I hope everyone's been out there getting some good fish lately as it seems they are most definitely around. I love how the season always begins and ends with the best fish.

Anyway...with the fiance away on business this weekend, the moon being a mere sliver in the sky, and it being the first week in October, I'm looking to fish all Jonny Hardcore style.

Before I head out, I had a few questions, and I figure yah'l could help me out with one point or another.

1. - To fish the ditch do you need to be able to hurl 4 oz. of lead clear across the canal and retrieve it without losing it? Will I lose every jig in my bag if I try and fish it? Should I just take a twenty dollar bill throw it in the canal instead of the jigs and start chunking? Does chunking work in the ditch?

2. - Why do I suck at fishing eels? I do just fine with plugs, but can barely manage a fish with eels. I want to fish them. I like the idea of fishing them. However, I usually finish the night empty handed with a sore back from casting the slimy freaks all night.

3. - I'd like to venture out to the backside beaches. Which one's have structure this year as my Nauset sticker only admits me to a big flat sand parking lot.

4. - Where does BM live? I'd like to steal all his pikies and needlefish....:D

5. - My regular fishing partners are all busy this weekend. If anyone would like to meet up and fish these backside beaches with me, that would be cool too.

6. - Why does my car smell different (ie. bad) now that I've been fishing a whole lot lately?

7. - Is it difficult to deal with braided line on a spinning reel? I've never used it, and it makes more sense to me.

8. - I'm looking to pick up a conventional reel. Do they take a long time to get used to and cast productively? That "backlash" thing sounds like a real pain. Albeit, I don't even know what that "backlash" thing is, but it still sounds like a real pain.

I appreciate any and all help. Feel free to PM me with advice and your secrets spots.

Keepin' it reel...

Andrew

1. No, I rarely go over 3, No, but you will lose some, No, some of the guys on the site sell jigs for a very reasonable price, Yes, quite well
2. Can't say, but eels do take big fish.
3. Not a clue
4. Not a clue
5. Fish Rhody Saturday, plenty of people there you're welcome too.
6. Old bait and stinky waders
7. No, but true braids twist a lot with the wrong reel.
8. No, you'll be glad you did it and you'll get over the backlash if you stick with it.

1. - To fish the ditch do you need to be able to hurl 4 oz. of lead clear across the canal and retrieve it without losing it? Will I lose every jig in my bag if I try and fish it? Should I just take a twenty dollar bill throw it in the canal instead of the jigs and start chunking? Does chunking work in the ditch?
Couldn't tell you because I don't jig the Ditch, yes chunking works..

2. - Why do I suck at fishing eels? I do just fine with plugs, but can barely manage a fish with eels. I want to fish them. I like the idea of fishing them. However, I usually finish the night empty handed with a sore back from casting the slimy freaks all night. Fish 'em REAL slow. Chances are if you aren't getting bumps on eels, there are no fish there, OKOK, not exactly true - how are you fishing your eels

3. - I'd like to venture out to the backside beaches. Which one's have structure this year as my Nauset sticker only admits me to a big flat sand parking lot. Structure is different out there, holes, bowls, and bars - can change almost weekly. Best thing to do is think North, go down at low tide during the day and see what the structure looks like 0 then fish at nights

4. - Where does BM live? I'd like to steal all his pikies and needlefish.... In a truck on the beach

5. - My regular fishing partners are all busy this weekend. If anyone would like to meet up and fish these backside beaches with me, that would be cool too.
Think Rhody, plenty of structure and it's the same distance as Eastham
6. - Why does my car smell different (ie. bad) now that I've been fishing a whole lot lately? HiTech waders are BREATHABLE http://www.striped-bass.com/images/new/fart.gif
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7. - Is it difficult to deal with braided line on a spinning reel? I've never used it, and it makes more sense to me. I've only used it with smaller 8' rods on a 4K Stradic... But no problems

8. - I'm looking to pick up a conventional reel. Do they take a long time to get used to and cast productively? That "backlash" thing sounds like a real pain. Albeit, I don't even know what that "backlash" thing is, but it still sounds like a real pain. Some people get it right away, some take a while (like me) and some never get it. Won't know until you try it

1.Don't know.
2.I bet you are reeling too fast. Bass are on the bottom, let the eel seek the bottom and work him along it. I think the biggest mistake people make when fishing eels is the reel it like a plug. (too fast!) Reel it just fast enough to keep some degree of tension in the line. stop it at times too.

3-5 ?

6. I bet you have eel under the rear seat.

7. I have not commited yet to casting braids...I use mono.

8. I use to fish conv most the time and now I spin cast most of the time. I think advancements in reels has been wonderful. (spin reels sucked in the 60's and 70's) I have been using the penn and shimano live liner spinning reels with out any problems.

That said I think conv reels have improved as well. It is a matter of personal preference. The nice thing about conv is you can fish braids in the 50+ class. Try to spin cast 50+ mono on a cold night... talk about wind knots! So its really depending on the style of fishing and your preference not which is better. I say a man simply can't have enough rods and reels so I advise getting it!

1. Yes if you are jigging correctly be ready to part with quite a few jigs. 3oz-5oz, depending on how fast the current is ripping.

2. I have been having the same results. I think it is the eels that we get up here. :D I know how to fish em right cause they worked on the cape, cuttyhunk, and RI for me.

3. check your pm's

4.I believe he shares a cave with Pepe Lepew

5. Like John R said the Rhody leg is this saturday, head south.

6. You got to stop eating those bean burritos before you head out :o

7. If the reel has a big line roller it should be ok. Try fireline, it seemed to work on more reels for me than whiplash did.

8.Well I can say that you should get proficient with one before you start jigging in the canal with one.....:(

Thanks for the help everybody...

1. I think I'll try chunking the canal until I get some braided line. Jigging with mono isn't much fun or productive given the stretch.

2. I do fish my eels slowly. It's the one thing I do know about throwing eels. I can feel it on the bottom, it gets hung up occasionally, and I couldn't possibly reel slower. Do you have to let the fish run with it before trying to hook it, or will the fish sometimes hook themselves on a hard strike?

3. Thanks Specialist for the PM. I'll try up there.

4. I'll still find them pikies.

5. No can do on the Rhody fling. I need to get to the Cape to pick up my small St. Croix so I don't have to throw little Storm Wildeye shads with a big stick anymore. Plus, my folks have a place there, and that makes sleeping easier.

6. Breathable waders can still smell bad. Plus "The Glove" (All purpose eel grabber, and fish toucher) has been unknowingly in the trunk and the smell came through. It's Fabreeze time.

7. I'll get my extra spool filled with some of that Fire line this weekend.

8. I agree wholeheartedly about a man never having enough rods, reels, plugs, and terminal tackle. HOWEVER, my fiance has a very, very, very, very different opinion of this. "But this one's a conventional Honey"..."And the other three aren't???". I'm gonna have to sneak this one by her.

Don,
You'll note most people who fish eels retrieve with the rod straight up. When they get a hit they drop the rod tip and wait a five or ten count take up the slack and set the hook (I have to force myself to wait 5). Bass will rarely set the hook themselves unless you are using circle hooks.

I found my fluking bag stinkin up the car and the garage, after a year I finally found a mummie I lost in it............:smash:

I'll get my extra spool filled with some of that Fire line this weekend.

I tried that Fire Line this year for the first time on my spinner after hearing some good things about it. I like it but you cannot fish light lures, jigs or poppers well with it as they can cause uneven spooling resulting in problems on subsequent casts (especially when casting directly into the wind).

The Mitchell Nautil reels both the 7500 and 6500 seem to be good braid friendly reels. The 7500 is popular for jigging the canal so if you decide not to take up the conventional then you might consider getting one of those if you intend on jigging the canal on a regular basis. Definetely need braid to really feel the jigs and 3-5 oz are sizes you will need to be throwing if you want to be hitting the bottom in the stronger rips. A lot of times you won't be able to hit the bottom if you limit yourself to 3oz or less.

Don checka you pm's again. ;)

Also one thing with the braid, like Jeff said it's tough with light lures but is doable. After you cast you lure, manually close the bail with your hand, and check yo see that the line is tight before you reel it up. I like to pull a little line off with the bail closed before I start my retieve, just to make sure.

Whe you jig fish the canal you have to adjust how far up current you throw the jig . I like the jig to hit the bottom when it is straight in front of you . You can adjust how far up you throw as the current speed changes. The other thing to be careful of is when there is wind and you get a big belly in the line . If the jig hits the bottom and you still have the belly from the cast the slack will wrap around something every time.