aplumma

When a snappin turtle goes into the hole he goes in face first. When you noodle into a hole if you touch shell or feet you don't double check that hole because he will turn around and be facing out by then. Ask "lefty" or "4 finger Fred" about that. Juggin for Cats is still one of my favorite ways to fish for a catfish fry. We run usually 4 orange jugs across the flats with chicken livers on them. We float them in front of the boat and use the trolling motor to keep the boat back but in the area till we get a strike and then chase it down. Using small jugs in deep water is a no no because if the fish can get back to a snag and get tangled and die you have done a disservice to a fine sporting fish. Art

While catfish may feed from the bottom most of the food is minnows and crawfish and insects. One they get to be about 7-10 lbs they are full blow predators and eat baitfish just like the muskie, pike,and bass. Fishing for them with chicken parts or soap works because it is bloody or full of oils/fats that they can track too with the whiskers. What stinks to us in the air might be perfume to them under water. Art

Been their and done that..... I am telling you bud the world of catfishin is the greatist. Wait till you see what juggin for cats is all about that alot of fun and a good way to scout for good fishin grounds. I wont ruin it by going into detail just google it you will like it. Art

What a pain that would be to clean all of the soap and stuff off of after being rolled up wet and taken home..... I am sure it would be much easier if you showered and we all promised not to look. Art

good then take TJSA with you the next time and see if he can catch a 41 for team 8. You have my condolances for not making it past 4 and up to team 8... J/k good luck and catch some fish. Art

Dont listen to the song it will get stuck in your head and then you will start looking for its meaning........ Art

How can you throw mud at one of the best eating fish in the world? It's kind of funny see I do not eat the bullhead cats and will even move to a new spot if they find my bait. Now hook up to a 3-5 lb channel catfish and I will consider it a treasure for the table. Around5-10 lb they are not as tasty so back into the water for them. After 10 lbs well they got my respect for the fight they have just given me so they get to go back and spread their supior genes. As far as cleaning them I am not near as good as Joe is but he fillet them and then runs the knife between the skin and the flesh the same way you do a fish with scales. The meat on the ribcage is so thin that it is not worth messing with if you decide to debone that part of the fish. Don't forget to fry up a batch of hush puppies to go with them catfish they are part of a good summer fishfry with the crickets chirping and a cold beer flowin........ Art

really you caught fish.... come on fess up you went to the grocery store again right??? ( I am not sure I should be jerkin your chain since I havent wet a line yet this year) Art

Well...... how did your day go? Did you remember to bring the new boss a shinny red apple? Were your shoes shined and your hair slicked back? first impressions are ever lasting. Art

To me the best tow vehicle is the one were you don't relize that you are towing anything. I once towed a 20 foot fiberglass boat with a 90 hp on it with a CJ5 with a big V8. I also once almost killed myself when I had to slam on the brakes and the jeep was pushed sideways by the boat thank goodness for road shoulders or I would be dead. The good news is my lesson was learned without any penalty. I now tow a 2,500 boat with a 9,900 rated truck and it feels good not to worry if I can get out of a dangerous situation. Art

Darn I was just about to hire you too..... Congradulations on the job and thanks HH for helping my bud out. Art

How did the rocks in your head get into your kidney???? My doctor said that laughter makes the stones pass quicker..... he did not tell me how to laugh when you got that much pain. He did get me some demeral that really made me giddy though. Once the stone is in the bladder the pain stops and the uriter is much bigger so the passing is easier. My doc made me strain my urine so they could biopsy it the dam thing looked like a sea urchin..... I will stop here for you faint of hearts. I am glad it was nothing to do with your other recovery bud so get well soon. Art

I cant really give you an answer because in the US it is tough to be a freshwater guide because of the expense/time of getting and running the water with only 1-3 people in the boat. A guided trip for bass was $300.00 for two of us and the guide had 8 hours into a 5 hour on the water trip by the time he put the boat back in the garage. That is 37.50 per hour without any expenses. After expenses he was around $20.00 per hour. Which sounds good till you figure that you are not booked 8 hour/365 and the most popular days are Sat-Sun around here. Start up is all of the tackle in multiple numbers, Insurance, auto/boat upgrades and time on the water to learn new spots. It is a huge outlay for something that can be controlled by public opinion of yourself. I have seen a few go down in flames because their equipment,knowledge boat appearance,and their appearance/personality was perceived as being less than perfect for a short time. One guide had a family member die and that hit him hard and it reflected in his performance. I am not trying to tell you not to do this just look at it with the light of day on it because it is not an easy business to start and to make it successful. If the lodges have their own guides how will you get the word out to the Tourists? 20 weeks x 5 trips a week maximum x 8 hour day x $20.00 = $16,000.oo income how much different is that from what you make now? If you have a go at it how much money do you have put aside as a cushion? If you get into financial issues is your old job available or something equal? The average guide around here replaces their boat/motor every 3-5 seasons will the present boat be able to go that length right now being about 300 hours of running a year? If your boat goes down do you have a back up boat or can you borrow a friends boat? Can you spend the day in a boat with an ass**** and still smile? Can your spouse accept you getting up at 4:00 am and back at dark for days in a row? I answered all of these questions and decided that I could not be a guide here in the states. My present job pays better than guiding and I can't fish with an ass**** so I get to keep my fishing as fun and not a job. Think hard about it and if you can answer all of the questions correctly then go for it. Art

Since I quit I stopped getting ear infections and my sinuses do not react as much to allergies. The lungs clearing out is the best feeling I just recently got a chest cough and it feels like I am smoking again..... it really really sucks. Glen is alot like my Pops who is a Radiologist and smokes we had some really effective commercials and social pressures to smoke in their era. Thats OK their marlboro man you can smoke in my boat anyday bud. Art

Sorry you hurt again Chuck give a holler if I can help. Art

Here is the knife I have and it is very nice for the finesse jobs. nice knife

Sorry for the news.....but I am proud that you did the right thing for Dallas. Art

If you catch a fish and stick the nose in the snow the cold will draw the mercury to the head which you cut off..... yea OK I know it is bull**it but it is an old wives tale that got to be kept alive. Art

A transducer sends a pulse out at the speed of sound that reflects off of the first object it hits and the machine measures the time and makes a mark on the screen. The next signal makes the same trip and makes the next mark.... on and on. The wider the beam the less detail you will get from the unit because it only sees the closest point of the radius of the signal. The signal is an ever increasing circle from the point of origin. It means that the sidfinder will tell you their is an object 60 ft from the boat but it does not know if it is at the top of the circle or the bottom of the circle which could be a 25 ft+ difference in depth. The wider cones will give you more hits only because they are seeing more area however they are not confining the information to an area you can locate easily. Art

It's the cold season Roy that should explain it. Art

Well lookie who chimed in Darth Dawg and his come to the dark side speech. You just keep suckin on the butts Dawg and I will be driving your boat after you are gone. Though I not sure anyone in Alabananas does not smoke even the squirrels smoke if I am not mistaken. Heck looks like you are losing your Lak Air smoken buddy douG better bring enough shine to keep them all happy. Art

I had the Tournament bottomline series with sideview and found it to be more of a gadget than a useful tool. If you want to spot bait balls with a sonar then you will be looking downward. Remember that a 40 degree cone is showing a 40 foot circle at 110 feet meaning that you are receiving a reflection of the highest point in the 40 foot circle. You are missing alot of detail. I personally like to use a dual beam unit witht eh12 degree to read the bottom contours and the 40 degree as my upper column reader. On my present Garmin sounder unit it tells you which unit you are getting the reflection from by the darkness of the signal. Dual beams are more useful than a sidefinder unit if you are looking for were the fish live and other areas like were the fish are active than just looking for fish. Art