By Joe Cermele

Growing up, I pretty much threw nothing but spinners during the spring trout season. My dad, my grandfather, and I were Panther Martin men. It wasn’t until later that I realized everyone on my local rivers was throwing in-line spinners, so I started experimenting. These days, I catch more and bigger trout on stickbaits. The trick to being successful with these lures is making sure you match the style of stick to the water you’re fishing. These three have come through for me in all kinds of rivers. Choose your weapon wisely—and you’ll outfish the spinner crowd. [ Read Full Post ]

By Joe Cermele

I've never met an angler that doesn't have a particular time or place in history they'd love to fish if given the chance. Perhaps you'd like to flycast on the Blackfoot circa 1940, or maybe chase stripers on Cape Cod in the days when 40 pounders were thick as thieves. Me? I'd love to visit the New England coast back when all the rivers were rife with wild Atlantic Salmon. Despite efforts to bring salmon runs back, I don't think we'll ever see the same fishery that existed pre-industrial revolution. But that doesn't mean all the wild Atlantics are gone. In fact, kayak angler and blogger Pierre Champion scored one in the Bronx, of all places, just a few days ago. The story goes like this:

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By Joe Cermele

There are pure-strain, landlocked striped bass all over the country, but there are only so many places in freshwater where these fish reach the same "cow" proportions as their coastal cousins. Being a Jersey guy, I know a thing or two about big bass (or pretend to, anyway), so it's taken me a while to pull the trigger on a sweetwater striper hunt. That's partially because it's hard to break the mentality that the biggest bass are salty, and partially because picking the right body of freshwater and finding the right guy to get you on the big fish is tricky. But I finally found him. In three days on the Clinch River in Eastern Tennessee, veteran guide Bud White made me and fellow Northeast striper nut Mike Sudal realize that you can't appreciate the fight of a 30-pounder until you need to lock down the spool with your thumbs to stop the fish from running into one of many downed trees that are always in close proximity. Enjoy the show. 

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By Dave Wolak

It’s usually around early May that I see bass fishermen (at least the ones that procrastinate) make a dash to the tackle shop to load up on new baits as the season really begins to heat up. There was a time when, like many guys, I was easily sucked in by “bargain bins” and the latest and greatest lures on shelves. But over the years I’ve managed to refine my lure-buying methodology, not just to save money, but because I just don’t need lures that I won’t use or that don’t work taking up precious tackle box space. Whenever I pick up a lure, I pose one of these two important questions: Does it fill a functional void? Or, does it open up new and valid possibilities?

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By Joe Cermele

Though I get all fuzzy inside when a trout sips a dry fly or slurps a nymph on the swing, I will take the crushing blow of a big brownie slamming a streamer over the more dainty stuff any day. And the bigger and uglier the streamer, the more pumped I am to throw it. That's why I'm really digging Thomas Harvey's Trophy Wife...which just so happens to be tied in this video by Brian Weiss with help from his real trophy wife. Granted, there's about $40 worth of material in this bug, but it's dead sexy and there will be some Trophy Wives in my flybox before my next visit to the river. I particularly like this tying video because of the clear, concise portrayal of each material and step. Yeah, that's it. Let's go with that. Have a great weekend.

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By CJ Lotz

Check out this clip from a National Geographic report that details how coral groupers “shimmy” and do headstands to attract moray eels, then lead them to good hunting spots.
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