All things fishing thread

[golfballs]

When the girls were little, we used to chum in bluegills with bread in ponds around here and in brackish canals over in SC...and put bread on their hooks....they don't really "bite" per se, I don't think, but they'll swim by and can suck the hook in....we used to catch striped "jumping" mullet that way, too, but most people net those...I've never seen those carp bite a worm or a cricket, though.

I’ve only tried w flies. Only a couple foul hooks

 

[bag12day]

Top water bite is fun for sure when it’s on.

I personally prefer using more finesse baits/tackle with 6-8 pound. Something about not knowing how big of fish is on the end of the line until it comes up. It could be a lunker, or it could be one with little man syndrome.

Don’t get me wrong I love freshwater fishing and have fished more than my share of bass tourneys as well, matter of fact back when I had my offshore boat I would fish a billfish tourney, king mackerel tourney, and be a backseat non boater bass tourney in 3out of 4 weekends in june. I had a bass semi pro tell me the same thing and I set him straight with ”yeah but you know it’s gonna be 1-12 lbs no question unless your on bill dances or Roland martin’s private water in Florida.
But I digress, the ultimate wth is it is when you have a an 8 inch ballyhoo rigged into a blue/white islander chugger (lots of bubbles right on the surface) on a 30,50 or 80 lb outfit and when the drag starts screaming it could be 8-50# mahi, 10 lb blackfin tuna, 20 lb cuda,40 lb wahoo, 70 lb yellowfin, 80# sailfish, 125# bigeye tuna, or 700# blue marlin. Back in the 90s I did a lot of winter bluefin fishing here in N.C. and we would hook 150 lb schoolys right beside an 800# behemoth sometimes it took longer to get the 150 in than the 800.

 

[Tin Man]

king mackerel tourney

Yeah, buddy! I fished a few out of the St. Mary's River Sound, a battle between the crews from St.Mary's and the greater number from Amelia Island, Jawja-Florida on the water. I always fished with the boat of the assistant principal of St. Mary's High School, crewed by him and his son. They trusted me as a fisherman, so my fees were just above actual cost (He'd quote the margin as the tip to the boat; the tip to the captain and mate was at my discretion). I never won, but I did get an honorable mention once, for best picture of a big King bitten in half by a barracuda (taken by the captain of me, his son, and the 1/2 fish raised aloft on the line).

 

[Carl Pickens]

Me and a friend went fishing on Old Hickory the evening before last and stayed out until 9:30 or so. We thought they’d be up shallow , but apparently the slight cool off ran them a little deeper. We kept up with our best five and had 14lbs..... and I had one snap my 8lb line. The guy I was with caught a big fat female that looked like she was spawned that weighed right at 6. I’m ready to go again

 

[ndubvols]

I’m interested to see what the cold snap this weekend and middle of next week does to the spawn. I’m not able to get out until next weekend so really hoping it delays it a bit.

 

[hndog609]

 

[SmokyRiverDog]

Me and a friend went fishing on Old Hickory the evening before last and stayed out until 9:30 or so. We thought they’d be up shallow , but apparently the slight cool off ran them a little deeper. We kept up with our best five and had 14lbs..... and I had one snap my 8lb line. The guy I was with caught a big fat female that looked like she was spawned that weighed right at 6. I’m ready to go again

Thought the bars were closed?

 

[Tin Man]

Me and a friend went fishing on Old Hickory the evening before last and stayed out until 9:30 or so. We thought they’d be up shallow , but apparently the slight cool off ran them a little deeper. We kept up with our best five and had 14lbs..... and I had one snap my 8lb line. The guy I was with caught a big fat female that looked like she was spawned that weighed right at 6. I’m ready to go again

Tilapia teeming in Old Hickory Lake

It is incumbent upon you to attempt to fish out the invasive tilapia. When temperatures have them massing, you need to fill your boats.

 

[Carl Pickens]

Tilapia teeming in Old Hickory Lake

It is incumbent upon you to attempt to fish out the invasive tilapia. When temperatures have them massing, you need to fill your boats.

I live near the steam plant where they congregate

 

[Tin Man]

I live near the steam plant where they congregate

Kill them all (and eat them while you're at it).

 

[Tin Man]

I wonder if you could free-line little tilapia, night fishing for big flatheads...

 

[bag12day]

I wonder if you could free-line little tilapia, night fishing for big flatheads...

Imma free line big tilapia for big flatheads lol. Thank goodness we don’t have any tilapia yet. my biggest flathead came on a 1.5 lb live crappie though. I also use 14-16 inch blueback herring live Or dead cut. This is the same lake as the 143 lb world record blue cat 8 miles from my house. We use bigggggg baits...

 

[Tin Man]

my biggest flathead came on a 1.5 lb live crappie

 

[bag12day]

LOL love it! Ive used 1+lb Shell crackers and white perch too.
we got nice crappie around here and some of them I fry for Bag12day bait and some I use raw for bigger fish.
Here's Mrs Bag from that day we got back to find out my dad had coded last week... My biggest Flat is about 50 Lbs weighed while solo fishing on handheld scales that bottomed out at 50Lbs and my biggest Blue cat is 68.? Lbs weighted on certified scales. Both fish were released back into the same water.

 

[OL SMOKEY]

LOL love it! Ive used 1+lb Shell crackers and white perch too.
we got nice crappie around here and some of them I fry for Bag12day bait and some I use raw for bigger fish.
Here's Mrs Bag from that day we got back to find out my dad had coded last week... My biggest Flat is about 50 Lbs weighed while solo fishing on handheld scales that bottomed out at 50Lbs and my biggest Blue cat is 68.? Lbs weighted on certified scales. Both fish were released back into the same water.View attachment 274883

Awesome fish!!!’

 

[bag12day]

Awesome fish!!!’

Whoops edit to add words. I weighed on the boat with handheld scales and was either 2.47 Lbs or 2 lb 7.4 ozs either way it wsa just shy of 2 1/2 lbs and nice fish indeed caught about 4 more in the 2lb range that we realeased and kept a gut hooked 1.5 lbs and a white perch for dinner.

 

[bag12day]

Tilapia teeming in Old Hickory Lake

It is incumbent upon you to attempt to fish out the invasive tilapia. When temperatures have them massing, you need to fill your boats.

I read the article and the only time I have caught tilapia was fishing the canals for peacock bass and largemouth down in Southwest FLorida. One question how did those fish survive in a private pond in Tenn in the winter before they washed out during the flood? Were they just a seasonal food stocking for some ones trophy largemouth pond? My sons company stocks 8-16 inch rainbow trout into trophy largemouth ponds here in NC just as food for the bass during the winter months. Incredible the amount of money his clients spend doing this and the fish the bass don't eat die off by late may from warm water so kind of the opposite of the tilapia.

 

[joevol33]

my girls had all the luck today!

 

[Tin Man]

here in NC

There are a passel of lakes in NC. Which are your fishin' holes?

 

[Tin Man]

Years ago, I was fishing with some locals at the convergence of the Satilla River and the East River looking for speckled trout and redfish. I hooked into something, and as I was bringing it back to the boat, boom! It was gone. I had no idea what had snatched my catch, when a huge tarpon launched out of the water less than ten feet from me. My hosts quickly brought everything in, sat everybody down, and moved to another area. One explained that being struck by a leaping 60lb+ tarpon could be lethal. Besides, you don't eat tarpon, and we were fishing for food.

 

[bag12day]

There are a passel of lakes in NC. Which are your fishin' holes?

Name one, chances are I have fished it or will unless I die real soon. I live close to Buggs Island Reservoir and Lake Gaston both of which have held or do hold world record Blue Cats. New world record came from close to where I live and weighed 143 Lbs.

 

[Tin Man]

some people thumb their noses at surf fishing.

Done it many times. Flounder and blue fish are favorite targets, but you're gonna get whatever's swimming by that takes the bait.

 

[TheBigOne10]

Today was a first for me. Took the fly rod down to a Creek I’ve fished a hundred times growing up right on the GA/TN border and caught this Meanmouth Bass. A cross between a Smallmouth and a Spotted Bass. Fought like crazy for a 17” fish!!

 

[GordonC]

Done it many times. Flounder and blue fish are favorite targets, but you're gonna get whatever's swimming by that takes the bait.

We used to toss grubs right in the breakers, back in the day we used Mann's stingray white or yellow with red tail depending on water clarity. It's pretty amazing sometimes how many decent-sized whiting and flounder can be caught right in the breakers in shin-deep water. Pomps are usually a little farther out, based on my experience. I think a lot of folks outcast the fish in the surf. (Not talking about drumming at Cape Point at Hatty. That's work right there. HA)

 

[bag12day]

We used to toss grubs right in the breakers, back in the day we used Mann's stingray white or yellow with red tail depending on water clarity. It's pretty amazing sometimes how many decent-sized whiting and flounder can be caught right in the breakers in shin-deep water. Pomps are usually a little farther out, based on my experience. I think a lot of folks outcast the fish in the surf. (Not talking about drumming at Cape Point at Hatty. That's work right there. HA)

We used to say use any color as long as it had a red head and white mann's grub with the hot pink tail lol. The fall trout bite in the surf however was usually a Kelly green twist tail with a red 1/4 oz head.
Off topic a bit but it hit a nerve...I quit fishing the point and Hatteras in general when you had to start bringing your own sand mat to stand on back in the late 90s. The idiots from up north ruined a lot of things in NC not the least of which the politeness and cooperation between fishermen and with a whole beach to fish and they would pull up 15 feet away from you. Exceptions to the rule existed of course but the Delaware, Masshole, NJ, NY, and Ohio (more MidW I know) tags were usually the root cause with light line, getting into your pocket cause they saw you catch a fish, not enough weight, and drifting w/ baits. You could only try to educate so many times with "don't tell me how to fish" answers. I guess I've changed a bit since then but I have taught many a close troller when pier fishing, or unpolite surf fisherman a valuable lesson with a 4 oz pyramid sinker and 4 razor blades cast into it.

Some of my fondest memories fishing anytime in the past 50 years was standing in the surf on Emerald Isle or Cape lookout watching the sun come up over the sand up the beach with a dropper rig of sand fleas caught the night before or really fresh shrimp and a PVC sand spike.