Dame1981. Just be happy you don't have to wait weeks or months for parts or repairs. After the recent strike it was impossible for dealerships to get parts as the lines were shut down. Save your anger for the moment you see your bill and then maybe count your blessings. I am an Inspector for Extended Warranty claims and you would not believe what I have experienced in my 9+ years of Inspections. Because of my experiences I know what to buy and drive, vehicles that seldom need repair and therefore I don't want or need an expensive Extended warranty that doesn't pay everything you are led to believe they will. I am a true American but I only buy one make of foreign car because almost all other vehicles have interference fit engines which means if the timing chain or belt breaks or jumps more than two teeth the pistons contact and bend the valves and can destroy the head and/or pistons and engine components. If America ever builds a good/reliable vehicle I will consider buying it but not until then and I am not holding my breath! The local dealers in Central, Mn. charge $110 to $140 per hour and more for specialty repairs like engines and transmissions. Ford recently stopped building cars and is receiving high marks for some trucks. Chevy doesn't seem to care anymore and is losing ground. Most manufacturers are going to CVT transmissions of 8 - 10 speed (not Gears!) with a drive system like a snowmobile clutch which is not perfected yet, and is controlled by a computer which is leading to many dangerous driveability problems. I won't get into turbos which I won't ever have and the engine oil lubricates the turbos so when the turbo shaft, fans or bearings fail the metal can destroy the engine and visa versa, engine failures can destroy the turbo necessitating replacing both. Please temper your anger and disappointment and count your blessings if your vehicle was promptly repaired and if the bill is acceptable. I am not saying you should not call the episode to someone's attention and at least get an apology but just compare that to what Trump and his family has gone through for 3 years!! (By the way the mechanic at my old shop charges $50 per hour and the very few times I have had my 2 vehicles repaired in the last 10 years were minor and I could count on one hand!!!) I have NEVER been to a dealer!!! GOOD FISHING!!!

G-Dude. Are you by chance using artificial lures that could be twisting the line?

G-Dude. Without more information I can only suggest that if you use a quality spinning reel and good 4 pound test line, (I have used 4# and 6 # Green Trilene in XT (Xtra Tough) (NEVER use XL Xtra Limp) or you will have a series of bird's nests and will throw away a lot of line each time) the secret is to set your drag correctly and NEVER turn the reel handle while the fish is running or holding and not coming in. This applies to any fish that is big enough to fight and the smallmouth is notorious for it's fantastic fight and aerial acrobatics. I have caught more than my share of smallmouth bass as I live on the Mississippi River in Central Minnesota. Our rivers and many lakes have healthy populations of smallmouths. I know some who can not catch on to the proper method of fighting a fish and resort to swivels between their line and lure or bait. The proper method is to set the drag so a fish can pull line off the reel without breaking it. When you get a strike or bite, place your index finger on the reel spool and set the hook, then immediately remove your finger and let the reel take over. If the fish is running or not coming in, stop reeling and hold the rod up and not at the fish and fight the fish with the rod and line. When the fish is moving towards you then you can reel but stop immediately if the fish runs again. Use the rod and line to pump the fish and the reel to regain line ALWAYS lowering the rod while reeling at the same pace as to eliminate slack in the line. If you play the fish properly you can land most fish on light line unless you are in heavy weeds or brush/trees. Just remember, EVERY rotation of the reel handle with the drag slipping results in one twist! Good Fishing!

Fishing Roddy. Welcome to the forum and fun and I also want to thank you for your service to our country. I always felt bad about the treatment the Vietnam Vets received upon their return for serving in a war they were not responsible for. For a long time many would not wear any clothing that would expose them to the venom of the idiots responsible for the horrible treatment they were subject to. Finally I saw many wearing their Vietnam hats, jackets and patches. I ALWAYS go out of my way to thank ALL Veterans for their service to our country. I spent 5 1/2 years of meetings and 6 months of active duty with the Army Reserve, served in 1960. I don't know why they called us 90 day wonders because we served 180 days and fortunately I was not called to fight for my country although I would have done so if necessary. I have successfully hunted elk and deer in the Yellowpine, Idaho area back in the late 60's, never saw any moose though and was not hunting them anyway. Good Fishing!

Jeremy. I just saw that Oregon also has the law against wanton waste. It really doesn't matter that the Heron was mad if you did not throw the trout in the air for him. A game fish is protected, as well as the Blue Heron. The warden would probably tell you the same thing the local warden told me, that the seagulls, (and I am SURE the Herons) DO NOT need our help in finding food. To each their own! I was fishing where the small perch were a nuisance and NEVER grow big in that lake so I never considered that throwing a few to the gulls would be a violation, but as I said the Warden was watching and questioned me and then told me it was wanton waste of a game fish and not to do it again. The result in your case and mine were the same, the game fish were removed from the lake.

Jeremy. In Minnesota you would be arrested for "Wanton Waste!" I was chastised and warned by the warden for throwing small perch to the seagulls swarming around my boat. I have no intention of paying a fine so of course I only did it once!

I use sucker minnows through the ice to catch bass in the winter. It seems they can't resist the sweet taste of sucker meat. No other type of minnow even comes close. We can fish two lines in the winter so I use a small casting rod and reel, a line tie, slip bobber, split shot, plain #6 short shank crappie hook and a sucker minnow hooked through the back on one line while fishing with an ice fly and light rod, reel and line and maggots for panfish on the second line. Sometimes I will go though a dozen sucker minnows before I run out of suckers on bass and northern and can finally fish for sunfish and crappies. In 3 1/2 hours yesterday I caught 6 bass, 4 northern and ran out of suckers, then caught 20 sunfish, 3 crappies and one perch. Three years ago I was using shiners and catching some fish. The bait shops could not get shiners anymore so I reluctantly tried suckers at about half the price and was so successful I don't even buy shiners anymore. (Central Minnesota area.)

In Central Minnesota we have lots of them. My deceased fishing partner ate them, I never tried them because of the big white worms I saw in many of them. I prefer sunfish although many of those have black parasites or small white worms in the flesh. I can handle a few black spots and remove the few white worms but if the fillets look like they were sprinkled with pepper I will discard those. I know proper frying will kill the parasites but they are still unappetizing if too numerous. I haven't seen the black parasites in Rock Bass and my friend always commented on the white fillets from Rock Bass.

Please don't forget the Bug Spray! Mosquitoes allegedly kill more people than anything else! Don't forget Tick repellent as those little buggers are responsible for the suffering of many also. Include some type of sun protection and plenty of water to stave off dehydration. With children it is better to go slow and not push them too much at first but your grandchildren are a little older and may be able to handle a longer outing. They will let you know, especially if you run out of food, pop and water!
Have fun and make many lasting memories with grandpa!!!

As far as the comment on a need for speed I disagree. I come home from the lake at 9 - 10 PM with 20 sunfish and 10 crappies many times, often double that when the wife goes along. I have cleaned SO MANY fish over the years and although it is necessary and I don't hate it, I go fast and listen to music. My wife does not clean the fish. I can hand fillet 20 sunfish and 10 crappies, remove the skins, wash the fish, clean up the mess, soak the fish in vinegar and discard the remains in about 45 minutes. I don't want to spend all night cleaning fish, hence the desire for speed.

Our local Mills Fleet Store in Waite Park Mn. carries a large supply of both the wooden handled and rubber handled Rapala fillet knives with the leather sheath and sharpening tool for just under $20. I have only used 2 Rapala knives in many years of cleaning many fish so it is not like they don't last a long time. Because I fillet fish without cutting through the rib bones and then removing them from the fillet I don't have to sharpen the blade very often. I don't use and do not want an electric knife. I can fillet and remove the skin so fast my way. I have not tried the rubber handled version but I like the wooden handle.

I have used the 7" Rapala fillet knife with the wooden handle for many years and have not had any problems at all.

I live on the Mississippi River in Central Minnesota. Beavers made houses in and on the banks of my property and destroyed many trees. They have to keep chewing to keep their teeth from growing too long. They eat the small limbs but just girdle the large trees and destroy them. When I was fishing from my shoreline the beavers would come up or down the river and DID NOT WANT ME THERE! They would slap their tail on the water and swim in circles. I had enough and was tired of them destroying the big trees and going up into my woods and taking the finest saplings down to the river for their food and house. I carried my 17 HMR with me and finished them off with head shots when they circled in front of me. The HMR 17 bullet leaves the barrel at 2550 feet per second and is not much longer or louder than a 22 long rifle. The HMR 17 will NOT ricochet off of water, rocks, brush, etc., so is safe to shoot. It blows up on contact and is deadly on varmints. The next year I did find someone to trap the replacements who were again damaging my trees. The DNR and game wardens
would not do anything and we finally had to protect our own property. WARNING!!! This is not a joke! Beavers defecate in the ponds they have dammed up and if you contact the water you can die or get severely ill from what is called "BEAVER FEVER". This happens where the Ponds are not flowing and are stagnant. It does not take much contact and many who have fallen in or waded in to try to remove their dams have paid with their lives! Of course they CAN bite! I think they would have to be cornered but there are always exceptions, like infected with rabies?

Thank You! And a Very Happy New Year To All!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How would you like to learn to go CATCHING and not just FISHING?! I am now 80 years old. I started fly fishing in my early teens and thoroughly enjoyed it and always caught pan fish fishing with my dad. In Minnesota we can use 3 flies on one line but I soon quit that because when you hooked two or three fish they were going in different directions and fighting each other. I returned to one fly and still fish that way. HOWEVER, YOU DO NOT NEED A FLY ROD! I have fly fished for over 50 years with a spinning outfit and have been unbelievably successful doing so. I grew tired of catching trees, screens, etc. and constantly watching behind for people and dogs. When the movie "A River Ran Through It" came out I immediately noticed an influx of people fly fishing and many were obvious beginners. While they were false casting repeatedly I would throw my fly a country mile with the flip of the wrist and have another fish before they even made their second false cast! Here is how simple and effective it is. I have tried different components and settled on the following. Use "Torpedo Floats" which have an eye on each end. They are heavy plastic and you do not have to fill them with water like others. Use an ultra light spinning rod and reel. I use 6 lb Green Trilene Line XT (Xtra Tough). Take my word for this, DO NOT USE the XL (Xtra Limp)! You will end up with unbelievable snarls and discard much line each time. Tie the SMALL END of the Torpedo Float to the line from the rod. USE 4 lb. Green Trilene (Again in XT)! as a leader. You may use 2 lb. in some instances and Green Trilene does not come in 2 lb. The length of the leader depends on the depth of the fish. Because the pan fish are feeding on insects, they are in shallow water in the warmest part of the day, usually late afternoon and evening. When the insects are over the water and not in it the fish will be near the surface and will leave a wake when attacking the fly. I never use more than a 6' leader and sometimes 2' or 3". Tie the leader on to the LARGE end of the Torpedo Float and the fly on the end of the leader. By casting the large end first the float does not tangle up in the leader. Cast the float, leader and fly out with speed, shooting it out and not lobbing it in an arc. Watch the Float (they come in bright colors) and I use flourescent red. Just before the float is going to enter the water, stop the line with your index finger causing the leader and fly to pass up the float and land correctly. Immediately close the bail and take up the slack. Pull the rod towards you a foot or two or three and stop. Turn the reel handle and take up the slack and set the hook immediately if the float hesitates, twitches or the line jumps. If no strike, repeat the rod movement over and over. If a fish knocks the float a foot in the air do not be surprised. Immediately move the float towards you the length of the leader to where the fish just swirled and be ready. I use a fly that slowly sinks, and by moving it forward it surfaces again. Watch for a swirl or MANY swirls where the fly is and again set the hook. You are now fighting the fish with the rod and reel and not having to retrieve with your fingers like with a fly reel. I have a 92 year old fishing companion who turned out to be color blind and could not see the red float, so I gave him a green one which helped. He still wasn't setting the hook as he had trouble seeing it coming straight at him. I solved that problem by putting maggots on the fly for scent. The pan fish are notorious for instantly spitting out a fly that they detect is fake. By using the maggots they don't spit it out and he catches many. I can fish solo during the last 3 hours of a hot, calm, sunny day and have caught (by actual count) 200 or more sunfish, crappies and even some bass. In Minnesota the limit is 20 sunfish and 10 crappies but the fish are slightly hooked in the lip and easily released to fight another day. You talk about non stop action! As I said this is turning FISHING into CATCHING. These are school fish and when they are looking up just under the surface for insects, there will be many swirls when the bubble and fly land and MANY will leave wakes on the surface when heading for the fly. Catch, release and fire right back into the school of fish. Stay alert and look around while fighting a fish as you will often see another school fleeing a hungry northern or bass, or jumping for insects. You can then cast over there and catch those. If you make a long cast and miss a fish often you will have multiple strikes on the same cast. In fact it is seldom that you will retrieve without hooking a fish when the conditions are right. That is why it is exciting and entertaining and why I claim I can catch so many fish in a short time. Find a fly that will work in your area. Many use the black Woolly Booger. I have my flies tied by a local man to my liking and now use only those, very effectively. I fish from shore or in my boat if I cannot access the area by foot. I have a number of local lakes I fish and know just where to go to get out of the wind which is essential for fly fishing. AND YES, I KNOW HOW TO SWIM!!!