Wanted to launch my tube for the first time this year on the south marina. No go. It had been open but NW winds blew ice into the channel and closed it up again. Still quite a bit of ice in the boat launch area but doesn’t look good enough for ice fishing.
Headed to the north marina. Everything open and a calm flat lake. Air temp 23 and water temp 35 at launch. Set up my newest design motor mount for my tube and did a triple klutz on the slickery algae on the launch ramp. Sheesh.
Started by dragging a minnow down the channel into the open lake, while pitching a tandem plastic rig for crappies, a walleye…or? Nada on neither.
**Started fishing at 8 AM. Sun peeked over the mountain about 8:30 and I had my first bite at 9…in 20 feet of water. My first cookie cutter kitty of the year. Small but welcome. **
Got my second and last bite about an hour later. Another cookie from about 13 feet of water right off Eagle Beach. The eagle was watching. I took his picture before I left.
Fished another couple of hours in water from 8’ to 20’ deep…from the channel mouth to the campgrounds. Saw almost nothing on sonar at any depth. Didn’t get another sniff, either on bait or plastic. Tough.
About noon I motored back into the marina to see if anything might be hanging out inside. Nope. More of the same ol’ nada. Talked with some dock dunkers and they admitted they had not seen or caught anything inside. Ditto for a bank tangler.
**Water temp had warmed to 37 and air temp to 45 when I hit the ramp about 1. **
**No skunk. At least I had a couple of cookies to convert into scampi kitties on noodles. That’ll work. **
Thanks for the report Pat! The new motor mount looks good. I need to schedule a visit to see how you’ve attached the bumpers on the bottom. It looks like it is attached to the motor mount itself. Slick!
Yeah, I have been working on a way to make everything one-piece with quick attachments so that it installs and breaks down quickly…as the need arises. Here are some more pics to give you an idea.
Would be glad to help you rerig your Fat Cat. Pretty simple and definitely runs great.
That is one of the most elaborate rigs I have ever seen. The Starship Enterprise would be jealous . I’ve seen boats with less equipment and much more disorganized.
Pretty impressive unit…
Glad you like it. Now if only I could rig it to “beam up” the fishies. But that would take all the fun out of it.
As those who have been around me for a while know, I never met a piece of PVC I didn’t like. I have been tinkering with different designs for many years and what I have now is very efficient. Too bad it doesn’t scare off the power squadron. I have been thinking about replacing a couple of the rod holder tubes with surface to surface missiles.
After reading your report I see that you caught the same number of keeper walleye and perch that I caught today at Starvation. Great minds think alike!
Did get a few Starvation Steelies for the Masterbuilt smoker.
Just add a sling shot and carry some extra sinkers [;)].quote]
Ha! Been there…done that. Big trouble.
I used to be the most dangerous kid on the block, with all kinds of weapons…bullwhips, slingshots, blowguns, throwing knives. You name it. I got really good with slingshots and made my own super powered ones with surgical tubing. Shot a lot of birds and bunnies with steel balls and marbles.
Back in the early days of tubing Willard…late 1970’s…I was one of the first tubers ever seen on that lake and the water skiers loved to harass me. No PWCs in those days but the skiers were bad enough. One boat in particular always headed right for me whenever I was fishing along the dike. They would roar by close enough to rock my world and the skier would lay over and shower me with spray.
**I had already tried firing a heavy sinker with my rod and that did not seem to deter them. So I brought along my trusty slingshot. But I nearly went to jail after shooting the skier in the butt at close range. If I had not been on good terms with the rangers I am sure I would have been toast. Instead the rangers had a tough time keeping from laughing as they ticketed the boat for coming too close. But I was warned that I was never to do that again and that I would get busted for the next offense. **
Over the years I have broken out windshields on boats with sinkers and wrapped hook covered crankbaits around the wrists of skiers and PWC operators. And I have sometimes just taken pictures of guys coming too close and reported them to the rangers. I love it when they ask me why I am taking their pictures. I usually reply “It’s for my new book…&$$%#s of America. I’m gonna put you on the cover.”
**I’ve mellowed out in my older years. Since tubing and tooning are more common there is less novelty for the power squadron and they are not as curious. And since a lot of them have gotten tickets for violating the 150 foot rule, there are not quite as many buzzers any more. Still plenty. But in a day and age when you never know what will set somebody off…and who is “packing”…it is not a good idea to provoke anything. **
And it is also foolish and dangerous to be slinging sinkers and hooks at someone else…much less shooting at them with a slingshot. Much better to grit your teeth and just report them than to risk injuring them and winding up in jail or with a hefty fine yourself. Carry a cell phone and have the number of the rangers on speed dial. If nothing else, get a good picture of the boat with the hull numbers showing.
Wow that is a slick design. Is this the final incarnation or do you have some more tube-cain induced visions that you want to try out, Pat?[;)]
“Final incarnation”? Silly you. The visions never cease. PVC is like LSD…lots of freak-outs and flash backs…and flash forwards.
Got a new front end set up for the bait-riggers and sushi board (hard apron) attachments. Needs a couple of small refinements. Will be posting on the float tube board soon.
Glad you had calm waters for the maiden voyage of 2011. You got to get out and stretch the muscles in your manual propulsion system, catch a couple kitties and view some of what mama nature has to provide..Not a bad way to start the soft water season
“Final incarnation”? Silly you. The visions never cease. PVC is like LSD…lots of freak-outs and flash backs…and flash forwards.
Just wanted to make sure you hadn’t changed[;)][;)]. Speaking of sushi boards, I need some help figuring out how to get one attached. I kept telling myself that I really didn’t need one last year but I’ve been using so much cut bait it would help. In fact, I lost a few catfish last year trying to hold them down to remove the sharp pointy bits and each time I would say, “Wag, why don’t you get a work surface for this thing like TD told you to get, dummy?”
Hopefully the dumber part of me starting to listen to the smarter part of me…
Yeah, the wimpy fly-flinger aprons that come standard on most tubes just don’t “cut it” for us guys who rassle kitties and other spiny critters. I have been using the rigid aprons (sushi boards) for years and wouldn’t be without them. Great for tackle workbench projects, controlling rowdy fish and cutting bait.
My current model is the BOTTOM of a big Rubbermaid container…cut to leave raised edges. Helps control both fish and water runoff, etc. My newest system of attachment consists of running a loop of bungee cord under the apron and looping the ends over a PVC hook on either side. Got a new setup for that…when you can make a trip up to see it.
Wanted to launch my tube for the first time this year on the south marina. No go. It had been open but NW winds blew ice into the channel and closed it up again. Still quite a bit of ice in the boat launch area but doesn’t look good enough for ice fishing.
. I’ve seen boats with less equipment and much more disorganized.