Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Quickly! Snakehead fishing!

"Right, let's check our gear. This is no ordinary fish we're hunting – a snakehead will take that ultra-light rod you got in your hand and use it as a switch to whip your ass. You're going to want something with more backbone. Try this 7-foot, nearly unbendable rod with a strong reel whose gears won't strip down as you grind these fish back to the boat.

Looks like your tackle box will need to be kicked up a notch, too. A snakehead uses regular fishing line to floss its razor-sharp teeth with. You'll need braided line with at least a 25 pound test, although 65 pound test is better. Pick stout hooks because a snakehead can take regular hooks and twist them in its maw like a cherry stem. Get the idea yet? You're in for a battle, pal.

“Reeling them in is sort of like trying to pull a dog off a fire hydrant,” says Chaconas. “They go left, right, up, down and they actually back away from you.”

Oh, and you're wearing the wrong clothing. Ditch the polo shirt and baseball hat and grab an old mariner's hooded jacket and a face visor. If you're having trouble finding inspiration, imagine you're Dexter in the killing room. Snakeheads are a very slimy fish and they will try to douse you with mucous. “It is like the slime from a St. Bernard's mouth sliding off these things,” Chaconas says. “There's just gobs of it. You'll want to call Bill Murray and the Slime Busters to clean up all the slime.”

Bruce, from what I've read, think of a LMB crossed with a NP.

Bruce is coming down to West Palm Beach today for a convention! My operations manager, Nick, is taking him Snakehead fishing on Saturday. Snakeheads are invasive exotic species from Asia and Africa, and are extremely aggressive. There is a golf course community that my company manages with a large population of snakeheads, so that is where they shall head.
According to Bassonline.com, they are described as: "All snakeheads are distinguished by their torpedo shaped body, long dorsal and anal fins without spines, and toothed jaws. This snakehead typically has red eyes and is gold-tinted brown to pale gray in younger fish while older fish are generally dark brown with large black blotches. The most distinctive marking is the black spot rimmed with orange near the base of the tail fin, known as an eye-spot or ocellus."
They basically look like a dark fish with a snake head :-).

"Right, let's check our gear. This is no ordinary fish we're hunting – a snakehead will take that ultra-light rod you got in your hand and use it as a switch to whip your ass. You're going to want something with more backbone. Try this 7-foot, nearly unbendable rod with a strong reel whose gears won't strip down as you grind these fish back to the boat.

Looks like your tackle box will need to be kicked up a notch, too. A snakehead uses regular fishing line to floss its razor-sharp teeth with. You'll need braided line with at least a 25 pound test, although 65 pound test is better. Pick stout hooks because a snakehead can take regular hooks and twist them in its maw like a cherry stem. Get the idea yet? You're in for a battle, pal.

“Reeling them in is sort of like trying to pull a dog off a fire hydrant,” says Chaconas. “They go left, right, up, down and they actually back away from you.”

Oh, and you're wearing the wrong clothing. Ditch the polo shirt and baseball hat and grab an old mariner's hooded jacket and a face visor. If you're having trouble finding inspiration, imagine you're Dexter in the killing room. Snakeheads are a very slimy fish and they will try to douse you with mucous. “It is like the slime from a St. Bernard's mouth sliding off these things,” Chaconas says. “There's just gobs of it. You'll want to call Bill Murray and the Slime Busters to clean up all the slime.”

Bruce, from what I've read, think of a LMB crossed with a NP.

Here is a video of snakehead fishing in the same water system that Bruce will be fishing on Saturday. This is exactly what they will be doing ~ shoreline fishing. Nice background music!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9COQNn3zRs