fishing

Stew21

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(I could ask my husband, but thought I'd get a wider choice of response here and he might not have a response for the dates in question.)

Here's the scene - hot day - on a small boat. it's a very large deep lake - well-shaded in some areas, water is muddy and potentially grassy-bottomed (midwestern most likely). I imagine there are trees and grass around the banks - too thick for bank fishing, but nice occasional fallen trees good for bass beds - cool hideouts around the edges for fish to hang out.

timeframe: I'd have to date the story back to the early to mid 1970's. the story set up. An older experienced fisherman takes his grandson out on the boat. It's afternoon on a hot day - I can't imagine they'll catch much anyway(??) He ties a lure to the line for him after the first one is snapped off. (they are at odds, he was probably reeling when he shouldn't have been - overly anxious - trying to muscle it into the boat. the old man gets mad at him for snapping the line.) It has to be a simple rod/reel set up for the young guy to use - nothing too complicated, and something that would have been used in the 70's.

What's the bait/lure he ties on for this type of fishing environment? what is the most likely fish they are trying to catch? what rod/reel set up would he be using?

And: if the old man is experienced enough, he has to know that on a day this hot they can't catch much (except maybe in the shaded areas - but especially right in the middle of the day) - so is the set up not very feasible to begin with? too contrived?

Thanks fishermen!
 
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Stew21

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not much experience fishing. he's done it before but it's not his favorite thing to do. He rejects it more because he rejects his grandfather. So he knows basics, but does it grudgingly. The kid is probably 12 or so.
 

Tiger

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Bass fishing. Using a sonic sound lure. I used to love those things. Don't forget the pull tabs on the soda cans :D
 

Stew21

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ok, now the important question...if I start rattling on in this story and give the set up (obviously in prose rather than just blurting it out like I did here), do I pull it off ok, or do I sound like an inexperienced person talking about fishing and pretending to know more than she does?
 
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Haggis

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Okay. Probably using a spincasting outfit.

On a midwestern lake like you describe they could either be going for bass or panfish--bluegill, crappie or perch. If bass, they could be using a sonic lure (if they were around then--I don't remember) or something like a Rapala. Perhaps a spinner.

For the panfish, they might be using a popper or a small spinner (Mepps spinner, perhaps). Maybe just a hook and worm.

As to whether or not the experienced guy would be out there on such a day--probably, yeah. Sometimes folks fish when they can, not when they'd rather. Any day spent fishing is a good day.

Hope this helps.

But when in doubt, ask Frank.
 

WendyNYC

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Midwestern? Catfish, for sure. Bluegill maybe too. We used live bait: worms, sometimes those colorful fish eggs.
Maybe bass--I think you use artificial lures.

My dad would know ALL of this stuff. He used to tie his own lures. He'd be happy to help. PM me if you want his email address.
 

Don Allen

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Bass fishing in the 70's was worms.. Night Crawlers in weeds during a hot day. I'm thinking Daredevils, spoon lures with tri-hooks, they are red on each side with a white strip down the middle.. Lots of action to the lure, and we used to let them sink to the bottom then yank them up and let them fall back down as we reeled them in looking for Walleye, perch, an occassional striped bass. An older guy in the seventies would have used a metal spin cast reel, zebco was cheap and looked down upon back then, but I think Shakespeare reels were around and ther is one that I can picture in my head always green and the easiest longest lasting reel you could buy and I can't think of the name off the top of my head. If I remember I'll post again...
 

tallus83

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A deep lake will have a muddy, rocky bottom.

On a hot midday, you won't catch many fish at all. An experienced older fisdherman wouldn't even bother going out. Why go out and bake in the hot sun? During the hottest part of the day, the fish are deep and not active at all. The best times are early mornings, late evenings, also overcast days.
 

Stew21

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My husband does a lot of fishing. He just wouldn't know anything about what they used in the 70's (he's a tad younger than I am - he was born in '75) I do know that he will rarely go out on a hot afternoon in summer for bass. more early evening right before dusk or first thing in the morning. I'd like it to be bass fishing because it is more challenging than crappie and bluegill (which are the panfish we go for in this area - Southern IL), just seems like bad timing weather-wise for them to be out there.

Mostly, I just don't want to sound like a doofus who doesn't know what she's talking about.
thanks so much for all the input!
 

Stew21

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*asking opinions about fishing is sort of like talking about religion and politics in a bar, isn't it?*

:D



eta: I could always tweak the scene to accomodate the things that make no sense also.


I'm here to learn.

thanks.
 
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tallus83

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Actually, you would not want to discuss religion in a bar.

Politics maybe.

Fishing won't get you a beer bottle over the head. :)
 

Stew21

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I think that depends on if your buddy was able to net your fish when you were on the lake earlier, tallus.

;)
 

Haggis

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One more important detail is the type of knot the experienced guy would use to attach the lure. As I recall, I used a bowline then, but I haven't used it now for years. Nor does anybody else as far as I know.
 

Stew21

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My favorite hometown tavern has a sign behind the bar that says "Hunters, Fishermen and other liars gather here."
 

FinbarReilly

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Going with the stereotypical old grandpa/young kid: Odds are it's perch (or some equivalent; I like bluegill myself), given that the kid just lost his tackle due to overmuscling. Odds are good that it's not a lure, but a hook, sinker, and bobber, especially if the kid is really inexperienced (the lure would do him no good, as he doesn't know what a fish feels like yet, and he still needs the bobber to help him).

Also, I'd lay odds that they would be using salmon eggs (less expensive than worms, and not as wriggly, so it would be easier to hook them, and if he's there that late with that much sun, he's doing it for the kid's experience more than anything else).

Yeahyeah, I was actually just learning to fish myself, and I'm decent at it, and I have nieces/nephews...so :tongue! Sorry if I rambled....

FR
 

Stew21

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oh boy.

I have more to think about than I realized.
You all have been great with the info, now I suppose I have some decisions to make.

FRANK? DINO? HELP!
 

KTC

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I'd go with fin, myself. I know we used salmon eggs in pink netting back then...but we fished on the Miramichi and always had salmon eggs. And I'd agree about the perch too...they seem to hit whatever the time of day and weather too. I'd also agree with fin on it not being a lure, but a hook, sinker and bobber. I didn't always have a bobber, though. In fact, as I think back...I rarely had a bobber. Also, my Poppy often pulled branches on the way down to the river to use as fishing rods, if he had too many gran kiddies with him. They worked wonders...
 

Haggis

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I don't recall salmon eggs being all that available in the upper midwest back then--at least in the early 70s. By the later 70s, sure. And worms? They're free. Water your lawn the afternoon before you go fishing and reap the night crawler harvest after dark.
 

KTC

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Yes...you may have a point. For me, it was a geographical bonus. And, yes, here in Ontario...we dew worm hunted. No watering, though. We'd tent outback and just wait for around 2amish. The dew would call those puppies to the surface and we'd just walk around plucking. So, yes...probably worms, Trish.
 

Stew21

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worms - yes, I can see this just because it's more things for the kid to really hate about it.