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Hey glen looks like our comic relief is trying to slip out......... better get the rope we got us a little sidetrip before we get to fishin....... .... ...... ...... heeeeeeereee Toooommmmmmmmyyyyeeeee Art

Their are a few things that are a given as far as the way a sonar unit works The deeper the water and the wider the cone the larger the area is you are reading. The further out from the center of the cone the weaker the return signal is. The return from an object's strength is Dependant on the density of the object. What you should be thinking when you see a mark on the screen is that mark is the highest point from the signal that is bouncing back to your transducer in the area that the cone is being read. If you have a cone reading a 20 ft radius it is telling you the high spot in that 20 ft circle and no other feature is being returned till the next signal. The cone that is being read is from the center out to the edge of the radius with the center being read the soonest and the strongest. The density compared to the water is how strong a signal bounces off the object. A fish has a density slightly more than water. Mud is denser than fish and rocks/sand is one of the densest materials you will read. Now look at your color sonar a red return is a very dense return and can be verified as being rocky bottom while a mud bottom has shifted to blue or yellow. Notice at the top of the screen the reflection the wider the reflection the harder the bottom is. Now you can adjust the gain till the rocky bottom gives you a slight return . Now if you are trolling and looking for a fish that likes rocky bottoms you can see at a glance if you are in mud or weeds because the reflection is not at the top of the page. Remember you need to adjust the gain if you vary the depth more than 10 ft or leave the gain turned up and look at the thickness of the return. Now look at the color of the returns that are suspended a yellow blue return that is large in mass and has highlights of red are more than likely bait fish because of the density of the school and the shifting of the red spot areas depths. If you see the same thing and the red spots stay the same and the color patterns dint move then you are reading a ball of weeds or if more red than yellow wood structure that is free floating or possible coming straight up from the bottom. So what does a fish look like color wise is usually blue with a hint of yellow. Since the speed that an object passes thru a cone is what gives the famous arch that some people associate with the size of a fish a slow moving target will look much bigger than it actually is. A good graph to see as you are trolling is a few arches then above them a shifting cloud of yellow and blues with a few arches again below it. Remember you are looking down at the first object the signal strikes so you have found the edge of the predator fish with the arches and the bait scattered by them feeding and then the other side of the fish feeding. By staying over the arches and not over the cloud you will not scatter the bait and still see the fish below. The best thing you can do is to go out in 10 ft of water clear or not and tap a stick on the bottom you will feel the different bottom contours and textures and how they relate to your screen. Think of the return as the highest point of the signal sent that means a rock will hide a fish that is in a depression inside of the cones return. So the long answer to your question is A bottom littered with rubble will often times not show the fish that you are catching that are holding tight to the cover. Art

Thanks Pete for the well wishes and we hope your season goes well. Don't forget to checkin and give a few reports on how your season is going. Art

and they said you were untrainable...... glad you got a few more weapons in your walleye arsenal. Thanks to Tom and Greg for passing on some knowledge. Art

using chemicals and lazers to bond/etch is not a new process we have been doing this to computer chips for many years. Art

WOW that is a good batch of shine it even made the camera see fuzzy. Art

Look like a fun trip you had their good fishin and friends are a tough combonation to beat. Art

thats an awfully big word you got their douG but can you spellit too??? Art

You dont understand for the 15 min u get to listen to twin 318 roaring and go below to the refrigerator and get a beer legally ( boats with heads in the states can serve beer ) and get to pee into a porcelin toilet whats not to love??? By the size of my compensation thinggy I must have got the boat for free then . Art

Lets see on the big boat with both motors running at optimum rpms of 3000 and 27 mph I will see you in 7 and 1/2 miles out of gas. I am pretty sure though it will be the best 15 min you had on the water. Art

I will stick to Aluminum for all of my boats. The 28 ft Marinette is aluminum and it weighs in at 7200 lbs were a 28 ft four Winn's fiberglass is 9800 lbs the kicker is the Marinette has twin 318's and the four winns has the single volvo setup. The aluminum does not become porous over time and survives impacts with debris in the river better. Being lighter also makes for better fuel economy and less maintenance on the bottom painting. Art

The guage of the wire is #6 because the larger the size the less resistance is lost in the wire in the form of heat. The best way to see if the wire you have existing is going to be good enough is to turn the motor on high in the water for a few minutes and check the existing wire to see if it get warmer than you can comfortable hold. If it does then it is to small and a new wire needs to be pulled. The boat is more than likely wired with a #8 gauge and should be O.K. if it looks any smaller than that then you run the risk of softening the wire in the chase area and then rubbing it thru and shorting. The fuse or the circuit breaker have the same function so either is acceptable. Make sure you have an extra fuse just in case you accidently blow it by shorting it or a loose connection. Remember that the circuit protector is the first thing that comes off the battery and then runs to the motor because everything between the battery and the fuse is not protected. Art

Sounds like a good time was had by all. Thanks for opening your doors again for yet another good cause. Art

Why Roy how nice of you to volunteer to make us a new prep station. I will send you the measurements. Actually since pops workshop is packed up for the big move I had to put that one together to keep the fish guts from getting all over the boat. After Pops gets moved in I will see if he can build us a nice board that is fitting for such a noble sport fish. If you all are following the fishing adventures that is Possum Point power station in the back round and we are fishing on pole B for the cats. Art

wow someone almost ruined a perfectly good computer geek. Glad to hear that you are better it's tough when your job tears up body parts. Art

Nice report Mike, Their is nothing like sight fishing for bass and skimming over rocks just below the surface. It is unnerving till you get used to it. Art

well its just...... well.......... see.........ahhh.........we like to get Ca-nooks drunk and well then......uhhh..... watch them stumble around and crawl up the stairs and pass out on the floor. But we have been deprived of the real joy that happens and that is the next mornin when they wake up lookin like they had run thru a wringer and put away wet. The bonus is when they don't know that they are drunk because they had a beer or two and decided to switch to Pepsi because they did not want to get to messed up. Well thats were I come in because I will distract you while Glen pours a big old slug of liquid hangover into your can when you ain't seeing it and bang you are on the way to being our favorite comedian. Pretty sick huh??? or you will be......... signed Glen's Accomplice

Like you all up North don't have Anal Lizards in the water...... Art

dont you worry their Glen I got all of devos albums and we can listen to them all week in the cabin bud. Man by sunday you going to know every song they do by heart....... So I am guilty of listening to a few classical T.V. themes wait till I break out the Ska for you Roy I bet I can get you to dive off the boat by the 3rd song. Art

Yup when ever someone posts a trip I always enjoy the reading even if it is a fishless post it is fun to fish along with that person when you read it. Well said Glen Art

Hey Roy, Well the truth be told I had my Ipod going in the speaker system and we had it on shuffle...... It was hooked while Buckwheat was singin Toot Toot one of my favorite songs. After releasing it the next song that came up was the theme from Jaws. Then the Valkyrie was next from Apocalypse now. Kind of scarry huh? Art

How could you question Roys sanity.........we all know he is insane. I do believe that Glen and I might take a SHINE to good old Tom. Nothin better than a man with a shine hangover when he thought he only drank a pepsi. That stuff is clear as water and tasteless tom so you will never know when you have been spiked by the Southern Contingincy. I aint sure whats going to be more fun Tom or the fishin. Anyone takin bets??? Art

Nice fish but why do you live in a place that has white stuff in the end of MAY. Thats just plain not fair to have such great fishin and such a short season to play. Art

Well a happy ending to a semi bad day. Just think now you can work your way up to no fish and your motor does not break for a good day fishin. Art

Well I was tying on a hook and had 3 oz of lead dragging it into the meat of my hand when that fish struck. It was pulling the tip of the rod down towards the water and the drag was steady slippin out so Joe got to catch the 1st fish of the day. It just so happened to be this great big monster of a fish that had already spawned out. Now for the story that Steve wants to hear....... Well when I saw that fishin thinggy bend way over towards the water I just raised my skirt up and ran towards the front of the boat screaming for Joe to get that ugly animal off my fishin thinggy.... and Yes thats the new boat out their with the radio playing and the twin 318's idling at a low rumble and the gas gauge going from right to left. Art