Fishn' Close to Home

Woody cover looks inviting!

I must say, just the other night I figured out that I have about 2 dozen private lakes and ponds to fish within a 30 minute drive of my home...what a blessing! I'm gonna' post a few of them I enjoyed this year, along with some decent fish we got from them. The scene above is another 'new' pond from the summer...bass, gills and pumpkinseeds...

Big and beautiful pimpkinseed sunfish from one of the 'new' ponds.

A great spot for kids of all ages. We caught big seeds up to 9.5 inches, along with some near ten-inch bluegills and some bass to 1.5 pounds. Gotta' hit this place in the spring when the panfish are spawning!

This gem was reclaimed about 8 years ago...nice!

We fished this secluded pond in southern Pennsylvania three times this season, catching bass, gills, channel cats and redear sunfish. Pond was reclaimed and dug out and stocked about 8 years ago. The fishing is good here...

My friend Loren with a fine channel cat!

One of the bigger bass I caught this year!

At yet another small lake, we encountered a lot of quality largemouth bass on plastic worms and surface frogs. No surprise here...we had fished this gem for almost a decade and had always caught and released big bass during the summer. And big gills to boot! Here's the lake and a few bigguns'...

Our old standby pond has produced many big bass over the years. Cool!

Jake shows his beautifully marked 5 pounder!

This one's about four...nice fish!

From an earlier post, Linda with our 'his-and-her' near five pounders!

Then we hit a 'far away' lake...a good 8 miles from the house, for massive bluegills and redbreast sunnies...

10.25 inches.

My best gill so far in 2012...11.25 inches!

Most recently, I got an in to a pair of lakes less than a mile from the house. Variety was the word here, with crappie, channel cats, bass, bullheads , sunfish and more. I even caught my first ever black-nosed crappie! Plus, I managed some excellent bass up to nearly 5 pounds on, of all things, frozen shrimp intended for catfish! Go figure! Oh, we caught some nice channels, too...

Crowded parking lot at the local fishing hole.

My first ever black-nosed crappie!

A big bass on frozen shrimp...are you kidding me?

Lean cattie could have used another meal or two.

Yes...small ponds and lakes, all close to home, all providing excellent fishing for a variety of species. No parking or boating hassles, no entry fees and no really sophisticated equipment needs to have fun and catch fish. Real close to home, blue collar enjoyable fishing.

Way too often, I have been guilty of persuing more than I actually needed, thinking it would make me happy and prosperous. But God always provided me with plenty, and in every way and need. I don't need the big boats, the expensive electronics or the fancy stuff. And in all other aspects of life, He has provided me ...'all that I needed, His hand has provided'. Check out Psalm 128: 1-2...

'Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in His ways.
You will eat the fruit of your labor:, blessings and prosperity will be yours.'

Thank you Lord! As I get older I hope to embrace this truth all the more!

POND BASS MASSACRE!

Okay, I am really not one to brag about the fish I catch, preferring to call them 'our' catch. And, if my wife Linda was not such a good plastic worm fisherman, well, on some trips, we wouldn't catch any thing if she were not along for the ride. Anyhow, she had a pretty good evening the other week at the local largemouth bass factory. We had fun...

First good evening bass on the frog.

We caught fish on two lures...she used a 4.25 inch Stank X Stix in Camo and I used the 5 inch Stanley Ribbit Frog. Both caught fish, and I picked up some good 'uns earlier in the afternoon when strong winds blew surface algae to one end of the pond, opening up spacious areas for us to cast and catch...

Twenty incher!

All smiles!

The afternoon bite wasn't near as hot as the evening gig. Sure is great to have such outstanding water just minutes from home! Linda caught 11 to my 5 bass on the evening stint, but I like to think that my fish were bigger! With the frog, hookups to strike ratios are low percentage at best. I am getting to the point where I am at about 65 %.

This is how I rig the Ribbit with a #2 offset worm hook for surface action.

This Stank X Stix caught 13 bass for Linda.

Meanwhile, Linda's simple lift-drop retrieve got plenty of strikes, plenty of bass. The highlight of the evening was a double headed of near 5-pounders that she and I landed at the same time! Of course, I think mine might have been just a little bit bigger...

Linda and I each got a hawg as darkness settled in!

And here are a few more shots from the 23 fish that we caught, in only 2 hours, with 10 fish over the 4 pound mark...

Lindas' first cast nabbed this fine 18 incher!

Another afternoon brute!

Had to have it!

Final fish of the evening was this post-dark frog hawg!

So...Linda and I had a great afternoon-evening of bass fishing, a close-to-home adventure that will stand out in our memories for a long time. We thank God every time we can enjoy His creation, together. Yes...the pond was man-made and the bass were stocked, but it was indeed the Hands of the Creator that enabled it to be so, and for us to enjoy it. Praise God and all His Glorious things! After a long, hot summer and a year of many trials, Linda and I enjoyed the glory. Here is what Psalm 19:6-7 says about that...

'It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is hidden from its heat,

The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul.'

                                           THANKS FOR ALL THE BLESSINGS!

The Way to Bring Up a Child

I don't often tell people this, but when I was five years old I had my first experience at catching a fish...and I haven't been the same since! It was about a five inch bluegill, and I thought I had caught the biggest fish in the world!

Caden 'long-arms' a decent bluegill for the camera.

Bluegills and kids...ha-ha! Makes sense, doesn't it? You bait a hook, watch the bobber go under, set the hook! You never know what the next fish is gonna' be! Big, small, bass, bluegill...or, perhaps a pumpkinseed sunfish! Pumpkinseeds? What are they?

Pumpkinseeds are among the most brilliantly colored of all the sunfish...like slow moving creeks or ponds, but do well in larger, clear lakes. Taste great and put up a good fight. Eight to ten inchers are considered whoppers. My friend Pete and his young sons, Ryder and Caden and I enjoyed some 'super seed' fishing recently at a local pond on a pleasant August evening. Check out some of the action...

Pete and his son Caden with a decent bluegill!

Ryder shows off a high-quality seed for the camera!

Here Ryder and Caden 'double-up' on bluegills at the local panfish factory. They wore Pete and I out with their Huck Finn style of fishing!

Magnum pumpkinseed sunfish more than fills the hand!

My biggest 'seed' in a long time...9.25 inches.

Caden shows off the top 'gill of the trip...a fine 9 1/2 incher!

Spunky bluegill splattered Ryder with mud-flappin' fins on the release!

Does this look good or what?

What a great bunch of fun and a great evening of fishing! We caught maybe 30 gills and seeds and maybe a dozen bass. Top gills went 9 1/2 inches and we had some seeds that were almost as big! And the pond was just loaded with great looking structure! I gotta' go back, and soon!

Teaching kids to fish...it just makes sense. Like teaching them about the Bible and about Gods Word and His Grace, Glory and Kindness. We were blessed that night, but we are far more blessed with a gracious and loving Savior as Jesus Christ. In 3 John:5, it says ' I have no greater joy than to know my children are walking in the truth' . Wow! Can we all say that? If not, don't we wish we could?

As I watched Pete patiently assist and counsel and guide his two sons on a fishing trip, I could not help but imagine the same love and care that goes into every aspect of child rearing...and how important it is to instil Gods incredible qualities to our children. I wish I had payed attention to those who tried to instilled a Christ-centered walk in me during my days of youth.. Instead, I struggled, and eventually found it, with the aid of precious ones whom God put in my path. THANK YOU LORD!

                                                  NO GREATER JOY!

BACKYYARD BASSIN'

During a rain shower I got this lunker on a stick worm.

I have been in wonderment of all the latest and greatest TV shows that are tracking every type of freshwater bass fishing competition in the nation. Lot's of things going on out there...A-Rigs with multiple catches, new scents for new soft-plastics, multi-imaging sonar for greater structure and detail, and better and bigger sunglasses. New boats, new motors and new places to go. But me...I have to stay close to home if I want to enjoy bass fishing. No tournaments, no weigh-ins, no bragging rights...just get out somewhere and fish!

Not all the fish are big, but all the fish are fun! Most of what we have been catching are smaller guys, 10 to 14 inches, but they are rod-benders on the light stuff nonetheless. Most are taking stickworms like Travis Crosmans 4.25 inch Stix in camo or bluegilla colors. This is a great bait, better than the 'big-name' stick baits, and his Stank X Baits can be found on- line along with a host of other fish killers. I like helping out the small guy...you should, too!

Nice 17 incher from the local park pond, 5 minutes from home.

Some of our better spots have been in small, public ponds that just about everyone ignores and just jogs around or walks the dog. Early and late in the day, or during cloud cover, has produced the most fish for us recently. Plus, you don't have to put up with the blazing mid-day heat. Easy on the gas mileage and easy on the body...that's how I like it!

Another nice one in the rain!

I must admit to fortune, as I have no fewer than a dozen private ponds near me that have excellent bass fishing. But believe me...they are not always biting! Today I caught 14 bass in two different ponds, but didn't have a fish over 13 inches. Last Friday, my wife Linda caught 6 bass to my none on the Stick Baits. That's right...I made her walk home!

Backyard bassin' isn't for everyone...some tournament anglers claim big pond bass 'don't count' for bragging rights or lunker catches. I think some of them are just jealous...I didn't drive a couple hundred miles, hire a guide or invest in a $40,000 bass rig with all the trimmins'. I didn't have to pay for a hotel or meals out. I just went down the road a little bit a caught some nice fish...the kind of bass we drive by everyday of our lives. Every bass in this blog was caught within 20 miles of my home, and some much closer. Yes, I am blessed.

Blessed mostly because of a Creator God who is the only one who can paint a picture like the one above. On a day when we traveled far and caught no fish, we were rewarded abundantly more by catching this glimpse of Gods' meticulous handiwork and detail. I love what it says in the opening of Psalm 8...

'OH LORD, OH LORD...HOW MAJESTIC IS YOUR NAME IN ALL THE EARTH'

This, my friend, is a true and wonderful 'trophy'. Indeed, the heavens declare Your Greatness!

The Baddest Sunfish on the Planet

I will say this...I have caught just about every kind of sunfish out there to include coppernose bluegills, red ear sunfish, pure strain bluegills and pumpkinseed sunfish. But the undisputed, pound-for-pound toughest fighter among them all is the Hybrid Sunfish...specifically the green sunfish X bluegill cross, a lab produced fish that grows fast and fights like a demon. The colorations are astounding and the power of these fish on 2-pound gear are unbelievable.

Most hybrid sunfish waters are private ponds.

Hybrid sunfish aren't found just anywhere...they are stocked by some pond owners here and there to get some big panfish, and fast, into their lakes for fun and food. Almost 95% of the first generation, lab produced hybs are males. Hence reproduction of any subsequent efforts from the stocked fish leaves very few offspring. No overcrowding means fewer, and usually bigger, fish to go around. But females do exist. They grow fast, live about 8 to 10 years and are extremely aggressive, attaining 10 inch status quickly.

First cast of the day produced this powerhouse hybrid for Linda!

My wife Linda shows an outstanding 10.5 inch hybrid she recently caught and released at a local pond on one of my grass shrimp hair jig patterns.Notice the yellow/white pectoral fins and the 'hump-head' of this unblemished male...cool!

The pectoral fins on this male are only slightly edged in yellow. Very few hybrids look exactly the same. Some bear the body dynamics of a spawning male bluegill and others are more elongated with the shorter opercular eartab of a female bluegill. Most have the larger mouth of the parental green sunfish.

Say 'Ahhhh!'

This guy here took a jig tipped with a piece of nightcrawler and stayed still just long enough to let me take his picture. Check out the sun sparkles!

Almost like something out of the Amazon!

Fin edging and an orange/yellow crescent on the eartab is also a trait. Each spiney dorsal spine is etched as well. This one went 11.25 inches...another reason I dig hybrids!

Check out this big female that hit a grey grass shrimp jig! Wow!

And this 11.25 inch male that brutalized a Rattle Flash spoon, 10 feet down, in nearly 100-degree heat!

Anyway you look at it, even if they are created in a laboratory situation by mankind, they are still the baddest sunfish I have ever caught, or fought with! They very seldom occur naturally in the wild, but God gave man the ability to create something as beautiful as this fish, just like he gave you and I the ability to create something beautiful, whether it would be music, a story, a house, garden, or perhaps a relationship with a friend or family member. God did not mess up when he gave us the skills and gifts to create beautiful things.

Romans 1:20 says this...'For since the creation of the world, God's invisible qualities...His eternal power and divine nature...has been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.'

Ultimately, our handiwork is God's handiwork as well. Let us not be so haughty as to think we can do it on our own.