WEBVTT

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It's the Terrible at Fishing radio show on Gold

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Country Radio. Here's your fishing expert and

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host, Michael Raffino. Welcome back to Terrible

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at Fishing, everybody. Well, I hope you enjoyed

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your Fourth of July weekend. It was a warm one.

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It was beautiful. The parade downtown was really

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cool. Veterans Park was packed. And I'm sure

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all the lakes were too. So, July and August.

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Two of my favorite months to go fishing. Now,

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this year I can't drive, but it doesn't mean

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my heart's not out on the lake. Now, why is July

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and August my favorite months of fishing? It's

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because I'm a bass fisherman, mostly. and the

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bass are a warm water fish. I know. And in July

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and August, we got warm water. Lakes are like

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75 degrees surface temp. It's awesome! And what

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happens with warm water fishing? Well, the bass

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come up and they're feeding on the surface. And

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we're going to talk a little bit about how to

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catch a bass really quick. And if you've never

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caught a largemouth or a smallmouth bass, you're

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in for a fight. And you're in for a show. That's

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what's so beautiful about going topwater fishing

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this time of year. When you go topwater fishing,

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you get to see the bite from the very beginning.

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Because the bait is on top of the water and the

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fish breaks what we call breaks surface and grabs

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that bait and so you get to see it from the very

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beginning and the fight in between and then of

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course the end when you land the fish. This is

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probably, ask any fisherman, this is probably

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the best experience when it comes to fishing,

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is to see a fight from beginning to end. And

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topwater fishing, well, topwater fishing is the

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best. It really is. So we're going to talk about

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a few different lures to use on the top of the

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surface of a lake. So first, we're going to probably

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talk, yeah, we're going to wait for, we're going

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to talk about the two hardest lures to use later.

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so The first lure is probably the easiest lure

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because it's very visible to you and to the fish

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and It's got the funniest name and it's called

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a whopper plopper. I know Whopper plopper a Whopper

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plopper is a bait that floats on top of the water

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and has a spinning tail It's got it like a propeller

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on the back of the tail And as you pull it, you

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activate that propeller. The propeller on the

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back of the bait creates agitation in the water

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like a motor on the back of your boat. It will

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agitate or cavitate. Cavitation is where the

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propeller is up at the surface and it's just

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splashing. And that's what this is doing. You're

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the propellers cavitating or agitating that water

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and creating a bubbling sensation as you pull

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it through. Now the neat thing about this is

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why it's the easiest for any bait for you to

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use is because anybody can use it from a child

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to an adult. You can toss this out there and

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it flies through the air. They actually do really

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really well. to cast. So you can cover a lot

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more surface with a whopper plopper, and then

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your retrieve speed is activating the propeller.

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So when that propeller activates, just reel it

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in at that speed. It's easy. It's basically a

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lesson on fishing all wrapped up in a lure, and

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it's called a whopper plopper. Do they work?

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Absolutely they work! Whopper ploppers are very,

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very effective baits. Really effective baits.

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There's different designs of them and stuff like

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that. But this bait right here, you know, a Whopper

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plopper, will guarantee, I mean, to be honest,

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these are fantastic. Now, how's the best way

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to fish topwater? The bass like shallow water,

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and they like cover. So, what you want to do,

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and a great thing, too, about top water fishing

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is that you could toss it right over submerged

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branches and trees, because you're fishing on

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top of the water. And those bass are going to

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come out of that cover and hit this now. Let's

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say you get a big one and they hit it. What are

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they going to want to do? They're going to want

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to dive. Well, this is where you get to see the

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bite right at the very beginning. Right when

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they go up and then they descend, that's when

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you set the hook. So when they go up and then

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when they start to descend, set the hook. And

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then you need to keep your tip up and keep them

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up on top of the water. This is real important,

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as you're going to see in lots of other top water

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fishing, is that if they go down and I'll tell

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you a story about two years ago. I was at Lake

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of the Woods and I was using a seven and a half

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inch wake bait. Yeah, no big, big, I mean that

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was only three, three and a half inches and so

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twice this length. It's a big giant bait that

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I make. Big old giant bucket mouth breaks surface

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on it. It had to be at a double digit. He broke

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surface and I was ready. I set that hook really

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hard on him. I didn't really have to do too hard

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because I use really sharp hooks. Then he dove

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down into the tree. I should have controlled

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it better. So I set the hook perfectly. I was

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ready, except I didn't keep the fish above the

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tree. He went down into the tree underneath the

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water and he was able to use the branches to

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dislodge the bait from its mouth. Bass are one

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of the smartest fish that you will ever fish

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for. I mean, they're just smart. And the big

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ones, they're big for a reason. I mean, yeah,

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we catch and release. We really, I mean, you

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don't keep your bass. I mean, it's just, you

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measure, you weigh it, and you put it back. And

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take a picture, of course. And that's what you

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do with bass. I mean, it's a sport fish. They

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taste great, by the way, but if you keep a double

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-digit bass that you didn't damage on accident,

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most fishermen won't like you they just won't

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so that's where you know you really got to control

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the fight and if you you know yeah I still think

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of that moment you know how I could have done

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it different what I did do on that seven and

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a half inch bait is that I that week I bought

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sharper hooks now I was using really good hooks

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on that bait, but I went sharper and a different

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design of hook. And then I put in a slightly

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larger hook. I think I had a 1 .0 and then I

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went with a 1 .0. So with a slightly larger hook,

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different design, Gamakatsu, and so if I catch,

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you know, It would give me a better chance at

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landing that fish. And that's the thing. Bass

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are violent fish. Big, giant mouths like this.

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And they do this. They shake. They shake like

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a crazy thing. And by shaking, it's creating

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some momentary slack. your line. That's why you

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got to keep your tip up and keep it tight. They're

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trying to shake that hook out of its lip. This

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is where, I mean, it's just fun is what it is.

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So this thing is just shaking. Big ol' Giant

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Bucket Mouth. Little mouths have a harder time

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removing a hook. Alright? Little Mouth Fish.

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That's why they're easier to catch like trout

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and pan fish but a large mouth I mean, I mean

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it's it can have an 8 -inch mouth on it and it's

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just violently shaking that that hook out of

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its mouth. That's why you really got to plan

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it right and practice practice practice. But

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they love shallow and cover. Now, the best way

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to fish is from a boat or a raft or something

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like that. Cast towards the shore. Smallmouth

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bass love to hug shorelines. They love to hug

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the shorelines. So, you're going to be out about

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100 feet and you're just going to cast, you know,

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or 50 feet or 75 feet or whatever. You're going

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to cast that lure within a foot of dry dirt.

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and you're going to pull this lure from three

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inches of water out over between you and that

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cast. And what will end up happening at about

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half distance between you and the shore, a smallmouth

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will hit this. If you are shooting for a largemouth,

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smallmouths are better fighters. All right? They're

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better fighters. They have to be. They've got

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smaller mouths. Large mouths can get bigger.

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Yeah, a lot bigger than a smallie. Well, we call

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a smallie a smallie. Typically, if you catch

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a two -pounder in that range, that's a great

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small mouth. It really is. Biggest one I ever

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caught is, you know, three and a half pounds.

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I mean, that's a big smallie. And I caught it

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at Lake of the Woods. Lake of the Woods has great

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bass fishing, really good bass fishing. And what

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I usually like to use when I catch smallmouths

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is what's called a wake bait. A wake bait is

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also a hard bait, but with a lip that goes straight

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down. And what that does is it creates exactly

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what it says. A wake and a nice V wake. So, again,

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with a whopper -plopper, activate the propeller.

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That just retrieves speed. With a wake bait,

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create a V on the top of the surface of the water.

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You know, a V like in a wake. Once that V is

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created, that's your return speed. That's your,

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you know, that's the speed you want to reel it

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in. And you can pop it a couple little times,

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try to create some little bit more agitation.

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But when you retrieve a wake bait, you only want

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to retrieve it to create that that V of a wake.

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You don't want to retrieve it any faster. As

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soon as that V happens, that's your retrieve

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speed. I've told you time and again that it's

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not what you throw and where you throw it. It's

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how you pull it back. Presentation is crucial

00:13:31.009 --> 00:13:36.590
to catching fish. Understanding your bait and

00:13:36.590 --> 00:13:41.929
its speed of retrieve to activate its best action

00:13:41.929 --> 00:13:46.049
is the most important thing when it comes to

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fishing. It really is. It could be a worm or

00:13:53.990 --> 00:13:57.809
anything like that. Its presentation is very,

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very important in the water. Hard baits want

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to be retrieved at a certain rate of speed. And

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a wake bait, what you want to do is just create

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that V. Just create the V and then pull it across.

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and use a very small finesse, you know, quarter

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ounce or lighter bait and throw it out there.

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And you're going to throw it towards the shoreline.

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Smollies love hugging the shoreline. Really like

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to hug the shoreline. It's amazing. The swimmers

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at Lake of the Woods, because it's a good swimming

00:14:43.049 --> 00:14:45.889
lake, you know, they'll be swimming and I'll

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catch a fish. a smallmouth 20 feet from them.

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They have designated swim areas that fishermen

00:14:55.429 --> 00:14:58.970
cannot fish in, but the rest of the lake, I'm

00:14:58.970 --> 00:15:04.009
sorry, I'm going to throw a bait near you. I'm

00:15:04.009 --> 00:15:06.570
a very good caster, so you don't have to worry

00:15:06.570 --> 00:15:10.169
about me catching you, but you'd be surprised

00:15:10.169 --> 00:15:15.990
with swimming around your feet. And that's a

00:15:15.990 --> 00:15:18.970
fish that I want to catch so stay tuned we're

00:15:18.970 --> 00:15:23.049
gonna continue talking about Very specific ways

00:15:23.049 --> 00:15:26.490
of topwater fishing so stay tuned and we'll be

00:15:26.490 --> 00:15:38.830
right back after this message This is Dave Dave

00:15:38.830 --> 00:15:42.419
makes the tastiest burritos in town but Nobody

00:15:42.419 --> 00:15:45.960
knows I exist. I'm serving culinary masterpieces

00:15:45.960 --> 00:15:49.440
to my mom and a raccoon named Dennis. Then came

00:15:49.440 --> 00:15:51.740
Jenny. Dave, have you tried radio? Radio? Isn't

00:15:51.740 --> 00:15:54.059
that for traffic reports and late night alien

00:15:54.059 --> 00:15:56.519
talk? It's also for thousands of people who don't

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know you exist. Yet, radio is affordable, reliable,

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and it works. Not instant burrito fame, but people

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start showing up kind of results. So I partnered

00:16:11.799 --> 00:16:15.539
with Gold Country Radio. And now, people know

00:16:15.539 --> 00:16:18.740
I exist. I've got new customers, catering calls,

00:16:18.940 --> 00:16:20.659
and Dennis brought a possum. I think they're

00:16:20.659 --> 00:16:23.240
dating. I told you. Radio gets your business

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heard. Next up, we a second table. Maybe indoor

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seating. Want to get your business heard? Visit

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goldcountryradio .org and click contact to get

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started. Radio, small budget, big reach. real

00:16:37.539 --> 00:16:41.659
results. Out in the backwoods under the stars,

00:16:42.200 --> 00:16:47.039
I turn in the radio from my old car. Go country

00:16:47.039 --> 00:16:51.480
radio on Friday night. Terrible at fishing but

00:16:51.480 --> 00:16:56.000
it feels just right. Okay welcome back to terrible

00:16:56.000 --> 00:16:58.379
at fishing. We're going to continue warm water

00:16:58.379 --> 00:17:05.279
fishing and we've already covered a whopper plopper.

00:17:07.299 --> 00:17:15.720
wake bait and my favorite small mouth bait to

00:17:15.720 --> 00:17:22.220
use is combining kind of both those and it's

00:17:22.220 --> 00:17:25.819
called a whopper. I call it a whopper plopper

00:17:25.819 --> 00:17:30.140
popper. Okay, we haven't talked about poppers

00:17:30.140 --> 00:17:36.440
yet, but a popper is a bait with an open mouth.

00:17:36.839 --> 00:17:41.740
And so, when you tug on it, it splashes forward.

00:17:42.680 --> 00:17:45.200
So it's got an open mouth, and when you tug on

00:17:45.200 --> 00:17:50.079
it, it splashes forward. And this tiny finesse

00:17:50.079 --> 00:17:54.240
bait has a propeller on it. And it has holes

00:17:54.240 --> 00:17:58.640
in the propeller. So it creates more bubbles

00:17:58.640 --> 00:18:03.900
behind it. And so, basically, I can use this

00:18:04.039 --> 00:18:07.700
as a popper, a whopper, plopper, a wake bait,

00:18:08.039 --> 00:18:13.380
anything I want. And this tiny little bait gives

00:18:13.380 --> 00:18:17.259
me three different presentations to get to capture

00:18:17.259 --> 00:18:21.000
a fish. So I could just pull it straight to me,

00:18:21.099 --> 00:18:24.180
and if indeed that propeller is doing its job,

00:18:24.759 --> 00:18:30.920
great! I can pop it, creating a forward splash

00:18:30.920 --> 00:18:37.160
on it, if that catches me a bait fish awesome

00:18:37.160 --> 00:18:42.539
and I can swim it basically on top of the water

00:18:42.539 --> 00:18:49.299
creating both a wake and a bubble trail on it

00:18:49.299 --> 00:18:54.279
a whopper plopper popper it's fun to say isn't

00:18:54.279 --> 00:18:57.720
it whopper plopper but whopper popper plopper

00:18:57.720 --> 00:19:00.980
whopper plopper pop I don't know anyway I like

00:19:00.980 --> 00:19:05.660
this bait I've never seen one in the stores.

00:19:06.079 --> 00:19:11.480
I paint these and I just love them. Now typically

00:19:11.480 --> 00:19:14.599
if I see some children out there and I've got

00:19:14.599 --> 00:19:18.880
some extra ones, you know, I'll give them to

00:19:18.880 --> 00:19:24.380
some kids. One time at the Aspen ramp I saw a

00:19:24.380 --> 00:19:27.759
little boy getting in the boat with his parents.

00:19:29.960 --> 00:19:32.420
He had a fishing pole and he was tossing it off

00:19:32.420 --> 00:19:35.640
the dock there. So I went over to him because

00:19:35.640 --> 00:19:39.339
I was going to take a break and I says, you know,

00:19:39.420 --> 00:19:41.980
I was talking to him and saying hi to his folks.

00:19:42.759 --> 00:19:46.500
I says, do you mind if I give him a bait to catch

00:19:46.500 --> 00:19:49.000
some smallmouth? And they were like, really?

00:19:49.200 --> 00:19:53.599
Smallmouth? I go, oh yeah. So I get his line

00:19:53.599 --> 00:19:57.960
and I tie on a whopper plopper popper. And I

00:19:57.960 --> 00:20:00.920
told him, I says, cast it right over there by

00:20:00.920 --> 00:20:03.960
those bushes. It was just on the other side of

00:20:03.960 --> 00:20:07.359
the ramp. I go, just toss it over there, and

00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:11.480
I go and do a steady retrieve in. So he toss

00:20:11.480 --> 00:20:14.920
it once, and I'm teaching him, I says, okay,

00:20:15.380 --> 00:20:18.519
faster, stop. I go, that's the speed. Now do

00:20:18.519 --> 00:20:22.900
it again at that speed. second cast he made a

00:20:22.900 --> 00:20:25.299
really good cast right where I thought there

00:20:25.299 --> 00:20:30.460
was some fish and within a second a smallmouth

00:20:30.460 --> 00:20:34.680
jumped up and hit it and he reeled it in and

00:20:34.680 --> 00:20:38.279
his parents go how did you do that I go it's

00:20:38.279 --> 00:20:42.700
all about presentation about you know the baits

00:20:42.700 --> 00:20:48.299
that I make and so had a great time kid had a

00:20:48.299 --> 00:20:52.200
great day that's a tiny little bait. We use it

00:20:52.200 --> 00:20:56.460
on an ultralight or a light rod and with very

00:20:56.460 --> 00:21:01.119
light line. I use fluorocarbon. I don't like

00:21:01.119 --> 00:21:07.019
monofilament. But this is really the way to do

00:21:07.019 --> 00:21:12.180
it. And that's a Whopper Plopper Popper. So let's

00:21:12.180 --> 00:21:18.039
talk about a popper. Poppers are a hard bait.

00:21:18.879 --> 00:21:24.539
with an open mouth. Big open mouth. Okay? And

00:21:24.539 --> 00:21:27.599
when you toss this out there, you're just going

00:21:27.599 --> 00:21:30.940
to tug, tug, then you're going to splash, splash,

00:21:31.339 --> 00:21:34.740
splash, splash. That's what you're doing. Splashing

00:21:34.740 --> 00:21:39.019
it, splashing it, splashing it. And you can let

00:21:39.019 --> 00:21:45.640
it sit. Let it float. Splash, splash, sit. Splash,

00:21:45.880 --> 00:21:50.509
splash, sit. try to vary it, you know, one, two,

00:21:50.549 --> 00:21:57.049
three splashes, and let it sit. And a popper,

00:21:58.470 --> 00:22:01.190
you know, this is hard to see because it's green,

00:22:01.250 --> 00:22:03.650
but you know, I got green screen on on the video

00:22:03.650 --> 00:22:10.809
here. A popper is a great, great bait for lots,

00:22:10.869 --> 00:22:15.859
for anything that hits surface. And They come

00:22:15.859 --> 00:22:19.019
in all different sizes. You know, the bigger

00:22:19.019 --> 00:22:24.900
the bait, the bigger the fish. Now, I will tell

00:22:24.900 --> 00:22:31.099
you, I mean, what we've covered so far, the whopper

00:22:31.099 --> 00:22:33.920
plopper, the wake bait, the whopper plopper plopper,

00:22:33.960 --> 00:22:37.480
and then a popper. These are all beginner baits.

00:22:37.480 --> 00:22:43.000
These are easy, easy baits to have anybody catch

00:22:43.000 --> 00:22:46.900
a fish. and catch a lot of them. And you're thinking,

00:22:47.039 --> 00:22:50.839
Mike, why would I go with anything else? Because

00:22:50.839 --> 00:22:54.619
there are a few more options for topwater fishing.

00:22:54.960 --> 00:22:56.640
And you're thinking, well, how many baits can

00:22:56.640 --> 00:23:01.180
there be? But there's a lot of them. And again,

00:23:01.500 --> 00:23:05.579
you want shallow water over cover. or as close

00:23:05.579 --> 00:23:08.359
to the shoreline as you can for those smallies.

00:23:08.720 --> 00:23:11.319
Smallies, they don't necessarily look care for

00:23:11.319 --> 00:23:14.099
color cover. I mean, they like it, but they don't

00:23:14.099 --> 00:23:16.859
have to have it. They could be on a hard pack

00:23:16.859 --> 00:23:20.799
bottom and you don't even see them. I mean, because

00:23:20.799 --> 00:23:24.279
of that that yellowish green sort of blends right

00:23:24.279 --> 00:23:27.119
into the water. So a lot of people, they don't

00:23:27.119 --> 00:23:31.319
see what's by their feet. But this is, a popper

00:23:31.319 --> 00:23:35.279
is an easy bait to just tug, tug, tug, sit. Tug,

00:23:35.319 --> 00:23:39.640
tug, tug, sit. And just bring it into you. This

00:23:39.640 --> 00:23:44.960
is a great, great, great bait. Again, topwater

00:23:44.960 --> 00:23:51.339
baits. Now, all right. All right, I'm going to

00:23:51.339 --> 00:23:58.160
show you my seven and a half inch wake bait.

00:23:59.129 --> 00:24:03.670
and a seven and a half inch wake bait. These

00:24:03.670 --> 00:24:06.769
are my sharpest hooks that I put on here. So

00:24:06.769 --> 00:24:11.650
I put hook keepers on it. So these are the sharpest

00:24:11.650 --> 00:24:17.450
hooks money can buy. And so on these, these hooks

00:24:17.450 --> 00:24:22.369
are very expensive by the way. I spend about

00:24:22.369 --> 00:24:28.309
$3 a hook on these. But this particular bait,

00:24:29.299 --> 00:24:33.000
jointed, double jointed, seven and a half inches.

00:24:33.119 --> 00:24:37.220
I have them painted several different ways. This

00:24:37.220 --> 00:24:44.480
one's more of a rainbow trout sort of, you know,

00:24:44.700 --> 00:24:49.140
coloring. And it's got that big lip that's facing

00:24:49.140 --> 00:24:52.319
down. This thing right here you control very

00:24:52.319 --> 00:24:57.400
slowly. And, I mean, nice thing about this bait

00:24:58.139 --> 00:25:01.140
you're limiting your catches to one pound on

00:25:01.140 --> 00:25:07.079
fish. So I've actually had smaller fish at this,

00:25:07.079 --> 00:25:13.180
but most of the time it's a big fish. But with

00:25:13.180 --> 00:25:17.339
a big bait like this, because this weighs about

00:25:17.339 --> 00:25:22.539
two ounces, you can't throw this on most rods.

00:25:22.900 --> 00:25:28.190
You need a heavy rod. you know, a rod that has

00:25:28.190 --> 00:25:33.690
a heavier action and thicker line. You really

00:25:33.690 --> 00:25:36.849
do. You cannot, you can't throw this on a trout

00:25:36.849 --> 00:25:39.829
rod. You just can't. You're going to have to,

00:25:39.829 --> 00:25:44.849
and then you wonder why bass fishermen have lots

00:25:44.849 --> 00:25:48.589
of rods is because, you know, we have little

00:25:48.589 --> 00:25:52.349
baits, we have medium baits, we have heavy baits,

00:25:52.349 --> 00:25:57.420
we have frogs, which we'll talk about, but this

00:25:57.420 --> 00:26:02.759
next bait, this next bait, is an advanced bait.

00:26:03.660 --> 00:26:07.779
This next bait is what we call a spook, or a

00:26:07.779 --> 00:26:12.000
walking bait, and this one's had so many fish

00:26:12.000 --> 00:26:17.259
on it. This one's had so many fish on it, and

00:26:17.259 --> 00:26:24.589
a walking bait It doesn't have feet. I know this

00:26:24.589 --> 00:26:28.890
is radio and I'm also recording this. So if you

00:26:28.890 --> 00:26:31.190
go to my YouTube channel you'll be able to see

00:26:31.190 --> 00:26:34.990
the video of it. A walking bait is an advanced

00:26:34.990 --> 00:26:37.089
bait. You're going to throw this out there and

00:26:37.089 --> 00:26:40.789
they cast forever. So these things cast a mile.

00:26:40.849 --> 00:26:44.269
They have a weight transfer system within the

00:26:44.269 --> 00:26:49.789
hard bait and it causes it to just travel. then

00:26:49.789 --> 00:26:52.910
what you do is you're going to tug, tug, tug,

00:26:52.910 --> 00:26:55.710
tug. What ends up happening when you're tugging

00:26:55.710 --> 00:27:00.569
the tip, flicking the tip of your rod, is that

00:27:00.569 --> 00:27:03.970
the bait shoots back and forth on top of the

00:27:03.970 --> 00:27:07.069
water. Back and forth, back and forth as you

00:27:07.069 --> 00:27:09.609
tug, tug, tug. It takes a little bit of practice,

00:27:09.869 --> 00:27:17.940
but when you get it, walking baits, You know

00:27:17.940 --> 00:27:23.339
and I've got huge ones This is a 180 but this

00:27:23.339 --> 00:27:27.539
is not a huge one. I've got really big ones and

00:27:27.539 --> 00:27:30.039
You're gonna walk it on top of the water and

00:27:30.039 --> 00:27:32.660
it's just boom boom boom back and forth back

00:27:32.660 --> 00:27:35.140
and forth back and forth then it's creating a

00:27:35.140 --> 00:27:37.680
splashing action do and it's going back and forth

00:27:37.680 --> 00:27:42.460
and then if you know a fish sees that and just

00:27:42.460 --> 00:27:47.569
Just is What we call a walking bait or a spook

00:27:47.569 --> 00:27:52.690
these things right here There's they're killer

00:27:52.690 --> 00:28:00.470
These things are so cool and You know, I think

00:28:00.470 --> 00:28:04.190
I've got oh I got it. Oh, yeah, I've got a much

00:28:04.190 --> 00:28:10.809
bigger one here. I have a lot of walking baits

00:28:10.809 --> 00:28:16.710
and Walking baits are just and here's a much

00:28:16.710 --> 00:28:24.509
bigger one so compare that to that and again

00:28:24.509 --> 00:28:28.349
heavier baits require heavier gear so please

00:28:28.349 --> 00:28:32.130
do not try to throw a big bait with a rod that

00:28:32.130 --> 00:28:34.970
cannot handle it you'll just lose your bait although

00:28:34.970 --> 00:28:37.710
you'll have to go retrieve it because these float

00:28:37.710 --> 00:28:41.829
as long as you can see it you can you can get

00:28:41.829 --> 00:28:48.859
it Fantastic baits. A walking bait or a spook

00:28:48.859 --> 00:28:52.559
is one of the more advanced baits, and it's one

00:28:52.559 --> 00:28:55.900
that fishermen, experienced fishermen, use all

00:28:55.900 --> 00:28:59.019
the time. Now, I love wake baits too. I like

00:28:59.019 --> 00:29:01.799
whopper ploppers. I like my whopper plopper popper.

00:29:02.140 --> 00:29:06.480
I like all these, but these baits right here,

00:29:08.359 --> 00:29:12.569
you really can't go wrong. and I'm telling you

00:29:12.569 --> 00:29:14.609
this month and next month at Lake of the Woods

00:29:14.609 --> 00:29:20.690
is the best time to catch bass. Now these are

00:29:20.690 --> 00:29:25.950
all easy baits to hook a fish because they have

00:29:25.950 --> 00:29:28.329
treble hooks on them and they're you know good

00:29:28.329 --> 00:29:31.930
hook is really really really sharp and when they

00:29:31.930 --> 00:29:37.230
bite when they go up at it they get hooked. But

00:29:38.430 --> 00:29:41.150
At Lake of the Woods and other lakes, Dog Lake

00:29:41.150 --> 00:29:44.670
is another really good lake for this type of

00:29:44.670 --> 00:29:48.390
fishing. It's called lily pad fishing. Lily pad

00:29:48.390 --> 00:29:53.809
fishing is a type of fishing that you're going

00:29:53.809 --> 00:29:59.769
to throw what we call a soft body, a soft body

00:29:59.769 --> 00:30:06.849
frog or creature on top of the lily pads. they

00:30:06.849 --> 00:30:12.069
have an upturned double double hook that's upturned

00:30:12.069 --> 00:30:18.109
and just hugging the body of that soft body when

00:30:18.109 --> 00:30:23.250
the fish bites on it they crush it crushes the

00:30:23.250 --> 00:30:29.890
body and then hooks themselves now soft bodies

00:30:29.890 --> 00:30:33.990
they come in lots of different designs they can

00:30:33.990 --> 00:30:39.210
come looking like rats One of my favorites, which

00:30:39.210 --> 00:30:45.710
is fun to toss it towards swimmers. Spiders.

00:30:46.089 --> 00:30:49.910
Big spiders. Spiders are so cool, by the way.

00:30:50.190 --> 00:30:53.250
They don't last very long, but they're fun to

00:30:53.250 --> 00:30:56.289
walk on top of the water. Then we got these things.

00:30:56.369 --> 00:30:59.170
They don't look like frogs, but they're called

00:30:59.170 --> 00:31:04.890
frogs. This is what we call a walking frog. See

00:31:04.890 --> 00:31:08.089
the front of it? and then we have a popping frog,

00:31:08.410 --> 00:31:13.309
which has that big cupped mouth on it. So, there's

00:31:13.309 --> 00:31:17.890
lots of different soft bodies. Now, the reason

00:31:17.890 --> 00:31:21.549
they don't snag is because, one, they float,

00:31:22.029 --> 00:31:27.849
and the hooks are upturned, and in this bird,

00:31:28.190 --> 00:31:31.890
these are called Toad Thumpers, and Toad Thumper

00:31:33.029 --> 00:31:38.269
What they do is they mold They mold the hook

00:31:38.269 --> 00:31:41.730
into the tip of the hook into the body. There's

00:31:41.730 --> 00:31:46.049
really no way for that to catch so what you end

00:31:46.049 --> 00:31:49.309
up doing is you throw this over the lily pads

00:31:49.309 --> 00:31:52.789
and It's just going to pop right down on top

00:31:52.789 --> 00:31:56.109
of the little pet. Don't be surprised Okay, if

00:31:56.109 --> 00:31:58.430
you get a hit right when it lands because that

00:31:58.430 --> 00:32:02.130
happens a lot We call it, you know on the drop

00:32:03.659 --> 00:32:07.980
When it drops, boom, you get a hit. And then

00:32:07.980 --> 00:32:11.460
a walking frog is very much like the spook. You're

00:32:11.460 --> 00:32:13.299
going to walk it and it's going to dart back

00:32:13.299 --> 00:32:17.759
and forth. A popping frog does exactly that.

00:32:18.119 --> 00:32:20.740
It's going to pop, pop, pop, and you're going

00:32:20.740 --> 00:32:25.279
to tug it a lot. Basically working them similarly,

00:32:25.500 --> 00:32:28.579
except they have two different actions to them

00:32:28.579 --> 00:32:33.700
for presentation. This is the hardest form of

00:32:33.700 --> 00:32:40.059
fishing, but this is the most entertaining form

00:32:40.059 --> 00:32:44.519
of fishing. So, I want you guys to just go out

00:32:44.519 --> 00:32:47.019
there and have a great time. We're at the end

00:32:47.019 --> 00:32:52.380
of the show. I will tell you, if you get a bite

00:32:52.380 --> 00:32:58.180
on a frog, a soft body, count one thousand one

00:32:58.180 --> 00:33:01.950
and then set the hook. Do that and you'll land

00:33:01.950 --> 00:33:04.289
your fish. Take care everybody, tight lines to

00:33:04.289 --> 00:33:07.210
you and we'll see you hopefully out on the water.

00:33:09.309 --> 00:33:12.289
That was Terrible at Fishing, the radio show

00:33:12.289 --> 00:33:16.069
with fishing expert Michael Raffino. Check out

00:33:16.069 --> 00:33:19.269
Terrible at Fishing on YouTube and tune in next

00:33:19.269 --> 00:33:22.130
week for the next episode and more great fishing

00:33:22.130 --> 00:33:27.009
tips. Terrible at Fishing, Fridays at 7pm on

00:33:27.009 --> 00:33:29.250
Gold Country Radio. you