FishwithJD

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B.A.S.S. bans Alabama Rig in Elite Series Events & Classic

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Alabama Rig: Too deadly, says B.A.S.S.


The castable umbrella known as the “Alabama Rig,” which turned the bass fishing world on its ear just a few months back, has officially been banned in B.A.S.S. Elite Series tournaments and the Bassmaster Classic.

Elite Series Rules Committee members believe the rig eliminates some of the skill that should be required in tournament competition at the highest level. “It doesn’t matter how you work it,” said one of the anglers. “The fish can’t help themselves.”

Our resident bassin’ expert and professional angler, Big Fred Contaoi, is excited about the ruling.

“The rig can be hard on the fish…you may get one of the lures in the mouth but others can snag fish in vital areas like the belly,” he says. “Outlawing it levels the playing field again I wish other tournament series would follow suit.”

Read the entire story at BASSMASTER.com

20-Pound Steelhead from the Chetco River

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Welcome to the 20-pound club! Guide Tony Sepulveda (L) and John Sellers


It’s time to welcome the 20-Pound Steelhead Club’s newest member, John Sellers of Fortuna, CA, who fished on Tuesday with guide Tony Sepulveda of Greenwater Guide Service on a very low and clear Chetco River in Orgeon for this bruiser buck.

Let’s let Tony tell the rest of the story…

“John hooked the fish drifting roe and a Fish Pill along a shallow break,” he says. “When he swung on the bite, it erupted in 18″ of water and went burning off the flat with it’s back out of the water like a spooked bonefish!”

Congratulations are in order for John…fish like that don’t come every day. And to that end, he thoughtfully opted to release it, despite the ridiculous regulation in Oregon that allows for the retention of wild steelhead.

“John’s a relative newcomer to steelhead fishing, catching his first on the Eel with me last winter,” says Tony. “With his big fish resting in the net, we talked about the importance of keeping those genetics in the gene pool. John was immediately on board. We took a few pictures and sent him on his way. We ended the day by 1:00 pm with 6 landed out of 10 hooked, a 20 pounder and a double hookup. Not a bad day!”

Top 3 Giant Halibut of 2011

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Holy beer batter Batman, 2011 may just go down as the “Year of the Halibut!” There were three absolute monsters taken last fall that are more in the “blimp hangar door” class than barn doors.

First up is this one above from Norway which weighed an almost hard to fathom 539 pounds! Here’s the link

This monster came from the waters off Gustavus, Alaska (near Glacier Bay) and was 95 inches long and weighed 482.5 pounds! Read more at Bloody Decks


Then there was the one from Iceland that tipped the scales to 485 pounds! See more at Outdoor Life

Former owner of North River Boats convicted of 1st Degree Murder

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Brush, in happier times (KEZI Photo)

It took a Pacific County Superior Court jury less than two hours to convict Brian Brush, former owner of North River Boats of aggravated first-degree murder.

More than 800 days have passed since Brush used a 12-gauge shotgun to kill Lisa Bonney, 45, near the north end of the Long Beach Boardwalk on a busy September afternoon. He has spent all those days behind bars. Now it is likely he will spend the rest of his days in prison after jurors found he premeditated his crime. Aggravating circumstances will likely guarantee life in prison without possibility of parole.

Read the entire story at KVAL.com

Chetco River pumps out 65-pound Chinook Salmon!!!

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Oregon’s Chetco River has a good reputation for producing jumbo king salmon but that still couldn’t have prepared Wayne Smith of Yreka for what was about to happen on Nov. 19 when this massive 65-pound Chinook engulfed his back-trolled T55 Hawg Nose FlatFish.

Wayne Smith and Andy Martin pose with Salmonzilla


After what must have been some very nervous moments, guide Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing slipped the Beckman under the beast, which according to Martin, is the largest salmon of the year on the Oregon Coast (duh!) and one of the largest ever from the Chetco River.

All I can say is WOW!!