Bay of QUinte September 2010

I know all 4 of you are waiting on a report from Florida and Sir's bachelor party, but I am awaiting a few more pictures before I can do that report justice.

In the meanwhile, here is a report on a weekend trip Musky and I made last year to the Bay of Quinte.

We stayed at Merland Park, who have an awesome logo which looks like Jurassic Park.

We stayed in a 2 person cottage, which had full facilities and was within view of the dock.

Merland Park is located in Picton on the world famous Bay of Quinte in Ontario!  Having never really fished the Big Bay, I did what anyone these days does, and did some research on the internet.  The thing is, the entire bay is know to be able to produce fish.  The problem lies with this being a big body of water (let's be honest, it's huge!), and actually finding a good place to start fishing.

Musky and I fished all the way from Picton to Hay Bay - which the handy dandy internets told me was a great place for pike.  Because of the vastness of this body of water, and my lack of experience really fishing deep water structure, we headed for shallower weedlines in the various smaller bays and points.  For all of the talk of how replete with fish the Bay is, I could have caught just as many in my toilet.  The problem was fisihing in spots that, although they loked good, were holding no fish.  We had to fish other spots until we found what was working.

We eventually did just that.
On a relatively steep shoreline with fast moving water and green weeds, we fished spinnerbaits just above the weeds, which finally paid off for us.

And this nice one.

We did not have a working scale with us, so there was no way to tell how big she was.

Musky was not having the same success.  On one particular drift, we drifted into the weeds, and which point, I coached her; told her where to cast and what speed to retrieve at.  This was her first weekend using her baitcaster, and perhaps her confidence was not there initially.  But after this fish, we found it.

Again, we did not know just how big this girl was, but she was a very nice bass for Musky.

We didn't catch anything else after that, but it was a great way to end the fishing.

Sir Fusses' Bachelor Party Prologue

Tomorrow, we leave for  Port Canaveral, Florida, from where we will get onto a large cruise ship, and set sail for the Bahamas - Nassau, specifically, for Sir Fusses' bachelor party.  No, we are not going deep sea fishing.  So why is this on my blog you ask?  Well, just because we aren't deep sea fishing, it doesn't meanwe will not be fishing at all.  In fact, we will be arriving in Orlando on Wednesday night (if everything goes according to plan), where we will stay overnight before boarding the cruise ship the next afternoon.  That leaves all of Thursday morning for something... what to do in the Orlando area for 4 morning hours?
....
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How about giving my old friend Captain Dean Puller of Gators Big Bass Guide Service to show us what we can do for 4 hours.  If you recall, Musky and I hired Captain Dean to show us around Lake Conway, and he put us on some good bass.  So, with his proven record with me, we decided to hook it up again.  This time, we will be arriving during the pre-spawn/spawn/post-spawn period(s), which should be a new fishing experience for all of us since bass season is closed during the majority of this period of the year.

Captain Dean took Musky and I to Lake Conway in December.  Although the clear waters of Lake Conway produced some good bass for Musky and I, Sir is hoping that Captain will take us to Lake Toho.  From Wikipedia:

Lake Tohopekaliga Tohopeka [fr
om tohopke /(i)to-hó:pk-i/ fence, fort]}; Tohopekaliga [from tohopke /(i)to-hó:pk-i/ fence, fort + likv /léyk-a/ site] Lake Toho, West Lake, or simply Toho for short), native name meaning "we will gather together here", is a lake in Osceola County, Florida, United States. It is the primary inflow of Shingle Creek, which rises in Orlando. It covers 22,700 acres (91.86 km2), and spans 42 miles (68 km) in circumference. It is linked to East Lake Tohopekaliga by Canal 31 (St. Cloud Canal). The canal is 3 miles (5 km) long and runs through western St. Cloud. South Port canal is located at the southern tip of the lake and links it to Cypress Lake. It is 4 miles (6 km) long. Three places surround the lake, Kissimmee on the northwestern shore, Kissimmee Park on the eastern shore, and South Port at the southern shore. Lake Tohopekaliga is the largest lake in Osceola County and is known for its bass fishing.

Lake Toho is so well known for its bass fishing that it hasbeen host to many tournaments.  Let us hope that Lake Toho gives us one of its giant bass when we fish there Thursday morning.  You will know one way or the other.

PainInTheBass Custom Rods Logao

So this will be a short blog in which I just wanted to share the logo for the custom rods I build.  Let me know what you think.

I wanted it to be cartoony and fun, like the name I use: PainInTheBass.

Jerkin' It

My name is PainInTheBass and I have a problem... with jerkin' it.

I first started to jerk it a few years ago, and have not been able to stop since.

It's exciting; sometimes yankin' hard on my rod; sometimes subtly pulling on the tip.  I never know when it's gonna happen - the explosion.  I never know how long it's gonna be before the payoff, but I continue to jerk in rhythm; waiting in anticipation until I feel that familiar pull at the base of my rod before giving that final tug...

In case my description didn't tip you off, this article will be about one of my favourite things to do on the boat - jerkbaiting.

Jerkbaits are generally longer, narrow, cylindrical lures which, when jerked, dart erratically - like a baitfish fleeing from a predator.  The sudden darting motion can entice fish; drawing their attention, and triggering strikes, often of the more violent type.  The fleeing action incites the predatory instinct in many fish, compelling them to follow and strike the lure.  Often, the decision to strike is one made instinctively and suddenly, which makes this technique exciting.

There are generally 2 types of jerkbaits - hard and soft. 
Hard jerkbaits are generally molded or carved; are equipped with a diving lip and treble hooks. 

These lures can be weighted to float up to the surface during pauses in the retrieve; to suspend; or to sink.  For this reason, these lures may be fished at various depths and at different speeds.  The short lip, when subject to a sharp jerk, deflects water sharply, causing the lure to dart to one side, while the body remains rigid.  Subsequent jerks tend to make the lure dart the other direction for that erratic action.

Soft jerkbaits are generally soft plastic baits that are rigged with a jighead or hook through the nose and/or body.

Most soft jerkbaits are weighted to sink at a relatively slow rate, and are often used in shallower water or when fish are attaching schooling baitfish near the surface.  Weight can be added to the hook in order to alter the weight and fish different depths.  When jerked, these lures dart from side to side based on teh hydrodynamics of water flowing across the tapered body.  Further, the soft plastic body will bend and flap like a fleeing fish, adding to the realism.

Jerkbaits are fished by a series of jerks and pauses that are performed sequentially in varying orders and cadences until that pattern which seems to draw strikes is found.  Under cooler water temperatures, often slower twitches and long pauses is preferred due to the lower metabolism of the fish.  As the water warms, increase the intensity of the jerks and decrease the lengths of the pauses to simulate more energetic prey.  When you can, it is often beneficial to 'match the hatch' by selecting a lure which matches the prey in size and colour.

So with that brief introduction to jerkin' it, go forth, rod in hand, and keep tugging on your rod erratically until ou feel that explosion on the end of yor rod.

P.S. - For those that thought, "erotic' whenever I wrote erratic; get your minds out of the gutter.  Some people's kids... Makes me sick to see what this world is coming to...

Random

So, out of 31 daysin January, I blogged 19 times!  That is a ridiculous pace, and is the very reason I am running out of material.  That, and my creative juices are running dry.  Actually, they aren't, but have been diverted to my new custom rod concepts.  I have been commissioned by Kakka to make one rod and by Duk to make 2 rods.  So far, both Kakka and Duk have selected blanks for their custom rods, but have yet to settle on the rest of their builds.

I have also ordered one blank for a custom rod for Musky and two for myself.  I also ordered one rod to repair Mek Mek's rod. He broke his on it's inaugural trip.  I have already planned out Musky's rod; the key for which will be the handle.  You see, I plan on making Musky's rod a light saber!

That way she can be the Yoda of Fishing!  With her and I being such big Star Wars nerds, I don't see any better option for her.  With her custom rod, I am planning on giving her Viento a custom paint job. 
One of my rods is going to be a light action rod for casting finesse lures for bass and potentially panfish.  It will be paired with my Sol, and will be trimmed in orange and black to go with a planned orange and black makeover for the Sol.  My other rod will be for my viento.  It will be more basic and minimalist.  Perhaps I will go for the ninja look and go stealth with this combo, also giving the reel a custom paint job.

This sounds like a lot of work, and it is.  However, I enjoy building things, so this is right up my alley.  I will be blogging about the status of the rods and reels here.  Stay tuned...