times two

At the front end of a casual search for the next boat. Looking to move up a hair to a 23 Seaswirl o/b. Not sure I am ready to take on the cost of new, but would be interested in anything above 2003. Want the hardtop. Doing the internet thing, have found a lot with saltwater use, very few with freshwater only. Appreciate it if you guys can keep your eyes open.....

YT.... Please share...what are you looking at? Also, did you forward your info to the guy on the GL site that was looking? John

I'd say it was either made by arbogaster or heddon.

Billy.... Those boots look good but aren't they slick on the non-skid, plus black marks? For warm weather I have a pair of columbia pfg's, breathable and comfortable. John

Hey guys...looking to get some new footwear for the cold weather days on LO and LE. My boat has the non-skid floor, which actually does get slick depending on the style of shoes.... SO what do you guys wear and recommend?

I know that this isn't necessarily fishing related, but I thought I would throw a plug in for the work of BlueEye. As many of you know, in addition to the great work he has done for the LOU site, he also does other web work/design. For my own charter site, I was in need of making a bunch of relatively minor changes to the site content, plus the need to refresh the site with some new features, pictures etc. After some discussion, and many emails and pms back and forth, Chad finished up my site today. Some of the highlights include the addition of the widget, as well as a direct link from my site to the fishing reports section. Very, very happy with his prompt replies, and his willingness to work thorough all of my issues. I would highly recommend him to any of you in need of web design, etc. Thanks again Chad. John

pennfish: Did you get the pics and would you like me to get the details you had inqired about? John

Let me start off by saying I have no affiliation whatsoever with this company..... Anyway, when fishing for striped bass in December in VA, we used a small in-line planer board called a water bugz (www.waterbugz.com). Worked great for the slow trolling we did using live bait. Guy that makes them says they have used them in 2-3 footers on the ocean pulling bait. I thought they would be great for some spring harbor trolling here in Dunkirk, or maybe on some inland lakes. Not sure how they would fare with big water.... John

Pennfish....sent the pics to your email address. John

Nice job Chris! I live right on the lake in Dunkirk....now I'm really going to have the itch! For what its worth, Bud Marsh (alibi) and I put together an article for Great Lakes Angler (similar to your part III) on setups for E. Lake Erie. Last I knew Dave Mull was planning on using it in May or June....

We stayed right at the marina, in the lighthouse looking thing. Fished on my friend 27 whaler. The day we left your boat was on the trailer in the parking lot, if I remember correctly. Hoping to get a few more days in this year, as we had a good time last year.

Pennfish: Pm coming your way. Boat is still available. John

Thanks guys. YT...yes, have Kevin's #...I stayed there last year, very nice. John

Hey guys....looking for places to stay in Wilson in May. I know about the Wilson Boathouse, and 4 mile park, wonder what else is out there? Got a group of 3 guys coming up and they are looking for overnight lodging, as they put it "other than in a tent"! John

LOTSA is doing a 1 day in Lockport on 2/24......

Always set the riggers first....get that probe in, and they can be set so fast that it allows me to have 2 rods in right off the bat..... John

Yes, the bobbers are for the stripers. They slow troll with an electric motor, and minnows on the bobbers. We used small inline boards that I had not used before (www.waterbugz.com), with a minnow and a single split shot. LOADS of bait pods there for sure. Google the park, they got pics of the cabins. Ours was 3 bedroom, 2 bath full kitchen, fireplace...something like 6 months old, right on the lake. Just across the lake from Clarksville.

YT: Did you happen to state at occoneechee state park? awesome cabins! Didn't really like the way some of the guys fish for stripers....chasing back and forth across the lake following the birds, then casting. Not much of a flyer, so it was interesting coming back yesterday due to weather delays in NYC....... John

Had the change to make a trip to Raleigh this weekend to fish with my brother and 2 friends for striped bass on Kerr reservoir, which borders VA and NC. Overall, had a blast. We stayed in a nearly new cottage in a VA state park that was as nice, and overlooked the lake. Fishing is either casting when you find birds working the bait, or slow trolling minnows with an electric motor. Not one to forget my great lakes roots, we ran small inline boards with some success. We had probably close to 40 bites, but as I learned, the catch ratio is typically about 1 to 4, and we were worse than that. Did get 2 nice ones, about 27" each. Also got a very white colored catfish that pushed 6 lbs or so. The other nice thing was that as a border lake, you could buy either a VA or NC license, and it was good for the whole lake. Wouldn't that be a great thing to have for us here on the Great Lakes? John

Had the fishhawk, and changed over to the DR. Love it. John

Irish... That's the way I understand it. Wanted to get it for myself, and also there is a slim chance that I would be pairing with another guy to do some stream guiding down the road..... John

You may want to look at www.walleye.com. There is a fee to list, but it seems like the majority of boats move pretty quick over there. John

Legacy: Thanks, there is very little information out there. The DEC did tell me for a portion of the test they give you a booklet to use, kind of "open book". John

Anyone know the cost of getting a marine survey done on a boat? And am I correct that this would be a cost borne by the prospective buyer? John

I had a fish hawk for 5 seasons. Like the digital readout, but it had a tendency to "cut out" and LOVED 9 volt batteries. Made the change over to the DR, and absolutely love it. I favored it over the subtroll due to the smaller probe, smaller dash unit, and the digital readout. Do yourself a favor and get the DR. John