Review By: Danny Bell (Stumphumper)

Item reviewed: Yum Money Hound

Condition: New

Number of trips used: 10-20 trips

How it performed: I always avoid treble hooks whenever possible on the river for obvious reasons. Because of this I seldom fish “Spook” style baits…until now! The Yum “Money Hound” allows me to “walk the dog” in the heaviest of cover. I rig mine on a 5/0 EWG hook, and throw it into places the old treble hooked lures dare not go. The weight and profile of this bait makes long, accurate casts a breeze.

I would rate this bait a 10 if not for two small issues. First, if you are not very particular about keeping the hook straight while rigging, it will “roll” during the retrieve. Second, due to the stiffness of the plastic, hooksets can be  problematic in the beginning. To counter this use a long, sweeping, sideways motion.

Overall Rating: 8 out of 10

Trips Used: 3

Pros: The new Cablz™ system for eyewear retention (www.cablz.com) is truly a unique and clever design because it never touches your neck while the glasses are on.  Yet, if for some reason you take them off they will not get lost since they will hang from your neck.  The thin wire (or mono if you have the mono version) will never get all sweaty and dirty from your neck since it is so thin and can always be rinsed.  The rubber inserts slide onto any glasses very easy and yet are Continue Reading

This bass fell for the Ultra-Vibe!

When most people think of worm-fishing they normally think of painstakingly crawling a piece of plastic along the bottom waiting for a strike.  Because of this stigma as being a “slow” presentation, many river fisherman shy away from plastic worms, preferring faster power techniques. After fishing Florida’s natural lakes for the last 15 years, I’ve become somewhat proficient at fishing plastic worms…it’s THE # 1 lure in my neck of suburbia.  If I have learned one thing after years of worm fishing it’s to Continue Reading

Trips Used: 10

Pros: Having previously owned the Etrex Legend (until I dropped it in the river!), which does not float, I decided I needed to upgrade from just waterproof, to waterproof and floating.  This is where the GPSMAP 76Cx fits in perfectly.  The fact that it floats is the main “pro” to this unit in my opinion.  Over my many years on the river I have learned that no matter how much more it costs, it is always better to Continue Reading

Trips Used: About 6

Pros: The TRU-LIFE swimbait comes through the water in a very realistic and life-like motion as you can see in the video below.  They make several sizes – 4, 7, 8 and 9 inches – as well as styles including bluegill, gold and silver tilapia, and rainbow trout.  The four inch version was deadly on smallmouth but you may want to Continue Reading

…There are so many different styles of carts available on the market today what kind of cart is right for your particular needs? I own a 12’ sit-on-top (SOT) kayak, a 15’ canoe, and a small 10’ sit-in-kayak. The company that makes my 12’ kayak has a specific scupper-hole cart for my kayak; however, it will not work with my other small boats. So instead of buying two separate carts, or trying to build one from PVC (I’m not a great do-it-yourselfer), I went on the search for the one DO-IT-ALL cart.

After a lot of research I found Continue Reading

Item reviewed: Malibu Stealth 12
Condition: New
Number of trips used: 6-10 trips
Gear Review Submitted by: Just Fish

How it performed: I purchased the new Malibu Stealth 12 after owning an X-Factor and a Malibu Extreme. My plans were to get a smaller kayak for my river trips since I seem to be fishing the river a lot more than the lake and I already have an 09 Ride that goes to the lake with me.
The Stealth is wide and stable for all big guys and is great for kayak fishing. It is shorter than the X-Factor but built with the same design features. The thing that I like the best is the storage capacity that the Malibu kayaks are known for and the new cockpit design is designed so you are able to stand up and fish if you desire.

Continue Reading

People are always asking me what is the best lure to use on the river and it isn’t a simple question to answer.  There are just so many variables to consider when choosing a lure, like water clarity, temperature, time of year, current speed etc.  What I will try to do is share about my top five favorite river lures that I use at different times of year.

Before I get started I’ll begin by showing you the results of a survey I conducted in the summer of 2007. This poll was asked to river fisherman only and the question was,”What is your top big river bass producing lure?” The results were very interesting and fairly diverse. Continue Reading

Tarpon 120 – This is a very solid kayak that has been around for a while.  It was one of the original, most used boats by river fisherman.  The popular 140 and 160 versions are commonly used by saltwater and lake fisherman.  The brand has been around for a long time and is a proven commodity in the kayak world.

Positives: It is very solid and abrasion resistant to handle more wear and tear than some other brands.  Even though it is not really a boat I would endorse standing in, it is still a very stable boat.  Continue Reading

This was my first river fishing kayak and it served me well as I was able to catch many nice river bass out of it.  I liked it so well I bought a second one and used it as my spare for friends.  It has many positives and over time proved to have several negatives as well.  Hey, I’m a positive kinda guy, so let’s start there.

Positive: The good thing about this kayak, and all Ocean Kayak boats is that they are light weight.  The kind of fishing I do can be very tough in getting kayaks in and out of the river. Sometimes bridge access points can be very steep and having a light kayak can save some wear and tear on ones back!  Another good thing about these boats is the fact that they are very stable.  I realized I could stand and fish out of my Caper soon after I put it on the water, and I haven’t been sitting and fishing a river since. Continue Reading