FISHING

“A fish doesn’t know the difference between a man or a woman on the other end of the line,” Bradley said. “It’s really just me and the fish, instead of me competing just against guys.”

Sometimes nothing beats live bait for catching fish. Sport fish get conditioned over time to seeing the same lures, especially in waters receiving heavy angling pressure. Bass don’t eat spinnerbaits, nor do red drum dine on hard plastic topwater plugs. So why not offer them a meal that looks, smells and even tastes like dinner?

The allure of saltwater angling is sometimes shrouded in mystery. You don’t know what kind of fish is on the hook until it appears at the surface.

Even if you live on the coast, some of the tastiest fish in the sea are not available at the fish market. Why is that so? The answer is good news for boaters who catch their own saltwater fish to eat.

Preventive maintenance and repairs, rigging new accessories and repowering your boat is what you expect to find at the service department of a boat dealership.

Bow hunters begin limbering up for the whitetail deer season in summer by taking aim at practice targets in their backyards. That can get downright boring while sweltering in the summer heat when the season is months away.

Anglers are notorious for blaming slow fishing conditions on the fish, when they could blame themselves for not using the right bait.

A holiday downer comes when it’s time to take down the Christmas tree. If you are an avid angler, though, you can actually look forward to what otherwise is a gloomy task. Best of all, you can enjoy the spirt of giving long after Christmas ends.

Some strange species are elusive loners. You never know what’s on the end of the line until the fish appears on the surface. Others make spawning runs that are “save the date” angling events due to their numbers.

Saltwater anglers have a good problem—there are so many species from which to choose. Catching them all could be a full-time job, which in fact, it is! Only charter captains have that luxury, so what about the rest of us?

Do you sometimes want to be a kid again? You can by taking a real kid fishing. Children are curious about and fascinated with the outdoors. Even the simple things that you might have outgrown—like skipping rocks along the shoreline—excite young minds. You might even rediscover how those little things can make spending outdoors so satisfying and fun.

Are you fired up about the tournament season ahead? Of course! There’s a lot to be excited about when winter gives way to spring. New tackle, a clean slate and a winning attitude are all part of the game.

How many freshwater fish can you correctly name?

The shopping task sounds simple enough—pick up a new rod and reel. Once upon a time, that might have been as easy as that, too. Choices were fewer with rods and reels essentially universal in their angling applications. For light line and small lures, you went with a spinning outfit. For everything else, it was a baitcaster.

There’s fresh seafood, and then there’s really fresh seafood. The taste is noticeably more delicious when seafood comes directly to market from the commercial fishing boat. 

“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” has an epicurean definition when it comes to what are called “trash fish” in the freshwater angling world. Some species get a bad rap based on their uncommonly bad looks. But like they say, looks aren’t everything.

Largemouth bass get most of the attention from freshwater anglers, and rightfully so. From local bass clubs up to the big leagues, there are tournaments that make chasing bass for cash very lucrative. At the top of the freshwater food chain, bass grow big and fight hard. 

You catch, weigh and release bass in tournaments, giving little thought to what happens to the fish next. After all, bass are released into the wild to be caught another day in catch-and-release tournaments, right? Not necessarily and here is why.

You update your wardrobe for spring and summer—so, why not your boat? Get ready for a season of fun on the water with these new products. From rainwear and other apparel to electronics and trolling motors, these are but a few of the offerings you can find online at Basspro.com and Cabelas.com and at select Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s Boating Centers.  

How many saltwater fish can you correctly name?

A fillet knife is undeniably the most important tool of the catch-and-keep angler. Some prefer the ease of pressing a switch and making nimble cuts with an electric knife. Others swear by carving the meat by hand with a razor-sharp stainless-steel full tang blade model.

Cast and retrieve. Repeat. That is what it takes to catch fish with a rod and reel. The idea is the more casts you make, the more fish you will catch.

High school team sports offer students the opportunity to compete for school pride and to earn college scholarships. Football, basketball and baseball are the all-too-familiar headliners. What about other sports, like bass fishing?

Unless your grocery store is in a coastal area, finding truly fresh fish is pure fantasy. A visit to the seafood department reveals that most of the catch came from a far-flung continent. 

Knots. Many are challenging to learn, let alone remember how to tie. Tying some knots takes time, too much of it, when you’d rather be fishing. In this day of instant gratification, you won’t find a packaged, ready-to-use Improved Clinch Knot at Bass Pro Shops or Cabela’s. Too bad!

How do the pros spend the winter “off season” between tournament seasons? The answer is staying busy preparing for the next season. Boats are ordered, rigged with accessories and decked out with all the latest tricks of the trade. Christmas comes nearly every day. Shipments of the newest tackle arrive and must be unboxed, organized and prepped for duty.