Do you spend hours in the spring sitting in your bass boat wondering why you’re having such a hard timing getting a bite? Your bait seems to be devoured by everything from bream (bluegills) to tree limbs, but not by bass fish. There’s definitely a reason for the elusiveness of these cold-blooded, aquatic vertebrates. Read on to learn about the habitual habits of bass fish!

From mid-April until June – whether you’re bass fishing in Tennessee, California, or somewhere in between – bass fish are very busy with spawning responsibilities. Guarders (otherwise known as territorial males) spend much of their time doing just what their name implies – guarding their eggs and offspring from other aquatic or reptilian predators. Often when you do catch a bass, you’ll notice that it’s a female (commonly a pregnant one, too).  While the male bass protect the eggs, the females are on the hunt for food. So, the females are racing around searching for food, usually in the form of a crappie or bream offspring Happy Meal.

Now that you have a better idea about what is going on under the surface of your favorite bass fishing lake,it’s time to find out where all these fish are hanging out. Your best bet is to coast your bass boat on over to a nearby shoreline; the type of place where bream like to build their beds – amid weeds, sunken logs, and debris. Generally, you can locate bream near their beds, which look like bass beds in their honeycomb shape, but are a lot smaller.

The next step to luring a bass fish is to use the right bait. Let’s think about it logically for a second: bass fish are hungry during the spring, and spend their timescouring the lake for small crappie and bream fish. It makes pretty good sense, then, to use bait that resemble these fish. Bream fish are colorful, so you can doll up your hook by adding a shiny & reflectivebream imitation bait that has colors such as yellow, teal or orange. The crappie imitation baitis easier because these fish are various shades of silver, so metallic bait should work well.

The final (and most rewarding) step is to reel a large bass fish right into your boat!  It doesn’t matter if you’re enjoying daytime bass fishing or preferthe cooler, nighttime excursions – being aware of the habits of the fish you are pursuing is a good way to bring a steady supply of them into your cooler. Learn more tips and tricks by visiting an active and fishing blog, or get real-life advice from a bass fishing forum. Happy fishing!

bassfishingtips.org Essential information about bass fishing rigs. If You are serious about becoming a great angler You must watch this!

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April Fools’ Day

All Fools’ Day, although not a Festival in its own right, is a notable day celebrated in many countries on April 1. The day is marked by the commission of hoaxes and other practical jokes of varying sophistication on friends, family members, enemies, and neighbors, or sending them on fool’s errand, the aim of which is to embarrass the gullible. Traditionally, in some countries, the jokes only last until noon: someone who plays a trick after noon is called an “April Fool”.  Another origin is that April 1 was counted the first day of the year in France. When King Charles IX changed that to January 1, some people stayed with April 1. Those who did were called “April Fools” and were taunted by their neighbors.

Any how the quest of origin and the date from which the day is being celebrated is still haunting to many today. The origin of April Fools’ Day is obscure. One likely theory is that the modern holiday was first celebrated soon after the adoption of the Gregorian Calendar; the term referred to someone still adhering to the Julian Calendar which it replaced. In many pre-Christian cultures May Day (May 1) was celebrated as the first day of summer, and signalled the start of the spring planting season. An April Fool was someone who did this prematurely.

Almost every culture in the world has some kind of festival in the first months of the year to celebrate the end of winter and the return of spring. Anthropologists call these “renewal festivals.“ Often they involve ritualized forms of mayhem and misrule. The wearing of disguises is common. People play pranks on friends and strangers.

April Fool’s Day has all the characteristics of a renewal festival. For one day forms of behavior that are normally not allowed (lying, deception, and playing pranks) become acceptable, and yet the disorder is bounded within a strict timeframe. Traditionally, no pranks are supposed to be played after 12 o’clock noon of the first. Social hierarchies and tensions are exposed, but hostility is defused with laughter.

For as long as people have been speculating about April Fool’s Day, they have noticed the similarities between it and other springtime “renewal” festivals. Many historians have theorized that April Fool’s Day evolved directly out of some such festival practiced in ancient times. A direct connection between April Fool’s Day and any of the Roman-era festivals seems unlikely, though it is quite possible that the tradition evolved out of a medieval festival held around the time of the Vernal equinox (such as the New Year’s festivals at the end of March, as discussed above). Nevertheless, there is no agreement about which festival the tradition of April Foolery developed out of. Below is a list of some of the festivals that have most frequently been suggested as its forerunners.

References to April fool’s Day can be found as early as the 1500s. However, these early references were infrequent and tended to be vague and ambiguous. Many theories have been put forward about how the tradition began. Unfortunately, none of them are very compelling. So the origin of the “custom of making April Fools” remains as much a mystery to us as it was back in 1708.

 The most popular theory about the origin of April fool’s Day involves the French calendar reform of the sixteenth century. The theory goes like this:

French calendar reform

 In 1564 France reformed its calendar, moving the start of the year from the end of March to January 1. Those who failed to keep up with the change, who stubbornly clung to the old calendar system and continued to celebrate the New Year during the week that fell between March 25th and April 1st, had jokes played on them. Pranksters would surreptitiously stick paper fish to their backs. The victims of this prank were thus called Poisson d’Avril, or April Fish—which, to this day, remains the French term for April Fools—and so the tradition was born.

The calendar-change hypothesis seems, on the surface, like a logical explanation for the origin of April Fools. However, the hypothesis becomes less plausible if we examine the history of calendar reform in more detail.

The Julian calendar

The Julian Calendar, established by Julius Caesar in 46 BC, made January 1 the first day of the year. But as Christianity spread throughout Europe, efforts were made to christianize the calendar by moving New Year’s Day to dates of greater theological significance, such as Christmas or Easter. Some countries continued to use January 1, justifying this as the date of Christ’s circumcision. As a consequence, by the 1500s the European calendar system was a mess. Not only had errors in the Julian calendar caused the solar year to diverge from the calendar year, but also countries were beginning the year on different dates.

Moreover, the French used Easter as the start of the year primarily for legal and administrative purposes. January 1, following the Roman custom, was widely regarded as the traditional start of the year, and it was the day when people exchanged gifts.

Sixteenth-Century Reform

The practice of starting the year on Easter Day caused enormous practical inconvenience, so around 1500 many people in France began to use January 1 as the start of the calendar year. For instance, in early sixteenth-century French books, it is common to see both forms of dating listed side-by-side (for titles published in January, February, or March). By the mid-sixteenth century, a calendar system beginning on January 1 was in wide use in France. In 1563 King Charles IX decreed January 1 to be the first day of the year, thus aligning legal convention with what had become the popular practice. His edict was passed into law by the French Parliament on Dec. 22, 1564.

Eighteen years later, in 1582, Pope Gregory issued a papal bull decreeing sweeping calendar reform. The Gregorian reform included moving the start of the year to January 1, as well as creating a leap-year system and eliminating ten days from the month of October 1582 in order to correct the drift of the calendar. The Pope had no formal power to make governments accept this reform, but he urged Christian nations to do so. France immediately accepted the reform, although it had already changed the start of the year in 1564. (Many histories of April Fool’s Day mistakenly suggest that France only moved the start of the year in 1582 when it accepted the Gregorian calendar reform in its entirety.)

With this history in mind, it becomes clear that the calendar-change hypothesis is a problematic explanation for the origin of April Fool’s Day. The switch to January 1 did not occur suddenly in France. It was a gradual process, spanning an entire century. And even before the switch, the French New Year had no obvious connection to April 1st.

British Calendar Change

The calendar-change hypothesis is more plausible if applied to Britain, because it was the British, not the French, who observed New Year’s Day on March 25 (the date of the christian Feast of Annunciation), followed by a week of festivities culminating on April 1. In fact, the earliest version of the calendar-change hypothesis to be found in print, dating from 1766, does place the argument in a British context. As reported by a  correspondent to the Gentleman’s Magazine in April 1766 :

“The strange custom prevalent throughout this kingdom, of people making fools of one another upon the first of April, arose from the year formerly beginning, as to some purpose, and in some respects, on the twenty-fifth of March, which was supposed to be the incarnation of our Lord; it being customary with the Romans, as well as with us, to hold a festival, attended by an octave, at the commencement of the new year—which festival lasted for eight days, whereof the first and last were the principal; therefore the first of April is the octave of the twenty-fifth of March, and, consequently, the close or ending of the feast, which was both the festival of the Annunciation and the beginning of the new year.“

Britain only changed the start of its calendar year to January 1 in 1752. By this time April Fool’s Day was already a well-established tradition. So confusion about the calendar change could not have been responsible for the origin of the custom in Britain. But it is possible, as the correspondent to Gentleman’s Magazine speculated, that the festival held on April 1 (the “octave” of the March 25th calendar year change) evolved into April Fool’s Day. However, this is pure speculation, undermined by the lack of any other compelling evidence that the custom originated in Britain. The earliest unambiguous references to April Fool’s Day actually come from continental Europe, suggesting it is there that April Fool’s Day began.

Great Britain

British folklore links April Fool’s Day to the town of Gotham, the legendary town of fools located in Nottinghamshire. According to the legend, it was traditional in the 13th century for any road that the King placed his foot upon to become public property. So when the citizens of Gotham heard that King John planned to travel through their town, they refused him entry, not wishing to lose their main road. When the King heard this, he sent soldiers to the town. But when the soldiers arrived in Gotham, they found the town full of lunatics engaged in foolish activities such as drowning fish or attempting to cage birds in roofless fences. Their foolery was all an act, but the King fell for the ruse and declared the town too foolish to warrant punishment. Ever since then, according to legend, April Fool’s Day has commemorated their trickery.

Germany

On April 1, 1530 a meeting of lawmakers was supposed to occur in Augsburg in order to consider various financial matters. Because of time considerations, the meeting did not take place. But numerous speculators, who had bet on the meeting occurring, lost their money and were ridiculed. This is said to have been the origin of the tradition of playing pranks on April 1.

The Netherlands

On April 1, 1572 Dutch rebels captured the town of Den Briel from Spanish troops led by Lord Alva. This military success eventually led to the independence of the Netherlands from Spain. A Dutch rhyme goes: “Op 1 april / Verloor Alva zijn Bril.“ This translates to: “On April 1st / Alva lost his ‘glasses’”. “Bril” means glasses in Dutch, but is also a pun on the name of the town, Den Briel. It is claimed that the tradition of pranks on April 1st arose to commemorate the victory in Den Briel and humiliation of the Spanish commander

Chaucer

What is possibly the first reference to April Fool’s Day can be found in the work of Chaucer. Unfortunately, the reference is so ambiguous as to be worthless as historical evidence.

In the Nun’s Priest’s Tale (written around 1392), Chaucer tells the story of the vain cock Chauntecler who falls for the tricks of a fox, and as a consequence is almost eaten. Whatever Chaucer may have meant, we can’t conclude, based on these few lines, that he was aware of a custom of playing pranks on April 1st.

 Eloy d’Amerval

The next possible reference to April Fool’s Day we find is in a 1508 poem written by Eloy d’Amerval, a French choirmaster and composer. The poem is titled Le livre de la deablerie. In this poem he made the use of  phrase “poisson d’avril” (April Fish) is the French term for an April Fool, but it is unclear whether d’Amerval’s use of the term referred to April 1st specifically. He might have intended the phrase simply to mean a foolish person.

Eduard de Dene

The Flemish writer Eduard De Dene published a comical poem in 1539 about a nobleman who hatches a plan to send his servant back and forth on absurd errands on April 1st, supposedly to help prepare for a wedding feast. The servant recognizes that what’s being done to him is an April 1st joke

Escape of the Duke of Lorraine

According to legend, the Duke of Lorraine and his wife were imprisoned at Nantes. They escaped on April 1, 1632 by disguising themselves as peasants and walking through the front gate. Someone noticed them escaping and told the guards. But the guards believed the warning to be a “poisson d’Avril” (or April Fool’s Day joke) and laughed at it, thus allowing the Duke and his wife to escape. It is not known if any part of this legend is true. In the eighteenth century written references to April Fool’s Day became numerous and appeared throughout Europe.

At last, what we have here is a fairly clear reference to a custom of playing practical jokes on April 1st. So we can say that April Fool’s Day dates back at least to the sixteenth century. Because of this reference (and the other, vague French reference), historians believe that April Fool’s Day must have originated in continental northern Europe and then spread to Britain.

The April Fools is full of hoaxes, humor, laughter and enjoyment. The frequency of April Fools’ hoaxes sometimes makes people doubt of real news. Here are some of the real news of april 1st which people took as hoaxes.

The April 1, 1946 Aleutian Island earthquake tsunami that killed 165 people in Hawaii and Alaska resulted in the creation of a tsunami warning system established in 1949 for Pacific Ocean countries. The tsunami in question is known in Hawaii as the “April Fools’ Day Tsunami” due to people drowning because of the assumptions that the warnings were an April Fools’ prank.
The death of King George II of Greece on April 1, 1947 when the news spread people took it as hoax..
On April 1, 1984, singer Marvin Gaye was shot and killed by his father. Originally, people assumed that it was a fake news story, especially considering the bizarre aspect of the father being the murderer
The 2005 death of comedian Mitch Hedberg was originally dismissed as an April Fools’ joke. The comedian’s March 29, 2005 death was announced on March 31, but many newspapers didn’t carry the story until April 1, 2005.
The merger of Square and its rival company, Enix, took place on April 1, 2003, and was originally thought to be a joke.
The announcement of the anime version of the Powerpuff Girls, Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z, was on April Fools’ Day causing many to think it was a joke.
The game Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games was announced only a couple days before April Fools’ Day. Forums were flooded because so many thought that the two rivals since the 90′s, Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog, appearing together in a video game as an official 2008 Olympics game was a joke.
British sprinter Dwain Chambers joined English rugby league team Castleford Tigers shortly before 1st April 2008. The athlete was attempting a return to top flight athletics at the time following a high profile drugs ban, and his apparent unfamiliarity with rugby led many people to assume this was an April Fools’ Day prank.
On April 1st, 2008, it was reported that UEFA would require the Swedish fast food chain Max to close their restaurant at the Borås Arena during the European Under-21 Football Championship due to a conflict with official sponsor McDonalds and a requirement that only official sponsors may operate around the arena. The arena was later replaced as a tournament site.
On April 1, 1984, singer Marvin Gaye was shot and killed by his father. Originally, people assumed that it was a fake news story, especially considering the bizarre aspect of the father being the murderer.
On April 1, 2008, Christian Persch announced that the GNOME desktop web browser Epiphany would be switched from Mozilla’s Gecko engine to the WebKit engine used by Safari and KDE’s equivalent application Konqueror.

     Dr. Ashhiq Hussain

Lect. Govt. Degree College Kishtwar

E.mail:- drashiqhussain@rediffmail.com

Vote for Deidra to be the Cover Girl on the 2011 Marlin Wear Calendar. You can vote for her by clicking the following link and signing up: marlinwear.com

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Choosing the right bass fishing bait for a given fishing situation is determinant to the success of catching a bass. Speaking about bass baits, live baits are still the indispensable choice and proven effective bait in bass fishing. But the use of fishing lures provides some advantage over the live bait by its wide range of varieties and practicality. Among numerous types of lures there are ones that consistently outperform the others in catching a bass successfully. Here is the list:

#1 – Plastic Worms. This bait should be given credit for the ability to catching more bass than any other bait. They are highly flexible and can be used to fish from top to bottom. Plastic worms offer a wide range of sizes and colors. The available size ranges from the tiny 3 inches long to a giant worm of 10 inches long. You can find almost any desired color on your discretion.

Plastic worms are the appropriate choice for fishing in waters with thick weeds even in the thickest cover where the bass are hiding and wait to take the bait. You can rig them in Carolina or Texas style, or on a jig head, weightless or whatever presentation you like to carry out and they will get a bass.

#2 – Crankbaits. These lure resemble a crawfish or baitfish which are the two preferable foods of bass. Crankbaits are available in wide range of shapes, sizes and color. You can cast them easily and will be effective in almost all kind of water. You can use them to fish in fast streams and cover water to get an active bass. It is suggested to learn and train yourself to fish a crankbait which will add to your arsenal of effective lures.

#3 – Spinnerbaits. Spinnerbaits is considered as one of the best choice for bass fishing, in spite of other available choices for bass fishing baits which we are discussing now. Spinner baits are still the best pick due to its ease and versatility. You can easily match a spinner bait with countless of fishing situation and condition.

It performs well in almost all types of cover and structure at any season. Whether in summer, autumn, winter and springtime or whatever water condition, muddy or clear, warm or cold and deep or shallow. Spinner baits can be easily adapted and applied to weeds, brush, grass, stumps, standing timber, rock piles, rip-rap, boat docks or any other specific type of structure or hiding place.

#4 – Topwater Plugs. Catching a bass with this type of lure will be very exciting. Imagine the crashing smash of the caught bass hitting the surface. Topwater lures are available in various sizes, color and action. Topwater plugs are suitable to be used during early morning or late evening hours when the conditions are a bit dark with low light.

This lure is also most effective in condition with little wind and with the presence of active ripples on the surface so it will not frighten the bass when it cuts through the water. Letting the bait move through still water will arouse the suspicion of the bass

#5 – Jig and Pig. This is among the best choice to catch a big bass. Commonly used in game fishing where some fishermen won tournaments using this jig and pig. Providing the look of a crawfish, the jig and pig is a good treat for bigger bass which is their favorite food.

#5 – Jig and Pig. This is among the best choice to catch a big bass. Commonly used in game fishing where some fishermen won tournaments using this jig and pig. Providing the look of a crawfish, the jig and pig is a good treat for bigger bass which is their favorite food.

#6 – Bucktail Jig. This is very simple lure but very effective to catch any type of fish. It consists of a plastic straight or curly tail which can match a lot of fishing condition. 

#7 – Tail Spinners. It is a very effective bait to catch bass in deep water. Excellent for cold water fishing when the bass are inactive and a bit lazy to go after a bait quite far from them. 

#8 – Spoons. The weedless spoon type attached to a trailer is a very effective method when fishing in grassy and heavy cover waters with better results compared to other baits. Their flash and twist are the effects that trigger the bass to strike.

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Tired of looking at the same old backyard everyday? Do you want to have that special area where you can sit and relax after a hard days work? A pond will create a tranquil and serene environment that is sure to have your curious neighbors peeping over your fence.

However, one thing to keep in mind is that pond equipment and installations can cost several thousand dollars when contracted out to a landscaper. They can be extremely expensive investments! Wouldn’t you like to obtain all the supplies that a contractor normally would, at their wholesale price? Well, now you can buy a professional-quality pond kit directly from Algreen Products!

New for 2007, Algreen’s Professional Pond Kits include a pump, liner, underlay, filtration media, and both a skimmer and bio waterfall filter! These kits come complete with a whole load of accessories to help transform your backyard into a spectacular work of art. The new Professional Pond Kits come in 3 sizes which range from 4’ x 6’ liner kits, to the 6’ x 6’ liner kits, to the larger 6’ x 11’ kits (which includes a pump that moves over 12,000 gallons of water per hour).

Leafs, twigs, and other debris use to make ponds look dirty and were a hassle to clean up. Not any more!! With the introduction of Algreen’s new pond skimmer, pond debris is skimmed off the pond water surface and filtered regularly so that you have a clean, clear, and beautiful looking pond anytime of the day. The skimmer is specially manufactured to operate with ponds containing up to 5000 gallons of water.

The skimmer’s Trap Basket has a large filter that is easily removable for cleaning and maintenance. There is also a secondary filter mat used for secondary filtration prior to reaching the pump. The kit comes with a special pump that creates a natural flowing waterfall. The pump is uniquely housed within the skimmer so it’s completely hidden from view.

Your fish will thank you with Algreen’s new Biofalls Filter, which includes both removable biological and mechanical filters, and 2 activated charcoal pouches. The charcoal filtration units have an extremely high surface area and when placed in the water bind, and thus remove harmful chemicals such as bacterial toxins. Poisonous toxic molecules physically adhere to the activated charcoal and stick to it until they are completely destroyed.

Keep micro bacterial agents such as algae and bacterial colonies from developing in your pond with the Bio Waterfall Filter’s special fish friendly filters and pond solutions. The filters include six separate filtering actions to ensure that your pond water is in healthy condition.

These new Professional Pond Kits are a lovely addition to any area they are placed in. They are proudly manufactured in Canada and are accompanied with a lifetime warranty on both the skimmer and waterfall filter enclosures!

I know what you’re thinking. With this great value, the price must be through the roof. WRONG!! Compared to the leading competitor’s prices, Algreen’s Professionial Pond Kits give you a savings of more than 25%. The leading competitor has a 6’ x 11’ kit retailing close to 00, and it does not even include all the specialized filtration media and pond solutions that Algreen provides. In addition to Algreen’s great package, you also get a free thermometer, so you can keep an eye on your fish during those hot summer days. Algreen gives you everything you need, other than the shovel and landscaping materials; even then, the largest kit is still priced under 00.

Be the trend setter this year on your block. These pond kits add value to your home, are great conversation starters, and make a great place to relax next to while enjoying your drink. They come with easy to follow installation instructions and are customizable so no pond looks the same. Best part about the kit is that the instructions give you the flexibility of doing-it-yourself, with helpers. Alternatively, the kit also provides you with a low-cost, professional pond kit, so that you can hire a contractor to complete a cheaper, more affordable pond. Come visit gardensupermart.com today for more information about our Professional Pond Kits.

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If you are fishing for salmon you are sure to be treated to a bit of a fight and there are a few things you need to know before you embark on this great outdoor activity to make it as enjoyable as possible.

There are many different ways you can go fishing for salmon but as fly fishing enthusiasts will agree, you can easily go after salmon with the perfect fly for a fantastic fishing experience. In general you will need a 12-16 ft. graphite or fibreglass rod, fly reel and line but the type of fly you will need will vary depending on the type of salmon you are after. Fly fishing is particularly fruitful for Alaska Salmon and this is the main type we will be talking about in this article as a basis for comparison.

Firstly, if you want to fish for salmon in cold waters, you will need to pick an appropriately sized fly. Large flies that are fished slowly will work the best in this type of water. You should also consider the taking zone of the salmon, which is usually quite small so your fly will need to land within a few feet of the salmon. It is not uncommon to use flies of three inches and more in cold conditions and tubes are quite popular for this type of environment.

The colour of your fly should also be considered when choosing the right salmon flies. Yellow has a significant impact on fly fishing in cold waters whereas yellow, orange and green are excellent choices for spring. Warm waters tend to use gold, silver or holographic bodies or binding around simple black flies. The best flies can be a combination of black, yellow and silver to create a variety of effects. Ensure you have a large selection of different colours and sizes of salmon flies to choose from for every situation. Always take into account the fish you are aiming for, what water you are fishing in and what the temperature is alongside other more detailed fly fishing factors.

If you are new to fly fishing you should be aware that although the concept of fly fishing is simple the practice and knowledge required is quite complex. You need to ensure you have the right fly, leader and tippet and much more to make sure you don’t end up losing the fish at the crucial moment. The best advice to give would be to take a selection of flies along with a selection of leaders and tippets to create the perfect fly fishing experience for whatever situation. Practice and theory learning alongside some sage advice from a professional fly fisher will help you build up the confidence to choose your fly with ease every time.

Why not try a black and yellow nylon salmon tube fly, a willie gunn or a black and yellow copper tube for cold water salmon fishing although this colour combination is highly reliable throughout the year and highly recommended.

Even though there are lots of materials available to build kayaks, wood is predominantly used in its building. Wooden kayaks are strong and light weight. Building kayak with wood is affordable to all and also wood is an easily available material.

Wood is used in building kayaks because they are durable when compared to steel and fiber glass. Most wooden kayaks weigh less than the commercial manufactured boats. It is not possible to specify the exact weight of a wooden kayak since different wood will have different density.

Red Fish Wooden Sea kayaks

The Red fish wooden sea kayaks perform well in water. The Return is a fast wooden sea kayak. It has shallow arched bottom to minimize the wetted surface area of the boat. It has superb entry and exit line and longer water line which help the paddlers to get greater speed. This kayak has been designed to provide sufficient stability and therefore even a beginner can paddle without fear.

The spring run is also a fast wooden sea kayak which is one foot shorter than the Return. It provides optimum stability so that you can do other activities like taking photographs, fishing etc without any fear. This kayak has larger volume than Return and can accommodate a larger paddler well. In fact there are two types of spring run wooden kayaks to suit small or light paddler and heavier or larger paddler.

The silver is a narrow wooden kayak which is 16 or 17 feet long. The silver wooden kayak has narrow beams that allow upper body movement of the paddler. This is a cedar strip wooden kayak and it is the most beautiful wooden sea kayak.

The King wooden sea kayak is designed for advanced paddlers. It has unique handling characteristics that will provide you an exciting experience in sea. The hull configuration in the King provides outstanding performance. It is fast and responsive to leaning turns. This wooden sea kayak is comfortable as well as efficient.

The Parr is designed for a child paddler. If you want to introduce kayaking to your child then the Parr is the superb way. It has removable sponsons. You can attach the sponsons to the kayak to get enhanced stability. If the paddler gets more practice in kayaking then you can remove the sponsons.

All these wooden kayaks have adjustable foot braces and water tight hatches. The foam seat will add the paddler’s comfort while kayaking. Generally the price of wooden kayaks may vary from 00 to 0. The price may vary if you want to add some optional features like custom seats, custom thigh braces etc.

Stewart wooden sea kayaks:

There are two models in Stewart wooden sea kayaks. The Blue fin is Greenland type wooden kayak which is based on traditional design. It turns well when leaned. This kayak is more suitable for intermediate paddler. It has foam seat that can fit the paddler well.

Northern Light is a south western Greenland type wooden kayak. It has straighter sides than Blue fit. It has flat V shaped bottom. This boat is very easy to turn. It has spacious cockpit for free entry and exit. It has foam fitted seat and back rest. It tracks well in flat water.

Have you recently purchased yourself a new fish tank? If so, there will come a time when you will need to clean your fish tank. When that time comes, and there is no doubt that it will, do you know how you can go about properly cleaning your fish tank? If not, you are urged to familiarize yourself with common fish tank cleaning supplies, many of which you may find helpful.

When it comes to familiarizing yourself with fish tank cleaning supplies, there are a number of important factors that you will want to take into consideration. Two of those factors are extremely important. First, you will want to make sure that you examine the type of fish tank that you have. Secondly, you will want to make sure that you examine the type of fish that you have; for instance, do you have saltwater fish, tropical fish, or freshwater fish? While there are a number of universal cleaning supplies that can be used, for all different fish tanks, you will want to verify before using any particular cleaning product or piece of equipment, as you do not want to jeopardize your fish tank and its contents.

Although there are some instances where you may need certain fish tank cleaning products or equipment, there are many cleaning supplies that are sometimes considered universal. One of those products is floating magnets. Floating magnets are known as a safe, convenient, and easy way to remove fish tank debris, like algae, from the walls of your fish tank. While floating magnets can be used on a wide variety of different fish tanks, you are urged to keep the type of fish tank that you have in mind. When it comes to buying floating fish tank magnets, you will see that there are magnets which are designed solely for glass fish tanks and others that are designed solely for acrylic fish tanks.

Scrapers are another piece of cleaning equipment that you may need to purchase or want to think about purchasing. Scrapers, like floating magnets, are used to remove algae from the sides of a fish tank. Scrapers can get the hard to reach algae or the algae that didn’t make its way to the magnets. For larger fish tanks, you should be able to purchase scrapers with extendable handles. Scrapers, as with fish tank magnets, are designed for both acrylic fish tanks and glass fish tanks. If and when you decide to purchase a fish tank scraper, it is important that you examine the scraper in question. While a large number of scrapers are designed for both glass and acrylic fish tanks, there are some scrapers that are only safe to use with glass aquariums. To protect your acrylic aquarium, you need to carefully examine what you are purchasing.

If the fish tank that you recently purchased was an acrylic fish tank, you may need to purchase an acrylic fish tank scratch repair kit. While you might not necessarily associate repairs with cleaning, you should, particularly when it comes to acrylic fish tanks. A scratch on an acrylic fish tank, even just a small one, may change the way that you feel about your aquarium. That is why it advised that you look into have an acrylic fish tank scratch repair kit to have on hand, just incase. Should you accidentally scratch your acrylic fish tank when cleaning it, having an on hand acrylic fish tank supply scratch kit could fix that scratch and have your aquarium back to looking new in no time at all.

Gravel vacuums are another fish tank cleaning product that you may want to examine closer. Fish tank gravel vacuums are ideal for all fish tanks that have gravel bottoms and since most do, this piece of cleaning equipment may be perfect for you and your new fish tank. With a fish tank gravel vacuum, you can clean your fish tank and the gravel, without having to separate all of the contents. A gravel vacuum can distinguish fish tank gravel from other fish tank debris. Owning a fish tank gravel vacuum is fish tank cleaning at is best; it saves time and it tends to eliminate some of the many hassles associated with cleaning a fish tank. Most fish tank gravel vacuums are safe to use with glass fish tanks and acrylic fish tanks.

The above mentioned fish tank cleaning supplies and equipment pieces are just a few of the many that you may need to purchase for your new fish tank. For a more accurate list of supplies that you may want to look into purchasing, as well as a large selection of fish tank cleaning supplies available for sale, you are urged to examine FishTanksDirect.com.

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In the 1970’s I was a teen-ager growing up in a small town in the mid-west.  Though video game systems for the home had just come out, they always seemed to pale in comparison to the kind of games that were available in the local arcades that were springing up at that time.  I don’t remember what our first home game system was called, but it basically had three different versions of pong.  Don’t ask me why, but the pong where we each had two paddles was called “Hockey”.  Go figure.  The only other thing I remember about the system was that it came with a big red pistol with which we were to shoot the frantic bouncing pong square as it ghosted across the screen.  Looking back, it seems crazy that we were so fascinated by the movement of those simple white squares.  But there began the hunger for a weekly trip to the quarter consuming video game arcade.

Actually, the predecessor to the arcade was probably the local pizza joint or gas station. In those days, the owner would invest in only one game, usually Pac Man or Asteroids, and then tuck it away in some dark corner of the store in hopes of generating a little supplemental income.  There you were sure to find a gaggle of spastic adolescent boys in hooded sweatshirts with fingers flying in the flickering light of the newest release from Bally.  I hate to think of how much money I spent wasting away the hours jockeying that joystick at our local 7-11, the left hand wielding the big red ball and the right franticly pounding the dirty white button.  But the sticky soda pop soaked floors of the gas station soon gave way to a slew of locally owned and operated video arcades.

I’ll never forget when they opened the first “Play Land Arcade” in my hometown.  Looking back, it was little more than an abandoned laundry mat that someone had gutted so they could make room for a dozen or so games and line them up against the back wall.  We didn’t care that the drop ceiling was covered in water stains and that only half of the fluorescent lights worked.  And though the owner was a scary beer swilling troll who spent his day watching a little black and white TV in the closet he called his office, every Saturday we would somehow find our way to what we fondly esteemed as a veritable Mecca of entertainment.  As long as none of our quarters got stuck in the machine and the bill changer was working, we would try desperately not to disturb the surly oaf.  But if his skills were required, only then would we be left with no choice but to hasten the beast from its lair.  As he knelt down to open the little door that revealed the magical compartment holding all the change, we would do our best to avoid gazing upon the part of his anatomy that would be revealed as, like clockwork, his tool belt would prove too much weight for his dirty jeans.  Some images are just too vivid to suppress.

Nonetheless, titles like Galaga, Donkey Kong, and Centipede will always hold a special place in my memory.  Not because they were great video games, but because they represent a simpler time of life.  Though I’m fairly confident most gamers would contend that modern video arcades have drastically improved the public gaming experience, I will have to respectfully disagree.  In short, we’ve been visually over stimulated and thus no longer appreciate the value of a good ol’ 2D game requiring only basic hand eye coordination and a little imagination.  Besides, who needs tickets, tokens, and a boat load of cheap junk in a glass showcase?  Give me a monochrome monolith like the ones in the old arcades any day.  If you’re trying to find a good list ofvideo arcades, visit www.arcadepages.info/

Arcade Pages is a nationwide directory of video arcades and California video arcades

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Basic fishing tackle consists of a rod, line, hook, bait, lure, and sinker, all of which are specially designed to be as easy to use and accurate as possible. For example, the line is made up of a cord specially manufactured to be very hard to detect underwater while being very strong. Factors to take into account when buying a new line include issues such as resistance, the stretch, its strength and suchlike. The line should be chosen after considering the size and species of the fish that is to be caught.

The sinker, otherwise known as a plummet, is a weight that aids in getting the bait and hook as far out into the water as possible from wither the shore or a boat. Hooks are available in a wide variety of sizes, shapes and materials to suit each person’s individual fishing style.

Baits and lures are the other essential elements of any fishing tackle arsenal. The lure is an object that looks and moves like the prey of whatever fish you’re aiming to catch. Once the lure has done its thing, the fish will turn its attention to the bait, which is the prey element the fish will go for. The lure and bait work in tandem to ensure you get a good catch. The bait can be natural, such as maggots or insects, or man-made materials. As with everything else in fishing, a successful catch is down to having the best fishing tackle at your disposal.

The Two Best Fall Bass Baits

Because people fish in so many different ways and most have a favorite way to fish, picking just two baits from the hundreds is difficult.

This is not an article for “experts” or people set in their ways. It’s for the guys and gals who just like to fish and sure would like to go out sometime and catch a whole bunch of fish.

The best time to do that is during the fall, especially here on Barkley and Kentucky lakes, as well as on most other lakes on this general latitude.

Spring is when most people who don’t fish every weekend think about wetting a line. Being cooped up for most of the winter has a lot to do with that. And spring is a great time to fish because bass and other game species are moving shallow where they become more vulnerable to the average fisherman.

During the fall, however, game fish again move shallow, but for a very different and important reason: During the spring, their primary motive is to spawn. During the fall, all they’re thinking about is putting on their winter fat.

All those little fish they spent so much time making and guarding during the spring are nothing more than delicious, bite-sized morsels during the fall, and the truth is, they don’t care who made them.

These bait fish of various species, but mostly shad around here, travel around in tightly-packed pods that can number in the thousands. There is some safety in numbers, but this natural instinct also makes it much easier for bigger fish to find and attack them.

Because the food these little fellers eat is found on or near the surface, these massive groups of synchronized swimmers are silhouetted against a clear sky like a flashing neon sign that says “eat here.”
There is no more predictable pattern at any time of year. I’d be hard pressed to pick just two baits that I would call best for the spring, but during the fall I can do so with great confidence. These baits not only are the best, they are designed to be fished in a way that anyone can master in a few minutes, regardless their experience.

One is a Rat-L-Trap. You can fish just about any size and color of this lipless bait, and the other similar baits by other manufacturers, and catch some fish, but by far, the best size is a one-quarter-ounce with chrome sides and a blue back.

And you can fish it a few different ways, but by far, the best way is to bring it back about as fast as you can. They are wind resistant and very easy to cast long distances on either baitcasting or spinning equipment, using 10- or 12-pound test line.

The other is a Mepps or Rooster Tail in-line spinner, again in one-quarter ounce. Choose the whiter or lighter colors. Sometimes, when it is overcast, those with a gold blade work better, but bass and other game fish bust minnow pods most frequently when it is clear, so in-line spinners with a chrome blade are best.

In contrast, in-line spinners are best fished slowly, just fast enough to make the blade rotate, and the best equipment to cast them is a spinning outfit with 10-pound-test line. It, too, is very easy to cast long distances and all you have to do is bring them back slowly and steadily. If you bring them back slowly, they won’t twist the line, either, so you don’t need a swivel and all those extra knots that could break. Just tie them directly to the line.

You may have noticed that you can fish both baits quite well on a spinning outfit with 10-pound-test line, and that’s really what I’d recommend, but I’d like to stress that the reel you choose should have a fast retrieve rate of 6-1 or better for the Rat-L-Traps. For this bait, speed kills, and you can always slow down for the in-line spinners, if that is what the fish prefer.

These two baits are so great, because they closely resemble the action, color, flash and size of the young-of-the-year minnows, especially during October and November, when this kind of fishing is at its peak.

With just one rod and two simple baits, you can go out and catch fish all day long by simply moving from pod to pod. These pods not only are highly visible and attractive to gluttonous game fish; it is simple for a fisherman to see which ones are being ravaged because of the splashy surface shows these game fish perform as they tear into them with predatory exuberance.

It may be not only the easiest, but the best fishing of the year.

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Sand Eels As A Fishing Bait

Sand Eels

An eel-like fish which swim in large shoals, that’s the sand eel. They are abundant and an important part of the fish food chain. The sand eel is a bait fish that every one bait fishing knows about but I believe few realise the potential of. Sand eels often catch more fish than any other bait, just ask the guys down south or in Wales.

Exactly why the sand eel is such a popular ‘bait fish’ amongst the predators in the sea is hard to know. It seems to account for most species when used as bait especially the likes of Bass, Mackerel, Pollack Garfish, Trout and even Salmon.

The sand eel can be fished in several different ways and are normally best fished as a ‘live bait’. It can be hooked through the mouth – up through the head, through the back, through the tail or through the skin on the kneck. I don’t think personally it matters too much how the hook it set as long as the sand eel stays alive and looks natural. Different species of fish will attack and take a bait in various ways.

Finding sand eels can sometimes prove hard but by asking about in your own local area you might find a boat, or tackle shop that can supply you. Otherwise it means gathering your own. The effort in gathering your own is well worth it because of the effectiveness of this great bait!

The best methods to present sand eels are by using them under a float or on a long snood on a bottom rig. The hooks most folk use are often circle hooks for bottom fishing and normal single or triple hooks when fished under a float. Sand eel will catch most of what we call our ‘sporting’ fish in this country, especially the infamous Bass.

A ‘best buy’ for keeping your sand eels alive is a bait bucket, there are one or two very good ones available from good tackle shops. The Salt Bucket by Shakespeare at around £18.00 is ideal for your live sand eels utilising an aeration pump. It has it’s own pouch for an aerator pump, has a lid which helps to keep the sun from cooking your eels and also stops them from jumping out! It can also be used for storage of baits such as crab, ragworm and lug worm. It’s easy enough to wash it out and it is also collapsible. You can pick up a battery operated pump for around the £9 mark. Sand eel will quickly die if not kept in oxygen aerated water but do watch the temperature as you don’t want your hard efforts ending up as cooked fish!

You can keep sand eels in tanks at home but it does get rather involved and I aren’t able to go into the method here. Any eels that do die on you, then freeze them down and be sure NOT to let any stay in your bait bucket if they are dead as they WILL kill off the others.

Bass is thee sporting fish in British Waters now and has certainly captured the imagination of a lot of anglers over the last few years. Most of the anglers I know love spinning for them using poppers, plugs, feathers or spinners and some are even starting to fly fish for them. Another very successful method used for Bass fishing in particular, is dead bait spinning and this is a method I would highly recommend.

There are a lot of benefits to using this method. You need to present the sand eel like you would a popper or plug, as an injured fish, nothing too hard in that and you get scent, colour, look and feel as an added bonus. Presenting them like this gives you the same options as using poppers etc, you can move about searching for your Bass whether it be along a surf beach, among rock gullies or between sand banks.

Just mount the dead eel on your hook by passing the hook through it’s mouth and making sure the hook comes out through it’s stomach and use a bit of elasticated cotton to secure it…simplicity itself.

There is another method and that is to wrap the sand eel in a slice of squid and secure the squid with a bit of elasticated cotton, leaving the head and tail of the sand eel protruding. This method helps to protect the eel and it should keep a lot longer on the hook before having to change it. Use a small weight on the end of your line, you can get small spinning weights which prevent the dreaded line twist. A hook snood as long as possible to comfortably use to a decent sized hook, add your bait, most species have larger mouths than we tend to give them credit for and away you go.

Remember that Bass are a ‘sporting’ fish and as such are used to chasing their prey. They will often be found round rocks, on the downside of a sand bank waiting for their next meal to show itself. Don’t be afraid to vary your retrieval rate, you would be surprised at the speed bass, mackerel etc can move at. You will often see a ‘swirl’ next to your bait as you retrieve, don’t stop, keep the retrieve the same, if the fish doesn’t hit your bait straight away, stop the retrieve for about 10 seconds then start again, this is when a bass will often take.

Sand eel is an excellent sea fishing bait.

Happy fishing.

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This article will outline the five most sought after saltwater game fish. It will outline strategies you can use to locate and catch them.

The Snook inhabits much of the state of Florida. You can find Snook primarily in inshore areas. You will rarely catch a Snook if you are fish a far distance from a shoreline. The absolute best area to fish for Snook is in and around docks.

Snook can be caught on live bait and artificial bait. If you are a live bait fisherman there is nothing better than a lively pinfish or large shrimp presented in an area the Snook inhabits.

Because you will be fishing dock area you need to have a rod that will allow you to initially horse the fish away from the potential hazard rather quickly. If you fail to do this and allow the fish to take your line into the obstruction you will surely lose the fish. Snook are extremely intelligent fish that know their surroundings. They can and will use any piece of terrain they can to remove a hook from their mouth.

The barracuda is a fish that requires a great deal of care when you angle for them. When you look at one the first thing you will notice is their impressive rows of large sharp teeth. You immediately realize you need to gear up with a wire leader to prevent line breaks.

You can catch barracuda in many different places. In Northern Florida for instance they are most commonly found offshore near fish wrecks and other areas with some form of cover. As you travel south and enter the Florida Keys you will often find Barracuda inshore. It is not uncommon to see a Barracuda as large as four to five feet swim right up to your boat.

You can of course catch Barracuda with live bait. You should use bait that is definitely large than you would for a Snook. The most exciting way to catch a Barracuda however is with a topwater lure. The lure of choice for Barracuda resembles an eel. It is light green in color, generally a plastic tube about twelve inches long with three sets of sharp treble hooks. When you retrieve this lure it swims across the surface of the water resembling a snake or eel. It really has great action. The only difficulty about fish with this method is setting the hook too soon. You will often see a Barracuda swim behind this lure and follow it for a short bit before striking it. Be careful to wait until he hits the lure before you set the hook.

Redfish can be caught almost anywhere in the inshore areas of the Gulf of Mexico. They are very popular in Louisiana, Texas and of course Florida. You will find them in many of the same areas as Snook and yes like Snook they are experts at using terrain to cut lines.

One habitat unique to Redfish is the grassy flats. I like to fish for Redfish in areas of water that are one to three feet deep.

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