[Pond Pounder]

So last year I had a pretty good fishing year, setting a few new PBs and finally getting a Master Angler certificate. This year, my goal is to add some additional species to my catch list (mostly saltwater with a trip up to Maryland to try and bag my first snakehead) and also help my girlfriend break the 40 lb catfish mark. Getting a certificate for a largemouth (8 lbs or 22”) would be nice, but I just don’t bass fish enough consistently to have a good shot at one.

What does everyone else hope to catch in 2022?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[CBower]

Oh my, where to begin.

High level: hope to keep safely exploring NC waters with my son. There is so much to explore.

More specific:

• Try the float-n-fly technique before spring.
• I'm also thinking about a snakehead trip (Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Md). May not happen this year.
• Improve on last years shad fishing. We caught four hickory and one american. Should'nt be too hard to improve if we get the right conditions.
• Also hoping to hit the white bass spawning run better this year.
• Catch a bigger smallmouth... means exploring new water because where I catch alot of SM (Ashe County) they tend to be small.
• Put my son on a good topwater bite... can be so fun, just have to get out there at the right time.
• Catch a carp. We tried a few times in '21. My son had one on for a few minutes, but he pulled the hook.
• Stretch goal - carp on the fly rod.

I could go on...

Tight lines!

 

[cbruce41]

Oh gee.....let me see...bluefin, yellowfin and big eye tuna, bull dolphin, black sea bass, spanish and king mackerel, wahoo...flounder, trout, reds, striped bass bonito, cobia...the list goes on and on. Just a note, the only new species would be the bluefin!

Only 57 days and counting (mid-March) until the spring trout bite starts!

 

[Pond Pounder]

Oh my, where to begin.

High level: hope to keep safely exploring NC waters with my son. There is so much to explore.

More specific:

• Try the float-n-fly technique before spring.
• I'm also thinking about a snakehead trip (Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Md). May not happen this year.
• Improve on last years shad fishing. We caught four hickory and one american. Should'nt be too hard to improve if we get the right conditions.
• Also hoping to hit the white bass spawning run better this year.
• Catch a bigger smallmouth... means exploring new water because where I catch alot of SM (Ashe County) they tend to be small.
• Put my son on a good topwater bite... can be so fun, just have to get out there at the right time.
• Catch a carp. We tried a few times in '21. My son had one on for a few minutes, but he pulled the hook.
• Stretch goal - carp on the fly rod.

I could go on...

Tight lines!

There’s a wildlife impoundment in Durham on Stagecoach road that is loaded with carp. You can catch them pretty easily from the bank. Here’s the set-up I like to use for them. You don’t have to go as fancy, but the circle hooks keep them from swallowing the hooks. Don’t forget a net!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[CBower]

There’s a wildlife impoundment in Durham on Stagecoach road that is loaded with carp. You can catch them pretty easily from the bank. Here’s the set-up I like to use for them. You don’t have to go as fancy, but the circle hooks keep them from swallowing the hooks. Don’t forget a net!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thank you Pond Pounder. I'm a big fan of circle hooks when bait fishing. As a kid, I used to fish with night crawlers on those classic eagle claw pre-snelled hook leaders, and I always hated the way they would get swallowed deep.

 

[Cam]

I think this is a good topic, I'm in a group text with some fishing buddies and this came up recently too, I'll give my two cents below but wanted to give credit where due on the hand drawing above for carp setup. Stuff like that is really helpful especially for people that are still relatively new to fishing (myself included). I'm about a month shy of being two years in but I've been hitting it pretty hard in that time period. Lots of self research from forums, youtube, old-school fishing videos, etc. Target bass 90% of the time unless I'm making a trip to the coast, couple of my goals this year are below:

• Catch a carp, I've seen a lot of large carp (compared to bass at least, I'm guestimating them at 10+ Pounds) in lakes I frequent and they want nothing to do with any bass lures I've tried to toss there way but think it'd be cool to catch some of them and I heard they put up a good fight.
• Get better and more confident at powerfishing, I have a ton of 6th sense crankbaits that I really like but don't use them much as I've had much more success with finesse fishing. I bought a new setup (of course right before it started getting really cold around here) specifically for crankin' and I think that will help with motivation to use more of them as well (Shimano SLX DC reel with duckett crankin' rod).
• Break largemouth PB (Currently 6lbs 12 ounces)
• Catch limit of flounder on a trip to coast during season
• Catch and cook some crappie (caught a couple by accident and 2 while targeting but only tried like 3 times total), everyone raves about how they taste so I want to see firsthand what the hypes about
• Get a kayak and figure out way to transport that isn't ridiculously tedious, I own a sedan and have really been wanting to get SUV or truck that would make this much easier but my cars been paid off for years now and don't love the idea of a car payment again
• Catch a fish over 100 pounds. This is kind of a lifetime goal, I'd even settle for 50+ but I really want to have a fight with a fish that makes me exhausted after it. Can't explain why but given my current audience you guys probably get it.

Best of luck to you all and tight lines!

 

[cbruce41]

Lofty goals… I can get you two of them, a 50 lb bull red…and that limit of flounder (should be easy considering currently they are proposing a limit of ONE/day for the upcoming season), carp…sorry, can’t help you there and crappie isn’t on my target (all saltwater) but I think you’ll find plenty of assistance with your other goals on this site. Stick around, we’ll put you on fish!

43 Days and counting until…
Bruce