check this out it is funny!!!!!!!

[mikecromaine]

[url "http://www.bullguard.com/badnews"]www.bullguard.com/badnews[/url]

it is funny very funny
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[EmuScud]

[] LOL! So have you dried out yet?
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[polokid]

I definitely got a kick out of that!!! That was funny!!!
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[mikecromaine]

YES I DRIED OUT ON SATURDAY BUT WAS STILL COLD TILL SUNDAY
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[EmuScud]

That fish was worth whatever the warming up time had to be. I'm always amazed at what comes out of that lake in less that 3' of water.

Good luck on your next trip.
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[mikecromaine]

YEAH THAT WAS THE BIGEST CAT I HAVE GOT IN A COUPLE OF YEARS. THEN AGAIN I DON'T TRY FOR THEM MUCH ANYMORE I MAY JUST HAVE TO. DOES ANYONE KNOW IF WILLARD HAS ANY NICE SIZED ONES IN THERE I HAVE COUGHT A FEW SMALLER CHANNELS IN THERE I HAVE NEVER GOT ANY BIG ONES THOU
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[TubeDude]

[cool][blue][size 1]Lots of cats in Willard, although the average size has dropped over the years, since wipers and smallies came on the scene. Still some over 20 in there, with enough over 5 to make it interesting.[/size][/blue]

[#0000ff][size 1]If you pitch small lures or fish worms, you will likely catch smaller fish. Soak a big chunk of FRESH fish meat after dark, however, and you can score big. [/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]My personal biggest was about 18 pounds from Willard, but I have taken several over 15 and bunches in the 9 to 10 pound range. [/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]By the way, if you are a float tuber or 'tooner, Willard is a great place to drift around on a calm night, dragging a big piece of bait behind your tube. I fish with no sinkers and keep the bail open on my spinning reel. When you get a pickup, let the fish munch and move a bit. Then when you can tighten up and feel weight, set the hook.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]Don't use wimpy tackle for the big cats. You need good line of at least 10 pounds, big bait, big hooks and a stout rod that can stick the hook into a big tough mouth. [/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]Circle hooks are a good way to go too. It takes some getting used to, but you can't strike to set the hook on them. You have to let the fish pull the hook into the corner of their mouth as they move off.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]Here's a few Willard pics to whet your appetites. By the way, May is one of the best months for big cats at night. The water is warming to spawning temps and the bigguns come out to play. Just be sure to bring a 55 gal. drum of 100% DEET (skeeter repellent). Either that or tie a rock on your leg so they can't carry you off.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]There are a couple of "morning after" pics in the group. They were shot after night fishing the north side of the channel, just opposite of the South Marina. Whole smelt and slabs of mackerel were usually the baits that got the best response.[/size][/#0000ff]
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[fishluvr]

Notice some of the rod holders in some of the pictures. For those of you that don't know they are used to hold your fishing rod on the bank so you don't have to go swimming for your pole. Just thought some people here that shall remain nameless might be able to put this information to good use.
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[mikecromaine]

I GUESS I WILL NEVER LIVE IT DOWN WILL I. NOT AS LONG AS FISHLUVR IS AROUND. IT'S OK I FIND IT FUNNY ALSO.... BUT HERE IS SOME FREE INFO THAT WAS NOT THE FIRST TIME I HAD TO DRIVE IN AFTER A ROD I HAD ONE YANKED INTO A LAKE ON MY FATHERS BOAT AND IT WAS IN A ROD HOLDER GOOD THING I GREW UP IN CALAFORNIA AND I KNOW HOW TO SWIN IN BIG BODIES OF WATER.
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[EmuScud]

How in the world did you bring in that monster on the stringer (in the tube pic) without you or your tube getting spined????? Nice fish TD.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff][size 1]Hey Scudman, it is a common concern...them catfish spines. The good news is that the sharpest spines are on the younguns, as a means of protecting them from being invited to family dinners...as the main course. The spines tend to get duller and less dangerous as the fish grow bigger.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]You can still get a hole in you, your waders or your air chambers up until the cats get to be about four or five pounds. By then, spawning activities and rooting around in the rocks will have worn off the points in most cases, and you don't have as much to worry about. The hard first spines are still there on the pectoral and dorsal fins. They just don't have the sharp points any more.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]The cat tethered to the tube was only about 10 pounds...but too big for my basket. Like most large kitties it was good for a few minutes of being towed around by a one "catpower" motor. [/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]For the benefit of those who haven't seen a previous post of one of my Arizona flatheads, here is one of a 27 pounder that I took on 6# line and a small jig while fishing for crappies. Took a long time to talk him into crawling into my net...which only could handle about the front half. Just about tipped the tube over when I hoisted it up onto the apron to string the rope through its mouth.[/size][/#0000ff]
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[EmuScud]

I'm surprized you landed that thing at all! Thanks for the heads up. Now I just have to worry about anything under 5 lbs, but then again, that's all I catch.

later,
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff][size 1]I guess I could have addressed that issue better, instead of showing off. Most of the cats I catch are also in the "DANGER ZONE", as far as size goes. That's going to be true on most waters. [/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]I automatically assume that every kitty I bring to the tube is "armed and dangerous". So, I net every cat I catch, regardless of size. The operative word is CONTROL. You need to wrap them up and keep them from thrashing around. Failure to control them allows them to fling those pointy spines in all directions. If they come in contact with human flesh, it hurts. If they come in contact with an air chamber, you may get to walk back to your car...or throw a rooster tail trying to get back before all the air leaks out.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]Once you have the cat secured in the net...out in front of your craft...lift it up and try to get a firm grip around the belly...avoiding the spines on the dorsal and the pectoral fins. There's a knack to it. [/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]Any cats I plan to keep, I immediately cut off the spines with a stout pair of sidecutters. If they are too big to cut, I snap them off. This reduces the potential for further damage and keeps them from trashing your basket too.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]If you plan to release the fish, simply work out the hook and keep holding the fish securely while you toss them well away from the tube. Forget the classic routine of working them in the water until they recover. That invites them to wriggle and whip the spines into you or the tube. They are tough and do just fine if you toss them out a ways. Be careful that they do not flip as you release them. I have sustained some painful punctures at that critical moment. Almost makes you want to catch them again and bash in their little heads.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]A Berkeley Lip Gripper works great on larger kitties. If you try to lip them with your thumb, like a bass, you can get a painful munch. Those jaws are powerful and they have lots of rough little teeth that can remove skin and flesh. The lip gripper also allows for easier release.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]An interesting note. Those big flatheads have a protruding lower jaw and do not have nearly the crushing power as a channel cat. A popular way of handling them is to grab the lower jaw. However, if that does not immobilize them, and they start flipping, they have nastier teeth than the channels and it can result in a sudden "weight loss" program for your knuckles. Most flathead fanatics proudly show off their "fish rash" as proof of their prowess.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]But hey, you first have to catch the fish in order to have the problem. Right? Some problems are good problems.[/size][/#0000ff]
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[EmuScud]

I'll take all of those kinds of problems that I can get! I didn't think you were showing off at all, at least I didn't take it that way. Thanks for the primer. A couple of years ago I was wet wading out into the lake going for the cats. I'm lucky I didn't get perferated or my 10 year old nephew who was with me. We sure had lots of fun though!

On a different subject, did you ever catch many LMB in around all that great rocky structure in the Provo River along the state park??? All those rocks in the water just look fishy to me, but I hardly ever see anyone fish that section. I have found that most people fish where there are fish to catch, e.g., Lincoln, boat harbors, etc. I think I'm rehashing info you've told me before. I guess it is just a matter of finding the fish not the people.

Thanks as always!
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[TubeDude]

[cool][blue][size 1]I have seen the odd largie come from the stretch of river below the crossover wooden bridge, but have never really fished for them there. Most serious bassers do much better inside the harbor, around that structure.[/size][/blue]

[#0000ff][size 1]That being said, there is some "sleeper" largemouth action in the warmer months of summer, up the Provo River a ways. Wherever you can find deep holes on bends and under trees and brush, you can often find a stray bucketmouth. Early morning topwater and later with sunken plastics. The fish up in the clearer water of the river are much prettier marked than the ones from the warmer and murkier lake. Seem to hit harder and fight better too. I once had about a 4 pounder jump clear up into some brush growing on the bank.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]The lower part of the river, between the last bridge and the outlet, CAN produce some occasionally great action on "off season" walleyes and white bass. Again, they probably come up to find more oxygen, less turbidity and even more food. If you can see small sunfish along the edges, chances are there are bigger fish hanging out in the deep holes.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]Some of my best action each year was in the early fall, along that straight "know-nothing" stretch. I would break out the last few packages of frozen carp minnows, from the spring abundance, and fish them on the bottom in the deep spots. There was no current, so I fished them "flylining", with no weight. [/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]Never knew what was going to take the minnows. Got big white bass, lots of cats, occasional walleye and even a chunky brown trout once in awhile. Never recall getting any largies in there though.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]From late fall through early spring, that area holds quite a few sluggish white bass. Small white marabou jigs or my "over and under" flies sometimes got a few, when worked low and slow. It does take some depth to bring them in though. I doubt if a severe low water year would see many fish in there.[/size][/#0000ff]
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[ocean]

that was hilarious![cool]
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