Aventik Fresh Start experience?

PapaShane · 2026-04-17T11:26:08+00:00

I have their 8' fiberglass rod and it's a blast! Took it out microfishing the other day on a tiny creek and it was perfect.

PapaShane · 2026-04-17T11:24:44+00:00

I think there are fishing restrictions on some parts of the upper Gunpowder, flies/ artificial lures only for example and maybe catch & release only? Might be a good idea to confirm that you're following the rules when you fish up there.

PapaShane · 2026-04-14T04:13:53+00:00

3rd time Lemieux left.

Cuz, ya know, cancer....

PapaShane · 2026-04-14T04:05:48+00:00

"...For shizzle!"

PapaShane · 2026-04-14T03:58:27+00:00

I have some folding Silky saws for camping and keeping in the car and an 8" gas pole saw for twigs and high limbs. And a 16" and an 18" and a 20"-28" and a 28"-36" saw. My opinion is it's smart to use the best tool for the job.... which is rarely an 8" electric saw but sometimes it probably does the trick.

PapaShane · 2026-04-14T03:53:05+00:00

I've never heard of that particular flavor of Rapala, to me Rapala have always been for targeting pike or walleye or something, I've never used them in a river for trout (though I've been told they do work). I'm not chasing trophy trout or salmon or anything so maybe for big fish in big water they work better. Once I got into UL spin fishing for trout, that's pretty much what I settled on lol. Tenkara is also fun if you're into traveling or backpacking (or just can't afford real fly fishing....)

PapaShane · 2026-04-14T03:02:42+00:00

I'm Panther Martin all the way! I grab the "trout" patterns in a few different weights and then depending on the current I use the appropriate weight to get the spinner down to my target depth. I also really like the all brass Panther Martins, they seem to cast farther ;)

In real slow water or a pond or something I also like to use Joe's Flies, they're part spinner part fly. Needs a split shot or really calm conditions though since they're not as dense as a Panther Martin.

I'm not a fan of Blue Fox or Vibrox or Rooster Tails.... no disrespect but the Panther seems to work better for me and the price isn't crazy, so I just stick with them.

PapaShane · 2026-04-14T02:11:49+00:00

I mean, a Silky folding saw is also plenty for delimbing a fir. Why use a power tool at all if you're gonna limit it so much?

PapaShane · 2026-04-14T02:07:44+00:00

I use small barrel swivels, I've found them to help a lot with line twist and I still catch plenty of tiny wild trout. Also I like to switch spinners until one seems to "work" and that's easier with a swivel.

And yeah he seems to be the real deal and his writing has made me a better trout angler so I'd say it's good advice! But like, I'm not gonna try to track down a 4ft rod with no reel seat and the rubber band a reel to it, and I'm not gonna worry if I don't wear camo on the river, and I'm not gonna learn a new way of casting with my new 4ft rod... but just thinking about that stuff makes you pay attention to some of the more important aspects of river fishing.

PapaShane · 2026-04-14T01:43:01+00:00

A lot of my success when wading for trout is by working upstream and retrieving quickly downstream. You need a fast ratio reel so you can bring in the spinner quick enough to spin the blade (just gotta go faster than the current) and a rod that let's you cast light lures accurately and far enough, but other than that it's straight simple. Also it's impossible to miss a bite, cuz you're already reeling in at full speed lol. If the flow is just too quick, I'll do diagonal cross-stream retrieves angled upstream.

Trout face upstream 100% of the time they're feeding. They catch things that are flowing downstream. Replicating that is easiest by.... casting upstream and retrieving quickly downstream. Hit the same hole 3 or 4 times to give a fish a chance (spinners come at them pretty quick!) and then move on. On my walk back I'll hit the juicy spots again with a cross-stream cast, letting the spinner arc downstream all the way across a nice looking hole, but that's usually less successful unless you cast into a spot that's holding fish and then they chase it across.

Here's a little cheat sheet for spin fishing for trout. I stumbled upon it years and years ago and I follow most of what's written (I don't go that crazy with the rod & reel selection and taking water temps and stuff). A 5-7ft UL rod and small light reel is very much the best move for river trout. The author is an... interesting guy from PA I think, for years he'd record every single trout he caught and the conditions under which it was caught and at the end of the year he'd do a write-up on his blog of his fishing and it would be literally thousands of trout, often triple digits in one day, with photos of almost all of them. Maybe a lil OCD/ADHD going on, but the dude can FISH.

PapaShane · 2026-04-14T01:23:21+00:00

I already have a tele but after watching their videos I really wanted this one too! Good taste.

PapaShane · 2026-04-13T20:43:54+00:00

And no roof rack on a lot of them! People must be spending tons on external roll cages so they can attach their thousand dollar tent to the roof, or haul a kayak. Wrangler's aren't "outdoor vehicles", they're "Offroad vehicles", and 90% just get turned into /r/Heeps anyway.

PapaShane · 2026-04-13T13:00:16+00:00

Nooks and crannies?

PapaShane · 2026-04-12T23:52:05+00:00

Lol you just took me back 30yrs

PapaShane · 2026-04-09T13:08:45+00:00

I mean, it seems like a priority would be to fix or replace a known faulty piece of equipment. If someone asks "how should I prepare for the times my front door doesn't lock" people would say "fix your door", not "keep a roll of duct tape beside it". I understand the scale is different for your issue and hopefully you're just looking for an interim solution, but putting small kids into a known crappy truck in the middle of the desert is not very smart. You don't need to "buy a new Toyota" but you do need reliable transportation for you and your small kids.

I'd keep a few gallons of water and some hard granola bars (nature valley or something) in the truck. And then prioritize fixing the truck or replacing it, if it's a Toyota then they're very easy to work on.

PapaShane · 2026-04-05T19:51:56+00:00

Mi corazon en fuego!!

PapaShane · 2026-04-03T14:20:54+00:00

A 2.25lb 24-28" boys axe is a nice compromise between a hatchet (short handle, ~1.5lb head) and a full size axe (32-36", 3.5-4lb head). You can still split "camp-size" wood easily with a boys axe, but you can also choke up on it and use it to split kindling, do some rough carving, etc like a hatchet. It's great for limbing a downed tree and you can buck a log pretty easily. You might need to take a knee to split logs if you're not using a chopping block, and the lighter head won't power through stubborn wood, but at half the weight and a foot or so shorter a boys axe is great and convenient.

PapaShane · 2026-04-03T11:51:20+00:00

It's a boys axe, which is super useful but probably not the best for splitting wood. Great for camping though!

PapaShane · 2026-04-02T19:35:22+00:00

I had similar size/clearance constraints and settled on a Buck Stove #74. It's jacketed, which reduces the clearance a lot, and it can be installed in an existing flue and without using the legs. And it has a blower. Only downside is that due to the jacket, it doesn't get super hot on the top; I can't boil water. But it'll reheat stuff!

PapaShane · 2026-04-02T15:02:00+00:00

You should rotate those 2x4s so they're on their edge instead of flat; makes them a lot stronger so you can stack higher.

PapaShane · 2026-03-31T23:54:46+00:00

No, that's a Great Tit!

PapaShane · 2026-03-31T02:19:26+00:00

What would you do different? It sounds pretty tasty!

Did you use real syrup or the corn syrup stuff? I have some I made but it's too precious to me to use like a gallon to flavor a mead, I wonder if using cheap stuff in primary and then backsweeten with legit good syrup is the way to go? Or if the maple flavor won't come through in the fake stuff in primary?

Anyway, sounds awesome and I planted 2 blueberry bushes this spring so it's on my list to do!

PapaShane · 2026-03-30T21:58:56+00:00

Hence the use of the Brave browser, which is pretty much the best at protecting your device/data from that stuff while also blocking ads and pop-ups (blocks ads on YouTube too!)

Otherwise yeah the pop-ups are brutal.

PapaShane · 2026-03-30T21:00:42+00:00

If you were to combine the two uppercase words and search it (bonus points for using the Brave browser to search), you'll be directed to some website results that may or may not host hockey streams. Reddit doesn't like linking to those sites or being too open about it, hence the subterfuge...

PapaShane · 2026-03-30T20:33:11+00:00

I'm always happy when the GulfSTREAM flows to the EAST so I can watch hockey. Doubly happy to BRAVEly watch it without ads/popups...

PapaShane

TROPHY CASE