12-29-2008, 10:25 AM
[size 2]Charles Walsh's Fishing Column
By Charles walsh
CORRESPONDENT
For the thoroughly hooked angler, the month of January might as well be renamed Bland-uary.
For 31 days -- days of whipping winds, blasting blizzards and freezing feet -- most of us put fishing as far out of our minds as possible. Too much dwelling on fishing in January can cause a person to lapse into a state doctors call "pesca-depressa," a malady characterized by an extreme, sometimes debilitating longing for spring.
Most of us have had a touch of this disease at sometime or another. The only real cure for it is to pack up the tackle and head for the Florida Keys or Bahamas.
For those of us who for one reason or another cannot make the trek south, there is another way to survive January and even get some benefit out of a month that ought to have been eliminated from the calendar before it caught on.
Actually, January can be one of the most productive months in the year.
Chances are, if you are like me, the rod and reel you used on your last fishing outing are right now stacked in some dark corner of the cellar or relegated to some wall hooks in your unheated garage.
Worse, they are still coated with dried Long Island Sound salt or grit from the last freshwater stream or lake you visited.
This is not a good thing. Would you treat your dog that way? No. So why do it to the gear that has served you so loyally for so long? It is time to start cleaning things up.
Here's what you will need to get started: a small Phillips head screwdriver, some clean cloths, Q-tips, paper towels, light machine oil, a small tube of reel grease, a well-lighted space and enough time to get the job done (at least an hour).
Let us start with the reels. Be they fly, spin or conventional, reels must be cleaned and lubricated at least once a year. If you fish a lot, say two or three times a week, the cleaning and lubricating should take place twice annually.
Saltwater is the enemy of fishing equipment. Left in place, it will rust and corrode reels, guides, reel seats, and even damage cork handles. The longer it says on the equipment after the trip, the more damage it does.
Any tackle shop can hook you up with a professional who will do a first-class cleaning and lubricating of reels for a fee, but it is not all that difficult to do yourself. The concentration required in disassembly and assembly of the reel can keep you from thinking about spring too much. If you are the organized type, you know right where the little booklet is that came with the reel when you purchased it.
Without that booklet and its "exploded" diagrams of the reel, reassembling the reel can be something of an adventure, especially when a tiny sprint pops out and rolls under the refrigerator. If that happens, there is always the repair pro of last resort.
Once the reels are dry, it's wise to apply some lubricant to the moving parts and light oil to the metallic surfaces. A product called Reel Magic does a very nice job. Do not use WD-40 on a reel; it actually cleans the oil off a reel.
If the idea of taking a reel apart is simply too daunting, just fill a bucket with warm soapy water and dunk the reel in it and wipe with the soft cloth. Rinse with clear water and you are good to go for the coming season. Give your rods that same soapy treatment, especially the cork grips.
There are some very good Internet sites that offer step-by-step guides to cleaning reels and rods. The best I have found is a multi-part guide by Rob Brooks at About.com, and another by Trevor Kugler of Ezinearticles.com.
[/size]
[size 2]SHORT CASTS FEDS DELAY REGISTRY [/size][size 2]-- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has postponed the start of a federal registry for recreational fishermen until January 2010. The registry, which after the first year would cost anglers $15 to $25 per year, was set to begin on Jan. 1, 2009. But due to "a flood of public comments" the administration received, more time was needed. The requirement to register includes "anyone who fishes in federal waters (3 to 200 miles from shore) as well as anyone who fishes anywhere for "anadromous" species such as striped bass, found all along our shores, particularly in rocky areas and in estuaries, salt ponds and rivers. Charter-boats anglers and those 15 or younger would not be required to register. The enabling legislation -- the Magnuson-Stevens Reauthorization Act of 2006 -- also exempts saltwater anglers who already are registered in their own state. Connecticut currently has no such registry, but the Department of Environmental Protection is said to be ready to act on such a measure. -- CHARLES WALSH[/size]
[signature]
By Charles walsh
CORRESPONDENT
For the thoroughly hooked angler, the month of January might as well be renamed Bland-uary.
For 31 days -- days of whipping winds, blasting blizzards and freezing feet -- most of us put fishing as far out of our minds as possible. Too much dwelling on fishing in January can cause a person to lapse into a state doctors call "pesca-depressa," a malady characterized by an extreme, sometimes debilitating longing for spring.
Most of us have had a touch of this disease at sometime or another. The only real cure for it is to pack up the tackle and head for the Florida Keys or Bahamas.
For those of us who for one reason or another cannot make the trek south, there is another way to survive January and even get some benefit out of a month that ought to have been eliminated from the calendar before it caught on.
Actually, January can be one of the most productive months in the year.
Chances are, if you are like me, the rod and reel you used on your last fishing outing are right now stacked in some dark corner of the cellar or relegated to some wall hooks in your unheated garage.
Worse, they are still coated with dried Long Island Sound salt or grit from the last freshwater stream or lake you visited.
This is not a good thing. Would you treat your dog that way? No. So why do it to the gear that has served you so loyally for so long? It is time to start cleaning things up.
Here's what you will need to get started: a small Phillips head screwdriver, some clean cloths, Q-tips, paper towels, light machine oil, a small tube of reel grease, a well-lighted space and enough time to get the job done (at least an hour).
Let us start with the reels. Be they fly, spin or conventional, reels must be cleaned and lubricated at least once a year. If you fish a lot, say two or three times a week, the cleaning and lubricating should take place twice annually.
Saltwater is the enemy of fishing equipment. Left in place, it will rust and corrode reels, guides, reel seats, and even damage cork handles. The longer it says on the equipment after the trip, the more damage it does.
Any tackle shop can hook you up with a professional who will do a first-class cleaning and lubricating of reels for a fee, but it is not all that difficult to do yourself. The concentration required in disassembly and assembly of the reel can keep you from thinking about spring too much. If you are the organized type, you know right where the little booklet is that came with the reel when you purchased it.
Without that booklet and its "exploded" diagrams of the reel, reassembling the reel can be something of an adventure, especially when a tiny sprint pops out and rolls under the refrigerator. If that happens, there is always the repair pro of last resort.
Once the reels are dry, it's wise to apply some lubricant to the moving parts and light oil to the metallic surfaces. A product called Reel Magic does a very nice job. Do not use WD-40 on a reel; it actually cleans the oil off a reel.
If the idea of taking a reel apart is simply too daunting, just fill a bucket with warm soapy water and dunk the reel in it and wipe with the soft cloth. Rinse with clear water and you are good to go for the coming season. Give your rods that same soapy treatment, especially the cork grips.
There are some very good Internet sites that offer step-by-step guides to cleaning reels and rods. The best I have found is a multi-part guide by Rob Brooks at About.com, and another by Trevor Kugler of Ezinearticles.com.
[/size]
[size 2]SHORT CASTS FEDS DELAY REGISTRY [/size][size 2]-- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has postponed the start of a federal registry for recreational fishermen until January 2010. The registry, which after the first year would cost anglers $15 to $25 per year, was set to begin on Jan. 1, 2009. But due to "a flood of public comments" the administration received, more time was needed. The requirement to register includes "anyone who fishes in federal waters (3 to 200 miles from shore) as well as anyone who fishes anywhere for "anadromous" species such as striped bass, found all along our shores, particularly in rocky areas and in estuaries, salt ponds and rivers. Charter-boats anglers and those 15 or younger would not be required to register. The enabling legislation -- the Magnuson-Stevens Reauthorization Act of 2006 -- also exempts saltwater anglers who already are registered in their own state. Connecticut currently has no such registry, but the Department of Environmental Protection is said to be ready to act on such a measure. -- CHARLES WALSH[/size]
[signature]