I have been fishing since I was old enough to drop a line, hook and worm off a dock.  For my 10th birthday, my grandparents gave me a metal “BuddyBoy” tackle box with some fishing gear in it.  There were sinkers, swivels, bobbers and a few lures.   There was a wooden Rapala with a joint.  It moved like a fish in the water.  Because it floated, I had the fun of jerking it on the surface or pulling it under water depending on how I wanted to fish.  My grandchildren have fished with that same lure.  These days, my grand kids are using animated fishing lures.  Animated fishing lures imitate minnows.  Live minnows cost a lot.  They have to be kept in a minnow bucket in the water.  They can be difficult to get on the line and they don’t last very long.  One jointed lure can last forever as long as I didn’t snag it on a rock.  Today, USB charged animated fishing lures revolutionize fishing fun.

Animated Fishing Lures

Animated fishing lures come in a variety of sizes.  The minis are great for panfish and bass.  Larger sizes attract pike and musky.  Of course, the largest size is for salt water fishing.  There are quite a few colors available for these lures.  So, the lure can imitate whatever kind of bait fish is in the water.

Bobbers with Animated Fishing Lures

The joints in animated fishing lures cause the lure to swim in a circle.  All these lures sink so a bobber is a must.  However, no other special equipment is needed.  Bobber size is important.  The bobber keeps the animated fishing lure at the desired depth swimming in a circle.   So, if the lure pulls the bobber under, it will not work.

Recharging Animated Fishing Lures

The larger the lure, the longer the battery life.  This just makes sense as larger lures have more space for a larger battery.  The largest animated fishing lure has a battery life of about 4 hours.  The smallest is about 45 minutes.  The batteries recharge with a USB connection so it is important that lures are charged at the beginning of the day.  It’s a good idea to carry a small portable battery charger.

Where to Fish with Animated Fishing Lures

These lures can be fished in either fresh or salt water.  In fresh water, they can be fished in either streams or lakes and ponds.  In salt water, they can be fished shallow or extremely deep, but they cannot be trolled.   Because a bobber is necessary, they are used in still fishing.  It is important to know the depth of water being fished because these lures are relatively expensive.  They can easily be lost to rocks, logs or other submerged structures because they move on their own.

Pros and Cons of Animated Fishing Lures

Pros

1. The movement is realistic.
2.  They are easy to fish.
3.  They attract fish.
4.  Almost any kind of fishing situation works.
5.  Recharging is easy.

Cons

1. They are more expensive that most other lures.
2.  They need to be recharged.
3.  Trolling is not an option.

Because animated fishing lures come in a variety of sizes and colors, they can be used for almost any kind of fishing.  Once in the water, the person using them no longer controls them other than retrieving and playing the fish.  As jointed lures, changed fishing many decades ago, these USB charged animated fishing lures revolutionize fishing today.

 

 

Fishing along the shore of a lake when I was 12 years old, I saw a big green bug stuck in the rocks. I picked it up.  It was a weird fishing lure with metal wings and two treble hooks. I didn’t realize that I had found The Ultimate Topwater Bait.  There was monofilament line tied to the eye.  I got rid of the monofilament and tied the lure to my line.  I had an open face Mitchel 304 which I still have.  The lake was calm.  My cast went a long way because the lure was pretty heavy and there was no wind.  As soon as the lure hit the water, I started to reel.  Immediately, a fish hit flying out of the water.  I was shocked.  I loosened my drag so there was no chance of the line breaking.  After a few minutes of  fun, I pulled a beautiful smallmouth onto the rocks.  I had not idea that the lure was a Tiny Crazy Crawler, the ultimate topwater bait.  I still have one in my tackle box.

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When I was a kid, Al’s Goldfish, the best lure ever, was free with the can of shaving cream my Dad bought.  I can’t remember the brand of shaving cream, but I got the best lure ever with every can he bought.  The lure was bright gold metal with a slight bend upward in the center.  It had a treble hook.  The was a simple eye to attach line.  The lure was light, but it seemed to catch every kind of fish in the lake.

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Its true.  Bilge plugs can cause disaster.  More accurately, forgetting to install bilge plugs can cause disaster.  Friends of mine have sunk boats large and small by forgetting the bilge plug.  I have been running boats for 60 years.  Last week, I forgot the bilge plug.

Bilge Plugs Can Cause a Disaster

The Idea

My brother-in-law and I decided to spend a day on the water looking for bass.  We chose Lake Nacimiento in San Luis Obispo County in California for the excursion.  Boots towed the boat behind his truck.  I navigated.  We picked a weekday because weekenders and folks with kids weren’t likely to be on the lake.  As it turned out, we had the lake to ourselves.  That didn’t mean that the day on the lake would be easy.

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Where’s the water?

Frustrated fishermen keep asking, ” Where’s the water?”  It’s a legitimate question.  Despite a lot of  rain last winter, central California is still suffering through low water levels.

This is my dock on a large lake in Central California.  The closest water is almost 3/4 mile from where this picture was taken.  The “full” level is the light brown line just below the trees.

 

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Your boat is your most expensive piece of fishing equipment.  At the end of every fishing season, be sure to winterize your boats.  Proper winterization makes spring launching easier and  saves your boat from damage while sitting.

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