rcdinaz

We were there 3 weeks ago. All the fish we found that cooperated were 15-18" of water, rocky areas leading to the flats. From what we could gather they were staging on the flats and then feeding towards the banks. Spinner baits and shallow crank baits, sexy shad, shad, and bluegill pattern caught most of ours on cranks 6-8 feet of water. The spinnerbait bites were pretty random. We didn't catch squat in the trees and it seemed to be 1-2 hours of hits and then nothing for a while. We never did find the crappie and we drug minnows around in almost every spot we hit. Best luck was across from windy hill north before you hit all the mud flats. We did not hit the Salt end of the lake or the areas around the marina where the reports said the Crappie were bedding.

First thing is to thin of the areas you want to hunt. If it is high grass or thick desert laying down ain't gonna happen. We have hunted Mexico the last few years and no one has been able to lay down for any of the deer that have been shot do to the high grass. A lot of areas down south are this way. So the environment may limit your options. I have Caldwell, Harris, Stoney Point, and an older one that is silver matt aluminum that looked really cool with my stainless 300RUM. I like the Harris the best, the longer (I think up to 27") so I can sit and shoot which has proven more practical. Besides if I can lay down I can use my pack. Caldwell is a bit sloppier than the Harris. The Stoney Point broke but I liked the short bipod that was incredibly easy to take on and off, the rubber broke on a heavier rifle on the second outing. If you have big $ Atlas is the standard but they are limited in height. Shooting sticks, and the BogPod are also incredibly versatile. For my dad with 2 titanium knees the Bogpod has proven to be a God send, he shot this years deer at ~400yds one and done sitting in his tripod stool.

I see em in 3c/3b also. Man they are spooky in the pines though!

I am heading out Friday. Probably around lunch to chase the bass and then shoot for a few hours after dark. I want to try the north end so I am going to head to the ramp on that side. First try I always put in on the south side but I want to see if we can locate some stripers or white bass. Let me know if you are going to head out.

I have tried a lot of brands and there are a lot of good ones so I wouldn't get hung up on the names. Also may want to look at Kryptek & Core 4. I have seen some good deals on their stuff, the core 4 stuff I have is probably the best deal I have and great well thought out gear. I love Kuiu's pants, gloves, and rain gear, First light sweaters, Sitka is the one I haven't really tried. No matter how cool and stylish it is make sure it is comfortable. You will find yourself always grabbing what is most comfortable once you quit caring about the logos. I have some great gear I don't wear much because it just doesn't feel great compared to some of my other stuff.

All good suggestions but the most useful thing I have for layering is an ultralight down jacket. It wads up into a baseball size lump for stowing and weighs near nothing. When you need it or start the day shake the heck out of it and put it on under your shell. It is very warm. Kuiu and a couple of other companies now make waterproof down. I currently use a mountain hardwear version in bright yellow which allows me to use it to show the other guys I am hunting with wear I am if we are glassing from opposite spots.

Welcome! Check out the sponsors on the site. Also if there is a specific area you want to hunt then ask about guides who focus on or are located in that area. You can hunt these critters from high altitude in the pines all the way down into Mexico and some guides really specialize in certain units.

Awesome! Pretty sure I saw them at Jim's during my last visit. They look great on the wall!

That is fantastic! Congrats on a great trophy! I just talked to Jim and mine should be done by the end of April. My kids keep asking about it so everyone is excited about the bear.

We just used one in San Diego and it was a lot of work and actually a pain to paddle. I would not want to be out in the wind without a trolling motor. I have noticed almost all of them at the lakes in the neighborhood have trollers on them. I think a fishing kayak would be a better bet if you are buying something. But if you have one free for your use then you can't beat that, I would give it a try.

They had relaxed the side arm rules quite a bit last time I was there but it was the year of the fire. I have not been back since, still waiting for the fishing to recover. There is a really easy way around the sidearm issue, buy a small game permit for each day and you will have no issue since you are simply carrying it for rabbits and yotes. I take one day and usually call yotes in which case I have a rifle and sometimes a sidearm both and have talked to the warden every time with hardly a question. Don't take any UTV, ATV, or Motorcycle's they can and often will confiscate them and make you go to court to get them back. They are not allowed on the WM or SC lands.

Sounds good I am going to have to make a few daytime shooting only trips inst ad of waiting until dark.

Awsome!

There is a really long thread with a ton of info on Long range hunting.com. If I remember they recommend about 25-30 lbs. That is a lot of extra gear if you have 2-3, no food required and they are able to drink any water you can find and don't need much. If I had the space I would have some.

Awesome! So how do you go about chasing the buffs in the daytime? I have really ony shot at night. A couple times crusiing in the day but fish seem pretty skitish. Always end up fishing in the daytime, but I would chase those big boys for sure.

Good work! You are a beast on leg day.

If its wax then it will come off completely by simply using dish washing detergent. If you look at most car polishes and waxes one step for completely cleaning the car before detailing is to use dishwashing detergent. It looks to me like your plastic is actually faded, If so then try this: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008A5GRHM/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Carworx Restore I have an Avalanche and they are notorious for all that plastic fading really badly. This has worked the best, requires 2-3 coats. After the color comes back use the STP which has silicone and UV protectant. For worse case scenario a heat gun will slightly melt the plastic and return the color but you have to take it slow.

Well that was fast... dang!

Anyone heading out this weekend?

me too!

134 1/8 or BIG whichever is closer!

Well that was quick! Cool rug!

I have not used them only because I couldn't find them when working up loads int he right weight. However, I have read nothing but good reports on most forums for long range hunting. I want to try them in our new 6.5 when I start working on some new loads.

You guys did great! I was out the same night (Friday) right after the storm blew through. We were across from Cholla and there were fish everywhere but it was so dang muddy we didn't get a lot of shooting. Even though the numbers were not huge for 3 hours we had 7 fish, not too impressive but I finally got my dad shooting and he hit 3 fish 2 really good ones. The first took off like it was shot out of a cannon and he was just holding on while it took line, great time! I would not hit those mud flats again just because visibility was so bad and that was with the big 400W HPS lights. It was so muddy I kept running the troller into ground and having to push pole my way out of a couple of areas that were still 20 ft from the shore line. Bass fishing report: The Bass were still hit and miss. We fished the trees for the first half of a day and couldn't get anything to bite bass, Crappies on minnows, nothing. We tried a few other areas and finally found fish in some transition areas between rocks and sand. Almost all the fish we found in numbers on the fishfinder were in 15-20 feet of water. We fished hard for a day and a half and caught 13 fish, 11 large mouth and 2 white bass. I caught virtually every fish on a small diving crankbait (think crappie crank) in a minnow pattern. My dad mixed it up on the spinners, crawdad & sexy shad crankbait. We fished texas rigged lizards, drop shot worms, spinners, cranks, jigs, minnows, and topwater, medium crankbaits seemed to be the best bet if i was picking one. My dad managed to lose about $100 in lures on this last trip. It went from completely annoying to painfully funny when he kept losing lures even in areas where there seemed to be not much cover. I told him his reels were not allowed in the boat again until they had new line. I lost a grand total of "0" lures.

Great job! Looks like a good side business.