Got an email from JPowers. He got a fish about 43 inches Sat on one of the skin jigs Smokey and I made. He also reported some smaller fish taken and some blue fish around.

Glad somebody is catchin fish. Going to be interesting to see if Slipknots fish holds up as biggest canal fish on the board. I figure Jim has a couple more over 40 inches due before the end of October.

Hey Mike, I just got a fish monday about 3:00 AM at the ditch on one of your skin jigs, first one.
Well if someone bests my canal fish then I'll have to fish harder and more often. Maybe even resort to chumming and chunking,


Nice fish Jim, they are out there still, just a little tough to find in August. I bet I know where you got that one. How heavy was she?

theres a bass in the 38-40 inch range swimmin around the ditch with one of my jigs in its mouth :( (snap opened up sunday am)...

That fish was about 27 1/2 #. I'm guessing here because I released her. Wierd thing is that she came in like an old boot - no fight whatsoever. Took an unusual amount of time to reveive her. I'm blaming the warm water - fish was probably O2 starved.
Slip: I was fishing your spot. I owe ya rent I guess.

Yep, I rate Saltheart/Smokey's jigs right up there with the best I've used. Perfect weight for the Ditch currents and the hook is set back just the right distance from the lead. Of course, my museum quality eel skins are a bass delicacy :-D

Nice fish for the Dog Days...

"Museum Quality Eelskins" hehehehe :P ... On top of Salty/Smokey's Rolls Royce eeeelskin jigs - Impressive...but Jiggin' the Ditch is gonna get costly if you need that high quality stuff!!

JPowers - I know you have a few firmly held beliefs about eels... What would you say your top 3 are?

Thanks...

The Holy Three:

1) Black side out at night
2) Blue side out - predawn to sun up
3)Skin the biggest/fattest eels ya can find - only use the last 7-8" of the tail. They'll blow up like a windsock at the airport.

Other stuff:

1) Skin them newly/fresh dead.
2) Use an ice pick thru the head when skinning.
3) Use hemostats rather than needlenose pliers to
rip the skin off
4) Use a crochet needle or similar shaped rigging
needle to turn the skin back rightside ( black
side) out.
5) Skin enough of them at this time of the year
when the big/fat ones are available - You'll
need them next Spring/early Summer when
only the shoestring eels are available.
6) Lemons will take the smell off the hands.

When using these buggers jig them sloooow. However, we've nabbed big fish on a lightspeed retreive on the surface also.

When skinning gets too gross/time consuming/wife-girlfriend sensitive, pick up the 9" sluggos.

I get enough hassel with just the live eels from the wife (nah, she's really OK about them)...

Thanks...