was lying in intensive care after having suffered a major heart attack. Now I am on LTD. It was a blessing in disguise. Now I can fish whenever I want to! Keep up the good work. Michael

I have no idea how large their booth is going to be. The last time I saw one of their set-ups was at the Fishing show at the International Centre in February 2007. At that show, they also had a tax free event going. The booth was a good size, and the items that they carried were all current. What I found at that show was that it was important to shop all of the different suppliers who had exhibits. Prices on certain items varied from one place to another. I cased the whole show for what I was looking for, and then took my business back to the places where I could get the best deal. For Lebaron's, it ended up being two Shimano Stradic reels. I guess at the end of the day ...... caveat emptor (buyer beware). Michael

You should be congratulated on your composition. It is fantastic! Keep up the good work.