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Outdoors
Trying new methods on fish
Several years ago, someone
started Ashing the plastic worm
without a weight, keeping it just
under the surface and started catch
ing lots of bass.
Some people credit Doug Han
non of being the First to Ash worms
without weights, while others in
different parts of the country say
someone else started the practice. I
don't really know who started the
craze, but the Slugo was bom.
Since then they have been made un
der different names, with a little dif
ferent shape, all doing the same
things—catching big bass.
Personally, I first heard of this
type of Ashing eight or nine years
ago. Susanne and I were Asking a
tournament and not having a lot of
success.
A friend of ours, who was also
fishing the tournament let us in on
what they were doing. They were
fishing a weighted bubble gum pin
Culprit worm rigged with no
weight and jerked it give the worm
a snake-like action just under the
surface.
What did we have to lose? So,
we tried it.
At first, I felt like it was a waste
of time and only half heartily paid
any attention. That was until a Ash
about three pounds sucked it in and
took off with it. By the time I real
ized it was a bass, it was too late
and the bass spit the worm back at
me.
It didn't take a second time for
me to be made a fool of, once was
plenty. Well, in just a short while
we caught the tournament limit of
five bass and missed twice that
many.
A lot of times we do things try
ing to get an edge on the fishing.
This was one of them and, several
years after discovery, someone put
it on the market. A little different
look or technique in using them,
but the idea is the same—some
thing different to offer, an edge.
This is the way a lot of new
baits are bom and put on the mar
ket. The Carolina rigged is proba
bly the best known. As far back as
the early 70s this technique was
used.
The first time I ever saw it was
on Clark Hill. I didn't pay a lot of
attention to it, except to use it oc
casionally. Some 10 years later.
Jack Chancellor won a B.A.S.S.
tournament using them and the rest
is history.
The soft jerk baits come in a va
riety of colors and sizes. Susanne
and I prefer the Zoom Trick Worm
in yellow or gray ghost color, the
melhoilate color is good in dirty
water, but we have not had the suc-
Composting helps improve garden soil
As a gardener, the soil is your
most precious resource.
The type of the soil you have
will determine both what kinds of
plants will grow well for you and
what kinds of soil improvement
programs you'll want to undertake.
As we enter the gardening season
full force, I thought that you might
need to be reminded of some of the
basic tenets of successful soil man
agement.
The structure of the soil and the
soil pore space determine how well
water moves through the soil and
how easy it is to work. Good struc
ture develops when sand, silt, clay
and organic matter in the soil
clump together, forming a loose,
crumbly mass.
A good topsoil, for example, is
made up of about half minerals
(sand, silt and clay) and have pore
space. Half of the pore spaces
should be made up of large pores
filled with air, and the other half
small pores that hold water.
Sandy soils have too many large
pores, which makes them drain well
but not hold enough water. Clay
Georgia parks offer plenty of fishing for all
If you and your young ones are
fishing for some great outdoor ex
citement this summer, take a few
minutes to team more about the ac
tivities offered at the 55 lakes and
streams located within Georgia's
State Parks.
The parks have made it easy for
everyone to take advantage of the
many lakes and fishing sites located
throughout the state. Whether
you're a beginning fisherman or
have spent much of your life reeling
them in, the parks have a great deal
to offer.
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Fishermen are always looking for a new edge In catching fish. Once the edge Is
found, look for It to soon hit the market.
Gone L
EfPlFishing I
1 Jf Susanne Andel
cess that we have had with the other
colors.
Ranger baits, Riverside Lures
and S&S Distributors only scratch
the surface of manufactures of the
famous Slugo-type baits. They all
look basically the same, but each
one has its own claim to fame.
Tim 1
Lewis
Ag. instructor, H
Perry High School
soils, on the other hand, have too
many small pores causing them not
to drain well enough, waterlogging
the soil.
One thing that will help im
prove the structure of any soil,
sandy or clay, and that is organic
matter.
Organic matter can be chopped
leaves, grass clippings, wood chips,
manure and vegetable parings, but
compost is the ideal -soil condi
tioner. So plan on adding plenty of
organic matter to your soil by
working composted organic matter
into the soil wherever practical.
To make a compost pile, start
with a layer of brush to hold the
pile off the ground and aerate it, and
be sure the pile is in full sun so it
In addition to hosting annual
fishing tournaments, the parks offer
daily bank and boat fishing.
Before you begin packing up
your gear, rent one of three fishing
videos produced by the Department
of Natural Resources. These infor
mative features give children and
adults a preview of the joy that can
be gained through fishing:
* "First Time Fishing" presents a
delightful view of a young boy's
first fishing excursion with his
older sister. In addition to defining
some of the terminology and
Fishing the soft jerk bait is easy
once you get the rhythm down.
Cast the jerk bait into the cover and
let it sink just under the surface.
Then give it a couple quick jerks,
rest a couple of seconds, then give
it one jerk and let it rest.
Use this technique all the way
out of the cover and a little beyond
because sometimes bass will follow
the bait out before they strike.
Variations are always good to try.
We usually hook the jerk bait
like a regular Texas rigged worm,
except we will put a little bend in
between where the top of the hook
will heat up more quickly, then pile
on alternating layers of slow-decay
ing materials such as leaves, wood
chips and sawdust, and fast-decaying
materials such as grass clippings,
manure and food wastes.
Finished compost looks just like
the dark, almost black humus you
find under the layer of leaves on the
forest floor. It has little odor.
There are three tricks that will
Carbon/Nitrogen
|ratios of composting "S#
materials -Ji
Cornstalks 60:1
Fruit wastes 35:1
Grass clippings 19:1
Leaves 40:1 to 80:1
Ilk Hay 25:1 M
Manure, rotted 20:1
Paper 170:1
Sawdust 500:1
•Jp* Straw 80:1
scraps
equipment associated with fishing,
the video touches on "fishing eti
quette" and the importance of rules
and regulations.
* Fishing holds many pleasures
for different people. Explore a few
of the meanings it could hold for
you in "The Pleasures of Fishing."
* If you need a practical and in
teresting view of helpful fishing
techniques, "Fishin' Fun" covers the
basics of many aspects of fishing.
Learn about common fish found
in Geprgia, and get hints on bait
and other fishing equipment that
Hoik ton Times-Journal
goes in the worm and where the
point goes in the egg sack.
Some people hook the worm
through the egg sack, making a
large "U." But, we have found this
tends to cause the worm to twist
the line.
This is a good technique to catch
those bass while they are in the
shallows during the spawn. Re
member to release those bedding
bass, so there will be more for the
future of fishing.
Until next time ... we've gone
fishing.
speed up the composting process:
I—put materials through a
shredder or chipper before adding
them to the pile. Leaves can be
chopped with a lawn mower.
I —Turn the pile every seven-to
-10 days. This brings more oxygen
into the pile, which serves as fuel
for the millions of micro-organisms
that are actually breaking down the
organic materials at high tempera
tures of 100 plus degrees.
3 —Layer in a variety of materi
als so that the overall carbon to ni
trogen ratio is close to 25 or 30:1.
Use the list of carbon/nitrogen ra
tios to determine the ratios of the
materials you have on hand.
To learn more about home com
posting, be with Bill Hafley and me
at the new Compost and Recycling
Center this Saturday, April 9, and
next Saturday, April 16.
We will try to answer your
composting questions so that you
can start your own pile or make the
one you have more successful. See
you there!
can make fishing fun and afford
able.
Contact the Film & Video Unit
of the Georgia Department of Natu
ral Resources at 404-657-9851 for
information on free loans or pur
chase of one or all of these videos.
A free catalog is also available.
Persons 16 and older are re
quired to have a valid Georgia
Fishing License to fish in any of the
state parks' lakes or streams. A
fishing license may be obtained
from discount stores, regional fish-
Please see Parka, page 7A
Saturday, April 9,1994 “Houston Times-Journal
Page 6A
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•The following fishing re
port is compiled each
week by the Houston
Times . Journal. Lake,
weather and fishing con
ditions are reported by
telephone from contacts
listed at the end of each
report. If you would like
additional lakes or rivers
listed, please call the
newspaper at 987-1823. If
you would like a free picture of a catch you are proud
of printed in the paper, we will be happy to shoot and
publish the photo.
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SOLUNAR TIMES LUNAR TIMES
1994 A. H. P. M. Longitude 83.44 Latitude 32.28
JUI Minor Major Minor Halor Sunrlae Bunaet Moonßlse Moon Up Moon Down
1 Tue 08:17 02:03 08:45 02:31 07:01 06:30 10:58p 03:32a 04:00p
2 Wed 09:20 03:05 09:49 03:34 07:00 06:31 04:28a 04:57p
3 Thu 10:22 04:08 10:52 04:37 06:59 06:32 12:05a 05:27a 05:56p
4 Fri 11:23 05:08 11:52 05:37 06:57 06:32 01:09a 06:25a 06:53p
5 Sat 12:01 06:05 12:19 06:33 06:56 06:33 02:07a 07:22a 07:50p
6 Sun 12:44 06:57 01:11 07:24 06:55 06:34 03:00a 08:17a 08:43p
7 Mon 01:33 07:45 01:58 08:11 06:54 06:35 03:47a 09:09a 09:34p
8 Tue 02:18 08:30 02:42 08:54 06:53 06:35 04:28a 09:59a 10:22p
9 Wed > 03:00 09:12 03:23 09:35 06:51 06:36 05:05a 10:45a ll:08p
10 Thu > 03:41 09:52 04:03 10:14 06:50 06:37 05:38a ll:3ua 11:52p
11 Fri > 04:23 10:33 04:44 10:55 06:49 06:38 06:10a 12:13p
12 Sat N 05:05 11:15 05:26 11:36 06:48 06:38 06:41a 12:55p 12:34a
13 Sun > 05:48 11:59 06:10 12:01 06:46 06:39 07:12a 01:38p 01:17a
14 Mon > 06:34 12:24 06:56 12:45 06:45 06:40 07:44a 02:21p 01:59a
15 Tue > 07:23 01:12 07:45 01:34 06:44 06:40 08:18a 03:0Sp 02:43a
16 Wed 08:13 02:01 08:36 02:24 06:43 06:41 08:55a 03:51p 03:28a
17 Thu 09:04 02:52 09:28 03:16 06:41 06:42 09:34a 04:38p 04:14a
18 Fri 09:56 03:44 10:21 04:09 06:40 06:43 10:18a 05:27p 05:02a
19 Sat 10:49 04:36 11:14 05:01 06:39 06:43 11:06a 06:17p 05:51a
20 Sun 11:40 05:27 12:01 05:53 06:37 06:44 11:59a 07:07p 06:42a
21 Mon 12:04 06:17 12:30 06:43 06:36 06:45 12:55p 07:S9p 07:33a.
22 Tue 12:53 07:06 01:19 07:32 06:35 06:45 01:55p 08:51p 08:25a
23 Wed 01:40 07:53 02:06 08:19 06:34 06:46 02:59p 09:43p 09:17a.
24 Thu 02:26 08:39 02:52 09:05 06:32 06:47 04:04p 10:35p 10:09a
25 Fri > 03:12 09:25 03:38 09:51 06:31 06:47 05:10p ll:28p 11:01a
26 Sat > 04:00 10:13 04:27 10:40 06:30 06:48 06:18p 11:54a
27 Sun F 04:52 11:06 05:20 11:33 06:28 06:49 07:28p 12:21a 12:49p
28 Mon > 05:49 12:01 06:18 12:04 06:27 06:49 08:38p 01:17a 01:46p
29 Tue > 06:52 12:37 07:21 01:06 06:26 06:50 09:49p 02:15a 02:45p
30 Wed 07:57 01:42 08:28 02:13 06:24 06:51 10:56p 03:15a 03:45p
3j.Thu 09:04 02:49 09:34 03:19 06:23 06:51 04:15a 04:45f.
Major=2 hours/Minor=l hour Accuracy to 1 minute
vindicates peak activity.
Solnoir Services, lac. HOT I. loro«n It., liikville, II 41173
Freshwater forecast
Blackshear Lake: Lake is at the normal level, but it is
a bit dingy. Bass fishing is a little slow; but, white
perch is being caught around the cypress trees.
Marion Stewart, Camper’s Haven.
Jackson Lake: The lake is at its normal level and it's
clear. Crappie are hard to catch, and hybird fishing is
slow. However, Bass are being caught in good
numbers. Van Kersey, Kersey’s Marina.
Oconee Lake: Lake is at a normal level and is clear.
All fish are being caught, with crappie and hybirds
fishing well. Bass and bream are going to the beds.
Jack Branyan, Lakeview Bait and Tackle.
Seminole Lake: Lake is at normal level. However,
the lake is muddy from debris. Speckled bass and
shellcrackers are hitting; but the bass are a little slow.
Jack Wingate, Wingate’s Fishing Lodge.
Sinclair Lake: The Lake is at a normal level. Lake
clarity is split with the lower end being clear; but the
upper end and Little River being dingy. Fishing is
doing better than good. In addition to bass, crappie
and hybirds, catfish are being caught using flattail
worms and cutbait. Crappie are being taken with
minnows off the treetops, while bass are being caught
with spinnerbaits and crankbaits along the shorelines
in the back ends of pockets and back in the grass
beds. Hybirds are gathering in sizeable schools and
are being caught using crankbaits. Glen Colwell,
Little River Park.
Lake Eufaula: The lake has risen a foot, but is still a
foot below normal. Bass are being caught in shallow
flats and in dropoffs. Look for them to hit from one foot
to 10 feet deep. Bass are being taken with chartreuse
and white Carolina rigs. Crappie are up in the creek
channels and points. They are being found in five-to
eight feet of water using minnows and jigs. Hybirds
are being caught using RatL traps and white jigs.
They are being found on the surface to 10 feet deep.
Charles Ingram, Tom Mann’s Outdoors.
West Point Lake: Lake is down around two feet. The
temperature is 60 degrees, with the water being
muddy. Fishermen are catching smaller bass in the
shallows; but, the larger largemouth bass are still in
the secondary and primary points. For shallow fishing,
spinnerbaits or Carolina-rigged lizards are doing the
job. Crappie are moving out of the creek channels.
Best bet, troll with grc Ar> or yellow jigs or live
minnows. White bass are being taken with the
hybirds, which are being caught near the dam on live
bait or bucktail jigs. George Marovich, Highland
Marina
Plastic Moon Time Calculator available.
Send $5.70 to: Moon Time Calculator, SPR Sports,
_ P.O. Box 177, Mound, MN 55364
ociaoNan
Fishing forecast
Moon times
Hannon’s best hunting and Ashing days and hours
SOLUNAR/LUNAR TIMES
Perry Georgia Area
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