The Yes bay View - This was taken last year and I am anxiously awaiting my departure in a few weeks to be back "Home" in Alaska.

All the guides are hired and the rest of the crew. They all have their reservations and are looking forward to a great season of fishing with our guests for 2010, both new and returning!

If you haven't finalized your plans to visit Yes Bay this season, call the office and make your reservations soon as we are nearly filled, although there are still prime dates available for small groups of 2 or 4!

I am looking forward to seeing everyone back at the Bay for 2010!!

Capt Jim

Fun Video - Tarpon on Fly with broken Fly Rod

A good friend of mine, Captain Dave Dant shot a pretty neat video of a tarpon on fly, big fish and while fighting the fish the fly rod broke...BTW - Capt Dave is one of the best guides in the Tampa Bay area and specializes in sight fishing for tarpon, snook, redfish and trout.

Pretty neat, go to his blog or web site and check it out, I just got the videos posted online...

Blog: http://sightfishtarpon.blogspot.com/

Website: http://www.sightfishtarpon.com/CDDTarponVideo.htm

Enjoy,

Capt Jim

Yes Bay Lodge - Trailer

Old Yes bay Video

Take A Kid Fishing!

This was written for the York Dispatch by a very good friend of mine and former fishing guide at Yes bay Lodge, Andy ( Whiplash) Snyder!

Get a kid hooked on fishing

COLUMN By ANDY SNYDER For The York Dispatch
Updated: 04/09/2010 07:00:40 AM EDT

Preparing for a child is a daunting endeavor.

Not only do I have to worry about the "normal" things, such as clothes, food and college education, but as any angling and hunting nut does, I have to contemplate things such as making sure my tackle bag has enough room for some spare diapers and whether I'll need a two-man deer stand this season or next.

With a couple of months to go before I hear those first intimidating, yet invigorating screams of my first child, I must admit I was a bit jealous this past weekend. As I walked the banks of the area's streams in search of trout, my eye was drawn to something else, those brightly colored children's fishing rods bearing characters such as SpongeBob, Snoopy and Barbie. I was a tad jealous -- not of the rods, but of the opportunity to take a kid fishing. Sharing in a first fish, a first deer or even a first cast are all memories I look forward to making over the next, well, lifetime.

Seeing so many fathers and mothers helping their sons and daughters search for trout this past weekend reminds me of a line I've heard a lot as I read all of the obligatory books and attended all of those repetitive parenting classes in anticipation of a little one. It says: "Children don't need your presents. They need your presence."

What could be a better reason to introduce them to the outdoors? Instead of plopping your kids in front of a TV set and letting some violent cartoon raise them, take the time to show them what lies outside.

Chances are it will become a lifetime activity that you can enjoy as a family for years, perhaps even generations.
What if you don't know how to fish or don't know much about the outdoors? No problem. It takes about as much skill to catch a fish or take a hike as it does to fire up a computer game.

Even if you still don't think you have what it takes to get the job done, there are plenty of outdoor-oriented camps coming up. Invest in a week of on-the-job training and you'll surely create a fan of the outdoors.

If you want to take a kid fishing this spring, here are a few pointers to get you started. First, keep things simple. All you need is a cheap rod, a can of worms and a few hooks and weights. Next, let them do the work. It may be a little more frustrating for you, but it will be a lot more enjoyable for them when they get to feel that first addictive nibble. Finally, keep it fun. Don't let the pressure of catching a fish overburden the joy of sharing time together. Some of my best memories on the water don't involve fish.

Getting ready for a third seat at my kitchen table is a scary notion, but knowing that I'll soon have a live-in fishing partner more than makes up for it. I just hope I can find a pair of waders that small.

Andy Snyder writes about the outdoors for The York Dispatch. He can be reached at sports@yorkdispatch.com. Read his blog, "The Outdoors Insider," at the Blogzone at yorkdispatch.com.


Enjoy,


Captain Jim

Anticipation!!

Hard to believe we are only about 10 weeks away from Lodge opening! I am busy getting ready for my annual trip North and I am anxious to get going. I went to the Post Office today and shipped two large boxes of my things up to Alaska, with the airlines charging so much for luggage and especially extra bags, it is easier and less expensive to let the post office do the lugging!!

This past week I have been busy confirming all the information for the new guides, we look to have a great crew for 2010, with a bunch of returning guides and lodge crew, so it should be a smooth opening and an easy training week!

I am very anxious to get back fishing in Alaska...as cold as Florida was this winter, in some ways I felt like I never left, ironically there were several days when it was warmer in Alaska than here in St Petersburg! Must be that global warming thing people have been talking about!

If you haven't made your plans to come to the Lodge this year, now is the time. There is still a little space for small groups in some prime times, so give Kris a call and make your plans now!!

I hope to see you up there and look forward to fishing with all our customers for 2010!!

Captain Jim Lucas
Head Guide - Yes Bay Lodge

www.yesbay.com

Last Guide for 2010 Season!

Well, I had all the guides set for this season and then wouldn't you know it we had a drop out. At least it was for a good reason. Captain Greg Wickline had taken a job running a supply boat to Haiti for the relief effort and decided he wanted to continue with his efforts, so he sent me an email that he was going to have to decline our offer for a job.

No Problem - I had 3 Captains on standby - one good seasoned veteran fisherman who accepted right away then called the very next day saying he just fell off of a ladder and was going to have to have shoulder surgery, so he was out for this year...No Problem - Call Number 2 on standby, he is excited, accepts the position, then sends an email the very next day saying he decided to accept a regular full time management job, better for his career!

No Problem - Contacted Number 3 and BINGO - So far so good, it has now been two days and he is still on board, even sent pictures so I think we have finally rounded out our 2010 Guide Staff.

So let me introduce Captain Greg Walters.



Greg was born in Sitka Alaska and has fished his entire life, even at a another Lodge in SE Alaska, so he comes with experience. He has also spent quite a few years on large Yachts all over the world.

I think all this mess has helped us through fate, get a really good member for our guide staff!

Only a couple months and the 2010 crew will be heading to Alaska and setting up for your visit, we look forward to a wonderful season.



Oh and for all you "Cookie Monsters" out there, heard the best news today we have a returning crew member from year before last - Janna - so we can look forward to some wonderful cookies to munch on while we are out fishing.

I am really happy to hear she will be joining us as part of the kitchen crew this year!

Can't wait to get fishing again!!

Captain Jim
Professor

2010 Salmon Projections

According to the latest State of Alaska - Fish and Game Report we are in for another fantastic year of salmon fishing with all species up or at the same levels as last year except the pink salmon run, which will be a little lower this year, more back in line with a normal year as last year was one of the largest on record.

Here is the detailed data from their report - Predictions say salmon season will produce fewer fish By LAINE WELCH - Alaska's 2010 salmon season will produce 15 percent fewer fish, if predictions by state fishery managers hold true.

The statewide, all species harvest is pegged at 138 million salmon, compared to last year's catch of 162.5 million salmon, the 12th largest take since 1960.

According to the 2010 Run Forecasts and Harvest Projections report just released by the state commercial fisheries division, the shortfall stems from an expected decrease in pink salmon catches.

The statewide breakdown for this year's projected salmon catches calls for a slight bump up for Chinook to 515,000 fish; for sockeye, a catch of 45.8 million reds is an increase of 2.5 million; the coho catch of 4.4 million is up just slightly; staying the same is the chum forecast of 18 million fish. For those hard to predict pinks, a projected catch of 69.1 million is about 28% lower than last year.

Make sure you make plans to join us this year as it promises to be a good one!!

Capt Jim

I really need a dog like this!!

Jim

Sheepshead fishing

February 18th - Surprise Fishing Trip

I was heading down to Gulfport on some photography business with a plan for when I finished to stop by and see Capt Dave Dant to have him help me set up my new fly rod that I am taking to Alaska this summer. So as soon as I finished, I called Capt Dave to see where he was and of course he was out fishing...he said, where are you and I said not far from Gulfport marina, he said lets go fish, we'll come in and pick you up, bring along the fly rod I'll get it set up while you fish for some nice sheepshead!

Now - who could turn down an offer like that, so 20 minutes later, I am climbing on the boat and off we go!

First stop right in Boca Ciega Bay near the marina, we fish some pilings and in no time we have a couple real nice sheepshead in the well. I had no fish at home, so decided to keep a few for dinner.

We fished most of the day and even managed to get my fly rod set up. Although, I have ordered some better line which I will put on when it gets here.

Fish for dinner - had 4 real nice keepers, we released the rest, but these guys are good eating.

Capt Jim Lucas

Final Pictures from trip to and from Alaska 2009

I have now upgraded my photography site to allow the purchase of pictures, this also includes the fishing photos taken at the fish weigh in at Yes Bay Lodge, so if any of you want your fish pictures, you can find them here.

http://captjim.smugmug.com/

Search through the Alaska galleries and you will be sure to find your pictures, then you can purchase any that you would like, there are a number of sizes available and they are quite reasonable.

Enjoy the slides from my trip on the cruise to Alaska on the MV Ryndam and my trip home through the Canadian Rockies.

Getting ready to return to Alaska the end of May! Can't wait!

Capt Jim

Good Bye Captain Mel Berman

An old friend passed away today. Capt Mel Berman a long time Tampa Bay fishing guide and radio and television personality. On the air for almost 25 years every Saturday morning, I awoke most every Saturday morning listening to his show.

I have known Mel now for almost 5 years, he asked me to be on his show several times, although it never worked out, I told him that his show was for the Tampa Bay anglers and that people would not be interested in hearing about my fishing in Alaska or the various techniques we use.

Saw Mel on the water many times and he was always gracious and friendly. We only fished together a couple times and it was a pleasure. He was a very knowledgeable fisherman and loved to share his experience.

Anyway, he will be missed for sure.

Capt Jim Lucas

Final 2010 Guide Additions

Well the entire Guide staff is now confirmed and ready to go. We have three additional returning guides for 2010.

Captain Fred (Fireman) Rovey will be joining us for the beginning of the season, June through mid-July. You might remember Fred from the 2008 season which was his first year guiding at Yes Bay.



Then the dynamic duo of the Captain Sean (Harvester) Roberts and his fearless buddy Captain Sean (The General) McCossin will be returning to finish the season at Yes Bay. They spend the early part of the season out on Prince of Wales and have fished at Yes Bay for years. They will arrive around the beginning of August and close out the season with us.

Captain Sean Roberts - He's the one in the orange pants!



Captain Colin McCossin - He's the tall one!!



We are looking forward to another fantastic year at Yes Bay. The rest of the staff is nearly complete as well, so we are all making plans for a fantastic summer at Yes Bay Lodge in beautiful SE Alaska,

Capt Jim Lucas
The Professor

Fish Kill Update

I have received several emails asking about the fish kill in Tampa Bay and I found these pictures in the newspaper yesterday. In one retirement community they removed over 8 tons of dead fish… Where I live they also removed a bunch, since I don’t keep up with the goings on around here, I missed the opportunity to participate. Although, when out fishing with a buddy of mine the other day, we picked up two large trash bags full and could have done that many times over, we just collected the ones near the boat ramp.

Sadly many of the fish were snook, but happily the majority were tilapia and salt water catfish and some mullet.

Jim

2010 Yes Bay Guide Staff!

Our Guide staff for 2010 is all set. We had a ton of applicants and were lucky to stay focused and hire only guides with full time guide experience.

Our complete staff from last year is returning with the exception of one - Capt Sean Hagen (Shamrock) will not be returning. You might recall he and his girlfriend Ashton (Our wonderful bartender) went to town one weekend last season and got married. They were engaged before they arrived in Alaska. Well the honeymoon must have worked, because Ashton is due to have a baby in a month or so, which means Sean will be changing diapers instead of fishing in Alaska. Congratulations Sean and Ashton!

Slice returns for his 17th year and Slammer returns for his 11th year, Kicker and I return for our 4th years, Axeman returns for his 3rd year, Batman returns for his 2nd year and we have 5 new guides for 2010.


Capt John Luman - John hails from Oregon and has a ton of Pacific NW fishing experience as well as several years of Alaska fishing, so we are glad to have him. That is a nice King Salmon he has there, we expect many more in 2010!


Capt Guy Hickman will be the youngster of the bunch and hails from the Florida area. Guy runs a guide service out of Vero Beach on the east coast of Florida. For those of you who are not familiar with Florida fish - Guy is in the water with what is known as a Goliath Grouper, formerly called a Jewfish, until someone decided it was not politically correct and changed the name. They are a protected species and must be released. They have been known to weigh up to 700 pounds.



Capt Phil Chieco is another Florida guide and fishes from the east coast of Florida as well. Phil has a real nice dolphin fish (No relation to the Dolphin mammal), very good eating. It is also know as Mahi Mahi on the west coast and in Hawaii.

We have one other new guide - Capt Greg Wickline, no picture yet as he is very busy working running a supply boat between Miami and Haiti to help with the Earthquake relief effort. He can be commended for his service and getting involved. He promises to send a picture when he returns back to home in a week or so.

I will be sure to post it here.

I look forward to fishing with these guys for the 2010 season and beyond. Yes Bay Lodge is proud of the fact that we are always able to secure top quality fishing guides and 2010 promises more of the same.

Capt Jim Lucas
Professor

Cold Weather Damage

It is hard to believe how much damage our cold winter has caused, the fish kill seems to get bigger and bigger everyday. Mostly because the water is warming up and now the dead fish are beginning to float and it is much more obvious the amount of fish that have died. The good news is, the fishing still remains pretty good, the trout and redfish were not affected too much. Seems that the only real sport fish that has been seriously affected is the Snook. A fish we all value and had just made a huge come back from the red tide from several years ago. So hopefully the season closure will help them again regain a strong footing in Tampa Bay.

Agriculture also took a huge hit with the strawberry season cut short, the orange groves have suffered and the vegetable farms got almost entirely wiped out. Another little know industry is the tropical fish farms, they were devastated. Most will be out of business as they had no way to keep their breeding ponds warm and lost their entire crop. So if you have an aquarium, plan on spending more for some of those little tropical fish!

I took my walk yesterday morning at Sunken Gardens, just to see how much damage there and it was depressing. This place is normally very lush and green and the sun barely shines through the canopy of the jungle. Sadly, they will have much planting to do and trimming before the spring wedding season as there are many weddings performed there. I was happy to see the resident flamingos were still in their glory and took a few pictures.





Then it was off to Sawgrass Park for my real walk along the boardwalk for my exercise. It was very dead there as well, but managed to see a nice squirrel and a baby gator, so it made the trip worthwhile...







I have finished hiring all the guides for the 2010 season at Yes Bay Lodge, we will have a great crew again, with all but one guide from last year returning. Sean (Shamrock) Hagen will be changing diapers while we are fishing, he and Ashton are expecting a baby soon and she refused to give him a hall pass to come back to Alaska. We are planning on a full crew for 2010 as bookings are very strong, so if you have yet to make your reservations you better get to phoning Kris. There are some great show specials right now, so make you plans and join me and crew at Yes Bay in 2010!

Capt Jim
Professor.

Tampa Bay Fish Kill

The picture above is from the newspaper.

Here is a nice trout I caught.

I went out fishing yesterday and it was a very slow day. Water temperature is still way low and the fish are not chewing. The water temperature in the bay and along the beaches went down into the low 40’s which has caused a pretty major fish kill in Tampa Bay and in fact in most areas of the state of Florida. So much so that the Fish and Game has decided to extend the block on keeping any Snook this year. There are literally thousands of dead snook floating around the Bay and with the season scheduled to begin on the first of February, they decided to keep it closed for at least the rest of this year and they may extend it for another year after some final research on the total kill.

Jim

Alaska 2009

Here are some pictures that I took on my trip to and from Alaska this year!



Enjoy,

Capt Jim

Christmas Gifts

I decided to do something different for the girls in my life this year and all summer I collected Otoliths (Ear Bones) from the yellow eye snapper which were caught on my boat. Sometimes I passed them on to my guests and sometimes they made it into my collection for the summer, with the plan to have some jewelry made for my sister, my niece and my grand niece.

So now that Christmas is over and the secret is out, I can show you how they turned out!



The Otolith or earbone is particularly large in most bottom fish or reef fish as opposed to swimming species such as the salmon or tuna. They have long been collected as good luck charms and were very popular as jewelry among Native Americans.

I had a local jeweler who makes custom jewelry order in the ear ring stock, then drill a small hole and mount them on the ear ring stock. They are quite striking and certainly unique.



All packaged up in a nice jewelry box they are very nice and made a very unique gift and something that very few people will have or for even know what they are.



All of the ear rings I made this year were from Otoliths from the yellow eye snapper. These are also called Red Snapper in Alaska, very similar to a grouper from Florida although bright orange in color. They are also a VERY tasty meal and a prized catch in Alaska! The largest caught on my boat this year weighed over 11 pounds and there were a couple a little bigger brought in by other boats.

In many cultures these are called "Lucky Stones'., on one side an angled groove forms an "L" or "J" and are said to represent "Love & Joy". They have been found at ancient Indian archaeological sites and were used in commerce and worn for decoration and worn as good luck charms to prevent sickness. Ancients considered them valuable in treating certain diseases.

According to history, Otoliths were known as far back as at least to the time of Aristotle. For centuries Lucky Stones have been used as protective Amulets to ward off evil, made into jewelry and traded into far away lands.

Scientists value the Otolith, because they contain growth rings and can very accurately determine the age of a fish and it's growing cycle.

Enjoy,

Capt Jim

Happy New Years!

Gulf Sunset!



My Good Friends:
Johnny K Marshall (Tramp) and Sandy Strickland (Lady)
Ready for a true Southern Dinner: Fried Chicken, Black eyed peas, rice and gravy, dressing, and of course some collard greens.



Very Cheap entertainment!



The ever watchful Hound Dog at rest!



Florida Wild Pig!


My New Years weekend was an absolute blast! Took off from St Pete Friday afternoon and drove for about 2 1/2 hours North to Crystal River to finally visit some old Yes Bay Lodge friends from the 2007 season. Sandy (Lady) and Johnny K (Tramp). Johhny went back to work as an engineer and has been working for the past 16 months at the Crystal River Nuclear plant, in charge of the rebuild of one of the steam generators. That job is almost complete and he is not sure where he will be heading next, so I figured I better get up there to see them since it had been since end of season 2007 since I had laid eyes on them

Not a bad drive up, got there mid-afternoon and as soon as I arrived, Johhny K was out starting the boat and off we went for a short boat ride and fishing adventure. Cold as hell out, but we still managed to catch a couple trash fish, something he is very good at!

So a wonderful boat ride and a beautiful sunset over the Gulf! Clear skies and very cold weather were on the horizon, but we were going to fish the next day no matter what. Johhny K just had to prove to me he knew where the fish were! He actually gave me a choice, fish, pig hunt or go deer hunting. I chose fishing.

Back at the dock we all headed into the house to warm up and it was Happy Hour! Johnny K had made up some special fish sauce which he put with some salmon before dinner which was fantastic. I will be putting this in the new Yes Bay cookbook which I am working on now!

Sandy had some chicken set out to fry and we were in for a true southern fried chicken dinner, which was wonderful! Add rice and gravy, some collard greens and blackeyed peas and it was a meal to remember! More drinks and some great conversation finished out the evening then off to bed for a good nights rest before heading out on the boat in the morning.

About 4 AM, I awoke to sounds in the kitchen and lo and behold, Johnny K was up working on some recipe he had learned in India for our breakfast. I went back to bed and let him keep experimenting.

Up around 7:30 or so to some great smells from the kitchen, fresh bacon was cooking and Johhny K was still working on getting some crepes to come out right to be filled with the India concoction. Table set and everything ready to go. Good scrambled eggs, bacon and these wonderful crepes with a potato filling that was wonderful.

We drank some coffee after breakfast and waited until the air warmed up a little before heading out for some fishing. Did manage to see some wild pigs on the beach which was fun, guess we should have gone pig hunting! About 10 hours later and after anchoring in about 49 spots and freezing our asses off, it was nearly dark again and I had a grand total of 2 fish on the line...1 ladyfish and 1 very small saltwater catfish. Sandy had manged 2 lady fish and finally at the last stop, Johnny K managed to hook a lady fish! So, Ol Johnny K had once again proved to me that he knew where the trash fish were!

I will give him the benefit of the doubt, the water temperature had fallen down to less than 55 degrees and the fish just were not biting.

Back in the house to warm up again and have some cocktails then a wonderful steak dinner. A little more wonderful conversation catching up and reliving old memories, then time for bed again.

Another early morning wakening to wonderful smells from the kitchen. This time a true southern breakfast. More bacon, some eggs and some cheese grits, cheese toast and fresh coffee and juice. Who could ask for more!

Sadly it was time for me to return home and get back to work, but it was a wonderful way to spend my New Years weekend!

Captain Jim

Behind The Scene's News!

I have received numerous requests for copies of the various pictures which are posted on the blog. For the most part, they are available by right clicking on the photo and saving it. However, these are low resolution versions and are not that good when printing.

So in an effort to remedy this problem, I have upgraded my SmugMug account to allow people to purchase prints of any of the photographs that are on the site. This includes virtually all of the 2009 Catch pictures. They are divided by the months and you can easily find the pictures you want with a little searching and just put them in your shopping cart, when you are in a gallery just click on the thumbnail picture on the left side and a larger version will show up on the right side. Then there is a drop down above the picture that says “BUY” you can either buy that picture or buy pictures from this gallery, I find it easier to just say buy this picture and then select the size you want and the quantity you want. Then return to the gallery and select any additional ones you would like.

The pictures that are uploaded are small versions and some of the larger print sizes will not be available. If you have a particular photo that you would like a larger version of, highlight the photo and hit the “INFO” and get the file name and email it to me and I will find the original picture and upload it within a couple days and will let you know by email that the large size is now available and you can go online and order it.

Feel free to poke around my SmugMug site and in addition to the “Catch” pictures, there are some wonderful pictures of the Lodge and other scenes around Alaska which are all also available for sale.

In the side bar of this page are several slide type shows, all of these will link directly to the SmugMug site or you can click this link to go directly there:

http://captjim.smugmug.com/

Crew – I have heard you and will be gradually adding some more of the crew photos onto SmugMug in case anyone wants prints. I have also put a few of the videos up, thanks to Kenny and Joel. Also, out of spite, I have put the much requested “Living with Ron” video from the 2007 season.

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and we all look forward to a fantastic 2010! Make sure you have made your reservations for this upcoming season as the show season starts in a few days and will fill up quickly. Our bookings remain strong for this coming year!

Captain Jim

(Professor)

Wednesday December 30th Fishing Trip

Fish ON!

Nice Over Slot Red Fish

Capt Jim with a nice Red Fish

Beautiful Speckled Sea Trout

White Pelicans

White Pelicans

White Pelicans

Capt Dave Dant - Premier Guide

I have not been fishing in Florida other than from my dock since my return to Florida from Alaska in October, so in an effort to help a good friend and one of the best fishing guides in the Tampa Bay area with some marketing and photography, we took a little trip out to the Boca Ciega Bay and Fort Desoto area of Tampa Bay yesterday and as expected (??) had a great day of fishing and some nice pictures of just a couple of the fish we caught.

Honestly, I was a little surprised at our success although I should not have been, because as I mentioned Dave is one of the premier guides in the Tampa Bay area and he picked the time and place based on tides and previous experience, although I am not too sure he considered the weather.

Yesterday was the coldest day we have experienced thus far this winter. When I arrived at the dock in Gulfport the temperature was a brisk 43 degrees with light winds, cold and clear. We departed right on time at 7:00 am and headed to our first spot less than a 15 minute run away and I managed 3 real nice trout on my first 4 casts. We were looking for redfish, but spotted some nice trout, so why not! In another 30 minutes of searching we spotted some tailing redfish and brought a real nice one to the boat and hooked several more which we didn’t photograph. We tried to avoid taking the stressed fish out of the water, so we only took pictures of a couple of the bigger fish.

After working that area for a while, we decided the tide had come in enough to try the Fort Desoto area and off we went for about a 20 minute run and in no time Dave had us on some more big redfish. As the day progressed the temperature rose an unbelievable 30 degrees and by the afternoon we were fishing in a warm bright sunny Florida winter day at about 73 degrees. It was fantastic.

We made sure to stop by and see the beautiful white pelicans which are winter residents and managed a couple nice photos although they spooked a little too quick for any real close shots, but we managed a couple anyway.

Fishing with Dave is a very unique experience. Dave specializes in what is becoming a lost art, Sight Fishing. Which means stalking the fish and casting to a visible fish, sometimes not always clearly visible by the angler, but Dave’s keen vision tells you 6 boat lengths at 2 o’clock and off you go! Too many guides these days rely on trolling motors and best guess practices to catch fish. Dave works hard up on the poling platform hand poling the boat into the ideal position, very quietly, for the best opportunity to make a great cast to the feeding fish.

His specialty is sight fishing for Tarpon in the summer months and tackling them on fly! There are not many guides left in Florida that can say they specialize in this form of Tarpon fishing.

Visit his website and if you are looking for a unique fishing experience book him for a charter to remember.

I think a true professional guide should have at least the following four qualities.

1. Great equipment

2. Work hard for their customers

3. Be a great conversationalist

4. Catch fish based on his customers abilities.

I can honestly say that Dave exceeds all of these characteristics. I had a great day and we had some great conversation about his tarpon season and his plans for the upcoming season. I just wish I could talk him into coming up to Yes Bay for a season. But he doesn’t feel his girlfriend would appreciate his absence and right now wants to focus on building his business in the Tampa Bay market.

I asked Dave to put together a summary report of this past summer’s fishing and you will see it shortly on his blog, which I created last February, but did not bother to give him detailed instruction on working with uploading pictures and keeping it current, which we will be doing very shortly. So stay tuned for more details on his fishing adventures.

Dave’s website: http://www.sightfishtarpon.com/

Dave’s Fishing Report Blog: http://sightfishtarpon.blogspot.com/

Capt Jim Lucas

My web site: http://www.captainjimlucas.com/

My Fishing Report and Travel Blog: http://captjimtravelblog.blogspot.com/

From St Petersburg, FL

Oh and by the way…I leave tomorrow for another adventure of sorts. I am heading up to Crystal River Florida to visit some old Alaska friends…Lady and Trap from the 2007 season at Yes Bay. They were guides there for the 2007 season. And from what I hear, Tramp has finally caught a fish in Florida!! We’ll see!

Crew 2009 Videos

Here are 4 different really great videos that were prepared by some of the crew this past year.


The infamous group of Kenny Browning who did most of the creation of these wonderful memories and Joel Swanson and PJ Mack - collected from all the crew a bunch of photos and merged it all into a wonderful DVD complete with sound and everything.

I received mine today and decided that is was certainly Blog Worthy and converted them to AVI files and uploaded them to the blog, they were downsampled to reduce the size, but still came out great, so take a few minutes and enjoy some of the highlights from our 2009 season for the crew.

Video number 1 is a great compilation of our 2009 summer!




Video Number 2 highlights some of the crews fishing exploits!




Video Number 3 highlights a little of the scenery and wildlife from 2009!



And finally Video Number 4 is just some great Crew Fun Shots!





Thanks Kendog and Joel for taking the time to collect all the pictures and make them into a wonderful DVD for us all to share with our friends and family!

Now we are looking forward to 2010...make plans to join us.

Capt Jim
(Professor)

BTW - Don't mind some of the misspelled words in the titles...Kendog is only a sophomore in college and the other two morons are college graduates?? Must be a midwest thing! Don't they teach spelling in like elementary school??

The Professor just has to Bust their A%% one more time!

Merry Christmas 2009

I got a wonderful Christmas card from my Niece with the attached photo of my two favorite girls in the world, lovely Nicole and her new baby sister Rachael. Hard to believe 2009 is almost over! Christmas is generally a quiet day around my house in St Petersburg, however, it is a wonderful day and a time to reflect on the year past and the year upcoming.


2010 promises to be a challenge and a time for us all to work hard to contemplate the short comings of our government and work hard to make sure that we elect some new government officials, it just might be nice to find a few that actually follow what their constituents want to have happen and not bow to the graft and corruption which seems to prevail in Washington these days.


Just when I start to worry about what my next project to work on will be, something comes along that directs me in my future endeavors and I can easily see that my focus will be on ending the terms of at least 60 people in the Senate and as many in congress as I can find as well. Thank goodness voting records don’t lie, so it should be easy to decide who goes and who stays. Although, quite frankly finding any worthy of staying will be a challenge.


Well enough of the political crap, I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday season and a joyous and happy New Year with at least several days planned for Yes Bay in 2010.


Merry Christmas,


Capt Jim

Fishing With Captain Jim

Got a really nice Christmas card from one of my Yes Bay Customers today and it had a USBMemory stick with these two really nice videos, as well as a whole bunch of pictures.

I Figured I would share these so everyone can see what the fishing is like at Yes Bay Lodge.

This was taken in September and we were fishing primarily for Silver Salmon. We had a really great time and caught some very nice fish.

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year with a trip scheduled to Yes Bay Lodge included!

Capt Jim
Professor

Blog Worthy Barbara!

The wonderful view from the 14th floor - looking West!

The Life Guard stand across the street - Looking East!

The redone kitchen from my last visit - getting ready to change the ceiling light to track lighting!

Damn - What a mess - lots to do!

Gutted bathroom

More work on getting the new sink ready to hook up!

Almost finished - just a towel bar left to go!

Master Bath - new vanity

I have been very busy lately – Made a trip to Miami (I hate Miami), but went down to see an old friend, YES, I do have some friends! She lives in a beautiful condo on Miami Beach and needed some items repaired, so I went down to work for a week and ATTEMPT to empty her job jar! Jesus, the list was long.

Gutted the second bathroom (1/2 bath), total rebuild. New vanity, toilet, ceiling, light, mirror and all the fixtures. Came out very nice, beautiful update. Damn I do good work! Did some tile work on the balcony, put up a new ceiling in the entrance hallway and solved an air conditioning leak. Put up three new track lights, one in the kitchen, which I redid a couple years ago, one in the dining area and one in the master bedroom.

The bathroom came out so good, she decided a new vanity was needed in the master bath as well…of course! So another trip to Home Depot and some more destruction and construction and another days work.

Plus she had a bunch of that furniture that you have to put together and a “closet system” for the master bedroom walk in closet. More destruction and construction and then of course trying to decipher instructions for putting the computer hutch together and two sets of drawers. Trying to find “part A” and determining which screw or fastener they want you to use…what a pain in the ass! All completed and a great time was had by all. Good company, good pay and some fantastic meals!

Went out to my favorite rib place – Tony Romas…and Barbara even bought some wonderful Florida Lobster for one meal and some great gulf shrimp for another meal.

I arrived back in St Pete on Tuesday and unloaded all my tools and got back to getting some work done for the Lodge – still trying to hire a few guides and working on some promotional material for the upcoming Sportsman Shows which begin in early January.

Anyways, just a little update on my activities…

I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday Season

Merry Christmas to all!

Enjoy,

Jim

OH - One other thing - I was finally convinced to open a "Facebook" page - not too sure I really needed something else to keep up with...

But here it is:

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?v=wall&id=100000156373287#/home.php?ref=home