May 25th, 2011 West Erie County, DWCO Randy Leighton, rglerie@msn.com Have a Safe Holiday Weekend: As always, a reminder that alcohol and boating can be a bad combination. Fines and penalties can be stiff for those boating under the influence. not to mention the danger to yourself and the lives of those around you. The penalties for operation of a watercraft while under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance could lead to a fine of not less than $500 nor more than $7,500, or imprisonment not exceeding two years, or both, plus the loss of boating privileges for a period of 12 months. Homicide by watercraft while under the influence carries a fine of not less than $2,500 nor exceeding $15,000, or imprisonment of no less than three and no more than seven years, or both. In addition to the offenses described above, operating a watercraft under the influence may also violate other laws. These may include prohibitions against reckless or negligent operation of boats, public drunkenness, disorderly conduct and underage drinking. Its just not worth taking the risk. How to fish a Tube Jig: Insert a light (1/16 - 1/8 oz.) lead head jig with a 2/0 spring wire hook into the inside of the tube, pushing the jig's eye through the top of the tube. Cast the bait letting it spiral down like a dying baitfish. Fluorocarbon line can be helpful with Lake Erie and the bay being extremely clear. Jumbo tubes in the 4 1/2" to 5" length are popular for those anglers targeting a trophy fish. The larger tubes require a larger lead head jig. Let the bait fall on slack line but be aware of your line at all times. Any movement of the line will indicate a strike while it is falling. Reel down, and with a snap of your wrist, set the hook. If the bait reaches the bottom, gently raise your rod tip until you feel the bait. Do this two or three times and if it feels funny, set the hook. If you do not feel anything after the two or three lift and drops, reel in and repeat the process. Use tube jigs while searching for large or small mouth bass in the shallows In and around Presque Isle Bay, try rigging it weedless by using a Shaw Grigsby High Performance hook in the 2/0 size with a small weight inside the tube. Use as light a weight as you can get away with without losing the delicate feel of the tube bait (Lighter weights in the Bay and heavier in the Lake). Fish the tube bait around docks and brush or any other available cover with no weight, the slow fall will drive bass crazy. Out in open water for smallmouth, fish the outside edges of large deep weed lines or large weed beds. As the day progresses, throw a weedless tube rig inside the weeds as bass tend to go deeper in the weeds as the sun rises. Tighten your drag down for a better hook set. Once the fish is away from cover let off on the drag and let the bass tire itself out. The advantage of a longer rod comes into play here as it does the work of tiring the bass so you can land it. Use different styles of lead heads ( round, darter, and chicklet are a few) to do different kinds of fishing with the tube. Each one produces a different type of fall. There are many different types of plastics used in the process of making tubes. Use a soft plastic for open water fishing and a harder type for cover fishing such as brush and Lilly pads. There are also many different colors to use but stay with the basics of greens and browns (pumpkinseed, motoroil, black with speckles, olive are all popular) for imitating crayfish and clear or pearl with metal flake colors for imitating baitfish. These are not hard and true colors, but day in and day out, produce the best. Fish for Free Days Copies of the Anglers Summary booklet can obtained at most area bait and tackle shops and at the Walnut Creek Access office free of charge. The Erie area offers a bonanza of fishing opportunities for the new angler. Plenty of shore fishing is available to new anglers along the Bay Front Highway on Presque Isle Bay as well as much of the shore line at Presque Isle State Park. Fish for fee days are the opportunity for the inexperienced angler to try his luck as well as a great opportunity to introduce a friend to fishing. This is also a great opportunity to get that spouse involved as well. Local Weather: Wednesday Night...Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Not as cool with lows in the lower 60s. Southeast winds 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 50 percent. Thursday...Mostly cloudy. Showers and thunderstorms likely...mainly in the afternoon. Highs in the upper 70s. South winds 15 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70 percent. Thursday Night...Showers and thunderstorms likely. Lows in the lower 60s. South winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70 percent. Friday...Showers likely. Also a chance of thunderstorms. Highs around 70. Chance of rain 70 percent. Friday Night...Cloudy. Showers likely with a chance of thunderstorms in the evening...then a chance of showers after midnight. Lows in the mid 50s. Chance of rain 60 percent. Saturday...Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the lower 70s. Chance of rain 50 percent. Saturday Night...Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the upper 50s. Chance of rain 50 percent. Sunday...Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 70s. Chance of rain 30 percent. Sunday Night...Partly cloudy. Lows in the lower 60s. Memorial Day...Partly cloudy. Highs in the lower 80s. Monday Night...Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 60s. Tuesday...Mostly sunny. Highs in the lower 80s.
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