momay4000

Also very good points. Come to think of it - I filleted only one steelhead this past year (over 10#) but it was absolutely loaded with alewives. I think therewas 9-10 in there. Maybe they are just eating more of them?

Pete - your point is an excellent one. Either the alewives now have some sort of a genetic deficiency causing them to have higher levels of thiaminase than they did before, or the high levels of thiaminase are coming from something else (i.e. bacteria, a virus, etc). - Chris

Yes - they work great. Get the mediums for mono on planers and the heavy ones for 3/5/7 color lead cores. I use the large Scotty power grips for ten color cores and copper. Good luck, Chris

Awesome....just awesome Good luck this year YT, Chris

Listen - I'm not trying to be an a-hole here, but could you please enlighten/teach me how this works? Do the dogs hunt the coyote and fight it to the death or do they simply chase it down, tire it out and you shoot it? Your dogs look a little bloody in the picture. Disclaimer: I am an avid hunter/outdoorsman and by no means a PETA activist/tree-hugger and I dislike coyotes as much as the next guy, but I'm just trying to understand what's going on in the picture. Thanks, Chris

Oh man - that's terrible. Honestly, I do not launch at Mayer's any longer as his dock is too short for my 22' boat, and I no longer moor on D-dock after the finger pier broke off in 2009 b/c of his ****ty welds which resulted in $2,000 in damage to my boat when the pier broke off in a wind storm (still connected to my boat) and my boat was pushed into the rocks on the south end of the bay near the public launch. I moor on A-dock near the sailboats, so I pray that there's no rocks in that neck of the woods. Thanks for the heads up! Chris

Yikes. Do you mean south of the gas dock in the area that they often mark off as "shallow water"? You cannot cut west after you launch b/c of his catwalk. His catwalk to D-dock is too low and any boat with a bimini or hardtop cannot get through so you are forced to go through the channel between C and D docks. There are no obstacles or rocks in the channel south of the launch in between C and D docks that I am aware of.

This is fantastic advice and well worth the money. Good luck, Chris Disclaimer: I am not a charter captain - only an amateur weekend warrior.

Where are the big rocks in front of the I-Bay launch? I launch there every year and have never seen or hit a big rock near the launch. Thanks for any advice you may have, Chris

http://www.guns.com/2012/07/11/do-rifled-choke-tubes-improve-slug-accuracy/ Interesting article on this. Personally I won't shoot anything other than a fully rifled barrel shotgun with sabots but take a look at this article. I think you'd be making a mistake by firing sabots out of a smooth bore barrel, regardless if you have a rifled choke on it. I'd stick with rifled slugs in your gun and shoot it through standard cylinder or an IC choke. I posted a similar article in another post regarding the tumbling of sabots when shot out of a smooth bore barrel. Chris

Cool video - nice little crowd of people gathered to cheer you on. Thanks for sharing, Chris

You will have several issues: 1.) Low water level makes his ****ty launch even ****tier. There's a significant drop off from his short ramp and it's almost impossible to launch a 20' or bigger boat this time of year b/c his dock is also too short 2.) He often stores all kinds of junk boats and other junk which can block the ramp this time of year and I'm not sure anyone will be in the marina to answer your call ahead of time this time of year to verify if it's clear. Do yourself a favor and launch at the county launch since it's only about 200 yds away now that the swing bridge is back in place. - Chris

All three are great scopes are good for a shotgun - and I own all three makes - but I prefer the Leupold VX-1 for my shotguns in 3-9x40mm as I think it is the best at low light. Here's a few things to consider: 1.) Shotgun/muzzleloader scopes are not marketed to be "more rugged" or more "shock resistant" to mount on a shotgun. They are labeled as shotgun/muzzy scopes b/c they have paralax adjustments built into the scope for closer range shots typically within 100yds (which is the typical range for a shotgun). The scopes for shotguns also typically have more eye relief. 2.) Contrary to popular belief, the objective lens diameter, i.e 33, 20, 40mm doesn't really have much to do with field of view, but more to do with how well the scope will function at low light. A 40mm will look brighter (called exit pupil) than a 20mm lens but both will have similar field of views at similar magnifications. 3.) Also, pay attention to what reticle you prefer. My newer Leupold shotgun scopes in 3-9x40mm have the thicker crosshair reticle which I also like. My Nikon has a BDC reticle which i do not like for shotgun hunting. This is personal preference, but I prefer crosshairs for deer hunting. Any of the three makers mentioned above are great, but for my money i think the Nikon or Leupold are brighter and function better at low light. Good luck, Chris

Awesome deer. Thanks for sharing Chris

Thank goodness for this post. Cheers, Chris

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