Conference wahoo::fishing

    SUPER EXCELLENT choice Don Mac, if anybody can find those hogs in
    that bog its got to be on of Rolands "associates".....dont be too
    sure...Roland hisself may take interest in a poor yankee come south
    to catch a hog...it still possible....maybe you'll be fantastic
    lucky and get him as the "frosting on the cake"......keep us all
    up on your plans and preperations so we can enjoy the vicarious
    experience.......
    
                                                     Tight lines
    
                                                        Ed
    
    
    

    Yea, Roland's must be one of the best around, they took more 8+lb 
    bass than any other guide service on the lake!
    
    Also, I got the Okeechobee info that I had requested from BASS Info
    Services.  They sent me the "Florida Freshwater Sport Fishing Guide 
    and Fish Mgmt Areas", a little pamphlet about rules etc... Also, a 
    run down on Okeechobee, what types of bait to use when, places to 
    stay, guides, etc. and a page worth of Roland Martin's Marina
    details.  They also sent a sheet asking for any corrections on 
    their info.  
    
    For more detail they referred me to the Okeechobee chamber of comerce.
    In all, I feel they did well with their help, the response time
    was good, and they pointed me in the right direction. 
                                           
    						don mac

    Don Mac,
    
    I'm curious if B.A.S.S. gave you any of their "volunteer" fishing
    information names???? Suppositly these people give their names to
    B.A.S.S. as a person that can be contacted for fishing info and
    "maybe" even a fishing trip with them if your in the area. The reason
    I ask, is they asked me to sign up as one in Mass. (I respectively
    declined)
    
    Tight lines, and "get a hawg", Ron

    Your right, I remember reading about that in the BASS booklet...
    
    However, there was not any info like that included.  It's possible
    that they do not get much response on this - especially around the
    more populiar lakes where the volunteers would be quite busy...
    
    don mac

Ron, (or anyone else who may know),

Do you know anything about Lake Tohopelikaga (or something like that), it's 
FLA's thrid largest lake, and supposedly has a fair amount of bass in it.
I belive the record out of there is a round 16lbs...  It's also minutes away 
from Orlando (where we'll be based).  

I'm considering passing on the Okeechobee deal.  I sent a letter to Rolands 
marina, asking if there was any way that we could leave the marina a bit 
later than their usual 6am - since I'll be staying in Orlando and will have a 
three hour drive.  They said that I should stay in Clewiston that night. 
(sorry, I'm already paying for 7 nights at the Marriott)  And besides that 
(remember this is a honeymoon) I did not want to make a two day deal out of 
this, I talked the wife-to-be into spending a afternoon fishing, not a couple 
of days.

I know that in Lake George, abit north of Orlando, there's a place called 
Bass World Lodge that rents fully rigged bass boats for $60 a day, so if there
is any place on Lake Toho****, I'd probably go for that... 

don mac		who_has_to_remeber_this_is_a_honeymoon_not_a_fishing_trip

		(but_still_wants_a_HONEYMOON_HAWG_on_his_wall)

    don...
    
    If you want to have a successful and happy marriage, ya gotta get
    the wife-to-be straight on one point right from the beginning...
    
    		FISHING COMES FIRST...THEN THE WIFE!
        
     
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    (oops...sorry ladies....only kidding!)
    
    joe

    joe....
    
    watch it buddy!!!! you forget that my office is right across from
    Don's.....  and our lunch hour activity is reading these notes files...
    
    i make sure that he's got his priorities straight!!!  ME!!
    
    					"the wife-to-be"

    Okay, now that the marital or is it martial, I mean it's just a
    letter, is out of the way I'll tell you what I know about Tohopekaliga
    which is located just south  of Orlando. If this isn't the one you're 
    talking about we have a problem. 
    
    This isn't the third largest lake in Fla. by the way. I don't know
    where you got that, but it's not so. (so is it the same lake???)
    George, Rodman and Kissisimmi are all bigger. Really doesn't matter
    as they are (or in Rodmans case were) good bass lakes. There are
    two lakes with that name, one of them being called "East". They
    are on opposite sides of the Sunshine Turnpike with East T*** being
    the smaller one.
    
    Good bass fishing with trophies available, but more work to get
    them. These lakes get more pressure because of the close location
    they have to Orlando. Unlike Okeechobee, which is really out in
    the boonies, there is development around these. Contact the State
    Freshwater Gamefish Dept (I gave the phone number earlier) and they
    will have more info than I have. I'll check the old books and see
    if there is an article on it. Most of the Fla. lakes have been written
    up at one time or another.
    
    Keep those priorities straight and you'll have a fishing buddy for
    life..............Even if she doesn't go with you.
    
    Tight lines, Ron (heading out this weekend)
    
    ps. You still might want to look into Okeechobee City guides. This
    is on the north part of the lake and within 45 minutes/hour drive.
    
    

    Yea, that's the one, Tohopekaliga - I tell ya, that's a name and
    a half...  I got that info from the Official Guide to Disney, they 
    say "Bass anglers make a big deal about Florida's third largest 
    lake, Lake Toho***..."  They recommend writing to the Kissimee visitors
    council (or something like that - I mailed it this AM), so we'll
    see what they have to say.                                      
                                                                    
    Since your a former local, where would you recommend?  
                                            
    The Okeechobee deal is starting to seem like a little much.  Yea, I'd 
    love to fish the lake, a guide from Roland's would be great, and
    my odds of landing a hawg would be better, but getting up at 4am
    and driving for 2-3 hours for 4 hours of fishing...                  
                                                                        
    Again, this is a honeymoon, so I'm kinda heading towards the idea
    of fishing a local lake... could get up whenever we want, have
    breakfast by the pool, a few cool drinks, head over to a local lake
    that is supoosed to hold some hawgs, pack a cooler, rent a bass boat, 
    etc... you know, a much more laid back type of deal... I think this
    would be a safer way to start off a marrige than dragging her out
    of bed at 4am to go hawg'n! :-)              
                                                 
    don mac	who_would_like_to_keep_this_fish'n_buddy_around_awhile 
                                                 
                                                 
                                                 

    Okay Don,
    I haven't fished in that area of the state for ten+ years so my
    data is going to be way out of date. Your best bet is the town of
    Kissimmee, and there are some places (probably a lot more now) there
    that rent boats by the hour or day (cheaper by the day - or it use
    to be). Kissimmee is located at the junction of hwy 441 and 17 
    right at the north end of the lake. If memory serves me the lake
    is about 10 miles long and about five wide. It has sort of a crescent
    shape and the best fishing use to be in the cove on the northeast
    part of the lake. Like all the lakes in the center of the state
    it is shallow and has acres of grass and weed. So much for my stroll 
    down memorylane.
    
    You will have to check on things like tackle and kinds of boats,
    but don't expect to much. Rates should be in the $30-$50 area, with
    tackle, probably light spinning rods $5 or so. They will rent rods,
    but you will have to buy the bait you are going to use. I don't
    know of any of them renting lures :^) ..............)
    
    Wish I could go there myself, but it's not in the cards at this
    time. Lake George is a great fishing lake. Its the headwater for
    the Saint Johns River and the "second" largest lake in Fla. You
    might like to take a look at it if Tohopekaliga doesn't end up suiting
    you taste. T**** is about a fifteen minute drive from the Disney
    area, so you could check it out durning a slack moment :^)))))
    
    Enjoy whatever you decide to do and keep those line tight, Ron

Thanks Ron, it sounds like that area has just what I'm looking for.  I did 
have my heart set on Okeechobee, but it'll probably have to be some other 
time.  Ever since I've been considering this, I've been reading and watching 
stuff about Okeechobee.  Now, I think the big lake is cause enough for a trip 
down there, a couple of days down there in Feb/Mar would be great!  

As far as tackle goes, I'll probably bring my box, maybe even bring my rod,
I have a "brandy new" 6ft bass action, graphite rod (2 piece, so I could 
probably get it on the plane) w/ a shimano mag plus, that may do a better 
job landing my "Honeymoon HAWG", than a lightweight rental.  I could probably 
rent heavier stuff, but I'd rather have something familiar to work with...

And although a guide would be nice, it'd be even nicer having nobody but myself 
to credit with finding "the spot" - but then again I won't have anyone to
blame for NOT finding it either!!!  And going guideless will provide more 
privacy too, remember, we're talking honeymoon here!  No slack in this 
guy's lines !! 

don mac		

    Eh Don, mon ami,
    
    Chou need to mobe to Looseyanna. Don dere dey libe ober de water
    so de mon fishes all de time, de femme she cook de gumbo all day
    an de both make gogo(love) all de nite. Dat wey all tings is jolie!!
    
    Bonne mariage!!(aussi bon peche)
    
    Coonass Bob
    

Hey there Coonass,

Sounds good down theea, but....

Up heea, it's a little different.  In Baaston, us guys drink beea, an fish 
for caad in the haaba.  But the haaba waata's too scummy for me, so I moved to 
New Hampsha, not too faa up though, just up by Manchesta.  Heea the waata's 
cleena and instead of the haaba, we gut a fish the riva and the paands, ain't 
no caad or haddick heea eitha - gutta fish for them lunka bass... the wifes 
up heea are different too - all they eva do is try an soba us up - make us 
drink caafee then drag us out in the yaad and beat the hell out of us...

don mac		

    

    TO: Wife-to-be
    
    Aw come on now...I said I was only kidding!  It's nice to know that
    you share in his interests.  I wish my wife did.  
    
    TO: Hen-pecked-to-be  (cheeez...there I go again...only jesting!)
    
    Well, Don, seeing as you'll be on your honeymoon, I guess I can
    accept not getting up at 4 AM to go fishing.  I can think of better
    things to do (heh..heh).
    
    -Joe- (countin_the_days_to_bassin'_with_Coonass_Bob)
    

    HEN-PECKED-TO-BE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!?????????????????????????
    
    OK, WHO WANTED TO KNOW WHERE JOE'S HONEYHOLE WAS?????
    
    Ha Ha!  Just kidding, she was too!  You don't have to worry about
    her getting upset - she's got a sense of humor too!
    
  
    don mac    

    How lucky can you get Don,
    
    Orlando Wilson's show this Sat. was from Lake Toho*****. He was
    fishing it in March and gave some tips for the lake for the summer.
    
    Not really all that much different than you would expect. Flipping
    was highly recommended (but then when isn't it in summer in Fla.)
    around the flats and pickrelweed beds. While he didn't mention the
    size of worms (I would use 7-10 inch) it was the preferred choice.
    As I mentioned earlier, it is a very shallow lake and you could
    see there were houses along the banks, they were fishing well out
    into the offshore weed beds for spawning bass.
    
    If anyone else caught the show and can remember more please add
    it here for Don.
    
    Tight lines, Ron

    AHHHHH!  
    
    For the last few months I've been watching (and often taping)
    BASSMASTERS,Fishing w/ Roland, and recently fishing w/ Orlando...
    
    figures, the only show I caught this weekend was BASSMASTERS....
    
    don mac

    Well, I'll tell ya, I don't know why anybody would want to spend
    even a night in Whorelando.  What a hole.  Why don't you get yourself
    a place out on the beach where it is quiet.  A 40 minute drive is
    nothing in FL.
    
    Anyway, if you want to know where to fish, Lake Toho and Okeechobee
    are for "turists".  If you go there, be sure to where your Hawaiian
    shirt and lime green pants.  
    
    I've been watching this conversation and had to add my two cents
    in.  A place on the beach would be real cheap.  Someplace like
    Indialantic.  The lake you want to fish is Lake Washington.  It
    is on the St. John's system, which flows North. (because Georgia
    sucks, as the Gator tale goes)  Washington is where the fish are.
    
    Look at a map.  There are two GOOD fishing camps there.  One is
    north of Washington on 520 and I forget the name.  The other is
    down on 192, which goes from Melbourne to Disney World/Whorelando
    (you catch things besides fish in that town, really).  The name
    of the camp on 192 is Camp Holly, if memory serves me.  I would
    guess it would be in the West Melbourne phone book.  In Fl, there
    are a lot of areas that are just called "unincorporated" and they
    use the nearest town's phonebook.  The owner is a Hell of a nice
    good ole' boy named Darold.  I've seen more 8+ lbs. Bass come in
    there on any morning.  Just a routine fish.  I really think that
    is the place to go.
    
    If you don't go running around acting like a Yankee, you will do
    quite well by him. (A yes ma'am goes a very long way with Southerners)
    You should give him a call and check him out.  Whatever you do,
    don't play liars poker with him.  He has only ever lost once and
    the dollar is stapled to the wall.
    
    Seriously, I think this is an excellent place and you would not
    get ripped off.  Also, you would be very likely to catch some fat
    hawgs.
    
    Also, if you are interested, about 20 miles south of Indialantic
    (Coastal town on beach side of Melbourne) is the Sebastian Inlet.
    This time of the year the Snook run real heavily through there.
    This is a real romantic place to go at night.  You go down there
    and stake your place just before the tide turn about.  The palms
    are real still and when the moon is out, it is killer.  I'll even
    give you my secret spot if you want, but not in this note for the
    world to read.  For about twenty or thirty minutes during the tide
    turnaround, you just cast over and over.  If interested, I'll tell
    you which lure to use.  Then when the tide rushes out, fishing is
    over.
    
    If you've never heard of Snook, it is really the best tasting fish,
    real white meat.  They run very large. 10 lbs. is considered light.
    20 lbs. is a nice fish.  Let me know if you are interested.
    
    However, I strongly suggest you call camp Holly and give that a
    shot.  It's the kind of off beat place the turists don't find and
    the good ole boys go to to catch the real fish.
    
    Aside from going to Disney World, etc. I'd stay out of Orlando,
    but that's a matter of preference.  BTW, I lived in Brevard for
    7 years and have a fair idea what's happening down there fishing
    wise.  Also, I would suggest reading the Brevard Today.  That's
    a local paper.  On Fridays, Bill Sargent has an article and he gives
    hot tips for the weekend.
    
    Have a good trip,
    
    Brett.

    See that, I try and be nice and tell you my favorite place to fish
    and I get abuse.  Don't get the wrong idea, Darold isn't some Yankee
    hatin redneck like Porkey's or somethin.  He's a super nice guy
    and I've seen him take some wicked abuse from turists, generally
    from New Yauk.  But he knows where the fish are and how to get them.
    
    I always figured that most people that come down and go to Toho
    and Okeechobee just don't know where any of these little places
    are.  Figured I'd give you a break.  And this place is like 30
    minutes from Disney World (Tooly Land) on 192.  I mean you asked
    if anybody knew of any good place.
    
    If you look at a map of FL though, you'll see that all these really
    hot lakes are just kind of bulges of the St. John's River.  There's
    an aweful lot of big bass swimmin that chain.  Over the years, I've
    seen more big fish from Washington in the paper than any other of
    the lakes.  
    
    Anyway, have a good honeymoon.  Don't knock Snook fishing until
    you catch one!  Anybody out there ever been snook fishing?

    geez, i missed it... you can see by the way the notes landed, brett
    that i tried to get rid of that... i haevn't read your previous
    note - since i just came on to put this one on... i'll put this
    one here and read yours now...
    
      
 For any of you who were here earlier today, I had a note in this spot [98.19] 
that I decided to delete.  After waking up and reading it, I realized that I 
was flaming too much - got real defensive being a full blooded yankee and all.
So I extracted that one and I'll try again...  

RE: .18 :-)

I couldn't find any lime green pants, but I did get some white ones!
Also, I WAS lucky enough to find a Hawaiian shirt, my fiancee got one too!

I'm sure that to locals, Orlando is considered a tourist trap.  After all it 
IS a tourist trap, I've been there.  But, to the thousands of people who visit
there, it is a fun and exciting place.  And as far as your term "whorlando", 
I'm sure that depends on where you go, that is unless of course you southerners
find Minnie Mouse's low cut dresses offensive... :-)  

For us, the Orlando Mariott will be quite acceptable, remember, this is a 
honeymoon - not a fishing trip, if this WAS a fishing trip, I would NOT be 
going to Orlando.  I would probably go to Okeechobee (if it's good enough
for Roland, it's good enough for me), and then maybe swing up to Camp Holly, 
to play some liars poker with good ol' fishdick darold, and his other brother, 
darold... :-)

Lake Washington does sound intesting though, how far is it from Orlando?

And, Ron, do you know anything about these lake?

Thanks Brett, by the way, you weren't a tech in NI about 4 years ago were you?

what a long strange trip it's been			don mac

    
    I guess that we all have our own favorites.................that
    is what makes for horse races. I lived in Fla. for 15 years and
    if it comes to that, the whole state is a "turist" trap. I happen
    to love the state though and think its the greatest overall fishing
    area in the entire country. There are no "bad" lakes in the state
    from the little farm ponds and phosphate pits to the the huge lakes
    like George, Toho, and Okee. Unfortunitly, Rodman is dead and won't
    be back for another 4-5 years. They still aren't real sure what
    really wiped it out. But it was great in the 60's and 70's. I've
    caught 8+ lb bass in ponds no bigger than 40 arces and a 12 lb'er
    in Okeechobee. So, it really doesn't matter where you go, there
    are fish there.
    
    To answer your question Don, these lakes are along the east coast
    between Melbourne and Mims (space enter) and slighly inland. There
    are four lakes in the chain beginning with Lake Washington in the
    south and then going by river up to Lake Winder, Lake Poinsett,
    and then Lake Harvey. I only fished in Harvey back in the late sixties
    and didn't do all that well. But that was only two days, so you
    can't draw any conclusions from that. As for the others, I only
    know of them. They are about an hour or so out of Orlando and off
    the "beaten path", so the pressure is more local unless things have
    really changed. 
    
    All things considered, I would stay with your original idea and
    go to Toho. It's a great lake and since you will probably go durning
    the week, the boating pressure shouldn't be all that great. I think
    that you and the wife will have a great time and who knows, you
    may get that "hawg" for the wall. This will be June and the bass
    will be deep in cover, so think "flipping" or at least worming,
    if you don't go with shinners. Heavy line in the 20 lb category
    is a must unless you just want the smaller ones for the action.
    
    Advice, including mine, is cheap :^)   You're the lucky one who
    is going to be there.....................
    
    Tight lines, Ron (poised_at_the_ready)
    

    

    Is dat snooker fishin anyting lak snipe huntin? We catch plenty
    of dem down here.
    Down here we always ast dem a question in cajun French an if dey
    answer in Anglish, den we know dey is a Yanqui. Dey not so bad tho,
    wun time I brought mysef all de way op north, yea, all de way to
    Shreveport, but de weather she too cold, so I cum bak.
    
    Coonass Bob
    

    I think I watched Mark Sosin this weekend snook fishing in the
    everglades or close by.  Seems like he was using a flyrod and a
    sinking fly?  I'm not sure; I watched too many fishing shows. The
    best one featured Jerry McInnis bonefishing on Christmas Island.
    Seems like any fish that cruises the saltwater shallows puts up
    a heck of a fight.  
    
    Steve

	Brett gave me the number of Camp Holly (went to mail and put
    out the flames!), when I get down there I'll take a look at a map,
    give a bunch of places a call (a couple of days in advance) and decide
    then and there, where to go hawgin'... I tell ya though, it's great
    having this notes file to find out this stuff... Where else could
    someone get firsthand advice from locals or former locals, whatever
    the case may be...                               
                                        
    If there's anyone else out there who's fished the Orlando area, let's
    hear what you've got to say!        
                                            
    don mac                             
                                        
                                        

    Well, it's not my honeymoon, but we decided on the spur of the moment
    to go visit some friends in Fla for a week.  Leaving at 7:00 tomorrow
    morning so I don't think there's time to solicit any advice from
    Brett, Ron, Don Mac or anybody else who's lived visited or fished
    Fla but I will check before I leave tonight....tried to post a note
    last fri after I picked up the tickets ($139 round trip/$49 for
    kids; I couldn't pass up a bargain like that) but couldn't access
    the file.
    
    The friends live in Gainesville and we'll be there for 4 days. 
    John is a fellow basser and has lived in Gainesville better than
    half his 30-35 years.  He's planning to take me to Lake Loch-loosa
    one day and the St Johns around Palatka (?) another.  I even went
    out and bought a new rig (ABU 5000 baitcaster and 5'6" Berkely
    Cherrywood composite).  The local bait shop helped me select a few
    spinnerbaits (white, black and chartreuse) and a couple large noisy
    topwater plugs.  They said to wait until I got down there to select
    worms in the right size and color and to try large shiners too (John
    says we can catch our own on small hooks and breadballs).
    
    Here's hoping I can come back with an entry for the H-A-W-G registry
    and make up for Don Mac's disappointment. ;-)
    
    Steve

    Steve...considering Don was on his honeymoon...I really doubt that
    he was "dissappointed"!
    

    Well Steve, good luck!  I envy you!  I'd LOVE to be heading back
    down there...  I'm sure that between the FLA notes here, and 
    your bass'n buddy down there, you'll be all set.  Shiners seem to
    be the #1 bait down there, from what I could tell.  Just make sure
    you have strong line to pull them hawgs out of the weeds.  I obviously
    was suffering from temporary insanity when I threw a shiner on my
    8lb test and tossed it in there (WOOSH, SNAP... the only shiner
    that I did NOT use on my big rod with 25lb test HAD to be the one
    that got hawg'd), anyway, with shiners, use heavy duty stuff.
                                                            
    I've looked at some brochures fronm the St Johns, looks like a real
    nice place (then again, in Florida EVERYPLACE looks like bass heaven!
    
    Good luck!
    
    ps: come on now you guy's!  6lbs 13oz is NOT a disappointment!!!!!
    how many of you have done any better in New England this year?????
    come on now I'm waiting!!  your all just jealous!!!!!!   8^)
                          
    Have fun Steve, show `em what us yankees can do!!!
    
    Don Mac
                
    

    Oh.... I thought that "disappointment" was referring to my recent
    scale troubles in the HAWG REGISTRY note...  
    
    But your right Joe, the fact that I didn't get my Honeymoon Hawg
    was a little bummer, but your right, the enjoyment of the whole
    honeymoon kept swept it right away!  I'm ready for another one!
    
    Are you SURE you don't need someone to carry your tackle, Steve????
    
    Don Mac

    I really DID mean disappointment over the 3 lb H-A-W-G not the
    H-O-N-E-Y.
    
    Sorry, Don, my 5 year old will carry the tackle (to/from the plane,
    he's not fishing on this trip).  I bought a Plano rod case for the
    trip, it doesn't feel that solid.  I hope the baggage apes don't
    try to bend it.  If a rod is gonna break, I'd rather a fish was
    responsible.
    
    Steve (hoping_to_better_3_lbs_if_not_6_lbs_13_ozs)

    Goshdarnit!!!!!  I didn't catch a single bass. :-(  We headed to
    Cross Creek Fish Camp on Cross Creek between Lochloosa and Orange
    Lakes, rented a boat and motored out onto Lochloosa by 7 am.  It
    was already 90 degrees and getting hotter.  The guy at the camp
    wouldn't sell us shiners, told us they'd die within an hour because
    of the extreme heat.  The recommendation was to stick with artificials;
    blue/black worms, white spinnerbaits, Dances Eel (which I had looked
    for and not found up north).
    
    I studied the map at the camp.  It indicated areas where bass over
    10 lbs had been caught (polaroid evidence on the walls included
    a 14 pounder from last summer).  The 3 prime spots included 2 along
    the shore and one 14' deep trench in the middle of the lake (the
    rest of the lake was 10').  I reasoned that the heat would send
    the bass to the trench and we went looking for it.  By 8, we had
    found the trench, anchored, and proceeded to throw everything but
    the tackle box into the trench.  We could see fish jumping all around
    us (there were also alligators swimming all around us) but by 10,
    neither of us had more than a bite.
    
    At this point I switched to a small Mepps spinner (size 1 comet
    in red/white) and John tied on a Blue Fox Super Vibrax in brass/orange
    and that's when the action started.  We ended up catching over a
    dozen Crappies all over 2 pounds (biggest was 2.75 according to
    my deliar).  Floridians call them Specks or Speckled Perch and they
    saved the trip from total disaster.
    
    On the way in, I had John stop along one of the weedchoked shoreline
    hotspots.  I threw out a worm and John tied on a red crappie jig
    hoping for a couple more specks.  Guess who caught the bass?  John
    picked up the sole bass of the day, a 3 pounder, on a crappie jig!
    
    Bassless or not, I had a ball.  The lake was spectacular.  I was
    awed by the abundance of wildlife including Herons, Snakes, Alligators,
    and Ospreys.  
    
    No H-A-W-G, but one heck of a fish fry.
    
    Steve

Saw something about this over the weekend on tv too..  I guess the big lake
came REAL close to reaching `fish-kill' a week or so ago, luckily some rough
weather came thru just in time and stirred things up enough to save it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Associated Press Sun 24-AUG-1986 18:58                      Okeechobee-Graham

Governor Pledges Emergency Action To Remove Pollutants
   OKEECHOBEE, Fla. (AP) - A giant algal bloom that threatened the
survival of Lake Okeechobee may have been a blessing in disguise,
Gov. Bob Graham said.
   ``Lake Okeechobee will not be allowed to die,'' Graham said
Saturday after inspecting the remains of the south Florida lake's
giant algal bloom that flourished on excess phosphates and other
nutrients in agricultural wastewater.
   ``It certainly dramatized the state of ill health of Lake
Okeechobee and brought us to a sense of urgency for action,'' he
said, signing an executive order hastening removal of phosphorous
pollutants from the 715-square-mile lake.
   The blue-green algae turned 100 square miles of the lake into a
pea-green soup and created a foul-smelling, lifeless zone of 6
square miles where algae had consumed virtually all available oxygen
from the water.
   Graham visited the lake to celebrate the third anniversary of the
state's Save Our Everglades plan, which calls for several ambitious
environmental projects but was criticized by environmentalists for
neglecting the lake.
   Graham said lake will be the state's top priority for the final
months of his administration.
   The plan outlines short-term emergency efforts to remove even
small amounts of phosphorus pollution from the lake while the state
hastens to accomplish a long-term program to keep it out.
   To dramatize his plan, Graham, wearing blue jeans and sneakers,
used a heavy, four-pronged rake to yank 10 gallons of
phosphorus-eating aquatic weeds from the lake.
   He imposed a 30-day moratorium on chemical sprays to kill the
floating weeds, mainly hydrilla and hyacinths. During the
moratorium, state officials will make final a plan to harvest the
channel-clogging plants.
   An acre of aquatic weeds holds about 180 pounds of phosphorus, he
said. The spray kills the weeds, but the phosphorus is returned to
the lake as the plants decompose.
   He challenged fishermen and boaters to follow his example by
pulling weeds from the lake, and promised to make available
state-owned lands for disposal of the weeds.
   Graham's executive order also includes strengthening the state
Department of Environmental Regulation's control over agriculture
around the lake by next May, and DER review of pumping stations on
the lake.

    Saw an interesting article when I picked up the latest issue of
    FISHING FACTS.  Those of you anticipating a Disney trip might want to
    read the story on officially sanctioned Disney fishing in their
    lake and canal system.  I didn't read the whole article but did
    notice that you can rent a pontoon boat, guide and equipment for
    a 2 hour bassin' trip on the lake for a mere $75 (additional hrs
    available @ $25 per) - the boat holds 5 passsengers by the way so
    that's only $25/fisherman for a half day.  The canal system is part
    of the "wilderness" campground (airconditioned trailers @ $105/night).
    It can be fished from shore or canoe rentals are available.  It
    seems the system was stocked 10 years ago and "official" fishing
    has started just recently.  It says that bass up to 13.25 pounds
    have been taken !!!  If I only knew then what I know now....
    
    Steve 

    BOY  and I stayed at the campground for 10 days and did not even
    bring a fishing rod!!!!  :^(
    
    Bassin' Bob
    

    Well, the saga continues........Back from one week in the Sun and
    Fun Capital of the world, tanned (a little) and wishing that I could
    go back. The weather was GREAT. 80-85 degrees every day and all
    the sun you could use. Slept with the windows open every night and
    never needed so much as a sheet for cover. Just the way it's suppose
    to be.
    
    That was just to make everyone jealous ;^)
    
    Now, the fishing was absolutly the best it could be.......Unfortunitly,
    I didn't catch a thing. EVERYONE else was killing them, but me.
    I think that I brought my Mass luck with me. But it was great, non-
    the-less. 
    
    They are still doing a lot of work on "the lake." Massive cleanup
    programs are going on and they don't think that the fishing will
    be affected at all. Whew.......for a while I was getting worried.
    
    Just wish I could talk about THE fish....maybe next time.
    
    Tight lines, Ron

    Geez, Ron, that's great!  Now I don't feel so bad about my "Honeymoon
    Hawgless" trip!                                       
                                                          
    Seriously though, glad you had a good time! 	Don Mac
                                                          
    It's the FISHING that counts, the CATCHING is a bonus!
                                                            

    did you use live bait..??.?.?
    bb
    

    No Bob, I didn't.............It was to hot and I didn't have the
    right equipment to keep anything alive. I didn't take my boat:^(
    
    Tight lines, Ron

    Two years and one day after starting this topic I'll finally be
    on my way to Okeechobee (I ended up at East Lake Toho last time).
                                             
    On Mar 25th my partner and I will be heading down there for 5 days of 
    fishing.  Hopefully we'll be able to get together with Ranger Ron, The 
    Texican and TBDW (and possibly Bass'n Bob and partner) who will also
    be on an excursion down south at that point - but not exactly sure
    where yet.  Bri and I are set on the Big O.  
                
    We're going to drive down, tow the boat and campout.  I couldn't
    locate the info that I had sent away for two years ago.  Anyone know
    of any campgrounds on the lake?  Or *cheap* cabins or whatnot?
                 
    Don Mac

    There are probably 50 camp grounds around the lake....maybe more.
    You won't have any problem finding them. Stop  at the tourist info
    park when you go into the state....they have all the info you need.
    
    We'll talk some more about this as our plans firm up. Currently
    we are planning to do somewhere around 3 major lakes (very ambitious)
    on our annual tour of the south. This will be the forth year we
    have tried this undertaking. The Texican wants to go to Texas, what
    else, I want to end up in Florida, what else, and TBDW wants to
    fly....he hates driving:^)... and meet us wherever. So, you can
    see that all the plans are not yet done.
    
    One thing I would like to add though, EVERYONE is invited to join
    us on this. We could have a ball. Right now, Basin Bob and his buddy
    Shawn are going to go with us, if we go the southeast route. The
    cost for this 10 day affair, gas, food, beer etc. shouldn't run
    more than $300. Licenses are cheap down there...$6 to $12 for seven
    day. We camp out, either tent or camper, and do some of our own
    cooking (with a real chef like TBDW - true, he is) that is just
    great. It could be a real great experience for some of you that
    would like to try fishing on the BIG lakes of the south with someone
    who has been there before. It would lessen the hassle for sure.
    Well, consider it........never in, never a winner;^)
    
    Tight lines, Ranger Ron

    An de Coonass want chew to cum to Loosianna!!! I got boats for 4-5
    an slepin room fo anudder 6-8. Jes let me know wen!!
    
    Coonass

I'm really envious!  But, because I still only get 2 weeks vacation, there's
NO WAY the wife would let me give up one of them to go fishing down south!

BUT....next year I get THREE WEEKS!  ANd that might be a different story!

In fact, I mentioned that this morning to my wife...



AND NOW WE'RE NOT TALKING!!  BOY ... IS SHE "BS"!

Oh well....maybe it won't make a difference after all, 'cause by then I 
just might end up being divorced!  (only kidding....I think!)

-HSJ-

RE: 598.6                Salmon fishing on L. Francais                   6 of 6
    
>    	    	Jim (whose dying to launch his newly acquired RANGER)
    
 
    Well, Jim, although there probably a few smallies in the area, it's
    mostly pink fish fish'n up that way... However, if you want BASS
    and want to try out that new Ranger, then north is not the direction
    that you want to go...  Doesn't the thought of trying out the new
    Ranger for the first time in FLORIDA sound nice?????  See ya at
    my place, 7am Mar 25... 
    
    Don Mac

    Don,
    March 25th is too late for me to be going to Florida, I need it
    bad NOW!!!  I tell ya, between having the boat in the garage and
    getting 14+ inches of snow, this whole situation is getting real
    old. Our club has a tournament down on the Cape on the 29th of 
    March so this gives me something to look forward to, and maybe,
    just maybe, I'll get down there within the next two weeks if the
    ice goes out.
    
    
    				I'm ready NOW!!
    					Jim

>    to break up the drive, you need to make some stops......
>    I hope those stops include some fishin.  ie: Westpoint, st cooper
>    etc.  
>   What's you driving plan?  Give us all the vicarious thrills.
>    TBDW (FLYIN)
           
    You guys were supposed to get back to me with your itinerary so
    we could possibly plan to meet somewhere...              
                                                             
    Anyway, we're going to drive 2 days, fish for 5 days and then drive
    2 days back home.  
           
    We're planning on leaving Friday, Mar 25th around 6-7am and drive for
    12-16 hours.  That should put us somewhere around North Carolina. 
    (I tried *real* hard to schedule a stop at Greene's to pick up a new 
    Ranger, but just couldn't convince the wife...8^)  We'll grab a
    cheap motel for the night, and leave bright and early Saturday morning
    for Florida.  It's kind of hard to say how far we'll get by 10-11
    Saturday night, but we expect to be somewhere in Florida.  We'll
    start fishing Sunday morning, don't know wherem it will depend where
    we are.  The St. Johns, Lake Toho*, Lake George, who knows... Our
    schedule isn't dead set, Okeechobee is the only water that is a
    definite.  We'll just fish our way aorund the state for 5 days
    and head head back north Friday morning.
           
    Lookin' forward to it, 
           
    Don Mac
                                                      

    Don Mac,
    
    Its a 14 hr. drive to Santee-Cooper. 95 goes right across it and
    you can pull off on the south side of the lake and there is a fish
    camp right there. You can see the "massive" stump field right from
    the bridge. It might be something to consider as you put all this
    together.
    
    For our part, the trip has taken on a different tone. "Cabin Fever"
    has struck real bad, and TBDW has wimped out of driving around for
    ten days, plus the TEXICAN has lost the tow vehicle, well, he never
    really had one (but we it used anyway), so our whole trip is now changed
    to "flying" (TBDW won't have it anyother way) to Texas (the TEXICAN
    has connections) around the first week of March............and I
    will now be going to Fla. in mid April (because I couldn't talk
    them into doing it now). Oh well, maybe next year we can get together.
    TBDW didn't have the ----- to put this in;^)
    
    Tight lines, Ranger Ron

    So, The Back Deck Wimp is wimping out... tsk tsk tsk
    
    Oh well, maybe next year...
    
    Don Mac
    
    ps: anyone ever try the alternate to 95 - I think it's RT 81, a
    bit to the west, but bypasses the big cities..?

    Thanks.  Sounds like I'll stay with 95.  I'm looking for the fastest
    route, that's all.  If anyone else has any input on the fastest
    way to get to Fla, I'll be glad to hear it.  Don Mac

    
    TWA is fastest......
    
    Don, get off the fastest,  Take the time to stop along the way and
    try out some of the water that holds some GREAT BASSIN. 
    OKADAMCHGOBBE is JUST A BIG PULLUTED FANTASY ANYWAY.
    Trust me ... the drive will burn you out if you try to blast it
    in one swoop.
    
    Have some fun fishin and campin an stuff. Drivin is a bore.
    
    TBDW (not_wimpin_out,_just flyin)
    
    
    

    Well, TBDW, I can't argue the what's faster issue... Flying is 
    nauturally faster than driving... But, if you do not have connections 
    at your destination, the overall cost of the trip justifies the driving 
    time in my mind, or should I say, in my wallet...

    The airline ticket alone is not too bad, and a rent-a-car split 
    amongst 2 or 3 people isn't too bad either.  But after that, the bucks 
    start piling up... 
    
    Renting an adequately equipped boat is expensive. The last time I was 
    down there I rented a typical fishing camp rental boat, it wasn't too 
    expensive, and wasn't too fancy.  Just a 10ft plastic tub with a small
    motor.  This was fine for a couple of hours of fishing, but that's 
    about it.  If I'm in for 5 full days of fishing, that just doesn't 
    cut it.  And, from what I've seen bass boats, or at least boats equipped
    with  livewell/baitwell, lcr, running lights, night fishing lights, 
    trolling motor, etc., are pretty expensive (not much cheaper than hiring 
    a guide)-- and only available at certain areas - which would mean that
    you can't fish where you want, when you want.  And driving down in a
    truck you can take a hole lot more stuff with you than you could if
    you were flying -- *especially* if your talking about camping when your
    down there!  
    
    Anyway... Personally, I'm willing to make the drive.  And your right, 
    driving straight thru would burn us out.  We're gonna stop for the night.
    And fishing that 2nd day *is* a possibility, we'll just see how it goes.

    How is Santee Coooper at the end of March - are the fish spawning yet? 
    
    Oh yea, as far as "OKADAMCHGOBBE is JUST A BIG PULLUTED FANTASY ANYWAY."
    goes... Well, I haven't fished it, so I can't speak from experience, 
    but most of what I've read and heard leads me to believe otherwise.
    It did have a problem (that huge algae bloom) a year or so ago, that
    almost caused real problems -- but from what I've read, the fishing 
    has been better than ever in the last few years....
    
    Don Mac, heading south
    

    Good for you Don! Don't you listen to that Back Deck stuff. The
    BIG O is one of the best bass lakes in the world. Anyways TBDW has
    never fished it, so forget what he is saying. He's just jealous;^)
    
    I don't know if this helps, but the way I go down there (at least
    twice a year) is to take 84 to the TappinZea (sp?) Bridge and from
    there to the Garden Xway, to the Jersey Pike and then onto 95. And
    yes, I have made it in 14 hrs to Santee Cooper. Okay, I wasn't pulling
    a boat and only stopped for gas twice before getting there. The
    other thing is, traveling at night and missing all the traffic in
    NY. and Baltimore/Washington. I leave at around 3-4 PM. Once south
    of Washington you got it made. Wish I was going with you! But I'll
    be there in mid April, so now I just have to hang on:^)
    
    Tight lines, Ranger Ron

    
    OK, OK my point is this...........NOW LISTEN THIS TIME!
    
    GO do that Okadamchoke stuff-that's cool.  Just take your time on
    the way and enjoy yourself in any one of a number of very good bassin
    lakes on the way down and on the way back.

    I din't remember the names of all the lakes but they are numerous.
    ie Westpoint etc. 
    
    Fishin in the south is very different than what we are used to.
    People down there will fish in anything that has water and it doesn't
    matter the size of the body of water.  Let me give you an example...
    On our last trip down there, we stopped at the side of the road
    to relieve ourselves and six guys tried to launch thier john boats
    in it.
    
    Have a good time and don't forget to stop at the PRO BASS SHOP in
    Bay Minet, Alabama.
    
    TBDW
    
    

    TBDW, you win the chuckle of the day award, made me laugh out loud!

Yeah...I agree, Don.  He certainly did pull a funny!



It's too bad he can't fish, though!

HSJ

   Tomorrow night the truck will be packed and the boat will be hooked 
   up.  Then around 5-6AM Friday the morning, my partner and I will be 
   heading south.  We'll be arriving in Florida sometime Saturday night,
   and we'll start fishing Sunday morning.  We may not be as far down as 
   Okeechobee - we may still be in northern/central Florida, but that's ok.
   There's so much good water in that state, it really doesn't matter.
   
   I read the article on Lake County in this months BASSMASTERs, sounds
   good.  We'll have setup camp at Okeechobee by Sunday night, possibly a 
   site at Roland Martin's Marina.  Although Okeechobee will be our home
   base, we're going to try and hit some other water as well.  If we don't 
   hit the northern/central part of the state on the way down, then we may 
   try and hit it on the way back.  And we're quite willing to do some 
   driving to get to other water.
   
   I'm looking forward to fishing the Everglades, or at least some of 
   the canals.  I've recieved lots of great maps (some even waterproof) of 
   that area from the state (for free, plus a 'protector of the everglades' 
   sticker).  I realize how dangerous this area can be, getting lost, 
   cottonmouth, etc. - that's why we don't plan on venturing in aimlessly, 
   we'll just bounce around the perimeter.
   
   Anyway, any last minute tips/suggestions/ideas from you experienced 
   Florida bassers??  Things to do, places to go, etc... And, I don't
   mean Disney World either, I'm talking about fishing!  THIS time I can 
   say the reverse of what I kept saying a couple years ago....
   
  "This is a fishing trip, not a honeymoon!"
   
   Don Mac

    
    In 1969, TBDW ran the bait and tackle store at the entrance to the
    LOCKSAHATCHEE game preserve.  If you are down that far,  you may
    want to check it out.  The fishing is great and the scenery is some
    of the most spectacular in the everglades.
    BTW getting lost in the everglades is no casual experience.........
    When I worked in the glades, anyone leaving our entry had to register,
    and we demanded that we know when to expect the boat back or we
    would mount out a search. (This applied to the rentals)...I spent
    at least one night a week during the peek season cruisin with the 
    airboat tryin to locate some yankee jerk that got lost.  EASY TO DO.....
    
    One of the guides back then had a 7 or 8# bass that he taught to
    jump thru a hoop for shiners.....but that's another story.....
    
    Have a great time
    
    TBDW

    Best of luck Don, and I'll be following you down shortly......:^))))
    
    As for tips....well the spawning season is long over (FEB) so the
    fish should be in a more or less summer pattern. Outside of that
    just keep your lines wet and tight......
    
    Ranger Ron (thinking he'll try it this weekend up here)

Hey, Don...there's a couple more items that you probably forgot, so I put 
together the following little checklist for your convenience...



[]  Snake bite kit
[]  .357 S&W (for gators)
[]  RDF & LORAN C (to find your way back)
[]  Compass (see above - in case batteries go dead)
[]  K-Rations (for unexpected overnighters)
[]  Bug repellent
[]  Toilet paper (for after hooking a 10lb+ hawg)
[]  Daniel Boone's "Guide to Survival for Beginners"


You're welcome!

And good luck!

-HSJ- 

Anyone care to make some bets on how DonMac did down on the great
OKACHOBEE??

I'm sure we'll all hear about the 15lber that got away...or swamped his
boat!  Unless he's got pictures...don't believe a word he says.  And even
with pictures, there's no way of telling that they haven't been retouched.

I can't wait for some interesting reading...(heh, heh)

    
    Hate to disappointment ya Joe, but there are no tall tales to tell.
    
    The fishing was a little less productive than we had hoped for, but we
    still had a good time.  We only caught around 10 bass for the week,
    between 2-3LBs.  It was the old "you should have been here a few days
    ago" routine.                         
                                          
    We arrived at Florida around 9am Saturday.  We had planned on driving
    right to Okeechobee, but we wanted to get out of the truck and into the
    Florida sun, so by noon we were at the St. Johns, south of
    Jacksonville.  We fished for a couple hours, I hooked one bass, but
    lost him at boatside.  When we arrived back at the launch, some
    local was screwing around with his jeep, leaving a trail of empty beer 
    cans behind him.  By the time I got the truck and trailer back to the 
    launch, all I could see was his windshield and headlights sticking up
    out of the water and 4 wet people wading to shore. I disconnected my 
    trailer and pulled him out.  
    
    We arrived at Okeechobee around noon on Sunday, found out that Roland's
    Marina didn't have tent sites, but Angler's Marina (right next door) did.  
    After setting up camp we headed out to the water (BIG water).  We
    cruised around for awhile to check it out, boats EVERYwhere fishing
    shiners.  The next morning we decided that we needed a guide.

    We lucked out.  All the guides had been booked, but one's party did not
    show up.  The guide was Steve Daniels, he's one of the top anglers in
    the country, currently in 14th place for the angler of the year, and it
    looks like he'll qualify for this years Classic, he took 4th place in
    the 85 Classic.  Spending the day fishing and talking with him was
    defintely one of the highlights of the trip.  He taught me how to
    'walk the dog' with a spook, how to fish a jerk bait (the way Rick
    Clunn had showed him!), etc...

    Steve's a good buddy of Roland's, who was not around by the way, he
    was off turkey hunting in the glades.  Talking with Steve about Roland,
    Clunn, Nixon and the other guys at the top was alot of fun.  (Roland
    sank his airboat twice last year chasing rabbits in the everglades, I
    got a kick out of that).
                           
    We had a good time with Steve - but even he could not produce quality
    or quantity of bass that Okeechobee is famous for.  He had us drifting 
    shiners across flats, thru pepper grass, outside of the (miles of)
    bullrush.  The bass were in postspawn mode and were heading out into
    deeper water, scattered.  We picked one up on the shiners, Brian got
    one on a topwater, and I picked one up pitchin' a worm into the 
    peppergrass.  
      
    The next day we picked up some shiners and did exactly the same thing
    as the  day before, in the same area, on our own (along with numerous
    guides and others).  Again, one bass on a shiner.  After the shiners
    were gone, we headed into the maze of channels that run between the
    bullrush - there were more people fishing shiners in there.  I did hook
    a real nice bass at the end of a long cast, with a worm.  However, with
    the length of line that I had out, I must have failed to get a good
    hookset because I eventually lost him.  No other action for the day.
    We decided we'd head a little north in the AM...
                                                 
    Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday morning were spent at East Lake
    Tohopelagia, south of Orlando.  Again, lots of people fishing shiners.
    Again, "you should have been here a few days ago"...  We spent most of
    the time fishing shiners as well, this time right in the think of the
    bullrush.  We picked up a few, nothing to brag about...  One hawg was
    taken at Toho while we were there, 13.5lbs by a guide, we saw where he
    caught it and fished the spot to death the next day... Saw a picture of
    the bass too, what a beauty...
                                                                             
    From what we heard, the fishing was slow for this time of year down
    there, a few people were blaming it on the weather, a few people were
    blaming it on the moon, etc...  One time, while we were in the lock
    bewteen Okeechobee and the marinas, there were around 15 boats in there
    and nobody had caught fish!!!

    Anyway, it was a good time - even though we didn't catch lots of fish
    or any big fish, we still enjoyed the fishing.
          
    Don Mac    

    Another thing I got a kick out of was hearing about Roland doing
    his shows.  One show that Steve Daniels did with him was wading
    for bedding bass, using spoons.  He said that was a good one, and
    it only took a day and a half to do the half hour show.  They found
    the beds first, with the airboat, then went back and setup the cameras 
    in all the right places.  Right before they started taping they
    went around and caught all the little buck bass off the beds
    and put them in the livewell, so that they'd only tape catching the 
    hawg females that they had spotted.  Once the taping starts they
    make it sound like none of this was preplanned...  Once they're done
    they release the bucks back to the beds.                       
    
    Don Mac

It's beginning to sound as staged as "Professional Wrestling"!!

    Oh here's another tidbit....  I asked if Roland did any guiding
    and Steve said that he stopped guiding a year or so ago... at that
    time he was getting $1000 a day... must be rough... donmac

    'Nother story bout dem stupid southerners bein tooken advantage
    of by dem brilliant yankees.....

    So Ron, let's hear it.... how was the trip?  
    
    have a little rain?
    
    donmac

    Okay, now for all the trip details on Nov in Fla on the Big O.
    
    Pulling the boat down took a little longer than just driving. 25
    1/2 hrs to West Palm Beach. As an aside, it took 15 hrs. 36 minutes
    to make it to Santee Cooper in South Carolina. That answered a question
    in another note.
    
    The rain from topical storm Keith only caused me to miss Weds fishing.
    But the wind really roilled the water and friday was just like fishing
    in mud.....weeds and grass all over the place. But the good news
    took place on Monday (my first day out - got there late Sat night).
    Within the first hour I caught a real nice six pounder, then I had
    to wait till almost 4:00 for the second one......unfortunately it
    was a mudfish, but a real good fight.
    
    Friday, because of the muddy and still windy conditions we had no
    idea where to go for the fish. So, I went to my old standby the
    Grass Island and worked all around it and through it with little
    success. I hooked up once and lost it, and my buddies each got one
    about 3 lbs. I saw an 8 lber back at the dock, but caught on a shiner.
    We didn't use any shiners, relying on my favorite, worms. Black
    with a green fire-tail.
    
    Well, so it went. The return trip, took 22 1/2 hrs. Pulling the
    boat did make a big differnce in time. As I mentioned earlier, I
    left it down there for our spring trip. Nice thing about it, is
    one of my good friends now runs one of the marineas down there and
    he is going to do the whole boat/motor thing for me this spring
    for a greatly reduced price......pays to have friends ;^)
    
    More later. Tight lines, Ranger Ron
    

    Glad to hear you had a good time Ron.  When I saw Keith on the news
    I thought of you.  I can imagine how muddy Okeechobee was.  Even
    when I was there in March the water was weed choked for a 1/4mile
    around the shore, I can imagine what it's like when that stuff is
    all stirred up.

    Did you drive straight thru?
    
    donmac

    Sounds awful good with December right outside the window.
    
    � .....unfortunately it was a mudfish, but a real good fight.
    
    What the heck's a "mudfish"?
    
    Ed
    

    yes Don, thanks to my oldest daughter, I did drive straight through.
    She took the wheel for about 7 hrs which gave me the time to catch
    some z's.
    
    As to the question of what is a mud-fish? That's really not an easy
    question to answer. I have never run into them anywhere but down
    in Fla. They may well be know as something else somewhere else.
    I can think of Conass and all the names for fish in that part of
    the woods. Best way to try and discribe it is as a very stocky fish
    with a round cat-fish like head, with a set of razor sharp teeth,
    but not all that long. No head barbs like the cat-fish. The skin
    is carp like (large scales) and grayish with a white belly. There
    is a black mark on the end of the gills. It puts up a real good
    fight, even jumping ala a bass and if you can't see the fish real
    well, you think that you have a bass on. That is till you get a
    closer look. It gets it name from its eating habits. As I know of
    it, it works the bottom for snails and mullosks, with the odd crawfish
    and other bait thrown in. Well, so much for the mudfish. It is a
    good catch, but I don't think to many people eat them.......????
    
    Tight lines, Ranger Ron
    

    I tink dats whot we call a grenel. People don eat dem, dey eats
    people!! Dey put op a helluva fight usually.
    
    Deres also a mudcat, but dats jes a catfish wit a brown-yellow color.
    
    De las time I wuz in Florida I wen to de airport to ketch a aeroplane
    to N'Awlins. I ast de mon wen de nex plane wud leave an he said
    at 7:30 pm in de evenin. I ast him wen it wud ge to N'Awlins an
    he sed at 7:15 in de evenin. I ast him agin an he said de same.
    Den he ast me if I wanted to buy a ticket fo it. I said "No, but
    cud chew jes show me where it leave, I wanna watch dis sucker take
    off!!"
    
    Dey got som fast planes in Florida!!
    
    Coonass

    RE: .71 COONASS I don't believe it I'm actually getting so I can
    read your messages and understand them. I know you live in Texas
    but where abouts? I have a sister that lives in Plano outside of
    Dallas and a niece in Huntsville, matter of fact she works at the
    Huntsville prison.
    
    Jan
    

    Me, I lib in Lewisville, jes a short 25 mile ride north on I35E
    frum downtown Dallas! I know were Plano is. Is dat chore Plano sister??
    Dey have Plano schools, an Plano fire depertmant, an Plano stores
    dere.
    
    I had an oncle dat wuz in Huntsville wunce. He wuz de only member
    ob my fambly dat knew jes when he wuz goin to die. Howd he know???
    De judge tole him!!
    
    Coonass

    I guess mebbe to onderstood bout de Plano sister I shud say dat
    de wey to pronounce Plano is lak "plain-o". Den it maks sense.
    
    Mebbe nex time chew com don to see her, we kin go fishin??
    
    Coonass