Tag Archives: lake fishing

What I Carry in my Tackle Bag…

Today I thought I’d share what I carry in my bag when I go fishing. Everything in the picture should be self-explanatory other than perhaps the Meiho Versus clamshell tackle boxes on the top left. I have a blog post covering those.

But yah, that’s all the gear I carry. Nothing too fancy, just the time-tested items I rely on. The 2 yellow things in the top right, next to the yellow Magpul DAKA pouch, are plastic bags I carry to haul out trash we run across when fishing.

I prefer a modular approach so if I change bags/packs, I can pick and choose what goes inside easily. Obviously colors change with the seasons or species we are after or even what type of fishing we are doing.

As stated previously, we are trying to streamline our gear and eliminate the complexities. Simple is better; lighter weight is the goal…

Outing 25 April 2021…

The wife and I took a quick trip to one of our local lakes this morning. We counted 6 boats on the lake with more arriving when we left. All told, we fished for 2 hours before the wind kicked up and it got kind of crowded. We walked to the opposite end of the lake and in no time we had 5 boats up on us. Guess that happens when you’re catching fish. There was no ill will amongst anyone and I think everyone was just glad to be out fishing and trying to get out of the wind.

Today was the first time I was able to use my Major Craft Finetail Area Stage FAX-B642UL baitcast rod. I LIKED IT! It was a little more limber than I was expecting but worked very well. I ended up catching 6 largemouth bass. Conditions weren’t great due to all of the recent rainfall. The lake was about 4ft high and stained. It was a day of catching “salad” as we call it. Almost every cast forced you to pick grass, weeds or algae off of your lure. But like I tell the wife, “if you aren’t fishing in the weeds then you aren’t where the bass are.”

I took the GoPro this time and tried to shoot some video for the blog. The wind made it tough due to where we were positioned on the lake (facing into the sun)

https://videopress.com/v/kiXrUwMR?preloadContent=metadata
https://videopress.com/v/mehkDeKM?preloadContent=metadata

I managed to catch 2 of the 6 fish on video. Because of the wind, the GoPro wasn’t able to pick up my voice commands very well. The sun felt great and we had a blast just getting out there and relaxing and catching fish…

Area Trout Baitcasting Rod

I wanted to try an “Area Trout” baitcasting rod since I already have a “Native Trout” baitcasting rod. The difference is that “Area” designated rods tend to be a bit more limber. They are whippier and have more of a parabolic bend in the blank. In theory, it should be easier to use the rods inertia to assist in casting a light lure.

I have a cheap BPS Sensilite fiberglass rod that I practice with and kind of liked the action…hence getting this rod. As soon as I can get some free time I will definitely give this rod a shot.

Major Craft Finetail Area Stage Rod FAX-B642UL specs…

-6ft 4in- 2 piece rod

-lure weight 1.0-5.0 grams

-line weight 1.5-5 lbs or 0.2-0.6#PE

-action FAST

I definitely like the low profile and minimalist rod handle. I am excited to try this one out…

Fly Casting Practice…

Like I do every spring, I hit a local park and practice my fly casting. I consider it a “tune-up” if you will. To me, flycasting is somewhat of a perishable skill and I try to set aside time to practice so I’m ready for the upcoming season. Plus, there was a 10-15mph cross wind this afternoon which is normal conditions here in Oklahoma and it was good to work through it.

The Fenwick Aetos 9ft 5wt is one of my favorite rods and I love fishing with it. Yah, it’s not a high end rod, but if you ever cast one, you’ll see why I like it. The Loop XACT 9ft 5wt was a rod I got towards the end of 2019 and haven’t even fished with yet. It has a heavier swing weight than the Aetos but it’s still a good rod.

We have had a lot of rain lately which has made fishing problematic. It’s sunny and 70F right now but will drop into the 30’sF come Tuesday. We also have a chance for some snow…I sure hope it doesn’t though.

Got Out With My Shimano Calcutta Conquest BFS…

We waited for the temps to climb this morning and then headed to a local lake. I wanted to take my Shimano Calcutta Conquest BFS reel and my Major Craft Finetail Stream FSX-B502L rod. I figured that the only way to become proficient with it was to use it for several hours. I only experienced one minor backlash in 3 hours of fishing so I was pretty happy. I managed to catch 6 fish, 5 Largemouth bass and 1 Warmouth but I didn’t get a single picture. As anyone who is familiar with Oklahoma knows, wind is always a factor and today was no different…it was blowing at 20+mph today.

Due to previous commitments, we had to cut and run after 3 hours.

10APR2021 Outing..

We decided to get out and explore an area for some new fishing opportunities. Unfortunately, due to the rains last night, several of the roads were off limits to our Subaru. We tried a couple and almost got stuck…Thank God we bought new tires!

She caught one decent sized White Bass while I smell like skunk…LOL. She was trying out her new rod and reel she bought, the Major Craft Finetail Stream Switch Style FTX-46/505UL and the Abu Garcia Revo MGX Theta 1000S. She had a lot of fun on that little rod and I apologize for not getting any pictures. By the time I got into position to get a picture she had released it.

The rivers were up and stained due to all of the rain. It was 78F yesterday evening with strong storms and a tornado a few miles north of us. We woke up to 42F temps when we left at 0545. We debated about not even going but decided to anyway. Everything ended up being a muddy mess and the cold wind didn’t brighten our spirits one bit.

But, as usual, it was good to get out and I’m sure I will endure a good “ribbin” this evening since I caught ZERO! It’s only fair…

4APR2021-Fishing at Local Lake…

Today, we didn’t have any plans since the kids were all out of town, so we decided to go fishing at one of our local lakes again.

It was a beautiful day with minimal wind, lots of sunshine and temps in the 70’s. In fact, we had the entire lake to ourselves.

We ended up catching 22 fish total…21 Largemouth bass and one Crappie in about 3 hours worth of fishing. It was awesome! No pressure, no constraints…we just had fun being out together and catching fish.

Ultralight Fishing Kit…

Years ago, I was doing ultralight backpacking and thought it would be wise to incorporate an ultralight fishing kit into my setup. I found out about Zimmerbuilt through a friend of mine so I purchased a Zimmerbuilt Tenkara Strap Pack. This was designed for Tenkara fishing but I thought it would work really well for what I had in mind. It stays in my vehicle since I tend to stop at ponds and creeks a lot so I wanted something small yet handy.

This Strap Pack has quite a few mounting options. It was obviously intended to be worn on a backpack of some sort, but I just use the lanyard it came with and just sling it over my shoulder. It works perfectly for my intended purpose and is highly functional.

Here is a link to his site: (no affiliation)

https://www.zimmerbuilt.com/store/p20/Tenkara_Strap_Pack.html

A Birthday Present from my Wife!!!

This was quite a surprise. It is a Shimano Calcutta Conquest BFS reel on a Major Craft Finetail Stream Stage FSX-B502L rod.

I guess she noticed that I had been watching lots of videos about this reel and this style of fishing. I kept mentioning in casual conversation that I would like to try it and apparently she was listening lol!

Now, let me say this, baitcast reels are not my specialty. I can use them passably but not really well. I can use them from a boat but have never tried them from a kayak or while wading a stream. So I practiced in the front yard for several hours until I got the hang of it. I will definitely be trying this combo out on several streams soon.

Thanks again babe! You’re the best…

A Picture of a Crappie I Caught Today…

I rarely take pictures of the fish I catch and what’s worse is that I’m woefully unprepared when I do feel like taking a picture. My phone was safely tucked away in a waterproof bag so I had to grab my GoPro to take a quick snapshot. If you’ve ever fished from a kayak then you understand that rummaging around looking for something is never easy or convenient.

I caught several Crappie this morning and a few small bass but released them all. I was trying out my Major Craft Finetail Banshee FBA-602L spinning rod coupled with my Daiwa Presso LTD 1025 reel. I think these two will stay paired up from here on out. What a great combo!