Why in the world would I choose to snell a hook?

There's gotta be some sense of it, but .  .  .

Well, there is a good reason in my mind and it has to do with big girl striper gill plates.  These girls can pull drag for more than a hundred yards in a heart beat.  Any knot attachment of leader to hook that leaves globs of unprotected line around the hook eye can be nicked by a gill plate.  Most of my hook ups are in the corner of the mouth.  The hook eye pulls back along the plates as the striper runs.  So, the snell affords more protection for the leader, plain and simple, as based on my experience.  This is striper fishing at it's best during the fall at Kiptopeke are in the lower Chesapeake Bay.

For smaller fish, almost any knot will suffice.  Unlikely that a snell is practical to tie on the water with cold fingers.  Thus, I snell hooks before the fishing adventure and stow them on plastic noodle tubes.   I load the hooks in a clockwise direction with a marked starting point.  Then, unload them in the reverse.  The long leader is coiled around the tube and the loop end is pressed into a slot cut in the bottom of the tube.  I can load about 6 tubes in a small lock top plastic box for the boat.  The gummy on each hook is to prevent the hook from looping back into the herring and shad baits.  For the big girls, I use eels hooked through the shout and the gummy is not needed.

I've used the old fashioned method for years without knowing or needing to change.  But, the fingers and the vision don't work well anymore.  The following video by Tom Richardson from the webb is expertly done and simple to follow.  Thanks Tom!

http://www.newenglandboating.com/fishing/video-quest-for-the-perfect-snell-knot.html

For months, I've researched and practiced snelling with a tool, with tubes, and I always go back to the old fashioned means described in the "quest for the perfect snell knot".  I have about a 90 percent success rate that produces the coils in the snell to be perfectly aligned.  But, the hook point on Gamakatsu circles makes the tie very difficult.  The line twists and catches on the hook point while I'm making the wraps.  Other times, the point is into my fingers.  Trying to show others is near impossible.  So, the above video does it.

Yet, I wanted a method that kept the point away from the line twist (it must twist as the coils are made around the shank of the hook).  OK, let's make the snell from the eye end of the hook.  It works!

1.  Tie a loop in the end of the leader.




2.  After ya tie the loop, cut the length of leader ya want plus about 15 inches for the snell.

3.  Feed the tag end through the hook eye and pull the leader loop to the eye.




4.  Make a huge loop so the tag end protrudes beyond the curve of the hook about 5 inches.




5.  Ya pinch the cross over of the line against the shank of the hook, leaving the eye as far as possible       from the pinch.  Be sure  the tag end is above the knuckles.




6.  As in Tom's video, it's difficult, but imperative that the line wrap start near the eye and the coils          wrap toward the curve without overlap on the hook shank.  Should be about 8 wraps, depending on the #s of the leader.




7.  Keeping the snell coil/wraps held tightly between the fingers (thumb and forefinger), hold the tag        end and also put the leader loop on a peg and pull until the mess of loops in the leader pass                  between yer finger/thumb pinch.  Yes, it feels like there's a tangle near the end of the pull, but it          usually pulls through.  Ya may have to fiddle with the loops that form to help them pass.

    Caution: The loops that form can gather and catch the hook to make a series of not wanted half           hitches.

   

8.  Pull the tag end and the loop simultaneously to tighten the snell and assure that it slides along the        shank to the hook eye.  The loop is still on the nail, isn't it?




9.  Trim the tag end and yer done.








Caution again:  If ya let the tag end fall into the loops (by not keeping it on top of yer hand or letting the loops that form when pulling the line under the wraps grab the hook) the result will be more like the "easy snell" where the leader is locked one or more times by a series of half hitches.  I don't like the lock and feed the line back out of the lock as many times as needed so the tag end exits the coils in a straight line along the shank.

Guess the next presentation will include some kind of video to explain my method, NOT.  Time to get back to making my sonar produce fish arches.  One day I'll have baits and actually fish?

More time on Lake Anna with electronics?

Wasn't the best day, nor the worst - but .  .  .
Made it to the lake again on this August 3, 2015.  Likely a great day to most as the boat traffic wasn't all that bad, sunny, light winds, clear skies, but forecast late afternoon T-storms.  I launched about 3 PM not intending to stay long, but wanted to look up river past the 208 bridge.  This bridge is considered mid-lake by the coastguard.  Also, I wanted to get screen shots along the way.  The plan was to get the Lowrance echo looking right on display.

The following shot is taken from the Simrad nss7 evo 2 as I'm motoring out of Rockland Creek.  Bottom lock 2X on the left and normal on the right.  The depth was much too deep, set at 60 feet.  Would have been better at 30.  The stacked arches on the right are supposed to be white perch.  The larger solo arches on the bottom are likely catfish.  Lots of other small fry in the shot.

Somewhat similar to the above shot, but this one shows lots of individual small fish arches and a bait ball in the center of the shot.

Still further out the creek toward the main channel, lots of stacked white perch and maybe catfish?

Out in the main lake now and the depth vs the display is more reasonable.  Seems like mostly stacked white perch.  Definitely not stripers of any size.

The following shot is at 20 mph and while interesting, likely still stacks of white perch.  Lots of individual marks (the orange vertical dashes).

In this shot, I'm slowing from 20 mph to about 3 mph.  Some larger fish, but unlikely stripers.

I might guess that the arches at 30 feet on the bottom to the right in the shot are dormant stripers.

This could be interesting, but more likely white perch as I slow from 20 mph to 3 mph.

 The magnificaiton makes this stack of likely white perch look massive!  Yet, I'd like to think it is dormant stripers tightly packed.

Well, that's enough of the Simrad chirping the TM150.  In my opinion, the detail is incredible.

Trying echo on the Lowrance HDS 9 touch gen 2 with the HST wide angle ducer didn't look good.  I would like more of the heavy center glow .  .  . 200 khz!  Maybe I have to try chirping the HST.  Reconnect the network cable, allow networking for both the Simrad and Lowrance?  Mapping sure would be useful when displayed on the Simrad as it is on the Lowrance. :)  Of course, with a Lowrance HDS 12 gen 3, I could have it all on one screen and eventually have 3D structure. :)  Yet, don't have the gold for such procurements.

Trying a different pallet at 83 khz.  The 4X might indicate these arches are quite small fish and unlikely stripers.

 The below shot might have given a lot more information if I had the depth adjusted properly.  Maybe I need to do an auto setting.  Obviously there's stuff in the water column as it's easy to differentiate between the interference.

Not sure why the interferrence is so intense below the boat on the right.  Still lots of stuff in the water that echo might identify.

 In the following shot, slowing from 22 mph to 3 mph.  The structure maintains bottom, but has too much garbage to be useful for me.  For info, the display is moving down so the new stuff is at the top and the history is at the bottom.  With a map of Lake Anna, it is simple to find where the boat is.

 The horizontal dashes are interferrence that I can't resolve.  Maybe a power line behind the dash.  The battery is isolated electrically for both hot and ground.  The same interference occurs with the start battery connection. However, this is a great structure shot as there is bait below the boat and obviously off to both sides.  Much too deep for cast net.  Yet, this might have been a small school of larger fish.  Only the echo knows for sure.  I'm thinking I should look at this area again.

Well, that's my water story for this trip.  Hurried back to the dock and called Mel to meet me.  Her arrival was just as I reached the dock.  She had a container of ice water to quench my thirst.  Held the boat to the tiny dock while I backed the trailer.  I've learned to keep the boat and trailer close enough so I can step without losing my balance.  Of course, I have my inflatable PFD on when ever I'm boating solo.  So, I get the boat on the trailer, Mel cranks the bow to the stop, and then pulls the trailer onto the lot.  Meanwhile, I take care of some stuff on the boat and climb off, Mel closes the gate and drives her Honda to the house.  Always great to have a spouse that helps with the boat and rushes to get dinner each evening.

I always forget something and today it was to reconnect the isolated battery charge line before I got off the boat.  Earlier, I remembered that I hadn't installed the bilge plug.  OK, I remembered that I put it in the previous day when I didn't get on the water.  Whew, need a written check list when I'm doing stuff solo.  I did record the screen shots to the storage media before I left the boat, likely a first! :) This is not a simple task per Navico engineering.  The Simrad water proof micro SD is hard for aged fingers to pull from the slot and maintain in possession.  Easy for the tiny gadget to drop to the floor, etc.  The Lowrance isn't much easier, except that the SD is standard size.  Still difficult to extract from the compartment.  Maybe I need a tool to help?

I've had trouble with the guide ons bending forward and back from minor collisions with the boat.  At home, when I was on the ground, I found that both are nearly broken off from cracks.  Need replacements before both fall off the trailer.  Better get them taken off the trailer today!  Did an on-line Overland order as the guide-ons were on sale.  Also ordered the LED lights for the top of the guide-ons.  I saw the clear lens, but also a picture of the lens with red rear and amber front.  Hope it comes with both.

Maybe get on the water tomorrow.  Need to make a trip early in the morning to view the differences in fish.  Or, go back to the dam area where I've seen some great display of something on echo that looks like inactive large stripers!  Might have to visit Fish Tales with my minnow bucket so I can have baits while headed toward the dam or dike 3.

Another afternoon in sweltering 95 heat . . .

OK, I launched the boat solo and went toward the                                   Dam.
Most things went OK after I mowed the weeds in the yard.  Got to the launch and the gate was open.  The gate doesn't keep the launch private anyway as Rockland Creek is a gated community?  Headed out the cove and the Simrad Chirping the 150 shows incredible amounts of small fish.  My objective today is to try the HST wide angle ducer in single frequency or chirp at 200 or 83.  Looked in a familiar area up river from the dam and found marks.

Don't have a clue what they are, but there were lots of fish!  Not sure what ducer I was using and may have networked the HST at 83 to the Simrad for this shot.

The next 2 shost must be the TM150 on Medium chirp of marks in the same general area.

Needless to say, I had my toothache in the water and hit bottom with it and started the jig.  After some time, I examined the toothache and recognized the manufacturers protective tubes on the hook points?  Yep, took a few minutes to get the toothache hook freed from the protective tubes.  Kept trying to motor back above the marks and let the wind drift me back, but only had one of something that may have been a snag.  Broke off just before the surface.  Likely a rope, etc.

The Lowrance structure kept going into pause, so I turned the networking off.  Still happened, so I disconnected the ethernet cable.  Must be something in the software that isn't set right.  Also, I see lots of dashes that extend beyond the bottom and are not fish marks.  Seem more like interferrence, but I'm not sure how or what.  The source battery for the electronics was isolated at the time and I disconnect the onboard charger so there can't be any feedback through the Trolling Motor.  Yet, I wasn't using the trolling motor?

Seems like there's a Gen 3 HDS12 in my dreams!

Well, I know the Simrad works just fine with either the

On the water again . . .

       Made it to the lake again, but on a Sun?
What a terrible day to try a water trip.  Friday was bad enough with horrendous boat traffic, but Sunday?  Beautiful weather and everyone wanted on the lake.  Even the Rockland Creek parking lot at the ramp was so full of parked cars that I could hardly manage the launch.  The newly taped back up camera on the topper window helped.  Again, I backed the trailer close enough to the dock to step across to the boat.  This day, I wasn't into fishing, though I did take one down rod and a casting rod along with my tackle box just in case.

Again, ran the TM 150 with medium chirp on the Simrad with the networking turned off.  Ran structure and navigation on the Lowrance.  I'm sure I can't run the HST-USBL wide angle transducer and the TM 150 simultaneously even though each is on a separate display.  Identical signals are involved.  Structure operates on a different frequency than the TM 150 or the HST wide angle (I call it broadband).

These shots were at various locations.  On some, I tried to toggle the coordinates in the screen shot by bringing the cursor on screen.  Then, toggling the "clear cursor" to go back to the active scan.

Lots of small fish in shallow water, some larger on the bottom in the above shot.  The lower shot shows much larger fish, but not deep enough to be stripers.  OTOH, could be fish feeding on a broken bait pod?  Surprised the surface temp is quite high at 89.1 degrees.

In the lower shot, the boat is slowing as there's too many marks in the column.  No clue as to what kind of fish, yet, in a depth zone that could be catfish or stripers.  Notice the drop in surface water temp.

More marks (lower shot) at higher speed and slowing to reveal what is obviously white perch due to the stacking. Some larger marks on the bottom are likely catfish.

The lower shot was made to show the GPS coordinates.  Pretty shallow and likely catfish.  Some stacking that might be white perch.

The lower shot may be feeding stripers as the depth seems right and the surface water temperature seems lower.

The lower shot was taken to show the GPS coordinates of the above shot.

I decided to shut the TM150 medium chirp off and see what the HST-USBL wide angle echo on the Lowrance HDS9 gen 2.  Obviously, I needed lots of tweaking to get arches that mean something.  However, I see some things I wasn't seeing with the TM 150.  The fish marks are on and show the depth of each fish.  I see the thermocline at 30 feet.  The shot is magnified (lower left says 2X) and the actual is shown in the narrow window to the right.  Other settings are shown in the far right window.

I think the above and below shots are consecutive with the lower showing the GPS coordinates.  Might have moved on a bit while trying to get the shot recorded.

Obviously a bait ball with GPS coordinates and magnified 2X.

Nothing needs no explaination in the above shot.  The lower shows what might be some pretty large fish?

Well, that's it for the report of the Sunday screen shots report.  Have to do a lot of tweaking on both units to make good use of the data.

At the dock, I got the boat tied up and backed the trailer close to the dock.  Could have stepped across and hauled the boat out, but Mel said to call for her help, so I did.  She arrived with a cup full of ice and a can of Lemon O Rita.  Took about two swallows to finish the liquid and then the trip to the house to devour the ice.  At the house, I looked in the SD card case and the micro for the Simrad wasn't in it.  Had to ask Mel to get the card from the desktop and bring it to me.  Wives are wonderful!  She puts up with a lot of my shit, that's for sure.

I might get the drain fitting on the bait tank resealed with caulk and fill it today with our well water.  I'll add a tablespoon of calcium chloride and 3 cups of rock salt, a tablespoon of "shad keeper" and let the aeration run over night.  Need to get an aquarium thermometer so I can compare the shiner temp with the bait tank.  Trying to keep several 2 liter bottles frozen to help with the bait tank temperature.  Yet, my diabetes insulin shipments contain many gel packs that I should be freezing to use as they should be much more efficient than water.  Maybe fill the 2 liter bottle?

Updated the Lowrance and now for the Simrad!

      At first, if ya don't succeed, try again?

So, I looked at the Simrad website and learned that I had to take the unit to a dealer who would do the update.  What?  OK, asked Mike Smedley and he had other words of wisdom.  "Watch my youtube link".  OK, that explained how to get the update and install it.  Almost identical to the Lowrance except the update isn't zipped and other things.  Also learned that I need to turn the network off on both units to help prevent cross talk between the units that changes the settings.  Also learned that I can't just change the ducer cable and continue.  I have to select the proper ducer in the settings.  Guess everyone knows the setup routine except Joy! :(

Yeah, still got issues with the iPad as it keeps looking for the home wifi until I turn the gofree on at the boat.  Range is too limited to use the iPad in the house. :(  Still trying to learn how to connect to my Home wifi hotspot and get downloads as needed?

Thought I had a fishing appointment with Marcus and Nathan, but .  .  .

I was up at 5 and got my shit together and all loaded on the boat.  Wanted help, but .  .  .   Had 10 gallons of fuel, but didn't think I could lift it for the fill.  So I didn't.

To make a very long story short, Marcus and Nathan didn't show at my place at 6, or 6:30.  Went the dock and launched the boat solo at 7.  Sent several text to Marcus.  Sat and waited till 7:45, still no Marcus.  So I went for fuel.  Not easy since I can't walk far.  Took 26 or so gallons, near $100. The 10 gallons I had in the truck wouldn't had done the job.  Still need to check the oil.  Still no call from Marcus, so I went for shiners.  Did Marshall Creek, both ends of the island  (Jets)  at the state park, and dinked around all day.  Caught one dink striper about 10 inches and 5 catfish.  Tossed 'em all back.

Only got one screen shot recorded.  Don't recall the settings.  The red bloom came and went on the display, maybe algae bloom.  Lower left seems like fish on the bottom.  Arches obvious with yellow centers meaning larger fish?The long streaks might be fast moving small stripers feeding on small stuff.  My intent was to try to see the down sinkers.  I think I see them in this shot at 22, 25, and 30 feet as I had 3 moved up to the front rod holders.  Well, maybe.

A very frustrating day for me. 

Guess Nathan and Marcus will have their story .  .  .

Finally did a Lowrance update on my own?

               Did a Lowrance update solo?

Well, not quite as I had to go to several web sites and learn. The quest was updating the Lowrance HDS 9 touch Gen 2 with 4.5-52.1.75-standard-1.  Not as simple as it sounds because an error might require the unit to be returned to the factory to restore it's operation.  The previous update had me hauling several units to Green Top to do the deed.  This time, I went to www.Lowrance.com and then selected "support" to list the updates.  Selected the one above and got the zip file on my desktop.  Tried to load the new update, but got nowhere.  Back on the internet and learned that the file must be opened rather than zip.  OK, that was simple, but .  .  .  I see 2 files being saved on the SD?  Can only be 1.  Finally I realized that the zip opened in a folder.  Opened the folder and then copied the file to the SD.  Put the SD in the Lowrance and turned it on .  .  .  success!

Hopefully Bill Fowler and Jamie Peoples will make a visit this week.  But, Bill is busy with his garden and a new bait tank.

                                                           Bills dove Kill Zone

                                                     Bill's new bait tank

               Gummy to stop herring and shad hook back.  Hook snelled with the tool that follows.                                                    Sometimes works, sometimes don't.

                        Tool for snelling hooks and other line joinings when tired eyes and fingers fail.

Old Neptune given a new life . . .

The Neptune finds a great home and will learn to do Lake Anna                                           Stripers.

Pete in his pre-Neptune float 2014

Pete DeSario bought the Neptune Sunbird a few weeks ago and has been working on it to put it to good use as a fishing/family boat.  Unfortunately, he put his outfit for sale and it sold immediately!  The boat sat for a looooong period and had lots of motor work and other clean up.  Still some oil injection and other electrical gremlins, but he is competent to do the needed work.

Pete make other modifications as shown in the photos.

Hard to believe it's the same boat that left my house.

Pete added the rear rails for his own rod holder layout.  Looks great!

Looks like Pete made a special base for the Trolling Motor and also cut the rails away.  More rod holders up front too.

He says he's still working on installing the electronics, but on the lake today, July 4th, likely giving the family a taste of what fishing will by like?  

I can hardly wait to see photos of his first catches from the new to him Neptune.

Meanwhile, I'm off to try and install or repair the backup camera on the F250 that died a few weeks ago.  Can't hitch the trailer to the truck without one these days.