Some new pics

We braved the rain and cold this past Friday to do some fishing and were rewarded with some of our best fish this year!

Above is a 4.2lb. largemouth taken on a black spinnerbait from a brush pile close to shore.

Bob bagged a 3.5+ pickerel on a bluegill pattern crankbait that fought on even inside the boat!

Removal of the hooks requires pliers as these fish have many sharp teeth, and being built like barracuda squirm and fight until released. All in all a good day, we got 3 bass and more than 7 pickerel for the few hours we were able to stand the cold and wet. Next weekend we have two days of fishing and what looks to be good weather, if the fish cooperate the post should be big with pictures!

God bless, Mike.

East Brimfield Reservoir

Finally, we are out on the boat!!! This past Friday Bob and I took the boat out to fish and we had a great day for early spring. The air temp. was in the mid 70'sF. and the water was about 60F. and the bass are moving up in preparation to spawn making them very aggressive. We started the day around 1:30 pm, after I got out of work and only got one bass on a deep diving crank until about 4:30 pm.
We were on the NW shore of the lake working into some shallow coves, the shoreline was steep and the bottom dropped off fast. We were throwing medium diving crank baits and started to get hit just into early evening. The first fish were smaller males, but they hit the lures as soon as they landed, and we went from one fish to 3 or 4 in about 30 minutes.
The fish began hitting fast and hard when the sun began to lower. Bob with a good spring male bass.
As the afternoon went on we started to see a mix of females, some we were able to land, some we lost. We think this was due to the fact that the fish may not have been hungry, but made aggressive and prone to snap due to the warm weather and impending spawn, so they did not hook up on the lures as well as if they meant to eat them.
In the mix Bob caught a good size Yellow Perch, a very tasty species, though they only get up to about 2lbs. They are a tenacious fish for their size and will hit lures even larger than themselves.
One of the lures Bob used, a medium diver Xcaliber fat free guppy. This was the star lure of the day as it caught the most fish. they are, like most crank baits easy to use. They are cast to the desired location, then retrieved steadily fast or slow sometimes stopping to let the lure float up momentarily, and when possible running the plastic lip into rocks and wood to make noise. Bob added a twist by letting the bait sit on the surface after it landed and twitching it, with the bass in their mood they would strike the bait without needing to reel it in.
I caught most of my fish on this bait, a Mann's -4 crank bait with a steady slow retrieve. The lure swims at about 4 ft. below the surface and has a great wobbling action that made the fish hit.
Bob with another nice fish. We definitely had the best day of fishing so far out of the four we have spent on the water, we lost count after a dozen fish and were it not for failing daylight and falling temps (it's not summer yet) we could have kept catching for longer. This will be the first in what I hope to be many positive accounts of fishing both local and out of state waters, and the lures we used to bag them. Until next time, God bless and keep fishing! Mike Z.

Wocester Sportsman Show 2008, Pt. 2

To complete the coverage of this show, I will pick up with boats.

Photo 1) A nice aluminum 16.5 ft. bass boat from G3, completely loaded starting at about $18,000 US. This is a good beginning package for starters, although one can find Trackers for about $12,000 US, they will be a slightly lower quality, and not as nicely equipped. There is something to be said for buying an equipped boat. It will cost more for a down payment, and higher monthly installments, but out the door, you are ready to fish. Buying a base model will be easier on the wallet initially and monthly, but unless you search for the lowest prices on each option and install them yourself, ( no guarantees with this option either with some items if not professionally installed) in the long run you are likely to pay more, and of course do without the assurance of some manufacturer coverage.

One needs to think long and hard on how you will buy as well as what you will buy, and how much capitol you can afford to spend.

Photo 2) Ranger boat line up. These are 16 to 18 ft. fiberglass boats that are at the top of the price chain, exceeding $40,000 US and some of the better made on the market, though not as well made as some like BassCat costing the same or less.

Photo 3) The new lineup of Penn reels. Here I have to admit some ignorance. I know little of Penn reels other than they are almost exclusively salt water orientated, however if you look to the center of this picture you can see a baitcaster reel that is an inshore model, with anti-corrosion bearings that double as a bass reel. I do know that Penn is one of, if not the most famous names in reels worldwide and if the quality, fit, action and feel of these reels is any indicator than I understand why.

Photo 4) More Penn reels, again mostly all are designed for saltwater, but I saw no reason why some of the medium reels could not be used for drop-shotting and light plastics in freshwater venues. Penn reels range in price from $50.00 US to $600.00 US, depending on whether they are for Giant Tuna, or lite action flats fishing.

Photo 5) This would be my buddy Tim, dreaming of the size and weight of the lunker bass that would give this $700.000 US Diawa Tuna reel stripped drag plates and burnt bearings. By the look on his face I would guess he imagines it would be bigger than him!

That is all for this show. I did not cover rods as I did not really look at many, and there was a request to cover reels. The next post however will be a rod and reel review, a Grandt Industries All-American Pro-Series Rod I bought at this show, and a new Abu Garcia Revo SX baitcaster 6.4:1 that I matched it to. The pair promises to be a lethal combination for bass!

2008 Worcester Sportsman's Boating & Fishing Show.

This past Saturday My friend Tim and I went to the annual fishing show in our area. I went two years ago, missed last year, but when Tim invited me to go I did not need my arm twisted. Unfortunately Bob was unable to go with us.

There are a lot of things to see, I took photos of mostly boats and reels, as some folks wanted to see more fishing equipment, and while the boats are outrageously priced, they are beautiful to see. This review will be two part as I have more reel pictures to show than I can reasonably fit into one post.

The first three photos are the Shimano table.

Photo1) Saltwater reels for medium shark and Tuna fishing. These run $200 to $400 US. Shimano makes a good, durable reel. While I do not have any reels of this caliber, the Shimano Curado Bantam 201 baitcaster for Bass was my first baitcasting reel and I still use it regularly.

Photo 2) The long spread of handle mounted reels was massive! One could explore every make of reel Shimano makes form freshwater baitcasters, to saltwater spinning reels. The sales reps were helpful, though there was no negotiation on price unless you were to buy more than one reel.

Photo3) These are varieties of the Calcutta series, ranging from $200 to $220 US. They are a crossover size, suitable for medium salt to heavy freshwater fishing. I have seen them used on television for big Pike and Muskie in North America, to Peacock Bass in the Amazon. I have even seen them used in Egypt to fish for 100+ lb. Nile Perch!

The show was four days long, running from February 7th to 10th, admission was $11 US and was fairly crowded, but not to the point of uncomfortability. There were also many booths devoted to hunting and taxidermy, charter and guided tours, and new fishing related products like collapsible boats and specially outfitted kayaks for fishing in remote backwater.

There were even showmen handling Monocled Cobras, and a reptile zoo with American Alligators (juviniles), turtles and lizards for the many children that came with their parents. Also for the kids there was a trout pond set up and hourly fishing contests with junior rods and reels as prizes.

The biggest spectacle, and I do mean big, was a live 1,400 lb. Brown bear that was tame, and had been in movies and on the cover of National Geographic Magazine last year. I did
take pictures, but unless anyone wants to see them I will stick to the fishing aspects of the show for the visual reference.

Photo 4) These are some of the new freshwater spinning reels from Quantum, the Energy series. these are awesome reels, though I do not own one, they are smooth and strong with 10 bearings, machined aluminum frames and titanium bails. Each one comes with a spare aluminum spool and a supply of Hot Sauce, a specially formulated lubricant exclusive to Quantum products. They sell for $150 US.

Photo 5) These are some of the new Catalyst reels from Quantum, similar to the Energy series, they also boast many of the features listed above, including a hybrid polymer stainless steel bearing system that is distinctive to Quantum. This reel contains 8 bearings, magnetic anti-reverse, and sells for about $100 US.

These reels are some of the most popular among pros in the US. I see many using them on footage from B.A.S.S. tournaments around America, and while I only own two spinning reels, both Shimano's and less expensive,I could tell from handling these that they are performance oriented and worth every penny.

Photo 6) These are some of the new the new Diawa reels, Viento, (blue body) Zillions, (silver bodies) Millionair-S, ( Top, left row) and Lunas, (right row, all). These are middle level reels from Diawa, (the Steez is the highest at $450 US) and are very good quality. All are milled aluminum frames, and free-floating spools with a wide range of bearing numbers. The prices range from $200 to $300 US, and their quality reflects the price. These are incredibly tight reels, the drags are smooth and all operational parts are made to a high tolerance, these are reels you buy once, keep for life and then hand down to your children!

I do not own a Diawa as I have a love for Abu Garcias, but I can appreciate their quality. There are more photos and more reels to come, I will post more in the next installment of this post, The Worcester DCU Center is a medium sized sports venue located in Worcester Masachusetts, and during this show the arena center was filled with over a million dollars US in boats, motors and trailers. From my last post you may know that I just bought a new-to-me boat that I am overly joyful to have, and thank God for, but that does not stop me from appreciating the works of engineering art for fishing I saw Saturday!

Photo 7) While my jaw is still dragging on the ground from this boat, an 18ft. Skeeter with a 225 hp 4stroke Yamaha with an incredible paint job that looks like it belongs on a race car rather than a bass boat, the price of $32,999 US kept me from any dreams. As beautiful as it is, I told Tim I feared the bright color would scare the fish, even if the 4 stroke was super quiet!

Photo 8) this nice Champion bass boat is very understated with its simple paint scheme. I like it the instant I saw it, it is 18ft. X 6ft. with a 150 hp. Evinrude 2 stroke e-tec motor. Evinrude e-tec motors are to date the most fuel efficient, powerful, and quiet 2 stroke motors made. They have the added advantage of needing no dealer maintenance for 3 years, and no break in period!!!

Photo 9) After a few hours Tim and I got some sandwiches and sat up in the upper level of the arena to eat and watch all the people walk about and look over all the awesome toys. This is the right side view of the arena and as you can see the spread of boats is extensive, something for every taste, and as far as new boats go, most price ranges. A basic package aluminum hull Bass Tracker starts at about $10,999 US, and the most expensive boat we saw was a 21ft ranger at over $54,000 US! No, I did not take a picture of it, my camera is not that good!

Photo 10) The picture below is the left side of the arena and the rest of the array of fishing machines that we perused.

I hope I am able to bring the enjoyment of the show to you in this post. It was a good show shared with a good friend. The next post will be the second half of this show, focusing on more reels, and a nice custom rod I bought, not that I was looking for a new rod, but it impressed me so I took the leap. Enjoy the post, and for those still locked in winter, be patient spring is only four to six weeks away!

God bless, Mike.

1990 Lowe 1600 V

After three years of waiting, scraping and saving, I am finally a boat owner! And thank God, we got exactly what we wanted and at a better than good price. After a long while of renting boats when we could find then, and fishing from shore and small canoes my fishing partner and I will now be able to go after the fish where they live, rather than being at the mercy of the shoreline, trees, and private property ownership. This past Friday Bob and I went to New Hampshire, about an hour away from our area to the Monadnock Boat Store where we had seen the ad, and made arrangements to inspect and purchase what looked like a good deal for the price. We got there and met Scott, the salesman and he led us to the boat.

We were very surprised! They had brought the boat in from the storage warehouse and unwrapped it, and put it into a large heated work bay with tools and a bench. " Heres all the tools you'll need, go through the boat and make sure it meets your needs, let me know when your done, I'm not going to hang over your shoulder and pressure you." Scott said, and left us to check out the boat for an hour. We were stunned, the last place we had looked would not let us look at the boat like that unless we bought it, which I did not like at all.
We were immediately impressed. The boat, even though 18 years old was in great shape. I checked the hull first and saw it to be in very good shape, having only scrapes in the aluminum on the riveted keel rib, regular wear from rocks in New England, and a 1 1/4" slit that did not penetrate the hull, an easy fix with a TIG weld, or aluminum weld epoxy and a file. Bob is a master mechanic and electrician, he checked the motor, a 1989 Evinrude 50hp in very clean and well maintained shape. (the boat originally came with a 40hp, and is rated for a max. of 70hp.) The spark plugs were seasoned but almost new, and the wiring was solid. The prop is new and the lower unit was rebuilt this spring, a pricey job if you pay someone.

I looked over the interior. I was happy to find all aluminum decks and transom, so replacing rotting wood will not be an issue in the future. The carpet was in good shape, but I will replace it in the fall as there are some worn areas, small holes, and a few stains. As you can see by the pictures there is plenty of storage compartments, a large bait well up front, a large livewell between the seats, and two smaller wells behind each seat. There is a battery charger, and three new batteries, one Garmin color fish/depth finder on the console, and one graytone Humminbird fishfinder on the bow. It even comes with a stereo am/fm cassette player, which I will replace with an all weather radio, as I can't think music will help our fishing!

The trolling motor is a neat feature. It is a Minn Kota AP55, with Auto Pilot. The motor is connected to the fish finder, and one plots a course by the electronic compass, and the motor follows the path automatically, we have never even seen one before. I also have a 30lb Minn Kota stern mount 30lb. trolling motor and another new battery from my canoe that will now go on the boat so we have enough power to fish our local watershed lakes that do not allow gas motors. There is a rod locker that will fit most of my fishing poles and wonderful pedestal seats for comfortable casting all day long.

The boat even comes with a pair of Cannon downriggers to run lures deep and at a steady depth, a type of fishing I know nothing about but may have to learn. The trailer is galvanized aluminum and in very good shape, tires are new, bearings are good and the winch and hitch are well cared for and the crank jack works well.
All in all one could not ask for a better deal. The boat was taken meticulously good care for throughout it's life so far, and I will continue to do so. Being a boat owner will be a big step, I am looking forward to working on the motor, boat and trailer as it needs maintenance, and modifying it to suit Bob and my style of fishing. The weather helped us greatly, if it were spring here in Massachusetts, I would have paid far more for all the boat and options I have described.

By summer Bob and I hope to fish tournaments, and I hope to spend many days fishing with the fishermen in my church, and vacationing at my aunts in Maine, camping out and fishing with Bob and his son. I will keep posting on the boat from time to time, repairs, modifications and tournament news as it happens and of course photos of the big fish we hope to catch now that we can get to them!

God bless, Mike.

More from Bass Pro Shops.

Here are the pictures I promised. I apologize for not having more close-ups of the actual lures and rods and reels. I know God willing, we will be going again soon and I will make it a point to get more specific with the images. Before I go again, I will post, and ask if there are any particular sections of the store, or product lines, lures, rods, reels, or displays any reader wants to see. I will take the list with me and do my best to cover the requests with pictures and a post.

Photo Captions:

1) 35,000gal. aquarium, massive!

2) A small section of the lure and rod displays, saltwater section.

3) Approximately 6lb. landlocked salmon, good eating!



4) 1960's sportfishing boat, 43ft!

5) One half of one isle, mostly freshwater heads, some plastics.

6) View from the top floor, about 1/8 of the freshwater baits and rods section.

Bass Pro Shops, Foxboro, MA. USA

Where to start? After two years of waiting here in New England, we finally have a Bass Pro Shops Store! By far the top of the food chain in the U.S. in outdoor equipment. One can find anything needed for fishing, from a child's beginner spin caster combo, to $50,ooo plus ultimate bass boats from Nitro. One can also find firearms, ammo, bows, camping equipment, outdoor bar-b-q supplies, fly rods and fly tying equipment, clothing for any season and terrain, and.... well the list goes on and on.
As we are concerned with fishing I will try to hold my overall excitement in check and stay on topic. No promises.
The size of the store alone is daunting. At 140,
000 sq. feet split into two levels complete with two large elevators to get people and shopping carts easily between floors, it is by far the largest outlet of its kind in the northeast. On entering the store the decor is engulfing and complete. A large fireplace and sitting area is to the right of the main entrance, wood post and beam construction and wall mounts of bear, deer, elk, ducks, turkey, fox, wolf, pheasant, salt, and freshwater fish abound. The walls are laden with rustic box shelving holding antique fishing reels, guns, axes, knives, snowshoes and anything else that has ever been used to adventure in the wild.

There were over a thousand people of all ages in the store during our visit, but due to it's size and layout we were never crowded or boxed in. The store staff was always available, and in great numbers, checkout was fast and efficient. Above the vast area of fishing line, tackle, and tackle boxes that is six or seven 15 ft. long isles with product on both sides, is a life size replica of a 42ft. 3,000 lb. humpback whale. To further help one understand the scale of things, above and to the right of the service counter fronted by multi-level glass cases full of both salt and fresh water fishing reels, is a hanging diorama including a 43ft. sport fishing boat from the 1960's, with an angler on deck fighting a large
Blue fin Tuna, complete with crashing waves. The center of the store from the top floor to the bottom, is a replica New England waterfall complete with live plants and trees, and mounts of native animal and bird species . The falls empty into a 5,500 gal. turtle pool, and then flows into a floor level 3,500 gal. trout pond. Standing in the center of the pond is a life size 1,600lb. bull moose mount. The trout in the pool average 24in.
To the right of this massive display is the aquarium, a 35,000gal. freshwater tank built from the rock backdrop of the falls, with a massive glass panel that measures around 14ft.X20ft. This is filled with some dozens of native species, including rainbow trout, largemouth and smallmouth bass, catfish, sunfish, landlocked salmon, pickerel, and northern pike to name a few. This is an awesome opportunity to see these species in motion, and to add to the excitement the fish are fed live baitfish three times a week during the business day, showing how each species attacks and devours it's prey.
We had hoped to see this event, and showed up an hour before, but were so overwhelmed with everything around us we missed it! Next time for sure. Not yet open, but part of the store is the Blue fin lounge, a restaurant and bar where top quality meals will be served, at the time we had lunch at the food bar on the top level. There were sandwiches, nachos, sodas, coffee, fudge, and assorted snacks. The sandwiches were big and stuffed with great quality meats, more than fair for the price. along side of the food bar was a large dining area set up with a fireplace, and dozens of thick cushioned armchairs and couches, around large wooden trunks that served as tables. Bob and I sat around and ate and took in the view of all the store, and the scenery outside as well, the wall behind the dining area is a story tall glass viewport over woods and a pond. Out in the distance are mounts of deer and moose in the field and around the wood's edge. They add a neat ambiance, but also serve as objects of focus for the optics department at the end of the dining area, where you can test out any of several hundred types of spotting scopes and binoculars.

We started out in the plastics section of the fishing displays. 10 15ft. isles stocked back to back took a while to get through. Every type, color, size and scent of worm, grub, lizard, creature and frog could be found. We did notice that there were many empty places where items were sold out, but that is to be expected for the first few months open, and when the season kicks in the help will be hard pressed to keep the shelves stocked too.
About the only items I could not find were the higher end swimbaits in the 6"+ size like Huddleston, and Megabait Charlies, which are popular on the west coast but smaller sizes from companies like Storm, Berkley, and Zoom were abundant,

Hard baits were next in line, saltwater occupied 3 of the 10 isles opposite the plastics side, freshwater baits the balance. High end lures like Luckycraft and Yo-zuri had a good representation, Rappala had the biggest display I have ever seen. I would guess that 90% of their product line was represented.
Cotton Cordell, Excaliber, Storm(a subsidy of Rappala) , Heddon, Mann's, Smithwick, and of course BPS' own brand of lures were available in every imaginable pattern. Jerkbaits, topwater, crankbait, lipless crankbait, and poppers in all depths, and sizes and in various prices were there.

Rods and reels, well, if you could not find something to make your pulse race in this setting, you are probably dead. Shimano, Abu Garcia, Penn, Fenwick, Quantum, Diawa, take your pick, most every model, length, and weight rod was there to handle, and all the reels on display are setup on rod handles that you can remove from the display and test out for smoothness, brake investigation, and drag inspection.
Be warned, don't bring the rent money with you if you go, and take care with the credit card. Spending money here is so easy, but the trip is worth every second!

New England Bass

Call them Greenies, Bucketmouth, or just plain Bass, the North American Black Bass (Micropterus Salmoides) is not a Bass at all, but a member of the Sunfish family. Don't let this fool you though, throughout America Bass are the most pursued species of game fish in fresh water. Not as tasty as Trout or catfish nor as large as Muskie, or Pike in some cases, they are the second most fight for the cast. The above specimen, approx. 3 lbs. was taken this June from Quabbin Reservoir in Hardwick, Massachusetts using a chatter bait in a crayfish pattern. Angler; Bobby Plankey.

Enter the Smallie, Bronzeback, or Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus Dolomieu). Also a member of the Sunfish family, these are the smaller of the two New England species, but take first prize for the fight. Pound for pound I am told only Amazon native Peacock Bass are a tougher customer. This photo (my apologies for the poor light) shows a 4 lb.+ fish caught this May on Kezar Lake, Lovell, Maine by Team Kezar angler Bruce Trimpop. The fish fell prey to a 1/4 oz. Rapala Rattlin' Shad in a silver/chartreuse pattern.
My host, and Team Kezar angler Tim Trimpop, (left) put me on my biggest fish to date. This Largemouth weighed at 6 lbs. 2oz. and was taken on Lake Kezar, late May on a custom black double Colorado spinnerbait designed by Bruce Trimpop. The hit on the bait was soft and unremarkable, and until I got the fish to within 12 ft. of the boat and she went wacko, stripping drag and making us scramble to lip her and get her on board for a picture. Angler; Mike Zelonis.
This 5lb. + lump fell to the same custom spinnerbait as the fish in the previous photo, and fought to get away from the start. Late May is a good time for Lake Kezar fish as it is still pre-spawn, 5 hours south in Massachusetts where I live, fish at this time are already starting to make beds and are distracted from feeding so ferociously. Angler; Bruce Trimpop.
Bruce with another beast, close to if not over 6lbs. on the same lure. The spinnerbait design is a unique construction that the Bass in Lake Kezar seem to love, in a future post I will put up a photo. It looks plain, but a flexibility feature in the blade arm allows for a more positive hookup ratio than the standard commercial variety.
Mid July on Quabbin, my fishing partner Bob bagged this approx. 3lb. Largemouth on a gold/blackback Cotton Cordell Spot lipless crankbait, 1/2oz. size. His second fish in this class in about about 10 min. Then we lost the school. High pressure, (30+ millibars), cooler temps, and a cold front made the day tough, we got 6 fish in about as many hours. Angler; Robbery Plankey.


A note from the author. All Bass we catch are released
unless fatal injury is suspected once the fish is boated.
At present no New England states stock Bass of any
species. We strictly advocate catch, photo, and release.
The Bass fishing future for our kids depends on this!

Thanks, Mike Zelonis.


Below, Early July on Quabbin, Bob tagged into this approx. 2lb. smallie on a chartreuse chatter bait. The fish was taken in clear water less than 8ft. We watched the Bass charge the erratic jig and snap it up like candy. Bob was fairly happy as he bought some of these baits last year, but had no success with them until this day. In fact most of the fish, Largemouth and smallies were after the chatter on that trip. Angler; Robert Plankey.